third rule is that wee must carry in minde the right and proper end of Physicke lest we deceiue our selues We must not therefore thinke that Physicke serueth to preuent old age or death it selfe for that is impossible neither doe we eate drinke and sleepe that we may neuer die but that we may prolong our lâ—fe for a few dayes and to spend those dayes in the seruice of God preparing our selues to die For life câ—nsists in a certaine temperature and proportion of naturall heate and radicall moisture which moisture being once consumed by the heate is not by all arte reparable and therefore Death must needs follow But the true end of physicke is to continue and lengthen our life to his full natural period which is when nature which hath beene long preserued by aâ—l possible meanes is now wholly spent Now this period though it cannot be lengthened by any art of man yet may it easily be shortened by intemperance in dyet by gluttony by drunkennesse by violent diseases and such like But care must be had to auoide all these euils and the like that the little lampe of corporall life may burne till it goe out of it selfe by Gods appoyntment and vntill God hath fulfilled the number of our dayes Exod. 23.26 And this very space of time is the day of grace and saluation And whereas God in his iustice might haue cut vs off and vtterly destroyed vs long before this day yet in his great mercie he doth giue vs thus much time that we might prepare our selues for our end Which time when it is once spent which may be neerer then we are aware if a man would redeeme it with the price of ten thousand worlds Mat. 16.26 it caÌ„not be obtained For what is a man profited saith our Sauiour if he shall gaine the whole world and lose his soule And hauing thus seene what bee the duties of the sicke man to himselfe now let vs see what be the duties which he oweth to his neighbour And they are two First the dutie of reconciliation whereby hee is freely to forgiue all men and to desire to bee forgiuen by all In the old Testament when a man was to offer a Bullocke or a Lambe in sacrifice to God Matth. 5.23.24 He must leaue his offering at the Altar and first goe and be reconciled to his brother if he had ought against him and then come and offer his gift much more then must this bee done when wee are dying to offer vp our selues soules and bodies as an acceptable and reasonable seruice and sacrifice to God in forgiuing of all men And if the partie bee absent or will not bee reconciled yet the sicke partie by forgiuing hath discharged his owne conscience and God will accept his will for the deede in such a case For if yee forgiue men their trespasses saith our Sauiour your heauenly Father will also forgiue you Matth. 6.14.15 but if yee forgiue not men their trespasses neither will your Father forgiue you The second dutie is that those which are Rulers and Gouernours of others must haue great care that they which be committed to their charge and gouernment may be left in good estate after their death wherein are three duties to be handled the first of the Magistrate the second of the Minister of the Gospell and the third of the Master or Gouernour of the family The Magistrates dutie before his death is to prouide as farre forth as he can for the godly and peaceable state and gouernment of all such as are vnder his charge and gouernment and that is done partly by procuring the maintenance of pietie godlinesse and sound religion and partly by establishing of good and wholesome lawes for their safetie peace and quietnesse Whereof there are examples of the practise of these duties in Gods word Deut. 31.1 When Moses was an hundred and twentie yeeres old and was not longer able to goe in and out before the people he called them before him and signified that the time of his departure was at hand and therefore he tooke order for their welfare after his death And first of all hee placed Iosua ouer them in his stead to be their guide to the promised Land Secondly he gaue speciall charge to all the people to be valiant and couragious against all their enemies and to obey the Commandements of their God And Ioshua followes the same course Ioshua 24.1 for he called the people together and telles them that the time of his death is at hand and giues them a charge to bee couragious and to worshippe the true God which being done he ends his dayes as a worthy Captaine of the Lord. And so when King Dauid was to go the way of all flesh 2. King 1.1 and lay sicke on his death-bed he placed his owne sonne Salomon vpon his throne and gaue him charge both for the maintenance of true religion and for the execution of ciuill iustice Touching the dutie of Ministers of the Gospell when they are going out of the world they must cast about and prouide as much as in them lies that the Church of God ouer which God hath made them ouerseers may flourish after they are gone An example whereof we haue in Saint Paul Take heede therefore saith he vnto your selues Acts 20.28.29.30.31 and to all the flocke ouer which the holy Ghost hath made you ouerseers to feed the Church of God which hee hath purchased with his owne bloud For I know this that after my departure shall grieuous wolues enter in amongst you not sparing the flocke Also of your owne selues shall men arise speaking peruerse things to draw away disciples after them Therefore watch and remember that by the space of three yeeres I ceased not to warne euery one night and day with teares If this dutie had been well obserued and performed there could not haue beene such abundance of errors and heresies in the Church of God as hath beene and are at this day But because men haue had more care to maintaine personall succession then the right succession which stands and consists in the wholesome word and doctrine of the Prophets and Apostles therefore Wolues and vnprofitable teachers haue come into the places and roomes of faithfull and painfull Pastors and teachers not sparing the flocke of Christ but haue made hauocke of the same the Apostacie whereof hath ouerspread the face of the Church Thirdly housholders and masters of families must haue great care to set their houshold and family in good order before they die Which dutie the Lord himselfe by his Prophet Esay doth command that good King Ezechiah to performe Isa 38.1 Thus saith the Lord set thy house in order for thou shalt die and not liue And for the procuring good order in the family after death two things are to be done The first concerning this life and that is touching the ordering and disposing of lands and goods And that
will be vnfitting by reason of the paine and of other lets and hinderances at that time It must not be put off to bee done when we will for it is not in the power of man to doe this duetie at his pleasure but when God will Ier. 10.23 O Lord saith the Prophet I know that the way of man is not in himselfe it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps And againe this late preparation which consisteth chiefly in repentance is seldome or neuer true It is sicke like the partie himselfe commonly languishing and dying together with vs. This preparation should bee voluntary as all obedience to God ought to bee but preparation taken vp in sicknesse is vsually constrained and extorted by the feare of hell and other iudgements of God For in true and sound preparation wherein chiefely wee must repent men must forsake all their sinnes but in this the sin forsakes the man who leaues all his euill wayes only vpon this that he is constrained whether he will or no to leaue the world Therefore ponder with thy selfe what then thou wouldest that thou hadest done when being neere vnto death thou hast no more time to liue and the same thing which thou wouldest wish thou hadest done when thou art at the point of death the same thing without delay doe while thou art in health that thou maist be ready euery houre to imbrace the message of Death as Seneca perswades Mors vbique nos expectat tu si sapiens eris vbique eam expectabis so it shall neuer take thee at any aduantage To this end remember Augustus his admonition be afraid to liue in such an estate as thou art afraid to dy in And pray vnto God that by his grace these things may penetrate into the bottom of thy heart and bee there so fixed that they may neuer bee quenched and that from this time forward thou maist make such vse of the preaching and hearing of his holy word of the comfortable sacraments of his Church and all other the good meanes of thy saluation that thou maist begin to walke now with a better conscience before him that in the peace of a quiet conscience after this preparation thou maist thereby arriue at the heauen of eternall glory and happines and say with the blessed Apostle Act. 24.16 Herein doe I exercise my selfe to haue alwaies a good conscience void of offence toward God and toward men Thus then this poynt being manifest that a generall preparation must be made let vs now see in what manner it must be done And for the right doing of it fiue duties must be practised in the whole course of our liues The first is the meditation on Death for the life of a Christian is nothing else as was noted at large in the second diuisiâ—n but a meditation on Death A notable practise whereof we haue in the example of Ioseph of Arimathia Mat. 27.60 who made his tombe in his life time in the midst of his garden to this end no doubt to put himselfe in minde daily of his death and that in the midst of his delights and pleasant walkes hee might be the better prepared for Death And in this respect a decent funerall is a dutie to be performed and a debt to be paâ—d to the bodies of all Christians who are the temples of the holy ghost and members of the body of Christ 1. Cor. 6.19 Eph. 5.30 and therefore are to be laid with honor into their graues as into howses of safe custody and beds of rest to remaine there in peace vntill the resurrection to the end that thereby all others might be admonished to meditate hereon to prepare themselues for their end Gen. 23. Gen. 25 9. Gen. 50. And therefore did not onely the fathers in the old testament but the faithfull also in the new performe funerals for their friends departed this life So Abraham performes a funeraâ—l for Sarah Isaac and Ismael for Abraham Ioseph Num. 20.29 Deut. 34.8 the Israelites and the Egiptians a most sumptuous one for Iacob and all Israel at two times kept a solemne mourning thirtie dayes together for Aaron and Moses In the new testament Iohn the Baptist is buried and intombed of his disciples Mat. 14.12 Mark 15.43 Our Sauiour Christ by two great Counsellers And Stephen is carried out to be buried by men fearing God who made great lamentation for him And likewise all the rest of the Patriarches and holy men of God This honor is to be giuen vnto the dead which from the Church was deriued vnto the very gentiles with whom to violate the sepulchers of the dead was euer accounted an hainous offence and the place of buriall sacred But God threatneth it is a iudgment to the wicked that they shall not be buried and lamented and denounceth it twice as a great curse against Iehoiakin the sonne of Iosiah that hee shall bee buried as an Asse is buried Ier. 16.4.6 Ier 22 18.19 Ier. 36.30 and that his dead body shall be cast out with contempt without any pompe or decencie of buriall It appeares also in Ezechiel that it was a custome in old time to enterre valiant men in their armes Ezech. 32.27 to put them into their graues with weapons of warre and to bury them with their swords vnder their heads which thing God seemes there to threaten that his enemies shall not haue giuing vs thereby to vnderstand that the hauing of such funerall pome and ceremonies is an honor a worldly blessing and a gift of God of which he depriues his enemies and therefore threatens in the next verse that they shall ly by them that are slaine wiâ—h the sword that is shall not be honorably enterred like Conquerors but basely buried amongst the conquered And although the wicked doe come to this honor of sumptuous funerals and to be laid in costly and painted tombes and sepulchers as it often falleth out yet it may be said of such a one that he which was not long since clad in silke purple and gold and shined with diamonds is now assaulted with troupes of wormes and breathes forth intollerable sents while that his heire liueth pleasantly in ryot and excesse possessing the fruite of his labours which hee himselfe neuer or a small time enioyed And herein his very dust and corruption doth appeare and his ambition and pride doth rest it selfe within this tombe for then behold stately Sepulchers engrauen stones that report some famous actions and proud titles vpon his tombe set out with false narrations to the end that passengers may say here lyeth a goodly stone but a corrupted bodie But the vse that wee must make of all burialls and funerals for whomsoeuer they be is to admonish and put vs in minde that we must make preparation for our owne end and for the felicitie happines of the life to come Which kinde of preparation is of especiall vse and brings forth many
not in the fadom of mans head to tell or heart to know how neere or farre off the day is onely God knoweth and Christ as God in what yeare month day and moment this frame shall goe downe In an age long since the day was neere now the houre is neere but curiositie is to be auoided in a coÌ„cealed matter in this forbidden tree of knowledge For secret things saith Moses Deut. 29.29 belong vnto the Lord our God Many men beate their heades about friuolous matters some saith Chrysostome being more busie to know where hell is then to auoide the paines of it others pleasing themselues in pelting and needlesse questions as this is to seeme singular amongst men neglecting in the meane time this dutie of their preparation for their end and such necessary things But when they come to their departing they shall finde that they haue beaten their braines about fruitlesse matters and wearied themselues in vaine It is sufficient for vs therefore to know that such a day will come and it shall bee wisdome in vs alwaies to bee readie for it that it come not vpon vs as the snare vpon the bird vnlooked for Therefore our Sauiour Christ saith Luk. 12.34.35 take heede to your selues lest at any time your hearts be ouercharged with surfetting and drunkennes and cares of this life and so that day come vpon you vnawares for as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the earth Thirdly if wee knew the day houre or certaine time of our death wee would put off all tiâ—l the comming of that day and it would giue vs too great boldnes and incouragement to wallow in all manner of sinne till that time or houre came The whorish woman because shee knew the iust time when her husband would returne who went into a farre Countrey did the more liberally power out her soule to sinne and wantonnesse Pro. 7.19.20 For the good man saith shee is not at home hee is gone along iourney hee hath taken a bagge of money with him and will come home at the day appoynted Fourthly and lastly It is therefore vnknowne to vs when wee shall dye to the end that all the dayes of our appoynted time wee may waite for this day and all our time looke for this last time and prepare our selues for it Argus as is fained had his head inuironed with an hundred watching eies signifiing thus much vnto vs that he was euery way indued with great wisedome prouidence and singular discretion Therefore if a pagan and Heathen man so excelled in wisedome and prouidence how much rather ought a Christian man to be well furnished with wisedome circumspection for his latter end Be thou therfore an other Argus nay more wary then he more wise and prouident then he more watchfull circumspect then hee that thou mayst learne to know to vnderstand and finally to prouide for thy last end Gregory vpon the watches mentioned by our Sauiour Christ in the Gospell of Marke in these words Mark 13.35.36.37 Watch yee therefore for yee know not when the Master of the house commeth at euen or at midnight or at the cock-crowing or in the morning lest comming suddenly he finde you sleeping and what I say vnto you I say vnto all watch he saith that there be foure watches in a mans whole life wherein it behoueth him to be vigilant and carefull and as a wakefull and warie watchman to keepe his watch and so prepare himselfe for his end The first is childhood the second youth the third manhood the fourth old age In all which ages he must prepare himselfe for death but he which remissâ—ly passeth ouer his childhood without this preparation and watchfulnesse let him be more carefull of his watch in his youth and pray as it is in Ieremie Ier. 3.4 My father be thou the guide of my youth If he hath passed his youth dissolutely let him be more carefull of his watch in his manhood And if hee hath passed ouer his manhood carelessely let him in any case looke to his last watch of his old age Nay if we prepare not for death before we come to this last watch of old age to which verie few doe attaine it is so fraile weake and feeble and decayed by the custome of sinne that it is an age not so fit for this preparation and watchfulnesse For at such an age men for the most part are like to the Idols of the Heathen Psal 115.4.5.6.7 which haue mouthes but speake not eyes but see not eares but heare not c. Therefore put not off this preparation and watchfulnesse to thy old age which is thy dotage but be thou watchfull and prepared in thy childhood youth manhood Eccl. 12.1 Remember now thy Creator saith the Preacher in the daies of thy youth while the euill dayes come not nor the yeares draw nigh when thou shalt say I haue no pleasure in them Wherfore not without cause our Sauiour Christ crieth so often in the Gospell Matth. 24.42 Mar. 13.32.33 Take yee heed watch and pray because yee know not the day nor the houre nor when the time is the which is as much as if he had more plainely said because yee know not that yeere watch every yeere because yee know not that moneth watch euery moneth because yee know not that day watch euery day and because yee know not that houre watch euery houre That is to say watch continually yeares moneths dayes houres yea all your life if you haue a care of euerlasting life And let your loynes saith our Sauiour Christ be girded about and your lights burning Luke 12 35.36.37.38 and yee your selues like vnto men that waite for their Lord when he will returne from the wedding that when he commeth and knocketh they may open to him immediately Blessed are those seruants whom the Lord when he commeth shall finde watching Verily I say vnto you that hee shall girde himselfe and make them to sit downe to meate and will come forth and serue them And if he shall come in the second watch or in the third and finde them so blessed are those seruants Prou. 19.20 Therefore heare my counsell and receiue instruction that thou mayest be wise in thy latter end The end of the third Diuision THE FOVRTH DIVISION OF THE RIGHT BEHAVIOVR IN DEATH THis behauiour is nothing else but a religious and holy behauiour especially toward God when we are in or neere the agonie and pangs of death Which behauiour containes foure especiall duties The first is to die in or by faith And to die by faith is when a man in the time of death doth with all his heart wholly rely himselfe on Gods especiall loue fauour mercie in Christ as it is reuealed in his holy word And though there be no part of mans life void of iust occasions whereby he may put faith in practise yet the speciall time