Ten senses He applies himself after Prayer to root out of the mind anger and wrath which if it be not done Prayer is not accepted The Form of PRAYER which our Saviour made after his Baptism when the Heavens were opened as it is delivered by Dionysius Syrus according to the Testimony of St. Philoxenus and Translated by D. L. O Father according to the good pleasure of thy Will I am made Man and from the time in which I was born of a Virgin unto this day I have finished those things which are agreeing to the nature of Man and with due observance have perform'd all thy Commandments the Mysteries and Types of the Law And now I am baptized and so I have ordain'd Baptism that from thence as from the place of spiritual Eirth the Regeneration of Men may be accomplish'd and as John was the last of the Legal Priests so am I the first of the Evangelical Thou therefore O Father by the mediation of my Prayer open the Heavens and from thence send thy Holy Spirit upon this womb of Baptism that as he did untye the womb of the Virgin and thence form me so also he would loose this Baptismal womb and so sanctifie it unto men that from thence now men may be begotten who may become thy Sons and my Brethren and Heirs of thy Kingdom And what the Priests under the Law until John could not do grant unto the Priests of the New Testament whose chief I am in the oblation of this Prayer that whensoever they shall celebrate Baptism or pour forth Prayers unto thee as the Holy Spirit is seen with me in open Vision so also it may be made manifest that the same Spirit will adjoyn himself in their society a more secret way and will by them perform the ministeries of the New Testament for which I am made Man and as the High Priest I do offer these Prayers in thy sight Dionysius Syrus his Question and Answer concerning the Prayer which JOHN the Baptist taught his DISCIPLES Translated by D.L. Quest VVHat was the Prayer which John taught his Disciples Answ Some recite it thus O Lord fit us for thy Kingdom and that we may enjoy the happiness thereof with thy Son Others thus O Father shew me the day of the Baptism of thy Son But what if one should say What need was there of this Prayer after he had baptized the Son had seen the Spirit and had heard the Father Others say That he prayed thus Repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand Others thus O Father let me hear thy Voyce O Son shew me thy Person O Spirit shew me thy Descent and raise up thy Power But neither is this approved the first Exposition carries with it the greater verisimilitude Gregorius the SYRIACK SCHOLIAST called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 on the Four Gospels Translated by DUDLEY LOFTUS J.U.D. MATTHEW the First The Son of David the Son of Abraham HE mentioneth David for that they hoped Christ would arise from him according to that Was not Christ to rise from the seed of David and from Bethlehem He mentions Abraham also for that it hath been said In his seed shall all Nations be blessed And Luke because that he wrote unto the Gentiles mounted up unto Adam the common Father and from him to God the Creator of all things Jacob begate Judah and his Brethren He did not mention the Brethren of Isaac and Jacob for that the Nation of the Hebrews were not to derive their Genealogy from them as from the Brethren of Judah for these were Hebrews the other were Edomites the sons of Ishmael and Esau Judah begate Pharez and Zarah of Thamar Pharez was a Type of the New Testament whose resemblance he was made in regard he first put out his hand which was afterwards withdrawn And after Zarah who was a Type of the Old Testament came out and therefore he expresses both their names and the Evangelist abstains from making mention of Zarah Rebecca and other vertuous Women but mentioneth Rahab Ruth and Beersheba to reprove the Jews who upbraided the Lineage of the Gentiles with the peculiarity of the people of God and thought that the meritorious cause of becoming the servants of God was Lineage or Wisdom whereas he shews That David the Great descended from Thamar the Ammonite who committed Fornication with her Father-in-law and from Rahab the Harlot who received the Spies in Jericho and from Ruth the Moabite though against the Moabites and Ammonites it was decreed That they should not enter into the House of the Lord for ever and King Solomon the wise was begotten of Beersheba the Hittite who at first had unlawful Communication with David Joram begate Hosiah Joram did not beget Hosiah but Ahaziah and Ahaziah begate Joash and Joash begate Amoziah and Amoziah begate Hosiah In the Catena he is called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Africanus of Emaus and St. Severus say That the Evangelists omitted these three for that they descended from Attaliah the Sister of Ahab she who for her wickedness was also called the sister of Jezabel but if it were so How cometh he to make mention of Ahaziah and Manaasse who were more wicked Georgius de Gentilibus saith Concerning this the Authour of the Catena after the citation of many Opinions rests upon none but saith 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Id est quam voluerit sententian sequatur lector That the first Scribe failed by reason of the similitude of letters and instead of Ahaziah wrote Hosiah but neither doth this Opinion prevail with me because that if these three be brought into computation with the others they make up Seventeen Generations and if they were not omitted by the Evangelist How did he set down Seventeen and reckon but Fourteen It is therefore known that the computation of Origen ought rather to take place and to be credited who saith That the Evangelist omitted those persons to accommodate the computation to the pleasure of the believing Hebrews who much respected the number Fourteen Josia begate Jocania and his Brethren in the Captivity of Babylon Jocania who was the Grandson of Josia he calls his son for Josia begate Jehoiachim who was Aliakim and Jehoiachim begate Jocania and the Uncles of Jocania on the Fathers side Jehu Achaz and Zedekia are called his brothers children according to the custom of Scripture as Abraham said unto Lot the son of his brother We are Brethren And because the Prophet Daniel reckoneth the seventy years of Captivity in the Transmigration from the Prophesie of Jeremiah which began the 13th of Josia Matthew saith That he begate Josiah although it was Achaziah Jocania begate Shelathiel Jeremiah the Prophet said concerning Jocaniah That his Throne shall perish without children and that no man of his seed shall sit upon the Throne of David How therefore can Christ of whom it is said The Lord will give him the Throne of his Father David derive his Genealogy from him for one of the
beginning of the Evangelium which is good Tydings is the Baptism of Christ as blessed Mark saith and inasmuch as he saith The Beginning of the Gospel he sheweth that he was the first that gave the name of Evangelium to a Book Moreover forasmuch as Evangelium or Gospel is by interpretation good Tydings and Christ before his Baptism did neither Preach nor Evangelize but after he was Baptized and Tempted he immediately Preached Repent the Kingdom is at hand as Matthew and Mark have written Moreover from his Birth to his Baptism he was governed by the Law and from his Baptism by such a new Administration as comported with the New Testament Again before his Baptism he performed no Miracle nor delivered any Doctrine otherwise than by Question and Answer in the Temple when he was Twelve years old as Luke sayes Moreover those things which were from his Birth to his Baptism are not to be reputed as of the Gospel though they have relation thereunto and are compiled therewith that we might be taught after what manner were his Conception and Birth Nor were it possible that we should be capable of receiving the Doctrine of the Gospel if we had not first learned where and how he was born whereas in those Years from his Birth to his being Thirty Years of Age he satisfied the Obligation of the Law of Nature and the written Law then he applied himself to frame a Module of a new World in his Baptism and to Preach the Gospel of the Kingdom of God And forasmuch as Mark knew that Baptism was the Beginning of the Gospel and that our Lord thence took his Commencement in the new Administration he wrote in the beginning of his Book thus The Beginning of the Gospel And if it shall be Objected Wherefore did the other Evangelists begin higher than his Baptism It is plain that Matthew wrote so that he might make it appear unto the Hebrews to whom he wrote That as the Prophets had before written that Christ should spring from the Lineage of David so he did then spring thence and Luke that he might bring them into Contempt who unskilfully undertook to write the Histories of deeds and John that he might write concerning the Divinity of Christ for that the other three omitted it lest it should be concealed and Christ be reputed but a meer man for these three causes they took their rise so high and not for that his Conception his Birth his Circumcision c. were of the Gospel The Son of God He calls Jesus Christ the Son of God and not the Son of Grace as say the Nestorians for we are the sons of grace and that Mark doth not here call Jesus Christ the Son of Grace but the Natural Son of God is evident from that which the Apostle said to the Philippians in an Epistle Let this mind be in your selves which was also in Christ Jesus who being the likeness thought it not robbery to be equal with God but evacuated himself of reputation and assumed the likeness of a servant and was made in the likeness of the sons of men and in fashion was found as man and humbled himself and became obedient even to death even the death of the Cross wherefore God hath exceedingly exalted him and given him a Name more excellent than all names That at the Name of Jesus every knee should how c. Let the Nestorians and Calcedonians be demanded Who is he who so evacuated himself and assumed the likeness of a servant Man or the word God Divine Nature or Nature Humane for Man and Humane Nature were already evacuated and servants wherefore this is the sense of the words that the word God evacuated himself and observe that the word God who evacuated himself and assumed the likeness of a servant doth he call Jesus Christ and to him is attributed Subjection Obedience and Death and the Cross and to him is attributed Exaltation and the giving of the Name of God which is more excellent than all Names And forasmuch as the Apostle said concerning the word God that he evacuated himself these are evident Demonstrations First That he being God by Nature was incarnate and made Man of his own will without being changed from being God Secondly That being equal in Nature with the Holy Ghost and Giver thereof and having a natural Holiness he took upon him to be anointed and sanctified by the Holy Ghost as he was Man for being made Man he suffered natural and animal Passions but not culpable Hunger and Thirst Sleep and Death did he taste for us And Thirdly That being called by eminent and exalted Names to wit Lord and God and Omnipotent and other the like so that whatsoever he had did as naturally belong unto him as to the Father and the Holy Ghost as having life of his own nature having power over all things and having glory due unto him from all things yet it is said That it was given him of the Father and that he received it from the Father And this moreover for that he was evacuated and made man And these were Demonstrations of his Exinanition that he vouchsafed to be called by humble and inferiour names as of Man Son of Man and a Stone Moreover it is certain That the word God who was the natural Son of God the Father is called Christ and not the Son of man who was of Mary for David saith That thy Throne O God is for ever and ever a right Scepter is the Scepter of thy Kingdom thou hast loved righteousness and hated iniquity wherefore God thy God hath anointed thee with the oyle of gladness above thy fellows It is therefore clearly understood that he whom he calls God and of whom he saith Thy Throne O God for ever is the same whom God the Father anointed and not the Son of Man who was of Mary Furthermore forasmuch as he saith That he anointed him above his fellows that is to say more than all they who were anointed by the Holy Ghost because they stood in need of anointing and were anointed by the Holy Ghost but the word God was anointed and sanctified by the Holy Ghost not being in want thereof because he was equal with the Holy Ghost and had a natural Holiness and was full as St. John saith of his fulness have we all received but because he was made man he received the Spirit and his anointing and his holiness that by his Mediation he might give us the Spirit to anoint and sanctifie us for that this word was anointed and sanctified by the Spirit because he was sent into the World and was made man is manifest from that which he saith of himself Say ye of him whom the Father hath sanctified and sent into the world thou blasphemest because I said unto you that I am the Son of God for it is certain that he who was sent from God the Father into the world was God the word and he who was sent was
souzes She cast in more than all the men cast in And how did she cast in more than all whereas they cast in twice as much as she He presently explains the difficulty and saith For all they cast in of their abundance Christ here teacheth us two things First That this gift which was made out of her penury was more abundant and greater in God's esteem than that which proceeded from Redundancy Secondly That God doth not regard the greatness or smallness of a gift but the will and mind wherewith it is given and it is certain That if it be given with a chearful will it is accounted much and great with God although it be small but if otherwise it is meanly esteemed by God though much in quantity CHAP. XIII BVt of that day and hour knoweth no man no not the Angels neither the Son but the Father The Hereticks to wit the Arrians when they are desirous to vilifie the Son they produce this Argument To whom we answer For inasmuch as he is God he knew all things that are before they were made but inasmuch as he was man he saith he knows not and the very same that is God is man and no other as he is life by nature and became death for us forasmuch as he was man so though he doth know all things as being God he said that he did not know as man And as he was before Abraham in respect of his Godhead according as he said Before Abraham was I am yet he was after him as being man for if he had said I know he had been like to the Father onely and not at all like unto us but he said I know not that he might be likened unto us and that there might be no place left for mistakes or to say that he was not made man for this property of man not to know things in futurity was common to him for he communicated in our want of knowledge even as in other humane infirmities and this is manifest from hence that he did not say Neither the Son of God knoweth but neither the Son simply as he was the Son of God so was he a so the Son of man and in that respect wanted knowledge though he knew all things as God Moreover it is certain That as he was man he said he did not know forasmuch as he did not say concerning the Holy Ghost that he did not know Again we say That God the Father is greater than the day of the coming of the Son and is more hidden and concealed than that day and yet the Son saith Even as the Father knoweth the Son the Son knoweth the Father If therefore he knoweth the Father who is high and exalted above all things and is more hidden and concealed than this day how much more then doth he know this day And if any one shall object That the Father knows the Son perfectly but that the Son knoweth the Father but in part let him know That for the same reason he might conclude that the Father knoweth not the Son but in part for the same knowledge is attributed to the Father and the Son as the Father knoweth the Son c. We say further That if the Father knows this day and hour the Son must necessarily know it because there is one knowledge of the Father and of the Son and of the Spirit for they are of one and the same nature the same will the same power and operation and therefore necessarily have they one and the same knowledge Moreover for that the Son created the Worlds and Times and Years and Months and Hours and Dayes it is manifest That he knows the day and hour of his appearance but if any one shall object That he hath not yet created the day of his coming he may be convinced by the force of two reasons First From this which is written That he finished the heaven and the earth and all that was in them and God finished his works on the seventh day Secondly Let it be granted That it were so though it be not a Truth yet he knew as God before hand those Things which are not and he knows every thing before hand Again How doth he know the Prognostications and the Signs which are to be at the day of his coming and yet not know the day for he declareth how that there shall be lightning and that the Sun shall be darkned and other such like things and the Stars shall fall from Heaven and the powers of Heaven shall be shaken and the sign of the Son of man shall appear and other the like things which are to happen in that day and hour and how is it possible That one should know what things are in the House and not know the House or how doth a man know the thing that is within a City or a Ship without knowing the City or the Ship And how can he who knoweth what things are without and within a Wall say that he doth not know the Wall in the middle Moreover as he knew the hour of his Birth and the day of his first coming in Bethlehem so doth he know his second coming Furthermore Paul saith That Christ is the power and wisdom of the Father and in this that he saith the power he sheweth That there is nothing out of his Jurisdiction and Providence and by that of wisdom he declares That there is nothing out of the reach of his knowledge but that all things which are and are to come are comprehended within the compass of his knowledge for if he can err in any thing he is not perfect wisdom especially since that he is the Divine wisdom of the Father and in him is hidden all wisdom and he it is that gives wisdom to the wise as saith the Son of Syrach All wisdom is of the Lord and Christ is the Lord whence it was that the Angels said to the Shepherds there is born unto you a Saviour who is Christ the Lord. Neither the Angels In this which the Angels said unto the Shepherds viz. To you is born c. which neither the Angels knew did he forbid them to declare that day and by this That neither the Son that is to say my self he stopt their mouths from asking him for in like manner they asked him after the Resurrection Art thou at this time about to restore the Kingdom And he stopt their mouths saying It doth not belong unto you to know the times and seasons which the Father hath appointed c. But the Father Inasmuch as he spoke of the knowledg of the Father he prevented them that they might not ask him and it is like to that of the mother of the sons of Zebedee for being unwilling to answer whether he would grant the request or no he answered It is not mine to give when assuredly it was he who was to place the Sheep on his right hand and the Goats on his left and to call Come ye
remembred his mercy i. e. Mary doth not insinuate as if he had forgotten what he had said but by the words he remembred is to be understood That he fulfilled his mercy and his promise which he made unto Abraham that Christ should rise of his seed Moreover That which God promised by his mercy unto Abraham That in his seed the Nations should be blessed did he fulfill by the Twelve Apostles and by the multitude of Jewes who believed as also the Promises of Palesti were performed by Joshuah the Son of Nun and Caleb DIONYSIVS his EXPOSITION ON SIMEON 's Nunc Dimittas His Benediction and his Prophesie Translated by D. L. DIsmiss now thy servant He begs a Dismiss from Christ though he was not detained by him but by the Spirit for he knew that there was one Nature of the Father and of the Son and of the Spirit and that they have one Will which he had learned by the Spirit By these words Dismiss thou thy servant He prayes to be dismissed out of this life According to thy Word It is likely that he had formerly heard from him somewhat concerning this and therefore he put him in mind of what he had said unto him In peace That is to say Without pain and passion He begged a quiet departure and that very day he was dismissed this life though others say the day after Mine eyes have seen thy mercy His Incarnation or Incorporation he calls mercy whereby he redeemed all Nations Which thou preparedst in the sight That is to say In his clemency he was gracious to sinners and propitious unto them A light for revelation of the Gentiles When Christ was revealed in person he was a light to the Gentiles who sate in darkness and they discerned and distinguished between the false gods and the true God and worshipped him And the glory of thy people He was glory to the Israelites because he was incarnated of their Nation and chose from amongst them Twelve Apostles and Seventy two Evangelists and although there was amongst them one wicked man yet the rest of them believed as said the Apostle And Simeon blessed them The Virgin because she was worthy to be the Mother of him who was begotten of the Father eternally and Joseph because he was an assistant to the Virgin and they were both Ministers in this mystery Behold he is set for the fall That is to say Of the Scribes and Pharisees and Priests who did not believe And rising of many That is to say Of Publicans and Harlots who believed in him and arose and of all the sons of Adam who believed Is set Here is fulfilled that which was spoken by the person of the Father Behold I am to set up in Sion a stone of offence and it was well said I am to set up And Simeon said is set up by reason he was placed in the midst of those who believing arose and of those who denying fell In Israel He said so for that as yet they had liberty of choice and the fall and rising were not from Jesus but from proper freedom and power of those who believe or deny And for a sign of Contention For all Tongues spoke against him and were all overcome by him according to that I came not to bring Peace For a sign Because that as a sign doth not only shew it self but other things also so Jesus doth not onely reveal himself but also the Father and the Spirit Of Contention For the Jewes of that time were divided in opinion concerning him Some of them called him a Prophet and others of them a Deceiver As also the Christians of this time some of them call him God made Man others Man made God and two natures after the union And some of them call him Creator others call him a Creature And a Spear shall pass thorow thy soul He calls a Spear the defect of Faith in Mary concerning him at that time and also at the time of his Passion He did not say That a Spear shall stick in thee but it shall pass thorow thy soul That he might shew that her defect of Faith was not permanent with her because she received from the Apostles correction when the Spirit came down into the upper Room and instructed her concerning the Majesty of him whom she had born Moreover He calls a Spear the Contumely and Reproach which the Jewes cast upon her which as a Spear were to transfix her Again He calls a Spear that which transfixed her Son on the Cross which having passed thorow our Saviour he said that it passed thorow Mary for it was the Custom that they who were Crucified did end their life not with a Sword but with a Spear when therefore the Son receiveth a wound the Mother also is likewise wounded especially when she is neer at hand and seeth it for although as God he was by nature the Son of the Father yet inasmuch as he was made Man he was naturally the Son of Mary In the Greek instead of a Spear it is written a Sword Others Through thy soul That is to say Through thy Son shall pass a Spear and the sting of the Serpent of Paradise by reason of the Transgression of the Commandment hitherto and she calls her soul her Son That thoughts of many might be revealed That is to say this Spear to wit doubting and scandal which passeth thy soul doth reveal the Thoughts of many hearts whether they raise doubts concerning him out of infirmity or out of an evil mind receive Correction from the Spirit as Mary did and as many others at that time and as the Faithful afterwards DIONYSIVS SYRVS HIS EXPOSITION ON THE AVE MARIA Translated by D. L. AND the Angel came to her i. e. The Angel declared his message unto her being alone for as he had done unto Zacharias and Joseph speaking unto them he did not so declare unto Joseph for without the communication of Joseph in the conception she conceived by the Holy Ghost but he denounced the matter unto Zachary because he communicated in the conception of John Peace unto thee full of grace He commenceth his Discourse from Peace for this Child was to destroy the Hostility which was between earthly and heavenly Things between the Nation of the Jewes and the Gentiles and between the Soul and the Body and also his Administration was to be accomplished according to what Isaiah said He shall speak Peace with his people Who filled her with Peace The Father And what was this Grace It was this That she conceived God in the flesh Our Lord is with thee He doth not say My Lord onely but also of all the Hosts which is known from hence That it was God who was conceived for he was not onely Lord of the Angels but he was God also And why did he say God We say That he observed the custom of servants who do not call their Masters by their name Blessed amongst women That is to
to his Father what he had done and that he might convince those who said he was an enemy to God And he sighed First by reason of the hardness of their hearts who saw the Miracles which he wrought and did not believe Secondly because there were some amongst them who did not onely not believe when they saw the Miracles which he did but also crucified him Thirdly as a Shepherd who sighs for his lost sheep and as a Mariner for his ship that is lost Fourthly by reason of Humane Nature which until then was humbled afflicted and brought into subjection Fifthly by reason of the captivity of our nature by the Devils And looking up to heaven he said unto him Ephphatha He did not open him by prayer or supplication but as in the beginning he commanded the light and it was made And if any one say That in the Beginning the Father commanded the Creatures that they should be made We answer That there was the same Commandment of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost as it is written That by the word of the Lord the heavens were made And straightway his ears were opened This was the operation of God who so soon as he commands any thing it is perfectly done according to that he commanded and they were and he commanded and he arose wherefore from hence That he commanded and it was done we understand That Christ who is God was made man And he charged them that they should tell no man thereof For he abstained from vain glory nay rather he Taught how to shun it and this which he said And he charged them being of the plural number whereas there was but one deaf man which he Cured must be taken in this sense That he joined this deaf man with others whom he had Cured or he charged this deaf man together with the multitude there assembled That they should tell no man CHAP. VIII ANd he came to Bethsaida and they brought unto him a blind man That is to say That they might Tempt him as his Friends And he took him by the hand and led him out of the town Wherefore he led him out hath been spoken unto by us concerning the deaf man And he did spit on his eyes This in like manner have we explained before And he asked him Dost thou see any thing That the blind man might be confirmed concerning his Cure I see men like trees walking The word walking is to be referred to men and not to trees according to that All the people saw the voyces and the lightnings and the Priests accompanied them in the way and they flew It had been an easie thing for him in the twinkling of an eye to have Cured him but he prolonged his Cure that the blind man might be more sensible thereof And that this Miracle might be confirmed and that the Humanation of Christ might not be taken for a fancy some say That because this blind man and that deaf man were doubtful in the Faith therefore did Christ prolong their Cure and effected it by little and little that they might be sensible thereof And sent him to his house Thereby abstaining from vain glory and Teaching us to flie from it And Peter took him and began to rebuke him Not angerly but lovingly and rather by way of Deprecation But he turned about and looked That is to say Jesus looked on his Disciples as if a man should say observe what Simeon saith even that which a Religious man should not think fit to admit into his Thoughts Get thee behind me Satan He calls him Satan by way of Admonition unto them that no man should presume to find fault with such Things as are acceptable to God as if they were complying with the mind of the Devil CHAP. IX I Have brought unto thee my son That is to say Not the Spirit which did not speak but the man who â—â—ught the infirm person spoke for his speech was suppressed whil'st he was Tormented He bruiseth him and he foameth That is to say Froth did come out of his mouth and he was like a dry stick And he spake to his Disciples that they should cast him out and they could not Because it was not decent that they should work Miracles when they were so near our Lord for when they were sent into Judaea they themselves did not only do mighty deeds but also said unto our Lord Behold the Devils are subject unto us through thy Name Nay others acted in his Name insomuch that they said We saw a man casting out Devils in thy Name and we forbade him We have expounded the rest of this matter upon Matthew And he wallowed and foamed That is to say he did beat with his legs and he cast up foam And Jesus asked his Father He did not ask as being ignorant for he who knew the Father perfectly knew also the time when this unclean spirit entred but he asked the question for four Reasons First That he might shew the contempt of the Jews Secondly That the power of Christ might be the more taken notice of and published Thirdly That the Miracle might be the more magnified in the eyes of the Beholders Fourthly That those who stood in need of Cure might be sensible of his Cure and these things we have explained in Matthew John said unto him Master we have seen a man who casteth out Devils in thy Name and we prohibited him It is probable That this man was one of those who often came to our Lord although he did not follow him as did his Disciples and because he was worthy our Lord bestowed on him this power But the Disciples when they observed it they forbade him the exercise thereof That is to say They admonished him under pain of Excommunication since thou art not of those who adhere to our Lord it is not lawful for thee to cast out Devils in his Name but our Lord saith unto them Forbid them not for there is no man who worketh a miracle in my Name and can suddenly speak evil of me If thy hand offend thee cut it off it is better for thee maimed c. By the Hand and by the Foot he signifieth the Congregation That is to say The lesser sort of People and Commonalty That is to say Whosoever is Arrogant a Glutton or a Covetous person or a Fornicator whether he be a Governor of the Congregation or of the meaner sort if he offend the Church to wit the Faithful cut him off and cast him out of the Church lest that he infect the whole Church by his offence and so all fall into Hell For every one shall be salted with fire and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt That is to say even as that Coyn which is tryed and purged by fire is of use to a Kingdom And as Salt preserves tender Bodies from Corruption so also the grace of the Spirit preserveth loose minds from the corrupt odour of sin
and be comforted in the Vision of the Divine image Again Vision is taken in seven several significations but generally it may be reduced into three viz. to Sense Reason and Faith and God is onely seen by Faith and Faith is the persuasion of those things which are in Hope Again He is seen in his Works according to that They shall seek after God and find him out in his creatures The Organ of this sight is a pure Heart which doth not adhere to earthly Things Furthermore They call sight the light and revelation which the Soul receiveth from within by the knowledge of him and of these spiritual Things according to that Clear mine eyes that I may see the wonderful things which are in thy Law VII Blessed are the Peace-makers For Peace is the equality of Will which is perfected in Love and the Proprieties of Peace and its Faculties are Love Quietness Unanimity and Charity These are the contraries to Peace Scandal Commotion and the Properties of him who is in Commotion are distorted Eyes tuberous Lips gnashing Teeth a distended Neck a moving and shaking Head Hands beating the Air stamping Feet therefore he calls them Peace-makers who cause War and Seditions to cease Moreover Him who worketh quietness between the Soul and the Body for the Spirit loves whatsoever keeps down the Body Moreover Whomsoever worketh quietness between himself and others For they shall be called the Sons of God But how can man that is made of dust be the Son of God We say That by Grace this was bestowed on him as it was in the beginning Free-will our own Liberty and Immortality are by Grace and what is this Filiation That is to say That man was made of mortal corruptible and temporal immortal incorruptible and eternal and that which is more he was made a divine man for he who was worthy to be the Son of God possesseth the glory of his Father as bodily Sons do inherit the riches of their Fathers VIII Blessed are they who are persecuted for Righteousness i. e. The Martyrs and Confessors who are persecuted by the Devil or Tyrants and our Lord calleth Righteousness himself as hath been said before Moreover He calleth Righteousness all the victories of vertues those who are persecuted for vertue either for the care of our Brethren or for Truth 's sake Moreover This eighth Beatitude hath affinity with the number Eight and as the Head of all Beatitudes is placed in the summity of divine vertues This David sheweth in the eight Psalm and also Moses by the Circumcision the eighth day cutting off and circumcising the dead skin wherewith we were cloathed for Transgression of the Commandment and here the eighth Beatitude gaineth us a return to Heaven and a regress to our former Righteousness Again This number of eight is celebrated in Nature and in Books and among the Heathen Philosophers Moreover There are eight passions of the right hand and eight of the left those of the right are Simplicity of the Mind Mourning Humility Righteousness Mercy Pureness of Thought Peace and perfect Suffering Those of the left hand are Pride Fornication Vain glory Intemperance Covetousness Anger Envy Disdain There is a Cure set down for every one of the left-handed passions viz. one of those of the right hand and the Soul is rectified and the Body perfected of him who takes care thereof Pride which is the first Devil a man overcometh by Simplicity which is of mean nature And Fornication the second being of a Swinish nature by the passion of the heart and Mourning Vain glory a Thorn which pricketh on every side and is without Fruit by Humility which is the good ground and cultivated with all vertues Gulosity a burning fire and never satisfied by an appetite regulated by Justice and Vprightness The rich man an Oppressor of and hated by all men by clemency and mercy towards all men A turbulent passion of the mind and commotion of a confus'd person by sincerity of thoughts and cordial love Envy the Fountain of all Contention and Strife by Peace the reconciler of differences Disdain the Father of pusillanimity and neglect by patient suffering the mother and root of all good Things IX Blessed are ye when men deride you i. e. When men call you Sorcerers Criminal Erroneous and by other reviling Terms for scorns and reproaches sometimes are a greater punishment than blows and many times men strangle themselves for that they have been reproached or reviled for what reason is this Beatitude of Reproach set in the last place By reason of the asperity thereof for if a man have not attain'd the perfection of the former he cannot endure this for he needeth to be a fortified man who can bear a reproach according as Job who bore the reproaches of his friends and David those of Shimei And persecute you i. e. Because they were to convert the Gentiles from worshipping of Idols to Faith in the Father in the Son and in the Holy Ghost therefore persecutions arise against you And speak against you every evil word Not for your offences but by reason of me it being untrue what they shall say against you as Paul said Let none of you suffer as an evil doer but as a Christian Then rejoyce and be glad for your reward i. e. in Truth when the Apostles were reproached and reviled for Christ they greatly rejoyced and now a reward is given unto them and then the glory which is to be revealed in us and these words are taken to concern all those who suffer Tentation for Christ For so persecuted they the Prophets This passage doth not only regard the Apostles but also the Doctors That as the Prophets suffered for the Father so ye shall suffer for me And by this he sheweth his Majesty and the Equality of his Glory with the Father And inasmuch as he said The Prophets which were before them He shewed That even they also had Prophets Again Though in every of the Beatitudes the Kingdom is not promised be not dismayed for though the rewards in the Beatitudes be divers and different one from the other yet all and every of them will bring him who observeth any of them to the Kingdom of Heaven And after he taught them their Duty he applieth himself to the praysing of them that they might not be troubled and say How can we attain the fulfilling of the Commandments which is requisite for our entrance into Heaven DIONYSIUS HIS EXPOSITION ON THE PROPHESIE of ZACHARIAS Translated by D. L. BLessed be the Lord God of Israel That is to say He is worthy of all Acknowledgments of thankful Benediction because he hath shewed his care and providence for us Who hath visited his people That is to say By the eye of the Spirit he saw that the Blind were to be restored to sight and the rest of the Miracles which our Saviour wrought And wrought them Redemption That is to say from Satan Death and Sin And hath raised
an horn for us He calls Christ an horn according to that then I will raise an horn unto David Psal 132.17 An horn is taken from the similitude of wiâ—d Beasts which fight and help themselves with their horns In the house of David his servant For in respect to him were the promises made That of the seed of David Christ should arise Severus de Gebulo God is the horn of the Righteous and Saints wherefore is he called an horn as an horn is one of the integral parts of the body and hath nothing like the body for it is not flesh specifically nor bones nor nerves nor veins nor any of the entralls though it be of the body So Christ though he be of men yet hath he not in him any thing like unto men of those things which are of sin As he spake by the mouth of the Holy Prophets That Christ should arise from the seed of David That he might redeem us from our Enemies That is to say from the Devil and his ministers and from sin and death And hath remembred his Covenant That he remembred is as much as to say he performed viz. The agreement which he made with Abraham this day hath he performed for Covenants are the Agreements which he made with Abraham swearing That of his seed one should arise in whom all Nations should be blessed By my self have I sworn said the Lord because thou hast done this thing and hast not with-held thy Son from me c. And the Oath which he sware That is to say That which I sware by my self saith the Lord of lords He calls his seed which sojourned in the Land of his Enemies the children of Israel and the seed wherein all Nations were to be blessed he calls Christ And that they might serve him without fear He therefore delivered us that we might worship him and not Idols without being afraid of the Devil In Justice and Righteousness That is to say in Holiness and not in Sacrifices of dumb Beasts Thou Childe the Prophet of the Highest That is to say If Christ be the Highest he hath Prophets also as hath his Father It is manifest That the Word is the most high from that which John said That he who came from on high is above all therefore it was the most High God who was incarnated and his Prophet was John not far off but neer at hand for he said Behold there cometh one after me For thou shalt go before the face That is to say To prepare the way before him in the minds of men who are sunk in sins Again He went before his Face for he said Behold there cometh after me one who is more powerful than I. That he might give knowledge of salvation to his people To give unto the Faithful knowledge of salvation by remission of sins he calls his people those who believe in him that he might give them the knowledge of God the Father who is the true God and that they might lead their lives as Christ said This is life that they may know thee the true God By the tender mercies of God That is to say By the mercies and favour of God He sent unto us from on high a branch According to that Behold a man and his name was a branch Others call the Star which declared unto the Wise men a branch which came from on High and preached unto the Wise men who sate in sin To give light unto them who are in darkness He calls sin darkness and the shadow of death for to this end he came from on High that he might expiate our sins and iniquities which are darkness and death because he is the light of the World To guide our feet in the way Feet and the way he calls Conversation and Actings In the way of peace That is in the way of the Gospel according to that Your feet shod with the blessing of the Gospel And he made peace between us and his Father THE EXPOSITON OF DIONYSIVS SYRVS ON THE MAGNIFICAT Translated by D. L. MY Soul doth magnifie the Lord. That is to say My Soul gives Thanks and glorifies him who hath magnified me and made me the Mother of his Son It is a Query Whether the Lord magnified Mary or whether Mary magnified the Lord And it is certain That the Lord magnified Mary Again Magnifie here is like that of the Scripture which saith Give Majesty unto God And my Spirit hath rejoyced in God Because he hath sent down his Son unto me and hath preserved me from that Curse In sorrow shalt thou conceive Regarded the lowliness of thy Hand-maiden That is to say He hath beheld my Humility and hath exalted me and made me the Mother of his Son Moses also by reason of his Humility was made a Prince And he saw that she obscured her self in the low condition of a Maid-servant though she was to be the Mother of his Son Behold from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed That is to say From this time that she conceived the Word of God And this she spoke by Prophesie For behold all generations of the earth called her blessed according as she said Hath done great things to me That is to say That she conceived him without the Society of Man and bare him with the Conservation of Virginity He that is mighty and holy is his Name Because he is Mighty and Omnipotent he hath done great things for me And his mercy is to generations Because he poureth forth his mercies upon those who are of a righteous and vertuous Conversation And she took of those Things which were her own and conferr'd them upon others i. e. because she feared God he multiplied his mercy on her in Virginity He hath gotten the victory with his arm i. e. his Dominion and Kingdom he calleth Victory In time past the Victory the Arm and Dominion of the Lord was seen in the Wonders which he wrought by the Prophets but in this time forward by the Revelation of his Son He hath scattered the proud In time past the Proud and Vain glorious but in the time to come the Crucifiers He hath put down the mighty i. e. In times past the Kings who rose up against the Hebrews but at this time the Gentiles and the Jewes and the Hereticks who have risen against the Church And exalted the humble i. e. In the time of Abraham and Isaac and afterward the Apostles and Faithful The hungry he hath filled with good things i. e. Really he satisfied and will satisfie and spiritually he satisfieth and will satisfie those who hunger after vertue and in the world to come will fill them with good Things and Rewards The rich he dismist i. e. Those who gloried in their Riches he vomited out and drove away from him He hath holpen his servant Israel i. e. In Egypt and in the Wilderness and in that he gave him the Land of Promise and freed him from his Enemies He hath
say In thee is blotted out the Curse by thy bearing him in whom are blessed all Nations An EXPOSITION of the LORDS PRAYER taken out of DIONYSIVS SYRVS his CATENA on the Sixth Chapter of St. Matthew And Translated by D. L. PRay thus That is to say Not as the Gentiles and Hypocrites but as I teach you 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Prayer is sometimes taken for a promise of Vows which are separated or designed by us to God according to what David said I will perform my vowes to the Lord As also for whatsoever cometh from the lips And 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Prayer is an Oblation made to God after the performance of a promise therefore 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ought first to be accomplished and then 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to follow 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Prayer is taken three manner of wayes First For Words as that of Hannah who prayed with her mouth Secondly For matter of Fact as that of Phinehas who prayed by a zealous deed Thirdly For that of the mind according to that I will pray in the Spirit and I will pray with knowledge And every one of these three manner of wayes bodily mentally spiritually our Lord recommends unto us the latter Our Father who art in Heaven Our Father may be termed several wayes First Our remote Father as Adam the Father of us all Secondly Our next Father as Abraham who was the Father of Isaac Thirdly Accidental Fathers Fourthly An Instructer of Youths is called a Father Fifthly An aged man is called a Father Sixthly The High Priest is called Father Seventhly The Three hundred and eighteen Doctors are called Fathers Moreover Satan is called the Father of them who are subject unto him but in none of these kinds do we call God our Father but by reason of Baptism and forasmuch as Christ and we also are born in Baptism we are Brethren unto him and Sons to the Father as David said I will declare thy Name to my Brethren and he gave them authority to be called the Sons of God And we call the Father our Father Christ was the natural Son of his Father but we are the Sons of Grace Unto whom doth it belong to call God his Father He who is perfect in a good Conversation is he who calls God our Father but he who is of a sordid and evil Conversation calls Satan his Father because he fulfills his Will Why doth he teach us to say Our Father generally and not peculiarly every one of us My Father who art in Heaven That he might shew that we are one Body and that our Father is one and that we might pray for the intire body of Brethren Moreover by the words Our Father he beats down Pride and exalted Opinions of our selves shewing That Kings and Beggars are equal in that glorious Pedigree if ye all have one Father ye are also of one kind in the Spirit Our Father who art in Heaven Not that he is confined to Heaven but that he might divert the mind of him who prayeth from earthly Cogitations and raise it to Heaven Again He saith in Heaven That we might be weaned from earthly Parents and to shew that his dwelling is in Heaven Hallowed by the Name That is to say That by our glorious and gracious living the Name of God may be sanctified and glorified Again That we might consecrate our lips and our mouths to his Name because he is Holy before we can call him Holy Again Hallowed That is to say Let thy Holy Name be praised or celebrated 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is an Hebrew name and signifieth separation And whatsoever thing is separated from another whether it be in beauty or in riches c the Hebrew calls it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Holy according to that The Holy in the Land and Renowned Thy Name Thy Name is used in the place of God according to the phrase of Scripture Praise the Name of his holiness and let them know that thy Name is the Lord onely Thy Kingdom come That is to say That thou may'st deliver us from evil The word Kingdom is taken in sundry senses as we have hinted heretofore Kingdom The Beatitude of the World to come wherein we shall be made immortal Kingdom The time after the Resurrection of Christ according to that I will not drink of the fruit of the Vine until I drink it anew in the Kingdom Kingdom The Gospel Kingdom The Theory of Things of small quantity according to that The Kingdom is like unto Leaven Kingdom The Contemplation of the Trinity according to that The Kingdom cometh not by observation and the Kingdom of God is within you Here he calls the Kingdom the Grace of the Holy Spirit which we receive in Baptism Again Thy Kingdom come He teacheth us to pray for Faith in him therefore he calls Faith the Kingdom Thy Will be done He teacheth us to pray for a vertuous and chaste Conversation Moreover Be pleased that we who dwell on earth may glorifie thee As in Heaven so also in Earth That is to say As thou art well-pleased with the Angels in Heaven so also be pleased with us who dwell on Earth Give us the Bread of our Exigency By Bread is understood all things necessary for the Body Meat Drink Rayment and Lodging all which are requisite for the Body This day In that he saith the day he means the present time Remit unto us our debts as we also For remission he gives remission we as men remit unto men but he as God remits unto us our many Trespasses And as is the disproportion between a grain and a Mountain between a drop and the Sea so little is our remission in comparison of that remission he grants us Lead us not into Tentation That is to say Let us not be the occasion of their being condemned who are to bring Tribulations upon us And again It doth not befit us to presume of our own accord the exposing of our selves to Tentations for Satan himself continually raiseth them up against us and therefore let not us excite them But deliver us from Evil. That is to say It behoveth us alwayes to pray that we may be delivered from the Temptations which the evil one raiseth against us For thine is the Kingdom If the Kingdom be his then Satan is his Slave and cannot presume to attempt any thing unless he permit him as he gave him permission in the case of Job and of the Swine The Power and the Glory His is the Power for he is able to do all Things And Glory for ever For as his Kingdom is sure and his Power great so also shall his Glory without end remain for ever He comprehends the Prayer in Ten sentences according to the Mystery of the Ten Commandments and the Ten Beatitudes and Jud which signifieth Ten is the letter of Jesus and the five first sentences concern the Soul and the five latter concern the Body that we may purge the
set down by St. Mark is evident from this That before our Lord was Baptized he neither Preached nor Evangelized but after that he was Baptized and Tempted he began to say Repent the Kingdom of heaven is at hand And St. Basil saith That this Mark first used the word Evangelium and this is clear from hence That the other Three Evangelists made no mention thereof A voyce crying in the wilderness John is called a voyce because he made known Christ the Word for by the voyce is made known the Word that is hidden in the mind Confessing their sins Hence it is manifest That confession is necessary for the Faithful And straightway he came up out of the water That is to say our Lord. He saw To wit John the Baptist And straightway the Spirit took him out To wit the holy Spirit What have we to do with thee This one speaks as from the mouth of them all CHAP. II. THE son of Halphaeus All the Doctors agree That this Levi was Matthew the Publican who was an Evangelist and that Jesus sat down in his House and Mark here calls him the son of Halphaeus and that this was not the brother of James the son of Halphaeus is demonstrable from this That Matthew was of the Tribe of Issachar and this James was of the Tribe of Menasse When Abiathar was High Priest In the Book of Samuel it is written That David desired the holy bread from Achimelech the Father of Abiathar and it is possible that he desired it from Achimelech and that Abiathar his son gave it CHAP. III. SOns of Thunder Because the sons of Zebedee did preach with a high voyce he calls them by this name And his Kindred heard That is to say the children of Joseph CHAP. IV. THat under the shadow thereof the Fowl may dwell That is to say the Gentiles without the Law may rest under the shade of the Gospel And they left the multitudes In some Copies it is read He left but that reading is not to be approved but we ought to follow the Greek Copies to wit That he and his Disciples left them or dismissed them And there was a great tempest The Syriack word signifieth a boysterous wind which bloweth on the face of the earth and raiseth up dust and sand it is of an Hebrew derivation and is expounded the ascent of God CHAP. V. LEGION That is to say Ten Thousand CHAP. VI. BEhold the Carpenter the son of Mary It is likely that Joseph was dead and therefore he did not mention him with his mother and brethren Except a Rod. The word except beareth the sense of neither in this place and it is clear from this That Matthew saith neither a Rod. It is not lawful for thee to take the wife of thy brother Because she had by fraud caused him to be put to death and had it not been for this it had not been unlawful for him to take her to Wife according to the Law of Moses CHAP. X. TImaeus the son of Timaeus In two Greek copies it is a blind man the son of a blind man And to say Son of David In two Greek copies we find it Son of the Son of David have mercy upon me CHAP. XIII AND not the Son but the Father Matthew hath not the woâ—ds and not the Son And our Lord said this wâ—th reservatâ—on and not that he was ignorant of the thing for he who knew the Father who was concealed and â—ncomprehensible saying No man knows the Father but â—he Son Hâ—w could he but know the time of the end of the World He said thus for this reason to wit That if he had said I know and will not tell they had been offended and it he had said he knew and had declared it unto them others would have known it frâ—m them and have communicated it to all other generations and so by reason of the remoteness of time they would have grown negligent and careless Hence it is known That it is more advantagious to the sons of men to be ignorant of a matter of this kind than to have knowledge thereof CHAP. XIV AND he took the Chalice and gave thanks and blessed and gave unto them In the Greek it is not said That he blessed any moâ—e than the body onely And a certain young man followed him and was naked onely covered with a linen cloth That this was a stranger is known from hence that his Disciples were modest and ashamed to accompany him with a linen cloth only Wine mixed with myrrhe That he might be the more intoxicated and not be sensible of the agony of death And Mary the mother of James the less That is to say the brother of our Lord and that he might be distinguished from James the brother of Zebedee he calls him the less and this Mary was not the mother of our Lord but the wife of Joseph to wit the mother of his children And of Jose and Shalom These also were the natural sons of Joseph and were called the brethren of our Lord in name only and not by consociation of blood CHAP. XVI AFter this he was seen of two of them Luke the Evangelist speaks clearly of one of them that he was Cleophas but as concerning the other there are different opinions Some say it was the wife of Cleophas Others say That it was Luke himself and that he might not seek glory he did not mention his name And confirmed their words with the signs which they wrought St. Severus saith in the Seventy seventh discourse of his Epithronion That in approved Greek copies the Gospel of Mark ends with these words For they were afraid LUKE CHAP. I. FOrasmuch as many That is to say The Sect of Simon the Sorcerer and those of the Circumcision for it is said That there were Eighty four Gospels according to the number of Apostles and Disciples and after the Apostles departed this life their Disciples chose two of those of the Apostles to wit those of Matthew and John and two of those of the Disciples to wit Mark and Luke and that they destroyed the rest According to what they have delivered That is to say The Apostles To us That is to say To me and to Mark. Of the Word That is to say of Preaching to wit Evangelical denuntiation and the doctrine of our Lord in the World and that this voyce the Word is applicable to those Three senses is apparent from the words of Gregorius Theologus Theophilus This man was a Believer and one of the Rulers of Alexandria Nor Seicera strong drink That is to say a certain kind of drink which was made of Honey and of Dates c. From the Birth of Jesus to his Baptism were Thirty years and from his Baptism to his Ascension were Two years and Six months He shall be great That is to say His greatness shall be revealed to Angels and to Men. And the power of him on high shall come upon thee All the
a Samaritan a Transgressor of the Law and have said That I am not come from God These things shall be forgiven unto ye but forasmuch as ye have blasphemed against the Holy Spirit by whom I have cast out Devils and Cured the Sick and have said That I did so by the help of Beelzebub and have attributed Divine miracles unto Devils This Blasphemy shall not be remitted unto ye neither in this World nor in that which is to come Object If Blasphemy against him shall be forgiven and Blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven therefore the Son is less than the Spirit and how is Blasphemy against the Spirit irremissible for behold the Jewes who blasphemed against him as also the Macedonians who called him a thing made when they believed and repented obtained forgiveness Resp We Answer That he doth not say that universally all Blasphemies against the Holy Ghost are irremissible but unless they repent they shall not be remitted unto them and many who blasphemed against the Son and did not repent did not obtain pardon and many who did blaspheme against the Spirit and afterwards repented have obtained pardon Moreover He sheweth that Blasphemy against himself is of a lower degree but Blasphemy against the Spirit is great and difficult There might be some excuse for Blasphemy against him because they saw him vested with a body and he appeared to be a man but the proof of the Spirit they took from the Scriptures and the Prophets who spoke concerning him and therefore they were inexcusable and according to what I said ye are offended with me because I am cloathed with flesh but forasmuch as ye have not seen the Spirit so cloathed but working miracles wherefore do ye blaspheme against him Neither in this World nor in that which is to come For some men are Tormented here and there as the Sodomites and the Jewes who were Tormented here in the Captivity and in the other World because they did not believe and there are others who are neither Tormented here nor there as the Apostles the Martyrs and Job for although they suffered afflictions yet whatsoever they endured was not a punishment but a colluctation with evil and a tryal of integrity for there is a difference between a punishment which proceeds from sin and tryals which are permitted for proof of the Elect and Vertuous for the one hardly receives remission of the sins which he committed by the tribulation he endures but the other obtains a Crown of Righteousness And there are some who are Tormented here as Beggars and Lazarus and he who toâ—k the Wife of his Father and some there as the Rich man and it being certain that some are Tormented here and some there our Lord said Neither in this World nor in that which is to come Moreover He calls his body the son of man that is to say Whosoever shall blaspheme against my body saying I came not from a Virgin or that I did not descend from Heaven or that my body hath not suffered truly but in fancy I shall forgive him upon Repentance but he who shall blaspheme against the Divinity working miracles shall not be forgiven for this is a sin accompanied with contempt and is not made of poverty and delight and although this sin may be remitted as we said before by Repentance yet it is the worst of all sins DIONYSIVS SYRVS CONCERNING FREE-VVILL IN HIS Exposition on the Eighteenth Chapter of MATTHEW Ver. 7. Translated by D. L. J. U. D. FOR it is necessary that offences should come By the word necessary he doth not take away the liberty and power which they have in themselves but hath regard to the Scandals which by their own liberty and will they were to bring necessarily upon themselves by reason of which they were to be condemn'd Again He did not cast them under a constraint of fact but foresaw that they were incurably sick and of their own will were to produce Scandals and therefore he said It is necessary forasmuch as they were to be the cause thereof for if they had been unwilling they would not have come But if it were necessary that Scandals should come why doth he denounce a Woe unto the World We say That as he abstain'd from the doing of some things as he was God so being Man he suffered passions and did whatsoever became him but because they were not the better he denounces a Woe unto them They were honoured and were not the better but when they were scourged they were amended And as a Physitian taking care of his sick Patient who will not obey his commands saith Woe to such a man by reason of his sickness which he increaseth by his own disobedience If it be necessary that Scandals should come how is it possible that we should escape them We say It is necessary that Scandals should come but it is not necessary that we should perish thereby even as a Physitian saith it is of necessity that such a man should be sick yet it is not necessary that he should be destroyed thereby who is forewarned thereof and it is certainly known from hence that there have been vertuous men who have escaped from evils and scandals therefore that a man is destroy'd proceedeth from his neglect If every man were upright and no man should bring Scandals this saying would be false It is necessary that they should come We say That if they were to be upright he had not said It is necessary but because he knew that they were not to be upright he said It is necessary i. e. absolutely * Omâ—imodâ— venient scandala And wherefore did not he grant unto them that they should not be troubled with Scandals We say That of neglect they were scandalized if destruction proceeded from the cause of Scandal every man must necessarily have been destroyed but if some escape he who doth not escape may repute himself the cause thereof Otherwise thus It is necessary Scandals should come Some men say That these words are founded upon the passion and death of our Lord for his death was necessary this is clear from hence That he said A grain of wheat unless it fall into the ground and dye beareth no fruit And Paul that by his death we vanquish him who had power and if the vanquishing of death is necessary so also is the death of our Lord and Regeneration necessary And we ought to know That although the Passion of our Lord were necessary yet the Actors and Authors thereof were not of necessity nor did they unvoluntarily attempt the same otherwise he had not pronounc'd a Woe against him by whom Scandals should come and if according to their madness the Treachery of Judas was of necessity who was the cause of his bursting and hanging himself Dionysius Syrus concerning the woman that had six husbands John 4. Translated by D. L. J. U. D. GO call thy husband i. e. That he might partake of these
sanctified by the Spirit that the word God is called Christ because he was made man St. Paul saith But to us there is one God the Father of whom are all things and one Lord Jesus Christ by whom are all things and one Holy Ghost in whom are all things Moreover he saith of Christ that all things were made by his hands by whose hands therefore saith Paul that all things were created whether by the hands of the Son of man who was begotten of Mary or by the hands of the word God as John saith All things were made by him and the same word by whom all things have been created doth Paul call Jesus Christ It is evident therefore from these premises that Mark calls the Natural Son of God the Father who was incarnated and made man by the Name of Christ and not the Son of man who was born of Mary who was the Son of Grace as say the Hereticks As it is written in Isaiah the Prophet behold I send my Angel That is to say he produceth this Testimony to prove That the Beginning of the Gospel is the Baptism of Christ for this Allegation Behold I send my Angel is written in Malachi and not in Isaiah but others say that it was also written in Isaiah and that it is lost Others say That this Gospel was Translated out of the Roman Language into the Greek and out of the Greek into the Syriack and that the Interpreters mistake put Isaiah in the place of Malachi Others That in the Book of Diateseron which is preserved in Alexandria and was written by Tatianus the Bishop as also in the Greek Gospel and the Harkalian it is written in the Prophet without expressing what Prophet Others say that this Quotation hath reference to the voyce of one crying in the wilderness Prepare ye the way of the Lord make his paths strait for Isaiah speaks after that manner but not to this Behold I send my Angel for the Evangelist was not curious as to the exactness of his Narrative according to the custom of a Book wherein a Subject is Treated of at large but wrote after an ordinary manner according as other Divine Writers have done after this sort all the people saw the Voyces and the Lightnings whereas it is known that Voyces cannot fall under the sense of sight Again a Bullock or a Lamb whose Ear is cleft or wants a Tayle whereas a Bullock hath no Tayle In like manner it is said My hand kissed my mouth whereas the mouth did kiss and not the hand So Mark sets down that of Isaiah then this I send my Angel and after this The voyce of one crying not distinguishing to which of the two sayings he referred the Quotation out of Isaiah The voyce of one crying Wherefore is John called a voyce because Christ is called the word and a word without a voyce or writing is not known therefore very aptly is John called a voyce because with his voyce was Preached the onely Word Prepare the way of the Lord. The way and path he calls the coming of Christ Prepare your minds and thoughts against the coming of Christ John was in the wilderness He calls the Wilderness the desolate passage from Earth to Heaven By Baptising and Preaching he signified that the destruction of Mortality was to be destroyed By his cloathing of Hair he signified Repentance By the Girdle about his Loyns and the Band upon his Bowels he denotes the sensitive and intellectual Faculties and Continency from an exorbitant Appetite which in Prosperity is exuberant By the winged Locusts the seed of the Just to meet the Lord. By the sweetness of Honey the sweetness of the Blessings which come from our Lord of higher value than Jewels Moreover Honey signifieth the purging of the World from the rust of sin for Honey is of a cleansing Nature 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 The Region of Judaea That is to say a place of Towns or Villages The Garment of Camels Hair signifies the meanness of his Apparrel and his Poverty for he was not cloathed with Wooll but with course Hair The time is accomplished and the Kingdom is at hand That is to say the time of the shadows of the Law and the fulfilling of Mysteries and Types is at hand the Kingdom of God he ealls here the Gospel and Grace A certain man with an unclean spirit He calls the Devil unclean by reason of the unclean deeds he frequently acted by him in whom he dwelt Art thou come to destroy us He hints two things First Their fear of our Lord which possessed them from the victory had against them in the Wilderness Secondly Their wickedness in respect that the delivery of that man out of their power who was their Captive was reputed their loss I know thee who thou art the Holy One of God He speaks unto him as unto a holy man and not as persuaded that he was God And when they had found him they said unto him all men seek thee This saying all in this place is like to this Jesus looked upon her with all the Earth and all the Nations round about me and all they who came were Thieves and Robbers See thou say nothing to any man He prohibited them who were cured to publish the same lest he might be suppressed by the Jews as a vain-glorious person for he knew that the Miracles which he did were not to be concealed When he performed Miracles before the multitude he gave no command that they should not publish them as in Kotna and when he multiplied the bread but as touching the matter of Lazarus he forbade his own followers to publish it as he did also concerning this Leprous man the Paralytick and the blind men And we say that among the Multitudes he openly wrought Miracles to the intent that he might draw them to faith in him and did not praerequire from them faith in him as he did amongst his own followers for when he changed Water into Wine he did not first of all take the Suffrages of the company to acknowledge whether he were able to do it or no as he did in the case of the Leprous person the Paralitick and the blind men whom he did not cure until they had confessed that he was God As Moses commanded for a testimony unto them He commanded the Leprous person to offer an Oblation that he might manifest the agreement of both Testaments Secondly That he might shew that there was one giver of them both although the first was the Doctrine of Babes and ours of Perfection Thirdly That he might declare that this of God was not contrary to that of the Law so that they needed not to suppress this for the other CHAP. II. THey lifted up the Roof By Art they found out a way to lift up the Roof of the House and easily to let down the Bed in such manner that neither the Timber nor Dust might fall upon them as many in these dayes