his worship and that he should not be the appointer of it Hence it is that not onely the Hebrews but also all Greeks and Barbarians did rest from work on the seventh day witness Iosephus Clemens Alexandrinus and Eusebius lastly it afronteth Christs institution included in the very name of the day Why is it called the Lords day Rev. 1.10 1 Cor. 16.2 is it not because it was appointed by the Lord and to continue for the Lord as the Sacrament for the same reasons is called the Supper of the Lord. To make an end of the point let the Magistrates of London and other parts who haue kept back their authority from sanctifying of the Sabboth look to the end fire is broke out already but I fear if we will not â—earken to hallow the Sabboth of the Lord that the fire spoken of by Ieremy shall break forth in our Gares and not bee quenched till it haue devoured us I might say much in this point both by reason of the commonnesse of the sin and plenty of matter against it but I will onely say this Where there is no conscience of keeping of the Sabboth sincerely they haue no ground to expect any good As for Stage-plaies they are the devils chaire the seate of Scorners the plague of piety and the very pox to the Common-wealth but I haue a whole Treatise against them And as for the other sins mentioned it is counted but Puritanism to count them sins but so much the worse As our Nation is a field of crying sins so the cry of some sinns must not be discovered but countenanced in a searfull manner who knows but the things which we count trifles may be the speciall matter of our controversie with God A little other fire then God had ordained might seem a small matter in the eyes of indifferency yet it was such a sinne as made all Israel guilty as appeareth by the sacrifices offered for that sinne Levit. chap. 16 yea it brought such a fire from the presence of the Lord as could hardly be quenched These sinnes therefore must be taken by the poll and others of the like nature as contempt of the Word and hatred of Gods people and they must be beaten to powder with the Israelites Calfe Goe from a Tribe to a Family from a Family to a house and so to every man of the house till the golden wedge be found out We must not trust our wicked hearts with this work for corrupt nature is blind as a beetle in the finding out of sinne witnesse the Israelites even then when all the plagues of God were comming upon them they sayd What is our iniquity or sinne against God Ier. 16.10 Princes and people had need of good Seers whom they must suffer to shew them their sinne that either they cannot find or will not finde such was Nathan to David they must not count such men of contention and busie-fellows as the Iewes called Ieremiah but our evill age doth not onely hide sinn but maintaine sinne There is also too much propensitie both in the bade and also in the good to palliate sin to tranfer their troubles to other causes then to it I remember that Traian Generall to Valence the Emperour that mirror of impietie going against the Gothes he was defeated in the very first battle for which Valence upbrayded Trajan at a feast with cowardize and sloth as being the causes of the overthrow but noble Traian not enduring that indignitie with freedome of speech told enduring that indignitie with freedome of speech told the Emperour in plaine termes that he had lost the day for you do so war against God saith he meaning his persecuting of Christians that you abandon the victory and send it to your enemies Niceph. Calist lib. 11. Cap. 40 Eccle. Hist it is God saith he that overcommeth and he giveth the victory to those that obey him but such are your adversaries and therefore you haue God to fight against you how then can you overcome Here you may see a patterne of a wicked disposition well taken up and the saddle set upon the right horse And not onely doe such bloudy monsters as this shift off their calamities from their sinnes but also Gods people by falling in sin and lying in sin may be tainted with it witnesse David a man otherwise after Gods owne heart yet tainted with this Amongst the rest of his trickes of legerdemain when he spun the spiders webbe of his implicit sin this was one to cover the murther of Vriah he useth a principall experimentally knowen the sword devoureth one at well as another make thy battell more strong against the cittie and so overthrow it 2. Sam. 11.25 David spake the trueth but not truely for he knew that it was not common lot that had cut off Vriah but his owne heart and hand had caused him and others to fall yet he would daube over a filthy peece of business with a litle white plaistring but when once he was awaked he was so far from daubing as that he chargeth himselfe more deeply with every circumstance then any other could haue done I am the man And after the numbring of the people when his heart smote him grieving at the punishment of the people he taketh the whole sin upon him and vvould cleere the people both of the sin and punishment Loe I have sinned and I haue done wickedly but these sheepe what haue they done 2. Sam. 24.77 let thy hand I pray thee be against me and against my fathers house CHAP. XLIIII Of quitting God of all injustice A Third thing in the behaviour of the conquered is this since sin is the cause they must quit God of all injustice how heavy soever their burthen lye upon them David quitteth the Lord of all injustice if he should adjudge him to eternall death Lament 〈◊〉 18. so doth the people of God in the lamentations being under the verie rod of his wrath The Lord is righteous for I haue rebelled against his commandment By condemning of our selues to acquit God De summo bono lib. 3. is the readiest way to get an acquitance from God Yea as Isedor saith let a man learne not to murmur when he suffereth although he were ignorant for what he suffereth let this suffice to tell him that he suffereth justly because it is from him that cannot deale but justly Pompey was herein exceedingly mistaken who seeing all to goe on Caesars side doubted not to say that there was a great deale of miste over the eye of divine providence for with him that offered nothing but wrong to the commoÌ„ wealth all things went well but with him that defended the common-wealth nothing succeded But Pompey blamed the Sunne because of his sore eyes There be many in our age of Pompey his saucie humor yea arranter wranglers then he because of greater light and showes of profession who if their corruption be never so litle crossed or the Lord
Moon and the causes of the said Eclipse that they might not be dismayed at it through the ignorance of the cause Pericles going to war as he went aboord of his ship the Sun was eclipsed at the darknesse of which eclipse the Master of the ship was exceedingly astonished taking it for some ominous or prodigious thing but the General cast his cloake over the Masters face and asked him if there were any matter of terrour in that who answered noâ— No more in the other said the General but that the cause is not so well known If Heathens were thus wise is it not a shame for Christians to startle at the signes of heaven or at the casuall occurrences of accidents below Let Gods command medcine this shie disposition which is worse then heathenish in the Lords account Ier. 10.2 Be not dismayed at the signes of heaven for the Heathens are dismayed at them The third thing is seeking to idols or false Gods so did all the Heathen and new Rome is not one whit short of old Rome in this Maior coelitum populus quaÌ„ hominum lib. 2. cap. 7. Yea as Plinie saith of the one so I may say of the other that the number of their gods exceedeth the number of the Papists And as another saith well they are Lapideus populus a people made of stocks and stones to Saint George and to such they goe for successe in battell The last is difference of daies as some daies they hold good to fight on and some bad as though the Lord had made one day good and another bad This superstitious differencing of daies the other Rome held both in position and practise They were called Fighting-daies saith one wherein it was lawfull to fight with the enemy Proeliares dies appellantur quibus fas est hostem bello lacescere erant enim quaedam feriae publicae quibus nefas fuit id facere for there were some feriall daies wherein it was not lawfull to fight Of these irreligious daies and of their strictnesse in this point Cato maketh †Festus mention in his commentary upon the Civill Law In those daies saith he they did not levy men nor ioyne battell nor sit in iudgement The Macedonians abstayned from fight all the moneth ‘ Tacit. Dio. in Pompo of Iune The Germans held it unfortunate to fight in the beginning of the new Moon or in the full of the Moone It is observed of the Iewes that they neglecting to defend themselvs on the Saboth Pompey took Ierusalem Lucullus the Roman Captain considered better of the matter who being to fight upon the eighth day of October against Tigranes was by some of the company disswaded from it because Scipio as on that day had had a great defeat Plut. Rom. Apoth Let us said he therefore fight the more stoutly that we may make to the Romanes a good day of an evill Ioshua and Israel compassed Iericho seven daies and on the last day took it which was the Saboath of the Lord. Ios 6. One perswading a Generall not to fight upon some ominous conceit taken of the day Optimum augurium est pro patria fortiter pugnare ' I hold it saith he the best kind of divination to fight stoutly for my Country To obserue daies or months and times standeth not with Christian liberty It is charged upon the King of Bohemia when Prague was taken that he would not fight on the Lords day but it is one of the lightest aspersions put upon him by his calumnious enemies If he had fought and carryed the day they would haue put his fighting as an imputation upon his profession for fighting upon the Saboath As fighting hereon and all other works should be avoyded as much as may be though the Papist as one saith pestereth the week with idoll-holydaies and heathenishly maketh lesse reckoning of this then of the least of his devised holydaies yet if necessity command either to assault or defend the day is made for man and not the man for the day That restriction which the Heathens held concerning their daies agreeth very well to the Lords day Si ultima necessitas suadeat administretur Cato in coÌ„ment de jure civili that is if necessitie inforce to fight we may Let Gods people therefore both in peace and warre beware of Romes superstition It is said that old Rome had their superstition from the Hetruscians whether they sent every year Valer. Max. lib. 1. cap. 1. six of the Patricians sonns to learn the rites of religion but all Nations now haue their superstition from new Rome which is become the Mistresse of Whorish inventions and whether our Romanists send their yong Cobbes to learn their postures and motions Of her whosoever borroweth for garnishing or rather for gaudifying of the worship of God may justly feare to the woe of their soules that they pay as deer for it as Israel did for the golden Calf The Altar of Damascus provoked the Lord to forsake his own Altar wherein Achaz presumed of safety oh Cimmâ—rian blindnesse and fearfull apostasie but it proved contrary for it was the ruin of him 2 Chron. 28.23 and of all Israel according to the word it was the break-neck of them or as some translate not unfitly it plagued him and all Israel Was the Apostle in fear of the Galatians Ga. l. 4.10 because they kept daies and monethsâ— And may not we feare and tremble who haue not onely their dismall hollow daies mince them as you will but 〈◊〉 great deale more of the devils dirt wherwith as with a garment spotted with the flesh the garment of Christ is fearfully defiled The strange Armes or colours of the enemy in the field or Cittie are ominous indeed for by them the wallâ— haue been scaled and the forces slain and routed without so much as a blow given in defence even so doe not the Armes of the Beast and the colours of the Whore set up cheek by joull with Gods colours in his House and amongst his Armies in the field presage some fearfull plague approching especially to those that are a sleep our Laodicean conceit shall be so far from sheltering us that thereby we provoke God that he can beare no longer but that he must needs spâ—â— us out of his mouth which if he doe it is to be feared we are such a loathsome thing that he will never take us up againe but make a new people to himselfe Wherefore in the first place Awake you Angels and Watchmen indeed upon the Walls whom I charge as you will answer before God your Master that you will cast away the inverse Trumpets of Furius Fulvus which sounded a retrait when they should haue sounded an Alarum With the Prophet Psay proclaime the iniquity of those things which pestereth Gods worship Isa 30.22 and run so many upon the rocks of separation Are they not the coverings of Idols or Idols themselues Shew the
Philistim and yet these were they that they never suspected till the battle was lost wherein 30000 were slaine their Priests were gone Eli his necke broken and which was worste of all the Arke of God was taken Then they began in their calamitie to call a new quest of inquirie to make a new search and to find out this execrable thing namely their sin 1. Sam. 7. â— for the which as it is said all the hoast of Israel lamented before the Lord. The like neglect wee may behold in the people of Israel going against Beniamin The first day they lost 22000 they lament indeed and looke about them what should be the matter but they go the wrong way they fall to doubt of their commission as though there had been some fault in that they supposed they could not prosper because they had lift up their hand against their brethren although God had bid them doe it but there was another matter in it that they were not a ware of that was their sin which questionlesse God did punish by those two overthrows First they were altogether become corrupt and abhominable in their courses worship of God insomuch that as the Lord speaketh every man did what seemed good in his owne eyes It is true when they heard of the beastly and abhominable act of killing of the Levits wife under their filthy lust their hearts rose against it they would be avenged on all the whole tribe if the transgressors were not delivered This was all well but this was not all they should haue begune at home and purged themselues of spirituall uncleannesse and other sinnes that doe accompany that and then they had been fit to haue punished the beastlinesse of the Beniamits Againe for number they were so many and the other not a gleaning to them that they made no question of the victory so that they thought it needlesse to seeke to God by humbling of themselues for a good successe But God for those met with them and set them in the right way ere he had done with them for when after the second defeate they got sight of their sin and humbled themselues for it by fasting and praying they received a better answere with assurance of the victory Now give me leaue to applie and that in all humilitie Application The ground of your enterprise was good the commission faultlesse and the end for any thing I know upright yea and the enemie Gods enemie yet for all this thus far they haue prevayled and doe prevaile the cause I feare is want of reformation at home and it may be too much presuming of worldly forces and friendship which the Lord would haue to prove no better then a broken reede If the commission be good and the parties disable themselues from the execution of it what fault is in it or in him that gaue it out As it is far from me to charge any thing upon any mans conscience so I intreate every man to charge his owne conscience as David did and say I am the man A generall view or search will not serue for so long as men keepe themselues at generals they never find out that in themselues which most displeaseth God but often mistake that to be no sin which is sinne or that to be sin which is no sin Men must not stay themselues in the Procatartick or remote causes but they must dive unto the Proegumene conjunct or essential imediate cause Empyrickes mistaking symptomes for the sicknesse it selfe are fayrer to kill then to cure so in finding out some petty sinnes some never look at the main sinnes like those that lop off branches of the tree but never strike at the roote and as by this pruning the trees grow bigger so by daliance in search all growes worse and worse therefore to the bosome sin the darling-sin the seed-sinne that is deer as hand and foot cut it off and cast it away Let every man be severest with himselfe and favour himselfe not in the least sin that sin that hee least lookes after and will not acknowledge to be sin is commonly the capital sinne as taking liberty to profane the Sabboth going to stage-plaies scoffing precisenesse pettie oathes abuse of the creatures usury these be Nationall sins and set ope the gate to all other sins and consequently to judgment On the first my heart giues me to dwell if it were my place and the Treatise would permit for as it is the sin of Nations so it is the capitall sin though least thought on the threatnings against the breach of this commandement the promise annexed to the keeping of it the backing of it with reasons and fore-fronting of it with a remember Zacor doe necessarily imply all these lessons as first the antiquity of it and the continuance of it that as it was from the beginning so it should be remembred to the end Gen. 2.3 secondly it discovers the propensity of man to the light esteem of it and to the breaking of it thirdly it shews the greatnesse of the sin Ezech. 20.12.22 fourthly Gods great desire to haue it kept calling it the holy honourable day yea and the delight of the Lord Es 58.13 All these cords will pull down inevitable judgements upon all the palpable profaners of this day by their pleasures or ordinary imployments except they repent This sin cryes in England and roares in Holland where by open shops and other works of their calling they proclaim with open mouth their little regard of God or his Sabboth Iudgement likewise hangs over the head of all halvers of the Lords day making it neither Gods nor theirs but divide it All Iewish translators of the Sabboth all toleration from higher powers to profane it at which we may lay our hands upon our mouths But I hope the Parliament will redresse it likewise on all that dare proclaime it from Pulpit to bee onely a Ceremoniall Law and that the rest now injoyned is a meer Civill Ordinance The Papists presse this as a meer humane Institution in religious Worship Spalato a little before his departure told a man in dispute with him that that Commandement was done away Many Libertine Ministers and Prelats in England maintain the same in effect and the worst of the Ministers of the Vnited Provinces concur with them in this point for though some presse the keeping of it yet they urge it not as a divine Precept but as a time appointed by a meer positiue law for the worship of God but this crosseth the nature of the commandement being Morall given from the beginning before the Ceremoniall Law written by Gods own finger proclaimed to all the people to continue to the end It substracts from the number of the Precepts being ten Exod. 34.18 Deut. 10.4 it oppugneth the practise of God which is for a president to us It is against naturall reason and divine prerogatiue that God should not haue a solemn time appointed for
the evils for we haue not one golden Calfe but many so would to God every one of Gods people would reforme one and that Moses and Aaron the Magistrate and Minister would both reforme themselues and others by the due and holy imployment of their severall powers in their places and every one in the so doing must cast out his beloved sinne Samuel shewing the Israelites the way how to return layeth down a good and perfect rule in this case 1 Sam. 7.4 which will never deceiue us If you will return to the Lord with all your hearts then put away the strange gods and Ashteroth from among you What was not Ashteroth a strange god Yes and the greatest Idoll Why is it singled out then Because it was their beloved Idol So every one hath his Ashteroth his beloved sin which though it seem a little one to himselfe like Zohar yet it is the greatest of all Ashterah it may seem an Ashterah a sheep but it is indeed a wolfe in sheeps clothing At this then must we strike and neither at great nor small so much as at this He that conquereth this overcommeth 〈◊〉 but where this beareth sway no sin is truely overcome And so much Samuel intimateth by the speech as if he should explane himselfe further You say well you will return to God you will amend what is amisse if you will doe it indeed this is the right way to work put away Ashteroth and so must we doe if we mean that God shall heare us and help us The cause of Nehemiahs diligence in reforming of the Sabboth after the return from the captivity was not onely conscience of obedience or because the sincere keeping of the rest of the commandements dependeth much upon the keeping of this but also as it is plainly in the Text expressed because it was Israels speciall sinne and the ground of other sinnes for the which especially the Lord had plagued them Did not your fathers thus saith he and did not our God bring all this evill upon us and upon the Citie Nebem 13.18 yet ye bring more wrath upon Israel by profaning the Sabboth I wish to God that the Vnited Provinces and all other that professe the Gospell would looke to this The Pharisaicall Papist being zealous of his idoll-Idoll-daies making the Lords day being his own commandement of none effect doth much insult over us that we hold it a morall commandement and yet do yeeld so little obedience to it together with this that we retain some of their devised holydaies The like amendment I might presse of many other sinnes though I cannot touch all in particular The Lord touch our hearts with the sense of every particular That Cardiack life of swilling sweating and swearing Bibere sudare est vita Cardiaci must be done away David and all his must not onely turn away his eyes from beholding the vanity of Stage-plaies and other idlements but he must whip out with Augustus that counterfeiting rabble that God never made The abhorring or liking of Stage-plaies was holden amongst the Romans for a note of a bade or a good Emperour I will not trouble this Treatise with the discovery of these hypocrites onely hear a little of that which one once much affected with them soundeth out against them in a retreat for so the Treatise is called he professeth on his knowledge that he found Theaters to be the very hatchers of all wickednesse as brothels of baudry the black blasphemy of the Gospell the Sabboths contempt the seat of scorning yea even of God himselfe the danger of the soule the disorder and cankar of the Common-wealth He instanceth in his own knowledg Citizens wiues confessing on their death-beds that they were so impoysoned at Stage-plaies that they brought much dishonour to God Pag. 43. wrong to their husbands and marriage bed weakenesse to their wretched bodies and woe to their undone soules Bodin the Civilian calleth them the schooles of filthinesse Turpitudinis scholae vitioraÌ„â—eâ—tinae and sinks of sinne insomuch that they are not worthy of a chaste eare nor of an honest mans presence But I hope in a Treatise onely of that subject more fully to discover the sin and to set them forth in their colours wherein I shall be able to proue that the Stage-player and Stagehunter breaketh all the ten commandements in an eminent manner The Stage is one of the Iesuits schooles from which these vile Varlets haue cast so much dirt upon the face of the King of Brittain and of his children with their Issue that I think they should be as hatefull to them in a manner as calumnious devils for they are 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or devils indeed As for the counter-railing of that prostituted Crue it stands neither with grace nor wit to make devils on our side Antagonists to other Devils it is also a bad requitall by the States of all Gods mercies to grieue his spirit by those plaguie plaies yea it is fearfull on the Lords day to make them a part of princely intertainment It was the observation of an ancient Hollander in Leyden upon the insurrection of the Armenians that hee feared God would being some great evill upon them for the Stage-plaies that did so abound for he remembred that before that firebrand Duke de Alva was flung amongst them that this plague was begun amongst them The Lord giue them and others to rid the land of them The Lord threatneth to be gone and hee will be gone indeed both from Camp and Cittie except we put away these evils from before his eyes But to conclude this point up and doe as you haue heard and the Lord no doubt will be with you and delight to doe you good in your deliverance I will not as some doe pawn my soule for assurance because it is not mine to pawn but I will assure you on a better pawn namely the promise and practise of God whose promises are all Yea and Amen and his practise like himselfe unchangeable for ever The booke of God is so large in this that I need not be any thing large in the proofe of it take but that one place of Samuel mentioned where after that Israel had humbled themselues and got their peace made with God and Samuel to cry mightily to God for them the Lord taketh the work of their hands he incountreth with the enemy by thundering from heaven upon them 1 Sam. 7. the earth trembled under them the lightning blasted them all wrought for his people against them Our God is the very selfe same God and they our enemies be the Philistims Would we become such as this people all the creatures of God should be inarmed in zeale to take vengeance on our enemies Yea I am perswaded that if the enemy should see us take such courses it would daunt 〈◊〉 more then thefeare of any forces that we can make if they should see us taking up the controversie
evil qualities of the wicked man this is reckoned as the chiefe Ps 140.1.2 that he is prone to war Release thou me Iehovah from the evill man from the man of wrong c. Every day they gather warres Yea in this the wicked man discovers the image of his father the devill Rev. 20.8.9 who being let loose after the thousand yeares expired goeth out to deceiue the people and to gather them together to battell Warre the wages of sin And for the second that it is the wages of sin and that the speciall it is as cleare as the first from plaine places of Scripture from Gods order in his proceeding and Davids avoyding of this when God gave him his choyce of the punishment For the first the Lord threatning to harden himselfe against his people in punishment as they had hardened themselves against him in sin Lev. 26.25 saith thus I will bring upon you a sword that shall avenge the quarrell or vengeance of my covenant It appeareth also in the order of Gods proceeding by comparing of places of Scripture together as the first and second Chap. of the prophesie of Ioel. The Lord having plagued his people with famine by the which they were not moved to repentance he coÌ„mandeth the Trumpet of war to be sounded telleth them that he would bring a fierce and cruell people against them whose mercilesse monstrons tyranny he compareth to the devouring of fire and for the fiercenesse of their consuming wrath he calleth that plague The day of the Lord a day of darkenes a day of blacknes Thirdly and lastly David delivereth thus much in choosing rather the plague Warre the cause of sin Rara fides pietasque viris qui castra sequuntur Lucan then the prevayling hand of the enemye 3. Warre is likewise the cause of much sin as pregnant testimonies and woefull experience teacheth The proverbe is as true as common That faith and pietie are rare in armes Wee may iustlie now with Erasm that great Maister in Arts take up the complaint made by him of his time Wee war continually Nation against Nation Kingdom against Kingdom Citie against Citie Prince against Prince People against People friend against friend kinsman against kinsmaÌ„ brother against brother yea son against the father which the very Heathen held impious and barbarous yea that which is most detestable of all Christian against Christian and yet there be saith he that commend and applaud this hellish practise for a holy course instigating the inflamed fury of Princes by adding oile to the flame as they say till all be consumed And what is come of this I may answer What evill is not come of it I may justly apply that of Aristophanes 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which Lypsius applyeth to the troubles of his time That God the heaven and earth hath set on fire In war renown honor wealth chastity life wiues and children yea and religion it selfe lyeth at the stake nothing so sacred no sex so tender no age so impotent which the barbarous souldier will not contaminate defloure and kill It is the souldiers sport as one saith truely to ruin houses to ravish Virgins to spoit Churches Iocus ludas in militia c. Ludo. vives in epist ad Henr. 8. Angl. reg Silent leges inter arma to consume Cities and Towns to ashes with sire yea these be the ornaments of war to profit none to hurt every one to respect neither sex nor age yea nor God himselfe for his in warr are neglected and the lawes of peace and war contemned All laws in Armes are silenc't by the sword The world for the proofe of this affoords a world of woefull experience both from sacred and profane Writ To omit the examples of ages past let us view with compassion the instances of our own times and as God usually doth commemorate his latest mercies to leade men to repentance and his latest judgements to terrifie men from their sinnes so let us look upon the latest warres in France Bohemia and the Palatinate Is it not with Gods people every where as it was with them in Asa his time There is no peace to him that goeth out or commeth in but great vexations are upon all the inhabitants of the Countries 2 Chron. 15.6 7. and Nation is destroyed of Nation And though my heart doth quake while I remember Et quanquaÌ„ animus meminisse horret Phil. 2.1 Yet to use the words of the Apostle If there be any confolation in Christ any comfort of loue any fellowship of the spirit any compassion and mercie behold all you that passe by your mournfull sisters Bohemia and the Palatinate with their torn hair about their eyes their vail taken away their crown fallen their sanctuaries defaced their people flain their land laid wast yong old Priest and people exposed to the immane and bloudy cruelty the beastly filthinesse and Ismaelitish mockerie of the cruell enemy In a word was there ever sorrows like to theirs Yea I may safely say the old Threns of Ieremy hath got a new subject And what is the immediate cause of all this evill of sin and punishment Tu bellum causa malorum 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Even bloudy warre thou art the cause of all It is the part therfore of wise men saith one if they be not the more provoked to be quiet yea of good men if they be provoked to change peace into warre but so that they change war againe into peace with all possible conveniencie Men disposed to unnecessary warre are compared by some vnto two Gamsters whereof the one is undone and the other is never a whit the richer Plin. l. 8.2 for all the gain is in the box Compared also they may be fitly to the Elephant and the Dragon Plin. l. 8. c. 12. which in their cruel conflict are each killed by other The Dragon as it is written sucketh out the bloud of the Elephant and being drunke therewith the weight of the falling Elephant oppresseth the Dragon and crusheth out the bloud which some calleth but falsly sanguis Draconis but they both perish And so it often falleth out with the unadvised undertakers of warr Vpon this ensuing evill the wise and learned haue taken occasion to check the humors of Princes so disposed as Lodovic Vives to Pope Adrian and in his epistle to Henry the 8 King of England there his motiues and counsels against unnecessary warre are to be seen at large The proverbe is true indeed 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Sub melle venenunclâ—tet That warre is very sweet to those that never tasted it but those that taste it shall be forced to confesse that there is poyson under the honey This Hannibal the honour of Carthage knew very well when the Roman Embassadours came from Rome to treat of the continuance of peace one Gisco as great a coward as a vain-glorious bragger without either the practick or
but more their sinnes vvhich were the cause And as he had the Duke and other Nobles for his Hearers so he gaue him and all the rest their portion shewing their particular faylings in that businesse which they all intertained as from God and acknowledging their sinns they were mightily encouraged and began to wax strong so that by Gods mercy in the end they prevailed as hereafter you shall hear Last of all the necessity of such doth appear in the happy successe of such Warres as haue made use of them Was not Elisha better to the King of Israelâ— then all his strength and counsel beside Eleazar was joyned with Ioshua the Priests bare the Arke and blew the Trumpets in the Lords warre for that was the Lords appointment Numb 1.10 31.6 One instance may serue for many namely of that great battel betwixt Abijah King of Iudah and Ieroboam King of Israel Where Ieroboam had the oddes in forces to the number of three hundred thousand men yet Abijah by his oration sheweth that he was confident he had the better And why 2 Chro. 13.12 Because saith he God is with us for our Captaine and his Priests with sounding Trumpets to cry alarum against you Where you see that Abijah conceived and that truely â—â—at he had great oddes of Ieroboam even in this particular â—at he had the Priests of the Lord and they the Priests of â—ols We may see how much the Priests and Prophets are â—steemed in warre even of the wicked by Balaâ—ms desiring â—f Balak to come and curse the people of God The hoâ—ourable esteem that Balaâ—m had of Baâ—aâ—k Num. 22.36 appeareâ—h in this â—at he went out to meet him Yea the Iewes in their rebelliâ—n against Adrian the Emperour had their Bar Cochab that 〈◊〉 the son of the Starre And so hath the Romish Iebusites And as to the Iewes finall undoing he proved Bar Cozibae the â—nne of falshood so shall the Iesuites proue in the end when â—heir seduced Crue shall see themselues deceived Who â—ught Ioash the King of Israel to smite his enemies but â—e Prophet Elisha 2 King 13.14 I will add but one instance more very memorable and admirable In the warres 〈◊〉 Scotland for the establishing of the Gospel the Protesâ—nt Army being nigh S. Andrews resolved upon â—eliberation not to goe thither by reason of the Queens â—reat forces in and about it that godly Minister spoken of â—efore being with them in all their troubles told the Arâ—â—y that he was resolved to preach there the next day being â—e Lords day According to which resolution he taketh his â—ible and goeth on When he came to the Citie the Queen â—nd her forces were fled for fear That night and the next â—ay he taught laying open the haynonsnesse of the sin of â—dolatry pressing the Magistrates with the ejecting of it â—d erecting of Gods true vvorship which so wrought upâ—n their hearts that the effect followed Yea that very act by Gods blessing was the very break-neck of Babel in those â—arts Thus you see the grounds cleared for the necessity of such â—cred Councellours in Gods Warres wherein I haue been â—â—e larger because howsoever this is universally slighted â—ver as a matter of least moment yet if it be judiciously and religiously weighed it shall proue a point of 〈◊〉 greatest importance Doth reason direct men to provide good souldiers a goâ— Generall good Officers a good Phisitian a good Chiâ—gian and shall they neglect the providing of a good Minister of whom I may say truely that in an Army he is boâ— Fabius and Marcellus a sword and a bucklar But by how much the necessity of such is the greater Application 〈◊〉 much the more is the neglect and contempt of such to bâ— regrated Neither in peace nor warr are the Watchmen 〈◊〉 God in their deserved esteem The counsell and commaâ— of such by men of all sorts as it is from God should bâ— obeyed and followed God commandeth us to obey sâ—â— as haue the oversight of us and to haue them in singular esteeâ— for the works sake They that murmur against such theâ— murmur against God and they that reject such they rejeâ—â— God If Eliah be found out he is charged to be the enâ—my of the State because he speaketh the truth They thâ—â— be indeed the troublers of Israel doe falsly charge it upoâ— the Watchmen of Israel Time-serving Amaziah will conjuâ— Amos from the Court and the Kings Chappell Lyiâ— Hananiah will not stand to contest against God himseâ—â— speaking by Ieremiah If Micaiah will not sooth with a hâ— to destruction hee must be hated and beaten for thâ— truth Zedekiah giveth him a bok on the ear and 〈◊〉 ther setteth him packing or fast by the heeles In a word if the man of God with the Apostle Paul deâ—ver painefully faithfully and freely the whole counsell of God he 〈◊〉 presently charged with conspiracie against the State the land cannot beare the words of such an one God indeeâ— hath given such counsellers but the rebellious of this time cannot brooke them eyther they choake them or chop them on the cheeke Our case and Israells is much alike I raysed up your sonnes for prophets saith God by Amos you â—ong men for Nazarits but how doe they use them They gaue their Nazarites wine to drinke Amos 2.11 and commanded their Prâ—â—bets saying prophesie not It is holden a great policie now for Micaiah that his word be like one of the rest and that he speake â—ood whatsoever come of it but a Micaiah indeed dare not â—ally for a world but whatsoever the Lord saith that he will beake Men had best looke to it for whosoever he be that â—eepeth backe one iote of Gods counsell for feare of the â—ce of a mortall man shall never be able with Paul to make a â—omfortable account of his Embassye to God which is far â—etter for a Minister then life it selfe Yea this huckstering of Gods counsell is the very way to bring the Minister to a â—earfull visible and exemplarie confusion The speech of God to Ieremie should be the word in the Ministers Banner â—ird up thy loines and arise speake unto them all that I command â—ee be not dismayed at their faces lest I consume thee before them Ier. 1.17 Indeed the faces of Kings and great Ones especially Generals in a field are full of feare and terrour to weake â—llie men that carry no Armes but the Word To this purâ—ose the Sermon of one Gregory Preacher to Fredericke Duke â—f Saxon a man much approved by Luther is not unworthie your view This man dealing roundly in the Dukes â—udience against the sinnes of the time being somewhat â—fraid to smite at the Princes sinnes in a publique place he â—ame home to him very handsomely with this similitude A Preacher saith he is not unlike to one that uncaseth a Hare it is an easie matter to uncase or take the skin of all the
body but when he cometh to the head there is all the difficultie there it taketh him tugging even so a Preacher may freely reprove the sinnes of the people for in that there is no matter of feare but wheÌ„ he commeth to the head pointing his hand to the Prince there is the difficultie there matter of feare presenteth it selfe yet it must be done aswell as the rest The like freedome of speech did Frederick Bishop of Vtricke use by way of parable to Lodoviâ—us Pius the Emperour as he sate at dinner with him being newly consecrated Bishop the Emperour willed him 〈◊〉 remember his office without respect of persons for whiâ—â— admonition the Bishop humbly thanked him and askeâ— him forthwith whither he should begin with the head 〈◊〉 that fish that was before him or with the tayle the Emperour replyed with the head as the chiefest member It is weâ— said the Bishop then breake you of your incestuous Match with Iudith Raunlph in Polychronic lib. 5. cap. 29. Anno 1363 which the Emperour did for a time but the Pope upon a penitenciary mulct of some thousands of Crowneâ— made up the Match againe and Iesabel caused the Bishop for his freedome of speech to be slaine in the Church These were honester meÌ„ though the one a Dominick Monâ—e the other a Bishop then that Protean Bandog Spalato whose Dalmatian Pal hath proved but a Pâ— Lib. 1. de rep Euch pag. 28. Sect. 13. to the English Church Amongst the rest of his Sicophantish knaveriâ—s he hath this flat against the Word That the faults of Princes may not at any hand be taxed in publique by whatsoever authoritie wherein sure he shewed him selfe a greater friend to his owne fâ—guts then to the states and soules of Princes And yet weâ— want not such Black-birdes in our owne Purpits who under the name of White Serm. in Rom 13 pag 18. vent this blacke position that Ministers are not to inforce Gods commaÌ„d upon Princes Iudge you by this what fearfull times we live in indeed the high Creast of authoritie thinketh much to stoupe to the word of a weake man as they conceve it What saucie fellows did Pharao esteemeâ— Moses and Aaron that they should will him from God to let his people goe Shall the worlds Minions deified with flattery or Mars his favorites adorned with trophees and attended with triumphes submit and render at the blast of a trumpet yes indeed that word that can make the blind to see the deaf to hear the lame to goe yea the dead to rise can command the greatest Commander in the world Yea if a man were commander of the vvhole vvorld he must eyther by this vvord be Commanded or condemned See the proofe of this in that powerfull discourse of Paul before Felix As he reasoned of rightousnes temperance and judgement to come Act. 24 25 Felix trembled Tertullus and all the smooth-tounged pick thankes under his governmeÌ„t could not haue kept him out of this fit These Counsellours are not to be slighted because the contempt of them is not onely a fearfull prognostick of fuâ—ure ruine but also a main moving cause vvhy the Lord vvil â—estroy both Prince and people Amongst many others Cha 36.15 16. there is a pregnant place for this in â—he second booke of the Chronicles And the Lord God of their fathers sent to them by his Messengers rising up betimes and fending them because he had compassion on his people and on his 〈◊〉 welling place but they mocked the messengers of God and despised â—his words and misused his Prophets untill the wrath of the Lord â—arose against his people till there was no remedie The worth of a worthy Minister is not knowen but in time of distresse and not then but to those whom the Lord hath taught how to esteeme of him heathens Pagans papists may challenge us of our neglect of this Were ten Nestors so much worth to AgamemnoÌ„ one Sopirus to Darius one Cineas to Pirrhus what is Gods Aaron to his people what is Nathan to David and Elisha to Ioash The Grecians would not part with their Orators on no condition The Romanes had a great care of their Dogges that kept their Walls Sagacissimos caues in turribus nutriebant Viget lib. 2 cap. 26. Anscribus cebaria publice lo antur in Capitolio Cic pro sexâ—o Rossio So the Geese that with their cry did awake the watch when the enemies were about to surprise the Capitol were in great esteeme with the Romanes insomuch that their food was allotted by a publique decree wherewith they were to be fed in the Capitol Yea in great scarsitie of food they would not touch them Will you see what honour Balac the King of Moab did to Balaam the false prophet he goeth out to meete him euen to the outmost border of his land Deut. 22.36 What honour were Baals priests in that eate bread at the Kings table The papists glory much and giue us often in the teeth with that honour they giue to their shavellings Gondomar for an instance made great bragges of this that though he were the Embassador of the great King and besideâ— that he had a breech that was not very bowable yet he mist not an inch of his manners to Blackwell in the tower False Prophets are with the wicked alwayes most in request because they serve their lusts and please their humors Balacâ— would not let Aaron haue so much as a bit of bread or 〈◊〉 draught of water but Balaam I warrant you wanted no dainties Ioash King of Israel was no good man and yet how did he honour loue with the best loue he had Elisha the Prophet 2. King 13 14. When the man of God was a dying he commeth to him vveeping over him cryeth out Oh my father my father the chariot and the Horsmen of Israel Alexander the great came dovvne from his horse and entertained Iaddo the high Priest of Hierusalem vvith all reverent respect All these and many more examples may condemne the neglect of this in the Professors of Christ ApplicatioÌ„ But vvee had best looke to it for neglect or contempt of Gods Messengers in time of peace maketh a vvoefull vvant of them in time of vvar especially vvhen the good spirit of God hath left the soule Saul in his peace vvould haue no Prophet but such as vvere of his ovvne stampe and pleased his humor therefore insteed of Samuel he had none but the devill to ansvvere him in the day of his distresse could all Baals Prophets and his full-fed trencher-chaplaines say nothing to him No never a vvord they vvere all to seeke A false deceiving Hananiah vvith his hornes a Doeg or doglike Amaziah accusing the bretheren a furious boxing Zedekiah smiting Gods Ministers on the mouth vvill prove but miserable comforters in the day of danger Therefore they must be Gods Ministers indeed and not barely in name of the Lords ovvne sending
that are Counsellours in vvarr As of al the heavenly creatures that ever God made a good Angell is the best but a bad Angell is become the vvorst so of all the sonnes of men a good Minister is the best and therefore called an Angell but a bad Minister the vvorst and therefore may bee called a Devill As all Gods Saints are his peculiar Iewels so his Messengers are the Starshining-Diamonds amongst the Iewels A mans state is but weak when he pawneth or putteth away his Iewels But it is a note of ignominie for a Prince to pawn his Crown Gods faithfull Ministers are the Crowns and Iewels of the Kingdom All the Iewelrie of Venice is not worth one of them A question was put once what Forreignes had received the richest gifts out of the Tower One answered the Spaniard another answered not so for the Duke of Bulloin had carryed the richest Iewell out of the Tower that ever was in it yea such an one as was worth all the rest and the Archduchesses inventory besides Those Princes wrong themselues much saith a learned Author that send such Iewels out of the land because they may stand in need of them when they cannot be had I haue knowne some of the black crue on their death bed to haue cryed out and roared for comfort from such Ministers whose presence in their health they haue hated and whose persons they haue persecuted besides others instance that Maule of the Ministery and arch-persecutor the first letters of whose name were Sir P. M. having persecuted in his life with cruel persecution that holy Father M. R. B. in dispair at his death he sent sundry to seek him but neither the man of God nor the favour of God could be found God giue others of his stamp to look to it in time for as there be many haters and persecutors of Gods Ministers against the light so I see or reade but of a very few reconciled to God Of all the gifts that ever God gaue to a people such a Iewel as I shewed is the very best Witnes that saying of God by the Prophet Ieremy Amongst many blessings promised upon repentance hee promiseth to giue them a good Pastour as the Crown of all the rest Ier. 3.18 And I will giue you Pastors according to mine heart which shall feede them with knowledge and understanding But of all the plagues that ever God threatned against a people or brought upon a people a Counterfeit Iewel is the very worst Witnesse likewise the Lord Chap. 2.11 by the Prophet Micah If a man walking in the spirit and falshood doe lie saying I will prophesie unto thee of wine and of strong drinke he shall even be the Prophet of this people Let Gods Warriours then take heed of such as God hath not sent of Wolues in Sheeps cloathing beware of vile pontificall Iason who for gain vvill betray the Citie and the Sanctuary to abominable Antiochus Let Nehemiah beware of couzening Shemaiah vvho under a colour of saving his life would earn the hire of iniquity from Tobiah and Samballet by suggesting false feares to disgrace him and to bring an evill report upon Gods Generall So man-pleasing Vriah is also to be looked to vvith vvhom change is no robbery namely to chop out the Altar of God and in the Altar of Damascus Take heed likewise of the Turn-coat Levite at the rate of who will giue most And likewise of the belly-god Chop-church the Bisteepled or Tristeepled metaphisicall ubiquitatiue the enemy to the crosse of Christ the maker of merchandize of Gods vvord Never one of this crew vvill doe good but hurt These cannot make up the breach nor rise up in the gap Ezech. 13.5 nor stand in the battell of the day of the Lord Hosea 9.8 yea the Lord calleth such snares and fowlers in the way of the people and hatred in the house of God In the name of God then let Gods Lieftenants get such as are of God such as are the Chariots and Horsemen of Israel and they vvill teach them to smite their enemies as Flisha did Ioash The ordering of the Lords Army by his own appointment is an excellent pattern for all others in this point Moses and Aaron with the Priests and Levites vvere quartered about the Tabernacle between the Sanctuary and the Tribes of Israel and as they were next unto the holy place and kept Centinal there continually so they were the first that moved in the March Numb 2. Neither vvas it onely so in the Camp of Israel but also in the Camp of the new Ierusalem vvhere God hath his Throne You may see the like namely between Gods Throne and the 24 Elders compassing it There are foure living creatures full of eyes glorifying God night and day Rev. 4.5.10 after whom the 24 Elders fall down and worship God This me thinkes should be a strong motiue to all Gods forces to take this course since none can giue better order for incamping then God himselfe Vntill the time such Centinall be set such Watch be kept such Counsellours be followed and such Commanders in the first place be obeyed giue me leaue to be plain the Lord will not be with us But if this couse be taken as I hope it shall I durst pawn my life for it that Gods enemies should flee before us with shame enough to their faces As the croaking froggs the Iesuites are the incendiaries of warre so it must be undertaken and continued at their pleasure What warre by the Papists hath been undertaken since they began to flourish but they haue had a speciall hand in it It is true as Remigius Nantelius a Dane doth discover that the Iesuites went not personally to warre before the Prince of Parmes going into France about the year 1595 because they thought it a disgrace to their Clergie and a breach of a Law made against it so to doe but with a non obslante sundry ensignes of them followed the said Prince with their Chariots and all furniture yea with their banners after the manner of Princes therunto ambitiously annexed they gaped as the Author saith for honour and spoile wherof they did assure themselues if the Prince had subdued the French In rationali Iesuitarum For it should haue been their prayers onely that moved God to giue the overthrow to their enemies But they counted before their Host and so they were deceived in the reckoning Yet for all this they cease not to ply it assuring all that fight for the beast that it shal goe well with them Their large promises of heaven of victory of pardon of freeing of their friends out of Purgatory and foyling and rooting out of their enemies maketh me call to minde a blasphemous brag of that curseâ— Heretick Nestorius made Prelate of Constantinople by Theâ—dosius to whom he speaketh thus in a Sermon O Caesar purâ— me the land of Hereticks meaning the true worshippers oâ— God and I shall giue thee
nor receive supplie he battered their bulwarke with 18 peece of ordinance making a sufficient breach as he thought insomuch that they were in a desperate case but when he came to the entry he found such brave entertainment that in three assaults he lost many of his best Captaines and no fewer then 1600 of his bravest souldiers but being never a whit daunted but rather inraged with this encounter the next day the Lord rayned from heauen so that the raysing of the waters caused them to raise their siege where they left some of their battery The like may be said of Mountaban where Duke de Maine had advanced his battery made fit all necessaries for the very last assault insomuch that he doubted not as himselfe said but within two or three dayes he should take the Towne but one day after dinner walking along to view his works one that was come thether out of S. Iohn de Angelot observed him a far off who with a peece of a longer sise then ordinary did levell at him and strucke him starck dead after which the siege was raysed Thirdly some by the brave entertainment of assaults doe quit themselves of their enemie Fourthly by holding out they attayne to honorable conditions which the enemie would never afford them but that he feareth their valour will answere their resolution Fifthly and lastly a resolute continuance saveth both life honour where an untimely surender might loose both by laying them downe in the hand of a merciles and faithlesse enemie The best of the defendants at the siege of Leyden did ingenuously confesse that through the feare of the people and also of the Souldiers they had quitted the Towne if it had not ben blocked up in doing whereof they had lost their honour and it may be their lives yea which was more they might haue lost the country but being bound to see it by continued valour they overcame sauing their lives honour and the place yea they so daunted the courage of the Duke de Alva and so defaced his credit as all his former encounters had never done the like after this he never attempted any thing worthy of note To conclude this point let them take heed in this continuance of the enemies dalliance yea to giue them a caveat to beware whose word they take or whom they trust I will say no more but remember Wesell The lawfull usage of the surrendred whether on composition or at mercie There is one point more concerning the oppugnation and expugnation of houlds to be treated of namely the just and lawfull usage of the surrendred or taken for the defendāts sometimes render upon composition sometimes they are taken in the very assault In the former fidelitie is to be kept and in the latter crueltie to be avoided The word of a souldier is the worth of a Souldier As publique faith inviolable by the lawes of nations in all places should haue place so especially in keeping conditions with the surrendred whose lives as they are be-trusted into the enemies hands upon articles so it is a kind of sacriledge to breake any one of them What honour from man or blessing from God can that souldier expect who hath torne his colours and flung away his shield To dye lapt in the colours or with the shield in the hand is counted a matter of the greatest honour The Graecian lawes set a mulct for him that lost his shield but none for him that lost his sword signifying thereby that their care should be greater for their owne defence Au. Clypeus salvus Amian lib. 25. then to offend others This was all the care of dying Epaminondas is my shield safe said he It was the onely command that the Grecian woemen gaue their children going to warr eyther to dye upon their shield or to bring backe their shield with them This fidelitie is the shield and colours of a souldier 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which when he hath lost he hath no more to keepe By this allusion Henry the 4 was nipt in the quick by one of our owne Poets he lost saith he his shield The execution of the two sonnes of William Seton formerly mentioned contrary to covenant the law of nations was a foule staine to Edward the first and much regrated of his owne All the excellents parts and magnanimious actions of Charles Lib. 8. de rebus gest Gall. Duke of Borbon were eaten out with this one Canker-worm the Inscription of his Tombe mentioned by Ferronus declareth his valour Aucto imperio devicto Gallo pontifice obsesso Roma capta Caroli Borboni hoc marmor cineres continet that is The Empire increased Italy overthrown France overcome the Pope besieged Rome taken this Tombe containeth the ashes of Charles of Borbone But his fidefragie vayleth all these with black for as Histories tell us he oppressing Millain much pressed it at last with the payment of 30000 Crownes for to pay his souldiers And though he had sundry times broken with them yet he got them to beleeue him upon his oath and imprecation that if they would let him haue it if ever he troubled them again he wished that a bullet might strike the head from him On this hope to be rid of him though they could hardly doe it yet they made him up the mony but they were never a whit the better for once having the mony without faith of promise Guiceiard Hist Italic lib. 7. or fear of expressed imprecation he let loose his spoyling souldiers to all their wonted outrages This was an hereditary fault in Hanibal for it was his Nationall sin Hence the proverbe punica vel Carthaginea fides c. But now the Papists haue taken the badg from them For in both these two infidelity and cruelty they exceed the African Turke Grecian or Thracian if any goe beyond him let him haue Pluto his chaire Nunquane ista natio coluit fidē 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 It may verily be said of that brood as Tully said of Africke That that Nation was never to be trusted for it never respecteth faith When all things are at the best with them as they suppose yet there is one thing wanting with them as Lewis the 11 said of France namely truth or fidelity And in this one thing they exceed all other that they doe not onely practise but preach perfidie After the burning of Iohn Hus contrary to the Emperours safe conduct they made an act in the Councell of Constance That no faith should be kept with Hereticks Iulius the second goeth one point further and telleth us the Church is not bound to keep oathes And as their position is which I shall haue occasion further to handle such is their practise in their Capitulations which is the present point in hand How was the capitulation of Sancere performed by the French Papists D. de Alva his faith to Harlem Narden and Zutphen was washed out with bloud And here I renew the
people how they should loath them and account them as a menstruous clout and that they should hold them unworthy of presence should say unto them get you hence Let them plead for Baal that are of Baal Hold never that to be clean in Gods worship that the Pope or Pagan hath once polluted being mans invention No it is unpossible that it should be cleansed With â—he sound of the Trumpet awake the Kings Maiesty awake the Prince the Parliament the Councell the Nobles Gentry and Commons that we may meet our God in sackcloth and ashes for great is the controversie that he hath wâ—th us all You are the Physitians content not your selues with the bare theoricke or generall rules but apply your rules and pick out particular mediâ—ines for particular diseases in particular subjects for Chronical pandemical or Epidemical diseases Haue your specifick rules and receits discover the darke day and the devouring people wherewith wee are threatned Ioel 2 v. 2.3.11 the day of the Lord is great and very terrible who can abide it As for your Majestie on the knees of my soule with all humble duety I doe intreat you as you haue begun in the spirit you would not end in the flesh but that you would beat down that Altar of Damascus bray the golden Calfe to powder crush the brazen Serpent to peeces and break off those bonds of superstition Ease Sion of her burthen under which she groaneth help not those that hate God and hate not those that loue God Let not God be robbed of his Sabboath nor his name be torn in peeces by bloudy oathes for these and the like are like to make your Dominions mourn Yea if your Highnesse loue the Lord your soule your life your Crown your people look to it Aegipt is deceitfull Nilus is ranke Poyson mixture of his worship is a mockery and no worship and God hath said he He will not be mocked For the Lords sake down with Balaam Balaamites and all their pedlery ware giue the Lord all or nothing for he is a jealous God In a word Dread Soveraigne remember I beseech you by how many mercies God hath ingaged you to be zealous of his house and that of all sins he cannot endure back-sliding As for you Gracious Prince If you desire to present your selfe to God as a member of his unspotted Spouse in Christ be not unequally yoked away with that Lincie-wolsie Match with reverence be it spoken it is a beastly greasie and a lowsie-wearing unbefitting your Grace Scripture will apologie my termes which speaking of spirituall whoredome giveth it alwaies the vilest termes Then good Sir curtall Baals Messengers by the middle to their shame Cast out of Gods house all the garish attire of the Whore and bring not an Athaliah what soever she be into your bosome who will adorn Balaams house with the riches of your God Let it never enter into your Princely heart that Dagon and the Ark can stand together for Christ and Belial hath no communion Let no profane person nor Popishly affected like briars and brainbles pester your house nor choake both life and practise of holy disties in you Keep good and plain dealing Physitians for your soule chear the hearts of Gods people with the loue of your countenance and in so doing you may bee assured the Lord will make you a sure house And you right Honourable and most Worthy of the High Court of Parliament together with his Majesties Councell Vse the counsell of a great King to his councell He would alwaies haue them to leaue two things without Simulation and dissimulation be either first for God and the reforming of his house or otherwise you can bring no honour to your selues nor good to your Country You illustrious Princes Nobles and Favorites of the King serue not the times nor your own turnes Ezr. 3.5 with the neglect or opposition of Gods cause withdraw not your neckes from the work of the Lord with the Tekoites nor break not the yoke of Gods obedience by impiety profanenesse and superstition as those Princes did in whom Ieremiah sought some good but found none Ier. 3.5 be not like those Princes of Iuda that with their false flatteries fayned curtesies and fleshly reasons 2 Chro. 24.17 made Ioash cast down all with his heele that he had set up with his hand but let Nehemiah his care Daniels zeale the three Childrens resolution Gid on s valour and Obadiahs loue possesse your soules for the purity of Gods worship with a loathing hatred of all superstition And to you great Prelates or sprightfull Lords the very hearth that keeps in the fire of all this superstition and the Ensigne staffe that fixeth those strange colours in our Camp If I could perswade you let your train fall Away with the little beast with the two hornes Rob not the Nobility and Magistracie of their Titles and places no more then they should usurp the office of the Ministerie Lord it not over the Stewards of Gods house and let not him finde you beating his servants when hee cals you to a reckoning in a word lest Pashur his case proue yours if danger come Let Christ raign in his Ordinances and let that maxime once be made good in a good sense no ceremony no Bishop Lastly to you people which be of two sorts carnall and called of the Lord to the former Thinke not the rotten walls of your profanenesse or meer Civilisme shall still be daubed over with the stinking morter of Romish superstition the durt whereof you cast in the faces of Gods faithfull Ministers if they touch your galled sores away with those fig-leaues and leprous clouts and let the Word haue its course with you To you the latter sort that with some lazie wishes are content to haue it so as the Prophet speaketh giue me leav out of my very loue to tell you that Isâ—char his caraiage or bowing down like an Asse between two burthens will not serue but you must hate the garment spotted with the flesh and say to the Idols Get you hence what haue we to doe with you Lastly to conclude the point to you all I say again from the highest to the lowest with my duety to all in lawfull place reserved if admonition will not work let terrour of iudgement prevaeile Levit. 10. the strange fire in Gods worship was punished with the fire of Gods wrath from heaven God proportions iudgement to the sin we haue ever kept in and pleaded for the excommunicate thing for the which the Lord may plague us we haue like fooles reserved the seedricks of superstition therfore the Lord is like to giue us enough of it Hos 8.11 we haue made many Altars to sin and they may be unto us for sin let King and Prince and Nobles and Ministers 2 Chron. 25 14 c. and people look to it King Amasiah setting up the gods of Seir by the God of Israel
caused the wrath of the Lord to be kindled against him which never slaked till it consumed him for he ran from one evill to another while his own conspired against him and slew him Shebnah that great rich Treasurer who was hewing out his Sepulcher and scorned the Lords call to humiliation for idolatry and other sinns Esa 22.15 he is tossed by the Lord like a ball in a strange Countrey where he dyeth so that the chariot of his glory becoÌ„meth the shame of his Lords house If Diotrephes will not leaue his Lording it over Gods house and beating his servants till he cast them out of their own houses and Gods house forbidding others to receiv them 3 Ioh. 9. Wil not the Lord remember their deeds If the luke-warme Angell with people of this loathsome quality will not grow zealous and mend Will not the Lord spue them both out of his mouth In a word Rev. 3 16. if we doe not as one man humble our selues for partaking with Idols and suffering of Idols and every man in his place put to his hand to bring Iezabel from the window we may justly feare that neither peace nor warre nor Parliament nor Plantation nor Traffique shall prosper with us Yea to shut up the point if we will neither hearken to counsell nor threatning we may feare that be made good upon us which the Prophet threatned against Amaziah that God hath determined to destroy us 2 Chr. 25 1â— because we haue done evill and will not hearken to the counsell of God I hope I am no enemy because I tell you the truth the Lord in mercy make us hear the sound of the Trumpet that we may stand up in the breach and liue As all these things aforesaid are duely to be considered so in the eight place followeth a thing not immateriall to be thought on and very often helpfull to the victory being thought on namely that souldiers wearyed with a long March Multum virium labore itineris pugnaturus amittit lib. 3. cap. 11. Livi. lib. 2. should not imediatly or if they can that day ioyne battel Vegetius giveth a reason by a great March the souldier weakeneth his spirits and looseth his strength Instance of this may begiuen in the Volscians fighting against the RomaÌ„s after too great a March much crying they ioyned in fight and at the very first encounter were defeated and abandoned their Campes Sergius Galba with his wearyed souldiers set upon the Portugalls and routed them at the first and pursuing them unadvisedly with his over wearyed souldiers the Barbarians with their recollected forces returned upon them and slew 7000 Romans very able souldiers The neglect of this observation did the Aâ—ch-Duke no good at the battle of Newport Appianus de bello Hispan who after a long March as I am informed gaue battle to his adversary and that upon a sandy ground Had Spinola with an easie march brought his forces fresh before Bergan-up-Soom presently giuen an assault he had hazarded the taking of the Towne but with over marching they were so wearyed and weakened that fiue dayes past before they were able to assault by this they lost their best opportunitie He laid the blame on Velasco but it was well howsoever The ninth and the last thing to be remembred but not the least The necessitie of fervent prayer yea the chiefest thing of all is devout and servent prayer unto God for the victory If an eloquent and pithy speech from the mouth of a natural man prevail much as I shewed in provoking them to courage how much more couragioâ— shall these men be whose hearts God doth touch and whose hands God doth strengthen for the day of battel Now â—hese by prayer are obâ—ayned of God witnesse that instance of Moses praying and the people of God fighting when Moses held up his hand that is was strong in prayer then Israel prevayled and when he let downe his hand that is when his spirit failed 〈◊〉 17.1 Amalec prevayled A man may thinke that Moses should rather haue gone into the field being the Lords Generall then got him up to the mountaine to pray but Moses knew well enough what he had to doe he appoints a man sufficient for the place he knew wherein the strength of Israel lay namely in their God and what would most prevaile with God namely fervent proyer One good man praying is worth an Army of men fighting and therefore Moses the man of God guided by the spirit tooke this as the best course for obtayning of the victory The prayer of the righteous saith S. Iames avayleth much if it be fervent Iam. 5.16 This is the key that openeth heauen and the steps of the ladder whereby we ascend This maketh the Lord to bow the heavenâ— and come downe By this wee wrastle with God that he may giue us strength to wrastle with the enemie This strengthneth the feeble knees and hanging downe hands of those that fight Gods battels Finally this blunteth the forces of the enemie and overturneth the horse and the rider Origen on that practize of Moses maketh this application lift thou up thy hands to heaven Eleva tu manus in coelum c. Homil. 11. in Fxod as Moses did and obey the Apostle his precept pray without intermisssion for Gods people did not so much fight with hand and weapon as they did with voyce and prayer This time of battle is the very pinch of extremitie and therefore the best opportunitie for prayer Deut. 33.7 Moses ioyneth these two together in the blessing of Iuda heare oh Lord the voice of Iudah or as the Chaldee well traÌ„slateth the prayer of Iuda when he goeth forth to war If wee be commanded to call on the Lord in the day of our trouble what greater trouble then this when the enemy is ready to devour us and to reproch the name of our God This you may see to be the ordinary practize of Gods people in the fighting of his battels Iudah cryed unto the Lord. 2. Chron. 13 14. Chap. 14.12 Notable is that prayer of Asa going against the Ethiopians he cryed unto the Lord. Heâ—pe us oh Lord our God for we rest on thee and in thy name wee goe against this multitude So that of Iehosaphat going against the Ammonites is a president at large for all Gods people how to behaue themselues in this particular First 2. Chron. 20 that good King discovereth the strayt wherein they were wee know not what to doe vers 12. Secondly his refuge but our eyes are up towards the ibidem Thirdly his pressing God with petition oh our God wilt thou not judge them ibidem Fourthly the arguments whereby he would moue God to heare his petition from the 6 vers to the 13. Fifâ—ly there is the preparation to this duetie that it may be the more effectuall and Iehosaphat feared the Lord and set himselfe to seeke the Lord proclaymed
your heads and shame upon your enemies This course will break the heads of the Dragons of your sinns this will offer violence to heaven and as it were inforce God to answer this will be like an earthquake to your enemies it will sinke them it will swallow them up A pretty instance of this I remember from the confession of an arch-enemy of the Gospell namely Queen mother of Scotland who fighting against God and the erecting of his Kingdom confessed openly That she feared more the fasting and prayer of the man of God Iohn Knox and his Disciples then an Army of 20000 armed men As your neglect hath been great in this particular so the blemish of out Nation in neglecting and opposing this office is indeleble No Nation professing the Gospell but they haue publiquely been humbled in some measure we excepted we onely haue not set forth to help thus against the mighty which I thinke verily hath accursed all the rest of our helps that they are as Water spilt upon the ground It is true that the soules of Gods people haue been exceedingly humbled in secret for the afflictions of Ioseph and haue poured out their hearts in aboundance of sighes and teares for their miseries But what is this to the publique discharge Since I am fallen upon the point I cannot but with griefe obserue that this Nation hath been at such opposition and enemity with this duety that it is thought as dangerous a thing to undertake it as it was in Athens to make mention of the recovery of Salamis or as it was amongst the Iewes to speake in the name of Iesus What should be the cause of this I haue often wondred I am sure of this It is an evill sign of an evill cause yea a fearfull fore-runner and provoker of Gods long protracted wrath to fall upon us Not any finne of omission or commission hath a more fearfull threatning against it then this Witnesse the Prophet Esay Ch. 22.12.13.14 When God saith he called to weeping and mourning and to humiliation in the highest degree as the word importeth then behold saith he ioy and gladnesse slaying of Oxen and all the contraries by which they braved out God to his face But what followed A fearfull threatning Surely this iniquity shall not be purged from you till you dye saith the Lord of Hosts Whose eares should not tingle to heare this And whose heart should not tremble to thinke upon it And yet the best in this is too secure But since the duety is so called for and since it setteth such an edge on invocation it hath so prevailed against the enemies of Sion and the neglect of it is so severely threatned what may be the cause may some say that in a Christian Common wealth it should be thus neglected and withstood If you will haue my opinion in my judgement I conceiue these to be the Remoraes or break-necks of this duty First the universall plenty except the wants of the meaner for so long as there be Oxen and Sheep to kill and sweet wine enough so long no humiliation Ioel 1.13 When the meat offering and the drink-offering fayleth them then will the Priests saith the Lord by Ioel gird themselues in sackcloth and lament and houle A second let is the conceited glory of the Church the Temple of the Lord the Temple of the Lord say they and that imgreat pompe and glory and what need we mourn It is an outside glury indeed but there is but a little glory within A third let is this men are so inslaved to sin and Satan and so vassalled to their own corruptions that they dare not incounter with their Maisters for whose service they haue bored their eares The fourth Remora is this the plants that are not of Gods planting know well that the use of humiliation would find out the causes of our evill amongst which themselues would be found to be the chief So that it is no wonder that they cannot endure to hear of humiliation But if men be thus fearfull to awake sleeping dogs and will hazard themselues and the Nation upon the point of Gods Pike what a fearfull plight shall they be in in that gloomy day that is like to come upon us wherein the Lord shall giue the Alarum May not Ahab condemne us in this Obliviscitur se Regem esse ubi Deum omniū Regem pertimescit purpuram abjicit c. And where shall we appeare when Ninivie sheweth it selfe Of whose King Ambrose giveth this pretty observation that he forgot himselfe to be a King when once his heart was smitten with the fear of the King of Kings hee casteth away his robes and beginneth by his repentance to be a King indeed for he lost not his command but changed it from the worse the better But to conclude the point oh that my counsell could please all those that I haue spoken to both Kings Ministers and people that we might be humbled as one man together and every man apart by himselfe and renting our hearts before the Lord never leaue importuning him nor let him goe till he were intreated If we would humble our selus the Lord would humble our enemies It is his Covenant Psal 81.13.14 Oh that my people had hearkened to me and walked in my waies I should soon haue subdued their enemies and turned my hand against their Adversaries Oh that wee were like Israel in the Iudges Chap. 20. who went to God the second time humbling themselues and offering burnt-offerings and peace offerings whereupon the Lord gaue their enemies into their hands So if we would humble our selues and kill our sinnes our enemies should quickly loose what they haue got and pay full deerly for all costs and damages But before I conclude the point take one caveat with the duty that it be performed with sincerity and singlenesse of heart for if it be done in hypocrisie or perfunctorily slighted over in the performance it provokes God and plagues the performer The Hollanders and French fast but without exprobation be it spoken they had need to send as God speaks for mourning women Ier. 19.17 that by their cunning they may be taught to mourn A soft heart sets well to a mournfull ditty where this is wanting there is no musick Humiliarion without reformation is a mockery of God and the undoing of a good cause The Lord tels us in the 58 chapter of Esay and the 7 of Zacharie how he abhorred the fasting of his people without reformation he giues a good reason in the fift and sixth verses They fasted not to the Lord but to themselues that is for their own ends as if men would serue their own turns with God and care not a whit how hee be served of them it were just with God to mock both them and us with shews of favours because we mock him with shews of service and amendment And surely if we look not to it in the humbling of
are the very first in front so I wish and pray that all that put their hand to the worke and fight those battels would take courage to them I would that speech of God by Moses unto the people might prevaile with them Heare oh Israel you approch this day to battle against your enemies let not your heart be soft feare not and hasten not away neyther be you terrified because of them The Lord addeth a reason for Iehovah your God is he that goeth with you to fight for you against your enemies to saue you Euen so would he be with us if we would be with him if you will fight for God as David did that blessing that was pronounced upon David by Abigail shall be upon you and yours the Lord would certainly make you a sure house and honour you and your children for ever because you fight the battels of the Lord 1. Sam. 2â— 28 and he would bind up your soules in the bundle of life I will not herein play the Pope to assure life and reliefe of friends out of purgatorie for fighting of the Lords battles No if such a fight would serve the turne in vain did Christ fight that great battle on the crosse but thus much I will assure them that they that fight these battles they fight the battels of the Lord for the maintenance of which the Lord hath given his promise and surely such as dye in these they dye for the Lord and thrice happie they if they dye in the Lord. As for their enemies fighting against the Lord they haue none of this assurance and howsoever it goe with them they can haue no sound comfort One thing more in the fight to be observed is that beaten rule of much use and practize not onely to let the enemy fly but to make way for him to fly if he be so disposed for this there be both lawes and a multitude of examples Poâ—aen lib. 1. Licurgus gaue a written law to the Lacones not to stop the enemies flight It was the saying of Scipio Africanus that he would not onely giue way but he would also make way for his enemy to fly A number of examples you haue in Frontine Caesar having inclosed the Germans standing to it desperatly made way for them to fly Haniball did so with the Romans at the battle of Thrasimena opening his orders he let them fly so defeated them So did Camillus with the Gauls The Grecians having got the victory at Salamis Polyaen lib. 1. they determined to cut the bridge over Hellespont to stop Xerxes his passage but Themistocles that old beaten souldier with danger counselled to let him passe for it stood with greater wit to rid the land of him then to force him to fight The reasons of this rule be two the first given by Vegetius necessitie is a desperat vertue which will effect as Themistecles well observeth that which neyther valour nor magnanimitie durst adventure to doe Secondly by this the victory is more easily obtayned they may kill and take at their pleasure routed forces without the losse of themselves Desperatio magnum est ad honeste moriendum incitamentuÌ„ Curtius lib. 9. where as by keeping them to it they may buy the victory to deare Despaire will incite some to dye with honour if dye they must that it may be never meant it G. Maulius the Roman Consull keeping the Hetruscians too strayt lost his life and had lost the field if his Legats had not opened their orders and let them passe and so they had them at their pleasure Yea this sometimes hath lost the victory witnesse King Iohn of France invironing Edward the blacke Prince not suffering him upon any conditions to passe put him and his handfull so to it that the French had shame and repentance for their paines To conclude the point I will shut it up with the saying of Count Poetiline If mine enemie saith he would fly I would make him a bridg of gold to fly upon yet all this must be taken with a graine of salt Not so to let the enemie fly as to loose the occasion of the victory or for feare to hold backe the sword from bloud that were to incourage the enemie to redintegrate the fight That wise speech of Kings Agis is worthy of observation who in the pursuit of his flying enemies Plutarch in Apotheg being counselled to make way for them answered thus If wee be not able to overcome our flying enemies how should wee overcome our fighting enemies intimating thereby that no occasion against the enemie should be lost CHAP. XXXVII Of the Issue of the hattle in Generall NOw I come to the Issue of the battle which giueth the one partie the victory and the other the overthrow for seldome they part on an even hand It is true indeed that the victory is so deare bought many times that as the Learned observe it scarse deserveth the name of victory Victoria magâ—o empta non est victoria sed calamitas 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Of that deare bought victory the Grecians haue a pretâ—ie proverbe The conqueror cryeth and the conquered is undonel Pyrrhus that Mirror of Generalls made this good out of his owne experience who having twice defeated the Romans but at so deare a rate that he was forced to say such another victory would undo us Yet since there is alwayes a better and a worse my taske putteâ—h me to it to discover as briefly perspicuously as I can how both the conquerour and he conquered should carry themselues Seneca layeth downe the generall Noscere hoc primum decet Quid facere victor debeat victus pati It first becomes the conqueror to know what he should doe the conquered also what he should suffer CHAP. XXXVIII Of the Carriage of the Conquerour TO begin then first with the victor Victoria est semper insolens for as Tully observeth victory is alwayes rash and insolent For the ordering of victory there be two sorts of directions the former for making of it up the latter for the right usage of it when it is fully aâ—â—ained In the former there be these two observatioÌ„s Be carefull to make up the victory First the conquerour must take heed of the rash and disordered pursuite of the enemie To this effect serveth well that counsell of Iphicrates ioyned with his practize This Commander following his flying enemie at his leasure in good order gaue order to his souldiers in the pursuite that they should beware of ambushment and that they should not follow too hard Lib. 3. nor neere to the Wals or forts planted with munition giving a good reason as Polyaenus well observeth that many by doing so haue lost the victory that they had obtayned Vegetius telleth us Frequenter jam fusi aeies disâ—ersoâ— ac passim sequentes reparatis viribus interimit lib. 3. cap. 25. that it often so falleth out that forces put to flight recollecting
with him who should surviue whatsoever it be or by whomsoever it must bee born so that as the Comick saith it is the part of a man Istuc viri officium not that a man should be taken in this case with a Stoicall insensibility and quaffe away all care and wit 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 with drinke and Tobacco or cast himselfe fast a sleep with the opium of delights or suffer himselfe to be charmed with the inchantments of solatious company as though hee cared not what God had done to him nor what he would doe with him this is to be under a double conquest the latter whereof is the worser A man therefore vnder the yoke must not onely suffer but also doe and devise how to redeem himselfe To doe and not to suffer is with the Lyon in the snare to struggle or with the fish to wrastle in the net but to suffer and not doe is with the sea-calfe to play and sport themselues when all the waues of God are going over them God often by the hand of the enemy as by a Pursivant at Armes fetcheth in bankrupt Tenants that is his own untoward or backsliding people and leaveth them in the pursivants hand till they take some course to satisfie for the arrerages If a man in that case take thought of nothing but strong drunke and Tobacco a punke and ribauldrie as sundrie in the fleet and Marshalsey doe is he not like to ly long enough by it yea it may be while all his delights leaue him and he haue neither inward nor outward comfort and the more unsensible one is of such a case it addeth the more to the miserie of his case So when Gods people are in the hands of their enemies they must consider where they are and cast about what to doe It is the lot of Gods people that are left alive in the Palatinate and Bohemia to be under an Aegyptian captivitie The Inheritance of God is laid wast and possessed by Gebal Amon and Amalecke they haue consulted together against God and his anoynted that his name and the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance A great part of this woefull calamitie lyeth on their Princely cedars who with their braÌ„ches are rooted up like a partridge they are hunted to and fro so if it were not that God out of the waters hath raysed a litle hill for them to rest upon I know not whether Kielah and Ziph would haue affoorded them any safe rest or no. Now since all this is come upon your royall Majesties you and yours yet lying under are the subject of the enemies insolencie to you yours giue me leaue to direct my speech in the application of this passage not but that I hope the rule of the word the long experimentall knowledge of heavie affliction the great misery of your poore distressed subjects hath caused you both to lay to heart the affliction But this is further to intreat you to observe whence it is looke about for deliverance get you a habite of patience how to beare it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and be directed in some measure what use to make of it Out of an earnest desire of deliverance to you yours all Gods distressed people I am bound to offer some rules to yours Majesties consideratioÌ„ which no doubt being followed wil work out your deliverance and therefore I presume they shall neither be grievous nor unprofitable to your Majesties CHAP. XLII Of acknowledging the defeat to be from God TO begin then with leaue the conquered in the first place are to look by whom they are conquered or defeated not I mean onely the secundary means for to that every one will look every one will be sensible of that but they must looke to God as the first mover of it the orderer of the means and the accomplisher of it As the Lord disposeâ—h the victory to the one so the foyle to the other Amos 3.6 There is no evill in the Cittie which the Lord hath not done Actions saith Hanna are not directed without the Lord 1 Sam. 2.3 hee killeth and he maketh aliue hee maketh poore and rich hâ—e bringeth low and lifteth up Yea many times hee giveth his own inheritance and his holy places with the bodies of his servanâ—s to be abused at the pleasure of their enemies Psal 98.6 99.12 Places are so plentifull for this that I could be infinite The Lord is said to sell his people into the hand of Iabin Iudg 4.2 he delivered them into the hand of Midian he sold them into the hand of the Philistims when the Israelites were smitten they acknowledged that the Lord had smiâ—ten them 1 Sam. 4.3 Wherefore hath the Lord smitten us to day before the Philistims That place of Ieremy is very remarkeable to this purpose I will sâ—atter them saith the Lord of his people with an East wind before the enemy Chap. 18.17 I will shew them the back and not the face in the day of calamity The lamentations of Ieremy are a whole field of such matter The Lord hath troden under foot all the mighty men Ch. 2.3 hee hath swallowed up the habitations of Iacob hee hath cut off the horn of Israel The Prophet Esay to this purpose is most pregnant Esa 42.24 Who gaue Iacob for a spoyle and Israel to the robbers Did not the Lord hee against whom we haue sinned Again Cha. 43.28 therefore I haue profaned the Princes of the Sanctuary and haue given Iacob to the curse and Israel to repreches I haue given the deerly beloved of my soule into the hand of her enemies Ier. 12.7 The Heathens men without God in regard of power or Scripturall knowledge haue been forced upon their foyles to confesse so much Mardonius the Persian Generall who stayed in Greece behind Xerxes either to redeem his reputation 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or to rid himselfe of his life by some desperate attempt having lost all was demanded by a certain Greek how it came to passe that such a huge Army of Persians were consumed and brought to nothing by a handfull of Greeks he answered very modestly and pertinently That that which God would haue done none was able to avert although men will not beleeue those that tell them such things Fond and confused indeed are the opinions of the Heathens of divers Sects concerning the ruin of Kingdoms and the overthrow of Princes The Stoicks ascribe it to Destiny the Epicure to Fortune Methodius and Cardanus to Planets 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Aristotle to an asymetrie or disproportion but Plaâ—â— and Pithagoras to whom Bodin assenteth doe lay the blame on Numbers And because some may wonder what should be the meaning of this last opinion I will unfold it so far as Plato the chiefe maintayner of it doth unfold himselfe As in numerall notes in the strain of Musicke Lib. 8. de reip
most moved of all since wee provoke him by our sinnes to forsake his owne inheritance and to leaue his owne cause to his owne dishonour unmaintained This lay heavy upon Eli who when he heard of the loosing of the day the slaughter of the people and the death of his sonnes could sit still and beare it out but when he heard of the taking of the Arke he could sit no longer So Phineas his wife made more of the losse of the Arke then of all the rest then of the people of her father in-law then of her husband or whatsoever yea her reioycing for the sonne she had gayned was swallowed up in sorrow so that shee left a character of her killing griefe in the name of her sonne calling him Ichabod where is the glory or there is no glory It is the speciall matter of the complaint of Gods people in their greatest desolation that the heathen in an insulting braverie did dishonor their God upon the seeming denyall of his presence and providence over his owne people yea many speeches in the Psalmes hath reference to the thoughts of the wicked concerning God Psal 79.10 Retsach Murther for a murthering weapon why shall the heathen say where is their God yea David sheweth how he was affected in this case that the reprochfull words of the adversary were as a dagger thrust into this bones with a murthering weapon in my bones Psal 42.11 my distressors doe reproch me when they say unto me all the day long where is thy God When Hezechiah heard how cursed Rabshakah had blasphemed reproched the Holy One of Israel 2. King 19. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Hipp. Aphoris how grieved was he in heart he got him to the house of the Lord spread the letter before him humbled himselfe in prayer It is a principall in phisicke that when two evills or sicknesses concurre together the greater taketh away the senoe of the lesser Experience did instance this in a man so oppressed and pained with the gout that he could neither stir foote nor hand but feared the very touch of a fether but being taken with a cruell fit of the stone he forgat the gout and run and stampt in the chamber as though he would haue beaten it downe To an honest servant dishonour done to his Master goeth neerer to his heart then the cut of a sword the true child of a father had rather loose his life then suffer his father to be dishonored This then ApplicatioÌ„ by it selfe were matter enough of humiliation why should the brats of Bable say where is the God of the Calvinists as they call them No should not this pierce our hearts while thus they say of our God but doth not all or the most lay this especially to their heels that all should lay to their heart witness the securitie of all the avarice oppression ambition and time-ferving humor of some the epicurish beastly life of others giue the men of this world gain honor office yvorie beds wine in bowles lascivious Musick joviall companie and beastly songs lordly prelacies and fat livings Let Ioseph carrie his afflictions as well as he can and let the Lords honor lie unlamented in the dust but woe be to them that are at ease in Zion Amos 6.1 the Lord suffereth sometimes himself to take wrong to see how men will take it but when he sees that none regards it he will quit himself by the power of his own Arme and when he rekoneth with the coward and the carelesse he will pittie them as little as they did pittie him Yea what reckoning can our State make who helps to deface the honour of God by suffering our people to serue Gods enemies against those that fight the battles of the Lord in this is a greater masse of mischiefes then we are aware of for beside the setting subject against subject bloud against bloud yea brother against brother which is worse then toleration of duels it smites at Gods cause it makes his honour bleed it heartens and hardens Gods enemies it grievs the heart and weakens the hand of Gods forces it proclaims that we are not Gods friends indeed what show soever we make and it threatneth the wrath of God against us I cannot but with griefe and fear make use again of Gods anger threatned against Iehoshaphats sin of this kind Shouldst thou help the ungodly c. therfore is wrath upon thee from before the Lord. Let us humble then our selues unfaynedly let us afflict our selues and powre out our hearts before our God and doe no more so Let us sow in teares for this especially if ever we mean to reap in joy Gods honour in the dust and all the rest of the former motiues cals us to mourning and baldnesse and girding with sack-cloth If we will not seek God with sorrow in affliction we will never seek him It is no time to hang our hearts upon the merry pin when we should hang up our harpes upon the willow trees if we doe the Lord hath threatned us as I haue formerly shewed not to purge this iniquitie till we die Let us doe as the Israelites did when the Lord did rebuke them by his Angel for not overthrowing of the Canaanits altars and that therefore he would not cast out the Canaanits but they should be as thornes in their sides Iudg. 2.2 and their gods should be snares to them all the people upon this lift up their voyce and wept and from their weeping called the name of the place Bochin so let us weep much for weâ— haue much matter of weeping but we must not onely weep bitterly for sinne but we must abandon sin there must be a totall change of the inward and outward man wee must cease to doe evill and learne to doe well the golden Calfe must be beaten to powder yea and the powder must be drunk as Moses made the Israelites to doe with thâ— golden Calfe Divers reasons whereof are given by the Fathers partly to put away all impressions and reliques of idolatry partly to shew the vile and base esteem that weâ— should haue of Idols as of things to be carryed into the draught and by the bitternesse of the water they might partly be admonished of the bitter curse whereunto all by nature without Christ are subject and partly how sin by the bitternesse of repentance must be done away I will not with some of the learned Chymists take this act of Moses as an instance of Chymicall projection but I am sure that out of it we may pick the true projection of repentance Ezekiah must break the brazen Serpent into peeces Iosua must find out the excommunicate thing and consume it with fire for so long as it is with us God will not be with us Non unum tantum vitulum sed multos habemus As Ferus did wish for the Romish Synagogue I woâ—ld we had some Moses saith he to take away