witnesse of God his Word and Truth In the first and broadest walkes the heathen Idolator For diuide the World into thirty parts and he takes vp as is obseru'd by a iudicious Mathematician ninteen of them but we must vnderstand his Obseruation of the continued magnitude of the surface of the earth not of the discreet multitude of men contained in it In the next wide field of error walks the Mahumetan who dispreads himselfe into sixe parts of the thirty In the third the stragling Iew wanders who is discoasted into the bounds of all the rest And the Christian impaths himselfe in the last and least and narrowest tract holding but the proportion of fiue parts in the thirty parts The Heathen anciently mistooke the Oracles of the Diuell himselfe for the word of God and in a manner is blinded in that errour to this very day eyther by the illusision of Sathan himselfe or the collusion of his Priests The Mahumetan embraces the Alcoron for the vndoubted word of God and esteemeth that of Diuine and oracular authority The Iews retaine still the ancient word of God but they al reiect the New and are therefore called by the Fathers Archiua Christianorum The olde Records of the Christians being differenced among themselues into three Sects the first whereof are called Charraim and allow all and onely the olde Testament The second sew to the Bible all their fabulous Talmud make that of Scripture-authoritie and are therfore called the Talmudists The third defalke as much from Gods word as the second crowded to it leaue only the Pentateuch or fiue bookes of Moses for selfe-credible named by the rest Samaritans Neither can the little flocke of Christ the Catholique Church now professant in the world goe peaceably in their narrow path together but with Abrahams and Lots Heardsmen or Iacobs bretheren they will wrangling and scolding as they goe being dissundred into thirteene small or fiue maine different sects Protestants Latins Gracians Nestorians Iacobites whereof most of them darken that word of God that should enlighten themselues by carrying the Sunne in a clowd reading the Scripture in an vnknowne tongue eyther of Latine Greeke or Syriacke and so traducing all the authority of Gods Word from it self to the golden and empty Title of The Church As the Latins Nestorians Indians Iacobites the Cophti and the Mannites Some of these again spanging out of the Canon of the New Testament all the Reuelation of S. Iohn the Epistle of S. Iude the second Epistle of S. Peter the second and third Epistles of S. Iohn others farsing into the Canonicall writings Apocriphall and vnknowne Authors the Gospell of Nicodemus c. with a world of rotten and vnwriten Traditions To omit the populous Churches at this day of the Nestorians and Iacobites who commit the like error concerning the Liuing word as they doe about the written the first diuiding Christ into two Persons by a separation the second cōfounding him into one Nature by the Adunation of his Humanity and diuinity Now all these selfe-arrogating to themselues the word of God either by oracular Reuelation as the Heathen or written Tradition as the Mahumetan Iew and Christian how in such a world of open Warre and ciuil mutiny about GODS Word should blinde soules such as wee all come into the World with be euer able to center themselues immoueably in the Diuine Truth of God and not be carried about with some one winde or other of these erronious doctrines Giue mee leaue with the mighty Angell that held open in his hand the little booke of Prophecies Reuel 10. to sweare by him that liueth for euer and euer Either the means how to effect this is here set downe To him giue all the Prophets witnesse or there is none in the earth or vnder heauen For as in it selfe the least tittle of Gods word is more firmely pillard and lesse passable then the whole fabrique of heauen and earth Heauen and earth shall passe c. So to vs this certaintie can no way bee more infallibly euident then by the Prophesies that are storied in it And as the Prophesies are the greatest argument of all the rest so this is the greatest of all the rest of the Prophesies to argue by For here both Gods words are met together The dead word hath met with the liuing the old Testament kisses the New either to other one by fore-telling the other by fulfilling giue mutuall witnesse of their irrepugnable Truthes Since therefore there is so great vnitie in the words and the Prophets are all ioyned in one witnesse Christ to whom they witnesse is vndiuided I industriously spare to make any diuision either of the words or among the Prophets Only I will set this one truth in the Light That Christ is the Center to whom all of them standing round about him as a compassing clowd of witnesses draw all the lines of their Prophecies then briefly gather such Instructions as shall bee thence deducible Wee might see this golden circle of all the Prophets geaphically described by the last of the Prophets himselfe Reuel 4. and 5. chapters where in the midst of 4. Beasts and 24. Elders a glorious Lambe standeth and sends forth the 7. Spirits of God into al the Earth That Christ is the Lamb himselfe the Passeouer of the Iewes wil tell vs. And that the foure Euangelists are the foure beasts their euen number and their standing neerest the Throne as waiting immediately on the Lambe of God our Sauior and the strict keeping of decorum in figuring them like beasts such as the Lamb himselfe is sufficiently proues And doubtlesse the 24. Elders can be no other then the 24. Prophets of the Olde Testament both because they are called Elders being more ancient then the foure Euangelists and stand in a greater distāce farther off frō Christ their number being iust the very same as S. Hierome obserues And because as themselues sing to their golden Harpes the Lambe had made them Kings in matters of Life Priests in Points of Doctrine to rule the Earth hauing before redeem'd thē to God by his bloud which is not appliable to the stedfast Angels but onely to such who had beene yong sinners before they became saintly Elders And to conclude the seuen spirits sent forth into all the Earth must needs be the seuen gifts of Gods Spirit precisely set down by S. Paul 1. Cor. 12. 28. Apostles Prophets Teachers Miracles Guifts of healings Helps in gouernment Diuersities of tongues which are therefore named by Saint Iohn in the very same place seauen Lamps and the seauen hornes and eyes of the Lambe because by them Christ giues Light to his Church and exerciseth a visible power in all the Earth And heere wee see all our Sauiours witnesses are met together The twenty fower Prophets hold out the first Lights to discouer the Lamb of God least they should be obscure the Euangelists sets the truth of the story by
first from the wombe of nature but where I pray should nature find seed 〈◊〉 some the earth but from the fruites of the earth before growing where should shee seeke for egges to breed her â—owles with but from â—owles already bred whither should she goe to gather her akrons but vnder the oake before flourishing what neede â—nfinite knotts It is not in the power of nature to bring forth a man but he must first be borne a child and of whom should that child bee borne had not there been already in nature both man and woman nature then we see could not by any power in her produce the least creature but shee must needs haue her semniall causes and whence are they seeded but from things already beeing Much lesse could chance for what is fortune but onely something in nature wherof we know not the cause If a man digging in a field find a mine we cal this fortune but a mine must bee first there by nature before any can finde it there by fortune And therefore fortune that comes alwayes after nature cannot bee the cause of nature It followes then that the whole world and the soules of men proceeded neither from nature nor chance but from the power and wisedome of God himselfe who is as much more powerfull then nature to call out his worke perfect in his kind at first as he is more wise then fortune to adorne his worke with the most graceful order with out any chaunceable or blind confusion This then being either graunted or extorted from a naturall man what followes hence Truely this That the soule of man doth consist by the word of God Secondly That the soule of man beeing onely able of all creatures visibly in heauen or earth to conceiue and vnderstand a diuine beeing which our experience teaches vs must needs be a spirituall substance like God himselfe and created after his image For this in reason and nature is a selfe-credible truth That no Creator can rayse the power of his action beyond the sphaere of his owne actiuity A stone cannot liue A plant cannot see A beast cannot vnderstand a diuine nature because it hath no such receptiuity no such actiue and diuine power in it as to take into it an insensible obiect For then it should work extra sphaeraÌ„ beyond the pitch of a sensible being man therfore onely who hath such an eye of vnderstanding in him whereby he is able to liue as it is sayd of Moses Heb. 11. 27. as seeing him who is inuisible must needs be fashioned and form'd in the similitude of the inuisible God For what creature worships a diuine power sanctifies holy dayes and Sabaoths obserues solemne feasts and assemblies offers sacrifices of prayer praise to God but man onely Vpon whose soule doth the law of God naturally reflect it selfe in the knowledge of that which is good and the conscience of that which is euill but onely vpon man's What nature in earth obserues the different motions of the heauenly bodies and admires the methodicall Wisedome of God in them or thinkes vpon his couenant of mercy when he sees the token of it shining in the waterie cloud sweetly abusing the same waters to bee a token of his mercy which before were the instrument of his iust reuenge but only man's whose eye lookes beyond the bright hilles of time and there beholds eternity or sees a spirituall world beyond this body esteeming that farre discoasted region his natiue countey but onely man Which diuine thought wee shall not find in the hearts alone of the children of light that haue the starres of heauen shining thicke in them Hebr. 11. 16. but in the minds of heathen men that lay shadowed in their owne naturall wisedome out of which the banisht Consul of Rome Boetius could sing Haec dices memini patria est mihi Hinc ortus hic sistam gradum O this my country is thy soule shall say Hence was my birth here shall be my stay And of which Anaxagoras liuing a stranger among the Athenian Philosophers and being chid for regarding so little his natiue soile by one that asked him why he minded no more his owne country answered 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ô sayes he pointing vp to heauen I am exceeding mindfull of my natiue countrie Now to apply all this discourse home man we haue prou'd was created by the word of God man only was form'd in Gods image and similitude And who then is the word of God but the Sonne of God who the expresse image of the Father but the Sonne Ioh. 1. 1. Heb. 1. 3. Since therefore our soules consist by the Word Christ and euery thing is preseru'd of that it consists as Nature it selfe teaches since our soules are made after the image and similitude of Christ and euery thing is most agreeably nourished by that it is most assimilated vnto is it not euen in reason an irrepugnable Truth that our soules must needs be nourished and preserued by the power of our Lord CHRIST who is Gods Essentiall Word and Image And heere by the way but I speake of it onely incidentally as it falls into discourse wee may see as the high dignity so the causall differeÌ„ce between the reasonable soule of man and the liuing souls of bruit beasts For doe but looke into the booke of the generatioÌ„ of creatures and you shall see there Mans soule was immediately breathed into his body by God himselfe and was created after his Diuine image but the Liuing Soules of bruit beasts were educ't out of their elementarie wombes those bodies which were most like theÌ„selues For so sayes our Lord God Let the Earth bring forth euery liuing thing according to his kind and it was so so the sea was commaÌ„ded to bring foorth issue according to his kind and so it was which is the reason the liuing souls of beasts fal again into the same matter out of which they were first taken and of whose kinde likeness they are as our corruptible bodies doe Dust thou art and into dust thou shalt returne but the diuine and reasonable Spirit of man returns to God that gaue it as Salomon speakes Eccles 12. 7. being immediately created by him of his owne similitude and kinde so breath'd into the body which is indeede the true prime cause of the immortality of our souls So that they being created immediately by the Word breath of God out of nothing and not arising from any praeexistent matter caÌ„not possibly be corrupted into any other nature or annihilated by any other word except we childishly suppose some word more powerful then the Word of God himselfe I haue now prou'd that our soules all consisting by the word of the Father which is Christ and being imag'd most like vnto him they must needs as euery thing else is by their like be preserued and nourisht by Christ whose image they are and who may therefore with greater truth and reason be called
the wordes of their Prophecie and that Christs Church may see this truth Christ sends out into the whole earth these seauen guifts of his Spirit as Lamps to giue Light both to his Prophets and Apostles So that if any Spirit of Antichrist obtrude vpon the Catholique Church any other witnesses or blinde Light of gouernment interpretation besides these or think that Christ sent his seuen spirits forth into Rome not forth into the whole earth it is to be held a Spirit of Error and not of Truth But to close vp this generall shadow of the Prophets which I haue vnawares vnfolded beyond my first purpose and to open the particular substance of their seuerall Prophecies we shall find thē all so signally point at our Sauiour that if Moses veyle were not taken frō his face and layd vppon their hearts if they did not by a wicked 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of the olde Prophecies set the last comming of our Sauiour in glory before his first in humility that so they might grow proud by him who would first learne them to be humble Learne of me for I am humble they could not but now at length see him to be the Glory of Israel who hath beene so long a time already the Light of the Gentiles all the Circumstances of his Birth the Miracles Offices Doctrine and Humilitie of his life the causes manner and other cōcurrences of his death the Place of his buriall and the assurance of his rising againe being so cleerely praeassigned by their owne former Prophets liuing so long before Let vs therefore diligently search into III. The seuerall Prophecies concerning the Birth Life Death and Resurrection of the Sauiour of the world FIrst that his Mother should be a Virgin was foretold Isay 7. 14. and we shal finde it Mat. 1. 18. fulfilled Beholde a Virgin shal conceiue which the Iews most sillily translate a young woman as Trypho the Iew in his disputatiō with Iustin Martyr and Aquila and Theodotion both Iewish Proselites in their Translations But as Iustin replies it were no wonder for a young woman to conceiue whereas the Prophet speaks of it as a wonder Behold the Lord himselfe will giue you a signe 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as your ancient Septuagint saith the Father reads it and not as your idle Rabbies newly translate it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Behold a young woman shall conceiue making that a very strange wonder then which nothing is more common and vsuall Besides to speake in grammer property 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Alma signifieth neyther a Virgin simply nor yet a young woman but one betweene both a Virgin already espoused but not married such as Mary was to Ioseph such as Rebecca was to Isaac when she veyled her face at his sight Gen. 24. 65. and is therefore deriued from 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to veyl or hide This being the maiden ceremony of the olde world for Virgins after they had once made choice of their husband to couer their faces to be Nuptae before they were Maritae veyled from al other before they married their owne man The husbands being to become the veyle of her eyes as Abimelech speaketh of Abraham to Sarah Behold he is the veyle of thine eies And this was Gods owne Argument to prooue our Sauiour his Son the Messias Gen. 3. 15. Ier. 31. 22. and in the place now cited And as the person of his Mother so the person of his Messenger was as disertly fore-told by the Prophets Esay 40. 3. Malach the 3. 4. chapters and fulfilled by Iohn the Baptist Luke the 4. who is therefore called Eliah not because he was to be person aeliter but onely personate being to come in the spirit of Eliah and in the manner of his life Eliah fasted often so did Iohn Eliah was girt with a leather girdle so was Iohn Eliah spake all his Prophesie writ none so did Iohn Eliah reproued the people openly to their faces so did Iohn Eliah was sent to renew the worship of God then defaced and changed so was Iohn Eliah told Ahab and Iesabell of their faults plainely so did Iohn Herod and Herodias painted Iesabel sought Eliahs life to slay him dancing Herodias sought and obtained the life of Iohn and slew him So that in his place and apparell in his manners and Prophecies in the prosecution of his life and persecution at his death Iohn though he were not Eliahs persō yet did throughly personate Eliah And this was Iohns crying Argument to proue our Sauiour the Messias The voyce of a Cryer in the wildernes prepare ye the way of the Lord saith Esay Who art thou say the Iewes to Iohn The voyce of a Crier in the Wildernesse prepare yee the waies of the Lord saith Iohn to the Iewes But our Sauiour as he had two Natures so hee had two Messengers Iohn was a burning shining Light on Earth but the Starre burned shined to giue him Light from Heauen A Starre shall come out of Iacob saith Balaam Num. 24. 17. Where is the King of the Iewes saies the Wise men for we haue seene his starre are come to worship him Mat. 2. 2. And this is the heathen mans argument that so much troubled Herod and all Hierusalem with him Now if we search diligently eyther the time when this starre first appeared or the place whether it led the Wise men after it had brought them out of their owne Countrey was it not in the time of the first Herod Luke 3. 1. when the Scepter was departed from Iudah Gen. 49. 10. And the Land was forsaken of both her Kings Esay 7. 16. And this was olde Iacobs argument to proue Iudahs sonne the Messias The Scepter shal not depart from Iudah till Shiloh that is his Sonne come And went it not with them directly to a little Bethleem foretold by Micah the 5. the 2. and in the 2. and 5. of Mathew interpreted by the chiefe Priests and Scribes and people all gathered together at the commmand of Herod to this very purpose who making this quiry Where Christ stould be borne receiued this answere In Bethleem of Iudah And thou Bethleem art not the least among the Princes of Iudah for out of thee shall come the Gouernour that shall rule my people Israell And this was the Argument of all our Sauiours enemies met together against him Herods the chiefe Priests the Scribes and the Peoples to proue him the Messias Wee might now take our Sauiour out of the Cradle of his birth and looke vpon him in the Miracles Offices Doctrine and Humanity of his Life all which wee shall finde curiously foretold by Moyses Dauid Esay Zachary and witnessed not onely by the mouthes of Children and Wise men but forcibly arrested by the Peoples Pilates and the voyce of the very Diuells themselues crying Wee know thee what thou art euen the Holy one of God but because the great Rocke of Scandall whereat both the obstinate Iew
the Corner-stone is layd by the Prophets in the Church of God and how mightily Christ vpholdes the Scriptures that are built vpon him one by foretelling the other by fulfilling the written word how the liuing should be borne and liue and die should bee buried and raised and the Liuing word by so entring the wombe and his graue so liuing dying rising as was written so that if our Gospel be hid it is hid to those onely whose minds are blinded by the God of this world as the Apostle speakes But as our Christian Faith is much dishonoured by a company of rude and vnsettled Professours so it is vtterly ashamed of the multitude of false blind which is strange dumb witnesses the Church of God is pestered with I will end therefore with V. A iust Invectiue against all false blind and dumbe Prophets who are indeed no true Witnesses of the Lord. LEt the Iesuit now the Sophister of Christianitie cal to vs to beg light and sufficiencie and auritie to Gods word from their Romane Church tell vs tell vs that we must run to Rome to their Spirituall Man to enterpret the Scriptures who commonly vnderstands not the Tongues they were writ in Let their Apostolicall Chaâ—re vaunt it selfe it cannot fall from the Faith because the two noble Apostles S. Peter and S. Paul sate in it by their doctrine ymbrightened it by their example and with their owne blouds baptized it Alas did not our Sauiour himselfe sow Hierusalem with his doctrine grace it with his Miracles shine vpon it with the light of his vniuitable example water it with the showre the best showre that euer fell from heauen of his owne blood And yet is not that Vine-yeard become a wildernesse hath it not losse with the leaues the fruit with the power of Religion the profession of it And is it possible that Gods word should bee darke it selfe that giues light to the simple insufficient and vnperfect in it selfe that makes perfit the Man of God that Gods word should begge authorities from mans and such a mans who is either the man of Sin or the Beast drunke with the blood of the Saintes and Martyrs of Iesus from such a beastly and sinfull mans word That hee should bee the sole and Infallible Interpretour of Gods word and his diuine Lawe in whose chayre-sentence all our thoughts must acquiet themselues who by his dispensatory court of Faculties is the daily Cancelour of it and is therefore 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 stiled by the Apostle 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the lawlesse Man Who can make Apocryphal Authors Canonicall Humane Traditions of Diuine Authoritie disanulling in Princes holy Marriages and making Legitimate amongst them incestuous Contracts Inioyning his Fryars vnlawfull chastity forbidding his Seculars holy Wedlocke commending in his Cardinals royal excessiue pride commanding in his votaries abiect humilitie counsayling in his Iesuits blind and sinfull obedience countenancing in forrein Subiects secret and Sainctly Rebellion creating heere among vs a Religious murder and meritorious treason and making the bulletting of a whole Commonwealth vp into the ayre at a shot an Action not onely vndiscouerable and to bee sealed vp vnder the holy Signet of Confession but canonizing the father of the Action for a most heauenly and venerable saint All which to the word of GOD are most repugnant and gladiatorie Is this the man vpon whose lip of knowledge they would haue vs and all the Prophets hang to kisse whose toes and commit idolatrie with the golden Crosse vpon his Pantofle they would haue vs flye ouer the seas Well when wee heare say hee is better able to make good his Interpretations by the Lights of Art helpe of Tongues and authoritie of Scriptures rightly inferred from the Collation of places the significancy of phrases the light of circumstances the Ayme of the words and the Analogie of Faith and hath ioyned to all these a sincere loue of the Trueth without any siding and part-taking for gainefull and honourable respects and an vnwearied search for it without prae-iudicating affections all which together make vp not an infallible but the least fallible Interpretour we will then thinke whether it bee fit to put out all these Lights in other men thorough the whole Church of GOD and with the losse of our Christian libertie to imbondage our selues to his Romane Chayre It is best therefore to keep on this side the seas from the false and whorish Prophet of Babylon that beares onely false witnesse to Christ and to consider those Ecclesiasticall home-Droanes of our owne which hiue themselues vnder the shadow of our Church the wicked thiefe money that siluer dropsie that now raigns in vnconscionable Patrons making way for them so beare indeed either no witnesse to Christ at all or but very slight and rash witnesse It was Eliahs speech from God to Ahab Hast thou slaine and also taken possession and it may well be his Churches to either of theirs Hast thou taken possession and wilt thou slay also not the body once but for euer the soules of innocent men Let no man quarrell with me as Ahab did with Eliah Hast thou found me O mine Enemie If he doe I must borrow Saint Paules answer Am I thine enemy because I tell thee the Truth No I speake not out of rash but charitable zeale thou art thine owne Enimie thou art Gods Enimie thou art the enimie of his Church For if thou didst loue him thou wouldst feede his flocke feede his Sheepe feed his Lambs If thou diddest loue his Church thou wouldest shew thy loue by thy obedience to it Who enioynes euery one eleuen moneths residence vpon his cure and graunts him but one months absence whereas it is a venture but without long search you may finde one that absents himselfe eleauen moneths and is resident but once a yeare and that is perhaps at haruest or peraduenture at Easter when his owne and not so much the Churches profit calles him to his benefit not his Benefice He would being resident preach euery Sunday as shee commaunds him in her 45. Cannon Hee would labour to coÌ„uince Heretiques which now in his absence growes vppon her or see them at least censured as she bids him in her 65. and 66. Canons He would keepe the sound in safety and visit the sicke as shee directs him in her 67. Canon Thus he would do and not laugh at them that did thus and would haue him doe so as men more precise than wise of more heate than discretion I am not so intemperate as to rage against all Non-residency which in case of insufficiencie of one Liuing or publique and necessarie imployment either in Vniuersities or Court must needs be allowable but either our Church it selfe is precise that bids him doe thus or he that does the contrary without any ouer-ballancing reason prooues himselfe a Bastard and none of hir Children A double wound it is our church receiues from these men For as themselues haue not
his goodnesse which shines euery where in his works and is therefore called by the Apostle 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 That which may be known of God the other of his Truth which is most eradiant in his word and is therefore called by our Sauiour the light of the world Now so diffusiue is God of his goodnesse and gratiously as it were prodigall of his image although in it selfe it can be seene in no place yet he would haue no place where it should not bee seene in his works which are all weake shadowes of some bright excellency that is substantially resplendent in himselfe For as the noone-Sunne which then makes all things most easily seene can then least of all bee seene it selfe and yet lights vp innumerable stars in the night season wherein as in so many little sparkles of it selfe it is visibly though absent presented to vs so our vnderstanding in this midnight of things may see the spirituall Sunne of our soules shedding some small starrelight of himselfe in euery one of his litle images his works whose vnapprocheable light in it selfe whosoeuer should hope to attaine vnto should certenly neuer attaine vnto his hope Thus in his workes the wisest of the heathen beheld and admired the goodnesse and glory power of God The Heauens declare the glory of God sayes Dauid Coelum homini praebet spectaculum sayes Tully The earth is satisfied with the fruite of thy workes sayes Dauid Terra foeta frugibus eidem fundit nutrimentum sayes Tully Thou hast set all things vnder his feete all sheepe and oxen yea and the beasts of the field sayes Dauid Bestiae ipsae hominum causa sunt generatae sayes Tully He opened the windowes of heauen and raind downe Manna the flowre of heauen and bread of Angels and feathered fowles like the sand of the Sea sayes Dauid so that well might the Oratour conclude Neque necessitatibus tantummodo nostris prouisum est vsque in delicias amamur It were ambitious but to name the speeches of heathen Plato Xenophon Plutarch and the rest in this Argument whose mouthes tasting their tongues could not but bee singing of this ranke and commendable luxurie of Nature which God with his open hand hath powred out euerie where in his workes Wherein Iustin Martyr and diuers of the fathers within the first foure centuries haue so throughly sweated their studious thoughts and as it is said of Caesar stirred vp a desire in all but taken away all hope of commendation from any that shold write after them I will onely adde to theirs the religious song of Epictetus whose lampe-shell whereby hee studied was sold after his death such estimation was there of the woorth not of the thing but of the man for aboue 100. Sestâ—rties who after hee had began many a sentence with 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 great is the Lord and greatly to be praysed he shuts vp his song in these words If I were a Nightingall sayes he I would sing to the honour of my Maker as a Nightingall does and how is that Siquis adest auditor sayes Pliny Lusciniae prius animus quam cantus deficiet The Nightingall if any will giue him the hearing will sing himselfe sooner out of breath then out of tunes But now I am reasonable man I will sing prayses to God with vnderstanding neuer cease to praise him and I would to God sayes hee all men would doe as I. But these Sermons which the Creatures preach out of the great booke of Gods workes though they haue wide mouthes and lowd voyces and Stentorian like will be hard through the whole Host of heauen yet they can but shew vs the out-side of Gods Temple and bring vs to the Porch dore here they meet with their Hercules pillars the great veile of heauen through which our Sauiour is entred into the Holy of Holies keepes them out They bring God to vs but they cannot bring vs to God they tell vs the true God is to be worshipped but how to worship him truly they cannot tell Besides this naturall diuinitie taught by the creature if it bee seioygnd from the word had as S. Paul tels vs it hath a certaine windy and puffing nature in it to swell bladder vp the soule of the wisest heathen with a kinde of Satanical pride and selfe-worthinesse As knowing therby al things to be made for them and themselues only for God and so thinking themselues as it were vulgus deorum semi-gods in comparison both of their Creatures I and other men But we right dearely beloued in our Lord and Sauiour must haue a feeling as wel of our own misery as a knowledge of the Maiesty of God ioyning our wants to his aboundance and to his goodnesse our euill Not like the Heathen of all whom we may say as Eunapius did of Oribasius 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 They were Larks indeed and with â—pictetus sung sweetly to Heauen but they were crested Larks and thought too highly of themselues beleeuing God to be but not knowing what confessing hee should bee worshipped but not knowing how And therefore the Lady of all their Sciences Athens when shee built God an Altar sacrificed all her offerings vpon it onely 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to the vnknowne God But what saies our Sauiour to this woman of Samaria that neuer came vp to Hierusalem to learne how to worship Ye worship yee know not what wee know what wee worship And though Bias when a Prophane Ruffian asked him what was Religion held his peace and being quarrelled with by him to know the cause answered out of his angry wit Because hee asked about a matter hee had nothing to doe with yet let vs assure our selues that Religion so neerely touches vs all that wee must not onely know what wee worship as our Sauiour sayes but as his Apostle tells vs be able and ready to giue a reason of our faith why we thus worship GOD which that wee may doe there is correquisite to the loud voyce of Gods workes the soft voyce of Gods word For as wee can no way know the minde of another man except it first open it selfe because it is manifest as Solons Prouerbe goes 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 wordes are the onely pictures of thoughts so much lesse can any man ascend vp to the minde of God except hee climbe to it by his word which it therefore standeth with Gods honour to reueale because he is no lesse gracious then iust and his Iustice exacting of vs the duety of Worship his Grace will not but giue vs a possibility to know how to performe our duties And thus farre the whole world of vnderstanding men haue gone the very Heathen themselues But in this question lies all the sweat of religious quarrells II. How wee should infallibly finde out the true Word of God which may leade vs to the knowledge of him our selues and our supreame happinesse HEere the way breaks into foure paths in the search of this perfect