Peace on earth Good will towards men For the conjunction 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is not to bee taken here for a copulative but as Vau is frequently in the Hebrew for a conjunction causall or for 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Glory to God in the highest for that there is Peace on earth Good-will towards men Or if we retain the copulative sense yet we must understand the words following as spoken by way of gratulation Glory be to God on high and welcome peace on earth good-will towards men Or both causally and gratulatorily thus Glory be to God in the highest for ô factum bene there is peace on earth and good-will towards men To begin with the first the Doxology or praise Glory be to God in the Highest that is Let the Angels glorifie him who dwels on high for 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is to be referred to Glory and not to God the sense being glorified be God by those on high and not God who dwels on high be glorified This may appear by the like expression in the 148. Psalm whence this Glorification seems to be borrowed Praise ye the Lord from the heavens praise him 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 â—ratâ—e ye him all his Angels praise ye him all his Host. Therefore Iunius for Praise ye the Lord from the Heavens hath Laudate cum coelites The Chaldee for Laudate eum in excelsis Laudate eum Angeli excelsi In like manner here Gloria in excelsis â—eo are the words of the Angelicall Quire inciting themselves and all the Host to give glory and praise unto God for these wonderfull tidings Now therefore let us see what this Glory is and how it is given to God To tell you every signification of the word Glory in Scripture might perhaps distract the hearer but would inform him little Nor will it be to purpose to reckon up every signification it hath when it is spoken of God I will therefore name only the two principall ones And first Glory when it is referred to God often signifies the Divine Presence or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as in this Chapter a little before my Text when it is said The Glory of the Lord shone round about the Shepheards and they were sore afraid But this is not the signification in my Text but another which I shall now tell you For Glory besides signifies in Scripture the high and glorious Supereminency or Majesty of God which consisteth in his threefold Supremacy of Power of Wisdome and of Goodnesse And as words of eminency and dignity with us as Majesty Highnesse Honour Worship are used for the persons themselves to whom such Dignity belongeth as when we say His Majesty his Highnesse his Honour his Worship so in the Scripture and among the Hebrews His Glory or the Glory of the Lord is used to note the Divine Essence or Deity it self As in 2 Pet. 1. 17. There came a voice saith S. Peter from the excellent Glory that is from God the Father This is my welbeloved Son in whom I am well pleased Rom. 1. The Gentiles are said to have changed the glory of the incorruptible God into the likenesse of things corruptible As it is said in the 106. Psal. ver 20. of the Israelites in the Wildernesse That they changed their Glory into the similitude of an Oxe that eateth grasse S. Iohn cap. 1. 14. of his Gospel says of the Son We beheld his glory the glory as of the only begotten Son of God According to which sense he is called Heb. 1. The brightnesse of his Fathers glory and the expresse Image of his person where the latter words are an exposition of the former Image expounding brightnesse and person or substance expounding glory If Glory therefore signifie the Divine Majesty or Greatnesse to glorifie or give glory unto God is nothing else but to acknowledge this Majesty or greatnesse of His namely his supereminent Power his Wisdom and Goodnesse for in the peerlesse supereminency of these three under which all his other Attributes are comprehended his glorious Majesty consisteth Take this withall That all the religious service and worship we give unto God whether we praise him pray or give thanks unto him is nothing else but the acknowledging of this glory either in deed or word namely by confessing it or doing some act whereby we acknowledge it To come to particulars By our Faith we confesse his Wisdome and Truth by our thanksgiving his Goodnesse and Mercy when we pray we acknowledge his Power and Dominion and therefore the form of prayer our Saviour taught us concludes For thine is the kingdome power and glory In praise we confesse all these or any of them according to that in the Hymne of the Church Te Deum laudamus Te Dominum confitemur We praise thee O God we acknowledge thee to be the Lord. All which is evident by those forms of glorification set down in the Apocalypse which are nothing else but expresse and particular acknowledgements of the greatnesse or Majesty of God and his peerlesse prerogatives When the four Wights are said to have given glory honour and thanks to him that sate upon the Throne what was their Ditty but this Thou art worthy ô Lord to receive glory and honour and power for thou hast created all things and for thy pleasure they are and were created When the Lamb opened the book with 7. Seals the Wights the Elders and every creature in heaven in earth and under the earth sung Worthy is the Lamb to receive power and riches and strength and honour and blessing And again Blessing honour glory and power be unto him that sitteth upon the throne and unto the Lamb for ever and ever In which we may observe the whole glorification to consist in the acknowledgement of these three soveraign prerogatives of the Divine Majesty his Power his Wisdome his Goodnesse The two first Power and Wisdom are expresse and Riches and Strength belong to Power The third is contained in 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Blessing or thanksgiving which is nothing else but the confession of the Divine goodnesse Hence it is that the Septuagint and Vulgar Latine commonly render the words 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifie to praise and glorifie 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 confiteor Confitemini Domino quoniam bonus quoniam in saeculum misericordia ejus Psal. 106. 107. 136. Confitebor tibi Domino in toto corde meo quoniam audisti verba oris mei Psal. 138. Confitemini Domino invocate nomen ejus Psal. 105. and the like And in the 148. Psal. Confessio ejus super coelum terram that is His glory is above the heaven and the earth The Holy Ghost in the New Testament useth the same language Luc. 11. 25. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes where we have I thank thee ô Father Beza and Erasmus read
Gloriam tibi tribuo which I think is the better So also in this Chapter Luke 2. 38. it is said of Anna 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Deo laudes gratiasque agebat So Heb. 13. 15. By him therefore that is by Christ let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually that is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the fruit of our lips confessing to his Name By all which it is evident that to praise and give glory unto God whether by praise at large or prayer and thanksgiving in speciall is nothing else as I have said but to confesse and acknowledge his peerlesse Majesty over all and in all which the Scripture cals his glory And if ever there were a work of God wherein all these peerlesse Prerogatives of Power Wisdome and Goodnesse all together appeared in the highest degree it was undoubtedly in this wonderfull work of the Incarnation of the Son of God for mans redemption well therefore might the heavenly Host sing Gloria in excelsis Deo The Power the Wisdom and Goodnesse of the glorious God be acknowledged by the holy Angels and all the Host of heaven for ever and ever This is the meaning of the Doxology Come we now to the gratulation which contains the cause thereof glory be to God on high for ô factum benè ô happy news there is peace on earth good-will towards men One and the same thing two ways expressed for it is an Apposition or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the latter words declaring the meaning of the former Peace on earth that is good-will towards men 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ' Ev for 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to wit in imitation of the Hebrew construction where 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 verbs which signifie 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the nown signifying 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 are construed with 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in Greek and accordingly both the Septuagint and New Testament expresse the same But the Vulgar Interpreter reads here Pax in terris hominibus bonae voluntatis as if the Greek were 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and not 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as now all our Copies constantly read and I beleeve ever did yet Beza seems here to favour the Vulgar Latine expounding Homines bonae voluntatis of those whom God wils well to to wit of the Elect to whom this Peace by Christ belongeth and from the conveniency of this sense inclines to beleeve that the Greek anciently read so quoting to this end Irenaeus Origen and Chrysostome as he saith in divers places But he trusted too much the Latine Translation of Chrysostome for the Greek Chrysostome hath no such matter but both in those places Beza points to and in divers others reads constantly 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as our Copies doe And so I make no question Irenaeus and Origen did too in the Greek Originals if we had them to look into But the Latine Translators thought not fit to alter the words of the Hymne so ordinarily sung in the Liturgy and so expressed it in Latine as the Latine Church used And for the meaning I beleeve the Vulgar Latine aim'd at no other sense then what the Greek implies namely that this Peace was no earthly peace but the peace of Gods good-will to man referring the Genitive Case voluntatis not to hominibus but to pax Pax in terris what pax Pax bonae voluntatis hominibus That which makes me think so is because Origen and his Translator in the place Beza quotes for this reading expresly expounds it so And so there will not be a pin to choose save that the Greek expresseth this sense by way of Apposition more naturally the Latine by way of Rection somwhat harshly and yet perhaps the Translatour thought lesse ambiguously Well then this peace on earth is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Gods good-will or favour to men and Gods 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is the peace on earth the Angels gratulate namely the reconciliation of God to men in Christ For by reason of Sin heaven and earth God and man were till now at enmity but by Christ this enmity is taken away and man by the forgivenesse of his sin restored unto peace and favour with God And as by this Nativity God and man became one Person so by this conjunction Heaven and earth Angels and men become one Fellowship one City and Kingdome of God the Kingdome of Satan that Prince of the powers of the Aire who by reason of sin had captivated and brought under his service the whole Earth and thereby held the same at open war and enmity with Heaven being now by degrees to be destroyed and rooted out And this is that admirable mystery of our Redemption by Christ which the Angelicall Host here gratulates by the name of Peace on earth and good-will towards men And that we may not doubt but we have hit the meaning that this peace on earth is Gods good-will to men and therefore expounded by it besides that in the Old Testament peace is often taken for Gods favour and mercy to men as in that of Isay 54. 10. The mountains shall depart and the hils be removed but my kindnesse shall not depart from thee neither shall the Covenant of my peace be removed saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee So if we examine the Use thereof in the New Testament we shall finde it in speciall applied to this our Reconciliation to God in Christ by remission of sin S. Peter to Cornelius Act. 10. describes the Gospel thus The word which God sent to the children of Israel preaching peace by Iesus Christ. And S. Paul Col. 1. It pleased God the Father that in Christ all fulnesse should dwell And having made peace through the bloud of his Crosse by him to reconcile all things unto himself What can be plainer then this The same as I take it he means Eph. 2. when he tels us That Christ came to preach peace both to those that were afarre off and to them that were nigh that is both to Jew and Gentile But what peace namely that through him we both might have accesse by one Spirit unto the Father Hence the Gospel is called the Gospel of peace and God so often in the New Testament the God of peace that is of reconcilement and favour and the Euangelicall salutation is Grace mercy and peace from God our Father and Iesus Christ our Lord. The meaning of this Angelicall gratulation being thus cleared let us see now what may be learned and observed therefrom Where my first Observation shall be this S. Peter tels Cornelius That to Christ give all the Prophets witnesse that through his name whosoever beleeveth in him shall receive remission of sins Our Saviour after his Resurrection expounding the Scriptures to his Apostles sayes the same Luke 24. 47. Thus it is written saith he and thus it behoved Christ to suffer
and to the Widow according to all the Commandements which thou hast commanded me Look down from thy holy habitation from heaven and blesse thy people Israel and the land which thou hast given us as thou swarest to our Fathers a land that floweth with milk and honey What we have seen in these two sorts is to be supposed to be the end of all other Offerings in pios usus which were not sacrifices namely to acknowledge God to be the Lord and giver of all As we see in that royall Offering which David with the Princes and Chieftains of Israel made for the building of the Temple 1 Chron. 29. where David acknowledgeth thus Thine ô Lord is the Kingdom and thou art exalted as Head over all Both riches and honour come of thee and thou reignest over all and in thine hand is power and might and in thine hand it is to make great and to give strength unto all Now therefore our God we thank thee and praise thy glorious Name For all things come of thee and of thine hand have we given thee For this reason there was never time since God first gave the Earth to the sons of men wherein this acknowledgement was not made by setting apart of something of that he had given them to that purpose In the state of Paradise among all the trees in the garden which God gave man freely to enjoy one tree was Noli me tangere and reserved to God as holy in token that he was Lord of the garden So that the first sin of Mankinde for the species of the fact was Sacriledge in profaning that which was holy For which he was cast out of Paradise and the Earth cursed for his sake because he had violated the signe of his fealty unto the great Landlord of the whole earth Might I not say that many a man unto this day is cast out of his Paradise and the labours of his hands cursed for the same sin But to go on After mans ejection out of Paradise the first service that ever we read was performed unto God was of this kinde Abel bringing the best of his flock and Cain of the fruit of his ground for an Offering or Present unto the Lord. The first spoils that ever we read gotten from an Enemy in war paid tithes to Melchisedek the Priest of the most high God as an acknowledgement that he had given Abraham the Victory Melchisedek blessing God in his name to be the possessor of heaven and earth and to have delivered his enemies into his hand To which Abraham said Amen by paying him Tithes of all Iacob promiseth God that if he would give him any thing for at that time he had nothing he would give him the tenth of what he should give him Which is as much to say as he would acknowledge and professe him to be the giver after the accustomed manner For the time of the Law I may skip over that it is well enough known no man will deny it But let us come to the time of the Gospel which though it hath freed us from the bondage of typicall Elements yet hath it not freed us from the possession of our Fealty unto God as Lord of the whole earth 'T were strange me thinks to affirm it I am sure the ancient Church next the Apostles thought otherwise I will quote for a witnesse Irenaeus who Lib. 4. cap. 32. tels us that our Saviour when he took part of the Viands of his last Supper and giving thanks with them consecrated them into a Sacrament of his body and blood set his Church an example of dedicating part of the creature in Dominicos usus Dominus saith he dans discipulis suis consilium primitias Deo offerre ex suis creaturis non quasi indigenti sed ut ipsi nec infructuosi nec ingrati sint eum qui ex creatura panis est accepit gratias egit c. Et novi Testamenti novam docuit oblationem quam Ecclesia ab Apostolis accipiens in universo mundo offert Deo ei qui alimenta nobis praestat primitias suorum munerum in novo Testamento But this is no proper occasion to follow this argument any further I will therefore leave it and adde a second reason why God requires Alms and such like offerings at our hands Namely that we might not forget God our blessed Saviour Mat. 6. and Luk. 12. 33 c. speaking of this very matter of alms Lay not up saith he for your selves treasures upon earth but â—ay up for your selves treasures in heaven For where your treasure is there will your heart be The proper evill of abundance is to forget God and our dependence upon him the remedy whereof most genuine and naturall is to pay him a rent of what we have So shall we always think of our Landlord and lift up our hearts to heaven in whatsoever we receive and enjoy Yea when this service is so acceptable to God that he promiseth a great reward to those who thus honour and acknowledge him how can it choose but detain our hearts in heaven in that respect also when we shall so often think of God not onely as the Lord and giver of what we have but as the rewarder also of the acknowledgement we perform PSAL. 112. 6. The Righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance A Word fitly spoken saith Solomon is like Apples of Gold in pictures of Silver that is gracefull and comely so is a Text of Scripture fitly chosen and rightly applied to the occasion Such an one as I take it is this I have now read not chosen by me but appointed by order to be used at these times of commemoration I shall need no other preface to commend it to your attention Let us therefore see what is the sense and meaning thereof The Righteous that is the bountifull shall be in everlasting remembrance In remembrance with God in remembrance with men with God in the world to come and in this world with men how and in what manner These are the severall heads I shall treat of and first of the first the Subject The Righteous or the bountifull man Righteousnesse in a speciall sense in the Hebrew and the rest of the Orientall Tongues of kinde to it signifies Beneficence or Bounty both the Virtue and the work and therefore by the Hellenists or Septuagint is it translated 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the word so frequent in the New Testament for that we call Alms. 'T is a known place Dan. 4. according both to the Septuagint and vulgar Latine Peccata tua Eleemosynis redime iniquitates tuas misericordi is pauperum where in the Originall for Eleemosyna is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Iustitia as we in our English render it Break off thy sins by righteousnesse and thine iniquity by shewing mercy to the poor This notion of righteousnesse is to be found thrice together in the 12. of Tobit ver 8. Prayer saith old Tobit
passe upon him not out of ignorance of what was done for how should the omniscient God be ignorant but out of his wonderfull clemency and unspeakable moderation towards man I say towards man for to him alone he shews this favour for as for the Serpent we see he vouchsafes not to ask him one question nor to expect what he could say for himself but presently without examination proceeds to judgement against him Doth the great God the Almighty Creator of heaven and earth deal with so unspeakable a temper with his creature and is vile man a base earth-worm so austere unto his brother It was the heighth of Eves whole ambition to be like unto God but her off-springs ambition is to be most unlike unto him He glories in mercy and clemency we in rage and rash austerity He hears his creature speak before he condemns him we condemn our brother before we hear him speak Be wise and learned ye Judges of the earth let this great example of God be the pattern of your imitation yea let no private man condemne another rashly untill he hath heard what he may say for himself as God himself here vouchsafed to go before us The third circumstance is Gods condescent unto man in that he sends neither Angels nor Ministers to examine our first Parents and to make inquisition of their offence but he comes himself in person to take notice thereof When men are offended especially great men they will not deign to look upon or to admit into their presence those that have offended them How great therefore is this indulgence of Almighty God who deigns here his presence to our most wretched and most naked Parents who had so grievously sinned against him How happily graced would a poor offender think himself if he might be admitted to the presence of his Prince there to say what he could either for his defence or excuse or else to sue for mercy and move compassion By how much therefore God is greater then the greatest Monarch of the world even as much as they are greater then nothing so much is this indulgence of God here expressed in my Text to Eve as before to her husband surpassing all the favour and condescent of men who sent not for man but came himself unto him yea who vouchsafed then to seek them out when they ran away from him Now all this is spoken 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 after the fashion of men and therefore not so much to expresse what God himself did as what men ought to do Let it be a lesson therefore to those who are set over others not to be too hard of accesse to such as are obnoxious unto them If God himself vouchsafed so far unto his creature so wretched much more should man unto his brother The fourth circumstance is the manner of his speech to Eve in that he that was the Lord God should so mildly speak unto her What is this thou hast done The Lord God said it saith my Text but who would not think it rather the speech of a familiar and condoling friend then of so great a Judge so greatly offended here is no word of asperity but of lenity no menacing no upbraiding terms but only What is this thou hast done And should not we learn hence not to insult over such whose offences make them liable either to us or others should we upbraid rail triumph and vomit our impotency upon them certainly we seem not to remember what a gentle and commiserating Judge God is or that our selves are men and have to deal with humane frailty and mans miserable condition which we ought to behold with pity and not handle with bitternesse THE next thing is the inquisition it self What is this thou hast done Some reade Why hast thou done this expounding 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 But Eves answer following where she saith I have eaten plainly argues the question was what she had done and not why she had done it And therefore I take the words as our Translation hath them and understand this manner of asking by God to be a scheme of admiration and to imply an exaggeration of the womans sin as if he had said O what an horrible sin is this thou hast committed How grievously hast thou transgressed O what hast thou done And therefore God enquiring of her sin with exaggeration she makes answer with diminution Indeed she had offended because she had eaten but yet the offence was the lesse for the Serpent had deceived her This then being the meaning of the words let us behold in them the greatnesse of the sin of our first Parents which made the Lord God himself to say What is this thou hast done The greatnesse of this sin I will first consider as it concerns them both in generall and then as in particular The greatnesse of the sin in generall appears in these four considerations First it was a transgression of such a Law as was given only to prove man whether he would be under God or no For the morall Law which was written and engraven in the hearts of our first Parents and was for the doing of things simply good and abstaining from things simply evill such things as a good man would do were there no commandment and such things as he would not do were there no prohibition so that in these there was no triall whether man would obey God or no only because he commanded him and meerly for obedience sake And therefore had God ordained this Symbolicall Law prohibiting a thing in it self neither good nor evill neither pleasing nor displeasing unto God but indifferent that mans observance thereof might be a profession and testimony that he was willing to submit himself to Gods pleasure only because it was his pleasure And that it might yet the more appear God made not choice of such a thing as man cared not for but of a pleasant and desirable thing whereunto the more his inclination was carried the more by his abstaining might his willing subjection be approved The violating therefore of this Law was an open profession that he would not be under God and renouncing of him to be his Lord. And this is the first respect wherein appears the greatnesse of Adams sin The second consideration arguing the same is that he on whom God had bestowed so many glorious endowments whom he had as it were stuffed with so many excellent abilities and adomed with so many precious graces that he should sin against him and set so light by his commandment for of those to whom God had given so much he might justly require and expect much Therefore those whom God hath furnished with the best gifts either of knowledge or other abilities they if they sin sin most grievously so that in this respect the sin of Adam and Eve exceeded the sins of their posterity as much as their integrity did our corruption The greater the person the greater his
sin The sin of a Prince greater then the sin of a vulgar person and therefore in the Law there was a greater Sacrifice to be offered for the sins of the Prince and Priest then of the people The third circumstance aggravating his sin was the easinesse of the commandment and the easinesse man had to keep the same both in regard of himself whom no itching concupiscence urged as being altogether free therefrom and not as we his off-spring are continually vexed with the boiling thereof Secondly in regard of the thing it self he was to abstain from being onely one fruit in so great a liberty of all the garden besides How easily might he have abstain'd from one to whom God had given the use of all saving this one he wanted not to feed him he wanted no variety of food he had even enough to surfet on only to approve his obedience to Him who had given all the rest unto him he was to abstain from one and yet he would not Quanta fait saith S. Aug. iniquitas in peccando ubi tanta erat non peccandi facilitas The fourth circumstance aggravating this sin was the place which was Paradise as it were in Gods own presence even afore his face for as heaven above other parts of the world is the place of Gods speciall presence so was Paradise above other parts of the earth as it were an heaven upon earth the place wherein he singularly revealed himself and therefore an holy place and the Temple of God Do not men otherwise giving the loose rein to wickednesse yet abhorre to commit it in Gods Temple How impudently contumelious was this sin therefore which was committed in Gods very Presence-chamber All these aggravations are common to both our Parents which all laid together makes their sin as great as ever any was saving the sin against the holy Ghost for so the best Divines do think But Eve addes one aggravation more to her weight in that she was not content to sin her self alone but she allured and drew her husband also into the like horrible transgression with her whereby she was not only guilty of her own personall sin but of her husbands also And this added so much unto her former summe that S. Paul 1 Tim. 2. 14. speaks of her as if she had been the only transgressour Adam was not deceived but the woman being deceived was in the transgression So great and horrible a thing it is in the Eye of God to be cause or mover of anothers sin woe be unto them who by any means are the cause of anothers fall And justly might God say to Eve for this respect though there had been no more What is this that thou hast done Now I come to the womans excuse The Serpent beguiled me In which words are three things considerable The author the Serpent The action Guile The object Me. Concerning the author the Serpent two things are inquirable first what the Serpent was indeed secondly what Eve supposed him to be For the first I think none so unreasonable as to beleeve it was the unreasonable and brute Serpent for whence should he learn or how should he understand Gods commandment to our first Parents Or how is it possible a Serpent should speak and not only so but speak the language which Eve understood For though some there be who think that beasts and birds have some speech-like utterings of themselves yet none that a beast should speak the language of man It remains therefore that according unto the Scriptures it was that old deceiver the Devil and Satan who abused the brute Serpent either by entring into him or taking his shape upon him The last of which I rather incline unto supposing it as you shall hear presently to be the law of spirits when they have intercourse or commerce with men to take some visible shape upon them as the Devil here the Serpents whence he becomes styled in Scripture The old Serpent Now for the second question what Eve took him to be whether the Serpent or Satan If we say she thought him to be the brute Serpent how will this stand with the perfection of mans knowledge in his integrity to think a Serpent could speak like a reasonable creature who would not judge her a silly woman now that should think so and yet the wisest of us all is far short of Eve in regard of her knowledge then Again if we say she knew him to be the Devil I will not ask why she would converse at all with a wicked spirit who she knew had fallen from his Maker but I would know how we should construe the meaning of the Holy Ghost in the beginning of this Chapter where he saith The Serpent was the subtillest of all the beasts of the field which God had made and so implies the womans opinion of the Serpents wisdome was the occasion why she was so beguiled otherwise to what end are those words spoken unlesse to shew that Satan chose the Serpents shape that through the opinion and colour of his well-known wisdome and sagacity he might beguile the woman For the assoiling of which difficulty I offer these propositions following First I will suppose there is a law in the commerce of spirits and men that a spirit must present himself under the shape of some visible thing For as in naturall and bodily things there is no entercourse of action and passion unlesse the things have some proportion each to other and unlesse they communicate in some common matter so it seems God hath ordained a Law that invisible things should converse with things visible in a shape as they are visible which is so true that the conversing presence of a spirit is called a Vision or Apparition And experience with the Scriptures will shew us that not only evil Angels but good yea God himself converseth in this manner with men And all this I suppose Eve knew Secondly I suppose further that as spirits are to converse with men under some visible shape so is there a law given them that it must be under the shape of some such thing as may lesse or more resemble their condition For as in nature we see every severall thing hath a severall and sutable physiognomy or figure as a badge of the inward nature whereby it is known as by a habit of distinction so it seems to be in the shapes and apparitions of Spirits And as in a well governed Common-wealth every sort and condition of men is known by some differing habit agreeable to his quality so it seems it should be in Gods great Commonwealth concerning the shapes which spirits take upon them And he that gave the law that a man should not wear the habit of a woman nor a woman the habit of a man because as he had made them divers so would he have them so known by their habits so it seems he will not suffer a good and a bad spirit a noble and ignoble one
nothing else but an all-fruition of good or to have a sufficient provision and furniture of good both for being and well-being So therefore that creature is happy and blessed which hath a sufficiency of all good for the being and preservation of it self which wants neither endowments inward nor means outward for the attaining of that end whereof it is by nature capable To be accursed is to have the contrary of this to be despoiled either of indowments internall or inherent without which it hath no dignity among the creatures or externall without which it cannot live or preserve it self but with much penury difficulty toil and danger Whatsoever therefore among the beasts of the field for with such only is the comparison made is for inherent perfections of all the most unworthy and base or for the outward furniture of means for the preservation of that ignoble being by unprovision of all others the most wretched and miserable this is that which is accursed above all cattell and above every beast of the field And such was the Serpents condition to be for the generall And now for the particulars Let us go on and see how they are expressed and that is in three things First To go upon the brest or to have the posture of the body groveling on the earth whereby as I shall shew presently is implied the abasement of the creature Secondly to have for meat the dust of the earth wherein is shewn its unprovision of food for the maintenance of its life being of all beasts of the field to have the basest and coursest fare Thirdly to be in continuall mortall and irreconcilable enmity with man both his Lord and the Lord of the rest of the creatures from whom it should be in continuall danger and fear of its life and once espied be sure to have its brains dash'd out by him And which makes the misery so much the greater to be no way able to be revenged of his enemy other then to come unawares behind him and then neither not able to reach above his heel as being most unequally matched he walking aloft with his head and whole body advanced while the miserable Serpent shall lie groveling on the ground ready to be trodden apieces under his feet Of these three particulars let us speak severally and first of the first Vpon thy brest shalt thou go In the Hebrew it is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which some turn upon thy belly which interpretation hath been one great cause of the difficulty to understand the meaning of this malediction For if the shape of the Serpent were after the fashion it is now it is not possible to imagine how it could ever have gone otherwise then upon the belly for to think that ever it went an end were a conceit more worthy to be derided then to be beleeved By which means there appeared no other way of evasion out of this difficulty but to affirm that the Serpent indeed went upon his belly from the beginning but either it was not so toilsome to him or not for a curse unto him till now which for my part it being so far from the letter of the Text I could never yet beleeve I had much rather in this follow the Vulgar or Ieromes Translation which reads super pectus tuum gradiêris for upon the belly I beleeve the Serpent went from the first Creation but not upon the brest untill this present malediction The brest of the Serpent I call the upper part of the Serpents body from the navell to the head the other part of the other half downward with which though at the first he walked prone to and upon the earth yet was the other part his brest and head reared up and advanced untill for having been abused to the ruine of mankind he was now with his whole body to creep groveling upon the earth And perhaps thus much the Septuagint meant to insinuate by their Translation which is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 upon thy brest and thy belly where it may seem that they rendred two words for one in the Text for illustration and for intimation of this that whereas the Serpent before went only upon his belly 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 now he should from henceforth walk 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 upon his brest and belly too As for the Hebrew 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 here used there is no necessity at all to translate it the belly but rather some probability of the contrary in the etymology of the word for though in the Hebrew the theme be not used yet in the Chaldee 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifies incurvatus fuit to bow downward and seems to mean the inclination of the head and brest or upper part of the body to the earth as may be gathered from that of Eliah 1 King 18 42. where it is said that Eliah went up to the top of â—armel pronum se abjecit inâ—terram and put his face between his knees for here the Targum useth this word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the radix of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Again Mark 1. 7. in those words of Iohn Baptist There is one commeth after me the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to stoop down and unloose here for the Greek word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 stoop down the Syriack hath 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of as near a kin to 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as is the Syriack to the Chaldee The word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it self is of rare use in the Bible besides in this place and therefore we can receive no great help from the comparing of places It is read again Levit. 11. 42. and that with a singular mark as the Masorites have observed for the Vau cholem in the last syllable is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a great Vau and exactly the middlemost letter of all the Law of Moses if their Arithmetick failed them not But no particularity of signification can from that place be gathered the speech being of creeping things which go as well upon the brest as the belly and the belly as the brest Since therefore the word here used neither hindreth our opinion nor much furthereth it we will come to such other grounds as may prove our assertion for the Serpents going with brest advanced afore the fall of man and not groveling till his malediction And first let it be considered there is no impossibility of it in regard of the frame of the Serpent which appears both by their advancing themselves when they assault a man which the Painters expresse in their Pictures and also when they swim through the water which is with their head and some part of their brest raised above water even as a Swan holdeth up her neck as I have heard affirmed by such as have been eye-witnesses and lastly Plinie and Solinus report of the Basilisk that the Basilisk walks so still as I shewed a little before And it may be as when the Giant-like
darknesse in this world against spirituall wickednesse in high places Thus then having seen the marshalling of these two Armies which are at so deadly an enmity let us at last see the successe of their skirmishes and of the stratagems which they practise one against the other these are described on the Devils part very terrible that his head should be mauled But on Christs side the losse should be very small the Devil prevailing but to the wounding or bruising of his heel But what is this Head of the Serpent and what the Heel of the womans seed Those who understand the seed of the woman singularly of the person of Christ only make his head to be the Godhead against which the Serpent could prevail nothing but his heel to be the manhood which the Serpent so bruised at his Passion that the grave became his bed for three days together This indeed is true and no marvell for the head is as it were the whole bodies epitome But we who have expounded the seed of the woman collectively of Christ and his Members must also in this mysticall body find a mysticall head and a mysticall heel and so in like manner for the Serpent and his seed The Head therefore or if you had rather Headship is nothing else but Soveraignty The Serpents head is the Devils Soveraignty which is called â—rincipatus mortis the Soveraignty of death namely both objectivè and effectivè that is such a Soveraignty as under which are only such as are liable to death both temporall and eternall and such a Soveraignty whose power consists not in saving and giving of life but in destroying and bringeth unto death both of body and soul. Under the name also of death understand as the Scripture doth all other miseries of mankind which are the companions of this double death I speak of This is that damnable head of the Serpent the Devillish Soveraignty of Satan Now the Sword whereby this Soveraignty was obtained the Scepter whereby it is maintained or as S. Paul speaks the sting of this Serpents head is Sin This is that which got him this Kingdome at the first and this is still the right whereby he holds the greatest part thereof Imporium iisdem artibus conservatur quibus acquiritur This Soveraignty of the Devil which once overwhelmed nigh all the world the womans seed should break in pieces and destroy which according to this Prophecy we see already performed in a great measure and the grounds laid long ago for the destruction of all that remaineth As saith S. Iohn Ep. 1. c. 3. v. 8. The Son of God is revealed for this purpose that he might destroy the works of the Devil And Christ himself said that the time was come that the Prince of this world should be cast out and bade his Disciples be of good chear for he had overcome the world If you would see what a wonderfull victory he hath long ago gotten of the Serpent when after a terrible battell he overcame and destroid the Soveraignty of the Serpent in the Romane Empire see it described in the 12. of the Revelation where a Michael that is Christ and his Angels fought against the great Dragon and his Angels till the Dragon with all his Army was discomfited and their place found no more in heaven that is he utterly lost his Soveraignty in that state whence there was a voice in heaven Now is come salvation strength and the Kingdome of our God and the power of his Christ. And what he will at the length do with the remainder yet of the Devils Soveraignty you may finde in the 19. and 20 of the Revelation For he must reign as S. Paul saith untill he hath put all his enemies under his feet untill he hath destroyed all power rule and authority adverse unto him And then last of all destroying death by giving immortality to our raised bodies shall surrender up his Kingdome unto his Father as it is 1 Cor. 15. But Satan saith my Text shall prevail something against him for the Serpent shall bruise his heel What is this heel Those who understood the seed of the woman singularly as I told you made it Christs Manhood But how we expound the seed Christs mysticall body what shall we make the heel thereof I could say that by it were only meant a light wound or the Devils assaulting the Body of Christ ex insidiis at unawares for that is his fashion since the great overthrow which our Michael gave him to work his feats underhand and to undermine our Lord in his members But this though true is not full enough It may seem therefore the fittest to make hypocriticall Christians who professe Christ outwardly but inwardly are not his to make those the heel of his mysticall body for against such the Devil we know prevaileth somewhat and by them annoyeth the rest of the Body with his venome though he be far enough yet from impeaching our Lords Headship and Soveraignty But will you give me leave to utter another conceit If the blessed souls in heaven be the upper part of Christs mysticall Body the Saints on earth the lower part of the same may not the bodies of the Saints deceased which lye in the earth be accounted for the heel for I cannot beleeve but they have relation to this mysticall Body though their souls be severed from them and yet must that relation be as of the lowest and most postick members of all If you will admit this then it will appear presently what was this hurt upon the heel when Christ had once mauled the Devils head for the Text seems to intimate that the Devil should give this wound after his head was broken I will hold you in suspence no longer read the 13. of the Revelation and see what follows upon Michaels Victory over the Dragon what the Devil did when he was down He forms a new instrument of the wounded Roman Empire by whose means under a pretence of the honour given to the precious reliques of the Saints and Martyrs he conveyed the poison of Saint-worship and Saint-invocation into the Kingdome of Christ with which wound of the heel the Devil comming on the blinde side the true Church had been long annoyed and limpeth still THE Christian Sacrifice OR The Solemne VVorship in the EVCHARIST Foretold by the Prophet Malachi Taught by our blessed SAVIOUR AND Practised by the Primitive CHVRCH BY JOSEPH MEDE B. D. and late Fellow of Christs Colledge in CAMBRIDGE LONDON Printed by M. F. for JOHN CLARK and are to be sold at his Shop under S. Peters Church in Cornhill MDC XLVIII THE Christian Sacrifice MALACHI 1. 11. Abortu solis usque ad occasum magnum erit nomen meum in Gentibus in omni loco offeretur Incensum Nomini meo Munus purum quia magnum erit nomen meum in gentibus dicit Dominus exercituum THIS place of Scripture howsoever now in a manner silenced and forgotten was once and
ONE of â—srael Habak 1. 12. Art not thou from everlasting O LORD my God mine HOLY ONE Agreeably whereunto the Lord is said also now and then To swear by his HOLINESS that is by himself as in the Psalm before alledged v. 35. Once have I sworn by my HOLINESS that I will not lie unto David c. Amos 4. 2. The Lord God hath sworn by his HOLINESS that lo the days shall come upon you that he will take you away with â—ooks c. According to this sense I suppose also that of Amos 8. 7. is to be understood The LORD hath sworn by the Excellency of Iacob that is Jacobs most eminent and incommunicable One or by Iacobs HOLY ONE Surely I will never forget any of their works c. For indeed the Gods of the Nations were not properly and truly Holy because but partially and respectively onely Forasmuchas the Divine eminency which they were supposed to have was even in the opinion of those who worshipped them common to others with them and so not discriminated from nor exalted above all But the God of Israel was simply and absolutely such both in himself and to them ward who worshipped him as who might acknowledge no other and therefore 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and by way of distinction from all other Gods called Sanctus Israelis The Holy One of Israel i. That sole absolute and onely incommunicable One or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as the Author of the Book of Wisdome cals him chap. 14. v. 21. that God exalted above all and divided from all without pareil there being no other such besides him There is none Holy as the Lord saith Hannah for there is none besides thee The Septuagint none Holy besides thee neither is there any ROCâ— like our God Wherefore it is to be observed that although the Scripture every where vouchsafes the Gentiles Daemons the name of Gods yet it never I think cals them Holy Ones as indeed they were not Thus you see that as Holinesse in generall imports a state of eminency and separation so this of God as I have described it disagrees not from that generall notion when I affirm it to consist in a state of peerlesse or incommunicable Majesty for that which is such includes both the one and the other But would you understand it yet better Apply it then to his attributes whereby he is known unto us and know that The Lord is Holy is as much to say He is a Majesty of peerlesse Power of peerlesse Wisdome of peerlesse Goodnesse and so of the rest Such a one is our God and such is his Holinesse Now then to Sanctifie this peerlesse Name or Majesty of his must be by doing unto him according to that which his Holinesse challengeth in respect of the double importance thereof namely To serve and glorifie him because of his eminency and to doe it with a singular separate and incommunicated worship because He is Holy Not to doe the former is Irreligion and Atheisme as not to acknowledge God to be the chief and Soveraign eminency not to observe the second is Idolatry For as the Lord our God is a singular and peerlesse Majesty distinguished from and exalted above all things and eminencies else whatsoever so must his worship be singular incommunicable and proper to him alone Otherwise saith Ioshuah to the people You cannot serve the Lord. Why For saith he He is an Holy God he is a jealous God that can endure no corrivall he will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins if ye forsake the Lord and serve strange gods c. Whence in Scripture those who communicate the worship given unto him with any besides him or together with him by way of Object that is whether immediately or but mediately are deemed to deny his incomparable Sanctity and therefore said to prophane his Holy Name See Ezek. 20. 39. 43. 7 8. In a word all that whole immediate Duty and service which we owe unto God whether inward or outward contained under the name of Divine worship when either we confesse praise pray unto call upon or swear by his Name yea all the worship both of men and Angels is nothing else but to acknowledge in thought word and work this peerlesse preheminence of his power of his wisdome of his goodnesse and other attributes that is His Holinesse by ascribing and giving unto him that which we give and ascribe to none besides him that is To sanctifie his most Holy Name This is that the Holy Ghost would teach us when describing how the Seraphims worship and glorifie God â—sa 6. he brings them in crying one unto another Holy Holy Holy is the Lord God of hosts the whole earth is full of his glory that is Sanctifying him From whence is derived that which we repeat every day in the Hymne To thee all Angels cry aloud the heavens and all the powers therein To thee Cherubim and Sâ—raphim continually doe cry Ho ly Holy Holy Lord God of Sabaoth Heaven and earth are full of the Majesty of thy Glory And because the pattern of Gods holy worship is not to be taken from earth but from heaven the same Spirit therefore in the Apocalypse expresseth the worship of God in the new Testament with the same form of hallowing or holying his Name which the heavenly Hoste useth For so the 4. Animalia representing the Catholique Church of Christ in the four quarters of the world are said when they give glory honour and thanks to him that sitteth upon the throne and liveth for ever and ever to doe it by singing day and night this Trisagium Holy Holy Holy Lord God Almighty which was and is and is to come that is the summe of all that they did was but to agnize his Sanctity or Holinesse or which is all one to Sanctifie his holy Name When therefore the same 4. Animalia are afterwards brought in chanting Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power riches wisdome and strength and honour and glory and blessing And again Blessing honour glory and power be unto him that sitteth upon the Throne and unto the Lamb for ever and ever all is to bee understood as comprehended within this generall Doxologie as being but an exemplification thereof and therefore the Elogies or blazons mentioned therein to be taken according to the style of Holinesse in an exclusive sense of such prerogatives as are peculiar to God alone And according to this notion of sanctifying Gods name which I contend for would the Lord have his Name Sanctified Esa. 8. 13. when he saith Fear ye not their Fear that is the Idolaters 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or Gods for so Fear here signifies to wit the thing feared neither dread ye it But Sanctifie the Lord of Hosts himself and let him be your Fear and let him be your Dread that is your God Again chap. 29. 23. They shall sanctifie my Name saith he even Sanctifie the holy
One of Iacob and shall fear the God of Israel The latter words shew the meaning of the former The like we have in the first Epist. of S. Peter ch 3. v. 15. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 OBON 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i. Gentilium 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. Fear ye not their Fear nor be in dread thereof that is Fear not nor dread ye the gods of the Gentiles which persecute you but sanctifie the Lord God in your hearts that is Fear and worship him with your whole hearts For that this passage howsoever we are wont to expound it ought to be construed in the same sense with that of Esay 8. before alledged and the words to be rendred sutably I take it to bee apparent for this reason because they are verbatim taken from thence as he that shall compare the Greek words of S. Peter with the Septuagint in that place of Esay will be forced to confesse Besides this evident and expresse use of the word Sanctifie in the notion of religious and holy worship and fear of the Divine Majesty there is yet another expression sometimes used in holy Scripture which implieth the self-same thing that namely to worship God with that which wee call holy and divine worship is all one with to agnize his holiness or to sanctifie his Name Those speeches I mean wherein we are exhorted to worship the Lord because he is Holy As Psal. 99. 5. Exalt ye the Lord our God and worship at his foot-stoole for he is holy Again in the end of the Psalm Exalt the Lord our God and worship at his holy hill for the Lord our God is holy The same meaning is yet more emphatically expressed by those that sing the song of victory over the Beast Apoc. 15. Great say they and marvellous are thy works Lord God Almighty just and true are thy ways thou King of Nations Who shall not fear thee O Lord and glorifie thy Name 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for that I beleeve is the true reading not 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for thou onely art Holy therefore all the Nations shall come and worship before thee i. they shall relinquish their Idols and plurality of Gods and worship thee as God onely For this was the Doctrine both of Moses in the Old Testament and of Christ Jesus the Lamb of God in the New That one God onely that made the heaven and the earth was to be acknowledged and worshipped and with an incommunicable worship In respect whereof as I take it these Victors are there said to sing the Song of Moses the Lamb that is a gratulatory Song of the worship of one God After that his Ordinances were made manifest For otherwise the Ditty is borrowed from the 86. Psalm the 8 9 10. verses where wee reade Among the gods there is none like unto thee O Lord neither are there any works like unto thy works All Nations whom thou hast made shall come and worship before thee O Lord and shall glorifie thy Name For thou art great and dost wondrous works Thou art God alone that is Thou onely art Holy Compare Ier. 10. ver 6 7. I have one thing more to adde before I finish this part of my Discourse lest I might leave unsatisfied that which may perhaps seem to some to weaken this my explication of the sanctification of Gods Name For the word to sanctifie or be sanctified is sometimes used of God in a more generall sense then that I have hitherto specified namely as signifying any way to be glorified or to glorifie as when he saith He will bee sanctified in the destruction of his enemies or in the deliverance of his people and that before the Heathen and the like that is he would purchase him glory or be glorified thereby I answer it is true that to be sanctified is in these passages to be glorified but yet always to be glorified as God and not otherwise Namely when God by the works of his power of his mercy or justice extorts from men the confession of his great and holy Godhead he is then said to sanctifie or make himself to be sanctified amongst them that is to be glorified and honoured by their conviction and acknowledgement of his power and Godhead For although men may be also said to glorifie or purchase honour unto themselves when by their noble acts they make their abilities and worth known unto the world yet for such respect to be said to be sanctified is peculiar unto him alone whose Glory is his Holinesse i. unto God THUS we have learned how the Name or Majesty of God is to be sanctified personally or in it self which is the chiefest thing we pray for and ought so to be in our endeavour namely to worship and glorifie him incommunicably according to his most eminent unparalleld Holiness and so O Lord Hallowed be thy Name But there is another sanctification or hallowing of Gods Name yet behind which must be joyned therewith which is To sanctifie him also in the things which have his Name upon them that is are separate and dedicate to his service or in a word which are His namely by a peculiar relation For otherwise it is true The whole earth is the Lords and the fulnesse thereof the World and those that dwell therein But there are some things his not as other things are and so as they are no longer ours such as according to the style of Scripture as I have already noted are said to be called by his Name or to have his Name called upon them These are things sacred Therefore I told you before of a twofold sanctity or Holinesse The one originall absolute and essentiall in God the other derived or relative in that which is set apart to be in a peculiar and appropriate manner His. For whatsoever belongeth unto him in this manner is divided from other things with preeminence whether they be things or persons which are so separated For in such separation we shewed the nature of sanctity in generall to consist Now as the Divine Majesty it self is separate and holy so know it is a part of that honour we owe unto his most Sacred Name that the things whereby and wherewith he is served should not be promiscuous and common but appropriate and set apart to that sacred end It is an honour which in some degree of resemblance we afford unto Kings Princes and other persons of dignity of infinite lesse eminency then God is to interdict the use of that to others which they are wont to use sometimes the whole kinde sometimes the individuall onely As we know in former times to wear purple to subscribe with the Ink called Encaustum of a purple colour and other the like which the diligent may finde were appropriate to the use of Kings and Emperours onely In the Book of the Kings we reade of the Kings Mule so appropriate to his use as to ride
in the Kingdome of heaven The word is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i. loose or dis-binde as he doth both that abrogates and that observes it not much more he that affirmeth it unlawfull to be observed Nay how dare we disbind or loose our selves from the tie of that way of agnizing and honouring God which the Christian Church from her first beginnings durst not doe Irenaeus witnesse of that age which next succeeded the Apostles is plain Lib. 4. c. 34 Offerre oportet Deo saith he primitias creaturae ejus sicut Moses ait Non apparebis vacuus ante conspectum Domini Dei tui Et non genus oblationum reprobatum est oblationes enim illic sc. in V. T. oblationes autem hic sacrificia in populo sacrificia in Ecclesia sed species immutata est tantum quippe cum jam non à servis sed à liberis offeratur Vnus enim idem Dominus proprium autem character servilis oblationis proprium liberorum uti per oblationes ostendatur indicium libertatis It behoveth us saith he to offer unto God a present of his creature as also Moses saith Thou shalt not appear before the Lord thy God empty For offerings in the generall are not reprobated there were offerings there viz. in the Old Test. there are also offerings here in the Church but the specification only is changed For asmuch as offerings now are not made by bond but free men For there is one and the same Lord still but there is a proper character of a bond or servile offering and a proper character of free-mens that so even the Offerings may shew forth the tokens of freedome Now where in Scripture he beleeved this doctrine and practise to be grounded he lets us know in the XXVII chap. of the same Book Et quia Dominus naturalia legis per quae homo justificatur quae etiam ante legisdationem custodiebant qui fide justificabantur placebant Deo non dissolvit sed extendit sed implevit ex sermonibus ejus ostenditur i. That our Lord dissolved not but enlarged and perfected the naturall precepts of the Law whereby a man is just which also before the Law was given they observed who were justified by faith and pleased God is evident by his words Then hee cites some of the passages of that his Sermon upon the Mount Mat. V. 20. c. And a little after addes Necesse fuit auferre quidem vincula servitutis quibus jam homo assueverat sine vinculis sequi Deum superextendi verò decreta libertatis augeri subjectionem quae est ad Regem ut non retrorsus quis renitens indignus appareat ei qui se liberavit Et propter hoc Dominus pro eo quod est Non moechaberis nec concupiscere praecepit pro eo quod est Non occides neque irasci quidem pro eo quod est Decimare omnia quae sunt pauperibus dividere i. It was needful that those bonds of servitude which man had before been inured to should be taken off that so he might without Gives follow God but that the laws and ordinances of freedome should be extended and his subjection to the King encreased lest that drawing backward he might appear unworthy of him that freed him And for this reason our Lord in stead of Thou shalt not commit adultery commands not so much as to lust in stead of Thou shalt not kill not so much as to be angry in stead of to Tith to distribute all we have to the poore c. All which saith he in the same place are not solventis legem sed adimplentis extendentis dilatantis not of one that dissolves the Law but fulfils extends and enlarges it alluding still to that in our Saviours Sermon upon the Mount Besides those who are acquainted with Antiquity can tell that the Primitive Christians understood the holy Eucharist to be A commemoration of the sacrifice of Christs death upon the crosse in an oblation of bread and wine T is witnessed by the Fathers of those first ages generally Whereupon the same Irenaeus also affirmeth That our Saviour by the institution of the Eucharist had confirmed oblations in the new Testament Namely to thanksgive or blesse a thing in way to a sacred use he took to be an offering of it unto God And was not Davids Benediction and thanksgiving at the preparation for the Temple an Offertory Where note well that as he upon that occasion blessed the Lord saying Thine O LORD is the greatnesse the power and the glory all that is in heaven and earth is thine thine is the Kingdome Both riches and honour come of thee Ergo because all things come of thee of thine own have we given thee So doe Christs redeemed in their Euangelicall Song Apâ—â— 5. ascribe no lesse unto him saying Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive Power and Riches and Wisdome and strength and honour and glory and â—…g Yea the 24. Elders which are the Christian Presbytery expressing ch 4. ult the very argument and summe of that Hymnology which the Primitive Church used at the offering of bread and wine for the Eucharist worship God saying Thou art worthy O Lord to receive glory and honour and power for thou hast created all things and for thy pleasure they are and were created TAKING therefore for granted that which the practise of the Church of God in all ages yea I think I may say the consent of mankinde from the beginning of the world beareth witnesse to that among those duties of the Sanctification of Gods Name wherewith his Divine Majesty is immediately and personally glorified of which I have before spoken this is one and a principall one to agnize and confesse his peerlesse Soveraignty and dominion over the creature by yeelding him some part thereof toward his worship and service of which we renounce the propriety our selves and that accordingly there are both things and persons now in the Gospel as well as were before the Law was given in this manner lawfully and acceptably set apart and separated by the devotion of men unto the Divine Majesty and consequently relatively Holy which is nothing else but to be Gods by a peculiar right I say that these are likewise to be done unto according to their degree of sanctity in honour of him whose they are Not to be worshipped with divine worship or the worship which we give unto God communicated to them farre be it from us to deferre to any creature the honour due unto the Divine Majesty either together with him or without him but yet Habenda cum discrimine To be regarded with a worthy and discriminative usance that is used with a select and differing respect from other things as namely if Places not as other places if Times not as other times if Things by way of distinction so called not as other things if Persons set apart
observation of those precepts whch the Hebrew Doctors call the precepts of the sons of Noah namely such as all the sons of Noah were bound to observe These precepts are in number seven recorded in the Talmud Maymonides and others under these following titles First the precept 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to renounce Idols and all Idolatrous worship Secondly 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to worship the true God the Creator of Heaven and Earth Thirdly 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Bloodshed to wit to commit no murder Fourthly 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 detectio nuditatum not to be defiled with fornication incest or other unlawfull conjunction Fiftly 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Rapina against theft and robbery Sixtly 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 concerning administration of Justice The seventh 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Membrum de vivo so they call the Precept of not eating the flesh with the blood in it given to Noah when he came out of the Ark as Maymonides expresly expounds it and addes besides Quicunque haec sep tem praecepta exequenda susceperit ecce is est 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ex piis gentium mundi habetque partem in seculo futuro Note that he saith ex piis Gentium for this kinde were still esteemed Gentiles and so called because of their uncircumcision in respect whereof though no Idolaters they were according to the Law unclean and such as no Jew might converse with wherefore they came not to worship into the Sacred Courts of the Temple whither the Jews and circumcised Proselytes came but onely into the outmost Court called Atrium Gentium immundorum which in the second Temple surrounded the second or great Court whereinto the Israelites came being divided there-from by a low wall of stone made battlement-wise not above three Cubits high called saith Iosephus from whom I have it in the Hebrew Dialect 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the Greek 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is Lorica close by which stood certain little pillars whereon was written in Latin and Greek Letters 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 In atrium sanctum transire alienigenam non debere And this I make no question is that which Saint Paul Ephes. 2. alluded unto when he saith That Christ had broken down the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the partitionwall namely that Lorica which separated the Court of the Gentiles from that of the Circumcision and so laying both Courts into one hath made the Jews and Gentiles Intercommoners whereby those that were sometime far off were now made nigh and as near as the other unto the Throne of God But in Solomons Temple this Court of the Gentiles seems not to have been but in the second Temple onely the Gentiles formerly worshipping without at the door and not coming within the Septs of the Temple at all This second kinde of Proselytes the Talmudists call 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Proselyti portae or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Proselyti inquilini because they were under the same condition with those Gentile strangers which lived as inquilini in the land of Israel For all Gentiles dwelling within the Gates of Israel whether they were as servants taken in war or otherwise were bound to renounce their false Gods and to worship the God of Israel but not to be circumcised unlesse they would nor farther bound to keep the Law of Moses then was contained in those precepts of the sons of Noah These are those mentioned as often elsewhere in the Law so in the fourth Commandment by the name of the Stranger within thy gates whereby it might seem probable that the observation of the Sabbath day so far as concerneth one day in seven was included in some one or other of those precepts of the sons of Noah namely in that of worshipping for their God the Creator of heaven and earth and no other whereof this consecration of a seventh day after six dayes labour was a badge or livery according to that The sabbath is a signe between me and you that I Iehovah am your God because in six dayes the Lord made heaven and earth the sea and all that in them is and rested the seventh day vide Exod. 31. 16 17. Ezek. 20. 20. From the example of these inquilini all other Gentiles wheresoever living admitted to the worship of the God of Israel upon the same terms were called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Proselyti Portae or Proselyti inquilini of which sort there were many in all Cities and places of the Gentiles where the Jews had Synagogues and used to frequent the Synagogues with them though in a distinct place to hear the Law and the Prophets read and expounded But in the New Testament they are found called by another name to wit of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or Worshippers so often mentioned though not observed in the Acts of the Apostles For first these are those meant in that of the Acts 17. 4. alleadged at my entrance into this discourse where it is said that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a great number of the worshipping Greeks beleeved and adhered to Paul and Silas which the Vulgar rightly translateth de colentibus Gentilibus multitudo magna taking the name of Greeks here as elsewhere in the New Testament to be put for Gentiles in generall And this place will admit of no evasion For that they were Gentiles the name of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 betokeneth expresly being given them by way of distinction from the Jews then and there present also That they were worshippers of the true God the God of Israel their coming into the Synagogue their name 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 their capablenesse of S. Pauls discourse which was to prove out of the Scriptures that Messiah was to suffer death and that Iesus was he argues sufficiently yea abundantly For who could have profited by such a Sermon as this but those who already had knowledge of the true God and beleeved the reward of the life to come This place therefore may serve as a key to all the rest of the places in this Book where these 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 are mentioned To that in the same Chapter ver 17. where it is said that Saint Paul in the Synagogue at Athens 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 disputed with the Iews and the worshippers To that Acts 16. 14. where Saint Paul preaching the Gospel in the Jews Proseucha or Oratory at Philippi a woman named Lydia a seller of purple of the City Thyatira 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 A proselyte worshipper was converted unto the faith and baptized with all her houshold In the like manner to Acts 18. 4. when S. Paul is said at Corinth to have reason'd in the Synagogues every Sabbath and to have perswaded the Jews and the Greeks For these Greeks were 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 what did they in the Synagogues else so regularly every Sabbath day True the name of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is here wanting But it
whence it is probable that S. Peter in the foregoing passage of Angels referred also those chains of darknesse to reserving and not to delivering that is not that the evill Angels were now already delivered to chains of darknesse but reserved for them at the day of Judgement And thus much for clearing of the words of these two parallel Texts now what hath been anciently the current opinion of this point And first for the Jews it is apparent to have been a tradition of theirs that all the space between the earth and the firmament is full of troops of Evill spirits and their Chieftains having their residence in the air which I make no doubt S. Paul had respect to when he cals Satan the Prince of the power of the air Drusius quotes two Authors one the Book called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Munus novum another one of the Commentators upon Pirke Aboth who speak in this manner Debet homo scire intelligere à terra usque ad firmamentum omnia plena esse turmis praefectis infra plurimas esse Creaturas laedentes accusantes omnesque stare volare in aere neque à terra usque ad firmamentum locum esse vacuum sed omnia plena esse praepositis quorum alii ad pacem alii ad bellum alii ad bonum alii ad mulam ad vitam ad mortem incitant By praepositi I suppose he means such among the Spirits as are set as Wardens over severall charges for the managing of the affairs of mankinde subject to their powers This was the opinion of the Iews which they seem to have learned by tradition from their ancient Prophets For in the Old Testament we finde no such thing written and yet we see S. Paul seems to approve it Now for the Doctors of the Christian Church S. Hierome upon the sixth of the Ephesians tels us that their opinion was the same T is the opinion of all the Doctors saith he that Devils have their mansion and residence in the space between the heaven and the earth And that the Fathers of the first 300 or 400 years nor did nor could hold the evill Angels to have been cast into Hell upon their sin is evident by a singular Tenet of theirs For Iustn Martyr one of the most ancient hath this saying that Satan before the coming of Christ never durst blaspheme God and that saith he because till then he knew not he should be damned The same is approved by Irenaeus in his fifth Book and twentysixt Chapter Praeclarè saith he dixit Iustinus quod ante Domini adventum Satanas nunquam ausus est blasphemare Deum quippe nondum sciens suam damnationem Post adventum autem Domini ex sermonibus Christi Apostolorum ejus discens manifestè quoniam ignis aeternus ei praeparatus sit per hujusmodi homines he means those Heretiques who blasphemed the God of the Law blasphemat eum Deum qui judicium importat Eusebius 4. Hist. Cap. 17. cites the same out of both with approbation So doth Oecumenius upon the last Chap. of the first of S. Peter Epiphanius against Heresie 39. gives the same as his own assertion almost in the same words with Iustin and Irenaeus though not naming them Ante Christi adventum saith he nunquam ausus est Diabolus in Dominum suum blasphemum aliquod verbum loqui aut contra elationem cogitare expectavit enim Christi adventum put avitque se misericordiam aliquam assecuturum esse I will not enquire how true this Tenet of theirs is but onely gather this that they could not think the Devils were cast into Hell before the comming of Christ. For then how could they but have known they should be damned if the execution had already been done upon them Saint Augustine as may seem intending to reconcile these places of Peter and Iude with the rest of Scripture is alledged to affirm that the Devils suffering some hell-like torment in their aiery Mansion the Air may in that respect in an improper sense be called Hell But that the Devils were locally or actually in Hell or should be before the day of Judgement it is plain he held not and that will appear by these two passages in his Book de Civitate Dei First where he saith Daemones in hoc quidem aere habitant quia de Coeli superioris sublimitate dejecti merito irregressibilis transgressionis in hoc sibi congruo velut carcere praedamnati sunt Lib. 8. Cap. 22. The other where he expounds that of the Devils Mat. 8. Art thou come to torment us before the time that is saith he ante tempus Iudicii quo aeternâ damnatione puniendi sunt cum omnibus etiam hominibus qui eorum societate detinentur Lib. eodem Cap. 23. in fine The Divines of later times the Schoolmen and others to reconcile the supposed Contrariety in Scripture divide the matter holding some Devils to be in the Air as Saint Paul and the History of Scripture tels us some to be already in Hell as they thought Saint Peter and S. Iude affirm'd which opinion seems to be occasioned by a Quaere of Saint Hieroms upon the sixth of the Ephesians though he speaks but obscurely and defines nothing But what ground of Scripture or reason can be given why all the Devils which sinned should not be in the same condition especially Satan the worst and chief of them should not be in the worst estate but enjoy the greatest liberty It follows therefore that these places of Saint Peter and Saint Iude are to be construed according to the sense I have given of them namely that the evill Spirits which sinned being adjudged to hellish torments were cast out of Heaven into this lower Region there to be reserved as in a prison for chains of darknesse at the Day of Judgement 1 COR. 4. 1. Let a man so account of us as of the Ministers 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of Christ and Stewards of the Mysteries of God A Man would think at first sight that this Scripture did exceedingly warrant our use of the word Minister in stead of that of Priest and leave no plea for them who had rather speak otherwise Howsoever I intend at this time to shew the contrary and even out of this text that we have very much swarved herein from the Apostles language and abuse that word to such a sense as they never intended nor is any where found in Scripture I fayour neither superstition nor superstitious men yet truth is truth and needfull to be known especially when ignorance thereof breedeth errour and uncharitablenesse My discourse therefore shall be of the use of the words Priest and Minister wherein shall appear how truly we are all Ministers in the Apostles sense and yet how abusively and improperly so called in the ordinary prevailing use of that word I will begin thus All Ecclesiasticall persons or Clergy men may be considered in a
Saxons first used Preoster which by a farther contraction came Preste and Priest The high and low Dutch have Priester the French Prestre Italian Prete but the Spaniard onely speaks full Presbytero But to come more near the point our men in using the word Minister for a distinctive name in stead of Priest incurre four Solecisms I mean when we use the word Minister not at large but for a distinction from the Order of Deacons saying Ministers and Deacons First we run into that we sought to avoid For we would avoid to call the Presbyters of the Gospel by the name of the Sacrificers of the Law and yet run into it in such sort that we style those of the Gospel by the legall name and those of the Law by the Euangelicall name the Hebrew cals them of the Law Cohanim of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which properly signifies to minister and thence comes the Greek word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 but we call those of the Gospel Cohanim when we style them Ministers On the contrary the Apostles style those of the Gospel Presbyteri but we transferre that name to those of the Law when we call them Priests This is counterchange Incidit in Scyllam qui vult vitare Charybdim Secondly It is a confusion or tautology to say Ministers and Deacons that is Ministers and Ministers For 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is in Greek what Minister is in Latin both signifying a Minister as if one should say Homo and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or Dilavium and Cataclysmus and think so to distinguish things of severall natures or conditions Thirdly We impose upon that Order a name of a direct coÌ„trary notion to what the Apostles gave them The Apostles gave them a name of Eldership and Superiority in calling them Presbyteri we of inferiority subordination in calling them Ministri The Jews had no name more honourable then that of Elders 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for so they called their Magistrates so we read of Elders of the people and Elders of the Priests and Levites meaning the chief in both sorts This honourable name the Apostles gave as a name of distinction to the Euangelicall Pastors whereby they dignified them above those of the Law whose name in the Hebrew as I said before is but a denomination of ministery And we have rejected the name of Dignity of Fathership and Eldership and assumed in stead thereof a name of under-service of subjection of ministery to distinguish our order by I say to distinguish our order For in a generall sense and with reference to God we are all his Ministers and it is an honour unto us so to be more then to be other mens Masters as our Apostle in my text intimates Fourthly in the Churches beyond the Seas there is a worse Solecism by reason of this misapplied speech They have a kinde of Officers who are the Pastors assistants in Discipline much like to our Churchwardens these they call Elders we style them Lay-Elders These are but a kinde of Deacons at the most and of a new erection too And yet these are dignified by the name of Elders and Presbyters who are indeed but Deacons or Ministers and the Pastor himself is called a Minister who in the Apostles style is the onely Presbyter or Elder For so they speak The Minister and his Presbyters or Elders To conclude it had been to be wished that those whom the term of Priest displeased as that which gave occasion by the long abuse thereof to fancy a Sacrifice had rather restored the Apostolicall name of Presbyter in the full sound which would have been as soon and as easily learned and understood as Minister and was no way subject to that supposed inconvenience But the mis-application of the word Presbyter in some Churches to an Order the Apostles called not by that name deprived those thereof to whom it was properly due Howsoever when they call us Ministers let them account of us as the Ministers of Christ and not of men Not as deputed by the Congregation to execute a power originally in them but as Stewards of the mysteries of God S. JOHN 10. 20. He hath a Devill and is mad IT is a matter of greater moment then perhaps every man thinks of under what notions things are conceived and from what property or Character the names we call them by are derived For hereby not seldom it comes to passe That the same things presented to us under different notions and names derived therefrom are not taken to be the same they are Even as he that meets a man well known unto him in an exotick disguise or antick habit takes him to be some other though he knew him never so well before For example a man would wonder that a Comet as we call it being so remarkable and principall a work of the Divine power and which draws the eyes of all men with admiration towards it should no where be found mentioned in the Old Testament Neither there where the works of God are so often recounted to magnifie him when as Hail Snow Rain and Iee works of far lesse admiration are not pretermitted neither by way of allusion and figured expression in the Prophets predictions of great calamities and changes whereof they were taken to be presages especially when we see them borrow so many other allusions both from heaven and earth to paint their descriptions with Should a man therefore think there never appeared any of them in those times or to those Countreys It is incredible Or that the Jews were so dull and heedlesse as not to observe them That is not like neither What should we say then Surely they conceived of them under some other notions then we do and accordingly expressed them some other way As what if by a Pillar of fire such a one perhaps as went before the Israelites in the Wildernesse or by a Pillar of fire and smoke as in that of Ioel I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth Blood and Fire and pillars of Smoke Or by the name of an Angel of the Lord whereby no doubt they are guided according as is said of that Pillar of Fire which went before the Israelites That the Angel of the Lord when they were to passe the Red-sea came and stood between them and the AEgyptians when that Pillar did so And who knows whether that in the 104 Psalm may not have some meaning this way He maâ—eth his Angels Spirits or windes and his Ministers a Flame of fire to wit because they are wont to appear in both It comes in in the Psalm among other works of God in a fit place for such a sense both in regard of what goes before and follows after These I say or some of these may be descriptious of those we call Comets which because they are disguised under another notion and not denominated from Stella or Coma hence we know them not Now to
beginning to such a power as to grapple with the Enemy and overcome him But behold there is yet something more admirable namely that this should not be done by the strength of his Arm but by the breath power of his Mouth Out of the mouth of Babes and sucklings thou hast ordained strength because of thine enemies c. What Enemies Thine saith the Psalmist and such too as are ultores avengers the enemies both of God and mankinde And who are those but Satan and his Angels those Principalities and Powers of the Air those 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and Rulers of the Darknesse of this world as Saint Paul speaks For when mankinde is the one party what can the other be but some Power that is not of mankinde Besides who are the Enemies both of God and mankinde but these And of mankinde especially I put enmity saith God to the serpent between thee and the woman and between thy seed and her seed Hence he is called Satan the adversary or Fiend and the enemy 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Behold I give you power saith our Saviour to the seventy Disciples Luke 10. 19. to tread on serpents and scorpions and over all the Power of the Enemy Your Adversary the Devill saith S. Peter And this is he as I conceive who is here called the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Enemy the Avenger mans tormentor which words being found again in the 44. Psalm may for ought I know by warrant of this place be taken for the same Enemy and the usuall distinction altered and the place read thus By reason of the Enemy and the Avenger all this to wit the Calamity and confusion he spake of before is come upon us that is by the malice of Satan Now that such Enemies as these should be subdued by an arm yea by a mouth of flesh is a thing which might justly make the Prophet cry out Lord what is man c. Now that this which I have given is the true meaning of this place may be gathered from S. Paulâ— inculcating the word Enemy when 1 Cor. 15. he demonstrates out of this Psalm that Christ before the end shall abolish 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 For He must raign saith he till he hath put all enemies under his feet The last Enemy which shall be destroyed 〈◊〉 Death and then he alledges for his proof that Corollary in this Psalm For he hath put all things under his feet But in all this Psalm there is no mention of Enemies or subduing them but onely in the verse I have in hand which unlesse it be thus expounded S. Pauls allegation from hence will be too narrow to prove what he intendeth Having thus cleered the words I chose for my Theme I shall not spend much time to shew you how directly and literally the purport of them was fulfilled in our blessed Saviours incarnation You have in part heard such Scriptures already as do evince it The summe is this The Devill by sin brought mankinde under thraldom and became the prince of this world himself with his Angels being worshipped and served every where as Gods and the service and honour due to the great God the Creator of heaven and earth cast off and abandoned and all this to receive at last for reward eternall wo and everlasting death To vanquish and exterminate this enemy and redeem the world from this miserable thraldom the Son of God took upon him not the nature of Angels which might have been the enemies matches but the nature of weak and despicable man that growes from a babe and suckling Who saith Esay in that famous Prophecy of Messiah hath beleeved our report and to whom is the Arm of the Lord revealed namely that works such powerfull things by weak means for he shall grow 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as a tender plant or sucker it is the very word here used in my Text for a sucking childe and translated by the Seventy 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and as a root out of a dry ground that is a small and little one This is that whereof S. Paul discourses so divinely in the Epistle to the Hebrews To which of the Angels said he at anytime Sit thou on my right hand till I make thine enemies thy footstool For unto the Angels hath he not put in subjection the world to come whereof we speak but unto him of whom it is said What is man that thou art mindefull of him or c. Again We see Iesus who was made little lower then the Angels that is was made man that 's the meaning for the suffering of death crowned with Glory and Honour what can be so plain as this It is the Son of man by whom in part we are and more fully shall be delivered out of the hands of our enemies that we might serve the true God without fear as Zachary sayes in his Benedictus It is the Son of man that delivered us from the power of darknesse Col. 1. 13. The Son of man that spoiled Principalities and Powers and made a shew of them openly Col. 2. 15. It was no Angel that did all this but the Son of man even as was prophesied from the beginning when the Devill first got his Dominion That the Seed of the woman should break the Serpents head Nor is this all for this Son of man enables also other sons of men his Disciples and Ministers to do the like in his name The seventy Disciples in the Gospel return with joy saying Lord even the Devils are subject to us through thy name Yea not these onely but as many as fight under his Banner against these enemies have promise they shall at length quell and utterly subdue them Yea at that great Day shall sit with their Lord and Master to judge and condemn them Do ye not know saith S. Paul that the Saints shall judge the world know ye not that we shall judge Angels Lastly this victory as for the event so for the manner of atchieving it is agreeable to our Prophesie For as much as Christ our Generall nor fights nor conquers by force of Arms but by the power of his Word and Spirit which is the power of his mouth according to my Text Out of the mouth of Babes c. Hence in the Apocalypse Christ appears with a sword going out of his mouth In the 2 Thess. 2. it is said He shall consume Antichrist with the Spirit of his mouth Esay prophesies Chap. 11. 4. That the Branch of Iesse should smite the earth with the rod of his mouth and with the breath of his lips should stay the wicked That is he does all nuâ—â— verbo as God made the world By the word of the Lord were the Heavens made and all the Hoasts of them by the breath of his mouth Psal 33. 6. So doth Christ vanquish his enemies and enable his Ministers to vanquish them Verbo Spiritu oris according to that Hos. 6. 5. I have
of the Saints and so translated accordingly This tradition is farther testified by Ionathan ben Vziel the Chaldee Paraphrast Gen. 11. 7. where the Lords words spoken in the plurall number Venite descendamus confundamus linguam eorum are paraphrased in this manner Dixit Dominus septem Angelis qui stant coram eo Venite nunc c. Whether rightly or fitly in this place it matters not The testimony is sufficient for the Jewish tradition of seven Arch-angels that stand before the Throne of God This tradition Iunius saith is magicall and not a little triumphs therein as an undoubted Argument to evince the Book of Tobit not to be Canonicall But whatsoever the Book of Tobit be I hope to shew this tradition to have firm ground and footing in Scripture and not so rashly to be rejected The chief and most clear place is that I have now read which gives us to understand that these seven Angels were represented by that Candlestick of Seven Lamps which continually burned in the Temple before the vail over against the Mercy seat which was the Throne of God For in the beginning of the Chapter the Prophet being shewed this Seven-lamped Candlestick in a Vision and two Olive-branches on each side ministring oyle to the Lamps thereof The Angel asketh him if he knew what these meant The Prophet answers No my Lord Then the Angel discoursing a little by way of Preface tels him what they were These seven saith he that is the seven Lamps are the seven eyes of the Lord which run to and fro through the whole earth that is those Seven Vigiles or prime Ministers of his Providence the seven Arch-angels As for the two Olive-trees on each side These are saith he two anointed ones which stand before the Lord of the whole earth that is Zorobabel and Iesua the Prince and Priest at that time which should be Gods two instruments on earth whereby his Church signified by the Candlestick should be re-established and his Temple builded and that not by force or strength as he saith in his Preface but by the Spirit of God working with them as the olive trees here conveyed oyle to the Candlestick not after a naturall and usuall but a supernaturall and secret manner This interpretation of the latter hath the suffrage of the best Expositors both Jews and Christians and so I shall need say no more of it but betake my self to make good the first concerning the words I chose for my Text That those seven eyes of God signified by the seven Lamps are seven Angels That this is so I prove out of two places in the Apocalypse derived from hence where as well the Seven Lamps before the Throne as the Lambs Seven eyes are said to be the Seven Spirits of God I saw saith Saint Iohn cap. 4. 5. Seven Lamps before the Throne which are the Seven Spirits of God And again cap. 5. 6. I saw in the midst of the Throne and of the four Beasts as we translate it and of the four and twenty Elders a Lamb as if he had been slain having seven horns and seven eyes which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth Here first we have Zacharies very words Seven eyes sent forth into all the earth Secondly That these seven eyes are the seven Spirits of God Thirdly that these seven Spirits were represented by the seven Lamps burning before the Throne If this be not sufficient to make my interpretation of Zacharie good I know not what can be For who can now but think that the Jews derived their tradition of these seven Angels from this place of Zachary and the Apocalypse from them both And that indeed the Jews supposed some such thing meant by the seven Lamps in the Temple appears by the report of Iosephus though depraved and fashioned unto the capacity of the Gentiles For he tels us both in his Antiquities Lib. 3. cap. 7. and in his De Bello Iudaico Lib. 6. cap. 14. that the seven Lamps signified the seven Planets and the most holy place within the vail ibid. cap. 5. the heaven of God or heaven of Glory and that therefore the Lamps stood slopewise as it were to expresse the obliquity of the Zodiack Now it is true that the Jewish Astrologians savouring of Gentilism make these seven Angels the prefects of the seven Planets which they seem to have learned in part from the Greek Philosophy which conceit howsoever it be vain and groundlesse yet may be as a key to understand the meaning of this of Iosephus And one thing more If the visible things of God may be learned as Saint Paul sayes from the Creation of the world why may not the invisible and intelligible world be learned from the Fabrick of the visible the one it may be being the pattern of the other But to let this passe and return again to the Apocalypse Where concerning the places alledged there may be two things objected First That the seven spirits there mentioned are and may be expounded of the Holy Ghost thus represented in respect of those seven-fold that is manifold Graces he communicates unto the Church I answer that many indeed have so taken it but besides the uncouthnesse of expressing one spirit by seven there is a reason in the Text why they cannot be so taken namely because not onely the seven Lamps are said to be those seven Spirits of God but the seven Eyes and seven Horns of the Lamb also to be the same Now it will be very hard and harsh to make the Holy Ghost the Horns and Eyes of Christ as he is the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world that is as he is a Man Above Angels indeed the Man Iesus is exalted and that too for the suffering of death that is as the Lamb but not above the Holy Ghost This made not onely Drusius but even Beza himself in his Notes upon this place to affirm it could not be meant of the Holy Ghost but of seven created Spirits A second scruple is how if they be created spirits Iohn could pray for Grace and Peace from them Grace be unto you saith he and peace from him which is which was and is to come and from the seven spirits which are before his Throne and from Iesus Christ the faithful witnesse c. would he pray for Grace and peace from Angels I answer Why not For first he prayes not to them but unto God unto whom such votes are tendered Secondly he prayes for Grace and Peace from them not as Authors but as the Instruments of God in the dispensation thereof Are they not 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 sent forth to minister for them who are heirs of salvation And if it be no Idolatry to pray unto God to give Grace and Peace from the outward Ministery of his word no more is it to pray unto him for it from the invisible Ministery For certainly it is lawfull to
not so much the child as the Parents liable to the wrath of God as here the Angel sought not to kill the child who was uncircumcised but Moses the Father who should have circumcised it Both which observations I mean to amplifie no farther but to leave to your exacter meditations and so I conclude EZEKIEL 20. 20. Hallow my Sabbaths and they shall be a signe between me and you to acknowledge that I Iehovah am your God THis Commandement with the end thereof the Lord bids Ezekiel tell the Elders of Israel that he gave to their Fathers in the Wildernesse And it is recorded in the Law so that I might have taken it thence but I rather chose to make these words in Ezekiel my Text as expressed more plainly and so a Comment to those in the Law the place is Exod. 31. where this which my Text containeth is expressed thus Verily my Sabbaths ye shall keep for it is a signe between me and you throughout your generations to acknowledge that I Iehovah am your sanctifier that is your God as the expression in Ezekiel tels us For to be the Sanctifier of a People and to be their God is all one whence also the Lord is so often called in Scripture the Holy One of Israel that is their Sanctifier and their God That which I intend at this time to observe from these words is the end why God commanded this observation of the Sabbath to the Israelites to wit that thereby as by a Symbolum they might testifie and professe what God they worshipped Secondly out of this ground to shew how far and in what manner the like observation binds us Christians who are worshippers of the same God whom the Jews worshipped though not under the same relation altogether wherein they worshipped him All Nations had something in their ceremonies whereby they signified the God they worshipped so in those of the celestiall Gods as they termed them and those which were Deified souls of men were differing rites whereby the one was known from the other Those gods which were made of men having funerall rites in their services as cognisances that they were souls deceased and each of them some imitation of some remarkable passage of the Legend of their lives either of some action done by them or some accident which befell them as in the ceremonies of Osyris and Bacchus is obvious to any that reads them And indeed it is a naturall Decorum for servants and vassals by some mark or cognisance to testifie who is their Lord and Master In the Revelation the worshippers of the Beast receive his mark and the worshippers of the Lamb carry his mark and his Fathers in their Fore-heads Hence came the first use of the crosse in Baptisme as the mark of Christ the Deity to whom we are initiated and the same afterwards used in all Benedictions Prayers and Thanksgivings in token they were done in the name and merits of Christ crucified so that in the Primitive Church this rite was no more but that wherewith we conclude all our Prayers and Thanksgivings when we say Through Iesus Christ our Lord and Saviour though afterward it came to be abused as almost all other rites of Christianity to abominable superstition To return therefore unto my Text Agreeably to this principle and this custome of all Religions of all Nations of all vassals the Lord Iehovah Creator of heaven and earth ordained to his people this observation of the Sabbath day for a sign and cognisance that he should be their God and no other It is for a sign saith he between me and you that I Iehovah am your God In the place I quoted before in the 31. of Exod. are these words The Children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations for a perpetuall Covenant it is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever for in six dayes the Lord made heaven and earth and on the seventh day he rested As if he had said it is a sign that the Creatour of heaven and earth is your God But for the distinct understanding of this signification we must know that the Sabbath includes two respects of time First the quotum one day of seven or the seventh day after six days labour Secondly the designation or pitching that seventh day upon the day we call Saturday In both the Sabbaticall observation was a sign and profession that Iehovah and no other was the God of Israel the first according to his attribute of Creator the second of Deliverer of Israel out of Egypt For by sanctifying the seventh day after they had laboured six they professed themselves vassals and worshippers of that only God who created the heaven and the earth and having spent six days in that great work rested the seventh day and therefore commanded them to observe this sutable distribution of their time as a badge and livery that their religious service was appropriate to him alone And this is that which the fourth Commandement in the reason given from the Creation intendeth and no more but this But seeing they might professe this acknowledgement as well by any other six days working and a sevenths resting as by those they pitched upon there being still what six days soever they had laboured and what seventh soever they had rested the same conformity with their Creator let us see the reason why they pitched upon those six days wherein they laboured for labouring days rather then any other six and why they chose that seventh day namely Saturday to hallow and rest in rather then any other And this was that they might professe themselves servants of Iehovah their God in a relation and respect peculiar and proper to themselves to wit that they were the servants of that God which redeemed Israel out of the Land of Egypt and out of the house of bondage and upon the morning watch of that very day which they kept for their Sabbath he overwhelmed Pharaoh and all his Host in the Red Sea and saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians This I gather from the repetition of the Decalogue Deut. 5. where that reason from the worlds Creation in the Decalogue given at Horeb being left out Moses inserts this other of the Redemption of Israel out of Egypt in stead thereof namely as the reason why those six days rather then any other six for work and that seventh day rather then any other seventh for rest were pitched upon as Israel observed them Remember saith he thou wert a servant in the Land of Egypt and that the Lord thy God brought thee out thence through a mighty hand and a stretched out arm therefore the Lord thy God commanded thee to keep the Sabbath Day Not for the quotum of one day of seven for of that another reason was given the example of God in the Creation but for the designation of the day But whether this day were in order
the seventh from the Creation or not the Scripture is silent for where it is called in the Commandement the seventh day that is in respect of the six days of labour and not otherwise and therefore whensoever it is so called those six days of labour are mentioned with it The seventh day therefore is the seventh after six days of labour nor can any more be inferred from it The example of the Creation is brought for the quotum one day of seven as I have shewed and not for the designation of any certain day for that seventh Neverthelesse it might fall out so by disposition of Divine Providence that the Jews designed seventh day was both the seventh in order from the Creation and also the day of their deliverance out of Egypt But the Scripture no where tels us it was so howsoever most men take it for granted and therefore it may as well be not so Certain I am the Jews kept not that day for a Sabbath till the raining of Manna For that which should have been their Sabbath the week before had they then kept the day which afterward they kept was the fifteenth day of the second month on which day we reade in the 16. of Exodus that they marched a wearisome march and came at night into the wildernesse of Sin where they murmured for their poor entertainment and wished they had died in Egypt that night the Lord sent them Quails the next morning it rained Manna which was the sixteenth day and so six days together the seventh which was the two and twentieth it rained none and that day they were commanded to keep for their Sabbath now if the two and twentieth day of the month were the Sabbath the fifteenth should have been if that day had been kept before but the Text tels us expresly they marcht that day and which is strange the day of the month is never named unlesse it be once for any station but this where the Sabbath was ordained otherwise it could not have been known that that day was ordained for a day of rest which before was none And why might not their day of holy rest be altered as well as the beginning of the year was for a memoriall of their comming out of Egypt I can see no reason why it might not nor finde any testimony to assure me it was not And thus much of the Jews Sabbath how and wherein it was a sign whereby they professed themselves the servants of Iehovah and no other God Now I come to the second thing I propounded to shew how far and in what manner the like observation binds us Christians I say therefore that the Christian as well as the Iew after six days spent in his own works is to sanctifie the seventh that he may professe himself thereby a servant of God the Creatour of Heaven and Earth as well as the Jew For the quotum therefore the Jew and Christian agree but in designation of the day they differ For the Christian chooseth for his Holy day that which with the Jews was the first day of the week and cals it Dominicum that he might thereby professe himself a servant of that God who on the morning of that day vanquished Satan the Spirituall Pharaoh and redeemed us from our Spirituall thraldome by raising Iesus Christ our Lord from the dead begetting us in stead of an earthly Canaan to an inheritance incorruptible in the Heavens In a word the Christian by the day he hallows professes himself a Christian that is as S. Paul speaks To beleeve on him that raised up Iesus from the dead so that the Jew and Christian both though they fall not upon the same day yet make their designation of their day upon the like ground the Jews the memoriall day of their deliverance from the temporall Egypt and temporall Pharaoh the Christians the memoriall of their deliverance from the spirituall Egypt and spirituall Pharaoh But might not will you say the Christian as well have observed the Jewish for his seventh day as the day he doth I answer No he might not For in so doing he should seem not to acknowledge his Redemption to be already performed but still expected For the deliverance of Israel out of Egypt by the Ministery of Moses was intended for a type and pledge of the spirituall deliverance which was to come by Christ their Canaan also to which they marched being a type of that heavenly inheritance which the redeemed by Christ do look for Since therefore the shadow is now made void by the comming of the substance the relation is changed and God is no longer to be worshipped and beleeved in as a God foreshewing and assuring by types but as a God who hath performed the substance of what he promised And this is that which S. Paul means Colossians 2. 16 17. where he saith Let no man judge you henceforth in respect of a Feast day New Moon or Sabbath days which were a shadow of things to come but the body is of Christ. 1. CO◠〈◊〉 5. Every woman praying or prophecying with her head uncovered dishonoureth her head I Have chosen this of the woman rather then that of the man going before it for the Theme of my Discourse First because I conceive the fault at the reformation whereof the Apostle here almeth in the Church of Corinth was the womens only not the mens That which the Apostle speaks of a man praying or prophecying being by way of supposition and for illustration of the unseemlinesse of that guise which the women used Secondly because the condition of the sex in the words read makes something for the better understanding of that which is spoken of both as we shall see presently What I intend to speak upon this Text shall consist of these two parts First of an enquiry what is here meant by prophecying a thing attributed to women and therefore undoubtedly some such thing as they were capable of Secondly what was this fault for matter and manner of the women of the Church of Corinth which the Apostle here reproveth To begin with the first and which I am like to dwell longest upon Some take prophecying here in the stricter sense to be foretelling of things to come as that which in those Primitive times both men and women did by the powring out of the Holy Ghost upon them according to that of the Prophet Ioel applied by S. Peter to the sending of the Holy Ghost at the first promulgation of the Gospel I will powre out my Spirit upon all flesh and your sons and daughters shall prophecy and your young men shall see visions And that such Prophetesses as these were those four Daughters of Philip the Euangelist whereof we read Acts 21. 9. Others take prophecying here in a more large notion for the gift of interpreting and opening Divine mysteries contained in holy Scripture for the instruction and edification of the hearers especially as it was then inspired and
of thy life And I will put enmity between thee and the woman and between thy seed and her seed It shall bruise thy head and thou shalt bruise his heel 414 MALACH 1. 11. For from the rising of the Sun even unto the going down of the same my Name shall be great among the Gentiles and in every place Incense shall be offered unto my Name and a pure offering for my Name shall be great among the Heathen saith the Lord of Hosts 471 Four other Treatises by the same Author formerly Printed viz. 1. The Name ALTAR or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 THPION 2. CHURCHES that is Appropriate places for Christian Worship 1 COR. 11. 22. Have ye not Houses to eat and drink in 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Or despise ye the CHVRCH of God 31. B. 3. The Reverence of GODS HOVSE ECCLESIASTES 5. 1. Look to thy foot or feet when thou commest to the House of God and be more ready to obey then to offer the sacrifice of fools for they know not that they doe evill 81. B. 4. Daniels WEEKS DAN 9. 24 25 26 27. 24. Seventy Weeks are allotted for thy people and for thy holy City to finish transgression and make an end of sins and to make reconciliation for iniquity and to bring in everlasting righteousnesse and to fulfill Vision and Prophecy and to anoint the most Holy 140. B. 25. Also know and understand that from the going forth of the Commandement to cause to return and to build Ierusalem unto MESSIAH the PRINCE shall be Sevens of Weeks even threescore and two Weeks the street shall be built again and the Wall even in a strait of Times 146. B. 26. And after threescore and two weeks shall MESSIAH be cut off but not for himself and the people of the Prince that shall come shall destroy the City and the Sanctuary and the end thereof shall be with a floud and unto the end of the Warre Desolations are determined 158. B. 27. And he shall confirm the Covenant with many for one Week and in the midst of the Week he shall cause the Sacrifice and the Oblation to cease and for the overspreading of Abominations he shall make it desolate even untill the consummation and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate 163. B. A CONTINVATION OF CERTAIN DISCOVRSES ON Sundry Texts of SCRIPTURE LUKE 2. 13 14. 13. And suddenly there was with the Angel a multitude of the heavenly Host praising God and saying 14. Glory be to God on high or in the highest and on earth peace good will towards men AT the Creation of the world when God laid the foundations of the earth and stretched out his line thereon the stars in the morning as God himself describes it Iob 38. 7. sang together and all the sons of God that is the holy Angels shouted for joy This in my Text is so like it that a man would think some new Creation were in hand nor were it much wide of truth to affirm it for if ever there were a day wherein the Almighty Power the incomparable Wisdom the wonderfull Goodness of God again the second time appeared as it did at the worlds Creation it was this day whereof S. Luke our Euangelist now treateth when the Son of God took upon him our flesh and was born of a Virgin to repair the breach between God and man and make all things new The news of which restauration was no sooner heard and made known to the Shepheards by an Angel sent from heaven but suddenly the heavenly Host descended from their celestiall mansions and sung this Carol of joy Glory be to God on high welcome peace on earth good-will towards men A Song renowned both for the singularity of the first example for untill this time unlesse it were once in a Propheticall Vision we shall not finde a Song of Angels heard by men in all the Scripture and from the custome of the Church who afterward took it up in her Liturgy and hath continued the singing thereof ever since the days of the Apostles untill these of ours Yet perhaps it is not so commonly understood as usually said or chaunted and therefore will be worth our labour to inquire into the meaning thereof and hear such instructions as may be learned therefrom Which that we may the better do I will consider first the Singers or Chaunters The heavenly Host Secondly the Caroll or Hymne it self Gloria in excelsis Deo Glory be to God on high c. For the first the heavenly host here spoken of is an Army of holy Angels For the Host of Heaven in the language of Scripture is twofold Visible and Invisible The Visible Host are the Stars which stand in their array like an Army Deut. 4. 19. Lest thou lift up thine eies saith the Lord there unto heaven and when thou seest the Sun Moon and Stars even all the Host of heaven shouldst be driven to worship and serve them The Invisible Host are the Angels the heavenly Guard according to that of Micaiah 1 King 22. 19. I saw the Lord sitting upon his Throne and all the Host of heaven standing by him on his right hand and on his left So Psal. 103. Blesse the Lord ye his Angels that excell in strength that do his Commandements Blesse the Lord all ye his Hosts ye ministers of his that do his pleasure Where the latter words do but vary that which is expressed in the former From this it is that the Lord Jehovah the true and only God is so often styled the Lord or God of Sabaoth or of Hosts that is King both of Stars and Angels according to that Nehem. 9. Thou art God alone and the Host of Heaven worshippeth thee By which Title He is distinguished from the Gods of the Nations who were some of the Host to wit of the Stars or Angels but none of them the Lord of Hosts himself For the same reason and with the same meaning and sense in the Books written after the Captivity he is styled Deus coeli the God of heaven as in Ezra Nehemiah Daniel in which Books together with the last of Chronicles the title of Deus Sabaoth is not to be found but the title of Deus Coeli only and as may seem taken up for some reason in stead of the other But to return to what we have in hand It was the Angelicall Host as ye hear who sang this Song of joy and praise unto the most High God And wherefore For any restitution or addition of happinesse to themselves No but for Peace on Earth and Good-will towards men He that was now born took not upon him the Nature of Angels but of men He came not into the world to save Angels but for the salvation of men Nor was the state of Angels to receive advancement in glory by his comming but the state of men and that too in such a sort as might seem to impeach the dignity and dimme the lustre of those
excellent creatures when an inferiour nature the nature of man was now to be advanced into a Throne of Divine Majesty and to become Head and King not only of men but of the heavenly Host it self O ye blessed Angels what did these tidings concern you that ruined mankinde should be restored again and taken into favour whereas those of your own Host which fell likewise remained still in that gulf of perdition whereinto their sin had plunged them without hope of mercy or like promise of Deliverance what did it adde to your eminent Dignity the most excellent of the creatures of God that the Nature of man should be advanced above yours that at the Name of Iesus every knee should bow of things in Heaven and things in Earth and things under the Earth The Observation therefore which this Act of the Angels first presents unto us is the ingenuous goodnesse and sweet disposition of those immaculate and blessed spirits in whose bosomes Envy the Image of the Devil and deadly poison of charity hath no place at all For if any inclination to this cankered passion had been in these heavenly creatures never such an occasion offered nor greater could be to stir it up to envy But heaven admits of no such passion nor could such a torment consist with the blissefull condition of those who dwell therein It is the smoke of that bottomlesse pit a native of hell the character and cognisance of those Apostate Angels which kept not their first estate but left their own habitation and are reserved for chains of everlasting darknesse These indeed grieve no lesse at the happinesse of men then the Angels joy witnesse the name of their Prince Satan which signifies the Fiend or malicious one who out of envy overthrew mankinde in the beginning out of envy he and all his fellow-fiends are so restlesse and indefatigable to seduce him still The Use of this Observation will not be far to seek if we remember the admonition our Saviour hath given us in the prayer left unto his Church which is To make the Angels the pattern of our imitation in doing the will of our heavenly Father for so he teacheth us to pray Let thy will be done in earth as it is done in heaven that is Grant us ô Lord to do thy will here as thy holy Angels do it there And as we should imitate them in all things else so in this affection towards the happinesse and prosperity of others And good reason I think if we mean at all to approve our selves unto God our Father why we should endeavour rather to be like unto them then unto Devils But in nothing can we be more like them then in this to rejoyce at the good and not repine at the happinesse of our brethren Hoc enim Angelicum est This is the Character of the Angelicall nature and consequently of those who one day shall have fellowship with them To be contrarily affected Diabolicum est the badge and brand of Devils and Fiends and those who wear their Livery reason good they should keep them company Let every one therefore examine his own heart concerning this point that he may learn upon what terms he stands with God and what he may promise himself of the blessednesse to come Do the gifts of God Doth his favour or blessing vouchsafed to thy brother when thou seest or hearest of them torment and crucifie thy soul Dost thou make their happinesse thy misery Is thine eye evill to thy Brother because Gods is good If this be so without doubt thy heart is not right before God nor doth his Spirit but the spirit of Devils or Fiends reign therein But if the contrary appear in any reasonable measure with a desire to increase it for we must not look to attain the perfection of Angels in this life but in some measure and degree only if thou canst rejoyce at anothers good though it concerns not thy self the Spirit of God rests upon thee For emulations and envyings saith the Apostle Gal. 5. are the fruits of the flesh but the fruits of the Spirit are 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 kindnesse and goodnesse So he cals the opposite vertues to those former vices But as any good that betides our brother ought to affect us with some degree of joy and not with grief and envy so chiefly and most of all his spirituall good and that which concerns his salvation ought so to do This was that the holy Angels praised God for in my Text on the behalf of men that unto them a Saviour was born who should save them from their sins and reconcile them unto God Which sweet disposition of those good and blessed spirits our Saviour himself further witnesseth when he saith Luk. 15. 17. There is joy in heaven namely among the holy Angels for one sinner that repenteth But is there any man will you say such a son of Beliall as will not do this will not imitate the holy Angels in this Judge ye There is an evil disease which commonly attends upon Sects and Differences in opinion that as men are curious and inquisitive into the lives and actions of the adverse party so are they willing to finde them faulty and rejoyce at their fals and slips hear and relate them with delight namely because they suppose it makes much for their own side that the contrary should by such means be scandalized and the Patrons and followers thereof disreputed But should that be the matter of our grief whereat the Angels joy or that the matter of our joy whereat the Angels grieve How is this to do our Fathers will on earth as the Angels do in heaven Nay if this be not to put on the robes of darknesse and to shake hands with hellish fiends I know not what is O my soul come not thou into their secret unto their assembly mine honour be not thou united There is another Lesson yet more to be learned from this act of the Angels namely that if they glorifie God for our happinesse and the favour of God towards us in Christ much more should we glorifie and magnifie his goodnesse our selves to whom solely this Birth and the benefit of this Birth redounds If they sing Glory be to God on high for his favour toward men we to whom such favour is shown must not hold our peace for shall they for us and not we for our selves No the Quire of heaven did but set us in we are to bear a part and it should be a chief part since the best part is ours As therefore the Church in her publick Service hath ever since kept it up so must every one of us in particular never let it goe down or dye on our hands Thus much of the Quaere Now come we to the Antheme or Song it self whose contents are two First the Doxology or Praise Glory be to God on high Secondly a gratulation rendring the reason thereof Because of
be truly honest unlesse he be Religious so cannot that man what shew soever he makes be truly religious in Gods esteem who is not honest in his conversation toward his neighbour Religion and Honesty must be married together or else neither of them will be in truth what it seems to be We know that all our duty to God and our neighbour is comprehended under the name of love as in that summe of the Law Love God above all things and thy neighbour as thy self This is the summe of the whole Law contained in both Tables But S. Iohn tels us 1 Ep. 4. 20. He that saith I love God and hateth his brother is a lier which is as much as if he should say He that seems religious towards God and is without honesty towards his neighbour he is a lier there is no true religion in him If you would then know whether a man professing Religion by diligent frequenting Gods service and exercises of devotion keeping sacred times and hearing Sermons be a sound Christian or not or a seeming one onely this is a sure and infallible note to discover him and for him to discover himself by For if notwithstanding his care of the duties of the first Table he makes no conscience to walk honestly towards his neighbour If he be disobedient to Parents and lawfull Authority if he be cruell and uncharitable if he be unjust in his dealings fraudulent an oppressor a falsifier of Covenants and promises a backbiter a sclaunderer or the like his Religion is no better then an hypocrites For such was the Religion of many of the Pharisees whom therefore our Saviour termeth Hypocrites Woe unto you Scribes and Pharisees hypocrites They were scrupulous in the duties of the first Table they paid tithe even of mint and annise they fasted twice a week they were exact observers of the Sabbath and other ceremonies of Religion but judgement mercy and faith in their conversation towards men our Saviour tels them they regarded not Besides our Saviours woe denounced against such there are two dangerous effects which accompany this evil disease which should make us beware thereof First those who are addicted to Religion without any conscience of honesty are easily drawn by the Devil to many intolerable acts under colour and in behalf thereof as they imagineâ— We see it in the Papists and Jesuits whose preposterous zeal to their Religion makes them think Treasons Murders Rebellions or any other such wicked acts are lawfull and excusable so they be done for the good of the Catholique cause as they call it And if we search narrowly amongst our selves we shall light upon some examples of indirect and unlawfull courses undertaken otherwhile on the behalf of Religion and all through want of this conscionable care of maintaining honesty towards our neighbour together with our zeal for Religion toward God Even as we see an horse in some narrow and dangerous passage whilest he is wholly taken up with some bugbear on the one side of the way which he would eschew and in the mean time mindeth not the other side where there is the like danger he suddenly slips into a pit or ditch with no small danger to himself and rider So is it here with such as look onely to the first Table and minde not the second whilest they go about as they think to advance the duties of the one they fall most foully in the other The second evill is a most dangerous scandall which follows profession of Religion without honest conversation towards men It is a grievous stumbling block and stone of offence making men out of love with Religion when they see such evil effects from it and those who seem to professe it Those who are not yet come on are skared from comming resolving they will never be of their Religion which they see no better fruits of Those who are entred are ashamed and discouraged forsaking the duties of Religion that they might shun the suspition of hypocrisie and dishonesty But woe be unto them by whom scandall commeth Let us all therefore take heed to adorn and approve our profession by bringing forth fruits not onely of piety and devotion toward God but of works of righteousnesse and charity to our neighbour ACTS 10. 4. And he said unto him Thy prayers and thine Almes are come up for a memortall before God or as it is ver 31. are had in remembrance WHen the Jews had crucified our blessed Saviour the Lord and Prince of Life though their impiety were most horrible and such as might seem to admit of no expiation or atonement yet would not God for that reject them but after he was risen from the dead his Apostles and Messengers were sent to offer and tender him once more unto them if so be they would yet receive him as their Messiah and Redeemer which was promised to come telling them that what they had formerly done unto him God would passe by it namely according to our Saviours prayer upon the Crosse Father forgive them for they know not what they doe as done of ignorance on their part whilest himself was by the dispensation of his Providence fulfilling that which was long before spoken by the mouth of all his Prophets that Christ or Messiah should suffer death All which you may reade in the Sermon which S. Peter preached unto them in the Temple Acts 3. Thus the Lord shewed himself according to his style A God gracious and mercifull long-suffering and slow to anger But when these Jews notwithstanding this second tender not only continued in their former obstinacy refusing to accept him for their Redeemer but also misused and persecuted his Ambassadors sent unto them this their ingratitude was so hideous and hainous in the eyes of God that he could bear with them no longer but resolved thenceforth to cast them off and choose himself a Church among the Gentiles To prepare a way whereunto he sent a Vision much about the same time both to Peter who was then by reason of the Jews persecution fled to Ioppa and to Cornelius a Gentile Captain of the Italian Band living at Caesarea upon that coast ordaining the one Peter to be the Messenger and Preacher and the other Cornelius to be the first Gentile which should be partaker of the faith of Christ Therefore accordingly Peters Vision was to admonish him not to make scruple as all Jews did of conversing with a Gentile as unclean signified by a sheet let down from heaven wherein were all manner of four-footed beasts of the earth and wild beasts and creeping things and fowls of the aire that is of all both clean and unclean wherewith came also a voice saying Peter kill and eat Whereunto when Peter answered Not so Lord for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean the voice replies What God hath cleansed that call not thou unclean Now as this Vision was to give Peter commission to go unto Cornelius so was
Cornelius his Vision to command him to send for Peter For he saw a Vision at the ninth hour of the day an Angell of the Lord comming unto him and saying Cornelius Whom when Cornelius looked on being afraid he said What is it Lord The Angel said unto him Thy prayers and thine almes are come up for a memoriall or had in remembrance before God And now send men to Ioppa and call for one Simon whose sirname is Peter and he shall tell thee what thou oughtest to doe And thus have I brought the Story as far as my Text which is as you see a part of this Message of the Angel to Cornelius namely his Report And he said unto him Thy prayers and thine almes c. Wherein two things are to be considered First who was the man and what was the condition of this person to whom the Angel spake namely Cornelius And the Angel said unto him Secondly what the Message or Report he brought importeth Thy prayers and thine almesdeeds are come in remembrance before God To begin with the first The man here spoken to as you may read in the beginning of the Chapter and as I have in some part told already was Cornelius a Gentile Captain of the Italian Band at Caesarea and so no doubt himself of that â—…tion To understand which ye must know that at tâ—… 〈◊〉 the Land of Jury like as most other Nations were was under the Romane Empire and ruled by a President of their appointing which President had his Court and Seat at Caesarea a great and magnificent City upon the Palestine coast some seventy miles from Jerusalem where was continually a guard of Souldiers both for the Presidents safety and awing the subdued Jews And among these was our Cornelius a Commander being Captain of the Italian Band. But howsoever he were by race and breeding a Gentile yet for Religion he was no Idolater but a worshipper of the true God the God of Israel or God the Creator of heaven and earth For the Text tels us that he was a devout man and one that feared God with all his house who gave much almes to the people and prayed to God alway which is as much as to say he was a Proselyte for so were those converted Gentiles called who left their false Gods and worshipped the true Yet was he not circumcised nor had taken upon him the yoke of Moses Law and so was not accounted a member of the Church of Israel wherefore according to the Ordinances of the Law he was esteemed unclean and so not lawfull for Peter or any other circumcised Jew to accompany with him had not God given Peter an Item that he should thenceforth call no man unclean for as much as that badge of separation was now dissolved For the better understanding of this we must know there were while the legall worship stood two sorts of Proselytes or converted Gentiles One sort which were called Proselytes of the Covenant These were such as were circumcised and submitted themselves to the whole Mosaicall paedagogy These were counted as Jews and conversed with as freely as those which were so born But there was a second sort of Proselytes inferiour unto these whom they called Proselytes of the Gate These were not circumcised nor conformed themselves to the Mosaicall Rites and Ordinances onely they were tyed to the obedience of those Commandements which the Hebrew Doctors call the Commandements of Noah that is such as all the sons of Noah were bound to observe which were first to worship God the Creator Secondly to disclaim the service of Idols Thirdly to abstain from blood namely both from the effusion of mans blood and fourthly from eating flesh with the blood therein Fifthly to abstain from fornication and all unlawfull conjunction Sixtly to administer justice and seventhly to abstain from robbery and do as they would be done to And such Proselytes as these howsoever they were accounted Gentiles and such as with whom the Jews might not converse as being no free denizens of Israel yet did they yeeld them a part in the life to come Such a Proselyte was Naaman the Syrian and of such there were many in our Saviours time and such an one was our Cornelius Hence it was that when afterward there arose a controversie in the Church Whether or no the Gentiles which beleeved were to be circumcised and so bound to observe the Ordinances and rites of Moses S. Peter in the Councell of the Apostles at Jerusalem determined It was the will of God they should not and that upon this ground because Cornelius the first beleeving Gentile was no circumcised Proselyte but a Proselyte of the Gate only and yet neverthelesse when himself was sent as ye have heard to preach the Gospel of Christ to him and his house the Holy Ghost came down upon them as well as upon the Circumcision whereby it was manifest that God would have the rest of the Gentiles which beleeved to have no more imposed upon them then Cornelius had and accordingly the Councell concluded that no other burden should be laid upon them but onely those precepts given to the sons of Noah To abstain from pollutions of Idols from blood from things strangled and from fornication and the rest which they had received already in becomming Christians and so needed not to be expresly mentioned Now that I may not seem to have held you with so long a story without some matter of instruction Let us observe by the example of this Cornelius how great a favour and blessing of God it is to live and dwell within the pale of his Church where opportunity and means of salvation is to be had If Cornelius had still dwelt among his Countrimen the Italians where he was bred and born or in any other Province of that Empire he had in all likelihood never come to this saving and blessed knowledge of the true God but dyed a Pagan as he was born But by this occasion of living at Caesarea within the confines of the land of Israel where the Oracles and worship of the most high God were dayly resounded and professed he became such an one as ye have heard a blessed Convert unto the true God whom with all his house he served and worshipped with acceptation If this be so then should we our selves learn to be more thankfull to God then most of us use to be for that condition wherein by his Providence we are born for we might if it had pleased him have been born and had our dwelling among Pagans and Gentiles who had no knowledge of his word and promise and such our Nation once was But behold his goodnesse and mercy we are born of Christian Parents and dwell in a Christian Country and so made partakers of the name and livery of Christ as soon as we were born How great should our thankfulnesse be for his mercy Nay wee might have been born and bred in a Christian Nation too and yet
the use of the things themselves Vrim is Light and Illumination Thummim Integrity and Perfection By Vrim the Jews were ascertained of the counsell and will of God By Thummim of his favour and good will towards them All this agrees to Christ both in himself and in regard of us In himself his brest is full of Vrim full of Light and Understanding in him dwell all the treasures of Wisdome and Knowledge as S. Paul saith He is the Wisdome of the Father by which the world it self was made His heart is also endowed with Thummim with all kind of Perfections He was conceived without Originall sin lived without Actuall sin fulfilled the whole Law of God which is the Law of Thummim the Law of all Perfection Thus to Christ himself agrees both Vrim and Thummim and so it doth also in regard of us for he is an Vrim and Thummim both to us and for us To us he is Vrim a light which enlightneth every one which commeth unto the world He is the light which shone in darknesse but the darknesse could not comprehend it He was that light by which the people as it is said in Matthew 4. which sate in darknesse saw great light And of this Light Iohn came to bear witnesse that all might beleeve in him Ioh. 1. In summe Christ is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Patris the Word and Oracle of his Father by whom we know and learn the Fathers will for so S. Iohn saith cap. 1. No man hath seen God at any time but the Son who is in the bosome of the Father he hath revealed him unto us Neither is Christ only an Vrim but also a Thummim to us For as by Thummim the Jews were ascertained of Gods favour toward them in accepting their Sacrifice so by Christ comming in the flesh is revealed the unspeakable mercy of God to mankind in that he would accept his Sacrifice once offered for the expiation of the sins of the whole world This is that Good-will toward men which the Angels sung of assoon as he was born Glory be to God on high peace on earth and good-will towards men Yea glory be to God on high for this peace on earth and for this good will towards men Thus we see Christ an Vrim and Thummim to us now let us see how he is the same for us and that is when his wisdome and righteousnesse is made ours by imputation So his Vrim becomes our Vrim his Thummim our Thummim that is his wisdome is made ours his righteousnesse and favour with God made ours for this is my welbeloved Son said a voice from heaven in whom I am well pleased In brief S. Paul comprehends both these together where he saith Christ Iesus is made unto us Wisdome Sanctification and Redemption And so Lord let thy Vrim and thy Thummim be with thy holy one And thus much for the speciall consideration of this Vrim and Thummim both personally and typically Now I come unto the generall meaning thereof as it concerns not the High Priest only but the whole Tribe of Levi for this is the blessing of that whole Tribe And in this large respect the meaning cannot be proper for so it belongs unto the High Priest to have Vrim and Thummim nor typicall because the Priests only and not the under Levites were types of Christ but the sense must be analogicall signifying some endowments common to all Levites which resemble the Vrim and Thummim upon the brest of the High Priest Now what these are the words themselves import namely Light of understanding knowledge this is their Vrim and Integrity of life this is their Thummim The first makes them Doctores the second Ductores populi He that wants either of these two wants the true ornament of Priesthood the right character of a Levit. For though these endowments may well beseem all the Tribes of Israel yet Moses specially prays for them in Levi because by him they were to come to all the rest and the want of them in him could not but redound to all the rest It a populus sicut sacerdos the Priest cannot erre but he causeth others to erre also the Priest cannot sin but he causeth others to sin also And this is it that Malachi saith from the Lord unto the Priests of his time Ye are gone out of the way and have caused many to fall by the Law But the Levites of old saith the same Prophet The Law of Truth was in their mouth and iniquity was not found in their lips they walked with God in peace and equity and turned many from iniquity Here you see when the Levites erre the people erre also when the Levites walk in equity the people are turned from iniquity The Ministers of Christ must be Lux mundi the light of the world Vos estis lux mundi ye are the light of the world ye are the worlds Vrim saith Christ unto his Apostles for the lips of the Priest should preserve knowledge and they should learn the Law at hâ—s mouth This light of knowledge this teaching knowledge is the Vrim of every Levite and therefore Christ when he inspired his Apostles with knowledge of heavenly mysteries he sent a new Vrim from above even fiery tongues tongues of Vrim from heaven He sent no fiery heads but fiery tongues for it is not sufficient for a Levite to have his head full of Vrim unlesse his tongue be a candle to shew it unto others There came indeed no Thummim from heaven as there came an Vrim for though the Apostles were secured from errors they were not freed from sin And yet we who are Levites must have such a Thummim as may be gotten upon earth for S. Paul bid Titus in all things to shew himself an example of good works and this is a Thummim of Integrity But besides this Thummim the Ministers of the Gospel have received from God more especially another Thummim like unto that which was proper to the High Priest namely the power of binding and loosing which is as it were a power of Oracle to declare unto the people the remission of their sins by the acceptance of Christs Sacrifice And this directly answers to Thummim in the first sense ACTS 5. 3 4 5. 3. But Peter said Ananias Why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the holy Ghost and to purloin of the price of the Land 4. Whiles it remained was it not thine own and after it was sold was it not in thy power why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart Thou hast not lied unto men but unto God 5. And Ananias hearing these words fell down and gave up c. IN the 110. Psalm where our Saviour is Prophetically described in the person of a King advanced to the Throne of Divine Majesty glorious and victorious The Lord said unto my Lord Sit thou on my right hand till I make thine enemies thy footstool
it were done ignorantly but if wittingly and presumptuously there was no atonement appointed for it though for other sins there be even to perjury it self For as it is in Mal. 3. 4. Will a man rob his God Another proof and testimony of the hainousnesse of this sin is that so ancient a custome in Dedications todade it with a curse which to be no late custom as some may suppose taken up among Christians but used both by Jew and Gentile before Christ was born may appear by that Decree of K. Darius for the building of the Temple of Jerusalem which concludes with this execration The God that hath caused his name to dwell there destroy all Kings and People that shall put to their hand to destroy this house of God which is at Ierusalem I Darius have made a Decree let it be done with speed Ezra 6. 12. From this custome it came that Anathema signifies such a Donary given unto a Temple and an accursed thing or that which hath a curse with it So 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in Hebrew a thing cursed and destined to destruction and also a kinde of offering or consecration which had a curse laid upon it namely a curse to him that should meddle with it Which kinde of consecration had this peculiar that even the very individuall might never be altered changed or redeemed upon any terms Levit. 27. 28. whereas other offerings might so that a valuable thing or better were given for them Such a consecration I mean a Cherem or consecration under pain of a curse in the very individuall was that of the City Iericho as the First-fruits of the conquests of Canaan To these Arguments I will adde two or three examples to this of Ananias of the punishment of this sin and so conclude To begin then with the beginning of all Was not the first sin of Mankinde for which himself his posterity and the whole earth was accursed a great and capitall sin But this if we look well into it was no other for the species and kind of the Fact then Sacriledge Such the ancient Jews conceived Adams sin to have been namely a species of theft as may be gathered out of the Book De morte Mosis where Moses is brought in deprecating death and answering God that his case was not such as Adams for he transgressed by stealing and eating what God forbad him to meddle with and so was justly condemned 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 But who could Adam steal from save from God only And therefore I say the first sin of mankinde for the Fact was the sin of Sacriledge For whereas among all the trees of the Garden which God gave man freely to enjoy there was one Noli me tangere which he had reserved unto himself as holy in token he was Lord of the Garden Man by eating of this as common violated the sign of his Fealty unto the great Landlord of the whole Earth and committed Sacriledge for which he was cast out of Paradise and the whole earth accursed for his sake Might I now say that to this day many a son of Adam is cast out of his Paradise and the labours of his hands accursed for medling with this forbidden fruit But to go on Achan for nimming a wedge of gold and a Babylonish garment of the devoted thing of Iericho aforementioned brought a curse both upon himself and the whole Congregation of Israel For the Sacriledge of Eli's sons who not content with those offerings which God allowed them for their maintenance robbed him of his Sacrifices to furnish their own Tables God gave not only his people but even the Ark of his Covenant into the hands of the Philistins For the Sacriledge of the seventh or Sabbaticall year God caused his people to be carried captive and the land lie waste 70. years By the Law of Moses every seventh year the whole land was sacred unto the Lord so that no man that year might challenge any right of propriety either to sow his field or prune his vineyard or reap that which grew of it self or gather the fruits of his vineyard undressed only he might eat thereof in the field as at other times any might of that which was none of his as he travelled by otherwise every mans field and vineyard was that year free as well to the Servant as the Master to the Stranger as the Owner to beasts as well as to men The same year also were all servants and all debts sacred unto the Lord and so to be released whence that year was called The Lords Release See Exod. 21. Levit. 25. Deut. 15. This consecration being as much as the forgoing of the seventh part of every mans profits the covetous Jews for many years neglected the observation thereof For which sin the Lord as himself professeth caused them to be carried captive and the land to lie waste seventy years without Inhabitant till it had fulfilled the years of Sabbath which they observed not For their Idolatry he gave them into the hands of the Gentiles their enemies for their Sabbaticall Sacriledge hee added this unto it that they should beside their bondage be carried captives into a strange Countrey and their land lie desolate 70. years For the Sacrilegious profanation of Belshazzar in causing the Vessels of Gods House to be made his Quaffing-bowls for himself and his Lords his Wives and his Concubines to carouse in was the hand writing upon the wall sent which did so affright him that the Text says His countenance was changed and his thoughts troubled him so that the joynts of his loyns were loosed and his knees smote one against another And the same night Gods vengeance light upon him Dan. 5. Lastly in the days of the Greek Kings God gave his own Temple and worship to be profaned and his people to be trodden under foot by Antiochus Epiphanes a Gentile King because they themselves had a little before profaned the same with sacrilegious hands having betraid the Treasures and Offerings of the same unto a Gentiles coffers and sold the sacred Vessels to the Cities round about them 2 Mac. 3 4. 5. cap. JOEL 2. 17. Let the Priests the Ministers of the Lord weep between the Porch and the Altar and say Spare thy people ô Lord and give not thine heritage to reproach THese words are part of a description of a Fast as the Context before and after will tell you and they contain a Rite or Custome wont to be used in such solemne deprecations namely for the Priests of the Lord who are to be the Intercessors and Mouth of the Congregation not then as at other times to enter into the Temple to offer and sanctifie with Incense the prayers of the people at the Golden Altar before the vail but to prostrate themselves without the door between the Porch and the Altar of burnt-offering as unworthy to approach the Throne of the Divine Majesty or come over his Threshold and therefore
always some one wherein they demurre whether they should resolve to yeeld to or not if occasion should be offered Many will fortify themselves very strongly against the assaults of bribery of covetousnesse of theft of promise-breaking of drunkennesse but as concerning their lust they are unresolved what to do if a temptation should assault them so in others there is some other inclination but slenderly guarded when for the rest they could glory how strongly they are fortified But we must know that when the Devil comes to assault us he will passe by us where we are strength and attempt us only there where our weaknesse lies and then we shall find all our labour lost and all our other strength to have stood us in little stead For what wil it boot to guard the wals of our City never so strongly if but one part be left unguarded for the enemies to enter Is not all the enemies A Ship though in other parts never so sound will sink if but one leaking hole be left unstopped Let us therefore survey our hearts diligently and finding where we lie exposed to danger there most to strengthen our selves with resolution And thus I come to the second respect why the Devil made choice of the woman namely because of the vehemency of her husbands affection towards her so that to have gained her was to have gotten him also for he seemed to think that her strength in her husbands affection was more powerfull to prevail with him then his subtile motives were to overcome him and indeed the event prov'd he was not much deceiv'd Hence we are to observe that the Devil taketh advantage of the vehemency of our passions to work our overthrow if he once finde these to fasten his hold by he then thinks he may lead us whither he list To have gained our affections is as it were to have gotten a party within which is a dangerous advantage to further the invasion of an enemy especially when most of our passions are our favorites which we can deny nothing they ask and if they be once bribed will work us wholly to the dispose of our arch-enemy That we may not therefore afford the Devil this advantage and as it were reach him a rope to hang us withall it behoves us so to govern and temper our passions and affections that they transport us not into the Devils jurisdiction which that we may the better do it will not be unfit to set down some rules for performance thereof First therefore it is best to resist our passions at the beginning and to use the same policy which Pharaoh did with the Israelites that they might not over-run his Country in killing all their infants as soon as they were born While the sore is green Surgeons seldom despair but festered once they hardly cure it So it is with the passions of our minde when they are first growing they are soon curbed but being a little entertained they will hardly be subdued The second means is to inure our selves to crosse our passions when there is no danger and to bridle our selves sometimes from ordinary and lawfull desires that we may do it with more ease when we are in danger for how can he hope to be able to master his passions when dangerous temptations assault him who never used them to it in the time of his security We know that men who would fit themselves for the Wars will practice in the time of peace when there is no enemy near and will toil and labour when they might be at rest will lie hard when they may command a soft bed will watch when they might sleep and all to make themable to indure the like when they shall have need the like must we do that we may get an habit to crosse and subdue our passions when we shall have need The third means is to fly occasions which may incense the passions whereunto we are inclined Occasiones faciunt latrones saith the Proverb Occasion makes him a theef which else might have been an honest man wherefore he that commits himself to Sea in a boisterous tempest is worthy to suffer shipwrack and he that willingly puts himself in the company of infected persons may blame himself if he fall into their diseases Lastly but chiefly when thy passions are most vehement then seek for succour from heaven fly under the wings of Christ as the chickens under the hen when the kite seeks to devour them beat at the gates of mercy and crave grace to overcome thy misery He is thy Father and will not give thee a Serpent if thou ask him Fish humble thy self before him open thy sores and wounds unto him and the good Samaritan will pour in both wine and oyl and thy passions shall melt and fall away as clouds are dispelled and consumed by the Sun VERSE 14. And the Lord said unto the Serpent c. THese words contain in them the Serpents doom and destiny pronounced upon him by the great Lord of Heaven and Earth They contain in them two parts First the reason of this sentence in the words Because thou hast done this Secondly the sentence it self in the words following Thou art cursed above all cattell c. The reason of this heavy doom is Because he had done this What This namely because he had beguiled the man and woman which God had made and caused them to transgresse his great commandment He therefore that is the cause and occasion of anothers sin is as hatefull to God as the door and is liable to as great or rather a greater punishment then he for the Serpent here for causing hath this doom as well as the man and woman for doing Nay which is to be observed his doom is the first read unto him as if he were the archoffender and not to the man or woman till he was done with What should this mean but that his fault being the mover was more grievous in the eyes of God then theirs which is the reason also why the woman comes in the next place to have her sentence because she had been a sin-maker and was guilty not only of her own personall sin but of her husbands also whence the man who had sinn'd only himself and not caused others to sin had his judgement last of all I might also confirm the same from the quality of their severall judgements in that the Serpent alone is doom'd to be accursed and no such word spoken either of the man or the woman But I shall not need to tarry here to prove how horrible and fearfull a thing it is to be the author of anothers sin We know they are the words of our Saviour Mat. 18. 6 7. Wo unto the world because of scandals and woe unto the man by whom a scandall commeth it were better for him that a milstone were hanged about his neck and that he were drowned in the depth of the Sea And S. Paul 1 Cor. 8.
even to continue him in that accursed and vile condition to which he had dejected him For food is for the repairing and preservation of nature and the goodnesse and badnesse thereof doth make the temper of the body better or worse Hence according to the degrees of excellency in the creatures their food is finer or courser Plants suck the moisture of the earth beasts live most upon plants but man of the flesh of cattell fowl and fishes Since therefore the Serpent was to have no better fare then the dust of the earth as it argues the basenesse of his nature which can with such food be nourished so doth it necessarily imply his continuance in that his dejection and vilenesse whereas otherwise it were not impossible because his nature for the essence is still the same it was if his diet were as it had been for him to improve himself more near to his primitive temper then now he is But God who had decreed he should ever remain under this malediction appointed also the means to retain him therein VERSE 15. And I will put enmity between thee and the woman c. THE third and last particular remains to be treated of I will put enmity between thee and the woman c. This no doubt intendeth in some things more directly the spirituall Serpent then the brute yet for the generall it may and ought as well as the rest to be expounded of the brute Serpent as a glasse wherein to behold the malice and destiny of the other the Devil It containeth two parts The Enmity and the Event and managing thereof For the enmity how it is verified concerning the brute Serpent experience telleth It is some part of the happinesse of the creature to be the favourite of man who is the Lord thereof what honour could betide it greater then this But between the Serpent and Man is the most deadly enmity and the strongest antipathy that is amongst the beasts of the field Such an one as discovereth it self both in the naturall and sensitive faculties of them both For the first their humours are poison each to other the gall of a Serpent is mans deadly poison and so is the spittle of man affirmed to poison the Serpent For the sensitive antipathy it appears in that the one doth so much abhorre the sight and presence of the other mans nature is at nothing so much astonished as at the sight of a Serpent and like enough the Serpent is in like manner affected at the sight of man And that more especially as the Naturalists affirm of a naked man then otherwise As though his instinct even remembred the time of his malediction when he and naked man stood before God to receive this sentence of everlasting enmity And whereas the words of the Text do in speciall point out the woman in this sentence of enmity the Naturalists do observe that is greater and more vehement with that sex then with the male of mankinde Insomuch that Rupertus affirmeth that if but the naked foot of a woman doth never so little presse the head of a Serpent before he can sting her both the head and body presently dieth which no cudgell or other weapon will do but that some life and motion will still remain behinde Hoc saith he ita est ipsorum qui per industriam exploraverunt fide relatione comperimus Lib. 3. de Trin. c. 20. You know my Author The remaining words of my Text do expresse the managing and event of this enmity which is far more dangerous and unlikely on the Serpents part then on Mans for man is able to reach the Serpents head where his life chiefly resideth and where a blow is deadly but as for the Serpent he shall not be able to prevail against man otherwise then privily and unawares and that but in his lowest part namely when he shall passe him unseen to sting him by the heel And that this is the nature of a Serpent it appeareth in the words of Dans blessing Gen. 49. Dan shall be a Serpent by the way an Adder in the path that biteth the horse heels so that his rider shall fall backward And to make an end of this discourse also it is a thing to be observed in the nature of a Serpent that assoon as he perceiveth man ready to throw or strike at him he will presently roul his body for a buckler to save his head even as though he had some impression of that doctrine which God here read him in my Text Ipse conteret tibi caput Beware thy head And thus hitherto I have considered these words as they are the curse of the brute Serpent now I am to go over with them again to shew how they are propounded unto us by God as a glasse wherein to behold the Devils malediction the Serpent being made now the discovery of his vilenesse which once he abused for a mask to hide it from the woman As therefore the Serpent is the most accursed of all the cattell and beasts of the field so is the Devil the most accursed spirit amongst all orders and degrees of spirits namely of the highest of Angels become the abjectest of spirits more base accursed then the most cursed damned soul having little or nothing left him of that good which was sutable to a spirituall condition and this is the state of the Devil for the generall answerable to that of the Serpent Now for the particulars The first is Vpon thy brest shalt thou go How doth this befit the Devil The Devil hath no bodily brest to go upon But as I shewed in the Serpent that this groveling signified the abasement of his whole nature from his primitive excellency so in the Devil it signifies his stooping down and falling from his most sublime and glorious condition A wonderfull stoop this was when that which had been advanced as high as heaven was made to fall down as low yea lower then the earth it self This is the Devils going upon his brest this the groveling of that once so highly reared posture according to that description of Iude ver 6. who cals them the Angels that kept not their first estate but left their own habitation agreeable to that of S. Peter 2 Ep. c. 2. v. 4. God spared not the Angels that sinned but cast them down to hell The second particular is The dust of the earth shalt thou eat all the days of thy life The food wherewith spirits are fed is analogicall spirituall and not corporall we must therefore here seek out that which in them hath the fittest resemblance with corporall food The life of Angels consists in the continuall contemplation of the excellent greatnesse wonderfull goodnesse and glorious beauty of the essence of God both as it is in it self and as it is communicated unto his creatures This is that which our Saviour intimates Mat. 18. 10. Their Angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven The
they deny him The Jews offering was prophane and polluted because it proceeded not out of a due beleef and a conscience throughly perswaded of the greatnesse of their God that he was the Creator and Lord of the whole earth but rather some petty and particular god like the gods of other Nations But the Gentiles who should see him not onely the God of one Nation but universally acknowledged over all the earth should have no such reason to doubt but firmly beleeve him to be the Great God Creator of heaven and earth and worship him as such and so their offering be a pure offering not polluted with unbelief And it is to be observed that all the ancient Christian Liturgies begin with this acknowledgement For the summe of the Eucharisticall Doxologie when the Bread and Wine is first presented before God is comprehended in that of the Apocalypse Thou art worthy O Lord to receive glorie honour and power for thou hast created all things and for thy pleasure they are and were created And to this way of interpreting the purity of the Christian sacrifice to wit from the conscience and affection of the offerers the Fathers mostly bend Irenaeus lib. 4. cap. 34. Sacrificia non sanctificant hominem non enim indiget Deus sacrificio sed conscientia ejus qui offert sanctificat sacrificium pura existens Quoniam igitur cum simplicitate Ecclesia offert justè munus ejus purum sacrificium apud Deum deputatum est And a little after Oportet enim nos oblationem Deo facere in omnibus gratos inveniri fabricatori Deo insententia pura fide sine hypocrisi c. Neither is Tertullian whom I alledged before for the other interpretation averse from this for in his fourth Book Con. Marc. c. 1. Sacrificium mundum that is saith he simplex oratio de conscientia pura But this conscientious purity they seem to restrain at least chiefly to freedom from malice as that singular puritie whereby this Christian sacrifice is differenced from that of the Jew because none can offer it but he that is in charity with his brother according to that in the Gospel When thou bringest thy gift unto the Altar and remembrest thy brother hath ought against thee go first and be c. And therefore in the beginning of this Christian service the Deacon was anciently wont to cry 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Let no man have ought against his brother and then followed osculum sanctum the kisse of reconciliation Thus the Fathers of the first Councell of Nice took Sacrificium purum as appears Can. 5. where they expound 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that which is offered omni simultate deposita But according to this exposition the puritie of the Christian sacrifice will not be opposite to the pollution of the Iewish in the same kinde as it would if more generally taken but in another kinde and so the sense stands thus You will not offer me a pure offering but the Gentiles one day shall and that with a puritie of another manner of stamp then that my Law requires of you And thus I have told you the two wayes according to which the ancients understood this puritie and I prefer the latter as I think they did But there is a third Interpretation were it backt by their Authority which I confesse it is not which I would prefer before them both and I think you will wonder with me they should be so silent therein Namely that the title of Puritie is given to the Christian Mincha in respect of Christ whom it signifies and represents who is a sacrifice without all spot blemish and imperfection This the Antithesis of this sacrifice to that of the Jews might seem to imply For the Jews are charged with offering polluted Bread upon Gods Altar whereby what is meant the words following tell us If you offer the blind for sacrifice is it not evill And if you offer the lame and sick is it not evill And in the end of the Chapter Cursed be the deceiver who hath in his flock a male and voweth and sacrificeth to the Lord a corrupt thing Now if the sacrifice of the Gentiles be called pure in opposition to this is it not so called in respect of that most perfect unblemisht and unvaluable sacrifice it represents Iesus Christ the Lamb of God I leave it to your consideration SECTION 3. HAving absolved the two first things I propounded given you a definition of the Christian sacrifice and explained the words of my Text I come to the third and longest part of my task to prove each particular contained in my Definition by the testimonies and authorities of the Fathers and writers of the first Ages of the Church The Particulars I am to prove are in number six First That this Christian service is an Oblation and expressed under that Notion by the utmost Antiquity Secondly That it is an Oblation of Thanksgiving and Prayer Thirdly An Oblation through Iesus Christ commemorated in the creatures of Bread and Wine Fourthly That this Commemoration of Christ according to the style of the ancient Church is also a Sacrifice Fiftly That the Body and Blood of Christ in this mysticall Service was made of Bread and Wine which had first been offered unto God to agnize him the Lord of the Creature Sixtly That this Sacrifice was placed in Commemoration onely of Christs sacrifice upon the Crosse and not in a reall offering of his Body and Blood anew When I shall have proved all these by sufficient Authority I hope you will give me leave to conclude my Definition for true That the Christian sacrifice ex mente antique Ecclesiae was An Oblation of Thanksgiving and Prayer to God the Father through Iesus Christ and his sacrifice Commemorated in the creatures of Bread and Wine wherewith God had first been agnized SECT I. LEt us begin then with the first That this Christian service is an Oblation and under that Notion expressed by all Antiquitie The names whereby the Ancient Church called this Service are 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i. Oblatio Sacrificium 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a word if rightly understood of aequipollent sense 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Sacrificium Mediatoris sacrificium Altaris Sacrificium precis sacrificium Corporis sanguints Christi It would be infinite to note all the Places and Authors where and by whom it is thus called The four last are S. Augustins 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 are to be found with Iustin Martyr and Irenaeus whose antiquitie is the Age next the Apostles But you will say the Fathers even so early had swarved from the style of the Apostolick Age during which these kinde of terms were not used as appears by that we finde them not any where in their Epistles and writings But what if the contrary may be evinced that this language was used even while the Apostles yet lived For grant they are neither found in
frequent as I shall not need to quote any of them Now this joining of the Prayers of the Church with the mysticall commemoration of Christ in the Sacrament of his Body and Blood was no after-Invention of the Fathers but took its originall from the Apostles times and the very beginning of Christianity For so we reade of the first beleevers Acts 11. 24. that they were 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which the Vulgar Latine turns Erant autem perseverantes in doctrina Apostolorum communicatione fractionis panis orationibus But the Syriack Perseverantes erant in doctrina Apostolorum communicabant in Precatione fractione Eucharistiae hoc est Assidui erant in audiendis Apostolis sacrificio Christiano celebrando Both which Translations teach us that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Breaking of Bread and Prayers are to be referred to 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as the Exegesis thereof namely that this Communion of the Church consisted in the breaking of Bread and Prayers and so the conjunction 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to be exegetically taken as if the Greek were rendred thus Erant perseverantes in audienda doctrina Apostolorum in communicatione videlicet fractione panis orationibus And who knows not that the Synaxis of the ancient Christians consisted of these three parts Of hearing the Word of God of Prayers and commemoration of Christ in the Eucharist Our Translation therefore here is not so right which refers 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and translates it The fellowship of the Apostles The Antiquity also of this conjunction we speak of appears out of Ignatius in his Epistles to the Ephesians where speaking of the damage which Schismaticks incurre by dividing themselves from the communion of the Church he utters it in this manner Let no man saith he deceive himself unlesse a man be within the Altar he is deprived of the Bread of God And if the prayer of one or two be of that force as to set Christ in the midst of them how much more shall the joynt prayer of the Bishop and whole Church sent up unto God prevail with him to grant us all our requests in Christ These words of Ignatius directly imply that the Altar was the place as of the Bread of God so of the publick Prayers of the Church and that they were so nearly linked together that he that was not within the Altar that is who should be divided therefrom had no benefit of either SECT III. THE second Particular thus proved the third comes next in place which is That this oblation of thanksgiving and Prayer was made through Iesus Christ commemorated in the creatures of Bread and Wine Namely they beleeve that our blessed Saviour ordained this Sacrament of his Body and Blood as a Rite to blesse and invocate his Father by in stead of the manifold and bloody Sacrifices of the Law For that those bloody Sacrifices of the Law were Rites to invocate God by is a truth though not so vulgarly known yet undeniable and may on the Gentiles behalf be proved out of Homer and other Authors on the Jews by that speech of Saul 1 Sam. 13. 12. when Samuel expostulated with him for having offered a burnt-offering I said saith he The Philistims will come down upon me to Gilgal and I have not made supplication to the Lord I forced my self therefore and offered a burnt-offering upon which place Kimchi notes that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 hoc est Per manus holocaustorum precatio eorum ut plurimùm vel preces suas ut plurimùm per holocausta Deo offerebant The same is likewise true of their Hymns Doxologies as is to be seen 2 Chro. 29. 27. and by the words of the Chaldee Paraphrast Ionathan upon Exod. 38. 8. concerning the women that assembled at the doore of the Tabernacle Stabant saith he mulieres quae veniebant ad orandum in Porta Tabernaculi juxta oblationem elevationis suae laudabant confitebantur deinde revertebantur ad viros suos pariebant filios justos It is further confirmed for Invocation in generall by that which the Scripture so often reports of Abraham and Isaak That they built Altars where they called upon the Name of the Lord The Altar was a place for Sacrifice In stead therefore of the slaying of Beasts and burning of Incense whereby they called upon the Name of God in the Old Testament the Fathers I say beleeved our Saviour ordained this Sacrament of Bread and Wine as a Rite whereby to give thanks and make supplication to his Father in his Name The mystery of which Rite they took to be this That as Christ by presenting his Death and satisfaction to his Father continually intercedes for us in Heaven so the Church on Earth semblably approaches the Throne of Grace by representing Christ unto his Father in these holy Mysteries of his Death and Passion Veteres enim saith Cassander in hoc mystico sacrificio non tam peractae semel in cruce oblationis cujus hic memoria celebratur quam perpetui Sacerdotii jugis sacrificii quod in Coelis sempiternus Sacerdos offert rationem habuerunt cujus hic Imago per solennes Ministrorum preces exprimitur This a Reverend and famous Divine of blessed memory once of this Society and interr'd in this place saw more clearly or exprest more plainly then any other Reformed Writer I have yet seen in his Demonstratio Problematis and title de Sacrificio Missae where he speaks thus Veteres Coenam Domini sen totam coenae actionem formulam vocarunt Sacrificium tum aliis de causis tum quia est commemoratio adeóque repraesentatio Deo Patri sacrificii Christi in cruce immolati He goes on Hoc modo fideles etiam inter orandum Christum offerunt Deo Patri victimam dum scilicet mente affectúque ad sacrificium ejus unicum feruntur ut Deum sibi habeant faciántque propitium that which every Christian doth mentally and vocally when he commends his prayers to God the Father through Jesus Christ making mention of his death and satisfaction that in the publick service of the Church was done by that Rite which our Saviour commanded to be used in Commemoration of him These things thus explained Let us now see by what testimonies and authorities it may be proved the ancient Church had this meaning I will begin with Saint Ambrose because his testimony is punctuall to our explication Offic. lib. 1.mo cap. 48. o Ante saith he Agnus offerebatur offerebatur vitulus nunc Christus offertur sed offertur quasi homo quasi recipiens passionem offert se ipse quasi sacerdos ut peccata nostra dimittat hic in imagine ibi in Veritate ubi apud Patrem pro nobis quasi advocatus intervenit And in his Missa or Liturgie after the confractorium the Priest prayes in this manner Ipsius praeceptum est Domine