for euer Amen THE FOVRTH SERMON And his Name shall be called The wonderfull Counsellour The mighty God THe Nature and Excellencie of Christs Person are those two Points of Doctrine which haue beene obserued in this Text The first I haue ended you haue beene taught what Christs Person is what is his State I come now to the excellencie of both Each hath an excellency there is an excellencie of the Person and an excellencie of the State The excellencte of Christs Person is to be seen in the endowments thereof which are contained in his stile but the excellencie of his state appeares in his managing thereof I beginne at the excellencie of the Person which consists in the endowments and the endowments are exprest in the style As mortall Kings so this immortall hath his style proclaimed And his name shall be called his style expresseth indowments which are Regall but Spirituall Regall they are Two vertues are peculiar vnto Kings ouer and aboue those which they must haue in common with their Subiects they are Wisdome and Power Wisedome to prouide for and Power to sustaine their estate This King hath both he hath Wisedome for hee is The wonderfull Counsellour and he hath Power for he is The mighty God But as his indowments are Regall so are they Spirituall for they must be proportionable to the Kingdome His kingdome is not of this world for he is the Father of eternity Neyther is the condition of his people worldly it is Peace it is an heauenly not an earthly portion Hee is Prince of this Peace These be the endowments of his Person and of these we are to speake distinctly and in their order And first they are giuen him in his style Herein hee answereth mortall Kings in that he proclaimeth his style lest his people should faile in their respect For the greatnesse of respect ariseth with the greatnesse of the style we vse to looke vpon them with a more awfull eye in whom there are more grounds of awe This hath made Monarches in all ages to straine their Titles to the vttermost as hee that reades the Story of the Assyrian the Persian the Romane Monarches of old and the moderne histories both of barbarous and Christian Kings may easily perceiue But here is the odds that their styles doe commonly shew rather what they should be than what they are They are giuen them propter spem in hope they will proue as their Titles import or else they shew what they would seeme to haue done rather than what they haue done indeed And here flattery amplifieth beyond truth and maketh mountaines of mole-hils yea substituteth fables in stead of verities as might easily be proued if we would insist vpon their particular styles You may reade the title of Augustus giuen vnto such Emperours as did not enlarge but diminish the Empire of Pater patriae to those that were so far from being Fathers that they were plaine Tyrants of Pontifex Maximus giuen to them which were so farre from seruing the gods that they did sacrilegiously canonize themselues for gods and yet propter spem the Senate gaue them these titles and by flattery they did amplifie in the rest He that had but a small conquest encreased his style as if he had conquered a whole Kingdome as appeares in the styles of Germanicus Illiricus Brytannicus c. To omit the fabulous styles of the easterne Monarches he that will may read them in their stories and see how ridiculous they are in claiming kindred of the gods of the starres and of what not which might amplifie their Maiestie In a word Hope and Flattery are the best ground wherupon all mens worldly titles are built especially great mens and Kings most of all But it is not so with our King the truth in him is answerable to the titles that are giuen him They are not giuen him propter spem but propter rem Hee is that which he is called neyther is there in them any flattery yea his titles do come short of they do not exceed those perfections that are in him So that we may not measure the style of Christ as we doe the styles of mortall Kings but conceiue rather more than lesse when we heare his style Marke also another difference between the style of Christ and the style of mortall Princes Mortall Princes amongst other amplifications of their style are spoken vnto in abstracto you seldome heare of any salutations giuen to them but they are so conceiued Maiestie Dominion Celsitude Grace and the like as if they were framed of Plato's Idea vpon which Diogenes played wittily Scyathum video Scythietatem non video and another applying it to Princes obserues That before this style began vertues were in concreto the Persons and the Vertues met in one subiect but since they haue been separated and as we heare the vertue abstracted from the subiect so doe we commonly see the subiect voyd of the vertue But it is not so with Christ but whereas he may iustly and doth sometimes not only to note the eminency of his vertue but also to note his Godhead call himselfe by abstract names Wisedome Truth Righteousnesse Life c. yet doth hee vsually receiue his style in concreto to note that his Manhood is endowed with these qualities from his Godhead and that the subiect and the vertues goe in him both together Lastly wee must not beginne Christs being this which he is called at the time when he is first called and so with Seruetus question the Godhead of Christ as if it were no more ancient than this solemne proclamation of his style For though then his endowments began to be manifested and communicated to his Manhood yet as God hee had them from euerlasting from euerlasting was he the wonderfull Counsellour the mighty God the father of eternity But to leaue the preface and come to the indowments to the Regall indowments The first imports his Wisedome hee is called The wonderfull Counsellour Some seuer these words and make two titles of that which I reade but as one one title of Wonderfull and another of Counsellour and so it may bee Wonderfull may well bee a title of Christ nay a transcendent title which goeth through all his titles for not one of them is there in which we must not conceiue him to be wonderfull and wee cannot haue a better preparation to those meditations which we haue on the eminencie of Christ than if we begin at wonderfull Admiration is but broken knowledge but it is the seed of perfect knowledge so perfect as we are capable of It maketh vs when we study vpon the nature of God and of Christ and the excellencies of both to conceiue a good rule which is That though God speakes 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 yet we must vnderstand him 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and euer rise higher in our thoughts than we are led by the signification of the words We must adde a degree of eminencie wherin they
God tooke an occasion from the wrongs done to his people to powre forth his displeasure vpon them Wisd 19. The wrong was double First they brought friends into bondage that had wel deserued of them The storie is plaine in Genesis how Ioseph saued them from perishing by famine and therefore how willingly they receiued him and his into the Communion of their Lawes therefore it was against all Law to make them bondmen God therfore which is iudge of all the world sent Moses and by him commanded Pharaoh to deliuer them and to suffer them being his first borne to goe three dayes iourney into the wildernesse and sacrifice vnto him But so farre was Pharaoh from obeying God that hardning his heart he vexed the Israelites more What then did God In reuenge of his people hee brake Pharaohs hard heart hee made the proud King giue him the glorie both of his Iustice of his power while he destroyed that ancient that goodly Kingdome and slew the persons the principall persons of it the ofspring of those whom Ioseph had saued together with their countrie Moreouer hee forced them to make an amends to the Israelites for their seruitude not onely in willingly letting them goe but in furnishing them also for their iourney with the richest of their garments and most precious of their Iewels This did God to the Egyptians And indeed it was God that did it For though there were some ceremoniall meanes vsed yet there were none vsed that were effectuall Moses and the people did but looke on Gods immediate power produced those wonderfull effects The same God that tooke this vengeance for them is the same still and he will neuer suffer his Church to be vnreuenged though hee suffer her to bee cruelly persecuted when he seeth time hee will doe to her enemies as he did to the enemies of Israel Saint Paul Saint Peter and Saint Iude teach it briefely 2. Thes 1. 2 Ep. 2. Saint Iohn in the Reuelation deliuereth the Doctrine more a large by way of prophecie and the Ecclesiasticall Storie sheweth that that prophecie is accomplished for a good part of it The second worke sheweth what God did to the Israelites and that is a worke of Mercie Moses here teacheth the Manner and the End of it The Manner God bore them on Eagles wings we account it a great honour that God doth vnto men when hee giueth his Angels charge ouer them to carrie them in all their wayes that they dash not their foote against a stone And indeed it is a great honour that these glorious spirits which attend Gods throne should become ministring spirits and attend sinnefull men How great an honour is it then that God doth vs Heb. 1.14 when hee himselfe vouchsafeth to bee the supporter of Israel Carrieth them as a man carrieth his little babe God putteth them in mind of it by Esay Chap. 46. vers 3.4 Hearken vnto me O house of Iacob Deut. 1. and all the remnant of Israel which are borne by me from the belly which are caried from the wombe and euen to your old age I am he and euen to the hoarie haires will I carrie you I haue made and I will beare euen I will carrie and I will deliuer you And Christ like the good shepheard in the Gospel beares his sheepe and so likewise in the Prophets And indeed the passage out of Egypt was a Diuine transportation for of so many hundred thousand that past so great a iourney through so desolate places ther was not one sicke not one tired and how could they haue all beene so well at ease except God had carried them They might well take to themselues those words of Esay 〈…〉 31. They that waite vpon the Lord shall renew their strength they shall mount vp with wings as Eagles they shall runne and not be wearie they shall walke and not be faint When at any time wee haue strength to doe that which neither in our owne iudgement nor in the iudgement of others we are able to doe we must giue the glorie of it to God as Dauid doth in the 18. Psalme we must acknowledge that God did carrie vs through God doth not onely say that he did carrie them but hee carried them vpon Eagles wings quasi super alas aquilarum saith the Chalde Paraphrase as it were vpon Eagles wings There is a Simile in the phrase which breedes two inquiries first who is vnderstood in the Eagles secondly what the Wings meane Some vnderstand Moses and Aaron the two guides that led the people of Israel out of Egypt and will haue them compared to Eagles Propter acumen intelligentiae altitudinem vitae by reason of their piercing iudgement Hom 46. in Matth. and their holy life Saint Chrysostome nearer to our purpose saith that they were Mollissimae pennae misericordiae diuinae as it were the downe feathers of Gods mercie because they handled the people committed to their charge tenderly and intreated them gently in imitation of Eagles of whom some report how truely let the naturalists inquire that whereas other birds carrie their yong ones in their talents or clawes which cannot bee done without some griping they lay them vpon their wings and so transport them without any grieuance which is a good embleme for Magistrates and teacheth them paternall affection towards their people Saint Ambrose resembleth Christ to an Eagle Lib. de Solomone and that in three points First because as the Eagle fluttereth ouer her yong ones and safegards them from any that would annoy them so doth Christ carefully protect his Church Secondly as the Eagle stirreth vp her nest and taketh vp her yong ones enforcing them to looke towards the Sunne thereby trying her generous or degenerating brood euen so doth Christ make triall of true and counterfeite Christians he reiects them as counterfeits that haue but Owles sight and which hate the light but those which can looke vpon the Sunne of righteousnesse and delight in beholding him they goe for true Christians And why They can see their pray a farre off and where the carcasse is there will the Eagles be Sursum Corda though Christ be in heauen their thoughts ascend thither Thirdly the Eagle hateth the Serpent and wheresoeuer hee seeth him renteth him with his beake and Christ the seede of the woman did breake the Serpents head there is perpetuall enmitie betweene them and their seede There is good correspondencie in these points betweene Christ and the Eagle but they cannot be so fitly applied in this place because the word in my Text is plurall Aquilarum of Eagles except wee shall say that Christ had in him the perfection of many Eagles or was attended with many Angels which are sometimes compared to Eagles Ezek 1. Reu 4. and the Cherubins in the Temple and Tabernacle had large and broad wings But let vs come to the wings By them are meant two things the first is the height the second
liue amongst Beasts and vpon his acknowledgement of the Lord of Heauen and Earth was restored againe maketh this cleare Canutus a King of this Land when flatterers magnified his power and did almost deifie him to confute them caused his chaire to bee set by the Sea shore at the time of the floud and sitting in his Maiestie commanded the waues that they should not approach his Throne but when the tyde kept his course and wet his garments Lo saith hee what a mighty King I am by Sea and Land whose command euery waue dareth resist Though then they are mighty yet there is much weakenesse ioyned with their might Not so Christ It appeares in the Epithite that is added vnto El which is Gibbor importing that he is a God of preuailing might In Daniel he is called El Elim The Mighty of mighties whereupon Moses magnifying his might saith Who is like vnto thee Exod. 15. O Lord amongst the gods Which words abbreuiated the Maccabees in their wars against their enemies did bear in their standard and therehence as the learned obserue did take their name of Maccabees Certainely this Epithite is a lust ground of that which King Dauid perswades Psalme 29. Ascribe vnto the Lord O yee mighty ascribe vnto the Lord glory and strength But there are two Eminences in Christs might by which hee is aduanced aboue all Creatures The first is that he is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 mighty of himselfe The second is that he is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 almighty 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 other Creatures haue their power from him and therefore their power depends vpon him so that he can at his pleasure intend or remit theirs but his owne continueth euer the same Secondly they can doe but euery one so much as is permitted him and neuer was there any creature to whom God imparted all his power I speake not of the degree but the parts thereof some things he committeth to Angels which Men cannot doe and some things to Men which Angels cannot doe the earth hath not the power of the heauens nor the heauens of the earth but God is the fountaine of all power there is nothing done by any of these which without these he cannot doe Ier. 23. Nothing is hard vnto him and the Angel Luke 1. Nothing is impossible vnto God therefore hee hath wrought the same effects without these creatures What he doth by his Angels ordinarily he extraordinarily hath done by himselfe and what doth hee by Man which without Man hee hath not done And as for the Sunne and the Starres he hath illightned the ayre without them and without the earth hath he prouided both bread and flesh yea at his pleasure he hath stript all those of their power in an instant in a word He doth whatsoeuer he will both in heauen and earth he cannot will that which he cannot doe nothing resisteth his will but all things readily do serue him If this title be carried through the Gospell euery point of the Gospel will witnesse the truth thereof in Christ it will witnesse that hee hath a preuailing power and that he is therefore worthily called a mighty God When God promised him hee promised him in these words I haue layd helpe vpon one that is mighty Psalme 89. When God exhibits him Luke 1. Zacharie proclaimes him thus God hath raised vp a mighty saluation vnto vs in the house of his seruant Dauid Christ himselfe Mat. 28. All power is giuen to mee both in heauen earth to say nothing of like titles that are remembred in the Reuelation But I chuse rather to obserue vnto you out of both Christs Regall titles how well they fit vs what comfort they doe yeeld vnto vs. Our enemie the Diuell is compared to a Serpent to a roaring Lion hee is full of craft and of great strength and so are his instruments the wicked subtill and violent but wee are silly and we are feeble If we compare our selues to them how can we but feare to be deceiued to bee opprest See how God hath prouided for vs see how hee hath furnished Christ whom hee sendeth vnto vs Hee is a Counsellour and it was a Counsellour that wee needed that â—ight discouer vnto vs the Serpents policie in his end and Sophistrie in his meanes wherewith he setteth vpon vs He pretends that we shall be like vnto Gods when he meaneth to make vs Diuels and by setting an edge on our desire of the Tree of the knowledge of good and euill he would depriue vs of the Tree of life but Christ is at hand to discouer his purposes and to giue vs timely caueats that we bee not abused by them Secondly he still compasseth the world seeking Whom he may deuour and is mighty to destroy And certainely none should escape him were it not that we haue on our side a mighty God the seed of the Woman that shewed himselfe so much mightier than the seed of the Serpent by how much breaking of the head is more than bruising of the heele Wee haue a Dauid for that Goliah and a stronger man that hath entred that strong mans house bound him rifled him and diuided his spoyle So that if now it be doubtingly asked Shall the prey be taken from the mighty or the lawfull captiue bee deliuered we may answer with the Prophet Esay 49. Thus saith the Lord Euen the Captiues of the mighty shall be taken away and the prey of the terrible shall bee deliuered for I will contend with him that contendeth with thee and will faue thy children and all flesh shall know that I the Lord am thy Sauiour and thy Redeemer the mighty One of Iacob Wherefore seeing Christ is become our Counsellour let vs not leane vnto our owne wisedome but be counselled by him It is the second degree of wisedome when wee cannot aduise our selues to bee aduised by others if we faile herein the Philosopher himselfe will censure vs for fooles And remember withall that of the Sonne of Syracke Bee in peace with many neuerthelesse haue but one Counsellour of a thousand cap. 6. hee giues the reason at large cap. 37. And well may we rely vpon the iudgement of this Counsellour who much better than Elizeus can detect vnto vs the plots of the King of Aram of all our Enemies that we may prouide against them yea he can take them all in their owne wilinesse and infatuate their Counsels as he did Achitophels Reade Esay 19. 8. So did Christ deale with the old Serpent and with the broode of the Serpent in all ages our age our country hath had proofe thereof As this must encourage vs to rely vpon his Counsell so must the other title encourage vs to rely vpon his power his preuailing power We walk in the middest of our enemies and they vse the vttermost of their strength to ruine vs yet though we are in the middest of the valley of the shadow of death let vs feare none euill
then obedient subiects to their Prince By this that you haue heard wee may learne how to reckon dayes we must not put into our morall Kalender all times for Dayes wee must looke whether the Sunne be vp not the Sunne which runneth in the corporall Firmament but the Sunne of the Politicke or Ecclesiasticall State wee must see how much Light how much Heat is deriued into either of them how much the King doth aduance our temporall our eternall prosperitie so we must measure dayes And if we doe we shall find how much the world doth oftentimes mistak and wee shall find them children of the night which thinke themselues children of the day wee shall find that they are couered with grosse darknesse when they thinke they doe partake of the Light This is the case of the Turkish Monarchie if wee looke to a ciuill day and Kingdomes that are enthrawled to Antichrist if we looke to the spirituall day the time of neither of these Gouernments may properly be called a Day But when wee looke vpon a faire Sunshine day and see how welcome it is to the earth we must be put in minde thereby of Gods blessing vouchsafed vs and learne to illustrate our Metaphoricall by such a naturall day Certainly the time wherein wee now liue is a very cleere Day the Ciuill State hath long enioyed abundance of Peace and the Gospel hath free passage in the Church euery man sits quietly vnder his owne Vine and boldly doe wee assemble in this place to heare Gods Word these bee plaine euidences of a Day a double Day such a Day as few Nations haue enioyed for either the Sword rageth amongst them or the light of the Gospel hath not shined vnto them It is then worth the marking that our time is a Day But there is something more which I may not omit This Day began such a Day as our Chronicles for many generations doe not report the like When we reade the storie of Ioshua who commanded the Sunne to stand still and stretched forth one day to the length of two we all wonder and well we may for it was a great wonder to see two dayes come together and neuer a night betweene But had not we as great a wonder haue we not had so long a Day hath not our Metaphoricall matched that Naturall Yea it hath gone so farre beyond it as the Metaphoricall exceeds the Naturall reade our Chronicles and you shall find how seldome we haue had two such Dayes together as Queene Elizabeth hath made with King Iames immediatly succeeding both double Dayes Dayes of Church and Dayes of Common-Wealth Looke beyond Queene Maries time was at least a spirituall Night King Edwards time a short though a Spirituall and a Ciuill Day also King Henrie the Eighth his time was neither Night nor Day Henrie the Seuenth his time was a spirituall Night but a Ciuill Day Richard the thirds time was a Night both Spirituall and Ciuill if you goe yet more vpward you shall not find it much better only by comparing this you shall find how short their times come of ours to whom God hath vouchsafed this double Day wee may fitly call it duplex Festum such a Day must needs be a Festiuall Day a double Day a double Feast And indeed it hath set vpon it the markes of a Festiuall thereunto I told you must concurre two things First Operatio diuina Secondly Recognitio humana Gods worke and Mans acknowledgement Gods worke must goe before Deus fecit is the first character of an Holiday Why doth one day excell another saith the sonne of Syracke Chap. 33 Seeing the light of the dayes of the yeare commeth from the Sunne the knowledge of the Lord hath parted them asunder and hee hath by them disposed the solemne times and Feasts some of them hath hee chosen and sanctified and some of them hath hee put amongst the dayes to number But this is not all that is to be obserued in Gods making of the Day the Lord doth not only appoint such a time but doe something thereon for which it deferues such a title Obserue then that a time of aduersitie is called the day of the Lord but yet God is not said to make it a Day but rather he maketh that day a night one and the selfe same time is called in the Scripture both day and night In the fift of Amos Mich 3. Zeâ—â— â—â— we reade Is not the day of the Lord darknesse it is darknesse and there is no light in it Micah and Zephanie accord therewith A strange composition there is when the same time is called both Day and Night A Day it is called only in regard of the euidence all shall see plainly what it is and therefore it is called the Reuelation of the iust iudgement of God Gods iudgements are alwayes iust but they doe not alwayes appeare so to all but God hath appointed a time wherein he will so cleere it that the wicked themselues shall not bee able to denie it in regard of this euidence that time is called a Day But if you looke to the substance of things that doe befall them in that Day then sure it is not a day but a night they are dismall and dreapfull things either corporall or spirituall and in these two points standeth the substance of a metaphoricall Night A second reason why God is said to make the time a Day is because he is the sole cause thereof It is true that God createth darknesse and woe but he doth it not but as he is prouoked by man man doth sin if God send plagues but of light and prosperitie God is causa 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 also the occasion and the cause of blessednesse are both of God moued only by his owne goodnesse doth hee doe good vnto men especially the good of this double Day such as was the Day of Israel For if you looke vpon the people they were most sinfull if vpon the enemies of King Dauid they were most malicious and violent so that had not Gods goodnesse and his power the one past by the sinne the other represt the malice of King Dauids Aduersaries the Day could neuer haue dawned King Dauid had neuer sate vpon that Throne Well may God then bee tearmed the Authour of the worke which had so little probabilitie of being if you looke vpon all other things excepting God In a word the very phrase teacheth this lesson That when wee see alterations in the World we must no more doubt of the Author of the Metaphoricall then wee doe of the Naturall Day God is the Authour of both and of both with like facilitie Hee lighteth our candle and maketh our darknesse to be light Psal 18. Though we may not neglect second causes yet must we ascend as high as the first It was Heathenish Idolatrie when the Gentiles saw the benefits that came from the Sunne in lightning and warming the earth to make
33 34. Well Master thou hast said the truth c. p. 358. 10. Sermons on the 19. Chapter of Exodus p. 367. c. 5. Sermons preached at Saint Maries in Oxford Luke 3. v. 7 8 9. Then said he to the people that came to bee baptized of him O Generation of vipers c. p. 473. A Sermon preached at Pauls Crosse Luke 18. v. 7 8. And shall not God auenge his owne elect c. p. 531. Jn the third Alphabet 8. SErmons preached at the Feast of the Natiuitie of our Sauiour Esay 9. v. 6 7. For vnto vs a child is borne c. p. 1. 6. Sermons preached at the Feast of the Natiuitie of our Sauiour Haggai 2. v. 6 7 8 9. For thus saith the Lord of Hosts yet once it is a little while and I will shake the Heauens and the Earth c. p. 57. A Sermon preached at New Colledge in Oxford vpon the Annuntiation Day Luke 2.28 Haile thou that art highly fauoured c. p. 113. A Sermon on Palme Sunday Matthew 26.40 41. What could yee not watch with me one houre p. 127. A Sermon on Good Friday Marke 14. v. 35 36. And he went forward a little and fell on the ground and prayed c. p. 136. A Sermon preached at Saint Peters in Oxford on Easter day 1. Corinth 15.20 Christ is risen from the dead c. p. 151. A Sermon preached in Wells on Easter Day Matthew 26. v. 26 27 28. And as they were eating Iesus tooke bread and blessed it c. p. 161. 3. Sermons preached in Wells at the Feast of Whitsontide Ephes 4. v. 7 8. c. ad 17. But vnto euery one of vs is giuen grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ c. p. 177. A Sermon preached in Westminster before his Maiestie and the vpper House of Parliament at the opening of the Fast Iuly 2 1625. 1. Kings 8. v. 37 38 39. 40. If there be in the land famine if there bee pestilence c. p. 200. 2. Sermons preached at Wells at an Ordination of Ministers Matthew 28. v. 18 19 20. All power is giuen to me in Heauen and Earth c. p 221. A Sermon preached at a Visitation in Bathe Zacharie 11 v. 7. And I tooke vnto me two staues the one I called Beautie c. p. 249. Another Sermon preached at a Visitation in Bathe 1. Cor. 15.10 By the grace of God I am that I am c. p. 261. A Sermon preached at an Assize in Winchester Esra 7. v. 26. And whosoeuer will not doe the law of thy God and the law of the King c. p. 273. A Sermon preached at an Assize in Oxford Psal 75. v. 2 3. When I shall receiue the Congregation I will iudge vprightly c. p. 282. A Sermon preached in Wells at the Inauguration of King Iames Psal 118. v. 24 25. This is the day which the Lord hath made c. p. 299. A Sermon preached at Saint Maries in Oxford Nouemb. 5. Luke 9. v. 53 54 55 56 But they would not receiue him because his face was as though he would goe to Ierusalem c p. 307. Jn the fourth Alphabet A Sermon preached in Welles a man doing Penance for Incest Psal 50. v. 21. These things hast thou done c. p. 1. A Sermon preached in Wells a woman doing Penance for Incest Gal. 6. v. 1. Brethren if a man be ouertaken in a fault c. p. 10. A Sermon preached in Wells a man doing Penance for Incest with his wiues daughter 1. Cor. 5. v. 1 2 3 4 5. It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you c. p. 18. A Sermon preached in Welles two doing Penance for Incest a man and his wifes daughter Leuit. 20. v. 14. Likewise if a man taketh a wife and her mother this is wickednesse c. p. 32. A Sermon preached in Welles foure doing Penance for Incest committed by one with his wifes daughter by the other with his wises sister Deut. 27. v. 22 23. Cursed is he that lieth with his Sister the daughter of his father or the daughter of his mother c. p 42. A Sermon preached in Welles one doing Penance for hauing two wiues Mal. 2. v. 15. And did he not make one yet had he abundance of spirit c. p. 53. A Sermon preached in Welles certaine persons doing Penance for being at Conuenticles where a woman Preached 1. Tim. 2. v. 11 12 13 14. Let the woman learne in silence with all subiection But I suffer not a woman to teach c. p. 67. A Sermon preached at Welles one doing Penance for Blasphemie Leuit. 24. v. 15 16. And thou shalt speake vnto the children of Israel saying Whosoeuer curseth his God shall beare his sinne c. p. 79. A Sermon preached in Wells a Schismatick doing Penance 1. Cor. 3.18 Let no man deceiue himselfe If any among you seeme to be wise c. p 94. A Sermon preached at Farnham on Saint Iames his Day being the day of King Iames his Coronation Iames 1.12 Blessed is the man that indureth tentation c. p. 107. A Sermon preached at White-Hall Iohn 2.16 Make not my Fathers House an House of Merchandize p. 122. A Sermon preached at Greenwich Psal 32. v. 5. I said I will confesse my sinnes c. p. 132. A Sermon preached at White-Hall Luke 22. v. 60 61 62. And immediately while he yet spake the Cocke crew c. p. 143. A Sermon preached at Greenwich Matth. 3.16 17. And Iesus when hee was baptized went vp straight way c. p. 159. A Sermon preached at White-Hall 1. Iohn 3. v. 20 21. For if our heart condemne vs God is greater then our heart c. p. 176. Meditations vpon diuers Texts of Scripture AN EXPOSITION OF THE FIRST PSALME VERS 1. 1. Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsell of the vngodly nor standeth in the way of Sinners nor sitteth in the seate of the scornfull THis Psalme stands first in order and for the matter it well deserues to stand first Venerable Bede giues the reason Hic Psalmus fine titulo quia ipse est titulus this Psalme hath no inscription because it selfe is an inscription it containes the argument of all the other Psalmes and if of all the Psalmes then of all the Bible know them and know all yea know all in the best manner Non Theoreticè sed Practicè we may behold therein Man as a liuing Bible the Man Christ exactly of whom not a few of the Psalmes entreate and other men proportionably whose affections are here limmed and described be they good or bad The diuision then of this Psalme is the same with that of the whole Bible in both wee must obserue a Couenant and Parties thereunto the Parties are God and Man Man is remembred in the entrance Blessed is the man God in the close of the Psalme The Lord knoweth the way of the righteous c. The
proofe is the vnreformedliues of the Professors therof It caÌ„not then be denied but that though in the eye of flesh bloud when we sin wee satisfie our lusts vpon the creatures mandoth iniurie vnto man as Dauid to Vriah to Bathsheba yet the offence redounds vnto God and God is a party Against whom we Sinne whensoeuer we sinne Tibi peccaui I haue sinned against thee must be put in the Confession of euery sinner Besides this Confession that is common to all sinners here is added another Confession which is proper vnto Kings Tibi Soli peccaui against thee only haue I sinned could no man say but he that is a Soueraigne But to open these words more fully we must obserue that some vnderstand them Absolutely some Comparatiuely and of those that vnderstand them Absolutely some vnderstand them onely de Facto some de Iure some consider only what was done some what ought to be done these different senses agree all well with the Text and because the knowledge of them is vsefull I will touch at them all First at the sense which conceiueth in these words that which was vsually done Great Men especially Kings are beset with flatterers that will rather blanch sinne then set it forth in its owne colour pleade for it rather then against it they turne Princes vices into vertues and adore their imperfections as if they were heauenly perfections and so if they begin to bee bad they neuer leaue vntill they haue made them starke naught to glorie in their shame 〈◊〉 10. â—4 which they see others magnifie But God hath no respect of persons he soweth no such Pillowes vnder the elbowes of Kings neither will hee couer their ruines with such distempered morter when their subiects doe sooth them 〈◊〉 3.5 he will speake home and be a swift witnesse against them when all others hold their peace hee feareth not the faces of the mighty neither will he spare to strike the greatest Monarch Iob toucheth this more then once and the Author of the Booke of Wisedome doth euidently amplifie it neuer a Booke Historicall in the Bible that hath not some examples of it And this may be the first thing that King Dauid meaneth in these words he might haue slept and died in his sinne for ought was sayd or done vnto him by men but hee found one that rowsed him that searched his wounds to the quicke and that was onely God when the Prophet when the Priest the Councellors of State all were silent none made any Remonstrance to the King of his sinne God put forth His voice 〈…〉 yea that a mighty voyce that shiuered both the soule and body of King Dauid and made him acknowledge the difference betweene his Soueraigne in Heauen and his Subiects on Earth saying Against thee onely haue I sinned As these words are true de facto note what is vsually don so are they true de Iure also note what lawfully may be done In sinning there is a double difference betweene a Subiect a Soueraigne the one is ratione Praecepit Commandments Lawes the other is ratione Paenae mulcts and Chastisements The subiect hath two obligations vpon him the Law of God and of the King hee is bound to yeeld his Obedience to them both neither can hee dispence with his Obedience vnto either of them the King is absolutely bound only to Gods Law ouer his owne Lawes hee hath power although hee should vse them as Directions for the good of his people yet when there is iust cause he may dispence not only with himselfe but with others also in this respect do the Lawiers affirme that a Monarch is Solutus Legibus that a King in regard of his own Lawes cannot deale vniustly because in foro Soli hee onely is to iudge when it is expedient for him to dispence with his Lawes So then when a Subiect offendeth he offendeth against the Law of his Soueraigne and of God but when a King offendeth against the Lawes of a Soueraigne he cannot offend hee offendeth onely against the Lawes of God And so in that sense it is true Tibi Soli peccaui Besides the Precepts of Lawes there are Sanctions these containe the Penalties which they incurre that breake the Lawes as manifold as the Lawes are so manifold are the Sanctions And here commeth in a second difference betweene a Subiect and a Soueraigne A Subiect is liable to both Sanctions to the Sanction of his Soueraignes Lawes the Sanction of Gods Lawes if he offend he is punishable by both But a Soueraigne is subiect but vnto one Law so but vnto one Sanction that Sanction which is annext vnto the Law of God to the Sanction of his owne Law he is not subiect Nature abhors progressum in infinitum as in Philosophie so in Policy therefore subordination of Persons that ariseth by degrees must rest when it commeth to the Soueraigne all within his Territories are subiect to his chastisement but hee to the chastisement of none In Apolog. Dauid Cap. â— tutus est Imperij potestate saith Saint Ambrose it is the principall of his Roiall prerogatiues and vpon this point doe most of the Fathers insist that haue occasion to speake of these words euen from the verie dayes of the Apostles haue they made these words a Sanctuarie vnto Kings and a sacred plea for their exemption from the censure of any vnder God This Doctrine is the rather to be vrged in this Age because the two extreames that impugne the truth Papists on one side and Schismaticks on the other are both vsurpers vpon the Crowne and Scepters of Kings both will giue them Lawes both will correct the errors of their Liues and Gouerment one by the Pope the other by the People But both their vsurpations are condemned in this Text Tibi Solipeccaui Against thee only haue I sinned confuteth them both and subiects that will not passe for Rebells must be contented to take not to giue Lawes to suffer from not to inflict Punishments vpon their Soueraignes Yet though this be the duty of Subiects Princes are not lawlesse neither is this a Doctrine of Impunity for though it bee peccaui Soli Tibi yet it is Peccaui and Tibi God is their Lawginer and will call them to an account for breaking of his law Et potentes potenter Wisd 6. the greater they are the greater shall their punishment bee Lactant. Lib. â— de Iustitia c. 24 though they bee exempted from the power of man they are reserued vnto a greater power the power of God This may stop all mutinous mouthes and hold in all treacherous hands that declame against the vnbridled power of Soueraignes and thinke it long before Iustice is done vpon them But enough of the absolute sense of these words Some obserue besides this a Comparatiue sense King Dauid offended God and Men though the offence were great against both yet was the former infinitely
be receiued into the state of Glory AMEN PSAL. 51. VERS 8. Make me to heare Ioye and Gladnesse that the bones which thou hast broken may reioyce IN the desire which King Dauid expresseth of being restored to the state of Grace I haue told you more then once that he layeth open his owne wickednesse and layeth hold vpon Gods goodnesse Hauing at seuerall times sufficiently shewed you how he performed the former I began the last time to open the later vnto you The first thing that I then obserued was that the Medicine doth point for point answere the Disease the disease was of double wickednesse one King Diuid committed himselfe another hee inherited from his Parents I shewed you that here was a cure of both In the sinne which himselfe committed we found Malignitie and Impietie it vexed King Dauid and offended God each of these hath his proper cure the sinne as offensiue vnto God is cured by Expiation of that you heard the last time as it is afflictiue of King Dauids person it is cured by Consolation and of that you must heare at this time But before we enter vpon the Text marke the method of the Holy Ghost consider how the Cures are digested the Expiation of sinne must goe before the Consolation of a Sinner and why Sinne had neuer beene afflictiue if it had not beene offensiue we then began to bee in distresse with the guilt of conscience when we displeased God by breaking his Law therefore if we be not first at one with God we must neuer looke to be at one with our selues â—om 5.1 Cap. 14.17 learne it of Saint Paul Being iustisied by faith we haue peace with God and else where more fully The Kingdome of God is righteousnesse peace and ioy in the Holy Ghost it beginneth at Righteousnesse which is all one with the Expiation of sinne then vpon Righteousnesse followeth Peace and Ioy in the Holy Ghost And what are these but that Consolation whereof I shall now intreate Onely I giue you this note by the way that when so euer you shall neede the like cure you neglect not this sacred order that you tender not your owne case before you haue atained Gods fauour such preposterousnesse will cause that your spirituall physicke will neuer sort a wished effect But let vs come to the Text. I told you it containeth a cure of the Malignitie of sinne Of the Malignitie of sinne we haue here set downe the Power and the Author the power it breaketh a sinners bones the author of this power is God so saith the Text The bones which thou host broken the cure is restoratiue Comfort comfort noted by two words Ioy and Gladnesse that is Internall and Externall comfort and such comfort is restoratiue for it will make euen broken bones for to reioyce But whence commeth this comfort And what hope is there of it surely it commeth from God Dauid beggeth it of him make mee to heare of Ioy and Gladnesse marke euery word is significant the meanes by which we receiue it is the Eare but God conueieth it by the Eare yea the capacitie of our hearing is the gift of God all these three things are contained in these words Make me to heare As God is the giuer of it so there is no doubt but hee will bestow it the phrase imports as much and so doth the contexture for though in my Text it bee read as a petition Make me to heare yet in the originall which our vulgar reading Psalmes doe follow it is a plaine assertion Thou shalt make me to heare Adde hereunto the contexture the inference of the cure vpon the application of the remedie Make me to heare of Ioy and Gladnesse what will follow The bones which thou hast broken shall reioyce You heare whereof I must speake I pray God that I may so speake that you may heare and learne the meanes of true consolation in the distresses of your soules The first thing then to be obserued is the power of the Disease the Malignitie of sinne and that is the breaking of a sinners bones the Bones are but a part of the body but they are vsed here to note the whole and well they may in this case for if they faile the rest cannot continue the bones are the pillars as it were and foundation of the other parts the Ligaments are fastned to them the Muscles the Entrals the Skinne all are borne vp by them Adde hereunto that they being of the strongest substance that which can crush them cannot bee resisted by any other part well then may the bones signifie the whole body and the breaking of the bones the consumption of the whole But what The wound is in the soule how commeth the disease then to be in the body surely there is euident reason for it the body of it selfe is but a lumpe of earth the life and vigour that it hath it receiueth from the soule and according to the influence of the soule is the health and strength that appeareth in the body Take a similitude from the Sunne and the Earth the earth a huge globe made to be the nurserie of varietie of Plants Beasts Birds while the Sunne shineth comfortably vpon it how cheerefully doe all things looke how well doe they prooue and prosper but remoue the Sunne from it as in Winter or Eclipse the beames thereof how squalid is the face of the earth how doe all things euen languish as it were and die Euen so fareth it betweene our soules and our bodies our bodies are in good liking they are Summer-like if they bee cherished by our Soules but if our Soules neglect them then they grow Winter-like and droope And how can they but neglect them when the distresses of a guiltie Conscience haue seized vpon the roote of life that is the Heart If that once be cast into a spirituall melancholy it groweth senselesse and carelesse of all other imployment and if the soule wither at the roote how should the branches flourish how should any facultie performe its proper worke when the Heart that is the common director strengthner of the rest giueth ouer her worke They that have seene any conflicting with this passion might easily obserue how neither food nor friends nor family nor children nor any thing that either nature or reason doth endeare are any thing regarded by them but feeding vpon that pyning humour they seeme to take no content but in their disconrent and spend all their thoughts in complayning of this fretting and consuming humour Read King Dauids Penitentials if any where you shall there see the Picture of such a languishing person especially in the 38. Psalme where expressing his disease Sinne in the fourth Verse hee amplysieth the power thereof working vpon his body There is no soundnesse in my flesh there is no rest in my bones my wounds stinke and are corrupt I am wearie I am bowed downe greatly c. you may read the rest at your leasure 〈◊〉
his libertie out of the Loue hee bare to his Master and his Wife and Children Christ in his owne person maketh the allusion and we may accommodate it to our owne persons In a word a man doth heare Theologically when the Law which is perfect conuerteth his Soule the testimonie of the Lord that is sure Psal 19. maketh him wise of simple the statutes of the Lord that are right reioyce his heart and the commandement of the Lord that is pure doth illighten his eyes so that this hearing-eare is of God Deut 29. as also the Voice is and therefore Moses tels the Israelites that God hath not giuen them eares to heare and Christ in the Gospell saith qui habet aures ad audiendum audiat for vobis datum est it is not to euery body giuen to heare but of them to whom it is giuen Christ hath pronounced Blesse are the eares that heare that which you heare Hauing heard what the Voice is and what it is to Heare we must now ioyne them together and indeed speaking is for hearing in ciuill societie neither would God euer haue giuen men tongues if hee had not giuen them eares And if for this life hee so prouideth how much more doth he prouide so for the life to come Surely S. Paul saith that he receiued grace and apostleship 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Rom 1 5. 1. Thes 2 13. that men might heare him with faith and he calleth the word of God 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a word of hearing that is a word which must be heard Esay goeth a step farther and calleth the word of God Cap 53 1. Rom 10 16. Schemugnah Saint Paul rendreth it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 hearing who hath belieued our hearing So it is in the originall the meaning is who hath belieued the word that we Preach to the end that men might heare it The word of God is still to sound in mens eares and men are still to heare the sound thereof How iniurious then is the Romane discipline Luke 11. Matth. 23. which like the Iewish Lawyers takes away from people the Key of knowledge and shut vp the kingdome of heauen against men Which heretofore made it a mortall sinne to read Gods word And now clogs the libertie it grants with such cautions that very few especially of those that are with in the reach of the Inquisition dare bee acquainted with it yea and those clogs content not but now it is thought fitter vtterly to denie libertie As such teachers are iniurious so are there some schollars impious that may but will not heare whether out of contempt or neglect they are impious murtherers of their owne Soules for this Voice onely is the Voice of life and it quickneth by the eare although wee must not so limit the conueiance thereof by the corporall eare that wee exclude the eye for our eye also since Gods word is written by reading may conuey Gods Voice vnto the eare of our Soule and men by this second meanes are not a little edified in Gods truth the Fathers especially Chrysostome doth commend reading earnestly to the people yea the Law hath commanded it long since when it willed the Iewes to write the Law vpon their doore posts certainely the Iewes euen at this day inure their children to a daily reading of the Law so soone as they come to yeeres of discretion and it were to be wisht that Christians did imitate them therein But marke that as the Israelites must heare Gods Voice so they must heare it absolutely for God doth not yet acquaint them with the contents of his Voice he speaketh indifinitely hee requires obedience not to this or that Commandement not to this or that Article of faith but to whatsoeuer he shall purpose And well may God require such obedience for he is first 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Truth of himselfe yea Truth it selfe so that a man need not feare that at any time or in any thing God can bee deceiued or will deceiue vs neither can agree with the Omniscience and Holinesse of his nature Secondly God is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Almightie and the soueraigne commander of man so that his word is not onely Truth but a Law where the word of this King goeth there goeth power it admitteth no disputing no resisting As he is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Truth so we may safely captiuate our wits vnto his wisedome as he is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 so we must dutifully submit our wils vnto his commands vpon these two foundations are built our absolute obedience vnto Gods indefinite Voice The word my voice is a word of limitation Ioh. 10. Christs sheepe heare his voice the voice of a stranger they will not heare Gods voice must bee reputed obiectum adaequatum of his people hearing wee must neither stretch nor shrinke it neither adde thereto nor take there-from These two Attributes of Truth and Power are so proper vnto God that they are not communicable to any creature Omnis homo mendax Psal 116. euerie man may deceiue or be deceiued and Omne sub regno graniore regnum est the greatest Soueraignes vnto men are subiect vnto God therefore mens words must be tried before they must be belieued wee must not credit all their words and we must yeeld obedience vnto men no farther then may stand with our obedience to God This must be obserued because the glorie that is due onely to God is too often communicated to men so Disciples take their masters instructions as Diuine oracles and follow them in errour out of a preconceipt that they are not men likely to erre But Saint Pauls rule is Omnia probate 1. Thes 5 1. Iob. 4. quod bonum est tenete proue all things but hold that which is best and Saint Iohn trie the spirits whether they be of God or no for many false Prophets are gone out into the world Amicus Plato magis amica veritas we must neuer dote so vpon any man as to forget that he is a man that is a creature subiect vnto errour If this caution had beene obserued and the Disciples had in all ages examined their masters Doctrine by his word that is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 neither should the Church heretofore haue beene neither would it now be pestered with those many Sects that dictract the same As Disciples haue their caution so haue Subiects also they must dutifully obey their superiours but alwayes with a sauing sauing the Allegiance which they owe vnto the Superiour of Superiours that is vnto God so long as there is no contradiction betweene the commandements of God and superiour men subiects must obey though the obedience be vnsauorie and the command rigid but so soone as there appeares a contradiction endure they must patiently the Sanction of the Law but perform the Precept they must not Were this caution obserued by Subiects did they consider the subordination of all earthly Powers to the power of
he committeth some to his seruants they are trusted with the keeping and the care thereof but if hee haue any thing of speciall price and which hee esteemeth more then ordinarie that he layeth in his owne Cabinet he reserueth the keeping thereof vnto himselfe The portion of Good which is so tendered is by the Holy Ghost called Segulia 1 〈◊〉 19. Luckâ— 2 8. which we render a peculiar treasure such as King Dauid had and Salomon Vnto this practice of Kings or great men doth God allude in this resemblance all the world is his but by commission or permission hee intrusteth his creatures with much of it but his Church is more deare vnto him then so he maketh her the subiect of his speciall care and giues vs to vnderstand that she is a speciall Iewell 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 an exempt people and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a people of extraordinary note so the Translators render Segulla no phrase more vsuall in Moses then to call Israell a pretious people and neuer doth God resemble his Church when hee meaneth to honour it but hee resembleth it to things of greatest value I will not trouble you with the Canticles Cap. 4 1â— where it is called Hortus conclusus and is made the verie Paradise of God I will keepe my selfe to our present allusion In the old Testament the Tabernacle was a type of the Church as it was militant the Temple of Salomon was a type of it as it shall be triumphant and what were both of them made of but of the costliest timber mettall stones silke that could bee had Esay foretold the fabricke of the Church in the state of Grace that it should be of Carbuncles and precious stuffe and how sumptuous is the state of it in Glorie as it is described by Saint Iohn in the Reuelation Cap. 21. Our Sauiour in the Gospell compares the Kingdome of Heauen Math 13. which is the Church vnto a treasure hid and to a pearle of very great price But to speake more plainly the fountaine from which the Church springeth is the pretious louing kindnesse of God Psal 36 7. 1. Pet 1.19 the redemption that was paid for it was the pretious blond of Christ the foundation whereupon it is built Esay 28.16 1 Cor 3.11 is a pretious corner stone the doctrine by which it is built vp is gold siluer and precious stones the persons whereof it consisteth are vessels of Gold 1. Tim. 1.19 1 Pet 1 4 1 Pet 1 7. vessels of honour all the promises that are made vnto it are pretious promises and their faith is pretious how can they then chuse but bee a pretious people If you haue not enough to proue it that one phrase putteth it out of all doubt that the Church is Gods peculiar treasure God himselfe resides there and frameth the Church vnto his Image Christ liueth there the Church is his body the Holy Ghost doth breath there the Church is his Temple finally the Angels attend there the Church is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Cyrill Alexand. it is the Sanctuarie of God Can there be any thing added vnto the value where there is such a Presence And where there is such a Prouidence becommeth not the Church most peculiar Certainely that which is the Treasure of those Diuine mysteries must needs bee accounted Gods peculiar treasure I will dwell no longer vpon the Resemblance onely take notice that it promiseth more then an ordinarie good in so significant a phrase And indeed what tongue can expresse the fauour that is implied in the value that God setteth on vs and the care that he will take of vs when he calleth vs his Peculiar treasure But what God resembleth that hee brancheth hee openeth the good more plainely which he did but shadow figuratiuely and the first branch doth set forth the Eminencie of the state of Israel They shall be a Kingdome of Priests The phrase is read diuersly 1. Epist 2. Cap 1. 5. Moses hath here a Kingdome of Priests Saint Peter rendreth it a Priestly kingdome in the Reuelation Saint Iohn telleth vs that Christ hath made vs Kings and Priests The reconciliation is easie for in the Church euerie member of the Church is so a King that he is a Priest and so a Priest that he is a King And why He is Primogenitus Gods first borne Exod 4.22 so God called Israel and Saint Paul telleth vs that they that come into the Church Hebr. 12. come into the congregation of the first borne Now the Law of nature doth acknowledge this right of Primogeniture that is made a man Lord of his brethren and Priest of the most high God so that these words Kings and Priests are equipollent to first borne and are the ground of our prerogatiue whereof you shall heare anon But let vs take these words a sunder Cap 16. Cap. 12. First then the Israelites shall bee Kings The Church as it is described in Ezekiel is adorned with a Crowne and that woman which is described in the Reuelation hath a Crowne of twelue Starres vpon her head Psal 45. Matth. 18. the Psalmist calleth her a Queene the Parable of the marriage Feast calleth her the Wife of the Kingssonne her state is royall and all her children are Filij regni Children of the Kingdome the Gospell that is verbum regni doth so honour them they are heyres apparent vnto the kingdome of Heauen Saint Chrysostome vpon 2 Cor. 1. Ad sinem Cap. doth excellently open the Analogie betweene a member of the Church and a King A King saith he hath a Crowne and God doth Crowne his people with mercie and louing kindnesse Psal 103. A King hath his Robes of state and the Church is at the right hand of Christ in a vesture of Gold wrought about with diuers colours Psal 45. Christ himselfe is her clothing A King hath his Guard tending vpon him for his honour and safetie and the Angels of God pitcht their Tents round about the godly Psal 34. A King hath a multitude of Subiects whom hee doth direct and correct and the children of God haue many thoughts and desires ouer which they haue power to order and represse them And indeed herein principally standeth the Kingdome residet in se quisque animo regali euerie man is a Soueraigne ouer himselfe hee doth polish his owne little Common-weale prescribing a measure and obseruing good order in his head in his heart in his soule and in his body It is the Kingdome of grace which is Preached in the Gospell 〈◊〉 2. 〈◊〉 3. Iohn 8. 〈◊〉 1. by which we obtaine the Kingdome of glorie which is promised to them that rule well therein slâ—uerie to sinne is the direct opposite vnto this kingdome this title forbiddeth vs all earthly and sensuall thoughts and desires it requires that wee be kingly in both or else we doe not answere our title And the more is
the pitie there are but few that answere it but let vs take heed this is our danger hee that is not a King in grace shall neuer bee a King in glorie You see the first aduancement of the Churches state which is to bee Kings The second aduancement is to be Priests and a Priest was he that offered sacrifice and euerie member of the Church must offer hee must offer at both the Altars At the Altar of Incense Prayers and Prayser Prayers Psal 141. Dauid prayeth that his Prayers may come vnto God as the Incense Prayses Psal 50. we are willed to sacrifice praises And as they must offer at the Altar of Incense so must they at the Atar of Burnt offerings also Psal 51. a sinner repenting becommeth a Priest because a broken and contrite heart is the sacrifice of God such an 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 sacrificing of mans owne selfe is a speciall act of Christian Priest-hood And so is in generall 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 well doing Heb. 13. Cap. 12. Be not wearie saith Saint Paul of well doing for with such sacrifices God is well pleased and he exhorteth the Romanes to offer vp their bodies a liuing sacrifice holy and acceptable vnto God which is their reasonable seruice of him A Priest saith Origen is mens Deodicata and he is called a Leuite which doth continually attend God In Leuit. 25. and minister to his will in this sense Esay saith of the Church you shall be called the Priests of the Lord and they shall say vnto you the Ministers of God This second title of honor putteth vs in mind religiously to serue God for it is a plaine contradiction for a man to be a Priest and not to attend the Altar he that neuer prayeth vnto God neuer praiseth him for his benefits hee that neuer repenteth of his sinne nor crucifieth his sinfull flesh he that doth not exercise himselfe in good workes doth really renounce the Christian Priest-hood And here by the way let me obserue vnto you how senselesly they cast durt into their owne faces that vilifie Gods Ministers in the name of Priests forgetting that it is one of the honourable titles which themselues are vouchsafed of God and it is their dignitie in Gods word to be stiled Priests But happily they would be such Kings as are no Priests absolute in themselues and acknowledge no superiour which was the head-long pride of Angels and of Adam Put this title of Priest to that of King and then you shall find that this doth temper that for it teacheth that our Eminencie is subordinate for a King is he that hath inferiours a Priest is he that hath a superiour for a Priest doth honour those aboue him as a King is honoured by those that are below him the name of a King must not make vs thinke so highly of our selues but the name of a Priest must teach vs to bee humble we must so carrie our selues Masters of our selues as that in all things wee be the dutifull sernants of God Well then Kings we are and Priests but how in Christ The name of Christ is as much as anointed and Christ was anointed to bee the the King of glorie and a Priest after the order of Melchisedecke and we in Baptisme put on Christ we are grafted into him Aug de Ciuit. Dei lib. 10 c 10. and so become Christians partakers of his vnction and if of his vnction then of his Kingdome and Priestood Whosoeuer therefore doth seperate himselfe from Christ doth withall depriue himselfe of his Royaltie and his Priesthood for we are not Kings nor Priests but in him and by him who is the soueraigne both Priest and King so Saint Iohn teacheth in the first yea all the Saints professe in the fift of the Reuelation You haue heard hitherto much of a King and a Priest but these titles must not be misconstrued they fauour not the rebellion of Corah Numb 10. Dathan and Abiram nor Anabaptisticall anarchie not the wrest of those words in Daniel The Kingdome shall be giuen to the Saints Cap 7. as all are Kings so are all Priests and as all are Priests so are all Kings all are both spiritually without preiudice to Ciuill or Ecclesiasticall gouernment The case is cleere both in the Old and New Testament Deut. 33.5 for notwithstanding this promise Moses continued a King so hee is termed in Israel and Aaron with the Leuites did minister in the Tabernacle and the rebels against both were fearefully swallowed vp by the earth that cleft vnder them And though the Apostles giue vnto Christians the same honourable title that God by Moses giueth to Israel yet doe they require them to be subiect to higher Powers Rom. 13. Heb 13. and obey them that watch for their soules and threaten vengeance and damnation to such as are disobedient Wherefore that we be not carried away with the errour of the sonnes of Belial let vs obserue First touching our Roialtie that regnum Dei est intra nos the kingdome here spoken of is a kingdome within vs and Rex est qui se regit the King in this kingdome is he which ruleth himselfe well the sphere of this soueraigntie extendeth not farther then a mans owne person wee may not confound it with the kingdomes of this world with those Powers that are ordaind of God for the peace and benefit of Church and Common-weale if we doe we doe misconstrue Gods words and are vsurpers of the Ciuill Sword So likewise must we conceiue of the Priesthood for there is Sacerdos in persona sua a Priest that acteth only his owne person and there is Sacerdos in persona aliena a Priest that doth act the person of another Lay men are Priests if they bee Christian men but they act no bodies person but their owne they performe no other sacred duties but such as euery man doth owe to God the Cleargie they are Priests but they are so in persona aliena they represent the persons of others you may perceiue it in their forme of speeches they speake in the plurall number We beseech thee O Lord Wee praise thee O God c. and all the people saith thereunto Amen confessing in that word that the Minister is but their mouth not that hee deriueth his power from them as if they had it habitually and communicated it actually to him for neuer can it be proued that Holy Orders were at any time in the multitude it hath euer beene either Natiue or Donatiue still by the appointment of God who made it Natiue only to the first-borne at first and then to the seed of Aaron and after their Priesthood determined it became Donatiue Christ gaue it to his Apostles and by his Apostles tooke order to continue a succession but so as to deriue the power of Holy Orders still from them that were in Holy Orders so that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in vse it was euer the whole Churches as the
together As for the manner of their answere it is a consent they accept of the motion which God maketh by Moses They will doe In this Acceptance there is an obserueable mixture of very much modestie and ouermuch considence they doe not presume and yet they doe presume They doe not presume for whereas in the message there was something which God required of them and something which God offered vnto them they passe eueâ— in silence that which God doth promise and doe not capitulate for that Neither doe they limit God in that which be requires they yeild absolutely vnto it All that the Lord hath said we will doe In these two points they shew very much modestie they doe not presume Looke vpon the words againe and you will acknowledge in the answere ouermuch confidence you will confesse they doe presume presume of their abilitie and presume of the extent of their abilitie For what say they Faciemus we will doe that which God commandeth yea Faciemus omnia we will doe all that which God commandeth And are either of these in mans power Can hee make good the least of these vndertakings Surely he cannot Therefore they lay too hard an obligation vpon themselues and so expresse in their answere ouermuch confidence Though as you shall heare anone there is a commendablenesse in their confidence These are the particulars which I purpose God willing to speake of at this time I pray God we may all so heare as to imitate that when God sendeth a gracious message vnto vs wee may returne no worse answere then Israel doth vnto God The first particular that I pointed at Exod 18. Numb 11. was the persons to whom Moses maketh his report They are the Gouernours of the Tribes who are here called the Elders of the people But the Elders when they note Gouernours are in this booke vnderstood two manner of wayes Elders by birth and Elders by choice Elders by birth such were all the first Gouernours in the world as Parents in their families and the first-borne of many brethren after the death of Parents by the Law of Nature and in this sense doth Moses speake of Elders in the third and in the twelfth of this booke But because the Eldest in yeares are not alwayes the wisest nor the most vpright therefore when the Israelites became a Nation Moses ordained Elders by choice as appeares in the Chapter next before this he made such persons Gouernours as hee thought were best qualified for such an imployment And these Gouernours still retained the name of Elders partly because they were as neere as might be chosen our of those that were eldest in age as appeares in the fore cited place or at least such as succeeded them in their right â—â—sd chap. 14. and partly because Wisdome is grey haires and an vnspotted life is old age Their office giueth them this title to put them in minde that the maturitie of their iudgement and the grauitie of their carriage must be such as be seemeth the ancientest of the people So haue the very Heathen conceiued 〈◊〉 Seâ—ect as may be gathered out of the Lacedaemonian 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Roman Senatus both of them assemblies of ancient men ancient not so much for their yeares as for their good parts And we also in our Gouernours Ciuill and Ecclesiasticall retaine this title giuen by the Holy Ghost For in Corporations the chiefe are called Aldermen and in the Church the Pastors are called Presbyters or Priests that is Elders of the Church The only obseruation that I will giue vpon the title is this interpretetur quisque vocabulum suum nitatur id esse quod dicitur Let euery one in authoritie consider often of this his name and endeuour that his life may be answerable vnto it The rather because there can bee no shrewder prognostication of a States or a Churches downefall then the degenerating of those Elders into youngsters whether in Head or Heart whether greene witted or inordinately affected But why doth Moses make his report vnto the Elders Surely because there was of it a kind of necessitie and in it a very good policie A kind of necessitie there was because the voice of one man though neuer so strong a voice could not be heard by such a multitude Therefore as in great Armies and this was a very great one it consisted of six hundred thousand men besides women children and a rabble of strangers that accoÌ„panied them as I say in great Armies the General calleth the vndercommanders and acquaints them with his pleasure that by them it may be made knowne to their seuerall companies euen so dealeth Moses what by himselfe he could not doe he is faine to doe by these Elders by them he reporteth the message vnto all the Congregation of Israel Yea and sometimes when all Israel is named you must necessarily vnderstand immediately the Elders This he did of necessitie But with this necessitie there was a very good policie for the Gouernours being newly created he did inure them to exercise their authoritie and the people to reuerence the word of their mouth that so the ordinance might not be in vaine And according to this rule doth Saint Peter direct Christians to be subiect to all manner of ordinance of man not only to the King as supreme but also to those that are sent from him There is not the meanest Officer but he hath some beame of the Kings power which challengeth from the people a proportionable respect You haue heard to whom Moses maketh his report let vs now see how he dischargeth himselfe therein Surely he sheweth himselfe a faithfull and a wise Messenger faithfull for he deliuereth his message fully wise for hee deliuereth his message cleerely Let vs consider these points asunder He deliuereth his message fully for he told the Elders all that the Lord commanded him It is the Rule of the Law Deut. 4. v. 1â— Thou shalt not adde nor take from it it is the promise of our Sauiour that the Spirit should lead the Apostles into all truth and bring into their remembrance All that hee had spoken And for practice we haue our Sauiour Christ Iohn 12. All that I haue heard of my Father haue I made knowne vnto you and Saint Paul I haue shewed you all the counsell of God These are in the New Testament Iohn 14. And in the old Testament Micheas the Prophet when the messenger of Ahab would haue had him doe as the other Prophets did that is 1. Kings chap. 2â— speake pleasingly to the King As the Lord liueth saith hee what the Lord saith vnto me that I will speake Nay Balaam though otherwise hee loued the wages of iniquitie yet did hee answere Balaks messengers Num. c â—2 v. 18 though Balak would giue me his house full of gold yet can I not goe beyond the word of the Lord to doe either more or lesse From these good Rules and
the Chaldie Paraphrase insteed of the Hebrew I come saith fitly to this purpose I will appeare and because God doth not alwayes appeare to men alike therefore when hee doth more notably appeare vnto them hee is said to come Touching the varietie of Gods appearing or manifesting himselfe to the world take a similitude from the Sunne The Sunne doth manifest it selfe first by daylight and that is common to all that dwell in the same Horizon vnto which the Sunne is risen some haue more then the daylight they haue also the Sunshining light which shining light of the Sunne is not in all places where the day light of it is finally the Sunne is manifest in the heauens in his full strength for the very body is present there which none can endure but the Starres which become glorious bodies by that speciall presence of the Sunne amongst them In like manner God in whom all things liue moue and haue their being doth manifest himselfe vnto some by the workes of his generall prouidence of which manifestation Saint Paul speaketh when he saith Acts 14. God left not himselfe without witnesse to all nations in that he did good and gaue vs raine from heauen and fruitfull seasons filling our hearts with food and gladnesse This manifestation of God is like the daylight Psal 145 v. 15. it is common to all it is an vniuersall grace The eies of all things looke vp vnto thee O Lord and thou giuest them their meate in due season There is a second manifestation and that is peculiar but to some it is like the Sunne-shine it is that manifestation which God vouchsafeth his Church of which Esay speaketh Arise shine Chap 60. for thy light is come and the glorie of the Lord is risen vpon thee but darknesse shall couer the earth and grosse darknesse the people for in comparison of the Church the rest of the world sitteth in darknesse and in the shadow of death The third and last manifestation is that which God maketh of himselfe in heauen to the Angels and Saints the cleerest and fullest whereof a creature is capable and those which partake this presence of God become thereby glorious Saints more glorious then the starres which receiue their resplendent lustre from the aspect which they haue to the Sunnes bodie The manifestation that we haue to doe withall is of the second sort it is not so cleare as that which the Saints enioy in heauen it is not so darke as that which is common to the world but it is of a middle temper proper to the Church militant to whom God is said to come when hee doth so manifest himselfe vnto her From hence we must take notice that as there are those who are in better case then we are so there are who are in worse case and therefore we must thanke God for our present aduancement and remember that wee make forward to that neerenesse vnto God which is reserued for vs in heauen This may suffice for our vnderstanding of this phrase I come The next point is the manner of his comming In the thick cloud Before I speake distinctly hereof I will giue you a note vpon the Cloud Some make a question whether it be the same Cloud which guided the children of Israel through the wildernesse or some other they thinke some other greater and thicker but they thinke so without great reason for after that the guiding Cloud once rested on the Tabernade we heare no more of any Cloud vpon Mount Sinai neither did Moses after that ascend vnto Mount Sinai but God deliuered his minde vnto him in the Tabernacle where the Cloud then rested and God promised to dwell amongst the people after the Tabernacle should be built by bringing the Cloud and his glorie thither which was accordingly performed Exod. 40.34 Exod. 19.43 â—â— before that the people remooued from Mount Sinai yet after that time wee reade of no other Cloud vpon Mount Sinai Insteed then of coyning a new Cloud obserue rather how by degrees God approched to his people at their first comming out of Egypt he kept aloft in the aire the people had not yet shaken off their Egyptian disposition neither were they sitted for any nearenesse to God When they rose higher in their thoughts and had contracted with him God descended lower and came neerer vnto them he descended to the top of Mount Sinai Afterward when they had yet better exprest their affection to entertaine God by building the Tabernacle God vouchsafed to come lower to them he chose to reside in the midst of their Campe. And let vs take this for an vndoubted lesson the better wee preuented by grace prepare our selues for God the nearer will God approach to vs. I now come to speake distinctly of the manner I told you that the manner of Gods appearance was first maiesticall because in the thicke Cloud in this Cloud that you may see the maiestie of God obserue first that God was in it for there was the Angell of God that Angell in whom is Gods Name so we reade Exod. 23. verse 21. and who is called Gods presence Exod. 33. verse 14 15. so that the Cloud was Gods chaire of State or his Chariot or Pauillion as the Scripture doth call the Clouds when God putteth them to this vse And as God was in the Cloud so was the Cloud enuironed with an host of heauenly Courtiers becomming the maiestie of such a King learne it out of the sixtie eight Psalme The Chariots of God are twentie thousand euen thousands of Angels the Lord is amongst them as in Sinai in his holy place And besides these attendants we find obserued two other Ceremonies of State As Kings giue notice of their comming by the sound of Trumpets so this Cloud was attended by the voice of a Trumpet exceeding lowd And as before Kings there is wont to bee carried the instrument of Iustice and Vengeance the Sword so was Gods appearance in this Cloud attended with those dreadfull Meteors Lightning and Thunder Lay together those particulars and you will confesse that God appeared in awefull maiestie when he came in the thicke Cloud The Israelites confessed as much Deut. 5.24 Behold the Lord hath shewed vnto vs his glorie and his greatnesse we haue heard his voice out of the midst of the fire Mortall Kings neuer put on greater state then when they goe to their Parliaments the reason that moueth them is the same that moued God that men should feare to offend them whom they see armed with so great power and the greater regard be had vnto their Lawes As the thicke Cloud doth set forth Gods maiestie so is it also full of mysterie The first mysterie to be gathered out of it is obserued by God himselfe he clothed himselfe with a thicke Cloud to put the people in mind that hauing seene no shape of him they should not presume to make any image Let our lesson be Voluntas Dei non essentia
commeth from Edom and the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or Thankesgiuing in the Reuelation But I draw to an end The conclusion of all my Text is this If at any time wee bee distressed and not relieued the fault is not in God it is in vs for our Deuotion is tired ouer-soone wee are all modicae fidei men of little faith and though the spirit be willing yet the flesh is weake and the weaknesse of the flesh preuaileth more then the willingnesse of the Spirit Wherefore we must all pray vnto God to giue vs the Spirit of Grace and Prayer ANd Lord we beseech thee helpe our vnbeliefe and increase our faith yea Lord pray thou that our faith faile not and the more thou doest exercise our patience the more earnest let vs be for thy deliuerance deliuerance from our corporall deliuerance from our spirituall foes that well ouercomming our Militancie here on earth we may bee Triumphant with the Saints in Heauen where wee shall turne our Prayers into Prayses and sing day and night honour prayse strength and power bee vnto him that sitteth vpon the Throne and to the Lambe for euermore AMEN SVNDRIE SERMONS DE TEMPORE PREACHED VPON SEVErall Occasions by the Right Reuerend Father in God ARTHVR LAKE D. of Diuinitie Lord Bishop of Bathe and Welles LONDON Printed by R. Young for N. BVTTER 1629. יהוה EIGHT SERMONS ON THE NINTH CHAPTER Of the Prophecie of ISAIAH ISAIAH 9. VERS 6 7. For vnto vs a Childe is borne vnto vs a Sonne is giuen and the gouernment shall be vpon his shoulders and his Name shall bee called The wonderfull Counsellour The mighty God The euerlasting Father The Prince of Peace Of the increase of his Gouernment and Peace there shall bee no end vpon the Throne of Dauid and vpon his Kingdome to order it and to establish it with Iudgement and Iustice from henceforth euen for euer The zeale of the Lord of Hosts shall performe this THis is the first Lesson appointed for this Morning Prayer and appointed fitly For the Argument well fits the Time We are now met to praise God for the Morning of the Church Zacharie Luke 1. doth so call the Birth of Christ saying The day spring that is the Morning from on high hath visited vs Yea Christ himselfe Reuel the last vers 16 doth call himselfe The bright Morning starre And verily his Birth was the most blessed Morning that euer the Church saw whether you respect the Night that went before or the Day that followed after it was the blessedest Morning that euer the Church saw The Night was long and darke a Night of want of warre so wee reade in the last of the former and the first verse of this chapter But the Day that followed was a cleare and lasting Day a Day of haruest a triumph Day so we are taught in the foure verses that goe immediately before my Text. A great alteration Who could worke it who could turne that night into this day what Sunne shone forth in so great strength In such a case man was like to moue such a doubt therefore the holy Ghost hath resolued it and his resolution of that doubt is my Text. Loe here is one that can vndertake that work who he is How excellent he is we are taught here and that in regard of his Person and of his State For of his Person here are the Natures wherein it subsisteth here is the People to whom it belongs It subsists in two Natures 1. The Nature of Man Hee is a Childe 2. The Nature of God Hee is the Sonne The Person subsisting in these two Natures belongeth vnto whom To Vs was hee borne he was giuen to Vs saith the Prophet Esay and Esay was a Iew. Christ then belongeth to the Iewes though the Iewes must not bee vnderstood according to the flesh but the spirit To these Iewes was he vouchsafed by taking and giuing Natus he tooke his nature from them and Datus what he tooke he with aduantage bestowed vpon them But of what degree was he amongst them here commeth in his State He was a King The Gouernment shall be vpon his shoulders The Gouernement that was Royall for verse 7. it is called The Throne The Kingdome of Dauid He shall sit vpon that and that is the Gouernment that shall bee layd vpon his shoulders And happy are the People that haue such a King You will confesse it if you consider his Excellencie The Excellencie both of his Person and of his State Of his Person that appeares in his endowments Of his State that appeares in his managing thereof The Endowments of his Person are Royall Reade his Titles He shall bee called and what he is called that he certainely is Hee shall be called by those names that expresse such vertues as most beseeme a King our King For a King ouer and aboue the Vertues which are common to him with his Subiects must haue more than ordinary Wisedome and Power And see this King is called for his Wisedome The wonderfull Counsellour for his Power The mighty God But mistake not his Kingdome it is not of this World He that is our King is The Father of Eternity that is Of the World to come And as his Kingdome is not of this World so is not the condition of his People worldly it is Peace and Peace is not the portion of this world but of that which is to come Our King is the Prince of this Peace You see how the Person is endowed and thereby how excellent the Person is There is an Excellencie in his State also it appeares in the Effect in the Cause The Effect for of this Kingdome there are no bounds and the felicitie of the Subiects is also boundlesse so saith the Text Of the increase of his Gouernment and Peace there shall be no end Such an Effect must haue an answerable Cause it hath Iustice and Iudgement are the Pollicie of this State with these as a wonderfull Counsellour he doth order as a mighty God he doth support his State And he doth it vncessantly From henceforth and for euer As the Effect so the Cause this is eternall therefore that These Truthes concerning Christs Person and State are not onely affirmed in the body of the Text but also assured in the close thereof Much you haue heard and yet no more than shall bee He that hath promised can doe it such is his Power Hee is the Lord of Hosts Nay hee cannot but doe it such is his Loue for his Loue is Zeale So concludes the Prophet The zeale of the Lord of Hosts shall performe this You haue heard the summe of this whole Text and therein see a most exquisite picture of our Sauiour Christ certainely it is the fullest the liueliest that euer the holy Ghost in so few words exprest in any part of the Old Testament For here Christ is not only drawne from top to toe but drawn also with those varieties that befell him from eternity to eternitie
temporall Iurisdiction should be swallowed vp in the Ecclesiastical State sauour not of the things of God but of the things of this world yea they sow dangerous seeds of discord betweene Princes and Pastors and seeke to breed iealousies vpon which what will follow but that the one will seeke to ruinate the other Christs Kingdome then is of his Church and it is a spirituall Gouernment of his Church Notwithstanding these words must not bee vnderstood exclusiuely as if Christ were so confined to his Church as that he had nothing to doe with those that were without the Church As King Dauid ruled in Israel but so that the Philistines Ammoniâ—es Moabites and all the bordering Countries were subiect vnto his Scepter and hee layd tribute vpon them and commanded them at his pleasure Euen so our Sauiour Christ not only ruleth in his Church but commandeth them also that are without it not onely men but euen the powers of Hell also He hath the keyes both of death and hell and euery knee boweth to him at of things in heauen and of things in earth so euen of things vnder the earth also And it is our comfort that hee which is our King hath so great a Power ouer our Foes the more power hee hath ouer them the lesse wee neede to stand in feare of them the more securely may wee obey him And so haue you heard of what sort Christs Gouernment is The next Point is Wherewith he sustaines this Gouernment it is here said that it shall be vpon his shoulders Morall Princes vnburden themselues vpon the shoulders of others the wits the power of their Officers in peace and warre doe beare vp the greatest part of their state It is not so with our King he beareth all himselfe euen when hee vseth meanes those meanes are but Instruments whose abilitie and efficacie are both from him The Minister speaketh words and dispenseth Elements but in vaine doth he both except Christ bee with him and his spirit make effectuall that which is done by him if there bee not 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it will be indeed 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And what likelihood was there that a few Fishermen and those vnlearned should euer haue subiected the crownes of Princes the wits of Philosophers the stomacks of the Mighty the desires of the Ambitious finally all kinde of dispositions vnto the Scepter of Christ had not Christs spirit wrought with them A second thing that is to bee obserued in this Word is that as Christ is highest in degree so is hee deepest in care and so should Kings bee The Great world the Little world both preach this Lesson vnto temporal Kings The Great World hath many parts whereof it doth consist and of them one is placed aboue another The higher any part is placed the more it laboureth for the rest by motion and influence Witnesse the Sun the Moone the Starres compared to the inferiour Bodies all which labour for the Earth the basest of all In the Little World of our Body is not our Head set aboue our Hands and our Feete And how painefully doth the Eye watch the Eare heare and euery sense employ it selfe for the direction and preseruation of the Hands and Feete If it bee so in the Creatures that are destitute of Reason betweene reasonable Creatures it should bee much more so The Gouernour must lesse take his ease and lesse be idle than those which are gouerned nay his care his paine must farre exceede theirs he must partake of euery one of theirs Doe wee not see it so in our Body The hand hath his peculiar worke so hath the foote and euery other in feriour part employes it selfe about some particular function but the directiue and commanding parts in man are Architectonicall they resemble the Master of the works in a Building whose presence and guidance runneth through all the seuerall kinde of Labourers appointing what they must doe and caring that they doe it well whether they hew stones or lay them square timber or coâ—ple it whatsoeuer other worke is to bee done the Master hath though not his hand yet his head working with them No otherwise should the Magistrate carry himselfe in his charge nor be lesse prouident in the Common-weale the influence of his care must quicken must order must further whatsouer functions of the people and make them tend to the common good The 72. Psalme compares our Gouernour I meane Christ of whom this Text speaketh vnto a showre of raine and wee see that a showre of raine waters carefully all the plants of the fields the rose the lilly the violet the cedar and the pine all of them do fare the better for the watering of the raine And the grace of Christs spirit is no otherwise showred downe vpon euery member of the Church euery one is nourished therewith Malachie compares him to the Sunne he calleth him The Sun of Righteousnesse And who knoweth not how common the warmth of the Sunne is and how effectuall it is also The Raine yeelds matter to the earth but that it may become prouing matter the earth is beholding to the Sunne which workes the moisture and distributeth it through the whole body of the herbs and plants Christs grace supplyeth both Rain and Sunne from him wee haue both Posse and Velle nay the Apostle saith He worketh in vs both to will and to doe euen of his own good pleasure So that we may well say The Gouernment lyeth vpon his shoulders Vpon his shoulders Princes on earth beare the Ensignes of their Gouernment some in their hands as Scepters some on their heads as Crownes but Christ weareth his on his shoulders The Fathers generally vnderstand this of Christs Crosse some looking to the History related in the Gospell that Christ was made to bear his own Crosse vpon his shoulders when he went vnto his death which they say was prophesied of in the 95. Psalme Dicite in gentibus quia Dominus regnauit à ligno So saith St. Austin it was anciently read though it be not found so read now ordinarily in the Septuagint The Iewes in malice razed it out as hee thinkes But because the Hebrew Text hath it not wee neede not stand vpon so vncertaine a ground Wee may take a better eyther from the type of Aaron bearing the twelue Tribes ingrauen vpon his shoulders when he went into the Temple or from Eliakim Esay 22. vpon whose shoulders the key of the house of Dauid was layd or from the shepheard bearing the lost sheepe vpon his shoulders or if you will haue it of the Crosse take it from Christ himselfe speaking to the Disciples that went to Emmaus Ought not Christ to haue suffered these things and so to enter into his glory or from St. Paul also Christ triumphed ouer Powers and Principalities in his person but then when this Person suffered vpon the Crosse So that Christ reigned in his passion and because in his passion therefore had he his Gouernment
exceede all creatures such eminencie as we must adore because wee cannot comprehend it for they are wonderfull Euen the name of wonderfull be longs vnto them as appeares by the answer that was giuen to Manoah in the booke of Iudges when hee enquired after the name of the Angell which appeared Why askest thou after my name seeing it is wonderfull It were easie to shew how this title fits Christ by running through the whole story of the Gospell which to euery part setteth a marke of wonder to his birth to his life to his death to his resurrection to his ascention I will instance only in his birth because we now solemnize the memory thereof In that appeare three great wonders 1. That natures so farre distant as God and Man should bee ioyned in one person 2. That the nature of man should be conceiued in a Virgins wombe that neuer knew man 3. That she should being her selfe conceiued in sinne conceiue a Sonne without sinne Were there no other wonder these were enow to style Christ wonderfull and to make it one of his peculiar titles But because the Fathers following the Septuagint and the Caldee haue coupled these words Wonderfull and Counsellour together and made of them but one title and their opinion is made probable by the Hebrew Text and the other titles which are all compounded Almighty God Father of Eternity Prince of Peace I will so ioyne them and handle them as one title whereof there are two parts Counsellour and Wonderfull Christ is a Counsellour And here also marke the odds betweene mortall Princes and this our King mortall Princes and their Counsell are distinct persons the weakenesse and the idlenesse or both of mortall Princes wits maketh them to vse the counsell of others as it is euident in all States whereupon is grounded that prouerbe of Salomon In the alundance of Counsellours there is welfare But here our King is the Counsellour also hee is both King and Counsell And that which the Apostle hath out of the Prophet Who euer was his Counsellour may well be applied to him His vnderstanding is so large so cleare that it reacheth to all things and pierceth into the depth of all as St. Paul describeth it Heb. 4. and by it hee meaneth Christ as it appeares by the close of his speech The word of God is sharper than any two edged sword and entreth in to the diuiding of the ioynts and the marrow and is a discerner of the thoughts all things are naked before his eyes And Dauid sheweth that the night and the day to him are all one and the darkenesse is as cleare as the light And as such is his ability so is his care answerable His wits are not idle He that keepeth Israel doth neâ—ther slumber nor sleepe as it is Psalm 121. His eyes are vpon his charge from the beginning of the yeare till the end thereof as it is Deut. 11. Not a Sparrow lights vpon the ground without his prouidence So that he needes no counsell besides his owne he well deserues the name of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of whom Aristotle alledgeth that Verse out of the Greeke Poet 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 But let vs come nearer the Point You haue heard that he is a Counsellour but whereof I cannot expresse better than by two of his vsuall titles the Wisedome the Word of God He is Consiliarius ad intra and ad extra beeing 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 both 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 St. Iohn comprehendeth both in that sentence The Son which is in the bosome of the Father and so is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 hath declared himself vnto vs so is become 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And our Sauiour Christ Those things which I haue heard of my Father being Consiliarius ad intra haue I opened vnto you as Consiliarius ad extra and so Prouerbs 8. Wisedome describeth her selfe as a Counsellour both ad intra and ad extra with God and to the world But what is the Matter of this Counsell surely the principall is the Conenant betweene God and his Church which St. Paul Heb. 6. calleth the vnchangeable Counsell of God and God in the Prophets speaking of the Kingdome of Christ calleth it his Counsell not excluding all other secrets of God for Christ is priuy to them all He is the Lambe mentioned in the Reuclation that only can open the sealed Booke of Gods hidden Mysteries especially those that concerne his Church Now Christ as the Wisedome of God was of counsell when this Mysterie was resolued on before all time he was of counsell with God and when God was pleased to reueale it then Christ also became the Counsellour vnto men as he was the Word of God These two things are comprehended in his Counsellourship and in regard of both these may hee bee called wonderfull It was a wonderfull course that this wisedome of God found out to worke the Redemption of man by coupling of these Natures and satisfying Mercy and Iudgement and that by Man without sinfull man And as the course is wonderfull so likewise is the communicating thereof seeing the power of God vseth such weake instruments When wee behold the meanes wee cannot but wonder at the effects when wee see such heauenly treasures in earthen vessels and see such efficacie of the one shine through the infirmity of the other and behold the euidence of the spirit in the foolishnesse of preaching and see it casting downe of strong holds and captiuating vnto Christ euery thought this must needs make it wonderfull And wonderfull certainly will we acknowledge him to be if we consider these things for that is wonderfull which is aboue the reach of the vnderstanding Wee see the first royall title and Christs first royall vertue which is his Wisedome The second followeth which is his Power Primò opus est consulto deinde cum consulueris maturè opus est facto said the Heathen Orator for as it is true that Vis consilij expers mole ruit sua so is it no lesse true that if wisedome â—aue not strength to execute her designes it is fruitlesse Therefore our King is as well armed with power as furnished with wisedome So that he is able to execute whatsoeuer he doth resolue Therefore his second style is The mighty God El of it selfe signifieth mighty but it is communicated to others besides the true God to Angels to Men that are tâ—e Lieutenants of God or vsurpe the state of God all these haue a power but it is but a weake power in comparison and it is often times checked and curbed limited and stinted The Angels that are great in power are no farther powerfull than to doe Gods will much more are men at Gods controll Hee refraineth the spirit of Princes and maketh the stoutest of them to know that they are but men The story of Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel who was for seuen yeares cast out of his Pallace to
those things whereof we both partake he is our brother but if the Communication or deriuation of them he is our father for he is the second Adam as the Church is the second Eue and as we are termed the sons of the Church or of Hierusalem the Spouse so are we also of Christ the Bridegroome who begetteth vs in and by his Church Wee beare the image of this second Adam as wee doe of the first and his children are we whose image we beare therefore Christ that saith I will declare thy name vnto my brethren Rom. 14. saith Esay 8. Behold here am I and the children which thou hast giuen vnto me As hee is so he calleth himselfe sometimes brother sometimes father And so haue you heard how he is The euerlasting father But the words beare also another interpretation which is That hee is the father of euerlasting things As hee is so are those things that are subiect vnto him both euerlasting And this distinguisheth betweene this world and that which is to come making Christ King of the later St. Paul telleth vs Heb. 2. that God hath subiected vnto him the world to come That temporall and eternall doe distinguish betweene these two worlds it is cleare in St. Paul teaching that those things which are seene are temporall but those which are not seene are eternall And touching the things which are seene the Preacher hath pronounced peremptorily vanity of vanities all is but vanity One generation passeth and another commeth and nothing abideth stedfast in the world 1 Cor. 7. St. Paul biddeth vs vse the world as if we vsed it not because the fashion of this world passeth away St. Iohn biddeth vs not to loue the world nor the things that are in the world Psal 102. for this world passeth away and the lusts thereof The Psalmist telleth vs that they all waxe old like vnto a garment and St. Peter 2 Pet. 2. Rom. 8. that the heauens shall melt with heate and the earth with the workes thereof shall be burnt vp they shal be dissolued For all are subiect vnto vanitie But in the very same places where the temporalty of this present world is set down there is mention made of the eternity of that world which is to come you heard it out of the place to the Corinths and the words in the Psalme are very cleare 2 Cor. 4. Psal 102. 1 Iohn 2. The children of thy seruants shall continue and their seed shall stand fast in thy sight and St. Iohn Hee that fulfilleth the will of God abideth for euer St. Peter intimateth as much and so doth Salomon in the Preacher This our Prophet that in the fortieth is willed to cry All flesh is grasse and the glory thereof is as the flower of the field the grasse withereth the flower fadeth is willed also to cry That the Word of the Lord endureth for euer 1 Pet. 1. And this Word is the incorruptible seede by which wee are new-borne it is the food by which wee are nourished which endureth for euer it is the riches which ney ther rust can corrupt nor theeues spoyle vs of Iohn 6. it setteth vpon our heads an immarcessible Crowne and placeth vs in a Kingdome that cannot be shaken All the graces wherein stands the life of Christianity they are eternall graces they possesse vs of that which is eternall and make vs eternall possessours thereof Therefore well doth Christ in this respect also receiue this title of The father of eternity But eternity must be vnderstood à parte post not à parte ante The eternity à parte ante is Gods prerogatiue to be so eternall is to bee without beginning A creature hath his beginning and so farre is temporall but he may be continued for euer and so be eternall And in this sense doth the Prophet in this place speake of eternity and maketh Christ The father thereof And well may hee be called the father that was the Author and is the Disposer thereof for in his owne Person hee first gaue being vnto this both grace and glory and from his person doth it streame vnto vs wee no otherwise enioy it than as wee haue vnion with him And these three interests of Christ in these things doe make him to be termed the father of this eternity But now this title must looke back vnto the two formertitles and then wee shall see the sweetnesse that is in it In the Regall titles wee heard of that Wisedome and Power which wee may admire and adore but when I heare that the wonderfull Counsellour the almighty God is my father this sweetens these two glorious titles and maketh them the more comfortable to mee For whom doth the wisedome of a father prouide but for his childe and for whom so readily as for his childe doth a father vse his power I presume then of Christs prâ—uidence of Christs supportance because Christ is my father Hee that is the king is my father and what I might not presume of a king of a father I dare presume yea and presume it constantly for he is vnchangeable My immortall father is not like my mortall that his wisedome or his power should steed me but for a time they will sticke to me for euer no death can take them from mee neither will they bee estranged vpon any dislike Can there bee greater comfort for a feeble for a sinfull soule than this assurance of such an euerlasting father The comfort is great that appeares in the person but in the inheritance there appeares much greater for wherein hath or doth this my euerlasting father spend his euerlasting wonderfull wisedome and mighty power hath he spent them to prouide me a momentany estate is his inheritance like that which is left by my mortall parents such as I may lose or must leaue No it is like himselfe his workes be are the image of his person they are eternall like himselfe Let then the world faile me let all earthly things be taken from me let them be vnto me as my parents naturall parents were but temporall yet shall I not want I can as little be poor as bee an Orphan My father neuer dyeth and the portion he giues mee endureth for euer When I reade of what stuffe Moses made the Tabercle Salomon the Temple much more when I reade St. Iohns description of the heauenly Ierusalem I now perceiue Gods meaning it is to let me vnderstand so farre as earth can shadow heauen how much more stable my inheritance of heauen is than the best inheritance I can get here on earth if it be of earth though on earth I may haue euery childe of God hath the earnest the first fruits of that which wee exspect in heauen And so haue you the first of these two titles which teach that Christs royall endowments are also spirituall I come now to the second which sheweth that as Christs kingdome is not of this world because it is as hee is
not temporall but eternall so likewise the condition of it is not worldly it is Peace Divus Nerua saith Tacitus duas res olim insociabiles coniunxit imperium libertatem Hee spake with the most that ascribed so much vnto Nerua but of Christ is may be most truly affirmed that where he raignes there is peace and free liberty for euery Subiect It is too vsuall with men the wiser they are the more to bee turbulent and disquieters of States the more power they haue the more to tyrannize it is not so with our King but hee that is wonderfull for Counsell mighty for Power bends both his Counsell and his Power to worke Peace that peace which is the portion of his Church and which none partake beside the members thereof This Prophet hath peremptorily pronounced There is no peace vnto the wicked saith my God Esay 57. Hee compares them to the Sea still raging and foming casting out their owne shame Salomon vnto vanity adds vexation of spirit You may see it in the particular case of all wicked men that sure they haue no rest They haue no rest ab intra they neuer can light vpon that which doth sistere appetitum which maketh them range in their desires in their endeauours neuer finding where to settle and ab extra too they are vnquiet for the whirle-winde of God driueth them like chaffe and like a floud it driueth them downe the streame And indeed how should they bee quiet that are compared vnto the sea which when there is no storme cannot stand still but hath his flux and reflux And no wonder for it is the subiect of the Moone than which nothing is more changeable A fit Embleme of the world vpon which whosoeuer dependeth cannot be stable when the world it selfe is so vnstedfast But no greater argument can be brought for their want of quiet than that which is taken from the nature of peace and the nature thereof is insinuated in the word wherewith the holy Ghost in the Hebrew tongue expresseth it no tongue doth so vsually fit words to things and giue vs a notion of the things by the words Now the word Shalom which signifieth Peace doth in the roote containe two significations the one of Perfection the other of Retribution and these two comprehend the full nature of peace wherein there is first perfection What perfection is I will shew you corporally that you may the better conceiue it spiritually God hath made the eye to see and the eare to hear the eye seeth colours the eare heareth sounds that betweene those obiects and these senses there may be quiet the sense must be in good temper and the obiect such as will giue content if the sense bee sound and the obiect pleasing there groweth peace betweene them but if eyther the obiect bee not proportioned to the eye to please it and so likewise the sound to the eare or if the eare and the eye be vnsound so that it cannot endure the obiect then groweth vnquietnesse As it is thus bodily so spiritually there is an obiect that must be entertained by vs and wee must be fit to entertaine it Gods Word and his Workes If our senses be so sanctified that we can behold them and they doe so testifie Gods will to vs that we receiue comfort by them then there is Peace Apply this vnto the godly and you shall finde that the things of God doe alwayes giue them content and they delight to solace themselues in them yea though the crosse goe withall and they are exposed to worldly troubles yet euery good man is Medijs tranquillus in vndis Et si fractus illabatur orbis impauidum ferient rumae As for the wicked it is not so with them for eyther they want those senses whereby they should entertain Gods gracious countenance when it is present with them and so peace faileth in them for want of that wherewith they should receiue it or else if God giue them senses to see him they see nothing but Iustice and Wrath in him and so in regard of the obiect they haue no peace stupidity and senslesnesse of Gods iudgements which sometimes doth befall them especially in prosperity maketh a shew of peace but indeed it is nothing lesse For if so bee the parts of our body and powers of our soule doe not worke vpon their proper obiects and in working finde content there is not the nature of peace peace so farre as it consists in perfection Which vnderstood spiritually is nothing else but grace grace is the first kinde of peace which belongs vnto the Church Besides this peace of perfection there is a peace of retribution Euery Commandement as it hath his precept so it hath his sanction also and as we are commanded in the one so wee haue a promise in the other Glory is promised for grace and the seruant to whom the master saith Well done shall enter into his Masters ioy he shall haue peace for peace yea peace vpon peace the peace of heauen heaped vpon that peace which he had in earth which is nothing else but the reward of godlinesse You see the two branches of peace perfection and retribution of both these Christ is Prince Hee is the Author both of grace and glory the true King of Salem Ephes 2.14 the true Salomon the true Noah whom St. Paul calleth our Peace Luke 2.14 Luke 10.5 at whose birth the Angels sung In earth peace whose first Sermon that he commanded his Apostles to preach was Peace be to this house who taking leaue of his Disciples Ioh. 14.27 gaue them Peace when he went to his death Luke 24.36 when he rose from the dead finally as the Apostle saith Slew hatred and set at one all things both in heauen and earth The Prophets euery where speak of his Kingdome as of a Kingdome of peace Read Psalm 72. Esay 32. c. That the inheritance wee shall haue is eternall you heard before But the inheritance of the wicked is eternall also Goe ye cursed shall the Iudge say into euerlasting fire and they haue a worme that neuer dyeth but theirs is a miserable eternity an vnquiet inheritance hunger and thirst nakednesse and paine chaines and vtter darkenesse weeping and gnashing of teeth are their portion and where these are what trouble is there not But ours is a better eternity it is a peaceable one as wee shall euer bee so shall we euer be at quiet at quiet passiuely nothing shall disquiet vs at quiet actiuely we shall disquiet none Wee shall be pacati and pacifici sit at rest our selues and disturbe none It shall be so in heauen fully in earth it should be so in a good measure for Gods will should be done in earth as it is in heauen and we should begin our heauen here vpon earth We should beginne to exercise the Peace of Perfection and foretaste the Peace of Retribution that so we might haue a good experiment
and giue the world a good testimonie that we are the subiects of the Prince of peace I will set God before mine eyes and I will try how mine eyes can behold God and if I finde that mine eye delights to behold him that his countenance puts gladnesse into my heart when I doe behold him I am sure we are at Peace For were wee not eyther I haue no eyes and doe not see him or when I doe I shall be confounded with the sight of him I will open mine eares and I will heare God in his Word and if when I heare him the Law of his mouth is sweeter vnto mee than hony and the hony combe I know we are at peace were we not I must needs be like Adam heare and fly And if in the dayes of my mortality I can attaine this Peace of Perfection I doubt not but in the dayes of my immortality I shall attaine vnto that higher peace the peace of Retribution all teares shall be wiped from mine eyes all sickenesse from my body all blindnesse from my vnderstanding all vntowardlinesse from my will This ciuill discord of the flesh and the spirit and that greater betweene my conscience and God how much more these lesser discords that are between me and other men shall fully cease and be abolished for euer the Prince of Peace shall consummate my peace And so haue you those two titles of Christ which shew that we must vnderstand spiritually those two former titles which you heard before doe royally belong vnto him I should now farther shew you that the Scripture giues Christ many names because one or few cannot fully expresse him or at least we cannot fully sound the depth of that name when it is giuen vnto him The name of Iesus is a rich name and so is the name of Christ the vsuall names by which our Sauiour was called but the riches of those names are vnfoulded vnto vs in these particular titles and wee must take these as Commentaries vpon those for as it is in the eleuenth of this Prophecie The spirit which rested vpon Christ was manifold how manifold the holy Ghost doth there describe in abstracto but here to like purpose he speaketh of Christ in concreto The time will not suffer me to parallel these and the like places this is our Rule That as our nature delights in variety so there is a variety in Christ to giue full content vnto our nature and wee must not lightly passe by any one of his titles seeing euery one of them promiseth so much good vnto vs. O Lord that being my Lord art pleased to be my Father such a Father as that I neede not feare that I shall euer be an Orphan and hast prouided me an inheritance that shal be as lasting as my selfe that when all other fayle mee shall bee enioyed by mee an inheritance most comfortable because therein consists my Perfection and thy Retribution the Retribution of glory wherewith thou dost crowne the Perfection of grace grant that I neuer want that piety which I owe vnto my Father that charity which I owe vnto my Brethren Let my heart goe where my best treasure is and let that peace which passeth all vnderstanding haue the vpper hand in me Let me feele it let me practise it so in heart that I may haue the fulnesse of both sense and practice of it in the Kingdome of Heauen Amen THE SIXTH SERMON Of the increase of his Gouernment and Peace there shall bee no end vpon the Throne of Dauid and vpon his Kingdome to order it and to establish it c. IN Christ whom the Prophet describeth here vnto vs I obserued a double excellencie one of his Person and another of his State The first I haue already handled I come now to the second the excellencie of the State Which stands in a boundlesse growth of the Kingdome and a constant policie of the King that is the effect wherof this is the cause But more particularly in the effect obserue that there is a growth the Prophet calleth it an increase a growth of the gouernment and a growth of the peace both partake of the same increase And the increase of both is boundlesse there is no end of it no bounds of place it ouerspreadeth all no bounds of time it endureth for euer the word beareth both Of this effect or boundlesse growth of the Kingdome the cause is the constant policie of the King Which consisteth in the exercise of his two roy all indowments of his wisedome Hee shall order and to order is nothing else but to employ that wisedome which Christ hath as a wonderfull Counsellour of his power He shall support and to support what is it but to employ his power the power that he hath as he is a mighty God hee employeth them both his wisedome his power But they may bee employed eyther well or ill according as the rule is by which they proceed Christ employeth them well his rule is good it is iudgement and iustice he cals all to an account and measures to all as they are found vpon their triall This is the policie And herein he is constant he continueth it without ceasing from henceforth euen for euer So that of the euerlasting effect there is an euerlasting cause You see what is the summe or substance of this second excellencie but that you may see it better let vs runne ouer the parts briefly and in their order And first we are to obserue how answerable the excellencie of the state is to the excellencie of the person one goeth not without the other Christus naturalis will haue Christum mysticum conformable vnto him the body to the head Where he vouchsafeth an vnion of persons he vouchsafeth a communion also in the dignity of the persons It appeares in the name he is called Christ which is annoynted with oyle of gladnesse and we are called Christians we partake of the same oyle His name is but an oyntment poured out as it is in the Canticles Cap. 1.3 poured out like that precious oyle vpon Aarons head which ranne downe to the skirts of his garment Cap. 60. All Christs garments and the Church in Esay is compared to a garment smell of Myrrhe Aloes and Cassia as it is Psalme 45. This is taught by diuers Similies Of the wiues communicating in her husbands honour and wealth The branches partaking of the fatnesse and sweetnesse of the roote The members deriuing of sense and motion from the head So that our King is not like the bramble that receiueth all good and yeelds none to the state but hee is like the Fig-tree the Vine the Oliue they that pertaine to him are all the better for him they are conformable to him if he haue an excellencie they shall haue one also A good patterne for mortall Kings and Gouernours who should herein imitate the King of Heauen that as when a man seeth an excellent work he ghesseth that the
thereof withhold ought that should be subiect vnto thee eyther in soule or body And let our whole soule our whole body bee comforted with thy peace Finally let them last as they grow both Gouernment and Peace in all in euery one of vs and that world without end Let neyther end in this world where they are subiect to danger So shall both last for euer in that world that is to come where they shall be free from all danger Amen THE SEVENTH SERMON To order and to establish it with Iustice and with Iudgement for euer THe Excellencie of Christs State standeth in a boundlesse growth of the Kingdome and a constant policie of the King Of the boundlesse growth I haue already spoken I come now to the constant policie This is the cause whereof that was the effect and as the effect is answerable to the cause so the cause is not inferiour to the effect it must bee such as is likely to produce it and so is this Let vs consider it The policie is the exercise of the royall endowments of the Kings wisedome and of his power of his wisedome for hee doth order and to order what is it but to shew himselfe the wonderfull Counsellour of his power for he doth support and what is it to support but to shew himselfe the mighty God But both these may be done ill or well Christs are well done for in doing both he followeth a good rule his rule is Iudgement and Iustice Hee calleth all to an account and hee deales with all vnpartially And this hee doth constantly from henceforth and for euer For of an endlesse effect the cause must also be endlesse These be the particulars which now we must handle I beginne at the first And the first thing that I obserue herein is That as Christ hath endowments so hee vseth them to that end for which hee receiued them No creature though destitute of reason but keepeth his course they let vs see in their working wherefore they were ordained the Sunne giueth his light the Fire his heat the Water moistnesse the Earth beareth fruit in all creatures you may reade this lesson Deus Natura nihil faciunt frustra And if creatures voyde of reason deale so much more should those that are indued with reason they should not be like the vuprofitable seruant that wrapped his talent vp in a napkin and hid it but as St. Peter aduiseth Euery one as he hath receiued the gift 1 Pet. 4.10 so must hee dispose it as a good Steward of the manifold graces of God Certainly Christ doth so and hee is a good Precedent vnto euery one of vs especially vnto those of place and authority bee it in Church or Common-weale their gifts must not be idle seeing there was an end for which they were bestowed vpon them As they must not be idle so must each be applyed vnto his proper end for praestat otiosum esse quam nihil agere to busie our gifts and not intend that whereat euery one must ayme is an vnprofitable businesse And much businesse of this nature there is in the world which is the cause why St. Paul doth blame certaine persons whom he calleth busie bodies 1 Tim. 5.13 Mark then that our Sauiour doth employ his endowments and employ them fitly Wisedome is appointed to order and hee doth order by his wisedome Power is appointed to support and he doth support by his Power But let vs looke further into eyther of these Christ doth order order his Kingdome therefore it was out of order The Physitians medicine doth intimate the Patients disease and wee doe not vse to set in order that which was not out of order And indeed this Kingdome of Israel was out of order In the temporall state it was when Christ came as it was when Dauid came to the Crowne When Dauid came to the crown he professed All the Land is dissolued I beare vp the Pillars thereof it was much more so when Christ came in the dayes of Herod as hee that readeth Flauius Iosephus writing of the life of Herod may easily perceiue At what time Iacobs prophesie appeared true The Scepter was gone Cap. 9. the Law-giuer ceased whereupon ensued that which Amos foretold The Tabernacle of Dauid fell to the ground It was so with the temporall State But Christ meddled not with that hee left vnto Caesar that which was Caesars his endeauour was that God might haue what was due to God As the temporall State was out of order so was the ecclesiasticall much more it appeares in the Gospel where Christ layeth open the abuses of the Priests and of the Scribes of the Pharisees and of the Saducees it was their abuses that he came to reforme to set in order Secondly this word remembreth vs of the Apostles rule 1 Cor. 14. God is not the God of confusion but of order Confusion is from the Diuell but order is from God especially in the Church which St. Paul resembleth to our body wherein the parts are fitly disposed and euery one keepeth his place the eye the head the hand the feete one vsurpeth not the function of the other in answerablenesse whereunto the Apostle telleth vs that All are not Prophets all are not Apostles 1 Cor. 12. and Cap. 7. exhorts all men as God hath called them so to walke A good rule for these dayes wherein the hands yea and the feete too take vp the roome of the head and euery man thinketh himselfe fit to bee a Teacher both by his penne and tongue whose place notwithstanding is amongst the learners Christ came to reforme such disorders But the order that Christ setteth in his Kingdome must bee learned from that order which wise Kings set in their temporall Kingdomes they doe order their subiects two wayes inter se and ad bonum commune they take care that there shall be a variety of professions and that all those shall bend themselues to procure the common good Euen so should it be in the Church Christ bestoweth diuers gifts but all for the edification of his Church And as in the Common-weale a man doth not liue orderly if he only follow a Trade except the Common-weale be the better for it no more doth he liue orderly in a Church that doth ought by which the whole Church is not benefited The last thing that is to bee obserued in this order and which indeede is the chiefest of all is the ordering of each man in himselfe In the Creation God set in man an excellent order subiecting as the whole man to himselfe so in man the body to the soule the appetite to reason whatsoeuer inferiour faculties to their superiours But time put all these things out of order and man which from his better part should be denominated spirituall is from his worser part called carnall and more vsually doth the Scripture call him sensuall than rationall The holy Ghost meaneth thereby to intimate the disorder that is grown by sinne
the naturall sense there is in the body but it is from the head intercept the insluence of the head and you extinguish the sense of the body And as it fareth with the body in regard of sense so doth it in regard of motion also The like appeares in the spirits that haue their original from the heart in the bloud that streameth from the veines In the great world you haue many like spectacles the Sun and the Light the Streames and the Fountaine the Rootes and the Trees euery one of these you may perceiue endure not if the effect be seuered from the cause How much lesse may wee expect any enduring in those spirituall effects did they not receiue continuance from this spirituall cause It is our comfort that considering there is a mutability in vs this mutability preuaileth not because of the Kings constant influence vpon vs. Wee sinne and recouer we are in danger and escape neyther our inward weakenesse nor our enemies outward mightinesse destroy Gods gifts in vs or so hinder their increase but that they become Catholick for all which we are beholding to the constant policie of the King who neuer faileth to support vs but continueth ours vnto the end But the Prophet speaketh of this policie as if it began when hee spake these words Christ was not borne till some hundreds of yeares after The answer is easie you had it before The efficacie of Christs birth wrought long before he was borne not only in the time of this Prophet but euen from the time of Adams fall A scruple there ariseth how these words can be true that our King shall so rule for euer seeing a time shall come as the Apostle teacheth 1 Cor. 15 when he shall giue vp his Kingdome to his Father The answer is if wee respect the Kingdome of Grace That as the effect shall not cease increasing till it become boundlesse that is haue attained all his parts and degrees so the cause shall worke till the consummation of that effect till all enemies be put downe and wee are throughly perfected And in this sense both cause and effect are termed endlesse because they shall continue till the worlds end If you extend it to the Kingdome of Glory it hath an eternity also though not of Restauration but of Conseruation though he shall cease restoring of vs further when we are fully restored yet shall hee neuer cease preseruing vs because wee can no longer be than wee are preserued You haue heard the constant Policie of the King wherein standeth the second branch of the Excellency of the State what remaineth but that if wee were affected with the growth and desired to bee partakers of it wee submit our selues vnto the cause thereof the Policie of the King that we yeeld our disorderly selues to be set in order by him and repose our weake selues to be supported on him who will prescribe no Lawes of order but those that spring from Iustice that spirituall Iustice which will abide the tryall at Gods barre and worke the highest kinde of righteousnesse in our liues Neyther doth he only prescribe it but possesse vs of it also and lest it should faile he supports it in vs his Iudgements are as watchfull ouer vs as his Iustice they rectifie vs when wee breake order and bridle vs that wee doe not breake it And this he doth vncessantly by bringing vs from growth to growth in the state of grace and prescruing vs in this growth in the state of glory Hee will bee vnto vs a lasting blessed cause that there may be in vs no end of that blessed effect O Lord I am out of order and I am very weake thon art that Counsellour that knowest how to set mee right againe and that Almighty God which onely canst sustaine me Lord rule me by thy lustice and by thy Iudgements bridle me that I may bee conformable to the holy members of thy Church and euer continue conformable vnto them Let thy worke neuer cease in mee so shall I neuer cease to bee thy Subiect if thy Policie faile me not I shall euery day grow on to the fulnesse ef grace and shall therehence proceede to the eternity of glory Which I beseech thee to grant vnto mee that art the fountaine both of Grace and Glory THE EIGHTH SERMON The zeale of the Lord of Hosts shall performe this THese are the last words of that Text whereof you haue heard often but haue not yet heard all The whole Text was diuided into a Doctrine and a Warrant The Doctrine deliuered the Substance and Excellency of Christs Person and State both which I haue at sundry times so far vnfolded as the time would giue leaue it were tedious now to repeat were it onely the heads whereof I haue distinctly spoken In stead of that repetition I only recommend vnto you the laying together the parts and therehence the gathering of a description of the Catholicke Church Which what is it but a Kingdome such as I haue described growing in grace without stint of Place or term of Time vnder and by meanes of such a Person as being God and Man is called to be the King thereof royally endowed with Wisedome and Power eternall to worke an eternall good both which he employes ordering and stablishing by Iustice and Iudgement the disorderly and feeble members of his Church and that without intermission vntill he hath brought them to the fulnesse both of grace and glory More than this in the nature of that Catholicke Church which we beleeue in the Creede there is not neyther is there any thing more that we would desire to bee therein So that we may take this Text as a full Commentary thereupon and to our comfort vnderstand the riches that are treasured vp in that Article But to leaue the Doctrine and come to the Warrant The Doctrine containeth a large Promise the Warrant sheweth that it shall be performed and sheweth this by renewing those impediments that may crosse the performance thereof The impediments that stay a man from being as good as his word are of two sorts they proceede ab extra or ab intra from without or from within From without wee may bee ouer-ruled from within wee may change our minde Neyther of these can hinder God hee cannot bee ouer-ruled for he is the Lord of Hosts hee cannot vary in himselfe because of the greatnesse of his loue which is termed zeale So that the remouall of these two impediments from God are the principall argument of these words Let vs looke into them That Gods Word shall stand That his Counsell is immutable yea That heauen and earth shall passe and yet his Word neuer passe are Maximes in the Scripture and therfore haue 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 credibility enough in themselues but yet so farre doth the holy Ghost condescend to the weakenesse of our Faith as to point vnto these grounds which will content euen reason it selfe Reason when it questioneth the word of
round world and they that dwell therein It is true that the Diuell shamed not to Christs owne face to say All the Kingdomes of the earth are mine and theirs to whom I will giue them Luke 4. but that was but the vaunt of the father of lies Nabals speech was a speech beseeming a Nabal 1 Sam. 25. Shall I take my flesh and my bread and giue it vnto men whom I know not the diuell experienced Christs right and so did Nabal too Christ stripped them both of that which they had and he threatneth no lesse vnto the Iewes and Israelites Ezek. 16. Hos 2. when they became so gracelesse as to deriue his title to others to their Louers as the Prophet cals them be they idols or men I will open this point a little more fully There is ius ad rem and ius in re propertie and possession right to a thing and power ouer that thing These are many times seuered in men many a man hath right to that ouer which he hath no power he is kept out with a strong hand Wisd 2.11 and many a man hath power ouer that whereunto hee hath no right his strength is the Law of all his righteousnesse It is not so with Christ property and possession meete both in him and hee hath power ouer whatsoeuer hee hath right vnto both right and power extend vnto all things His right Iohn 1. Heb. 1. for hee is the onely begotten of the father therefore heire of all things In the second Psalme he that said Thou art my sonne this day haue I begotten thee said also Aske of mee and I will giue vnto thee the heathen for thine inheritance and the vttermost parts of the earth for thy possession Neyther is Christ an inheritor only but a purchaser also Rom. 14. He therefore dyed and rose againe that he might be Lord of quicke and dead that he might be King of kings and Lord of lords A double right then hath Christ vnto all by birth by purchase And his power is as wide as his right Mat. 28.18 by birth-right hee is an all-mighty God and by purchase all power is giuen vnto him both in heauen and earth therefore Iob saith cap. 1. The Lord giueth and the Lord taketh the Psalmist Promotion commeth neyther from the east nor from the west Psal 75.6 but the Lord setteth vp one cap. 2. 5. Psal 115. and taketh downe another Daniel Blessed be the name of the Lord for euer and euer for wisedome and might are his hee changeth times and seasons he remoueth kings and setteth them vp he doth whatsoeuer hee will both in heauen and in earth Out of this which I haue told you concerning Christs right you may learne many good Lessons first from the propertie If he haue right to all in whosoeuers hand it is then no man should come vniustly by his goods for he that defraudes his brother defraudeth not man but God Euen as a master that putteth his goods into his seruants hand is the principall partie that is wronged if his seruant be eyther deceiued or oppressed and as the Master will pursue his right against the wrong doer so will God also take vengeance vpon all vniust persons hee will in the world to come nay he doth in this world for what Chronicle is there that doth not iustifie the prouerbe de malè quaesitis non gaudet tertius haeres will gotten goods neuer prosper As Christs propertie in our goods teacheth vs not to get them vniustly so doth it teach vs also not to vse them vnreasonably A tenant that holdeth land from a Lord may not vse it otherwise than according to the couenants agreed vpon if hee doe hee forfeiteth euen so is it betweene God and vs the grant which he maketh vs of his creatures is but conditionall wee may take conuenient foode for our sustenance decent cloathing to shrowd vs from the iniuries of the weather and we may bestow our money to supply our own and other folkes necessaries To these ends wee may vse Gods creatures but wee may not riot with our meate and drinke we may not be fantasticall in our apparell neyther may we with our wealth grinde the faces of the poore we haue no couenant that warrants any of these and therefore the doing of any of these is a forfeit to him that is proprietarie And how often might Christ re-enter vpon our goods if he would take aduantage of our daily abuses yea he daily doth re-enter if wee had grace to see it for what goodly patrimonies daily come to nought by drunkennesse pride oppression I would the world did take as much notice of it as euery place doth giue them iust occasion to doe for what countrey what shire what citie yea what village aboundeth not with examples hereof These lessons Christs right to our goods doth yeeld vs. His power ouer our goods will yeeld vs as many for seeing our goods are not in our owne power but in Christs wee may not trust in them but in him It is the Apostles rule 1 Tim. 6. Wee may not trust in vncertaine riches but in the liuing God Our wealth may be taken from vs as Iobs was or we may betaken from our wealth cap. 1. as the rich man in the Gospell who while hee was inuiting his soule to eate and drinke because he had store laid vp for many yeares heard that vnpleasing message Thou foole this night shall they take thy soule from thee Luke 12. and then whose shall all these things bee Our selues are not in our owne power much lesse our goods therefore it is good trusting in neyther of them but in him that hath power ouer both Secondly this power of God ouer our wealth must remember vs that to our honest endeauours wee adde our deuout prayers for Psal 127.1 for except the Lord build the house they labour but in vaine that build it Wee may plant wee may water it is God that must giue the increase if hee bee close-handed euery thing will famish and he filleth euery liuing creature with his good gifts when hee openeth his hand It is his blessing as Salomon teacheth Pro. 10.22 that maketh men rich Ioyne Christs right and his power together and gather what wretches they are that for wealth forsake him who hath right to it and power to bestow it and betake themselues vnto the diuel who is but a pretender of right and when by Gods permission he hath done his best for them hee cannot keepe them in possession And no wonder the Gospell teacheth that Christ with a word did cast him out how then should hee be able to keep others in Secondly when Gods children are in want wee may not argue therehence that Christ is vnable to relieue Psal 78.19 Can God prepare a table in the wildernesse was the voyce of infidelity for God is Shaddai all-sufficient it is one of his essentiall Attributes and
the Iewes and vs we haue enuious eyes and ambitious hearts we would not only be great but greatest we would not willingly that any should bee in better case than our selues Gods promise then goeth very farre which hee maketh to the Iewes and in them to vs when hee saith that they shall not onely haue great glory but also great in comparison in comparison to that which was very glorious So that if fertilior seges est c. and wee couet after the best gifts 1 Cor. 12. the very phrase did put them and doth put vs in minde how deeply they were wee are bound to God for the honour that hee did them in Christ 1 Reg. 8. and doth to vs. we should both ioy more therein than euer the Israelites did at the dedication of Salomons Temple But wee must not mistake and vnderstand the comparison made betweene the Old and the New Testament in an anabaptisticall sense as if they in the Old Testament had only corporall glorie and they in the New Testament spirituall the glory of both is spirituall But theirs of the Old Testament was veiled with ceremonies ours in the New Testament is vnueiled they had Christ but they saw him not but through sacrifices and darke rites but we with open face doe behold the glory of the Lord 2 Cor. 3. therefore the Apostle teacheth Ephes 2. that of two we are made but one new man and Rom. 11. we are grafted into that â—liue from whence they sprang Secondly we must distinguish the meanes as they are offered of God and as they are receiued of men the glory of the New Testament is greater in regard of the meanes offered of God Blessed are the eyes that see that which you see saith our Sauiour Christ to his Apostles Luke 10.24 and the eares that heare that which you heare for I tell you many Kings Prophets and righteous men haue desired to see those things which you see and haue not seene them and to heare those things which you heare and haue not heard them But in regard of entertainement of the meanes the glory of the Patriarches faith vnder the Old Testament may well bee thought to haue equalled if not to haue gone beyond the glory of most of their faiths that liue vnder the New And why the darker their meanes were the stronger was their faith that built vpon them and our faith though in worke equall is in worth vnequall because our meanes are clearer clearer than was afforded any of those Worthies which are chronicled Heb. 11. Whereupon will follow a third thing which is that seeing in heauen men shall fare not according to the meanes which God affordes them but according to their vse of the meanes we may not so aduance the glory of the New Testament aboue that of the Old as to thinke that in the life to come all that liue vnder the New Testament shall haue precedencie of all those that liued vnder the Old Well it will bee with many if not most of vs if wee may haue a place in Abrahams bosome and sit down with him and with Isaac and Iacob in the Kingdome of God I haue done with the points of my Text as they were to be opened seuerally I haue shewed you what Christ can doe what he will doe it remaines that in very few words I shew you what instructions they will yeelde vs if we ioyne them both together Obserue then that the Prophet doth first set downe Christs power and then his will in so doing the holy Ghost doth helpe the infirmities of men Were we such as wee should bee wee would neuer question Gods promise through doubt of his power But the best of Gods children haue taken exception to Gods promises and exprest their distrust God promised Abraham a childe in his old age Gen. 18. Sarah laugheth at that and obiects her dead wombe and Abrahams decrepit bodie God promised Moses that the children of Israel should eate flesh a moneth together in the wildernesse Num. 11. Moses thus reasons against God The people amongst whom I am are sixe hundred thousand footemen shall all the flocks and the heards be slaine to suffice them c. You will not wonder to heare a Prince of Samaria dis-beleeue the vnexpected plenty promised by Elizeus 2 King 7. nor Ahaz distrusting the despaired deliuerance of Ierusalem from the armies of the King of Israel and Syria Esay 7. It is not strange to see flesh and bloud so backeward in beleeuing God seeing they which are a good part spirit are not so forward as they should bee It is not then without cause that the holy Ghost prefixeth Christs power before his will lest the ignorance of the power should make vs thinke that the Prophet doth lauish in expressing his will Wherefore the holy Ghost taking vs for no better than we are encourageth vs to hope well of Christs promise out of the consideration of his sufficiencie And this is the reason why the first Article in the Creede is prefixt before all the rest it preuents the scruples that would rise in our distrustfull nature A second instruction that the coupling of Christs power and his will will yeelde is that Christ doth giue his gifts not according to the narrownesse of our desires but the width of his owne power St. Paul Ephes 3. telleth vs that Christ is able to doe exceeding abundantly aboue all that wee aske or thinke and here the Prophet telleth vs that he is willing to deale so The Iewes would haue had a Temple glorious but they did not wish it more glorious than that of Salomon Christ will haue the glory of the later house greater than that of the former Abrahams wish was Oh that Ismael might liue in thy sight God heard him and promised to multiply Ismael exceedingly but he added a promise of an Isaac too Gen. 17. in whom all the nations of the earth should be blessed and whose off-spring should multiply as the sand of the sea and the starres in the firmament which are innumerable Salomon begged onely wisedome 1 King 3.11 God gaue him that in the highest degree but ouer and aboue and that in no low degree he heaped vpon him honour and wealth How many came to Christ for the helpe of their bodies and beyond their desire went away cured in their soules If wee in our prayers make the like triall of Christ wee shall finde no worse successe I will conclude all with two good remembrances taught vs by King Dauid The first is grounded vpon the consideration of Christs power When wee cloathe the naked feede the hungry doe any good deede giue any thing to any good vse we must with that religious King confesse 2 Chro. 29. Omnia exmanu tua accepta offerimus tibi Wee haue nothing which wee haue not receiued and we could not haue offered it to him except he had first bestowed it on vs for the siluer is his
which are stampt vpon true being the one is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the other is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is a being from it selfe and so is being it selfe 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is a being all that which hath being and so stands in neede of nothing besides it selfe All creatures as they are from God so are they no longer nor no otherwise than it pleaseth him and it pleaseth not him that any one creature should haue all the parts much lesse the degrees of all his perfections The King of heauen deales as kings on earth Kings on the earth reserue in themselues the fulnesse of regall poweâ— whereof they doe impart but some branches and those limited to their subordinate officers after the same manner doth the Lord dispence of his infinite power to Angels to Men to other Creatures Therefore the name Iehouah is by the Wise man truly called Gods incommunicable name it noteth that internall power in God which is found in no other and which giueth whatsoeuer power any other haue For from this inward proceeds an outward and hee that is Lord is also Lord of Hostes. It is not Gods pleasure that we should pry too farre into his inward power and if we would we cannot he directeth vs therefore to his outward which is more fitting to our capacitie and may sufficiently resolue vs that he is very powerfull though he were no more powerfull than as hee appeares in his creatures in regard of whom he is termed The Lord of Hostes Let vs leaue then his inward and come to his outward power In the second of Genesis Vers 1. where the Creation is recapitulated we finde mention but of one Host of God the Text is plaine God made heauen and earth and all the host thereof and yet it is vsuall in the Scripture to call God the Lord of hostes as if there were many Surely it is cleare that God made but one but Apostasie of that one hath made many First Apostasie in heauen hath made two hostes of spirits Reu. 12. Michael and his Angels the Dragon and his then an Apostasie in Paradise beganne the distinction of the seede of the woman Gen. 3. and the seede of the serpent and of mankinde part is fallen to the Dragon and part is preserued and cleaueth to Michael the truth whereof appeared presently in Abel and Cain and although Cain by murder of Abel killed and destroyed one of the hostes yet God renewed it againe in Seth and the Armies went on again in the Children of God and the children of men Gen. 4. A man would haue thought the stoud had swept away all the seed of the serpent but it reuiued againe in cursed Cham and the Citie of God and the Citie of Babel will bee and be opposite vntill the end of the world But touching these Apostasies the first of Angels the second of men we must hold this true rule Summonere se potuêrunt saeliettuti coelestâ— non potuêrunt se eximerâ— porestati diuinae they might defraud themselues of their blessed communion with God but free themselues from his power they could not God hath set his hooke in their nostrils and his bit in their mouthes so that they cannot stirre without nor beyond his leâ—ue It is plaine in the story of Iob cap. 1. and of Ahab 1 Reg. 22. But there is an effectiue and a permissiue power of God God is Lord of both hostes but he worketh in them differently his worke in Michaels host and the seede of the woman is properly effectiue For though sometimes to make them sensible of their frailtie and to make them cleaue faster vnto him he leaueth them for a time vnto themselues yet ordinarily the influence of his grace doth direct and support them vnto and in good workes and they sight his battels But as for the Dragons host and host of the Serpents broode Gods power in them is properly permissiue he leaueth them to their owne corrupt iudgements and affections to follow and to execute them but he doth not communicate in their corruptions eyther as author or abettor of the roote or fruite thereof Yet this soueraignty God hath ouer the most wicked that they cannot breake out according to their owne disposition but where and when God will and when they breake out by his leaue they stop when he checketh and giue ouer when he saith it is enough So that Gods permissiue power is alwaies accompanied with his effectiue which doth stint the wicked in their workes maugre their gracelessenesse and without their priuitie directs their endeauours to his ends so that euen then they fulfill his will when transgressing his commandements they seeme to be most contrary to his will And this is no small comfort to Michaels host and the host of the womans seede that the host of the Dragon and the broode of the Serpent must not be feared according to their own malice but according to Gods leaue And this is the reason why Christ taught vs to pray daily Lead vs not into temptation but deliuer vs from euill and this we doe or should meane when wee speake these or the like words Our Enemies cannot assaile vs except thou O Lord permit them and if thou O Lord assist vs they shall assault in vaine Seeing all the world is compared vnto Hostes howsoeuer wee apprehend confusion in the world yet may wee not thinke but that all things are well disposed because these Hostes are the Lords he is the common Generall and he directs the conflicts neyther are any put to try masteries but by his speciall appointment and for the accomplishment of his ends But it befalleth vs as it doth them which stand in the same leuell wherein two huge Armies are pitched they conceiue them to be a disordered multitude whom notwithstanding if they behold from a high hill they will discerne that they are artificially ranged they will see how euery one serueth vnder his owne colours Euen so wee which behold the state of the world with the eyes of flesh and bloud dimme by reason of the weakenesse of our iudgement and wickednesse of our affections thinke all things are out of tune bonis malè malis benè that the worse men are the better they fare and they fare the worse the better they are But we must ascend into the sanctuarie of God and iudge of occurrents by heauenly principles if we do so then we will confesse that no armie on earth can bee better marshalled than is the great armie of all creatures of heauen and earth yea and hell also and notwithstanding all apparencies to the contrarie queniam bonus mundum Rector temperat â—mnia rectè fieri ne dubites doubt not but that all is well and shall end well because God is Lord of Hostes Againe seeing God is Lord of Hostes wee must make no worse conclusion than the Centurion did in the Gospell when Christ promised to come to his house and cure his feruant
place of mortality But enough of the place Christ ascended not onely in place but in state also in a blessed place he had a blessed state and his state is reduced to two branches Glory and Power for he sate downe on the right hand of God and the right hand of God singifieth both first glory They that come neare in place to the person of a King come neare also in glory and dignity vnto him St. Paul saith he was receiued vp into glory Dauid Psal 8. he was crowned with glory and worship The Author to the Hebrewes he is set downe at the right hand of Maiesty farre aboue all powers and principalities hauing a Name giuen him aboue all names And this is opposed to the forme of a seruant which Christ tooke in the dayes of his flesh while hee was in the world he emptied himselfe of glory and made himselfe of no reputation becomming as the scorne of men and out-cast of the people not a house to hide his head but after the Resurrection he appeares in another habit In the first of the Reuelation and other passages of that Booke Iohn saw him as the King of Glory and the Fathers interpret those words in the Psalme Be opened O ye gates and be ye lifted vp ye euer lasting doores and the King of glory shall come in of the Ascension of Christ and entring into his glory for then did he lift vp himselfe aboue the Heauens and his glory aboue all the Earth As his state was full of glory so was it also of power for all power was then giuen vnto him both in heauen and earth and all knees bowed vnto him all things were put vnder his feet and he became King of kings and Lord of lords Heb. 4. yea he heares vp all things with the word of his power it usharper than any two-edged sword The Psalmist compares it to sharpe arrowes Psal 45. he hath an tron scepter in his hand wherewith he breakes the wicked as a Potters vessell finally he reignes in the middest of his enemies And this power is opposed to that weaknesse wherein he appeared in the dayes of his flesh the condition of that time is amply set downe Esay 53. wherein you shall see nothing but passion and subiection and the Gospell confirmes that Prophesie wherein you shall finde that from the day of his birth vntill the moment that he gaue vp the ghost Christ endured as if hee were the subiect of euery wicked mans blasphemous tongue or bloudy hands but the case is now altered for his enemies are now the patients and he the agent they are subiect vnto him and hee can as hee will bridle and crush them for his Kingdome is ouer all This is the summe of the Exaltation of Christs person and our nature in his person for hee made vs sit with himselfe in heauenly places that will appeare better in the second part of the Triumph Wherein I noted two particulars the first was that the monuments of the Conquest did attend the chariot of the Conquerour Incedunt vinctae longo ordine gentes Quam vartae linguis habitu tam vestis armis to this allude these words He led captiuity captiue and indeed 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 notes that which is taken by force 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Christ was the Lyon of the tribe of Iudah and Esay cap. 63. he is described as a glorious Conquerour Shah the prey be taken from the mighty or the captiuity of the iust be deliuered Thus saith the Lord the captiues of the mighty shall be taken away and the prey of the terrible shall be deliuered Esay 49. Christ the stronger man entered the strong mans house he bound him he rifled him But St. Austin on these words obserues a distinction of captiues and captiuity In Psal 67. Austin on these words obserues a distinction of captiues and captiuity there is inuolunt aria captiuit as and voluntaria whereof the former is misera the later faelix the fiends of Hell were taken captiues Christ triumphed ouer them and made a shew openly of them and the children of God were taken captiues Col. 2. 1. Pet. 2. 2. Cor. 10. for they are 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a purchased people And St. Paul tels vs that the weapons of his spirituall warfare are mighty through God to the pulling downe of strong holds casting downe imaginations and euery high thing that exalteth it selfe against the knowledge of God and bringing into captiuity euery thought to the obedience of Christ The children of God are deliuered from captiuity but to continue captiues still for they must take vpon them Christs yoake and they must account themselues not their owne but his The very same doth St. Paul meane Rom. 6. when he saith that of seruants of sinne we are made seruants to righteousnesse for servus and captivus are Synonoma's But betweene these captiues there is this difference that the first are vnwillingly captiues and in their captiuity are miserable for they are reserued in chaines of darknesse for the iudgement of the great day and they take little content in this thraldome But as for the children of God they are glad that they haue so changed their Master and well they may be for they are made happy by the change for their seruice is perfect liberty and what can our heart more desire In this difference captiuity being vnderstood of both sorts it is true that they attend Christs chariot the wicked vincti as Prisoners the godly coronati as being Conquerours for what Christ did hee did for them and there is a sense thereof in euery one of them But how is this true that eyther the one or the other are so captiues seeing this our Apostle in this very Epistle doth tell vs Cap. 6. that we striue not with flesh and bloud but with powers and principalities and spirituall wickednesse in heauenly places We must therefore obserue that Christ hath taken away from Sathan two things ius in nos and dominium in nobis His right vnto vs hath Christ taken away absolutely in his owne person for Christ hath the keyes of death and hell and Sathan cannot stirre but when and as farre as Christ giues him leaue As for dominium in nobis Christ hath taken that away by putting his spirit into vs and thereby mortifying the old man but yet so that wee still consist as well of the old as of the new the flesh rebels against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh Thus Christ is pleased to exercise vs that wee may imitate his Triumph and by experience of our trampling vpon Sathan be vndoubtedly assured that Christ hath bruised his head St. Paul was buffeted by a messenger of Sathan he prayed and Christ answered him My grace is sufficient for thee my strength is made perfect in weaknesse If we would but resist the Deuill he would fly from vs if we would resist I say stedfast in faith
for the shield of faith is able to quench all siery darts of the Deuill The Martyrs tryed it who neither were circumuented by the Serpent nor dismayed by the Lyon but ouercame by the bloud of the Lambe in that they loued not their liues vnto death and therefore with Crowns with Palms and Harpes they sing the triumphant song of Moses And we must all be resolued that as Ioshua when he had ouercome the Kings of Canaan brought them and made the Heads of Israel to set their feete vpon their neckes euen so Iesus that hath spoyled the powers of darknesse will haue his members with like confidence to insult vpon them Yea it is a part of that iust and glorious reuenge of Adams cowardise in his great strength hee yeelded himselfe a prey to Sathan when he had full power to withstand him to blot out that shame hee will haue the sonnes of Adam that are much weaker to encounter and trample on that mighty Hunter and serpentine Lyon And wee much neglect the honour that Christ would doe vs and the manifestation of that power which hee is pleased to vouchsafe vs if so be wee haue no testimony from our owne conscience that wee haue in our owne persons experience of this Triumph Tertullian hath a good rule that oftentimes men are foyled not because he that set on them was the stronger but they did not know or vse their owne strength that did resist It is the case of most men I neede no other proofe than their enormous falls the reason why they become Sathans prey is their cowardise or their negligence eyther they doe not at all resist or they pray not for assistance vnto God if they did they might confidently say with Saint Paul I can doe all through him that strengthneth me Philip. 4.16 and that is Christ But howsoeuer we faile in doing what we should this is sure that this conflict is no disproofe of the Triumph seeing the intent of it is to be a perpetuall euidence or rather an euident perpetuation thereof And so haue you the first attendant vpon the Triumphant Chariot The second is the disposing of the spoiles He gaue gifts and hee that rifled the strong man distributed whatsoeuer hee found in his House Touching the nature of the gifts I need not speake now former words of my Text occasioned mee to open them here onely you must marke originem and mensuram donorum though they were giuen often before yet tho dispensation depended vpon Christs Ascension Cap. 7. In Saint Iohn we reade that the Spirit was not giuen because Christ was not yet glorified And Acts 2. Saint Peter tels the Iewes that Christ being exalted poured forth the Spirit yea Christ himselfe Acts 1. when hee was readie to ascend biddeth his Disciples stay at Ierusalem vntill they were endued with power from aboue And no wonder that it depends vpon his Ascension seeing it is an effect of his Kingdome and his Kingdome began properly at his Ascension And as this is true of the Originall so is it also of the Measure of the gifts though hee gaue them before yet hee neuer gaue them in that measure whether you respect the number of persons that partake them or the degree of the gifts which were bestowed on them Saint Peter 2. Pet. 1. compares the gifts of the Prophets vnto a candle the Gospell vnto the day light a great oddes betweene the lights and as great oddes is there betweene the Spheares of their actiuity for it is no great roome that a candle can illighten be it neuer so great a candle and the Prophets went not out of the Holy Land ordinarily and that was but a corner of the world but the Sunne goeth out from one end of Heauen and the circuit thereof is vnto the end of it and there is nothing hid from the heate of it Psalme 19. euen so the Sunne of Righteousnesse shed his beames ouer all the world and Christ after his ascension made his Church Catholike euen wee that are assembled here are beholding for this our sacred assembly vnto the Ascension of Christ from thence it is that this light is come to vs. And as often as in our Creede we remember his ascension let vs thankfully remember that we owe this our spirituall condition vnto it And let this suffice for the opening of Christs Triumph My Text doth not onely tell vs of a Triumph but tells vs also that that Triumph was deserued Christ by vertue of his Hypostaticall Vnion was able to doe all that is specified in the Triumph to ascend in place and state to leade captiuity captiue and to giue gifts But hee would not attaine it onely by power hee would receiue it by merit and why hee stood out for man and therefore would obserue the Articles of that Couenant which God did enter into with him and the Couenant was Hoc fac viues Though Adam being created holy was immediately fit for Heauen yet God would not haue him come vnto Heauen but by vse of his Holinesse in obedience to God euen so Christ would fulfill all righteousnesse and vndergoe the Crosse in satisfaction for our sinne before hee would enter into Glory And wee must not deceiue our selues and dreame of any other course for though wee cannot equall Christs Crosse yet by mortification and tribulation wee must resemble it though wee cannot fulfill the Law yet must wee doe our vttermost endeauour And this course must bee vnto vs though not causa a merit as it was to Christ yet via regnandi the meanes vnto the Kingdome of Heauen without which no man shall euer haue accesse vnto the blessed presence of God But more distinctly Wee must marke that the Descension went before the Ascension and that the degree of the Ascension beares correspondencie to the degree of the Descension First the Descension goeth before the Ascension and it must needs doe so in Christ you will acknowledge it if you know what the Descension is The Descension is the incarnation and the passion of Christ in respect of these the Sonne of God is said to descend And indeede he fell below himselfe when he submitted himselfe to them by so much as a man is below God and so to bee vsed being a man is little answerable to the Maiesty of a God Had hee not thus descended hee could neuer haue ascended for whither should hee ascend that was in the forme of God and so as coaequall as coaeternall what state what place could hee bee aduanced vnto that as God was highest in both But his pleasure to descend made it possible for him to ascend it was possible for him to ascend in regard of that wherein hee did descend hee might glorifie his manhood in which hee was pleased to be humbled Secondly as the Descension must needes goe before the Ascension so doth the Ascension keepe good correspondency with the Descension Christ ascended high farre aboue all Heauens and hee descended lowe
them all I begin with Christs right Wee are first to enquire of what sort it is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the word vsed by the Euangelist doth signifie an Eminency now that may be either in Ability or in Authority in men these are often times seuered some haue abilities that haue no authority some haue authority that haue no ability some haue good gifts that are in no place of gouernement and some are in place of gouernment that haue no sutable gifts But in God and Christ it is not so both concurre in them and in them both are equall the Authority to the Ability and the Ability to the Authority And it should be so in those that serue them it is pity but that those which haue good gifts should bee set in good places but it is a shame for them that are set in good places to be without good gifts Wherefore let this be your sacred ambition who are now to receiue holy Orders neuer to let your preferment out-steppe your indowments labour to bee as able to serue as you are willing to be employed Something we haue said of Christs power but not that which is principally intended here To make you see that I must remember you of a Logicke Rule Talia sunt praedicata qualia permittuntur esse à subiectis suis when any attribute or title is giuen to a person it must bee conceiued in such extent as the person is capable of Now in Christ there are two capacities for he is God and he is also Man If we looke vpon him as hee is onely God so hee hath an infinite and an eternall power hee is as Almighty a Gouernour as Maker of all things This is potestas innata not data But becomming Man hee had another capacity and power proportioned thereunto a power fitting to a Mediatour a Mediatour that should recouer man fallen and reconcile him vnto God gather a Church and establish a Kingdome of Heauen Of this power our Sauiour Christ speaketh when he confesseth vnto Pilate that he is a King but addes My King dome is not of this world Iohn 18. and St. Paul the Kingdome of Heauen is not meate and drinke it standeth not in any earthly thing but in Righteousnesse and Peace and Ioy in the Holy Ghost Rom. 14.17 The Scepter of this Kingdome is the Gospell the seate of it is the Conscience of man it is as Christ speaketh in St. Luke chapt 17. Regnum Dei intra nos a Kingdome of God within vs a spirituall Kingdome mannaged with a spirituall power Such is the power of Christ the Mediatour But this power doth not in Christs person exclude the other power of a Creatour nor the Deriuatiue therefrom the power of Scepters and Crownes which are all subiect thereunto they are by Christs Ordinance and he that is Mediatour hath power ouer them and doth dispose of them as is best for his Church But hee doth not doe this as a Mediatour Kingdomes are founded vpon another ground a ground that went before the Fall vpon Paternall Authority though in time it hath receiued many variations yet did not the Mediatour intermeddle with those humane policies he erected no power ouer those powers but left them to the former Prouidence of God neither would hee haue them any way preiudiced or impeacht by the entertainment of the Gospell This Christ testified in his time the Apostles in theirs the Primitiue Church for many hundred yeares as our Writers haue clearly proued against the Vsurpation of the Bishop of Rome who claimeth by some of his Aduocates directly by other some indirectly a power at least ouer all Christian Scepters and Crownes But this is to confound that which God hath distinguished the power which the Church deriueth from a Mediatour which is a spirituall power with the power which Kings deriue from the Creatour and Founder of humane policy Obserue then in few words how Princes and Pastors are superiour and subiect in seuerall respects one to the other In Foro Poli in cases of Conscience and things that belong to ghostly counsell and comfort those things that belong to the saluation of the soule the Prince must be ruled by the Pastor so long as he is a faithfull Minister of Christ But in Foro Soli in the Iurisdiction that is annext to the sword the Pastor must submit to the Prince and obey his command This you may learne out of the Titles which are giuen them For as Princes are Children of the Church and Pastors reputed their ghostly Fathers so Pastors are Children of the Kingdome Ezechias calleth the Leuites his Sonnes 2. Chron. 24. and the Prophet calleth Princes nursing Fathers and nursing Mothers of the Church Esay 49. Constantine the Emperour distinguished well in his speech to the Prelates Vos estis Episcopi ad intra ego ad extra you are Bishops seruing for the administration of sacred things and mannaging of the Keyes but I also am a Bishop of the Church to see it well gouerned countenanced and protected While they serue God Princes are as it were Sheepe of the Fold but they are Shepheards also and must see God well serued This I obserue the rather because that you seeing the fountain of your Calling may keepe your selues within the Boundery thereof and not with either Papists or Schismatickes encroach vpon the Princes Sword deny vnto him his Iurisdiction Ecclesiasticall or vsurpe vpon his Temporall two diseases which raigne much in this age which a man may more wonder at that readeth the New Testament wherein the Iewes dreame of their Messias worldly Kingdome is so plainly discouered and the ambition of the sonnes of Zebeaee Iames and Iohn who would sit one on Christs right hand and the other on Christs left hand in his Kingdome is checked so discreetly and that generall rule giuen Matth. 20. the Kings of the Nations beare rule they that are great men exercise authority but it shall not be so with you you shall receiue a spirituall but no temporall Iurisdiction you shall haue power not of the Sword but of the Keyes not ouer mens bodies but their soules in them must I raigne you must erect my Kingdome there And thus much of the kind of Christs power This power of Christ is lawfull because giuen to him giuen by his Father as elsewhere we learne And here wee must first obserue that if data Iohn 3. Daniel 7. Esay 49. Psal 2.48.13 Rom. 14. then it is not rapta that which is giuen is not vsurpt the Prince of this world hath power euen in the consciences of the children of disobedience and their soules are captiued to his pleasure God hath permitted this but he hath made him no grant of this power onely hee is contented to leaue men to his will by reason of their sinne though the Diuell be so arrogant vpon this permission that hee told Christ himselfe The Kingdomes of the earth and the glory thereof are mine and theirs to whom
I will giue them Luke 4.6 notwithstanding he is but an Vsurper Neither is Antichrist any better who sitteth in the Temple of God and carrieth himselfe as God 2. Thos 2. taking vpon him that power ouer the consciences of the people which Christ neuer gaue him the particulars are many you may meete with them in the Casuists and in the Controuersie Writers I will not trouble you with them Our Sauiour Christs power is iust For it was giuen vnto him But when First in his Incarnation for no sooner did he become man but he was annointed with the Holy Ghost and with Power therefore the Angels that brought the newes of his Birth to the Shepheards said that to them was borne a Sauiour which was the Lord Christ No sooner did the Sonne of God become man but hee was inuested with this power the eternall purpose of God and Prophesies of him began to be fulfilled the Godhead communicated to the manhood this power not changing the manhood into God but honouring it with an Association in his workes the manhood is of counsell with the Godhead in his gouernment and Christ from the time of his Conception wrought as God and man who before wrought onely as God Of this gift speaketh the Psalmist Thou art my Sonne this day haue I begotten thee aske of mee and I will giue thee the Heathen for thine Inheritance c. Psal 2. and in Daniel chapt 7. one like the sonne of man is brought vnto the Ancient of dayes and to him was giuen a kingdome c. But though this gift were bestowed at Christs Conception yet was the execution thereof for the most part suspended vntill his Resurrection some glympses he gaue of it and shewed his glory in his Miracles but for the most part he appeared in the forme of a seruant and his Humiliation was requisite that he might goe through with his Passion his power though it were not idle before yet was the carriage of it veiled and therefore acknowledged but by a few But after his Resurrection God gaue him this power manifestly and the world was made to see it clearly for Christ did then not onely cloath his person with Maiestie but shewed himselfe wonderfull in the gouernement of his people Therefore the time of the gift is by the Holy Ghost limited to the Resurrection and declared to be a reward of his Passion so saith the Psalme Thou hast made him a little lower than the Angels that thou mightst crowne him with glory and honour Psal 8. St. Paul applyeth it vnto Christ Heb. 2. Rom. 14 and tells elsewhere that Christ dyed and rose againe that hee might be Lord both of quicke and dead The same he teacheth the Ephesians and the Colossians Cap. 1. Cap. 2. but especially the Philippians Christ being in the forme of God took vpon him the forme of a seruant and did exinanite himselfe and became subiect to death euen the death of the Crosse therefore God exalted him and gaue him a Name aboue all Names c. This gift or manner of giuing is properly meant in this place the gift of power in reward of Christs merit for by this merit did he enter into his Glory and into his Kingdome And from this must Ministers deriue their power which Christ hath right to conferre vpon them not onely by the gift of his Conception but also by the reward of his Passion As Christs power is lawfull so is it full also for hee hath all power a plenary power The word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 doth note sometimes a passiue power sometimes an actiue a passiue power as in those words of the Gospell to them that receiued Christ hee gaue 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 power to bee the sonnes of God Iohn 1.12 actiue when Christ sent his Disciples hee gaue them 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 power ouer vncleane spirits Matth. 10.1 that is to cast them out According to this double acception of the word is the fulnesse of Christs power diuersly expounded Some say it is full passiuely before Christs Resurrection Christ was obeyed but per nolentes by those that serued him against their will and so hee was serued but to halfes but afterward hee gathered Populum spontaneum an ingenuous willing people Psal 110. a people that should serue him readily not with a mixt will halting between two or between willing and nilling but with all their heart and cheerfully not like luke warme Laodiceans for the Kingdome of Heauen suffereth violence and the violent take it Matth. 11. This is the Interpretation of some true in it selfe though not so proper to my Text. Therefore we must vnderstand it of an actiue power that power which by allusion out of the Prophets words is specified in the Reuelation Cap. 3. He hath the Key of Dauid that shutteth and no man openeth openeth and no man shutteth he hath both Keyes of the Church Clauem Scientiae and Clauem Potestatis the Key of Doctrine and the Key of Discipline hee giueth all men their Talents and calleth them to an account for the vse of them It is he that separateth the Sheepe from the Goates and from his mouth proceedeth as well Goe ye cursed as Come ye blessed But if you will haue it to the full it is comprehended in those three offices whereunto Christ was annointed he was annointed to be a Prophet a Priest and a King all by an Excellency all Heauenly and what power is there belonging vnto spirituall gouernment which is not reduced vnto these three And they were all three in him without exception without restriction and so he had all power or as I told you a power vnlimited in it selfe And yet marke the phrase it is omnis Potestas not Omnipotentia though in Christ as he is God there is Omnipotency yet that power which hee hath as Mediatour is of a middle size it is greater than any Creature hath Angell or Man but yet not so great as is the infinite Power of God that extends ad omnia possibilia to all that possible may bee But the power which God hath giuen to the Mediatour is proportioned not to scientiae simplicis intelligentiae but visionis it extends as farre as the Decree which God made before all times of all that shall be done in due time especially concerning the Church it hath an hand in mannaging all that Prouidence and mannaging it in an heauenly manner As the power is vnlimited in it selfe so it extends to all places Hee hath all power in Heauen and in Earth Heauen and Earth are the extreame parts of the world and in the Creed are vsually put for the whole but in the Argument we haue in hand we must restraine it to the Church which consisteth of two parts one Triumphant in Heauen the other Militant on Earth Christ hath power in both for both make vp his body and he hath reconciled both vnto God In Earth he giueth men Grace in Heauen he giueth
them Glory here he commandeth our seruice there he giueth vs our reward in Earth hee bindeth and looseth by his Ministers and what soeuer they binde or loose here himselfe doth ratifie in Heauen he reigneth in Heauen in glory and by his Spirit hee ruleth on Earth therefore the Angels and Saints adore him in Heauen no lesse than the faithfull doe here on Earth both are recapitulated in him as the Apostle speaketh hee is that Iacobs Ladder one end whereof reacheth to Heauen and the other to the Earth vpon him continually do the Angels ascend and descend vnto these two places Finally the Angels at his Birth congratulate both places Glory be to God on high that is in Heauen in earth peace good will towards men Luke 2. and the Apostle saith it is the fulnesse of Him that filleth all in all And thus much of Christs right or power to send Come we to the Errant he sends them on This is grounded vpon that power of Christ wherof you haue heard the Illatiue Therefore importeth as much And indeede a Kingly power hath good right to send Embassadors and the Dignity of the Embassador is answerable to the King from whom he commeth he that looketh vpon the persons of Ministers only will not much esteeme eyther them or their words but adde whose Ministers they are and that requireth reuerence to bee yeelded to their persons and obedience to their doctrine Especially if we consider that all those to whom they come are at his mercy from whom they come for he hath power ouer them all and such power hee must haue that sends so it is not a message sent by a King to a neighbour King but by a King to his Vassals the more are they to be respected and their words heeded But let vs come to their Charge Ite Goe yee They were not to abide still at Ierusalem after they were endued with power from aboue they were presently to be walking their names Apostles Angels Embassadors all sound a walking life But in the word take notice of two things First the Apostles doe not goe before they are sent it is the marke of a false Apostle to bee so forward Hebr. 5. No man should take vnto himselfe this honour except hee be called by those to whom Christ hath giuen authority It is an Anabaptisticall dreame that euery man may thrust himselfe into this worke as he findeth himselfe moued by the Spirit and it is an impious attempt of some vagrant Schollars that make vp a poore liuing by exercising this Function whereunto they were neuer ordered how farre are both these from that modesty which was in Moses in Ieremy and others who were so farre from going before they were called that they held backe when God would send them and pleaded their insufficiency so did Chrysostome Nazianzene other Lights of the Church And indeede Quis ad haec idoneus He is ouer well conceited of himselfe whosoeuer he be that doth not thinke it to be an ouer-weighty burden a burden that will crush the strongest shoulders if he beare it as he should Notwithstanding when God commeth to Quid statis hic otiosi Why stand you idle as many as are fit to worke wee must yeeld our paines and doe as well as wee can though wee cannot doe so well as wee should it is no lesse a fault to bee too backward than to bee too forward and yet there are many such whether because they thinke the calling vnworthy their gifts and below their birth or because they will not vndergoe the paines and danger that doth accompany the same men that will neuer bee Labourers except they be thrust into the Haruest thrust not by the Lord of the Haruest but by their owne necessities or aduantages A second Note in this word Ite is that wheras the world should come vnto God out of a sense of their owne want God is faine to send to them this word iustifieth that saying of God in the Prophet I am found of them that sought mee not I am made manifest to them that enquired not after mee Esay 65. Neuer would Adam haue returned to God if God had not sought him out and the sonnes of Adam would perish in their sinnes did not he seeke them likewise The Marriage Feast would hane no guests if the King did not onely inuite them but send his seruants also to call yea compell them Therefore this Ite should remember vs to magnifie the goodnesse of God which is so indulgent to vs carelesse men But let vs come to the particulars of the Charge and first see to Whom they are sent They haue a great Iourney to goe for they must goe to all Nations In the first Mission the Apostles were restrained to the lost sheepe of Israel and forbidden to goe into the way of the Gentiles or into a Citie of the Samaritanes that Commission is here recalled and the partition Wall is broken downe and their Circuit is enlarged they are taught that in Iesus Christ there is neyther Iewe nor Gentile Grecian nor Barbariaâ— bond nor free male nor female all are one in him as St. Paul saith and St. Peter warned by a Vision breakes out into this confession I perceiue of a truth that there is no respect of persons with God but in euery Nation hee that feareth God and worketh righteousnesse is accepted of him the Prophets foretold it should be so â—â—ay 2. 49. Psal 2. 71. and now the Apostles heare from Christ that they must make good those Prophesies their sound must goe out into all the world they must be the Light of the world or rather carry the Sunne of Righteousnesse round about the world and they must be the Salt of the earth that must season all mankinde which Christ sanctified in his person Rom. 10. compared with Psulmo 19. and though by others hee were called the Sonne of Dauid yet the name which hee commonly giueth himselfe is the Sonne of man And here see a difference between the Typicall and the true Redemption the Typicall extended to one Nation and Moses Law went no farther the true reacheth all mankinde and the Gospell must be carried as farre But here wee must take heede of a mistake the Nations are oftentimes opposed to the Iewes so wee finde it in the writings of the Prophets and Apostles But it is not so here for the Apostles are willed to preach vnto all Nations beginning at Ierusalem and so saith St. Paul To you ought the Gospell first to be preached but because you make your selues vnworthy of it loe we turne to the Gentiles And here also wee must not mistake for from the contempt of the Iew occasion was taken of preaching sooner to the Gentiles not simply of preaching to them had the Iewes entertained the Gospell the Apostles would haue spent more time with them and they spent the lesse time with them because they did not entertaine it The truth then is that all
it fitted him for the charge which his Father imposed on him As the Shepheard was full furnished so was hee well employed he employed his furniture for the good of his charge His charge is noted by the Flocke a short but a faire description of the Church is intimated in this word for a Flock is Congregatio Ouium an assembly of Sheep euery member of the Church is resembled to a Sheepe and as Sheepe so are these members sociable Of such a societie Christ tooke care he fedde them hee wrought the properties of his Statues into them hee instructed euery Sheepe in truth and vnited them all in peace This was Christs pastorall care a care which we must hold exemplary if exemplary then other Pastors must exemplifie it it beseemes vs to bee conformed to the chiefe Shepheard of our soules I haue laid before you the Contents of this Scripture I will now begin to enlarge them and fit them to this occasion Qui pascit pastorem the Master Shepheard that feedes the vnder Shepheards so feed mee that I may herein be the better able to feede you and both of vs may proue duetifull obseruers and followers of his Pastorall care The first inquirie that must bee made is Who he is that speaketh these words hee is not exprest therefore the Interpreters differ Of those that speake probably some will haue him to bee Zacharie our Prophet some our Sauiour Christ they are easily reconciled It is an vndoubted rule that there are aswell reall as verball Prophecies and not onely persons but things also were Typicall in the Old Testament the Prophets did often times act their persons whose stories they related certainely Zacharie in this Chapter doth personate both good and had Shepheards the bad in the end of the Chapter and the good in this seuenth verse And this good Shepheard is our Sauiour Christ St. Matthew puts it out of all doubt for in him wee read that certaine words in this Chapter were fulfilled when Iudas sold Christ vnto the high Priests now hee that was sold was hee that spake these words that is plaine by the contexture therefore he that speaketh these words must needes be our Sauiour Christ Neither is it strange that he should be resembled to a Shepheard the Prophets the Apostles doe so compare him and least they should seeme to doe it with disparagement Christ is pleased in the tenth of St. Iohn to warrant their doing by doing the same himselfe But that which I worke hereout is that this Shepheard is Non seruus sed filius he is no seruant but the sonne of God there is eminency in his Person and indeede seldome is hee remembred without some addition importing his worth 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Shepheard of speciall note the good Shepheard the great Shepheard the chiefe Shepheard of our soules are his honourable titles The higher his person the more regard is due vnto him St. Paul argueth so Heb. 2. Contempt cost the Iewes deare and it is to be wished that other mens harmes make vs beware Secondly if the sonne stoope to this calling what seruant without intolerable pride may thinke himselfe too good for it No man can vnderualue it but withall hee must needes disgrace his blessed Sauiour I note this the rather because it checks the Gentrie the Nobilitie that thinke so well of their birth that they thinke scorne to be of our Coate In the beginning of the world for many hundred yeares the Kingdome and the Priesthood did concurre in the same person when they were seuered they were diuided between two brethrene Moses and Aaron yea at this day Christian Kings haue somewhat of the Clergie conferred on them at their Coronation and they disdaine not to be reputed mixt persons I will not remember those Senators and Officers of State that in the Primitiue Church became Clergie men nor the Princes that in the Church of Rome at this day vndergoe our calling though according to the fashion of that corrupt Church with more policy than piety Onely this I will say that seeing our calling in the state of grace is to bee Kings and Priests hee is vnworthy as a priuate person to haue this honour that scornes it in a publike one which hath an addition not a diminution and maketh them Fathers which were before but Sonnes the enlarging of the Prerogatiue should vindicate it from contempt especially seeing therein wee haue communion with Christ And let this suffice for the first Enquiry The second Enquiry must be into the meaning of the words I told you they meane nothing but the pastorall care of Christ In the deliuery wherof the first thing that I obserued in the text was the Shepheards furniture and thereof the first part appeared to be his Authority for it is his Authority that is noted by the Staues The Originall of this phrase is partly historicall and partly mysticall the history is briefely this The first Patriarches as it appeares in Genesis were for the most part Shepheards and yet to them being such God did commit both ecclesiasticall and ciuill power In an honourable remembrance hereof when the Church of domesticall became nationall the title continued still the Priest the Prince both were called Shepheards and each is said to haue his Shepheards staffe Moses no lesse than Aaron and Aaron no lesse than Moses though in time the Princes Staffe was changed into a Scepter and the Priests into a Crocier yet are both monuments of the old Shepheards staues This is the Originall of the phrase which we finde in the Rituals But I may not conceale from you a later birth of the Crocier wee read it in that part of the Ciuill Law which is intuitled Consuetudines feudorum there you shall finde that after the translation of the Romane Empire vnto the Germanes the forme of inuestiture of any person with Office or Land was per traditionem baculi the party doing his homage was inuested by receiuing of a Staffe As our originall is from those Nations so are their customes retained amongst vs when the great Officers of the Court of the Crowne are created they haue a staffe deliuered them and Copie-holders in Court Barons are admitted by the deliuerie of a Wand Bishops holding large Temporalities did homage for them and were inuested with them for many years per traditionem haculi annuli by receiuing a Staffe and a Ring from their Soueraigne from whom they held their Temporalities About this manner of Inuestiture the Popes neuer left wrangling with the Emperours and with other Kings vntill by Peters keyes and Paules sword excommunicating them and vncrowning them he wrested it from their hands and exempted the Clergies person from the Oath of Allegiance farther than it was subordinate vnto him and made himselfe Master of all such Inuestitures to the preiudice of all Christian Kings and States But we must learne to distinguish the old Symbolicall Staffe from this Historicall and not confound the power
the law of the Lord thy God and the Kings law let him haue iudgement without delay whether it be to death or banishment or confiscation of goods or imprisonment THese words that I haue read vnto you are the close of a Commission granted by Artashasht King of Persia at that time also King of the holy Land vnto Ezra a religious Priest and learned Scribe of the Iewes This Commission consisteth of manie branches the last commands the creating of Iudges in the Territorie of Iewrie concerning whom it is expressed How they ought to be qualified and Whereunto they are authorised Their quality is set downe vers 25. their authority is the argument of my Text a great authoritie because it is of the Sword the King giues this power that biddes them giue Iudgement But that their power may be as good as it is great they must vse it against malefactors so saith the King against them that will not doe the law and against them they must vse it so that first they frustrate not the end of the law A iudgement vnseasonable is vnprofitable they must therefore giue iudgement without delay Secondly they must not sway the indifferencie of the law to haue respect of persons in iudgement is not good they must then giue iudgement against whomsoeuer whomsoeuer will not doe the law But there are lawes diuine and humane the Iudges must proceede against the violaters of both against them that will not do Gods law against them that will not do the Kings law but with two cautions they must take heed that the God be the God of Ezra the true God they must no maintaine false religion and they must not forbeare to giue iudgement against them that violate the kings lawes though he be a king of Persis a false religion doth not hinder him from being a lawfull Soueraigne the Iudge must not foster seedes of rebellion They that violate the lawes of that God of this king the Iudge must draw his sword against them But how farre may he draw it and how deepe must he strike with it Surely so farre as the Magistrate is Gods instrument for the peoples weale so farre may he be his instrument for their woe His prouidence reacheth to their liues liuings and libertie so farre may his vengeance reach also thus farre he may draw his sword But he must giue no deeper wound therewith to offenders than offenders giue to the law the degrees of punishment must answer the degrees of offences some must dye some be fined some restrayned euery one as he deserues You see the substance of this Scripture withal conceiue that theron we must consider of these two points The power the vse of the sword the vse two-fold lawfull full I speak to them that haue vnderstanding therfore need I touch these particulars but briefly but that I touch them not vnprofitably I beseech you in the feare of God to iudge what I say And first some may demand why being to speake in the name of God vnto Iudges sent from a Christian king I remember vnto them the instruction of a king indeede but a heathen king such an author as may much lessen your regard of the matter It may but not except it be mistaken For besides that it is correspondent to the like in Moses and the Prophets Ezra acknowledgeth in the next verse that this Commission was indited by diuine inspiration God put it into the heart of the King And were it not so yet it is of no small moment to heare reason concord with religion The vse of this power is the more obseruable when it is enioyned by the pen not onely of God but also of man yea the lesse likely a Heathen King is to write it the more faulty a Christian Iudge if he set light by it Heare then what is your power it is to giue iudgement But iudgement is either of Discretion or Iurisdiction the first is common to all the second belongs but to a few all may discerne right from wrong but all may not right them that suffer or correct them that doe wrong He that takes the sword vngiuen shall perish with the sword as Christ told Peter Mat. 26. and told it him when hee was too busie with his sword it is not giuen to euery man And it is well that it is not giuen our affections do with such a false light delude our iudgements that where there are scarce moates we see great beames in other mens eyes but beames in our owne are so insensible Matth. 7. as if they were not so much as moates And as wee apprehend so would wee proceed Our strength would be the law of vnrighteousnesse Wisd 2. and as Tacitus well notes Malice the more vniust it is the more violent How many Cains would there start vp in the world that would kill their owne brother Abel onely because his deedes were good and theirs euill And if some would not be so vnnaturall yet would they be so vnreasonable as Simeon Leni of whom their own father pronounced Cursed be their wrath for it was fierce and their rage for it was cruell Genesis 48. we are so partiall and impotent when we haue the law in our owne hands and may satisfie our own lusts that wee will proceede without cause or at least aboue measure God knowing this vnbridlednesse of our nature hath laid this charge vpon all priuate men Auenge not your selues but giue place towrath for vengeance is mine and I will repay saith the Lord Rom. 13. Whatsoeuer therefore they pretend of the lawes of honour that apologize for Duels in a ciuill in a Christian common weale they should be reputed no better and it were good if they did fare no better than murderers they would not be so common if they were branded with their true name and had their iust reward Priuate men may not reuenge But who may It is only his right that is the Law-giuer or theirs that hold from him to recompence euery man according to his deeds Gods law is Deut. 19. that when two striue together they shall stand before the Lord euen before the Iudges where the Iudges are there the Lord is Psal 82.1 God standeth in the assembly of Gods he iudgeth among Gods the Apostle therefore calleth them the Ministers of God Rom. 13. So that a Iudge doth not only represent the person of a King but is in part with him the Deputie of God When the burden was too heauie for Moses God assisted him with the Seuentie but marke how he inaugurated them He took of the Spirit of Moses and conferred it on the Seuentie intimating his immediate presence and concurrence with them Wherefore what Shecaniah spake to Ezra cap. 10. when he lamented the disordered liues of the Iewes that must I say vnto you Arise for the matter belongeth vnto you bee of good comfort yea and courage too for this age moues more than teares and do it Giue
Iudgement God and the King are your warrant you may take the sword But your power must bee put in practice you must vse it against Malefactors Peccare peccantes non cohibere iuxta putato saith Agapetus to the Emperour the proper sinne of the Magistrate is not to represse sinners and sinners are they that doe not the Law Iudgement hath two workes as the law hath two parts The parts of the Law are Proeceptum Sanctio the workes of iudgement are Conuiction and Execution The King followes this methode in his commission hee will not haue any executed before he be conuicted St. Basil in an Epistle to Eustathius Bishop of Sebastia doth excellently describe the manner of the Iudges proceeding in his daies Quirerum potiuntur in hoc mundo quando facinorosum aliquem sunt vindicaturi cortinas obducunt c. The Iudges in temporal causes when they are to sentence a malefactor retire themselues desire to heare what the wisest of their assistants can say in defence of the arraigned they pause long sometimes beholding the prisoner sometimes reflecting their eyes vpon themselues as communicating with him in the same nature and feelingly bemone his case whose life they must cut off not moued thereunto by any passion of their owne but performing that seruice which is vndeniably imposed vpon them by the Law The Law then must speake before the Iudge and not the Iudge before the Law for iudicium legis is iudicium solius rationis but iudicium hominis est iudicium rationis libidinis no man murmures if his doome be euidently the voice of the Law though it bee a very grieuous doome but let it bee neuer so light if it bee onely the voyce of a man hee is very patient that doth not murmure at it The King therefore doth wisely subiect his people to the Law and wills the Iudges to vse that for their rule and try therewith who deserues the stroke of the sword and all Iudges must subscribe to Ireneus his note Indumentum iustitiae leges habet Magistratus if a Magistrate would be reputed iust he must referre euerie mans case to bee ordered by the vnaffectioned Law Secondly marke that a malefactor is described not by doing against the Law but by not doing of the Law the reason whereof is The first intention of the Law is the working of the common good It should be in the world of men as it is in the world of other creatures euerie thing furthereth the felicitie of the whole he is not worthy to bee a member of a State by whom the State is no whit the better The Romanes wel vnderstood it when they instituted their Censors to inquire into euerie mans course and to note them with infamie that could not giue an account of some good vse of their life It is pitifull to consider how many there are in this Land whose glorie is their shame as the Apostle speaketh the Chronicle of whose life was long since summed vp by the Poet Nos numerus sumus fruges consumere nati c. no better than cyphers if you respect the common good they doe but if you looke vnto the common euill they are the vipers of the State Surely they doe not the Law which they should but which they should not they doe against the Law they are daily seene and who doth not know them I meane riotous swaggerers and masterlesse vagabonds but by whose default I know not few are challenged fewer punished and so they swarme because they feele not the sword and yet they are the proper obiect of the sword For whereas St. Paul Rom. 13. expresseth two vses of the sword one the laude of them that doe well the other the terrour of them that doe euill this commission remembers only the later the reason whereof is giuen by Ireneus Quoniam absistens à Deo homo in tantum efferauit imposuit ei Deus humanum timorem vt moderentur ad inuicem in manifesto positum gladium timentes Had there been no fall there should haue beene a power indeede in man ouer man but it should haue beene only directiue it is now coerciue also wee neede now not only correction for doing ill but coaction also to do well and this is the principall employment of the sword whereunto accords that of St. Paul Lex non est posita iusto if all men were good euerie man would bee a law vnto himselfe but there are few that can guide themselues too many that will not bee guided by others Aristotle and those the Philosopher calleth fooles of whom you know Salomon saith Arod must bee for the backe of fooles The Magistrate must vse the sword against them And he must vse it without delay Sero medicina paratur cum mala per longas conualuere moras is no lesse true in the politicke than in the naturall bodie whether wee consider the corrigiblenesse of the delinquents or the preseruation of the State both should bee intended by iudgement but both grow desperate through delay In the heart of euerie man there are principles of honestie which when first lust casts into a slumber the Magistrate may awaken to checke sinne by holding him in that was running riot but if the Magistrate winke Consuetudo peccati obducit callum conscientiae by impunitie men will grow senslesse and shamelesse the Preacher confirmes it Because sentence against an euill worke is not executed speedily Eccles 8. therefore the heart of the children of men is fully set in them to doe euill Secondly sinne is like a contagious disease it will spred like a leprosie especially where the law of leprosie is not in force and where the wicked are not forced by the stroke of the sword to cry vnto the sound that approach them I am vncleane I am vncleane Leuit. 14. And so in time conniuencie breeds vitia adulta praeualida as Tacitus calleth them and a State becomes like Rome of which Liuie speaketh Neque vitia neque remedia ferre possumus though the sinnes bee so strong that they vuioynt the whole State yet the patient growes so tender that it will sooner dye than endure the setting of the ioynts againe How neere wee are to our Climactericall yeare I leaue it to the Statesman to consider onely this I will remember you that a Iudge which is a Father in his Countrey must be a louing Father and of such a one Salomon speaketh Pro. 13. Hee that loueth his sonne correcteth him betime Or if a louing Father be too meane a precedent imitate a good King King Dauid Betimes saith he Psal 101 will I rise to roote out the wicked Or if you will goe higher learne of God who speakes thus vnto Cain Genesis 4. If thou dost ill in foribus peccatum that is as the Sonne of Syrack speaketh Ecclus 35. The Lord will not be slacke the Almighty will not tarry long till hee hath smitten in sunder the loynes of the vnmercifull and
auenged himselfe of the heathen This I presse the rather because 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as Nazianzene speakes It is a very dangerous thing to be ouer prodigall of mercie for it is nothing else but an occasion of crueltie when rancke sinnes will not be cured without letting of great quantitie of blood a little seuerity in time would preuent a great deale of crueltie I will not say but somewhat that will resemble it which the iniquitie of the times doth hasten to wrest from you or which is worse to bring vpon the State You see the admonition that ariseth from this place is that your feet bee not nimium lanei lest your hands proue nimium ferreae you must strike soone that you may not strike too often or too deepe But it is not enough that you proceede timely except you proceede vnpartially you must proceede against whomsoeuer Gods Law is Deut. 1. Leuit. 19. Iâ—â— magnum paruum iudicabis Thou shalt not regard the poore because hee is poore nor the rich because he is rich there is no respect of persons in God neither should there be in his Lieutenants A Iudges sentence must be like a true looking glasse it must represent euerie mans case as the glasse doth his countenance neyther embellishing nor deforming it And no maruell for seeing they are Physitians of the State and sinnes are the diseases of it what skils it whether a gangrene beginne at the head or the heele seeing both wayes it will kill if the part that is diseased be not cut off Except this be the difference that the head being nearer the heart a gangrene in the head will kill sooner than that which is in the heele euen so will the sinnes of great ones ouerthrow a State sooner than those of the little ones But yet I know not how wee are more prouident for our naturall body than wee are for the politique curing in that first the principall parts and in this the lesse principall if wee cure them The vanity of which course Sigismund the Emperour well obserued in the generall Councell when vpon the motion that it was fit to reforme the whole Church one said Then let vs begin at the Minorites nay rather saith the Emperour at the Maiorites for if the great ones be good the mean ones cannot easily be ill but be the meane ones neuer so good the great will be nothing the better Iohn 7. I end this point with the saying of Christ Nolite iudicare secundum faciem sed iustum iudicium iudicate and I wish you the zeale of Phyneas Numb 25. that spared not Zimri or Cosbi though the one were a Princes sonne of Simeon and the other a Princes daughter of Madian so may it be imputed to you for righteousnesse and to your seed after you And thus leauing the conditions to bee obserued in the vse of your power I come to the limitations of the power it selfe The limitations are two first of the lawes There are diuine and humane lawes the Magistrate must proceed against the violaters of both against them that will not doe the law of God against them that will not do the law of the King Prou. 24. he must be Custos vtriusque Tabulae look to the obseruing of Salomons Feare God the King or Christs a greater than Salomons Giue vnto Caesar the things that are Caesars Matth. 24. and vnto God the things that are Gods he must conioyne both and acknowledge Dominum Dominum my Lord God and my Lord the King But with this difference that the one is an absolute Lord the other but subordinate the one commands as in his owne right the other but in the right of God Secondly as are the Lords so are their lawes Gods must haue the first place the Kings but the second And no maruell seeing Gods lawes are primitiue the Kings but deriuatiue nay the substance of euery law is from God it is but the determination of some circumstance that is left vnto the power of the King In lawes meerly morall Thou shalt not kill Thou shalt not steale c. the King hath power onely in regard of the Sanction not that God hath left it in his choice whether these sinnes shall or shall not be punished but to his discretion hee hath left it how and how farre the good of the State requires to haue them punished In things meerly indifferent because many things are lawfull in regard of that liberty which we haue from God which are not expedient in that society whereof we are parts with other men the Kings lawes may impose precepts and that vnder paines but still prouiding that the law of nature yea and of grace too may stand with them and be not impaired by them nay nature and grace must in a Christian Common-weale giue the first light vnto them Adde hereunto that Gods lawes binde the conscience immediately as hauing power in themselues to make things good or euill but the Kings lawes binde but mediately as the King hath authority from God and is in the promulging of his lawes the Minister of God So that although you must looke to both yet must not your care be of both alike for both are not of like worth there must be an eminency in the care of Gods lawes aboue the care of the Kings Yea there is a necessity too for as Nazianzene speakes of Iouinian the Emperour 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 It was Princely wisedome in him to protect the truth because the truth could best support him Kings lawes are neuer so readily obeyed as where the people are religiously disposed and Magistrates which neglect the care of Gods lawes doe but teach the people how to vilifie theirs But you must be sure that the God be the God of Ezra the true God this is the first caution so were these Iudges and so must you be you must not maintaine false religion or persecute the true vnto the seruice of this true God you may lawfully compell St. Augustine obserues it in the Parable of the Marriage Feast And that it is profitable you may perceiue also in the same Parable for of many that were compelled wee finde but one that came without his wedding garment the rest had their part in the Feast God himselfe in Osea saith Cap. 2. That he will hedge the Iewes way with thornes so that they should not breake through to follow their spirituall fornication but withall pricke themselues and marke what followes the Iewes bethought themselues thereupon and said I will returne to my first husband and that was God for it was then better with me than it is now Nazianzene a man of a meeke spirit as appeareth in his writings had obtained some patience to be vsed toward the Apollinarists but when hee saw how ill it succeeded hee wrote backe to the President of the Countrey 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 My intercession was vnseasonable for these wicked men will not make so
good vse of your indulgence as to be ashamed and reclaimed Wherefore as St. Iude obserues you must saue some with feare and plucke them out of the fire wherein they would burne themselues you must compell them to learn and obey the law of the God of Ezra the true God whereupon followeth also the next point which is they will the more easily be brought to doe the Kings law Of obseruing lawes in generall I need say no more than I haue but the iniquity of the times wills mee to remember you that lawes must bee obeyed though they be the lawes of the King of Persia this is the second caution The Proctors of Rome though they dare not flatly deny it yet so sophystically handle it that what with subiecting the scepter of Kings to the command of Popes and exempting of such persons and cases as seeme good vnto him they vndermine what they would seeme to yeeld and the most they grant is no more nor no longer than their Holy Father doth that 's too much or hereafter will allow them If hee will abrogate all they must acknowledge none no lawes of a King of Persia a King that is not of their religion Others haue learnedly and sufficiently shaken their grounds and my Text is an argument of no small force to resolue the consciences of such as doubt whether a different religion doth euacuate the power of a lawfull Soueraigne It doth not though it be a false religion how much more when it is the true and the King our King commands onely for the God of Ezra the true God and enioynes no other worship of him than according to his owne lawes the vndoubted register whereof is the sacred Word of God Wherefore you must bee as the earth mentioned in the Reuelation cap. 12. and swallow all those waters that the dragon casts forth to drowne the woman you must crush these seedes of rebellion which ayme at nothing but the ouerthrow of true Religion And how must you crush it euen by punishment And so I come to the second worke of iudgement from the precept to the sanction which containes the second limitation of the power Wherein I obserue first how farre the Magistrate may draw his sword Looke how farre his prouidence doth reach so farre may his vengeance reach also The reward of sinne is death eternall death to violate Gods Lawes or the Kings is no lesse than sinne it should therefore be reuenged with eternall death But behold here vnspeakeable mercie God would haue vs iudged here by men that we be not condemned hereafter by him This is the proper end of the keyes and the sword of the power that is in the Prince and the Pastor The occasion draweth mee to speake of the Sword yet let me giue you this Item touching the Keyes that malefactors must remember that for euerie of their offences challengable by the Law of man they owe a repentance vnto God and the greater their offence the deeper should be their repentance Which I the rather note because there are too many of them that scarce giue glorie vnto God when they suffer by the Law and if they escape make no conscience at all of their sin as if how soeuer they speed at the iudgement seat of men they were not to take heed that they be not cast at the barre of God which the first Councell of Nice well corrected when imitating Gods law without preiudice to the ciuill sword it appointed sundrie yeares penance according to the grieuousnesse of sinne Sed pristino rigori non sumus pares the Liturgie of our Church saith that it were to bee wished but the iniquitie of the times that it is not to be hoped Secondly seeing your power should touch men with a losse temporall to keepe them from a losse eternall you see what wrong you doe them when you suffer them to spend their dayes in loosenesse and in a moment as Iob speaketh though from their beds they goe quicke down into hell how much better were it for them if with one hand or one eye they might goe into heauen than hauing both to bee cast into hell O then let the righteous rebuke them yea smite them rather than that your precious balmes should breake their heads yea slay their soules spare nothing that is temporall so you may preserue them from the paine which is eternall You see how farre you may draw the sword But when you strike your strokes must bee proportionable to their sinnes but the proportion must not be Arithmeticall but Geometricall they must be secundum merita but not aequalia meritis you may punish intra but not vltra medum so doth God who notwithstanding doth punish in number weight and measure Semper aliquid detrahit de poenae atrocitate as Nazianzene speaketh 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 he doth temper mercie with iudgement In the hand of the Lord there is a cup the wine thereof is red and it is full mixt whereof though his children offending drinke yet only the incorrigible wicked drinke the dregs thereof And the same Father writing to the Emperours Deputie reckoning vp his vertues demands this 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 what shall I say of your clemencie 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 here you decline something but he addes 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I cannot much blame you you haue God for your patterne who in Hosea speakes thus of himselfe How shall I giue thee vp O Ephraim how shall I deliuer thee O Israel how shall I make thee as Admah how shall I set thee as Seboim my heart is turned within mee my repentings are rouled together I will not execute the fiercenesse of my wrath c. You must wisely then temper iudgement and mercie but so that mercie doe not hinder iudgement and yet that of the two mercie reioyce against iudgement And thus haue you heard what a Iudge may and must doe he may take the sword and must vse it against malefactors but with the conditions of the vse and limitations of the power specified in my text The conditions are two he must vse it timely and indifferently the limitations also two he must extend it to all transgressions of both Tables and intend it according to their transgressions And the end of all must bee by a temporall punishment to saue the wicked from eternall paine or if that will not bee that the blood of all cursing Shimei's and factious Ioabs and irreligious Abiathars also may bee vpon their head and the head of their seed but vpon Dauid our Dauid vpon his house and vpon his throne vpon this whole Church and Common weale may bee peace for euer from the Lord. MOst mighty most mercifull Lord who to preserue sincere pietie and secure peace in the Church and Common weale hast put the sword into the hands of mortall men and for the vse thereof hast aduanced them aboue their Brethren we humbly beseech thee so to sanctifie them with thy grace whom
thou hast armed with thy power that with a watchfull and single eye they may obserue and represse with a seuere yet a tender hand all vnsound Beleeuers and inordinate liuers that Church and Common weale may blesse them as happy Supporters of this Christian State and themselues may with comfort make their last account to the vnpartiall ludge of quicke and dead and now and euer both of vs may giue glory vnto thee that art our most mighty and most mercifull Lord. Amen Blessed are they that keep iudgement and doe righteousnesse euermore Psalme 106. יהוה A SERMON PREACHED IN OXFORD AT AN ASSIZES 1613. PSAL. 75. Vers 2 3. When I shall receiue the Congregation I will iudge vprightly The earth and all the inhabitants are dissolued I beare vp the Pillars of it Selah THis Psalme was penned if not by surely in the name of some worthy Iudge the people blesse God for the comfort they receiued by him and hee promiseth to redresse the disorders of the people put both their speeches together and you haue a good Commentary vpon the title of this Psalme The title is Ne perdas or rather Non perdes the Hebrew Al-tasheth will beare both and it imports That a good Iudge yeelds the best hope that a disordered State may recouer although it be farre gone Who this Iudge is all are not agreed some ghesse at him by one part of the Psalme some by another and according to their different apprehension giue the Psalme some a mysticall some an historicall interpretation both may stand true as elsewhere so here But being to fit this present occasion my purpose is to passe by the mysticall and insist only vpon that sense which is historicall According to the history the person that speakes seemeth to bee the king of Israel and that king as it is most likely is king Dauid He speaks here first of his owne Tribunall the Tribunall of a king but because that was set at naught by many insolent ones hee calleth them to an higher Tribunall the Tribunall of God and telleth them that it is God which from time to time appoints those that shall iudge here on earth till by Christ he call that great Assizes and fit Iudge of all the world This is the effect of the whole Psalme my Text containes so much thereof as concernes the Tribunall of the king the Dignity the Necessity the Vtility thereof To vnfold it I beseech you to marke therein The person and His work the person is the king whose worke is to iudge I will iudge But of the iudgement wee are farther taught When it shall be executed and How The time is at an Assizes When I shall receiue the Congregation The manner is according to the law to try the vprightnesse of mens liues I will iudge vprightly and that of mens vprightnesse the word Mesharim reacheth so farre As if this were not enough here is a seuerall reason added to each of these branches a reason of calling an Assizes It is no more than needeth there is much amisse in the people The earth and all the inhabitants thereof are dissolued And a reason there is why the king must iudge vprightly and of vprightnesse because if any goe awry if any swerue hee must set and keepe them strait so saith the king I beare vp the pillars of it These be the points that are to bee considered on this Text and that they are to be considered seriously you may gather by the last word Selah the character of a remarkable sentence it signifieth an extraordinary eleuation of the speakers voice which calleth for a more than ordinary attention of the hearers eare Consider then I beseech you in the feare of God the particulars that I shall deliuer thereon and God grant you a fruitfull vnderstanding of them all The first is the Person and this person is the King to Iudge is his work At Ierusalem are Thrones set for iudgement saith another Psalme and those thrones belong to the house of Dauid therefore in the Scripture is the kings throne called not onely the throne of Glory but of Iudgement also yea therefore of Glory because of Iudgement the Glory is giuen to countenance the Iudgement So that the plaintiffes speech was though not very courtly yet very true which hee vttered to a king denying him iustice Si non vis iudicare noli regnare implying that it is the proper worke of a king to be a Iudge And indeed God commits the power of iudgement immediately to the king and to that end setteth him vpon his owne Throne But you know what Iethro obserued to Moses Exod 18. and what Moses himselfe in his complaint to God confessed to be true A king in his owne person cannot beare all this burthen if he attempt it hee vainely tireth out both himselfe and his people wherefore it is Gods pleasure that so much as he cannot doe by himselfe he shall doe by his officers Whereupon ariseth a good distinction of a kings person It is either naturall or politique and vnder the politique are contained the Iudges This is cleare by Gods owne fact for when he called the 70. to bee assistants vnto Moses and to that end did qualifie them he saith not that hee will take of his owne spirit though that which hee tooke was the spirit of God but God is pleased to call that the spirit of Moses which he tooke and gaue to the 70. Numb 11. giuing vs to vnderstand that they were alwayes to bee reputed a part of Moses Yea and they communicate also in the same diuine title for I haue said yee are Gods containes not the peculiar title of a king it extends to euery Iudge as Moses teacheth in the Law if it be not plaine enough in that 82. Psalme So then when a king sendeth Iudges hee sendeth his owne eares to heare the complaints of his people his owne eyes to looke into their causes and his owne mouth to pronounce according to that which is heard and seen The person then in my Text though at first sight it seeme to bee onely the king yet now appeares to bee moreouer the Iudge and by I it is most plaine Honourable and Beloued that you are vnderstood The Vse of this point for the people is made by St. Peter 1. Pet. 2. Wee must be subiect to euery ordinance of man for the Lords sake whether it be vnto the King as supreame or to Gouernours sent from him such as are the Iudges the improuement of their persons must make them reuerend in our eyes But there is a Vse also which Honourable and Beloued must be made by you you may not mistake your eares your eyes your mouth you haue of two sorts priuate and publike the priuate you may vse about your domesticall affaires but to the Bench you may bring none but the publicke you must heare there with none but the kings eares and you know that a king is Abimelec my Father the king
not to them or stoppes their eares that they heare it not But this doeth rather suspend the worke then alter the nature of their Conscience it doeth not make it a not-condemning Conscience of a condemning one How many theiues and murderers are very frolicke not only when they act their wickednesse but when they are in the Gaile when they are brought to the Barre yea when they are casting off the Gallowes But wise men that see them in this humour censure it for vnreasonable stupiditie and desperatenesse they hold it not to be comfortable securitie No more is that which wee see in sinners who while they drinke in iniquitie with greedinesse haue stonie hearts and brasen foreheads If in the dayes of grace wee make vnto our selues the dayes of Iudgement and sift our selues vnpartially according vnto GODS word before we bee tried at GODS Barre and finde our selues discharged with a not guiltie and an Euge Serue bone well done seruant faithfull and true enter into thy Masters ioy this is indeed a not-condemning Conscience The second Rocke is that many confound a tender Conscience with a guiltie Conscience and plod more vpon the Heart of a man then they doe vpon the Heart of a Christian man they consider not the prerogatiue that the Elect haue by being in CHRIST into whom when they were ingrafted they were iustified from all sinne So that though afterwards they may become damnable through their fall yet damned they cannot be because their repentance and saith cannot bee in vaine neither must they measure the trueth of their state by their sense GOD is pleased often times to humble his children by suspending the sense of their state but he doeth not alter their state because his guifts are without Repentance and vpon their teares sighes and prayers wherewith GOD is pleased to be importuned he restoreth vnto them the sense of their state againe their eyes are opened to see that their obligation is cancelled and the booke crost wherein all their debtes were entred and that the blood of Christ hath cleansed them from all sinne You haue heard many things concerning Conscience all which though they bee of good regard yet they containe not all that which wee must heede For the worke of Conscience is rather Praeiudicium then Iudicium it is but a reall Prophecie informing vs how GOD will hereafter deale with vs. Therefore Saint Iohn carrieth our thoughts from our Hearts vnto God and will haue vs expect from GOD what wee finde in our owne Hearts And indeed our Heart is nothing else but GODS Apostle whose message is the Iudgement to come St. Ieromes Trumpet that sounded still in his eares Surgite mortui venite ad iudicium Besides our inward we haue an outward Iudge besides the present there is a future Iudgement And verily it is a wonder that any man should doubt of a future Iudgement that hath a Conscience seeing the vse of the Conscience is to forewarne vs of it the Iudgement in our bosome must bee vnto vs a Remembrancer of another Iudgement that is to come and wee must the rather be mooued with the former because of the reference it hath vnto the latter Reference nay Resemblance which is more for in the present Iudgement wee haue a liuely representation of the Iudgement to come GOD will deale with vs no otherwise then our Heart doâ—th the Iury at his Barre will exhibite no other presentment neither shall wee heare any other Sentence from that Iudge the Booke of GODS Prouidence will agree with the Booke of our Conscience and the Doome of our Conscience shall be ratified by GODS Doome And this representatiue qualitie that is in our Conscience must make vs the more to regard the absolute qualitie thereof For though it bee much to feele the force of Conscience without this Reference yet is it much more if the Reference bee included in our feeling thereof it will make vs more carefull to prepare our selues for GOD when wee are remembred so to doe by our owne Heart God then and our Heart agree in one worke their worke is like Like it is but not equall you may perceiue it in St. Iohns Inference that hee maketh according to the difference of the worke of Conscience One worke of the Conscience is to condemne thereupon St. Iohn maketh an Inference If our Heart condemne vs God is greater then our Heart and knoweth all things Wherein appeares a double inequalitie The first is of Authoritie Our Heart is great it is King in this little world of ours for it doeth season all that commeth from vs our workes are good or euill so farre as our Conscience is a partie to them they are good if she be good and if she be euill they are euill The inclination of the Heart is the inclination of the whole man so that no power of the soule or part of the body will hold backe if our Heart or Conscience doe set forward Our Heart then is great great within the Spheare of this little World But God is greater then our Heart who commandeth both ours and the great World GOD is said to be greater not so much in regard of his Eminencie aboue vs as his Soueraignetie ouer vs in which sense the Psalme saith that our God is a great God and a great King aboue all Gods And indeed Power belongeth onely vnto him Creatuâ—es are tearmed Powers rather Propter Ministerium then Dominium they can doe nothing beyond the influence they haue from GOD But GODS power is absolute and the Sentence hee pronounceth vnresistable whereas he can checke the sentence which our Heart pronounceth But to fit this point of Gods power to that which wee said before of the power of our Heart GODS power doeth season all the afflictions that come vpon vs and the apprehension that they come from him maketh them much more grieuous then they would be in themselues Secondly if GOD bee bent against vs no creature will stand for vs. You see wherein standeth the first inequalitie betweene GOD and our Heart The second Inequalitie standeth in Omnisciencie It is true that our Heart knoweth much 1 Corinth 2. and as the Apostle saith No man knoweth the things in man but the Spirit of man But that is as true which Salomon saith Prou. 20. The spirit of man is as the candle of the Lord searching the inward parts of man it is but a Candle and that is a dimme light a Candle of the Lord and that is a Ministeriall light Two wayes is our knowledge dimme through Ignâ—rance and Selfe-loue Ignorance is the cause that we cannot know our selues if wee would Selfe-loue is the cause that we will not know our selues so well as we can therefore Dauid prayed and wee must pray Ab occultis munda me domine O Lord cleanse me from my secret faults As for GOD his eyes are ten thousand times brighter then the Sunne Eccles 23. Dauid hath made a whole Psalme of