the Apostles first not in order onely but in excellencie also as appeareth by his similitude of mans body whose partes are some comelier some feebler and his comparison of spirituall gifts whereof some be more excellent and some of lesse regard and account in the Church of Christ. And so Chrysostome well obserueth Because some did mightily swell with the gift of tongues he placeth that last of all for first and second are not vsed here fortales sake but he noteth what is higher in degree and what is lower Wherefore hee set the Apostles before as those that were endewed with all sortes of gifts Hee saieth not God hath placed some to bee Apostles some to be Prophets but he saieth in the first place in the second in the third And Ambrose The chiefe in the Church hee placeth the Apostles which are Christes Embassadours Hierome writing of the 12. fountaines and 70. palme trees that the Israelites found in Elim saieth There is no doubt but the 12. Apostles are hereby ment from whose fountaines the streames running along doe water the drynesse of the whole world Neere to these springs grewe 70. palme trees whom we vnderstand to be the teachers of the second order Luke the Euangelist witnessing that there were 12. Apostles and 70. Disciples of a lower degree whom the Lord sent two and two before him And Augustine As when the sunne riseth it first shineth on the hils and thence the light descendeth to the lowest places of the earth so when Christ Iesus our Lord came he first spred his beames on the height of the Apostles he first lightened the mountaines and so his light went downe to the valleis of the earth The palme trees saieth Theophilact alluding as Hierome doth to the twelue fountaines and seuentie palme trees in Elim are these 70. disciples which are to bee nourished and taught by the Apostles for though Christ also choose those 70 yet were they inferiour to the twelue and afterward their scholers and followers Which we may the rather beleeue because Eusebius and Clemens long before testified that Christ deliuered the full knowledge of himselfe to the Apostles and the Apostles afterward to the 70. Disciples And that the Apostles had a superiour vocation aboue Prophets Euangelists Pastours Teachers and whomsoeuer in the Church of God and euen the gouernement and ouersight of them will soone appeare if we consider what Paul the Apostle writeth of himselfe and vnto them directing appointing and limiting as well Prophets as Euangelists and therefore much more Pastours and Teachers what to doe and how to be conuersant in the Church of God what to refraine in themselues and what to represse in others in which cases we must not dare say or thinke the Apostle presumed aboue his calling or had a seuerall Commission from the rest of the Apostles to doe that hee did but in his doings and writings we may perceiue the height and strength of Apostolike authoritie so guided and tempered with the spirit of wisedome and humilitie that it grieued or displeased none in the Church but such as did either swell with pride diuerted to fables or troubled the Church with their contentions From an Apostolike spirite and power proceeded these speaches that follow and many such that may euery where be obserued in his epistles We charge you brethren in the name of our Lord Iesus Christ that you withdrawe your selues from euery brother which walketh vnorderly and not after the rule or direction which hee receiued of vs. Wee are perswaded of you in the Lord that you doe and will doe those things which wee charge you Brethren I commend you that you remember all mine hold fast the ordinaÌ„ces as I deliuered them to you Other things when I come I will set in order Concerning the gathering for Saints as I haue ordained in the Churches of Galatia so do you And redressing abuses both in Pastours and Prophets he faieth If any speake with tongues let it be by two or three at most and let one interprete if there bee none to interprete let him keepe silence in the Church The Prophets let them speake two or three and the rest iudge Your women let them keepe silence in the Churches and if they will learne any thing let them aske their husbands at home If any seeme to be a Prophet or to haue the spirite let him agnise the things that I write to be the commandements of the Lord. And hearing of the strife enuie contentions back bitings whisperings swellings discords sundry other enormities that were at Corinth not in the people alone but euen in such as came to preach the Gospel amongst them and vndermined the Apostles credite and authoritie with them he saieth The weapons of our warrefare are not carnal but mightie through God to cast down fortes all heigth that lifteth it selfe against the knowledge of God hauing in readines wherwith to reuenge all disobediece when your obedieÌ„ce is fulfilled If I should boast som what more of our authoritie which the Lord hath giueÌ„ me for your edification not subuersion I should not be ashamed I write now being absent to theÌ„ which heretofore haue sinned to all others y â— if I come again I wil not spare for so much as you seeke experience of Christ y â— speketh in me I write these things being absent lest wheÌ„ I am present I should vse sharpnes according to y e power which y e Lord hath giueÌ„ me to edificatioÌ„ not to destruction Directing Timothie how to guide the Church of Ephesus he giueth him this instruction and this commission As I prayed thee to staie at Ephesus when I went to Macedonia that thou mightest command certaine not to preach any strange or other doctrine and that they intend not to fables so this charge I commit to thee sonne Timotheus Hymeneus and Alexander I haue deliuered vnto SataÌ„ that they may be taught not to blaspheme And expressing at large in the third chapter how the bishops deacons ought to bee qualified before they bee admitted he addeth These things I write to thee that if I â—arie long thou mayest know how to behaue thy selfe in the house of God Refuse the yonger widowes I wil that they marrie gouerne their household Let not a widow be chosen vnder the age of 60. Receiue no accusation against an Elder but vnder two or three witnesses those that sinne rebuke openly that the rest may feare Laie handes hastily on no man neither bee partaker of other mens sinnes And hauing deliuered diuers and sundrie points of wholesome doctrine godly life and seemely gouernement too long to be here inserted he authoriseth and requireth Timothie to see them performed in this sort These things command and teach Let no man despâ—se thy youth I require thee before God and the Lord Iesus Christ and his
of the people with him assist him in hearing ordering all matters of weight and difficultie Besides these God named twelue princes of euery Tribe one for oftener meeting quicker dispatch to be alwayes present with Aaron and Moses that is with the high Priest and the Magistrate Thus had euery Tribe their Iudges and officers Elders and Princes to direct and rule the rest of the multitude The same order was by Moses prescribed against they should recouer and enter the land of promise and was likewise there obserued Iudges officers shalt thou make thee in all thy cities throughout thy Tribes they shal iudge the people with righteous iudgement And if there arise a matter too hard for thee in iudgement within thy gates thou shalt arise goe vp to the place which the Lord thy God shall choose where the seuentie Elders were to abide and attend such matters as were of greatest moment both ciuill sacred and their sentence by Gods law no man might refuse without punishment of death This maner of gouernement Iehosaphat restored together with religion when hee set Iudges in the land throughout all the strong cities of Iudah citie by citie Moreouer in Ierusalem he placed of the Leuites and of the Priests and of the chiefe of the families of Israel for the iudgement and cause of the Lord and sayd Behold Amariah the priest is chiefe ouer you in all matter of the Lord and Zebediah the sonne of Ishmael a ruler of the house of Iudah for all the kings affaires and the Leuites are officers in your presence Iosephus repeateth the summe of these lawes of Moses in this sort In euery Citie let there be seuen rulers men chiefly regarding vertue the loue of iustice To euery Magistâ—acie let there bee allotted two of the Tribe of Leui for assistance If these Iudges cannot pronounce of any matter brought before them let the whole cause be sent to the holy Citie the high Priest the Prophet and the Senate or councill of Elders assembling determine what they thinke right The Iewish Thalmud varieth from Iosephus in the number of their Iudges and saieth that on small and pecuniarie matters in euery citie sate three Iudges on criminall and capitall three and twentie on the highest affaires of the common wealth and causes sent from other Cities sate at Ierusalem the lxxi Elders and rulers of the people The booke of Ruth witnesseth that ten of the Elders of the citie sate with Boaz in the gate when the matter was ended betwixt him and his kinsman for the inheritance of Elimelech and marrage of Ruth The Princes and Elders of Succoth euen of one Citie were 77. whose flesh Gede on did teare with thornes for refusing to relieue his wearied souldiers The iarre in the number of the Iudges I labour not to reconcile they may speake of diuers times and places without repugnance of each to other this I obserue that Moses appointed neither Iudges nor Elders in Citie or Synedrion but they were magistrates to execute the iudgements of the lawe and had the sword to chastice the body and punish with death The supreme Synedrion of Ierusalem heard and decided matters pertaining to God and the king and the man that presumptuouslie disobeied them was by Gods lawe to die Under Esdras the punishment of him that neglected their commandement was the forfeiture of all his goods and separation from the people of God The Elders of their Cities were to inquire and sweare for vnknowen murder to deliuer the wilfull murderer vnto the hand of the auenger of blood to adiudge to death disobedient children to a merce and chastise the slanderer of his wiues virginitie and to stone the adulteresse to death and in like maner to performe all the punishments and penalties of Moses lawe By which it is euident that their Elders in euery Citie were the Magistrates and rulers of the people and might inflict both losse of limme and life and determine all causes saue such as for distinction of holy and vnholy were peculiar to the Priest or for weight and difficultie were reserued to the councill of Ierusalem In the dayes of our Sauiour though many things were corrupted and altered from Moses lawe and the power of their Elders and Sanhedrin much decreased first by the kingdome of Herode then by the Romane Presidents who not regarding Moses lawes could not endure the soueraigne authoritie of the high Priest and Elders so neere their noses yet for the better containing the people in obedience to their countrey rites and lawes without which they would in no wise be gouerned or quieted the Elders of each place were suffered to retaine some shew of their former power as to heare and redresse the priuate wrongs and iniuries of their brethren and the Councill of Ierusalem had authoritie left them to imprison and chastice with rods the contemners and disturbers of their religion as appeareth by their binding and buffeâ—ing of Christ and beating his Apostles as also by Pauls letters from the high Priests and Elders to prison and beate in euery Synagogue such as beleeued I send you saieth Christ to his disciples as sheepe among wolues they will deliuer you vp to Councils and scourge you in their Synagogues Yea by shewing themselues zealous for Caesar and by false suggesting that the Apostles vnder colour of religion laboured to stirre sedition among the Iewes as Theudas and Iudas not long before had done the Elders so preuayled with the Romanâ—s that not onelie the Presidents themselues persecuted the faythfull to content and gratifie the people but suffered the Synedrion at Ierusalem to haue power of life and death when they same cause and to exercise the same in cases of defection from their lawe or rebellion against their lawe Our Sauiour saieth of the Scribes and Pharises sitting in Moses chaire Fulfill ye the measure of your fathers Behold I send vnto you Prophetes and wise men and some of them shall you kill and crucifie and some shall you scourge in your Synagogues and pursue from Citie to Citie Paul confessing how hote hee was against the Christians in the time of his ignorance saieth I persecuted this way vnto the death binding and imprisoning both men and women And when the blood of Steuen the Martyr was shed hee stoode by and consented vnto his death and kept the clothes of the witnesses that slew him At that time also when Steuen was stoned there was a great persecution agaynst the Church which was at Ierusalem and Saul entered into euerie house and drewe out both men and women and put them in prison breathing out threates and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord and making hauocke of his Church The stoning of Steuen some men suppose was done in a tumult without all lawfull authoritie because the chiefe Priests not long before sayd to
All lay persons vpon repentance might be reconciled with imposition of hands No Presbyters depriued for anie grieuous sin might be reconciled with imposition of hands therfore no Presbyter was a Lay person The fift general Council kept at Constantinople He that taketh a second wife after baptisme or marrieth a widowe or a woman diuorced or a bond woman cannot be either Bishop Presbyter or Deacon or in any other sacred order No lay Elders were tied to these rules all Presbyters were there was great oddes then betwene lay Elders and Presbyters If you trust not these Councils for y â— vse of the word Presbyter the lawes imperiall will direct you The Christian Emperors giuing many priuiledges to Clergie men doe likewise expresse who shall enioy them Presbyteros Diaconos Subdiaconos Cantores Lectores quos omnes Clericos appellamus Presbyters Deacons SubdeacoÌ„s Singers Readers al these we cal Clergy meÌ„ all these accordingly had the prerogatiues immunities of Clergie men by the Romane lawes Now if no laie Elder could claime anie Clericall priuiledge in the Romane commonwealth vnder the name of Presbyter as vndoubtedly he could not I much maruell how by force of y â— very same word in y â— Fathers who vse it as strictly as the Emperours do Lay men should claime to haue y â— gouernment of y â— church But indeed it is a meere conceit of our age transforming Clergy men into lay men contrary to y â— words meaning aswel of Fathers as of laws and canons rather then they will loose their holde of the Laie Presbyterie which they haue framed after their owne fansie and not by the direction or deposition of any Council or Father For they all with one consent vse the worde Presbyter as the ciuill Lawes and sacred Canons do In what sort Ignatius Tertullian Cyprian and Athanasius vse the word Presbyter we haue seene before the rest doe fully concord with them Irenaeus We must obey those Presbyters in the Church which haue their succession from the Apostles and with the order of their Presbyterie yeelde wholsome doctrine to the information and correction of others Such Presbyters the Church doth nourish Origen There are in the Church of Christ that loue the chiefe places and labour much first to be Deacons not such as the Scripture describeth but such as deuoure widowes houses vnder pretence of long prayer And such Deacons couet to attaine the chiefe chaires of those that are called Presbyters And some not there with content practise many ways to be called bishops by men which is as much as Rabbi Howbeit he that exalteth himselfe shal be humbled Which I wish al would marke but specially the Deacons Presbyters and Bishops which thinke these things are not written to them A Deacon being already in sacred orders coulde by no meanes become alay Elder the roumes therefore which they aspired vnto were the chaires of Clergie men these were called the Presbyters of the Church Of these he saith else-where Though I bee taken for a right hand and bee called a Presbyter and seeme to preach the true word of God yet if I do anything against the Discipline of the Church or rule of the Gospell the whole Church with one consent must cut mee off being their right hand and cast me from them Then were Presbyters not only right hands in the Church but also preachers of the word and that not some but all All Bishops and all Presbyters or Deacons do teach vs and in teaching do reproue sharply rebuke Quatuor genera capitum sunt in ecclesia Episcoporum Presbyterorum Diaconorum fidelium There be foure sorts of men in the Church saieth Optatus Bishops Presbyters Deacons and the beleeuers Out of which of these foure will you fetch your laie Elders From the beleeuers Then were they no Presbyters will you comprise them in Presbyters Then were they no Late men For Optatus in the same place chargeth the Donatists with subuerting of soules for making Presbyters to be Lay men Inâ—enistis Diaconos Presbyteros Episcopos fecistis Laicos Agnoscite vos animas ouertisse you founde Deacons Presbyters and Bishops you made them Lay men Acknowledge then you subuerted soules If you doubt I force his wordes against his meaning heare what himselfe saith touching those foure parts of the Church Quid commemorem Laicos quitunc in Ecclesia nulla fuerant dignitate suffulti Quid Ministros plurimos Quid Diaconos in tertio quid Presbyteros in secundo sacerdotio constitutos Ipsi apices principes omnium aliqui Episcopi instrumenta deâ—inae legis impiè tradiderunt What shall I reckon Lay men which were then aduanced with no dignitie in the Church What neede I repeate the Seruitours of the Church The Deacons in the third the Presbyters in the second degree of Priesthoode The chiefe and toppe of all euen many Bishops wickedly deliuered the instruments of Gods Lawe to the fire Lay men had no degree nor dignitie in the Church much lesse the honour or office of Presbyters For they were plainely Priests Had you but one such place for Lay Elders as heere is against them we would neuer striue with you about them Nazianzene telling howe the goodnes and prouidence of God brought that learned and famous man Basil 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to the sacred seates of the Presbyterie 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 by the order and course that should be obserued in spirituall climing saieth Hee first read the sacred bookes to the people and expounded them not disdaining this place of the Chancel and so came to the chaire of the Presbyters and after of the Bishops The Seates then of the Presbyterie in Nazianzens time were not onely sacred and seuered from the people but the right orderly way to ascend vnto them was first to passe through other Ecclesiasticall Degrees and Offices as Cyprian calleth them and so to rise to the highest and noâ— for Laie men to sit in them as fellowe Presbyters with the Bishops No Presbyteris quidem adesse permittitur in mysterijs quum tamen ipsi quoque sacrorum administri sunt The Presbyters themselues are not permitted to be present in the mysteries and yet they doe administer the Sacraments saith Iulius to the Bishops at Antioch I am a Bishop saieth Hilarie to Constantius continuing in the Communion of all the Churches and bishops of France though I be in banishment ecclesiae adhuc per Presbyteros meos communionem distribuens and still distributing by my Presbyters the communion of the Church or to the Church Presbyteri Episcopi vna est or dinatio vterque enim sacerdos est The ordering of a Presbyter is the same that a Bishops is saith Ambrose for both are Priests Aut igitur ex Presbytero ordinetur Diaconus vt Presbyter minor Diacono comprobetur in quem crescit ex paruo