cease from our earthlie affaires and all worldlie businesse to attend the better on the meditation of the works of God that wee may bee exercised to knowe the benefites he bestoweth on vs and aboue all that wee may bestow all our paines in acknowledging his gratious fauour whiche he offereth dailie in his Gospell to bee confirmed and established more and more therein when we shall haue emploied the Sunday to praise and magnifie the name of God and to meditate on his workes let vs shewe all the rest of the weeke how we haue profited herein Now let vs cast our selues downe before the face of our good God with acknowledging of our faults praying that it will please him to make vs feele them better than wee haue done And because wee can not in any respect serue him vntill this wickednesse and peruersnesse which is in vs be abolished and because he hath shewen that we shall not cease to make warre against his iustice as long as we shall lose the bridle to our wicked thoughtes and concupiscences pray we that it will please this good God by the power of his holy spirite to geue vs this grace to bee fullie conformed vnto him which is dead and risen for vs to the end he might mortifie and quicken vs that wee may beare the markes of our Lord Iesus euen in renouncing our selues and ordering our whole life so to his will that wee desire nothing but to bee conformed to his iustice to the end his lawe may bee accomplished in vs as it is spirituall and that wee bee reformed both in flesh and in spirite to liue vnder his obedience And forasmuch as wee so ofte returne vnto our selues pray wee that it will please this good God to beare with vs in our infirmities till his rest bee truelie accomplished in vs and that he hath gathered vs into his heauenlie kingdome That it will please him to graunt this grace not onelie vnto vs but to all people and nations of the earth c. The. 6. Sermon Deut. Chap. 5. 13 Sixe dayes thou shalt labour and shalt doe all thy woorke 14 But the seuenth day is the Sabbaoth of the Lord thy God thou shalt not doe any woorke therein thou nor thy sonne not thy daughter nor thy man seruant nor thy maide nor thine oxe nor thine asse neither any of thy cattell nor the straunger that is within thy gates that thy man seruant and thy maide may rest as well as thou 15 Remember that thou wast a seruant in the land of Aegypt and that the Lorde thy God brought thee out thence with a mightie hand and a stretched out arme therefore the Lorde thy God commaunded thee to obserue the Sabbaoth day WE handled yesterday in what sorte and to what end the commaundement of obseruing the Sabboth day was giuen to the Iewes It was said in generall that this was a figure of the spirituall rest which the faithfull ought to keepe the better to serue and woorshippe god And seeing our Lord hath brought vs the full accomplishment of this it hath bene said that we must no longer rest and stay our selues on this shadowe of the Lawe but be content that our old man be crucified by the vertue of the death and passion of our Lord Iesus Christ to the end wee may bee renewed in our mindes wholie to serue our god Withall wee noted that wee stand in neede of some order and policie amongest vs and therefore it behoued that some certeine day should bee appointed to assemble vs together to bee confirmed in the doctrine of God and to make our profite therein euerie day euen all the time of our life that wee bee also exercised to call vppon his name to make confession of our faith and that the rest of this day bee spent in considering the benefites wee receiue at all times at the hand of God to the end he bee the more glorified in them And now haue we to note this whiche followeth in the text of Moses Sixe dayes thou shalt labour saith the lord This ought not to bee vnderstood as if God commaunded vs hereby preciselie to labour Howbeit it is true that we are borne to this and wee knowe that God meaneth not wee should bee idle as long as wee liue in this world For he hath giuen men hands and feete force and strength to this purpose Yea before sinne entered it is saide that Adam was placed in the garden of Eden to dresse it and keepe it Albeit the labour and trauell which men are now enioyned is a chastisement for sinne For it is thus denounced them In the sweate of thy face thou shalt eate thy breade This is a curse and malediction laide on mankind For we are not worthie to enioy the condition whiche was giuen to our father Adam that he might liue at pleasure without troubling or tormenting him selfe But yet before that sinne entred into the world and that wee were in this sort condemned of God to this painfull weariesome trauell it was requisite that men should exercise themselues with some labour And why Because this is contrarie to our nature that we shoulde be as logges and blockes vnprofitable So then it is verie certeine that wee ought to applie our selues to some labour all the time of our life But yet here in this place it is not simplie commaunded that we trauell sixe dayes For indeede there were other solemnities vnder the Lawe besides the rest of the Sabboth There were feastes which might happen in the middest of the weeke but because the number of them was small beeing onely foure dayes in the yeare there is no mention made of them but onely of the Sabbaoth Therefore when it is said Thou shalt labour sixe dayes our Lord woulde hereby signifie vnto vs that we ought not to complaine of yelding vnto him one certeine day when he leaueth vnto vs sixe for one As if he did say Shall the cost and charge be great vnto you to choose one day which may be wholy geuen to my seruice that you doe no other thing in it but reade and exercise your selues in my lawe or heare my doctrine whiche shal be preached vnto you a day to come to the Temple to the end you may be there confirmed by the sacrifices which are there made a day to call vppon my name to declare and protest that you are of the number and companie of my people Ought this to bee grieuous and burthensome vnto you seing you haue sixe dayes free to traffike and to doe your businesse in When I vse such gentlenesse towardes you that I demand but one day of seuen is not this an ouer great vnthankfulnesse on your part if you complaine of this time as beeing euill employed and if you bee such couetous niggardlie wretches as not to spare mee one seuenth part of the time I haue giuen you your whole life Whensoeuer the Sunne shineth vpon you you ought to acknowledge my goodnesse
to declare himselfe our father and sauiour for our Lorde Iesus Christes sake that he will not onely graunt this grace to vs but to all people and nations of the earth c. Deut. Chap. 5 ▪ 1 Then Moses called all Israel and said vnto them Heare O Israel the ordinaunces and the lawes whiche I set before you this day that ye may learne them and take heede to obserue them 2 The Lord our God made a couenaunt with vs in Horeb. 3 The Lorde made not this couenaunt with our fathers but with vs which are all aliue at this day 4 The Lorde talked with you face to face on the mount out of the middest of the fire WE haue seene heretofore howe greatly Moses hath laboured to make the people perceiue the Maiestie which is in the worde of God to the end they should receiue it with all reuerence and feare For although men protest that they will obey God for so nature constraineth them yet can they not order them selues and their doinges according to his word and that is the verie true touchstone to knowe whether wee bee obedient to God or no. But herein is the rebellion of the worlde seene that although all will confesse that the worde of God is to bee receiued without any gainsaying yet shall one finde scarse one among an hundred which willingly humbleth him selfe to yeald vnto it that authoritie it deserueth And why is this Surely because we consider not of the Maiestie of God which declareth it selfe therein See then howe Moses not without cause so often heretofore hath wained the people that the worde of God shoulde be of such Maiestie towardes vs that all creatures shoulde tremble at it And nowe againe he addeth a confirmatiō of the same matter when he saith That the Lord talke◠face to face on the mount out of the middest of the fire as if bee shoulde saie You haue no cause now to doubt whether the doctrine which I propose vnto you be of God or of men for it is sufficiently proued God hath declared himselfe vnto you by plaine and visible signes in such sorte that you may well perceiue it is he which speaketh Nowe then wee see the intent and meaning of Moses But before wee passe any further one may here make a question How it is said that God spake face to face seeing that men cannot comprehend his infinite glorie For with what eye can wee contemplate his substance being We are so fraile weak that if God should but shew one beame of his brightnesse behold we should be all dazeled confounded therewith On the other side we know how it is said That we cannot se God face to face vntill we be renewed which shall not bee vntill the latter day For now saith S. Paule We see as in a glasse in part euen obscurely vnperfectly Which more is he saith in an other place That the Gospell at this day doth present vnto vs the Maiestie of God in such sort that wee may see it but the lawe was darke and obscure and had availe which hindered our fathers to knowe God in so plaine and familiar a manner as wee doe at this day But all this agreeth verie well For when wee make a comparison of the lawe with the Gospell it is certeine wee shall finde this which Saint Paule speaketh to be most true For then God declared not himselfe in so familiar a fashion as he doth vnto vs by the meanes of our Lorde Iesus Christ who is the liuelie image of him Nowe a dayes therefore there are laide open vnto vs the great treasures of wisdome in that God calleth vs to the kingdome of heauen sheweth that he holdeth vs for his children heirs Now this was not in the time of the lawe And yet although at this day we haue such a knowledge and so plaine manifest yet remaineth that alwayes true which we haue alledged that wee see but in part And why For we are not yet partakers of the glorie of God neither can we come neere it but it behoueth that he shew it according to our rudenesse and infirmitie Yet notwithstanding from the beginning of the world God hath appeared vnto mortall men Howbeit this was not to shewe him selfe as he is but as the weaknesse and infirmitie of men might beare it We must then note that God was not knowen to the fathers neither appeareth at this day in his owne beeing but he applieth him selfe to vs in asmuch as he sheweth him selfe for our measure and abilitie to make vs perceiue that he is present And yet for all that it is not without cause that Moses saith here that God spake face to face for he vnderstādeth hereby that the people had not some coniecturall signe that they might dout of him or conceiue onely some small opinion of God but that they had a certeine and infallible warrant whereby they might in this sort conclude Behold God hath so shewed himselfe to vs that our faith need not wauer and be doubtfull and the doctrine which is proposed vnto vs in his name ought no longer to be disputed of whether it be to be receiued or refused And why For God hath deliuered vnto vs a sure and certeine marke which can not beguile nor leaue vs in doubt but that this doctrine proceedeth from him Now we vnderstand the mening of Moses from whence we haue to gather a good lesson that is that if God declare not himselfe vnto vs after so high glorious a manner as our lust desireth let vs know that he doeth it for our profite and saluation For let vs haue an eye to our infirmitie and it will be sufficient to abate that ouer boldnesse to the which our nature alwayes stirreth vs For we would inquire and seeke after the secrets of God without end or measure And why is that Verely because we consider not our owne power and abilitie Wherefore let vs praise the great goodnes of our God for that he in fauour so considereth of vs regardeth our weaknesse that he is content to hide his glorie ▪ least we should be swallowed vp thereof For as I haue alreadie said we can not beare it being so fraile weake as we are And here withall let vs knowe that when God geueth vs some euident signe and token of his presence there resteth then no excuse if we yeald not to him the honour and doe him the homage he is worthie of Let vs not then desire that God come in his inestimable glorie that the heauens cleaue in sunder that all the Angels of heauen appeare but when the Lorde any way declareth that it is he which speaketh let it suffice vs and let vs humble our selues incontinently For if then we will foreslowe to yeld him our dutie we shal be sharply reproued for turning our backe to him when he sheweth his face to vs It is true that it is said in an other place That
as saith S. Iohn in his Canonicall epistle Yea men neede not goe forth of themselues to haue battell with God and his iustice For all our senses and reason and all our affections as saith S. Paul to the Romanes are enimies against God. When men loose the bridle to their thoughts and imaginations to their desires and lustes then make they open battell with god And we are not ignorant of that which is declared in the sixt of Genesis That all that which man can thinke and imagine is nothing but euill continually and all that which man forgeth in himselfe frameth in his owne shop is vntoward and corrupt before god So then we see well that we cannot be sanctified before our God that is to say we cannot serue him in holines and purenes being not yet separated from that vncleannes and those defilings which are contrarie therevnto not hauing first abolished al that which is of our own nature It behoued then that this should be represented in a figure to the ancient fathers for that Christ was not yet fullie reuealed vnto them But at this day we haue in Iesus Christ the accomplishment the performance of all thinges In this wise s Paul speaketh of the old man vnderstāding by this word al that which we haue of Adam that it ought to die be eleane abolished namely not the nature of our body or of our soule but the malice which is within vs the blindnes which maketh vs erre the lustes euil desires which are altogether rebellious to the iustice of god It behoueth that all this in as much as it is drawn frō Adam be beaten down cleane taken away And how is this done This is not by our own industrie labor but Iesus Christ dying for vs and to wipe out our sinnes that they might be no more imputed vnto vs hath gotten vnto vs also this prerogatiue that by the vertue power of his holy spirit we might renounce the world our selues in such sort that our carnal affectiōs to more reigne in vs And albeit they be ful of rebellion yet notwithstanding shall the Spirite of God beare rule euer them to represse them and to hold them backe as it were with a bridle Therfore it is said That we are raised with him And S. Paule declareth the same also in the Chap. which I haue alreadie recited to the Colossians Now this was not yet manifested vnder the lawe It behoued therfore that the fathers which liued in that time should haue some aide herein as they had the sacrifices which nourished them in the hope of the death of Christ to the end they should know that their sinnes were purged by the bloud of this Mediator So had they also the Sabbaoth day for a testimonie witnes that the grace was obteined vs to mortifie our thoughts affections to the end that God might liue in vs by the vertue of his holy spirit Now we haue some entrance to the vnderstanding of this which hath bene shortly touched namely that the Sabbaoth day was as a figure to represent this which in very deed hath bene accomplished at the cōming of our Lord Iesus Christ And so let vs note that the Sabbaoth day extendeth it selfe to the whole seruice of God to declare that men could not purelie sincerely honour him but by renouncing of themselues and by being separated from the defilements of the world of their owne flesh And for this cause the prophet Ezech. reproueth the Iewes that they kept not the Sabbaoth For this is said vnto them as if they had in general brokē the whole law not without cause For he which setteth at naught the Sabbaoth day hath cast vnder foote all the seruice of God as much as in him is And if the Sabbaoth day be not obserued all the rest shal be worth nothing as is spoken to the prophet Esay That men must bereaue themselues of their own proper vertues that they must humble themselues otherwise that this is not the rest of the Lord which is agreable to him or allowed of him By this we perceiue that it auaileth nothing to kepe the ceremonie only For albeit the Iewes had well obserued the ceremonie albeit they should haue assembled themselues together on the Sabbaoth day without putting a finger to their houshold affaires yet in the meane time should nourish in themselues their wicked thoughts affections after put them in practise this would haue bene but a mere mocking of God an abusing of his name a defacing peruerting of the whole order he had instituted as he also reprocheth thē For the principal point was to haue respect to the truth of the figure namely to the spiritual seruice of god And yet notwithstanding it behoued also that the Iewes should kepe the ceremonie which was cōmanded them For God held them in this bridle as not content that they should haue only the substance of things but also the shadowes figures of them vntil the cōming of Iesus Christ Now hereby vnderstand that which S. Paule saith That now we are not tied vnto this bondage of the auncient fathers to obserue in this sort the Sabbaoth day For we must do this honor to our lord Iesus Christ that we cōtent our selues with that which he hath brought to vs in his owne person without reteining any longer that which was exterior ceremonious vnder the law Now thē it is easie to gather how this obseruation perteineth vnto vs at this day Touching the ceremonie as I haue said it is past done away We must then come to the substance that is that to the end we may serue God well sincerelie we learne to withdraw our selues frō all our owne wils all our euil thoughtes affections And why For otherwise whē we will serue God we marre all It behoueth therfore that all our own wisdom be laid aside that we heare God speake not folowing our own wisdom fantasies Thus ye see the beginning first step to the right obseruing of the Sabbaoth day as we ought namely not to trust to that which we think imagine to be good For we must rest And how rest For sooth we must abide stil quiet Our thoughts must not stir to wāder deuise this that We must I say remain quiet in the obedience of our god And when we shal be pricked stirred vp by our lustes let vs call to minde that these are enimies against God that all our affections are wicked rebellious We must then quietly rest in that behalfe and yelde our selues ouer vnto God to the end that he onely may worke in vs that he may conduct and gouerne vs by his holy spirite By this we see that GOD hath omitted nothing when he appointed the Sabbaoth day For if it extend so farre as vnto his whole seruice what is wanting vnto
vs for a perfect doctrine of sanctimonie and holinesse Seeing then we haue the holy ghost which preseuteth vnto vs all that which is requisite there is no further questiō but of walking holily in the obedience of our god And how is this done Verily when with all reuerence and humilitie we receiue his holy worde seeking to conforme our selues vnto his iustice But because all that which is of our owne is contrarie herevnto we must begin at this end namely to renounce our selues When this shal be done haue we not all that which is requisite for the seruice of God But this is very hardly done and therfore let vs take the more diligent heed to awaken and stirre vp our selues when we heare that God commaundeth vs to obserue the Sabbaoth day knowing that this is not in sporting our selues but that we ought herein to vse force with our selues considering that for all our life we shall haue well profited if we come to obserue this day of rest that is to wit by renouncing all that which is of our owne and by dedicating our selues wholy vnto our god And by so much the more ought we to be inflamed to obserue spiritually this rest of the Lord seing we are franchised from this seruile subiection of the lawe and that God hath geuen vnto vs a greater priuiledge than vnto the auncient fathers in as much as he is contented that we bee mortified in our olde man to be renewed by his holy spirite so that we are no more bound to the obseruing of that ceremonie which was so streightly kept vnder the lawe Therfore when God handleth vs so louingly this bindeth vs so much the more to haue respect vnto the principall to the ende we may duely obserue it And we may not alledge that the auncient fathers haue had the ceremonie to stirre them vp and that this serued as a spurre to pricke them forward for we haue much more than the outward and exteriour signe for our Lord Iesus Christ is appeared that in him all this which hath bene figured vnder a shadow might be fulfilled Wherfore we are not to desire these smaller thinges which haue bene vnder the lawe Ye see then how this which hath bene ordeined concerning the Sabbaoth day is accomplished at this day touching the truth of the figure wherof the fathers had a sight vnder a shadowe And in deed wee must note that this which was commaunded of the Sabbaoth day is common belonging vnto ve as well as vnto them For let vs take the lawe of God as it is in it selfe and we shall haue a perpetuall rule of iustice seeing it is most certeine that vnder the ten commandements God would geue a rule which should endure for euer So let vs not thinke that this which Moses reciteth touching the Sabbaoth day is superfluous and not apperteining to vs Not that the figure yet abideth but we haue the truth thereof See to this purpose why the Apostle applieth to the instruction of Christians and of the new Church this which is said of the Sabbaoth day For he declareth that we ought to conforme our selues vnto our God and that this is our full and perfect felicitie So for asmuch as the chiefe happinesse of man consisteth in this that he was created to the image of God what ought we now sithence this image is defaced blotted out by sume but to studie to renew and repaire it See then how me ought to march on forward to our perfection namely that in conforming our selues to our God and to his will we enquire and seeke after his workes to the ende to endeuour to do the like Let vs know therfore that at this day to the end we may the better serue God our duetie is to bestowe all the paines we are able to tread vnder our owne thoughts and affections that God may reigne and beare rule in vs that he may guide gouerne vs by his holy spirite And so all hypocrites may well maske and disguise themselues they may well paint their doings and shew faire countenances yet neuerthelesse as long as their wicked lusts shall be closed vp and hid in their hearts as long as they shall be full of enuie of rancors of ambition of crueltie or of deceit it is certeine they shall doe nothing els but violate the Sabbaoth day or day of rest And therefore we may conclude that they peruert all the seruice of God according to that we haue alreadie alledged out of Ezechiel and as it is also spoken hereof in Ieremie And marke we why the ceremonie was so streight vnder the lawe Thinke we that God euer tooke pleasure in the idlenesse of men Certeine it is he hath not And yet he punished as greuously him which brake the day of rest to labour therein as if he had murdered a man And why so It seemeth that it is extreme crueltie that for gathering of stickes on the Sabbaoth day a man must die as if he did commit murder Yet the Lord condemneth him to death which gathered stickes in the Sabbaoth day And why Because that vnder this figure was comprehended the whole seruice of God. And see why in Ieremie it is said that they haue carried burthens on the Sabbaoth day And why It seemeth that God stayeth himselfe to much on a trifling and childish thing but he hath respect vnto this which was signified by the Sabbaoth day And therefore when it was so neglected of the Iewes this was as open sacriledge whereby they did declare that the whole lawe was of small account amongest them So then to come to our selues forasmuch as at this day we haue not this figure so precise and so streight but that God hath geuen vs a greater libertie obteined vnto vs by the death and passion of our Lorde Iesus Christ let vs learne with all diligence to bequest our selues vnto him and to knowe as I haue alreadie touched that how fairelie so euer we shall haue trauelled in all the rest it shall bee to small purpose except our affections bee helde brideled and that wee bestowe all our paines to renounce and take leaue of our lustes and desires in such sorte that GOD alone may rule and gouerne vs and that we may protest that we desire nothing els but to rest and repose our selues on him And see how God proposeth himselfe for an example For he is not onelie content to commaund men to rest but hee hath also shewed them the way hereto For after hee had created the worlde and all therein conteined be rested not that hee was wearie or needed any rest but this was to leade vs to beholde his workes and that staying our selues thereon we might be fashioned vnto him Will wee then obserue the spirituall rest Euen as it is said that hee ceased from all his workes So must wee also bee quiet and still leauing to doe that shall seeme good vnto vs and which our owne
confesse that our chief desire is willingly vnfeignedly to honor God that we cānot suffer any reprochfullie to abuse his maiestie Thus ye see what we haue to beare in minde vpon this place which we ought at this day with all diligence to obserue albeit it be preciselie geuen in commādement to the Iewes for in substance truth it belongeth vnto vs For as in old time our lord brought this people out of Egypt so at this day hath he drawen vs out of the gulfe of hell hath deliuered vs from eternal death from those deepe and darke dongeons wherein we were plunged to bring vs into his heauenlie kingdome hauing redeemed and purchased vs to himselfe by the bloud of his welbeloued sonne our Lord Iesus Christ Now let vs cast our selues downe before the face of our good God with acknowledging our faults praiing him to make vs feele them better than we haue done that labouring to reforme our selues more and more to his iustice we fight daily against the lustes and desires of our flesh and continue so long in this combate vntill he hath fullie freed vs from it and reformed vs vnto his image in the which we were first created That hee will graunt this grace not only to vs but to al people and nations of the earth c. The. 7. Sermon wherein it is entreated of the second Table Deut. Chap. 5. 16 Honour thy father and thy mother as the Lorde thy God hath commaunded thee that thy dayes may bee prolonged and that it may be well with thee in the land which the Lorde thy God geueth thee WE are now come vnto the second Table of the lawe wherein God sheweth vs how we ought all to liue here together For as it hath bene aboue touched there are two principall thinges required in our life The one that wee serue God purelie and sincerelie The other that we liue with men in all integritie and vprightnesse rendring vnto euerie one that which apperteineth and belongeth vnto him Now as the honour of God is more excellent than all that which concerneth men so it behoued that in the first and principall place the rule of honouring God as we ought should be geuen And this is handled dispatched in the first Table Here then God beginneth to declare vnto vs in what sort our life ought to be ordered if we wil applie our selues vnto the dutie we owe vnto men Now we haue also declared that God requireth no honour of vs for any neede he hath of it or for any profite it bringeth vnto him but it is for our welfare and saluation that he requireth it So then he will proue our obedience and the loue we beare him when he commaundeth vs to walke in all equitie and vprightnesse with our neighbours and that we liue together in such concord and fellowship that any one bee not geuen vnto himselfe but that we communicate together and that euerie one according to his abilitie and power to do well employ and force himselfe therevnto This say I is the proofe which God maketh to knowe whether we worship him vnfeignedly and from our heart For we might make many faire countenances and vse great ceremonies but God shall not content himselfe with it And this is the cause why our Lord Iesus Christ saith that the principall point of the law is iustice iudgement vprightnesse faith which worde importeth here fidelitie or faithfulnesse Therefore when we liue with men without hypocrisie and dissimulation when we are not geuen to our subtile sleightes nor malicious practises wee studie to minister vnto and to serue euerie one in his commoditie we mainteine right resist wrong as much as lieth in vs loe the chiefe and principal part of the lawe Not that the seruice of God ought in the meane while to be forgotten or that it is of lesse importance but because it is vnpossible that men acquite themselues in their duetie toward their neighbours except they be led herevnto by the feare of god Now let vs handle this commaundement last recited which concerneth the honouring of father and mother And here although expresselie mention be made of the father and the mother there is no doubt but GOD meant to deliuer a generall doctrine of hauing all superioritie in honour For graunt we which must needes be confessed that the lawe conteineth a perfect rule of doctrine wherein nothing is wanting and this which we haue said must needes be so For if it hath not touched any thing of the duetie we owe to other superiours as princes and magistrates and those which haue the sworde of iustice if it hath deliuered nothing concerning maisters it should haue some default in it Therefore we must conclude that God hath commaunded that all they which are in any degree of honour and authoritie be honoured and obeyed Moreouer seing all preeminence and superioritie commeth from God and that this order is established and appointed by him without the which the world could not stande what might be thought if God made no account of this when he gaue forth a certeine forme of liuing well and in all holinesse Neither ought we to account it straunge that vnder one speciall kind of obedience to bee yelded to all superiours the whole is comprised For we haue alreadie touched how this ought to be obserued in the law and we shall see it more plainlie hereafter And this was not done because God could speake in no other manner but for our better profite and instruction For we know that albeit men desire to seeme subtile and sharpe witted yet cease they not alwayes to couer themselues with the buckler of ignorance If we might espie that the law of God presseth vs ouer sore we would feigne haue some excuse to exempt our selues from the subiection of it And if the lawe of God were not apt and conuenient to instruct the rude and ignoraunt many would alledge that they are no great Clerkes that they neuer went to schoole It should seeme then that the law of God might not bind them But when we see that God abaseth himselfe to our rudenesse and that he speaketh grosselie according to our capacitie this taketh from vs all excuse this remoueth all pretences whatsoeuer and euerie one is bound to order him selfe aright and we all must confesse that there is nothing which hindereth vs from doing our dueties but that we be rebellious against God and will not beare his yoke Lo why vnder one kind God comprehendeth the whole that he might instruct traine vs vp like yong children whiche are not capable nor apt to be taught after some absolute and perfect maner This therfore is the true and naturall sense of the place as we shall see hereafter For as God deliuered the ten commaundementes or wordes as he calleth them so he annexed also the exposition of them to the end nothing might be obscure and that men might not doubt or dispute of that which
thing whatsoeuer and what benefite can you bestowe on me But all which I haue done and doe is onely for your profite and for your welfare I am then here readie to couenaunt by articles with you and to bind my selfe vnto you on my part Seeing I say that the liuing God doth abase himselfe so farre I pray you shall not we be to vnthankfull if we be not herewith beaten downe to humble our selues vnder him laying aside all our pride and hautinesse It is not therefore without cause that Moses speaketh here of the couenaunt which God hath made with his people to the end that especially his fauour and goodnesse shoulde be knowen Nowe if this was to be done in the time of the lawe there is at this day much greater reason thereof for the Lorde hath not onelie made a couenaunt for one time as with the Iewes but when he sent this onely some then declared he him selfe to be our father and sauiour much more fullie than before he had done and that after so sweete so gratious and so amiable a manner as nothing more in such sort that he hath here as it were laid forth his bowelles of loue and compassion towards vs Seeing therefore God hath presented vnto vs his heart in the person of our Lorde Iesus Christ and wee heare besides the protestation which Iesus Christ maketh that he will call vs no more his seruaunts but his friendes because he hath so familiarly communicated vnto vs all the secrets of his will must it not I beseeche you needes be that the diuell hath bewitched vs if wee bee not hereby moued to frame ourselues wholy vnto him renouncing euen our selues and all our affections So then when we perceiue in our selues any wickednesse wherby we are hindred to serue God when we feele our selues idely disposed in the worke of the Lord are euen brought into an heauie sleepe by the cares of this world to stirre our selues vp to praise our God let vs haue in minde this couenaunt which the Lord hath made with vs Nowe herevpon Moses further addeth The Lord made not this couenaunt with our fathers but with vs euen with vs which are aliue at this day This place may bee vnderstood after two sortes for it may bee taken for a comparison which Moses maketh the better to declare that the people which then liued ought to bee so much the more diligent in the seruice of God because they had receiued greater benefites than their fathers In which sense he speaketh in Exodus I haue not communicated this name to your fathers where God speaking vnto Moses saith that he declared not him self so plainly to bee God to Abraham Isaac and Iacob as he did vnto Moses And by this he signifieth that the people should be now more attentiue because God had reuealed himselfe vnto them after an vnaccustomed manner Euen so in this place one may vnderstand this God hath not made such a couenaunt with your fathers It is true that God spake vnto his seruaunts Abraham Isaac Iacob and did sufficiently instruct them And it is expresly said in the. 18. of Gen. Shall I hide from my seruant Abraham that which I will now execute vpon Sodome and Gomorra For I knowe that he will instruct his housholde in my decrees and ordinannces in my statutes and iudgements See then howe Abraham instructed his familie not after some bare and naked manner but in the iudgements and statutes and ordinaunces of the Lord Briefly wee must needes say that Abraham had the lawe of God imprinted in his heart yet loe besides a benefite not to be contemned when God hath sent this lawe in the two tables to the end the instruction thereof might remaine and abide for euer to his people and that the thinges therein conteined might be ratified for euer and testified to all posteritie as well as to them We see then what we may gather vpon this sentence euen as much as if Moses should haue said vnto the people Beloued acknowlege we the benefite the Lord bestoweth on vs this day euen such an one as our fathers haue receiued none the like for he deliuered not vnto them the lawe by writing as vnto vs he hath not declared to them these thinges in such plaine order True it is that he did sufficiently instruct them as much as was necessarie requisite for their saluation but here is yet an higher degree further steppe to which we are come at this day and therefore wee ought to drawe so much the neerer to him seeing we see that he hath so stooped vnto vs And this is the meaning of Moses if we vnderstand the place in this sense As if a man shoulde say at this day that God hath not done so to our fathers as he hath done vnto vs And this is that which Christ said to his disciples That many Kings and Prophets haue desired to see those thinges which you see heare those thinges preached which you heare and yet haue not had their desire Seeing then it is so that God of his infinite mercie goodnesse vouchsafeth to preferre vs before the Patriarches and Prophetes as it is also said that the Prophets serued not so much their owne time as ours we ought with greater diligence to suffer our selues to be taught vnder him to applie our selues wholy to his doctrine Notwithstanding when all is well considered although this we haue alledged be profitable and the exhortation is often brought in holy Scripture yet when we shall haue weighed all the wordes wee shall finde that Moses when he saith that God did not make his couenaunt with them which heard the lawe the first day it was published meaneth to say that not onely with them he made his couenaunt but also with those which ouer liued them and succeded in the place of those which were dead So that in fewe woordes Moses woulde here declare that the lawe was not transitorie to endure onely for the life of them which first heard it but that it was a doctrine which shoulde reteine his strength authoritie foreuer The Lord our God saith he hath not made a couenant with our fathers that is to say he woulde not onely haue our fathers for his people he was not tied to them so that his lawe should serue but for fortie or fiftie yeares but he hath made a couenaunt with vs as well and with them which were not borne when the lawe was published You then which were not at the mount of Horeb which haue not seene the fire on the montaine nor heard the thunderinges know you not withstanding that your God did then adopt you also to himselfe and that he made a couenaunt in the which you also were comprised You must therefore obserue his lawe because it hath bene established to bee perpetuall to endure from age to age and to bee preached euen to the end of the worlde And this is
after so gentle a manner that his maiestie might be knowen vnto vs in most louing and amiable wise For if GOD should speake only of his eternitie and souereigne being we should be all confounded Of a trueth this might suffice to condemne all our dotages yet we in the meane time can not bee fitlie hereby instructed to our vse and profite It behoueth then that after it hath bene declared that it is he alone whom wee ought to reuerence and to whome we must doe homage that he come vnto vs all after a gentle and familiar manner that wee may perceiue him to be our father and maister that we may knowe that he will alie himselfe and make a couenaunt with vs to the end we should cleaue vnto him This is meant by the title which he giueth himselfe in this place saying I am not onely thy euerliuing whiche come here to fright thee but I am withall thy god I haue chosen thee to my selfe I will that thou bee my heritage So then wee nowe see howe GOD authorizeth his Lawe to the end we should receiue it in all feare and humilitie and howe withall he sweeteneth it with his loue to the end we should take a tast of it and with a delighte pleasure submit our selues vnto it not refusing to be gouerned by the doctrine therein conteined And let vs knowe that wee can haue no excuse if at this day we honour not our GOD in trueth renouncing all our superstitions and what soeuer is contrarie to his seruice And why Because he shoulde winne vs to himselfe by these titles whiche are giuen to holde vs in his feare When he speaketh of the rule and power he hath ouer vs all and when he calleth him selfe Our GOD this ought to make vs tast his fatherlie goodnesse These two thinges are here comprised Wee see then that there remaineth nothing but that we geue diligent eare to that which is declared vnto vs in the lawe of God theron wholie rest and stay our selues And for this cause he vpbraided the people of Israel that they neither feared nor loued him If I be thy God and maister where is then my feare If I bee thy father where is my loue saith he by his Prophete Malachie There is no doubt but the Prophet in this place had respect vnto this whiche Moses here breefly toucheth For when GOD nameth himselfe The euerliuing he doeth it to the end that we shoulde beare him due reuerence When he nameth himselfe The GOD of his people it is to winne them by loue and gentlenesse and to shewe that after he hath elected them they shoulde geue them selues ouer wholie into his hand Now if this were vnder the lawe by greater right it agreeth vnto vs For although God in the person of his onely some would as it were be much abased yet for all this remaineth he always in his glorie neither is any thing diminished from the highnesse of that maiestie whereof he here maketh mention The abasement of our Lord Iesus Christ is an infallible testimonie of the mercie and loue of our God yet howsoeuer it be this ought not to occasion vs to cōtemne or to lesse esteeme his maiestie for God in this sort hath stopped to vs that he might allure vs to behold with lesse feare his maiestie and learne to reuerence him in such sorte as wee ought to doe So then of good right shall he reproue vs at this day as beeing altogether inexcusable if wee doe not feare and loue him For he sheweth himselfe our GOD and our maister But where is our feare when we regard not that he commaundeth vs when we haue hardened our heartes against his threatenings as if wee would despitefully resist him when wee continue in our wickednesse And although he hath said He will bee our iudge and that he will one day take an account of our doinges how is it that wee make but a scorne and mockerie of it Where is I say the feare which we owe to our GOD For it seemeth that wee will feare a mortall creature more than the liuing GOD which hath all preeminence and superioritie and maistershippe ouer vs Moreouer it is not enough that wee feare GOD after some seruile manner as being forced therevnto but wee must haue a loue alwayes ioyned with our feare For therefore nameth he him selfe Our father And let vs also note that when he declareth him selfe the God of Israel he meaneth by this word that he is our Sauiour also Thou art our God saith the Prophet Abacue and wee cannot perish So then let vs keepe in minde these titles forasmuch as they apperteine to vs and ought to serue this day for our instruction knowing that the Maiestie of God hath appeared in our Lord Iesus Christ Nowe let vs marke this which he further addeth for the greater proofe of his loue and fauour I haue brought you saith he out of the land of Egypte It is true that God here especially bindeth vnto himselfe the people of Israel aboue all other nations to which end he expressely setteth downe the redemption he had wrought them But when God speaketh wee must consider of all the benefites for the which wee are indebted to him which albeit they are in number infinite and inestimable yet wee ought at least wise call them to minde so farre as our small abilitie may doe applying all our wittes senses thereto perceiuing that wee faile and are behinde in this point let vs straine our selues better to minde them at least so farre as to be therby instructed in the loue and feare of our god Doth then God speake We must first consider that this is he which created vs wee are therefore his This one benefite were sufficient to prouoke euerie one with all his might to serue honour god For what sufficient recompense can we make him if there were but this that he hath placed vs in this worlde and of his mercie nourisheth vs here But yet when wee shall haue cast our eyes vp on high or downe belowe and take a diligent view of all the tokens he sheweth vs of his loue seeing that he hath created the worlde for our sake that he hath appointed all thinges to our vse considering that he hath engrauen his owne image in vs that wee shoulde be immortall vnderstanding that he hath prepared a better heritage for vs than this brittle and transitorie life when we perceiue all these things must it not needes bee that wee are more blockish and brutish than beastes if wee bee not rauished with a feruent desire to worshippe our God to vowe and to dedicate our selues wholy vnto him But yet further than this wee must make enquirie and enter into accompte as well of the benefites which are bestowed on vs all in generall as which euerie one also particularly receiueth and then behoueth it euerie one to make his confession with Dauid Lord when I thinke on thy benefites
opinions reasoning why this and why that And when we come to the high mysteries of God if they mislike vs we could wish that all were put out and abolished And this is all one as if we would plucke God out of heauen So then let vs learne that aboue all God commendeth vnto vs the honour and authoritie of his word as if he did say I will that you receiue all that which is conteined in the holy scripture that is in my word with all humilitie reuerence I will that you yeld your selues tractable although that which is there said agree not with your sense and reason and that you could wish I had spoken after your maner and fashion I will you do me this honour as to imprison all your senses and submit your vnderstanding to my word and to say Lord we are thy disciples we receiue without gainsaying whatsoeuer it hath pleased thee to teach vs knowing that it is for our profite and saluation Without exception therfore let all that which is comprised in the holy scripture be receiued with reuerence and when any question is of the holy mysteries of God let vs not geue iudgement according to our owne wit and vnderstanding And albeit the thinges be not conuenient and agreeable with our reason let vs notwithstanding be held backe in a short bridle that God may alwaies haue his whole entire authoritie ouer vs and his worde a full course and libertie And when we read the holy scriptures when we come to the Sermons let vs alwayes beare in minde to say Behold our God declareth himselfe vnto vs he sitteth as our Iudge we are not to make toyes and gambaldes of those things he shall speake As we see many will come to the Sermon But what They haue their hearts empoisoned against God and his word so that they can carie nothing thence which they peruert not with their wickednesse yea they will be further enuenomed to spue forth their blasphemies at table or els where when men shall speake any thing to their lust and appetite Loe how these men honour sanctifie the name of god Let vs learne then that whether we read the holy scripture or heare it handled in a Sermon to haue alwayes the name of God in reuerence and to yeld vnto him such maiestie that we tremble when one speaketh vnto vs hereof And aboue all when his word is preached as God speaketh by his Prophet Esaie For let vs know that so we shall declare our selues not onely by wordes but also by our deedes that we are his true faithfull ones and he shall take and auowe vs for his people and shall gather vs in the end into the inheritance of the kingdome of heauen Now let vs cast our selues downe before the face of our good God with at knowledging of our faultes praying him that it will please him not to impute those we haue alreadie committed vnto vs but that it will please him to reforme vs in such sort vnto himselfe that we desire no other thing than to honour him and to dedicate our selues vnto his seruice to the end he may dwel among vs and that our Lord Iesus Christ may reigne in vs both by his holy spirit by his word and so let vs say Almightie God and heauenlie father c. The. 5. Sermon Deut. Chap. 5. 12 Keepe the Sabbaoth day to sanctifie it as the Lord thy God hath commaunded thee 13 Sixe dayes thou shalt labour and shalt do all thy worke 14 But the seuenth day is the Sabbaoth of the Lorde thy God thou shalt not do any worke therein thou nor thy sonne nor thy daughter nor thy manseruant nor thy maide nor thine oxe nor thine asse neither any of thy cattell nor the straunger that is within thy gates that thy manseruaunt and thy maide may rest as well as thou AFter that it hath bene spoken of the pure and sincere worship of God of seruing him and glorifying his name without vaine taking of it either in othes or other thinges but reuerently and to the honour of God now here is mention made of the seruice of GOD according to that he hath required in his law touching the order he appointed for the exercise of the faithfull As the Sabbaoth day or day of rest was in part a figure to declare that men could not rightly serue God but by mortifying all that which is of their owne nature and afterward by dedicating themselues in such sorte vnto him as if they were wholy separated from the world Secondly the day of rest had this ceremonious vse to cause the people to assemble together to heare the lawe to call on the name of God to offer their sacrifices and to do all that which should concerne spirituall order and policie We see then now in what sort mention is made of the Sabbaoth day But this cannot be well sufficiently vnderstoode without some plainer and more distinct handling namely except both these parties should particularly be intreated We haue therfore first to note that the Sabbaoth day was a shadowe vnder the law vntill the comming of Christ to signifie that God will that men rest themselues from their owne workes And this is that which I haue said in a worde that we must mortifie our whole nature if we will be conformable to our god And that this is so S. Paule hath also declared Yea besides we haue sufficient testimonie hereof in the new testament But it shall suffice to haue alledged him at this time which speaketh more fully hereof namely to the Colossians when he saith That we haue the substaunce and the body of those thinges which were shadowed vnder the lawe We haue it saith he in Christ And therfore it was expedient that the auncient fathers should be exercised in this hope as well by the Sabbaoth day as by other ceremonies But â—ithence the thing is now giuen vs we ought not to stay our selues on these shadowes True it is that the law is so abolished that yet we ought to keepe the substaunce and truth thereof As for the shadowes and figures they are done away by the comming of Christ If one demaund how the auncient fathers knew of this sense and meaning Moses hath made declaration hereof as it is sufficiently shewed in the booke of Exodus For God after he had published his law in the 20. Chap. he reuealeth it to Moses and declareth to what ende this serueth and saith That he hath ordeined the Sabbaoth day as a signe that the people of Israel should be sanctified vnto him This is saith he the marke of my sanctification which I haue iustified among you Now when the scripture speaketh of our being sanctified vnto God it is to separate vs from all that which is contrarie to his worship and seruice But where shall one finde such puritie We are in the world we know that in the world there is nothing but peruersenes and wickednes
nature desireth If this example of GOD stirre vs not vp wee declare sufficiently that wee seeke not to obey him and by this meanes wee searche not after in any respect the true felicitie but desire willingly to abide in our pouertie and wretchednesse The souereigne goodnesse and chiefe felicitie of men as I haue saide is this that they cleaue vnto their god Beholde our Lorde calleth vs to himselfe and sheweth that wee can haue no true and holie coniunction with him but by resting our selues from our owne workes So then if wee bee still flitting in our fansies if wee labour hande and foote to put that in practise which shall seeme good vnto vs it is certeine this is as if we would breake the bondes which lincke GOD and vs together and withdrawe our selues from him as much as in vs lieth And by this may not a man see that we desire nothing els but to bee set forth as a prey vnto Sathan who driueth vs on headlong and maketh vs to wander forasmuch as we remaine no longer vnder the garde and protection of our GOD But what Few there are which consider of this aright Wee see the libertie euerie man yealdeth vnto himselfe When one warneth a man that hee ought not to walke after his owne heartes lust What I knowe will hee saie howe I ought to rule my selfe Verilie a man knoweth not how to despite GOD in more open manner than by such a rebellion This is as much as if wee would saie that wee will not that GOD haue any superioritie ouer vs It is true men will not openly protest this but the matter is so For as I haue alreadie saide there is no true worship except wee hence take our beginning to withdrawe our selues from our owne lustes and affections Now then when men will bee so wise in their owne conceite when they put such confidence in their owne witte and reason when they geue themselues all libertie to doe what so euer seemeth them good when they followe their owne affections and fansies when they will take no paine to represse them Nay are grieued when any woulde daunte and tame them it is a sure signe they neuer knewe wherein consisteth the true worship of GOD neuer vnderstoode the chiefe and principall pointe of the lawe And so let vs note well that when GOD alledgeth his owne example it is to allure vs with all mildenesse and gentlenesse to the obseruation of the lawe and keeping of this spirituall rest And withall let vs note as I haue alreadie touched that wee are wretched and miserable when we are separated and remoued from him And behold the bonde of our coniunction namely that drawing neere to his truth and religion wee suffer our selues to bee guided and gouerned by him Nowe a man may demaund for what cause the Iewes were commaunded to rest onely the seuenth day for wee ought not for one day in the weeke renounce our lustes and affections but wee must continue in that minde all the time of our life Briefly the rest which the Lord commaundeth is perpetuall and without any ceasing or intermission How then is it that he hath chosen one onely day in the weeke It was to shewe that when we shall haue applied all our studies to abandon our false opinions our wicked concupiscences all that which procedeth from our peruerse and corrupt nature that yet we cannot come fullie to this vntill we be wholy ridde of our flesh In deed the faithfull ought their whole life time to obserue the Sabbaoth day they ought to geue ouer their owne desires forsake their owne workes seeke to offer vp themselues wholy to God in all humilitie to order themselues after his will they ought to continue in his obedience I say wee must do so or otherwise all the seruice we shall do vnto God is but feignednesse hypocrisie and as for him he will disallow and reiect it Neuerthelesse we cannot acquite our selues wholy in this to renounce our affections in such sorte that there be no blame found in vs Saint Paule glorifieth in this that the world was crucified vnto him and he vnto the world Yet in the meane time he ceaseth not to say that the flesh fighteth with the spirite and haue no agreement together yea he confesseth also in the seuenth to the Romanes that he alwayes perceiued in himselfe this strife that he did not the good which he would that is to say he accomplished it not with so feruent a desire neither was he so resolued to walke according vnto God but that he had alwayes many stoppes and hinderaunces to stay him in such sort that he seemed to halte in stead of strong and vpright running Sithence then it is so let vs note that not without cause God ordeined the seuenth day for the Sabbaoth day signifying thereby that we cannot neither in one day neither in one moneth come to this perfection of sanctimonie and holinesse which he requireth of vs And why Because that when we shall haue manfully fought against the lustes and affections of our flesh against our euil thoughts and desires yet shall there be alwayes a residue and remnant in vs vntill we be fullie ioyned and associated with our GOD and that he hath gathered vs into his heauenlie kingdome Vntill that time there shall be alwayes some temptations in vs there shall bee alwayes some troubles some vnquietnesse we shall alwayes feele I meane those which seek to please God that we are yet subiect to many temptations and that there remaine in our nature many prickes by the which we are stirred vp and prouoked to this and to that And are not these so many lets to hinder the spirituall rest If a man did repose himselfe and rest so in God as he should do he should conceiue nothing in his fantasie which might turne him from the right way he should haue in him no euill affections or desires All these thinges should be farre from him Therfore when we conceiue so many wicked fantasies loe Sathan commeth to assaile and to shake vs with so many disquietings When we shall haue thought to doe well there arise some thinges in our minde which tickle and flatter vs and so albeit we hate that which is euill yet by such temptations we are prouoked to pursue after and to follow it And by this a man may see that it is no easie thing to be without all wicked concupiscences and to cast them off so that they beare no rule at all in vs So then let vs continually follow this studie and desire of celebrating the spirituall rest of God because we shall not come to the perfection thereof vntill the end of our life Now hereby we are admonished of two thinges The one is that we be in displeasure with our selues and mourne perpetually for our sinnes And although it seemeth that we haue bestowed great paine to make our selues obedient vnto GOD yet let vs knowe that we are alwayes but
But on the other dayes because we are occupied ouermuch about our worldlie affaires we are not so geuen to God as in that day which is altogether dedicated vnto this The Sunday the refore ought to serue vs for atowre to make vs mount on high to view the workes of God from a farre when we are neither hindered nor occupied with anything but that we may applie all our senses and our whole vnderstanding to reknowledge the gratious giftes and benefites which he hath bestowed on vs And when we shall well haue practised this on the Sunday namely shall haue deepely considered of the workes of God it is certeine that all the rest of our time we shall be geuen herevnto and that this meditation shall so fashion and polish vs that the Monday and all the rest of the weeke we shall be ledde to thanke our GOD when so before hand we shall haue premeditated on his workes to make our profite therein But when the Sunday is spent not onely in games and pastimes full of vanitie but in thinges which are altogether contrarie vnto God that men thinke they haue not celebrated the Sunday except God therein be by many and sundrie wayes offended When men I say vnhallowe in such sort this holie daie which God hath instituted to leade vs vnto himselfe is it any meruell if wee become brutishe and beastlie in our doinges all the rest of the weeke What is to bee done then Let vs all knowe that this is not sufficient that we come to the Sermon on the Sunday to receiue some good doctrine and to call vppon the name of GOD but wee must digest those thinges we heare and receiue and applie all our senses to the better vnderstanding of those benefites which God bestoweth on vs and that by this meane we bee so formed and fashioned to this thing that the Monday and all the rest of the weeke beside cost vs nothing to aspire and to come to our God and that we neede but to call to minde that whiche we shall haue learned before at good leasure when our mindes be as it were vnwrapped from all those thinges which hinder vs to recount the workes of god And this we haue to note touching the order wee are to obserue at this day which is not in keeping the ceremonie so streightlie as it was obserued vnder the lawe We haue no longer this figure But this rest day is to assemble vs together to the end that according to our infirmitie we bee better exercised to applie our selues to the seruice of God and to haue this day wholie consecrated vnto him to the ende we be drawen altogether from the world and that this may serue vs the better for the rest of our time as we haue saide And withall we must note that this is not enough that euerie one in particular and alone thinke on God and call to minde his woorkes on the Sunday but we must meete together one certeine day to make publike confession of our faith It is true that this ought to bee done euerie day as we haue said but because of the rawnesse and slouth of men it is behouefull to haue one speciall day which may wholie be dedicated and appointed to this vse I confesse well that we are not bound to the seuenth day as indeed we obserue not the day which was commandes the Iewes for this was the Saturday but to shew the libertie of Christians the day hath bene chaunged to the Sunday forasmuch as Iesus Christ in his resurrection hath deliuered vs from the bondage of the lawe hath cancelled the bond therof This was the cause why this chaunge hath bene made in the day But yet wee ought to obserue this order of policie to haue some day in the weeke be it one or be it two for this is left in the choice and libertie of Christians But that the whole people may bee assembled it is conuenient that one certeine day bee ordeined to receiue the Sacramentes together in common to haue the inuocation of the name of God and to shew an vnitie and concord in faith and religion It sufficeth not then that euerie one withdrawe himselfe into his owne house either to reade the holy scripture or to pray vnto God but it behoueth wee come into the companie of the faithfull and there declare the concorde and agreement we haue with the whole bodie of the Church and celebrate in such wise this order as the Lorde hath commaunded But what We may see here the vnhallowing of the seruice of god For as I haue alreadie touched are there not many which will shewe them selues herein despitefull vnto God and that will be exempted from the common lawe and order True it is that they will happilie come fiue or sixe times in the yeare to the sermon But what to doe Euen to make a mockerie of God and of all his doctrine These are indeed in the number of those hogges which came to defile the temple of God and deserued rather to bee in stables and better it were they held them selues in their stinking dennes to speake briefly it were better that such knaues were altogegether cut off from the Church of God than to shewe them selues in the companie of the faithfull But yet how many times come they among them The bell shall ring long enough before a man may espie them in any place So then wee ought with more diligence to take heede to our selues and quicken vp our selues to make such a confession of our faith that God may bee honored with one common accord among vs Moreouer wee must abolish all superstitions For wee see how among Papists men thinke to serue God by slouth and idlenes This is not the manner after which we ought to celebrate the Sabbaoth day but to applie it to his right and lawefull vse wee must knowe as we haue aboue said that our Lord requireth nothing else but that this day bee employed to heare his word to make our prayers in common to make confession of our faith and to vse the Sacramentes See wherevnto wee are called And yet wee see howe all hath bene corrupted brought to vtter confusion in Poperie for as they inuented dayes to honour their hee and shee Santes and haue forged to them selues idols so haue they thought they ought to serue them in all idlenesse Now seeing the world is so corrupted we ought so much the better to note this declaration of the Sabbaoth day as is here touched by Moses And withall let vs knowe to what end our Lord hath commaunded the auncient people to haue one day in the weeke to rest themselues And at this day vnderstanding how this outward ceremonie is abolished by the comming of Christ let vs geue our selues to the spirituall rest that is to dedicate our selues wholie vnto God renouncing our owne desires and affections and further let vs reteine the exteriour policie as farre as it apperteineth vnto vs namelie to
end the Iewes seing their stables closed vp shuld be put in minde to say How now God setteth here before our eyes this signe and sacrament visible euen in the brute beastes and this is to the end that we on our part should be the better kept and holden in his seruice that wee shoulde knowe that this were to breake the whole lawe if wee haue not regard vnto this which is the chiefe and principall point of all our life namelie that wee learne to renounce our selues and followe not our owne lustes reason or wisdome but that we suffer our God to rule and gouerne vs and that wee bee as dead creatures that he may liue in vs and not followe our owne swinge which is altogether corrupted Thus it behoued the Iewes deepely to weigh euen in the brute beastes this visible signe which was giuen to the end this might restreine them so much the more and that they should bee admonished by this meane to obserue the Sabbaoth day with all reuerence Withall we see how in all times God handleth men according to their hardnesse and that he hath prouided them of meete and conuenient remedies for asmuch as they are not inclined of them selues before he draweth them in this manner And this is not onely for the Iewes but for vs Let vs therfore acknowledge the great goodnesse and mercie of our God which forgetteth not nor omitteth any thing of all that which might remedie our vices And withall let vs acknowledge the peruersnesse which is in vs that wee flatter not our selues nor geue the bridle to our affections sithence we haue neede to bee constreined and that God geue vs many prickes with the spurre as to dull and restie iades And when God pricketh and spurreth vs in such sort knowe we that it is not without good cause but that he doth it because we are so croked and peruerse to be ruled because wee are so froward and rebellious Let vs then beginne to displease our selues in all our lustes and affections and learne to imprison our selues so farre that nothing hinder vs to follow the way which God would lead vs in And although our nature alwayes resist yet let vs enforce our selues to walke after his will vntill we bee fullie ruled and ordered by our god Loe what we haue to beare in minde vpon this place besides that which shal be by and by touched of man seruantes and maide seruantes namelie that God putteth the Iewes in remembraunce that they were seruantes in the land of Egypt and therefore that they ought with all gentlenesse to entreate them which are vnder their rule and authoritie For he saith Thy man seruant thy maid shall rest them selues And why For thou wast somtime in bondage the time hath bene thou couldest well haue wished that one had giuen thee some rest and release from thy labours Thou oughtest then to vse such gentlenesse towardes them which are vnder thy hand But here it might seeme that God hath ordeined the Sabbaoth day not for a spirituall order as it hath bene aboue said but that it might serue as a meane vnto charitie For he saith If thou wert in bondage wouldest thou not that one shoulde giue thee some release Wouldest thou alwayes bee oppressed with labour and trauell Surely by thy good will thou wouldest not It behoueth then that thou be are also with others Now this is not for the seruice of God but rather instituted for common charitie whiche ought to bee extended toward our neighbours howe euer in degree they be vnderlinges vnto vs But for asmuch as this commaundement is conteined in the first table of the lawe it is certeine that this whiche is here touched is but as accessarie I say the first table of the lawe for it is not without cause that God hath so diuided his lawe whiche he wrote in two stones Might he not haue wrote them in one stone if he had would Why then hath he made of them two seuerall partes This is not without great reason For in the lawe of God there are two principall articles The one concerneth our dutie towardes him the other our dutie we owe to our neighbours which liue and are conuersant with vs As our whole life if we consider well ought herevnto to be referred That is that first in knowing we haue a God to whom we are to liue we walke in obedience seeing we hold our life of him we doe him homage and reuerence therefore seeing he hath created vs into a farre better hope and hath adopted vs for his children we glorifie him for so great mercie and goodnesse seeing he hath redeemed vs by the bloud of his sonne we beecome his â–ª endeuoring to withdraw our selues from the defilements of the world to be vnto him liuelie and vnspotted sacrifices we call on him hauing our recourse vnto him alone we render him thankes for all his benefites bestowed vppon vs Yee see then the first point of our life consisteth in the honour we ought to giue to our god Againe seeing it pleaseth him further to proue our obedience by liuing with men in all vprightnesse none be giuen to his priuate profite but that we seeke to serue to the commoditie one of an other that there be mutuall honestie betweene vs so as wee absteine not onelie from fraude violence and crueltie but that our life be sober and modest that wee bee not dissolute wicked and brutish in our liuing And this is the second point of our life Nowe seeing it is so that this commaundement of the Sabbaoth day is conteined in the first table it followeth that it apperteineth to the spirituall seruice of GOD and that here is no question to bee made of the charitie wee owe vnto our neighbours And why then is this matter here treated of It is asmuch as if our Lorde did say This day of rest of some super aboundaunce and ouerplus shall serue you to this that your men seruauntes and your maides haue a release with you from their laboures Not that this was the chiefe and principall end wherevnto GOD tended For this was not his principall meaning that there shoulde bee one day in the weeke in the whiche a man shoulde cease from his labours to the end he might breath for that day and not toile so continually as to faint for wearinesse This was not the cause which moued God to ordeine the Sabbaoth day or day of rest but it was to this end that the faithfull should know they ought to liue so holily as to rest from all their affections desires that God might wholie worke in them For the rest it serueth as a benefite of supereâ—ogatioÌ„ as we say Behold our Lord saith Consider ye that sith you haue this warrant among you that I sanctifie you that you seeke to giue vp your selues wholy vnto me Yet loe one thing which shall serue you further and this is for your profite namelie that your familie shall not toile
and ouerworke them selues continuallie For there must be some rest for your men seruants and your maides and your cattell you shall haue then this as of superaboundance Nowe therefore we see why here is expresse mention made that the Iewes were seruantes in Egypt that it behoueth they haue some regard of them which are held as captiues and bondmen vnder their hands For Moses speaking of men seruantes and maides vnderstandeth it not after the common order and fashion among vs For with them the seruantes were slaues and bondmen they burthened them and held them vnder as the oxen and the asses they had so vile and barbarous a condition as was pitie to behold God then sheweth that the people of the Iewes obseruing the rest shall receiue profite commoditie by their familie You ought to be so farre saith he from complaining of the time which I haue reserued vnto my selfe that of seuen dayes there should be one dedicated to my seruice that if you be not ouer cruell vumercifull if you vse not tyrannie toward them which are vnder your authoritie such a day would seeme conuenient vnto you to be chosen For if you should haue no other regard but this policie namelie that in this day your seruantes shall haue some rest this ought to leave you herevnto but vnderstande you alwayes that I haue not ordeined it onely for your familie but for this end you might aduise your selues considering of this which I haue shewed that beeing separated from the vnfaithfull you be vnto me a royall priesthood that you desire nothing else but to serue mee in all vprightnesse and in a pure and sincere conscience When you shall haue this consideration then shall you knowe that this day shall further serue you for some earthlie profite and commoditie albeit in the meane time this is not that you ought to seeke after To speake in a woord our Lord in this place declareth vnto vs that which in like manner hath bene pronounced â—â— Iesus Christ that when wee shall seeke the kingdome of God all other thinges shal be cast vppon vs For we are of that minde that if we endeuour to mount on high to the heauenlie life and bestowe our studies herein we shall die for hunger and this shal be to turne vs from all profits and commodities Briefly the diuell coÌ„meth alwayes to persuade vs vnder this shadowe and wilinesse that if wee employ our selues to the seruice of God wee must needes die of famine and that wee shall liue to bee pitied of others for our miserie that we must needes quit our selues of the whole worlde But of a trueth we can not serue God except wee bee ridde of all our affections and cast from vs these worldlie cares which presse vs downe ouermuch Yet neuerthelesse wee must rest vppon this blessing which is promised vs namelie that if wee seeke after the kingdome of heauen wee shal be blessed in these temporall and transitorie thinges that our Lord will haue pitie vpon vs and will giue vs all that which he knoweth to be needefull and conuenient for this present life onelie let vs but waite for from him those thinges whiche wee by our industrie and labour can not obteine That then is the thing whiche is declared vnto vs in this place Now this sentence ought to serue vs as a pricke to stir vs vp to follow that which God hath commaunded vs For the cheefe thing which staieth vs from ruling and ordering our life to the obedience of God is this that being to much wedded to our selues wee thinke this shal be against our profite and we will alwayes prouide howsoeuer the case stands for our coÌ„modities in those thinges which apperteine vnto the world Behold how men can not followe God but rather forsake him and drawe cleane backward from his lawe for that they thinke if they serue God they shall neuer thriue Now this is so wicked an vnthankfulnesse that it serueth to aggranate an hundred times more our rebellion What must we then doe Let vs note well that we shall not be able to serue God with a frank and free courage except wee bee resolued that he prouideth for our whole life and that he will not forgette vs as it is spoken in the person of Iosue For the Apostle in the Epistle to the Hebrews applieth this doctrine to all the faithfull Yea to drawe them from ouermuch care and carcking he saith Thy God will not faile thee he will not forget thee So if once we can be persuaded that God watcheth ouer vs that he will liberally prouide for our necessities it is certeine we shall not bee so â—usied in our earthlie affections wee shall not bee so easilie turned from seruing of GOD we shall not be hindered to meditate and thinke on the heauenlie life we shall so passe through this world as to vse the creatures thereof as if we vsed them not because wee know alwayes that we ought to make our race further Loe in summe what we haue to beare in mind of this doctrine wherein our Lord sheweth that albeit this which he commaundeth of obseruing the Sabbaoth day bee spirituall yet notwithstanding that men shall perceiue herein their gaine and profite 〈◊〉 that God will blesse them when they shall haue a respect vnto him and shall not ouer busilie gredilie seeke after that which belongeth to their temporall and earthlie commodities Now withall we are warned that if any beare rule ouer others they ought not to despise their neighbours although they be inferiour to them And this extendeth it selfe verie farre For we ought not onely to expound it of men seruantes and of maides but of the poore of them which are neither in authoritie credite nor estimation of all subiectes of them whiche in the eye of the world are not worthie to be compared with vs For wee see what the pride of men is although wee haue no occasion to aduaunce our selues aboue others yet euerie one will desire and seeke after some preeminence and superioritie Seeing then there is such an hautines in vs that euerie one wisheth to be lifted aboue his neighbours yea though he haue nothing in him why he should bee aduanced to what outrage will we growe when we be exalted Behold them which are in the seate of iustice they would beare them selues in hand that the worlde were created onely for them if God held them not backe by his spirit and shewed them that they ought not to oppresse them whiche are vnder their charge but rather that it belongeth vnto them to execute the office of fathers to hold their neighbours as their children and that forasmuch as GOD hath so highlie honoured them they ought to walke in so much the greater humilitie They which preach the woord of GOD and haue charge to guide and conduct others if they thinke they ought to bee exempted out of the common ranke and despise others woe come to them For it
as to geue them the scepter of iustice to place them in his seate take good heede they rule exercise their authoritie in the name of God procure that he be serued honoured of all let them bee as mirrours spectacles to shew good example let them hold their subiectes in such good awe rule them in such order that the name of God be blessed the mouth of all euill speakers closed vp stopped Loe one point for them Let fathers mothers haue the care of well instructing their children let them studie to make them to knowe God for their onelie father and touching their men seruantes and maides let them so serue themselues with them that God haue alwayes the principall place Let them not doe as accustomablie men are woont who so they be serued to their owne profite and contentation care not if God be forgotten But let maisters knowe that God must beare rule ouer them as also ouer those which are vnder their subiection And this is spoken and noted touching them which are in authoritie Now on our part let vs consider that when we haue Magistrates set ouer vs if we be rebellious if we presume to arme our selues against the rule of gouernment if we seeke to subuert the order which God hath set that wee commit not this outrage against men onelie but that we assaile bidde battell vnto god And what can we winne by warring with him Can we he the stronger in this conflict No but he will reuenge himselfe without striking any blowe so that we shal be astonnished to beholde how he shall mainteine that which by his owne mouth he hath ordeined euen by a power admirable and wonderfull Thus much touching the first point And againe let children also consider and take heede they be not ouer arrogant and presumptuous they be not headstrong geuen to their lustes and appetites but that they order themselues quetly to the obedience of their fathers knowing that they are in combate against God when they cānot subiect themselues vnder the yoke which God putteth vpon them Let men seruants and maides knowe that if they refuse to be subiect vnto men whom they serue that God is thereby offended and that they in the end shall be found guiltie of so great a fault as this that they would not be gouerned by his hand Now in the meane time let vs note that God must be obeyed first of all that the people so obey their princes and magistrates that this derogate take away nothing from the right which God reserueth vnto himself as he is also worthie thereof If Princes will induce vs to do euill if they will ouerthrow the pure doctrine of God as we see ouermuch in the world that this furie and madnes is in many which would haue religion bended at their lust making it but an image of waxe which would haue the seruice and worship of God ordered according to their fantasies it pleaseth not God that we be obedient vnto them in that behalfe For who are they They haue lost all authoritie when they reuolt from the obedience of him who hath the chiefe and souereigne empire Must the diuels be forced to bend the knee before God our Lord Iesus Christ and shal there be men found which would vsurpe such maistership that in the meane time the honour of God shall bee ouerthrowen and all religion cast downe to the ground So then let vs learne so to obey both Princes fathers and mothers that God reteine his entier right fullie wholie and that we be not hindered to yeld him the honour which apperteineth vnto him but as farre as we may without wounding our cōscience we must obey them in all quietnesse And though they which haue authoritie ouer vs acquite not themselues of their dutie yet we owe them obedience so that the children ought not despitefully to behaue themselues when their fathers shal be ouer sharpe bitter vnto them shal exercise too great rigor against them True it is that fathers are forbidden to vse crueltie against their children yea forbidden to discourage them But yet although the fathers consider not to gouerne their children by gentlenesse yet ought the children to beare with it patientlie Briefly we ought to beare the iniuries quietlie and patientlie of all those which haue authoritie ouer vs And thus yee see what God would giue vs to vnderstand in this commandement Now he addeth also the promise That thy dayes saith he may bee prolonged that thou maist prosper vpon the land which the Lorde thy God giueth thee But there resteth yet a clause in the commaundement which for that we are hardlie ordered to humilitie God placeth for a spurre to quicken vs forward saying Thy God commandeth thee this And it serueth to the confirmation of the doctrine we haue aboue touched namelie that these shal be vaine friuolous shiftes to call into question whether they which are in degree of honour aboue vs deserue so or no whether they discharge their dutie in ttah office authoritie wherevnto they are called all this shifting to excuse our disobedience must be laid aside And why For we must content our selues with this which God hath appointed we must rest altogether vpon his good pleasure Loe for what cause Moses here addeth in expresse termes The eternall or euerliuing thy GOD hath so commaunded thee As if he did say True it is that men wil kicke and fling when they shal be rained with any bridle of obedience one shall neuer haue their good will and leaue to haue them in subiection Againe their pride and arrogancie alwayes stirreth them vp to a desire of lifting them selues ouer high So then there shall bee no voluntarie subiection before God beginne to worke and to put therevnto his hand But will you be rebellious vnto God saith he when you enter into these disputes Must he beare rule ouer me And must I obey him when he is no better than I If you so enuie at men see God opposeth him selfe and he will know whether he shal be obeied serued of you or no. And when he sendeth you his lieftenants you wil not receiue them it is a sure certein signe that you refuse also his yoke in such wise that his iustice is violated he perceiueth that he is despitefullie entreated of you Sithence it is so know ye saith Moses that the children which are rebellious to fathers mothers shall haue happily to alledge this or that and the people which are occasions of seditions and troubles shal wel haue some faire tale for their defence but this shal serue them to no purpose And why Because that God which hath established rules superiorities in the world will also that we mainteine them He hath pronounced the sentence herein which cannot be called back retracted When God hath geuen forth his ordinance decree we must make no questiō of our
will not make vs to wander and take endlesse labour as in a thing which hath neither banke nor bottome but he proposeth vnto vs onelie ten sentences True it is that hee hath expounded these tenne commaundementes by Moses And againe consequentlie by the Prophetes Lastlie we haue had the finall declaration of them by our Lorde Iesus Christ as it is at this day deliuered vs in the Gospell But what Wee haue yet this marke wherevnto we must alwayes order our selues Wee haue but tenne wordes for our lesson and seeing it is so ought wee not to iudge our selues verie frowarde and peruerse if wee despise so great grace of God and if we come not vnto him when hee handleth vs after so gentle a manner This wee haue then briefly to beare in mind of this easinesse and plainenesse which Moses sheweth vs to bee in the worde of god And withall let vs also note that he would hereby warne vs that we learne to content our selues with the simplicitie of the lawe that wee aduise our selues how wee come to controll GOD to cloute our patches and pieces to his worde For when he spake hee spake once for all and will that men hold themselues to that he hath said As we shall see hereafter how he hath streightlie forbidden vs to bende either to the right hande or to the left or to adde any thing to his doctrine And in verie deed seeing GOD hath adioyned nothing thereto who are wee to enterprise and take in hande any thing aboue him Thinke wee that when GOD deliuered his lawe hee had lost his memorie and knew not what was profitable for vs Can a man bethinke himselfe of that which hath bene vnknowen vnto GOD And againe beside all this when our Lorde hath so applied himselfe vnto vs thinke wee hee would instruct vs by halfes and leaue vs in the middest of the way Let vs therefore beare in minde that seeing GOD hauing pronounced these tenne sentences added nothing vnto them wee must so wholie applie and rest our selues simplie on that dâ—ctrine which is conteined in his lawe that wee ventur not to enterlace any thing of our owne whatsoeuer but let vs knowe that this is our perfect wisedome to bee obedient vnto our god It this had bene in all times well obserued we should not haue bene at this daie so incumbered to amend the corruptions whiche reigne throughout the worlde For from whence commeth it that men haue corrupted all religion and the seruice of GOD as wee see it is come to passe in Poperie The Papistes will vaunt and boaste themselues of seruing GOD when they shall haue their solemnities their ceremonies and other like trash And whence is this Euen from this that they haue presumed to adde some thing to the worde of GOD when they thought it not sufficient that GOD should be serued after his owne manner and fashion but men must reare vp some new deuises in their braines and fansie whatsoeuer they should thinke good So then all this which they call the seruice of God in Poperie is nothing els but a fardell of trumperies which men haue made vp together and not onelie this but that which hath bene spoken by the Prophet hath bene accomplished in them namelie That they haue despised and set at naught the commaundements of GOD while they haue bene geuen to their own inuentions And men see the wickednesse and mischiefe which is happened by this diuelish boldnesse and presumption when men haue gone about to disguise the worde of GOD by their lies and dreames and dotages So much the more diligentlie therefore ought wee to note this place when it is said That GOD hauing once spoken added nothing to that which he had said And in verie deede as I haue alredie said this is an horrible blasphemie when men will attempt to finde out I knowe not what some thing better than that which is conteined in the lawe of god This were to reproue him of a lie or to thinke that hee was not well aduised or happillie that hee forgat to geue in commaundement that which he ought And shall men finde out some thing better than hee Nay verilie Then let vs learne to order our selues in such forte vnto God that we haue this alwayes imprinted in memorie that God hauing spoken he made a full end and conclusion to say These are my limits borders whosoeuer wil presume to goe beyond shall but ventur further to breake his necke And in deede it can not otherwise be but a ruine and destruction shall followe vpon vs when wee will not keepe vs in that high way which God hath made and hedged in for vs Now albeit GOD speake not at this time in so visible manner as he did then to the people of Israel yet ought wee often to call to minde this lesson which is conteined in the lawe True it is that God hath not spoken twice but he hath spoken once for all as wee say but wee on our part must againe and againe call it to minde as it is also said in the Psalme The Lord hath spoken once I haue heard him twice For hereby wee are admonished that it shall not suffice to haue vnderstood for one day that which our Lord will haue pronounced and published in his name but wee must often and sundrie times meditate therevpon Let euerie one therefore exercise himselfe herein all the time of his life and let vs not cease euening morning to call this to minde and to consider well that which our Lord sheweth vs For when wee haue employed all the time of our life herein we shall hardly come so farre as the midde way True it is as wee haue alreadie said that euen at the first entrie God teacheth vs so much as is expedient to be knowen for our saluation But yet for all this we shall alwayes finde wherein to make our further profite in the worde of god Let vs therefore be diligent and let vs not thinke it is labour lost which we bestowe herein no not when we applie our studie day by day herein and shall not geue ouer to searche and inquire after that which God teacheth vs Behold in what sort wee must applie this to our vse and practise it wherein it is said that our Lorde hath added nothing Now let vs come to the third point which is that God spake out of the middest of the fire of the cloud and of the whirlewind It is true that this hath bene before expounded alreadie but seeing it is repeated againe vnto vs by Moses let vs note that it is not any thing superfluous And in verie deede wee cannot be to often put in minde hereof that the worde of God ought to beare a great maiestie with vs to humble vs vnder it that wee may yeelde all subiection and obedience therevnto And why First we see what pride and arrogancie is in men that they can hardlie stoope and bend their neckes to
bee pliable in such sorte as they ought I graunt a man shall not heare them say plainelie in expresse words they will resist God and make open warre with him But what euer they protest herein are they so tractable to be taught so humble and modest as were requisite they should be Nay they are farre wide from this Againe there is in vs such a dulnesse and vnsensiblenesse that being so nousâ—ed as we are in these earthlie things and so charmed in them wee can not raise vp our vnderstanding to hearken vnto GOD we can not come neere this spirituall wisedome for asmuch as our mindes are sore possessed with the cares of this worlde wee neede not anie thing to make vs rest our mindes here belowe on the earth It is therfore verie needfull and necessarie that our Lorde touche vs to the quicke to the ende we may beare such a reuerence vnto his woorde as that it die not altogether in vs partlie by our rebellion partlie by our stupiditie and dulnesse that is to say because wee are so lumpish so earthlie so grosse and worldlie minded and partlie for that we are alreadie fraughted with so manie vanities that wee neuer minde such things as are on high but lying still groueling on the grounde wee are helde occupied in these transitorie and corruptible things Therefore GOD not without cause spake out of the middest of the fire and of the cloud and whirle winde when he would publishe his fame For it behoued that the people should be touched with some great feare to say There is no talke of sporting our selues with God when he appeareth vnto vs so terrible and in such maiestie what resteth then but that wee tremble vnder him and shewe vnto him such subiection that he gouerne vs as his sheepe that we all bende our necke that we sloope with our head suffering him to order vs to his will that euerie one giue himselfe wholie thereto and that we be all confounded when hee speaketh and haue no other affection and desire in vs but to serue and honour him and to subiect our selues altogether to his guiding and direction Loe why God hath so magnified his lawe when it was first published Hee might well haue spoken without casting out flames of fire without making the mountaine to smoke without hauing so darke and obscure a cloude but hee would vse these miracles that the people shoulde tremble being stroken with an exceeding great feare And therefore let vs note that hee would hereby leade vs vnto that which the Prophete Esaie speaketh That his spirite shall not rest but vppon them which tremble at his woorde For this is the thing wherein hee will proue our obedience towardes him namelie that when he speaketh wee receiue without anie contradiction or gainsaying what soeuer hee shall say that we account it good for vs and agree therevnto and say Amen not onelie with the mouth but also with the heart that in our whole life we serue obeie him For this is the seruice which GOD requireth and wherewith hee will be honoured namelie that we declare what obedience we beare vnto his woorde But because we are herein so hard and so heauie that rather wee drawe cleane backwarde than bende the necke to carrie his yoke it is needfull that we be ayded and set forwarde by such meanes as are here mentioned And therefore let vs note that this flame of â—ire appeared not then to serue and instruct them onelie which sawe it but that at this day the lawe of God must by this testimonie witnesse be authorized and made authentike and that the remembrance hereof should remaine so fresh in our memorie that when we shal call to minde this which happened for one time we be humbled vnder the maiestie of our God and that when we would proudly and presumptuouslie lift vp our selues against him this fire which then burned to feare the people the thicke darke cloude likewise come before our eyes that we remember also howe the mount was seene to smoke that all this may be to holde vs in such a fright and feare that all loftinesse and hautinesse of ours be beaten downe that we may bethink vs to come and present our selues to our God to bee led by him whither he will and that we may followe most willinglie whither soeuer we shal be called of him Ye see then wherevnto we must referre this which is here touched of the smoke of the flame of fire and of the thicke cloud And withall let vs note that when God appeared in a whirlewind and in an obscure and darke cloud this was to represse and keepe downe the curiositie of men It is true as we haue alreadie touched that GOD speaketh to be vnderstoode that he vseth no doubtfull and ambiguous wordes that he fetcheth no long circumstances as we say but manifesteth and openeth his will so clerelie and plainlie that the fault shal be no where but in vs if we bee not perfectlie instructed therein if wee will but lende our eares to heare him But in the meane time wee must not bring with vs such a foolishe curiositie as to inquire beyonde measure of what wee list as wee see men inclined to such a foolishe ambition that their eares are alwayes itching and they will say I would knowe this and that Nowe beholde howe our Lorde God opposeth him selfe contrarilie and saieth Will you knowe this and that Loe a thicke cloude which hindereth you consider of this obscuritie and darkenesse which you see So let vs learne that if wee will bee good scholers vnder God we must not loose the bridle to our owne fantasies to be inquisitiue after that which ought to be hidden from vs but let vs content our selues with that which shal be spoken vnto vs in the name of God and let vs waite for that day wherein we shall haue a full manifestation of the rest which is nowe incomprehensible brieflie let vs be ignorant of that which God will not declare vs For this ignorance surmounteth all the knowledge and wisedome of the world namelie when we desire to knowe no more than our Lord permitted and graunted vnto vs Now let vs come vnto that which Moses addeth he saith That the lawe was written in two tables of stone that it was deliuered to him When mention is made of two tables we must call to minde that which hath bene said handled heretofore that is that God could well haue written the whole law in one stone but he would write it in two that this distinction being made we might so much the better comprehend that which is conteined in the lawe For we see our Lorde hath so chewed those things for vs which are there conteined that we might not alledge that he speaketh in to high a language for vs to vnderstand For as much as there are two principall points in our life our Lord hath diuided his law into two tables namelie that
as to destroy and bring vs to nothing that he yet vseth such mercie towardes vs that it is vnto vs to life in steede of consuming and destroying vs And when I say that the worde of God is of such force as to consume vs to nothing I vnderstand not onelie the worde as it is here described by Moses but if the Lord would make vs feele the vertue and power of his worde albeit it should be preached vnto vs by men yet shoulde it serue vtterly to confound vs But now wee see that the Lorde quickeneth vs when he speaketh vnto vs and especially at this day when the Gospell is preached vnto vs for this which is spoken by Saint Iohn is euerie day accomplished namelie That all those which heare the worde of the sonne of man are restored to life For by nature wee are aliantes from GOD wee are exiled and banished his kingdome wee are dead and as it were enâ—umbed in some graue or sepulchre and loe our Lorde Iesus Christ profeteth vnto vs the remission and forgiuenesse of our sinnes God his father adopteth vs for his children Beholde then the manifestation of saluation which is opened vnto vs and wee are thereby quickened and restored vnto life by the meanes of the Gospell And for this wee haue wonderfull great cause to praise and glorifie our GOD for that he maketh his worde to serue for to restore vs vnto life and to deliuer vs from death whereas his worde is of such force and vertue as vtterlie to consume vs if he of his mercie did not turne it to worke a cleane contrarie effect in vs. Now withall let vs diligentlie note that if our Lord hath once bestowed on vs more than we any way deserue wee must not therefore take leaue and licence hereby to tempt him and to desire alwayes to rule him after our owne lustes and appetites As wee see at this day the Papists will excuse themselues for not receiuing the Gospell because they see no miracles done in our time Yea but let them answere me wherevnto the miracles which our Lorde Iesus Christ hath done and which hee committed to his Apostles serued Ought these to serue nothing to our profite and commoditie Behold then what admirable vertue and power GOD hath declared at the beginning of the Gospell The heauen and the earth were then moued there was no parte in the worlde wherein GOD imprinted not some worke or signe of his maiestie that the Gospell might be authorized Beholde the Angels which descended at the birth of our Lorde Iesus Christ to beare witnesse vnto him beholde the Sunne which was darkened at his death behold the vaile of the temple which was rent in two pieces to shew that the holy Sanctuarie was opened and that freer and bolder accesse was graunted vnto GOD than euer before The raging and tempestuous Sea is appeased the diuels themselues do homage to the glorie of GOD being present Brieflie both by signes and wonders aboue and beneath God hath declared that the Gospell proceeded from him as wee haue alreadie shewed So many maladies sicknesses healed so great warres appeased so many other signes and wonders which were shewed were not to serue for one time onelie but at this daie the memorie of them ought to remaine and wee must receiue this witnesse for a seale of our faith that wee doubt not but that the dignitie of the Gospell ought to bee as great at this day and that the authoritie thereof is as well nowe ratified and confirmed as it was then when Christ wrought his miracles And yet for all this we see manie of the vncredulous and vnbeleeuing sorte which alledge that if they did see any miracles they should be conuerted But it is certeine if they were now presently shewed they would still remaine in their obstinacie and stubbornesse take thereby an occasion of further enuenoming and impoisoning themselues against god What remaineth then for vs to doe We must learne as I haue said to content our selues with that which GOD hath once done If GOD hath giuen vs more than hee owed vs let vs receiue it and with geuing of thankes let vs learne not to prouoke his wrath and anger against vs by an ouer presumptuous tempting of his patience Beholde then what wee haue to beare in minde in this place when the people saith Let the Lorde speake vnto vs no more for it sufficeth vs that were haue hearde his voice and yet haue bene permitted of him to liue And that this wee haue aboue declared may bee more certeinlie confirmed vnto vs let vs beare in minde that which is here said What fleshe hath hearde the voice of the liuing GOD and liueth For by these wordes in this place it is plainelie shewed that the people of Israel spake not in their owne name but euen in the behalfe of all mankinde They saie not onelie What are all we to heare GOD speake but What is all flesh And in verie deede as I haue touched in the beginning it cannot bee but men are either staring madde or starke dronken when they cannot humble themselues for there needed no other thing for them to doe but to respect their owne estate and condition to saie What are wee There is nothing neither in our bodies nor in our soules but frailtie We are not now remaining in our nature wherein wee were first created but beeing fallen therefrom into that estate wee nowe are in what are wee but as a water which glideth away as a smoke which passeth and vanisheth on a soudeine And which worse is wee are enimies of GOD and hee must needes bee our aduersarie partie forasmuch as there is nothing in vs to be found but sinne and wickednesse Therefore when we be entised and tickled with such foolish and vaine lustes and desires as to wishe that GOD would do miracles that we might heare the angels of heauen let vs returne to thinke on this which is here said and what is all flesh Let vs I say enter into this consideration to bethinke our selues what wee are and our owne small abilitie shall sufficiently aduise and aduertise vs to geue praise and thankes vnto God that he maketh vs not feele his presence to consume vtterlie to confound vs but with an amiable mildenesse and gentlenesse allureth vs to himselfe when we heare men like our selues and our brethren which speake vnto vs in his person And let vs further note that when the people of Israel say What people hath heard the voice of the liuing God and remained aliue as wee It is to shewe vnto vs that God would not that this should bee drawen into consequence for vs to conclude any thing thereon And therefore let vs not alledge this to say And why speaketh not God at this day vnto vs after a visible manner as he hath done to his people in the mount It pleased him then so to doe but wee must not impose him a lawe or thinke to binde
as it were requisite Wee shall then bee accursed and condemned when God shall iudge vs in any rigor and seueritie So then men must not here vaunt them selues of obteining any reward which they haue merited nor boast of their workes but rather let them knowe that all the promises which God hath giuen in his lawe import with them a condition and therefore shoulde bee vnprofitable vnto vs by reason that none discharge them selues of their dutie except God would accept of vs and beare with vs for his meere bountie and goodnesse And hereby wee see what rage and madnesse this is in the Papistes when they boast themselues of their merites that it seemeth them they haue to contracte and couenaunt with God and they so venturoustie vpon a diuelish ouerweening and boldnesse make their account that they thinke God is verie much bound and beholding vnto them But what proofes haue they of their satisfactions their woorkes their meâ—â—â—es And where shall a man finde those merites O we haue done say they this and that no remedie but wee must make vp our accountes with god And behold on the contrarie side God who requireth that wee serue him in all and through all which wee are neuer able to doe as wee haue seene heretofore and as it is sufficientlie handled and declared in many other places Nowe let all the worlde examine them selues to see whether there may herein be found one which hath accomplished the lawe But so farre we shal be from finding any such that there is not one which may protest that he hath done the hundred part of that which is in the lawe required Therefore all must confesse that they are accursed Yea in this so small portion and so little as may be wherein men acquite them selues shall bee alwayes founde some wickednesse and some blottes or other So then GOD shall iustly reiect and haue in detestation all that we bring and are able to doe Let men therefore bee ouerwhelmed and confounded with shame and let them confesse that they are all culpable guiltie before god Wherefore let vs note that this promise cannot be accomplished but that God beareth with vs and respecteth not so manie vices and infirmities as are in vs but by his mercie hideth and burieth them Therefore our workes are then receiued and approued by God when he respecteth not what they are but accepteth them through the vertue of the death and passion of our Lorde Iesus Christ as good and holie And albeit there be alwayes many blots and staines in vs yea much stinking corruption except it should be washed away by the bloud of Iesus Christ yet hee alwayes accepteth vs by the meanes thereof and no otherwise So let vs learne to boast our selues and glorifie in the meere and only mercie of God and not vaunt vs of anie merites And in the meane time let vs not cease to be incited and stirred vp with so much greater zeale to serue him when we see that hee will allure and winne vs vnto him selfe by such mildnesse and gentlenesse Yea Moses sheweth that whatsoeuer God promiseth vnto his people when they shall obserue his law procedeth from this fountaine rather than from anie obligation And this is that which he saith As God hath promised to thy fathers as if he said Beloued serue God and he shall be a good maister vnto you And thinke not that you haue lost your time labour when you shall haue obserued his law for you shall haue a large reward which is made readie for you But withall consider ye whence it proceedeth Behold the fountaine saith hee that is that before ye were borne and brought into this worlde God hath promised your fathers to bring them into a land which floweth with milke and honie Moses thus leading the people vnto this promise which had beene made vnto the Patriarches sheweth sufficiently that God maketh no new promise but that he ratifieth and confirmeth that which hee had said And why Is it that he was bound to them which were not yet born No but because he had loued their fathers as he hath aboue said It is true that Moses now sheweth that the people was partaker of such a promise if so be they should obserue the lawe of God. But what We must yet alwayes come to this point that men are vtterly confounded if they will oppose themselues against GOD alledging anie dignitie or worthinesse of their owne and that they shall alwayes remaine in their condemnation they shall finde that they are all accursed It behoueth therefore that they haue their onely refuge vnto the mercie of GOD and that they knowe that when they shall haue forced them selues to walke according vnto his lawe that God shall owe them nothing albeit he will not leaue to accomplish that which he hath promised them euen by his meere goodnesse and free mercie Loe then howe this place ought to bee vnderstoode Nowe seeing he in this place speaketh of the land promised vnto the Iewes let vs note that at this day we ought to be by manie degrees more incited and prouoked to serue GOD seeing hee hath dedicated the whole earth vnto himselfe and will that his name be called on throughout all the worlde For the bloud which our Lorde Iesus Christ hath shedde hath sanctified all the world which was then as it were in all filth and pollution For we knowe there was no lande but this which GOD had reserued vnto himselfe and wherein hee woulde beare rule vntill the comming of his Sonne But when our Lorde Iesus Christ appeared he then obteined possession of the whole worlde and his kingdome was extended from one end vnto an other and especially nowe when the Gospell hath beene published Sithence then it is so let vs diligently note that we are at this day much more streightly bounde vnto the seruice and worship of GOD for as much as by the precious bloud of his Sonne he hath consecrated and made holie the whole earth to the end wee may dwell and be lodged therein and that we may liue vnder his kingdome And therefore as we will that he haue vs vnder his safegard and protection so let vs beware that wee yeeld vp our selues wholie vnto him But because men are alwayes so fickle and wauering that as I haue alreadie saide no bridles are sufficient to raine them to obedience Moses confirmeth all the doctrine hee hath in this place pronounced by saying Heare therefore O Israel the Lorde thy GOD is one god He had saide before Hearken he had said Take yee heede he had said That they must obserue the lawe But here he confirmeth his whole matter much more better when hee saith so expressely That the GOD of Israel is one GOD For by this his meaning is to exclude all the gods which the worlde forgeth and he will shewe that it is not lawfull for them to conceiue anie thing after their owne fansie but that only which we holde by
the worde of god Therfore when the God of Israel is called One God it is as much as if Moses did make comparison betweene the God which published his lawe as before he was manifested vnto his seruant Abraham and to the other Patriarchs would oppose him against all the gods which the world imagined As God in all times hath bene called vpon this name hath bene common among the Painims But what The Painims haue so wandered that albeit euery one hath saide I adore and worship God yet what was this but their owne dreames and fantasies For when men take vpon them to worshippe God when they haue no knowledge of him there is no doubt but they worshippe idols The Turkes at this day will say that they worship God Creator of the heauens and of the earth but this is but an idol which they worshippe And how so They name him Creator of the heauens and of the earth they haue no images It is true But yet haue they but an idol in stead of God because they will not receiue our Lorde Iesus Christ who is the liuelie image of God his Father And we knowe what Saint Iohn saieth that he which denieth the Sonne he denieth the Father Therefore they haue not God but an idol As much is to be saide of the Iewes The Iewes will brag much that they haue the law and that they worship the God of Abraham of Isaac and of Iacob but what They are Apostataes they haue renounced the lawe of God when they haue reiceted and refused Iesus Christ who is the soule of the lawe It is he by whom God the father will manifest and open himselfe vnto vs it is he in whom hee will be worshipped And againe he saieth Risse the Sonne whom I haue sent you And againe Who so honoureth not the Sonne the same honoureth not the Father which hath sent him Let vs therefore diligently note that Moses would in this place make comparison betweene the GOD which hath declared himselfe in his worde and all the gods which are renowned throughout the whole worlde shewing that all that is beside him is nothing but apishnesse and meere vanitie and lying And why For we cannot worship God aright except we haue first knowne him And wee must alwayes to this purpose remember that which Iesus Christ said vnto the woman of Samaria ye knowe not what ye worship When Iesus Christ vseth this word he doth as it were spit at all those seruices and worshippings which were then established There was no nation which vaunted not of seruing God and Iesus Christ reiecteth all that which men thought to be good and holie Ye knowe not saith he what ye worship Hee sheweth hereby that it is reqâ—isite and needefull there be made some manifest declaration of God we must not walke here at all aduentures but we must be assured what the God is whom wee serue and worship Now seeing God must be knowne of vs to be rightly serued and worshipped let vs consider whence this knowledge shall come and arise Shall it grow in our owne garden as we say Shall we obteine it by our owne labour and industrie Shall it bee lawfull for euerie one to thinke what shall seeme good vnto him to say I haue knowne God No no but GOD must declare and shew himselfe hee must approche and come neere vnto vs And so the onely meane to knowe GOD aright is this that wee bee taught and instructed in his woorde And loe why he saith The Lord thy god For this people had receiued the lawe and againe the couenaunt had bene made with their fathers GOD had separated this flocke from the rest of the whole worlde It is not then without cause that Moses here leadeth the people to the knowledge of God to the end they estraunge and keepe themselues from all the superstitions of the Painims that they haue nothing common with the vnfaithfull ones but that they know that wheras God hath manifested himselfe so familiarly vnto them they haue a most certeine and infallible truth Now if this hath bene saide of the time of the lawe it agreeth much better vnto vs For albeit God hath giuen a sufficient admonition vnto the Iewes that they bee not mingled among the pollusions of the Painims in their idolatries yet haue wee at this day a much more brighter clearenesse since the appearing of our Lorde Iesus Christ who is the liuelie image of GOD his Father as wee haue saide And wee may well agree vnto that which is written in the first of Saint Iohn None hath seene GOD at anie time but the Sonne which hath alwayes bene in the bosome of the Father hath reuealed him vnto vs The auncient Fathers haue had a knowledge as we haue said but this knowledge is accounted as none in respect of that which we haue at this day by the Gospel Since the Sunne of righteousnes shineth on vs behold God sheweth him selfe most familiar vnto vs And loe why the Prophet Esaie when he entreateth of the redemption which was to be made in the person of the sonne of God Behold him beholde him this is our GOD this is our Lord saieth he The Prophete crieth out This is this is our god He is not contented to say in one worde Beholde our GOD but hee speaketh as if the thing had bene present and that GOD should then appeare And howe is this said Was not God in the middest of his people For hee saide I will dwell in the middest of you And againe Beholde my rest Sion is the place of my habitation And againe he protesteth that hee will neuer depart thence that the people is his temple that they are his royall priesthoode Why then is it that the Prophet Esaie saieth Behold him behold him saith our God This is he this is he when our Lorde Iesus should come into the world This is because God reuealeth him selfe vnto vs in greater perfection There remaineth therefore lesse excuse for vs if wee at this day wander and holde not our selues to the pure trueth but that enerie one turne after his dreames to say It seemeth me so beholde what I finde to bee good Knowe we that all this is nothing that wee must returne to that certeintie of trueth which hath bene brought vnto vs by our Lorde Iesus Christ But the worlde is so farre from knowing of this that it seemeth all haue desired to despite and anger GOD that they haue deuised howe to turne their backe vnto him that they haue laboured to reiect and lay aside all subiection that they might haue leaue to remaine in their enormities and vurulie demeanours and that their wickednesse in the meane time might not bee perceiued The Iewes are vnexcusable as wee see howe the Prophetes reproche them that they haue wittinglie abandoned and put away GOD and that they can not excuse them selues as the wretched Painims saying That they haue heard nothing