and almost necessarie to vse that gesture which doth most signifie and declare and vsually accompanie the greatest humilitie and reuerence and what other gesture can this bee but kneeling which is more reuerent then standing like as this is more reuerent then sitting and therefore Saint Iohn sawe the foure and twenty Elders first sitting vpon seates then rising and standing Reuel 4.4 10. 5.6 7 8 14 and after that falling downe or kneeling before the Lambe in imitation whereof all good Christians ought to kneele before the holy Lambe when they receiue his blessed body as it were out of his owne heauenly hands for the spirituall foode of their soules which do assuredly feede vpon his flesh by faith in a mysticall spirituall and sacramentall manner Againe I aske of our Geneuites if it be not lawfull to thanke God in receiuing of the Sacrament of thanksgiuing which I thinke wil not be denied In the next place I aske if it bee not lawfull to vse in our thanksgiuing the gesture that the seruants of God haue alwaies vsed in their other religious thanksgiuings and if not why shall that gesture which is lawfull in all other religious thanksgiuings bee vnlawfull in this and if it be lawfull in this aswell as in all other then let them shew me what other gesture it was but kneeling and if kneeling be the fittest gesture for the expressing of a most humble thanksgiuing such as we should offer vnto God in this Sacrament of thanksgiuing then why doe we not kneele with the Church of England rather then sitte or stand after the homely yea vnholy and vnhumble manner of Geneua Sect. 18. Fifthly The Church of England more heanen-like for harmonie Reuel 5.8 9. 14.2 3. 15.2 3 4. 19. the Church of England is more like the Church of God in heauen for heauenly harmonie then the Geneuian is for in Gods Church in heauen those holy and vnspotted Priests are painted out in seauen or eight places of the Reuelation singing new songs vnto God in most melodious manner both with voices and instruments and namely with Harpes and answerable thereunto in the English Church wee haue the harmonious consort and musicall concord of voices and instruments especially of Organes in the praising of God with Hymnes Psalmes and songs The which kinde of musicall instrument beeing as it were animated with the melodie of Singing-mens voices doth most of all other represent that which Saint Iohn heard in heauen like a voyce of a great multitude and as the voyce of many waters and as the voyce of strong thundrings saying and singing HALLELVIAH Of the which my sticall musicke I shall God willing deliuer many notable considerations and most comfortable Contemplations in our worke called Dies Domini And there I shal prooue both by Scriptures and Fathers authoritie and by irrefragable reasons euidencie the lawfulnesse and commendablenesse of the musicall consent of voyces and instruments in the seruice of God and that the alternatiue Church singing of the Quire diuided into two parts is conformable vnto the manner of the heauenly Churches musicke as may be gathered out of the prophecie of Isay who in his vision of the maiestie of God and his glorious Seraphims Isay 6.1 2 3 saith that one cryed to another and said holy holy holy is the Lord of Hostes the whole world is full of his glory And truley the Doctours of the Church and other ecclesiasticall writers doe witnesse in expresse words as shall be shewed in our said worke that the first Christians were wont to sitte one for against another as wee see they doe now adaies in the Quire and to inuite or cohort alternatiuely or by turnes one another to the praising of God by singing of Psalmes So that I cannot but wonder how our Geneuians can say any thing against so auncient and christian a custome or yet against the vsing of some instruments in the singing of Psalmes especially when as the word Psalme doth signifie either the melodie of the instrument or Organ alone or else the harmonie of the instrumentall noise and the musicall voice going together so that indeed there cannot be a Psalme there may well be a Song without an instruments sound and if we haue our Psalmes originally from Ierusalem and not from Rome from the Prophet Dauid and not from the Pope why may we not with the same Dauid vse in struments and organes especially when as the Spirit of God by him exhorteth men thereunto so often in the same Booke of the Psalmes which wee reade and sing euery day in our Churches yea with such an exhortation hee shutteth vp his Psalmes saying Praise ye him with Virginals and Organes Psal 150.4 1. Cor. 14 26 Ephes 5.18 19 20 Coloss 3.16 And that we might know that the praising of God vpon instruments was not a meere lewish Ceremonie and to last only vntill the comming of Christ and no longer the Apostle Saint Paul writing to the Corinthians sheweth that the Christians in his time in their assemblies were wont to sing Psalmes that is to say to ioyne the melodie of instruments with spirituall hymnes and songs for somuch doth the word Psalme in Greeke signifie and therefore the same Apostle distinguished betweene Psalmes and Songs both in his Epistle to the Ephesians and in his Epistle to the Colossians where hee exhorteth the faithfull to the melodious singing of Psalmes Hymnes and Spirituall Songs But if neither the example of king Dauid and the Church of Ierusalem both in King Dauids time and Saint Iames the first Bishop thereof nor the practise of the Primitiue Church within the first 500. yeares can induce vs to a liking of this kinde of Church musicke and of Organs melody yet let this mooue vs to like it that the Pope doth dislike it for otherwise hee would not want Organs in his chappel as he doth whereof I gather this new argument in fauour of Organs at least for the Kings Chappell If it be fit that our Kings Chappell bee vnlike vnto the Popes then is it fit that their bee Organs in our Kings Chappel for there are none in the Popes but the former is fit at least in the opinion of Puritaines and Precisians which would faine wee were vnlike the Pope in each indifferent thing and therefore the latter is fit likewise Sect. 19. Sixtly The Church of England more heauen-like for habite as the English Church is more heauenly for harmonie and therein resembleth neerer the Church of God and Angels then the Geneuian doth so is shee more heauenly for habite The ministers of the triumphant Church euen those blessed spirits that doe offer vp incessantly the sweet incense and sacrifice of praise vnto God are said to bee suted in pure white linnen as wee may reade in the Reuelation in some ten or eleuen places in sixe seuerall chapters Reuel 3.4 5.18 4 4 6 11 7 9 13 14 15 6 19 8 14 Dan.
A NEVV EIGHTFOLD PROBATION OF THE CHVRCH OF ENGLANDS DIVINE CONSTITVTION PROOVED BY MANY PREGnant arguments to be much more complete then any Geneuian in the world against the contrary assertion of the fifty three petitioner-preachers of Scotland in their petition presented in the late Parliament to the Kings most excellent Maiesty With a ten-folde probation of the same Churches doctrine touching one of the most important points of our Creede which is of our Sauiours descending into Hell BY IAMES MAXVVELL Master of Artes c. LONDON Printed by IOHN LEGATT Printer to the Vniuersitie of Cambridge 1617. Psal 122. verse 6. Pray for the peace of Ierusalem let them prosper that loue thee Isay 41.8 9 25. Thou Iacob whom I haue chosen I haue taken thee from the endes of the earth and called thee before the cheife thereof and said vnto thee thou art my Seruant c. I haue raised vp from the North and he shall come from the East Sunne shall he call vpon my Name TO THE MOST LEARNED RELIGIOVS AND RENOWNED PRINCE IAMES the Concorder King of Britaine France and Ireland defender of the faith all felicitie Most gratious and redoubted Soueraigne INEVER read those words of the Euangelicall Prophet prefixt in the former page and I haue read them often but as oft did I thinke of Almighty Gods raising of you our Iacob from the North and endes of the earth to performe the part of his Select Seruant for the especiall good of his Church and euen so oft did I call to minde your gratious endeauours for the farthering of the glorious worke of Vnitie and Concord amongst diuided Christians but more especially according to your Royall and proper interest among your owne vnvniformed Britaines Wherefore perswading my selfe that it is both the duty of all good Christians to applaude your mest Christian Commendable endeauours and designes and the part of all your good subiects to concurre with your Maiestie in so worthy a worke for the aduancing thereof I haue brought vnto the building of this spirituall Temple of Concord and Peace two stones to wit two Treatises penned and framed to the common peoples capacitie Such as they are I doe humbly exhibite both heere together into your Royall hands to dispose of according to your most gratious and wise pleasure and as ye shall thinke good for them for whose good they are intended The first Treatise containeth an eightfold probation of the diuine and perfit constitution of the Church of England the which I doe demonstrate to be much more complete then any Genenian forme wheresoeuer in the world for a moderate quiet and calme refutation of a certaine contrary assertion contained in the three and fifty preachers of Scotlands petition presented vnto your Maiestie in the late Parliament And though there were many reasons which might induce me to dedicate the same vnto your Royall Maiestie yet nothing mooued me so much thereunto as that the demonstration which I doe vse is drawen out of the diuine Booke of the Reuelation of Saint Iohn the diuine the which I may in a manner call the Booke of King Iames the diuine a demonstration that no writer hath vsed before me so farre as I knowâ— for I suppose that no diuine will or can denie but that 〈◊〉 â—he Booke of the Reuelation is contained a representation both of the Church Triumphant in Heauen by such externall or sensible signes or showes as were most fit to represent the same by and likewise of the Church militant on earth such as it was to bee after our Sauiours ascensien in the two times of persecution and peace aye vntill the last period of his glorious comming to iudgement For as the beloued and diuine man of God Moses made the Tabernacle according to the patterne or modele shewed him in the mount as the Scripture speaketh so our Sauiour Christs beloued and diuine disciple Saint Iohn representeth vnto vs the forme and fashion of the militant Church according to the patterne of the Triumphant shewed vnto him by reuelation in the I le of Pathmos So that in the opinion of all diuines amongst the many particular Churches that are on earth that which is likest vnto the Church in heauen must needs bee the diuinest and best and that so much the more because that our Sauiour himselfe hath taught vs to pray and say daily thy will be done in earth as it is in heauen Now that the Church of England doth more neerely resemble the heauenly Church then the Geneuian doth I make it apparant by eight pregnant proofes and irrefragable arguments founded and grounded all of them in Gods written word especially in the foresaid diuine booke of Saint Iohns Reuelation 1. in that the Church of England is more diuine or God-like then the Geneuian in her supreame Gouerner on earth the Prince 2. in that shee is more Angelicall or Angel-like in her secondary Gouernours of Archbishops and Bishops 3. more celestiall or heauen-like for holinesse 4. more heauen like for humble reuerence 5. more heauen-like for harmonie 6. more heauen-like for habite 7. more heauen-like for locall decencie Church-implements conueniency Church-seruice solemnity and sacramentall ceremonies 8. and lastly more heauen-like for honour of the ministery In the handling of which eight arguments I doe demonstrate the lawfulnesse vtility and conueniencie of the chiefe rites vsed in the Church of England as namely of holy dayes of standing vp at the reading of the Gospel of kneeling at the rehearsall of the Law and in receiuing the holy Sacrament of Churchâ—musicke consisting of song and Organs of the Church habite of Surplice and Rotchet of the comely Structure and ornaments of Churches of hauing a Font with a standing Table for the celebration of the Sacraments and of signing with the crosse in Baptisme for the which I doe produce thirteene arguments all grounded in Gods word I doe likewise iustifie the title of Priest giuen to the inferiours of the ministery and of Lord giuen to the superiours by diuers good reasons and by thirteene arguments I prooue the lawfulnes and equity of paying tithes to the ministers vnder the Gospel adding thereunto an Invectiue against the Genevian or Puritane impure sinne of sacriledge And in handling the first of the eight branches of this our new demonstration which is that the Church of England is more diuine or God-like then the Geneuian in her supreme Gouernour on earth I do procue these sixe important points after following most part against the common contrary opinions of Romanes and Geneuians first that the Kingly power is immediatly from God and not from man by eight Testimonies of Scripture and three arguments Secondly that the kingly dignitie is absolutely greater then the priestly and of all other the diuinest by eight arguments Thirdly that christian kings are not meere lay-men but of a mixt condition partly ecclesiasticall and partly secular by ten sacred examples and three arguments Fourthly that kings are lawgiuers vnto their
hand execute Gods vengeance vpō himself thus he suffered Saul to slay himselfe and Zimri to burne himselfe And as he wil not employ a Princes owne subiects in such a businesse so he needeth not to vse the hand and power of any person whatsoeuer for God can drowne the wicked Prince in the water or sea with Pharaoh or hee can strike him with madnesse with Nebuchadnezzar or hee can burst him or breake his necke with Ahazias or can strike him with leprosie like Vzziah or Azariah The very elements and beasts of the field are at his beck and bidding the beasts to deuoure the fire to burne the aire to infect the water to drowne and the earth to swallow vp such Princes as God will be auenged on yea he hath armies of painefull and shamefull diseases of wormes of mice and of lice to consume and vexe wicked Kings with Dan. 4 10 11 12 13 14 22 23 28 29 30. 5.6 7 24 25 26 27 28 2. Micha 6.9 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 28. And as the Angels of God which are his highest creatures smote Nebuchadnezzar with madnes droue him from amongst men to dwell with the beasts of the field and so depriued him of his kingdome for a time for those Noters and Geneuian Glossers are deceiued that doe thinke his owne subiects did depose him for tyrannie and as another Angel did write vpon the wall the sentence of King Belschazzars destruction so the wormes that are the Lords lowest creatures conspired to vexe the wicked tyrant Antiochus the cruell persecuter of the Iewes that he died miserably and both these creatures together the highest in heauen act 12.1 2 3 4 5 21 22 23 and the lowest on earth did at Gods appointment concurre to plague Herod the persecutor of the Christians who had vexed many of the faithfull killed Iames and imprisoned Peter for the Angel of the Lord smote him because he gaue not glory vnto God so that hee was eaten vp of wormes Thus we see how God getteth glory when he correcteth wicked Kings with his owne hands 1. Sam 13.9 10 11 12 13 14 15 1 2 3 8 9 10 11 16 17 22 23 19 20 22 23 26 28 cap. 1. King 16.30 31 32 17 18 19 20 21 22 cap 2. King 21 1 2 3 4.5 6 7 8 9 10 11 16 2. Chron. 33.1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9. whereas he is robbed of his glorie by such subiects as dare take the rod as it were out of Gods hands and put it into their owne to scourge Kings with Fourthly the people of God vnder the old Testament did not imprison or depose their most wicked Princes such as were Saul Ahab and Manasses nor did the high Priests excommunicate them for their crueltie tyrannie apostasie and idolatrie persecution and seduction and therefore the people of God vnder the new Testament ought to doe the like in following the example of their pietie and patience in the behalfe of bad Princes otherwise Christians should come short of the Iewes in morall perfections which were absurd Fifthly the constitution and creation of Kings is of God and not not of man it is Gods hand only that can make a King according as he saith himselfe By me Kings raigne and as we haue prooued aboue in the first lesson and therefore the deposition of Kings Prouerb 8.15 and their coercion belongeth likewise to God and not to the Kings owne subiects for the power is equall in the one and the other And therefore wee see that the voice that deposed Nebuchadnezzer came from heauen Dan. 4.22 28 29. Thy kingdome is departed from thee like as the Angel and the Prophet doe both of them auouch that it is the most high that giueth the kingdome to whomsoeuer hee will Sixtly in the new Testament Christ and his appostles do oftentimes command subiects to giue vnto Kings but no where they bid take away or withhold any thing from Kings howsoeuer vnworthy neither tribute and liuing by detention nor libertie by incarceration nor Kingship by depriuation nor life by ciuil or rather vnciuill and sinnefull execution nor the benefits of the Church and kingdome of heauen by hellish excommunication Giue saith the King of Kings vnto Caesar the things which are Caesars like as he had commanded Peter his very prime Apostle to giue the Kings Receiuer poll money for them two Mat. 22 17 21 17 24 25 26 27 Mark 12 14 15 16 17. Mat. 10.1 2. 1. Pet. 2.17 Rom. 13 1 2 24. giue saith hee the twenty pence vnto them for me and thee and the same prime Apostle commandeth all subiects both spirituall and temporall persons euen as many as haue Soules for his fellow Saint Paul saith let euery soule besubiect to princes to feare God and honour the King Ergo subiects must not dishonour the King by coercion incarceration excommunication or depriuation Yea Saint Peters Successor himselfe if he hath any hath no power to dishonour the King whom God hath honoured with his crowne and throne let him be neuer so vnworthy in his conceite nor to expose him to the dishonour or danger of any of his subiects by his censure of excommunication or sentence of depriuation Our Sauiour bids giue to Kings Saint Peter gaue to Kings ' and bids giue them honour and so doth S. Paul saying Giue to all men their duty Rom. 13.7 tribute to whome yee owe tribute custome to whome cnstome feare to whome feare honour to whom yee owe houour And no where they bid take away any thing from Kings and therefore such men as take away from Kings their liuings libertie or life or the benefits of the Church Gods kingdome or their owne doe disobey God the father of Kings and obey the deuil the dishonourer debaser of kings Seuenthly wee doe not read in Gods word that euer a King was deliuered vnto Satan so that it wanteth example and as for precept the very formal words vsed in the institution of excommunication by our Lord do shew that it was neuer intended for Kings by the Spirit of God For besides they were not as yet within the bosome of the Church Mat. 18 15 16 17. by calling when it was ordained those words If thy brother trespasse against thee If thy brother hoare thee If thy brother heare thee not If thy brother refuse to heare the Church also do euidently and pregnantly euince that excommunication is a censure of an offending brother 1. Cor. 5.12 not of the father of the people And therefore the Apostle entreating of excommunication extendeth it no further then unto such a one as is called a brother If any that is called a brother saith he be a formcatour 2. Thess 3.13.14 15. or couetous or an idolater or a railer or a drunkard or an extortioner with such a one eate not neither companie together and againe And ye brethren be not wearie
Booke Reuela 1.2.8 9 11 14 1 6.7 21 14 22 1 3 our Church angelspreaching of the Gospel to the Preaching of Angels which Saint Iohn heard the Pulpit answereth to Mount Sion whereon he saw the Lambe standing or rather to that Tree of life bearing twelue manner of fruites for from thence the word of life is delinered by the learned and reuerend Bishops as it were from the mouth of the Lambes twelue Apostles twelue times in the yeare the first Lords day of euery moneth To be briefe our Church-font with Holy-water for the celebration of Baptisme doth answer vnto that glassie Sea or riuer of water of life cleere as christall proceeding out of the throne of God of the Lamb our Euangelical Priests Crosse-siguing the baptized on the fore-head and our Angelicall Bishops sealing and confirming of the Virgin seruants of our God which by Baptisme had beene bathed and washed Reuela 4.6 6.9 7 2 3.4 14 1 2 3 4. and so made fit to follow the Lambe doe answer vnto the Angels signing and sealing of the Seruants of God on the fore-head our Sacrament all holy bread of life answereth to that hidden Manna of heauen promised to him that ouercommeth our Lords supper to the Lambes supper Reuela 2.17 6.9 8 3 4 5 19 13 11 1 19 19 9. our Church golden and siluer Basons and Cuppes for the ministration of the holy Sacrament to the Angels golden Censer and our Church Table for the ministration and celebration of the same Sacrament answereth vnto the Golden Altar which Saint Iohn sawe before Gods throne And who can say otherwise but that a Font and a Church-Table are two implements or instruments as requisite to be in enery Church for the ministration of the Sacraments as a Pulpit is requisite for the delinerie of Sermons and for the reading and preaching of the word And thus haue I made it apparent to all such as haue but common sense and vnderstanding that the Church of England is much and many degrees liker then the Geneuian to the Church that Saint Iohn saw in heauen so that as many of vs as doe loue heauen cannot but exceedingly like the forme of the English Church and better then that of Geneua and wee may well say it that the forme of the Church of England and not that of Geneua was reuealed and represented to our diuine Prophet For the Reuelation containeth a propheticall representation of the Church of Christ and of the forme and constitution thereof such as it was to bee after our Sauiours ascension in the two times of persecution and peace vntill his last comming to iudgement to confound his foes and to glorifie his friends and elect children as I doe shew more particularly in another worke in Latine entreating of the persecution and peace of the militant Church according to the holy prophesies of Daniel and Saint Iohn a booke that I began at the age of nineteene yeares wherein all the opinions of ancient and moderne writers and euen of the learned of both Religions touching the authors instruments duration beginning manner and ending of the persecution or troubles and of the tranquillity and peace of the Church are propounded and compared together with their reasons and arguments debated and many errours refuted Now because I haue said in this Section that the Church of England is liker to the Church of God in heauen in the matter of sacramentall or symbolicall ceremony then the Geneuian is and haue giuen an instance thereof in their Signing of Christs new-borne babes on the fore-head with the signe of the Crosse in Baptisme Ezech. 1 2 3 4 5 6. Reuelat. 7.1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8. like as the Angels in heauen are said in Ezekiel to signe them that sorrow and mourne vpon the fore thead with the Crosse-like letter Thau and in the Reuelation of Saint Iohn to signe the fore-heads of Gods seruants with the seale of God I haue thought good to insist a little longer vpon the matter of this ceremony and to prooue the lawfull commendable and Christian vse of it by many arguments and euen some new ones of our owne meditation Our first argument is thus both the Prophet Ezekiel in the old Testament and the Prophet S. Iohn in the new haue prophesied of the conuersion of the Iewes to the faith of Christ by the Angels signing of them in the fore-head as the letter of the word doth beare in both places the which the auncient Doctours of the Church haue vnderstood of the Signe of the Crosse to be receiued at the hands of the Church in their Baptisme as no diuine that euer read the Fathers dare deny whereby they shall professe that they are no more ashamed of his Crosse or scandalized at the ignominie of it as their forefathers had beene 1. Cor. 1.23 to whom it prooued a stumbling block as the Apostle speaketh but that they glorie in it and beleeue to be made blessed by it euen to bee saued by Christs suffering on that same Crosse which their forefathers had once set vp to slay and destroy him by Wherfore if our Geneuians would haue the Iewes to bee conuerted to their Church they must needes receiue from England or rather from the primitiue Church the sacred signe of the crosse that they may haue it to christen the Iewes with otherwise they will not goe to Geneua for Christendome nor to Scotland neither nor to any reformed Church of their fashion Secondly in all reason and common sense it is conuenient that the Iewes beeing conuerted should declare by some sensible signe that they are no more ashamed of Chrisls crosse but well ashamed of their owne cursed course in crucifying him that came to cure them and though there were not any mention at all made in holy Scripture of their signing or sealing in the foreshead as there is most expressely yet should it bee lawfull for them to declare by some externall gesture or act aswell as by words of mouth their Christian disposition of this kinde Thirdly as it tendeth much to the glory of God in that he can bring light out of darkenesse life out of death saluation out of destruction nobilitie and fame out of ignominy and shame and honour out of dishonour so it tendeth to the edification of the Church that this admirable working of our most glorious and wise God bee declared and made as notorious as it can be with all conueniencie both by words of profession and gestures of signification and consequently it tendeth to the edification of the Church that the Iewes should declare by the signe of the crosse that they doe acknowledge God to haue drawen admirably blessing and honour out of the dishonour and curse of the crosse and saluation out of destruction It is a most Christian confession for Iew or Gentile especially the Iew to confesse and acknowledge that the Crosse which they once set vp