cloudy and his actings to be in obscurity but when by an eye of faith the godly can see thorow all these clouds they have wherewith to comfort their spirits in the midst of all confusions namely that the Lord reigneth When we see a new face of things and great mutations in the world we are apt too much to look upon Instruments Now such a party is cry'd up anon cry'd down Some will inveigh against one party some against another according to mens several affections principles interests ingagements It is true Some sin grievously that are the grand Instruments in great Revolutions and Changes yet is it not in their power to change times and seasons it belonging to God alone to remove Kings and set up Kings Dan. 2.21 as Daniel tells Nebuchadnezzar and as for men Time and Chance happeneth to them all God hath appointed changes unto men in their condition and no wisdom riches or strength can defend them from his appointment Dr Preston of God's Attributes as a Learned man hath noted Neither is it in the power of the most haughty Instruments to change the face of times and things according to their own wills as we have seen of late by large experience in divers instances No this is the work of him who is a God unchangeable and when he determineth to change times and seasons to root up such and such Governments or to change the form of any Government he maketh use of Instruments of divers sorts good and bad and these do strive and struggle one with another and do all work together in accomplishing his secret counsel known to himself though to them altogether unknown the temper of the times carrieth upon it the impressions of Eternity and the two great Wheels of the Worlds Charet Motion and Mutation are driven by him with whom there is no variablenesse nor shadow of turning And though the great Changes that have of late befallen this Nation seem new to us yet they are but God's counsels of old and his Eternal Purpose brought into Act Acts 15.18 For known unto God are all his workes from the beginning of the world God's people then may comfort themselves That the Kingdome and Government of the most High shall stand as Mount Zion which cannot be removed but abide for ever firm in the midst of all the Concussions Revolutions and turnings of the time and shall be upheld when all earthly Kingdoms shall be destroyed And therefore as the Sunne alwayes keeps one tract and way in a steady course because his way is above the Air where winds and storms and tempests are So the glorious Sun of Righteousnesse is alwayes going on without any stop to bring to passe his Act his strange Act and to doe his worke Isa 28.21 his strange worke because his Kingdom and Government is above the power of time Senault Treat 2. Disc 5. and of all creatures subject to time and chance God's Providence still leads men to their end with as much force as sweetnesse his power hurts not their liberty because accompanied with sweetnesse and his sweetnesse wrongs not his Majesty Duc me summe Pater vasti Moderator Olympi Quacunque placuit nulla parendi est mora Adsum impiger fac nolle comitabor gemens malusque patiar facere quod licuit bono August de civ Dei c. 8. l. 8. because attended with power What ever he doth he acteth alwayes like a Sovereign I conclude all with that prayer of St Augustine O Sovereign Father who governest the vast frame of Heaven I submit to thy direction lead me to the right hand lead me on the left turn to what side thou pleasest I follow thee without reply or delay For what should I get by resistance but to be dragged weeping and to bear being evil what I might do sincerly by becoming good FINIS
use of variety of Agents in the world led by divers principles some by the spirit and power of grace some by the flesh and by the spirit of the world and by the Prince of the power of the air some labour to build up the Church of God others like Sanballat and Tobiah do hinder the building and crosse others who seek the welfare of Sion and altogether seek for honour and preferment for themselves Now by these contrary effects of men the Lord bringeth forth contrary events and causeth his Glory to shine thorow all How justly then are they to be reproved that have lived long yet make no special observations of those events that have happened in their dayes Some are so much taken up with vain and foolish delights as pleasant Musick jovial company feasting and carousing that they regard not the work of the Lord neither consider the operation of his hand Isa 5.12 Whoredome and wine and new wine hath stollen away their hearts Hos 4.11 Others there are whose hearts are wholly taken up with worldly business only minding earthly things It is an argument of a bruitish spirit to neglect observation Wherefore is a price put into the hand of a fool seeing he hath not an heart Prov. 17.16 Gods work is about us and in us at least in a common providence and yet few there are that see it or see God in it It is the part of fools to passe by these things without observation Who so is wise will observe these things Psal 107. ult He that is endued with heavenly wisdom and taught by the Spirit of God will observe them and shall understand the loving kindnesse of God It is admirable to consider God's Providences without the Church among the Enemies thereof The Kings of Assyria had overcome divers Nations therefore Sennacherib sends messengers to Hezekiah to tell him That the gods of the Nations could not deliver them whom his fathers had destroyed as Gozar Haran c. therefore he would have Hezekiah to have believed that he could have done the like to his God also Now the use that he makes of it was not slightly to passe by these things but makes a contrary use of it acknowledging his God to be the living God and able to save him out of his hand and that the gods whom the Assyrians had cast into the fire were no gods but the work of mens hands therefore they had destroyed them Now the issue was dreadfull to the Assyrians Isa 37.11 12 18 19 36 37 38. An Angel of the Lord in one night slayeth an hundred fourscore and five thousand in the camp of the Assyrians and Sennacherib himself was afterwards slain by two of his own sons as he was worshiping in the house of Nisroch his god So likewise it is very observable concerning the Turks the vassals of that base and grand Impostor Mahamet who are great enemies of the Church that the Lord hath so ordered it by his Providence that they have not sent such huge armies against the Christian Church for many yeares past as they did heretofore Within the Church Christ bids us discern the signes of the times Mar. 16.2 and makes it a note of hypocrisie to be able to discerne the face of the skie and of the earth and not to discern the signes of the times as he sad to the Pharisees which then were admirable the Scepter being then departed from Judah and one of Esau's race enjoying it John Baptist the promised Elijah the forerunner of Christ being now come before the face of the Messiah as a messenger to prepare his way before him Great Miracles wrought by our Saviour the blind receiving their sight the lame walking the Lepers cleansed the deaf hearing the dead raised and the poor having the Gospel preached unto them all which shewed him to be that Messiah that was to come and not another So in Luther's time there was an admirable change What warrant have the Papists for their Jubilees but the Popes knocking at Rome-Gates with his golden hammer promising pardon to whomsoever shall enter in at them that year bringeth much Gold to St Peter's chair and the Pope's coffer keeping their Kitchen smokeing Jubilees were of use before Christs coming but ever since out of date clear light shining out of thick darknesse the year of Jubilee proclaimed the acceptable year of our Lord the year of release from Babilonish thraldom and Popish superstition free justification by the blood of Christ preached An Angel cometh down from heaven having great power and the earth was lightned with his glory and he crieth out mightily with a strong voice saying Babylon the great is fallen c. Rev. 18.1 2. and vers 4. Another voice from Heaven saith Come out of her my people that ye be not pertakers of her sinnes and that ye receive not of her plagues And is it not vrey needfull for us to observe the Signs of these our times how many Nations professing the truth of the Gospell with us have of late endured many hard and sore trials God hath destroyed the strength of many Kingdomes overthrowing the Charets and those that rode in them the Horses and their riders have come down Hag. 2.21 22. every one by the Sword of his Brother God hath even shaken the Heavens over us and the earth under us for the great formality and lukewarmnesse intemperance earthlymindednesse of the Nations and for the great opposition of the Kingdom of Christ the beauty of holynesse and the truth of God clearly revealed in the Gospell Furthermore It is very observable how that many men in all ages have been taken away by suddain judgements and that divers waies Herod on a suddain cometh upon the Galileans and killeth them as they were Sacrificing mingling their Blood with their Sacrifices Luk. 13.1 upon eighteen others a Tower falls suddainly and killeth them as the house upon Job's Children Thus some men have been taken away in their drunkennesse and in their riotous meetings some fall from scaffolds some be slain with timber some killed with the overthrow of earth some drowned some with falls from Horses some with Tiles or Stones falling from Houses Mayer Exposit in Jam. Paenitentia est animi medicina Lactant. Secunda Tabula post naufragium Hieron as that worthy Roman Captain riding through the streets of Rome in Triumph after a famous victory was killed by a Tile of a House falling on his head Now the use and end of God's judgments upon some is to work amendment and repentance upon all Repentance as Lactantius calls it is the Physick of the soul which all that be sin sick as all Adam's brood be must take before they can be recovered and all that will not be drowned in the Sea of Sinne must of necessity swim out upon the plank of repentance CHAP. XXXV Instruction second Instruct 2 AS we must observe So likewise we must be carefull to remember and not forget
the three Worthies fet him because it was Pretium sanguinis the price of bloud Such Magistrates may be said to drink the bloud of their people that live idly and lewdly spend what they may spare This gives a check to all sorts of people that abuse their places that make more of them than the Laws of the Land and a good conscience requireth and alloweth All Purveyours and Takers Customers and Searchers that set their Commissions upon the tenters All such as buy Offices for gain 't were well if all such were disabled to use them For the saying of the Emperour Alexander Severus is most true He that buyeth an Office selleth Justice The Thebans had a Law That no man should bear any Office of credit among them but such as had discontinued their Trade by the space of ten years to the end their hands might be out of base taking Here I might pull Lawyers by the sleeves and put them in mind of this precept of John when they will have a double Fee for a single pleading Item Under-Sheriffs Bailiffs and Justices-Clearks all which have their set Fees proportionable to their places appointed them by Law As also all such as are Overseers of Wils Guardians of Infants and Orphans under age if they have any Legacy bequeathed them they may take it if they be at any charge they may allow it themselves but let them beware of loud reckonings they be crying sins and will make a loud noise in the ears of God In a word all deceit in all dealing is wholly unlawfull as servants working by halves and taking wages for the whole all false weights and measures adulterate and counterfeit wares shewing of one sort and serving another hoording up Commodities to make a dearth Landlords also oppressing their Tennants and Patrons corruptly bestowing their Advousons or Presentations to Livings upon unworthy persons may here justly be censured Next to the Publicans the Souldiers likewise demand of John Baptist What shall we doe Luk. 3.14 and he said unto them Do violence to no man Accuse no man falsly and be content with your wages There are three Branches of John's answer to the Souldiers 1. Do violence to no man Offer no injury to any man abuse not your power to do wrong oppresse not those whom you are appointed to defend lest they rather betray themselves to their Enemies than yield to the abuses of such false friends Histor Novi orbis Such Souldiers the Spaniards set in Hispaniola and other places who carried themselves so insolently among the people as they had rather turn to the Turk than endure them among them I might here disswade from all cruelty even toward Enemies and embruing hands in cold bloud All Souldiers are not to do as Saul should have done with Agag and all the Amalekites 1 Sam. 15. Such Souldiers as are billeted should not so basely behave themselves as to be more burthen than benefit to the Countrey 2. Accuse no man falsly Histories tell us That it was a custom among the Romans to proceed against those whom they had conquered of which sort the Jewes now were according to the informations of their Souldiers that quartered and were ingarrisoned among them to keep them in subjection and to banish or put to death the parties accused and confiscate their goods half to the Senate and half to the accuser whereupon the Baptist knowing what a bait rich mens wealth might be to hungry souldiers and make them lift at a lie he laboureth to redresse this vice 3. Be content with your wages with your allowance whether in money meat or whatsoever is provided for you fit and proportionable be content with it keeping your selves within compasse and let your allowance suffice for your maintenance and neither mutiny against your Officers nor go a forraging and free-booting among the free people of the Countrey Great was the Justice of Aurelianus the Emperour in this case Si vis Tribunus esse imo si vis vivere militum manus contine nemo pullum alienum rapiat ovem nemo contingat uvam nullus auferat Aurelian Imperat who told his Lieutenant It thou wilt be a Tribune yea if thou wilt live hold the hands of thy souldiers let no man snatch away another mans Chicken nor touch a Sheep nor take away so much as a Grape from another man It must be a rule to all servants and labourers and whosoever are hired to any kind of imployment the practice of true Religion and Equity is fit for all sorts of persons yea even for souldiers which confuteth that foolish conceit of Machiavel That Religion may be spared in Warre because it maketh men cowards both parts of his Assertion are most false For 1. To whom can Religion be more necessary than for those that are in most danger 2. And who have more reason to be resolute than they that know their quarrel is good and cause warrantable for them to die in and also have faith and be perswaded of the forgivenesse of their sins It was a wicked speech of Marius the Roman that being reproved for breaking the Laws of his Countrey in the Camp made answer that he could there hear no sound of Laws for the clattering of armour Constantine had the exercises of Religion in his Camp and the Priest by God's own appointment made a short Sermon to the Israelites going to battel Deut. 20.3 4. Let no man therefore do that which is irregular and then make Providence whistle to his own tune as the manner of too many in out dayes hath been because God hath not presently executed vengeance upon their abominations therefore they have pleaded necessity and brought in providence for the approbation of them CHAP. XLII The Conclusion consolatory to the Church of God THis Doctrine of Providence may yield much comfort to all that are in Christ and at peace with that God that governeth the world The Lord reigneth let the earth rejoyce let the multitude of Isles be glad thereof Psal 97.1 that is Let the people that are dispersed here and there in several parts of the world rejoyce that the Lord is upon his Throne reigning over the whole world It is true this is matter of terrour to his Enemies Clouds and darkness are round about him c. vers 2. A fire goeth before him and burneth up his enemies round about ver 3. Yet is it matter of singular comfort to the people of God that their Lord and King reigneth over the whole world Sion heard and was glad and the daughters of Judah rejoyced because of thy judgements O Lord for thou Lord art high above all the earth thou art exalted far above all gods vers 8 9. There are now many dark clouds round about the Throne of God which seem to obstruct the dim-sighted carnalist from beholding the glorious actings of him that sits upon the Throne God's wayes and providences toward these Nations for divers years together have seemed dark and