come in Christs Vicars name so he calleth himselfe and would be called by others but indeed he is an Aduersary and you will receiue them and aduenture your neckes for them And wee come in Christs name with his message and reconcilement vnto God whom you haue offended without any working of you to offend the State and will you refuse vs Shall they be welcome with their Traditions that is with their Tales and we odious with the Gospell which was preached vnto you which ye also receiued and which you must returne to if you meane to be saued What is strong illusion what is the working of Satan what is the power of darkenesse if this be not 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. You forsake the right and straight way and goe that which is full of thornes and stakes what arrogancy and phrensie are you possessed with saith Clemens Alexandrinus out of Sibylla So Cyprian Christ promiseth euerlasting life if we will follow him and he is forsaken The Deuill promiseth Gu-gawes and lyeth too in his promise and he is adored O foedam defectionem ô iniquam permutationem O filthy defection O absurd exchange saith Cyprian The like may we say to those bewitched Countrey-men of ours that preferre Rome before Sion and the doctrine thereof before the liuely Oracles of God that like children or women that haue the disease called Pica preferre Lime or dirt before white bread yea like vnwise Marchants glasse before pearle lead before gold cotton before silke that is error before truth Belial before Christ Baal before Iehouah more particularly ignorance before knowledge dumbe Images before effectuall Teachers Saints before Christ doubtfulnesse before Faith seruile feare before filiall loue horror of conscience before tranquillity of spirit There is no peace to the wicked saith the Lord. And truely there is no rest to the soule in Popery What rest can there be when they make Saints mediation the onely anker of their hope mens books the foundation of their faith mans Absolution the remission of their guilt here and mens pardons the relaxation of their punishment hence This they doe an hundred things as bad in Popery therefore it is impossible that they should be at peace with God or haue peace within themselues that thus make flesh their arme and in their heart depart from God And therfore if you desire to find rest for your soules or to haue your Election saluation made sure vnto you you must haue nothing to do with the vnfruitfull vncoÌ„fortable opinions of Popery but rather abhor them reproue them The Lord in mercy vouchsafe to bring them home that goe astray to confirme them that stand to grant vs true peace true rest through Iesus Christ our blessed Sauiour To whom with the Father the holy Ghost be praise thankesgiuing for euer and euer Amen Amen A SERMON VPON THE FIRST OF PETER THE NINTH SERMON 1. PETER 5. verse 6. Humble your selues therefore vnder the mighty hand of God that he may exalt you in due time THE word therefore hath reference to that which went before namely to the last words of the former verse God resisteth the proud and giueth grace to the humble and inferreth strongly vpon the force of them For if God resisteth the proud if contrariwise he giueth grace to the humble then there is no cause in the world why any man should be proud and there is great cause why euery one should be humble For doe wee prouoke the Lord are we stronger then he If we walke crosse against God or hardly stifly the Chaldee hath 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 hardly he will walke so against vs. It is a fearefull thing to fall into the hands of the liuing God Iacob I grant wrastled with God preuailed but how he did not make head against God neither did he thinke himselfe an equall match for God by no meanes but God vouchsafing to take him vp in his armes and bearing him in his armes that he should not dash his foot against a stone he might doe all things by him that strengthned him he might swimme easily the Lord holding him vp by the chin he might fight valiantly the Lord teaching his hands to warre and his fingers to fight But tell me how they sped against whom God bent himselfe Pharaoh and his Hoast whom the Lord looked vpon out of the fiery and cloudy Pillar for euill and not for good were they not drowned in the red Sea Those stiffe-necked and rebellious Israelites which prouoked the Lord ten times that is many and many a time against whom the Lord swore in his wrath If they shall enter into my rest that is Neuer beleeue me if they enter did not their carkasses fall in the Wildernesse and were they not vtterly consumed there till not one of them was left This before they came into the Land of promise When they were there did not the Lord take the Kingdome from Saul and his Stocke because he was angry with him and gaue it to Dauid From Dauids sonne Salomon because of his Idolatry did he not rend the Kingdome and câ—nferre tenne parts thereof vpon Ieroboam From Ieroboams Line yea from all the Kings of Israel succeeding him and caused them to be carryed away captiues into Assyria There remained the Tribes of Iudah and Beniamin for a while in honorable estate but when these also defied the Lord and prouoked the Holy one of Israel when they said that they should be deliuered because of the righteousnesse of their Fathers and the holinesse of the Temple though they hated to be reformed and had cast Gods Commandements behind them Then did the Lord cast Iudah out of his sight as he had done Israel he plowed Sion as a field as he had done Samaria he made Hierusalem the beloued City in former times which also hee called a greene Oliue-tree faire and of goodly fruite a breeding of Nettles and Salt pits and a perpetuall desolation For it is a righteous thing with God as to shew mercy to them that feare him and stoupe vnto him so also to render tribulation and anguish and shame and confusion to euery one that exalteth himselfe before him to the Iewe first and also to the Greeke Lysander a great man in Lacedemon and one that had deserued well of King Agesilaus being disgraced many wayes and suffering many indignities by the Kings conniuence falleth into expostulation with the King because he suffered him so to be contemned and abused To whom the King made answer So they deserue to be vsed that take so much vpon them as thou doest and will not reuerence and awe the King Precedent merits and good seruice will not tie Princes of a gâ—nerous spirit to such subiects of theirs as shew themselues ouer-lusty and crancke with them And can we thinke that God who is of pure eyes and incomprehensiâ—le Maiesty to whom the greatest men are as nothing and the
vnto Dauid a righteous Branch and a King shall raigne and prosper and in his dayes Iudah shall be saued and Israel shall dwell safely and this is the name whereby they shall call him The Lord of righteousnesse This is he that was promised Iacob The Scepter shall not depart from Iudah vntill Shiloh come And to Abraham and Adam before that The seed of the woman shall breake the Serpents head In thy seed shall all generations of the earth be blessed And to Dauid and Symeon afterward All Nations shall blesse my Sonne and bee blessed in him Thou shall not see death vntill thou hast seene the Lord Christ. Briefly this is He that being appointed for the fall and vprising of Israel for the gathering of the Gentiles for the ioy of the whole earth was when the fulnesse of time came made of a woman borne vnder the Law that he might deliuer vs from the curse of the Law that so we might receiue the adoption of sonnes Will you vnderstand a little more of his nature Being in the forme of God and thinking it no robbery to be equall with God he tooke vpon him the shape of a seruant the substantiall forme not the accidentall there be his two natures Diuine humane Will you heare of his Person whether it be two or one because of his natures The Word became flesh and dwelt among vs Here begin againe his â—â—o natures and we saw his glory as the glory of the only begotten Son of God Lo Son he calleth him not Sons for all that he was called Word flesh that is God and man Will you heare of his kindred of the time of his comming of his behauiour of his miracles of his Doctrine of his doings suffrings of the effects of his doings suffrings The time was prophesied of by the Prophets by the Euangelists he is set forth to haue beene of the Linage of Dauid in the Towne of Dauid vnder the gouernment of a stranger in great humility and meekenesse with powerfull Doctrine with great signes and wonders with great and wonderfull obedience euen vnto death Finally to haue triumphed ouer Principalities and Powers and led Captiuity captiue to haue deliuered man who for feare of death was all his life time subiect to bondage to set at peace by the blood of the Crosse both things in heauen and things in earth In a word He dyed for our sinnes and rose againe for our Iustification This is the blessed Babe of whom my Text occasioneth me to speake the memory of whose Natiuity we celebrate this day But how doe we celebrate it We put on our best apparell that we doe and that wee may doe but doe we decke our selues inwardly with lowlinesse of minde with purity and integrity c. that wee should doe Wee draw neere vnto God with our lippes that we doe and that we may doe but doe we draw as neere with our hearts with hearty thankesgiuings for Gods mercies in his Sonne with hearty acknowledgement and repentance for our sinnes and wickednesses that we should doe Wee stand here before the Preacher as they that would be edified in their holy faith and to learne their duty that we doe many of 〈◊〉 and that wee ought to doe all but doe wee care to carry any thing away and to lay it vp in our hearts and to ponder it in our minds and to expresse it in our liues and conuersations that we should doe that is the thing that is necessary So we will fare well as many as are able and we will lade our tables with dishes and haue plenty of wine and strong drinkes c. but will we remember withall the affliction of Ioseph as it is in Amos will we send vnto them for whom nothing was prepared as it is in Ester that is will we helpe and releeue them that haue need of our comfort then we shall doe well Lastly we will laugh and be merry and reioyce and shout as in the dayes of Haruest as it is in Esay wee will call for the Violl and the Pipe the merry Harpe and the Lute as it is in the Psalme we will sit vp long haue many conferences with our neighbours and many songs and this we will doe and this we may doe But shall our songs be of the praises of the Lord and our talking of the most Highest Shall our watchiâ—g be vnto prayer not vnto vnthriftinesse our ioy in the holy Ghost not in worldly vanities our pastime a sober recreation not wanton daliance c Then we shall doe well then we shall please God then the Lord will say of vs as he did of Ierusalem Hephzi-bah that is My delight in her Indeed as the Apostle Saint Paul calleth vs away from the Iewish obseruation of the Passe-ouer to a Christian and spirituall keeping thereof not for a day or a yeere onely but thorowout our whole life saying Christ our Passe-ouer is sacrificed for vs therefore let vs keepe the Feast not in old leauen neither in the leauen of maliciousnesse and wickednesse but with the sweet bread of sincerity and truth So are we to be called vpon Beloued and waightily charged in Gods name and so I doe charge you that in this Feast you beware of all heathenish profanity and all carnall loosenesse and intemperancie and as they that looke for the comming of the Bride-groome and are carefull to shew forth the vertues of him that vouchsafed to be borne and to become man for their sakes see that we walke in newnesse of life The Gentiles indeed at this time of the yeere celebrated diuers feasts in honour of their Idols as Saturnalia Vacunalia c. wherein they allowed themselues and their seruants too in one of them all kinds of loosenesse and knauery But the Apostle doth declare and testifie vnto vs that wee henceforth should not walke as other Gentiles in vanities of their mind and being strangers from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them For the grace of God which bringeth saluation to all men hath appeared and commandeth that we should deny vngodlinesse and worldly lusts and to walke iustly and soberly and godly in this present world They that sleepe saith Saint Paul elsewhere sleepe in the night and they that are drunke are drunke in the night but now we are the children of the light and of the day and God hath not called vs to vncleannesse but vnto hâ—linesse Therefore it becommeth vs to cast away the workes of darkenesse and to put on the armour of light and as he that hath called vs is holy so we to be holy in all maâ—ner of conuersation This know that meat and drinke apparell doth not commend vs to God much lesse doth sporting or reuâ—lling much lesse doth chambring or wantonnes gluttony or drunkennes strife or enuying or the like but if any will be in Christ he must be a newe creature and if
shift for themselues by flight before they had put their Generall Sertorius in safety So the Galles had their Soldurios that is deuoted men which vowed to liue and dye with their Lord as Bodin out of antiquity doth gather So the French Protestants are much commended by the equall for that they bâ—stowed the young Princes of Nauarre and Condie in a strong Castle out of gun-shot before they hazarded the great battell of Moncounter The King is so to the Common-weale as the helme is to the shippe or rather as the shippe is to the passengers while the shippe is safe there is hope to recouer the land be we neuer so farre from it though the Sea and winds doe neuer so much swell and rage but if the Shippe sinke or be dashed on the rockes there remaineth nothing but a fearefull looking for of drowning and destruction Therefore the safety of the King being the safety of all what maruell if the Prophet begin with Kings and aduise them to looke about them This may be one cause Another this We know that there is no cloth that doth so kindely take the colour that the Dyer would staine it with as the people are apt to imitate the guize and carriage of their Prince the similitude is not mine but Nazianzens therefore because the conuerting of him is the conuerting of hundreds at a clap and his auersenesse or stiffenesse the auersenesse or standing out of multitudes this also may be thought to be a cause why he beginneth with Kings When was there a good King in Iuda for there were but few in Israel after that Ephraim departed from the house of Dauid that sought the Lord with all his heart but he drew the people to be well-giuen at the least-wise in comparison On the other side when was there a wicked King that did set set vp Idols in his heart or worshipped the Hoast of heauen or burnt incense vnto Baal but the people were as forward and as sharpely set vpon Idolatry as he 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is The subiect is wont to emulate and imitate the life of his Gouernour or Prince saith one Historiographer and another Princeps quum Imperio maximus sit exemplo maior est that is Be the Prince neuer so great for command yet he commandeth most by his example It is somewhat strange Circumcision is a painefull thing specially in them that are out of their Infancy it may be gathered hereby for that the Turkes vsing it at this day vpon their children being of sâ—me yeeres doe vse such dissembling towards them for the circumstance of the time when they doe it and yet when the King of Sichem had yeelded thereunto the whole City followed So Diodorus writeth of the Aethiopians that when their King had caught some mayme or marke in any part ofhis body the manner was for all his Fauorites to maime or marke themselues in the same part Is it not written of Rehoboam expressely that when he forsooke the Lord all Israel did so with him Also is it not to be obserued in the Ecclesiasticall Story that when Iulian fell from Christ vnto Paganisme Valens in stead of the truth imbraced a lye the vile Heresie of the Arians a great part of the Empire did so likewise On the other side when Iosiah serued the Lord with all his heart all Iuda did so all his dayes And when Constantine the great and Theodosius the great gaue themselues to aduance the faith of Christ and to purge out the old leauen of Heathenisme there was such a change in the Empire on the sudden that Zosimus and Eunapius being Pagans doe much complaine thereof in their writings therefore me thinkes Fulgensius speaketh to good purpose and agreeable to true experience that although Christ dyed indifferently for all the faithfull yet the conuerting of the mighty Ones of the world is of speciall seruice to winne soules vnto Christ. Hee doth symbolize with that learned Writer that allegorizng vpon those words of Saint Iohn touching the taking of so many great Fishes doth congratulate vnto the Church the happy conuerting of Princes because by their conuetsion many were brought vnto Christs Fold Yea Plutarch a Heathen man saw in a manner as much touching the great force that is in the example of Princes for he in the life of Dio speaking of Plato his sayling into Sicily to doe some good vpon King Dionysius maketh this to be the speciall motiue for that the reforming of the King would be the reforming of the whole Iland So then the Kings piety and sound perswasion being as effectuall for the winning of the soules of his subiects as his bodily safety is auaileable for the conseruing of their worldly estates Our Psalmist without doubt had great reasâ—on to doe as he doth to begin with Kings This may suffice for the naturall placing of the words and withall touching the incomparable good that redoundeth to the common Estate by the Kings piety and safety I come now more closely to the Duty of Kings for of that onely and of the touch of the time Now which shall be for application I shall speake at this time Be wise now therefore O Kings Two kindes of wisedome are required in Kings and Princes wisedome or knowledge in Gods matters otherwise called Diuinity and wisedome or knowledge in matters of the world otherwise called Prudence or Policy Both are contained in the Originall word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 It signifieth also good successe to note that God many times crowneth pious prudence prudent piousnes with many a temporall blessing Both are not onely for ornament like the two Pillars that Salomon put in the Porch of the Temple but also for speciall vse like the hands of Aaron Hur which did support the armes of Moses for the discomfiture of the Amalekites For if they be pious only in Gods matters be not otherwise prudent then they are fitter for the Common-weale of Plato then for the corrupt estate of Romulus for the Cloister then for the Court Againe if they be prudent or politicke onely be not pious then they are fitter to be Kings of Babel where dwelleth confusion then of Hierusalem where Gods glory is seene and more rightly to be called the children of this world which goeth to nought and perisheth then the children of God who loue truth in the inwards and caâ—e for none but for such as worship him from a pure heart with a good conscience Well they must bee Diuines as it were this is first required I say not in profession but in knowledge they must know God the onely Lord and whom he hath sent Iesus Christ they must know Christ and him crucified and the power of his Crosse and vertue of his resurrection and the fellowship of his afflictions that they may be conformable vnto his death they must separate and distinguish truth from error cleane from vncleane right from
in matter of doubt as euery good mans should doe 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 towards the better sense Which property because I finde it so much commended in the writings of the wise and learned as an vndoubted token of a good man I could not passe ouer vnremembred Vt quisque est vir optimus ita difficillime esse alios improbos suspicatur saith the Romane Orator Tully that Father or founder of Eloquence as Pliny calls him And not much different is that saying of the Greeke Diuine Gregory Nazianzen which he oftentimes repeates in other parts of his writings with some alteration in terme and phrase of speech onely 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 hee that is least iealous of euill in others is freest from it himselfe So then as true gold is discerned from counterfet mettals by touching or rubbing of it vpon the stone as Saint Basil some-where notes and as the Elect child of God is distinguished from the bastard cast-away by his vnfained loue to the brethren as Saint Iohn speakes and the true Disciples from the false and fained by the mutuall loue they beare each to other as our Sauiour deliuers it In like manner may we conclude from this excellent and so much commended quality engrauen and stamped by the finger of God in the heart of this worthy Prelat to wit Charity the Queene of Vertues as one calls it the life of Vertues as another that he was no other then a liuely fruitfull plant in Gods Vineyard a true Disciple one that had rightly learned Christ whom God had made a great example of vertue in this declining age to be admired easier then imitated But his Piety it must not be forgotten His care of Gods true worship and zeale vnto his house which he euer loued it is and will be remembred with much honour to his Name It was his ioy to see a company of well-deuoted people to meete together to praise God and to that end did not onely continue a Lecture begunne in his Predecessors time to be read in the Cathedrall weekely on the Tuesday by the grauest Orthodox and conformable Preachers within his Dioeces from the time of his entrance into that See till he died being full twelue yeeres and vpwards but did vsually present himselfe in the Assembly at Diuine prayers and Sermons both on the Sabbath and Lecture dayes if vrgency of occasions hindred not And herein as his Piety and Zeale is set forth vnto vs so likewise his Wisedome too Priuate deuotions are good commended in the holy Scripture yea and commanded too but publike are preferred Dauid professed that he would call vpon God Euening Morning and at Noone-day and praise him alwayes but amongst the people in the house of the Lord it reioyced him much to doe it Psalme 122. and mourned in his restraint Psalme 42. Now what is it that worketh vnanimity in affection and maketh it sure and strong as death doth not vniformity in Religion Certainely there is nothing that tyes the hearts of the people so close vnto their guides and Gouernours and maketh them so faithfull each to other as a ioint harmony and consent therein It knitteth soules together as it is said of Ionathan and Dauid 1. Sam. 18. Yea and causeth one soule in a manner to beare two bodies as Gregory Nazianzen spake of himselfe and Saint Basil and before him Minutius Felix of himselfe and his Octauius This the wise Greeke Orator Isocrates well knowing doth in his Paraenesis to Demonicus earnestly exhort and perswade him to worship the Diuine Power 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 alwayes but chiefely 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 with the people Publicke worship freeth from suspition when priuacy therein the other being neglected oft-times occasioneth iealousie of superstition When Xenophon would proue to the Athenians that Socrates had not brought in any strange gods or new fashions in Religion amongst them for which he was accused thâ— Argumâ—nt of defence for him was this that he did sacrifice vpon the common Altars of the Citie 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. saith Xenophon Now herein I say did Piety and Prudence manifest themselues in this Worthy they met together and kissed each other as the Psalmist speakes of Righteousnesse and Peace He delighted inthe Assembly of the Saints and in the place where Gods honour dwells and would be there and thus he gained by it from men a reuerend esteeme He was honoured and beloued of all sorts And God I doubt not in Christ after whom he longed euen to his last gaspe hath giuen him to finde the fruit of his holinesse in the fruition of that blessed presence where is nothing but fulnesse of ioy for euer-more Touching the things of the world he carried himselfe as though he looked not after them nor cared for them neuer seeking for as I haue credibly heard any preferment that he had before it was by Gods Prouidence cast vpon him But this I can truly report and from his owne mouth too who was not wont to speake otherwise then became the seruant of God that the Bishopricke of Gloucester was conferred vpon him vnsought for and vnlookt for at the suit of the most Reuerend Father the Lord Archbishop of Canterburie his Grace that now is So that what Nazianzen spake of Saint Basil so long agoe may be verified of him He pursued not honour but honour pursued him And now for his sufficiency in learning as therein I suppose he was inferior to none either for knowledge in Diuinity or skill in the Easterne Tongues so ioyning to the height of his knowledge the humility of his minde for my part I must confesse that I neuer knew or heard of his match Ofhis exactnesse in those languages this may be a sufficient testimony that he was thought worthy by his Maiesty of blessed memory to be called vnto the Great worke of the last Translation of our English Bible wherin he was not 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 one to make vp a number or to be met withall at euery turne but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a chiefe one a workeman that needed not to be ashamed as the Apostle speakes He began with the first and was the last man of the Translators in the worke For after the taske of translation was finished by the whole number set apart and designed to that businesse being some few aboue forty it was reuised by a dozen selected ones of them and at length referred to the finall examination of the learned Bishop of Winchester that then was Doctor Bilson and of this Reuerend Bishop Doctor Smith viri eximij ab initio in toto hoc opere versatissimi as the History of the Synod of Dort expresseth him who happily concluded that worthy Labour Which being so ended for perfecting of the whole worke as now it is he was commanded to write a Preface and so he did in the name of all the Translators
principall measure thereof is for all such as are called to this waighty charge of being Gods Messengers and Interpretors vnto the people For if no man can say that Iesus is the Lord but by the holy Ghost 1. Cor. 12. then who can preach worthily of Iesus and of the doctrine of saluation but by him And if this key of the Spirit be requisite for the opening of all points of doctrine then is it thrice necessary to reueale mysteries Beloued this point of doctrine concerning the Incarnation and Office of our Lord and Sauiour Iesus Christ is not onely a mystery but a mystery of mysteries that is a most deep and hidden mysterie which the Patriarches saw in a glasse and as it were in a darke speaking the Prophets searched after the very Angels desired to behold And therefore not onely we that take vpon vs to vnfold the same haue need to pray with the Prophet Dauid Lord open thou our lips that our mouthes may shew forth thy praise and speake worthily of this high mysterie but also you that are here present before God this day to heare words from my mouth ought to pray with all manner of prayer and with all instance that he that tooke away the scales from Pauls eyes and is called by Daniel The Reuealer of Secrets would so open the eyes of your vnderstanding that that which shall be deliuered vnto you may not be as a booke that is sealed or clozed fast but that you may know Christ and comprehend him for whose sake you are also comprehended of him This short Preface I thought good to make vnto you in respect of the excellency and diuinenesâ—e of the Argument or Theme vndertaken by me to stirre vp your godly deuotion that there may spring vp in you no root of profanenesse nor cold pang of wearinesse oppresse you to make the Word vnprofitable For if they escaped not that despised Moses his Law much lesse shall we escape if we despise the Gospell that is if wee shall not reuerently heare and religiously lay vp in our hearts this most gladsome tydings concerning Christ manifesting of himselfe in the flesh to communicate himselfe vnto vs and to draw vs vnto him But let vs come to the glad tidings it selfe Behold a Virgin shall conceiue c. Three notable things or rather wonderfull are contained in this short verse 1. A wonderfull Conception 2. A wonderfull Birth 3. A wonderfull Coniunction of the Diuine and humane nature in one person A Virgin shall conceiue This is the first of the wonders A Virgin shall beare a Sonne This is the second His name shall be called Immanuel that is Gâ—d with vs because of the assuming of our nature vnto himselfe This is the third A Virgin shall conceiue This truth is contradicted by two sorts of men especially by the wrangling Iewe and by the doubtfull Infidell The one saith It was not so the Prophet did not meane that shee should be a Virgin that should be the mother of Immanuel The other saith It could not bee how can a Virgin conceiue c These be the obiections of the vnhappy miscreants the Iewes the Gentiles the Atheisticall scorners whom I will not answer diligently or at large lest I should seeme too much to honour them but I will confute them briefly that I may furnish you with some reasons against the day of battell against the time I say that your faith shall be shaken with such kind of persons To the Iewe therefore this I say That though we take no aduantage of the Etymon of the Word vsed by the Prophet and yet as the Learned know the Hebrew tongue doth excell all other tongues in fitting the nature of things with proper fit names yet forasmuch as the word signifieth one that is kept close and secret who else but a Virgin can be meant But to omit this aduantage and to omit also the authority of the seuenty Interpreters which were Iewes and so translated it before this matter was in controuersie and therefore not excepted against for partiality Let vs consider the matter it selfe Doth not the Prophet in Gods name promise to shew them a signe 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is a prodigious and strange thing surpassing the course of nature Quale autem signum erat adolescentulam non Virginem parere saith Origen against Câ—lsus What signe were that what wonder were that for a young woman that lyeth with a man to conceiue This were a wonder not to be wondred at Therefore either the Prophet Esay spake absurdly and called these things which were not such as though they were such which was farre from that wisdome and eloquence that was in him or an extraordinary Conception and which exceeded the bounds of nature and the experience of the world is here signified This is enough to beat downe the Iewes enough in this place for if I should stand to refute all their canils I should seeme to forgâ—t mine Auditory To the Infidels that cry out It is impossible that a Virgin should conceiue this I answere euen as Christ did in the like case That with men indeed it is impossible but with God all things are possible Whatsoeuer God will that hee doth both in heauen and earth or speake I this after the manner of the Scripture and saith not Nature the same Yes verily 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 All things are easie to God c. for if any thing were too hard for God then he were not God but that which is too hard for him should be God rather since by reason hee that is strongest and aboue all hee onely deserueth the name of God It remaineth therefore that all things aâ—â— subiect to God subiect to his pleasure subiect to his motion then Nature specially then he may alter it as it pleaseth him Indeed Beloued though he hath made a Law for all his creatures yet he hath not made a Law for himselfe he will be brought vnto subiection to none He is and will remaine Liberrimum agens a most free Agent Therefore let no man say no Infidell nor any whatsoeuer This is not wont to be done therefore it cannot be done I doe not see how it may be done therefore it is impossible for surely he speakes rather madly then foolishly that speaketh so since there be infinite examples and in all ages to the contrary Why naturally we know the Lord hath made the sands for bounds to the Sea and hath appointed the same to checke the billowes thereof c. and yet many aliue haue seene the same to range ouer its bankes and to carry away with it whole Townes and Shires c. So naturally man onely hath the gift of speech and not presently after his birth but he must stay a certaine time but yet when it pleaseth God to shew a miracle euen Asses haue spoken and Oxen at the Plowe and a child in his mothers belly I doe not tell you fables but stories So
to draw backe with Moses or to runne away with Ionah or to forsweare prophesying and preaching with Ieremy c. since we shall but speake in the aire we shall labour in vaine and for nothing Who will beleeue our report To whom will the Arme of the Lord be reuealed Shall horses runne vpon the rockes or will men plow there with Oxen Shall we goe about to teach them that doe glory in ignorance Amant ignorare cùm alij gaudeant cognouisse to informe them that stop their eares are ready to run vpon vs as they did vpon Stephen in a word to perswade them that protest they will not be perswaded What are wee that wee should hope to doe any good men compassed about with infirmities men of great imperfections of conceit of memory of vtterance of presence Therefore our instruments being but the instruments of a foolish Shepheard as the Prophet speaketh it were best for vs to put vp our Pipes and to hang our Harpes vpon the Willowes and to sit downe vnder our Gourds as good to sit still as to rise and fall To whom me thinkes I heare the Lord make answer as he did to Peter What God hath cleansed hath sanctified to a speciall vse doe not thou call common or as hee doth in Esay Let not the Eunuch say Behold I am a dry tree or as he doth in Ieremy Is not my Word euen like a fire and like a hammer that breaketh the stone As if he said Let them haue hearts as hard as a flint yet the hammer may breake them at the least the fire may consume them Finally as he doth by our Apostle in my Text The Gospell it is the power of God beleeue that doubt not of successe What weapon or instrument euer was too weake to effect Gods will if he tooke it in hand Was not Aarons rod sufficient to worke miracles in Egypt and to ouerthrow Pharaoh and his Host in the red Sea Did not the walles of Iericho fall downe at the blowing of Rammes hornes The Madianites murder euery one his fellow at the clinking of the Pitchers The great Gyant falls groueling to the ground by the pat of a sling-stone And surely though we haue this treasure in earthen vessels and the Gospell that we teach be as contemptible as Dauids sling-stone yet the Lord will doe his worke his strange worke And bring to passe his act his strange act He will doe I say what he hath appointed by the weakest meanes sometimes that the excellency of the power might be of God and not of man and that Israel may neuer say Mine owne hand hath saued me The same Confessor that vndertooke to dispute with the subtill Philosopher in Constantines time the Story is in Ruffinus and Sozomen was not the greatest Clerke nay he seemed to know nothing else but Iesus Christ and him crucified yet by reciting the summe of his faith being agreeable to the Gospell with great spirit and zeale he so foyled and grounded his Aduersary that he forced him to recant and become a Christian. So Simplicianus and whosoeuer else did perswade Victorinus to take Gods booke and by name the Gospell in hand were no body to him for learning and eloquence for he was most famous for the same yet in time they so preuailed with him that they gate him to Church and to be baptized in his old age So to come downe to these last times at one leape The men of Merindol and Cabrieres in Languedock Annas Burges in Paris in the dayes of Francis the first and Henry the second Walter Myll in Scotland that I trouble you with no more forraine examples and abstaine from domestique altogether were not the subtillest and acutest disputants in those times nay some of them are noted to haue bin but plaine men yet such was the goodnesse of the cause such was the power of Gods grace working with his Gospell that by these mens confessions of faith partly vttered by word of mouth partly read very many of those Doctors that were imployed against them were conuerted to the truth and by most that were in the assemblies the Lords Name was glorified Now I aske Brethren is God a God of the Iewes onely and not of the Gentiles also And he that was mighty through Peter may not he be mighty through Paul May not he giue a blessing to the Gospell preached now as well as he did in former times Truly as Saint Paul saith How knowest thou O man whether thou shalt saue thy wife and how knowest thou O woman whether thou shalt saue thy husband Nay as Dauid said to Saul I haue slaine a Lyon and a Beare already and truly this vncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them So we may perswade our selues probably nay be resolued and out of doubt that our labour shall not be in vaine in the Lord. Finally but that the Lord will make manifest the power of the Gospell and adde vnto the Congregation daily such as shall be saued Therefore let vs of the Ministery comfort our selues with these words and bestirre our selues against the day of Haruest The people also are to learne somewhat by this That the Gospell is called The power of God namely that they doe not resist this power lest they hale downe vpon themselues condemnation You know what Laban and Bethuel said in a farre meaner case then the case of Saluation This thing is proceeded of the Lord Wee cannot therefore say vnto yee either euill or good You know what Gamaliel said Act. 5. If this worke be of God yee cannot destroy it lest yee be found fighters against God 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Indeed 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. It is hard kicking against the pricke and if thou hast run with the footmen and they haue wearyed thee how canst thou match thy selfe with horses If thou smart for disobeying the Princes commandement thinkest thou to escape if thou stand out against God It was the saying of a worthy Learned man that the Orthodoxe Church is an Anuill that will rather breake the hammer that beateth vpon it then be broken by it And we may be bold to say of the Word of truth the Gospell of our Saluation that it is of such power as that same stone cut without hands Dan. 2. which brake the Image all to pieces so the siluer and the gold became like the chaffe of the Summer flowres c. And the same stone became a great mountaine and filled the earth Darkenesse may couer the earth for a time thicke darkenesse the people The true Professors also may be driuen to the wall for a season and lie among the pots as it is in the Psalme but yet in the end the day-starre will shine in mens heâ—rts yea the Sun of righteousnes will arise aboue our Horizon and then shall euery man haue praise of God yea then they shall be as the wings of the Doue
beyond his appointment to doe the least point of their owne will Thou couldst haue no power against me except it were giuen thee from aboue said Christ to Pilate And Sennacherib did not stirre a foot out of doores before God in his secret counsell did send him against that people of his wrath as it is to be seene Esay 10. Therefore let vs not feare the Axe nor the Sawe nor the Rod nor the Staffe I meane either the French or the Spaniard not whosoeuer that are but instruments and truly but dead instruments too for execution except God say vnto them Destroy but I will tell you whom you shall Feare feare Him that taketh away courage from the valiant and agility from the swift and authority from the honorable and wisedome from the wise c. Feare him that casteth confusion vpon Princes and lifteth vp the simple from the dust and teacheth the hand to warre and the fingers to fight the Lord of Hostes is his Name Him let vs feare and study to make on our side and then we need not care what man can doe vnto vs. Sennacherib was not onely the Lords sword as all wicked Tyrants be Psalme 17.12 but also a sharp sword for so his Name signifieth so his edge his malice declared But yet what of that The Lord that dwelleth in the heauens was sharper He it is that hath the power of life and death killeth and no man saueth saueth and no man killeth It is all one with God to saue with many or with few and so it is all one with God to destroy with many or with few yea to destroy many or few stronger or weaker The Learned know what was sung to Maximinus that barbarous man-queller Elephas grandis est occidiâ—ur Leo fortis est occiditur c. The Elephant is a great beast yet is he slaine the Lyon is a stout beast yet hee is slaine too c. And therefore as Dauid saith He that deliuered me from the paw of the Lyon and from the paw of the Beare He shall deliuer me from the hand of the Philistine So may wee â—ay So may we say The Lord that hitherto hath taken our part against them that rose vp against vs he also will stand by vs still and will not deliuer vs ouer for a prey vnto their teeth But inough of the second note The 3. and last note from the person of Sennacherib shall be this Sennacherib menaceth the Land of Iudah with an huge Army there reuelleth and burneth and spoileth while there is any thing to spoile Thus he sheweth himselfe to be an enemy and exerciseth all kind of hostility But where were the Heraulds or Embassadors that were sent to demand satisfaction for the wrongs that Hezekiah had done if he had done any Why did he not obserue the Law of Armes namely to denounce warre and to send defiance before hee inuaded them with fire and sword Indeed in the Law it is written Deut. 20. When thou commest neere to a Citie to fight against it thou shalt offer it peace c. Also lest you should say that this was a written Law onely and proper to the Iewes The Romanes themselues who were withâ—ut the Law written yea and without God himselfe they in their better times were so farre from oppressing any vpon the sudden without sending them defiance that as Dionysius and Liuy write they did not make warre vpon them before the Herauld Fecialis hauing brought vnto the Romanes the answer of their enâ—mies did returne backe vnto the enemies Countrey and there in the presence of diuers cast a Speare into it in token of defiance This solemnity and this conscience the Romanes learned of Nature and therefore the Assyrians could not plead ignorance except they would smother the light that was in them Howbeit as Tacitus saith In summa fortuna id aequius est quod validius In high estate hee that hath strength on his side hee hath right And as one said vnâ—o a man that alleaged Law for himselfe Ius mihi obiectas gladio accincto Dost thou tell me of the Law that haue the sword in my hand So this Tyrant Sennacherib and his people made no reckoning of honesty or honor or Law of Armes so that they might wreake their anger vpon the Iewes and bring them into subiection to them quo iure quaque iniuria either honourably or dishonourably they cared not So Caracalla when he had no helpe to preuaile agâ—inst the Parthians by force he pretended that he was a suiter to marry the Kings daughter and meant nothing but peace nay the greatest friendship that might be But when he had thus bleared their eyes saw his opportunity he then compassed a great number of them with his Army and slew them without pitie or mercy But the Romanes gained nothing by this for when afterward they fell into the Parthians and Persians hands they cryed quittance with them to the full and taking the Emperour of the Romanes prisoner they vsed him in the vilest manner that might be making him to serue their Princes turne for a foot-stoole as oft as he should get vp vpon his horse Thus much the Romanes degenerating got by their falsehood Now for these men that professed not God nor knew him thus to distaine themselues with vniust and perfidious practices it was no maruell for who will looke for other then euill fruit from an euill tree and filthy water from an vncleane fountaine c But now for them who glory in the Law and trust in God in outward shew and say that they are Catholiques and that all others are Heretiques and the Synagogue of Satan for them to seeke to surprize Christian Common-weales which are at league with them without proclaiming warre first nay at such time to intertaine vs with an hope of peace when their Armado was now lanched nay aduanced forward nay vpon our coastes almost this was such a feate as posterity which will iudge of things incorruptly and render to euery Prince the honor that he deserues posterity I say if there shall be any posterity will record not among the stratagems of noble Warriours but amongst the attempts of false-dissembling Tyrants For mine owne part I rest vpon Tullies iudgement Nemo qui fortitudinis gloriam consecutus est c. Vnhonest craft is not the way to attaine the honor of Knight-hood and I honour from my heart the disposition of those elder Romanes mentioned by Liuy who when certaine commended those Ambassadours whom they had sent into Macedonia for deceiuing the King thereof vnder an hope of peace greatly misliked this new policy of theirs alleaging that their Ancestors atchieued their conquests not by craft but by prowesse and were wont to giue tâ—eir enemies warning what they should trust to Thus whilest there was either loue of fame or feare of shame or sparke of vertue in mens hearts they denounced warres before they waged Warre and
if there had beene any friendship betweene the parties they solemnly renounced the same But now in this weake old age of the world where the Lyons skin will not reach there they itch it with the Fox skin and nothing seemeth vnhonest that will serue their turne nay as children are deceiued with huckle-bones or with Puppets so many seeke to circumuent Princes vnder pretences This is the new Diuinity that our enemies haue learned and this they and we may thanke the Iesuits and the Councell of Trent for the Councell of Trent as being the broachers the Iesuits as the practizers The Councell of Trent they defined that whosoeuer would not receiue their Decrees had forfeited their Kingdomes ipso facto and might lawfully be inuaded by whomsoeuer The Iesuits they grin like a Dogge and goe about the Citie as it is in the Psalme nay like the Enemy of mankind mentioned in the 1. of Iob they compasse the earth round about and buzze into mens eares that keeping of faith out of the Church of Rome is not faithfulnesse but perfidiousnesse Thus they Howbeit as Tertullian said of one that excused his running away by Vir fugiens iterum pugnabit one said so I grant saith Tertullian but he was a cowardly runne-away himselfe So may it be said truly that he that would not haue faith or promise to be kept to a man of a contrary Religion is a man void of faith himselfe For if it be not necessary to keepe our promise made in the name of God and by swearing by him then it is not lawfull to make any such promise Otherwise in that we sweare we shew our selues to be afraid of him to whom we sweare that is of man but in violating the same oath we shew our selues not to be afraid of Him by whom we sweare that is God himselfe This by the way to their Doctrine and practice who are moued with no conscience to inuade them whom they hold to be out of their faith not onely without defiance sending but euen against a League solemnly made And let so much be noted from the example person of Sennacherib the Inuader First what a dangerous thing it is to drawe strangers into a Land Then how vnsatiable a thing Ambition is Lastly what a violent thing it is Now let vs come to the person that was inuaded Hezekiah by name and see how wee may profit by him In the foureteenth yeere of Hezekiah So my Text. This Hezekiah wel-beloued was not an ordinary man but comparable to any of the Kings of Iudah that were before him or after him If Piety be to be respected He did vprightly in the sight of the Lord according to all that Dauid his father had done verse 3. If Zeale He tooke away the high places and brake the Images and cut downe the groues c. verse 4. If Faith and assurance He trusted in the Lord God of Israel and was peerelesse in that respect verse 5. Further if Constancy and perseuerance He claue to the Lord and departed not from him c. verse 6. Finally if valiant acts and good successe in warre The Lord was with him in all that he tooke in hand and he got a famous victory of the Philistims his bordering enemies verse 7 8. This manner of Prince was Hezekiah so religious so zealous so faithfull so vertuous so constant so valiant so successefull And who would haue thought that he being so precious in Gods eyes should haue beene so much honoured in the world and hauing deserued so well of his owne subiects should for the same haue beene no lesse beloued and regarded of his neighbour Princes Indeed it pleaseth God many times to reward vertue and specially piety with such reuerence from men that either for feare or for loue they are suffered to enioy their owne quietly So Salomon had peace forty yeeres together almost round about him on euery side and Iudah and Israel dwelt without feare euery man vnder his Vine and vnder his Fig-tree all the dayes of Salomon 1. Reg. 4. So Abimelech King of the Philistims came to Isaak a priuate man a stranger desired to enter into a League with him Gen. 26. We saw certainely saith he that the Lord was with thee and we thought thus Let there be now an oath betweene vs thou shalt doe vs no hurt as we haue not touched thee c. So Iacob though he had greatly offended Laban his vncle and Esau his brother yet the Lord so wrought for him by mollifying the hearts of the other that they durst not not onely doe him hurt but not so much as speake a rough word vnto him This is that that Salomon saith in the Prouerbes When a maâ—s wayes please the Lord he maketh his very enemies to be his friends And which Satan enuyed to Iob Doth Iob feare God for nought Hast thou not made a hedge about him and about his house and about all that he hath on euery side Howbeit though it spiteth the Deuill to the heart to see the faithfull specially faithfull Princes to be guarded and protected by God and to be regarded and reuerenced in the world yet for all that the Lord vouchsafeth them that grace many times As the example of Constantine at the first stablishing of the Gospell proueth To whom the King of Persia nay most of the barbarous Kings of those dayes as Eusebius shewth sent presents and desired his friendship As the example of Fredericke surnamed the Wise and Fredericke surnamed the Confessor Dukes of Saxony in the time of restoring the Gospell in those later times that I may not name Gostaue of Sweathland and the free Cities of Germany to whom the Lord shewed such mercy that they were suffered without trouble almost to build a Temple for the Lord as it were I meane to enact Lawes for the true seruice of God for the abolishing of Superstition doe abundantly declare It is very true therefore that as God hath made many hills so high that there is no wind to be felt vpon the top of them and some stones so hard as the Adamant that they will not be broken with any hammer and some trees also so fat and so oyly as the Bay-tree that the Winter stormes haue little power on them though they make the most trees besides to let fall their leaues So there haue beene some in the world so graced and priuiledged by God that euen those things which doe vsually strike thorow other men Enuy and Malice I meane haue had no power to enter vpon them at all They haue beene placed by God 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 out of gunneshot vnder his owne wings as it were and vnder his feathers they haue not beene confounded neither of the Pestilence that walketh in the darkenesse this is secret Enuy neither of the Plague that destroyeth at noone-day this is open and professed Malice Lo thus haue some beene blessed that feared the Lord
nestle in it The Clowd that Eliahs seruant saw at the first was no bigger then the palme of an hand but anon the whole heauens were blacke with it and the whole Land was wet with the showres thereof Therefore let no man say I am a dry tree I haue a dull head I haue a daâ—ke eye I cannot perceiue those spirituall matters which are spiritually discerned But let him thinke this rather that if he hath beene baptized and put on Christ if he hath bene washed iustified sanctified in the Name of the Lord lesus and by the Spirit of his power then he will deliuer him out of the power of daâ—kenesse and will cause all scales to fall from his eyes as they did from Saint Pauls he will not keep from him the knowledge of the way for whom he appointed the Inheritance of the Kingdome If you see nothing yet as you ought to see know nothing yet as you ought to know be not discouraged for all that for it is not so with Gods graces as it is with naturall faculties that we must haue them at the first or else neuer Nay but though ye be blind and ignorant men euen as beasts in comparison to day yet you may to morrow or within a very short space see Gods truth with open face and become as wise as your Teachers in the mysteries of Saluation Who giueth an eye to man or teacheth man knowledge Doth not God Therefore remember euer to pray with Dauid Open mine eyes O Lord that I may see the maruailous things of thy Lawe And againe Turne away mine eyes lest they behold vanity Surely as in the matter of obedience Austins Supplication is to be imitated full Da quod iubes iube quod vis Giue Lord what thou commandest and then command what thou pleasest which speech hee vseth frequently in his writings So in the matter of knowledge and perswasion we aâ—e to subscribe to his well ruled humility Non paâ—uaâ—x parte intelligit scit qui intelligit scit etiamhoc à Domino sibi dari vt intelligat sâ—iat Dominum He doth not a little know and vndâ—rstand the Lord that so vnderstandeth and knoweth that it is of Gods gift that he vnderstandeth and knoweth the Lord so Augustine And so much of the two doctrines contained in thiâ— word â—ee Both for cautelousnesse to looke ere we leape and against sluggishnesse that we indeauour what we may to see the way of our selues and doe nâ—t looke alwayes to be led by the hand It followeth Aske after the old waâ— c. As God hath furnished few Countries with absolute perfection and fulnesse of earthly blessings that it needeth nothing that another Countrie hath neither for necessitâ— nor for delight for then marchandize would cease and trafficke vanish away then one Countrey would be as great a stranger to another as we are to those that are departed out of the world So for the maintainance and enlarging of the offices of charity and for the abating of pride and disdaine God hath so distributed his gifts that one should haue vse of another the weaker of support from the stronger the darker of direction from the wiser Are all Apostles are all Prophets are all Guides of the blind and workeâ—s of miracles Are all Instructers of them that want discretion and â—eachers of the vnlearned Were all in the Mount of God with Moses Did all see the Lord Iesus with Paul This were to imagine a Common-weale consisting all of Kings or an Army composed all of Generals Why if all were Commanders there were neuer a Commander and if all were Kings there were neuer a King I grant Cynâ—as being demanded his opinion of the Senat of Rome when Rome was at the best not at the greatest said It was an assembly of Kings such Maiesty and state there appeared in them And of Alexanders Army it is leftwritten by diuers that it was a gathering together of thousands of Captaines such expertnesse and skill they shewed vpon occasion But these speeches were Hyperbolicall and ouer-lashing and argue rather affection in the commenders then merit in the commended It is certaine that as God hath made sâ—me to beare rule so some to obey as some to be full so some to be empty as some to be wise and learned so others to be ignorant and vnwise that the ones aboundance might supply the others want as Saint Paul saith in another case and â—hâ—t they thâ—t want may know whither to haue recourse for their supply If Iacob had not heard that there was Corne in Egypt in what case had he beene when his prouision was consumed in Canaan If Ioseph had not met with a man that told him where his brethren kept their sheepe when he was sent to them by his father he might as well haue beene deuoured of a wild beast indeed as he was falsely reported It is a great blessing to meet with a faithfuâ—l guide when one is wandring out of the way And so when a man is distracted in his opinions what he may hold what he may imbrace what hee may abhorre when he is puzzeld and cannot tell which way to turne him whether to the right hand or to the left then to find such a faithfull Counsellor as Iehosaphat did touching warre and pâ—ace of Micaiâ—h Such an Interpreter as the Eunuch did of Philip touching the interpretation of a place in Esaiah such a deepe Diuine and Learned as Augustine did of Hierome touching Ionâ—hs Gourd touching the beginning of the Soule c. This must needs be as sweet and as wel-come as a showre of raine in the time of drought nay as bread is to the hungry soule or drink to the thirsty Now here our common saying hath place Spare to speake and spare to speed Doe ye looke I speake to the vnlearned that as Bees brought honey into Platoes mouth as they fable and as Timotheus had Cities and Castles cast into his lap when he was asleepe as they painted him so knowledge and the resolution of hard doubts and the vnderstanding of darke places of Scripture will be breatheâ— vpon you without once opening of your mouthes or asking a question Cur nescire pudens prauè quà m discere malo Why should I through sullennesse depriue my selfe of the helpe of vnderstanding which for once mouing the matter might be imparted to me It is true that Seneca saith That many might haue attained to wisedome if they had not thought they had attained it already And so it is true that the former writer hath Stultorum incurata pudor malus vl cera celat The vnwise suffer their sores to rankle to grow incurable while of a proud kind of modesty they keepe them close conceale them Therefore Plutarch I remember noteth it for a signe of great towardlinesse in young Cato that he doubted of many things and would aske a reason of his Master of euery thing And
so cruelly with vs But now when the Precept of humiliation is to the Creator of all things shall flâ—sh and blood disdaine to submit it selfe to God weake flesh and blood to the mighty hand of God It was a reason that Iosephus vsed in his Oration to his Countrey-men to perswade them to submit their neckes to the yoke of the Romanes for as much as they had gotten the Dominion of the greatesâ— part of the world The same reason vsed Rabshakâ—h to them that were besieged in Ierusalem that for as much as the King of Assyria had subdued many other Nations strong and mightie therefore they might with credit enough yeeld Dignitate Domini minùs turpis est conditio seâ—uâ— By the honor of the Master the base estate of the seruant becommeth more tolerable It was some comfort to Marcus Antonius hauing wounded himselfe to death in desperation that he was ouercome not by any base coward but by a valiant Roman AEnaeae magni dextrâ cadis So Aeneas bade one comfort himselfe Salâ—em ne lixae manu cadam saith the valorous Admirall of France Slay me and spare not but yet not by the hand of a skullion Let not a boy slay vs said Zibah and Zalmumah Iudg. 8. but rise thou and fall vpon vs for as the man is so is his strength Therefore for as much as we are required to humble our selues vnder Almighty God who made the heauens and the earth by his great power and by his stretched-out Arme and nothing is hard vnto him Ieremy 32. Behold he will breake downe and it cannot be built he shutteth vp a man and he cannot be loosed Iob 12. He putteth his hand vpon the Rockes and ouerthroweth the mountaines by the roots Iob 28. For as much I say as he is the Creator of the Spirits of all flesh not onely of their bodits and doth what he will both in heauen and earth turning man to destruction and againe saying in mercy Turne againe ye children of men Shall we bridle it or bristle it against him shall we scorne to answer when he calleth obey when he commandeth sorrow and mourne when he chasticeth shall we receiue good of the Lord and then to be vnthankefull euill and then be impatient Nay rather let vs hearken to the Commandement in my Text Humble your selues vnder the mighty hand of God and to the promise annexed that he may exalt you Foelix Ecclesia saith Austin cuise Deus debitorem fecit non aliquid accipiendo sed omnia promittendo Happy is the Church to whom the Lord hath made himselfe a debtor not by receiuing any thing at her hands but by promising all things Surely though the Lord had onely commanded bade vs on our Alleageance to imbrace humility and to remoue arrogancy farre from vs we were bound euen for the Commandement sake to yeeld all obedience to it For doth not a sonne honor his Father and a seruant his Lord And are we not his workemanship created in Christ Iesus vnto good workes which he hath appointed that we should walke in them Againe if he had tendered the vertue humility vnto vs in it owne kind without any painting without any sauce as it were were it not worthy to be looked vpon nay to be tasted nay to be swallowed downe as most wholesome meate Whatsoeuer it seemeth to you of the wise it hath beene esteemed either the most excellent or the most necessary of all vertues Some call it the Rose of the Garden and the Lilly of the field Some the Queene of all vertues Some the mother Some the foundation and ground-worke Some the roote Certaine it is saith Bernard Nisi super humilitatis stabile fundamentum spiritale aedificium stare non potest A spirituall building cannot stand steady except it be placed vpon the sure foundation of humility Augustine goeth further and saith to Dioscorus that it is the first thing in Christianity and the second and the third and almost all in all for saith he except humility doe both goe before and accompany and follow after all whatsoeuer we doe well pride will wrest it out of our hands and marre all Therefore humility is to be thought vpon and by all meanes to be coueted after euen for the very worth of it though there were no promise annexed to it to drawe vs on But now when God is so good and gracious to vs as to promise vs promotion for the issue and cloze wee must needs shew our selues very dull and very vnhappy if we doe not striue for it as for siluer and digge for it as for treasure The Husband-man is content to goe forth weeping and to bestow his precious seed so that he may returne with ioy and bring his sheaues with him So euery one that proueth Masteries is content to abstaine from all things so that he may obtaine a Crowne though the same be a corruptible one So the Souldier to approue himselfe to him that hath chosen him to the Warfare The Captaine and specially the Generall to get glory what paine and hardnesse doe they sustaine or rather what doe they not sustaine It is written of Alexander I will trouble you but with one Story that being in the farther parts of Asia one while striuing against heat and thirst another while against cold and hunger another while against craggy Rockes another while against deepe and dangerous riuers c. he could not containe but burst forth in this exclamation O yee Athenians what difficulties and dangers doe I endure for your sakes to be praised and celebrated by â—our pennes and tongues Now if to be extolled by the pennes and tongues of vaine men could preuaile so much with a Prince tenderly bred and of great estate should not wee much rather submit our selues to Gods will and pleasure and prouidence and euen deny and defie whatsoeuer worth may seeme to be in vs that hee may aduance vs and bring vs to honour God surely vseth to make great ones small and smal or meane ones great as Xenophon speakes Nay the blessed Virgin being moued by the holy Ghost acknowledgeth as much He pulleth downe the mighty from their seat and exalteth the humble and meeke He maketh high and maketh low yea he maketh them high that before were low if in humility and meekenesse they possesse their soules Dauid kept his fathers sheepe and was not ashamed nay he braggeth of it in an holy kind of reioycing in the Psalme That the Lord tooke him as he followed the Ewes great with Lambe to be a Ruler in Iacob and a Gouernour in Israel So Agathocles so Willigis to trouble you with no more the one was exalted to bee King of Sicily being but a Potters sonne the other to be Archbishop of Mentz a Prince Elector in Germany being but a Wheelers sonne They acknowledged Gods prouidence and worke in their aduancement and were so farre from being ashamed of their base parentage that the one would not
wrong yea they must be able to put a wise difference betweene the great things of the Law as Righteousnesse Mercy and Iudgement and the lighter things of humane obseruation which perish with the vse or abuse If Iephthah had knowne and considered what things might lawfully be vowed and how farre vowes do binde he would not haue immolated his owne daughter If Saul had knowne and considered what is written in the Law Yee shall not doe what seemeth good to your selues but what I command you that you shall doe you shall turne neither to the right hand nor to the left he had not forfeited his Kingdome If Vzziah had knowne and considered that none but the sonnes of Aaron were to approach to the Altar of the Lord and there to burne incense he had not beene smitten with the leprosie To be short If those Kings of Iuda and Israel that built high places and sacrificed vnder euery greene tree had knowne and considered that Hierusalem was the place whither they should haue brought their oblations being the place that God appointed to put his name there they had not been so bitterly inueighed against nor so fearefully threatned by the Prophets as they were To conclude If the Machabees had beene wise and knowne what that meaneth I will haue mercy and not sacrifice that which was the kernell of the ceremony from the beginning how-soeuer the shell was not so cracked and opened in former time as it was by our Sauiour the Sabbath was made for man not man for the Sabbath they would not haue suffred themselues to bo knocked downe like Oxen in the Shambles or to be led as sheepe to the slaughter but would haue stood vpon their gard and vpon their defence euen vpon the Sabbath day On the other side Dauid was not afraide to eate of the Shew-bread which was appointed onely for the Priests Dauid was wise and knew that Necessity ouer-ruleth Ceremony So Salomon was not afraid to command Ioab to be slaine euen in the Tabernacle of the Lord although he caught hold of the hornes of the Altar Salomon was wise and knew that there was no Sanctuary for murder So briefely Hezechiah was not scrupulous to goe forward with the celebrating of the Passeouer though there were some present that had not beene cleansed after the purification of the Sanctuary Hezechiah was wise and knew that there was a maine difference betweene those things which God commanded principaliter and those things which he commanded consequentia as Iraeneus saith Thus knowledge of Gods matters cleareth the vnderstanding chaseth away superstition sheweth the more excellent way and bringeth a King to glory Looke what the light is to the eye the eye to the head the head nay the soule of a man to his body the same is wisedome to the soule of a King It filleth him with grace in beleeuing it giueth light to his mind reformeth his will sanctifieth his affections snubbeth and crosseth all vnlawfull designes In crosses it maketh him patient in dangers vndaunted in prosperity moderate in what estate soeuer he be content On the contrary side where this knowledge is wanting there the Sunne goeth downe at noone-day there the light that is in them is turned into darkenesse and how great is the darkenesse They are not so much to be tearmed 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is pore-blind which are Saint Peters words but are stricken with grosse darkenesse and blindnesse like the Sodomites they stumble at the threshold nay they doe in Montes impingere as Augustin speaketh and are as ready to enter into the gates of their enemies as of their friends like the Assyrians The Grecians talke of the great helpe that a certaine great Commander had from Philosophy for the quieting of his owne mind and of those that were about him in the time of an Eclipse by shewing by a familiar example the reason thereof So the Romans tell of the great satisfaction that was giuen to their Army in Macedony when one Sulpitius Gallus skilfull in Astronomy fore-told them of an Eclipse before it hapned This was some-what I grant to be heaued vp as it were by the hand of naturall reason to the obseruing of Gods vniforme power and prouidence in causing the Planets to keepe their courses in their Spheares and the reuolutions of the heauens to be certaine and ordinary but yet in respect of the good that is reaped by Diuinity I meane by the knowledge of Gods will in his Word it is but as sounding brasse or as a tinkling Cymball For light it is but as the light of a rush candle to the light of a great burning Torch as Clemens Alexandrinus saith For profit as drosse is to siluer or the chaâ—le is to the wheat as the Prophet speaketh Princes therefore are to haue their hearts stablished by faith and therefore first they must be stored and furnished with the Word of God it must dwell in them plentâ—ously they must be exercised and skilfull in the same so shall they be sufficiently prepared and furnished to euery good worke so shall they be sufficiently armed against error and heresie There haue beene since Christs time many corruptions and deprauations of the truth in the Church of God it is confessed and it cannot be denyed but a great part of them either sprang originally or was much increased through want of wisedome and knowledge in the chiefe Gouernours What maruell if the Mystery of iniquity which began to worke in the time of the Apostles grew to such a head and strength euen in Constantines time or shortly after when that shall be allowed for a good collection out of these words Ye are Gods therefore the Church of Rome hath a speciall priuiledge neither to be looked into for their liues nor to be quâ—stioned for their doctrine So what maruell if the Imperiall dignity did decay and sinke as fast as the Papall did swell and pearke vp as Otho Frisingensis doeth obserue nay the rising of the one was the ruine of the other as wisemen men know When Kings and Princes doe suffer themselues to be gulled with the sweet words of Peter and Paul and of the Church and especially with those words Math. 16. touching the Rocke and Iohn 21. touching the Feeding of Christs Sheepe by these words I say fouly mistaken to be stripped of their Regalities and to cast downe their Crownes not before the Lambe but before the Beast Whereas the former place touching the Rocke viz. Vpon this Rocke will I build my Church containeth a promise common to all the faithfull as the most ancient and learned Fathers doe agree and the latter place touching the Feeding of Christs Sheepe and Lambes containeth a duty belonging to all true Pastors as not onely Saint Paul in the Acts but also Saint Peter himselfe by whom they would make their claime doe most plainely shew I might thus run ouer most points in
for our duty which I said was a second reason why such excellent titles were giuen vnto Kings the same we might be put in mind of by all the seuerall appellations of Kings which I reckoned vp but I will onely insist vpon two the appellation or title of a Shep-heard and the appellation or title of a Father So then in order If Kings be Shep-heards then we that are subiects are sheepe then we had need to haue two properties at the least of sheep the one mentioned in the 10. of Iohn the other in the 53. of Isay. In the 10. of Iohn it is said that the sheep doe follow their Sheep-heard for they know his voyce but they will not follow a stranger c. Let vs be of the same minde There is a stranger of Rome no lesse to be shunned than the strange woman the same naughty-packe mentioned in Prouerb Cap. 2. and Cap. 7. who with great craft causeth simple-ones to yeeld and with her flattering lippes she enticeth them so that they follow her as an Oxe that goeth to the slaughter and as a foole to the stockes for correction He promiseth liberty but is himselfe the seruant of corruption another Gospell which is not another Gospell but therein he goeth about to deceiue He is an Idoll Sheep-heard preaching not at all nay professing that it doth not belong to him to preach therefore no Ecclesiastike Sheep-heard Euangelizare pascere est to preach the Gospell that is to be an Ecclesiasticke Sheepe-heard saith Bernard and though he counterfeit the voyce of the Sheepe-heard yet he is but an Hyaena and would tole men out of their houses to deuoure them Come out of Babylon O my people saith God by the Prophet and so the voyce of euery Preacher should be O ye that are in Babylon come out from thence ye that are out keepe your selues out lest ye be partakers of her plagues He of Babel He of Rome Rome is called second Babel Babel first Rome by Augustine howsoeuer he counteth himselfe Vicar at the least to the Angell of the great Counsell and putteth his right foot on the Sea and his left on the earth like the mighty Angell Reuel 10. As though all power were giuen vnto him both in heauen and in earth yet he is but an Angell of the bottomles pit Reu. 9. the very Abaddon son of perdition destroying and appointed to destruction Behold I haue warned you This for one note taken from Shep-heard and sheep by way of correlation Another note shall be this The sheepe is dumbe before his Shearer and openeth not his voyce so ought subiects to part with that they can spare for the supply of their chiefe Shep-heard without clamor yea and without grudging The sheep may trust their good Sheep-heard he will tondere not deglubere he will charge his Officers as the Emperour did his Lieutenant in Egypt that they should sheare and not swallow vp or as another reporteth sheare and not shaue he ventureth his life many times for their good as Dauid put his life in his hand and encountred first the Lion then the Beare he commiserateth them when they are in danger and rueth their ruine when they haue miscarried as the same Dauid when hee saw the Angell with the sword drawne cryed out What haue these sheepe done Quid meruistis Ones placidum pecus c Let thy hand O Lord be vpon my selfe I haue sinned As Augustus also when he heard of the ouerthrow giuen vnto his Forces in Germany vnder the vnhappy conduct of Varuâ— he ranne his head against a dore saying Redde Vare Legiones Hast thou lost my Legions Varus so many thousands of my men euery one being as deare vnto me as a childe woe-worth thee Varus that euer thou wert borne vnhappy I that I committed such a charge vnto thee And doth not this commiseration and passionate spirit deserue the fleece What speake I of the whole fleece a piece of the fleece a locke in comparison Marcellinus writeth thus of the Egyptians Erubescit apud Egyptios siquis non inficiando tributa plurimas in Corpore vibices ostendat that is the Egyptians hold it for a marke of degenerousnesse and a disparagement not to be able to shew many blowes many markes of blowes on their bodies receiued by denying of Tribute Thus he Aequius erat hoc voluntate fieri said one and so say I for if there be first a willing mind it is esteemed according to that a man hath and not according to that which he hath not But if it be by constraint or vnwillingly this is not so thanke worthy either with God or with man For this cause Saint Paul signifieth that he would not presse Philemon too farre that the good-turne might be voluntary and not as it were of necessity And the rule is right 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 either willingly or not at all I hope it will neuer be verified of so noble a Nation as ours which is laid to the charge of the Corinthians though vpon another occasion Now there is altogether or by all meanes a defect among you yet there is no Nation so perfectly wise but they may be told sometimes as Iacob told his sonnes Peraduenture there was some mistaking some error In the 2. of Sam. the 19. When the men of Israel had bethought themselues how vnrespectiue they had beene towards their King their good King Dauid they bled inwardly as it were and were at strife among themselues who should shew most forwardnesse to make him amends and so it may be thought that whatsoeuer vnhappinesse hath happened I know not by what mistaking or misleading yet when we shall be put to it againe there will appeare so strange an alteration of mindes that if the enemies of the truth and of our State did before clap their hands for ioy because of our diâ—â—raction they will as fast and as passionately wring their hands for sorrow of heart to heare of our ioyning together as one man with one heart and with one shoulder as the Prophet speaketh to beare common burthens and to giue content vnto our Prince Saint Paul speaketh thus of Onesimus Peraduenture he went aside for a season that thou mightest receiue him not now a seruant but more than a seruant a Brother beloued specially to me And Tully I remember saith of his returne from banishment that the same was so glorious that I am afraid said he lest some doe thinke that I went into banishment of set purpose so to be welcommed home with those applauds and acclamations And so who can tell whether this toughnesse which hapned not to all Israel but in part will not redound to the greater aduantage of the King and the greater honour of the Realme godly sorrow causing an earnest endeauour yea indignation yea feare yea longing yea zeale yea a kind of reuenge-taking of our selues so that
foole is his name and folly is with him and wilt thou put thy wit to a fooles wit What wisedome Secondly My selfe whom thou mightest thinke to haue more wit certainely I had better breeding and another spirit hath appeared in me than in him was by great mis-hap out of the way when thy messengers came and wilt thou turne casum in consilium and punish mischance for miscarriage what equity Thirdly looke vpon thy selfe and what is fit for thee to doe the eyes of all Israel are cast vpon thee and hitherto thou hast beene esteemed to fight the battels of the Lord and wilt thou now fight thine owne battels and reuenge thy selfe vpon an ill-nurtured clowne vpon a feeble woman vpon innocent hindes what man-hood Lastly if I or my husband or our people haue done thee any wrong I am present here to make satisfaction Behold I haue brought thee a present of such and such things the best things that we haue for the reliefe of thy selfe and thy Souldiers I haue not sent iâ— but haue brought it my selfe who doe beseech thee vpon my bended knees to remit the ouer-sights of thy seruants euen I beseech thee who am one of thy Votaries and doe pray God daily for thee that he would settle thee in the Kingdome whereto thou art already anointed and canst thou despise so great affection so great deuotion Thus Abigail And who euer would haue thought that such a woman could haue beene so vnhappy as to be matched to such a man and againe who would thinke that any man could be so vile and naught as not to be bettered by such a woman but this is that that Salomon saith Bray a foole in a mortâ—r and his folly will not depart from him and this is that which we vse to say in our Prouerb Where lands and goods are onely looked after there the Deuill may be thought to aske the Banes It is to be presumed that Nabals wealth and not his worth was put in the Ballance this made Abigail or her friends fond of him Et bene nummatum decorat Suadela Venusque that is Is any man rich Then he is a wise man an eloquent man a proper man and worthy a Lady All that may be said for Abigail and her friends their excuse is this that peraduenture they had hope to doe some good vpon him to refine him to remould him For how knowest thou O woman whether thou shalt saue thy husband and how knowest thou O man whether thou shalt saue thy wife I answer briefly that S. Paul speaketh in that place of such as are married already whom he would not haue to thinke of parting or breaking vpon whatsoeuer pretext or surmize of lesse beliefe or worse beliefe But if ye aske his iudgement concerning them that are to be married he sheweth it plainely in the same Chapter verse 39. A widdow is free to marry with whom she will onely in the Lord that is in nomine Domini quod est indubitatè Christiano that is In the name of the Lord which is without doubt to a Christian. Thus Tertullian in the second booke to his wife and to the same effect his disciple Hierome So againe the Apostle ruleth it Be not vnequally yoked with infidels We must not be yoked with them in any neere society or coniunction then not in marriage which is the neerest of all Touching the hope of doing some good vpon them I grant that Charity hopeth all things and consequently the best but yet wisedome feareth the worst And if two Apples be set together the one a rotten one the other a sound one the rotten one is not sweetned by the sound but the sound is tainted by the rotten Vnderstand what I say and the Lord giue you vnderstanding in all things Haue ye not heard of that foule Lake in the Land of Iury called the dead Sea It is obserued by Geographers that it is neuer the sweeter or the wholesommer for all that the sweet riuer Iordan runneth into it Doe you not remember what Salomon saith in the 10. of the Booke of the Preacher Dead flyes corrupt the ointment of the Apothecary Marke the dead flyes are not mended by the precious ointment but the precious ointment is marred by the dead flyes The note is this Nabal the husband is neuer the better for Abigail his good wife for ought that doth appeare but Abigail the worse for Nabal it is to be suspected therefore beware of such coniunctions Well hauing spoken so much of the speaker Abigail and her mate let vs come now to the speech it selfe Yet a man is risen vp c. Of this speech there be two parts An Indignation and an Omination The Indignation in the former part of the verse in these words Yet a man is risen vp to pursue thee and to seeke thy soule The Omination in the words that follow But the soule of my Lord shall be bound c. The Indignation was grounded no question vpon two apparent causes to wit Sauls ingratitude and enuy for which Abigail doth 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is shew her selfe agrieued and offended Yet a man c. The Omination hath two parts the former presageth wisheth at least all good vnto Dauid and the later Confusion to his implacable enemies Touching the first part and the first ground of Abigails indignation to wit ingratitude the same is a foule sinne I pray God it be not found in the house of Iacob as the Wise man speaketh in another case but it is to be doubted nay it is certaine that it euer was and euer will be among the children of disobedience It is strange weeds doe not grow in all grounds if in moist then not in dry if in dry then not in moist this commonly neither doe they grow in all times of the yeere some be not vp before Aprill some be not before May or Iune and in Winter most of them doe wither away and are gone So wilde beasts and strange birds be in few places If you will see the Crocodyle you must goe into Egypt if the Ostrich into Barbary or Ethiopia if the Rhinoceros you must goe into India if the Alce vnto Polonia c. In a word if you will see the Tsijm you must goe into the wildernesses if Iijm into the Ilands In like manner monstrous birds are very rare God be thanked scarce one in many yeeres How happeneth it then that ingratitude should be so common and fill so much ground Townes Villages streets houses and what not It is obserued by Naturalists yea and by Herodotus himselfe that those beasts that be for mans meat are very fruitfull as for example the Hare who is of strange fecundity 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is she is euer breeding euer bagged On the other side the Lionesse bringeth forth but once and then her matrix is spoyled as also they write of the Viper that the brood destroyes the damme I
know these things are contradicted by some but the current of antiquity goeth as I haue reported For the point Ingratitude certainely is a very malignant beast or rather monster and therefore we had need to pray against the increase of it as the Prophet Hosea doth against Ephraim O Lord giue them What wilt thou giue them barren wombes or aborting wombs 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and dry breasts And with the words of the Poet against an odious man 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is O I would thou hadst neuer beene borne at the least I would thou hadst neuer beene married that we might haue no more of thy brood Now the causes of Ingratitude doe proceed partly from the giuer partly from the receiuer From the giuer if it be apparant that he doth it with an vnwilling mind as for example It is written of Clement the seuenth that whatsoeuer he gaue it was as it were extorted from him Secondly If he gaue it with an ill-liberall hand as it is written of Galba that he gaue pinchingly and minchingly as though he had not beene Emperour but a bare Steward Thirdly if he bragge much of that which he hath done for a man and doe twyte and reproach the receiuer then they make themselues after a sort amends and deserue but small recompence from the benefited Haec seges ingratos tulit feret omnibus annis It is written of a noble Roman that he neuer requested any thing but with shamefastnesse neither granted any thing but with cheerefulnesse It is dictated by a wise Grecian Hee that bestoweth any thing should presently forget it but he that receiueth it should alway remember it If these things were duely considered there would be lesse ingratitude in the world Now as these causes of ingratitude proceed from the giuer so the receiuer hath in him many times the causes thereof but amongst those causes none more generall or of more force than pride and ouer-weening Remember the example of Parry the Traitor Our late Queene of famous memory gaue him his pardon after he was condemned to dye for a foule offence Did he take it to the heart No he made but a pegh at it saying She gaue me that that without cruelty she could not take from me I had serued her long So the Gun-powder Traytors the memoriall of whose confusion as also Gods gracious preseruing of our Gracious King and the whole State we celebrate this Day with all thankefulnesse had receiued great fauours from his Maiesty liberty of body to goe whither they would liberty of conscience to belieue as they lusted liberty of accesse to the Court without any touch of disgrace or exception against their person for their Religion but yet all this was nothing they thought they were worthy of a great deale more euen to be made Princes at the least Priuy Counsellers at the least to haue vp the Masse againe at the least to haue a generall toleration Thus as Caesar Borgia a wicked sonne of a most Atheisticall father said and bragged that either he would be Caesar that is a Soueraigne Commander or no body and so became no body And as Saint Augustine saith of Adam that by abusing his free-will he lost his free-will and vndid himselfe So these Giant-like Conspirators by not knowing themselues and by proceeding from Pride to vngratefulnesse from vngratefulnesse to male-contentednesse from male-contentednes to disloyalty nay hellish designes vndid both themselues and theirs for the present and haue left none other memory behind them but of infamy But to returne to Saul he surely was very vnthankefull towards Dauid but not vnthankefull onely but also enuious After the women came forth with Tabrets and such other kinds of instruments of melody and sang this song Saul hath slaine his thousand and Dauid his ten thousand the Text saith that Saul had an eye vnto him from that day without doubt it is not amisse that the Prince should haue an eye vnto his subiect and the Master or Lord vnto his seruant though otherwise they trust them farre For the eye of the Owner feedeth the horse and the feete of the Owner fatteth the ground Pliny reporteth these speeches to haue beene vsed with the Romanes for Prouerbs Therefore the eye of inspection or circumspection is necessary But now to looke vpon one with an euill eye as it is written of Laban that his countenance was not towards Iacob as in former time to enuy one brother or one neighbours well-doing to make his vertues lesse than they be and his faults greater to make his commings-in greater than they be and his charges lesse to haue the same eye that Saint Marke speaketh of Out of the heart proceed euill thoughts adulteries fornications and amongst other vices an euill eye a strange Hieroglyph for an eye to come out of the heart but the Hebrewes did and doe expresse thereby enuy this is such a thing as God euer abhorred and reasonable men not onely good men should detest For why should any mans eye be euill because Gods is good why should any grudge at the master of the house for vsing his liberty in his owne in dealing to some more to some lesse when he that receiueth least receiueth more than he deserueth 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is If any man haue much and doe vs no wrong therewith why should we enuy him It was the voyce of Nature in Demosthenes yet for all that the world is the world like it selfe euer full of enuy and monstrous enuy Ioseph was enuyed by his owne brethren and not by one or two of them but by them all for his gay childish coate his father had made him So we read that in Italy a brother the same a Cardinall pluckt out his brothers eyes because they were more amiable than his So I remember the time and know the place when one Tradesman dasht out the braines of his neighbour for none other offence as he confessed at the time of his execution but that God blessed the other more than himselfe Lastly he knoweth nothing in Story that doth not know that many battels haue beene wretchedly lost by the malignity of Captaines which chose rather to vndoe their Country themselues too than that such a Commander whom they enuyed should get the glory of a field wonne This kind of enuying many Schoole-men haue esteemed to be the sin against the holy Ghost whereof it is said that it shall neuer be forgiuen I dare not say so exceptit be ioined with despightfull blasphemy and finall impenitency yet this I make no doubt of that if it be not the sin against the holy Ghost yet it is a sin against the holy Ghost and against the Father and Sonne too therefore hainous and dangerous Iacob was not content to curse the wrath and rage of Simeon and Leui Cursed be their wrath for it was fierce and their rage for
Phaâ—ton to the whole earth and so he proued shewing himselfe not onely an enemy to vertue but also to all that that sauoured of it And truly he that had the skill to cast the Iesuites their natiuity or rather that will by the fruite iudge of the tree will confesse that of all the Spawne that Satan or his Vicar haue cast out or allowed in these later hundred yeeres none haue wrought either more dishonour to God or hurt to his Church or danger to Common-weales than these Plutarch maruelleth how a man could be compounded of so many contraries as Alcibiades was iocund with the merry sad with the graue babblatiue with praters of few words with the silent a rioter with boone-companions abstinent with the abstenious c. in a word a very Cameleon changing himselfe into all colours saue white for these be Plutarch words The like writeth Tully of Catiline in Oration pro Caelio The like we may say of the Iesuites as also some of themselues at the least of their friends giue forth Iesuita est omnis homo that is A Iesuite is an euery-ody fellow for all companies he can blow hot and cold with one breath play fast and loose with one hand hold with the Hare and runne with the Hound goe to the Kings of the earth and incense them against their subiects specially if they smell of Heresie as they call Heresie repaire to the subiects and blowe the coales of mutiny against the Prince specially if he giue the least cause of Iealousie to him of Rome with the iouiall they will not sticke to quaffe and carouse yea to dance and game Ordine ad Deum to winne them forsooth the Apostles were wont to vse that method in preaching no doubt with the austere they will bend the browe and put such a face of grauity vpon it as though the Quintessence of vertue might be extracted out of their fore-heads intus Nero foris Cato totus ambiguus that is A Nero inwardly a Cato outwardly euery way an Hypocrite or doubler Thus as the Apostle became all things to all men to winne some so they become all things to all men to ouerthrowe the faith of many Volo virtutes eorum proferre c. that is I will acquaint you with their vertues saith Tertullian of some Heretickes but this I acknowledge to be the greatest vertue in them that they doe emulate the Apostles peruersely for the Apostles raised such as were dead to life and these make such as were aliue dead Aeneas Syluius compareth Monks and old witches together saying Non audet Stygius Pluto tentare quod audet Infelix Monachus plenaque fraudis anus that is The Deuill himselfe is not so venturous as wretched Monks and charming old women be And the like complaint might be taken vp and might haue beene taken vp this many and many yeeres past concerning the Iesuites that their attempts are desperate and their executions bloody for the most part They will not play small play nor busie their refined wits about trifles as Domitian is reported to haue spent certaine houres in the day in catching flies O no but as one said to Antonius the Triumvir Thy fishing is to take vp Townes and Fortresses and Kingdomes and the lik so their fishing is to hale vp at one draught a whole Seignory or Principality Is any man great with a Prince or a State him they seeke by all meanes by promises by gifts by threats to winne him to their side if they cannot make him to be for them then they will doe their best or worst to make him away Nay they are not content to strike at a seruant and to seeke to vnhorse him but no worse than Dauid will serue their turne Dauid the Anointed of the Lord him they persecute his life they seeke to take away as it is in my Text Fight not against small nor great but against the King of Israel onely said the King of Syria So these strike onely at the fairest So did they in Queene Elizabeths time What doe you speake of killing of Leicester said one of the foureteene Traitors that were En-Iesuited the Queene is the onely marke Thus in England So in France Let King Henry the third a counterfeit Monke be killed by a true Monke Iames Clement doe thou vpon the remission of thy sins and to be made a Saint strike him and one blow for all that thou needest not strike him againe Thus they dispatched Henry the third for feare lest he would wholy reuolt from them So did they deale against Henry the fourth though he had turned to them yet because he had stood out long and the holy Father was not wholy reconciled to him therefore they proclaime that it was a meritorious deed to kill him Hereupon one Iohn Castile a Nouice of theirs attempts vpon his person and strikes out one of his teeth he meant to haue striken him to the heart but the King stooping downe vpon occasion receiued the blow into his mouth My mouth said the King afterwards conuinceth the Iesuites And Barrier a disciple of theirs came with a resolution from Meloun to stabbe him Barrier missed then but Rauillacke afterwards did the deed being poysoned by the Iesuites their doctrine that for as much as the Pope is Christs Vicar or Vice-gerent whosoeuer fighteth against any of his creatures or fauorites he fighteth against Christ himselfe and therefore may lawfully be murthered Before that euen about this time twelue yeeres they attempted against our now Soueraigne whom God in his mercy preserue and as though it had beene a small thing to kill a King and no body besides they conspired to destroy the whole State with him head and tayle branch and rush as the Prophet speaketh The King Queene and their Children they were as it were the head the Counsellors and Honorable men they as it were the brest the Commons assembled in Parliament they as it were the feet Vpon all these and vpon thousands more that dwelt or lay neere the Parliament-house they thought to bring a Panolethry an vniuersall destruction We read of twenty thousand slaine in a Towne of Italy called Fidenae in the dayes of Tiberius by the fall of a Theater but this was by casualty the finger of God was in it but men call it casualty So we read of many hundreds yea thousands blowne vp into the ayre and torne in pieces by gun-powder bestowed in mines vnder the earth for such mischiefe but this was in time of hostility and by enemies So we read of Mithridates conspiracy against the Romanes in Asia of Hamans conspiracy against the Iewes in Persia to haue them massacred all in one day as one man but these were Pagans and knew nothing of God or godlinesse So we read of Vesperae Siculae matutinae Parisienses that is Sicilian Euen-song and Paris-Mattens also of Danish and Normandish Washals in which there was an horrible slaughter made of
of it euery one specially young men and that you may escape Drunkennesse take heed of drinking much wine and strong drinke otherwise you will fall into the extremity which is called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which without serious repentance without the greater repentance will bring a man to destruction both of body and soule The Lord saue that which he hath bought Amen Amen FINIS A SERMON AT THE FVNERALL OF THE RIGHT REVEREND FATHER IN GOD MILES LATE LORD BISHOP OF GLOVCESTER PREACHED IN THE CATHEDRALL CHVRCH of GLOVCESTER vpon the ninth of Nouember 1624. by THOMAS PRIOR Master of Arts and one of the Prebendaries there PSALME 16. My flesh shall rest in hope LONDON Printed by Elizabeth Allde for Robert Allot dwelling at the Blacke Beare in Pauls Church-yard 1632. A FVNERALL SERMON VPON THE DEATH OF MILES SMITH LATE LORD BISHOP OF GLOCESTER 2 TIMOTHIE 1.12 For I know whom I haue beleeued and I am perswaded that he is able to keepe that which I haue committed vnto him against that Day BLackenesse and sadnesse haue clouded this day for a principall Pastor a great Prelat is now fallen in our Israel Himselfe occasioned the choise of this Text and the scope of it is this Paul appointed a Preacher of the Gospell laboureth therein much but men worldly-wise accounting his preaching foolishnesse and babbling doe scoffe reproche and persecute to dash and to discourage him yet cannot he through cowardice be diuerted from his way nor through selfe-guiltinesse be ashamed of his worke For when else-where he looketh on the Gospell it selfe he is bold and saith I am not ashamed of the Gospell of Christ for it is the power of God vnto saluation And here looking on the future reward of his now paines and patience with like confidence hee saith againe I suffer these things neuerthelesse I am not ashamed for I know whom I haue beleeued c. They obserue a difference vsuall betweene credere Deum Deo in Deum to beleeue a God to beleeue God and to beleeue in God But here the holy Ghost obserueth not this difference for though 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 be rightly englished whom I haue beleeued yet it imports no lesse than if it had beene 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in whom I haue beleeued For by it he giues firme assent to the premises with application to himselfe and relyance on God that they shall be performed to him accordingly which is to beleeue in God And for proofe of this our Apostle telleth vs that he hath committed to Gods custody as he calleth it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a Pawne a Pledge or that which he intrusted him withall And what that is take from Interpreters ancient and moderne One saith his soule another which is all one himselfe his workes saith a third a fourth addeth his sufferings a fifth his Saluation And from all you haue the whole truth and nothing else For thus it standeth God hath deposited with Paul the gifts of his Grace these he vseth to his masters best aduantage and suffers much for it but that blankes him not that puts not him out of heart for his depositum is with God to whom he hath committed his soule himselfe his doings his sufferings to be rewarded with life and saluation Of this to be sure he supporteth his confidence with two props One the Alsufficient power of God who is able 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or of power to keepe all for him Now this 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 this Power of God is either Immanent working in himselfe or Transient towards the creatures And this Absolute by which he can doe more than he will or Actuall by which he doeth what he will And that this actuall power which the Almighty pleased to determine by his Will is here meant is plaine by the Other prop of his confidence to wit His experience of the effects of the other diuine Attributs implyed in I know whom I haue beleeued q. d. A God of Wisedome Truth Righteousnesse Goodnesse Loue and whatsoeuer may assure me But when is the time of his expectation At the Day that shall set an end to all dayes to all times called by an eminency in the Text that Day id est that great and fearefull day of Christ in which the Lord Iesus shall come to iudge the world In summe thus our Apostle He who knowes that he whom he hath intrusted can will keepe for him against the appointed day that which he hath committed to his trust needeth not to be ashamed of his sufferings for it But such an one I know my God to be c. Thus he reasons And by this time you know his meaning and whereat he aymes scil To speake his knowledge of God In a two-fold Proposition 1 Generall that he knowes who he is saying I know whom I haue beleeued 2 Particular that he knowes what a one specially in one of his Attributes viz. of Power Which Power is Inuincible able to keepe that which is committed vnto him Which Power is Vnchangeable vntill or against that day According to this the first Meditation we shall fall on will runne thus That God and none but God is the comfort of the faithfull in his troubles The beleeuer in afliction drawes not comfort out of the standing Pooles of outward sufficiencies but out of the liuing Fountaines of the Alsufficiency of the Lord Almighty He romes not vp and downe this Sublunary world to releeue himselfe being hard bestaed No that were with that vncleane spirit in the Gospell to walke through dry places seeking rest and finding none but when he with Dauid is greatly distressed his house rifled his goods spoiled his wiues captiuated his Ziglag fired his associates mutinous meditating death and stoning him then fetcheth he his comfort from Heauen so Dauid comforted himselfe in the Lord his God 1 Sam. 30.6 And truely to enlarge our selues a little here whither should a man in such a case flie but hither For nothing can afford solide comfort that it selfe cannot at least take away the cause of discomfort That Romans griefe prompt so much to him who to his friends that would comfort him about the losse of the Consulship saith Omnes consulere scitis Consulem facere nescitis All can giue me counsell yee cannot make me Consull Could outward things rid vs from the troubles of this life from death the end of this life from damnation after death then said they something worth the harkening to but this they cannot doe for breuities sakes insist on one Not from Death for as the Candle failes before it is well lighted or is choaked with much moisture or is puffed out with the wind or is extinguished by the hand of man or goeth out of its owne accord So man if not intombed in his mothers bell◠dyeth not in the cradle withereth not growing vp be not conquered when ablest to conquer but doth hold out till old age then
Out of the belly of Hell cryed I Chap. 2.2 Then vers 4. I said I am cast out of thy sight Oh that God rather than lose them would so pursue ours and fetch them home before past recouery O that themselue would fore-apprehend the bitternesse of outward crosses specially of sickenesse when these refuges will proue but a lye vnto them Oh that they would consider how conscience will then board them and present to them the sin-reuenging wrath of God enough to make the heauens to melt and the earth to tremble Ah poore dying man whose life doth hang before him stayes it It s with that intolerable companion a wounded spirit departs it t is into the insufâ—erable and vnquencheable flames of hell But whereto tends this to driue to desperation Nay but to God Whither should the aâ—â—righted child goe but to his Father Whither the tyred but to him that can refresh him the wounded but to the Chirurgeon A people but to theiâ— God To whom shall wee goe say the Disciples by Peters mouth thou hast the words of eternall life To Christ then to Christ and by him vnto the Father who saith I am the way the truth and the life no man commeth to the Father but by me And againe Neither knoweth any man the Father but the Son and he to whomsoeuer the Son will reueale him Where to finde comfort in distresse ye know the way ye know When Noahs Doue found no rest for the sole of her foot she returned into the Arke vnto him againe so let vs returne vnto God againe out of whom no rest can be found no not for the sole of our foot The Law was that if a man found his enemies Oxe or Asse going aâ—tray he should returne it home to the owner sure I am we owe no lesse to our own soules when they go astray from God Let vs therefore send them homewards with Dauids direction Returne to thy rest O my soule Thus haue we opened the fountaine of Pauls consolation next you shall see how he doth assure it I know whom I haue beleeued and I am perswaded that he is able to keepe that which I haue committed vnto him id est intrusted him withall When a foundation is laid in a proportion Geometricall they build and the more weight is laid on the foundation the firmer so where God is the foundation settle thy building vpon him intrust thy selfe and whatsoeuer thou art with him and be sure For They that trust in the Lord shall be as Mount Sion which cannot be remoued but abideth for euer The meanes to secure our felicity is to intrust our selues and our causes with him For he is both Able to keepe all and it may stand him vpon First He is Able for nothing is hard to the Almighty He is able by his absolute power of these stones to raise vp children vnto Abraham To mix all things and to bring them backe to their former Chaos And what else not And by his Actuall power he can cast Satan from heauen like lightning can deliuer him into the chaines of darkenesse can rescue out of his Kingdome whom he will can keepe them being so deliuered vnto Saluation That then which is committed vnto him doth not perish because the euerlasting Arme is vnderneath Him wilt thou keepe in perfect peace saith Isaiah whose minde is stayed on thee because he trusteth in thee Trust ye in the Lord for euer for in the Lord Iehovah is euerlasting strength And secondly in a sort it stands his Maiesty vpon to doe for them that depend vpon him else what shall bee done to his great Name how will the enemy insult the godly hang downe the head or how will any be bold to cast themselues on him in aftertimes In their pressures therefore they may resolue with Dauid Our heart shall reioyce in him because we haue trusted in his holy Name Psal. 33.21 Wouldest thou then O Christian man finde sanctuary in a storme and a City of refuge against the pursuer when other mens hearts doe faint would thine be stable when the spirit of other men can scarce beare their owne infirmity would thine finde helpe against the wound of spirit when not ciuill honesty not good intentions not formall prosession nor the bare name of Christian can steed thee wouldest thou then want wherewith to foile and fell thine enemy when thou art to dye wouldest thou bid defiance to death and hell In a word when the heauens shall be on fire about thine eares wouldest thou be able to looke vpon the Sonne of man Let the Lord be thy relyance and the most High thy confidence gather thy selfe vnder his wings and trust vnder the shadow of feathers bewaile thine vnaptnesse to beleeue on him confesse thine aptnesse to leane on lying vanities and stirre vp thy soule to rely on heauen Doe we call Acts and Deeds of men security and shall we not trust that which God hath sealed and deliuered vnto vs children rely wholly on their parents and shall not we rely wholy on our heauenly Father Neuer man yet trusted in God and was disappointed and shall we now be forsaken If Iehosaphats people will beleeue in the Lord they shall be established if beleeue his Prophets they shall prosper If we be not wanting to our selues wee shall not want any thing necessary If thou canst beleeue saith our Sauiour to that man in the Gospell all things are possible to him that beleeueth dependance on God is better than all worldly confidences And better is it than Sauls Armour to be able to affront an enemy as Dauid did Goliah saying I come to thee in the Name of the Lord of Hosts the God of the Armies of Israel For that armeth with Power inuincible able to preserue and with Power vnchangeable able to preserue for euer for this cause our Apostle is bold and saith He is able to keepe that which I haue committed vnto him against that Day Where of the last Day in the last place Now in that he doth so slight his sufferings and the shame of them for his expectation at the day of Iudgement he learneth vs That it doth much concerne a man to prouide that it may go well with him at that Day Let the fire saith Ignatius that holy Martyr vnder Traian in his Epistle to Rome the gallowes deuouring of wild beasts breaking of bones pulling asunder of my members the pressing of my whole body the torment of the Deuill or hell it selfe come vpon me so that I may winne Christ Iesus Winne Christ Iesus What 's that This is that and no other for which our Saint Paul suffered the losse of all things and did count them but dung that he might winne Christ Philip. 3.8 But what may that be Reade the 11. and 12. verses and you shall heare himselfe That I may know him and the power of his resurrection and the
a place of celestiall pleasure and celestiall plenty plenty that neuer faileth and pleasures for euer-more And thus haue you our Meditations on the Text. A word more of this present occasion we haue done When I was appointed by this right Reuerend and Honorable Prelate to this seruice I found him declining any Encomium of his pr aises for well knew he what Austin hath and what hath Augustine or any of the Fathers that he knew not That the soule receiued among the blessed regardeth not the commendations of men Imitationem tantùm quaerit it liketh their imitation better But as the Elders of the Iewes to Christ in another case on the Centurions behalfe He is worthy thou shouldest doe this for him for he hath loued our Nation and built vs a Synagogue he is worthy to be remembred of vs for he loued our Nation id est vs Ministers and he furnished your Synagogues your Churches with the plentifull preaching of the Gospell The same which moued Israel so honourably to interre that good high Priest Iehoiada is our cause this day For he did good in Israel both towards God and towards his house Ye daughters of Israel weepe ouer him who clothed you in scarlet with other delights and put on ornaments of gold vpon your apparell Two singular ornaments crowned him which seldome meete in one man Learning and Humility Learning the ornament of his mind and humility the ornament of his learning Iulius secundus studying long for an Exordium to his matter was asked by Iulius Florus Nunquid tu melius dicere vis quà m potes I haue matter if I must fit it with speech I must speake better than in this cantle of time I can speake Therefore lest I should Frigidè laudare which Fauorinus liketh not I le giue it you in grosse considering his much reading with the happinesse of his memory how well acquainted with Histories Ecclesiasticall and profane with the Iewish Rabbins and the Christian Doctors with Diuines ancient and moderne with Fathers Greeke and Latin how perfect in the Greeke the Hebrew the Chaldee the Syriacke and the Arabicke tongues I am bold to affirme that there are few so learned men vnder heauen One monument of his learning haue we for which the age now doth and the children vnborne shall blesse his memory That he began with others but finished alone with one of the greatest and most learned Bishops of the Church of England set forth the new and most exact translation of the Bible wherein as it was said of Ierome for translating the Septuagint into the Dalmatian tongue he deliuered the Scriptures suae linguae hominibus to Englishmen in English The sole merit of which worke preferred him to this place of gouernment in the Church For with Basilius Magnus Non ex maioribus sed ex propria virtute Nobilitatem duxit He eennobled himselfe with his owne worth and vertue And touching his Humility as it was said of Piso so more truely of him Nemo fuit qui magis quae agenda erant curaret sine vlla ostentatione agendi No man did more good than he with lesser shew of ostentation How he decked himselfe inwardly with lowlinesse of minde and did put himselfe vnderneath himselfe euery one that knew him knew On a time and many such I could tell you a poore Minister sending in to speake with him abruptly he brake off a most serious discourse saying But the Minister must not stay lest we should seeme to take state vpon vs. Therein imitating that great and inuincible Supporter of the Faith of one Substance Athanasius of whom Nazianzene writeth that being 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 growne to a super excellent height of vertue yet was he 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 easie of accesse and facile to entertaine the poore mans suit When in his sickenesse one hoped for his recouery he gaue the answer that Saint Ambrose gaue to the Nobles of Millaine that desired him to pray for life Non ita inter vos vixi vt pudeat me viuere nec timeo mori quoniam Dominum bonum habemus I haue not so liued among you that I am ashamed to liue neither am I afraid to dye because our Lord is good How he perseuered in the truth you shall heare Some few dayes before his death in the presence of a worthy and truely Noble Knight I heard him discourse sweetly of the Certainty of Saluation and of Perseuerance in Grace comfortable truths so much opposed by Papists Arminians and carnall Gospellers And in conclusion he did affirme That he which holds the Protestants doctrine and faith herein hath built his house vpon the Rocke and the gates of Hell shall not preuaile against him Not many houres before his departure for as Ambrose of Acholius non obijt sed abijt I found him as mee seemed victorious vpon some conflict and Quis Sanctorum sine certamine coronatur What Saint was euer crowned but vpon a combat saith Saint Ierome I drew neere his bed he reached for my hand and greezed it and now you see the cause of my choise saying I know whom I haue beleeued and I am perswaded that he is able to keepe that which I haue committed vnto him against that Day This occasioned some thing concerning relyance vpon God by Faith yea said he I had fainted vnlesse I had beleeued to see the goodnesse of the Lord in the Land of the liuing Mention being further made of Faith and Hope and of their obiect But saith he againe in Dauids words The mercies of the Lord are from generation to generation on them that feare him Mercy brought in thoughts of Christ oh saith he in the words of that holy Martyr None but Christ None but Christ. Being told how preciously the Lord esteemeth the death of such he replyed Right deare Right deare in the sight of the Lord is the death of his Saints Some prayers made for him vpon his desire at conclusion he said Amen I thanke God Amen enough enough Amen I thanke God They write of Lanfrancus sometime Archbishop of Canturbury that he often prayed and obtained to dye such a death that neither hindered speech nor memory this blessing God afforded our Reuerend Bishop for as I am certified by one most deare to him and worthy to be beleeued when he was leauing this life he looked on her and on the rest of his children in the chamber present and said Christ blesse you all And like that old Patriarke Iacob he moued himselfe vpon the bed and cryed Christ Iesus helpe and so Christ tooke him and conclamatum est His soule is now at rest his name is among the Worthies of the Church his estate is with his children and now are we to returne his body to the dust from whence it was taken The best fruits shew their goodnesse when they haue lyen let him lie a while and mellow let vs
such as came vnto the place in the simplicity of their soules but this was done by the Zelotae and in hot blood and rather to preuent mischiefâ— that themselues might not be destroyed than to bring causes of destruction vpon others But now for the sonnes of the Church and her deare and lawfull sonnes so they repute themselues and all others for bastards for the sonnes of the Commonweale and the same most faithfull and loyall what else for them I say to seeke to shead the blood of warre in peace for them like Vipers to gnaw the bowels of their mother and to stretch forth ouer their Country the line of Samaria and the plummet of the house of Ahab as it is in the holy Story the line of vanity and the stones of emptinesse as it is in the Prophet this would make Isaiah if he were aliue to cry out as he doth Chapter 29. verse 9. Stay your selues and wonder crie out and crie Or as he doth Chapter 66. Who hath heard such a thing who hath seene such things Poets feine of Enceladus the Giant that as oft as he changeth his side for wearinesse he maketh the Country about him to quake and as oft as he belcheth he casteth vp fire brimstone in that abundance that he maketh all the Ilanders to be agast So Philosophers teach that when exhalations and vapours haue gotten in great store into some hollow places of the earth if they hap to be stopped there so that they cannot haue a vent they first worke a strange rumbling and hurly-burly in the earth making it to reele to and fro like a drunken man as the Psalmist speaketh and then in the end breaking forth with violence they carry away whatsoeuer is in the way trees houses Towers transplanting or translating them from one side to another from one end to another maruellously And euen in like manner these Enceladi or Ennosigaei by working vnder the ground and piling together a great deale of sulphurous and combustible or rather inflammatory matter vnder the vault of the Parliament house made reckoning with the turning of their side nay with the turning of their hand by setting fire to the match to blow vp all that were aboue or neere and to bury in one common sepulchre the whole State Suetonius writeth of Nero that when heard one vtter out of a Tragedy these words When I am dead let fire and earth be iumbled together Nay rather said he let this happen 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 while I am aliue So these vnnaturall parricides thought it too long to stay till God should correct vs himselfe either by famine or pestilence or the sword but they would take the sword into their owne hands and call for fire from heauen like the rash sonnes of Zebedee or rather because they had no hope to preuaile that way they would strike fire in the lower parts of the earth and set vpon a light fire their whole natiue Country Thus they persecute Dauid and seeke to take away his life and the liues of all his well-wishing subiects and neere ones But did they preuaile No They tooke counsell together but it came to nought they pronounced a Decree but it did not stand for God was with vs. Omnipotens Deus Valentiniano Regnum quod dederat reseruauit that is Almighty God that gaue Valentinian the Empire preserued it vnto him and he that set the Crowne vpon the Kings head did keepe it sure vnto him maugre the despight of Rome and Romanists They thrust sore at him that he might fall but the Lord was his helpe and our helpe our mercifull God did breake the snares of them that sought to entrap vs all the snare was broken and we deliuered O that we would giue thankes to the Lord for his goodnesse and declare the wonders that he doth for the children of men O that we would confesse that he himselfe did it and he alone and that it was not our policy or prouidence that auoyded the blow Remember O let vs remember how glad Iacob was to see Ioseph rediuiuum whom he had giuen ouer and thought he had beene deuoured of a wilde beast Remember how glad they were in Markes house when Peter came in vnto them whom they had thought to haue beene fast bound in fetters and iron that he should haue beene brought forth and put to death the next day It is a day that the Lord hath made let vs be glad and reioyce therein a day to be remembred as the dayes of the Passe-ouer wherein the children of Israel escaped the destroying Angell and also the fury of the Egyptians or as the dayes of Purim wherein the same people of God escaped the bloody practices of Haman and his complices Let me tell you what ioy there was in Rome vpon a false alarum Newes being brought that Germanicus noble Germanicus was aliue of whose sickenesse they had intelligence and for whose health they were most carefull they showted Saluae Roma salua patria saluus est Germanicus Rome is safe our Country is safe for lo Gemanicus is safe Much more iustly may we showte for ioy and say Salua Anglia salua patria saluus est Rex that is England is in safety our Country is in safety for why our King is in safety This I say should make vs to reioyce with ioy vnspeakeable and glorious seeing it is not a false word that is brought vnto vs of the Kings safety but as we haue heard so may we see and his Maiesty may say â—nto vs as Ioseph doth to his brethren Genesis the 45. Behold your eyes doe see and the eyes of my brother Beniamin that my mouth doth speake vnto you The Romanes celebrated the memoriall of the driuing out of their oppressors and called it Regifugium we may call this feast Regi-saâ—uium because the Kings life and the life of his best subiects were saued and preserued The Persians kept a feast in remembrance of the destruction of the Magies who destroyed the remainder of the Blood-Royall and vsurped the Crowne themselues and called it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 we may call this feast 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 because of the destruction of the Traytors who were taken in their owne snare and fell into the pit that they had digged for others This was the Lords doing and it is maruelous in our eyes and ought to be remembred with all thankefulnesse and God is to be honoured for the same and with speciall honour while we haue a day or houre to liue For if the Lord himselfe had not beene on our side may Israel now say if he had not giuen his Angels charge ouer vs it had not failed vs but our soules had beene put to silence they were so wrathfully displeased at vs. Well the enemies of Dauid were found lyers and howsoeuer they thought to take away his life by pursuing him yet they could not This
is a good entrance to the Omination the later part of my diuision the which I will rather touch than handle the time being so farre spent The soule of my Lord shall be bound in the bundle of life with the Lord thy God and the soule of thine enemies shall he sling out as out of the middle of a sling In these words Abigail promiseth or foretelleth wisheth at the least safety and preseruation to Dauids person and estate and describeth the same safety by a Metaphor of safe bindingor safe pursing We know that eares of corne if they lie scattered vpon the ground they may easily be trod out with the foote or licked vp by a beast but if they be bound vp in a bundle and the bundle layd vp in a stacke then they are out of harmes way commonly the originall may signifie a Bundle as in that place of the Canticles that is My Beloued is as a bundle of myrrhe Tseror mor. Again we know that if a piece of money be it of gold or siluer be cast vpon the table or some odde place it may be taken vp by some thiefe or one that is light-fingered but if it be pursed then it is safe The originall may signifie a purse as inthat place of Haggai Chapter 1. He that earneth wages putteth it into a bagge or purse that hath a hole in it In like manner of Phrasing Dauid saith that his teares were put vp in Gods bottle that none of them should be spilt vpon the ground but should be remembred and accounted for And Saint Paul That our life is hid with Christ in God hid that is layed vp 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as in a repository sure and safe And briefely the Prophet Esay phraseth it after the same manner that God had made him a chosen shaft and hid him in his quâ—uer that it should not be broken nor pilfered away by euery one that came in the way Now we vnderstand the meaning of the Phrase but peraduenture for the truth of the matter euery one is not satisfied for some will say How could Abigail speake so confidently that Dauid and consequently such as were faithfull like Dauid should not miscarry since so many worthy seruants of God and his Anointed ones haue dyed a violent death as namely â—osiah to speake of no more before Christs time and after Christs time Gratian and Valentinian Christian and godly Emperours and of late in our fresh memory the two Henries of France that I speake nothing of the Prince of Conde and the Prince of Orange If it be true as it is most true that these had their liues taken away by their enemies then Abigails speech cannot be true in the generall I answere first That Abigail speaketh this as a well-wishing woman but not as a Prophetesse for we doe not read any where that the name of a Prophetesse is giuen vnto her Secondly That prophesies themselues importing a blessing haue either expressed or implyed a condition namely If they will walke in the wayes of the Lord with an vpright heart and with all their heart c. euen as Samuel the Prophet expresseth the happinesse of a King and a State conditionally and not absolutely in those termes If ye will feare the Lord and serue him and heare his voyce both you and your King shall follow the Lord that is you shall prosper in following the Lord a Metonymie of the cause for the effect but if ye doe wickedly ye shall perish both you and your King O that we would consider this we that forget God so oft and so foulely what hurt we doe to our good King not onely our selues by euery worke of impiety and iniquity we doe we strike at his Estate as oft as we strike our brother with the fist of wickednesse we wound our Kings person after a sort as oft as we teare God with our false or vaine oathes we doe what we can to shorten his dayes as oft as we drawe along the cords of vnnecessary contentions of sensuality of drunkennesse of oppression of vncharitablenesse of coozenage of vsury and the like These doe more endanger a Kingdome than either forraine enemies or domestike conspirators For as while we please the Lord he maketh our very enemies to be our friends as it is in the Prouerbs yea the stones of the field to be at peace with vs and the beasts of the field to be at league with vs as it is in Iob. So on the other side if wickednesse be found in vs as Salomon said to Adoniah if an execrable thing be found in the Host as in the dayes of Iosuah then Israel cannot stand before the men of Aye nor Iosuah prosper Then the Lord will raise vp the vildest of the Nations to persecute vs they shall fanne vs and they shall empty vs till we be weeded out of the good Land that God hath giuen vs to possesse It is true the most High it is that translateth Kingdomes taking them from one Nation and giuing them to another as it is in the Prophet Daniel but it is true withall that this is done for the sinnes of the people euen as Salomon expresly setteth it downe Prouerbs 28. For the transgression of a people there be many Princes that is many changes when as on the contrary side when a people doe set their hearts to feare the Lord and to worship him with holy worship when they meddle with the thing that is equall and right and shunne the sinnes of vnfaithfulnesse of Idolatry of presumption of profanenesse and the like then behold he giueth them a good Prince in his mercy and keepeth him vnto them in his fauour preseruing his lying downe and rising vp his going forth and comming home in such sort that the enemy can doe him no violence nor the sonne of wickednesse hurt him Would we then haue our King to flourish and to prosper to liue out of danger and gun-shot Oh then let vs not onely pray for him as Tertullian did for the Emperor that God would giue him Domum tutam exercitus fortes senatum fidelem that is A safe Court valiant Armies and a faithfull Senate but also that he would giue him Populum probum that is A vertuous people a good Commonalty which is a part of Tertullians prayer in the same place and let vs endeauour our selues euery one for his part to make vp this Populum probum that is to be pious and vertuous Let vs haue nothing to doe with the stoole of wickednesse which imagineth mischiefe like a Law let vs haue nothing to doe with the bagge of deceit with false weights false measures since these be an abomination to the Lord as Salomon speaketh and since God is a reuenger of all such things as the Apostle testifieth Finally let vs haue nothing to doe with the vnfruitfull workes of darkenesse but rather reproue