will endeavour to discharge his duty by good report and evil report 2. You may observe that goodness it self is hated and truth it self slandered and traduced for in his mouth was found no guile but as Saint John saith he is the way the truth and the life and yet all that malice can invent is thought little enough to be laid on him he must bear in his bosom the reproach of a mighty people and he must endure the contradictions of a wicked generation And therefore what wonder is it if the best King and Governour in the world were he as mild as Moses as religious as King David as upright as Samuel and as bountiful to Gods servants as Nehemiah or if as worthy Preachers as ever trod pulpit were they as faithful as Saint Peter as loving as Saint John and as zealous as Saint Paul should be maligned traduced and slandered for you may assure your selves it is no new thing though a very true thing for the wicked to deal thus with the good and godly at all times But among all the subtil arguments doubtful questions and malicious disputations that the Scribes Christs good deeds inraged the wicked Pharisees and Heredians had with our Saviour Christ which were very many and all only for to intrap him in his speech that they might bring him to his death and not to beget faith in their own hearts that they might attain-to eternal life this conflict in this chapter seemeth to be none of the least for after he had so miraculously healed the poor man that was born blind their malice was so inraged and their rage so furious against him that they excommunicated the poor fellow and thrust him out of their Synagogue for speaking well of him that had done so much good for him or because he would not be so wicked and so malicious as themselves and then gathering themselves together round about Christ they began to question him about his office and very strictly to examine him whether he was the Christ the Messias or not And Our Saviour Christ Christ answereth for the good of the godly that knew their thoughts better then themselves intendeth not to satisfie their desire which was to receive such an answer whereby they might accuse him yet for their instruction that would believe in him he setteth down an institution or an infallible induction whereby both their subtil question was fully answered and his own true servants perfectly expressed and distinguished from them that serve him not in these words My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they follow me Wherein The means ways to save us our Saviour setteth down the means whereby the true Christians are eternally saved in being called justified and sanctified which are the three main steps or degrees whereby we pass from our natural state of corruption unto the blessed state of grace that brings us to eternal glory 1. Called in these words My sheep hear my voice 2. Justified in these words I know them 3. Sanctified in these words They follow me 1. Then the Christians are called to come to Christ in that he saith My sheep hear my voice for as Adam after his transgression never sought for God until God sought for him and said Adam Where art thou So all the children of Adam would never come to Christ if Christ did not call them to come unto him but as wisdom crieth without and uttereth her voice in the streets Prov. 1.20 so doth this wisdome of God Jesus Christ cry Come unto me all ye that are weary and heavy laden and I will ease you and if he did not cry and utter forth his voice his sheep could not hear his voice but God sendeth forth his voice yea and that a mighty voice and as the Prophet David saith The Lord thundered out of heaven Psal 68 33. and the most high uttered his voice And that not onely as he did once unto the Israelites God uttereth his voice two wayes when he delivered his laws on mount Sinai but also to all others whom he calleth and uttereth his voice unto them two special ways 1. To the ears of his people by the mouths of his Prophets 1 To our ears Apostles and Preachers of his holy Word that do continually call and cry unto them to come to hear his voice and to obey his Precepts 2. To the hearts of his servants by the inspiration of his blessed Spirit 2 To our hearts which teacheth them to cry abba Father and perswadeth them to yield obedience to all his heavenly motions And our Saviour saith that his sheep or servants will hear his voice that is both uttered by his servants and inspired by his Spirit and they will neither neglect to hear the preaching of his written Word nor suffocate or choak the inspired Word that is the internal motions of his holy Spirit but they will most readily and willingly hear both these voices My sheep hear my voice howsoever uttered Three things observable For the further and the better understanding of which words you may observe these three things 1. The denomination Sheep 2. Their appropriation my sheep 3. Their qualification hear my voice 1. By Sheep here is understood not those four-footed silly creatures The children of God called sheep in a double respect that by their wooll and lamb and milk and their own flesh are so profitable unto us and by their simplicity are so easie to be kept and are the most innocent among all the beasts of the field but those children of God and true Christians that are called and compared unto sheep in a double respect 1. In respect of Christ that is their Pastour or Shepherd 2. In respect of themselves that are his flock 1. Christ is often called in the Scriptures our Shepherd 1 Grand Shepherd of the sheep Christ the good Shepherd in two respects 1. A lawful entrance into his Office Heb. 5.4 1. By the testimony of his own conscience 2. By an outward approbation and he is set forth unto us in this 10. c. by a double manifestation 1. Of a lawful entrance into his Office 2. Of an absolute performance of his Duties 1. The Apostle saith No man taketh this honour unto himself that is to be the Shepherd over Gods flock and a Priest to teach Gods people but he that is called of God as was Aaron And how was Aaron called 1. By God inwardly by the testimony of his own conscience that tells him the Spirit of God calleth him to such an Office 2. Because a man is not to believe his own private spirit that many times deceiveth us therefore God would have Aaron to take his commission and his ordination from Moses as you may see Exod. 28.1 and as the Lord had formerly said unto Moses that he should be instead of God unto Aaron to call him unto the Priests office And as no man taketh or should
〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 more and above all other his creatures whatsoever And here you must observe also that amongst men as the glory of all Starres or the beauty of all Flowers is not the same when as every Star is not a Phoebus and every Flower is not a Lilly so the love of God doth not appear alike to all men for I love them that love me and I will shew mercy on them that love me and keep my commandements saith the Lord but the ungodly and him that delighteth in wickedness doth his soul abhor And thus not onely the Elect are beloved better then the Reprobates and the Saints better then Sinners but among the very chosen Saints God loveth some better then others for every like loveth his like and therefore God embraceth them with a greater love whom he vouchsafeth to make and findeth them willing and most yielding to be the more like unto himself and so he loveth those that are the better more then those that are less good as the more we excell in Vertue and Goodnesse the more dearly doth God love us so he loved Abraham among the Patriarchs Moses among the Prophets David among the Kings and this beloved Disciple among the Apostles more as it seemeth then any other and so the blessed Virgin whom all generations shall call blessed was highly beloved and loved more then any of all the daughters of men And of this gradation of Gods love S. Aug. saith Omnia diligit Deus quae fecit God loveth all that he made and among them he loveth rather the reasonable creatures and of these he loveth them more which are the members of his Son and most of all his onely begotten Son And this greater love of God to some men more then to others besides those internal graces of Faith Hope Love Patience and the like which he giveth to the Elect Mark 4.11 and not to the Reprobates Quia vobis datum est because it is given to you to know the mysteries of the Kingdome of heaven but to others not because they will not accept of them when they are offered God manifesteth the same to all men by two outward infallible demonstrations 1. The donation of his graces 2. The preservation of their persons For 1. There is no man but might consider how God hath bestowed more excellent gifts and graces on himself 1 God giveth his Gifts and Graces severally and differently then he hath done to many others as either Health or Wealth or Honour or some other gift that the meanest man hath which many others have not or if not yet seeing God out of his greater love to some men more then to others bestoweth on some five Talents when he bestoweth on others but two or but one and maketh some men Princes and others Peasants or indueth some men with Learning and Knowledge when he leaveth others ignorant and foolish and so maketh some men rich when as many others are very poor Why should our eyes be evil because he is good For Cum huic fit misericordia tibi non fit injuria when as herein he doth but shew mercy unto one and injury unto none Why should we not rather consider that he may love whom he will and shew mercy on whom he will have mercy and so do what he will with his own especially seeing we know not why he doth what he doth 2. God doth guide some men with his counsel that they run not with the wicked Ps 37.24 Rom. 1. into the same excess of riot as they do for seeing by nature we are all equally indifferent and equally inclined to all sins Repleti omni injustitia saith the Apostle How comes it to pass that some men abstain from odious Rebellions and other impious abominations and abominable impieties that many wicked men do perpetrate Is it from out selves and from the goodness of our Natures or the sweetness of our dispositions No no it is from God that giveth his grace and holy Spirit unto some that are willing and ready to receive it when God offereth it unto them rather then to others that refuse to answer when he calleth and to accept his gifts and graces when he offereth the same unto them so God preserved Noah from partaking with the wickedness of the old world Lot from following after the abominations of the Sodomites Joseph from consenting to the lewd inticements of his Mistress and the like and so he doth preserve them that he loves from imitating the wicked in their odious sins because these men love God again are ready and willing to be preserved by God for did not the blessed God work this happy change in our souls and the Father of Lights illuminate our minds with a more distinct knowledge of his grace we might have groped and flumbled in a thicker mist of stupidity then now befools our unnurtured brethren and whatsoever is either odious or ridiculons in them might have beene farre more prodigious in us And so S. Aug. doth most excellently confess it saying tentator defuit Satan was away and time and place was wanting to do the deed but this was thy doing to preserve me the Tempter came in time and place convenient Aug. Soliloqu L. 16. but then thou withheldest me from consenting So when I had a will I wanted ability and when I had ability I wanted opportunity and all this was from thy blessed Spirit that preserved me And this preservation of us from evil Prov. 1. is offered by the goodness of God unto the wicked but that they refuse it as the wise man sheweth and the Scripture testifieth in many places And as God preserveth those that he loveth from the sins so he delivereth them also from the punishments of sin for though misfortune shall slay the ungodly yet as the Prophet saith God preserveth the righteous And though the plagues of God shall range and rage so far against the wicked that thousands of them shall fall besides the godly and ten thousands on his right hand yet it shall not come nigh him because God giveth his Angels charge over those that he loveth and they do preserve them in all their wayes that they dash not their foot against a stone And here in 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the persons on whom God shewed so many testimonies of his abundant love to some more then to others I may and must put our selves before many thousands of others that perhaps deserved the same far better then we do For whereas all other places that had the truth of the Protestant Religion amongst them have now their Candlesticks removed and the true publick service of God metamorphosed and corrupted with lyes heresies and blasphemies we alone of all our Kings Dominion have the true light and the publick service of God shining in the right Candlestick and with Authority maintained And I humbly beseech Almighty God that our sins unthankfulness and unworthiness do not ere long deprive us
from those great treasures and possessions which they had suddenly attained unto And therefore let not the righteous that rightly serveth God fret himself because of the ungodly neither let him be envious against the evil-doers when he seeth them in such prosperity for when God seeth the time Psal 37.1.2 they shall soon be cut down like the grass and be withered even as the green herb But as the Poet saith animum servate secundis And as the Prophet saith Let them that serve God put their trust in the Lord and tarry the Lord's leisure and pray with the words of our rejected Liturgy O God make speed to save us O Lord make haste to help us And in his good time he will deliver us out of all our troubles Amen THE FIFTH TREATISE 1 Pet. 2.17 Honour all men Love the brother-hood Fear God Honour the King IT is an old received Rule consented unto by all and contradicted by none that all the Commandments of God are 1. Brevia 2. Levia 3. Vtilia That is 1. Few and short 2. Leight and easie 3. Sweet and profitable For 1. They are not many like our Laws or the precepts of the Alcoran or the Popes Canons that are multiplied above number for these are but ten in all But two but one Ten saith Moses Two saith Christ One saith S. Paul and all say the truth For the Ten Precepts of Moses contain nothing else but First our duty to God And Secondly our duty towards our Neighbours as our Saviour saith And both these duties are comprised in this one act and affection of Love as S. Math. 22.37 John 15.12 1 Cor. 13. Rom. 12.10 Paul saith For thy duty to God is to love him with all thy heart and with all thy soul and with all thy mind and if you love me keep my Commandments saith our Saviour Christ and my Commandment is That ye love one another And love worketh no ill to his neighbour saith S. Paul therefore is love the fulfilling of the Law So all the Commands that God gives unto us is but one word one syllable Love So he gave to Adam but one Precept to abstain from one Tree and therefore you need not burden your memories nor take the pains to learn the Art of Memory for fear you should forget it God hath thus provided to prevent this excuse That the multitude of Precepts have caused you to forget your duties And as God so all good and wise men imitating God herein have given short Precepts and brief Rules unto their Schollars which we call Aphorisms or Dicta sapientum The words of the wise as the seven wise men of Greece left seven brief Sentences unto their Followers For Dicta septem sapientum 1. Cleobulus said Keep the mean 2. Chilon said Know thy self 3. Periander used to say Restrain wrath 4. Pittacus said Nothing too much 5. Solons wise saying was Remember the end 6. Bias was wont to say The wicked are many 7. Thales's saying was Flee suretiship And Solomon useth the same Method of teaching men in his Proverbs and Book of the Preacher which is Eclesiastes And so doth S. Peter here in this first Epistle to the dispersed Jews 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 His Sentences are very short but exceeding pithy Inest quoque gratia parvis and abundance of worth may lie in a little thing as you see a little Diamond is of a great value And therefore as Democharis saith 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Ne despice parva Slight not the smallest things Nam verbum sapienti sat est A word is enough to the wise And the longest Sermons do little or no good to the wicked 2. 2 The Commandments of God very easie and light Math. 11.30 1 Joh. 5.3 Psal 119. As the Commandments of God are short so they are leight and easie for my yoke is easie and my burden leight saith our Saviour And Mandata ejus gravia non sunt saith S. John His Commandments are not grevious but they are so leight and so easie that the Prophet David saith I will run the way of thy Commandments And S. Paul saith he can do all things through Christ that strengtheneth him And our God is not so tyrannical as to give such Commandments as are impossible to be observed especially in the outward acts and the inward also if we consider the aid and assistance of Gods Spirit that Christ giveth to them that seek it And therefore if our hearts be indued with grace and we desire the Spirit of Christ we need not murmur and lie down with Balaam's Asse for the great weight that is upon our backs or complain of the heavy yoke that Christ hath laid upon our necks and say with those drones in the Gospel Durus est hic sermo Love makes all labours easie This is a hard saying Who is able to endure it For if Leander did so much for the love of Hero and Pyramus for Thisbe then certainly the Commandments of God are leight and sweet enough to every one that loveth God Da amantem sentit quid dico And if you bring me one that truly loveth God he will confesse this truth saith S. Augustine Even as the Prophet David doth Psal 119. And such are all the Precepts of this our Apostle you may observe them without pain without losse without abating your strength and without wasting your wealth And 3. 3 The comman dments of God bring great profit to them that keep them Psal 119. They are not so leight and so easie in themselves as they are beneficial and profitable to those that observe them for Great is the reward of those that keep thy Laws O God saith the Prophet David and Moses setteth down the many many blessings of the Israelites if they would observe Gods Commandments And so these short Sentences of S. Peter and these leight Precepts of our Apostle have abundance of wisdom in them and do bring an infinite deal of commodity and profit unto the true observers thereof And therefore if nothing else yet the benefits of keeping Gods Commandments should perswade us all to be ready to hear and willing to obey these Precepts of the Apostle which he delivereth from the Spirit of God for we are naturally given to love our own profit And as the Poet saith Et reditus jam quisque suos amat sibi quid sit Vtile sollicitis computat articulis Every man respecteth his own advantage and loveth his own benefit And I do assure you there is nothing in the world that any of you all can do and let him do what he can that shall bring him more profit than the right observance of these few Precepts Honour all men c. Wherein you see there are four special Precepts And these four Precepts are like unto the four Rivers of Eden that watered the Garden of Paradise to make the same both profitable and pleasant The 1. concerneth all men
this world better than Peace for as the Poet saith Omnia pace vigent pacis tempore florent All things do prosper in the time of peace And as the Prophet saith Our garners are full and plenteous with all manner of store our sheep bring forth thousands and ten thousands in our streets our oxen are strong to labour and there is no decay no lâ—ading into captivity and no complaining in our streets Psal 144.14 but our houses are repaired our Cities inlarged our Fields tilled and the poor are relieved which the Souldiers cause to starve and to die at their doors which have nothing to help them And therefore the very heathen man could say Cicero Iniquissimam pacem justisfimo bello antefero that he preferred the worst peace before the best and justest war and the onely outward blessing that comprehended all the other blessings which the Israelites desired was peace their onely salutation was Peace be unto you John 20.19 when Christ arose from the dead the first word that he spake to his disciples was Peace be unto you and when he was to leave the world the chiefest Legacie that he left to his Apostles was My Peace I give unto you and so the Apostolical wish to all Saints in all their Epistles is Grace and Peace be unto you and the most frequent Counsel most principall Precept that is given 2 Cor. 13.11 Colos 3.15 Phil. 4.7 Luc. 10.3 To love one another to honour all men to live in peace with all men the same thing in effect Which was Cromwels that Arch-souldier's Motto and is to be earnestly urged to be observed in all the New Testament by all the Ministers of Christ is to love one another to honour all men and to live in peace with all men which are the very same things in effect though exprest in divers forms and where this bond of peace is broken our Saviour saith Blessed are the Peace-makers for they shall be termed and called the children of God which is the God of Peace And what think you then of the souldiers that fight and war and break the bands of peace and the golden chain of unity and concord all to pieces whose children be they and may they not fear to be accursed Yes certainly and therefore they pretend that Pax quaeritur bello they make war to purchase peace To whom I may justly answer as Cyneas did to King Pyrrhus when the wise Oratour demanded of him what he would do when he had conquered Italy and Sicilie and Africk and Macedon c. Pyrrhus answered we will then be quiet and make peace and eat drink and be merry to whom Cyneas replyd And what letteth us my good Lord but that we may do so now before the shedding of so much blood as must be spilt in these enterprises So I say if you make War to procure peace why will you disturb the peace and not rather now when men do live in peace embrace it and suffer it to continue before you purchase it with the slaughter of so many men as must be killed in war But would you know the reason All the graces of Christ without the this grace will availe us nothing why they are so blessed that do procure peace and do embrace it and why we are so earnestly so often and in so various terms sollicited by Christ and his Apostles to observe this duty Saint Augustine telleth us it is because all the graces of Christ without this grace of loving all men and living in peace with all men will avail us nothing at all Namsicut spiritus humanus nunquam vivificat membra nisi fuerint unita ita Spiritus sanctus nunquam nos vivificat nisi sumus in pace conjuncti For as the Soul and humane spirit doth not quicken and give life unto our members unlesse they be joyned together so the Spirit of God will never quicken us to become members of Christ unlesse we be united together with love and in the bond of peace as the same Father speaketh and Saint Paul plentifully proveth the invalidity of all graces 1 Cor. 13. per totum without this grace of love and charity towards all men and what love can be in them that kill their neighbours And therefore not onely of our peace and reconciliation with God or the peace and tranquillity of our consciences but even of this peace among men Esay 52.7 the Prophet saith How beautifull are the feet of the Embâ—ssadours of peace and our Saviour doth so earnestly perswade us to embrace this peace without which we can never attain unto any peace with God or to any quiet mind for as Saint John saith he that loveth not his brother and I may adde 1 John 4.20 and is not at peace with his neighbour whom he hath seen how can he love God and be at peace with God whom he hath not seen And therefore The piety of our Liturgy and Letany howsoever they that think themselves to be the holy brethren and yet are the incentives of war do exclaim against our Liturgy and cannot endure the Letany yet our Church doth most piously pray Give peace in our time O Lord and again That it may please thee to give unto all 〈…〉 peace and concord 〈…〉 the first part of that honour which we owe to all men that is to do 〈◊〉 wrâ—ng to shed no blood to hate no man in our heart to traduce no man with our tongues and to smite no man with our hands but to love and to live in peace with all men 2. As we are no wayes to hurt or to wrong any man so we ought 2 Every way to assist and help them that need our help to the uttermost of our power to be always ready to relieve help and succour every one that is oppressed and that standeth in need of our help nihil est tam egregium tam liberale tamque munificum quà m opem ferre supplicibus excitare asfâ—ictos dare salutem homines à periculis liberare and there is nothing more royall more liberal and more munificent then to help the poor supplicants and distressed Petitioners to raise up the afsticted and to free the oppressed out of the hands of their oppressours saith the Oratour Câ—cero Orat. 1. and in his Oration for Ligarius he saith Homines ad Deos nulla re propiùs accedunt quà m salutem hominibus dandâ— men can by no way be made more like unto God than by doing good and by yielding health and deliverance unto men Therefore Solomon saith with-hold not good from them to whom it is due when it is in the power of thine hand to do it and say not unto thy neighbour Prov. 3.27 28. Go and come again and to morrow I will give it thee when as thou hast it by thee because as Lucian saith 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Celeres Gratiae dulciores sunt
take this office upon him but he that is as well outwardly approved by such as are lawfully authorized to approve him Exod. 4.16 as inwardly called by the restifying spirit of his own conscience so also Christ saith the Apostle glorified not himself to be made an high Priest and to become the great Shepherd of Gods flock Heb. 5.5 c. 17.21 but he that said unto him Thou art my son this day have I begotten thee and hath sworn Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedech And therefore if no man no not Christ himself taketh this holy office upon him but he that is lawfully called by such as have lawful authority to call him I wonder how any man dares to intrude himself into the Ministry without any mission from Christ or commission from such as are lawfully authorized by Christ to admit them You know what our Saviour saith As my father sent me so send I you and they that were his Apostles never went until he sent them for there must be an Ite go ye Mat. 28.19 Mar. 16.15 John 10.1 before Praedicate preach ye and you see what our Saviour saith here Verily verily I say unto you he that entreth not by the door into the sheepfold but climbeth up some other way the same is a thief and a robber that is he that is not lawfully called and comes not the right way into the Ministry to be the shepherd of Gods flock the same is none of Gods Ministers Jer. 23.21 14.14 but is a thief and a robber stealing to himself what of right belongs to another And yet I fear we have now too many of whom the Lord may say as he doth by the Prophet Jeremy I have not sent these Prophets yet they ran I have not spoken unto them yet they prophesied for we are not onely to consider whether they be called and approved to be the Ministers of Christ but we must likewise consider by whom they are called and approved for as idem est non esse non apparere so it is all one to be not called and not approved as to be called and approved by such as have no right nor authority to call and approve them as when a company of thieves and robbers gives power and authority to a man to be Justice of the Peace or a Judge of Assize we say his power and authority is null and of no validity so they that give orders and approve of Priests and have no right no power nor authority to give orders and to allow them do just nothing in the just way and their orders is worth nothing But you will say this may be true of the Lay-preachers but those that are ordained by the Presbyterians and approved by an assembly of Presbyters cannot be denied to be lawfully called and to enter in by the door into the sheepfold I answer that I will not at this time discuss who gave them this power and authority to ordain Priests but I say that I dare not I cannot approve and justifie their authority let them answer for it that presume to do it I have shewed you their error in my discovery of the great Antichrist So you see how this grand Shepherd did lawfully enter into his office and how all his under-Shepherds should imitate him in their lawfull entrance and not intrude themselves nor be unlawfully admitted into the Ministry 2. 2 A perfect performance of all the duties of a good Shepherd Philo Jud. in l. de opificio mundi The other point here spoken of this great Shepherd is a perfect and most absolute performance of all the duties of a good Shepherd Where first of all you must observe that Theocritus Virgil and others writing of this office of Shepherds do make three kindes of Pastors or Shepherds and so doth Philo Judaeus where he saith 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Shepherd Goatesman and Herdsman drive the flocks of sheep goats and bullocks and it is observed 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 dici de pastore omnium animalium 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 cum relatione tantum ad oves that the Greeks do call him onely that keepeth sheep 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a shepherd and our Saviour saith not 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I am the good goatsman or the good herdsman John 10.14 but he saith 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I am the good Shepherd that taketh care for his sheep but not for goats because the Lord careth for the righteous but as the Prophet saith he scattereth abroad all the ungodly And seeing that he is a Shepherd you know what the Poet saith Pastorem Tytere pingues Pascere oportet oves Vagil Eglog 6. The Shepherd ought to feed his sheep for as the old proverb goeth 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Spartam nactus es hanc orna every one should look to his own office as the learned Divine to preach the Word of God the Cobler to mend his shoes the Countrey-man to plough his ground curabit prelia Conon and the King or whosoever is the chief Magistrate to provide for war and to conclude peace which is the onely way to keep all things in the right way because that mittere falcem in alienam messem for the Coachman with his whip to lash the pulpit the Taylor with his shears to divide the Word of God the shepherd with his hook to rule the people and the unruly people to reign as Kings is that which as the Poet saith Turbabit fadera mundi Lucan phars l. 1. and is the readiest way to pull all things asunder to tear in pieces the whole course of nature and to subvert all the order of Gods creatures and indeed to reduce the total frame of the creation to a speedy dissolution whereas that man is worthy of all praise as Aelian saith which meddleth with nothing 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that pertaineth nothing unto him but looketh onely and carefully to his own duty and he is worthy to be reproved as our Saviour checkt Saint Peter for his curiosity to know what John must do that is a stranger in his own affairs and busieth himself onely with what onely belongs unto others And therefore not to do my self what I blame in others or to extend my discourse beyond my line to treat of the art of war with Phormio before Hannibal or to tell you the office of a King or a Judge when my text tels me I am to treat of a Shepherd but to keep my self contrary to the common practise ad idem to my own proper task I shall desire you to remember that the duty of a good Shepherd consisteth chiefly in these two points 1. Negatively what he should not do to his sheep 2. Affirmatively what he should do for them 1. The heathen man could tell us that boni pastoris est pecus tondere non deglubere it is the part of a good Shepherd to fleece