seruants the prophets rising vp early and sending them saying Returne now euery man from his euill way and amend your workes c. but you would not obey mâ— Now if the obedience of the Rechabites to their father should be so great an argument to moue the Iewes to obedience vnto God how much more may the example of these rough seas and stormy tempests being calmed at the word of our Sauiour Christ only be a greater means if we truly meditate vpon it both to coÌ„sider how many words of his in the mouthes and writings of his Ministers haue bin in vaine vnto vs in former times and to put vs in mind of our duty of obedience that we be not worse then other creatures which are ready to obey and doe his will as it appeareth in this place And surely the word of God which is so powerfull in other creatures should be of as great command in man for the Apostle tels vs that the word of God is liuely and mighty in operation and sharper then any two edged sword and entreth through euen to the diuiding asunder of the soule and the spirit and of the ioynts and the marrow and is a discerner of the thoughts and of the intents of the heart And this word will produce a worke for so saith the Prophet in the person of God Surely as the raine commeth downe and the snow from heauen and returneth not thither but watereth the earth and maketh it to bring forth and bud and that it may giue seede to the sower aâ—d bread vnto him that eateth So shall my word be that goeth out of my mouth it shall not returne vnto me void but it shall accomplish that which I will and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it It is true that if we examine the working of this word in men it hath not many times that successe to be the power of God vnto saluation and the sauour of life vnto life but if it faile of that it is the sauour of death vnto death vnto them that perish for the earth saith the Apostle which drinketh in the raine that commeth oft vpon it and bringeth forth herbes meete for them by whom it is dressed receiueth blessing of God but that which beareth thornes and briers is reproued and is neere vnto cursing whose end is to be burned And to apply this vnto the text the Prophet telles vs That the wicked are like the raging sea that cannot rest whose waters casâ— vp myre and dirt There is no peace saith my God vnto the wicked That is they are continually troubled with stormes and tempests for their exorbitant passions and affections bee as violent and contrary winds distracting them on the one side to wanton lust and on the other to hatred and malice sometime feeding them with vaine hopes and sometimes renting and tearing them with desperate feares So that these and all other passions of the mind are fitly termed perturbations that corrupt the iudgement and seduce the will causing wicked men neuer to be at rest and quiet And the chiefe end of the word of God preached or read is to quiet and calme these tempests of the soule to moderate the violence of these furious passions and perturbations of the mind The vse whereof to all men but specially to Sea-men when they see stormes and tempests and their ship in danger is to consider their soules and the spirituall danger they are in by these outragious winds that sometime their ship or heart is driuen a shoare and sticks fast in the mire and dirt of lust and vncleannes which I heare hath been the wracke of many a poore soule in his trauels and sometime they are driuen into the gulfe of intemperance whereby they are swallowed vp quicke for want of calming that passion of their greedy appetite and desire sometime they are driuen vpon the rocke of desperate profanenesse swearing and cursing and blaspheming God vntil the ship of their soule be quasht in pieces and sometime on the sands of selfe-loue and selfe-conceit which passions and all other so long as they be inordinate doth driue their ship dangerously they know not whether Saint Augustine writing vpon that in the Psalme He would make haste for my deliuerance from the stormy wind and tempest sheweth both the cause and the remedie of all such tempests arising in thy heart and mind Forte nauis tua ideo turbatur quia Christus in te dormit c. Happily saith he thy ship is troubled because Christ is asleepe in thee The ship in which Christ sailed with his Disciples was sore troubled and in danger but the reason waâ— Christ was asleepe when his Disciples awaked him â—e rebuked the winds and the sea and there followed a Calme Thy heart and mind are therefore perhaps worthily troubled because Christ in whom thou hast â—eleeued â—s not awake in thee thou sufferest many perturbations because thou hast forgotten Christ his Passion and suffering for thee Recouer thy faith in him call vpon him awake him and â—e will arise and rebuke the storme and giue thee a Calme The cause then of all thy tempests in thy soule is that thou sufferest Christ to sleepe in thee the remedy against them is to awake him and call vpon him for helpe and deliuerance Doth the tentation to lust and vncleannesse seaze vpon thee as a tempest say vnto thy soule I am a Christian and haue giuen my name to Christ and am a member of his Mysticall body Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them the members of an harlot God forbid Thus doe thou rouze vp Christ by thy spirituall meditation the storme will blow ouer and a Calme follow And as in this so in all other tentations if thou repaire to Christ his word will be as powerfull to giue thee peace and quiet as it was here to appease the fury of the windes and waues Thus much shall suffice of the third generall part of the historie to wit the miracle The fourth and last followeth concerning the successe of it in the beholders consisting in two things First They maruelled Secondly They acknowledged What man is this that both the Windes and Sea obey him For the first we neede not stand long with interpreters vpon this place to enquire who they are that are that are here said to maruell and wonder Our Euangelist calleth them the men and Saint Marke and Saint Luke they among themselues and seeing Saint Marke saith There were also with him other little ships It is plaine that both the Disciples and all the rest that were the beholders marueled for the Disciples as was shewed before were yet but young beginners raw fresh water souldiers and are reproued before for their little faith and therefore they as well as the rest could not chuse but wonder The Prophet Esay speaking of the birth of Christ saith that they shall call his name
thou Lord hadst not been on our sides when men rose vp against vs they had swallowed vs vp quicke when their wrath was kindled against vs Then the waters had drowned vs and the streame had gone ouer our soule Then had the swelling waters gone ouer our soule Praised be the Lord which hath not giuen vs ouer as a prey vnto their teeth Our soule is escaped euen as a bird out of the snare of the fowlers the snare is broken we are deliuered Let vs not therfore forget to offer the sacrifice of praise and thanksgiuing vnto thee the true God y◠hast deliuered vs frō the hands of our enemies let the holy examples of thy seruants Moses and Miriam and Baruch Deborah and the Prophet Dauid in their Psalms of thanksgiuing for their victories and deliuerance from their enemies incite and prouoke vs to praise thy name as long as wee liue yea as long as we haue any being Thou hast giuen vs the shield of thy saluation and thy right hand hath staid vs and thy louing kindnesse hath caused vs to encrease For thou hast girded vs with strength to battell Them that rose against vs thou hast subdued vnder vs. Let the Lord liue and blessed be our strength and the God of our saluation be exalted It is God that giueth vs power to auenge vs and subdueth the people vnto vs O our deliuerer from our enemies euen thou hast set vs vp from them that rose against vs thou hast deliuered vs from the cruell men Therefore will we praise thee O Lord among the nations and will sing vnto thy name We will alwaies giue thankes vnto thee and thy praise shall be in our mouth continually and our tongues shall vtter thy righteousnesse and thy praise euery day Thou hast put into our mouthes a new song of praise vnto thee our God Many shall see and feare and shall trust in the Lord. Blessed is the man that maketh the Lord his trust and regardeth not the proud and such as turne aside to lies O Lord our God thou hast made thy wonderfull works so many that none can count in order to thee thy thoughts towards vs. Wee would declare and speake of them but they are more then we are able to expresse Thou makest war to cease vnto the ends of the world thou breakest the bow and cuttest the speare and burnest the chariots in the fire Let vs therefore be still and know that thou art God and wilt be exalted among the Heathen and wilt bee exalted in the earth Thou Lord of hosts art with vs thou God of Iacob art our refuge Let vs therefore reioyce and be glad in thee and tell and sing of thy greatnesse Thy name shall bee for euer thy name shall endure as long as the Sunne All Nations shall blesse thee and bee blessed in thee Blessed be the Lord God euen the God of Israel which onely doth wondrous things And blessed be his glorious name for euer and let all the earth be filled with his glory Amen Amen A Prayer in the time of Famine and Dearth O Lord our God thou hast broken the staffe of our bread and taken away the strength therof wherby it should nourish vs we eat our bread by waight and with care and drinke our water by measure with astonishment because our bread and water faile we are astonied one with another But thou hast taught vs that Man liueth not by bread only but by euery word that proceedeth out of thy mouth We know therefore that howsoeuer thou hast appointed bread and meat and drinke as the ordinary means to maintaine life yet it is thy blessing vpon those meanes whereby we are preserued and as it is easie with thee to turne penurie and scarcity into plenty and abundance beyond the expectation of men so thou canst giue a blessing to a little meale in a bartell and a little oyle in a cruse to continue and not wast till thy seruants are relieued And though thou hast threatned the iudgement of Famine as a punishment to wicked men yet wee know that thy dearest children the holy Patriarches Abraham Isaac and Iacob haue all of them been tried thereby and yet after been relieued by thee And seeing the Scripture teacheth vs that thy eye O Lord is vpon them that feare thee and that trust in thy mercy To deliuer their soules from death and preserue them from famine And that our Sauiour Iesus Christ hath not onely charged vs not to cark and care for our selues as the Heathen What wee shall eate or drink but to depend vpon thy prouidence which feedest the fowles of the aire and knowest that wee haue need of these things but also hath promised that they that seeke the kingdome of God and his righteousnesse shall haue all these things ministred vnto them Teach vs to relie vpon thy prouidence O Lord and to know that when all outward meanes faile vs yet thou art still the same God faithfull in thy promises and thy mercies cannot faile Thou canst suddenly by meanes vnknowne to vs supply our wants thou canst make a little stretch farre and canst proportion our appetites to our store Giue vs grace therefore to make vse of this crosse when we see the great care taken for our prouision before we vndertook the voyage cannot helpe vs that it may cause vs both to waite thy leisure and expect supply in thy good time and submit our selues vnto thee without murmuring grudging or repining at thee and without mutining or falling out among our selues And if it please thee to supply our necessities grant that we may thankfully acknowledge thy mercies therein and keepe our selues in so sober a diet that we may both auoide the sins of surfetting and drunkennesse and may specially be stirred vp to hunger and thirst after righteousnesse and the spirituall meate and drinke of our soules which shall endure vnto euerlasting life which now and euer we desire to be so carefull of that howsoeuer it please thee to dispose of our bodies the food belonging vnto them we may know that meate was made for the belly and the belly for meate but thou shalt destroy them both but this bread of life and water of life shall last and neuer faile vs but euen in death bring vs to euerlasting life purchased for vs by the death of thy Sonne Iesus Christ in whose name and words we craue the supply of all our wants in that forme which hee hath prescribed saying Our Father which art c. A Prayer being arriued at a Port among Infidels O Lord it is thy goodnesse and mercie that hath brought vs safe through the many dangers of Sea vnto this place where we are to enter yet into more dangers being to trade and conuerse with
prouidence and therefore where the diuell doth most rage they receiue the greatest comfort As therefore the enchanters of Pharaoh striuing by their lying wonders to imitate the miracles wrought by God by the hands of Moses and Aaron were faine at the last euen in a most vile creature to wit lice constrained to confesse that it was the finger of God So much more should al Christians in the sensible feeling of any of Gods iudgements and the serious meditation of them confesse with old Ely It is the Lord let him doe what seemeth him good and with Hezekias The word of the Lord which thou hast spoken is good Farre be it therefore from them to runne with Saul in their extremities to a witch to aske counsell of the diuell against which sort of people the Law of God is plaine that they should be put to death But let them know that whatsoeuer power the diuell falsely ascribeth to himselfe as that all kingdomes of the earth and the glory of them are deliuered to him and are at his disposing or whatsoeuer power the Scriptures ascribe to him and his Angels as that the Apostle calleth them principalities powers c. yet as was said before his power is restrained and limited by God And though as a strong man armed he hath taken possession of all men by nature now corrupted yet Christ is stronger then he that takes from him the things in which he trusteth and diuideth the spoiles To which the Prophet Esay alluding saith In that day the Lord with his sore and great and mighty sword shall visit Leuiathan that piercing Serpent euen Leuiathan that crooked Serpent and he shall slay the Dragon that is in the Sea And that speech of the Prophet Zachary The Lord reproue thee Satan sheweth the power of Christ aboue his And himselfe shewing his victory ouer the diuell saith Now shall the prince of the world be cast out And he not onely expressed his power against Satan in word but in deed both casting out of diuels out of the possessed himself and giuing power and authoritie to his Apostles and Disciples to doe it also Therfore doe the Apostles Saint Peter and Saint Iude tell vs that the diuels are kept in chaines as Christs captiues and cannot stirre to doe harme further then he shall giue them leaue And howsoeuer it is comfort enough to all Gods children That he 〈◊〉 giuen his holy Angels charge ouer them to keepe them to pitch their tents about them to fight for them and being stronger then the dâ—uels to ouercome them So that if they looke to God by the eye of faith they shal see as Elisha shewed his seruant that there are more with them then against them for they are compassed about with horses and chariots of fire to defend them from all hurt and to destroy their enemies Yet they haue a further coÌ„fort in God who is alwaies present with them and therfore say with the Apostle If God be with vs who can be against vs Or with the Prophet Dauid The Lord is my shepheard therefore I shall want nothing yea though I walk through the vallâ—y of the shadow of death I will feare no euill for thou art with me thy rod and thy staffe thâ—y comfort me And thus we see that God hath onely absolute power in himself to worke miracles and so that Christ in the working of this miracle by his word onely commanding the winds and the sea doth thereby shew himselfe to be God by whose word as all things at the first were created of nothing so now al things and actions not onely of men but of all other creatures yea euen of the diuels themselues are ordered and directed to teach all good Christians in their greatest crosses not to be dismaied or discouraged seeing they haue God at hand who hath promised to helpe them and to whose word all the creatures must yeeld subiection and obedience as it followeth in the next words the last thing considered in the miracle There was a great calme This is the worke it selfe containing the obedience of these vnruly Creatures to the word of Christ that as the Centurion saith to him before in this Chapter But speake the word onely and my seruant shall be healed so here the word no sooner spoken but a great Calme followed By which wee see the truth of that deliuered by the Prophet He sendeth forth his commandemâ—nt vpon the earth and his word runneth very swiftly And a game in the same Psalme He sendeth out his Ice like morsels who can abide the cold thereof He sendeth out his word and melâ—eth them he caâ—sâ—â—h the wind to blow and the waters to flow So that as his word can raise a tempest At his word the stormie wind ariseth and lifteth vp the wauâ—s of the sea Or as the Prophet Ieremiâ— speaketh He giueth by his voice the multitude of waters in the heauen and he causeth the cloudes to ascend from the earth he turâ—eth lightnings to raine and bringeth forth the windes out of his treasures So at his word as they that came to apprehend him went backwards and fell to the ground So I say all the creatures must yeeld obedience and doe his will as the sea and wind doe in this place No maruell therefore if the Apostle do call the afflictions that befall the children of God in this life light and but for a moment for we may say of them as was said of Iulian Nubecula est cito transibit It is but a little cloud that will soone be blowne ouer for Heauinesse may indure for a night but ioy commeth in the morning After the storme there will come a calme and though Leuiathan doe make the dâ—pth boyle as a pot and the sea like a pot of oyntment yet our trust is in Gods word as the Prophet speaketh He appeaseth the noise of the seaes and the noise of the wâ—ues thereof The vse whereof to all men both at sea and land is to consider the obedience of these disordered creatures to the word and command of their Lord and Master and to compare it to their owne disobedience vpon whom neither the word of God nor his promises nor his threatnings nor his blessings nor his iudgements can worke so much as his bare word did heere on these insensible things The Prophet Ieremie to draw the Iewes to obedience vnto God doth propound the example of the Rechabites by Gods commandement and applieth it thus â—he commandement of Ionadab the sonne of Rechaâ— that he commanded his sonnes that they should drinke no wine is surely kept for vnto this day they drinke none but obey their fathers commandement Notwithstanding I haue spoken vntâ— you râ—sing early and speaking but you would not obey me I haue sent also vnto you all my
ten persecutions raised against this ship of Christ by those wicked Tyrants Nero Domitian Traian Antoninus Verus Seuerus Maximinus Decius Valerianus Aurelianus and Dioclesian were such great stormes that as Rabanâ—s saith of the first of them Some were slaine with the sword some sâ—ourged with whips some stabd with forkes of yron Some fastned to the crosse or gibbet some drowned iâ— the sea some had their skins pluckâ— ouer their eâ—res some their tongues cut out some stoned to dâ—ath some killed with cold some starued with huâ—ger some their handâ— cut off and dismembred and left naked c. So Saint Augustine saith of the Christians to them all They were in bonds and imprisonments they were slaine thâ—y were tortured they were beaten with cudgels They were burned they were torne in pieces and yet they multiplied Saint Ierome saith that there was no day in the whole yeere vnto which the number of fiue thousand and Martyrs might not be ascribed except onely the first day of Iaâ—uary Eusebius writes of Neroes persecution of the Church that in his time a man might see Cities lie full of dead â—â—dies the old lying together with the young and the dead bodies of women cast out into the open streetes without reuerence to their sexe This may serue for a taste of the tempests raised against this ship of Christ in the times of these persecuting tyrants But the stormes raised by Arrius the heretick and his followers in good Constanâ—â—ns time were as much if not more dangerous of which Saint Ierom complaines Ingemâ—it orbis Christianus miratur se subito factum esse Arrianum That the Christian world did lament and wonder how vpon the sudden they were al becâ—me Arians And certainely hereticks haue as furiously assailed the Church as euer did Tyrants But when Heresie and Tyranny met together in the Maâ— of sinne the Pope of Rome especially when Boniface the third by the meanes of Phocas that execrable murtherer that by treason conspiracy being but a coÌ„mon souldier did betray and put to death his Lord and Master Mauritius the Emperour hauing first slaine his Empresse and his three sonnes before his face and by this traitrous villany aspired to the Empire when Boniface I say by this persidious Wretches meanes had gotten to be proclaimed The Head of the Vniâ—eâ—sall Church then and from that time Satan being let loose the poore Church or ship of Christ went to wracke which was about sixe hundred and thirteene yeeres after the birth of Christ. Since that time we may truly say his armes are a rauening wolfe his sentence burne burne burne his saying Let vs lay waite for bloud his head is blasphemy his shield tyranny his brest iniurie his eies fire his girdle fornication his breath poyson his tongue the sting of death his feete ready to shed innocent blood his sword violence his crosse persecution his pardons iniquitie his triple Crowne presumption his keyes ambition and all his doings abomination I write this the rather because that Sinagogue of Satan doe boast and brag and challenge to themselues that they are this ship of Christ and that out of their ship there is no saluation that Protestants are hereticks that raise vp stormes and tempests against this ship I confesse the time was to wit in the times of the forenamed persecuting Tyrants that the Church of Rome had her part in Christs ship many of her Bishops were holy Martyrs all those stormes raised by those tyrants might happily fill the ship with water but could not sinke it But how is the faithfull citie become an harloâ— For when Constantine the Great gaue not only peace to the Church but endowed it with worldly promotions they shutting vp their vpper-decks to heauen-ward and opening leakes beneath to the sea of the world thinking they could neuer haue enough of that bitter water except they had the whole sea and world at their command From that time Rome is no longer a ship but a sea for that proud Bishop to sit in though he falsely terme it the sea Apostolick and from that sea haue risen more tempests against Christs ship then from the persecuting tyrants that we may iustly say of Rome as the Prophet said of Niniueh O blâ—udy citie it is full of lies and robbery the prey departeth not c. for this Whore of Babylon is drunken with the bloud of Saints and with the bloud of the Martyrs of Iesus Let their owne Authors speake for them Iohn the twentie two did persecute tâ—e poore Christians of Armenia and hired the Saracens to warre vpon them bâ—cause they would not acknowledge his authoritie A strange expence of the goods of the Church as they call themselues to hire infidels to cut the throats of Christians and to inuade Christendome In the dayes of Queene Marie saith the same Author the Papists procured the slaughter of millions of Christians in France Flanders and other places in that time how many poore Christians were butchered and burned here in England Natalis a Popish Writer saith that threescore thousand Hâ—gonites were murâ—ered in the Massacre of France An. 1572. and therfore he calles that execution cruâ—ll and bitter The Pope in his charitie with his Cardinals hearing of it reioyced went a Procession sang Te Deum and gaue a Iubile Paul the second is reported by diuers torments to haue vexed diuers godly and learned men for very small causes Alexander the sixth would put men to death for euery light word spoken against him Budeus calles Iulius the second Sanguinarium cleri magistrum that is A bloody Master of his Clergy When Charles the Emperour was setting forward against the Turke the common enemy of Christians Cardinal Poole an English Popish traytor was sent to him from the Pope and in an oration extant in print did perswade him to turne his forces from the Turke against Henry the eight as worse then any Turke I need not speak of the Popes Bulles and tempestuous thunder-bolts sent out against Christian Princes to set them together by the eares and sometimes stirring vp the subiects against their Princes and sometime owne son against the father The Bull of Pius Quintus roaring thus against Queene Elizabeth of happy memory Iubemus vt contra Reginam Angliae subditi arma capessant We will and command that the Queene of Englands subiects doe rise vp in armes against her Neither need we to seeke farre to find that the Iesuites his dearest darlings are the fierbrands of all Kingdomes and States in Christendome to goe no further and that they are both contriuers and patrons of the greatest conspiracies and treasons that euer were hatched in the world The Spanish inuasion of England intended in the yere 1588 with their Inuincible Nauy as they termed it and the Gun-powder treason intended against the Parliament-house and the Estates of the land that were there to