of Ierusalem knew very well that in the first yeare of Darius of the seede of the Medes as also of Cyrus king of Persia these seuentie yeares were expired Whereupon he turneth hymselfe vnto the Lord with fasting and in sackcloth and ashes making his confession and praying O Lord God which art great and fearefull and keepest couenant and mercy toward all them whiche loue thee and toward them whiche keepe thy commandementes but wee haue sinned and haue committed iniquitie and haue done wickedly yea we haue rebelled and haue departed from thy preceptes and from thy iudgementes For we would not obey thy seruaunts the prophetes which speake in thy name to our kinges to our princes to our fathers and to all the people of the land O Lord righteousnesse belongeth vnto thee to vs open shame as appeareth this day vnto euery man of Iuda and to the inhabitantes of Ierusalem yea vnto all Israel both neere and farre off through all the countries whither thou hast driuen them because of their offences that they haue committed agaynst thee O Lord vnto vs appertaineth open shame to our kinges to our princes and to our fathers because we haue sinned agaynst thee Yet compassion and forgiueuesse is in the Lord our God albeit we haue rebelled agaynst him For we haue not obeyed the voyce of the Lord our God to walke in his lawes which he had layd before vs by the ministerie of his seruantes the prophetes Yea all Israel haue transgressed thy law and are turned backe and haue not heard thy voyce therefore the curse is powred vppon vs and the othe which is written in the lawe of Moses the seruant of God because we haue sinned agaynst hym and hee hath confirmed his wordes which he spake agaynst vs agaynst our iudges that iudged vs by bringing on vs a great plague for vnder the whole heauen hath not bene the like as hath bene brought vpon Ierusalem All this plague is come vpon vs as it is written in the lawe of Moses yet made wee not our prayer before the Lord our God that we might turne from our iniquities and vnderstand thy trueth therefore hath the Lord made readie the plague and brought it vpon vs. For the Lord our God is righteous in all his workes which he doth for we would not heare his voyce And now O Lord our God that hast brought thy people out of the land of Egypt with a mightie hand and hast gotten thee renowne as appeareth this day wee haue sinned we haue done wickedly yet O Lord according to all thy righteousnesse I beseeche thee let thine anger and thy wrath be turned away from thy citie Hierusalem thine holy mountaine for because of our sinnes and for the iniquities of our fathers Ierusalem and thy people are a reproche to all that are about vs. Now therefore O Lord our God heare the prayer of thy seruant and his supplications and cause thy face to shine vpon thy sanctuary that lyeth wast for the Lords sake O my God incline thine care and heare open thine eies and behold our desolations and the citie wherupon thy name is called for we doe not present our supplications before thee for our owne righteousnes but for thy great tender mercies O Lord heare O Lord forgiue O Lord consider and doe it deferre not for thine owne sake O my God for thy name is called vpon thy citie and vpon thy people So here you see a prayer framed vpon a sounde grounde and squared by that iust rule of Moses and according to the forme of that by Salomon with full assurance beeing done according to that rule that the Lord would shewe himselfe a righteous iudge and therefore whiles hee was speaking and praying and confessing his own sinnes and the sinnes of his people Israel and presenting his supplications before the Lord his God for the holy mountaine of his God euen while he was thus praying which was about the time of the euening oblation came the Angel Gabriel vnto him to giue knowledge and vnderstanding of their deliuerance and not onely how that at the very beginning of his supplications the commaundement came forth to returne them from Babylon but also that from that very houre the former seuentie yeares were to be multiplied by seuen and then should Christ the king the most holy be killed and not for himselfe but to confirme the couenant of olde made for the many of all nations that would imbrace the same By the bloud of which couenant they should be freed from confusion and redeemed not onely from the bondage of the outward but also of the spirituall Egypt and Babell and which bloud beeing shed for the remission of sinnes and for a reconciliation of all their iniquities should cause all sacrifice and oblation to cease So that here this welbeloued prophet who alwayes abode constant in the true worship of his God notwithstanding the rage of the enimie was shewed the summe and effect of all Moses and was also heard in that which he required for the Lord euer in wrath remembring mercy doth also at this time remember his mercie and promise of old made vnto their fathers and so bringeth them to the holy hill of Sion agayne euen to that freshe springing mountaine from whence suche gratious streames of doctrine continually issued as were sufficient if rightly vsed to coole the intollerable heate of all the soules that euer were or shalbe in y e world thither I say were these Iewes the people of God agayne brought And from whence Euen from a most filthy pit that without any such water which deliuerance was so great and myraculous as that from this time forward they were not to say any more the Lord liueth that brought the Children of Israel out of the land of Egypt but the Lord liueth that brought them out of the land of the North and from all the landes where he had scattered them yea it was so strange and so farre beyond their expectation as that when it came to passe they were euen like vnto men that dreamed or as men amased at so sodayn a decree and their mouthes were then filled with laughter and their toonges with ioy yea they confessed that the Lord had done great and woonderfull thinges for them But full soone doe they forget it for notwithstanding all this his great mercy and iudgementes shewed vnto them yet still they rebelled agaynst hym prophaning his holy Sabbaothes agayne and making them dayes of marchandice and also ioyned themselues with strang women of y â— land contrary to the law yea they greatly neglected the worke of his holy temple and citie saying The time is not yet come that y â— Lordes house should be built but they thought it was high time to build for themselues that so they might be setled againe in their sieled houses though the Lordes house lay wast Wherfore he was
heard of this We perceiue now that God hath also graunted vnto the Gentiles repentance vnto lyfe So that the necessitie of this poynt is farre greater then I can wel declare because men are geuen generally to thinke that yf they can frame them selues to do well as they tearme it and to mortifie the lustes of the fleshe that that is the onely thing the Lorde requireth and accepteth of but they are marueylously deceyued For the Lorde delighteth more that men shoulde haue the sounde knowledge of him then he doth in all the workes which we call good be they neuer so many by vs perfourmed for yf it stoode onely vpon good workes and mortification wherewith the Lorde woulde be pleased I am sure you can not denie but that all the people in the worlde were then in as good case one as an other For who can deny but that the verie Insidels for outwarde actions behaue them selues as well as men can do and yet notwithstanding they go to eternal destruction And why Because they know not God in Christ. For this is an eternall rule whch you are bounde to holde that is that who soeuer knoweth not the Sonne of God nor beleeueth in him shal neuer see lyfe but the wrath of God abydeth on him Therefore yf you be one of those which loue eternall lyfe you must haue an earnest minde to know him aright that so your beliefe in him may stande most firme and constant and then assure your selfe you haue perfourmed the chiefest worke that God requireth at your handes For when the people demaunde of our Sauiour what they shoulde do whereby they myght worke the workes of God His answere is that they shoulde Beleeue in him whom the Father had sent for that in deede was the onely worke that God required at their handes as he also telleth them Agayne when the keeper of the Prison demaundeth of Paule and Silas what he shoulde do whereby he might be saued Their answere is in like maner that yf he woulde beleeue in the Lord Iesus Christ he shoulde then be saued Now it may be you wyll say vnto me in this place yf that be all in all to beleeue in him what neede you then to bestowe such long speech in this poynt For we beleeue in the Lord Iesus and know well enough that all the workes in the worlde will not helpe vs vnles we do so Then must I say vnto you agayne yf it be so that you do beleeue in him as you say you do it must folow then of necessitie that you haue a minde to knowe him for those that beleeue in Christe the Sonne of God the Lord hath geuen a minde to knowe him sayth the Apostle Iohn therfore if you haue an earnest minde to be increasing in the knowledge of the Sonne of God then may you safely say that you are one of those that do beleeue in him and then agayne yf you be one of those that do stedfastly beleeue in him you haue then perfourmed the chiefest worke that God requireth at your handes yea then haue you also learned true mortification in deede otherwyse you haue it not For true mortification consisteth not only in humilitie or in not sparing of the body or in not satisfiyng of the fleshe to fulfill the lustes thereof Neyther do good workes as you see onely consist in the doing of that which is required vnto men for so the Papistes and many others as the forenamed woulde goe before you in that kinde but they both consist chiefly in the soundnes of your knowledge which you ought to haue of the Sonne of God Therefore whereas the most part of people are brought to this passe that is euen to thinke that yf they can say they do beleeue in Christ and learne withall to bring foorth the fruites of a christian lyfe which is to feede the hungrie to cloath the naked to visit the sicke to relieue the prisoners to do vnto all men as they woulde be done vnto and to mortifie the lustes of the flesh all which in deede are their dueties concerning the seconde Table and therefore worthy of commendation for so much But whereas they are brought to this passe I say which is to thinke that yf they can performe these thinges that they haue then performed the only thing the Lord requireth they are greatly deceyued for the Lorde requireth a great deale further matter at their handes then so For knowe you not the answere of our Sauiour vnto the Ruler who had asked what he might do to inherite eternall lyfe yf you do not this is it Yet lackest thou one thing sayth our Sauiour Now what this one thing was that he then lacked I wyll shew you First then the Ruler demaunding of our Sauiour what he myght do to inherite eternall lyfe and our Sauiour reciting the dueties of the seconde Table and he replying that he had kept them all euen from his very youth Our Sauiour trieth him then with a further and more chiefer poynt that is with his duetie concerning the fyrst Table and telleth him playnely that he lacked one thing yet and that in deede the most chiefest thing of all which was his loue towardes our Sauiour Christ and therefore sayth our Sauiour vnto him Sell all that thou hast and come and folowe me thinking thereby to try his obedience towardes the first Table that is to see whether he did so loue the Lorde in hart mynde and soule as that he coulde be contented to leaue all that he had and folow him as Abraham Moses Dauid Daniel and diuers others in the Gospell did but when he came to that poynt the case was altered whereby you may playnely see that yf men neuer so well performe their dueties concerning the seconde Table and yet misse therein as touching the chiefest poynt of the fyrst it profiteth them nothing at all Therefore this is the marke the which most earnestly I do shoote at euen this to haue you and all men well to know that the Lorde requireth most chiefly your whole duetie as touching the fyrst Table which is not fulfilled onely in saying there is but one God Father Sonne and holy Ghost nor in saying you beleeue to be saued by the seconde person in the trinitie but you must well knowe that the Lorde doth also require a most intire loue to be shewed towarde him that is he wyll haue you to loue him euen with all your hart with all your minde with all your soule with all your strength the which loue can in no wyse be so greatly expressed as when you haue a most earnest desire to heare his voyce and when as rather then you woulde be hindered from the hearing thereof by worldly matters you woulde rather be contented to forsake them all Therefore it is not enough onely to say you know this or beleeue that but you must shewe a willing minde to know beleeue according
if you will knowe agayne what this preaching was it was no more but euen this Blessed be the Lord God of Sem. And tenne ages after that an other In thy seede O Abraham shall all the nations of the earth be blessed Now out of all doubt two meruellous short Sermons as possible can be heard and yet so full of vertue and grace that whosoeuer wroung out the iuice therof and applied it to his sores found euerlasting lyfe thereby but he that trode them vnder foote a biting Serpent whose sting was vnto eternall death and destruction The iudgements of God vpon the Israelits in the time of their being in the wildernes and also vpon their successors vnto the time of Samuel and Saule THus you see then the louing kindnes of the Lord towards the Israelites the seede of Abraham the seede of Sem in that he deliuered them from the Iron furnace the lande of Egypt the house of bondage according to his promise made vnto Abram which was That they should be straungers in a lande that was not theris where they should be afflicted and euill intreated for the space of foure hundreth yeeres But in the ende he woulde iudge that nation and bring them againe to the lande of Canaan in the fourth generation euen so it came to passe For all the host of Israell came out of the lande of Egypt by the blood of a Lambe figuring the seede that was promised to Abraham euen the selfe same day foure hundreth and thirtie yeeres before by whose bloud they were deliuered from that spirituall Pharaoh the Diuell Yet notwithstanding all this this grudging Israell the sonnes of Iacob the seede of Abraham who had seene the meruellous workes of God in the land of Egypt and his wonders in the fielde of Zoan and howe he had brought them thence as vpon the winges of an Eagle and howe he went before them by day in a pyller of a cloude to leade them the way and by night in a pyller of fire to giue them light and how he came downe vpon mount Sina and spake vnto them from heauen and gaue vnto them right iudgements and true lawes ordinaunces and good commaundements and declared vnto them his holy Sabothes and commaunded them precepts ordinances and lawes by the hand of Moses his seruaunt and how he gaue them bread from heauen for their hunger and brought foorth water for them out of the rocke for their thirst and how he rayned flesh vpon them as dust and fethered foule as the sande of the Sea and how he suffered them to lacke nothing for theyr clothes waxed not olde and their feete swelled not And all this hee did to teach them that man liueth not by bread onely but by euerie worde that proceedeth from him Yet notwithstanding I say all these his great benefites bestowed vpon them full soone did they forget his noble actes and the woonderfull workes that he had shewed them and styll they rebelled agaynst him yea full often did they prouoke him in the wyldernesse and greeue him in the Desart they made a Calfe in Horeb and woorshyped the molten Image and thus they turned their glorie into the similitude of a Calfe that eateth Haye Wherefore his wrath was so greatly kindled agaynst them that the fyre burnt vp the wicked yea they prouoked hym so greeuously in misbeleeuyng styll his worde that he swore in his wrath that onely two of sixe hundreth thousande shoulde enter into his rest which by the tyme that fourtie yeeres was expired in the Wildernes their chyldren whom they had sayd shoulde be a pray for the enimie they I say sawe the performaunce of this othe For they saw this wicked company consumed and their Carkeises ouerthrowen in the Wildernesse So that not one of the sixe hundreth thousande was left saue Caleb the sonne of Iephunneh and Ioshua the sonne of Nun. Here then might you pause a lytle and consider with your selfe of the ingratitude of man and how that yf the Lord shoulde deale with vs according to our desertes we shoulde be sure to fynde that we shoulde deserue no better then here you see because as the Apostle sayth these men are euen as very stampes of our owne natures But because I would not haue you to tarry in this Booke I wyl proceede to the rest that when you haue heard all you may consider the drynes of your owne soule and so get you with all speede to the fountayne it selfe wherein you may drinke yf you wyll euen your fyll of those waters of lyfe the which sprang out of the Rocke that here folowed them and also learne to auoyde that vnholsome pit of mistrust the which became vnto them their onely poyson Agayne then when as now it had pleased the Lord to bryng in the younger sort as all vnder twentie by Ioshua or Iesus euen into the borders of his Sanctuarie and to the holy Mountayne which his right hand had purchased that so he myght perfourme his promyse made vnto their fathers and had cast out the Heathen before them and geuen them their possessions and lykewyse had fylled them with all good thinges in great abundance although not of theyr owne desertes Iwis but through his great goodnes Yet notwithstanding they also became disobedient and rebelled agaynst the Lord and cast his heauenly Lawes behinde their backes yea they tempted and prouoked him and kept not his testimonies but turned backe and dealt falsly lyke vnto their fathers yea they turned euen lyke vnto a deceitfull Bowe So that he gaue them vnto the handes of most cruell oppessours that greatly vexed them as vnto the Aramites Moabites Canaanites Midianites Ammonites and the Philistimes Yea they prouoked him to anger in such sort with their high places and moued him to wrath with their grauen Images that in the ende he greatly abhorred Israel euen so farre as that in the dayes of Ely he forsooke the habitation of Shilo euen the Tabernacle where he dwelled amongst them and so he deliuered his power the Arke so called into captiuitie and his beautie into the enimies handes Yea he gaue vp his people to the sworde and was marueylous angrie with his owne inheritaunce For sixe tymes now since they came into the Land had the Lorde suffered them to be most cruelly oppressed by the a forenamed So that here we may say agayne O beholde both the louing kindnes and the seueritie of the Lord. His louing kindnes towardes Israel whyle they tooke good heede vnto the couenaunt that he the Lorde their God made with them and his seueritie when so euer they began to tempt Christ in not obeying his voyce according as the Lord had tolde them Now yf you wyll know in what sort Christe was preached vnto them that they were thus destroyed for not obeying his voyce The answere is euen in as
againe so displeased with them notwithstanding all their pretence of zeale and shewe of holynesse that they were but as a polluted an vncleaue people in his sight yea all the workes of their handes and that which they offered was vncleane in the sight of the Lord so that hee caused the heauen ouer them to stay it selfe from dewe and the earth stayed her fruit for when they had sowen much they brought little in yea and when they came to their heapes of twentie measures they found but ten and to their wine presses thinking to draw out fiftie vessels they found but twentie and thus the Lord smote them with blasting with Meldewe and with Hayle in all the labours of their handes and onely to teache them to looke better vnto his holy worde that so they myght obey his wyll And yet for all this would they not try thereby wherein they had done amisse but thinke they shoulde well please the Lorde yf they wept and fasted in the first and seauenth moneth as they had done the seauenty yeeres before which was a thing that the Lord had not neyther would now approue but telleth them they shoulde rather geue care vnto his worde which by the ministerie of his Prophetes he had delyuered vnto them But in steade thereof they harden their hartes and geue stoute wordes agaynst the Lord saying It is in vayne to serue God and what profit is it that we haue kept his commandementes and walked humbly before him Doe we not see that the proude are blessed and that euen they that worke wickednes are set vp ouer vs and how they that tempt God are delyuered As yf they shoulde haue sayd Do we not see that the Babylonians reigned ouer vs for seauentie yeeres and then we were deliuered But what are we the better for that for all the tyme since the Medes and Persians reigne and rule ouer vs. And lykewyse we are cursed in all the labours of our handes But whereas they shoulde haue looked into the booke of God to see the cause of all this they are as men blynde Yea and although the Lorde geue them a speciall commaundement euen in the last elause of the olde Testament to remember the lawe of Moses which shoulde leade them as it were by the hand vnto Christe euen to that Angell of the couenaunt whom they desired to beholde yet most rebelliously do they reiect the same and so growe worse and worse euen tyll at length they become Pharisees Sadduces and such like beastes wherefore the Lord suffereth most vyle beastes lyke vnto them selues to reigne styll ouer them euen vntyll the comming of his sonne our Sauiour into the worlde And then who so blynde as the Prophet speaketh as they for whereas he that Worde which in the beginning commaunded all thinges to haue a beeing was nowe become Fleshe and dwelt amongst them whose glory they might haue behelde as the glory of the only begotten Sonne of the father full of grace and trueth yet woulde they not receyue him no although he were the day spring which was now come from on high to visite them and the true lyght which lighteneth euery man that commeth into the worlde yet loued they darknes more then lyght and to walke in the shadow of death rather then in the way of lyfe yea and although he were that true King of Israel by whom they should haue had delyuerance not onely from their mortall enimies but also from their spirituall euen hell and death and also that hygh Sacrificer whose priesthoode was not made after the lawe of the carnall commaundement but after the power of the endles lyfe euen that most holy and iust one which was seperate from sinners and was now come to enter for them not into the holy places made with handes but into the true Sanctuarie euen the very Heauen it selfe and there to appeare in the sight of God to make intercession for them yet woulde they not acknowledge him so to be but despised him and most shamefully reiected him counting him most base and vile and had no desire at all vnto him but drew away their shoulders and became styfnecked and of vncircumcised hartes and eares yea a generation of very Uypers still stopping their eares like deafe Adders and hardening their hartes agaynst him vntyll at length they vtterly denied him to be their king in the presence of Pylate the Romane gouernour saying We haue no king but Caesar. And so ioyne with the Romans to crucifie the king of Glorie euen the Lord of life whō Pylate as bad as he was could not chuse but confesse him to be their king and also to pronounce him guiltlesse and to say he could finde no cause at all of death in him yea and although the diuels themselues coulde not chuse but confesse him to be that holy one of God yet desired they rather to haue Barrabas a murtherer giuen them then the Lord of life saying Let hym be crucified let him be crucified and let his bloud be vpon vs and vpon our children for euer And so according to their owne wish it befell them for moste woefull curses hath the Lord pronounced agaynst them and his wrath as the Apostle sayth is come on them euen to the very vttermost and hath scattered them as vagabondes detested ouer the whole earth for before that generation passed they fell on the sword of the Romaines who as with a floud wrought a finall consummation of them their citie and sanctuarie euen to vtter desolation according as our Sauiour standing on mount Oliuet had told them and referred them to Daniel the ninth saying When you see the abhomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel standing in the holy place Let them that read it consider of it that is when you see Ierusalem besieged by the abhominable campe of the Romaine infidels then knowe that your destruction is neere which before that age passed came to passe euen those dayes of vengeance of wrath and of great distresse to that land and people So that here we may say especially with the Apostle O behold both the louing kindnesse and the seueritie of the Lord his louing kindnesse towards the sonnes of Abraham so long as they continued in the fayth of Abraham his seuere seueritie so soone as they became bastardes reuolting from the fayth of Abraham for as our sauiour colde them if they had bene the sonnes of Abraham they ◅ould haue done the works of Abraham that is they would haue beleeued in him as Abraham did but sayth he you goe about to kill me and so did not Abraham but contrariwise he saw my dayes and greatly reioyced yea and many others desired greatly to haue seene these dayes that you see and would also haue reioyced but you seeing will not see and hearing so manie testimonies giuen of me ye◅ will
the booke of God whether this my vnskilfull draught woulde drawe you I shall thinke my laboure well bestowed and you your selfe shall remayne no longer as that lytle Syster which hath no brestes but you shall be lyke that flocke of Sheepe where not one is barren amongst them and as that florishyng Tree fast planted by the Riuer side whose leafe shall euer shew it selfe most fresh and greene euen to the bringing foorth of fruite in great abundance And moreouer you shall be then as a Pillar in the house of the Lorde your God and also as the Towre of Dauid most strongly buylt for your owne defence and shall continually remayne in the eyes of this Salomon as one that findeth peace The which peace the Lord graunt you may speedely inioy Amen Yours in the Lorde R. C. The reason why all Creatures ought to prayse the LORD and why Man ought so to do aboue the rest WHereas the holy Prophet prouoketh the Heauens and all thinges therein the Earth and Sea also with all thinges therein to prayse the Lorde he yeeldeth a reason why they ought so to doo and that is for that he spake the worde and they were created he commaunded and they were made And therfore because that all creatures haue their breath and beeing by him as the Apostle sayth the Prophet calleth them all to sounde foorth the prayse and glory of their Creator but especially he vrgeth Man to aduance the same aboue the rest because that he most chiefly aboue all others was thereunto appoynted For the Lorde speaking of his chosen Israel sayth This people haue I formed for my selfe and therefore sayth he They shall shew foorth my prayse and glory as also Moses taught them that vnto that ende and purpose they were chosen And lykewyse the Lorde speaking of the callyng of the Heathen from all quarters of the earth to be his Sonnes and Daughters in Christ Them also saith he haue I created for my glory and to none other ende but that they shoulde shew foorth his prayse amongst the rest as in diuers places of scripture may be seene So that for this cause were all the holy Prophetes and Apostles so much moued to call vpon Man to set foorth the prayse and glory of God and not onely because he was thereunto appoynted but also so much the more for that he hath done for him such wonderful and excellent thynges as first to elect him in Christ vnto saluation before the foundation of the worlde was layde Secondly to create him in so glorious an estate euen after his owne image and lykenes and as Lorde and King ouer all his creatures Thirdly to redeeme his soule from the iawes of Satan with the precions blood of Christ his Sonne as of a Lambe without spot and vndefiled Fourthly to exalt his horne on high euen to syt with his Sonne in the heauenly and highest places Fifthly to sanctifie and to endue him with his holy spirite whereby he may be led into all trueth Sixthly to lade him dayly with his manifolde and gratious benefites And seuenthly to sanctifie one day of seauen for his owne glory and to the ende that man shoulde rest from his owne workes and be workefull vnto God in geuing due prayse and thankes vnto him for the former benefites receyued And therefore as the holy Prophet sayth Let all them that seeke the Lord reioyce and be glad in him and let them that loue his saluation alwayes say The Lord be praysed Man ought dayly to consider for what cause the Lord shoulde so bountifully deale with him and beholding the Heauens be driuen thereby to confesse his owne duetie SEeing that the Lorde hath created Man to none other ende but to shew foorth his prayse and glory and seeing that he ladeth him dayly with his gratious benefites to the ende to induce him therunto O that men woulde therefore enter into deepe meditation with the holy Prophet and so consider with them selues yea and consider agayne and agayne that when they beholde the Heauens euen the workes of Gods fingers the Sunne the Moone and Stars which he hath ordeyned what man shoulde be that he shoulde be so mindfull of him yea or what sonne of Adam he shoulde be that he shoulde thus consider of for he hath made some one to haue dominion ouer the workes of his handes and hath put all thinges in subiection vnder his feete Surely therefore I wyll seeke him out to whom this glory doth belong and I wyll also seeke the cause why the Lord hath thus aduaunced me For he hath geuen me the vse of all these his goodly creatures and therefore once agayne say I What is man O Lorde that thou shouldest deale in this sort with him Surely thou hast thus aduaunced him for some great purpose and I can see none other ende but to aduaunce thy prayse and glory and that in the highest degree for when as I behold the Heauens I see that they haue neither toonge nor voyce and yet I see that they declare thy glory and the Firmament doth shew forth the workes of thy handes Day vnto day vttereth the same thing and nyght vnto nyght teacheth such knowledge there is no speach nor language where their sounde is not heard and surely to none other intent but that men shoulde be without excuse Wherefore I for my part wyll dayly say as the holy Prophet did My soule prayse thou the Lord and al that is within me prayse his holy name My soule prayse thou the Lord and forget not all his benefites Yea and I wyll also call and say Let all the nations prayse the Lorde and let all the people shew foorth the glory of God euen their saluation If man be styrred vp by all the workes of God to consider his owne duetie which is to prayse the Lord it must not be according to his owne fantasie but according to the rule of Gods worde NOW we haue considered that all the workes of God do set foorth his prayse and glory and that man is bounde thereunto aboue the rest we must consider one thing farther with the holy Prophet which is this My lippes sayth he shall speake thy prayse when thou hast taught me thy Statutes Therefore when you haue learned them then may you set foorth the prayse and glory of God in such sort as he shall like of but otherwyse it is vnpossible you should for notwithstanding Moses was brought vp in all the learning of the Egyptians yet he confesseth him selfe to be ignorant concerning the worshyp of the Lord vntyll such time as he shoulde be directed by his owne most perfect worde How much more then ought we to confesse great ignorance therein vntil such time as we also shal be directed by the same Moreouer for as much as no prayse or worshyp is accepted in the sight of the Lord but such as
shalbe done according to the rule thereof we must learne to worshyp him according to the same in no case to go one foote farther For as Moses was not to do any thyng about the Tabernacle or for the geuing of lawes statutes ordinances rites ceremonies or whatsoeuer according to his owne wyl or fantasie but in all thinges to do according to the paterne and prescription shewed him in the Mount and elswhere by the Lord no more must we in the very smallest thing we take in hand concerning the worshyp of the Lorde but in all thinges therein must we also be directed by the most pure perfect worde of God For as the Cloude was a direction to their Iornies in the Wildernesse and they not to steppe one foote forwarde or backwarde farther then by it they were ledde Euen so the Lawes there geuen by the Lord are a most perfect rule for men to walke by whyle the worlde shall stande For wherewithall sayth the Prophet shall a young man clense his way The holy Ghost doth answere Euen in taking heede thereto according to the worde of God and therefore did the holy Prophetes and Apostles alwayes pray that it woulde please the Lord to direct their steps according to the same For in no case can the Lord abide any will worship seeme it neuer so holy but in all thynges wyll he be worshypped according to his holy wyll layde downe in his holy worde for otherwyse we worshyppe him in vayne as our Sauiour sayth If insteade of the doctrine of his holy worde we obserue the preceptes and foolysh traditions of men so that To obey his holy worde as the Prophet Samuel sayth is better then al kind of sacrifice and to hearken therunto is better then the fatte of Rams Therefore let vs pray with the holy Prophet that it woulde please the Lord to encline our hartes vnto his law not vnto couetousnesse and that we may esteeme al his preceptes most pure and iust hate al false wayes and abhor al vaine inuentions Seeing that euery man is but as a beast by his owne knowledge we must learne to be made wyse by the worde of God NOw that we know the Lord hath created vs to none other ende but to set foorth his prayse glory and seeing we know also that no prayse or worshyppe wyll please him but that which shalbe done accordyng to his holy worde let vs pray vnto him with the holy Prophet that euen as it hath pleased him to make vs and to fashion vs euen so it woulde please him therefore to geue vs vnderstandyng that we may learne his commaundementes and chuse the way of trueth And agayne seeing that euery man is but as a Beast by his owne knowledge as the Prophet Ieremie doth say and seeing also the Prophet Dauid confessed him selfe so to be vntyll he went into the house of the Lorde and so through his holy worde became wyse We ought therefore to pray vnto the Lorde to geue vs grace to leaue of from leaning any longer vnto our owne wysedome as the holy Ghost vs warneth and onely to hearken withall the holy Prophetes and Apostles what the Lorde wyll say vnto vs that so his holy worde may be a Lanterne to our feete and a lyght vnto our pathes and that by his counsell alone we may be guyded as the Prophet saith euen vnto righteousnes iudgement equitie and to euery good path which thing being done and preceptes kept it shalbe vnto the Lorde a sacrifice of a more sweete smelling sent then the fatte of thousandes of Rammes and Goates or riuers of Oyle Wherefore I beseeche al you that are as my selfe euen of the simpliest sort vnto whom onely I direct my speeches and such as feare the Lord that you woulde cause your eares to hearken vnto wysedome and incline your hartes to vnderstandyng But what am I that I shoulde so beseeche you since that Wysedome her selfe doth intreate you and dayly offereth her selfe vnto you And yet because the holy Ghost commaundes that we should one exhort another I can not chuse but with the holy Prophet euen desire you to taste and see how sweete the Lord is Now if you aske me what this wysedome is that you shoulde hearken so vnto her and this vnderstanding that you shoulde so incline your hartes thereto the Lord himselfe doth tell you Behold sayth he the feare of the Lord is wysedome and to depart from euill is vnderstanding And in an other place the Knowledge of holy thinges is vnderstanding and the only way for you to finde the feare of God which is to haue wysedome and to finde the knowledge of holy thinges which is to haue vnderstandyng is for to repayre vnto the worde of God for the Lorde onely geueth wysedome and out of his mouth commeth knowledge and vnderstanding So that if you searche and seeke in the Booke of God you shall be sure to finde the knowledge of the Lord and then as he is knowen of you euen so shall you feare him and also by your continuall meditation therein you shall be sure to be made wyse vnto saluation for the worde of God is fully able so to do as sayth the Apostle and therefore in any wyse see that you alwayes pray vnto the Lorde that it woulde please him to geue you such a taste therein as that it may be more sweeter vnto your hart then the Hony or the Hony combe vnto your mouth yea and more desired for your necessitie then golde yea then much fine golde or treasures for your plentie The which the Lord for his mercies sake graunt vnto vs euery one whereby we may haue suche a feeling and knowledge therein as that the bryghtnesse of the glorious Gospel may shyne most cleerely in our mindes euen to the vtter abolishyng of our former and most damnable darkenesse Certayne Obiections vpon the former exhortation answered PEraduenture you wyl now say vnto me yf it be so that we can not attayne vnto Wisedome which is to vnderstande holy thynges and those holy thinges not to be founde vnlesse we read and meditate in the Booke of God alas that is so hard that we cannot attayne vnto the vnderstandyng thereof and agayne it is for great Clarkes and not for vs simple soules to meddle withall for many tymes the vnlearned peruert the Scriptures euen to their owne destruction and so I haue heard some say that S. Peter sayth they do so But I may say vnto you in the name of God Be not deceyued for it is the subtiltie of Satan that so perswadeth you and not you onely but almost all men generally throughout the whole world And wherfore trow you doth he so Surely to none other ende but that his owne kingdome may be the better thereby maynteyned for euen as the kingdome of God is dayly inlarged where his worde is
him selfe or who knew more then Moses Samuel Dauid Daniel or any of the Prophetes or Apostles and yet were they thereby puft vp with pride I would thinke and yf they looke well about them they shal finde the more knowledge they had of the heauenly maiestie of God the more base vile they became in their owne eyes Alas how are they deceyued that thinke the Apostle meaneth that true heauenly knowledge puffeth vp with pride Why how blind are men can they not see that he commandeth the same Corinthians not to be chyldren in vnderstanding but as concerning maliciousnes to be children but in vnderstanding to be of a ripe age Nor can they not see that he telleth the Colossians that he will not ceasse to pray vnto the Lord to fill them with all knowledge of his heauenly will in all wysedome and spirituall vnderstanding Nor can they not see that he doth the lyke vnto the Ephesians and to al others vnto whom he writeth Nor how he telleth the Romanes that the Iewes had a zeale in deede but not according to knowledge and therfore nothing worth Nor can they not see how the Prophet Dauid in lyke sort prayeth vnto the Lord that it woulde please the Lord to teach him knowledge and that not once nor twyce but many and many times But what should I speake of one or two examples when as all the Prophetes and Apostles and deare children of God haue euer most hartely desired it at the Lordes hands Since it is so then that they can not see that I would they could see consider this My people sayth the Lord are spoyled for lacke of knowledge and because they haue refused knowledge I wyll also refuse them O most fearefull sentence and most true and terrible vnto all those that haue so done as anonue you shall see at large So that by this you may see the Apostle meaneth not that heauenly knowledge doth pusse vp with pride but he meaneth suche lyke knowledge as some of the Corinthians seemed for to haue who in deede knew nothing at all as they ought to knowe because they wanted loue for though a man coulde speake with the toonges of men and Angelles and had all knowledge yet yf he haue not loue it profiteth nothing but is euen as a sounding Brasse or tinekeling Simball Agayne he meaneth suche like knowledge as the king of Tyrus had whom the Lord doth floute as he doth all others that are the like Beholde sayth he thou art wyser then Daniel there is no secrete that they can hide from thee with thy wysedome and thy vnderstanding hast thou increased thy riches and so thine hart is lyfted vp because of thy ryches And also suche like knowledge as the king of Babel had whose hart was lyfted vp so high therewith as that nothing woulde serue his turne but to exalt his throne aboue the cloudes and so to be euen like vnto the most High but full soone was he brought downe full low euen to the eating of Grasse with Oxe and Asse And likewyse such knowledge and wysedome as had that wyse Ahithophel who was puffed vp with suche swelling pride thereby that if good Hushai for wysedome and counsell be better thought of then he he goeth and hangeth him selfe for very spite and so the wyse counselling Ahithophel shewed him selfe to be according to the nature of his name that is euen the brother of a very foole And suche wysedome and knowledge the Apostle meaneth as the Grecians and all other worldlinges here amongst vs seeke after who as our Sauiour sayth attayne to woonderfull great wysedome in their generation and kinde and are full of knowledge and so puft vp with a proude conceite they haue thereof as that the word of God preaching of the Gospell as the Apostle sayth is but vnto them euen meere foolishnes And therefore sayth he vnto Timothie charge them that are rich in this worlde that they be not so high minded and that they trust not so much in vncertayne riches but in the lyuing God So that by this you see what kinde of knowledge it is that the Apostle sayth wyl puffe you vp with pride the which yf any of you haue or seeke after for to haue let him in any wyse ceasse from such wysedome and let him become a foole that so he may be made wyse in deede as the Apostle sayth Therefore once agayne I say take heede that Satan do not so deceiue you as to make you beleeue that the knowledge of the worde of God will pusse you vp with pride No yf you refuse to increase your knowledge therein you shew your selfe to be proude then in deede and wicked also for so speaketh the Prophet The wicked is so proude sayth he that he seeketh not for God but contenmeth him And God doth know innumerable there are amongst vs that do euen so For who can number the troupes of those most vile prophane beastes who notwithstanding do take the name of God in their mouthes yet do their deedes declare playnely that they say in their hartes there is no God as the Prophet speaketh of them And agayne who can number the troupes of a seconde sort Who notwithstanding their owne hartes do tell them there is a God and as the Apostle sayth they professe also that they know him and yet by workes they denie him and also say vnto him as Iob saith they do Euen depart from vs for we desire not the knowledge of thy wayes Agayne who can number the third sort Which are those vnto whom most chiefly I direct my speeches who notwithstanding haue woonderfull great zeale and also great care of the true worshyp of the Lorde yet are so grounded in a blynde conceyte they haue of foolysh zeale in mortification and also in doing well towardes men thinking that that is the onely thing the Lord requireth as that it is greatly to be feared least in the ende they wyll fall into the lyke danger of our blynde Papistes and also of the Iewes their predecessoures in that poynt whom the Apostle witnesseth of to haue a great zeale but not according to knowledge and therefore being ignorant of the righteousnesse which is in Christ went about to establishe their owne I say it is greatly to be feared least this damnable errour shoulde befall this thirde sort for truely for ought that I can perceiue they are come to the same passe of those in Esai already that is euen to say vnto other men Stande farther from vs because we are holyer then you Euen so foolyshe they are according as the Apostle speaketh to the Galathians that after they haue begunne in the spirite they woulde now seeme to be made perfect by the fleshe For truely I say for ought that can be perceiued they make more accompt of a lytle shew of humilitie and well doing as they tearme it then
to Scripture for the Lord wyl in no case like that you shoulde be troubled about many matters with Martha but wyll haue you without all excuse to choose the best part with Marie because that in deede is y e most excellent thing you can desire I meane the hearing of his voyce continually as Marie did that so you may haue all his most gracious words printed in your hart as Moses speaketh And why so Euen to the intent you may be able to rehearse them continually vnto your chyldren and that so you may be able to teach them and your selfe to knowe aright how that he IEHOVAH your God is one and that there is none but he according as he requireth in that first great Commaundement saying Heare O Israel IEHOVAH thy God IEHOVAH is one Therefore yf you holde them happie as happie blessed they are whose God this Iehouah is and that your selfe woulde be of this happie sort you must learne to know him aright that is you must learne to know according to the Scriptures how that vnder this name and nature there be three the Father the Worde and the holy Ghost and that these three are but one God for the Worde is the Sonne and yet he is IEHOVAH as S. Iohn in his twelfth teacheth you out of Esai the sixth And the holy Ghost is IEHOVAH as S. Paule in the Actes 28. teacheth you out of the same text of Esai And how this name IEHOVAH is opened S. Iohn in Apocalips the first sheweth you in this sort I am Alpha and Omega the beginning and the ende sayth the Lord euen he who was who is and who will be The knowing of this true God who is but one as also that the seconde person in this Trinitie was to take the nature of man that so he might suffer to the intent that in death he might destroy him that had the power thereof and so geue lyfe vnto the worlde The knowing of this I say according to the Scripture the which in all ages most playnely hath been manifested is the chiefest thing the Lorde requireth at your handes therefore you are to vnderstande that the holy Prophetes and Apostles did euer first and most chiefly labour to set foorth this and afterwardes exhorted men to walke according to their dueties layde downe in the seconde Table For you are not to thinke that when Iohn the Baptist came preaching in y e wildernes that his only drift was to bring the people to a more perfection of workes although after their demaunde he tell them that thus and thus they were to do but you are to vnderstande that most chiefly his drift was to bring them to a change of iudgement and to a more perfection of this knowledge and to a repentaunce of their former ignoraunces and a beleefe in Iesus Christ. For you see he telleth them playnely that the kingdome of God was euen now at hand and that a stronger then he came presently after him who in deede was before him and that him selfe was not worthy to stoope downe and vnlose the latchet of his Shoes and that although he baptised but with water yet he that came after him woulde baptise with the holy Ghost and with Fire and that he would come with his Fanne in his hand to make cleane his floore and to gather his Wheate into his Garner and to burne vp the Chasse with vnquenchable Fire And therefore vnles they did beleeue in him which shoulde come after him that is in Christ Iesus they woulde prooue to be this chasse Wherfore he telleth his kinsmen the Iewes that notwithstanding they for their partes began to say within them selues We haue Abraham to our Father and therefore we are the onely people because the couenauntes and promises of God belong onely vnto vs and also for that the Oracles of God were committed chiefly vnto vs and also because we are the Circumcision whereby we are separated from the sinners of the Gentiles I say notwithstandyng they beganne to bragge in this sort of all these outwarde thynges yet he telleth them that vnles they did beleeue in him of whom all the Prophetes before had spoken and was now come into the worlde they shoulde finde them selues to be this Chasse here spoken of and not the good Seede of the woman and of faythfull Abraham but euen the naturall seede of that olde Serpent their father the Deuill and that God was able to rayse vp sonnes vnto Abraham in steade of them euen of the very stones Whereby is meant that whereas the Gentiles vnto that time had hartes as hard as stones for asmuch as they regarded not to knowe the Lorde aright and therfore he regarded not the time of this their ignorance but suffered them to runne on in the hardnes of their hartes euen to their owne destruction Yet now he admonisheth all men eâ—…ery where to repent them of their former ignorance and beleeue the Gospell Yea now Iohn telleth them that the axe is put euen to the very roote of the trees and therefore yf these Gentiles woulde repent them of their former ignorances and beleeue in Christ as faythfull Abraham did then shoulde they be counted the sonnes of Abraham and the other shoulde be cut off euen according as the Apostle sayth Those which are of fayth are the chyldren of Abraham And againe He is not a Iew which is one outwardly neyther is that circumcision which is outwarde in the fleshe but he is a right Iew which is one within and whose hart is filled so full with the knowledge of God that he can alwayes prayse the Lorde aright and likewyse that is true circumcision which is of the hart and in the spirit and not in the letter and therefore yf these Gentiles woulde be such they shoulde then be the true circumcision in deede yea they should then be the true seede of Abraham and also the right Iewes and so their praise shoulde be of God and not of men Agayne whereas the Apostle vrgeth the Hebrewes to be led forward vnto perfection you are not to thinke he meaneth it of workes although no man will be so madde as to thinke otherwyse but that by those that haue knowledge a perfection of workes must also be practised for otherwyse because you shall not mistake me I tell you still your knowledge is in vayne For what hast thou to do with my couenant in thy mouth sayth the Lorde if thou hatest to be reformed And therfore as we are to grow vp in knowledge so are we also as the Apostle saith to grow vp in holines but in this place you are to vnderstande that the Apostle meaneth it of the perfection of knowledge which not onely y â— Hebrewes but also all others ought to attayne vnto that so they might see how Christ was answerable to all the former types figures shadowes and ceremonies in
commaund them to ouerflow the same agayne But yet they found it most true for in the seuenth age of this wicked generation the wrath of the Lord was well knowne amongst the sonnes of men for they were cut downe before the tyme and their foundation was as a Ryuer that ouerflowed So that he spared not this olde worlde which nowe had continued one thousand sixe hundred fiftie and sixe yeeres but onely saued Noe with seuen more of his familie and brought in the floud vpon the rest of the worlde of the vngodly yea he commaunded the fountaines of the great deepe to be broken vp and the windowes of heauen were opened so that all the high mountaines that were vnder the whole heauen were couered because that the wickednes of man was great on earth and all the imaginations of the thoughtes of his hart were onely euill continually And therefore did the Lorde smite the earth with the rod of his mouth and with the breath of his lippes did he destroy the wicked Yea hee made them to perish as though they had been doung so that they which had seene them might say where are they nowe But if you will know what is become of their soules Saint Peter will tell you how that they are now in prison that is in hell for disobeying the spirit of Christ who then preached vnto them by the mouth of Noe while the Arke was in making Againe if you will know how they might know that the spirit of Christ did so the answere is that euen the very same Gospell that was preached vnto Adam and Eue in Paradise and afterwardes to Abell to Seth and the rest of the godlie was also preached vnto them And this preaching was that the Seede of the woman should breake the head of the Serpent which notwithstanding being but a verie short Sermon yet was it so effectall and so full of matter as that all the whole booke of God is no more then that But as the preaching of this Gospell was a sauour of life vnto life to all those that laide holde thereon euen so was it also a sauour of death vnto death to all those that reiected the same So that for this first age you see both the louing kindnesse and the seucritie of the Lorde The iudgements of God on Chams posteritie as also on their confederats vntill the giuing of the Lawe NOtwithstanding now the former desolation of all things breathing on earth the which a man would thinke shoulde haue been a terrour vnto men for euer after yet full soone do they forget it For an hundreth and about some thirtie yeeres after the flood in the daies of Peleg do the posteritie of Cham with their adherents reuiue the olde impietie of Kain and his wicked race in that they also despise the couenants of God and the blessing pronounced vnto Sem And so goe about to buyld a Cittie and a Towre whose top as they thought should reach vnto heauen wherby they might get vnto them selues a Sem or name But full soone was the holy Trinitie aware of this their wicked intent and so he came down from heauen in his fierce wrath to confound their most foolish deuices and also to scatter them from thence ouer the whole earth And therefore the name of it was called Babell or Confusion because the Lord did there confound the language of all the earth so that they were not onely cut from the holy Language of Sem but also from the religion and true worship of the blessed God of Sem the which continued in his tents Agayne in the tenth age after the flood in the dayes of Abraham the wickednes of those fiue Cities in Canaan as Sodom Gomorrah Admah Zeboiim and Zoar brake out into such filthinesse as that the stincke thereof ascended vp into heauen and cryed for vengeance to be powred vpon them And notwithstanding the Lorde being mercifull and was intreated to haue spared them for ten◅e righteous men their sakes yet could they not therein be found so that their sinnes being so great and greeuous in the sight of GOD his great anger was so kindled against them that in his fierce wrath hee ouerthrew them and turned foure of them into ashes and condemned them and made them an e◅sample of eternall fier vnto all ages that afterwards should liue vngodly So that heere the curse of Noe vpon Cham extending to Canaan tooke effect on these some part of his wicked branches Likewise in the seuenth age from Abraham in the dayes of Moses the wrath of the Lord was manifested also in most vehement sort in Egypt euen in that land of cursed Cham vpon that proude Pharaoh and his countrie the which were other braunches euen of Cham himselfe that wicked roote I say the wrath of the Lord was manifested vpō them in most vehement sort by tenne seuerall plague◅ bestowed vpon man and beast and at last Pharaoh and all his host ouerwhelmed in the Red Sea For sayth he vnto Moses concerning the Lorde Who is he that I should heare his voyce and let Israell go I know not the Lord neyther will I let Israell go neyther do I regarde his words by you spoken for they are but vaine But the right hand of the glorious Lorde ouerthrewe these rebellious treatours which in this sort rose against him and sent foorth his wrath which consumed them as the stubble and also by the blast of his Nosethrils the waters were gathered and the floods stoode still as an heape yea the depthes congealed together in the hart of the Sea to intice them in but presently the waters couered them and they sancke to the bottome as a stone And why so because indeede they had forsaken the hope of Israell euen that most precious fountaine of liuing waters But he brought foorth them his chosen Israell through the middest of the Sea on drie ground and made the waters vnto them a wall both on the one side and on the other So that heere you may see againe both the louing kindnesse and the seueritie of the Lord his louing kindnes on Sem and his posteritie as also on all others that held the same fayth His most seuere seueritie on Cham and his posteritie as also on all other their confederats Now if you will knowe the chiefe cause why these horrible plagues befell them the aunswere is because they regarded not the preaching of the Gospell of our Lord and Sauiour Iesus Christ. For as he was made the author of eternall saluation vnto all them that did beleeue in him and obey him euen so is it sayd that he that beleeueth not in y e Sonne of God nor giueth due obedience vnto him shall neuer see life but the wrath of God abideth on him But the very same Gospel that was preached vnto Sem ◅aphet and their posteritie was also preached vnto Cham and his posteritie Now
appeareth to Ioshua in the forme of a man to shew that in time he so would be and therefore doth Ioshua doe worshippe vnto him as acknowledging him to be his only God sauiour Christ. So that by this they might well knowe it was not Iesus the captaine sonne of Nun that conquered the lande for them but Iesus the sonne of God euen that noble captaine of the Lords host who not onely setled them in the rest of that earthly Canaan but also in the heauenly So that if the sixe hundreth thousand in the wildernesse and all the other for the space of three hundreth and fiftie yeares in the land had but considered well of these fewe sermons of Christ which I haue heere layd downe amongest many more their carkeises had escaped the wrath of God and they had entered into the rest of Canaan which through vnbeliefe they did not and also the other in the land had remained as Lordes ouer their enimies where as nowe they became Lordes ouer them and therefore in any wise see that you alwayes remember the louing kindnesse and the seueritie of the Lord and the chiefe cause of both The iudgements of God vpon the house of Israel and Iuda for the time of seuentie seuens of yeares that is from the time of Samuel and Saul to the captiuitie of Babilon THe Lord nowe being full of compassion and not willing to hide the light of hys countenance ouer long from his people causeth such horrible plagues to befall the Philistians while y ◠Ark was amongst them which was seuen monthes as that full glad are they to be rid therof For as there can be no agreement betwixt God and Belyall no more could there be betwixt the Arke of Gods presence and Dagon the God of the Philistians So that home againe doe they send it by a couple of milch kyne who haue more wit to shew the cause of all those plagues that befell them then all the priestes of Dagon had by these two kyne then to Bethshemesh the Ark of God is brought Where you haue a most notable example of foolish zeale running before wit punished for there doth the Lord kill euen of his owne people fiftie thousand threescore and ten men because they had looked into the Arke which was not lawfull for them to do So that euen at this first entrance of Gods presence againe amongest them they had a good warning a man would thinke to take better heed vnto the booke of God then before they had done that so they might heare his voyce and in hearing learn therby to doe that which he commandeth and no more yet neuerthelesse they rebelled still against the Lord euen as they had done euer since he brought them from the land of Egypt For notwithstanding all the great thyngs the Lorde had done for them as styll to rayse vp deliuerers to deliuer them from the crueltie of their oppressours which through their owne idolatrie befell them Notwithstanding all this I say and many other his great benefites bestowed vpon them they continued still in that great sinne of infidelitie and mistrust of the Lorde his goodnes Although he had often told them that so long as they did worship him according to his holy wil layd downe in his word he would defend them from all their enimies round about yet no sooner commeth Nahash the king of the children of Ammon against them but they cry out vpon Samuel that they might haue a king forsooth yea a king to reigne ouer them as al other nations had when as yet the Lord Iehouah of hoastes was their king So that their wickednes as y e holy ghost recordeth was maruellous great herin for they cast not away only Samuel such other iudges or deliuerers but also the Lorde himselfe that he shoulde not reigne ouer them wherefore his wrath for this was so kindled against them that he gaue thē a king indeed euen according to their desire but out of all doubt in his verie great anger and therefore tooke him away in his sore displeasure and so establisheth his couenant with Dauid vnto whom the crowne and kingdome did belong as being a figure of Christ their king euen that true Dauid who should raigne ouer them for euermore Yet notwithstanding al this and although rebellion is as the sinne of witchcraft and transgression is wickednesse and idolatrie in the dayes of Rehoboam ten of the tribes despise this sonne of Ieshai of the tribe of Iuda from whence theyr glory was to arise and so became children of fornication in following the wayes of Ieroboam the sonne of Nebat who erected two calues and set the one in Dan and the other in Bethel and made the people to confesse that those were their Gods that brought them out of y ◠land of Egypt And thus Ephraim vnder whom is named the ten tribes ioyned themselues vnto Idols and so became children of fornication euen worse then an harlot committing whoredome with all the chosen men of Ashur and with all on whome they doted neyther left they their fornications learned of the Egyptians for in their youth they lay with them and they brused the brestes of their virginitie Wherefore the wrath of the Lord was so greatly stirred vp against them that hee gaue them into the handes of the kinges of Ashur as vnto Pull-ashur Tiglath Pilesser and Salmanesar euen into the hands I say of the kinges of Ashur vpon whom they doted and they discouered their shame and tooke away their sonnes and daughters and slew them with the sword and why because they would not obey the voyce of the Lord their God but transgressed his couenant that is all that Moses the seruant of the Lord had commanded them and woulde neither obey them nor doe them And therefore Ephraim became vnto the Lord as an abhominable branch and he vnto them as a moth and as a very Lyon yea they became vnto him Loammy that is not his people therefore would not he be their God For when he saw that this rebellious Israel euen Aholah which is Samaria had played the harlot when she was his he cast her away and gaue her a bill of diuorcement And yet for all this was not her rebellious sister Iudah afrayd but she went and played the harlot likewise euen Ierusalem which is a holy bath the other two tribes Iuda and Beniamen euen they his pleasant plant defiled themselues with inordinate loue more then the other and with their fornications more then the other with their fornications for according to y e number of their Cities were their Gods and according to the number of the streetes of Ierusalem did they set vp altars of confusion euen altars to burne incense vnto Baal and also committed their abhominations in the house of the Lord whereupon his name was called to defile
it Being altogether disobedient to receiue doctrine though he taught them rising vp yeerely and instructed them continually yet would they not heare neyther would they remember what he had done vnto Shilo but stil prouoked hym vnto the like anger with the workes of their handes for they became such rebellious traytors that the Lordes ministers the prophetes knewe not vnto whome they should speake and admonish because the word of the Lord was vnto them as a reproch and they had no delight at all therein neyther would they take any heede thereto nor to his lawes but cast them off and rather inclined to the statutes of Omry and kept all the maner of the house of Ahab And therefore because they cast off the law of the Lord of hostes and contemned the word of the holy one of Israel his wrath was so kindled agaynst them that as a flame of fire deuoureth the stubble and as the chaffe is consumed of y e flame euen so became their roote as a rottennesse so that theyr land shooke them cleane off for in the dayes of Iehoiakim Iehoakin Zedekias the wrath of the Lord was so kindled that he stirred vp the spirite of the Caldeans that bitter and furious nation against them and gaue them into the hands of Nebuchadnezar king of Babel who carryed them into the land of Shinar euen to the place where the Hebrew toonge at the first was confounded by the foolish building of the seuentie families so likewise at this time almost vtterly lost and the Lord caused them to remaine there as dead bones for the space of seuentie yeeres vntil their owne land had payd her sabbothes according as y e Lord long before by Moses had told theÌ„ For sayth he If ye wil not obey me but walke stubbornly agaynst me and despise mine ordinances and abhorre my lawes then will I walke stubbornly agaynst you and I will scatter you amongst the heathen and will draw out a sword after you and your land shalbe wast your cities desolate then shall the land inioy her sabbothes as long as it lyeth voyd and ye shall be in your enimies land that so your land may rest inioy her sabbothes euen all the dayes that it lyeth voyd it shall rest because it did not rest in your sabbothes when ye dwelt vpon it and euen so it came to passe for hauing neglected their sabbothes of euery seuenth yeare they were carried vnto their enemies land vntill theyr owne land had her fil of her sabbothes for al the daies that she lay desolate she kept sabboth to fulfill seuentie yeares according as the prophet Ieremy did likewise tell them who for the space of fortie yeares laboured amongest them before he could make them beeleue that so it should be but yet in y â— end they found it most true for the Lord of hostes bent hys bowe as an vtter enimie agaynst them and his right hand was stretched out as an open aduersary so that he powred out his fierce wrath like fire and consumed all his pallaces and destroyed his strong holds and made her aduersaries the chiefe and her enimies to prosper agaynst her euen agaynst Ierusalem the perfection of bewtie did he cause the Chaldeans to prosper who brake downe the walles thereof and burnt the house of the Lord and the kings house and all the great houses in Ierusalem burnt they with fire and the holy vessels and all the instruments of the house of the Lord by these prophane were carryed to Babell So that notwithstanding the kinges of the earth and all the inhabitantes of the worlde would not haue beleeued as the prophet sayth that euer the aduersarie and the enemie should haue entered into the gates of Ierusalem yet now did they enter euen into the very sanctuary and made a noyse in the house of the Lord as in the day of solemnitie and stretched out their handes vppon all her pleasant thinges and thus was this famous citie made solitarie that was ful of people yea she that was great amongst the nations became now as a widdow and shee that was as a princes amongest the prouinces was nowe made tributary and the Lord caused her feastes and sabbothes to be forgotten yea he vtterly forsooke his altar and abhorred his sanctuarie so that the waies of Sion as it were lamented because no man came to her solemne feastes but in stead thereof the enimies that passed by clapped their handes at her hissing and wagging their heades at the daughter of Ierusalem saying Is this the citie that men call the perfection of bewtie and the ioy of the whole earth yea all her enimies opened their mouthes against her in y e day of her destruction saying Let vs deuoure her for certainly this is the day that we looked for we haue found it seene it therefore downe with her say the sonnes of Edom and rase her walles yea rase theâ—… euen to the very foundation thereof And thus most despitefully did all her enemies helpe forward her affliction and reioyce ouer her in this her visitation and those that were the tayle are nowe become the head and aduance themselues as Lordes ouer them but from the daughter of Sion is all bewtie departed and her princes are now become as heartes that finde no pasture yea all the noble princes of Sion which were comparable to fine gold are now esteemed but as earthen pitchers and all those that were brought vp in skarlet are nowe driuen to imbrace the doong and those that fed most delicately perish now in the streetes yea the toonge of the suckling childe cleaueth to the roofe of his mouth for thirst and the yong children aske bread but no man breaketh it vnto them but rather the hands of the pitifull women are vpon their owne children to seeth â—…em to be their meate euen vpon the fruite of their owne boâ—… children of a span long So that here we may say againe 〈◊〉 behold both the louing kindnesse and the seueritie of the Lord his louing kindnesse towardes the house of Israel and Iuda so long as they delighted to heare hys voyce and were willing to obey hys commandementes and hys seueritie so soone as they reiected the same according as by all hys prophetes he had tolde them euen so came the curse vpon them as it is written in the law of Moses The iudgementes of God vppon the Iewes after their returne from Babell vnto our sauiour Christ his birth and also of their vtter reiection within seuentie yeares after for not receiuing hym THe prophet Daniel being carried into Babylon in the third yeare of Iehoiakim king of Iuda and continuing there vnto the first yeare of Cyrus king of Persia and vnderstanding also by the scriptures the number of yeares whereof the Lord had spoken vnto the prophet Ieremie how that he would accomplishe seuentie yeares in the desolation
you not vnderstand that the sayinges of the prophets might be fulfilled Now if you aske me in what sort the prophets before time had testified of Christ whereby they might haue knowen him to be that Messias that should come into the worlde the answere is very plentifull and very plaine and many of them did knowe that then was the time that the kingdome of God was to appeare and all the sort of them might haue knowne as well if they had considered well of the ninth of Daniel for there doth the angel Gabriel tell Daniel when Christ the king should be killed euen to the very houre of the day wherin he dyed Likewise they had Moses and all the prophetes euen vnto Iohn to lead them as it were by the hand vnto Christ and that at sundrie times and in diuers manners so that it will not be amisse to run briefly them ouer to shew you in what sort as I neere as I can he was described vnto them First then where as Adam by his disobedience brought not onely death vpon himselfe but also vppon all his posteritie and withall lost that dominion and Lordship he had ouer the creatures of God euen the very day of his creation the verie same day was Christ proclaymed heire of the world and a ful conquerour of Satan in these wordes I will put enmitie sayth the Lord vnto Satan betweene thee and the woman and betweene thy seede and her seede thy seede shal bruise the heele of the seede of the woman but her seede euen hee that speciall seede meaning Christ shal breake thy head the which came so to passe when as the fulnesse of time was come that is when as our sauiour tooke the nature of man vpon hym and so through death destroyed him who had the power thereof that is to say the deuill this olde serpent The which seede of the woman was also sayd by Noe to be the blessed God of Sem whom also Sem resembled Hee was also sayde by the Lord himselfe to be that special one seede of Abraham Isaake and Iacob in whome all the nations of the earth shoulde be blessed Likewise he was spoken of by Iacob to be that special childe Shillo the Lyon of y â— tribe of Iuda who if he did but lye downe and couch none durst stirre him vp and that vnto hym the people should be gathered the which Lyon of the tribe of Iuda that holy man Iob saw to be his redeemer and was most assured to see him one day with his owne eyes and none other for him although wormes should destroy that body He was also sayd by the Lord himselfe to be that angel of the couenant that kept their fathers in the way and brought them into the land of Canaan as also that star of Iacob whome Balam prophet false though he were sawe to strike the costes of Moab and to subdue all the sonnes of Seth. He was also said by Moses to be that great prophet whome the Lord would rayse like vnto him vnto whom all the world should hearken as also by the Lord himselfe that he should build an house vnto his name and that he would establish the throne of his kingdome for euer and that he would say vnto him I will be thy father and thou shalt be my sonne Likewise it was sayd of Christ by the prophet Dauid that the Lord sayd vnto him Thou art my sonne this day begat I thee that forasmuch as the Lord delighted not in sacrifices he should come to doe the will of God That in his heart his whole law should fully rest That he would not conceale the righteousnes thereof but declare it in the great congregation euen in the middest of the congregation would hee declare the name of the Lord amongest his brethren and how that notwithstanding that yet would the kinges and princes of the earth assemble themselues together agaynst hym That they woulde make him the contempt of the people haue hym in derision mocke hym and nod their heades at him That they would hit him in the teeth with the trust he had in the Lord as though hys hope therein had bene frustrate That they would like bulls of Bashan nay like dogges compasse hym about pearce hys handes and feete giue him vineger to drinke cast lottes vppon his garmentes and part them amongest them and yet notwithstanding all this their spight the Prophet sheweth that the Lorde would laugh them to skorne and breake them to peeces like a potters vessell That he would set Christ as king vpon y â— holy hill of Sion and deliuer hym from the contentions of the people That hee would grant him the heathen for his inheritance and the vttermost partes of the earth for his possession That he should be the head therof and that a people whom he had not knowne should serue hym euen such as were the kinges of Tarshish and of the Iles who should bring hym presentes and also such as were the kinges of Sheba and Seba who should bring hym giftes yea and that all kings vpon earth should worship him and all nations serue hym and that as soone as they should heare hym they should obey hym and be in subiection to hym and that whosoeuer would not kisse the sonne should be sure to perish but those that would put their trust in hym should be blessed for euermore Againe it was sayd of hym by the same prophet that hee would so loue righteousnesse and hate iniquitie and be so carefull for the house of the Lord that the zeale he would haue thereof would euen eate hym vp and that the Lord woulde therefore annoynt hym with the oyle of gladnesse aboue hys fellowes That hee would cause hys name to be remembred throughout all generations euen hys glorious name for euer and euer And that all nations should blesse hym and be blessed in hym and giue thankes vnto hym worlde without end And that notwithstanding all the râ—…ge of the deuill and his ministers yet should none euill come neere vnto hym for the Lord would giue hys Angels charge ouer hym to keepe him in all his wayes that hee should not hurt hys foote agaynst a stone And that notwithstanding himselfe should be that stone which the builders would refuse yet should hee be made the head of the corner Moreouer this holy Prophet sheweth that the Lorde woulde not leaue the soule of Christ in graue neyther suffer hym his holy one to see corruption That he would rayse him vp from death to life and crowne him with glory and honour That hee should ascend on high and leade captiuitie captiue That he shoulde sit at the right hande of God vntil he had made his enimies his fotestoole And lastly that he shoulde continue there a Sacrificer for euer after the order of