be possible But especially it is to bee kept when Enemies are banded together against Church or State Then above all other times looke well to the keeping of Vnity Am I deceived or is not this your case now Are not many and great Enemies joyn'd against you Are they not joyned both against the Church and against the State Are they joyned and are you divided God forbid It cannot be that you should so forget the Church of Christ or the Bowels of your owne Countrey and your owne Ioyne then and keepe the Unity of the Spirit and I 'le feare no danger though Mars were Lord of the Ascendent in the very instant of this Session of Parliament and in the second house or joyned or in aspect with the Lord of the second which yet Ptolomey thought brought much hurt to Common wealths But suppose all danger over I would it were yet keepe Vnity at all times For Enemies are as Cunning as malice can make them And if Vnity be not kept at al times at that time when t is not kept they 'l make their breach And they 'l make it certainly For if the Vnity of the Spirit be gone the Spirit is gone with it And if the Spirit bee gone Christ is gone with him And if they be gone God the Father is gone with them And what misery will not follow when an Enemy shall come upon a State and finde the whole blessed Trinity Father Sonne and Holy Ghost gone from it to accompany that Vnity which is banished out of it Yea but you will say if Vnity be lost we will quickly fetch it back againe Soft First t is more wisedome to keepe it than to be driven to fetch it back Secondly before Vnity be thrust off it would be well thought upon whether it be in your power to bring it back when you will The Spirit I am sure is not and t is His Vnity And lose it when you will 't is like the losse of health in the naturall body Iust like For there every Disease is with some breach of Vnity either by Inflammation in some noble or vitall part or by strife in the humors or Luxations in the joynts or by breaking veines or sinewes still with some breach of Vnity Well what sayes the patient therewhile What Why he sayes he will recover his health and then take care to keepe it Yea but what if Death seaze upon Him before health be recovered What then Had it not been better and safer a great deale to keepe health while he had it And is not death a just reward of his distempering his humors I will not apply to either Church or Common-wealth but certainely 't is better for both to keepe the Vnity of the Spirit than to trust to the Recovery of it when 't is lost Keepe then the Vnity of the Spirit but know withall and it followes in the Text that if you will keepe it you must endeavour to keepe it For it is not so easie a thing to keepe Unity in great Bodies as 't is thought There goes much labour and endeavour to it The word is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 studie be carefull to keepe it Saint Augustine reades it Satagentes doe enough to keepe it And he that doth enough gives not over doing till it be kept Nay the Apostle comes so home that he uses two words and both of singular care for Vnity For he doth not simply say Keep it nor simply Endeavour it but study and endeavour to keep it Now no man can keep that is not careful and no man will endeavour that is not studious Neither is it saith Saint Chrysost every mans sufficiencie to be able to keep Vnity And the word implies such an endeavour as makes haste to keepe and indeed no time is to bee lost at this worke Why but if there be need of such endeavouring whence comes it that that which clings so together as all Vnity doth is so hard to keepe Whence why I 'le tell you I presume you 'll endeavour the more to keepe it First then 't is hard to be kept in regard of the nature of this Vnity For be it in Church or be it in Common-wealth t is Vnum aggregatum One by Collection and Conjunction of many And the Schoole teaches us that this Vnity is Minima Vnitas A Unity that is least One and therefore aptest to fal asunder Both because many are not easily kept at One and because every one of the many by reason of the contrary thoughts and affections which divide him is not long together one in himselfe Which is the Reason as I conceive of that in Philo That a little difference is able to divide a City Secondly t is hard to keepe in regard of Opposers against it and slie practicers upon it And they are many David complained of them in his time Psal 120. My soule hath long dwelt with them that are Enemies to peace And there 's no Church nor no State but hath some of these And since the plotting and studdy of these is to breake you must endeavour to keepe the Vnity of the Spirit And you 'll finde the worke hard enough But as to keepe Vnity is a worke of Difficulty and takes up much endeavour of the best so 't is a glorious worke and worth their endeavour It is a pitifull thing to see a man but reputed wise and his Endeavour vaine But beside the comfort that is within there 's a great deale of honour to see a wisemans endeavour like himself And nothing is more like wisedome than Vnity For wise Counsells are seldome better knowne by any thing than this That as they are in themselves One and vary not so they tend to One and distract not That One end is Verity in the Church Safety in the State and Vnity in both Notwithstanding this Good God what spending there is of great endeavours about vanity and things of nought Halfe that endeavour spent in keeping Vnity would doe what all our hearts desire and more too Why but then how shall we be able to set our Endeavour right to the keeping of this Vnity of the Spirit How why the Apostle tells you that too ver 2. And the way hee proposes is so direct that I dare say if you endeavour you shall keepe the unity of the Spirit both in Church and State First then all Endeavour to keepe the Vnity of the Spirit is void if it be not vertuous For the Spirit will neither be kept nor keepe men together in vice Next among all vertues foure are most necessary to preserve Vnity The Apostle nameth them and I 'le doe no more They are Humility at the heart Meekenesse in the carriage Patience in point of forbearance And Charity whose worke is supportation of the weake that scandall be not taken and Unity broken And concerning this last great vertue whose worke is supportation of the weak 't is and excellent passage which
compasse of this year God hath crowned him againe with a Son a Crown far more precious than the Gold of Ophir For since Children are in nature the Crowne of their parents rejoycing what joy must this needs be both to the King and to the people who have an interest though not alike in the Kings Sonne In the Kings Son and he a Sonne given by God after some yeares expectation and he a Son given after so great a losse of a Son in the former yeare and he a Son after so many feares that this blessing could not or not so soone come upon us So here are two great blessings that God hath given you at once the King and the Kings Sonne the tree and the fruit the King to be a blessing to you and the Kings Sonne to be a blessing for your children after you And besides all other blessings that are to come here is a double blessing rising with this Sonne for it dispells the mists of your feares and promiseth an influence to them that shall come after And let me put you in minde of it for it is most true whether you will beleeve it or no There are no subjects in any State I speake what I know whatsoever Christian or other that live in that plenty at that ease with those liberties and immunities that you doe There is no nation under heaven so happy if it did but know and understand its owne happinesse To these nay farre above all these you have Religion as free as may be And all this you have maintained to you by the justice and judgement that God hath given the King for your good Take heed I beseech you take heed what returne you make to God and the King for these blessings Let not the sins of the time murmuring and disobedience possesse any They are great sins when they are at the least but they are crying sins when they fly out against such a King as God hath filled with Iustice and Iudgement Rather set your selves to prayse God and to blesse his name and to give him thanks for his goodnesse And pray to him that he would still preserve the King and that his loving kindnesse may imbrace the Kings Son That so no cloud no confused darknesse may be spread over this kingdom that no cloud arising from your ingratitude to God may obscure the King nor no eclipse caused by popular Lunacy may befall the Kings Son For in this the King and the Kings Sonne are like the Sun in the firmament seldome or never eclipsed but by that Moon that receives all her Light from them nor by that but when it is in the head or poisoned taile of the great Dragon the Devill In the multitude of people is the Kings honour Prov. 14. But in the loyalty and love of the people is the Kings safety and in the Kings justice and judgement is the happinesse of his people the ready way to make a King joy in justice and judgement over his people is for people to shew their loving obedience to the King And since none of us can tell how or what to doe better let us take up the prâ—yer here where David leaves it and proceed to pray as he did That as God hath given us a King and to that King justice and judgement so he will most graciously be pleased to continue these great blessings to him for us that the King may still receive comfort and the people from the King justice and judgement That these judgements may be many may be all which may any way fit the King or fill the people That these judgements may be Gods judgements that is as neare the uprightnesse of Gods judgements as may be even such as may preserve Religion intire as well as Equity And that God would graciously please not to looke for pay from us but to give where we cannot merit That since he hath not onely given us the King but the Kings Son he will at last double this blessing upon us and make the Queen a fruitfull Mother of more happy Children That to this Royall Prince he would give many happy dayes and a large portion of his mercy that the King and his Son and the joyfull Mother that bare him may rest in the middest of Gods blessings both spirituall and temporall that we may be in the middest of Gods blessings and the Kings till the Kings Son be grown up to continue these blessings to our Generations and transmit them to them And so O Lord give and continue and strengthen and increase and multiply thy judgements to the King and thy righteousnesse to the Kings Son even so Amen Lord Iesus and doe it To whom with the Father and the Holy Spirit three Persons but one everliving God be ascribed all Might Majesty and Dominion this day and for ever Amen FINIS 2 Reg. 6. 17 2 Reg. 6. 2 3. Josh 15. 9. Ver. 1. 9. Ver. 5. Ex. 23. 17. Ver. 1. Ver. 7. 2. Reg. 6. 17. 2. Reg. 7 13. Esra 3. 1 2 S. Hierom. Basil Theod Hilar. Arnob. Euthym. Ibid. L. 2. Nat. Qâ— 42. Psa 68. 32. ver 35. Ver. 9. S. Hierom. Aug. Hilar. Prosp. ibid. S. Basil Theod. c. ibâ—d Mat. 16. 18 Psal 82. 1. L. 2. Bell. Civil p. 100 Ver. 5. Esa 37. 12 Psal 29. 10 2. Reg. 5. Ver. 4. Ver. 6. Eccles 3. 8 Esa 45. 7. Deut. 29. 29. Enchir. c. 101. 1 Tim. 2. 2 Joh. 14. 27. Rom. 12. 18. 2. Reg. 7. 9. 1. Reg. 17. 2. Reg. 5. 5 2. Reg. 2. 2. Reg. 5. 20. 1 Chron. 22. 8. S. Jaco 1. 20. Appian L. 2. Bâ—l Civi p. 504. 1 Chron. 22. 9. Apoc. 21. 2. 10. G. de voca Judae pag. 44. Pag. 66. and 79. Rom. 11. Posit 7. pag. 2. Posit 44. 49. Pag. 48. Esa 25. 2. Pag. 105. Ver. 6 7. S. Hierom. Genev. Annot. Ibid. Jer. 19. 11. Apoc. 21. L. 3. de Virginibus Pag. 56. 75. Pag. 56. 102. Pag. 163. Sal. To. 4. Tract 37. Lorin in Act. 1. 6. Act. 1. 6. Lorin in Act. 1. 6. S. Hierom. Ar. Mon. Trem. Serm. 1. de Ieju 10. Men. Ver. 6. Ver. 7. Epist 7. ad Smyrnen S. Hilar. Ibid. S. Hierom. Ibid. Euthym. Ibid. Nihil firmius aut utilius aut celsius Turribus S. Hilar. Ibid. S. Hierom. Ibid. Gal. 2. 9. S. Chrysost Hom. 10. in S. Mat. S. Hierom. Ibid. Psal 74. 5 6. Esa 5. 5. Euthym. Ibid. Psal 100. 5. Patâ—rc L. 2. S. Luk. 10. 5. Calv. Ibid. 1 Tim. 2. 1. Or given him Or not be moved Gen. 27. 34. Exod. 18. 10. Vers 1. S. Hierom. S. August Jansen Calv. Lorin ibid. Vers 5. Lib. 1. sâ—ro Jaco 1. 17. 3 Reg. 8. Vers 55. ver 66. 1 Pet. 2. 17. Gen. 27. 38. 1 Chro. 11. 10. Ezek. 1. 15 Lib. 1. verbis primis Luk. 1. 33. Esay 11. 1 4. Reg. 23. 25. Jansen Copp ibid. S. Basil Ibid. Theodor. Ibid. 2 Reg. 17. Hab. 1. 16. Flav. Vop
My exhortation therefore shall keepe even with S. Pauls 1 Tim. 2. That prayers and supplications be made especially for Kings and for all that are in authority that under them we may live a quiet and a peaceable life in all godlinesse and honesty Here S. Paul would have you pray for the King And in my Text the King would have you pray for the State and the Church His peace cannot be without theirs And your peace cannot be without his Thus haveing made my Text my Circle I am gone round it and come backe to it and must therefore end in the poynt where I began Pray for the peace of Ierusalem Let them prosper that love it Peace be within the walls of it and prosperity within the Palaces That the Peace of God which passeth our understanding here may not leave us till it possesse us of eternall Peace And this Christ for his infinite Merit and Mercy sake grant unto us To whom with the Father and the holy Spirit be ascribed all Might Majesty and Dominion this day for evermore Amen SERM. II. Preached at White-hall on the 24. of March 1621. being the day of the beginning of His Majesties most gracious Reigne PSAL. 21. 6 7. For thou hast set him as Blessings for ever thou hast made him glad with the joy of thy countenance Because the King trusteth in the Lord and in the mercy of the most High he shall not miscarry MY Text begins where every good man should end that is in Blessing Not an Esau but he cryes when the Blessing is gone Gen. 27. This Psalm is a Thanksgiving for David for the King In Thanksgiving two Blessings One in which God blesseth us and for that we give thanks The other by which we blesse God For he that praiseth him and gives him thanks is said to blesse him Exod 18. Now we can no sooner meet blessing in the Text but we presently find two Authors of it God and the King For there is God Blessing the King and the King Blessing the people And a King is every way in the Text For David the King set the Psalme for the People and the People they sing the Psalme rejoycing for the King And all this is that the King may rejoyce in thy strength O Lord v. 1. And when this Psalme is sung in Harmonie between the King and the People then there is Blessing This Psalme was sung in Ierusalem But the Musicke of it is as good in the Church of Christ as in their Temple Nor did the spirit of Prophecie in David so fit this Psalme to him as that it should Honour none but himselfe No For in this the learned agree That the letter of the Psalme reads David that the Spirit of the Psalme eyes Christ that the Analogie in the Psalme is for every good King that makes David his example and Christ his God The Psalme in Generall is a Thankesgiving for the happy estate of the King In particular it is thought a fit Psalme to be recited when the King hath recovered health or when a gracious King begins his Reigne Because these times are Times of Blessing from the King And these are or ought to be times of Thankesgiving from the people My Text then is in part for the day For I hoped well it would have been Tempus restaurationis a time of perfect restoring for the Kings health and thankes were due for that And it is Dies creationis the Anniversary day of his Crowne and thankes is due for that And there is great reason if you will receive the Blessing that you give the Thankes The Text it self is a reason of that which is found v. 5. There it is said that God hath laid great dignitie and honour upon the King And here is the Meanes by which and the Reason why he hath laid it there So three parts will divide the Text and give us order in proceeding The first is the Meanes by which God layes honour upon the King Not honour onely which they all have as Kings but that great honour in his salvation which attends good and gracious Kings And the Meanes are two-fold in the Text Dando Laetificando By Giving and by Joying By giving the King as a Blessing to the people Thou hast given him or set him as Blessings for ever And by Joying the King for blessing the people Thou hast made him glad with the joy of thy Countenance The second is the Reason both of the Honour and of the Meanes of laying it upon the King And that is Quia sperat Because the King puts his trust in the Lord. The third is the Successe which his Honour shall have by his Hope That in the mercy of the most High he shall not be moved he shall not miscarrie I begin at the first The Meanes by which God adds Honour even to the Majesty of Princes And because that doubles in the Text I will take the first in order which is Dando Thou laist great Honour upon the King by giving or setting him as Blessings for ever In which Meanes of laying Honour the circumstances are three And the first of the three tels us what a King is and that 's worth the knowing And marke the Holy Ghost how he begins He describes not a King by any of his Humane infirmities such as all men have And no meane ones are registred of David the particular King spoken of No that had been the way to dishonour the King which is no part of Gods intention But hee begins at that which crownes the Crowne it selfe He is Benedictio a Blessing and no lesse to the people And therefore in all things and by all men is to be spoken of and used as a Blessing Now it is one thing for a King to bee blessed in himselfe and another thing to be given or set Vp as a Publike Blessing to other men David was both and he speakes of both A King then is a Blessing to or in himselfe as the Septuagint and Tremellius give the words Dedisti illi benedictiones Thou hast given blessings to him when by Gods grace he is Particeps sanctificationis Partaker of Gods hallowing Spirit For no man King or Subject can be blessed in his soule without Religion and Holinesse And if these be counterfeits such also is his Blessednesse But a King is given as a Blessing to others when in the riches of Gods grace upon him he is made Divinae Bonitatis fons medius A mediate fountaine of Gods goodnesse and bounty streaming to the people When he turnes the graces which God hath given him to the benefit of them which are committed to him For marke the Heavens and the Earth will learne God did not place the Sunne in the heavens only for heighth but that it might have power to Blesse the inferiour world with Beames and Light and Warmth and Motion David was thus and thus was Christ
faithfull He must trust And now to end at home David is gone long since to his Hope the Mercy of the Highest But a King a gracious King is living over us in Peace and Happinesse as our eyes see this day I know He remembers why God set Him over this great and numerous people that is in benedictione even to blesse them And that he hath been a Blessing unto them Malice it selfe cannot deny And I make no question but he will go on with the Text and be Blessings to them for ever For ever through his whole time and for ever in his generous Posterity Tu dedisti Gods gift is through all this and I will ever pray that it may never faile He hath given this people all His time the Blessing of Peace And the sweet Peace of the people is Praeconium Regnantium the Glory of Kings And Gods gift is in this too For though it be the King that Blesses yet it is God that gives Blessing to Blessing it selfe And suppose Peace end in Warre Tu dedisti Gods gift reaches thither too For the Battell is the Lords 1 Reg. 17. The Battell yes and the Victory For sayth S. Basil Dextera victrix Whosoever be the Enemy the right hand that conquers him is the Lords Now for his Blessing it is fit he should receive Joy But if he will have that true and permanent and no other is worth the having he must looke it in vultu Dei in Gods countenance If he looke it any where else especially where the joy of his countenance shines not there will be but false representations of joy that is not This day the Anniversary of his Crowne is to all his loving Subjects Dies Gaudii and Dies Spei A day of Joy and a day of Hope A day of joy For what can be greater than to see a Just and a gracious King multiplying his yeares And a day of Hope And what can be fitter than to put him in minde even this day that a Kings strength is at sperat in Domino His trust in the Lord the preserver of men Job 7. That as God upon this day did settle His Hope and His Right to this Kingdome upon Him So upon this day which in this yeers revolution proves His day too Dies Domini the Lords day as well as His hee would continue the setling of his Hope on him by whom all the Kings of the Earth beare rule Prov. 8. I say Settle upon Him and his Mercy that is the last The very feet of Kings stand High and in high places slips are dangerous Nothing so fit so able to stand by them as Misericordia Altissimi the Mercy of the Highest In the goodnesse and the power of this Mercy he hath stood a King now almost five and fifty yeares nay a King He was before he could stand Through many dangers the Mercy of the Highest hath brought Him safe Let Him not goe from under it and it followes my Text verse 8. His right hand shall finde out all that hate Him And for himselfe Non commovebitur He shall not be moved not miscarry And so we offer up our Evening sacrifice unto God for Him and for our selves that God will ever give and he may ever be a Blessing to is People That His yeeres may multiply and yet not outlive His joy That this day may come about often and yet never returne but In Gaudio vultus Dei in the joy of Gods countenance upon the King and In Gaudio vultus Regis in the Ioy of the Kings countenance upon the People That the mercy of the most High may give Him hope in the Lord and strengthen it That His Hope may rest upon the Mercy that gave it That in all His businesses as great as His place His Successe may be Non commâ—veri not to miscarry That He may goe on a straight course from Blessing others in this life to be Blessed Himselfe in Heaven And that all of us may enjoy Temporall Blessings under Him and Eternall with Him for evermore And this CHRIST JESUS for his infinite merit and mercy sake grant unto us To whom with the Father and the holy Spirit three persons and one God be ascribed all might Majesty and Dominion this day and for ever AMEN SERM. III. Preached on Monday the 6. of Feb. 1625. at Westminster at the opening of the PARLIAMENT PSAL. 122. ver 3 4 5. Jerusalem is builded as a Citie that is at unity in it selfe or compacted together For thither the Tribes goe up even the Tribes of the Lord to the Testimony of Israel to give thanks unto the Name of the Lord. For there are the Seats or the Thrones of Judgement even the Thrones of the house of David SOme are of opinion this Psalme was made by David and delivered to the Church to be sung when the Ark of God was carryed up to Jerusalem when Jerusalem was setled by David to be the speciall seate both of Religion and the Kingdome The people were bound thrice a yeere at Easter Pentecost and the Feast of Tabernacles to come up and worship at Jerusalem Deu. 16. And some think this Psalme was prophetically made to sing by the way to sing wheÌ„ they went up by the steps to the Temple And 't was fit for they came up with joy And joy is apt to set men a singing And at joy the Psalme begins I was glad when they said unto me We will goe into the house of the Lord. But whatsoever the use of this Psalme was in any speciall Service certaine it is that Jerusalem stands here in the letter for the City and in type and figure for the State and the Church of Christ My Text looks upon both and upon the duty which the Jewes did then and which we now doe owe to both The Temple the Type of the Church that 's for God's service No Temple but for that The City the Type of the State that 's for the peoples peace No happy State but in that Both the Temple and the State God's house and the Kings both are built upon Pillars And it is not long since I told you out of Psal 75. that there are many times of exigence in which if God doe not beare up the Pillars no strength which the Pillars have in and of themselves can support the weight that lies upon them Be they Pillars of the Temple or Pillars of the State Therefore here to ease the Pillars God hath built up Buttresses if men doe not pull them downe to stay the maine walls of both buildings The Buttresse and support of the Temple is Religion God will not blesse the house if men doe not honour and serve him in it The Buttresse and stay of the Kingdome is Justice God will not blesse the State if Kings and Magistrates doe not execute judgement If the widdow and the fatherlesse have cause to cry out against the Thrones of Justice So
his Church purchased by one bloud to be One Body made more made other than One. And for the Common-Wealth A people is as one City yet such a one saith Saint Augustine cui est periculosa dissentio as to whom all breach of Unity is full of danger For Church and State together It was a grievous Rent among the Jewes when Manasses devoured Ephraim Ephraim Manasses and both fell upon Judah Esay 9. What followed was God pleased with this or were the Tribes in safety that were thus divided No sure For it followes The wrath of the Lord was not turn'd away but his hand was stretched out still Still How long was that How long Why Till Ephraim and Manasses which could not agree at home were with the rest of the ten Tribes carried away into perpetuall captivity And Esay lived to see his Prophecy fulfilled upon them For they were carried away by Salmanasar in the sixt yeere of Hezekiah when Esay flourished This wrath of the Lord was fierce and the people dranke deepe of this Cup. Therefore I goe a farre off both for time and place to fetch this Instance And doe you take care not to bring it neerer home And I pray observe it too The hand of God was stretched out upon Ephraim and Manasses but there 's no mention which was the first or which the greater offender Ephraim or Manasses What 's the Reason 'T is because the breach of unity scarce leaves any Innocent and the hand of God is stretched out upon all I presse Vnity hard upon you pardon me this Zeale O that my thoughts could speak that to you that they doe to God or that my tongue could expresse them but such as they are Or that there were an open passage that you might see them as they pray faster than I can speak for Vnity But what then will any kinde of Vnity serve the turne Surely any will doe much good But the best is fafest and that is the Vnity of the Spirit The learned are not altogether agreed here what is meant by the Vnity of the Spirit For some thinke no more is meant by it than a bare concord and agreement in minde and will Let 's keepe this and both Church and State shall have a great deale of freedome from danger But others take the Vnity of the Spirit to be that spirituall concord which none doth none can worke in the hearts of men but the Holy Ghost And I am apter to follow this sense because if you take it for a bare agreement in judgement Saint Paul had said enough by naming Vnity He needed have made no Addition of the Spirit And because in the Text 't is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which for the most points out the Holy Spirit And because else Saint Pauls words which Bucer calls Ardentia verba zealous and burning words adde nothing to any even the coldest exhortation of the Heathen to Vnity The Vnity then of the Spirit to which the Apostle exhorts includes both Both concord in minde and affections and love of charitable unity which comes from the Spirit of God and returnes to it And indeede the Grace of Gods Spirit is that alone which makes men truly at peace and unity one with another Ei tribuendum non Nobis To him it is to be attributed not to us saith Saint Augustine T is he that makes men to be of one mind in an house Psal 68. Now one mind in the Church and one mind in the State come from the same fountaine with One mind in an house All from the Spirit And so the Apostle cleerely ver 4. One Body and one Spirit that is One Body by one Spirit For 't is the Spirit that joynes all the members of the Church into one Body And 't is the Church that blesses the State not simply with unity but with that unity with which it selfe is blessed of God A State not Christian may have Vnity in it Yes And so may a State that hath lost all Christianity save the Name But Vnity of the Spirit nor Church nor State can longer hold than they doe in some measure obey the Spirit and love the Vnity This Vnity of the Spirit is closer than any corporall union can be For Spirits meete where bodies cannot and neerer than Bodies can The Reason is given by Saint Chrysostome Because the Soule or Spirit of man is more simple and of one forme And the Soule apter in it selfe to Vnion is made more apt by the Spirit of God which is One and loves nothing but as it tends to One Nay as the Spirit of God is One and cannot dissent from it selfe no more ought they whom the Spirit hath joyn'd in One and the Spirit hath joyn'd the Church in One Therefore he that divides the Unity of the Church practices against the Unity of the Spirit Now this Vnity of the Spirit so called because it proceedes from the Spirit of Grace continues in Obedience to it and in the end brings us to the Spirit that gave it is the cause of all other unity that is good and the want of it the Cause of all defects in Vnity The presence of it is the Cause of all unity that is good Of all within the Church no man doubts But 't is of all without the Church too For no Heathen men or States did ever agree in any good thing whatsoever but their Vnity proceeded from this Spirit and was so far forth at least a unity of the Spirit And for States that are Christian and have mutuall relations to the Church that is in them S. Gregories Rule is true The unity of the State depends much upon the peace and unity of the Church therefore upon the guidance of the same Spirit And as the presence of the Vnity of the Spirit is the Cause of all Vnity that is good So the want of it is the cause of all defects in Vnity For as in the Body of a man the Spirit holds the members together but if the Soule depart the members fall a sunder So 't is in the Church saith Theophilact and so in the State So little unity then in Christendome as is is a great Argument that the Spirit is grieved and hath justly withdrawne much of his influence And how is the Spirit grieved How why sure by our neglect if not contempt of Him as He is One. For as he is the Spirit of fortitude Esay 11. there wee 'l have him he shall defend us in warre And as he is the Spirit of Wisdome there wee 'l have him too he shall governe us in peace But as he is One Spirit and requires that we keepe his Vnity there wee 'l none of him though we know right well that without Vnity peace cannot continue nor warre prosper One unity there is take heed of it 't is a great Enemy to the Vnity of the Spirit both in Church and Common-wealth S. Basil
way already and here 's an other 'T is necessary that the Governours have a good and a quick eye to discover the cunning of them that would breake the Vnity first and the whole Body after You shall give a guesse at them by this They 'll speake as much for Unity as any men but yet if you marke them you shall still finde them busie about the knot that bindes up Vnity in peace somewhat there is that wrings them there They will pretend perhaps t is very good there should be Vinculum A Bond to binde men to Obedience O God forbid else but they would not have the knot too hard Take heed Their aime is They would have a little more liberty that have too much already Or perhaps they 'll pretend they would not untie the knit no there may be danger in that but they would onely turne it to the other side because this way it lyes uneasily But this is but a shift neither For turne the knot which way you will all binding to Obedience will be grievous to some It may be they 'll protest that though they should untie it yet they would not leave it loose They would perhaps tie it otherwise but they would be sure to knot it as fast Trust not this pretext neither Out of Question their meaning is to tie up Vnity in a Bow-knot which they might slip at One End when they list Indeed whatsoever they pretend if they be curious about the knot I pray looke to their fingers and to the Bond of peace too For whatsoever the pretences be they would be at the dissolving of Vnity Well Provide for the keeping of Vnity And what then Why then God blesse you with the Successe of this Day For this Day the seventeenth of March I. Caesar overthrew Sex Pompeius And that Victory was in Spaine and Spaine which had long beene troublesome setled and came quietly in by that one Action And this very Day too Fredericke the Second entered Jerusalem and recoverd whatsoever Saladine had taken from the Christians But I must tell you These Emperours and their forces were great keepers of Vnity The first Lesson at this Daies Evening prayer is Judg. 4. There Sisera Captaine of Jabins Army fell before Israel But I must tell you The two Tribes Zabulon and Nepthali went up in great both Vnity and courage against them Judg. 5. And I make no doubt but this Day may be a Day of happy successe to this Church and State if S. Paul may be heard and that yet before it be too too late there be a hearty Endeavour to keepe the Vnity of the Spirit in the Bond of peace And now to conclude I beseech you Remember That all this Vnity and Peace what ere it be and when t is at the best is but Vestigium a track and a footing of that everlasting peace which is to come And I would not have you so love this peace of Grace that you should at any time forget the infinite peace of Glory The bond whereof nor Earth nor Hell can breake For t is not folly onely but madnesse saith Saint Gregory to love this Peace this Vnity which is but a foot-step a print in the dust soone worne out soone defaced and not love God and his Peace A quo impressum est whose very foot made this so safe so happy so pleasant as it is But I cannot but hope better things of you and such as accompany safety here and Salvation hereafter For you have not so learned Christ as that you can preferre any Vnity before his Or neglect the safe keeping of that which is his foot-step in this world The Vnity of the Spirit Let us therefore all pray unto God That he will evermore give both the King and his People the comfort of his Spirit That that Spirit of his may so direct all your Counsells that they may be for Vnity That following the direction of this Spirit of Grace we may enjoy the Vnity of the same Spirit both in Church and Common-wealth That all our Endeavours publike private may tend to the keeping of this unity That our keeping of unity may be such as it ought in Peace in the very bond of peace I began with S. Pauls Exhortation I end with his Prayer and Benediction 2 Thes 3. T is the prayer of this Day For t is the second Lesson at Evening Service The God of Peace give you peace alwaies by al means Peace in concord and Peace in Charity Peace on Earth and Peace in Heaven Peace of Grace Peace in Glory To all which Christ for his infinite mercies sake bring us all To whom with the Father and the Holy Spirit be ascribed all Might Majesty and Dominion this day and for ever Amen SERM. VII Preached at Pauls Crosse in Commemoration of King CHARLES his Inauguration PSAL. 72. 1. Give the King thy Judgements O God And thy Righteousnesse unto the Kings Son THe Psalmes of David and his Heart never went sweeter The Title of the Psalme doth not onely tell us that but it tels us that David had an eye upon his Son Solomon An eye that is true but not both eyes upon Solomon no nor one absolutely fixed because a greater than Solomon is here A greater than Solomon who is that who why it is Christ Solomon was the type and shadow if you will and so one eye may be upon him but the other eye must pierce through to the Antitype and body of the Promise which is Christ So the antient Fathers Justine Tertullian Origen Athanasius and the rest are cleare and upon very good ground for there are many things in this Psalme that cannot be applyed to Solomon and no Type is bound to represent in all and there are some typicall Propositions as one observeth upon Deut. 18. that are applyable to the Type or to the Antitype alone There are many things in this Psalme that are not applyable to Solomon But some are and none more than the words of the Text. For these words can as hardly be applyed to Christ as that after to Solomon Now that that agreed to Types before Christs comming agrees to all that are like Christ after his comming Therefore this is applyable to all godly religious Kings For all have direction from and share in the prayer of Solomon These words that begin the Psalme I shall take in that sense as applyed to the Type to Solomon and in him to all religious Kings Which so to Solomon that I am heartily glad to find Christ so full in the Psalme so near the King First I am glad to find him so full in the Psalme because that is a confutation of all Judaisme for they received the Psalmes as well as we here in this Psalme there are many things that they cannot fasten upon Solomon or any other but Christ So cleare is that that Tertullian hath observed long since against them The Iewes saith he