office he breathed on them and gaue them his holy spirite that thereby they might not only abound in gifts but also should without terror speake his wil and preach his name to all nations So in like maner Paule witnesseth that both the gift of prophecying Prophets Doctors and teachers is by the spirite of god Of which grace he hath promised continuance to the end of the world saying J wil be with you to the end of the world And therfore Iohn warneth thée reader not to beleue euery spirite so he calleth the doctrine by the preacher brought but coÌ„maundeth thée to trie whether they be of god He sheweth thee absolutely that in the preachers of thy age Gods spirit also speaketh saying Hereby shall ye knowe the Spirite of god Euerye spirite that confesseth that Jesus Christe is come in the Fleshe is of GOD. There were false Prophets among the Jewes which kept the people backe from the faith in Christ There were certaine heritiques which denied Christ to be come in the flesh as the scriptures teach him And these so vexed the Church and molested the consciences of the godly bretherne and began to make such shipwracke of the faith of many that the Apostle was driuen from the Doctrine to frame their hartes in Christ to arme by instruction the church of GOD against Cerinthus Ebyon and other heritiques that woulde not acknowledge Christ wholy as the Scriptures proued him to bée The like proofe of Gods spirit is left to thée to the ends of the world to trie the Preachers which come vnto thée whether they haue in them or doe by Gods spirite speake vnto thée He that preacheth Iesus Christ as hée is set downe in the written Scriptures is of god Hée that denieth him in any part their vouched to be in Christ is of Antichrist Whosoeuer hath not this spirite and is a preacher cannot but by the spirite of Sathan vtter as by his receiued spirite all lying fables as Zedkia the false prophet did to Achab. And both Paul and Peter manifestly shew vnto vs that many such false Prophets shall rise vp in the last dayes which shal also denie christ in déede albeit they confesse him with naked words Paule giueth thée notes infallible that euer shall lead thée to a right iudgement of these spirits of error doctoâ—s of diuels First they shall speake lies by hypocrisie fayning truth but trie them by the rule giuen of christ search the scriptures which order the Citizens of Berrea are said to obserue when the Apostles taught them 2. They shal forbid to marrie and who doth forbid I pray thée take vew that ministers may not Marrie not the scripture but rather the flat contrarie Who doth forbid that holy ordinaÌ„ce of god in Paradise to auoyd sinne but the Pope the minister of sinne he doth forbid it to all his sacrificing priestes at all times yet whoredome he permitteth to theÌ„ vnder purchased warrant to al time To al other christians he forbiddeth mariage at certaine times as Aduent Lent Jmber daies c. and Siricius one of the Popes condemneth mariage to be a fruit of the flesh as in the which state a man can not please god Meats which god hath created to be receiued with thanks geuing is made holy by his word praier doth this beast of the Dragon Satanas in paine of daÌ„nation forbid to al at his appoynted times And the breakers of his lawe though blessed of God are of him cursed with booke bell and candle out of his heauen as Pasquine calleth it earth and this naturall life as Lollords heriticks not worthy the benefite of temporall quiet These saith Paule in the place before quoted are the doctrines of Diuels Behold the popish doctrine from whence it commeth and of what spirite it is Flie from it as from hel it selfe Peter warning our times of the like false spirite sayth But there were false Prophets also among the people euen as there shal be false teathers among you which priuely shall bring in damnable heresies eueÌ„ denying the Lord that hath bought them bring vpon them selues swift damnation And many shall followe their damnable wayes by whom the way of truth shal be euill spoken of And through couetousnes shall they with fayned words make marchandise of you whose iudgement long agone is not farre of and their damnation sléepeth not Lay this Scripture before thy hart and indifferently measure thereby the Popish Church and doctrine and thou shalt sée as it were the Apostle to paynt the sinfull Sinagoge of Rome vnto thy prospect With what humblenes of Angels créepe they craftely into the conscieÌ„ces of men what opinions bréed they flat condemned by the word How open they their mouthes to slaunder the gospel of our Christ and cal it heresie though not as it lieth in leaues but as it is truly preached by gods holy prophets in this our dayes And what loue they haue to the word it selfe do thou iudge when hauing the gouernment they burned the Bibles rased the scriptures from of the walles in churches els to that they could burned the graueÌ„ letters in the sacred flesh of christes martirs What marchaundise of mens soules is there in poperie wheÌ„ their God their pope their reliques saints merits their Paul and Peter their heaueÌ„ helly purgatorie thier Masses pardoÌ„s their whole power pelf is set at price al for monei What sinne in man so horrible that shuld not there haue pardon for money What wicked fact pretended shall not there for money not only be pardoned but warranted Amongst the sinnes against the 2. Table is there a greater then Treason I say treason to god his religion his prince and vicar by his great mercy set ouer vs in this natioÌ„ And is not the Pope the head practiser of the same Doth not he loose that in earth by his Bul which god hath most surely tied fast in heauen by his word the sworne and natural due obedience to her Maiestie Doth not he promise absolution where God pronounceth curse and damnation To whatsoeuer person which resisteth his power And is this for any other cause theÌ„ to bring your purses to his coffers your soules to swift damnation Looke vpon the Gnat by that most precious Iewell the reuerend Bishop late of Sarum brought forth to the vew of all mens sight in his learned answere to halting Harding and thou shalt not maruaile though he wold haue vs his again that Camels in great number and yet scarsely could might yearely conuey his huge sommes of money out of this nation Reioyce O England for thy deliuerance embrace the word by Gods spirite put in the mouthes of thy learned Bishops and others their godly brethern in most pleniiful wise So shal thy hart yéeld faithful loue true obedience to our godly Quéen thou shalt reape her aid for
An Exposition of the Hymne commonly called Benedictus with an ample comfortable application of the same to our age and people By A. Anderson Preacher Stay prophane vain bablings for they shall encrease vnto more vngodlines 2. Timothe 2.16 But if you haue bitter enuying and strife in your harts reioyce not neither be liars against the truth This wisdom discendeth not from aboue but is earthly sensuall and diuelish For where enuying and strife is there is sedition and all maner of euill woorkes Iames. 3.14.15 16. ¶ Imprinted at LondoÌ„ by Henry Middelton for Raufe Newbery The booke to the Reader To prayse the Lord is my desire To helpe his Church all that I can To quench if could such burning yre As Satan late hath caste in man VVhile pen doth carpe at brothers ill Sinne taketh rest the Church doth spill For other state some men do craue And cut themselues from this we haue In hart they hate thy state and life â–ª They ioy to see thee at such strife And they at ease do by disdaine Inuent all meanes t' encrease thy paâ—â—â— Their Pope and Masse they long to see Our Christ his law and vnitie They do blaspheme through our discent In cases new of gouernment Thy brawle their broyle would come to end If cease thou couldst thus to contend Ioyne hands in one embrace remorce To banish sinne bend all thy force Thy selfe restraine Gods truth respect His Church and peace of his elect Vouchsafe vs Lord thy Christ his grace Our Queene thy sprite but sinne deface Amen A.A. ¶ To the right reuerend Father in God THOMAS by the mercifull prouidence of God Bishop of Lincolne his good L Anthony Anderson Minister of the good Gospel of God wisheth all health and peace in Christ our only Sauiour THe holy Apostle sayth that whatsoeuer thinges are writteÌ„ afore time are written for our learning which sentence reuerend father as often as I do remember by the hand leadeth mee deepely to consider with reuerent regard what I read in the holy Scriptures and vrgeth me by feruent prayer to craue of God the geuer of all good giftes in Christ the true vnderstanding of the Scriptures sense and the hidden treasures therein comprised And so hath it pleased the lord of life to open the windows of heauen his name bee euer praised and from thence by his spirite most familiarly to speake vnto mee by his written word So that to his great prayse and my endlesse comfort I see that no iot of his Law is voyd of most excellent comfortes to the heart that simply in integritie of soule seeketh to quench his thirst in this fountaine of health the Gospell of God. In this word I find the knowledge of God Christ his sonne with promise of his holy spirit shall in all his elect open their hartes and write in them the true vnderstanding of his lawes Ezec. 36. The which most excellent gift by the learned books since the time of the Apostles and penned trauels of sundrie godly fathers in the Church aswell before our times as in these our dayes doth appeare to be eueÌ„ now most florishing in the church of God his name be alwayes praysed therefore And wherefore did the Prophets by his spirite speake or Christ and his Apostles preach or the godly Fathers before vs or these our learned writers in this age VVherefore I saye with hart mouth and penne haue they trauailed But to vtter the testimonie of gods gift confesse his name to the people of the earth to the life of the elect the inexcuse of the reprobate So will the Lord haue his spirite euer resiant in his Church to the end of the world To follow these Fathers as they followe Christ I accompt it my part hauing for further example amongest the many worthy workes of our writers now your L. profitable worke lately set forth to the better tast of Gods good wil in his expressed word in the appoynted Lessons at common prayer Of which worke I cease to speake further and seeke to follow as I can such good examples to the ende before touched VVhat if my Mite be not much worth Yet as it commeth from the Lord of heauen so shal it no doubt profite thither to his habilitie and that is my whole desire Let the learned eares accept as in inferior place this my small coyne yet good curraÌ„t siluer I trust tried by the touch of truth and geue him licence to passe to the lesse learned and poore countrey people whose state requireth yet mornings milke not all able for solidate questioÌ„s or deepe digested misteries Their soules are precious in the sight of God their liues ought to be deare in our consciences their wounded hartes require some soueraigne medicine of gentle digesture and quiet operation yet so that their ignorance weaknes may be remoued which God for his mercies sake in Christ vouchsafe them richly in his loue This is not the least cause why I haue stirred vp the small gift of God in me to exercise the same vpon this Hymne vsed in and at the morning prayer Iudging as by order through vse the wordes are readie at the lippe to vouch the Prophetes speech So if their tender hartes had some helpe to open therto the hidden cause of ioye in that holy letter no doubt I say the same of them shuld both with hart and mouth ioynd in one consent of grateful harmonie crie out the praises of the Lord in the temples of the holy Ghost which is the song that deliteth only the musical eares of Gods maiestie Assuredly al other chaunting notes and changing keys seeme they neuer so pleasant in the eares of men are far estranged from the good like of god al if set vp in his house of prayer This people worship me saith God with their lippes but their hartes are farre from me In vaine do they serue me c. And albeit I cannot touch the stile worthie so high a matter or set downe such deepe doctrine as the nature of the place requireth or yet approch such the hidden treasures as are here layd vp or the finenes of this our age expecteth yet nay the lesse the wydowes Myte is my boldninge comfort And on the other part the sorowfull lookes of the slothful Miser to whom the Lordes Talent was imparted maketh me afraid to queÌ„ch the spirit or stay the firie word kindled in my hart if I may vse Ieremies wordes at this present But be it that I should blushe to present my simple skill to the scanning of the wise and sharpned sight of the loftie learned deepe Doctors of our time knowing that my owne weaknes is to sundrie of them knowne also inable to this exploit in respect of infinit others â–ª yet I ioye at this refuge my conscience beareth me witnes tofore GOD and men that the onely end and scope of this my pen is chiefely to promote Gods glory
concerning the purpose of God in this Baptist Thus he saith And thou little babe shalt be called the Prophet of the highest c. By these words we are put in mind stil of Gods aboundant mercy in his Christ who not only maketh Zacharie an old comfortable father but openeth also vnto him the arcane counsel of his diuine disposition And by the spirit of prophecy assureth him and the Church committed to him of the heauenly benefite their spirituall deliuerance in this Christ their true Messias of whom this little babe that yet can nothing say shal be the most noble preacher and Prophet When hée calleth him the Lords Prophet he acknowledgeth him to be the interpreter of the lords Law and Oracles the Doctor and preacher in to the Church of God by whose mouth the Lord him selfe speaketh to the same opening to them his secretes and manifesting his holy will as appeareth by that which followeth To geue knowledge of Saluation c. Which prophecie of the father was fulfilled in his sonne the Baptist in the the first yeare of Tiberius at which time Christ was about thirtie yeres of age And John began to preach publiquely saying Repent for the kingdome of God is at hand Two notable thinges in the wordes of this his text he promiseth to his sonne by his warrant receiued frō god First that albeit he be in respect of natures worke and the worldes reputation but a small child and of lowe degrée yet hath the lord chosen appointed him from his cradell nay before his creation to be the instrument most apt to the Lordes labour The second is the nature of his office which is to prepare make straight the way of the Lord as the Angel before had sayd to Zacharie in the vision Who being corrected for his doutfulnes assured him selfe and others most constantly of the Lordes promise which was that this holy Prophet the Baptist should be great in the sight of God and should not geue him selfe with the wicked Priestes of the earth or the false prophets of Israel to gorge their crawes with bibbing cheare but should lead an austere temperate diet hauing his hart wholy set vpon his office which the spirit of God selected him to from his mothers wombe that he should turne the children of Israel to their Lord God by that heroicall spirite which God erst gaue to Helias to turne the harts of the fathers to the children and the disobedient to the wisedome of the iust men to make ready a people prepared for the lord This was the most excellent office of the Baptist in consideration wherof this Zachary song this Psalme to the lords praise Now let vs note here good reader that not by chāce but by gods prouidēce al things are guided to his glory the churches profite Not any mā is by chāce set into place autoritie or any office but are appointed of god in his wisdome yea before they are to be men beyond his search sute or expectatiō to the seruice of his god As Moyses Aarō Saul Dauid Samuel Amos Jeremie Esay Christ him selfe Paule the Apostles els and all others before and since The very wicked Magistrates their office and authoritie is of the Lord by him kinges doe raigne good or euil In that they are kinges of his good wisedome it is but as they are euill it is of their owne frowardnes Satans malice from which persons neyther may the action of Gods iustice in any wise be seperate Pharao his hart the Lord hardened Nabuchadnezar hée stirred vp against the children of Israel Pilate and Herode with the Gentiles and cruel Jewes were in their malicious harts furiously bent and did in déede gather them selues together against Christ the annoynted of the lord But it was to do whatsoeuer the hand and the counsell of the Lord had before determined to be done All which emphatically Zacharie voucheth vnder this word Thou shalt c. Wherefore let vs depend vpon our heauenly fathers prouidence and what gouernement raigne pollicie or order so euer we sée prayse God for the good pray God to amend rectifie or remoue the euill at his good pleasure and for his spirit to direct our steppes knowing that as a sparowe falleth not to the ground without the heauenly fathers prouidēce So shall nothing come to passe without his good pleasure to his elect And the euent shall euer be to them because they feare the Lord good and prosperous Oh that ye Papistes Atheists and other the Macheuils of this our age could consider this then would ye not so range at the Gospell or so enuie the professors therof or yet contēne so gracious gouernmēt as is set ouer you vs by the which not by casualitie but by diuine destinie gods word is so amplie preached forcibly beaten into your eares that were you not appointed to the slaughter in the day of wrath impossible should it be for you to remayne rebellious But so is it Gods good pleasure to rayse vp little Baptists and lowly babes to possesse that grace which you wise and mightie Giants of the world despise and persecute All prayse be to thée O heauenly father therefore and continually vouchsafe thy blessing to this our nation graunt our Dauid to consider thy choyse of her Maiestie which was not from the fold of simple shepe but out of the Lions téeth the Papists clawes out of the Towers prison and tirans death to féede thy people of England in the sinceritie of her harte and the porcion of her gracious giftes bestowed vppon her Moreouer I note to thée good reader the yet more mercie of our good GOD who spilleth not but spareth the worlde for the electes sake and before he sendeth destruction for sinne he exhibiteth to that people his Prophetes to call them to repentance that he in lyke sort may torne from the euil which he hath determined agaynst them As to Adam in Paradise he appeared by him selfe To Cain by his voyce from heauen To Pharao by Mosses To Achab his age by Hely To the Iewes before the destruction by Esay Je. sundry others To Ierusalem by Iohn Baptist Christ Iesus and his Apostles forty and od yeares after his death and all to call these to repentance and true turning to the Lorde by the warning of the Trumpe of God the mouthes of the Preachers But alas these ages as they are past before vs so haue they left to their posteritie as yet their former vices of securitie and contempt of the preachers voyce So that Esay may well say at this houre Lorde who beleueth our saying or to whom is the arme of the Lord knowne But woe ouertooke them and so shall it all such as despising the light of the worde wallow still in the myre of mans deuises agaynst god Where God offereth his worde therewyth