all have sinned A worthy Divine of our own doth solidly though briefly state that question viz. Whether man had not died if he had not sinned Or whether death be natural or accidental and doth evidently prove that mans life should have lasted as long as his obedience that man had never fallen into his grave if he had never fallen into transgression Hâ— died not because his nature was subject to corruption but because sin had corrupted his nature If he had not turned from God he had not returned to dust Man was wholly a stranger to death till acquainted with sin If he had continued in a state of innocency he had continued in a state of immortality Though Adam died not actually assoon as he fell yet he presently became mortal and liable to death for immediately upon his fall sentence was passed upon q Gen. 3.19 him Dust thou art and to dust thou shalt return according to that r Gen. 2.17 Some say the Pope hath a book called Taxa camerae Apostolicae shewing the rate of every sin At what rate one may be drunk or swear or keepe an Whore law In the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die As the Malefactour is a dead man in Law when the sentence is pronounced upon him though there be some time between his Condemnation and Execution so was man dead both in the decree and threatning of God when the sentence of death was denounced against him This word death alone implyeth at what rate man may sâ—n Death temporal which is the separation of body and soul death spirituall which is the separation of God and the soul in part and for a time eternal which is everlasting and total perdition from the presence of the Lord and the glory of his power are the rate of sin and the sad fruits that grow on this root of bitterness Sin is the father of death but death like Senacherib's issue will at last destroy its Parent Sin in the body is like the Leprosie in the house which will not out till it be pulled down but when the body of the Saint shall be dissolved that body of death shall be wholly destroyed though there was some respite between it and his actual dissolution Now Magistrates sin therefore must die If you perform but that duty of much difficulty yet of absolute necessity of communing with your own hearts looking somtimes back upon your lives without question you will find beside your original depravation a numberless number of actual provocations I believe the best of you are too like the Egyptian Temple without fair and beautiful but within full of Serpents and Crocodiles Your lives possibly may be unblameable as to the eye of man but are there not seven abominations in your hearts 2 Cause is Physical the corruptibility of mans body Contraria inter se pugnant mutuo se destruunt Gen. 3.19 The second Cause of death is the corruptibility of Magistrates bodies this is the natural cause your bodies are corruptible It s now common to all Creatures mixt of Elements to be resolved into that out of which they were made Contrary qualities will for a time contend and at last destroy each other In the third of Genesis we read mans exodus viz. that he was dust in regard of his original production and shall be dust in regard of his ultimate resolution As the finest garment breedeth a moth and that moth eateth up the garment Physitians have a rule Vltimus sanitatis gradus est morbo proximus As the strongest tree breedeth a Worm and that Worm devoureth the tree So the fairest and strongest bodies breed such diseases as will at last consume them Eliphaz speaking of the highest men assureth us that their foundation is in the dust Now the stability of a building dependeth on the strength of its foundation Job 4.19 The Church is therefore immoveable because Christ her foundation is invincible Matth. 16.18 but our natural foundation being in the dust we cannot hold out long The house of mans body is walled and roofed with Earth and founded upon no better then dust The bodies of Magistrates have the same foundation The Psalmist speaking of a Prince saith Psal 146.4 that he returneth to his Earth As if his body could challenge no alliance to or propriety in any thing but Earth L. Cur. and Plut. in vit It is His earth Alexander the Great being wounded at the siedge of an Indian City said I have been told I am the Son of God but I see now I am liable to wounds and death as well as others 3. The supernatural cause of death is the appointment of Heaven It is appointed for all men once to die Heb. 9 27. 3 The Metaphysical cause is God's decree Some men yea most in the World die twice the second death hath power over them but all must die once The exception of one or two that were translated and of them that shall be found alive at the comming of Christ The greatest Landlords are but Tenants at God's will in these houses of clay will not make void this general rule Magistrates that Execute the Statute-law of men die by a standing Law of God When God is pleased to give sickness a warrant under the great Seal of Heaven it quickly executeth its Office and turneth men into Earth It is thus ordered in God's high Court that Judges and Justices who now sit on the Bench shall die and appear at his Bar. The Turkish Historian observeth that when the great Bassaes are feasting oftentimes there commeth a Messenger by order from the great Sultan and casteth a black Mantle over them and they are presently forced to submit to strangling So the proudest Potentates in the midst of their mirth are often surprized by a sudden distemper commissionated by God and sent to their long homes Vse by way of Inference that nothing can free from death I shall now draw some Inferences from the Doctrine First If Magistrates are mortal observe hence deaths prevalency and power above all the Priviledges and Prerogatives of nature Lib. 5. in conclusion of cap. ult It is a memorable Speech of Sir Walter Rawleigh Though God who loveth men is not regarded yet death which hateth men is quickly obeyed O mighty death O eloquent death whom no man could advise or perswade thou canst prevail with Take notice from hence that nothing in this World can priviledge a man against the arrest of death 1. Strength cannot First strength cannot all the strength and power which the gods have cannot free them from death Magistrates have civil strength as they are Magistrates the Command of whole Counties Kingdoms yea Empires in this respect it is that Magistrates are called Å¿ Tiâ—us 3.1 Principalities and Powers yet death hath power over them that hath power over others Alexander and Cesar that Conquered Countries and Kingdomes were conquered by
Claudian of Pomp. Mag. Cyrus therefore did fitly cause this Epitaph to be engraven on his tomb O man whosoever thou art that shalt come hither know that I am great Cyrus that first erected the Persian Monarchy therefore envy me not this little Earth that now covereth my body From it you may learn That your greatest care should be to fit your self for your last hour your main work is to doe your last act well The Roman Gladiators appointed to death were very solicitous how they should contrive their bodies so as that they might fall handsomely and die modestly Your business is so to furnish your soul that you may die piously Å¿ Hujusmodi comparandae sunt opes quae simul cum naufragio enatent to get such riches as will swim out with you in a shipwrack to be t Luke 22.21 rich towards God u Jam. 2.5 to be rich in faith to be rich * 1 Tim. 6.18 19. in good works Alas how poor is that 〈◊〉 who hath no other riches then what are at the courtesie of the thief moâ—â— and death hereby you will lay up a good foundation against the time to come and lay hold on eternal life It will shew you how absolutely necessary an experimental knowledge of a crucified Christ is to a dying Christian that no weapon is more requisite for us to have and use when we enter the lists and encounter with our last enemy then the shield of faith O how cheering and comforting to a dying body will the warm blood of the Lord Jesus be being applied by a true lively faith to the soul He and he only may look on the King of terrours without fear that hath first looked on the King of Saints with the eye of faith It will acquaint you that a saving work of grace must be wrought upon the heart before death can be a passage to the weight of glory A Painter may paint fire but he cannot paint heat A person civillized may attain to the outward actions but cannot to the inward affections of a sanctified Christian That all the godliness of an unregenerate man will die with him That the lamp of profession which shineth gloriously whilst a man liveth if it be not fed from oyl in the vessel true grace in the heart a renewed nature the image of God stamped on the soul it will go out in a stink when he dieth and not advantage him at all And therefore Christians should not like some Tradesmen live altogether upon their credit with others but labour to find some testimony within them that there is a real change wrought upon them It will tell you that it highly concerneth you to be laborious for your soul for your Saviour now you live because you must rest when you die That you should be much in thinking highly of God in speaking humbly to God in acting vigorously for God * 1 Cor. 15. ult That you should abound more and more in the work of the Lord. Saints must not * Josh 10.12 13. Falsi illi sunt qui diversissimas res expectant ignaviae voluptatem praemia virtutis Salust Non incepisse sed perfecisse virtutis est Aug. ad fratr in erem like Joshua's Moon stand still much less like Crabs goe backward no not like the Snail creep forward but like the Sun rejoyce to run his race The path of the just must be like the shining light that shineth brighter and brighter to perfect day Prov. 4.18 Truth of grace is ever followed with growth in grace though perfection be the honour and reward onely of the Saints in Heaven yet it is the desire and endeavour of the Saints on earth That you should persevere and encrease both by your pattern and precept in discouraging the bad and encouraging the good That you should improve all opportunities employ every talent your honour riches power life health strength relations interests all you have are or can be to the utmost in his service and for his for glory who I hope hath loved you and washed you in his blood Gen. 47.6 Pharaoh would have active men to be his servants the great King of heaven is a pure act and he loveth most and liketh best those servants that are most active for him Hereby you will please the most high God though hereby you will displease prophane men The world indeed whom the Spirit of God compareth to e 2 Pet. 2. ult His speech savoured more of wit then grace who counselled his friend not to come too nigh unto truth lest his teeth should be beaten out with its heeles dogs if a man go softly will be quiet but if he ride a pace in the way to heaven they will bark exceedingly yea and bite if they can do but hinder their progress in sin and like waters stopt at a bridge they will roar and make a noise to purpose But surely the favour of God will bear up the heart against all the anger of men Those persons which the wicked besmear with calumny and those actions which ungodly men speak of with scorn and contempt God will entertain with an Euge and reward with glory f Matth. 25.21 Well done good and Faithfull servant thou hast been faithful over a few things I will make thee ruler over many Cities enter thou into the joy of thy Lord. Sir My hearts desire and prayer to God for Rickmersworth is that it might be saved And I hope the Divine providence wil ere long put a greater price into your hands then ever yet you had wherein you may manifest your fear of his Majesty your zeal for his glory your hatred of iniquity and your real love to the place of your Nativity which that you may faithfully discharge at this day and comfortably account for at the last day and that you and yours 2 Cor. 5.1 when these earthly houses of your tabernacles shall be dissolved may have a building of God an house not made with hands but eternall in the Heavens shall be the prayer of him whose desire is to be Rickmersworth June 1. 1657. Your faithful servant in the work of your faith GEORGE SWINNOCK The GODS Die like MEN OR MAGISTRATES are Mortall Psal 82. v. 6 7. I have said Ye are gods and all of you are children of the most High But ye shall die like men and fall like one of the Princes ONe a Ambr. Offic. lib. 1. cap. 32. of the Fathers resembleth the whole Bible to the visible Heavens wherein saith he the Psalms are like the Sun whose beams shine brightly and rays warm comfortably An English Divine compareth all the Scriptures to the body of Man Luther calleth them parva biblia summarium utriusque testamenti and the Psalms to the heart the most Pathetick part the seat and center of sweet affections Nay as one observeth the very Turks that disclaim both Old and New Testament in general yet will swear
as solemnly by the Psalms of David as by the Alchoran of Mahomet But what need have we of the testimony of men when God is pleased to give such large witnesse in the Gospel to this book of Psalms In which the Psalms are quoted above sixty b Leighs hist p. 35. times The Apostle calleth them spirituall c Colos 3.16 songs both because they were inspired by the holy Spirit of God and because they are instrumental to spiritualize mens affections and also because they do sute with mens spirits they are so penned that every man may think they speak de se in re sua of himself and to his own condition * Quia reges quicunque potestate praediti sunt immensam sibi licentiam fastu excoecati ut plurimum indulgent denunciat Propheta reddendam esse rationem summo judici qui omnem mundi celsitudinem supereminet Calvin argu Psal 82. This 82 Psalm containeth a severe reprehension of superiours for their ungodly oppression of inferiours The Text presenteth you with their Majesty and with their Mortality In Verse 6. They are gods and children of the most High there is there Majesty In Verse 7. They die like men and fall like Princes there is their Mortality Plautus telleth us concerning Hercules that he was the son of uJpiter and so immortal and the son of Amphitrus and so mortal The former Verse speaketh that Ye are the sons of God thereby ye seem to be immortal but the latter pronounceth plainly that Ye shall die like men and therefore it is apparent ye are mortal In Verse 6. Ye are exalted as high as Heaven I have said Ye are gods In the 7. v. Ye are debased as low as Earth But ye shall die In ver 6. How beautiful are your features how Evangelical are your faces Nay how God-like are your looks I have said Ye are gods In the 7. when the other side of the Picture is turned what hoary heads what heavy hearts what quivering lips what trembling loyns what dying flesh what decaying spirts have ye ‖ Vt caeteri omnes natura sunt obnoxii morti quidem aeternae damnationi si in delictis adversus conscientiam ad extremum usque perseverent ita scitote vos quoque iisdem legibus subjectos esse Moller in loc Ea cogitatio de fragilitate vestra de poenis secuturis commone facere excitare vos debebat ut in procuratione muneris vestri majore diligentia studio versaremini Idem ibid. And it is not without cause that the Spirit of God subjoyneth your humanity to your Deity your Mortality to your Majesty as a means to prevent sin and as a curbe to restrain you from making your Lust your law or your Will the rule of all your actions In the words we have the Mortality of the Magistrate namely from the seventh Verse First affirmed Ye shall die like men Secondly amplified and fall like the Princes Thirdly confirmed surely and certainly as surely as ye live like gods so surely ye shall die like men Certe sicut homo Calvin Moller Trem. legunt I have formerly in this place upon the like occasion from the 6. v. discovered the dignity of * At aâ— Assize holden at Hertford for that County upon the 2. day of August 1653. Magistracy I shall now proceed to the frailty of the Magistrate My work now will be like Philip's youth to mind you that ye are but men And I hope there is none here of the Persian Monarchs humour into whose presence none might come cloathed with d Est 4.2 sackcloth nor like Lewis the 11th of France who would not permit the word Death to be named in his Court For all the Dish I have to entertain you with at this time is a Deaths head Neither shall I garnish that with the flowers of humane eloquence as knowing there is no need of it The deformed Harlot wanteth colouring but the Virgin truth of God is most beautiful in her native dress And there is little good by it A painted window keepeth out the light a paintâ—d fire will not burn a painted sword will not cut and if ever the a Jer. 23.29 fire of Scripture warm b Luke 24.32 the heart or this c Ephes 6.17 sword of the spirit wound the Conscience to conviction and conversion it must be drawn out of the gawdy scabbard of mans wisedom I shall first speak to the Explication of the words and then draw the Obsâ—rvation from the words But i.e. For all the glorious titles wherewith ye are invested as gods amongst mens and the administration of justice wherewith ye are intrusted as my Lieutenants on Earth yet for all this Ye shall d Ac si diceret quum instructi sunt potestate ad regendum mundum non exuisse tamen naturam ut mortales esse desinerent Calv. in loc die though your names are Divine your natures are but Humane Surely i.e. Though ye should flatter your selves because ye are gods ye shall ever live yet know certainly that ye are but men and must die All God's words are true and sure but on some there is affixed a special note of certainty because of mans especially great persons extraordinary infidelity Though ye should neither regard it nor provide for it as if it were a thing of small consequence or little concernment Yet e Job 17.14 ye may say to corruption Thou art my father and to the worm Thou art my brother and sister Ye shall die like men Your souls and bodies that have been joyned together like husband and wife shall be parted asunder Death will loose all bands untie all knots even this conjugal one 'twixt soul and body which is the strongest of all e Sicut plebeius homo Tremel Like men i. e. Like ordinary men like Adam saith Ainsworth Though in your lives ye are like Saul higher by the head and shoulders then the people yet in your deaths they and you meet are equal Two things ye do as men 1. Ye sin as ye are f 1 Cor. 3.3 Errare humanum est men to walk as a man is to walk carnally to walk sinfully 2. Ye die as g Psal 9. ult quod sint homines i. e. quod sint miseri infirmi mortales Moll in loc men to know your selves to be men is to know your selves to be mortal And fall like one of the Princes These words have a double Lection and four-fold Construction We read them And fall like one of the h Et sicut quilibet principes cadetis Calv. Qui exquisitissimis tormentis cruciantur Potentes potenter torquebuntur Princes others read them And ye Princes shall fall like one For their four-fold Construction 1. Some understand them of a fall into Hell So several of the Ancients take them like the Prince of the Divels this is true of evil Magistrates death to them is but the trap-door to
death Magistrates have natural strength as they are men but death trippeth up the heels and layeth on their backs the most strong and valiant t Job 21.23 24. Plato saith that Marrow is not only the sourse of generation but the seat of life One dyeth in his full strength being wholly at ease and quiet His breasts are full of milk and his bones are moistned with marrow Put the case that a man be in the zâ—nith and height of his estate when his health is most pure and his strength is most perfect when he hath the choicest complexion in his face and soundest constitution in his body when there is most agility in his joynts and most appetite in his stomach yet even then sickness arresteth him at the suit of death haleth his body to the prison of the grave and sendeth his soul to his own place Man at his best estate yea u Psal 39.5 surely every man at his best estate is altogether vanity 2. Riches cannot Luke 16.22 Secondly as the strength so the wealth of Magistrates is insufficient The holy Ghost telleth us that the â—iâ—h man also dyed Men may put riches into the grave with them The Irish have a Proverb What aileth a rich man to die but they will not keep them one moment out of the grave Death like jealousie will not regard any ransome not be content though men would give many gifts Job speaketh supposing that he had dyed Then I had been at rest with Princes that had Gold and filled their houses with Silver It s reported of Cardinal Beauford that when on his death-bed he should say Fie will not death be hired will Money doe nothing if the whole Realm would save my life I am able either by wealth to buy it or by wit to procure it but it could not help him die he did Money is the Monarch of this World but not of the next it can neither stave off sickness nor buy out death 3. Honours cannot Thirdly as neither strength nor wealth so neither can the honours of men help them against this last enemy How have the highest men on Earth been laid as low as the Earth by it Man in honour doth not abide Psal 49.12 His duration is sometimes the lesse because his reputation is so great Job speaketh excellently Where is the dwelling place of Princes who shall declare his way to his face Job 21.28.31 This person is so high that none dareth tell him of his wicked practices Luther complaâ—neth that in his time Magistraâ—es Elati superbia volebant esse ipso verbo superiores Kings saith one have Clouds in their brows as well as Crowns on their heads they would be adored like gods and not reproved like men Yet these men which are so high that none must speak to them death will be sure to speak with them Yet he shall be brought to the grave and remain among the Tombes Job 21.32 There is much weight in that word Yet i. e. though he be a Prince so proud that he scorneth to hear mens reproofs yet he shall be forced to listen to death's language though his dwelling place was stately amongst men yet he shall be brought to an homely one amongst Worms Yet he shall be brought to his grave and remain amongst the Tombes When Michael Paleologus Emperour of Constantinople sent for a present to Nugas the Scythian Prince certain royal Robes and rich Ornaments he set light by them saying Nunquid calamitates morbos aut mortem depellere possent It was a notable speech of the King of Persia who visiting Constantine at Rome was shewn the rare Edifices rich Coffers and great Honours of the Emperour Mira quidem haec sed video ut in Persia sic Romae hommes moriuntur If Magistrates are mortal 2. Vse by way of Inference of the Magistrates folly how much folly is in him that laboureth most for his body The truth is there is a secret conceit in the hearts of great persons who have the World at will that they shall not die it is not vox oris but it is vox cordis they still think of a longer life though they have lived never so long they can see death in other mens brows but not in their own bosomes w Psal 49.11 How many be too like that Duke d'Alva who bâ—ing asked whether he had observed a late eclipse of the sun answered That he had so much business to doe on earth that he he had no time to look up to Heaven so they spend so much time on their dyiâ—g bodies that they can spare none for their never dying souls Their inward thought is that their houses shall continue for ever and their dwelling places to all generations Hence it commeth to passe that they work altogether for this world so they have Earth in their hands they care not though they have nothing of Heaven in their hearts Their endeavour is to live in the favour of great men and not to die in the feare of the great God How many great Persons spend their time as Seneca speaketh inter pectinem speculum occupati between the Comb and the Glasse and not between Scripture and Prayer their labour is to go finely to fare deliciously to live honourably to prosper outwardly but not to honour God fruitfully to discharge that trust which is committed to them faithfully or to work out their own Salvation diligently There is a story of a fat man riding through Rome on a lean horse it was demanded how it came to passe that he being so exceeding fat his horse was so lean he answereth Ego meipsum stabularius equum curat I mind my self but my Groom looketh after my Horse Too many God knoweth have fat bodies and lean souls their outward man is flourishing their inward man is perishing and the reason is they themselves regard their bodies but they say they trust God or more truly the Divel with their souls Prince Absalon is a fit resemblance of such persons whilst he lived he provided somewhat against the time he must die But what doth he provide only a place for his body to rest in The Spirit of God takes special notice how provident this ambitious youngster was for his body 2 Sam. 18.18 Now Absalon in his life time had reared up for himself a Pillar But he never thinketh of his precious soul where that might rest when it left his body How foolish and faulty are many Magistrates in this particular whilst they live they take special care that when they die their bodies be in such a vault interred with such a company of mourners attended that such a Monument be eâ—ected but take no care that when their bodies go to the house appointed for all the living their souls might go to that house which is not made with hands but eternal in the Heavens They little consider that when their Friends are weeping over
their bodies the Divels may be laughing over their souls O unspeakable folly to make much of the Cabinet and disesteem of the Jewel to trim the Scabbard and let the sword rust like Shimei to seek their servants and lose themselves Man in regard of his body claimeth kinred with the beasts of the field in regard of his soul with the Angels of Heaven and yet this beastial part is pampered whilst the Angelical is starved It is storied of Archimides that when Syracuse was taken by the Romans he was secure in his Closet Plut. in vit Marcell drawing circles with his Compasse in the dust and was then and there slain So these men ordinarily leave the Earth when they are most busie about it How did the fool in the Gospel promise himself a long and a comfortable life Soul take thine ease Luke 12.20 thou hast goods laid up for many years If he had said Soul take thine ease thou hast a treasure in Heaven or thou hast Christ who will doe thee good to eternity it had been somewhat like but thou hast goods saith he Alas how irrational is this you may assoon satiate or content corpus aura as animam auro the body with wind as the soul with wealth But I beseech you consider he that thought then to begin to take his ease is forced that night to make his end He was but a little before flourishing exceedingly his mind full of mirth his heart full of hope and his soul full of expected satisfaction But on a sudden he is departed and all his high hopes frustrated If you ask me whither he is gone his estate to men his body to the grave his soul to Hell Poor wretch little did he dream when he was asleep in sin How many die like those that are stung of the Tarantula a viper in Italy that even diâ— laughing though they are going to the place where is nothing but weeping of going from a bed of feathers to a bed of fire But too too many like him go from carnal pleasures to eternal pains Take notice how secure this rich fool was and yet his security was but the forerunner of his future calamity When the Wind lyeth then the great rain falleth When the Air is most quiet then commeth the great Earth-quake When Sisera was asleep then his Head was nailed to the ground Pharaoh in his Chariot Belshazzar in his bowls Haman at his banquet Herod in his robâ—s are secure but not safe when they least looked for it death surprized them When they cryed peace peace then sudden destruction seized on them as travail on a woman with child 1 Thes 5.3 which they could not escape Ambitious like the Jay They are pruning and priding themselves on the top of some high tree when suddenly a shot from a Fowler tumbleth it down dead to the Earth Covetous like Ants How busie are they like a company of Ants about white and yellow Earth when death like the feet of the next passenger crusheth them to pieces Voluptuous like the little Fish that swims merrily down the silver streams of Jordan till they empty themselves into the dead Sea and there perish The worlds greatest darlings are in no better condition then the Bull that goeth to be sacrificed with a Garland on his head and Musique before him when suddenly he feeleth the stroke of the murdering Axe and is knockt down dead Job 21. ver 7. to 13. They spend their days in wealth and end their days in endless wo. I shall conclude this Use with Job's Character of this rich sinner who flourishing for a time and perisheth to eternity The wicked live become old yea are mighty in power They send forth their little ones like a flock and their children dance They spend their days in wealth and in a moment go down to Hell Vse by way of advice Prepare for your dying hour Isa 38.6 Doe it speedily Exam. Are Magistrates mortall Let me then in the fear of the Lord beseech you that are Magistrates now presently to make preparation for the hour of your dissolutions My counsel shall be with a little alteration in the words of the Prophet Isaiah to King Hezekiah Now set your house in order for you must die I must tell you all the time ye have is little enough for a work of this weight If Seneca can say all a mans life is little enough for Philosophy etiamsi a paeritia usque ad longissimos humani aeviterminos vita protendatur though the silver-wyre of life should be drawn out to the longest thread I am sure then that all your time is little enough for Christianity Ye have a great work to doe a great journey to go and a little time will not be sufficient Make much of time saith Aquinas especially in the weighty matters of Salvation O how much would he that now lyeth frying in Hell rejoyce if he might have the least moment to get God's favour in The sun of your lives Blessed be God is not yet let the gate of mercy is not yet shut I request you before the bridge of divine grace be drawn in this day of God's patience mind the things that concern your eternal peace Austin professeth he would not be an Atheist one quarter of an hour for a world because he did not know but in that time God might cut asunder his thread of life and so let him drop into Hell Let me perswade you and the good Lord prevail with your hearts to set your selves speedily about this necessary work Delays are dangerous especially in a business of infinite concernment Mat. 24.44 Ideo latet unus dies ut observentur omnes How earnestly doth our blessed Saviour exhort you to be always ready because ye know not at what hour your Master will call you Cesar would never acquaint his Souldiers with the time of removing his Campe that they might be always prepared to march Consider that on this moment dependeth eternity Petrach relateth an answer of one who being invited to dinner a day after said A mu tis annis crastinum non habui Quam serum est tunc vivere incipere cum desinendum est Sen. ad Paulin cap. 4. God hangeth heavy weights on weak wyers And how dolefully have many complained and mournfully lamented their losse of time when it hath been too late That story of a great Lady of our land which several speak of may awaken secure onâ—s when on her death-bed she dreadfully screeched out A World of Wealth for an inch of time A world of wealth for an inch of time And I have read of Chrysorius a man as full of wickedness as of wealth when he commeth to die cryeth out Inducâ—as usque ad mane Domine Truce Lord but till morning Truce Lord but till morning and with these words he breathed out his last Alterius perditio tua sit cautio Let that which was a murdering piece to
others be a warning piece to thee Do but think should God permit a danmed sinner that is now in Hell to come and sit but one hour amongst you under the Gospel of the Kingdome of Heaven how highly would he prize this present opportunity how greedily would he embrace every tender of mercy how eagerly would he catch at every word of comfort how heartily would he close with Christ upon the hardest terms I am perswaded ye should behold him with such streams of tears watering his cheeks as if he were dissolved into a fountain And will ye trifle away such golden seasons and waste such precious advantages which others would purchase with worlds if they had them to give nay which ye your selves would redeem hereafter with your heart blood but shall not be able O therefore now prize time Quare O miser non omni hora ad mortem te disponis cogita te jam mortuum quem scis necessitate moriturum mors enim inopiae non miseretur divitias non reveretur non sapientiae non moribus non aetati parcit nisi quod senibus mors est in januis juvenibus vero in insidiis Bern. before you come to enter upon eternity Be serious in your preparation for death And yet a little further to presse this needful duty upon your spirits O that if it were the will of God I had the tongue the understanding the affections of an Angel how willingly would I improve them to the utmost and serue them up to the highest pitch in exhorting you to this weighty and absolutely necessary work This this is the one thing necessary this this is the whole duty of man Mors est aeternitatis ostium this is the great end for which ye were born and the great errand for which ye were sent into the World It s a work of infinite weight and a businesse of everlasting concernment I speak to you that are great men and I assure you from the great God that ye must die and that ye must come ere long to doe that which ye never did before nor never shall doe again even this to throw your last cast for eternity Your everlasting weal or woe joy or sorrow pleasure or pain dependeth on your well dying As Scipio said In bello non licet bis peccare So may I of death as he of War in death there is no erring twice he that erreth once errs for ever Assoon as ever your souls launch out of your bodies they sail to the Ocean of eternity Ca yl on Job That we transgresse the laws of living so often is the aggravation of iniquity on all men but that we can transgresse the laws of dying but once is the seal of misery on most men How pathetically doth God wish that man would mind this real wisdome Deut. 32.29 Vid. 1 Tim. 6.17 18 19. Pro. 19.20 O that my people were wise then would they consider their latter end or that they would consider their latter end It seemeth to me one of the dolefullest sayings in the book of God and by the way let men guilty of bribery or oppression think of it He that getteth goods and not by right Jer. 17.11 shall leave them in the midst of his days and in his latter end shal be a fool To be a fool in the judgment or account of Scripture while a man liveth speaketh his condition very dangerous but to be a fool when he dyeth speaketh his estate altogether desperate For a Vessel to leak much in the harbour is sad but O how sad is it for the Vessel to leak in the main in the Ocean It was Austin's prayer Hic ure seca ibi parce Lord launce me burn me here but spare me hereafter And the desire of Fulgentius Domine hic da patientiam postea indulgentiam But it is very emphatical and observable in the fore-quoted place that the holy Ghost speaketh In his latter end he shall be a fool He was a fool before in the estimation of God and in the opinion of godly men but now in his latter end he is a fool in the conviction and acknowledgement of his own conscience and now he will think O what a fool was I who was ever dying never to live to my Saviour to my soul What a fool was I to respect so exceedingly my vile transitory body and to neglect so unworthily my precious immortal soul What a fool was I to make so much provision for a little time and so little preparation for eternity What a fool was I to be so diligent about Earth and so negligent about Heaven so careful about perishing decaying vanities and so slothful about reall enduring felicities Pliny observeth of the Mole that though it be blind all its time of living yet when it commeth to die Oculos incipit aperire moriendo then it seeth Men that whilst they live are blind in the worth of their souls insensible of the weight of their sins ignorant in the severity of divine justice incredulous about the necessity of the new birth when they come to die their eyes are opened and they see all these things cleerly Lam. 1.9 Mumb. 24.20 and O then what a doleful screech will that soul give that stands quivering upon the pale lips of a dying man ready to fly to its eternal home and seeth nothing before it but a bottomless boundless Ocean of the wrath of God in which it must swim naked for ever ever ever My Lords and Gentlemen I beseech you attend diligently that this Sermon which is a funeral Sermon in regard of its subject may be a resurrection Sermon in regagd of its effect Who knoweth what a day yea what a great bellied hour may bring forth I can assure you this Sermon is a child of some prayers yea and of some tears therefore I hope it shall not perish If I speak not the word of God the mind of Christ and the meaning of the Spirit cast back my words as dung in my face But if I doe hear attentively and practice conscientiously least my counsel rise up in judgement against you at the great and dreadful day of the Lord. In reference to this great duty of preparing for your dying day I shall commend six particulars to your most serious thoughts my prayer shall be that they may all especially the two latter be written in your hearts 1 Execute justice impartially 1. Discharge your trust faithfully the way to have great confidence when ye die is to keep a good Conscience whilst ye live Were Judges and Justices always to live upon Earth there were no such reason for the impartial Execution of justice but God acquainteth you this day that ye must die Heb. 9.27 and after death commeth judgement Judex nuper eram jam judicis ante tribunal Subsistens paveo judicor ipse modo Ye are but Stewards and within a short time ye must give an account of your
a mound of Earth The consideration that ye shall be turned into Earth should dead the Cannons of temptation which Satan shoots against yoir souls 1 Pet. 2.11 Plut. As pilgrims and strangers abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul Lycurgus made the first law that the dead should be buried about the temples intimating thereby that they which are dying should be very religious Nihil facit mortem malam nisi malum quod praecedit vel sequitur Nothing maketh death evil but the evil that goeth before it for without that no evil could follow after it I have read of one that gave a Ring with a deaths head to a young Ruffan upon this condition that he should meditate on it one hour every day for seven days together which he did and through the help of God it wrought a blessed change in him Take a turn or two daily in Golgotha walk often among the Tombs ponder frequently your own frailty it may much quicken you to walk exemplarily Your high places call for holy practices It s esteemed one of King Alphonsus his sayings That a great man cannot commit a little sin I must tell you As Cesar said That Cesar's wife should be without all suspition of fault ye have many following you either to Heaven or Hell in the narrow or broad way ye had need to choose a right path Great mens vices are as seldom unaccompanied as their persons Dives was a great man and a bad pattern and he had many brethren following him to the place of torment Vivitur exemplis potius quà m legibus Mâ—n are led more by the eye then by the ear and follow rather the doings of Magistrates then the sayings of Ministers * Claudian Componitur orbis Regis ad exemplum nec sit inflectere sensus Humanos edicta valent quà m vita regeniûm Sin indeed commeth in at first by propagation Many say to such as Tiberius to Justinus Si tu volueris ego sum Si tu non vis ego non sum but is much encreased by imitation Ye are the heads of the people Numb 7.2 Mich. 3.11 If the head be giddy the body must needs reel Ill humours from the head destroy and consume the vitals in the body Isa 49.23 Ye are the Nurses of the people and our Naturalists observe that what disease Nursts have the Children will partake of Josh 24.15 It is a great praise that Melancthon ascribeth to George Prince of Anhalt His Bed-chamber saith he was Academia curia tenplum And Xenophon of Cyrus that a man might winke and choose among his Courtiers he could not misse of a good man 3. Walk humbly with God Now how will it gall your consciences when ye come to die if ye have been ringleaders in iniquity and not patterns of piety believe it ringleaders in a rebellion will be most severely punished and with those whom ye have made wicked without repentance ye will be made eternally woful Take up the practice of dying Joshua who was going the way of all the Earth I and my house will serve the Lord. Theodosius the Emperour being asked how a Prince might promote good abroad answered By ordering all well at home If ye cannot rule your family well ye are unfit to rule Cities and Counties Let me request you to follow David's pattern I will walk in the midst of my house with a perfect heart until thou come unto me Psal 101.2 or O when wilt thou come unto me lest when ye come to die ye have cause to cry out as she did They made me keeper of others vineyards but mine own vineyard have I not kept Cant. 1.6 Thirdly As your frailty calleth upon you to be faithful in your places holy in your practices so likewise in the third place to walk humbly with God I would have others to have high thoughts of you because Ye are gods but I desire you to have low thoughts of your selves because ye must die like men A Magistrate should be like a star or spire-steeple the higher he is the lesser he should seem to be Pride as one observeth is the shirt of the soul put on first and put off last it is a weed that will grow in the best soil but men that are highest in place are usually highest in spirit It s rare to see a man great in others eyes and little in his own Honour is often the stinking breath of the vulgar which being blown into the bladder of a graceless heart causeth it to swell But here is a Pin in the Text to prick this bladder and take down its swelling Did you but spiritually consider the brittlenesse of your bodies it would abate the swelling of your spirits I should think the evil disposition of your souls and the frail condition of your bodies should keep you low while ye live Alas notwithstanding all your powers places or preferm nts what are ye but clods of clay a little refined earth moving slime enlivened dust breathing ashes Some Naturalists observe of Bees that when they rise and buz on high if you throw dust upon them they will house and be quiet When your thoughts are lifted up on high because of those places in which God hath set you I pray cast some dust on those thoughts rememember ye shall be laid as low as the worms are Abraham was a Prince a great man but how much did this thought humble him Gen. 18.27 Lo I have undertaken to speak unto the Lord who am but dust and ashes I have read of Agathecles King of Sicily that being a potters son he would be always served in earthen vessels to mind him of his original There was one Willigis Bâ—shop of Ments who being son to a Wheelwright caused wheels to be hanged on the walls up and down his Pallace with these words written over them Willigis Willigis Recole unde veneris 4. Act zealously for God Some write of a Bird so light and feathery that it is forced to flie with a stone in its mouth lest the wind should carry it away The truth is men that are high in place are apt to be carried away with the wind of high mindednesse they had need therefore to have earth in their minds I mean their frailty and it may prove through the blessing of Heaven a singular preservative O that you who are Judges and Justices would but take the length of your bodies in the dust where ye must ere long lie and believe that a little dstemper will kill you a little sheet will wind you a little grave hold you little worms feed on you and a little time quite consume you could ye then be great in your own eyes Remember that your remembrance is like unto dust and your bodies are bodies of clay Job 13.12 Fourthly Must ye die and would ye prepare for it then be active for God whilst ye live the serious thoughts of death