A LOOKING GLASSE For Princes and People Delivered in a Sermon of Thankesgiving for the Birth of the hopefull Prince CHARLES And since augmented with Allegations and Historicall Remarkes Together with a Vindication of Princes c. By M. WILLIAM STRVTHER Preacher at Edinburgh Psal. 2. Bee wise O Kings Printed at Edinburgh by the Heires of Andro Hart. 1632. TO THE MOST HIGH AND MIGHTY KING CHARLES OF GREAT Britaine Defender of the Faith c. Most Dread Soveraigne BOth these Arguments craue your Ma. kyndlie patrocinie as Father of that Prince whose birth occasioned the Thanksgiving And Sonne of that King who went before all Kings in vindicating royall Authoritie Gods Providence over Man his last Creature in time but first in Loue is so great that his care of other Creatures comparatiuely seemeth a Neglect Hee hath distinguished him in Order and Degrees Gathered him in Societies And perfited these Societies with an supereminent power That Head giveth a natiue influence to its Bodie and the Bodie subiecteth it selfe to that Head Wee bring this Law from the Wombe written in our Hearts and Christ confirmed it by Word and Example Hee disposed so his Birth at Bethlehem that at once hee fulfilled his Fathers promise and obeyed Augustus Edict beeing taxed in his Mother The Church for ten Ages followed her Head in that Obedience Though her Worke bee Heavenly by the Keyes of the Kingdome of Heaven to winne Soules â—o Goâ—t and her Reward bee to sit on Thrones and judge the Tribes of Israel Yet shee gaue to Caesar the things that are Caesars And though Ambrose say that Sublimitas Episcopalis nullis potest comparationibus aequari And nihil esse in hoc sâ—câ—do sublimiius sacerdote yet hee both practised and perswaded obedience to Princes But Babâ—l confounded all And Antichrist in a more fearefull Collision of the Civill and Ecclesiastick Powers then the two Hills in Marius Sylaes time trod the honor of Princes in the dust he thought it greater to divide Lands than remit sins and thurst himselfe in their Thrones Hee exposed their Kingdomes to violence and their sacred Persons and Authoritie to contempt These insolencies might seeme tolerable in times of blindnesse as S. Austine speaketh of Romulus Apotheosing But now after so long contest they maintaine them Their Advocate affirmeth Paul the fifth approved it That he is the onelie Emperour and King the Superiour of all Kings from whom all Iurisdiction floweth What ever in danger they deny or in necesitie they mitigate this is the just Modell of their Pope and the prime Article of their faith That Luciferian pride was so eminent in Popes that it is hard to know whether to wonder more at the Impudencie of Christs Vicar vsurping or the patience of Princes suffering Poperie was never further from the Truth and meeknesse of Iesus then since it was Iesuited That name is not a denomination of a new Zeale or goodnesse but the maske of exquisite craft and crueltie and the tincture of impenitencie And as the Apostle maketh the opposition of Christus and Antichristus and Cyprian of Spiritus and Antispiritus somay wee of Iesus and Anti-Iesus But God by Reformation hath mended that confusion The light of the Gospel hath at once revealed his heresie in Doctrine and tyrannie in Vsurpation This is a tryall of Princes for they are free and happie Princes who haue shaken off his Yoak and reformed themselues and their Kingdomes to the Gospel of Christ But thrise miserable are they who lye still drunke in her fornications God in mercie hath put your Ma. in the first ranke The Titles of Defender of the Church from King William of Scotland and of Defender of the Faith from Henrie 8. of England are both Ensignes of your profession and remembrancers of your royall Duetie to defend the true Church and the true Faith your Ma. devotion testifies the peaceable part of the discharge And doth promise the other part by the Sword when GOD shall honour Kings to execute his will on the Whore And in GODS time they who now adhere to her shall count it their happinesse to follow your Ma. Example Behold now your Ma. Happinesse in their miserie Their common end to destroy Protestants hath made them Confederats But God hath divided them by their privat ends like Sechem and Abimelech And juggling Proteâ—s of a bloodie Dragon it turned a craftie Serpent and seeketh his saftie by wynding betwixt the Iealousies of these great Princes Hee is carried violentlie as hope and feare canvasse him Rut fire will breake out from Abimelech and devoure Sechem And these Princes shall dwell in brotherlie loue when they receiue the Gospel of peace This private offering is a fruit and testimonie of a commoun joy the Flowre of the States of this land present in this Citie at the glad newes of the Princes birth were overjoyed And this citie expressed their loyaltie in all significations so that no place of these three Kingdomes could exceede It was S. Austines discretion to Macedonius a Iudge taken vp with publick affaires not to deteine him with long Epistles What shall wee doe to so great a KING Almightie GOD who hath set your Ma. on these three Thrones multiplee royall gifts on your sacred person and make You a King of many Royall blessings That great Britaine vnder you and your clement Name may more and more be a terrour to Anti-christ a comfort to the Saints and a Land wherein GOD delighteth to dwell AMEN Your Ma. most humble Subject and Servant M. WILLIAM STUTHER The Table of the Thanksgiving THE Preface of the Princes Birth Pag. 1 1. The first part King David a Supplicant 4. 2. The second part Of a Monarchie 6. The Author of it 7. 2. The Necessitie 8. The Excellencie 11. The Character of K. 12. Their Limitation 13. Monarchie the best Government 15. Affectation of Divinitie is a frensie 16 The PoPe taken with that frenesie 17. Errours about Magistracie 19. 20. Wee should pray for Kings 21. And obey them in the Lord. 21. Three wayes to come to a Kingdome 1. Conquest 24. 2. Election 26. 3. Succession is better than both 28. Womens Governement lawfull 29 Queene Elizabeths instance determineth the question 30. King IAMES instance 30. A new borne Prince a great blessing 31. 3. The third part of the Royall Gift 1. The habite of Iustice. 33. Religion falleth vnder the care of Kings 37. Popes debarred them from it 38. Hee gulled them by Cannonizing 39. Some Princes abused Religion Reformation a blessing to Princes and People 40. Popes tye God to themselues and loose themselues from God 43. 2. The worke of the royall Gift is Government 44. 1. The rule of it good Lawes 45. Difficultie of iudgement in cause parties witnesse 46. The necessitie and danger of Forture 50. Princes Difficulties and Dangers 52. Flatterers of Princes are Pests 54. It is faintnesse to lay downe their Crownes
in loue they were comfortable to other as in Constantine and Sylvester Maurice and Gregorie c. But when they rubbed one other both Churches and Policie smarted They had sundrie other rubbes in former times but never one like that The Emperour thought that the question was no lesse than the standing or ruine of the Impire And Gregorie thought lykewise of the standing or ruine of the Church The Emperour pleaded Prescription because from the dayes of Charles the great vnder threescore Popes and moe it was in vse And Necessitie because by loosing the Investures hee would lose a great of the Impyre for when Charles the great gote that priviledge the Pope and Prelats were poore But thereafter both Kings and Emperours enriched the Church because they had the investiture in their owne hands Besides when Princes had investitures scarcely could Prelates be keeped in Subjection but if they were put in the Popes hands they would make many Enemyes in the Impire so Onuphrius stateth the question But in the multitude of so many Historians affected to one of the parties this much may bee gathered That the Emperour beside his personall faults gaue occasion to Hildebrand to make some sturre Hee abused the power of investiture in passing by the voice of the Church and giving Prelacies and Dignities to the vnworthie whom flatterie or bryberie or such by respects commended vnto him Hee gaue them as rewards for bygone service or ingagements for service to come And at his Court Church benefites were either saleable or exposed to prey Heereof Hildebrand tooke occasion to worke that hee had long desired hee made a strong faction both of Church men and Politicks against the Emperour and draue him in that strait to make such a foule agreement at Canusium as no man can patiently reade of and thereafter put all Europe in dissention and blood They divyded the trueth and each of them had both right and wrong on his side The Emperour had right to the Investitures but erred foully in their abuse and brought in ignorant and fleshlie men in the chiefe places of the Church who overthrew both Religion and State The Pope had iust cause to quarrell that abuse but no right to clame the investitures and farre lesse to oppose seditiously and trode downe the Emperour This was a consequent of too large dotations The Dotars were Patrons of the Church rent and some abusing the Patronage did marre the spiritualitie of the entrie of the Pastours So the Benefice drew the office after it and the Investiture the Daughter of Donations bred this strife and corrupt entrie in some But wise Princes haue made some provision against such corruption in giving the Church her place in election and it is best when Church and Patrons goe together The mysterie of iniquitie was then comming to rypenesse and Sathan had provyded one to hatch that egge of Antichrist whose seedes were layed in the Apostles times and that omnious accident in Rome of a Bird that layed an egge with a Serpent was so expounded by many that the Apostolicke Sea had hatched the Cokatrice egge and brought out a Serpent to destroy the Impyre Wee may passe the things imputed to him by his enemies As his fornication with Mathildis the great vrger of Chastitie to bee familiar with that Countesse lik Cremensis the Popes Legate vrging Chastity in a Synode at London was found at night in a Borthell Or his impietie in casting the Hostie in the fire Or his Nacromancie whereof hee gaue a proofe in that Response That an vnjust King would bee killed that yeare hee tooke this to be Henrie the Emperour but it fell on Rudolph the Vsurper But even his friends charge him with great sinnes As his dissimulation stirring vp Rudolph in Germanie while Henrie the Emperour was at Rome fulfilling his injoyned pennance His idolatrie in incalling the Apostles and blessed Virgine and commanding them speedilie to execute his decreete against the Emperour VVhen hee saw that this made him odious to men he devysed some courses to mitigate their hatred Hee sent Apologeticke Letters to excuse him to all men and pretended the zeale of God in defending the liberties of his Church which was nothing but a fleshlie pride of his owne broyling Nature Hee tooke the lesson from Stephanus who sat a little before him in the Chaire beeing a Brother of the house of Lorraine and offended with the Emperour for hurting of his House hee tooke that Gentilitious enimitie into Peters Chaire and made it Peters quarrell And his Successours finding it there followed it out as the cause of the Church Even as they tooke in the Armes and â—nsignes of their Families Next he pretended great puritie and holinesse and vrged the Chastitie of the Cleargie This was a faire colour both to cover his too â—reat homlinesse with the Countesse Machildis to make the world think that all was good that came from such an one but it was a libertie proclamed to Church men for sundrie of them yeelded to want one wife that they might meddle with many Hereby Europe was filled with troubles and the Sacraments ministred by married Priestes were trod vnder â—â—ote This was to vrge and promone the doctrine of divels But his third and most politick devyce was the holie warre which iustlie may bee called a profaine warre Hee made faire pretexts to recover these places where Christ was borne And lived and wrought our salvation And to make the matter more plausable they fained that Petrus Eremita got a Letter from Heaven written by Iesus Christ to stirre vp Christians to that warre though others are shamed of that fiction and said Hee got it by Revelation The motiues were as powerfull â—o a superstitious Age. They offered to all that would goe to that warre First Securitie from all troubles vnder the Apostolicke protection Secondly Exemption from all pennence Likwise the going to that warre shal be reputed for all Pennance Thirdlie Remâ—ssion of all their sinnes For their wages who are in that warre they shall receiue pardon of all their sinnes Lastlie Life eternall what ever their former life hath beene This hee learned of Mahumet who bade his fellowers defend his Religion by force promising Paradise to good warriours whether they were killed or not In all this businesse of the profaine holy warre they obtained their ends both over Church and Policie Over the Church they sought to establish their Monarchie over the Patriarkes of the East as they had done in the West Over the Policie because they diverted peoples mindes from prying in their tyrrannie over Princes and gaue them another matter of talking They found an errand to send away the most wise and valorous Spirits of whom they feared greatest opposition at home as Gottofred the chiefe Counceller and commander of the Empâ—rours Arâ—ies That emptying the land of such spirits they might securelie encroach on
provision of some hundreth at their pleasure Henrie the third in a survey of the Church-rents found sixtie thousand merkes sterling to bee provided for Romanes Wherevpon with his Nobles hee supplicat Innocent the fourth at the Councell of Lions to ease that burthen They got faire promises but their burthen doubled ' For a new survey within six yeares found tenne thousand merkes more was yearelie assigned vnto them They whipped Henrie the second by Discipline as a Boy for Beckets punishment and canvased King Iohn so fearefullie that hee found no rest at home but sought desperate courses with Mahumetan Princes and in end was forced to resigne his Kingdome to the Pope and take it holden of him and lastlie was poysoned in the Eucharist Navarre also found the like crueltie and when their King was excommunicate and cast out of his Kingdome by Iulius the second his Subiects deserted him when hee was invaded by Ferdinand But their first blowes came from these abused Nations Everie people hath their owne Genius I meane neither of the Platonicke conceats of attending Spirits nor Paredri Daemones but a Gentilitious disposition of a Nation It is not mortall with persons and therfore neither so soone irritate nor appeased Persons lay their quarrels at their death but the surviving Genius or Spirit of a Nation liveth longer than persons and in the owne time doeth resent olde iniuries and revenge them Therefore long oppressed Germanie finding a light in Luthers time gaue such a blow to Antichrist that hee could not as yet cure It had beene good if they had not run on the other extremitie about Church maintenance but they fearing that the Cleargie would againe abuse authoritie did spoyle the Church of her Patrimonie and defyled the the reformation of Religion with horrible sacriledge As Germanie began so England followed and shook off his yoak vnder Henrie the eight brought foâ—rth at last that great and ever-memorable fact which overcome with oppression for manie Ages shee had conceived with great sorrow And what ever personall disposition they alledge to haue beene in Henrie the eight yet GOD had his hand in the worke And though hee had not beene at all yet God would haue provided him meanes to doe that that was done Therefore in the reformation of England we should not looke to the time of Henrie alone but to fiue or six Ages preceeding wherein that Kingdome was long grievouslie oppressed by the Popes but the fulnesse of the Popes cup and Gods iust anger to breake his power in that Kingdome did meete together in that time In like maner the King of Navarres Posteritie payed the Pope home againe for his excoÌ„munication they were stirred vp with privat hatred syded with them who coÌ„spyred against the Sea of Rome By their forwardnesse the truth was first spread abroad in France and to this day they haue beene shaking France from the obedience of Rome and who knoweth but some branch of that stemme shall helpe to giue the Pope his fatall stroke in France also Let vs heare from a bygot Papist what vantage Pops haue made by their tyrannie over Kings Event us rerum sayeth hee satis docent nihil proficere Pontifices dum hac via incedunt The event hath clearelie proven to this day that the Popes haue profited little while they walke in this high slipperie and steepe way But they rather make broyles schismes and wars in Christian Nations then propagate the Faith of Christ c. And when hee hath reakoned out the pernicious course of Gregorie the seventh against Henrie the Emperour of Boniface the eight against Philip of Iulius the second against Lodowicke the twelth of Clement the seventh and Paul the third against Henrie the eight of Pius the fifth against Elizabeth c. Then hee inferres Did not all these Princes contemne and mocke the Papall Impyre as an intolerable pride nonne hi omnes Principes papale illud Imperium ut meram arrogantiam riserunt And concludeth that that tyrannie was the cause of the overthrow of Poperie And in another place hee affirmeth that the strength of the Protestants in France and Britaine is hatched of the miserable heate of the Popes temporall power This testimonie is true and out of their owne bosome This is like the ruine of olde Rome shee forced out her tyrannie on farre Countries and her furthest extension met with the greatest opposition of mightie Nations and had in it the period both of her furthest reach and the beginning of her ruine as the sea marke is both the point of the highest flowing and the beginning of the ebbe So when she streached out her selfe to Britain Saxonie Persia c. In Gods time shee beganne to find her stresses there was compelled to call home her Legions to guard her head and heart Italie and Rome it selfe from the incâ—ersion of the Barbarians So now Rome stretching out her ambition to farre Countries hath found her curbing to beginne there and in Gods time by reformation which is her consumption shee will bee put to the defence of her Antichristian Seate which in end shall fullie bee destroyed This is the measure of his cup Hee is called the child of perdition first actiuelie because hee destroyeth mens Soules by herefie and their bodies by persecution and soundeth nothing but destruction Santarellus the Iesuite discovered a secret when citing the Apostles text that hee had power to Edification but not to destruction hee left out the word of Edification to tell that the Popes power is onelie for destruction And though he was justlie censured by the Sorbone yet their practice goeth broad according to his reading and they inculcate for that same end the words of Ieremie I haue sent thee to roote out and destroy Next hee is the childe of perdition passiuelie because God will destroy that Destroyer Doe to her as shee hath done to other It is his doome that Kings shall eate vp her flesh and burne her with fire And yet he is so blinded that hee falleth in controversies with Kings and by that provocation sharpeneth them as Gods instruments to his owne destruction But in this time their prevailing against the Protestants seemeth to stay the course of their destruction But indeede it is a furtherance of it God is iustlie punishing Protestants for their contempt and abuse of the restored Light And their sinnes are now greater than in the time of darknesse Yet the Pope also therein is filling his cup and like Pharaoh hardning his heart both to hold Gods people in thrall and to pursue them when they depart God hath charged his people to come out of Babel and manie haue alrea lie obeyed This inrageth the Pope for hee seeth that his lies and deceit by Iesuits and Emissaries cannot recall them who haue departed from him therefore hee vseth the force of Armes to destroy them and in so doing hasteneth his owne