children of darkenesse For what communion hath light with darkenesse In the beginning he made all things good in the ending he will destroy all things that are naught seeing the euil and naughtinesse that is in man or in any other Creature came not vnto it by creation but by corruption Therefore Christ saith he will seperate and diuide one from the other that is the good from the badde The good he compareth to sheepe for their gentlenesse patience and meekenesse of nature the badde he most fitly compareth vnto Goates â—â—ech 34. who are a more sauage and filthy kinde of beastes The metaphor seemeth to be borrowed from Ezechiell who bringeth in the Goates pushing and hurting of the sheepe with their hornes and troubling of their waters These filthy pushing Goates that all their life long desire and delight to harme and wrong the poore sheepe of Christ wil Christ himself that great shepneard finde out euery one of them at the end of the world nonne of them shall be hid from his sight And because these poore sheepe haue a very long time with great patience endured these foule and filthy Goates to feede pasture among them in the outward face of the Church to their extreame hurt and griefe therefore Christ Iesus their sheepheard without any delay at his first comming to iudgement will gather and draw out his faithfull flocke of sheepe from that filthy heard of Goates and to the ende these Goates shall see the care that Christ hath ouer them he will place them in their sight at his right hand of heauenly protection the Goates contrariwise he will set at his left hand to send them presently to endlesse destruction But here before we proceede any further we are to note by whom our Sauiour Christ will make this separation namely by his holy Angels which came with him and attend on him with all ready obedience First he will cause an Arkangell to sound out the trumpet of God in so glorious and fearefull sort that it shall be heard the world throughout not onely they that are liuing but they that are dead in their graues shall heare the sound of that Trumpet and all the wicked spirits and Diuels in hell shal quake and tremble with the noyce thereof Then when all the Nations of the world are summoned and warned by that glorious Trumpet Christ shall send foorth his Angels to separate the Sheepe from the Goates the elect from the reprobate This thing our Sauiour Christ doth reueale vnto vs in the Gospell and saint Paul doth likewise report the same in one of his Epistles to the Thessaloniant First Christ saith in the 24. of Mathew Math. 24.31 that He will send his Angels with a great sound of a Trumpet and they shall gather together his elect from the foure windes and from the one end of the heauen vnto the other The same doth Saint Marke repeate in the 13. Chapter Moreouer our Sauiour Christ doth at another time make mention of this glorious separation as Saint Mathew reports it in the 13. Math. 13. Chapter for hauing in that place shewed by diuers parables that the children of God must not be offended to liue here for a time in this world accompanied and mingled with the godlesse as the good seed is with the cockle the Wheate with the chaffe they must growe together both for the greater iudgement of the one and tryall of the other vntill the harnest which is the end of the world at what time Christ will send forth his reapers which be the Angels to gather the good seede the pure wheate that hath beene well thrashed with the flaile of affliction and winnowed from the chaffe with the Fan of Gods Iudgement in the Lords garner but the chaffe and the cockle and the Darnell shall be burnt in fire that neuer shal be quenched then shall the Iust shine as the Sunne in the kingdome of God their Father Likewise our Sauiour reporteth this separation in the same Chapter by a parable taken from Fishers which when they haue brought all manner of fish to land gather the good into vessels but cast the bad away So saith our Sauiour shall it be at the end of the world the Angels shall goe forth and seuer the bad from the Iust and shall cast the badde into a fornace of fire there shall be wayling and gnashing of teeth Saint Paule likewise in the fourth Chapter if the first Epistle to the Thessâ— lonians maketh a like description of thesâ— things The Lord himselfe saith he shalâ— descend from heauen with a shout and with the voyce of an Arkangell and with the Trumpet of God according to that which hath beene said already But the Apostle in that place like aâ— he doth in the first to the Corinthians openeth a secret or two more and he saith that he doth it by the word or commandement of the Lord. The first is that at the generall resurrection at the day of iudgement when Christ shall appeare then they that are dead in Christ that is all those that haue died in the faith of Christ since the beginning of the world shall rise first that is before the wicked that did not die in the faith of Christ The second secret or mystery is that those of the faithfull that are liuing at the day of iudgement of whom the same Apostle speaketh in the first to the Corinthians 18. When he saith we shal not all die but all shall be changed those I say that then are liuing vpoÌ„ the earth shal not preuent or goe before those that are dead and turned to dust and powder in the earth but as those that are liuing shall be changed from mortall to immortall in the twinckling of an eye to vse the Apostles words so likewise shall those of the faithfull that are dead be raised vp by the power of God at the voice of the Trumpet and being ioyned to their soules both the one and the other saith the Apostle shall bee caught vp into the cloudes to meete the Lord in the ayre and so shall euer remaine with the Lord which he speaketh specially for the comfort of the faithful and therefore addeth this 1. Thes 4.18 Comfort your selues one another with these words Thus we see how all Nations that is all people of all the Nations of the world shall be gathered together by the holy Angels before Christ sitteth in iudgement The godly with all the holy Angels set on his right hand the wicked with all the damned spirites and diuels set on the left attending and harkning when that finall and definatiue sentence shal be pronounced But before we speake thereof it shall not be amisse to consider in a word or two what shall be come of all other things that are now in the world Saint Peter hath resolued this point already wheÌ„ he preacheth that there shaâ— come and is euen at hand the ende of aâ— things that is of all mortall
SAINT PETERS WATCH WORD The end of all things is at hand Digested into eight Chapters and published by R.M. Minister Perused and allowed Reuel 22.7 Behold I come shortly Ver. 20. Surely I come quickly LONDON Printed by I.W. dwelling at Powles Wharfe at the signe of the Crosse-keyes 1603. The Contents of euery seuerall Chapter in this Booke IN the first Chapter The Watchword it selfe is explained In the second the day of Iudgement that it shall be is proued In the third the names and titles of that day are noted In the fourth the signes and tokens of that day are remembred In the fifth who shall bee the supreme Iudge at that day is shewed In the sixt the glorious comming of Christ vnto Iudgement is deciphered In the seuenth the order maner of the iudgement is described In the eight an exhortation vnto prayer sobriety and watchfulnesse is added with a necessarie prayer annexed thereunto TO THE VERIE VVORshipfull vertuous and religious Gentlewoman Mistresse Elizabeth Foord wife vnto the worshipfull master Th. Foord of Ilsington in Deuonshire Esquire R.M. dayly prayeth the rich blessings of God to be powred down vpon them their kindred and posteritie to their comforts in this life and to their eternall saluation in the life to come THe dayes of man being compared with eternitie may be likened vnto one sande on the Sea shore vnto one grasse vpon the ground or to one starre in the firmament matched with all the rest for if a man coulde liue as some almost haue liued a thousand yeares yet all those yeares are but as one day with God The ignoraunce whereof hath made men imagine that it is a very long while agone since God created man and that seeing the world hath continued so many thousand yeares therefore that it shall neuer haue an ende yea the worser sort do thinke that either God hath not at all determined to destroy this worlde or if he haue determined and promised so to do that then he hath forgotten his promise And therefore say many times to themselues Where is the promise of Christ his comming become And wherefore doth he make so long delay Whereunto our Sauiour himselfe doth answere if we would vouchsafe to heare him and sweares because we shoulde beleeue him Beholde I come shortly And surely I come quickly tarying for no mans pleasure one minute of an houre longer then is determined and appoynted which appoynted time though no man may curiously inquire of yet euery good Christian wil dayly think of it thank God for any good thing that may put them in remembrance of the same Among which number of true hearted Christians because I knowe your worship to bee one and such a one whereof in my charge I take greate comfort as well for your godlinesse as for your kindnesse extended vnto me I therefore offer vnto your meeke Meditation by way of dedication these my poore labours howsoeuer imperfect or vnpolished which at times of leysure I haue collected since my first comming vnto you through the fauour and presentment of your kinde husband and my very worshipfull and louing Patron Publishing the same in this sort for the benefite of all but through their owne fault for the comfort onely of all such as either do or hereafter shall vnfainedly loue and looke for the comming of our Lorde Iesus Christ to their immortalitie Beseeching the diuine maiestie to giue vs grace and patience cheerfully to passe ouer this our pilgrimage in his feare and in some discharge of our dutie in a good conscience to Gods glorie and to some good of Gods children howsoeuer the world and the childrē therof shall esteeme of vs or of any thing we do that so at last to our endlesse ioy we may heare that sweet sentence of our sauiour pronounced vnto vs Euge bone serue fidelis Well done good and faithfull seruant thou hast beene faithfull in few things I will make thee ruler ouer much enter thou into the ioy of thy Maister Which God of his mercy grant through the merit of his sonne by the assistance of Gods holy spirit who seale the assurance therof in our hearts to which holy and blessed Trinitie be ascribed all prayse power and maiestie for euer Amen Your Worships as much bounden vnder God as his life is worth and in the Lord euer to be commaunded Radford Mauericke To each Christian Reader all health and eternall happinesse wished and desired BEing more then one yeare passed right courteous and Christian Reader sithence I was entreated to peruse Saint Peters Chaine for setting it on vnto a second Edition I therupon by Gods helpe togither with that labour tooke occasion and courage to contriue this little work called Saint Peters watchworde which may either passe alone by it selfe or bee ioyned to that Chaine according as it shall bee fitting and expedient the mettall both of the one and the other being finest golde of the truest touch first hammered vpon the Anuill in Saint Peters forge by that Apostle himselfe and whatsoeuer is added vnto it and howsoeuer vnpolished yet you shall finde it weighed I trust in the vpright ballance of the Lords Sanctuarie Which Watchworde of the Apostle if it waken them that are sound a sleepe in sinne and warne them that are alreadie waking to stand vpon their guard more warily then heretofore it is the onely marke that I ayme at and the verie blessing of God vpon these poore and vnlaboured labours of mine which I heartily desire And because as all men know it is a very vnpleasant thing any whit to trouble them that are asleepe and euen breuitie it selfe to them that are napping is counted tediousnesse I haue therefore not onely indeuoured to be as briefe as conueniently I might throughout this whole Treatise that so I might not offende them that are best disposed but haue also cut or deuided this discourse into diuerse partes or Chapters that so euen they that are drowsie may at least wise take a taste thereof in reading a Chapter betwixt euery nappe and so happily may be thereby incouraged to proceede with the rest as appetite and good desire shall increase vpon them Most humbly praying the holy spirit of God who first mooued Saint Peter to giue this watchword and inspired and confirmed my minde thus to explaine it and to publish the same for the good I trust of others to blesse this little labour of mine and to make it fruitfull with the dew of his grace as well in the heart of the sower as in the minds of those that shall reape any profit thereby And so gentle Reader I wish thee well to fare as thy soule fareth and in thy prayers I pray thee remember him that prayeth dayly for thee and for all them that looke for the appearing of our Lorde Iesus Christ to their immortalitie Veni citò domine Iesu SAINT PETERS Watch-word The end of all things is at hand 1. Pet. 4.7 The first Chapter THe
the same lesson doth our Sauiour continually teach vs specially when he telleth vs Mark 13. that the end of the world is at hand saying Take heed watch and pray for ye knowe not when the time is And againe elsewhere he saith Watch and pray continually Luk. 21. â— that yee may bee counted worthie to escape all these things and that yee may stand before the Sonne of man Prayer is a chiefe part of that Panoplia or complet harneis which the Apostle Saint Paul in the sixt to the Ephesians Ephe. 6. â— doth charge euery Christian Souldier dayly to put on or being put once on neuer to put it off any more the reason is because so long as we liue in the fielde of this world we must a waies looke our enemie in the face and neuer turne the backe Therefore also it is that the Apostle hath appointed vs no harneis for our hinder parts Againe we must neuer vnarme our selues because there is neuer no truce to be taken with our aduersarie who continually seeketh to kill vs as well or rather by night then by dayâ— aswell in Winter as in Summer Againâ—â— because we wrestle not onely with fleâ—â— and bloud which are our dayly and domesticall enemies and must alwaies bee kept vnder as bond-slaues which naturally seeke to conspire against vs But also as the Apostle saith Against principallities against powers and against the worldly gouernours the prince of the darkenesse of this worlde and against spirituall wickednesses which are in the high places For this cause wee must take vnto our selues the whole armour of God that wee may bee able to resist in the euill day That is euery day when we are tempted and hauing many fightes wee must still stand vpon our stations or guard With our loynes girded about with truth and hauing on the brestplate of righteousnesse And our feete shod with the preparation of the Gospell of peace Aboue all wee must take the shielde of faith wherewith wee may quench all the fierie dartes of the Diuell We must also take the helmet of saluation and the sworde of the Spirit which is the word of God And yet all this is too little therefore the Apostle addeth And pray alwayes with all manner Prayer and supplication in the Spirit and watch thereunto with all perseueranee So that wee are taught how wee must bee harnessed from toppe to toe as they say as many as are Christes souldiers they must not come naked vnto this fight neither must they onely put on their armor or harnes but they must also take weapons in their hands the sword of the spirit to strike at the diuel if he come neare and the pike of prayer to keepe him off that he doe not assault them And these weapons if the skill of them bee well known are both offensiue and defensiue they will as well sticke and wounde the aduersary as defend vs from the force of his blowes when hee striketh towardes vs yea belieue it deare christian though the Diuel play the Lion when hee is not resisted yet if thou come towardes him as did Dauid towardes Goliah with these weapons in thine hand hee wil soone flee from thee as S. Iames saith and be afraid of thee and euen quake for feare Iam 4.7 as doth the Lion at the crowing 〈◊〉 a cocke for as the roaring of a Lion â—righteth the beastes of the forrest so doth the prayers of the faithful profligat or driue to flight the diuels of hel faithfull prayer therefore is to be considered chiefly in these two respects the one is the great neede and necessitie of it that we may not bee without it the other is the fruite profite that it bringeth with it if it bee dayly and continually vsed the necessity wherof we see already in that it is one of out chiefest weapons wherewith wee must euermore be fighting if happely at any time the sword of the spirit which is the word of God bee forgotten behinde or layed vp in our closet as the sword of Dauid was behind the Ephod and the dore of our remembrance locked and the key lost for a time yet praier must alwayes be present and neuer be forgotten behind therefore it is that wee are so oftentimes exhorted in the scriptures to pray continually and alwayes giue thankes for benefites receiued not that we should doe nothing els but pray but to teach vs that whatsoeuer we doe else either at home or abroad wee must if we please vse prayer with it either publikely or priuately either in word or in thought yea the very secret groninges of the godly at al times are acceptable vnto God and to teach vs also that euery good thing wee take in hand shall prosper the better for prayer yea thinges Adiaphora thinges indifferent yea euen our sportes and recreation such as the wicked vse prophanely may by the godly be vsed holily by the benefit of praier 1. Tim 4.5 All things saith the Apostle are sanctified by the word of God and prayer that is as I take it all indifferent thinges such as in themselues are neither good nor euill are sanctified to the vse of godly men for thinges that are euer good are euer sanctified and thinges that are meerely euill can neuer bee made good only the euilnes that is in theÌ„ may be auoided and taken away and so the thing that was euil before may in a sort bee changed into goodnes all this is done by the word of God and praier through the mightie working of the holy sanctifying spirit of God Praier therefore I say must be present with the children of God at all times the praises of God must be in their mouthes continually for as a souldier without weapon so is a christian without praier and as water is the life of a fish so is praier the life of the fouâ—e As Sampson was soone ouercome by the Philistines when hee once cut off his haire wherin his strength was so these diuelish Philistines will soon come vpon vs if once they see vs to neglect or cast away praier wherein our spirituall strength consisteth For this cause the necessitie of praier is not onelie commended vnto vs in scripture by sundrie precepts 〈◊〉 Psal 50.15 Mat. 11.28 as Call vpon me in the day of trouble I wil hear thee saith God thou shalt prayse me And again come vnto me al that trauel and are heauy loden with the burthen of sin I will ease ye Mat. 7.7 I will refresh yeâ— And seeke aske knocke which teacheth vs that wee must continue in praier and manie such like precepts but also it is most of all commended vnto vs by example which is a most forcible kind of teaching what meaneth that continual course of praier and the spending of whole nightes in praier by our sauiour but to commend vnto vs the necessitie of praier No sooner did that good disciple who soeuer he was desire