was far greater and more outragious then was Salomons yet his true repentance found the grace to be raised vp from that wofull downfall for God hath mercie on whome hee will haue mercie Rom. 9.15 Rom. 11.33 and compassion on whome he will haue compassion O the profound riches of the wisdome and knowledge of God! How vnspeakeable are his iudgements and his waies past finding out 2. Chron. 33. Amon the wicked sonne of this repentant father committed also the like offence in seruing strange gods but recanted not by like repentance Idolatry Lib. 1. cap. 26 and therefore God gaue his owne seruants both will to conspire and power to execute his destruction after he had swaied the kingdome but two yeeres CHAP. XX. Of the third and worst sort of Apostataes BY how much the more God hath in these latter daies poured forth more plentifully his graces vpon the sonnes of men by the manifestations of his sonne Christ Iesus in the flesh and sent forth a more cleare light by the preaching of his Gospell into the world then was before times by so much the more culpable before God and guilty of eternall damnation are they who being once enlightned and made partakers of those excellent graces come afterwards either to despise or make light account of them or go about to suppresse the truth and quench the spirit which instructed them therein This is the sinne against the Holy Ghost which is mentioned in the sixt and tenth chapter to the Hebrews and in the 12 of Luke and in another place it is called a sinne vnto death because it is impardonable by reason that no excuse of ignorance can be pleaded nor any plaister of true repentance applied vnto it The Apostataes of the old Testament vnder the law were not guilty of this sin for although there were many that willingly and maliciously reuolted and set themselues against the Prophets of God making warre as it were with the holy ghost yet seeing they had no such cleare testimonies of Christ Iesus declaratioÌ„ of Gods spirit as we haue their sin can not be properly said directly to be against the H. ghost so neuer to be remitted according to the description of this sin in those passages of Scripture which were before recited as it may manifestly appeare by the former example of king Manasses The Apostle himselfe likewise doth auerre the truth hereof when he saith If wee sinne wâ—llingly after that wee haue receiued the knowledge of the truth there remaineth no more sacrifice for sinnes Heb. 10.26 27 28 29. but a fearefull looking for of iudgement and violent fire which shall deuoure the aduersaries If any man despised Moses law he died without mercie vnder two or three witnesses of how much sorer punishment suppose yee shall he be worthy which treadeth vnder foot the son of God and counteth the blood of the Testament as a prophane thing whereby hee was sanctified and doth despight the spirit of grace Here we may see that this sinne is proper to those only that liued vnder the Gospell and haue tasted of the comfort and knowledge of Christ Iudas Iscariot that wicked accursed varlet committed the deed and feeles the scourge of this great sinne for he being a disciple nay an Apostle of Christ Iesus mooued with couetousnes after he had deuised and concluded of the manner and complot of his treason with the enemies sold his Lord and master the Sauiour of the world for thirty peeces of siluer and betraied him into the hands of theeues and murderers who sought nothing but his destruction After this vile traitour had perfourmed this execrable purpose by reason whereof hee is called the sonne of perdition hee could find no rest nor repose in his guilty conscience but was horribly troubled and tormented with remorse of his wickednesse iudging himselfe worthy of a thousand deaths for betraying that innocent and guiltlesse blood If he looked vp hee saw the vengeance of God ready to fall vpon him and ensnare him if hee looked downe hee saw nothing but hell gaping to swallow him vp the light of this world was odious to him and his owne life displeased him so that being plunged into the bottomles pit of despaire he at last strangled himselfe Matth. 27. Acts. 1. and burst in twaine in the midst and all his bowels gushed out Suid. There is a notable example of Lucian who hauing professed Christianity for a season vnder the Emperour Traian fell away afterwards and became so profane and impious as to make a mocke at religion and diuinity whereupon his sirname was called Atheist This wretch as hee barked out like a foule mouthed dog bitter taunts against the religion of Christ seeking to rent and abolish it so he was himselfe in Gods vengeance torne in pieces and deuoured of dogs Porphyrie also a whelpe of the same litter after hee had receiued the knowledge of the truth for despite and anger that he was reprooued of his faults by the Christians set himselfe against them and published bookes full of horrible blasphemies to discredit and ouerthtow the Christian faith But when he perceiued how fully and sufficiently hee was confuted and that he was reputed an accursed and confounded wretch for his labour in terrible despaire and anguish of soule he died Iulian the Emperour sirnamed the Apostate cast himselfe headlong into the same gulfe for hauing beene brought vp and instructed from his childhood in the Christian faith and afterward a while a profest reader thereof to others in the Church assoone as he had obtained the Empire malitiously reuolted from his profession and resisted with all his power Socrat. Theod. Sozom. the saith and Church of Christ endeauouring by all meanes possible either by force to ruinate and destroy it or by fine sleights and subtilties to vndermine it And because his purpose was to doe what hurt he could to Christians therefore he studied by all he could to please content and vphold the contrary party I meane the Painyms hee caused their temples first to be opened which Constantine his predecessour had shut vp hee tooke from the Christian Churches their ministers those priuiledges liberties and commodities which the said Constantine had bestowed vpon them and not content with this hee confiscated the Church reuenewes Atheisme Lib. 1. cap. 25. and imposed great taxes and tributes vpon all that professed the name of Christians and forbad them to haue any schooles of learning for their children And yet more to vexe and grieue them he translated many ordes of the Church discipline and pollicie into Paganisme After he had thus by all meanes striuen to beate downe the scepter of Christs kingdome it turned quite contrary to his expectation for in stead thereof the scepter of his owne kingdome was broken and brought to nought at that time when making warre vpon the Persians he was wounded with an arrow which pierced his armour and diued so deepe into his side
town of Champaigne to remoue the siege wherewith it was girt by the Duke of Burgoine and other of the English captaines Sir Iohn Leupembrough a Burgonian knight took her aliue and conueied her to the city of Roane where she faining her self with child when the contrarie was knowne was condemned and burnt And thus these two holy women that in a diuerse kind mocked the people of England and France by their hypocrisie by the iustice of God came to deserued destructions CHAP. XXIII Of Coniurers and Enchanters IF God by his first commandement hath enioined euery one of vs to loue serue and cleaue unto him alone in the coniunction and vnity of a true faith and hope vnremoueable there is no doubt but he forbiddeth on the other side that which is contrarie to this foresaid dutie and herein especially that cursed familiarity which diuerse miserable wretches haue with that lying spirit the father of error by whose delusions and subtiltie they busie themselues in the studie of sorceries and enchantments wherevpon it is forbidden the Israelites in the nineteenth of Leuiticus Leuit. 19.31 to turne after familiar spirites or to seeke to soothsayers to bee defiled by them and the more to withdraw men from this damnable crime in the chapter following there is a threat set downe against it in manner of a commandement 20.27 That if either man or woman haue a spirit of diuination or soothsaying in them they should die the death they should stone them to death their blood should be vpon them Exod. 22.18 so in the twentie two of Exodus the law of God saith Thou shalt not suffer a witch to liue and Moses following the same steps giueth an expresse charge in in the eighteenth of Deutronotny against this sinne saying Let none bee found among thee that vseth witchcraft Deu. 18.10.11 nor that regardeth the clouds or times nor a sorcerer or a charmer or that counselleth with a spirit or a teller of fortunes or that asketh counsell at the dead for all that doe such things are abhomination vnto the Lord 1. Sam. 15. Isay 8.19.20 and therefore this sinne in the 1. Sam. 15. Is reputed amongst the most hainous and enormous sinnes that can bee When they shall say vnto you saith the Prophet enquire at them that haue a spirit of diuination and at the soothsaier which whisper and murmure answer Should not a people inquire at their God From the liuing to the dead To the law and to the testimony Wherfore it was a commendable thing and worthy the imitation when they that had receiued the faith by Paules preaching Acts. 19.19 hauing before vsed curious arts as Magicke and such like being touched with the feare of God brought their bookes and burned them before all men although the price thereof amounted to fifty thousand peeces of siluer which by Budeus his supputatiō ariseth to fiue thousand French crownes The counsels as that of Carthage and that other of Constantinople kept the second time in the suburbes vtterly condemned the practise of all coniurers and enchanters The twelue tables in Rome adiudged to punishmēts those that bewitched the standing corn And for the ciuill law this kind is condemned both by the law Iulia and Cornelia In like manner the wisest Emperours those I meane that attained to the honor of Christianity ordained diuerse edicts and prohibitions vnder very shape greeuous punishments against all such villanie as Constantine in the ninth booke of the Cod. tit 18. enacted that whosoeuer should attempt any action by art Magicke against the safety of any person or should bring in or stirre vp any man to make him fall into any mischiefe or riotous demeanour should suffer a greeuous punishment in the fifth law hee forbiddeth euery man to aske counsaile at witches or to vse the helpe of charmers and sorcerers vnder the paine of death Let them saith hee in the sixt law bee throwne to wild beasts to bee deuoured that by coniuring or the helpe of familiar spirits go about to kill either their enemies or any other Moreouer in the seuenth law hee willeth that not so much as his owne courtiers and seruants if they were found faulty in this crime should be spared but seuerely punished yet neuerthelesse many of this age giue themselues ouer to this filthy sinne without either feare of God or respect of law Some thorough a foolish and dangerous curiositie others through the ouerruling of their owne vile and wicked affections and a third sort troubled with the terrours of an euill conscience desire to know what shall befall and happen vnto them in the end Thus Saul the first king of Israel being troubled in himselfe terrified with the army of the Philistims that came against him would needs foreknow his owne fortune and the issue of this doubtfull warre Now whereas before whilst he perfourmed the duty of a good king and obeied the commaundement of God hee had cleansed his realme of witches and enchaunters yet is he now so mad as to make them serue his owne turne and to vse their counsels in his extremitie adding this wickednesse to the number of his other great sinnes that the measure thereof might be full hee went therefore to a witch to seeke counsell who caused a deuill to appeare and speake unto him in the shape of Samuel and foretell him of Gods iust iudgement vpon his wickednesse his vtter and finall ruine and destruction Plutarch in the life of Romulus reporteth of one Cleomedes a man in proportion of body and cruell practises Plutarch Romulus huge and giantlike who for that hee was the cause of the death of many little children and was pursued by the parents of those dead infants who sought to be reuenged on him for that cruell part hee hid himselfe in a coffer closing the lid fast to him but when the coffer was broken vp the coniurer was not therein neither aliue nor dead but was transported by the malicious spirit the deuill vnto a place of greater torment Ancient histories make mention of one Piso a man of credit and authoritie among the Romanes Tacit. whome the Emperour Tiberius gaue vnto his sonne Germanicus for an helper counsellour in the managing of his affaires in Asia so well was he perswaded both of his sufficiencie courage and loialtie towards him It chanced a while after that hee was suspected to haue bewitched to death the said Germanicus the signes markes of which suspition were certaine dead mens bones digged out of the earth with diuers charmes and curses and Germanicus name engrauen in tables of lead and such like trash which witches exercise to murder men withall were found with him whereupon Tiberius himselfe accused him of that crime but would not haue the ordinary iudges to sit vpon it but by speciall priuiledge committed the enquiry thereof vnto the Senate Pise when euery man thought hee was preparing himselfe for his defence against the morrow like
touching Murder which is by the second commaundement of the second table forbidden in these words Exod. 21. Thou shalt not kill the Lord denounceth this iudgement vpon it that he which striketh a man that hee dieth shall die the death And this is correspondent to that edict which he gaue to Noah presently after the vniuersall flood to suppresse that generall crueltie which had taken root from the beginning in Cain and his posterity being carefull for mans life Gen. 9. saying That hee will require the blood of man at the hands of either man or beast that killeth him adding moreouer That whosoeuer sheddeth mans blood by man also his blood shall be shed seeing that God created him after his owne image which he would not haue to be basely accounted of but deare and pretious vnto vs. Exod. 21. If then the bruit and vnreasonable creatures are not exempted from the sentence of death pronounced in the law if they chance to kill a man How much more punishable then is man endued with will reason when maliciously and aduisedly he taketh away the life of his neighbour But the hainousnes greatnes of this sinne is most liuely expressed by that ordinance of God set downe in the 21 of Deuteronomie where it is enioyned That if a man be found slaine in the field Deut. 21. and it be not knowen who it was that slue him then the Elders and Iudges of the next towne assembling togither should offer vp an expiatorie sacrifice by the hands of the priests to demand pardon for that cruell murder that the guilt of innocent blood might not be imputed vnto them And if by ouersight or negligence without any malice hatred or pretence one killed another yet was he not exempted from all punishment Num. 35. but suffered to fly to the citie of refuge to be kept and as it were inclosed vntill his innocencie were made manifest or at the least vntill the death of the high priest From this it may seeme arose the custome of Painyms in the like case which was that if a man vnwillingly had committed murder hee did presently auoid the countrey and go vnto some man of power and authority of a straunge nation and present himselfe at his gate sitting with his face couered humbly intreating pardon and reconciliation for his murder and for one whole yeere hee might not returne into his owne counrrey On this manner was the sonne of a certaine king of Phrygia entertained in king Craesus court Herod lib. 1. who vnaduisedly had slaine his owne brother Whereby it is manifest how odious and execrable in all ages and all places and all people this homicide and murder hath beene insomuch that men did shun their very meeting and companie and abandon them out of their temples and publicke assemblies as people excommunicate and prophane And yet for all this mankind for the most part like sauagde beasts hath by the instigation of that wicked spirit who was a murderer from the beginning bene too too addicted to this kind of cruelty not being afraid to offer violence to nature and shed innocent blood Such was the franticke peruerse crueltie of the second man Cain Gen. 4. when without any occasion but only through enuy he slew his only brother Abel and that traiterously which deed albeit it was done in secret and without the view of men yet it could not shun the piercing eie of God who reprooued him for it saying That the blood of Abell cried for vengeance from the earth And although this cursed and wicked murderer receiued not immediatly a condigne punishment answerable to his crime God to the end to spare mans blood vsing vndeserued fauour towards him yet escaped he not scotfree for he was pursued with a continuall torment and sting of conscience togither with such an incessant feare that he became a vagabond and a runnagate vpon the earth and seeing himselfe brought into so miserable an estate he fell to complaining that the punishment was greater then he was able to beare Thus God permitted this wretch to draw out his life in such anguish that for a greater punishment he might pine away the rest of his daies without comfort A man may find in this world many such brother-murdering Cains who for no occasion sticke not to cut their throats whom for the bond of common nature wherein all men are linked togither as branches of one root they ought to acknowledge for their brethrē friends vpon whome the heauie hand of God hath not beene more slacke to punish either by one means or other then it was vpon their eldest brother Cain But seeing the number of them is so great and it is not so conuenienr to heap vp here so huge a multitude togither it shall suffice only to recount the most famous and notablest of them as of those that haue ben men of note and reputation in the world or that through an ambitious desire of raigning haue by armes sought to atchieue their purposes for these for the most part are the greatest murderers and butchers of all that through their wicked affections worldly pomp or desire of reuenge haue no remorse of making the blood of men runne like riuers vpon the earth making no more account of the life of a man then of a fly or a worme Iudg. 9. Such an one was Abimelech one of the sonnes of Gedeon who to the end to vsurpe the regiment of the people which his father before him refused got togither a rout of rascall vile fellowes by whose aid comming to his fathers house hee slew seuenty of his brethren euen all except Ioathan the yongest that stole away and hid himselfe After which massacre hee raigned in iollitie three yeeres and at the end thereof was cut short by God togither with the Sichemites his prouokers and maintainers who were also guiltie of all the innocent blood which hee had shed for God sent the spirit of diuision betwixt them so that the Sichemites began to despise him and rebell against him but they had the worst end of the staffe and were ouercome by him who pursuing the victory tooke their citie by force and put them all to the edge of the sword And after hee had thus destroied their citie put fire also to the castle wherein he consumed neere about a thousand persons of men and women that were retired thither to saue their liues And thus God brought vpon them the mischiefe which they had consented and put their hands vnto For as they had lent him aid and furtherance to the shedding of his breethrens blood so was their own blood with their wiues and childrens shed by him yet this tyrant not content therewith made warre also with the inhabitants of Tebez and tooke their city and would haue forced the tower also wherein the citizens had inclosed themselues but as he approched to the wall a woman threw downe a peece of a milstone vpon
owne humours with their abominations and approoue and cleare themselues therein yet are they rewarded by death not onely by the law of God Leuit. 20. but also by the law Iulia. When Charlemaigne reigned in France there happened a most notable iudgement of God vpon the monkes of Saint Martine in Tours for their disordinate lusts they were men whose food was too much and dainty whose ease was too easie and whose pleasures were too immoderate being altogither addicted to pastimes and meriments In their apparell they went clad in silke like great lords Nic. Gil. vol. 1. and as Nichol. Gill. in his first volume of French Chronicles saith their shoes were gilt ouer with gold so great was the superfluity of their riches and pride in summe their whole life was luxurious and infamous for which cause there came forth a destroying angell from the Lord by the report of Eudes the Abbot of Clugny and slew them all in one night as the first borne of Aegypt were slaine saue one onely person that was preferued as Lot in Sodome was preserued this strange accident mooued Charlemaigne to appoint a brotherhood of Canons to be in their roome though little better and as little profitable to the common wealth as the former It is not for nothing that the law of God forbiddeth to lie with a beast Leuit. 18. and denounceth death against them that commit this foule sinne for there haue been such monsters in the world at sometimes Exod. 22. Leuit. 20. Deut. 27. as we read in Caelius and Volaterranus of one Crathes a sheepheard that accompanied carnally with a shee goat but the Buck finding him sleeping offended and prouoked with this strange action ran at him so furiously with his hornes that hee left him dead vpon the ground God that opened an asses mouth to reproue the madnesse of the false Prophet Balaam and sent lions to kill the strange inhabitants of Samaria emploied also this bucke about his seruice in executing iust vengeance vpon a wicked varlet CHAP. XXXIII Of the wonderfull euill that ariseth from this greedinesse of lust IT is to very good reason that the scripture forbiddeth vs to abstaine from the lust of the flesh and the eies 1. Ioh. 2. which is of the world and the corruprion of mans owne nature for so much as by it we are drawne and enticed to euill it being as it were a corrupt root which sendeth forth most bitter soure and rotten fruit Iam. 1. and this happeneth not onely when the goods and riches of the world are in quest but also when a man hunteth after dishonest and vnchast delights this concupiscense is it that bringeth forth whoredoms adulteries and many other such sinnes whereout spring forth oftentimes floods of mischiefes and that diuers times by the selfe will and inordinate desire of priuat and particular persons Gen. 39. what did the lawlesse lust of Putiphars wife bring vpon Ioseph was not his life endangered and his body kept in close prison where hee cooled his feet two yeeres or more We haue a most notable example of the miserable end of a certaine woman with the sacking and destruction of a whole city and all caused by her intemperance and vnbridled lust About the time that the Emperour Phocas was slaine by Priscus Sabell one Gysulphus gouernour and chieftaine of a cuntry in Lumbardie going out in defence of his cuntry against the Bauarians which were certaine reliques of the Hunnes gaue them battaile and lost the field and his life withall Now the conquerours pursuing their victory laid siege to the chiefe citie of his prouince where Romilda his wise made her abode who viewing one day from the wals the young and faire king with yellow curled locks gallopping about the city fell presently so extreamely in loue with him that her mind ran of nothing but satisfying her greedy and new conceiued lust wherefore burying in obliuion the loue of her late husband with her young infants yet liuing and her countrey and preferring her owne lust before them all shee sent secretly vnto him this message That if hee would promise to marry her shee would deliuer vp the citie into his hands he well pleased with this gentle offer through a desire of obtaining the citie whioh without great bloodshed and losse of men he could not otherwise compasse accepted of it and was receiued vpon this condition within the wals and least hee should seeme too perfidious hee performed his promise of marriage and made her his wife for that one night but soone after in scorne and disdaine hee gaue her vp to twelue of his strongest leachers to glut her vnquenchable fire and finally nailed her on a gibbet for a finall reward of her treacherous and boundlesse lust Marke well the misery whereinto this wretched woman threw her selfe and not onely her selfe but a whole city also by her boiling concupiscense which so dâ—zled her vnderstanding that shee could not consider how vndecent it was dishonest and inconuenient for a woman to offer her selfe nay to sollicite a man that was an enemy a stranger and one that shee had neuer seene before to her bed and that to the vtter vndoing of her selfe and all hers But euen thus many more whose hearts are passionate with loue are blindfolded after the same sort like as poeticall Cupid is fained to be that not knowing what they take in hand they fall headlong into destruction ere they be aware Let vs then be here aduertised to pray vnto God that hee would purifie our drossie hearts and diuert our wandring eies from beholding vanity to be seduced thereby CHAP. XXXIIII Of vnlawfull gestures Idlenesse Gluttony Drunkennes Daunsing and other such like dissolutenes LIke as if we would carry our selues chastly and vprightly before God it behooueth vs to auoid all filthines and adultery so wee must abstaine from vnciuill and dishonest gestures which are as it were badges of concupiscense coles to set lust on fire and instruments to iniury others withall Sabel from hence it was that Pompey caused one of his souldiers eyes to be put out in Spaine for thrusting his hand vnder a womans garment that was a Spaniard and for the same or like offence did Sertorius command a footman of his band to be cut in pieces Oh that we had in these daies such minded captaines that would sharply represse the wrongs and rauishments which are so common and vsuall amongst men of warre at this day and so vncontrolled they would not then doubtlesse be so rife and common as in these daies they are Kissing is no lesse to be eschewed than the former if it be not betwixt those that are tied togither by some bond of kindred or affinitie as it was by auncient custome of the Medes and Persians and Romanes also according to the report of Plutarch and Seneca and that which is more Sueton. Tiberius Caesar forbad the often and daily practise thereof in that
prouidence whereby albeit he guideth and directeth especially his owne to wit those that in a speciall and singular maner worship and trust in him as by the sacred histories touching the state and gouernment of the auncient and primitiue Church it may appeare yet he ceaseth not for all that to stretch the arme of his power ouer all and to handle and rule the prophane and vnbeleeuing ones at his pleasure for he hath a soueraigne empire and predominance ouer all the world And vnto him belongeth the direction and principall conduct of humane matters in such sort that nothing in the world commeth to passe by chance or aduenture but onely alwaies by the prescription of his wil according to the which he ordereth disposeth by a straight and direct motion as well the generall as the particular and that after a strange and admirable order And this a man may perceiue if he would but marke and consider the whole body but especially the end issue of things wherein the great and marueilous vertues of God as his bountie iustice and power doe most clearely shine when hee exalteth and fauoureth some and debaseth and frowneth vpon others blesseth and prospereth whome hee please and on the contrary curseth and destroieth whome he please and that deserue it It is hee also which erecteth principalities and which maintaineth commonwealths kingdoms and empires vntill by the summe and weight of their iniquities they sinke themselues into ruine and destruction And herein is hee glorified by the execution of his most iust and righteous iudgements when the wicked after the long abuse of his lenitie benignitie and patience doe receiue the wages and reward of their iniquities In this I say once againe shineth out the wonderfull and incomprehensible wisedome of God when by the due ordering of things so different and so many hee commeth still to one and the same marke which hee once prescribed to wit the punishment of the world according to their demerits And this same is most manifest and apparant euen in the histories of prophane writers albeit in their purpose it was neuer intended nor thought vpon nor yet regarded almost of any that read the same men contenting themselues for the most part with the simple recitall of the storie therein to take pleasure and passe away time without respecting any further matter Notwithstanding the true and principall vse of their writings ought to be diligently to marke the effects of Gods prouidence and of his iustice thereby to learne to containe our selues within the bonds of modestie and the feare of God seeing that they which haue carried themselues any thing vprightly in equitie temperance and other naturall vertues haue beene in some sort spared and the rest bearing the punishment of their iniquities haue fallen into ruine and destruction This consideration ought to persuade euerie man to turne from euill and to follow that which is good seeing that the Lord sheweth himselfe so incensed against all them which lead a wicked damnable and peruerse life And this is the cause why I hauing noted the great and horrible punishments wherewith the Lord in his most righteous iudgement hath scourged the world for sin according to that which is contained as well in sacred as prophane histories hauing gathered them togither and sorted them one after another in their seuerall roomes according to the diuersitie of the offences and order and course of time which as neare as I could I endeauoured to follow To the end to lay downe as it were in one table and vnder one aspect the great and fearefull iudgements of God vpon them that haue rebelled or repugned his holy will And this I doe not with purpose to comprehend them all for that were not onely difficult but impossible but to lay open the most notable and markeable ones that came to my knowledge to the end that the most wicked dissolute and disordered sinners that with loose raines runne fiercely after their lust if the manifest tokens of Gods seueritie presented before their eyes doe not touch them yet the cloud and multitude of examples through the sight of the ineuitable anger vengeance of God vpon euill liuers might terrifie and somewhat curbe them Periurers idolatours blasphemers and other such wicked and prophane wretches with murderers whoremongers adulterers rauishers and tyrants shall here see by the mischiefe that hath fallen vpon their likes that which hangeth before their eies and is ready to lay hold of them also For albeit for a time they sleepe in their sinnes and blindnesse delighting in their pleasures and taking sport in cruelties and euill deeds yet they draw after them the line wherewith being more ensnared than they are aware they are taken and drawn to their finall destruction And this may teach and aduertise both those that are not yet obstinate in their sinnes to bring themselues to some amendment and those that feare God already to strengthen and incourage them in the pursure and continuance in their good course For if God shew himselfe so seuere a reuenger of their sins that take pleasure in displeasing him there is no doubt but on the contrary hee will shew himselfe bountifull gracious and liberall in rewarding al them according to his promise which striue to please him and conforme their liues vnto his will Great and small yong and old men and women and all other of what degree and condition soeuer may here learn at other mens charges how to gouerne themselues in duty towards God and betwixt themselues by a holy and vnblameable life in mutuall peace and vnity and by shunning and eschewing sinne against the which God a most iust iudge poureth forth his vengeance euen vpon the heads of them that are guiltie thereof Beside here is ample matter and argument to stoppe the monthes of all Epicures and Atheists of our age and to leaue them confounded in their errours seeing that such and so many occurrents and punishments are manifest proofes that there is a God aboue that guideth the sterne of the world and that taketh care of humane matters and that is iust in punishing the vniust and malicious Againe whereas so much euill and so many sinnes haue raigned and swaied so long time and doe yet raigne and sway vpon the earth we may behold the huge corruption peruersitie of mankind and the rotten fruits of that wormeaten roote originall sinne when wee are not directed nor guided by the holy spirit of God but left vnto our owne nature And hereby true faithfull Christians may take occasion so much the more to acknowledge the great mercy and singular fauour of God towards them in that they being receiued to mercie are renewed to a better conuersation of life than others In briefe a man may heare learne if he be not altogither void of iudgement and vnderstanding to haue sinne in hatred and detestation considering the wages and reward thereof and how the iustice of God pursueth it continually euen to
giuing him the crowne he most vnthankfully recompenced by putting to death his sonne Zacharias 2. Chron. 24. whome he caused for reproouing and threatning his idolatry in a publicke assembly incited thereto by the spirit of God to be stoned to death in the porch of the Temple But seeing he did so rebelliously set himselfe against the holy spirit as if he would haue quite oppressed and extinguished the power thereof by the death of this holy Prophet by whome it spake God hissed for an armie of Syrians that gaue him battell and conquered his souldiers who in outward shew seemed much to strong for them His princes also that had seduced him were destroied himselfe vexed with grieuous diseases till at length his owne seruants conspired against him for the death of Zacharia and slue him on his bed yea and his memory was so odious that they could not afford him a burying place among the sepulchres of their kings Amazias the sonne of this wicked father 2. Chro 25. caried himselfe also at the first vprightly towards God in his seruice but it lasted not long for a while after he was corrupted and turned aside from that good way which he had begun to tread after the by paths of his father Ioas for after he had conquered the Idumeans and slaine twenty thousand men of war and spoiled diuers of their cities in stead of rendring due thankes to God who without the aid of the Israelites had giuen him that victory he set vp the gods of the Edomites which he had robbed them of to be his gods and worshipped and burned incense to them so void of sense and reason was he And being rebuked by the Prophet of his aduerse dealing hee was so farre from humbling and repenting himselfe thereof that quite contrary he proudly withstood and reiected the Prophets threatnings menacing him with death if he ceased not Thus by this meanes hauing aggrauated his sinne and growing more and more obstinate God made him an instrument to hasten his owne destruction for being proud and puffed vp with the ouerthrow which he gaue the Edomites hee defied the king of Israel and prouoked him to battell also but full euill to his ease for he lost the day and was carried prisoner to Ierusalem where before his face for more reproch foure hundred cubits of the wall was broken downe the temple and pallace ransackt of his treasures his children caried for hostâ—ges to Samaria And not long after treason was deuised against him in Ierusalem so that he fled to Lachish and being pursued thither also was there taken and put to death 2. Chron. 28. Likewise king Ahaz for making molten images for Baalim and walking in the idolatrous waies of the kings of Israel and burning his sonnes with fire after the abominations of the heathen in the valley of Ben-Hinnon was forsaken of the Lord and deliuered into the hands of the king of Syria who caried him prisoner to Damascus and not only so but was also subdued by Pekah king of Israel in that great battell wherein his owne sonne with fourescore thousand men at armes were slaine yea and two hundred thousand of all sorts men women and children taken prisoners for all these chastisements did hee not once reforme his life but rather grew worse and worse To make vp the number of his sinnes he would needs sacrifice to the gods of Damascus also thinking to find succour at their hands so that hee vtterly defaced the true seruice of God at Ierusalem broke in pieces the holy vessels lockt vp the temple dores and placed in their stead his abominable idols for the people to worship and erected altars in euery corner of the city to doe sacrifice on But as hee rebelled on euery side against his God so God raised vp enemies on euery side to disturbe him The Edomites and Philistims assaulted him on one side beate his people tooke and ransackt his cities on the other side the Assyrians whome he had hired with a great summe for his helpe turned to his vndoing and vtter ouerthrow and confusion What shall wee thinke of Manasses who reedified the high places and altars which the zeale of Ezechias his father had defaced and throwen downe 2. Chron 33. and adored and worshipped the plannets of heauen the Sunne the Moone and the Starres profaned the porch of Gods Temple with altars dedicated to strange gods committing thereon all the abominations of the Gentiles Idolatrie Lib. 1. cap. 26. yea and caused his sonnes to passe thorough the valley of Benhinnon and was an obseruer of times and seasons and gaue himselfe ouer to witchcraft charming and sorceries and vsed the helpe of familiar spirits and soothsayers and that which is more placed a carued Image in the house of God flat against the second commaundement of the law So that hee did not onely go astray and erre himselfe in giuing ouer his mind to most wicked and damnable heresies but also seduced the people by his pernitious example and authoritie to doe the like mischiefe And that which is yet more and worst of all hee made no account nor reckening of the admonitions of the Prophets but the rather and the more hardened his heart to runne out into all manner of crueltie and wickednesse that his sinnes might haue their full measure For the very stones of the streetes of Ierusalem were stained from one corner to another with the guiltlesse and innocent blood of those that either for disswading him from or not yeeldihg vnto his abominable and detestable Idolatry were cruelly murdered amongst the number of which slaine innocents many suppose that the Prophet Esaias although hee was of the blood royall was with a straunge manner of torment put to death 2. King 12. Wherefore the flame of Gods ire was kindled against him and his people so that they stirred vp the Assyrians against them whose power and force they being not able to resist were subdued and the king himselfe taken and put in fetters and bound in chaines caried captiue to Babylon but being there in tribulation he humbled his soule and praied vnto the Lord his God who for all his wicked cruell and abominable Apostasie was intreated of him and receiued him to mercy yea and brought him againe to Ierusalem into his vnhoped for kingdom Then was hee no more vnthankefull to the Lord for his wonderfull deliuerance but being touched with true repentance for his former life abolished the strange gods broke downe their altars and restored againe the true religion of God and gaue straight commandement to his people to do the like Wherein it was the pleasure of the Highest to leaue a notable memorial vnto all posterity of his great and infinite mercy towards poore and miserable sinners to the end that no man be his sinnes neuer so heinous should at any time despaire for where sinne aboundeth Rom. 5. there grace aboundeth much more Admit that this reuolt of Manasses
to be without the reach of danger seeing hee was not assailed but did assaile was guarded with so mighty an army that assured him to make him lord of Ierusalem in short space yet the Lord ouerthrew his power destroied of his men in one night by the hand of his Angell 185 thousand men so that he was faine to raise his siege returne into his own kingdome where finally he was slain by his own sonnes as he was worshipping on his knees in the temple of his God In the time of the Machabees those men that were in the strong hold called Gazara 2. Mach. 10. fighting against the Iews trusting to the strength of the place wherein they were vttered forth most infamous speeches against God but ere long their blasphemous mouths were encountred by a cōdigne punishmēt for the first day of the siege Machabeus put fire to the towne consumed the place with the blasphemers in it to ashes Holofernes when Achior aduanced the glory of the God of Israel Iudith 6.7 replied on this fashion Since thou hast prophesied vnto vs that Israel shall be defended by their god thou shalt prooue that there is no God but Nabuchadonosor when the sword of mine army shall passe through thy sides and thou shalt fall among their slaine but for this blasphemy the Lord cut him short and preuented his cruell purpose by sudden death and that by the hand of a woman to his further shame Nay this sinne is so odious in the sight of God that he punisheth euen them that giue occasion therof vnto others yea though they be his dearest children as it appeareth by the words of the Prophet Nathan vnto king Dauid 2. King 12. Because of this deed saith he of murdering Vriah and defiling Bathshabe thou hast made the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme the child that is borne vnto thee shall surely die In the Empire of Iulian the Apostata there were diuers great men that for the Emperors sake forsooke Christ abiured his religion Theod. llb. 3. cap. 11 12. Contempt of holy things Lib. 1. cap. 3 4. amongst whom was one Iulian vncle to the Emperor gouernor of the East another Faelix the Emperors treasurer the first of which two after he had spoiled all Christian Churches and temples pissed against the table whereon the holy sacraments were vsed to be administred in contempt and stroke Euzoius on the eare for reproouing him for it the other beholding the holy vessels that belonged to the Church said See what precious vessels Maries sonne is serued withall After which blasphemie the Lord plagued them most strangely for Iulian fell into so strange a disease that his entrails beeing rotten hee voided his excrements at his mouth because when they passed naturally hee abused them to the dishonour of God Foelix vomited blood so excessiuely night and day at his blasphemous mouth that hee died forthwith About the same time there liued a famous sophister Epicure called Libanius who beeing at Antioch Theatr. hist demaunded blasphemously of a learned godly schoolmaster what the Carpenters sonne did and how he occupied himselfe Mary quoth the schoolmaster full of the spirit of God the creator of this world whome thou disdainfully callest the carpenters sonne is making a coffin for thee to carry thee to thy graue whereat the sophister iesting departed and within few daies dying was buried in a coffin according to the prophesie of that holy man Vide lib. 1. c. 21. Heres Philip. Chron. Abb. Vrusperg The Emperour Heraclius sending Embassadours to Cosroe the king of Persia to entreat of peace returned with this answer that he would neuer cease to trouble them with warre till he had constrained them to forsake their crucified Christ and to worship the Sunne But ere long he bore the punishment of his blasphemie for what with a domesticall calamitie a forraine ouerthrow by the hand of Heraclius he came to a most wofull destruction Michael that blasphemous Rabbine that was accounted of the Iewes as their Prince and Messias Fincelius de miraculis lib. 2. as he was on a time banketting with his companions amongst other things this was chiefest sauce for their meat to blaspheme Christ his mother Mary insomuch as he boasted of a victory alreadie gotten ouer the Christians God But marke the issue as hee descended downe the staires his foot slipping hee tumbled headlong broke his neck wherin his late victory proued a discomfiture ouerthrow to his eternal shame confusion Three soldiers amongst the Tyrigetes a people of Sarmatia passing through a wood there arose a tempest of thunder and lightning which though commonly it maketh the greatest Atheists to tremble yet one of them to shew his contempt of God and his iudgements burst forth into blasphemie despitings of God But the Lord soone tamed his rebellious tongue for he caused the wind to blow vp by the root a huge tree that fell vpon him crushed him to pieces the other escaping to testifie to the world of his destruction No lesse notable is the example of a young gyrle named Denis Benifield of twelue yeres of age Acts and Monuments of the Church who going to schoole amongst other gyrles when they fell to reason among themselues after their childish discretion about God one among the rest said that he was a good old father what hee said the foresaid Denyse he is an old doting foole which being told to her mistresse shee purposed to correct her the next day for it but it chanced that the next day her mother sent her to London to the market the wench greatly entreating her mother that shee might not goe so that she escaped her mistrisses correction But the Lord in vengeance met with her for as she returned homeward sodainly she was so stricken dead all the one side of her being blacke and buried at Hackney the same night A terrible example no doubt both to old and young what it is for children to blaspheme the Lord and God and what it is for parents to suffer their yoong ones to grow vp in blindnesse without nurturing them in the feare of God and reuerence of his maiesty and therfore worthy to be remembred of all In the yeare 510 an Arrian bishop called Olimpius being at Carthage in the bathes reproched and blasphemed the holy and sacred trinitie and that openly Paul Diacon in the historie of Anastatius Sabell Aenead 8. lib. 2. Anton. Panor of the acts of Alphonsus Aeneas Siluius of the acts of Alphonsus but lightning fell downe from heauen vpon him three times and he was burnt and consumed therewith There was also in the time of Alphonsus king of Arragon and Sicily in an Isle towards Affrica a certaine Hermite called Antonius a monstrous and prophane hypocrite that had so wicked a heart to deuise and so filthy a throat to belch out vile and iniurious speeches against Christ Iesus
the Lord hath preserued her maiestie not onely from these but many other secret and priuie foes and that most miraculously and contrarie to all reason and hath spread his winges ouer her to defend her from all her enemies the consideration whereof as it ought to stirre vp in euerie one a thankfull heart to acknowledge his mercies and a fearefull care not to displease him that is so gratious vnto vs so it ought also to incite euerie one of vs to pray incessantly for her further preseruation as being the soule of our soules and life of our liues for surely if the Lord depriue vs of her life our sinnes are the cause and our smart will be the effect thereof Moreouer there is yet another kind of treason and another rancke of traitors as pernicious as any of the former and as odious before God and man Such are they which either vpon priuate quarrels or receiued iniuries or hope of gaine or any other silly respect forsake their countries take part with the enemies to fight against it or they that in time of necessity refuse to fight or dare not fight in defence of it the former sort are called fugitiues and the latter cowards As touching the first they haue beene alwaies in detestation in well gouerned pollicies and also euermore seuerely punished The Aeginates punished them with the losse of their right hand thumbes to the end they might no more handle a speare or a sword but an oare The Mitylenians with losse of their liues The inhabitants of Samos marked them in the face with the picture of an oule and the Romanes punished them after diuerse fashions Fabius Maximus caused all those that had fled from the Romane succours to the enemy to loose their hands Africanus the former though gentle mild by nature yet in this respect he borrowed from forraine cruelty for hauing conquered Carthage got into his power all those Romane rebels that tooke part against his country hee hung the Romanes as traitors to their countrie Valerius maximus and mitigated the punishment of the Latines as but perfidious confederates Africanus the latter when hee had subdued the Punicke Nation hee threw all fugitiues amongst wild beasts to be deuoured Lucius Paulus after the conquest of the king of Persia committed these fellows to the mercie of Eliphantes Generally there is no Nation vnder the sunne which holdeth them not in execration and therfore our English fugitiues who vnder cloke of religion not onely abandon their countrie their kindred and their Prince but also conspire the vndoing swear the destruction of them are they not worthie to be handled like traitors and to haue their quarters spectacles of perfidie The bridge and gates of London beare witnesse of the wofull ends that these Iesuits come vnto As touching cowards I meane such as preferring their liues or liberty or any other by-respects before their countries welfare either dare not or wil not stand stoutly in defence of it in time of war and danger they deserue no lesse punishment then the former seeing that as they are open oppugners so these are close vnderminers of the good thereof And therefore the Romans did sharply chasten them in their gouernment as may appear by diuerse examples of the same as first they were noted with this ignominy neuer to eat their meat but standing hereunto they were sworne Nay they were in such hatefull account amongst them Alex. ab Alex. that when Anniball offered the Senat 8000 captiues to be redeemed they refused his offer saying that they were not worthy to bee redeemed that had rather bee taken basely then die honestly valiantly the same Senat dealt more fauourably with the captiues which king Pirrhus tooke for they redeemed them but with this disgrace degrading them from their honors and places vntill by a double spoile they had won their reputation againe L. Calpurnius Piso handled Titius the captaine of his horsemen in Sicilia one who being ouercharged with enemies deliuered his weapons vnto them on this maner Valerius Max. lib. 2. cap. 2. he caused him to go barefooted before the army wearing a garment without seames hee forbad him society with any saue such as were noted with the same fault and from a Generall ouer horsemen he debased him to a common souldior How did the same Senat correct the cowardise of Caius Vatienus who to the end to priuiledge himselfe from the Italick war cut off all the fingers of his left hand euen they proscribed his goods and cast him into perpetuall prison that that life which he refused to hazard in defence of his countrie hee might consume in bondage and fetters Fulgosius saith Lib. 2. cap. â— that among the Germanes it was so vnhonourable a part to loose but a shield in the war that whosoeuer had happened to doe so was suspended both from the place of common councill and from the temples of religion insomuch that many as he reporteth killed themselues to auoid the shame The people called Daci punished cowards on this sort they suffered them not to sleepe but with their heads to the beds feetward besides by the law they made them slaues and subiects to their owne wiues what viler disgrace could there be then this Plu. Agefilaus And yet the Lacedemonians plagued them more shamefully for with them it was a discredit to marrie in the stock of a coward any man might strike them lawfully and in their attire they went with their clothes rent and their beards halfe shauen Thus are all kind of traitors continually punished of the Lord by one means or other and therefore let vs learne to shun treason as the vilest and the detestablest thing in the world CHAP. IIII. Of such as haue murdered their rulers or Princes ZImri captaine of halfe the chariots of Elah King of Israel conspired against his Lord All this whole chapter in regard of murder belongeth to the sixt commandemâ—nt 1. Kâ—ng 16. as hee was in Tirza drinking till hee was drunke in the house of Arza his steward and came vpon him suddainely and smote him till hee died and possessed the kingdome in his roome Howbeit herein he was the Lords rod to punish the house of Baasha yet when the punishment was past the Lord threw the rod into the fire for he inioied the crown but seuen daies For all Israell detesting his fact made Omri king ouer them who besieged him in Tirza and droue him inro that extremity that hee went into the pallace of the kings house and burnt himselfe and the house with fire 2. Kin. 12.21 Iozachar the sonne of Shimeah and Iehozabod the sonne of Shomer came to no better end for murdering Iehoash King of Iuda for Amaziah his sonne after the kingdome was confirmed vnto him caused them both to bee put to death But their children hee slew not 2. King 14.5 according to that which is written in the book of the law
The fathers shal not be put to death for the children nor the children for the fathers but euerie man shall beare his owne sinne 2. King 15. Neither did Shallum that slue Zacharia king of Israel prosper any better for he raigned but one month in Samaria wheÌ„ Menahim the sonne of Gadi rebelled against him and slew him as he had done his maister Amon the sonne of Manasseh was slaine by his owne seruants but the Lord stirred vp the people of the land to reuenge his death to kill all them that had conspired against their king But to let passe the holy histories of the sacred scripture wherein euer after any treason the Holy-ghost presently setteth down the punishment of traitors as it were of purpose to signifie how the Lord hateth all such rebels that rose vp against his owne ordinance Let vs consider a little the consequents of these in prophane yet credible authors and applie them vnto our purpose Iâ—lian lib. 1. Archelaus King of Macedonia had a mignion called Cratenas whome he loued most entirely but he againe required him not with loue but with hatred and stretched all his wits to enstall himselfe in his kingdome by deposing and murthering him which though he accomplished yet his deserts were cut short by the vengeance of God for he continued not many daies in his roialtie but he was serued with the same sauce that he had made Archelaus before him to tast of euen betraied and murdered as he well deserued Ludouicus Sfortia to the end to inuest himselfe with the dukedome of Millain spared not to shed the innocent blood of his two nephewes the sonnes of Galeachus togither with their tutors and one Francis Calaber a worthy and excellent man But the Lord so disposed of his purposes that he in stead of obtaining the kingdome was taken prisoner by the king of France so that neither hee nor any of his offspring enioyed that which he so much affected When Numerianus was to succeed Carus his father in the Empire Phil. Melanct. chron lib. 3. Arrius Axer his father in law to the end to translate the Empire vnto himselfe entred a conspiracie and slew his sonne in law that nothing mistrusted his disloialty But the Pretorian army vnderstanding the matter discharged Arrius and elected Dioclesian in his roome who laying hold vpon his competitor laid an action of treason to his charge and put him to death in the sight of the multitude Theodericke and Fredericke conspired against their owne brother Thurismund king of the Visigothes Chron. Sigebert to the intent to succeed him in his kingdome And albeit that nature reclaimed them from the act yet they slew him without all compassion But after thirteene yeres raigne the same Theodericke was requited by his other brethren with the same measure that hee before met to his brother Thurismund And so though vengeance slept a while yet at length it wakened Aelias Antonius Gordianus the third Emperour of Rome Phil. Melanct. chron Aventin lib. 2. though so excellent a young prince that hee deserued to be called the Loue and Iewell of the world yet was hee slaine by one promoted by himselfe to high honour called Philip Arabs when hee was but two and twentie yeere old after whose decease this Philip got himselfe elected Emperour by the band confirmed by the Senat. Ingratitude punished All which notwithstanding after fiue yeeres Decius rebelled and his owne souldiers conspired against him so that both he at Verona and his sonne at Rome were slaine by them about one time Aâ—entin lib. 2. After the death of Constantine the Great his three sonnes deuiding the Empire betwixt them succeeded their father Constantine the eldest had for his share Spaine France the Alpes and England Constance the second held Italy Africa Graecia and Illiricum Constantine the younger was king and Emperour of the East But ambition suffered them not to enioy quietly these their possessions for when the eldest being more proud and seditious thâ—n the other not content with his alotted portion made warre vpon his brother Constance his prouinces and stroue to enter Italy hee was slaine in a battell by Aquileia when he was but fiue and twentie yeere old by which meanes all the prouinces which were his fell to Constance and therewithall such a drowsinesse and epicurisme for want of a stirrer vp after his brothers death that he fell into the gout and neglected the gouernment of the Empire Wherfore in Auspurge and in Rhetia they created a new Emperour one Magnentius whose life before-time Constance had saued from the souldiers Notable ingratitude punished and therefore his treachery was the greater This Magnentius depriued and slew Constance but was ouercome by Constantine the third brother in Illiricum yet in such sort that the conquerour could not greatly brag for he lost an infinite company of his men and yet missed of his chiefe purpose the taking of Magnentius for he escaped to Lyons and there massacring all that he mistrusted at last growing I suppose in suspition with his owne heart slue himselfe also And so his traiterous ingratefull and ambitious murder was reuenged with his own hands Ritius lib. 1. regib Hispan Victericus betraied Luyba king of Spaine and succeeded in his place seuen yeeres after another traitor slew him succeeded also in his place Mauritius the Emperour was murdered by Phocas togither with his wife fiue of his children he seating himselfe Emperor in his Rome Howbeit traitours and murderers can neuer come to happy ends for as hee had slaine Mauritius so Priscus Heraclianus and Phorius three of his chiefest captaines conspiring against him with three seuerall armies gaue him such an alarme at once at his owne dores that they soone quailed his courage and after much mangling of his body cut him shorter by the head and the kingdome at one blow In the time of Edward the second and Edward the third in England Lanquet one Sir Roger Mortimer committed many villanous outrages in shedding much blood and at last king Edward himselfe lying at Barkley castle to the end that he might as it was supposed enioy Isabell his wife with whom he had very suspitious familiarity After this hee vniustly accused Edmond Earle of Kent of treason and caused him to be put to death therefore and lastly he conspired against king Edward the third as it was suspected for which cause he was worthily and deseruedly beheaded Among this ranke of murderers of kings we may fitly place also Richard the third vsurper of the crowne of England Stow. and diuers others which he vsed as instruments to bring his detestable purpose to effect as namely Sir Iames Tirrell knight a man for natures gifts worthy to haue serued a much better prince then this Richard if he had well serued God and bene indued with as much truth honestie as he had strength wit also Miles Forest Iohn Dighton two villains fleshed
and being demanded what he ailed he halfe asleep answered That his friend Ausanius and his wife whome hee had slaine long agoe summoned him to Iudgement before God vpon which confession he was apprehended and after due examination stoned to death Thus though all witnesses faile yet a murderers owne conscience will bewray him Pipin and Martellus his sonne kings of France enuying prosperity and ease Casp hed lib. 6. cap. 17. fell into diuers monstrous sinnes as to forsake their wiues and follow whores which filthinesse when the Bishop of Tungria reprooued Dodo the harlots brother murdered him for his labour but he was presently taken with the vengeance of God euen a lousie and most filthie disease with the griefe and stinke whereof being mooued he threw himselfe into the riuer Mosa and there was drowned How manifest and euident was the vengeance of God vpon the murderers of Theodoricke hishop of Treuerse Martian Scotus Conrade the author of it died suddenly the souldier that helped to throw him downe from the rocke Hermanus contractus was choaked as he was at supper two other seruants that laid too their hands to this murder slew themselues most desperately About the yeere of our Lord 700 Geilian the wife of Gosbert prince of Wurtiburg Casp Hed. lib. 6. cap. 10. being reprooued by Kilianus for incest for she married her husbands brother wrought such meanes that both hee and his brethren were depriued of their liues but the Lord gaue her vp to Satan in vengeance so that she was presently possessed with him and so continued till her dying day A certaine woman of Millaine in Italy hung a young boy and after deuoured him instead of meat when as she wanted none other victuals and when shee was examined about the crime shee confessed that a spirit persuaded her to doe it telling her that after it she should attaine vnto whatsoeuer she desired for which murder shee was tormented to death by a lingring and grieuous punishment This Arlunus reporteth to haue happened in his time And surely howsoeuer openly the deuill sheweth not himselfe yet hee is the moouer and persuader of all murders and commonly the detector For hee delighteth in mens bloods and their destruction as in nothing more At Winsheime in Germanie a certaine theefe after many â—obberies murders committed by him vpon trauailers and women with child went to the shambles before Easter and bought three calues heads which when he put into a wallet they seemed to the standers by to be mens heads Theat histor Though strange yet not incredible since God can as well turne calues heads into mens as a rod into a serpent or water into blood Whereof being attached searched by the officers and found so indeed hee being examined how hee came by them answered and proued by witnesses that he bought calues heads how they were transformed hee knew not Whereat the Senat amazed not supposing this miracle to arise of naught cast the partie into prison and tortured him to confesse the villany whereof the Lord would haue him detected as hee did indeed and was worthely punished for the same and then the heads recouered their old shapes Another theefe at Tubing betraied his murder robbery by his own sighes 8. Mandat lib. 2 cap. 35. which were so incessant in griefe not of his fact but of his small bootie that being but asked the question he confessed the crime and vnderwent worthy punishment Another murderer in Spaine was discouered by the trembling of his heart for when many were suspected of the murder and all renounced it the iudge caused all their breasts to bee opened and him in whom he saw most trembling of breast hee condemned who also could not deny the fact but presently confessed the same At Isenacum a certaine young man being in loue with a maid not hauing wherewith to maintain her vsed this vnlawfull means he vpon a night slew his host 8. Mandat lib. 2. cap. 35. throwing his body into the seller tooke away all his money and then hasted away but the terror of his owne conscience and the iudgement of God so besotted him that he could not stirre a foot vntill he was appreheÌ„ded At the same time Martin Luther Philip Melancton abode at Isenacum were eie witnesses of this miraculous iudgement who also dealt with the murderer that in most humble and penitent confession of his sins comfort of soule he ended his life By all these exaÌ„ples we see how hard it is for a murderer to escape without his reward Nay rather then he shal go vnpunished sencelesse creatures and his owne soule riseth to giue sentence against him In the yeare of our Lord 1546 Iohn Diazius a Spaniard by birth liuing a student and professor in Paris came first to Geneua and then to Strasbrough and there by the grace of Gods spirit saw his Sorbonicall errors and renounced them betaking himselfe to the profession of the purer religion and the company and acquaintance of godly men amongst whome was Bucer that excellent man who sent him also to Nurnburge to ouersee the printing of a booke which he was to publish Sleid. lib. 17. Whilst Diazius liued at this Nurnburge a citie scituate vpon the riuer Dimow his brother a lawier and iudge lateriall to the inquisition by name Alphonsus came thither and by all meanes possible endeuoured to dissuade him from his religon and to reduce him againe to Poperie But the good man persisted in the truth notwithstanding all his persuasions and threats wherfore the subtile foxe tooke another course and faining himselfe to bee conuerted also to his religion exhorted him to goe with him into Italy where he might doe much good or at the least to August but by the counsaile of Bucer and his friends hee was kept backe otherwise willing to follow his brother Wherefore Alphonsus departed exhorteth him to constancy perseuerance giuing him also foureteeene crownes to defray his charges Now the Wolfe had not ben three daies absent when he hired a rakehell and common butcher and with him flew again to Nurnburge in post hast and comming to his brothers lodging deliuered him a letter which whilest he read the villain his confederate cleft his head in peeces with an axe leauing him dead vpon the floore and so fled with all expedition Howeit they were apprehended yet quit by the Popes iustice so holy and sacred are the fruits of his holinesse though not by the iustice of God for within a while after hee hung himselfe vpon his mules necke at Trent Duke Abrogastes slew Valentinian the Emperour of the West and aduanced Eugenius to the crowne of the Empire but a while after the same sword which had slaine his Lord and maister was by his owne hands turned into his own bowels Mempricius the sonne of Madan the fourth king of England then called Britaine after Brute Lanquet chron had a brother called Manlius
Heraclius hauing raigned Emperour but one yeere was poisoned by his stepmother Martina Zonoras tom 3. to the end to install her owne sonne Heraclon in the crowne but for this cruell part becomming odious to the Senat they so much hated to haue her or her sonne raigne ouer them that in stead thereof they cut off her tongue and his nose and so banished them the city Fausta the wife of Constantine the Great fell in loue with Constantine her sonne in law begotten vpon a concubine Zonoras 3. Annal. Sex Aur. whom when she could not persuade vnto her lust shee accused vnto the Emperour as a sollicitour of her chastitie for which cause hee was condemned to die but after the truth was knowen Constantinus put her into a hote bath and suffered her not to come forth vntill the heat had choaked her reuenging vpon her head his sonnes death and her owne vnchastitie CHAP. XII Of Subiect Murderers SEing then they that take away their neighbours liues doe not escape vnpunished as by the former examples it appeareth it must needs folow that if they to whom the sword of iustice is committed by God to represse wrongs and chastise vices doe giue ouer themselues to cruelties and to kill and slay those whome they ought in duty to protect and defend must receiue a greater measure of punishment according to the measure and quality of their offence Such an one was Saul the first king of Israel who albeit he ought to haue bene sufficiently instructed out of the law of God in his duty in this behalfe yet was hee so cruell and bloody minded as contrary to all iustice to put to death Abimelech the high priest with fourescore and fiue other priests of the family of his father 1. Sam. 22. onely for receiuing Dauid into his house small or rather no offence And yet not satisfied herewith h◠vomited out his rage also against the whol city of the priests and put to the mercilesse sword both man woman and child without sparing any Hee slew many of the Gibeonites who though they were reliques of the Amorites that first inhabited that lād yet because they were receiued into league of amity by a solemne oth and permitted of long continuance to dwell amongst them should not haue bene awarded as enemies nor handled after so cruell a fashion Thus therefore he tyranizing and playing the butcher amongst his own subiects for which cause his house was called the house of slaughter practising many other foul enormities he was at the last ouercome of the Philistims sore wounded which when he saw fearing to fall aliue into his enemies hands and not finding any of his owne men that would lay their hands vpon him desperately slew himselfe The same day three of his sonnes and they that followed him of his owne houshold were all slaine The Philistims the next day finding his dead body despoiled among the carcasses beheaded it and caried the head in triumph to the temple of their god and hung vp the trunke in disgrace in one of their cities to be seene lookt vpon and pointed at And yet for all this was not the fire of Gods wrath quenched for in king Dauids time there arose a famine that lasted three yeeres the cause whereof was declared by God to be the murder which Saul committed vpon the Gibeonites 2. Sam. 21. wherefore Dauid deliuered Sauls seuen sonnes into the Gibeonites hands that were left who put them to the most shamefull death that is euen to hanging Amongst all the sinnes of king Achab and Iezabel which were many and great 1. King 21. the murder of Naboth standeth in the forefront for though hee had committed no such crime as might any way deserue death yet by the subtill and wicked deuise of Iezabel foolish and credulous consent of Achab and false accusation of the two suborned witnesses he was cruelly stoned to death but his innocent blood was punished first in Achab who not long after the warre which hee made with the king of Siria receiued so deadly a wound that hee died thereof the dogges licking vp his blood in the same place where Naboths blood was licked 2. King 9. according to the foretelling of Elias the Prophet And secondly of Iezabel whome her owne seruants at the commandement of Iehu whome God had made executour of his wrath threw headlong out of an high window vnto the ground so that the walls were died with her blood and the horses trampled her vnder their feet and dogs deuoured her flesh till of all her dainty body there remained nothing sauing only her scull feet and palme of her hands Ioram sonne of Iehosaphat king of Iudah being after his fathers death possessed of the crowne and scepter of Iudah 2. Chron. 21. by and by exalted himselfe in tyranny and put to death sixe of his owne brethren all younger than himselfe with many princes of the realme for which cause God stirred vp the Edomites to rebell the Philistims and Arabians to make war against him who forraged his countrey sacked and spoiled his cities and tooke prisoners his wiues and children the yongest only excepted who afterwards also was murdered when he had raigned king but a small space And lastly as in doing to death his owne brethren hee committed crueltie against his owne bowels so the Lord stroke him with such an incurable disease in his bowels and so perpetuall for it continued two yeeres that his very entrails issued out with torment and so died in horrible misery Albeit that in the former booke we haue already touched the pride and arrogancie of king Alexander the Great yet wee can not pretermit to speake of him in this place his example seruing so fit for the present subiect for although as touching the rest of his life hee was verie well gouerned in his priuat actions as a monarch of his reputation might be yet in his declining age I meane not in yeeres but to deathward he grew exceeding cruell not only towards strangers as the Cosseis whome he destroied to the sucking babe but also to his houshold and familiar friends Insomuch that being become odious to most fewest loued hi◠and diuers wrought all meanes possible to make him away but one especially whose sonne in law and other neare friends he had put to death neuer ceased vntill he both ministred a deadly draught vnto himselfe Iustine whereby he depriued him of his wicked life and a fatall stroke to his wiues and children after his death to the accomplishment of his full reuenge Phalaris the tyrant of Agrigentum made himselfe famous to posterity by no other meanes Oros then horrible cruelties exercised vpon his owne subiects inuenting euery day new kinds of tortures to scourge and afflict the poore soules withall In his dominion there was one Perillus an artificer of his craft one expert in his occupation who to flatter and curry fauour with him deuised a new torment
with his sonne but also quite extinguished the Gothicke kingdome in Spaine in this warre and vpon this occasion seuen hundred thousand men perished as hystories record and so a kingdome came to ruine by the peruerse lust of one lecher Anno 714. At the sacking and destruction of Thebes by king Alexander a Thracian captaine which was in the Macedonian army tooke a noble Matron prisoner called Tymoclea whome when by no persuasion of promises he could entise to his lust he constrained by force to yeeld vnto it Plut. in vita Alexand. Sabel lib. 5. c. 6. but this noble minded woman inuented a most witty subtile shift both to rid her selfe out of his hands and to reuenge his iniurie she told him that she knew where a rich treasure lay hid in a deepe pit whether when with greedinesse of the gold he hastened standing vpon the brinke pried and peared into the bottome of it she thrust him with both her hands into the hole and tumbled stones after him that he might neuer find meanes to come forth for which fact she was brought before Alexander to haue iustice who demanding her what she was she answered that Theagenes who led the Thebane army against the Macedonians was her brother Alexander perceiuing the maruellous constancie of the woman and knowing the cause of her accusation to bee vniust manumitted and set her free with her whole family When Cn. Manlius hauing conquered the Gallo-Grecians pitched his army against the Tectosages people of Narbonia towards the Piren mountains amongst other prisoners a very fair womā wife to Orgiagous Regulus was in the custodie of a Centurion that was both lustfull and couetous Liuiu◠lib. 38. This lecher tempted her first with faire persuasions and seeing her vnwilling compelled her with violence to yeeld her body as a slaue to fortune so to infamy and dishonor after which act somewhat to mitigate the wrong he gaue her promise of release and freedome vpon condition of a certaine summe of money and to that purpose sent her seruant that was captiue with her to her friends to puruey the same which hee bringing the Centurion alone with the wronged lady met him at a place appointed and whilest hee weighed the money by her counsaile was murdered of her seruants so she escaping caried to her husband both his money and threw at his feet the villaines head that had spoiled her of her chastitie Andreas king of Hungary hauing vndertaken the voiage into Siria for the recouety of the holy land together with many other kings and Princes committed the charge of his kingdome and family to one Bannebanius Chronica Hungariae a wise and faithfull man who discharged his office as faithfully as hee tooke it willingly vpon him now the Queene had a brother called Gertrude that came to visite and comfort his sister in her husbands absence and by that meanes soiourned with her a long time euen so long till hee fell deadly in loue with Bannebanus lady a faire vertuous woman one that was thought worthie to keepe company with the Queene continually to whome when hee had vnfolded his suit and receiued such stedfast repulse that hee was without all hope of obtaining his desire he began to droupe and pine vntill the Queene his sister perceiuing his disease found this peruerse remedie for the cure thereof shee would often giue him oportunitie of discourse by withdrawing her selfe from them being alone and many times leaue them in secret and dangerous places of purpose that he might haue his will of her but she would neuer consent vnto his lust and therefore at last when hee saw no remedie hee constrained her by force and made her subiect to his will against her will which vile disgracefull indignitie when shee had suffered shee returned home sad and melancholy and when her husband would haue embraced her she fled from him asking him if he would embrace a whore and related vnto him her whole abuse desiring him either to rid her from shame by death or to reuenge her wrong make knowne vnto the world the iniury done vnto her There needed no more spurs to pricke him forward for reuenge he posteth to the court and vpbraiding the Queene with her vngratefull and abhominable trecherie runneth her through with his sword and taking her heart in his hand proclaimeth openly that it was not a deed of inconsideration but of iudgement in recompence of the losse of his wiues chastitie foorthwith hee flieth towards the King his Lord that now was at Constantinople and declaring to him his fact and shewing to him his sword besmeared with his wiues blood submitteth himselfe to his sentence either of death in rigour or pardon in compassion but the good King enquiring the truth of the cause though greeued with the death of his wife yet acquite him of the crime and held him in as much honour and esteeme as euer hee did condemning also his wife as worthy of that which shee had endured for her vnwomanlike and traiterous part A notable example of iustice in him and of punishment in her that forgetting the law of womanhood and modestie made her selfe a baud vnto her brothers lust whose memory as it shall be odious and execrable so his iustice deserueth to be engrauen in marble with caracters of gold Equall to this king in punishing a Rape was Otho the first Albert. Krant lib. 3. for as he passed through Italy with an armie a certaine woman cast her selfe downe at his feet for iustice against a villaine that had spoiled her of her chastitie who deferring the execution of the law till his returne because his hast was great the woman asked who should then put him in mind thereof hee answered This church which thou seest shall be a witnesse betwixt mee and thee that I will then reuenge thy wrong Now when hee had made an end of his warfare in his returne as hee beheld the church hee called to mind the woman and caused her to be fetcht who falling down before him desired now pardon for him whom before she had accused seeing he had now taken her to wife redeemed his iniury with sufficient satisfaction Not so I sweare quoth Otho your compacting shall not infringe or collude the sacred ◠but hee shall die for his former fault and so he caused hi◠be put to death A notable example for them that after they haue committed filthinesse with a maid thinke it no sin but competent amends if they take her in marriage whom they abused before in fornication Nothing inferiour to these in punishing this sin was Gonzaga duke of Ferrara as by this historie following may appear in the yeare 1547 a citizen of Comun Theat histor was cast into prison vpon an accusation of murder whome to deliuer frō the iudgement of death his wife wrought all means possible therefore comming to the captaine that held him prisoner she sued to him for her husbands life
as the earth was corrupted and polluted with abundance of sinne so God sent abundance of water to purge and clense away the filthinesse thereof as at the latter day hee will send fire to purifie and refine heauen and earth from their dregs and restore them to their first and purest estate And thus God reuenged the extortion and crueltie of that age But yet for all this those sinnes were not then so defaced and rooted vp but that they be burnished againe and grown in time to as big a Bulke for euen at this day the greatest part of the world is giuen to practise fraud and deceit and by vnlawfull meanes to encroch vpon others goods which subtleties though they desire neuer so to disguise and cloke yet will they euer bee condemned reputed kinds of theft before God now as some are of greater power and authority than others in the world so answerable to their selues is the qualitie of their sinnes and by consequence the punishment the greater of power the greater theeues and the greater iudgement for if a poor man through pouerty and necessity cutteth a purse of stealeth any other trifle be culpable how much more culpable shall he that is rich bee that vsurpeth the goods of his neighbor Draco the lawgiuer of Athens appointed death to be the punishment of theft Solon mitigated that rigor and punished it with double restitution The Locrians put out his eies that had stolen ought from his neighbour The Hetrurians stoned them to death The Scythians abhorred theÌ„ more than all creatures because they had a communitie of all things except their cups The Vacceians vsed such seuerity towards this kind of men that if one had taken but a handfull of corne he was sure to die for it Marcus Fabius being Censor condemned his own son Buteâ— to death being apprehended for theft Tiberius the Emperor punished a souldior after the same manner for stealing a Peacock in sum there was no CoÌ„monwealth wherin this sin was not highly detested sharply punished except the Lacedemonian where it was permitted and tollerated for their exercise of warlike discipline It was a rash and seuere Theat histor yet as it proued a iust ded of Tamburlaine that mightie tyrant and conqueror of Asia when a poore woman complained to him of one of his souldiors that had taken from her a little milke and a peece of cheese without paiment he caused the souldiors belly to be ripped to see whither shee had falsly accused him or no and finding the milke in his stomacke adiudged him worthy of that punishment for stealing from so poore a woman When Theophilus raigned Emperour in the East there was a certaine souldiour possessed of a very gallant and braue horse which his captaine by all meanes possible sought to get from him Zonar Annal. 3. but he would not in any case part with him wherefore hee put him forth of pay and tooke his horse from him by force and sent him for a present to the Emperour Theophilus now it chanced that this poore souldiour was slaine in the battaile for want of his horse and his wife and children left destitute of succour insomuch that through necessity shee was constrained to flie to Constantionple and to complaine to the Emperour of the iniury done vnto her husband with this resolution entring the citie she met the Emperour riding vpon her husbands horse and catching the horse bridle chalenged him not onely for stealing the horse but also being the cause of her husbands death The Emperour wondering at the womans boldnesse examined her more narrowly and found out the whole practise of that wicked captaine whom he banished presently his Empire and bestowed his possession in recompence vpon the distressed widdow Ibicus the Poet being set vpon by theeues when hee saw that they would not only spoile him of his money but of his life also he cried for help and reuenge to the cranes that flew ouer his head a while after as these murdering theeues sat togither in the market place the same cranes appearing vnto them in the aire they whispered one another in the eare and said yonder flie Ibicus reuengers which though secretly spoken yet was ouerheard so that they being examined and found guiltie were put to death for their paines The like story Martin Luther Luther reporteth touching a trauailer only differing in this that as cranes detected the former so crows laid open the latter Albert. Krantz lib. 10. cap. 7. In the yeare 1384 when as al Saxony was so infested with theeues that no man could trauaile safely in the countrie the Princes calling a councill set downe this order That not only the theeues themselues should be seuerely punished but all that did protect or harbor any of them which decree wheÌ„ as Theodorick countie of Weringrode impugned the body of the councill sent for him and adiudged him to a most cruell and shamefull death Cranth lib. 10. cap. 30. In the year 1410 Henry duke of Luneburge a most iust seuere prince went about to purge his country from all thefts robberies insomuch as the least offence coÌ„mitted in that kind he suffered not to goe vnpunished now it happened as the Duke went towards Luneburge hee sent before him one of his chiefest officers to prouide necessaries against his comming who riding â—â—thout a cloake the weather being cold entreated a ploughman to lend him his cloke till his returne which wheÌ„ the clown refused to do he took it without leaue but it cost him his life for it for the ploughman awaited the dukes comming and directed his complaint vnto him on this maner What auaileth it O noble prince to seek to suppresse the outrage of theeues spoilers when as the chiefest officers dare commit such things vncontrolled as the lieutenant of Tzela hath but now taken froÌ„ memy cloke the duke hearing this complaint considering the cause dissembled his councill till his returne backe from Luneburge vnto the same place where calling for his leiutenant and rating him for his iniury he commanded him to be hanged vpon a tree a wonderfull seueritie in iustice and worthy to be commended for what hope is it to root out small and pettie theeues if we suffer grand theeues to goe vncorrected There is another kind of theft practised of them that be in authority who vnder the title of confiscation assume vnto themselues stollen goods and so much the readilier by how much the value of the things amounteth to more worth an action altogither vniust and contrary to both diuine and humane law which ordaine to restore vnto euery man his own truly he that in steed of restitution with holdeth the good of his neighbour in this manner differeth no more from a theefe than that the one stealeth boldly without feare the other timorously and with great danger and what greater corruption of Iustice can there be then this For who would follow the law vpon a theefe when
for the poor wretch making great shift to borrow that penny returned to her againe and desired her hee might haue the corne but as he paied her the mony the penny fell vpon the ground by the prouidence of God which as shee stretched out her hand to reach it miraculously turned into a serpent and bit her so fast that by no meanes it could bee loosened from her arme vntill it had brought her to a wofull and miserable end Fulgos lib. 2. cap 2. Sergius Galba before hee came to bee Emperour being President of Affrica vnder Claudius when as through penurie of vitailes corne and other food was verie sparingly shared out and deuided among the army punished a certaine souldiour that sold a bushell of wheat to one of his fellowes for a hundred pence in hope to obtaine a new share himselfe in this maner he commanded the Quaestor or treasurer to giue him no more sustinance since hee preferred lucre before the necessitie of his owne bodie and his friends welfare neither suffered hee any man els to sell him any so that he perished with famine and became a miserable example to all the armie of the fruits of that foule dropsie couetousnesse And thus we see how the Lord raigned down vengeance vpon all couetous Vsurers and oppressors plaguing some on this fashion and some on that and neuer passing any but either in this life some notable iudgement ouertakes them either in themselues or their ofsprings for it is notoriously knowne that Vsurers children though left rich yet the first or second generation became alwaies beggers or in the life to come they are throwne into the pit of perdition from whence there is no redemption nor deliuerance CHAP. XLI Of dicers and card plaiers and their theft IF any recreation be allowed vs as no doubt there is yet surely it is not such as whereby wee should worke the dammage and hurt of one another as when by gaming we draw away another mans money with his great losse and this is one kind of theft to vsurpe any mans goods by vnlawfull meanes wherfore no such sports ought to find any place amongst Christians especially those wherin any kind of lot or hazzard is vsed by the which the good blessings of God are contrary to their true and naturall vse exposed to chance and fortune as they tearme it for which cause Saint Augustine is of this opinion concerning them Epist 54. à Maced That the gain which ariseth to any partie in play should be bestowed vpon the poore to the end that both the gamesters aswell the winner as the looser might bee equally punished the one by not carrying the stake being woon the other by being frustrated of all his hope of winning Plaiers at dice both by the Elibertine and Constantinoplitane councell vnder Iustinian were punished with excommunication Can. 79. Can. 50. and by a new constitution of the said Emperor it was enacted that no man should vse dice play either in priuate or publicke no nor approue the same by their presence vnder paine of punishment and bishops were there appointed to be ouerseers in this behalfe to espie if any default was made Cod. li. 3. tit 43. Horace an Heathen Poet auouched the vnlawfulnes of this thing euen in his time Od. 24. lib. 3. Lndere doction scu graeco iubeas trocho seu malis vetita legibus alea. wheÌ„ he saith that dice playing was forbidden by their law Lewis the eight king of France renowned for his good conditions and rare vertues amongst all the excellent lawes which hee made this was one That all sports should bee banished the Commonwealth except shooting whether with long bow or crossebow and that no cards nor dice should either bee made or sold by any to the end that all occasion of gaming might bee taken away Surely it would bee very profitable and expedient for the weale publicke that this ordinance might stand in effect at this day and that all Merchants and Mercers whatsoeuer especially those that follow the reformation of Religion might forbeare the sale of all such paltrie wares for the fault in selling such trash is no lesse than the abuse of them in playing at them for so much as they vpon greedinesse of so small againe put as it were a sword into a mad mans hand by ministring them the instruments not onely of their sports but also of those mischiefes that ensue the same there a man may heare curses as rife as words bannings swearings and blasphmies banded vp and down there men fret themselues to death and consume whole nights in darke and deuillish pastimes some lose their horses others their cloakes a third sort all that euer they are worth to the vndoing of their houses wiues and children and some againe from braulings fal to buffitings from buffets to bloodsheding from bloudsheading to hanging and these are the fruits of those gallant sports Discipu de tempâ—r ser 12. But this you shall see more plainly by a few particular examples In a Towne of Campania a certaine Iew playing at dice with a Christian lost a great summe of money vnto him with which great losse being enraged almost beside himselfe as commonly men in that case are affected he belched out most bitter curses against Christ Iesus his mother the blessed virgin in the midst whereof the Lord depriued him of his life and sence and stroke him dead in the place as for his companion the Christian indeed he escaped sodain death howbeit he was robbed of his wit and vnderstanding Blasphemy li. â— cap. 31. suruiued not very long after to teach vs not onely what a grieuous sinne it is to blaspheame God and to accompany such wretches and not to shun or at least reproue their outrage but also what monstrous effects proceed from such kind of vngodly sports how grieuously the Lord punisheth them first by giuing them ouer to blasphemie secondly to death and thirdly and lastly to eternall and irreuocable damnation let our English gamesters consider this example and if it will not terrifie them from their sports then let them look to this that followeth which if their hearts be not as hard as adamants will mollifie and persuade them In the yeere 1553 neare to Belissan a citie in Heluetia Ioh. Fincel Andreas Muscabus in diabol blasphemiae there were three prophane wretches that plaied at dice vpon the Lords day without the wals of the citie one of which called Vlrich Schraeterus hauing lost much mony and offended God with many cursed speeches at last presaging to him selfe good lucke he burst forth into these termes Mandat 4. Breach of Saboth lib. 1. cap. 35. Mandat 3. Blasphemy lib. 1. cap. 31. If fortune deceiue me now I will thrust my dagger into the very body of God as farre as I can now fortune failed him as before wherefore forthwith he drew his dagger and taking it by the point threw it against
heauen with all his strength behold the dagger vanished away and fiue drops of blood distilled vpon the table before them and without all delay the deuill came in place and carried away that blasphemous wretch with such force and noise that the whole citie was amazed and astonished thereat the other two halfe beside themselues with feare stroue to wipe away the drops of blood out of the table but the more they wiped it the more clearely it appeared the rumour of this accident flew into the city and caused the people to flocke thicke and threefold vnto the place where they found the other two gamsters washing the boord whome by the decree of the Senat they bound with chaines and carried towards the prison but as they passed with them through a gate of the citie one of them was stroken suddenly dead in the midst of them with such a number of lice and wormes creeping out of him that it was both wonderfull and lothsome to behold the third they themselues without any further inquisition or triall to auert the indignation which seemed to hang ouer their heads put incontinently to death the table they tooke and preserued it for a monument to witnes vnto posterity both how an accursed a pastime dicing is and also what great inconueniences and mischiefes grow thereby But that wee may see yet more the vanity mischieuous working of this sport I will report one story more out of the same author though not equall to the former in strangenesse and height of sinne yet as tragicall and no lesse pitifull Iob. â—incel lib. 2. In the yeere 1550 their liued in Alsatia one AdaÌ„ Steckman one that got his liuing by trimming pruning dressing vines this man hauing receiued his wages fell to dice lost all that he had gotten insomuch that he had not wherwith to norish his family so that he fell into such a griefe of mind withall into such paines of the head that hee grew almost desperate withall one day his wife beeing busie abroad left the care of her children vnto him but he tooke such great care of them that he cut all their throats euen three of them whereof one lay in the cradle and lastly would haue hanged himselfe had not his wife come in in the meane while who beholding this pitifull tragedy gaue a great outcry and fell downe dead whereupon the neighbours running in were eie witnesses of this wofull spectacle as for him by law hee was iudged to a most seuere and cruell punishment and all these pitiful euents arose from that cursed root of dice-play Wee ought therefore to learne by all these things that haue bene already spoken to abstaine not only from this cursed pastime but also from extortion robberies deceit guile and other such naughty practises that tend to the hurt and detriment of one another and in place thereof to procure the good and welfare of each one in all kindnes and equitie following the Apostles counsel where he saith Let them that stole steale no more Ephes 4.28 but rather trauaile by labouring with his hands in that which is good that hee may haue wherewith to succour the necessitie of others for it is not enough not to do euill to our neighbour but we are tied to doe him good or at least to endeauour to doe it CHAP. XLII Of such as haue bene notorious in all kind of sinne WEe haue seene by these foreplaced examples These exaÌ„ples of this chapter may be referred to all the commaundements for the most part how heauy the iudgements of God haue beene vpon those that through the vntamednesse of their owne lusts and affections would not submit themselues vnder the holy and mighty will of God but haue countremanded his commandements and withstood his precepts some after one sort and some after another now because there haue beene some so wicked and wretched that being wholly corrupted and depraued they haue ouerflowed with all maner of sinne and iniquitie and as it were maugred God with the multitude and hainousnesse of their offences wee must therefore spend some time also in setting forth their liues and ends as of the most vile and monstrous kind of people that euer were In this ranke wee may place the ancient inhabitants of the land of Canaan an irreligious people void of all feare and dread of God and consequently giuen ouer to all abominable wickednesse as to couiurings witchcrafts and vnnameable adulteries for which causes the Lord abhorring and hating them did also bring them to a most strange destruction for first and formost Iericho the frontier citie of their country being assaulted by the Israelites for bindering their progresse into the countrey were all discomfited not so much by Iosuah his sword as by the huge stones which dropped from heauen vpon their heads and least the night ouerraking them should breake off the small and full destruction of this cursed people the day was miraculously prolonged the sunne made to rest himselfe in the midst of heauen the space of a whole day so these fiue kings hiding themselues in a caue were brought but their necks made a footstoole to the captains of Israel were hanged on fiue trees Semiramis queene of Assyria was a woman of an ambitious spirit Sabell who through her thirst of raigning counterfaited her sexe and attired her selfe like a man to get more authority and reuerence to her selfe shee was the destruction of many thousand people by the vniust warre which the stirred vp besides that shee was a notorious strumpet and withall a murderer of those that satisfied her lust for still as they came from her bed some lay priuily in watch to kill them least they should bewray her villany yea and it is reported that shee was so vile and past shame that shee sollicited her owne soone to commit incest with her who in detestation of her filthinesse raised a power against her and conquering her in one great battaile caused her to be put to death The tyrant Periander vsurped the gouernment ouer Corinth Sabell after he had slaine the principall of the city hee put to death his owne wife to the end to content and please his concubine nay and was so execrable as to lie with his owne mother he banished his naturall sonne and caused many children of his subiects to be gelded finally fearing some miserable and monstrous end and want of sepulchre in conscience of his misdeeds hee gaue in charge to two strong and hardie souldiers that they should guard a certaine appointed place and not faile to kill the first that came in their way and to bury his body being slaine now the first that met them was himselfe who offered himselfe vnto them without speaking any word and was soone dispatched and buried according to his commaundement but these two were encountred with foure other whome hee also had appointed to doe the same to them which they had done to him