GODS DOINGS AND MANS DUTY Opened in a SERMON Preached before both Houses of PARLIAMENT the Lord Major and Aldermen of the City of LONDON and the Assembly of DIVINES at the last Thanksgiving Day April 2. For the recovering of the West and disbanding 5000 of the Kings Horse c. 1645. Quadragesimus hic quintus mirabilis Annus Ang. Hyb Sco. requiem det Deus ut pariat By HUGH PETERS Preacher of the Gospel Judg. 3. 31. So let all thine enemies perish O Lord but let them that love him be as the Sun when he goeth forth in his might And the Land had rest fourty yeers The second Edition corrected by the Author LONDON Printed by M. S. for G. Calvert at the sign of the black Spred-Eagle at the West end of Paul 1646. TO THE RIGHT HONORABLE THE Lords and Commons Assembled in PARLIAMENT I Professe that I never thought my self master of my own Trade and therefore never forward either to cast such a mite as this into your Publique Treasury or to be in Print with the rest of my brethren But since it was your pleasure to make choice of me to bring in a Narrative of Gods bountie as being an eye-witnesse to many of his glorious works I have obeyed in this and that I knew not what better to pitch upon then Gods doing and your dutie He that will not confesse God hath done much I fear means to wave the duty and who so shall slight this duty must look for that sad Curse of Anathema Maranatha And therefore I again commend it to you They that have much given and much forgiven will love much The woman spent all that shee had upon Physitians for the cure of her Bloudy Issue and nothing would heal till shee toucht the hem of his garment who was the way contrived in Heaven to bring over Salvation to man I doe believe it hath been thus far your Cure to this Bloudy Disease and to enjoy a thorow Cure I beseech you stoop againe and touch the hem again you cannot honour the Lord more then in loving his Sonne and believing in him Bear with my rudenesse if I say you must be very hard put to it in your Counsels should you not live comfortably upon your experiences and cheerfully looke all changes in the face for time to come You have a greater stock by you then the greatest and richest Nation in the world could get and lay up for themselves The same God give you skill to improve it to his advantage and the good of this poor Kingdome that begins to breathe againe through his blessing upon your unexampled care and travell Methinks I see the Ages to come marking your doors and dwellings as the habitations of their Deliverers I wish that never a soule of you may die at Nebo but come to their injoyments of Canaans milk and honey You seem to have before you two or three great mountaines to go over and though I can contribute little to your encouragement yet I will beg your wonted patience for a few words First since you are still buzz'd in the ear with a desperate encrease of Errour give me leave to offer this Expedient by way of Quaere The wound seems to be in the Understanding and the Cure must lie there Vnder favour what if some convenient place or places in the City were set apart two or three times weekly where godly learned men appointed by your selves and the Leaders or Heads of those Errours as they are termed might have leave to come and there in a brotherly way take and give satisfction for as Conclaves have alwayes been dangerous so these poor erring men cannot have the benefit to appear with boldnesse and reasonable souls may sooner certainly be taught with Reason and Scripture then with cudgels and blowes Tyrannus had a School and Christ disputed with the Doctors in their Synagogue Religio docenda est non coercenda Religion is to be taught not forced This I am sure Conviction should goe before Punishment The Lord will not burne Sodome till be see whether the report be true I pray consider it Secondly for the present Government in order to any man or men if you keep to the premises the Lord himselfe will make a blessed conclusion Thirdly for further Hostility the Lord hath own'd you and your Army and made you formidable beyond what we conceive at home my onely fear hath been diseases in our bowels which gave me that boldnesse to urge a neer union betwixt your selves and the Citie which hath since a double knot upon it by your late full and satisfying Declaration and your ordering the dissenters about Church-matters to bring in their severall thoughts backt by the Word that so you may keep to that Clause in the Covenant which concerns England Onely be couragious and your work will be issued so as your selves and wee shall cry Grace grace c. For any other request unto you I have but one I most humbly beseech you spread that Gospell you own and to that end doe professe my grief not onely for the miserable dark and ignorant parts of the Kingdom but that divers Orthodox learned faithful Ministers of the Gospel with their precious Flocks cannot enjoy publick places in the City but their â—â—ry gifts and almost their persons are stifled by being thrust into corners which keep them under the name of Schismatiques whose souls have panted under your service in these calamitous times and their purses constantly opened themselves hazarded beyond many a word from you may enlarge them And for my self I acknowledge here before God Angels and men the Characters of your favour protesting that your work hath been so good and so sweet that I have found my wages wrapt up in my work and a great addition by your acceptance I could even say as he did Si in vita prodesse possim quid vis imperate si in morte vel occidite quicquid de me statuetis hoc semper confitebor profitebor semper hanc vestra humanitas mihi fecit injuriam quod vivam moriar ingratus If my life may be profitable command what you please if my death even kill me whatever you shall determine of mee this will I alwayes confesse and professe this injury your humanity hath done me that I shall live and dye ungratefull I blesse God heartily for a Parliament yea for this Parliament and the blessing of him that was in the bush and kept it in the fire be upon you and yours for ever And let all that love the God of Heaven who is the God of England say AMEN My Lords and Gentlemen I am Yours most humbly devoted Hugh Peters To the Honourable the Lord Major the Aldermen and the Common-Counsell of this famous City of LONDON YOu were invited to what ensues by the Honourable Houses and you invited them to a portion sutable to that day and I take leave to return you thanks
for their and your patience towards my selfe in hearing what I now present for which I humbly crave favour of them and you for some inlargements being then pent into much narrownesse in regard of the time and the rather because I strove to sute your expressions of respect and love to them who deserve so much from your selves and the Christian World How I have been represented unto you and others by printings or otherwise shall not fill up this paper I must reserve to some other way which shortly I shall doe God willing but in the mean time and ever doe professe my constant respect to and esteem of this Citie from your first compliance to the great Counsel of this Kingdome that I have left remembrances of you in forren parts and without flattery do think this City one of the best peeces of ground in the World I am sorry I caus'd any unexpected smiles in my zeal for your further conjunction with the Head and Heart of this Nation If I commended you as a good portion he did not well that thought it ridiculous nor do I think you too good a portion for those I wooed you unto You know me and your wisdoms know how to make allowance to my zeal They have a strong appetite to quarrel that are offended at expedients presented against future quarrelling My sighs to God for you are these That you may still move with faithfulnesse in your own Orbe That you remember you and yours live in a Parliament That you are made wealthy for others not your selves alone That you would not make Opinions your Interest which are changeable but Godlinesse and Faithfulnesse That you would rather punish known sins shew mercy to the poor a known duty maintain Civil peace look to your City-priviledges rather then lose your selves in doubtful questions I must remember you that I have heard many of you wish for such a Parliament and such an Army Own your own desires and be assured your constant concurrence with our great Counsel will not onely be your present safety but strength to posterity Beleeve it a now suspected party in the Kingdom have no further designe then your and the Liberty of the Nation from Bondage who deserve your love not your displeasure The God of all grace be with your spirits and help you to love him who hath kept you in the midst of your relations and comforts whilest so many thousands have fallen on the one hand and the other of you May your souls prosper under the abundance of rich means you enjoy May your examples for wisdom piety faithfulnesse love to the Lord Jesus and his Saints provoke the next Generation to glorious things These are the desires and heartie breathings of My Lord and Gentlemen Yours in any service for Christ Hu. PETER To my truly Honorable and Faithful General Sir THOMAS FAIRFAX SIR ONe of the greatest comforts I have bad in this world next to the grace of God in Christ to my poor soul hath been to be a Member of your Army and a Spectator of his presence with you and it What others doe I know not but it is my duty to return to my work and to meet you again which I am bold to doe with this simple present I know your minde who must not will not be flatter'd nor am I skilful in that mystery I have seen you upon Earth and doubt not but to meet you triumphing in Heaven I onely must crave leave to speak your own words That your great experiences of Gods power and mercy have made strong obligation upon you to love him and the Saints which I have seen you doe impartially you have made it your interest and now finde you are not deceived The God of all your unparallel'd mercy dwell in that thriving soul of yours strengthen you throughout to the compleating of this great Work yea Serus in coelum redeas diuque Laetus intersis populo Britanno For my self if it be worth your acceptance I am resolved to live and die in your and the Kingdoms service and as you have obliged three Kingdomes to you and many thousands of Saints so none of them more to honour you then SIR Your ever faithful servant in Christ HUGH PETERS A Sermon preached before the Honourable Houses of PARLIAMENT the LORD MAIOR and ALDERMEN of the City of London and the Assembly for the glorious Successe it pleased God to give our Army in dissolving 5000 of the Kings Horse and reducing Cornwal and neer all the West PSAL. 31. 23. Love the Lord all ye his Saints for the Lord preserveth the faithful and plenteously rewardeth the proud doer THe little time left for this Work must be improved to the best advantage and therefore though we must be beholden to the Neighbourhood of the words before and after the Text yet we shall forbear to speak any thing at all of the whole Book of Psalms and no more then neds of this It is easily agreed that this Psalm is 1. {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} 2. {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} 3. {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} 1. His Prayer you have to the twentieth Verse and therein 1. His desires for his own safety to the 18. 2. His request tending to the ruine of his enemies in the two following Verses 2. His Praises in the 21 and 22 Verses which are 1. Either {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} for all 2. Or {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} for himself in special 3. A hortatory Conclusion in the two last Versea O love the Lord all yee his Saints c. In the Text briefly thâ—se two things fall under consideration 1. The Duty Love the Lord and that set out divers wayes By intensivenesse in the Exclamation By the Object and by the universality of those engaged c. But time checks me these with others I can hardly name 2. The Arguments carrying on the Duty 1. Because be preserveth the faithful 2. Because be plenteously rewardeth the proud doer Thus much onely of the Logick of the Text something of the Grammar of it and then shortly to the Divinity and those profitable and seasonable Truths it will afford Some few words are to be attended in the clearing the sense Saints here in the text is or may be read Ye that feel mercies Faithful the word is sometimes taken for persons sometimes things and so the Lord is said to preserve True men and Truths Faithfull men and Faithfulnesses He plenteously rewardeth the proud doer or the Lord rewardeth plenteously The Lord who doth wonderful things Plenteously is either in cumulum abundè or in nepotes as some would have it But I would rather commend then goe about to amend Translations though I could wish some of my learned Brethrens quarrelling hours were rather spent upon clearing the Originals and so conveying 〈◊〉 pure Scripture to posterity then in scratching others with their sharpned
house of God if he might speed well in his journey What if you Noble Lords should write upon your door The Lord will honour them that honour him If you Worthies of the other house upon your door Salus populi suprema lex And you the Governours of this Citie Jerusalem is a Citie compact c. Your union amongst your selves will turn much to Gods praise And I wish this were written upon the doores of the Assembly If any man list to be contentions we have no such custome among us nor the Churches of Christ I leave these but as intimations or suggestions to your wisdomes lest the day and work we are about do evaporate and come to nothing I wish your children and so ages to come may be taught his praises since you so abound in matter I pray convey it to after ages that they may love the God of their Fathers Tell your little ones this night the story of 45. the towns taken the fields fought tell them of neer 30000 prisoners taken this last year 500 pieces of Ordnance tell them of the little losse on our side be sure to let them know it was for the liberty of the English subjects you fought charge them to preserve the liberties that cost you so dear but especially the liberties purchased by the blood of Christ and above all let them know that the God of heaven is the God of England and hath done all but his name and his Sons name who can tell us I wish we knew God better that we might love him more Oh love the Lord in his praises and praise him for his love In amore divino hic solus inest moduâ— ut siâ— siâ—e modo I dare not adde more time is so exceedingly exceeded You are I understand by the City invited to a feast which I confesse is one piece of this solemnity But what feast shall we call it Shall it be a feast of Tabernacles truly we might have lived in Tents and Booths or by some hedges sides all our dayes had Tyranny and Popery gained the travell of their souls and desire of their hearts you might have been sitting by some rocks sides in the Wildernesse looking sadly back upon poor England or by the river Ahava in the Captivity with Ezra If you like not to call it a feast of Tabernacles will you let it goe under the name of a Marriage-feast it seems to look like that I remember the Espousals of the Parliament and this Citie when yee wore your Protestations upon your Pikes resolving to live and die with the Parliament I hope you will be as good as your words you are upon the close of your work and now you have many causes of further union who have mourned together and now are rejoycing together upon unparallel'd grounds Call it then a feast of love my Text calls for nothing but love and I wish that may be the issue and product of the work and truly for that end I would willingly come from the place where I stand to beg it upon the bare knee and when I speak of love betwixt Parliament and City I do not exclude my Reverend Brethren onely I am afraid of a third State because we have paid already very dear for Clergicall interests And now I think of this further union betwixt you I remember when the Lord closeth with his people in Hosea He will take away the names of Loammi and Lorumah There are two names in this Kingdom I wish they were taken away also or whatever might hinder your nearnesse You worthies of the City look well upon the Parliament and tell me if they be not lovely how could you have been preserved from Anarchy without them where would you have centered had this Basis of the Kingdome been destroyed If the foundations be pluckt up what shall the righteous doe The best now in England could not have lived without a Parliament and the worst but a little time I must professe an Anti-Parliamentary spirit especially in this conjuncture to be the designer of his own ruine and posterity to be the introducer of certain misery to the present age I look upon it as the fruits of much malice or much ignorance and the brat of those mens brains that never lived beyond the view of the smoke of their own Chimnies that measure States and Kingdomes with their interests by their private shop-wands and if they be prest or priested into it by any of my coat which is Satans old method it will argue the more feeblenesse and prove more dangerous Remember friends to beat Religion with Religion is a subtlety as old as Jesuitisme and older Remember the dead and the living You have had their Hambdens Pims Stroudes who if now living would have called this day the Suburbs of their happinesse and you had the blood of some Nobles too that Zealous Brooke and others and these are here this day to joy with you that have mourned with you who have been your watch day and night You know how vain it will be to war abroad nisi sit consilium domi you are now reaping the most glorious fruits of their labours and paines if you have any thing justly to object against them all you can say is they are men yet such men as may not be called to a slight account for their actions but in many cases the wayes of State may run so deep that we can help onely with this Levius fit patientia Quicquid corrigere est nefas To be weary of a Parliament now were to conquer our selves into a new slavery it were to proclaim to the world we are mercy-sick victory-sick and liberty-fick the Lord prevent that portentous mischiefe Yet Goa is good to Israel Let me hope he will not be worse then he hath been Nobles and Gentlemen look upon the Citie these are they that strengthened you with the finews of your war you have not come unto them for any thing and returned empty You may remember the 100000. li the 50000. li the greater the lesser fu 〈…〉 nes for England Scotland and Ireland and I may not forget that 80000. li that oyled the wheeles of this last Army in their first going out The Lord of Hosts requite it to them that offered so willingly I adde you have not only had these helps but their servants yea their children out of their bosomes who now are found the Officers generally in this Army But I might call in much of this again and say the Parliament have had their labour for thâ—mselves and the Citie for themselves and one for the other and all for the Lord and this and other Nations Only I call for love this day I would desire strength in your union The Spirit says two are better then one and gives reasons from cold or fals but addes a threefold cord is not easily broken of which I conceive thus If two be well agreed Jesus Christ will make a third and then
wine in it â—ill you see whether a blessing be with it Not a child of Abraham's but shall be blest It is an old Charter of a promise And hence it came to passe that he preserved the very off-scourings of the world to carry forth his Name to the world and maintain that which men call foolishnesse to bring wisdom to them that knew it not And thus farre I have made progresse in the clearing up the former part of that Truth I am to prosecute and hope by this time we are all agreed when and how and why the Lord preserved the faithfull and that he plenteously rewardeth the proud doers remains to be made good Therefore not to make forfeiture of your patience I shall onely apply my selfe to these two passages 1. W 〈…〉 the Lord rewardeth them 2. How he doth it The former of these two Questions hath taken up the heads hearts and pens of the Christian world for divers years many crying with those in the Revelation How long O Lord holy and true doest thou not judge and avenge our bloud on them that dwell on the earth Some enquiring after the downfall of Antichrist some looking to the prophesies that concern Gog and Magog some casting their eve upon the drying up of Euphrates and the way to be made for the Kings of the East some looking after the taking away him that letteâ—â— and most men disputing the â—â—ying of the two Witnesses as much condueing to Gods designe in bringing about what is piomised in the second and seventh of Daniel where the Kingdome is promised to the Saints of the most High supposing that to be the fifth Monarchy In all which I shall bee silent for the present and onely put you in mind of their usuall seasons wherein we may expect to see proud doers receiving their wages 1. When the Lord goes his progresse through the world and rides his circuit amongst the sons of men and puts a crown upon his glory great offenders are then brought forth and that was Pharaohs case who withstood all the miracles that God might be more glorious in his downfall And thus hee contracts many times the eyes of neighbouring Nations to see his vengeance upon some And he is said to come out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity 2. When ever you see his Sanctuary troden upon and Holinesse slighted then he rends the Heavens and comes down to make his Name known to his adversaries that the Nations may tremble at his presence and that it was that brought the Lord forth to the ruine of the Jewish Church Your soule abhorred me and my soule loathed you Hence he destroyed three Shepheards in one day the Sadducees Scribes and Pharisees upon this he breakes his two staves of beauty and bonds Oh this undervaluing godlinesse in the power of it They were wont to say of Caius Seius he was an honest man but he was a Christian Poor Jews when Christ askâ— his price they valued him at thirty peeces of silver which in our account amounts to eighteen shillings and four pence and this was that which bought a field of bloud To slight that mercy that must save and shut the door of that onely Citie of Refuge that must protect from the pursuers of bloud to put indignities upon that Christ and injuries upon that Jesus by whose Name onely salvation is brought into the world The Lord hath set his Son upon his holy Hill and will crush those that have scorned him 3. When sinfull men shall have filled up their iniquities the Lord empties his full vials upon their heads that even the Saints must wait upon the sins of the Amoâ—â—tes for the fulnesse of them till they can be delivered Let us observe the Scripture setting forth this fulnesse and it will give us a 〈…〉 ling of God◠〈…〉 ing with the proud doers in order to time and that in these particulars 1. There is a fulnesse of magnitude when provocations grow very great Clamitat ad Coelum vox sanguinis Sodomorum 2. There is a fulnesse of number and multitude Bloud toucheth bloud and sins are fruitfull in their generations 3. A fulnesse of measure that Children may fill up the measures of their Fathers iniquity 4. There is a fulnesse of strength when the sinner grows strong and hath Cart-ropâ—â— to draw on vanity Behold the Princes of Israel every one was in you to their power to shed bloud when head and heart and hand are ingaged in mischiefe when all interests are improved to that end 5. There is a fulnesse of growth and now they sin more and more therefore they shall be as the morning cloud and as the early dew that passeth away as the chaffe that is driven with the whirlewind out of the floore and as the smoke out of the chimney 6. A fulnesse of age when men grow old in sin Behold every one that useth proverbs shall use this proverb against thee saying As is the Mother so is her Daughter and thus sinners grow gray in their transgressions yea sin must leave them before they leave it 7. There is a fulnesse of Dexterity there be some that be their crafts-masters in sinning who can spin threads of all sorts you have your Court sinnes Citie Countrey University sins men take their degrees in this sin-craft they have their severall dimensions depths and bredths 8. A fulnesse also there is of impudence when men cannot blush commit folly and yet wipe their mouths with Solomons harlot thus often sin meets you with a brazen fore-head it takes the wall of Christ and Religion and thrusts holinesse into the kennell This is that bold-fac't harlot that doth kisse and kill at once and these are the men that call great sinnes little and little ones none at all 9. When sin comes to a full period and then the proud doer hath done his work and receives his wages O let the wickednesse of the wicked come to an end but stablish the just for the righteous God trieth the hearts and reine The second Quâ—re is How God rewardeth the proud doer in which though the Lords proceedings be divers and many times his paths in the clouds and his judgements in the deep and the uttermost farthing shall be paid the proud doer at the great day yet so much of his mind he hath left unto us that even in this life he gives out something to the proud which he calls The day of Recompence which he commonly manifests in these particulars 1. By way of Retaliation for Adoni-bezek that would be cutting off thumbs had his thumbs cut off Satia te sanguine quem sitisti So the poor Jews that cried so loud Crucifie him crucifie him were so many of them crucified that if you beleeve Josephus there was not wood enough to make crosses nor in the usuall place room enough to set up
patimur mala saevior armie Luxuria incubuit victumque ulciscitur orbem We could never have suffered so much by a forraign enemy as by our home-bred luxury and wantonnesse Oh call these ill times when a base messenger from a proud Prelate could shut up these doors stop the mouths of the most godly Ministers that the best noble-man here could not enjoy the worship of God freely and hardly his Bible without reproach I am bold to say you have heard more of Christ within these last foure yeares then you have for forty before call such dayes good And more especially to improve what I have spoken in the doctrinall part truly the Lord hath rightly timed his favours even when he might most advance his own wisdom power and mercy when he might stir up his gifts and graces in you if the enemy ask after our Prayers Fasts Tears yea our God as they were wont to do we have all these this day from Edge-hill and before even to this very hoare yea all these preservations have been so seasonable that what time we our selves would have chosen hath been Gods time that we may say as David in this Psalm Our times have been in thy hands O Lord And I humbly beseech you give the Spirit of the Lord its praise who hath done the work The Lord is willing you should have the mercy so he may have the prayse Potiphar lets Joseph hâ—â—e the use of all he hath onely keepâ— his wife to himself Pharaoh lets him have the Kingdom but he will keep the Throne Gods Spirit hath so appeared as we conclude means can do nothing without him but he can do all without meanes and what meanes doth is all 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 be it is that hath quickned and succeeded your counsels and executions he hath even gone against 〈◊〉 and beyond means for you he it is who hath spirited all your endeavours in Counsels and Armies raised help for you out of the very dust Externall motive he hath none from us who are not the loveliest people in the world he hath from himself over a wâ—d men powred contempt upon Princes taking away the occasions of many evils met the proud in their full career and wither'd their arm often kept them from us by strange diversions fill'd the world with tumults that you might not be a prey to strangers On the riches of his grace His own righteousnesse and holinesse have thus perswaded him to do the glory of his mercy hath been his argument his wisedom and faithfulnesse have been glorious in preserving crums and clusters The very Truths now profest have been rak'd up in contemptible ashes and now revealed to the world and they that are wise shall see the loving kindnesse of the Lord in all For the proud doer so called because a contemner of the faithful you see how the Lord hath resisted him and hath taken him in his moneth as the wilde Asse in Job you may remember how the Egyptian King out-lived many miracles but must perish in the Red-sea whether Red from the sand thereof or the blood of many he spilt I will not dispute You know how the Lord hath been provoked by the low price set upon his holinesse and his image in his Saints the peculiar sin of this Nation for travell where you will even from hence to the Garamants you shall never find but the Zâ—lots in other parts of the world are honored onely in England Ludibrium vulgo It hath long been a crime to be godly and he hath been a lost man that trades that way whilst a company of obsolete and beggerly rudiments and ceremonies have been billeted upon Gods ordinances and eat out the very heart of them double Service and no Preaching Nay you have lived to see Iniquitie in the fulnesse of it Oaths and blasphemies unparallel'd yea when one of our Troopers reproved one of theirs in Cornwal for swearing he was answered by that prophane mouth He would sweare as long as he was on horse-back he should have time enough to repent on foot nay they would serve the Devil now that he might use them kindly when they came to hell the very Sunne might even blush looking upon such miseâ—â—ants Of this fulnesse you have seen the magnitude multitude measure strength age growth d 〈…〉 ity impâ—dence and the good God grant we may see the period How the Lord hath paid them in their own coyn you have many witnesses They would have war they have it the sword must decide the controveâ—sie let God Angels and men give the verdict and let it be carried down to after-ages that God plenteously rewardeth the proud doer or that a Parliament and faithfull Councel to a State may live in the midst of the fury of an implacable Prince and his â—aâ—e wigs Adde this that you have been eare and eye witnesses of the prâ—ud mens disappointments after all their labour and travels their inventions have been many for mischief which have been cherified by affection formed by consultations and Junctoâ— and made ready for birth by many resolutions which have held as high as Brainford what inland and forreign conceptions of this kind have we met with Plot upon Plot designe upon designe Speak London hath it not been so Let us now remember the time of travelling could not be prevented Petition sent after Petition Declaration after Declaration nothing must prevaile but the acceptance of such a remedy as would prove worse then the disease And then before the birth what throwes and pai 〈…〉 Send to Denmark run to Holland fly to France Curse Digby imprison Hamilton c. and then all help is called in for midwifery intreat friends here and there pawn jewels break and close with Irish even in a breath any thing for help hazard posterity ingagein marriage and as she did roare out Give me a childe or Iâ—dle and that miscarriage we are this day to prayse God for and wonder at The summe totall of all these endeavours of the proud comes to nothing but vanity and emptinesse all these conclusions vanish into a liâ— the Parliament is not destroyed the City stands the Gospel is preached we do not yet heare the scretches of defloured damosels nor the cries of abused matrons we hear not the ratling of their arms nor the neighing of their horses in our streets Oh my Lords you are not at Oxford led up and down as Sampsâ—n to be looked at by children nor are you crying as poore Belifalius Date obolum Belisario date obolum Nor you Gentlemen of the other House crying at a prison grate to some mercifull man for a penny Nor you my Lord Major and your Brethren under a great ransome for your freedome Nor You that your Teachers are forced from you but you can yet look upon them And you my reverend Brethren who have been part of the divided spoile you feele that mercy that gives them a loud lie But to raise the ground-work of our praises
work you could not have amended your choise rebus sic stantibus Heraldry did not miscarrie that hath this word for your Chief in his Coat of Honour Fare Fac Say Doe I might adde your Cromwel with many others and know not how to forget our deare Pickering who had as much worth in him as such a parcell of clay could well contain and never left his work till he was called to his account But I forbear Men The LORD hath preserved the faithfull and plenteously rewarded the proud doer And now it will be seasonable to improve what we have said These things are your Honour let not your Duty seem a burden O love the Lord ye his Saints and ye that feel mercy And so I passe in the last place to the first words of my text which will be the reverse or the other side of our present businesse As if the Lord should say Thus and thus I have done for you You have seen the glance of my eye you have seen the smiles of my face what could you desire more that I have not done for you You did but knock and it was opened you sought and found askt and had Go every stage of your latter pilgrimage and tell me if you may not set up a pillar and write upon it Thus far God hath helped us Are not the faithfull preserved and the proud doer rewarded have any of you lost your labour in trusting me and my providence have you not the fulfilling of many prophecies and might you not draw forth more had you more faith Is there any Nobleman here but hath been honorable by me or can he repent of his owning my truth 〈…〉 ath his faithfulnesse proved a burden to him Speak Parliament City Ministery have I not done well by You And me thinks I heare you ecchoing again Lord what would'st thou have from thy servants And I hope you stand as Samuel Lord speak thy servant beares or as Saul after Paul Lord what wouldest thou I should do Yea as he said Da quod jubes jube quid vis David lets you know Gods minde O love the Lord ye his Saints And truly it is one of the hardest skils in the world to use mercy well I remember the old spirit of the Jewes I wish we had never felt it In sad houres they would ever be making great promises and in prosperity they would soon make new gods Beloved I beseech you consider this short duty Love the Lord I will but use a few arguments and then open your duty in the duty and end all 1. I pray consider good Christians how the Lord hath loved you you could never hate him so much as he hath loved you He loved you enemies traitours He loved you unkind to him and cruell to your own soules nay so as he is willing to take the Devils leavingâ— when sin and satan had taken the use of your best strength and time yet he loves wooes and waits yea when you have been proud and scornfull when he had besieged and beleaguered you with love and were loth to hang out the white flag he offers propositions still O love the Lord 2. See if any God be like unto him of all the gods and can doe such wonders at he hath done You remember what Saul said to Davids men in his case If the son of Jesse can give you orchards and vineyards as I can do then follow him If all the Gods of the world can do for you what he hath done can pardon sinne by giving his Son can heale your soules and save them after all Follow them Joshua struck home in that last speech of his I have delivered the Ammonites Hitâ—ites c. into your hand I have sent a hornes before you which drave them out before you even the two Kings of the Ammoni 〈…〉 s c. I have given you a hand for which you did not lab 〈…〉 〈◊〉 Now therefore feare the Lord and serve him in sincerity and truth and put away the Gods your fathers served on the other side the flood and serve ye the Lord And if it seem evill to serve the Lord then chuse whether you will serve the gods on the other side the flood or the Gods of the Ammonites but as for me and my house I will serve the Lord Apply it to your selves and give me leave again to say therefore O love the Lord ye that feel mercy 3. You may be assured without love neither what you are nor what you do shall please him nay this whole dayes work will prove but a mockage Love will carry all home to heaven and gain acceptance Heare what Christ sayes Thou hast ravished me my sister my spouse with one of thy eyes and that was the eye of love I have many times thought of that of the Apostle giving so much to love even putting all upon love Yea though I gave my body to be burnt and had not love c. yea preferring it in some cases to faith truly it is worth your noting the summe of all is Nothing will passe without Love it is your ticket to passe into Heaven by They cry Wepreacht in thy name But wher 's your Passe did you do it in love to me We cast out Divels but was it in love c. Ah my beloved and honoured in the Lord we have prayed wept fasted feasted fought counselled c. but were all these in love to the Lord Jesus I am bold to say to my learned brethren that they shall find it the distinguishing character in their soule-trade I have seen this yeare some of the Enemy before a Councel of war and some of our own Officers upon some offence I have known both pardoned but here lies the difference the enemy pardoned is gone his pardon was all he lookt for but the other mourning what will this pardon do me good if I should leave this Army from which I know not how to live cheerfully It matters not for my lands saies poor Mephibosheth but I shall live in Davids presence and see his face Love makes way to the bosome of Christ incontinently and layes the soule in a bed of roses It is in all the world like Benjamin to Joseph if you bring Benjamin come and welcome I else look upon you but as Spies If this day all your graces were met to make a glorious flame that might reach heaven you shall find Love must doe two things it must put beauty upon all and perfume all Therefore O love the Lord ye his Saints 4. Let this prevaile that mountains of gold and silver are not desired nor fat bullocks and rams but only an affection Love the Lord If he had desired some greater thing of you as Naamans servants said would you not have done it Indeed you cannot bestow it better nor is there any object you call good can so justly claim it bestow this where you will else you shall find the