yeares space gaue diuers ouerthrows to some Romane Praetors Consuls as Cai. Vetulius Cai. Plantius and others that he waxed so proud and insolent of his victories ouer the Romans that he hanged vp the Romane Ensignes on high hilles and mountaines as trophies to shewe his victories ouer the Romanes but Viriatus was betrayed and slaine by some of his souldiers by meanes of Caepio the Consul against the manners of the olde Romanes which neuer allowed trechery thinking to haue a great reward of the Romanes for his trechery but they according to their manners sent him backe bound vnto Hispaine as a traytor to his captaine and countrey as they did to Timocheres Pirrhus Phisition who offered the Romanes if they would to poison his maister Pirrhus So Camillus sent the schoolemaister of the Phaelicians who brought all his schollers beeing noble mens sonnes to betray the Towne backe naked before his schollers euery scholler hauing a rodde in his hand to whip his master for betraying their fathers their frends and the citie so that neither Viriatus seruant that slew his maister neither Pirrhus Phisition that would haue poisoned his maister nor the schoolemaister that would betray his citie could get any rewards at the Romanes hands for trechery Now to Dauid whose example of warres and victories vpō the Amalekites Canaanites and the rest as in this the next booke shal be mentioned The end of the first booke The second Booke of the Stratagems of Ierusalem CHAP. I. Of Dauid the second King of Israel and his great victories and good successe which hee had in all his warres against the Canaanites Edomites Moabites Ammonites Philistines and others DAuid a man whom the Lord found to his owne heart a second Ioshuah of Israel hee fought many battels of the Lorde and wonne many victories for when the Philistines heard that Saul was dead they sought for Dauid to fight with him and Dauid asked counsell of the Lord before hee would take any battel in hand which made his victories so many and himselfe so famous that all his enemies feared him So should all Kings Generalls and Captaines hold that rule for a principall part of theyr charge and not to commence warre without a iust cause and lawful meanes to be executed Iosias had no good cause to fight with Necho king of Egipt who commaunded his souldiers not to fight with Iosias but against Charchemish a citie of the Assirians So the King of Syria charged his souldiers to fight with none but with Achab king of Israel at what time Iosaphat king of Iudah was spared and therefore returned safe and sound to Ierusalem by the counsell of the king of Syria Had Iosias followed the counsell of Necho king of Egipt as Iosaphat followed the counsell of the king of Syria Iosias had saued his life as Iosophat did Dauid fought with the Philistines smote scattered them and slew them that they fled before Dauids face in the valley of Gyants which is the plaine of diuision because of their victories and there they left their Images and Idols and Dauid burned them much like to the Iamnites who carried the Images of their Idols in theyr bosomes to the battell and tyed them about theyr neckes for they were so found after the Iamnites were slaine as in auntient time the Egiptians carried their gods and their Idols painted on their Ensignes and Banners into the field as their standarts Againe the Philistines gathered their force against Dauid at Rephaim which is called the valley of Gyants and Dauid ouerthrew the host of the Philistines chased them from Geba vnto Gazar An other battell of the Lord against the Philistines fought by Dauid and he againe subdued them tooke the strong citie of Gath which they called the bridle of bondage out of the hands of the Philistines This citie kept the countrey round about in subiection and bondage Thus all wise and skilfull generals ought to imitate Dauid herein to seize by all warlike policie vpon those strong citties and fortes that can commaund the countrey So Hanibal thought himself sure of Rome hauing gottē Capua and Tarentum two of the strongest citties in Italy into his hand So the Romanes hauing gotten Syracusa doubted not to take Carthage and hauing Carthage in their hands they soone cōquered all Affrike and hauing Affricke they made no account to win Asia for at that verie time the best souldiers of the worlde were in the West kingdomes For Antiochus the great the greatest king at that time in all Asia was soone ouerthrowne by a Consull of Rome So Dauid went forward in his victories after he had gotten the strong citie of Gath he smote Moab and measured them with a cord he slue them cast them down to the ground he ouercame whom he would and saued whom hee listed so that the Moabites became Dauids seruants and brought him gifts and presents that the Lord made Dauid famous throughout all the world During the time of Dauids warres against the Canaanites and other nations their associates there was no great warre then among the Syrians neither in any part of Asia and especially in Europe which was scant throughly inhabited in Dauids time and therfore there was no such warre to be written of as was thē between the Israelites and the Canaanites in the time of Dauid For as Ioshua slue the Canaanites and gaue the possession of the land vnto Israel so Dauid rooted them out slue their gyants and brought all the land tributary vnto Salomon his sonne who gouerned Israel fortie yeares in peace and quietnesse without warre Hadarezer king of Zobah hearing of the name and fame of Dauid went to establish his borders by the riuer Euphrates with a great army with him where Dauid gaue him battell fought with him ouerthrew him and tooke from him a thousand chariots seuen thousand horsmen and twentie thousand footemen Dauid destroyed all the chariots and hought all the horses but reserued an hundred chariots for himselfe so that the Lorde was with Dauid wheresoeuer he went and whatsoeuer he tooke in hand The Aramites hearing what great ouerthrow Hadarezer king of Zobah had by Dauid came from Damascus with a very great army to succor the king of Zobah for they knitted themselues against Israel with all theyr force and power but they had the like welcome as the Philistines the Moabites and the king of Zobah had Dauid slue of the Aramites two twenty thousand Dauid put a garrison in that part of Syria where Damascus was and the Aramites became Dauids seruants and brought him presents gifts Dauid so plagued the Aramites which are also named Siriās that they bare such mortall hatred to Iudah for they euer ioyned themselues after with the Ephraimites against ' the Tribe of Iudah Obserue the martiall proceedings of the Israelites to put garrison in euery strong Citie and fort where they had subdued
lawes So the best deserued men in Rome as Corilianus that saued the citie of Rome Scypio Affrican that brought Carthage and Numantia into Rome Metellus and diuers others of the best Romanes were banished by proclamation and sound of a trumpet out of Rome and yet Corilianus being so vniustly banished frō Rome to the Volscians at the request and teares of his mother Veturia and of his wife Volumnia hee refused to fight against the Romanes being Generall of the Volscians therfore was slaine of the Volscians in the Citie Curiolis which Corilianus before time wonne to the Romanes at what time he was named Corilianus after the name of the citie Curiolis as all Romane captaines were that wonne townes countries or cities thus sparing to destroy his vngratefull countrey Corilianus lost his life therfore by the Volscians he might well haue said as Scypio Affrican said at Linternum after he was banished Ingrata patria non habebis ossa mea Oh vngratefull countrey thou shalt not possesse my bones Themistocles also being banished by the law of Ostracysmus from Athens went to dwell in Argos from Argos he was faine to flye to Corphu from thence to Asia for the king of Persia offered two hundred talents to him that would bring him Themistocles for that Themistocles was the onely enemie that destroyed so many Persians in Greece But Themistocles vnderstanding of the kings intention for he supposed it the surest way to auoid the kings wrath and to saue his owne life to goe and yeeld himselfe vnto the king of Persia where he was so accepted that he had three great cities for his entertainment and grew in such great fauour with the king that the princes and nobles of Persia so enuied him that they sought by all meanes to destroy him But when Themistocles was required by the king to lead a Persian army against the Greekes according to his oath he thought that fact vnworthy of the name of Themistocles to beare armes against his countrey men the Greekes though he was banished from Greece but resolued to die like a true Greeke reseruing his loue to his country and his oath to the Persians least he should by any meanes seeme to hinder the victories and triumphes of Cymon at that time general of the Grecians or seeme any way to staine himselfe with a trecherous name against his countrey after secret conference with his friends whom he feasted and sacrifice done to his gods Themistocles died in Magnetia as Cleomenes did in Egipt in the citie of Alexandria which when Cleomenes sawe he could not escape the kings hand to whom hee bare mortall hatred after much slaughter within the towne Cleomenes exhorted the rest of the Greekes being his company which were but thirtie in number to die like men by their owne hands and not by the enemie saying Let not fortune triumph ouer fortitude Thus Cleomenes perswaded his company to dye like noble Spartans which they performed for they slew themselues one after an other by their owne handes And thus after Cleomenes had raigned sixteene yeares king of Sparta dyed as you haue heard in the Cittie of Alexandria in Egipt as Themistocles dyed in Magnetia CHAP. X. Of the comparison betweene the noble and wise Captaines of both the Romanes and the Grecians of their sundrie military kindes of triumphes and watchwords of Generals in their warres PLutarch therefore compareth the state and liues of the Romans with the Grecians and matcheth them as well in likenesse and qualities of nature as also for their qualities of fortune for their victories for their triumphes and for their benefites done to their country therfore compareth Agesilaus king of the Lacedemonians to Pompey the great Consul of Rome though Plutarch preferreth his country man the Grecian for his skill martial knowledge yet was he forced to aduance Pompey for his victories and conquests which was compared to Alexander the great for his victories ouer the three parts of the world Asia Europe and Affrica Pelopidas compared to Marcellus for theyr courage and prowesse for that the Thaebans called Pelopidas the arme of Thaebes for that Marcellus was called of the Romaines the sword of Rome both of equall fortune both of great prowesse courage yet without aduertisement rashly and wilfully ouerthrew themselues both alike Pericles was compared to Fabius Max. for his graue gouernment and wisedome the one called the hand of Athens the other called the target of Rome Fabius Max. for his wisedome that by watching long delaies wearied weakened the force of Hanibal that as the history saith Cunctando rem restituit Of these two noble Romaines Hanibal himselfe was wont to say that Marcellus wearied him and Fabius weakned him Yet Plutarch compareth Fabius life with Pericles The glory of Greece before by Milciades in the battel at Plataea the great good fortune and successe in warres of Cymon his sonne against the Persians the noble triumphes and victories of Myronides the noble valiant acts and exploits of Leocrates the many valiant deeds of Tolmydes made 〈◊〉 name of Pericles to be more famous in Athens at what time Greece was in her greatest glorie and Pericles most flourished who then was surnamed Olympius for his wit great eloquence hauing nine seuerall monuments of triumphs set vp in Greece of his good fortune and yet was Pericles supposed to be the cause of the Peloponesian wars for his great hatred towards the Maegarians was such that all the cities of Greece diuided themselues and held hot ciuill wars 27. yeares The like may be said of Iulins Caesar in Rome The great name and fame of Scypio in vanquishing Hanibal and the Affricans the valiant exploits of Marius ouer the Cymbrians and Teutons the great victories of Sylla ouer Asia and Greece the noble triumphs of Pompey ouer three parts of the world made the fame conquest of Caesar to be the greater for Caesar performed that which Pirrhus said of Italy and Rome that Italians must conquer Italy and Romaines ouercome Rome as Caesar did Next we compare Sylla the Romane with Lysander the Lacedemonian two noble and valiant captaines that the one did what he would in Rome the other did what he listed in Sparta both good and beneficiall to their countreys for their victories which they had against their enemies out of their coūtries but both scorpions that scourged plagued both their countrey and countrey men that Rome and all Italy was plagued by Sylla as Sparta and all Greece was by Lysander Q. Hortensius euer boasted that hee neuer tooke part in any ciuill warres So said Asinius Pollio to Augustus the Emperour being willing to haue him goe with him to the battell at Actium against Marc. Antonius hee answered and refused saying Ero praeda victoris Yet the lawe of Solon in Athens was that he which seperated himselfe and tooke no part in
battels his watch-word was Venus genitrix These were his vsuall watch-words in 52. set battels which he had The Romaine Consul Sylla in all the warres which he had in Asia and in Greece his watch-word was to his souldiers Appollo Cn. Pompeius in all his warres which hee had vnder Sylla in Affrica against Sertorius his watchword was among the Romanes Pietas while yet he was a young man but when his victories and his triumphes grew great ouer Affrica Europe and Asia and that hee was called Pompey the great hee gaue his watch-word to his souldiers according to his greatnesse Inuictus Hercules King Demetrius in diuers warres which he had with many kings and princes after his father king Antigonus dyed hee still vsed one watch-word in all his warres against Zeleucus Pirrhus Lysimachus and Cassander Iupiter Victoria Antiochus surnamed Soter leading a great Armie against the people Galatae his watch-word was Beneualere C. Caligula a beast and not an Emperour gaue accordingly a beastly watch-word to his souldiers Priapus Venus Other Emperours of Rome as Sept. Seuerus a noble captaine gaue his watch-word to his souldiers Laboremus And so Pertinax the Emperour his watchword was Militemus And the good Emperour Antoninus his words was euer to his souldiers Aequanimitas After these comparisons betweene the Romaines and the Greekes in all military discipline it were also fit to compare some of their stratagems As Darius king of Persia to escape the daunger by flight which he was in from the Scythians vsed a stratagem left dogges and asses barking and braying in his tents to deceiue the Scythians which the Scythians supposed by barking braying of dogges and asses to haue found Darius in his tents The like stratagem vsed the Lygurians to escape the hands of the Romanes who bound diuers wilde oxen and buffes to certaine trees to deceiue the Romaines which made such a roaring noise that the Romanes thought therby the Lygurians to be in their campe and in their tents when they escaped secretly away Hannibal being most busie in plaguing Italy Scypio Affrican vsed a stratagem passed with a great Romaine armie to Affricke to drawe Hannibal from Italy who was forced streight to follow after to succour the Carthaginians The like pollicie vsed Themistocles to drawe the armie of Xerxes from the land into a sea battell knowing the Athenians farre vnable to answere Xerxes armie on land sent all the wiues children from Athens to Troxaena and to other cities of Greece and left Athens emptie The Persians hearing that Themistocles left Athens followed hard after him whereby Themistocles by this stratagem got a noble victorie ouer the Persians at Salamina Cities besieged suffered as though they were ready to yeeld and where they found the enemies so carelesse that they expected nothing but yeelding they sodenly issued out with great fury and ouerthrew theyr enemies So did Furius the Consull so did Caesar with the like stratageme so did Labienus So doth Sathan when he findes men without watching and praying liuing slothfull and carelesse and as men suppose in securitie then Sathan vseth this stratagem finding them vnarmed without spirituall weapons ouerthrowes them takes them and brings them as prisoners captiues to his tents CHAP. XI Of two ouerthrowes of the Romanes by the Parthians and by the Cymbrians and their Generall Crassus slaine Of diuers other battels both of the Romanes and the Greekes and of many Libraries destroyed by warres THe Romainas flourished at that time with victories and triumphes ouer all nations yet had some of the best of them many shamefull ouerthrowes as Mar. Crassus a noble Romane equall in force and power to Caesar or to Pompey after many great victories was among the Barbarians and Parthians ouerthrowne by Carres a famous citie in Mesopotamia and the more famous for that Abraham dwelt there at what time many noble captaines slue themselues for verie shame and sorrowe after their Generall Crassus his sonne were slaine by Surena Lieutenant of the Parthians This Surena was the second person next the king in Parthia his greatnesse was such that he had a thousand camels to carry his sumpters a thousand men of arm◅s armed two hundred Coaches of Curtizans that his whole traine made aboue tenne thousand horse Censorius Octauius Petronius and diuers other Romaine Gentlemen slue themselues and Surena after he strake off Pub. Crassus head the sonne and sent him to the king his maister in the very selfe same day was slain also Crassus the father In this battell twentie thousand Romains were slain and ten thousand taken prisoners for he had seuen legions in his army of footemen and after that Surena had bathed Crassus head in blood and had melted golde into his mouth to the great reproach of the Romanes he sent both the heads of Crassus his sonne to Horodes king of Parthia at which time the king of Parthia and his nobles laughed and scorned the other captiue Romanes making rimes verses and enterludes of both Crassus heads This ouerthrow was one of the most ignominious that euer the Romaines had sauing the ouerthrow of Valerianus the Emperour by Pazaites the Turke whose army was quite ouerthrowne and himselfe taken prisoner and vsed as a block for the Turke to goe on horse And another ouerhthrow which the Romaines had by the Cymbrians Teutōs by the riuer of Roan where C. Manilius Q. Scaepio were Generalls of the Romaine armies had such an ouerthrow that of foure score thousand Romanes and of their associats scant ten escaped with their liues away the newes thereof made Rome so to quake and the Senators to feare that they were so amazed so terrified as they were at their ouerthrow at the battel at Canne but Cai. Marius fully reuenged and requited vpon the Cymbrians at the riuer Xextus the ouerthrow of the Romaines with such a victory ouer the Cymbrians that neither man woman nor childe escaped In like sort was M. Crassus reuenged vpon the Parthians by Pub. Ventidius vice-Consull vnder Mar. Antonius hauing done great exployts in subduing the inhabitants about mount Taurus and also hauing wonne diuers victories ouer the Parthians a stout and hardie Nation whom the Romanes plagued sundrie times in reuenge of Mar. Crassus death which was the third man of reputation in Rome Pub. Ventidius was suffered to haue both the triumphes vnder Mar. Antonius who chiefly at that time was Generall of the Romane Army appointed by the Senators and people of Rome But Ventidius better deserued to haue this triumphe then Mar. Antonius who began to esteeme and attend Cleopatra more then his Romane Army Ventidius wonne more victories ouer the Parthians then any Romane Captaine else did and yet the Romaines had eighteene pitcht battells against the Parthians for the Parthians had eighteene kingdomes vnder them These were stout Nations and called theyr king king of kings as the Persians called their kings the great kings and the Phrygians called their kings the greatest kings which the Romane Consulls could endure no great names but themselues as Sylla Lucullus and Pompey tooke the best hand either
which was answered and said to be Vastitatem Italicae the spoile and destruction of Italy Homer and Virgil both faigned that all kinde of dreams passe through two sundry gates the true dream through the hornie gate the false dreame through the Iuorie gate Yet we reade in the sacred scripture that Ioseph was exalted by expounding Pharaos dreame in Egipt and so was Daniel by expounding Nabuchodonozers dreame in Persia. But Ioseph while yet he was amongst his brethren a young boy dreamed and tolde his bretheren saying we were making sheaues in the field and loe my sheffe arose and stood vpright and your sheaues stood round about and made obeysance to my sheffe Then saide his brethren shalt thou be our king or shalt thou raigne ouer vs They hated him before for that his father loued him more thē they and for his dreame they hated him the more And Ioseph told his father and his brethren a second dreame saying I sawe the Sunne the Moone and the eleuen starres make obeysance to me and his father rebuked him saying shall I thy mother and thy bretheren come and fall before thee but yet his father noted his dreame but his brethren tooke such indignation against him that they solde Ioseph to an Arabian marchant who solde him againe into Egipt where he came by expounding of Pharaos dreame of the seuen leane kine that did eate the seuen fatte kine and yet were but leane to be the second person and the onely ruler of Egipt vnder Pharao Thither came his brethren constrained by a dearth in Canaan to buy corne in Egipt and after Ioseph being knowne his father Iacob and all his houshold came These were the Sunne the Moone and eleuen Starres heere his bretheren performed the dreame honouring Ioseph vpon their knees as all Egipt did In like manner Daniel being a captiue of Nabuchodonozers by expounding his dreame and his sonne Balthazers after him was commaunded to bee cloathed with purple and to put a chaine of golde about his necke and by proclamation made ruler ouer the third part of the kingdome of Persia and to be one of the three Princes that ruled the kingdome of Persia of a hundred seuen and twentie Prouinces vnder King Darius No doubt Ioseph was instructed by an Angell to expound the dreame of Pharao and Daniel to expound the dreame of Nabuchodonozer Angels did instruct men minister vnto men rebuke sinners Angels comforted the afflicted and foretold things an Angell appeared to Zachary who told him that his wife should bring forth a sonne and his name should be Iohn So an Angell appeared to the virgin Mary and said shee should haue a sonne and his name shal be Iesus Abraham in the feast which he made to the Angels vnder the oake of Mambre was promised hee should haue a sonne by Sarah and was named by the Angels Isaac laughing for that his mother laughed hearing she should haue a childe in her olde age being foure score and tenne So was also Ismael Solomon and Iosias named long before they were borne The olde Hebrewes tooke example for that the name of Abram was chaunged by the Lord and named Abraham which signified the father of many nations Iacob likewise was named of the Angell with whom hee wrestled Israel the prince of God So the Hebrewes gaue such significant names of things to come vpon their children that when they remembred the names of theyr children they should also remember the thing signified by the name as Solomon was named Iedidia beloued of God Iosias an oblation to the Lord and so Ismael the son of Abraham by Agar Absolon the sonne of Dauid and others more named of the Hebrewes in like manner Women onely gaue names to their children among the Hebrewes as Leah and Rachel Iacobs wiues named the twelue sonnes of Iacob So Sampson was named of his mother and so also was Samuel named by his mother for the Hebrew women gaue such names to their children as should containe something signified by the name not following the fathers name but one onely name which the Hebrew women gaue to their children The Romanes had three or foure names commonly contrary to the Hebrewes and besides three or foure names which were proper vnto them they would purchase as many names as they could get as Pub. Cornel. Scypio had the fourth name Affricanuss for his conquest ouer Affricke and his brother Lu. Scypio was surnamed Asiaticus for the fourth name because hee subdued Asia Lu. Q. Metellus surnamed Numidicus by his victories in Numidia Mummius for his victories in Achaia surnamed Achaicus So the Romanes being glorious people full of their victories would possesse as many names as they could haue and being not contented with so many names they would haue the moneths of the yeare to be named after their names So Iu. Caesar called the moneth Quintilis after his owne name Iuly Augustus the second Emperour called the moneth Sextilis after his name August So other Emperours imitating them as Nero would haue the moneth of Aprill after his name Neronius and Domitianus would haue October named Domitianus Likewise Claudius wold haue May called after his name Claudius and Germanicus would haue September named Germanicus after his name So the Grecians began to honor Demetrius in like sort in so much they decreed that the month Manichion which is Ianuary shal be called Dēmetrion and their feast Dionisia which was dedicated to Bacchus should be called Demetria after Demetrius name and that Demetrius and his father king Antigonus should haue their pictures set vp carried in the sacred banner of Peplon where none but the picture of Iupiter and Minerua were set and placed Clearchus the tyrant would be called sonne vnto Iupiter as well as Alexander the great so king Antigonus because hee might be called Bacchus hee resembled him outward in his habite ware a Diademe on his head made of Iuie like Bacchus and for his scepter bare in his hand Thyrsus The Greekes also most commonly had but one name vnlesse he had a name added vnto it either by some vertue or vice noted in him as Pericles for his eloquence and sweete perswasion was surnamed Olympius Aristides for his integritie surnamed the iust Antigonus for his liberalitie was surnamed Doson and yet reported in Plutarch that hee promised any thing and performed nothing So likewise the Greekes named those that had any blemish on their bodies as Antiochus surnamed Griphos for his great belly Another Antigonus surnamed Gonatos for that hee had great knees Demetrius surnamed Polycrates for his inuention and skill of warlike engines as Elepolis thereby as famous welnigh as Archimedes otherwise the Grecians vsed but one name And although Agesilaus was a great souldier for skil and knowledge in warre so famous that hee was sent from Egipt vnto Greece for to be their Generall and also among the Persians so feared and among the Grecians so esteemed and yet
change frō the names of Greeke Princes to bee named oxen of Lucania Bookes are no otherwise for in auntient time when bookes were yet rare they were fellowes and companions with Kings Princes in courts it so seemed by Alexander the great who could not sleepe before he laid Homer with his dagger vnder his pillow and by Scypio Affrican who would not frō Rome to Carthage without either Panetius or Polybius in his company and now bookes being common are so little regarded rather bought for their golden tytles which the Printer giueth them for his sale then for the matter therein by the Author written for the Revder much like to Mithridates sword whose scabbard was farre more precious and richer without then the blade within Of such bookes Plato speaketh Qui subitò vno die nati celerimè pereunt therfore seldome seene in sight are most in request The Ebaine tree which Pompey the great brought in his triumph into Rome was more wondred gazed vpon then all the braue shewes of the triumph besides So fewe wise words out of a wise mans mouth are more esteemed then heapes of wordes out of an vnwise mouth like the Abderites Embassadors more desirous to heare fewe words out of Zeno the Philosophers mouth then of all the Athenians besides and therfore Pau. Aemilius after he had subdued the king and kingdome of Macedonia wrote no more to the Senators but Victus est Perseus Caesar after he had conquered king Pharnaces wrote no more words but Veni vidi vici Like the Lacedemonians whose writings and speeches were so short and briefe that they would answer either Embassadors friends or foes by writing or by mouth in two or three words And so with the like fewe words I referre my selfe to the gentle disposition of the reader rather to excuse my trauell in curtesie then to accuse my goodwill wrongfully Lodowick Lloid The first Booke of the Stratagems of Ierusalem CAAP. I. Of diuers Battels and Combats Of seuerall markes of diuers nations vpon the good and bad Of the calling of Abraham and of his praise and trauell THe whole BIBLE is a Booke of the Battels of the Lord and the whole life of a man a militarie marching to these Battells betweene the seede of the womā the Serpent which Battel was first fought in heauē betweene Michael and his Angels and the Dragon and his angels at what time Satan was ouerthrowne and cast out of heauen with all his angels with him The second Battell was in Paradise fought betweene the seede of the woman and the seede of the Serpent where likewise Sathan was ouerthrowne for then it was promised that the seede of the woman should tread downe the Serpents head thereby perpetuall warre was publikely proclaimed in Paradise to continue betweene the seed of the woman and Sathan and therefore are the battels of the Lord innumerable in respect of number for that euery liuing man must fight in this battell in his owne person for his owne life and inuincible in respect of power and force for all battels and victories are of the Lord yea euen amongst Infidels and Pagans Which if the Hebrewes had so acknowledged it and had marched truly and faithfully in the Lords battels they should haue acknowledged this to haue bin their true Oracle that all victories come from the Lord and not from the arme of man Thē the Hebrewes might haue known that Egipt where they had bene bondmen and slaues 430. yeares was giuen to them for a pray frō the Lord by the hands of Moises and Aron and after Egipt the Canaanites Edomites Moabites Ammonites Philistines and diuers other nations were also giuen into their hands they might haue acknowledged that the ouerthrow of 39. Kings was no small bootie to such simple men as were no souldiers by education but brought vp as shepheards from Abrahams time to Moises But they forgot the great armies and legions of Frogges Flies Grashoppers and such armies which the Lord prouided to fight for them while yet they were bondmen in Egipt where they had ten victories and ten tryumphs some in the midst of the land of Egipt some in the midst of the Court of Pharao and some in the midst of the red sea to the wonder and terrour of the whole world The Hebrues might likewise haue knowne that the Chaldeans were giuē to the hands of the Assyrians the Assyrians to the Persians the Persians to the Macedonians the Macedonians to the Romanes Yet all these miraculous victories which the Lorde gaue the Hebrewes ouer so many Kings and Countries could not make them to acknowledge the author thereof but what victories soeuer the good kings of Iudah got by seruing of the Lord that the euil wicked Kings both of Iuda Israel lost by their Idolatry and contempt of the Lord vntill they themselues were rooted out of their Countrey slain and ouerthrowne and their Kings taken carried captiues the one by Salmanasser to the Assirians the other by Nabuchodonozer into Babilon of whom you shall reade more of them and of their warres hereafter And now I thinke it most conuenient to speake somewhat of diuers seuerall combats which is the strongest and onely battaile for in this battaile euery man must first ouercome himselfe and after be ready armed to fight with Sathan and his souldiers the onely enemie of man against whom all men are bounde by the vow of Cherim to fight the battels of the Lord. We are commanded to be as subtill as Serpents to preuent the subtill stratagems of Sathan with spirituall weapons who from the beginning against the Lord in heauen and against man in Paradise practised his policies this is the old Dragon which Michael threw downe out of heauen this is the serpent which the seed of the woman subdued in Paradise this is that ghostly enemy which practised his stratagem by his seruant Pharo in Egypt not onely by making a lawe and decree first to kill the Hebrewes children and after by a second decree to drowne them in Nilus least he should be deceiued in the first but also with a like stratagem by his seruant Herod to kill to the number of 14000. yong Infants in Bethelem and in Iuda among the which he sought Christ therefore we are commanded to be strong and valiant as the Lord commanded not only Ioshua Dauid and others of his owne seruants but also Nabuchodonozer and Cyrus In these kinde of battels or combats euery man must be armed with such spirituall weapons as is by Paul the Apostle appointed to resist the violence of so great an enemy who doth not only assault vs abroad but in our chambers yea in our beds we must therefore wrestle with this enemy as Iacob wrestled with the Angell for the which he was named Israel as Iob wrestled with Sathan for the which the Lord called him his seruant Iob Or as Dauid did with the Gyant Goliah for the which he was annointed King
Sicilia to Rome and Scypio Affrican was the first that shaued his beard in Rome It is written that Caesar the first Emperor of Rome so hated hairie heads that whersoeuer he met them he caused the hinder part of their head to be shaued that they might seeme bald because hee was bald himselfe Phillip king of Macedon vnderstanding that one of his Captaines died the haire of his head beard disgraded him from his place The like did Archidamus king of Sparta when he sawe one with coloured haire exhorting and animating the people forbad him straight to speake saying he could not haue a true tongue that had a false coloured head yet both Pirrhus and Hannibal in Italy coloured their haires but it was a stratagem to deceiue the enemies that they should not be knowne I come to speake of greater markes the markes of calling of Gods people both of the Iewes and of the Gentiles For as Abraham was the first man of the stocke of the Hebrewes that is called the Father of the faithfull so was he the first man marked amōg the Hebrewes to confesse the name of the Lord to whom the first promise was made who beeing admonished by an Oracle at 75. yeares of age to leaue the Chaldeans remoued to Carres a Citie of Mesopotamia where he buried his olde father Thare from thence Abraham remoued and went to dwell in the land of Canaan where so great a famine began that Abraham with his wife were forced to flie to Egipt where likewise he doubted that the beautie of Sarah should put him into much perill and daunger and therefore hee named her his sister and not his wife for he feared Pharao as he feared Abimelech king of Ierar saying to his wife Sarah I know thou art a faire woman and therefore they will destroy me for thy sake for I know the feare of God is not in these places But the Lorde deliuered Abraham from all this care and feare and vexed both king Pharao and Abimelech for their wicked thoughts and intention against Sarah with such terrour and feare by visions and vexations both of themselues of their people that they were warned by their owne Oracles to reuerence and to honour Abraham as a Prophet after which time Abraham continued in Egipt 3. yeares taught the Egiptians true religion and read Astronomy so long there in the which Science he being instructed in his owne Countrey among the Chaldeans the first learned Nation and Empire of the world Of this Abraham Berosus the Chaldean writer reporteth these words Post diluuium decimae aetate apud Chaldeos erat quidam iusticiae cultor Vir magnus syderalis sciētiae peritus And Damasenus also reporteth that Abraham dwelt in Damascus that at the time of Iosephus not only his name was much spoken of but also his house well knowne where hee dwelt in Damascus and therefore we will speake something of the Hebrewes of whom Abraham was the first Father of the faithful I am not ignorant that Heber was the first of the Hebrewes name before Abraham In those dayes seldom was seene any battel for the first and greatest onely battell among kings that we read of at that time was the battell at Siddim which was fought in the time of Abraham CHAP. II. Of the Battell at Siddim where foure kings were ouerthrowne by Abraham and Lot rescued IN this Battell met nine Kings togither to ioine battel foure against fiue the king of Shinaer the king of Ellasar the king of Elam and the king of the nations against the fiue kings of Pentapolis In this battell were Rephaims Emims and Horims Gyants which liued of theft and robbery in mount Seir and in other places yet in this battell the fiue kings of Pentapolis were ouerthrowne by the foure kings and fled and Lot the Nephew of Abraham was taken prisoner in this battell by the Assirian kings besides they tooke all the wealth and substance of these fiue kinges for a spoyle to the souldiers they were such kings at that time as had the whole Empire of Asia betweene them foure Abraham hearing this hard news of the ouerthrow of these kings his neighbors of Lot his nephew vsed this stratagem made strait after thē in the night time with his onely houshold seruants which were three hundred and eighteene came suddainly and set vpon them fought with them ouerthrew them and chased them to Dan where Abraham gaue them another battell recouered Lot the men the women captiues and all the wealth of the fiue Cities called Pentapolis and deliuered all the wealth to the kings of Zodom and Gomorrah the owners therof and kept no part to him nor to his souldiers This was a battell of the Lord that Abraham being but a priuate man with his houshold seruants ouerthrew foure of the greatest kings of Asia for in these battels of the Lord numbers are not respected As Gedeon marched with three hundred Souldiers against the Madianites and Amalekites who were like Grashoppers in number and like sandes of the sea in multitude yet were they ouerthrowne chased and slaine an infinite number by Gedeon and his three hundred souldiers with the like stratagem as Abraham did the Assirians So Dauid with foure hundred souldiers marched after the Amalekites after they had burned Ziclags and had taken Dauids two wiues with al the rest captiues slue ouerthrew them and rescued his wiues at Bezor with all the men women cattel wealth and all the spoyle which the Amalekites tooke away frō Ziclags But yet Dauid according to his maner wold neuer begin battel before he had consulted with the Lord commanded Abiather the Priest to bring him the Ephod and was assured thereby of the victorie ouer the Amalekites at Bezor as Gedeon was of his victorie ouer the Madianites So Abraham rescued Lot his Nephewe at the battel of Siddim where Melchisedech king of Salē for the victory therof met Abrahā entertained him his soldiers with great liberalitie Melchisedech offered gifts vnto Abrahā and sacrifice vnto the Lord with thanks for the victorie and Abraham gaue Melchisedech tythes of all the spoyles hee had by the victorie and deliuered it to the king of Zodom and the rest of the kings their wiues and all the men and women captiues which the foure kings tooke away and Abraham refused to take the worth of a shoe latchet at the king of Zodoms hand least he should say I haue made Abraham rich So that Abraham was in his own person in the first and greatest battel where nine kings met in battell after this Abraham returned to Canaan and dwelt in Hebron vntill Zodome and the rest of the fiue cities were destroied with fire from heauen in the sight of Abraham who but fewe yeares before defended Zodom from the foure kings of Assyria And at that time Abraham staied the Angels as they went to destroy Sodom vnder the oake of
wherevpon he besieged Ephron tooke it destroied it and spoiled it and slew as many as were males within the Citie Diuers kings assembled themselues against Ioshua hearing how Ioshua and the Hebrewes had conquered two great Cities Iericho and Ai fiue kings came together to fight against Ioshua at Gibeon for they feared exceedingly the report of the great battels and wonders that Moses before Ioshua had done vnto the Arabians Madianites Amalekites others for the Lord promised to send the feare and dread of the Hebrews vpon all people vnder heauen and all the Nations of the world should tremble and quake at the fame and great glorie of the Hebrewes and therfore came these fiue kings with all their Armies most strongly against Ioshua but it was the battell of the Lord for the Lord discomfited them before the Hebrewes and slew them at Gibeon with a great slaughter and the Hebrewes chaced them from Gibeon to Bethoron and the fiue kings fled with the rest that were vnslaine but the Lord cast great stones downe from heauen vpon them that more of them died by the stones that fell from heaue◅ then the Hebrues slew with the sword in the field and the fiue kings that fled into a caue in Makedah were brought before Ioshuah and he called the captaines and chiefe men of the Army and commaunded them to set their feete vpon the necks of these kings signifying vnto them that they should so ouercome all nations and vanquish all their enemies in the battels of the Lord. This Ioshuah did to encourage his captains in the setting of their feet vpon the fiue kings necks that conquerors may do what please them of kings conquered So did Sapor king of Persia vse Valerianus the Romane Emperour as a blocke to lay his foote vpon his necke to mount on horsebacke The like did Tamberlane to the great Turk Pazaites at mount Stella where he ouerthrew him and tooke him prifoner There also Pompey the great ouerthrew Mithridates K. of Pontus before where Tamberlane gaue the ouerthrow to the great Turke tooke him and kept him in a cage vnder his table and carried him about with him to his warres Obserue how the kings of the Canaanites Edomites Maobites Ammonites and Philistines knit themselues together against the Hebrewes feeling in themselues such inward fear of them as the Macedonians the Persians and all Asia were fearfull of the Romanes as you read before of Mithridates king of Pontus Tygranes king of Armenia and Iugurth king of Numidia and yet preuailed not for the Lord had determined to take the Monarchie out of the Macedonians hands giue it to the Romanes as he gaue it before from the Persians to the Macedonians Cratippus the Philosopher could say so much to Pom-Pey the great after he was ouerthrowne by Caesar at the battell of Pharsalia Pompey being desirous to know what should happen of the Empire of Rome Cratippus answered that all Kingdomes and Empires are fatall And as Sirach saith Regnum non trasferetur nisi ob in iustitiam regni regis so the kingdomes monarchies of the world passed one vnto another by the Lord appointed Now Ioshua proceedeth forward to his last battell at the waters of Merom where diuers and sundrie kings gathered together with all the force and power they had to fight with Ioshuah with as many people as the sand that is on the sea shore for multitude of men horses and chariots for in this battel al the kings ioyned their force and power together against Ioshuah at the waters of Merom for to fight against the Hebrewes but the Lord gaue them into Ioshuahs hands for they were so slaine that they fell before Ioshua and fled before the Hebrewes vnto Sidon and vnto the valley of Mispech Such a great victorie did the Lord giue vnto Ioshuah ouer these kings that the Sunne stayed ouer Gibeon and the Moone ouer Aialon vntill Ioshuah had full victorie ouer the Canaanites hauing subdued one and thirtie Kings These are the stratagems of the Lord in the behalfe of Ierusalem What stratagems hath not the Lord vsed to saue his people from their enemies enuironed with so many nations against them in the wildernesse and readie to bee deuoured of so many Kings about them in Canaan for the Canaanites thought it more straunge that Ioshua should come into the land of Canaan with his poore Hebrew Army called Hicsos in scorne among the Egyptians then the Babylonians thought of Cyrus to come to Babilon with his most inuincible Persian Armye or the Carthagenians of Scypio to come to Carthage and Affrica with his Romane armie Both Cyrus Scipio vsed stratagems to winne these victories Decius Brutus being so straightly besieged by Mar. Antonius at the citie Mutina to whom Hircius the Cōsull deuised a stratagem to write certaine letters vpon lead and to send them tied about souldiers neckes that swam down the riuer Scultenna to Mutina by the which he was certified of the Consuls minde Another stratagem of Hircius who tied certaine letters about tame Doues neckes which hee kept to that purpose hungry without meate and in darknesse which were sent by some of his souldiers in the night time as nigh as they could to the citie Mutina and then to let them flie the Pigeons being hungry fled straight to the Towers and high buildings of the towne which were brought to Brutus Brutus being now instructed with this stratagem of Hircius vsed the like himselfe to feede Pigeons within the citie Mutina and to let them flee which were for a time carriers of letters betweene Hircius the Consull and Brutus It is not read that the Hebrues reuolted during the whole time of Ioshuah the Hebrues needed not to doubt of victories if they would serue the Lorde hauing the Arke in the midst of their campe where the Lord presented himselfe to giue them Oracles and therfore they might boldly commence warre or enter any battell being imboldned by the Lord as hee promised to Moses and to Ioshua that hee would goe before them with such miraculous stratagems some in the seas as against Pharao some in the Sunne Moone as against the Canaanites some with fire from heauen as against Baals false prophets and priests Some with the opening of the earth in swallowing rebellious Iewes And other such stratagems with stones lightning and thunderbolts to destroy the enemies of Ierusalem CHAP. XVI Of the order and manner of the Gentiles how they brought their wiues and concubines how they ware their best apparell and how they brought the dearest and preciousest Iewels they had in the sight of the campe before they entred into any battell because they should more manfully and couragiously fight THe kings of Asia souldiers whē they went to fight any great battel they brought into the field their most dearest things and preciousest Iewelles which they ware about them to signifie how willing glad they
from mount Ephraim and now followed the enemies vnto Bethauen the victory was great which Saul got ouer the Philistines Saul in this battel did binde the souldiers by oath not to eate till euening and cursed him that would eate any foode till night for Ionathan tasted a little hony with the end of his rod and Saul his father would haue put him to death sauing that the souldiers rescued and deliuered him for the Lord had giuen a great victory by Ionathan ouer the Philistines CHAP. XX. Of the victorie of Saul at Iabesh Gilead and after how he was ouerthrowne by the Philistines and slew himselfe in mount Gilboa and of the reward of diuers treasons AFter the battel at Michmash Saul had an other victorie ouer the Ammonites where the Ammonites were slain at Iabesh Gilead the Lord prospered Saul and endued him with such vertues as were meete for a K. yet Saul disobeyed the Lord being commanded to destroy the Amalekites and sley both man and woman both infant and suckling both oxe and sheepe both camel and asse yet he spared Agag king of the Amalekites and the fat beasts and the lambes the sheepe and the oxen that were good against the commaundement of the Lord and therefore Samuel reproued him and tolde him that the Lord had reiected him and that his kingdome should bee giuen to an other and vpon Sauls disobedience Samuel was commaunded to annoint Dauid king ouer Israel so Saul wonne the victory but lost his kingdome and his life in the next battell Saul being forsaken of the Lord for his disobedience the Philistines preuailed against him in diuers battels for Saul was more desirous to kill Dauid the seruant of the Lord then to destroy the Philistines the enemies of the Lord. But Dauid was reserued and ordained to fight the battels of the Lord to destroy the Amalekites the Philistines the rest of the Lords enemies whom Saul spared being commanded to the contrary therfore the Lord gaue Saul to the hands of the Philistins at the battell in mount Gilboa that the Israelites fled and fell before the Philistines and the three sonnes of Saul were flaine and Saul himselfe sore wounded Such was his cruell life seeking to kill Dauid that he had a desperate death for he slew himself with his owne sword seeing the battell so sore against him his sonnes slaine his souldiers killed and all the rest of his army fled This was the end of Saul the first K. of Israel like the end of Zedechia the last king of Israel And whē the Philistins came to the spoyle of them that were slaine they found the body of Saul and his three sonnes in mount Gilboah slaine in the battel and they cut off Sauls head and stripped him out of his armour and they laid vp his armour in the Temple of their god Astaroth and hanged vp his body on the wall of Bethshan in token of victorie and triumph and they sent the head of Saul vnto the land of the Philistines that they might shew it in their cities and publish it in the Temples of their Idols among the people and after to set vp Sauls head in the Temple of Dagon This was the end of Saul whom the Lord raised from keeping his fathers asses to be a king ouer his people for not obeying the commaundement of the Lord thus euer the Lord punished disobedience in Saul in Rehoboam Achab Manasses and Zedechiah that the Lord deliuered Ierusalem and the kingdome of Iudah to the hands of Nabuchodonozer king of Babilon Saul being now slaine in mount Gilboa the Amalekite which brought to Dauid Sauls crowne and his bracelets and tolde Dauid that hee himselfe slew Saul which was a lye for Saul slew himselfe thought to haue a great reward for such good newes but Dauid commanded him to be slaine The like reward had Rechab and Banah that brought Isbosheths head vnto Dauid who disguised themselues as Marchants to buy wheate and went to Isbosheths house who slept on his bed at noone and they slew him tooke his head with them and presented it vnto Dauid at Hebron supposing they should bee better rewarded then the Amalekite was but Dauid rewarded them in this sort that their hands and their feete were cut off hanged vp ouer the poole in Hebron The recompence of such treacherous seruants were euer so rewarded as Bessus the onely chiefe captaine vnder Darius who after he fled from the battell at Arbela was slaine by Bessus and his head cut off and brought vnto Alexander who thought to be aduanced for his trecherous seruice but Alexander commaunded that he should be tyed to the tops of two young trees bending to the ground that he by the swinge and lifting vp of the trees might be torne in peeces So Septimius and Achillas commaunded by Ptolomeus king of Egipt to kill Pompey and to present his head vnto Caesar from him though Pompey before time had restored Ptolomeu his father to his kingdome in Egipt and Septimius had beene Pompey his souldier in diuers warres yet they slew him most trecherously in his boate at Pellusium and cut off his head to please Caesar but they were rewarded of Caesar as Bessus was of Alexander for the king was slaine and his kingdome giuen to Cleopatra his sister When Antigonus sawe Pirrhus head presented vnto him by his sonne though they were both enemies and in the field in armor one against an other yet he couered Pirrhus head with his hat discommending the crueltie of his sonne with such a reward that he made his bloud run about his eares saying how durst thou like a sauage beast bring Pirrhus head from his body being dead whom no prince or captaine in Asia or in Europe durst in the face meet in the field aliue Yet most men think that trecherie is allowed though traitors be not accepted I do not thinke but the head of Darius brought to Alexander by Bessus and the head of Pompey to Caesar were as gratefull as Ciceroes head was to Marc. Antonius brought by Popilius or as Marc. Crassus head sent by Surena to Horodes for thereby had Alexander the kingdome of Persia Caesar the Empire of Rome treason hath better successe then traitors haue To this effect spake Iezabell to Iehu Had Zimri peace which slew his maister Elah as though she should say can traitors haue good successe but she was rewarded by Iehu for that Naboth was stoned to death by her meanes for his vineyard as the rest were Euen cruel Sylla the Romane the enemie of Marius and all his well-willers and especiall of Sulpitius Syllas mortall foe Yet when Sulpitius seruant would haue betrayed Sulpitius his maister vnto Sylla Sylla caused him to bee throwne headlong downe from the rocke Tarpeia So much the olde Romanes hated traitors and treasons that when Viriatus an other Haniball and a great enemie of the Romanes for 14.
poore Iewes Iudith praied at the striking and the cutting off of Holofernes head which blasphemed the Lord and wold preferre Nabuchodonozer before the God of Israel Susan praied vnto the Lord for her innocēcy against the false Iudges at Babilō that accused her of incōtinency and they were stoned to death by meanes of Daniel We read also of Iud. Machabaeus a noble captaine of the Iewes that he neuer entred into any battell before he praied yet was hee in twelue set battels and in euery one obtained victorie sauing at the last at what time some write hee praied not where hee was slaine in the field by Bacchides and his people ouerthrowne As you heard of good kings by praiers that wanne victories so also shall you heare of wicked Idolatrous kings as Achas who caused an Idolatrous Altar to be made in Iudah like the Altar at Damascus and consecrated his sonne in fire and offered him to Moloch In like sort the king of Moab supposing his Idol Chemosh to be angry with him slue and sacrificed his eldest sonne that should haue raigned next after him King and offered him as a burnt offering to his God Chemosh vpon the walles of the Towne As Achab and Manasses Kings of Iudah did sacrifice their children in the valley of Hynnon to Moloch for Achab was one of the first kings that brought the name of Baal into Israel and mainteined betweene him and his wife Iezabel foure hundred and fiftie false prophets of Baal Achas had good king Ezechias to his sonne but Achas the father walked not vprightly before the Lorde as his sonne Ezechias did but made moulten Images for Baalim and burnt Incense in the valley of Benhynnon sacrificed his sonnes and burnt them with fire and offered them vnto his god Moloch and sought helpe at the gods of Damascus at Chemosh god of the Moabites Milcombe god of the Ammonites and other straunge gods and therefore the Lord gaue him ouer and deliuered him into the hands of the king of the Aramites and he smote him and slue a great number of his soldiers brought many prisoners of Iudah with him to Damascus Againe the Lord deliuered Achas into the hand of the king of Israel Phaekah and he slue in one day six score thousand in Iudah and tooke two hundred thousand prisoners of women sonnes daughters and brought them into Samaria with all the spoyle The Edomites slue of them of Iudah a great number and carried many captiues away Marke what mischiefe happeneth where an euil king doth raigne The Philistines also inuaded the cities of Iudah and tooke Aialon Gederith and other cities of Iudah and thus were they vexed by the Aramites Edomities and Philistines and by the Israelites being their owne nation for that Achas king of Iudah forsooke the Lord and sought helpe at strange gods and not at the hands of the god of Israel After wicked Achas the good king Ezechias his sonne succeeded he was to commence a battell with Senacherib who blasphemed the Lord and threatned destruction to Ierusalem but the Prophet Esay had instructed Ezechiah that this was the Lords battell that he would be reuenged vpō the blasphemy of Senacherib for proud Ashur challenged the Lord into the field to fight with him saying what god could take Iudah out of his hand he numbred the kings and their gods which he and his fathers destroied and with horrible blasphemy perswaded the king of Iudah not to trust to his god but to yeeld vnto him but the lord did put his hooke in his nosthrils and his bridle in his lips as the Lord had told Ezechiah the king by Esayas the prophet that Senacherib with all his army should not come to Ierusalem nor shoote an arrow there for the battel is mine saith the Lord. And hee sent his Angels that night which destroyed all the princes all the captaines and all the valiant men of Ashur and all the whole army of Senacherib to the number of an hundred foure score and sixe thousand without the drawing of one sword of Iudah and Senacherib fled with tenne men with him some thinke that Nabuchodonozer was one but I thinke time will not so allow for he was at that time but a very childe But Senacherib fled to Niniuie where he was slaine in the temple praying before his Idoll Nisroch whom he preferred before the liuing God that by his two sonnes the iust iudgement of the Lord for his blasphemy to be slaine before his owne god before whom he worshipped and prayed when he was slaine by his owne sonnes and thus we see in all iust battels whē we serue the Lord trust onely in him that victories come not by man but by the Lord. Iosaphat a good king had Ioram an euil king to his son a murtherer of his bretheren Ezechias a good king in Ierusalem had Manasses to his sonne a wicked Idolater who filled all the streets of Ierusalem with bloud Iosias a good godly king had to his fonnes Ioachas and Ioachim who were taken captiues by Nabuchodonozer into Babilon for their transgressions and sins at what time Daniel was taken captiue and many other gentlēmen of Iudah euen Ierusalem whom the Lord had defended frō the sword of Senacherib and from all the kings of Egipt and Ashur yet when the sinnes of Ierusalem were ripe it was deliuered into the hand of Nabuchodonozer to be carried captiue into Babilon as Samaria was to Niniuie by Salmanasher one hundred thirtie and three years before Iudahs captiuitie After Ashur had taken the ten tribes of Israel away he brought from Bethel from Cutha from Anah and frō Amath straunge people and placed them in the cities of Samaria in stead of the children of Israel and of these people came the Samaritans of whom mention is made often in the gospel with whom the Iews would haue no societie for so the woman spake to Christ at Iacobs well that why he being a Iew should aske water of a Samaritan This time Zedechiah the king gaue no hearing to the Prophet Ieremy who forewarned the king of their destruction to be at hand for the which the Prophet was imprisoned first by Fashur high bishop of the tēple who smote Ieremy and put him in the stockes strooke him as Zedechiah the false Prophet strook Micha who was after commaunded by Achab to be imprisoned as Ieremy the Prophet was and by meanes of the nobles of Iudah to king Zedechiah Ieremy was imprisoned in a dirtie dungeon Ieremy notwithstanding spared not to tell them that they should die an horrible death and should lie as dung vpon the earth and no man to burie them wherat they were so moued saying let vs not regard his words and let vs cut out his tongue The citizens of Anathot commaunded Ieremy not to preach vnto them in the name of the Lord if thou do thou shalt
presented by a poore husbandman with great treasure which he found in a vessel as he was digging in his owne ground Tamberlane demaunded whether his fathers name and Image were vpon thē causing the superscription of the money to be read being answered that it was Caesars the Romain Emperors he said thē they be not Tamberlanes and commanded that none of the souldiers should rob or spoile the poore man of the benefits of his good luck by his trauell This was that great Scythian Tamberlane that had six hundred thousand footmen foure hundred thousand horse against Pazaites the Turke and gaue him battell at mount Stella a place more famous for that there Pompey the great ouercame Mithridates king of Pontus there Tamberlane ouerthrew the Turks tooke Pazaites their Emperor kept him fed him in a cage vnder his table whom hee carried afterwards in a cage euery where in his warres The like infamy hapned to one of the Emperors of Rome by Sapor king of Persia who kept him al the dayes of his life as a blocke to mount on horse But Sesostris king of Egipt did farre passe the Scythian and the Persian kings in his victories for he caried those kings and princes whom hee subdued bound round about his coach from countrey to countrey from region to region as in a great triumph wherein Sesostris gloried much And yet all these three came short to Adonizebech who kept seuentie kings vnder his table whose toes and thumbes he cut off Thus cruell tyrants haue the like punishment oftentimes as others were by them punished CHAP. X. Of certaine noble Romane Captaines compared with Greeke Captaines Of the force of eloquence the commendations of diuers great Captaines and their stratagems PLato saith that from great minds great vertues or great vices do proceed and so it seemed in many noble and heroicall men as well of the Greekes as of the Romanes as Alcibiades might well bee compared to Lu. Sylla and Demetrius with Mar. Antonius al alike giuen to vertue and vice friendes and foes to theyr Countreys and yet all foure valiaunt and wise whose fortune seemed not much vnlike in all theyr victories Plutarch therefore very fitly compareth some Captaines of the Greekes with the Romanes as Lucullus compared with Cymon the Athenian both of equall fortune in great victories the one in Asia the other Persia. Mar. Cato surnamed the Demosthenes of Rome compared with Aristides surnamed the Iust in Athens So Hanibal is well compared to Philip of Macedon for false subtil deceitfull craftie stratagems they weyed not how they conquered so they might conquer they were in no wise to be trusted vnto either by their promise or by their oathes so farre differed Philip from his sonne Alexander that what Alexander wonne he wonne it onely by magnanimitie and Philip by fraud Demetrius after many victories of Ptolomeu king of Egipt and an other victory by sea in the I le of Cyprus ouer the same king the third victory against Cassander king of Macedonia at Thermopyle in Greece this Demetrius grew so fortunate and great that Seleucus Ptolomeus Lysimachus and Pirrhus foure mightie kings enuying Demetrius greatnesse conspired against him and ioyned their force together for they all feared and doubted his courage and enuied the greatnesse of his fortune Demetrius marching on with a great army to besiege Athens Crates a Philosopher carefull of his Countrey and fearefull of Demetrius least hee should destroy Athens the schoole of learning and the eye of Greece met Demetrius vpon the way with his Army whom he so entreated with sweet perswasions eloquent words that the fury of Demetrius was mitigated by Crates the Philosopher that he raised his siege and departed from Athens So Demades the Orator in like sort did perswade Alexander the great readie with his army to plague and to destroy all the cities of Greece So did Arius the Philosopher perswade Augustus Casar to spare the citie of Alexandria So had Cicero welnigh perswaded Caesar from the battel at Pharsalia with such pithie force of eloquence with such vehement words that Caesars countenance chaunged and his body so shooke that the booke which hee held fell out of his hand Cyrus spared Craesus for Solons sake and Alexander spared Thaebes for Pindarus sake the force therefore of eloquence is such that Philip king of Macedon euer doubted the tongue of Demosthenes more then the strength of the Athenians But againe to returne to Demetrius whose greatnesse grew so great in Macedonia in Asia and in Greece that in sumptuous building of ships framing of all sorts of engines of batterie this Demetrius excelled all Kings of his time For Aeropus King of Macedonia delighted onely to make fine tables and lampes Arsaces King of Parthia in making their arrowes heads keene and sharpe Attalus King of Asia in planting of phisicall hearbes but Demetrius might bee compared for his engines of batteries and his princely practise to Archimedes himselfe being the onely Geometrer of the world at that time whose death Marcellus lamented more then he reioyced for the winning of Syracusa For when Archimides was slaine in his studie and Syracusa taken by Marcellus souldiers hee sought no longer time to liue but till hee had ended certaine Geometricall conclusions which he had inuented for Marcellus that noble Romane feared more the Geometricall engines of Archimedes then all the force of Syracusa and therfore Pythagoras whē he found any new skill in Geometry he straight offered sacrifice to the Muses Demetrius grew so great in Greece that at a generall assembly of the states in Greece hee was chosen Lieutenant generall of all the Grecians where none were but foure before him Philip king of Macedon and his sonne Alexander the great before them none but Agesilaus and Agamemnon and yet died Demetrius a yeelded prisoner to Seleucus whom Demetrius in his greatnesse was wont to call but keeper of the Elephants Demetrius laughed them to scorne which called any other prince king but Antigonus his father and himself The orators in Athēs cōtended in orations who shuld exceed in preferring new titles of honors to Demetrius In so much they decreed that the moneth Munichian which is Ianuary should be called Demetrion and their feast Dyonisia should be called Demetria and that Demetrius and his father king Antigonus should haue their pictures carried with the pictures of Iupiter and Minerua in the tryumphe of Peplon in the holy banner of Athens This was the marching of Demetrius greatnesse to die a prisoner CHAP. XI Of the war like marching of diuers noble Captaines with their famous victories and stratagems Of the crueltie of Mithridates against the Romanes Of Marius and his reuenge ouer the Cymbrians TWo other great marchings of Epaminondas Agesilaus the emulation betweene these two Captaines was the cause of the ouerthrow of Sparta in the battell at Leuctres by Epaminondas at which
who after he had subdued the most part of the cities of Greece he laid siege to Athens tooke it about midnight with such a noise number of hornes and sound of trumpets in order of battell with their swords drawne making such an vncredible slaughter that the greatnesse of that murther and the number of the persons that were slaine could not be knowne the noblest men of the citie were in such dispaire that they made account to liue no longer because they sawe such tirannie and crueltie in Sylla that an infinite number slew themselues before they should come to Syllas hand at which time the learned libraries at Athens were destroyed quite and burned The most famous library at Pergamus gathered together of all the vniuersities of the world by the great diligence and industry of Attalus and Eumenes kings of Asia of the which library one Euporion had the charge by the appointment of Antiochus the great which was also burnt and destroyed in the warres of Asia between Antiochus the great and the Romanes which Antiochus by the perswasiō of Hanibal would take warres in hand against the Romanes supposing by his two Elephants whom he named Aiax and Patroclus to terrifie the Romanes with these beasts Hanibal might haue tolde him he had foure score Elephants in his warres against Scypio Affrican and after Hanibal was ouerthrowne and his Elephants brought to Rome Metellus at his victorie at Panormus sent to Rome a hundred foure and twentie Elephants and fiftie yeares before Metellus Pirrhus was glad to leaue foure Elephants to beautifie the triumphes of Curius Dentatus and to forsake the Romanes and to flye to his countrie Antiòchus the great might haue knowne this well eyther by himselfe or by Hanibal but being ouerthrowne of the Romanes the library also of Pergamum was destroyed Againe the most noble library at Rome began by Asinius Pollio and finished by Mar. Varro was such that both these great learned men had their Images and statues set vp in the market place at Rome while yet they liued If the Romanes had bene as desirous of bookes and learning as they were of bloud and spoile Caesar might as wel haue brought the library frō Alexandria to Rome as he brought the pictures of Cato Petronius and others from Affrike to Rome or as Augustus brought the picture of Cleopatra Lu. Scypio might as well haue brought vnto Rome the library of Pergamus from Asia as to bring in long tables painted the forme and likenesse of 130. cities townes which he subdued and conquered in Asia And so Lu. Sylla might haue brought the library of Athens to Rome as well as he did bring all the cities of Greece set out and painted brauely in tables banners and ensignes to aduance his triumph but the Romanes esteemed nothing but victories they weighed not for bookes but for battels they banished Mathematicians and Philosophers out of Rome and out of all Italy for the Romans professed onely armes and yet many of them were learned for Cato though learned himselfe yet hee would haue no Philosophy read in Rome hee much disliked that Carneades the Academick Philosopher who came as Embassador from Athens to Rome should tarrie long there least the Romain youthes that were desirous of learning and eloquence would giue ouer the honor and glorie of Armes and yet many of the best Romaine captaines were well learned It was but the opinion of Cato for Philopomen the Greeke by talking of warres with Captaines and by reading of Cincius and Euangelus bookes became an excellent captaine Lucullus in like sort himselfe being learned as it seemed for Lu. Sylla dedicated his commentarie of 22. bookes vnto Lucullus who was as noble a Captaine as any was among the Romanes Alexander the great would neuer sleepe in his bed without the Iliads of Homer vnder his pillow So Caesars Cōmentaries at this time is no lesse esteemed with the Turkes then Homers Iliads with the Greekes It seemed in those dayes that it was not hard to find famous and learned libraries when so many learned and profound schollers wrote so much as Callimachus wrote eight hundred bookes Crisippus a stoik Philosopher wrote more then others could read so many Greekes and many Romanes wrote all the dayes of their liues but as you heard the end of warre sword and fire consumes all especially of ciuill warres Some bookes are also mentioned of the Prophets and of the Apostles in their writings which are not extant as the booke of the battels of the Lord the booke of the Iust called Iasher and the booke of the Chronicles of the kings of Iudah often mentioned in the booke of kings In the new Testament of the prophesie of Enoch and the storie of the body of Moses mentioned in the Epistle of Iude but now not extant These things are also declared in the writing of Nehemias how he made a library and how he gathered the Acts of the Kings and of the Prophets the Acts of Dauid and the Epistles of the kings CHAP. XII Of the breach of the lawe of Armes of the trechery and murther that came thereby THe Castle of Thaebes called Cadmea was taken by Phaebidas a Spartan captaine before the Thaebans mistrusted any thing for there was a league betweene the Thaebans and the Lacedemonians howbeit the Lacedemonians against the lawe of armes tooke the castle and the captaine that then kept the castle named Ismenias and sent him to Sparta as a prisoner Pelopidas and others saued themselues by flight and for that the Spartans brake their league with the Thaebans hereby grew great warres betweene the Lacedemonians and the Thaebans to the vtter confusion of the Lacedemonians and the last ouerthrowe of Sparta at the battell of Leuctres where Epaminondas Pelopidas were victors This ouerthrow fell iustly to the Lacedemonians for that they brake their league and conditions of peace with the Thaebans for the which it is lawfull among all nations to commence warre so is it great wisedome for all nations to auoyd the great harme that may fall by entreatie of peace For vnder colour of peace many haue practised means to warre so Metellus deceiued Iugurth with faire words tending to peace Philip king of Macedonia hauing a vaine hope to haue peace with the Romains thinking therby to repaire his force being before foiled by the Romanes was the second time vanquished by the Romanes thrise he rebelled and thrise he was vanquished This was not that Philip father to Alexander the great who neuer kept conditions of peace but false and trecherous in all his promises he could be as rebellious as the last Philip but not so soone subdued Cotys King of Thracia vnder colour of a league was with faire words allured to a banquet where he was slaine It was the counsel of Archidamus Agesilaus sonne to talke of peace to the Lacedemonians to prouide for warre and therefore the Romanes
the Athenians were for Agesilaus tooke another course thē Themistocles did when he wanted money he went to the confines of Persia to spoile and to plague the Persians for the Persians euer feared the greatnesse of Agesilaus and yet was he but a litle lame man of stature that hee was satisfied with golde and siluer to returne to his countrey that Agesilaus would often iest and say that thirtie thousand Archers did driue him out of Asia which was the Persian coine that was stampt with the print of an Archer with these Archers the Persians caused oftentimes Agesilaus to returne frō Persia into Greece againe The like iest did Gilippus seruant he told the Ephories of Sparta that his maister Gilippus had vnder the roofe of his house more Owles then all Athens for the coine of Athens was stampt with the print of an Owle as the Persians was with the print of an Archer for Gilippus had taken from his maister Lysander much money and hidden them vnder the shield of his house and so by his seruant was in a iest betraied Thus leauing Agesilaus with his Archers and Gilippus seruant with his Owles I will returne to Themistocles to whom Marcellus shall be compared in celeritie of whom Hannibal said that Marcellus could not be quiet neither with good fortune nor bad neither victor nor conuicted Scypio Affrican with such celeritie after he had conquered Hannibal at the battell at Zama soone subdued Carthage Pau. Aemilius with great celeritie subuerted the whole Empire of Macedonia and brought their king Persius and Gentius king of the Illyrians both prisoners vnto Rome in his tryumphe Pompey the great vsed such celeritie that within fortie daies he vanquished all the Pyrates who had a thousand ships on the seas and taken aboue foure hundred townes they robd and spoyld all marchant venturers rifled and destroyed all the Ilands and townes vpon the sea coast and destroyed many Temples they feared no force neither weighed for kings nor subiects and grew so strong that they ruled both land sea without lawe But Pompey had such victory ouer them that after the great slaughter in the battell at the citie Coracesium he tooke twentie thousand persons prisoners and thus in lesse then three moneths Pompey ended and quite vanquished the Pyrates Caesar in all his warres excelled all men in expedition and celeritie in the which he had such wonderfull good successe against Pompey in Pharsalia against his sonne in Affrica against Affranius in Hispaine against Cato in Vtica with such expedition that he became as you read being one that was denied to be Consul to be Perpetuus Dictator and the first Emperour of Rome Clau. Nero the Consul considering that Italy was plagued by Hannibal in Lucania and by Asdrubal his brother in Vmbria made such secret great hast that before Hannibal knew he went out of his campe in Lucania he was in Vmbria and before Asdrubal knew he was in Vmbria he was with his fellow Consul at the battell of Metaurus where Asdrubal was slaine his armie ouerthrowne and his head sent to his brother Hanibal in Lucania so that by one Romane stratagem the two great Romane enemies Hanibal and Asdrubal were ouerthrowne the one slaine at the Riuer Metaurus and the other driuen from Italy into Affrike Celeritie vpon deliberation is most necessarie at all times therefore the chiefe guard about Romulus person were called Celeres for their quicknesse and celeritie in executing Romulus commaundement Dauid king of Iudah had such resolute men called Cerethites about his person readie with such celeritie to effect any thing the king would commaund them that when they heard the king longing for some water out of the well of Bethelem they presently ventured theyr liues through the campe of the enemies and brought water to the king from Bethelem before the king missed them but Dauid sacrificed the water vnto the Lord and would not drinke of it because his men offered theyr liues for it Caleb vsed such expedition after he had viewed and trauelled all the land of Canaan that he returned within fortie dayes to the Hebrew campe with a full resolution perswading Ioshua to take the warres in hand Ehud one of the Iudges of Israel who was wont to say to his souldiers follow mee went fully resolued to Eglon king of Moab an enemie of the Lord and therefore slew him in his chamber Many souldiers of the Lord are resolued through faith to effect many things with celeritie and zeale so Phineas slew Zimri the Israelite Cosbi a Lords daughter of the Madianites for that they offended the Lord in the campe and therfore Phineas thrust them through both with his speare Iehu though a wicked man yet much commended for his resolute zeale for that he ouerthrew Achabs house slew Baals prophets and destroyed Baals temple and his aultars The great kings of the world are resolued to hazard theyr liues to winne fame and glory eyther by parasites or flatterers moued therevnto or by oracles of theyr Idols or by visions and dreames especially as Astiages king of the Meades dreamed that his daughter Mandanes which was Cyrus mother made water that ouerflowed all Asia Astiages dreamed the second time that a vine grew out of his daughters wombe whose braunches couered all Asia therefore hee called all his wise men and soothsayers of his kingdome together to interpret him these two dreames who tolde him that his daughter should haue a sonne that should bee such a king that hee should rule ouer all Asia which made Cyrus so ambitious and proud that he could not be content with all the kingdomes of Asia but must goe to be slaine in Scythia The like dreame sawe Xerxes before his voyage in to Greece that in his dreame hee thought hee sawe an Oliue tree crowned whose boughes and braunches couered the whole earth and withall suddenly vanished away The same Author writeth that Iulius Caesar dreamed that he lay with his mother and by these meanes he was flattered by his soothsayers that hee should subdue the whole earth Euen so Hamilcar Generall of the Carthagineans thought hee heard in his sleepe a voyce that hee should the next night suppe in Syracusa but he was so glad of his speech that he was deceiued of his hope and yet he supt in Syracusa not as a conqueror but as a prisoner but was deceiued as Xerxes was by the hope of his crowned Oliue or as Caesar was by his mother Hannibal after the taking of Saguntum dreamed that Iupiter should call him into councell with the goddes where hee was commaunded to take warres in hand against the Romanes there hee seemed that Iupiter had giuen him a captaine to goe before him euen from the councell house one of the company of the gods and looking behinde him hee thought he sawe a terrible monstrous Serpent which Hannibal in his sleepe asked Iupiter what monster that was
not when Thermutes laide the diademe vpon the childes head which Moses being but a very childe with both his handes tooke the diademe from his head and threw it to the ground and treaded it vnder his feete whereat the Priestes of Egipt were so astonished that they told the king that that childe shoulde bee the ouerthrow and destruction of Egipt they all counselled Pharao to take away the feare of Egipt and the hope of the Hebrewes Notwithstanding Moses as he was by the prouidence of God preserued saued from killing drowning being a childe so likewise then was he kept from the enuy and malice of the Priestes and of the Egiptians who sought to kill him as the Iewes thought to kill Paul but as Paul preuailed ouer the Iewes so Moses preuailed ouer the Egiptians and marched forward with this Hebrew army towards Aethiope gaue them two great battels ouerthrew them chased them and daunted the courage of the Aethiopians that they were brought lower by the Hebrewes then the Egiptians were before by the Aethiopians The Aethiopians thus being brought lowe Moses brought his armie and besieged Saba the chiefe citie of Aethiope at what time the king of Aethiope his daughter named Tharbis hauing hard such great report of Moses fortitude and prowesse went vp on the walles of the citie to behold the armie of the Hebrewes where she saw Moses manfully and valiantly fighting before his armie she much admired his courage and wondred at his prowesse doubting much the destruction of her countrey she sent some of her chiefe seruants vnto Moses by whom shee opened her fauour her loue towards Moses offering her selfe to him in marriage and to cōclude peace between the Aethiopians the Egiptians which Moses accepted vpon her oath that the citie Saba should be yeelded vp into Moses hand and peace concluded betweene Aethiope Egipt which presently was yeelded vp and the marriage performed notwithstanding Moses at his returne to Egipt his seruice was more maliciously accused and suspected then thankfully accepted such hatred malice grew in Egipt towards Moses by meanes of the Priestes and the king himselfe suspected him for his greatnesse and successe of his victories ouer the king of Aethiopia that Pharao doubted that Moses might doo the like in Egipt by these meanes traps and snares were laide to destroy Moses that Moses was in such feare of his life the rather for that he kild an Egiptiā that abused an Hebrue that he was forced secretly to flie through the wildernesse vnto the Madianites where he maried Zephora Iethro his daughter and there continued fortie yeares from whence he was called by the Lord to lead his people from Egipt to Canaan whose greatnesse then was more knowne then before as is set downe in Exodus so that Appian with his Egiptian Authors with their fained fables against Moses are worthie to be scoft at for their impudent lies for Moyses was brought vp with Thermutes the kings daughter heire of Egipt and married to Tharbis the kings daughter of Aethiope But let vs omit Appian with his fellow lyers and come to Moses marching with his Hebrew campe CAAP. IX Of certaine military lawes and marshall exercise of the Hebrewes vnder Moses in the wildernesse AFter that Pharao and the Egiptians were drowned in the red sea the Hebrewes had such rich spoyles by their dead bodies found on the sea shoares that now the Hebrewes became from poore shepheardes called Hicsos in Egipt to be rich souldiers that neither Phillip king of Macedonia had such spoyle in Delphos nor his sonne Alexander in Babilon nor Nabuchodonozer in Ierusalem as the Hebrewes had of the spoyle of the Egiptians vpon the shoare For now the Egiptians paie them their hires for the seruice and bondage of foure hundred and thirtie yeares So Philo said that the borrowing of Iewels of siluer and Iewells of Golde was nothing else but to paie the due debt vnto the Hebrewes for their long bondage and seruice So Rupertus saide the wages and hires which the Egiptians kept so long vniustly from the Hebrewes by an honest guile the Hebrewes obtained their long deteined due for the Lord commanded the Hebrues to borrowe Golde and siluer of the Egiptians and the spoyle which is gotten of the enemies is due by the lawe of armes The Hebrewes marched vnder Moses with Egiptian weapons with songs of hymnes and Psalmes for the victorie vnto the Lord. Myria Moses sister the women and virgins of Israel with violls harpes and tabrets and with great melodie gaue thankes vnto the Lord so that it was afterwardes a custome among the Virgines of Israel to sing Psalmes and Songes to thanke the Lorde for their victories and withall to aduaunce the fame of the Generalls and Captaines as they did to Saul and Dauid The Lorde sets downe certaine martiall lawes to Moses to gouerne and to rule his people commaunding him to make two siluer Trumpets to assemble the armie to call the congregation and for the remouing of the Campe and charged the sonnes of Aaron to sounde out the trumpets in any seruice onely the Priests were appointed by the lawe to sound the trumpets to carry the arke which was their office for euer When thou goest out with the host against thy enemies keep thee then from all wickednes be clean from pollution in the night for the Lorde may not abide in the hoste any souldier that is any way vncleane before he be washt with water and purified and when a souldier must serue the necessitie of nature amōg other weapons he must haue his paddle staffe to dig the earth and after to couer his excrement for the Lord would haue his people pure and holie both in soule and bodie for the Lord walketh in the midst of the campe among his souldiers The Hebrues were also commanded whē they went to any battell that the Priest should stand before the whole armie being called together with the sound of a trumpet to exhort the armie and to encourage them to feare nothing the multitude of their enemies but to fight valiantly the battels of the Lorde assuring them that the Lorde would be their Captaine and goe before them and therfore not to doubt of the victorie So the Lord promised and said to Moses I will goe before thee to Egipt against Pharao So the Lord said to Ioshua that he would goe before him and his armie to Iericho So the Lord with the like words spake to Nabuchodonozer when he went against Ierusalem And euen so he spake to Cyrus when he went against Babilon All battels victories are mine saith the Lord. As the Lord promised not only to Moses to Ioshua and to others but also to Nabuchodonozer Cyrus Heathen Princes to goe before them in his own battels and therefore the Heathen kings made their souldiers beleeue that the Gods taught them stratagems to ouercome their enemies Archidamus vsed a
stratagem against the Arcadians commaunded secretly in the night time certaine horses to goe round about his campe and in the morning hee shewed his souldiers the steps of the horses saying that it was Castor Pollux that would be readie in the next battell to take their parts and to fight with them against the Arcadians So did Epaminandas he caused the armor which did hang in the temples and were dedicated to their Gods secretly to be taken downe by this stratagem he perswaded his souldiers that the gods promised to be in those armors themselues to fight in the battell Pericles Generall for the Athenians vsed the like policie caused a comely tall man of great stature all in purple to sit on a high stately chariot drawne with goodly white horses standing in a thicke wood consecrated to Pluto where both the armies might behold him vntill the signe of the battell were giuen then he called to Pericles and willed him to goe forwards and said that the gods of Athens were at hand by this stratagem Pericles got a great victory for the enemies fled before the battell began The Gentiles the Heathens beleeued confessed that all victories good successe came to them by seruing of their gods and all their ouerthrowes calamities fell vpon them by offending their gods so much stood the Heathens in awe and feare of their gods And like as Ioshua Iosaphat Dauid returned to giue thankes to the Lord with violls harpes trumpets for their victories so the Lacedemonians with trumpets and flutes crowned with garlands made of all kinde of flowers and with a song to Castor Pollux for any victories which they had obtained The Romanes also and the Grecians not only with building of Temples and Aultars but with the great sacrifice Haecatombae did please their Gods for theyr victories In Hercules Temple in Sparta the Armours that were hanged vp and consecrated to Hercules seemed to make a sound and and a noise and at Thebes in the Temple of the same Hercules the gates of the Temple being shut were suddenly of themselues opened and the shields and the targets that were hanged vp in the roofe of the Temple dedicated to Hercules fel downe were found vpon the ground which foreshewed to the soothsayers the destruction both of Sparta and Thebes Now to the Hebrewes The Lord commaunded that hee that buildeth a new house and had not possessed it a yeare should be spared from warre Hee that planted a vineyard and not receiued the fruites thereof should also be spared from warre And he that betrothed himselfe to a wife and had not married her might in like case be spared from war After the Priest had ended his exhortation to the souldiers the Generall of the Army proclaimed that if any timerous or fainthearted souldier were within the Army hee should returne home least hee through his cowardlinesse should disanimate or discourage the rest of his Army Hence the Gentiles had the first instruction to vse the like long after this time for the lawe of Armes which the Lord gaue vnto his people the Hebrewes in the wildernesse were in all countries of the Gentiles afterwards imitated in all their warres As among the Romaines the Priestes Faeciales in like sort as the Hebrewes exhorted and encouraged the Romanes manfully to fight for their Countrey repeating the lawe of Armes of the Hebrewes So the Athenians before they cōmenced any battel their Priests called Mantes stood before the army made a speech to the souldiers of the iust cause of theyr wars and would bee further instructed by their Oracles to know of their victories The Persians likewise would take no warre nor battell in hand before they had consulted with their soothsayers which were their wise men called Magi. CHAP. X. Of the camp of the Hebrews of their exercise in the wildernesse and of the whole Army deuided vnder foure principal standarts and of placing of the Arke in the midst of the Camp THe Lord commaunded at the setting out of the Army vnto the battell that the Arke should be carried by the Leuites which Ark signified the presence of God the figure of Christ at what time Moses vsed alwaies these words at the lifting vp of the Ark rise vp Lord let thy enemies be scattered and let them that hate thee flee before thee And when the Arke rested Moses alwaies said these words Returne ô Lord to thee many thousands when the Arke was caried a cloude couered the Arke and where the cloud stayed there the Arke would rest and when the cloud remoued the Arke was also to be remoued for by the remouing of the cloud the Arke was also to be remoued The Lord commanded in the wildernesse of Sinai to Moses and Aaron with the twelue Princes of the Tribes of Israel to take muster to number thē that were able to goe to the wars frō twentie yeares vpward hence frō the Hebrewes the Gentiles tooke their instructions in numbring and mustring their souldiers Moses numbred the people and found six hundred three thousand fiue hundred fiftie able men to go to wars in the camp of the Hebrews beside the Leuites which were appointed to attend the Tabernacle For the Leuites were numbred three seuerall times the first time they were numbred at a moneth old when they were consecrated vnto the Lord The second time at 25. yeares olde when they were appointed to serue in the Tabernacle The third time at 30. yeares old to bear the burthens of the Tabernacle and to serue in the Tabernacle vntill 50. yeares and then to cease from bearing such heauie burthens and painful seruice But after that they should minister in the Tabernacle singing hymnes Psalmes instructing counselling keeping of things in order After that Moses had brought the Hebrews frō Egipt instructed them with military discipline giuen them martiall lawes then the Lord would not haue Moses to bring his people straight way to the land of Canaan but to lead them too and fro in the wildernesse to keep thē in cōtinual exercise to teach them military discipline by the law of Arms appointed for they might within 3. daies as Philo writeth haue passed frō Egipt to the lād of Canaan but that the Lord would haue thē to endure labour to be exercised in martiall discipline to become good souldiers therfore suffred the Amalekites Moabites Edomites the Philistines to be with thē as needles in their eies thornes in their sides being their professed enemies to warre to fight and to keepe them still in practise and exercise of armes The Lord suffered the Camp of the people to wander too and fro in the wildernesse backward forward to learne to endure cold and heate and all kind of hardnesse remouing their campe too and fro 42. mansions before they came to the land of Canaan Cai. Marius perceiuing his
and how he should gouerne the Army for the custome of the Hebrewes was to run to the Arke as to their onely Oracle where the presence of the Lord was to crie and to call for help at the Lords hand in their most danger and greatest calamitie As the Arke was made by Noah to saue himself from the deluge in such forme fashion as the Lord had cōmanded the lēgth the breadth the height so was the Tabernacle made by Moses in which the Arke was placed in such proportion as the Lord commanded Moses that the tabernacle shuld be 30. cubits long 12. broad the Arke 2. cubits a half long a cubit a half broad After the vse of the Tabernacle the Temple was appointed where Salomon and the Priests were instructed to manifest the word of the Lord vnto his people The Gentiles also ranne in any danger or doubt as to Iupiter in Hammon to Apollo in Delphos to Baall and other such Oracles where their woodden Idols and gods gaue false answeres And where the Hebrewes as I said before had no prouisions for their wars either in towns or Cities nor any place to flie vnto but the Tabernacle where the Romanes in any danger might defend themselues in the Capitall The Carthagineans to their strōg fort Byrsa The Thaebans to their Castle Cadmea And so the Argiues to their strong fort Larissa And the Syracusans to the Castle Acradina These were the forts of the Gentiles Besides the Gentiles had theyr treasures and theyr money laid vp in strong holds and forts As Tygranes king of Armenia kept his treasure in Bambinsa Olena two strong castles to warre with the Romanes Iugurth king of Numidia kept his mony in two of his strongest cities called Capsa and Thola to warre with the Romanes So likewise Mithridates king of Pontus kept his treasure in Ptera to war against the Romanes So the kings of Macedonia and all the kings of Asia had their treasures and store houses to warre against the Romanes The Hebrewes had no such store houses prepared nor mony laid vp nor prouisions readie but their foode was such from the Lord that they wanted nothing and yet they conquered more kings and subdued more countries then all they CHAP. XI Of the maner and order of the Gentiles and of their principall standards Of the setting vp of the Tabernacle and the dedication of the altar by Moses HAuing spoken something of the Hebrew camp of their seueral marching vnder their standards I thinke it not amisse to set downe the orders maners of the marching of some of the Gentiles in their campes for varietie of matters and for that men may see and vnderstand how farre inferiour were all the nations of the world to the poore Hicsos the Hebrews And first of the Egiptians who carried in their proper standard into any battel the Image of that Idoll which they worshipped in that citie as in Heliopolis an oxe in Memphis a bull in Arsinoe a crocodile and so in other cities cattes calues serpents such as they worshipped in the temples such they carried as their ensignes to the field The Persians carried in the first and principall standart the Image of the Sunne which the Persians call Mithra In their second standart they carried the picture of the eternall sacred fire which they call Orimasdes In their third standart they carried a golden spread-Eagle The old Romanes when their Empire grew strong had fiue principall standarts which were carried before their military legions The first standart before the legion was an Eagle this was chiefe in the second was carried the picture of a Wolfe in the third the picture of Minotaurus in the fourth the picture of a horse in the fift the picture of a boare The Athenians carried in their standart the Image of an Owle which was likewise printed on their coyne with the face of Minerua The Thaebans caried in their standart the picture of Sphinx into any battell The Cymbrians caried before their armies in their standart vnto the field the picture of a brazē bull so did they in the Cymbrian wars against Marius the Romane Consull The old Germains vsed to carry the picture of lightnings to lead their armies into the field in their standart Sometimes great kings for their proper standarts in their warres carried the pictures of diuers and sundrie beasts and fowles as Osiris the first king of Egipt a dog Cyrus also the great king of Persia gaue in his ensigne a cocke as Themistocles did for the day before Themistocles had battell with Xerxes by the crowing of a cocke he was sure of victorie Iulius Caesar gaue in his ensigne an Elephant for that he vanquished Iuba king of Mauritania who bare an Elephant in his ensigne and so Porus king of India bare in his ensignes the picture of Hercules The Hebrues might better haue claimed the Sunne in their ensignes then the Persians as Ioshua for that the Sun staied ouer Gibeon and the Moone ouer Aialon at Ioshuaes commandement vntill he had full victorie ouer the Amalekites and therefore he might aswell haue the Image of the Sun in his ensigne being aliue as he had it set on his graue being dead So might Iudah Gedeon Dauid and others which had the sonne of God the starre of Iacob the liō of Iudah in their standarts ensignes Because we may omit nothing that the Lord commaunded Moses concerning the setting vp of the tabernacle and the dedicatiō of the altar the twelue Princes of the Tribes of Israel at the setting vp of the tabernacle after the tabernacle was anointed sanctified brought their offerings before the Lord sixe chariots couered ouer and twelue oxen one chariot for two Princes and for euery one of the Princes an oxe which they before the tabernacle offred to the lord which were deliuered to the Leuites So for the dedication of the altar after it was annointed sanctified these twelue Princes offred their offerings before the altar euery prince offered a siluer chargior of an handreth thirtie shickels weight a siluer bowle of seuentie shekels a cup of gold full of Incense a yong bullock a ramme a lambe of a yeare olde and a hee goate This was the maner of the setting vp of the tabernacle and dedication of the altar Hence grew the building of temples the dedica◅on of altars oblations and ceremonies among the Gentiles and Heathens to dumbe Idolls woodden gods It was euer the propertie of Sathan like an Ape to counterfeit and seeme to imitate the lawes of the Lord. There was nothing so rife among the Gentiles as temples and altars which made Paul full of anger to see so many altars in Athens and especially one dedicated Ignoto deo to an vnknowne God Athens excelled all Greece for the nomber of theyr gods and of their altars for they had an altar
in Athens to lust another to shame They had also straunge kinde of altars in Delos one to Apollo made onely of the right hornes of all kinde of beastes and an other altar made of the ashes of the sacrificed men and beasts like Belesus who raised vp a promontorie in Babilon of the ashes of the citie of Niniuie destroyed to giue light to passengers that sayled by Babilon on Euphrates in the which ashes Belesus carried secretly all the wealth gold siluer and all other rich mettals melted of Niniuie into Babilon Numa Pomp. a verie prophane religious king put vp a temple to Faith another to Terminus and decreed a law for that Terminus was the god of peace and a Iudge of meares and markes betweene neighbours that whosoeuer would plough any of his neighbors markes and meares both hee and his oxen should be sacrificed and slaine to god Terminus vpon the very meare where the offence was done This temple which king Numa builded to Terminus was made vncouered and open aboue as the Greekes did vse to build their temple to Iupiter and to Anfidius which the Greeks called Hypaethra both the Romanes and the Greekes thought it not fit that that these gods should be honored and serued in close couered temples and vpon their altars no sacrifice of blood should be offered but according to Pythagoras lawes fruits cakes hony flowers and such because they were gods of peace Againe the Romanes the Greekes and the Egiptians vsed in olde time to build temples out of the cities to those gods that should watch guard the cities from the enemies And therefore Romulus builded a temple to Vulcan out of the walles of the citie of Rome so his successor king Numa builded two temples the one to Bellona the other to Mars foure miles from the gate Caâ—…ena out of Rome The Athenians to that purpose as the Romains did builded a temple to Hercules out of Athens named Cynosarges Neither would the Egiptians allow the temple of Esculapius to be in any city of theirs neither wold they allow any temple to Saturne or to Serapis within the citie supposing by their watching garding abroad they might liue more safe and sure from the enemies So among other Gentiles temples were builded to the gods of feare of pouertie and of olde age because they might pray to these gods to escape the wants and miserie of pouertie and old age and thus the Gentiles tooke patterne of the Iewes who had so many Synagogues and but one Temple for the Iewes afterwards became so Idolatrous as the Gentiles that as Ieremy said euery citie in Iudah had a god euery where in groues and hils were seuerall altars that mount Oliuet thereby was called the mount of corruption because they had made altars vnder euery groue and vnder euery greene tree to honour their Idols But now let vs returne to the Hebrues vnder Moses in the wildernesse Moses leading the armie of the Hebrewes in the wildernesse from Egipt marched with sixe hundred thousand and hauing diuers battels giuen him by the king of Arabia by Arad king of the Canaanites by Zeon king of the Ammorites and Og the king of Basan after them hauing battel with the king of Madianites and the king of Moabites whom hee conquered before Ioshua had charge of the armie and because the battels of the Lord were most miraculous in Egipt gotten by a white rod by the which Moses obtained ten victories and ten tryumphs ouer the Egiptians in Egipt So Moses in the wildernesse had the like successe not by deuised stratagems of their owne heads but by following the commandements of the Lord which are the onely stratagems of all victories After that Moses had brought the Hebrues out of Egipt into the wildernesse as to a schoole to instruct them in military discipline and to be acquainted with martiall lawes to arme themselues ready souldiers to fight the Lords battels at Ioshuahs commaundement who in the battell at Riphidim was against the Amalekites at what time Moses Aaron and Hur went vp to the top of mount Horeb and Moses held vp the rod of the Lord in his hand and praied for victorie for the battell continued vntill Sun setting and when Moses hand was weary Aaron and Hur held vp Moses hand betweene them and Ioshua preuailed ouerthrew Amelech and all his army wanne a great victorie for Moses praiers and Ioshuahs sword were both meanes by the Lords appointment to obtaine the victory for while Moses hand was vp the Hebrewes preuailed and when hee let downe his hand Amelech preuailed this great victorie was commanded by the Lord to Moses to be written in the booke of the lawe for a remembrance of so great a victorie And all other victories which they had aswell against Pharao before they came out of Egipt and against the Canaanites before they passed ouer Iorden were obtained by stratagems of the Lord in the behalfe of his people which the Lord had determined to place in Canaan King Arad hearing of the great ouerthrow that the Hebrues gaue the Amalekites their friends and neighbours came with a great army and fought against the Hebrues and for that the Hebrues serued not the Lord and were thanklesse for the last victorie king Arad preuailed slue and tooke of them many prisoners When the Hebrues cried vnto the Lord and made a vow to destroy the Canaanites if they might haue the victory the Lord vpon their promise vow deliuered the Canaanites their king Arad their cities and townes and the people vnto the hands of the Hebrues that the Canaanites were slain vtterly destroied this was the battel of the Lord for the Hebrues vanquished king Arad and the Canaanites according to their vowes which they made to the Lord. These were lawfull vowes to destroy the enemies of the Lorde by the vow of Cherim of which vowe the Lord himselfe is the author the Lord himselfe determined and commaunded the Hebrues to destroy the Canaanites as his enemies So the Prophet published a commaundement saying Vow vnto the Lord performe it the same Prophet saith Thy vowes are vpon me ô Lord I will render praise vnto thee hauing that which I required I am bound to pay my vowes of thansgiuing as I promised thee ô Lord. CHAP. XII Of the vowes and feasts of the Gentiles Of espialls sent to the land of Canaan by Ioshua with diuers other Stratagems IN all Countreys of the world as well the Gentiles as the Iewes were wont to make vowes vnto their Gods with praiers and promise to performe those things which they vowed if their gods would graunt victories in warres against their enemies or health to their Kings and Princes or to remooue any plague or sicknes from the people The Persians when they vowed any thing to the Sunne the King with his councel called Magi ascended vpon a high hill or mountaine where
they made two piles of wood one vpon an other for sacrifice and vpon the same powring wine milke honey frankenscense with other sweete odours for a sacrifice to the Sunne the King himselfe with his soothsayers called Magi with their song Theogonia fired this pile of wood for the Kings of Persia would offer no sacrifice without theyr Magi were present nor the auntient kings of Rome without their soothsayers which they called Augures The Egiptians vsed when they vowed to bring the swords the shields the rotten ships chariots with all the armours ensignes of war of the enemies vnto one place laying thē all vpō a pile of wood the generall holding a firebrand in his hand kindleth the pile of wood the souldiers standing about the pile according to the Egiptian maner with songs mirth and ioyes for the victories In like sort the olde Gaules burned and sacrificed to Mars and Minerua as the Egiptians did their targets and old armours No victorie was had among the Gentiles but some of the spoyles therof were burned and sacrificed to their Gods some hanged vp to honour and beautifie their Temples So Alexander the great sacrificed consecrated some of the spoiles of his victorie ouer Tyre to Hercules The Romanes after any victory hanged vp some of the spoiles thereof in the Temple of Castor and Pollux the Egiptians in the Temple of Vulcan according to the old auntient lawe Vulcano armaius esto The Grecians when they prayed for victories to their Gods they promised and vowed to present their Gods with Images statues chaines iewels crowns and garlands with songs of Paeana The Romanes also promised and vowed to Iupiter and to Mars to build them Temples to make them places to sacrifice the tenth man and the tenth beast taken in the wars and to keepe an annuall feast in the Capital in memorie of their victories This vow the Dictator Consul Praetor the high Bishop going before them was made in the Capital before they went to the wars For both the Romanes and the Greekes vpon any great victories obtained celebrated the great feast Hecatombeon The Athenians for any prize they brought into the Hauen Pyroea celebrated a feast where many Orators and great Captains came once in a yeare to solemnize this feast for in sea victories Athens excelled all cities of Creece The old Romanes had an auntient feast called Consualia in memorie of Romulus watchword Talassa at the rauishment of the Sabine virgins They had an other feast called Anoyllia in memorie of Mamurius Targets that he made in Rome like the Nymphe Egerias Target which shee gaue to Numa Pomp. The Romanes had an other feast in Rome called Tubilustria in the which the magistrates met in the Capital and celebrated a solemne sacrifice vnto Vulcan with sounding of Trumpets about the citie to purge the citie of their crimes and offences against their gods The Athenians had diuers feastes they had one in memory of Thesius for his victorie ouer the Amazons an other in memorie that he brought diuers men out of Achaia to dwell in Athens being straungers who celebrated an annuall feast to honour Thesius as Milciades had a feast in memorie of his victories at Marathon Themistocles had an other feast for his victorie ouer the Persians at Salamina And Thrasibulus for his victorie ouer the thirtie tirants at Athens these were the tirants that vsed such crueltie that made the children of Athens to daunce in their fathers bloud The like feasts they vsed in Achaia in the citie Cycionium yearely in the honour of Aratus victories A feast celebrated among the Romane youths called Agonalia wherin they cōtēded about mastry in all kinds of exercise for triall of agilitie courage and strength hauing therevnto many kindes of crownes and garlandes appointed for rewards vnto the victors imitating the manners and orders of warre in scaling of walles in assaulting of forts in fighting of battailes and such other militarie discipline that some were crowned with Lawrell some with Pine some with okē boughes euery victor bearing in his hand a braunch of Palme in token of victorie In Syracusa also they held an annuall feast to honour Timoleon in memorie of many benefites and greate victoryes that hee obtained to the Syracusans For among the Grecians and the Romanes diuers feastes were celebrated and triumphes solemnized in memory of victories to stirre vp and kindle young souldiers mindes to embrace armes and to imitate the examples of their predecessors Hauing spoken something of the vowes and feasts of the Gentiles we must returne to the Campe of the Hebrewes marching vnder Ioshua beeing readie to passe ouer the Riuer Iordan who sent certaine espialls to view the land of Canaan one of euery Tribe twelue in number that should instruct him of the state scituation strength and manners of the people which beeing returned after fortie dayes with such fearefull newes of theyr strong and lustie men of theyr walled Citties strong Fortes huge and monstrous Gyants of the strength and inuincible scituation of the Countrey that brought the Armie to such terrour and feare that they were more willing to returne to Egipt then to goe forwards to conquer the Canaanites vntill Caleb ouerthrew theyr speeches and founde great faultes in his fellowes and consociates of his iourney to disanimate the Armie It dooth much amaze souldiers to see or to heare terrible reports for at that time the people were ready to stone Caleb and Ioshua to force them to fight against such a strong Nation fearefull reports to terrifie the souldiers were euer dangerous and therefore wise Generalls and Captaines inuented and framed many subtill stratagems to conceale and hide the multitude of enemies to keepe terror and feare away from the souldiers Tullius Hostilius vsed a skilfull stratagem to annimate his souldiers against the Fidenates who stood in feare as well of the multitude of their enemies before them as also the report they heard of Messius Generall of the Albanes lying in some secret ambush for his aduantage being indifferent to set either vpon the Romanes or vpon the Fidenates Tullius the Romane Generall perceiuing the terror of his souldiers spurred his horse forwards before the Army and told them they need not to feare Messius for he was gone neither to feare the enemies which being a scattered Army to make themselues seeme a great multitude were more readie to flye then to fight So Iugurth in his warres at Nunudio against Cai. Marius spurd his horse forwards rode to euery part of the battell crying aloud in Latine as he rode from place to place in the battell go on forward souldiers I slew Cai. Marius with my owne hand whereby the Nunudians were so animated and encouraged to fight the more lustily that Iugurth by that stratagem obtained a great victorie ouer the Romanes Val. Leuinus the Consull in his wars at
matters to please the reader as also of their diuers and straunge fashions of their coming into battell being then not acquainted with so many sundry shots with such Armors of proofe but with the sword and shield the speare and launce yet euery Nation deuised stratagems and straunge meanes to terrifie the enemies and to obtaine victories The auntient Greeks vsed in their warres the skins of sea dogges for theyr helmets and for great plumes of feathers which souldiers vse now to weare they vsed the manes and tailes of horses The Affricans came to the battel with leopards horse skins The Aethiopians the Scythians with Foxe skins The Troglodites with Serpents skinnes The Cydones with Goate skinnes The Massagets with barkes of trees The people called Geloni with the skinnes of the slaine enemies in the field The old Troians came to the battel with hornes of oxen and eares of horses on their heads and all to terrifie the enemie The olde Brytaines vsed to paint their faces to looke grim and terrible vppon the enemie and to seeme cruell and fierce souldiers in the battell The Thracians vsed Foxe skinnes for their helmets and painted their faces with such markes as might make them seeme terrible to the enemies like the olde Brytaines The people of Mauritania came vnto the countries of their enemies with Elephants Lyons skins so the Arabians vpon camels and the Indians vpon Elephants came vnto the wars which before Alexanders time were not seene in Asia neither before Pirrhus time in Rome which the Romans at the first sight thought strange but after they had subdued Affrica these strange beasts elephants camels lyons such were in Rome as in India or in Affrike and vsed in Rome so familiarly and commonly vpō the Theaters to fight with other beasts with men And yet Pirrhus as I said before was the first captaine that brought Elephants to Lucania in Italy where being ouerthrowne in his last battell at Arusnia by Curius the Consul at what time foure Elephants were brought to Rome which were so straunge among the Romains that they called them Boues Lucanias the great oxen of Lucania but within fiftie two yeares after Metellus in his victorie at the battell at Panormus sent to Rome 104. Elephants or as Plyni saith a hundred fortie and two The auntient kings of Egipt were wont to weare on their helmets the likenesse of diuers kindes of heads of beasts either the head of a Lyon of a Bull of a Dragon or such which the Grecians imitated and after them the Romanes In many Countreys they vsed to weare on their helmets the likenesse of Lyons Wolues Harts Dragons Dogs Eagles and other such beasts and fowles as pleased the Generalls or Captaines to weare for a terrour to the enemie For in the Cymbrian warres against Marius it is written in Plutarch that the Cymbrian horsemen ware on their helmets the likenesse of monstrous and terrible beats wide gaping and open mouthed thinking thereby to feare their enemie And what enemie soeuer he slew in the field might by the law of Armes take the Swords Targets Helmets and all other weapons of the enemie and hang them vp as Tropheys at the doores and gates of his house the rather to moue others by the sight thereof with greater desire to armes as the Belgeans were wont sometime to cut off the head of the slaine enemie and to take off his bloudie garments and to hang them vpon postes and trees as trophies of victories Now after the old and auncient maners and strange habites of diuers nations going into wars as you haue read of the Affricans Arabians and Indians so also in numbring their souldiers you shall read the manner of diuers natiōs when they sent their souldiers to any battell and first of the Hebrewes who brought account to Ioshua of the souldiers slaine and not slaine in battell The custome among the Persians was that the souldiers that went to the wars should euery one take a shaft out of his quiuer and write his name theron and throw the same vnto great chests before the chiefe magistrates and that the souldiers that returned from the wars again aliue shuld take their arrows frō the chest that the Persians therby might know the nūber of their lost souldiers In like sort the Romans recorded the names of their souldiers in writing tables that they might know at their returne from the wars by their names written how many were slaine in the warres For among the Romanes there could be no greater reproach to the General then to be ignorant of the names of all his captaines officers and magistrates of the field and also not to be acquainted with the name of any well deserued souldier Cyrus therefore King of Persia and Mithridates King of Pontus were both much honoured and much esteemed of their souldiers Cyrus for his skill and art of memorie for he could name all the souldiers in his Army And Mithridates for his knowledge of tongues for hee could speake two and twentie languages to all those nations that serued vnder him CHAP. XV. Of diuers battels and victories which Ioshua had at Iahaz at Edrei and ouer fiue Kings at the battell at Gibeon THe Hebrewes proceeded forwards in their warres against the Canaanites for the Lord said to Moses Goe to Sehon king of Amorites prouoke him to battell and conquer his land for that he denied passage to Moses Army to goe through his land to the land of Canaan and therefore the Lord gaue Sehon King of the Amorites vnto Moses hands at the battel at Iahaz And the Army of Israel destroyed all the Cities of the Amorites with their King men and women from the Riuer of Arnon vnto Gilead there was not one Citie that escaped the Lord had cursed Canaan and therefore he commanded to spare none In like sort in the battell at Edrei the Lord deliuered Og King of Basan the Giant into Moses hands as he did Sehon King of the Amorites and the Hebrewes smote the king and all his people destroyed three score strong walled and fenced Cities the Hebrewes destroyed all the Countrey of Argob and all the kingdome of Og in Basan which was called the land of the Giants and possessed from the Biuer of Arnon to mount Hermon Og king of Basan remained onely of the Giants for the Lord said vnto Moses I will send the feare and dread of thee vpon all the Nations vnder heauen so that when they heare of thee they shall tremble and quake for feare of thee As Sehon king of Hesbon denied passage to Moses to goe through his land to the land of Canaan so the Cittizens of Ephron denied Iudas Machabaeus passage through their Countrey though he sent with peaceable words vnto them as Moses did to Sehon king of Hesbon before that he might passe through their land doing no harm but they denied him his request
manner of the Gentiles aswell in choosing their Generals as you heard as also in choosing their former auncient kings some by flying of fowles as the old Romains choosed Numa Pomp. some by neying of a horse as the Persians choosed Darius others by swiftnes and agilitie of the body as in Lybia others by strength qualities comelinesse of person as among the Meades So the Aethiopians if they wanted one of the kings stock his name they made a choise as the Meades did of one to bee theyr king of a most comely personage that excelled in strength in qualities So because the Israelites wold haue a king and were weary of those gouernours that the Lord set ouer them the Lord cōmanded Samuel to annoint Saul to be their king who was the tallest and the goodliest man in all Israel from his shoulders vpwardes And so Xerxes though an Infidel among ten hundred thousand men which hee brought in his army from Persia against the Greeks was the only tallest and goodliest man of all his hoste and so in many countries among diuers nations they made such choise of their generals of their kings that they should be such men as should haue Bonum animi and bonum corporis fit and apt qualities both in mind and body to rule and gouerne an army But so did neither the Grecians nor the Romanes for Agesilaus was lame and had one leg shorter then the other Darius king of Persia had one hand longer then another Hanibal for two eyes had but one Caesar for his baldnes was fain to couer it with a garland oflawrel yet lame Agesilaus for his many victories 〈◊〉 warlike know ledge was called Agesilaus the great Hanibal with his one eye was the only captain of his time of all men reputed called Hostis Romanis Caesar though bald yet had not his peere nor his equal in martial exploits captains that farre excelled these goodly and tall kings Saul Xerxes and farre exceeded those comely tall captains whom the Meades the Aethiopians the Lybians were wont in old time to choose to be their kings And as the Lord is indifferent in bestowing his good gifts vpon the simplest meanest that serue him aswell as vpon the comeliest and goodliest men for the Lord hath no respect to the personage of men as we reade in sacred scripture Moses was goodly tall faire of complection and of yealow haire and a seruant of the Lord. Absolon the comeliest best made man from the crown of his head to his toe and yet the seruant of Sathan Ioseph the sonne of Iacob the fairest best fauored in Egipt a godly seruant of the Lord. Saul the tallest man in all Israel frō his shoulders vpwards yet serued not the Lord. So the gifts of nature appeare vpō the good the bad as you heard So may it be said of Elias a Prophet of the Lord being rough and hairy so we read of him of Esau rough hairy like Elias but a reprobate of the Lord for so the Lord said Iacob haue I loued and Esau haue I hated In fine Elizeus was bald for so was he mocked and called baldpate but a bear came out of the wood deuoured 42. childrē in Bethel for calling the prophet bald pate Dauid the least of his brethren not able to carry Sauls armour to fight with Golias and yet valiant inough to kill Golias and to bring his head to Saul Zachaeus so litle a fellow that he could not see Christ among the presse of the people but climbed a figge tree where Christ saw him bad him quickly come down This day wil I dine in thy house said the Lord to Zacheus So that Dauid being but of litle stature Elias rough and hairy and Flizeus bald yet three chosen Prophets of the Lord. Now to the marching of Ierusalam CHAP. XVII How Iudah was elected to be the third Iudge of Israel by Vrim and Thummim of his battell at Besecke Of Ehud Deborah Gedeon with their victories togither with certaine stratagems as well of the Iewes as of the Gentiles AFter Ioshua died Iudah was appointed the third captaine ouer the Israelites by the iudgement of Vrim and Thummim elected chosen to be the leader of the whole army of Israel the Lord from the beginning had appointed iudges and gouernors to lead his people frō Egipt to the land of Canaan as Moses Ioshuah after Ioshuah Iudah now the third captaine who fought the battell of the Lord in Bezeck and slew ten thousand of the Canaanites and the Perezites and tooke Adonizebech not a king but a tirant This king was by the iust iudgement of the Lord vsed in like sort as he vsed other kings for the thumbes of his hands and of his feete were cut off as he most cruelly cut off the thumbes of the handes of the feete of seuentie kings which he kept and fed with the crummes that fell from his table for so he confessed himselfe that as he had done so the Lord rewarded him for hee was brought to Ierusalem and there died Hannibal well nigh plaied the like part who vsed the poore captiue Romanes in like sort being weak wearied he cut off their thumbes pared the soales of the feete of a great number and so left them that they could neither stand nor goe Fabius Seruilianus equall or rather before these tyrants in tyrannie after he had vanquished a great number of the barbarous people of Scythia and had taken captiues Iure deditionis very many yet contrary to the faith and nature of the auncient Romanes hee cut off both the hands of fiue hundred of the principallest souldiers of them and left the poore Scythians without hands as Hannibal left the Romains without feete Thrasibulus being a tyrant for his tyrannie sent one of his chiefe men to Periander another tyrant to consult and to be aduised by him how he might liue without feare and daunger he being a tyrant among the Milesians Periander brought the messenger of Thrasibulus to a ripe corne field where with the staffe he had in his hand he did beat the eares of the corne and turnd to Thrasibulus messenger and said no more but commend me to thy maister Thrasibulus after he heard what Periander did knew his meaning was that he should destroy kill all the chiefe men citizens in Milesia if he would liue in safetie That tyrant must needs fear some of whom all men stand in feare This was such a dumbe stratagem which Periander taught Thrasibulus as Torquine the proud taught his son Sextus by a seruant which he sent to his father whom Torquine brought vnto a garden where with his staffe he beate the head of poppies This was a dumbe stratagem which Torquine sent to his sonne wherby he knew his fathers minde slew the chiefe Citizens and betrayed
the Towne to his father Though the Israelites fell to Idolatrie after Ioshuahs death who during the time of Ioshua serued the Lord and neuer forsooke him yet the Lorde at all times though they alwaies offended him deliuered them frō their enemies when they cryed vnto him for his ayde and helpe So being now vexed with their euemies the Lord sent Ehud as a Iudge and Captaine to leade them and to gouerne them as their Generall beeing a stout and a valiant Captaine who was wont to say to his souldiers follow me went boldly to Eglon king of the Moabites vsed this stratagē told the king that he had some secret from the Lord to tellhim wherevpon the chamber being auoyded and the doore shut hee out with his dagger slew Eglon the king and came out and shut the doore after him and after slew ten thousand Moabites at that time yet Ehud was left-handed and vnable to fight and therefore it was a stratagem of the Lord. Iabin king of Canaan an other enemie of the Israelites sent his generall Cisera a mightie captain with nine hundred chariots of Iron and a huge Army of souldiers to fight against Israel yet the Lord still prouided for his people and deliuered the Canaanites into the hand of Deborah a woman and Barac euen the whole Army of the Canaanites at the battell at Meroz where euen the starres in their courses from heauen fought against Cisera as Deborah confessed in her song of thanksgiuing to the Lord for the victorie For all the battels that the Lord had fought for Israell yet they sinned more and so offended the Lord that they were deliuered seuen yeares into the hands of the Madianites for their wickednesse that Israell made themselues dennes and caues in the Mountaines for feare of the Madianites and Amalekites whose tents were as thicke as Grasse-hoppers in multitude so that they their cattels and their camels were without number Yet the Lord when Israell cryed for helpe raised vp sound Iudges as Othoniel Ehud Barac and Deborah who ouercame their enemies and had many victories ouer them but still Israel offended the Lord and therefore the Lord left Sidonites Canaanites and Philistines to afflict and vex the Israelites for that they still offended the Lorde Hee left these Nations among them with their gods and Idols that should be as snares vnto Israel and as thornes in their sides and needles in their eies to trie them and to force them to call vpon the name of the Lord. The Hebrewes as they offended the Lord so were they punished by the Lord who often gaue them ouer into their enemies hands for their rebellious sedition and disobedience and therefore the Lord made choise of a wise and discreet generall whom he strengthned to rule his people sent his messenger to Gedeon a husbandman threshing his corne to bee their captaine before them who with the three hundred souldiers that laped the water by putting their hāds to their mouthes as the Lord had commaunded him by that signe and had appointed the number for him to take the Lords battel in hand to let the rest which were one and thirtie thousand and seuen hundred returne to their home which were by proclamatiō discharged The generals that the Lord made choise of to rule his people were but shepheards heardmen and husbandmen as Moses Ioshua Gedeon Saul and Dauid and of the like men he made choise for his Prophets Gedeon obeyed the message of the Lord called at the Lords hand for strength and courage to fight his battel and after deuided the three hundred men into three seuerall bands and vsed this stratagem gaue euery man a Trumpet in his hand with an emptie pitcher and lampes within the pitchers signifying by these weake meanes which the Lord vsed that the whole victorie should come from the Lord and not from man So Gedeon their generall comming to the side of the enemies with his threee bands he commaunded all the souldiers at once to sound al the trumpets together to break their pitchers and to shout crie the sword of the Lord and of Gedeon the enemies were so frighted the Lord set euery mans sword vpon his neighbour and caused the Madianites to kill one an other He made the Moabites the Ammonites Edomites in like sort one to destroy an other They tooke in that battell two Princes of the Madianites called Oreb and Zeb whom they slew and brought their heads to Gedeon from beyond Iorden as they fled from the sword of Gedeon The slaughter was an hundred and twentie thousand that were slaine with three hundred men as the Lord had commaunded Obserue the stratagem of Gedeon who commanded his three hūdred souldiers at once to sound al the trumpets together to breake their pitchers and to shout and crie the sword of the Lord and of Gedeon It so amazed the Madianites that the victory was Gedeons Ioshuah in like sort was by the Lord commaunded after he had carried the Arke round about Iericho seuen times vpon the seuenth day that the Priests should blow the rammes hornes and all the souldiers to crie aloude and to shout out all together at once that the walles of Iericho fell With a stratagem also Ioshua deceiued the king of Ai who came out of the Citie to fight with Ioshua who tooke vpon him to flye from the king but hauing laide ambushes vpon the way and about the Towne the Lord gaue both the Towne and the King to Ioshuas hand So did the Israelites deceiue the Beniamites with the like stratagems as Ioshua did who tooke vpon them to flye to draw the Beniamites from the Citie to the high wayes vntill they were compassed round about with the Israelites who destryed 25. thousand and 100. men These are diuine stratagems and to be attributed vnto the Lords doings Pericles generall of the Athenians besieging a certain Citie in Greece who vpon the sudden in the night time caused all the Trumpets to be sounded at once and all the souldiers to shout and cry as loud as they could it so terrified the Citizens within that they ranne from all parts of the Cittie vnto that place where Pericles commanded the trumpets to be sounded and that loud crye to be made thinking thereby that the enemies had entred the Citie Pericles without resistance made an entrie into the Citie in an other place Antiochus vsed the like stratagem against the Ephesians commanded certaine Rhodians which were of his Army to shout out loud and to make a sudden out crie in the dead time of the night their feare and terror was such that all went to defend that place of the Towne and left the other side of the Towne without defence to let Antiochus enter in Luc. Cornelius after he had besieged and taken many Townes in Sardinia he vsed this stratagem to take a populous strong Citie made a great number of
his souldiers to hide themselues in ambush he hauing but fewe souldiers prouoked them of the Towne to come out faining himself to flye the enemie following with great furie after Luc. Cornelius with all his hidden souldiers returned vpon the sudden with such a terrible crye that the enemies turned theyr backes and fled to the Towne and the Romanes followed after them close at the heeles and entred the Towne with them all together So Pompey the Consull Generall for the Romaine Army in Albania perceiuing the enemies both in horsmen and in footemen to be farre more in number then the Romanes practised this stratagem placed his footemen behind the horsemen being in a straight and commaunded his horsemen to couer their helmets least by the sight of the helmets they should be seene of the enemies and to take vpon them to flye to draw the enemies forwards into the midst of the Army of footemen and then the Romane horsemen to turne backe and deuide themselues and to set on both sides of the enemies By this stratagem Pompey got a great victorie ouer the Albanians Iphicrates the Athenian compared an Army in this sort the light horsemen to the hands the men of armes to the feete the battel of footemen to the stomacke and breast the captaine to the head But the Hebrewes for all the victories of Ioshuah of Iudah and of Gedeon were still vnthankful and wrought wickednesse in the sight of the Lord for all the battels that the Lord fought for them they were so well acquainted with the gods of the Gentiles yea they serued the gods of Acron the gods of Sydon the gods of Moab and the gods of the Philistines and forgat the god of Israel they serued straunge gods and attributed victories vnto their Idols and honoured them and gaue no glory vnto the Lord of Israel and therefore the Lord gaue them ouer and solde them to their enemies and were eighteene yeares sore tormented and vexed by the Ammonites and Philistines and the enemies proudly went ouer Iorden to fight against Iudah against Beniamin and against the house of Ephraim but they cryed vnto the Lorde according to theyr custome in extremitie and were aunswered by the Prophet from the Lorde Let the Gods whome you serue saue you and whom you trust vnto defend you for you waigh not me neither will I defend you and then they put away their straunge gods from among them Thus the Israelites did not onely rebell vpon the death of Ioshuah but also vpon the death of Iudah Ehud Deborah and others neither did they esteeme the victories which they got by Deborah a woman and by Gedeon a Husbandman who with three hundred souldiers slew a hundred and twentie thousand but euer forgetfull and vnthankefull to the Lord more willing to returne to Egipt to be slaues vnto Pharao then to stay in Canaan to serue the Lord. The name of Leonidas was famous among the Lacedemonians for his victorie at Thermopyle where Leonidas with three hundred ouerthrew twentie thousand of Xerxes Army being innumerable The Athenians gloried much for theyr great victorie at Marathon by Milciades and Callimachus hauing but 10000. Grecians in their army ouerthrew the generall of king Darius Army and made a great slaughter of the Persians to the number of two hundred thousand The Romanes bragge much of the victorie of Marius with fewe souldiers ouer the Cymbrians at the riuer of Xextas of Sylla ouer Mithridates at the battell of Orchomenon and of Lucullus ouer Tigranes king of Armenia being three great victories with infinite slaughter with the losse of fewe Romanes The very Schythians can boast and bragge of the ouerthrow of Cyrus hauing two hundred thousand in his Army and that by a woman which encreased the fame of the Scythians to the greatest infamy of the Persians All Nations can bragge and boast of theyr victories and be thankfull vnto their Idols and to their gods with sacrifices with vowes with games and playes with rearing of Aultars and building of Temples but the Hebrewes and the people of the Lord who had greatest cause and occasions to remember theyr victories and triumphes that they had ouer so many Kings and so many Nations before they came to the Land of Canaan by fire haile-stones thunder and great stones from heauen and though the Lords presence went before them in the Arke and the Arke among them in the midst of the campe yet were the Israelites stiffe necked people euer offensiue to the Lord seditious against theyr leaders and enuious one towardes an other so the Lord cryed out against them and said I haue nourished and brought vp children and they are fallen away from me the Oxe knoweth his Lord and the Asse his Maisters stall but Israel knoweth not me wicked children sinfull people a froward generation which are ouerladen with blasphemies Nothing could instruct them to obey the Lord neither the Arke of couenant neither the Tabernacle of Moses neither the pillar of fire where the Lord appeared vnto them and after the vse of the Tabernacle neither the Temple of Salomon nor the Prophets to whom the Lord manifested himselfe in Ierusalem yea euen in Samaria among the wicked Samaritans they had the Prophets of the Lord Elias and Elizeus to instruct them CHAP. XVIII Of Iepthas victories ouer the Ammonites and Ephraimites the ciuill warres the tyrannie of Sylla and Marius in Rome Of the slaughter of the Philistians by Sampson the reuenge of pulling out his eyes and of the battell of Saul at Mich-mash NOw after Gedeon the Lord sought out Ieptha beeing fledde and chased by his bretheren from his countrey to the Land of Tob from whence hee was called by the Lord who alwayes appointed a generall ouer Israell while they serued him to leade his people against the Ammonites which the Lord deliuered into Iepthas hand At that time Ieptha made a rash vowe to the Lorde that if hee should haue victorie ouer the Ammonites that which came out of the doores of his house when he returned home in peace shal be the Lords and he wil offer it vp a burnt offering He foolishly performed that which he rashly vowed Though some of the Rabines do excuse Ieptha that his daughter died not but was seperated to dwell by her selfe from common conuersation in a solitary place to bewaile her virginitie according to the custome and manner of the virgins of Israel to liue in prayers and to consecrate her selfe vnto the lord Yet some of 〈◊〉 best diuines as Augustine Ambrose which both were of a cōtrary opiniō that she was sacrificed according to Iepthas vow But the Lord gaue the victory to Ieptha ouer the Amonits with the ouerthrow of twentie cities and with exceeding great slaughter Ieptha againe after his first victory ouer the Ammonites had another victory ouer the Ephraimites who enuied the former victory of Ieptha most ambitiously as they before did vnto
Scypio Affrican for their victories to their countrey though they were compared to Hanibal for the harm hurt which they had done to their countrey Had Ieroboam harkned to the counsell of Abiah king of Iudah vpon mount Zemaraim he had saued fiue hundred thousand Israelites which were slaine at the battel If the Beniamites had taken counsel of their bretheren the Israelites and to yeeld vnto them the wicked mē that abused the Leuites wife the whole tribe of Beniamin had not bin destroied It was the ouerthrow of Iudas Machabaeus by Bacchides at the battell of Laisa for that he would not be perswaded by his friends to refraine the battell for that time Had the Prophet Ieremy beene heard of Zedechiah and the princes of Iudah Zedechiah had saued the liues of his owne children slaine in his sight and had likewise saued his owne eyes in his head which presently were pulled out after he saw his children slaine and himselfe caried captiue and blind vnto Babilon Ierusalem destroyed and the kingdome of Iudah subdued by Nabuchodonozer so it may be said of Saul refusing the counsell of Samuel and so of Iosias disobeying the counsell of Necho After the great victorie that Iudah had ouer Israel by Abiah king of Iudah his sonne Asa fought with Zerah king of Aethiopia an Infidel who brought an host of ten hundred thousand men three hundred chariots from Aethiope to Iudah and came to Maresha a citie of Iudah Asa the king of Iudah came with an army of fiue hundred and foure score thousand into the valley of Zephatah and both the kings set the battel in a ray But Asa began with praiers cryed vnto the Lord by praiers for the victorie putting no trust in his own power or pollicie neither fearing the strength of the multitude of his enemies so with full confidence in the Lord he set vpō the Aethiopians the Lord smote them before Asa and before Iudah that the Aethiopians fled and the army of Iudah followed and pursued them vnto Gerer for the Lord had striken the Aethiopians with such fear that there was no life in them that the slaughter was exceeding great the spoyle exceeding much of camels sheepe and cattell And Asa after the victorie which he had giuen him by the Lord returned to Ierusalem and gaue the Lord thankes who giueth all victories so as all good kings and generals ought to pray to the Lord before they enter into battell so ought they also to giue thankes after the battell for their victories This victory was a requitall and a full reuenge vpon the Aethiopians for the sacking and spoyling of Ierusalem and of the great slaughter of the people by Shesak king of Egipt In like maner as Abiah beganne with prayers before he beganne to battell so did king Asa his sonne follow his fathers rule and order in seeking helpe and aide at the Lords hand which euery King Generall or Captaine should doo So Iosaphat Asas sonne did when it was tolde him that the Moabites Ammonites Edomites came with an infinit number to fight against him he set himselfe to seeke the Lord and to aske counsell of him and all Iudah with him prayed vnto the Lorde to aide and strengthen him to fight the Lords battel wherby hee got a maruellous victorie ouer his enemies for before he went into the battell Iosaphat caused a Psalme of thankesgiuing to the Lord to be sung before the men of armes and so entred the battell and the Lord laide ambushments and shewed such stratagems against Ammon Moab and Edom that euery one helped to destroy another and the Lord turned euery mans sword to kill his fellow Where the Lorde leadeth the armie the victorie is soone gotten so Iosaphat putting his whole trust confidence in the Lord slue all his enemies that none did escape and the spoyle was such of golde of siluer and pretious Iewels that they were three dayes in gathering and in carrying the spoyle away and then they assembled together after the victorie by Iosaphats commaundement to giue the Lord thankes for the victory and called the place where they got the victory Berachab and they returned to Ierusalem with violls harpes and with trumpets These three battels of Abiah Asa and Iosaphat were battells of the Lord and as the Lord had done at that battell at Michmash to Ionathan so the Lord did now at the battell at Beracha to Iosaphat and so the Lord in all the battels of the good kings of Iudah and Israel shewed alwaies his diuine stratagems for the defence of Ierusalem as in Egipt by Moses against Pharao by Elias at the brooke Kyson against Baals prophets by Elizeus at Dothan against king Benhadads souldiers The Gentiles in like sort commence no warre enter no battell before they sing a song vnto their gods as the Lacedemonians brought vp onely in warre from seuen yeares old vsed before they went to the warres to make solemne sacrifice to the Muses to the goddesse Feare with a song to Castor Pollux The Thrasians sing a song to their god Mars and bragge much of Mars for that he was borne in Thracia Others made vowes when they went to any warres As among the Romanes their wiues their children and their friends should make vowes and cause the same to be written in tables and to be set on that gate through the which they went out of the citie to warre that vpon their return home they might see and read their vowes and performe them The three hundred Fabians which were slaine at the battell at Crimera the gate that they went through out of Rome then was euer called after that Porta Scelerata So did the Romains likewise call the field where one of the Vestal virgins called Minutia for her incest carnall fault was buried in the field was called Sceleratus Campus according to the Romain lawes made for the Vestal virgins that so offended We leaue the prophane marching of the Romanes and the Greekes and we will returne to the marching of Israel vnder king Asa and king Iosaphat his sonne who both by praiers obtained great victories as all the Israelites preuailed more by praier then by fight As by praier Ioshua made the Sun to stand stil ouer Gibeon and the Moone ouer Aialon By praier Elias made the cloudes to fall raine By praier Moses made his enemies to flie Elizeus raised the dead to life Solomon obtained wisdom So long as the Lord taketh not away thy praying so lōg he doth not take away his grace mercy from thee for a wicked man cannot pray well and he that praieth wel cannot liue wickedly And therfore praiers are compared to Sampsons haires for as Sampsons strength laie in his haires so our strength lieth in praiers Ester praied to haue that to come to proud Ammon which Ammon wished to haue done to Mardochaeus and the
die Ieremies speech was performed to the ouerthrow of the whole kingdome of Iudah neither could it be otherwise considering they sinned still against the Lord and the long ciuill warres betweene themselues which continued so long from Ieroboams time who caused Israel first to sinne vnto the last king of Israel Elias after he had destroied two captains one after another with their 50. souldiers seuerally with fire froÌ„ heauen after he had subdued 450. of Baals Prophets after all these great conquests and many other such he feared so much one woman that for very feare hee fled from place to place from her being wearie of his life he lay vnder a Iuniper tree wishing to die and prayed to God that hee might die complaining vnto the Lord that there was none left of the Prophets of the Lord but himselfe but hee was aunswered by the the spirite of God that there was seuen thousand more in Israel that yet neuer once bended theer knees vnto Baall The like may bee spoken of Ionas beeing like Elias wearie of his life hee sought meanes to forsake his Countrey and to flye by sea to other Countreys but the sea could not brooke him but deliuered him to be deuoured of a whâ—… and the whale could not keepe him but was compelled to vomit him vp from the bottome oâ—… his bâ—…y to goe to preach to Niniuie so that Elias 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 die vnder the Iuniper tree and Ionas would 〈◊〉 be throwne and drowned in the Sea â—…leane contrary to the purpose and prouidence of the Lord. Eâ—… 〈◊〉 â—…ly of his life to see the Prophets of the Lord so destroyed and Ionas to see his labour in preaching profit nothing that he should be â—…pured a false Prophet the Lord not destroying the Citie after fortie daies according to his word but sparing it in mercie as he did pittie the gourd in mercy After the Lord had giuen great victories to many of the kings of Iudah to Asa ouer Zerah king of Aethiope to Iosaphat ouer Shesak king of Egipt to Ezechiah ouer Senacherib yet Iudah still forsooke the Lord though Ieâ—…emy tolde them from the mouth of the Lord their destruction when they rather threatned then beleeued But neither Ioachim nor Zedechias would neither heare nor beleeue the Prophet and therefore the Lord deliuered them both into Nabuchodonozers hands the one was slaine in Ierusalem and his body commaunded to be cast out of the citie and to be left vnburied like an asse the other Nabucho tooke prisoner and caused his owne children all his chiefe friends to be slaine in his sight and after hee sawe this tragicall sight with his eyes Nabuchodonozer being then in Rebla before whom Zedechia was brought after he reprehended him for his periurie and trecherie and accused him for his falsehood caused his eyes to be put out and so bound in a chaine and carried prisoner to Babilon where hee lay and dyed in prison being the last king of the line of Dauid and the twentieth king after Saul There was a mightie king in Damascus ouer the Syrians called Adad who after many great battels with Dauid was subdued in a great battell at Euphrates This Adad was so great for his great victories among the Syrians that they named euery king after his name Adad to the number of tenne and the tenth king was that Benhadad which besieged Samaria in the time of the Prophet Elizeus whom this king Adad could no better fauour then Adad his predecessor could fauour Dauid or king Achab did Elias After this great victorie Dauid imposed tributes vpon the Syrians as he did before vpon the Idumeans Moabites and others hee returned to Ierusalem dedicated and consecrated as a trophey of his victorie the armours and rich spoile of Adad king of the Syrians in Ierusalem to the Lord. So the Philistines vsed the body of Saul slaine in mount Gilboa after they had sent his head to the Land of the Philistines and hanged his body on the wall of Bethshan they would be sure to lay vp his Armour in the temple of their god Ashtaroth according to the customes and manners of the Gentiles for they vsed to hang the armors and spoiles of their victories in their Temples to their Gods CHAP. IIII. How Achab though a wicked king had two great victories against Benhadad king of Syria who had 32. kings in his armies Of diuers great blasphemers punished Of the Idolatry of Israel And of the prophecying against Ierusalem BEnhadad king of Aram assembled an army against the Lorde hauing two and thirtie kings which were gouernours and rulers of prouinces with horses and chariots without number came and fought against Achab king of Israel a most wicked king And yet the Lord seeking to winne this wicked king as well by victories now as by myracles before sent a Prophet to Achab promising him ouer Benhadad king of Aram a great victorie For the army of the Syrians were so many that Benhadad sent a Herald vnto Achab commaunding him to deliuer vp to his hand Samaria and all the cities of Israel or else hee would come with such an armie that the dust of Samaria should not be inough for euery souldier a handfull much like Xerxes king of Persia for his vaunts and bragges who doubted that the sea Hellespont had not roome ynough for his nauies nor Greece had land inough for his armies nor the aire wide inough for his shottes but Xerxes was answered by Demarathus the Philosopher as Benhadad was by Achab Let him not brag that putteth on his harnesse as he that puts it off but the king of Syria bragged as Xerxes did before he wan the victory for the Lord gaue the victory to Achab and such a victory by slaughter by chasing by taking of men horses and chariots that the king of Syria fled and escaped narrowly with fewe horsemen that were his guard and said that the gods of Israel were the gods of the mountains therfore they ouercame vs chalenged a battel with Israel in the valleys where they assured themselues of victory thus they blasphemed the Lord in their furie but to their losse great ouerthrow The blasphemy of Rabsacis of his maister Senacherib king of the Assirians saying to king Ezechiah let not thy god deceiue thee in whom thou hopest and puttest thy trust was not he slaine praying before his god Nesroch in Niniuie by his owne two sonnes The blasphemy of Nabuchodonozer saying What God is hee that is able to take you out of my hands was not he punished with the losse of his kingdome and to liue among beasts like a beast and not like a king vntil he acknowledged the Lord The blasphemy of Holofcrnus saying there was no god but his maister Nabuchodonozer was not his head cut off by Iudith a womaÌ„ put vpoÌ„ the wals of Bethulia And likewise the blasphemy of Nicanor which said is there a
make the Princes of Iudah like coales of fire among the wood and like a firebrand in the sheffe and they shall deuour all people round about them saith the Lord. The foure hornes which Zachary saw which scattered Ierusalem Iudah and Israel but the Lord appoints Carpenters and Smiths with mallets and hammers to breake the hornes of those enemies for Iacob the Patriarke prophesied that the scepter should not depart from Iudah vntill Siloh should come so that after the destruction of Ierusalē vnder Nabuchodonozer to the last destruction of the same vnder Titus Ierusalem cōtinued her gouernment according to the prophesie of Iacob so that neither force power nor strrtagems could preuaile against Ierusalem CHAP. V. Of Semiramis stratagems in India and of Tomiris in Scithia Of the victories of Alexander the great Of Pyrrhus warres in Italy and of the ouerthrow of Xerxes armie in Greece by Leonidas at Thermopyles and by Themistocles at Salamina THe stratagems which Ierusalem vsed in the battells of the Lord were nothing like to the stratagemes of the great Monarchies and Polymarchies of the world who reposed their trust in their dumbe Idolles and woodden gods and in multitude of men and beastes as Semyramis did a woman of great fame and report in histories willing to excell men in martiall actions tooke her voyage into India with such innumerable armies that Staurobates king of India was so frighted with the report thereof that he caused all his Elephants to be brought and to be set in the most shewe to terrifie the Assirians that it made the Assirian armie more willing to returne backe then to goe forwards Semyramis perceiuing that the Assirians were afrighted and amazed at the sight of so many Elephants and that the king did purposely set his Elephants in sight to amaze the Assirians which was the order of the Indiās to terrifie all Princes with the sight of their Elephants she vsed this stratageme caused 300. thousand great oxen to be slaine and their skinnes to be stuffed filled with heye and to be framed in forme and fashion like Elephants in euery one of these she put in a Camell and a man vpon his backe which she placed in the forefront of the battell to terrifie the Indians and their king Staurobates for as Semyramis thought the Indians supposed that all the world could not bring more Elephants into the field then the Indians could After these fained elephants she placed such an infinit number of camels behind the armie that the sight therof much terrified Staurobates his army that Semyramis by this stratagem got two great victories in India But after these fained elephants were betraied by one of Semyramis Captaines taken in the warres who by torture confessed the secresie of Semyramis stratageme that she was glad to leaue India and to returne to her Country Euen so Tomyris Queene of Scythia to requite Cyrus stratageme by a banquet which he made purposely to deceiue the Scythians fained to flie for feare and left his tents full of wine and good cheare and sodainly returning found the Scythians banquetting and feasting and so charged with wine that they were more readie to sleep then to fight whereby Cyrus slue Sargapises Tomyris sonne with two hundred thousand Scythians The like stratagem vsed the Lorde against the Aramites when an Asse head was solde in Samaria for fiftie sickles that such plentie was in Samaria as Elizeus said before that the Aramites left their Tents with all prouisions and fled without any shewe or likenesse to bee done against them but this was a diuine stratagem by the Lord. Tomyris after her great losse which she had by Cyrus of her sonne and her people caused trenches deepe ditches and sharpe stakes to be made secretly and placed armed souldiers in the same being in narrow straight places dissembling that she was not able to giue a secōd battell to Cyrus but faigned her selfe to flie and al her army with her to draw the Persians after her vntill shee brought thē vnto these trenches ditches narrow places where she had set in wait an innumerable multitude of armed Scythiās round about Cyrus hisarmy which vpon the sudden fel vpon the Persians slew two hundred thousand of them that there was not one left aliue to bring tidings vnto Persia of Cyrus death thus Cyrus the great king of Persia was ouerthrowne with all his army by Tomyris Queen of Scythia a woman with the like stratagem as he ouerthrew Tomyris before Sampson who ouerthrew 6000. of the Philistines at one time by the fall of a house at an other time slew 1000. of them with a Iawe bone of an asse who burned theyr rickes and their corne destroyed their vines plagued them euery way Yet this Sampson was taken bound his eyes pulled out solde and deliuered to the Philistins his enemies by a stratagem of a woman Dalyla his wife Moses being chosen general ouer the Egiptians against the Aethiopians hearing by reports of the dangerous passage through the wildernesse frō Egipt vnto Aethiope deuised a stratagem to passe through the wildernesse full of noisome serpēts where Moses must needs passe through he made certain chests of bull-rushes caried out of Egipt with him a number of the birds called Ibes which bird to kill in Egipt was a capitall crime by law made for that they were so beneficiall to Egipt whose naturall hatred is such against serpents that when serpents assaulted Moses in the wildernesse he would let out his birds Ibes who assaulted them chased them slew them that Moses by this means passed safe through the wildernesse to the wonder of both the Egiptians Aethiopians and therby had two victories ouer the Aethiopians Alexander the great twelue hundred yeares after Semyramis taking his iourney with his Armye into India where when his army sawe so many Elephants set in battell raie along vpon the riuer of Ganges side it so amazed the Macedonian army that they told Alexander that they came not to fight with beasts but with mē so fearfull at the sight of the Elephants that the Macedonians would goe no further Alexander being of inuincible courage that nothing could feare him without stratagems but of meere magnanimitie requested the Macedonians the Persians that were in his army not to leaue him their king to such shamefull reports as the sight of a few Elephants might terrifie Alexander the great and his inuincible army The Argyraspides his principall souldiers hauing perswaded the most part of the army to auoyd shame infamy and to stick to their captain Alexander whose only request was to haue them altogither at once to shoote at Porus King of India which being perswaded hardly thervnto were forced for shame to perform the request which Alexander sought at their hands which they performed that so many shots lighted vpō the king at once that he fell to the ground from his
Elephant and the Indians fled supposing their king to haue bene slaine Thus Alexander got the first victory in India made a great slaughter tooke their king being sore wounded deliuered him to his generals captains to cure and Porus was substituted a king vnder Alexander in India Alexander had not such a booty in India by taking king Porus as he had by Darius in Persia the greatest treasure which Alexander brought from India were a fewe Elephants which were not before Alexanders time seene in Asia Alexander had such treasure in Susa being but one citie in Persia that he found aboue 40. thousand tallents of gold siluer in the kings treasury at Susa vncoined he found besides nine thousand tallents of gold in Dariks which were with Darius name stamped on it A Alexander also found in Persepolis the chiefe citie of Persia twelue hundred thousand talents of golde siluer which were from Cyrus time ready alwaies kept for the warres for the yearly reuenewes of Persia were kept in Persepolis It is written that Alexander the great founde such a maruellous treasure in Persia that he loaded ten thousand Moyles and three thousand Camels with the gold and siluer of Persia onely and the kings warderobes At what time he was requested by one Thais a Curtizan of Athens of singular beautie that the great pallace of king Xerxes might be destroyed and burned to reuenge the burning of Athens and the iniuries which Xerxes did in Greece that it might be said afterwards that a woman of Athens requited the wrong which Xerxes did to Athens with the burning and destroying of great king Xerxes pallace in Persepolis Yet got Alexander more fame by the Elephants he brought out of India into Asia by the ouerthrow of king Porus then by all the wealth he had in Persia by subduing of Darius for as Elephants were the only strength of the Indians against Alexander with his Macedonian and Persian army and of the Affricans against Scypio and others of the Romane armies So in Asia in many places Camels were their onely force in field So Mithridates furnished his warres against Lucullus with Camels So did Antiochus the great against Scipio So also it is written of Craesus that the sight of his Camels was such that the horses ouerthrew their ryders that Craesus wanne by his Camels great victorie All the Arabian kings vsed Camels in their warres as the Indians Affricans vsed Elephants for Camels were as plentifull in Arabia as Elephants were in India After Alrxander the great Antigonus vsed Elephants after Antigonus Pirrhus who grew so great a souldier after he had vanquished Demetrius king Antigonus sonne that hee brought from Epyre to Lucania in Italy twentie Elephants to fight with the Tarentines against the Romanes at what time Elephants were first sent in Rome as I said before but in Hanibals time after Affrica was subdued by the Romanes Affrican Elephants were as cōmon at Rome in a maner as horses though not so cruel in fight as the Indian Elephants were yet seldome vsed by the Romanes in any of their warres but rather vsed in triumphes Leauing these Elephants a litle to speak of Thais a Curtizā of Athens who was no lesse desirous to become famous vpon some conquest ouer the Persians then was Semyramis Queene of Babylon ouer the Indians If the desire of fame be thus in women found how much more in men and therfore Scypio Affrican would haue the picture of Ennius the Poet put vp in the Capitoll for that Ennius wrote that while Affrica was subiect to the Romanes and as long as the Romane Empire should flourish so long the name of Scypio should flourish Pompey the great gaue to Theophenes a whole citie because hee wrote much of the name and fame of Pompey and Alexander the great thought Achilles to be most happie for that his warres and victories were aduanced by Homer and the same Alexander hearing Anaxarchus alledging a place of Democritus his maister that there were many worlds wept for that hee had not wonne halfe a world thus great men sought euer to haue their name aduanced on earth Haniball being called from Italy into Affrick after his brother Asdrubal was slaine to resist Scipio Affrican Generall ouer the Romane army at Carthage Hannibal before he returned from Italy caused tryumphant arches and pillers to be set vp to aduance his fame in many places of Italy in the which hee caused to be ingrauen his great victories and the number of all the Senators Cōsuls Proconsuls Praetors Romane knights captains which he vanquished and slue at the foure great battels Tisinum Trebeia Thrasimen and Canne which were set in Greeke Punike letters for a memoriall of his being in Italy Pirrhus after that he had giuen two ouerthrowes to the Romanes in the behalfe of the Tarentines had the third ouerthrow himselfe and such an ouerthrow that of twentie Elephants which he brought with him from Greece to Italy he brought none backe from Italy againe vnto Greece Yet Pirrhus caused an Epilogue of his victories and fame to be writtē set vp in the temple of Iupiter at Tarentum in these words Qui antehac inuicti fuere hos vici victusque sum ab ijsdem the stout Romanes which were by none before ouerthrowne I ouerthrew and was againe by the Romains ouerthrowne but being blamed by his chiefe captaines that he confessed himselfe to be ouerthrowne said I so ouerthrew the Romanes that I dare not answere them another battel lest I should haue no more men come out of Italy then I haue Elephants The Romanes in the warres against Pirrhus in Italy were once or twise ouerthrowne by meanes of Pirrhus Elephants but the Romaines thus annoyed in the first and second battel by the Elephants inuented this stratagem to fling downe bundels of broom-stalks or hemp besmeared with pitch tarre and brimstone being set on fire from the walles vpon the Elephants and the souldiers in the Turrets Vpon these Elephants were strong Towers made of wood vpō euery tower was 32. men placed that fought in them besides the Indians that ruled them but by the foresaid stratageme they were all ouerthrowne sauing foure which were brought to Rome from Lucania to set forth Curius his tryumph but in the time of Hannibal to prouoke these Elephants to fight they vsed to shewe them the blood of grapes mulberies So did Antiochus in his warres against the Iewes In Italy betweene the Tarentines and the Lucans a great battell was appointed to be fought in the which battel Archidamus king of Lacedemonia taking part with the Tarentines was slain in the field by the Lucanians This Archidamus was the son of great Agesilaus he had gottē diuers victories in Greece his own country that victory especially ouer the Arcadians called the teareles battell and yet this king died in Italy being called from Greece to aide
of Lucullus triumph staied in Rome takē his rest as Lucullus did his head had not bin sent to Herodes by Surena But I wil return to military rewards of the Persians among whom diuers military gifts were appointed for souldiers The king gaue them a golden girdle and rings of gold that had either by pollicie or manhood gained fame by seruice whereby they were knowne to be in the kings fauour and therfore to be accepted and reputed among the Persians as gallant souldiers in any prouince of the Persians Among the Romanes and the old Gaules as among the Persians the greatest honour that they could giue their souldier was to giue them girdles and the greatest infamy and dishonour that might be was to loose their girdles from them which was as great a dishonour as to take their speares out of their hands or their horse from vnder them The Kings of Persia herein followed the Hebrewes for in the time of Absolon in his warres against his father in the wood of Ephraim where he hanged by the haire of his head between two oakes at what time Ioab would haue giuen the messenger that brought these tidings tenne sickles of siluer and a souldiers girdle if hee had killed Absolon and therefore girdles were giuen to souldiers among the Hebrews in the time of the kings of Israel before the kings of Persia. Among the Hebrewes before the time of the kings after they came to the land of Canaan from Egipt the souldiers had lands townes cities countreys and what spoile soeuer they gained by the sword for all that they wonne in the land of Canaan and other countreys was equally diuided between the Hebrew soudiers and the twelue tribes The Kings of Asia so esteemed the olde and chiefe souldiers of Alexander the great called Argyraspides that they sate in counsell with the kings of Asia as Iudges ouer other souldiers to direct and instruct them in military discipline and after if occasion required to correct them for military faults and martiall offences hauing their allowance out of the kings treasury for these captaines after the death of Alexander the great contemned to serue vnder Antigonus Seleucus Demetrius or Lysimachus which during the time of Alexander were named but Argyraspides themselues In Egipt the chiefe and auntient souldiers called Calasiries had after good seruice done besides their martiall allowance a certaine proportion of bread and flesh and a measure of wine by the king appointed in seuerall cities and garrisons of warre in Egipt to instruct the Egiptian youthes in martiall affaires Euen so the Aethiopian kings imitating the manner of the Egiptians obserued the like law their old chief souldiers being bruised and broken in the warres called Hermothibij with a certaine proportion of allowance of bread and flesh The Grecians very carefull to maintaine their good souldiers they met together at the temple of Neptune in Isthmos and there the Iudges of Greece called Amphictions did consult with iudgement discerne throughly examine the deserts and seruice of euery well deserued souldier with such rewards gifts as were appointed for them accordingly by martiall law The Amphictions as you heard were wont twise a yeare in March and September to meete the one in Isthmos the other in Trozaena wherein the one seuen cities appeared and in the other twelue to consult of martiall causes So that it was not lawfull among the barbarous Scythians that any souldier should claime or challenge any martiall reward by the law of Scythia vnlesse hee had brought an enemies head slaine by himselfe in the field vpon his speare vnto the campe and presented it before his captaine he might not be partaker of any bootie or pray among other souldiers without some exploit done worthy of it CHAP. VII Of prouisions and maintenance of souldiers Of the honourable burials of them that were slaine in the field and of diuers Monuments AMong all Nations of the world the greatest care they had was to prouide meanes to maintaine souldiers that Solon made a lawe in Athens that the rewards due vnto those valiant souldiers that died in the warres should bee distributed vnto their children being aliue and those gallant Captaines that died in the field should be honourably buried with pillars and arches set vpon their graues and their names written vpō them in Ceramicus and such other places This law of Solon was reuiued two hundred and three score yeares after by Alexander the great who so much honoured and aduanced the worthinesse of martiall men that he caused to be buried in the field Adrasteis one hundred and twentie knights that died valiantly in the field and caused strong arches and pillars of marble to be made ouer their graues with their statues and Images and their names written vpon them with their due commendation as an honourable monument of their perpetuall fame Licurgus lawe was that no dead man should put his name in brasse in Iuorie or otherwise vpon his Tombe vnlesse hee had bene slaine in the field like a valiant souldier fighting for his countrey These Funerall monuments were vsed long time before the Greekes among the Hebrewes who vsed to set vp pillars and monuments on the graues of the dead the auntient Fathers did it to testifie the hope they had of the resurrection not as the Gentiles did it for pompe and pride of their triumphes and victories but as monuments and vertuous visions Iacob after his vision had in his dreame tooke the stone that he had laid vnder his head set it vp and made a pillar of stones in that place and after hee had annointed the same with oyle which was the first annointing wee read of in scripture hee named it Bethel which was Luz before which name continued vntill Ieroboams time 784. yeares at what time Ieroboam erected a golden calfe to be worshipped and therfore was named Bethauen as mount Olyuet for that it was full of Images Idolls and Aultars in the time of the Kings of Iudah was named the mount of corruption After this Iacob when his wife Rachel dyed at the birth of her sonne whom she named Benoni which Iacob after his wiues death called Beniamin on whose graue hee pitched vp a pillar of stones as Ioshua had the picture of the Sunne on his graue So Samuel tooke a stone and pitched it betweene Mazphah and Sene and called the name thereof the stone of help as a marke and a trophey of victory which the Israelites had ouer the Philistines Yet Absolon following the Gentiles of very pompe and pride reared vp a pillar saying I haue no male childe and therefore I will pitch vp a pillar as a monument to haue my name in remembrance and he called it after his owne name Absolons pillar to haue his name great There was euer care in former age of holy mens burials long before Ceramicus in Athens
Alexander from Persia to Macedonia was troden vnder foote in one or two victories and the Empire carried by Aemililius from Macedonia to Rome In this triumph of Pau. Aemilius the rich armours of all the Macedonian and Illyrian kings then al the plate cubbords and Iewels of the auntient kings of Macedonia were carried in charriots after followed foure hundred princely crownes of golde which the cities of Greece sent to honour Aemilius victorie and to beautifie his triumph in the which triumph such wealth and treasure was brought to Rome by Pau. Aemilius as farre exceeded the triumph of Scypio Asiaticus who carried in his triumphes the pictures of Townes and Citties of Asia painted in tables or the triumphes of Caesar who brought but the likenesse of hilles mountains and riuers or of Pompey the great who brought in his seuerall triumphes 339. kings kings children princes peeres noblemen yet none of these were equall to Pau. Aemilius in respect of the wealth he brought in one triumph to Rome who brought all the treasure wealth of two kingdomes Macedonia and Illyria not in shewe but in substance Others brought in their tryumphes the Images and statues of the kings which were slaine or otherwise died before they could bee taken captiues as Lucullus brought the statue or picture of Mithridates set out and painted very liuely in ensignes Scipio carried in his tryumphe at Carthage the Image of Asdrubal Hannibals brother So Augustus Caesar brought the Image of Cleopatra to Rome in his tryumphe after shee slue her selfe to beare company with her friend Mar. Antonius Others brought in their tryumphes kings aliue as Iul. Caesar brought king Iuba and his sonne with all their treasures of Mauritania in great tryumphe and pompe into Rome Marius brought in his tryumphe Iugurth with all spoyles and wealth of Numidia with all the solemnitie that could be Yet in the infancie of Rome before Rome grew to any greatnesse the first kings tryumphed on foote into the citie as Romulus who though he tryumphed ouer king Acron whom hee slue in a combat challenged yet he being a king carried vpō his shoulders the rich spoyls of the same king being set in order vpon a young green bough of an oake as trophies of tryumphes without either horse coach Elephant or braue shewes and yet his tryumphe was for two kingdomes So did Corneli Cossus who slue fighting in the field hand to hand Tolumnus Generall of the Thuscans And so did Marcellus who likewise slue with his owne hand Britomarus king of the old Gaules before they were called Frenchmen this honour happened to none of the Romaines besides but to these three for Rome yet was scant heard of out of Italy Vechoris king of Egipt by Herodot called Sesostris for examples sake of courage fortitude of souldiers and to kindle their mindes to attempt great exploits in wars hee vsed when hee had ouerthrowne a valiant Armie and manly souldiers he would set vp a marble pillar and vppon it the picture of a man in brasse with a naked swoord in his hande as a trophey in tryumph of his victorie ouer hardie men and if hee had vanquished but a cowardly company and timerous souldiers hee would cause to bee put vp the picture of a naked woman with a Glasse in her hand and a combe to disgrace the souldiers which hee had conquered signifying they were timerous cowardly and womanish souldiers For honour and rewarde of military discipline of all kingdomes and countreys were inuented by wit and by lawe confirmed to set vp monuments of fame to great conquerers and noble Captaines to stirre vp young men to embrace Armes and to exercise martiall feates As Pericles in Athens had nine seuerall trophies for nine seuerall victories and vpon euery one his name written So Sylla for his victorie against Archelaus had a trophey set vp and his name written with these words Victoria Sylla Domitius Aenobarbus and Fabius Maximus for their victories against the Allobroges were the first among the Romanes that builded vp high towers of stone and pillars of wood and hangd the enemies armors weapons theron as trophies monumēts of their victories Sicinius Dentatus to signifie his singular commendations had for his noble exploites in diuers warres eight golden crownes foure ciuill crownes three scaling crownes called Murales coronae foure score three chaines eighteen pure speares and had a hundred three score bracelets giuē him in rewards gifts for his braue seruice in seuerall battels The like praise had Manlius Capitolinus who besides foure ciuil crownes had twentie sixe military rewards and before he was seuenteen years old wanne two rich spoyles of the enemy So forward to winne fame and become famous were the old Romanes The old Romanes vsed to honour them that saued a citizens life with a garland of oaken boughes for so was Corilianus by the Dictator Titus Largius at the last battell of Torquine the proud crowned with a garland of oaken boughes Besides these crownes garlands chaines bracelets rings and armour giuen by the Generall they had certaine military garments and certaine acres of ground diuided betweene worthy and well deserued souldiers by the lawe Agraria appointed to encourage the souldiers to hardinesse Alexander the great so esteemed the Tribune of the souldiers that he would admit none in the place vnder three score yeares old vnlesse he had bene of great skill long experience and a man of good and long seruice to whome Alexander the great admitted to weare golden rings as a reward of a military honour neither was it lawfull to any Romaine citizen vnlesse hee were a Senator or of the order of knighthood to weare golden ringes in auncient time This officer called Tribunus militum with the Romanes was named with the Lacedemonians Harmostes an officer of the care and charge of seruice as the Tribune or the Collonell of souldiers and might not continue in that office past sixe moneths as long as the Dictator of Rome was to enioy his office And when the Emperor Prince or Generall would allow and commend the office place of the Tribune to a graue skilful Captaine he would put a naked sword in his hand signifying his authoritie ouer the souldiers repeating the wordes of the lawe of armes before the whole armie set downe in these words Milites quibus iussierunt Parento eorumque Tribuni sunto The same forme vsed Traiane the Emperour in his time when he appointed Zura a Tribune ouer the Praetorian souldiers giuing a sword in his hand saying Accipe gladium quem prome c. If I vse this gouernment well vse it for mee If I do euil vse it to destroy mee None might be with the Romanes admitted to be Tribunes of the souldiers vnlesse he had bene before a leader of the band called Cohortes neither might any man be taken Harmostes among the Lacedemonians vnlesse
to these Prophets now they spared not IerusaleÌ„ nor Samaria but they had their message told them by the Prophet And so much of the manner and forme of the publishing and denouncing of warre by the Lords Heraulds his Prophets And now likewise to shewe the maner and forme of the Gentiles in denouncing of warre by their Heraulds The Gentiles in olde time proclaiming their warres against their enemies in seueral sorts as the Romains by their Priests called Faecials which were first instituted by Numa Pomp. and after appointed by the Romanes to be their heraulds both for warre and peace for the law was written in these words Belli pacis faederum induciarum or atorum faeciales Iudices sunto The chiefe of theÌ„ was called Pater Patratus being crowned with a garlaÌ„d made of Verbena who went with foure of them to the coÌ„fines of the enemies reciting the iust cause of the wars which were it not by the enemies satisfied answered within 33. daies after the Faecial Priests being sent froÌ„ the Senators and Citizens of Rome should throw after the word spokeÌ„ a bloudy dart or an iron speare into the enemies lands proclaiming warre against them Iure faeciali But if the Romains had their warres farre from Rome the Faeciall Priests should goe out of the citie through the gate Carmentalis to the Temple of Mars in the which Temple there was hanging a bloudie speare vpon one of the pillars of the TeÌ„ple called Columna bellica and from that place should the Faeciall Priest throw that bloudie dart towards those natioÌ„s whom they denounced to be their enemies then after this the Consul Proconsul or Praetor should goe to the Temple of Mars and take the Targets called Ancyllia in his hande and after pricke the Image of Mars with his speare or launce and say Mars Vigila The Persians also vsed this ceremony to throwe a bloudie dart towards the confines of theyr enemies thereby denouncing warre either to haue land and water by yeelding or else to abide warre The manners and customes among the Grecians wheÌ„ they went to publish warre they vsed to send their Herauld to the confines of the enemies after the iust cause of the warre being publikely declared vnlesse they were Perius sanctum legatorum satisfied the Greekes sent a Ramme to the enemies confines to signifie that they were readie armed for their enemies for the sending of the Ramme with the Greekes did signifie as much as the throwing of the bloudie dart or Iron speare with the Romanes for the Romanes were instructed in martiall discipline by the Greekes as the Greekes were by the Persians and the Persians by the Egiptians The old Gaules vsed this manner of order that their Senators called Druydes called a councell of the chiefe men which should be all armed and therefore called among them the armed councell and after consultation had between these Priests Druydes and the armed councell that whatsoeuer was agreed vpon betweene them ther of warre or peace was established for a lawe The Scythians had strange customes in defying their enemies and in proclaiming of warre they did send by Embassadors to Darius king of Persia a bird a mouse a frogge and an arrow signifying thereby that vnlesse the enemies would flye away like a bird creepe away like a mouse or swim away like a frogge out of Scythia that an arrow should pierce them through Warres being proclaimed by the Lacedemonians warlike people the herauld should carrie in his hand a vine twig wreathed about with wooll which the enemies if they would accept and receiue vpon conditions by the herauld opened it should be a full bond of peace otherwise a denouncing of warre and withall the herauld threw the vine twigge out of his hand as in defiance The Carthagineans though they could neuer abide the Romanes yet vsed they the selfesame ceremonies Hastae proiectio as the Romanes did in pronouncing of their warres There was a strange maner and custome among some nations when they proclaimed warre they would send a herauld with a present to theyr enemies wrapped round about with the likenesse of snakes which if the present would be vpoÌ„ conditions accepted they would take away the snakes and deliuer them the present if otherwise the herauld would deliuer the enemies the snakes in defiance and bring the present away this maner of defiance against their enemies the old Corinthithians vsed with others Now that you read the maner and forme of proclaiming of warres among diuers nations you shall also obserue diuers fashions and ceremonies touching composition of peace for both proclaiming of warre and concluding of peace were in all authoritie Per viâ—…faciale but altered in ceremonies CHAP. XIII Of the maner and diuers ceremonies in concluding of peace THe concluding of peace of diuers nations was in this sort those that were sent as Heraulds to proclaime warre were againe sent as Embassadors to entreate for peace in diuers Countries for as bloud was sought by warres so by bloud peace should be reconciled For as you heard the Lord did threaten warre long before warre came to the Hebrewes the Chaldeans Assyrians and the rest by the Prophets and his Heraulds and before these nations punished the first age for their sinnes with an vniuersal deluge ouer the whole world eight persons excepted and after made a league of peace and gaue the Rainebowe as a signe in the heauens not to destroy the world any more with water and when the people againe transgressed his commaundements the Lord commaunded his Prophets to threaten the Hebrues the Chaldeans and Assyrians denouncing warre to punish them as you heard of the Egiptians the Sodomites others with a condition of peace to continue betweene him and his people which was written out in the law of Moses This league was signified confirmed also with the bloud of a lamb as the bloud of couenant between God and man the true type figure of the lambe Christ Iesus which gaue vs euerlasting peace by his bloud in the new 〈◊〉 this peace was proclaimed to the Shepheards in the field at Bethelem by legions of Angels which came downe from heauen singing glory bee to God on high on earth peace towards meÌ„ This peace Christ repeated to his disciples saying Peace be vnto you this peace he brought into the world this peace he left with his people in the world which the world caÌ„not giue for there is no peace to the wicked faith the Lord. The ceremonies of euery natioÌ„ in all countries in concluding of peace was generally by bloud and as it were confirmed by an oath in supping each others bloud or by dipping in of their swords arrowes flint-stones or wooll As the Meades drewe bloud out of theyr armes the Lydians out of their shoulders the Arabians out of their fingers that by sucking and licking of each others bloud they thought it
and famine an hundred thousand solde publikely as slaues and sixteene thousand were sent to Rome to beautifie his fathers triumph as Iosephus an eye-witnesse doth report The Iewes looked not for their destruction so nigh at hand they obserued by tradition of some of their Rabines that their Messias should come about the time of Augustus as a magnificent mighty king not as a poore man the sonne of a Carpenter whom the Iewes whipt and scourged for that he tooke vpō him to be the sonne of God made himself Messias the Iewes litle thought that he was the Messas when they cryed to Pilate to haue him crucified in Golgotha saying his bloud be vpon vs and vpon our children The greedie desire and expectation of the people was such that many tooke vpon them to call themselues the Messias as Iudas Galileus and an other called Atonges a shepheard but aboue them all one Barcozba had diuers followers was receiued for their Messas thirtie yeares but when they saw that he could not defend them from the Romanes they would no longer accept him for their Messias but slew him Titus proceedeth forward to destroy the Iewes but especially the Priests the Scribes Pharisies on whom he had no mercie saying that they chiefly ought to dye with the sword sithence the temple was burnt with fire they onely being rebellious and seditious and the cause of the destruction of the citie Titus spared none of the stocke of Herod In this warres of Titus were ten of the learned Rabbines slaine whose names I thought good to write as I found them written in Genebrardus Chronicles Rabbi Simeon ben Gamaliel Rabbi Ismael ben Elizei Rabbi Hanina ben Tedarion Rabbi Husiphith Rabbi Eleazer ben Samaa Rabbi Iuda ben Dama Rabbi Isbak Scribam Rabbi Iuda ben Hachinas Rabbi Iuda ben Baba Rabbi Askiba These tenne Rabbines were slaine by Titus which the Iewes record in theyr latter Talmud for tenne martyrs and after Ierusalem was thus destroied Titus appointed Rabbi Iohanan ben Zachai gouernour ouer the remnant of the Iewes in Ahua Byther Oza other pla◅es as Nabuchodonozer did appoint Godoliah gouernor of the rest of the Iewes when he destroyed Ierusalem in the time of Zedechia the king Titus also left Bonia a younger brother of Fla. Iosephus to gouerne other places in Iudah and he returned with his prisoners and captiues which he brought with him to Rome to beautifie his fathers triumphes and his This was the fift and last ouerthrow of the Iewes destruction of Ierusalem First by Shesac King of Egipt in the time of Rehoboam secondly by Nabuchodonozer in the time of Zedechias the last King of Iudah thirdly by Antiochus fourthly by Pompey the great and fiftly and last by Titus and Vespasian Thus the Iewes that subdued all natiōs before them and conquered all the Kings about them that in the time of Ioshua Dauid all the earth trembled at the naming of the Iewes whose gouernment continued from Abraham to Vespasian two thousand yeares and more though for a time while they were in Egipt 430. yeares litle spoken of vntil the Lord raised them so strengthned thē vnder Moses and Ioshua that first they ouerthrew Pharao and his kingdome after subdued the Canaanites Edomites Moabites Ammonites Philistines and the Syrians which of the Hebrewes were called Aromites the strongest nation vpon the earth at that time which were subdued notwithstanding by Dauid Thus the Iewes which were as famous and feared as much in those dayes as the Romanes were in the time of their Consuls are now so destroyed and their country subdued like wandring banished mē without king lawe or countrey The cause wherof was the sinne of Ierusalem which would neuer acknowledge the goodnesse of God towards them nor his myracles and his mercy wrought amongst them they refused his grace offered and persecuted him most violently to death Yet Dionisius Areopagita and his fellow Appollonius in the citie of Eliopolis in Egipt they both obserued by the Eclipse of the Sun at the verie houre the sonne of God suffered more then the rebellious Iewes did for all the blessings and mercies which they had receiued they cried out still vnto Pilate crucifie him his blood be vpon vs and vpon our children These learned Heathens openly confessed in Egipt that either the sonne of God did suffer death or else the frame of the whole worlde should be dissolued these two Heathens confessed and named him to bee the sonne of God but the vngratefull Iewes called and named him the sonne of Ioseph the Carpenter in contempt of him and therefore it is conuenient to set forth the great goodnesse of the Lorde in a briefe and a short catalogue what the Lord hath done to Israel since he brought them out of the furnace of Egipt where they were bond-slaues vnder Pharao 430. yeares euen from the first comming of Abraham into Egipt vntill Moses brought them out of Egipt For after Esau Iacob had diuided their fathers possession Esau went to dwell in Edumea and Iacob tooke for his part Canaan where he dwelt and his childrē vntil Iacob went to Egipt with all his family to his sonne Ioseph which was 215. yeares after the being of Abraham in Egipt and 215. yeares before Moses brought the childrē of Israel out of Egipt into the land of Canaan at what time the law was written giuen to Moses in mount Sinai to gouern the people and after the lawe was giuen the Tabernacle was commaunded by Moses to be made in the wildernesse which should stand to them for a Temple to serue the Lord and after the Tabernacle the Arke was made where the tables of the lawe were commaunded by Moses at his death to be kept where Moses gouerned the whole army of the Hebrues fortie yeares before they went ouer Iorden And Moyses before he died he deliuered the army of the Hebrewes into the hands of Ioshua with a charge from the Lord vnder whom they passed into the lande of Canaan after whose death they began to be rebellious seditious Yet the Lord fauoured thē sent thē stout and wise gouernors as Iudah Ehud Barac Iephtha Gedeō and Sampson yet stil rebelled they like Idolatrous people against the Lord that they were weary of that gouernment and reiected Samuel his gouernmēt and would haue a king the Lord denied them nothing and they had kings to rule them during which time of kings Idolatry presently crept in that the lord his lawes were forsaken and Baal with his prophets priests accepted Hence grew ciuil warres between the 12. Tribes ten against two that of one kingdom they made two so that there was nothing but slaughter and blood betweene the house of Israel the house of Iudah and that straight after Solomons death 500. thousand were slain in mount Zemaraim of the king of Israels side by the king of Iudah Againe such a slaughter of
the king of Iudahs side by the king of Israel that two hundred thousand of womē and children were taken prisoners in Samaria so that they wasted and spoyled one another in such sort that frō a happy populous people by forsaking their Lord and God they became a most miserable Idolatrous people to serue strange gods For during the time of Dauid which was 40. yeares the kingdome of Israel was the most famous renowned kingdome of the world For so the Lord spake I will make the Princes of Iudah like coales of fire among the wood and like a fire-brand in the sheafe and they shal deuour all people round about them So Dauid brought all the kings nations about subiect tributary vnto Israel whose happie whole gouernment was such that at his death hee left a hundred thousand talents to his sonne Solomon to build a temple to the Lord which he himself had determined to build but that the Prophet Nathā warned him from the Lord that he should not for that he was a man of blood but that Solomon his sonne should build him a house This kingdom of Israel being so happy as you heard in king Dauids time and in Solomons time so glorious a temple builded and so richly furnished vnto the Lord that in Solomons time such plentie was in Ierusalē mony was no more esteemed thē stones in the streets yet presently vpō Solomons death in the time of Rehoboham his sonne the state of Ierusalem was so obscured altered that the citie was sackt and the temple robd with great slaughter of people by Shesac king of Egipt so that the wealth and treasure of Ierusalem and of the temple was carried by Shesac into Egipt Againe the kings of Israel became so Idolatrous that there were no gods among the Heathens but they were as gods worshipped in Israel so that they were far worse then the Grecians or the Romans who would allow no strange gods to raigne neither in Athens nor in Rome and therefore for that they forsooke the Lord the Lord forsooke them and gaue them ouer and their kingdome to the Assirians by the hand of Salmanasser and so Samaria and other townes in Israel were inhabited by strangers So the kings of Iudah after Israel within 133. yeares after were carried captiues into Babilon by Nabuchodonozer yet the Lord gaue them not ouer but brought them within 70. yeares after againe to Ierusalem stirred vp Cyrus Darius and Artaxerxes three great kings of Persia to fauour and to aide them with license to returne to their countrey to inhabit Ierusalem with money and much treasure to build vp the Temple redeliuering vnto them all the rich vessels of gold and siluer which Salomon left in the Temple at his death and which Nabuchodonozer tooke away from the Temple and brought to Babilon After Cyrus and these kings of Persia the Lord stirred vp a great Heathen Prince Alexander the great who when he came to Ierusalem lighted off his horse and came to meet the high Priest and reuerenced him with great obeysance where were read vnto him the prophesies of Daniel where it was found that a Grecian Prince should subdue the Persian kingdome which Alexander acknowledged to be himselfe and therefore went into the temple sacrificed to the God of Israel and not only freely granted to the high Priest whatsoeuer he would aske but commaunded him to aske what he would haue him do the high Priest asked nothing but that the Iewes that dwelt in Babilon in Medea and in other countreys about vnder his gouernment might enioy and liue according to the lawes of their countrey which Alexander graunted besides his great and liberall gifts which he bestowed vpon the Priest the temple Nabuchodonozer vsed himselfe otherwise then Alexander did against Iudah for he commanded Holofernus to spare no people no kingdome saying Non Parcet oculus tuus vlliregno The terror of Holofernus army therby was such that they came out of euery citie crowned with crownes on their heads and lamps in their hands to receiue him with all kind of musicke and with dauncing songs to please him yet could they not mittigate the fiercenesse of his fury After Alexander the Lord stirred vp Pthol Philadelphus so to fauour the Israelits to loue their lawes that he had the lawes of Israel written in the Greeke tongue in Alexandria and released many prisoners and captiues of the Iews to the number of 120000. which Ptol. Lagus his precessor had brought from Iudah to Egipt with as great bountifull rewards gifts as Alexander did So Zeleucus shewed such fauour to the Iewes dwelling in Antioch in Ionia in Ephesus that he graunted to them the liberties lawes of their countrey After Zeleucus the Lord stirred vp Antiochus the great being before a great enemy of the Iewes after Antiochus many of the kings of Asia so to fauour them that all the cities of Asia where the Iewes dwelt should suffer them to liue according to the laws of their country and to enioy the benefites of the same and though many of the Assirian kings troubled and molested them with great warres which ioyned themselues with the Samaritans to subdue the kingdome of Iudah Yet the Lord raised vp the house of Assamonias Mattathias to resist the violence of the Assyrians and after him his sonne Iu. Machabaeus who slew of the enemies Edumeans and Assyrians that sought the ouerthrowe of his countrey two hundred thirtie sixe thousand and seuen hundred in the defence of Ierusalem and after him his other foure bretheren forsooke not the lawes of the Lord for all the tyrannie of the Romane Emperors and the Assyrian Kings But the Iewes from time to time so reuoulted from the Lord that Aristobulus the sonne of Hircanus made himselfe a King 481. yeares after the returne of the captiuitie of the Iewes from Babilon but hee enioyed his kingdome but one yeare after he famished his mother and killed his brother for in Iudah their kings had no better succession then the kings of Rome had though in both the kingdomes they made great meanes to become kings After this Aristobulus there was no king among the Iewes vntill Herod who was made by the Senators of Rome with the consent of Augustus Caesar and Mar. Antonius both Emperours of Rome vnder whom Iudah was a Prouince Yet one false Alexander a Iew most subtilly adopted himselfe being very like to Herod to be of the stock and family of Herod and brother to Aristobulus and thereby claimed to bee king of Iudah saying that he was Herods sonne as false Philip faigned himselfe in Macedonia to be Persius sonne king Philips brother and as the common people there reuerenced false Philippe in Macedonia so likewise in all parts of Iurie was this false Alexander carried in coach from Cittie to Cittie with all the reuerence and honour that
could bee as though he were their true and lawfull king but being brought to Rome before Caesar who found by the hardnesse of his hands and rudenesse of his behauiour that hee was not brought vp like a Kings sonne and therefore Caesar hauing found his falshood bound him all his life time as a galley slaue and commaunded all his counsellors and conspirators to bee killed with the sword This house continued vntill the last destruction of Ierusalem So that the Iewes after Christ his death beeing euery where afflicted and oppressed from Babilon were forced to flie to Zeleucia the chiefe Citie in all Syria which Zeleucus Nicanor builded a Towne where Greekes Macedonians and Syrians dwelt together there also the Greekes and the Syrians conspired together against the Iewes that there dwelt and slew trecherously of them to the number of 50000. So sedition also began between the Iewes in Alexandria and the Aegiptians in Samaria betweene the Samaritans and the Iewes and all the Iewes which dwelt in Rome in Sardinia other places of the Romaine Empire were from thence banished These Iewes had not so much as a place to rest vpon the earth but were scattered like rogues vagabounds euery where without credit or loue without Prince Priest law or religion the iust iudgement of the Lord for their blasphemy against the sonne of God saying his bloud be vpon vs and our children Thus the Iewes whom Moses Aaron brought out of Egipt to the number of six hundred thousand died all in the wildernesse for their rebellious mutinie Moses and Eleazer after Aarons death numbred the people in the wildernesse where all the other died and they found sixe hundred thousand seuenteen hundred and thirtie able and sufficient men for the warres and yet not one of them which Moses Aaron numbred in the desart of Sinai after they came out of Egipt sauing Ioshua Caleb but died in the wildernesse for disobedience and stubbernesse euer preferring the cucumbers melons oynions garlicks of Egipt before Māna quailes and sweete water which they had from euery rocke in the wildernesse where neither their cloathes were worne nor their shooes spent for fortie yeares yet Egipt which should be a hel to them was their paradice The tenne Tribes of Israel raigned in Samaria 240. yeares seuen moneths and seuen daies during which time they neither obeyed the lawes of the Lord nor heard the Prophets that forewarned them of these calamities which were to come and therfore the Lord gaue them ouer they were taken prisoners their last king Osea brought captiues by Salmanasser vnto Niniuie So the kingdome of Iudah and the house of Dauid was likewise taken by Nabuchodonozer in the eleuenth yeare of Zedechiah the last king of Iudah who was taken captiue his noble men his children slaine in his sight before his eyes were pluckt out and after led in a chaine vnto Babilon where he died in prison 133. yeares after the kingdome of Israel was destroyed by Salmanasser that was the cause of his miserable end for the contempt he had to the Prophet Ieremy disdaining either to hear him or to read his booke for before any king raigned in Israel Iudges by the Lord appointed ruled 370. yeares the kings of Iudah after Solomons death raigned 395. yeares which agreeth well with Iosephus account And so of the continuance of the Bishops or high Priests euen from the building of the temple of Solomon Sadoc being their first high Priest or Bishop were seuēteene high Priests or Bishops in Ierusalem by succession of the children after their fathers The end of the second booke The third Booke of the Stratagems of Ierusalem CHAP. I. Of the care and diligence which Kingdomes and Countries tooke in military discipline to exercise their souldiers THe Romanes most carefull in all military discipline in no wise trusted strangers but euery Romaine souldier should take a military oath by the Colonell The Persiās also were in this point like the Romains for not admitting of mercenary souldiers seldome is found any constancie or soundnesse in mercenary souldiers as by too many examples the Romanes and others found Iugurth by trechery of fewe Thracians that serued the Romanes in Affrike in the night time betraied the Romanes to Iugurth and made a great slaughter of them In like sort the Thessalians were trecherous to the Athenians whom they trusted but they forsooke the Athenians at the battel of Tanagra wherby through their falsehood and trecherie to the Athenians the victorie fell to the Lacedemonians therefore neither the Romanes nor the Persians trusted any mercenary souldiers for mercenary souldiers and strangers are not to be trusted for they doo not onely forsake their friends in any danger but ioyne with the enemy for any aduantage So did the Gaules in the warres of Carthage slew the watch of the Romanes and fled to Haniball The lawe of armes in euery countrey should holde and maintain the crowne dignity of the prince by the sword so most necessary it is that subiects should be looked vnto with great care and prouision to maintain the willing forward and good souldiers due punishmēts and sharpe corrections for euill leaud wicked disposed men carelesse of their countries good How carefull euery common-wealth hath bene of this you shall read first of euery kingdome country seueral punishments by law appointed after of the rewards honor dignities of good souldiers of which Plato saith Omnis respub paena Praemio continetur Agesilaus therefore appointed gifts and rewards to draw and encourage his souldiers to shoote to throwe the dart the sling to ride to runne and with diligence and care to keepe them seuerely from faults offences and to exercise them in martiall feates which kinde of exercise among the Greekes was most commonly vsed called Pentatlon in the games of Olympia Isthmia to honor Hercules and Thesius two protectors and principall captaines that loued souldiers Alexander the great was so seuere in martiall lawes towards his souldiers that if any souldier or captain shuld lye or be any way proued a lyer hee should be depriued frō his office and place of seruice banished from his camp for so was Antigenes though a valiant captaine otherwise yet was both casseerd banished for making of a lye Alexander after he had banished all bakers cookes brewers and such like frō his campe said that marching in their armour in the night they should prouide them a dinner a stomacke to eate theyr dinner against the next morning as for a supper he said they should not looke for wine nor flesh to sleepe after it but for bread and hee would prouide for water which is the onely foode of a souldier and the most necessary care of a generall Hereby his souldiers being brought vp by Philip king of Macedonia his father were hardned with continuall paine
Among the Romanes a military oath was not onely ministred vnto the souldiers to obey the direction and correction of the Consuls but also the Consuls and Praetors themselues were sworne before the Senators of Rome that they should attempt no battell without full instruction from the Senators for many Consuls Praetors and Generals haue bene displaced from theyr Cōsulships for not obeying the orders of the Senators The same obseruation of oathes as well of captaines as of the souldiers were ministred to the souldiers by the magistrates in Sparta called Ephori though the Lacedemonians in their warres against the Messenians regarded as much their aultars their gods and their faith as the Athenians did against the Maegarians who caused their souldiers to take an annuall oath to waste to spoyle and to destroy and to do as much harme as they could to the Maegarians The Aethiopians and Egiptians made their souldiers to sweare by the names of those noble dead captaines whose seruice aliue did most aduance their countrey whose bodies they preserued with all sweete odours in glasse in their sumptuous tombes The Thracians and the Scythians laying their stand vpon the sword of Mars make their souldiers sweare in solemne sort to performe true seruice to Mars to their countrey When King Artaxerxes would haue Hipocrates the Phisition to be sworne towards him and offered him a great summe of gold Hipocrates sware vnto Artaxerxes that he would neuer serue vnder a barbarous King that should be an enemie to the Greekes This oath was obserued euer after of all the Phisitions of Greece The oath that Benhadad king of Syria sware vnto Achab king of Israel was thus the gods do vnto me if thou doost not deliuer me all thy treasures and yeelde thy selfe vnto mee the dust of Samaria shall not bee enough for euery one of my souldiers to take a handfull As you heard of the Lacedemonians against the Messenians and of the Athenians against the Maegarians so the Thessalians weighed so little their oathes that in the Peloponesian warre they fled from the Athenians vnto the Lacedemonians making no account of their oathes before made to the Athenians like the Parthians which made no account of a military oath in warres Notwithstanding the infidelitie of the Thessalians the Parthians and others I thinke it conuenient to set downe the olde auntient forme of the Romanes when they ministred oathes vnto theyr souldiers or otherwise The Romanes would sweare by Iupiter laying their hands vpon the aultar and on the sacrifice saying these words If I say otherwise then truth or deceiue any man so Iupiter throw me out of Rome as I throw this stone out of my hand The same words in effect did Scipio Affrican vse to Lu. Metellus and to other Romanes after the great ouerthrow of the Romanes at the battell of Canne hearing that Metellus and his company had determined to forsake Italy and to take sea Scypio Affrican went purposely vnto Metellus lodging whom hee found very resolute in their purpose Scypio drew his sword naked vpon them saying I sweare vnto you that during Scypios life I will not forsake Rome nor any part of Italy neither will I suffer you nor any Romane citizen to depart out of Italy with my life If I do Iupiter confound mee my house my family and all that I haue in the world This was Scypios oath to Metellus after that Hanniball had ouerthrowne the Romanes and so vrged Metellus and his company to sweare the same oath and so to ioyne theyr force together against Haniball for after the great victorie of Haniball at Canne his fortune by degrees began to quaile for Mar. Liuius and Clau. Nero both Consuls ' of Rome hearing that Asdruball Generall of the Affricans came with a great Armie vnto Italy to ayde his brother Haniball met him vppon the sudden and gaue him battell at the Riuer Metaurus with the like ouerthrowe as was equall to the battell of Canne for Asdruball was slaine and his head cut off and sent to his brother Haniball for a present by Claudius Nero and fiftie sixe thousand men of his Army slaine and his Campe taken vpon the which ouerthrow Hanibal was sent for presently to come from Italy to Affrica After this great battell Hanibals force and fortune began to bee weakened and hee made meanes to Scypio for peace and great Carthage began to alter and chaunge and yet were they most angry with Hanibal for that he counselled them not to follow their vaine hope of any victory but rather to entreat for peace at the Romanes But Carthage could not abide the name of Rome nor Rome Carthage and therefore forced Hanibal to take the battell at Zama in hand which was the last battell and the vtter ouerthrow of Hanibal and of all the Carthagineans The Affricans and the Carthagineans almost like the Romanes laide theyr hands on the Aultars of theyr Countrey goddes and on the sacrifice holding in the left hand a lambe and in the right hand a flint stone saying If they otherwise spake then truth or that they should deceiue any man to their knowledge so they wished that Iupiter should strike them as dead as they did strike the lambe with the flint stone The latter Romanes made their souldiers to sweare by the name of the Emperours as the souldiers sware by the name of Vespasian and by the name of Augustus So the Emperour Caligula sware by the name of Drusilla in Rome So Ioseph sware by the life of Pharao in Egipt yet it was not permitted for women in Rome to sweare by the name of Hercules The auntient Greekes in their most solemne oathes were wont to come to the temple of Ceres Tesmophore and there after sacrifice done to put on a purple robe vpon the goddesse Ceres holding lampes in their hands lighted and there to sweare before the goddesse Ceres in a maner the like words as the Romanes did of Iupiter Both Euripides and Aristophenes charged the Spartanes that they obserued neither their oathes neither their faith nor their aultars and named their king Aristocrates in his warres against the Messenians to bee as false as the Thessalians were Among other nations they sware by waters riuers and welles as the Indians sware by the water of Sandaracina the Massagets by the Riuer of Tanais Many Philosophers sware Per genium Socratis Many Pythagorians sware Per quaternionem which with them was the most perfect number CHAP. IIII. Of the last ouerthrow of Hanibal at the battell of Zama by Scypio Affrican of his going from Affrike to Asia to Antiochus the great and from thence to Prusias king of Bythinia HAnibal before hee came out of Italy seeing his force declining after hee saw his brother Asdrubals head thrown into his tent said I euer thought Carthage vnluckie and I know it should bee destroyed but I requited the Romaines before my
that Pompey had subdued all Sertorius captains and at last Sertorius himselfe he tooke king Iarbas who fought on Domitius side one of Sertorius captaines and brought him prisoner to Rome in his triumph So that within fortie dayes Pompey ouercame all the Marians which tooke Marius part which were enemies to Sylla subdued Affrike and established all the affaires of all the kings and kingdomes of all that country that Sylla named him Pompey the great Yet Sylla sawe Pompeys greatnesse growe on so fast that he went about to hinder Pompeys triumphes which Pompey spake to Syllas face that men honour more the sunne rising then the sunne setting Pompey hauing bene neither Praetor Consul or Senator had his triumph granted him against the lawe when he was but 24. yeares of age Pompey gaue an other ouerthrow to Sertorius captaines at a set battel hard by the citie of Valentia slew ten thousand men of Sertorius souldiers and at that battell Pompey slew Herennius and Perpenna both notable souldiers and Sertorius Lieftenants and so obtained the victorie and ended all this warre for the most part of Sertorius captaines were slaine in the field at that battell Yet had Pompey his hands full with Sertorius at the battell of Lauron a noble and valiant captaine on Marius side and one that galled Pompey more then all the rest for Pompey could do no good though hee sawe the citie of Lauron burnt before his face where Sertorius shewed himselfe a most skilfull and valiant captaine In like sort at the battell hard by the Riuer Sucron Pompey had his hands full with Sertorius where Pompey was forced to take his horse and driuen from his horse to flye and in his flight to forsake his horse to take his feete and to leaue his horse for a pray to Sertorius Affricans souldiers being so rich a spoile to stay the enemies who fought for the horse and let Pompey goe The Gaules hauing a great battell to fight with Attalus king of Asia deliuered all their gold and siluer to be kept that if they were driuen to flye they should scatter the gold and siluer vpon the way that by staying the enemies to gather vp the gold siluer so dispersed they themselues might escape The like stratagem vsed Mithridates king of Pontus to saue himselfe who fled from the enemies that followed hard after him who left a Mule laden with golde and siluer a bootie which Mithridates knew would please the Romanes to stay them and to saue himselfe from Lucullus souldiers So did Triphon king of Syria to escape from king Antiochus horsemen scattered money euery where on the way to stay Antiochus souldiers that Triphon might escape so did Alaricus king of the Goates and others saue themselues by the like policies Fewe great captaines hardly escaped with their liues from diuers dangers and perils Sylla hardly escaped from Telesinus at the battell of Antemna and Caesar himselfe after he had lost 32. Ensignes a thousand of his best souldiers escaped hardly the hand of Pompey at Dirachium and after in the battell at Munda in Affrica from the Pompeyans CHAP. V. Of Pirrhus warre against the Romanes of diuers stratagems of the marchings of diuers nations of the ouerthrow of Torquine last king ouer the Romanes of the praise of Porsenna and Mutius Scaeuola PIrrhus the great captaine in the battell hard by the riuer Siris after he had giuen to Leuinus the Consull a great ouerthrow before and made vp a trophey in the temple at Tarentum to Iupiter yeelding thanks for his victories being demaunded of the Tarentines to haue one battell more with the Romanes sith he had subdued the Romanes in two battels before he answered If I stay to giue the third battell to the Romanes I shal haue neuer a souldier to return from Italy to Epyre. Thus Pompey vnder Sylla Sylla vnder Marius Marius vnder Scypio and Scypio vnder his father whom hee rescued in the battell at Canne from the Affricans as Alexander the great rescued his father Philip at the battell at Cheronea being but eighteene yeares of age as Scypio was when he rescued his father at Canne While Pompey flourished in Rome after Syllas death that all the Romane Empire rung out Pompeys fame Caesar practised among the Gaules his secret ambitiō which was such that he went as a Romane captain with his army far from Rome to practise his stratagems where he conquered the Gaules with the weapons of the Romanes and wonne the Romanes with money of the Gaules fewe in Rome knew this but such as he fed with money in Rome to be his friends Hence grew the malice and enuie betwneene Pompey and Caesar for Pompey could not abide his equall in Rome nor Caesar his superiour Caesar was suspected to be confederate with Cateline in his conspiracie not onely to ouerthrow the state of the Common-wealth but also to destroy the whole Empire of Rome for the which cause Cato and Piso fell out with Cicero for that hee then beeing Consull had not bewrayed Caesar when Cicero well might haue done it for many sawe the greatnesse of Caesar farre from Rome before hee came to Rome they sawe his courage and minde to bee inuincible his martiall skill to bee singular that such was his conquests ouer the Gaules in tenne yeares that hee tooke aboue eight hundred Townes and hauing such an infinite number of enemies of thirtie hundred thousand souldiers Gaules Germaines Teutons and diuers others he slew of them at seuerall times aboue tenne hundred thousand So that Caesars praise his warres his battels his victories and conquests had excelled all the strongest kings and princes of Europe had he not onely shewed himselfe an enemie to his Countrey in the battell at Pharsalia where Pompey the great the Senators and the most part of the noble men of Rome were slain ouerthrowne and taken Had Caesar bene in the time of Hanibal of whom Scypio demanded who had bene and were the greatest captaines of the world to whom he answered Alexander was the first Pirrhus the second and Hanibal himselfe the third Then Scypio demaunded of Hanibal what if Hanibal had subdued Scypio Hee aunswered that then Hanibal should not haue bene the second nor the third but the first For what Pirrhus could not bring to passe in foure yeares nor Hannibal in seuēteen yeares that could Caesar bring to passe within threescore dayes he was Lord of all Italy Emperour of Rome and conquerour of all the Romane Empire and therefore worthily to be preferred before Pirrhus or Hannibal had he spared his countrey Such was the celeritie of Caesars victories ouer Pharnaces king of Pontus at the battell by the citie of Zela that hee wrote but three words to his friend Anitus to Rome from Pontus Veni vidi vici Againe he tooke three campes in one day and slue fiftie thousand of his enemies and lost but fiftie of his
losse of many countries prouinces and cities so the Turkes marched vpon the Romanes as the Romanes marched vpon others Cyrus the great king of Persia hauing an hundred and seuen and twentie prouinces after his conquest of many kingdomes and nations marched with two hundred thousand Persians to be slaine in Scythia and that by a woman so Cyrus lost Persia seeking to winne Scythia and lost his life to get more landes Zerxes marching into Greece with such an innumerable armie that they dranke and dried vp many riuers as Scamander in Thessalia the riuer Simois in Phrygia Clidorus in Beotia Lysus in Samothracia the riuer Menalia by Hellespont yet he came from Greece home to be murthered by Mardonius his seruant in his owne kingdom Alexander the great hauing subdued the most parts of the world he also for want of men marched to India to fight with Elephants and returned from India to Babilon where he was poysoned by his owne seruants Many such crooked marchings were as well among the Iewes as among the Gentiles Saul the first king of Israel marched not as he ought to haue done against Agag king of the Amalekites and therefore was he slaine with his three sonnes in the battell at mount Gilboa by the Philistines Ieroboam marched not rightly to the battel in mount Zemaraim against Abiah king of Iudah and therfore fiue hundred thousand Israelites were slaine of his soldiers The most part of the kings of Israel because I need not to name as Acha◅ Manasses Zedechiah the rest many of the kings of Iudah for that they marched not in the path of the Lord but followed Ieroboā which made Israel to sinne and therefore marched with Ieroboa◅ to their destruction These marched not with Moses who said to the God of Israel We will not goe hence if thou goe not before vs. Nor with king Dauid who would take no warre in hand before he had consulted with the Lord. Nor with Gedeon who would not goe to any battell vnlesse the Lord had giuen him a signe before he went so the captaines of the Lorde marched no where attempted no warre or battell without consulting with the Lorde by Vrim Thummim or with some Prophet of the Lord. The Gentiles likewise would take no warre in hand without consulting with their Oracles as the Romains besought the gods of Carthage promising them Temples Altars sacrifices feasts if they would forsake Carthage and come to Rome and therfore the Gentiles were so superstitious and blinde that in many countries they would binde the Images of Hercules and Mars lest they should forsake them and goe to other nations their enemies for no doubt it should seeme that either they read or heard of Moses bookes how the Lord forsooke the Israelites and gaue them ouer to the Canaanites Philistines and other nations about them and how the Arke was taken frō them by the Philistines Here hence grew the blindnesse of the Gentiles that the Arke being taken away from Israel they feared also lest their gods should be either allured by faire promises or taken away by strength of victories CHAP. VI. Of the maner and forme of vowes as well of the Iewes as of the Gentiles for their victories in warres A Bigail Nabals wife vsed a policie to please Dauid fearing least Dauid would be reuenged vpon her husband for his churlish deniall of reliefe to him and to his company went after Dauid with victualls gifts and rewards and pleased him with faire words as Iacob pleased his brother Esau who vsed the like stratagem to win his brother Esau to send him gifts and rewards to please his brother whom he much feared for Esau promised to kill his brother Iacob when his father should die For Iacob the Patriarke made a vow when he went to Mesopotamia after his vision in Luz which thē Iacob named Bethel and said If God be with me and helpe me this iourney and will giue me bread to eate and cloaths to put on he vowed of all things that the Lord would giue him that he would giue the tenth vnto the Lord. Iacobs vow is farre more godly then Absolons vow for Iacob sought but bread to eate and cloaths to put on and safe reture againe from Mesopotamia ouer Iorden but rebellious Absolon sought the kingdome of Israel from his father Dauid by a dissembling vowe saying I will goe and performe my vowes which I vowed vnto the Lorde in Hebron which vowe he made his father the king beleeue that hee vowed in Ieshur in Syria that if the Lord would bring him to Ierusalem he would performe his vowes in Hebron this is a rebellious vow like to the wicked vowes of the Iewes which vowed before they would either eate or drinke to kill Paul The Israelites after they were ouerthrowne in a great battell by Arad king of the Canaanites they vowed vnto the Lorde that if the Lorde would giue Arad and the Canaanites into theyr handes that they would truely ferue the Lorde and destroy the Canaanites theyr landes and theyr cities They bound the Lord to so many conditions that if they should obtaine victories they promised him true seruice and to fight manfully against the Cananites And againe for another victory that the Lord gaue them against the Canaanites they vowed the tenth and performed their vowe the Hebrewes wanted no victories vpon their obedience dutiful seruice to the Lord. Iephtha in his war◅es against the Ammonites vowed vnto the Lord if he should haue victory ouer the Ammonites that whatsoeuer first met him at his returne from his victory comming out of his house should be a sacrifice vnto the Lord. Asa king of Iudah vowed vnto the Lord as Abiah his father did when Shesac king of Egipt came with an infinite number Asa and all Iudah made a couenant to seeke the Lord promised sware that they that sought ◅ot the Lord small or great man or woman should die this with an oath he vowed that Iudah reioyced for the victory they had ouer Zerah king of Aethiope with all his army of tenne hundred thousand Ionas a Prophet of the Lord when he fled from Niniuie to Tharsis being in danger of shipwracke he tolde the Marriners that he was the cause of the perillous tempest and willed the Marriners to throwe him into the sea confessing the lot fell iustly vpon him saying I will performe the vow which I promised vnto the Lord. So Anna vowed vnto the Lord and said that if the Lord would bestowe a man childe vpon her she would giue him vnto the Lord and she vowed that neither razor or sheares should come vpon his head and so performed her vow and brought Samuel her sonne before the Lord. There was nothing so common among the Gentiles also as vows as you heard of the Hebrues of their vows to the gods of Israel so likewise among the Greekes and
nothing These were superstitious orders of Franciscans and not the vowes of Nazarites The Ethnicks likewise suffered their haires to grow because they might dedicate it either to Iupiter to Appollo to Mars or to some of their gods So did Thesius dedicate his haire vnto Appollo vpon his father Aegaeus graue So Achilles dedicated his haire vpō the tombe of his deare friend Patroclus So did Orestes consecrate his haire vpon the tombe of his father in lawe Agamemnon after he had killed him with the consent of his wife Clytemnestra So Euripides was of Archelaus king of Macedonia so honoured that hee lamented Euripides death in mourning apparell and with a shauen head and beard After the vowes of Iacob of Dauid of Asa and such godly men after the vowes of the Nazarites and of the Rechabites which was commanded from Ionadab the father vnto his children and to their posteritie was kept vnuiolated three hundred yeares These vowes were of the Lord accepted but for Heathen vowes which wilfully offer sacrifice their seruants their childrē thēselues to Moloch to satisfie the oracles of diuels speaking in dumbe Idols as vnto Curtius that rode sacrificing of a quick man which made Curtius on horseback in armor to ride into an open wide gulfe in Rome and Codrus king of Athens likewise in beggers apparell to sacrifice themselues to satisfie the oracles Yet Heliodorus was better aduised and more to be commended being sent by Seleucus king of Syria to rob and spoile the Temple of Ierusalem after he was scourged on both sides with many stripes by some diuine power hauing recouered his life by the prayer of Onias the high Priest Heliodorus offered sacrifice vnto God and made his vowes vnto the Lord which had graunted to him his life and thanked Onias confessing the name of the Lord to be great in Ierusalem Antiochus after his flight frō Persepolis in Persia thought to reuenge his wrath vpon Ierusalem aduancing himself that he would make Ierusalem a graue of all the Iewes but he was striken of the Lord that hee promised and vowed that whereas hee had spoiled the holy temple before now to garnish it with gifts to encrease the holy ornaments to become a Iew himselfe and to preach the power of the Lord through euery place of the world So Artaxerxes king of Persia so fauoured the Iewes through the goodnesse of the Lord that hee called Esdras the Priest and reader of the lawe of the Lord and willed him with all the Iewes that would goe with him to goe to Ierusalem allowed them golde and siluer and cattell to sacrifice vnto the Lord and to performe the vowes which they vowed vnto the Lord. So Nabuchodonozer Cyrus and Darius were moued by the Lord to fauour his people Israell And therefore olde Homer said that the sacrifices and oblations with all their vowes and ceremonies which the Troians offered to Iupiter were nothing of him accepted for that Iupiter rather esteemed the vowes and sacrifice of Agamemnon and the oblations of the Greckes before king Priamus and his Troians So the oracle of Ammon answered the Athenians that the gods esteemed more the vowes and prayers of the Lacedemonians with the sacrifice of milke honey frankincense cakes and wine according to Pythagoras rule then the rich spoiles and great gifts of the Athenians with the great sacrifice of Haecatombae So the Prophet answered the Iewes from the mouth of the Lord I abhorre your incense I cannot away with your new moones your sabbothes and solemne dayes I detest your ceremonies and fastings I hate although you make many praiers and offer many oblations yet do I neither heare your prayers nor accept your oblations CHAP. VII Of Oracles and soothsayings as well of the Iewes as of the Gentiles THe Lord commaunded in the lawes of Moses that no soothsaying should be among the Israelites yet things conteining of necessary causes are not forbidden for signes were asked of the Israelites and giuen vnto them of victories by the Lord. Ionathas desired a signe of the Lord and he had by the spirit of the Lord a token that if the Philistins would say vnto Ionathas come ye hither vnto vs Ionathas by that signe knew he should haue victorie The like signe was giuen to Gedeon of his victorie by a fleece of wooll that should be so full with deawe that the deawe therof filled a bowle with water and drie vpon all the earth besides Elizeus bad Ioas shoote eastward in token of his good successe in Aphec And againe hee bad Ioas smite the ground and hee smote the ground thrise so many great victories against the Syrians he had Samuel caught the lap of Sauls coate and rent it saying Thus shall God rent the kingdome out of thy hand and giue it to an other So did Ahiah the Prophet take the garment of Ieroboam and rent it into twelue peeces saying So shall the Lord rent the kingdome out of Salomons hand and giue tenne of the twelue Tribes vnto thee These were signes giuen before hand by the Prophets from the Lord. A prophet of Iudah came to Bethel and cried against the Aultar of Bethel and gaue them a signe that Iosias which was borne three hundred yeares after should offer Priests of the hill altars and burne mens bones vpon the altar and this shall be a signe the altar presently shall rent and the ashes that are in it shall fall out The being of Ionas in the Whales belly three dayes was a signe as Christ himselfe saide that the sonne of man should be three dayes in the belly of the earth It was lawfull for the Israelites to call for the Arke which was the presence of God the figure of Christ they would call for the Ephod they would consult with Vrim and Thummim before they tooke any battell in hand The Iewes required a signe the Grecians sought after wisdome but Christ crucified vnto the Iewes was euen a stumbling blocke and vnto the Grecians foolishnesse For the Greekes Persians went for Oracles to Delphos the Egiptians and Affricans to Ammon but the Hebrewes were taught to come to the doore of the Tabernacle and after the vse of the Tabernacle to consult with Vrim and Thummim to come to the Temple of Salomon or to the Prophets and there to be instructed what to doo The Hebrues tooke no warres in hand vnlesse they ◅ame to the Priest first who would stand with his Ephod◅rment ◅rment before the Arke of the Lorde and there to be ◅ught what to do So Ioshuah Generall of the Israelites vsed to stand b◅re Eleazar the Priest to take his instruction by Vrim and Thummim So Iudah the successor of Ioshua was chosen by Vrim and Thummim to be a Generall of the Hebrue army So did Samuel stand before the high Priest to receiue he Oracle of Vrim and Thummim The Hebrewes
So seuere was the Lord that he punished fiftie thousand Bethsamites for looking into the Arke It should seeme that in Rome Numa Pomp. in his prophane religion imitated the lawe of Moses he instituted orders of Priests called Flamines to Iupiter and to Mars he likewise instituted the Vestal virgins to attend the fire consecrated to Vesta to whom Numa commaunded rhat if the fire by negligence were out in the lamp they should take no other fire but from the heate of the sunne Numa also instituted the Priests called Aruales much like to the olde Priestes of the Gaules called Druydes or the Idolatrous Priests called Chemarims in Samaria who serued the golden calfe vnder Ieroboam which made Israel first to sinne so religious a King was Numa Pomp. that Romulus souldiers his predecessor were by Numa Pompilius turned from souldiers to become religious and made the olde Romanes beleeue that the Nimphe called Egeria gaue him rules and lawes to instruct his people with such sundrie and diuers ceremonies as Numa Pomp. himselfe deuised during whose raigne of fortie yeares Ianus Temple was neuer once opened He also decreed certaine seuere lawes for those that offended in religion and yet no Images were seene in Rome for 170. yeares but ceremoniall superstitious seruice of vnknowne gods which Numa decreed then in Rome And for to prophane any of the holy misteries of religion was a sacriledge as well among the Grecians as among the Romaines for so Alcibiades was accused that hee had offended against the goddesse Ceres and Proserpina for that hee counterfeited in mockery theyr holy misteries apparelled himselfe in vestiments as the Priests of Ceres called Eumolpides were wont to do with his Torch-bearer and Verger before him where none should be at this secret seruice but priests holding torches in their hands and women crowned with garlands made of the ◅ares of corne and therfore Alcibiades for his contempt herein was first banned and cursed by the Priests and Nunnes of Ceres after his goods confiscated and himselfe banished out of Athens by Eumolpides lawes In like manner Clodius was accused in Rome of the like sacriledge by Cicero with as great inuectiues against Clodius for prophaning of religion as Cicero did against Cateline for his treason towardes his Countrey For Clodius was accused that hee entered secretly into the misteries of Flora against the lawe whereby he was accused with Pompeia Caesars wife but it cost Ciceros bannishment out of Rome afterwardes by meanes of Clodius when hee became Tribune of the people at what time twentie thousand ware mourning apparell in Rome for Cicero but it cost Clodius life by degrees for Milo slew him and Cicero pleaded with all the eloquence hee had before Pompey the great then Consul in the behalf of Milo so that Alcibiades was banished from Athens and Clodius slaine in Rome for the prophaning of their religion For the like occasions grew warres betweene the Athenians and the Acarnanites for that two young men of the Acarnanites and others with them beeing not Priests came to Athens and entered into the secret misteries of the goddesse Ceres against the lawe which the Athenians tooke for a sacriledge therfore they slew the Acarnanites The Acarnanites beeing agrieued with the Athenians sought helpe of Phillip king of Macedonia against the Athenians to reuenge theyr wrong who was alwayes readye to take quarels against the Athenians So seuere and straight were the Heathens in obseruing the lawes of their religion ceremonies of their gods that euen among the Scythians a rude and a barbarous nation Anacharsis the Philosopher for that he altered the religion of Scythia being his countrey and imitated the Greekes in their ceremonies he was slaine in Scythia by his owne countrey men CHAP. IX Of the reward of souldiers Of honourable buriall of Captaines and of ambition TVllius Hostilius the next king in Rome after Numa Pomp. changed peace into warres and religiō into armes and made as many lawes for souldiers as Numa made for Priests Yet Cicero was of opiniō that the Romanes wanne more kingdomes rather by religion then by armes for the Romanes said Cicero were not equall in number to the Hispaniards neither in strength to the Gaules nor in subtiltie craft to the Affricans neither in learning and knowledge to the Grecians but only the Romanes ouercame these nations as Cicero said Pietate religione Yet Vegetius affirmeth that the Romanes became Lordes ouer all Nations through military discipline which the Romanes had from the Greekes and especially from the Lacedemonians to whom not onely the Affricans the Carthagineans and Cicilians but also the Italians and the Persians sent for skilfull Generalls and Captaines as the Syracusans had Gilippus a Lacedemonian captain against the Athenians and the Persians had Phocian the Athenian their Generall against the Lacedemonians Antalcidas was therefore much offended with Agesilaus for that he taught the Persians to conquer Greece by often and continuall warres with the Persians saying you teach women to ouercome men against Licurgus lawes So the Lygurians grew warlike skilfull souldiers by long fighting contending with the Romains And so the Thaebans became skilfull souldiers by continuall warres with the Lacedemonians that Epaminondas ouercame the Lacedemonians at the battell of Leuctres and brought the pride of Sparta vnder Thaebes Thus the warlike Lacedemonians whose aide and helpe was sought of all nations are ouerthrowne by theyr next neighbours the Thaebans Euen the Lacedemonians who thought it a shame to followe the enemies that fled from them and made a scoffe of the Persians great armies who thought neither Iewe nor Gentile equall to them are now ouerthrowne in their owne countrey by their owne countrey men We leaue the Lacedemonians in theyr losse and will speake of those great captaines that had the like care to bring vp their souldiers as the Lacedemonians had Alexander the great when any of his souldiers were maimed or hurt in the warres that they could no longer serue either being hurt or for their age he liberally rewarded them and sent them to Macedonia with his Letters vnto Antipater that they should be placed in the chiefest place of games and shewes with Garlandes of flowers on theyr heades to animate others to martiall exploytes and to embrace armes So liberall was Caesar to his souldiers that hee would haue them goe braue in apparell and feede them with gifts and rewards and would often say vnto them win gold and weare gold Agesilaus vsed his souldiers with the like martiall exercise and instructed them in all military discipline that hee appointed certaine Armours braue Targets Swordes and such military weapons that should be giuen to those Souldiers that should moste exceede others So Cai. Caesar caused not onely the olde warriors the Romane knights to traine vp the Romane youthes in martiall discipline but the Senatours themselues not only
a lawe was made against ambitious men that if any sought singularitie either by his wisedome or by his wealth or by fauour of the people hee should be banished by the lawe Ostracismus out of Athens as Themistocles was So ambitious men in Rome to get loue and fauour of the people by the lawe called Lex agraria were not onely banished out of Rome as Themistocles was out of Athens but sometimes slaine in Rome as both Tiberius and Cai. Gracchus were And therfore Platoes opiniō was that he which began to be ambitious by any secret practise with the enemies to hurt his country or made meanes to make warres of his owne head should be deliuered into the enemies hand and therefore Asdrubal did counsell the Carthagineans to giue Hannibal into the Romanes hands because Hannibal hated the Romans because he made war of his owne priuate head without the authoritie of the Senators of Carthage And so Cato Marcellus and others perswaded the Senators of Rome to deliuer Caesar vnto the Gaules for the like cause for that they suspected Caesar with Cateline and euer found him ambitious and desirous of warre in Rome and out of Rome and therefore ambitious Generalls and Captaines are euer most dangerous and most necessary to be lookt vnto The ambition of the Israelites is not to bee passed ouer as Absolon through ambition vnder pretence of iustice went about to take away the hearts of the people from his father the king saying often Oh that I were a Iudge of the land that I might do iustice to them that haue matters in the lawe and when any man came to do him obeysance he tooke him by the hand and kissed him and thus by degrees stole the hearts of the men of Israel from his father Likewise Adoniah Absolons brother through ambition also exalted himselfe and wanne all his bretheren the kings sonnes and all the men of Iudah the kings seruants that through ambition hee occupied the kingdome vnwitting to his father the king Hammon the Macedonian was so ambitious in Persia the kings court that he could not abide the sight of Mardochaeus because he wold not bend bowe his knee vnto him Abimelech went to Sychem and communed with his mothers kinred for that hee was a bastard to Gedeon saying in the eares of the people that it were better for them to haue one then to let the seuentie sonnes of Gedeon to raigne ouer them for I am your bones and your flesh so ambitious was Abimelech that hee went secretly to Ephrah and slew the 70. sonnes of Gedeon vpon a stone Antipater was so ambitious in Athens that he could not suffer the Orators to liue in Greece no more then Hamon could suffer the Iewes to liue in Persia but sent diuers to seeke and to search for them that when Hiperides was found he was commaunded by Antipater to be punished with all tortures to haue him to reueale the secrets of Athens and to confesse the faults of Lycurgus Demosthenes Isocrates and others Demosthenes and Isocrates hearing of Hiperides great tortures and thereby his death and of the victory at the battell of Cranon vnder that cruel king Antipater which after marched with his army towards Athens the one famished himselfe the other poisoned himselfe the rather for that the tyrant Archias should not bring Demosthenes aliue to Antipater who made great search for him so Antipater most cruelly tirannized with secret ambition against the poore Orators in Athens Not onely the Orators in Athens but also diuers Philosophers as Cleanthes Zeno Empedocles and others who in like sort to auoyd Antipaters tyrannie slew themselnes for very griefe to see Athens the schoole and nurse of learning at that time so oppressed through ambition The ambition of Sylla was such towards Marius and Marius towards Sylla that it ouerthrew welnigh the Empire of Rome betweene them and their confederates that Sertorius Carbo and other Romane Captaines carried flames of ambition from Rome to Hispaine and Affrica after whom warre followed so fast that Sertorius could scarse settle himselfe to gather an army either in Hispaine or in Affrike but three Romane captaines one after an other followed him at the heeles Cotta to whom Sertorius gaue battell and ouerthrew him by sea after Cotta Phidius whose army Sertorius ouerthrew and caused Phidius to flye after Phidius Toranius whom he slew and the most part of his army the fourth Metellus who was driuen by Sertorius to such a pinch that had not Pompey the great comne from Rome he had fared litle better then the rest who for a time both Pompey and Metellus had both their hands full to do with Sertorius This is that Metellus which caused Scypio Affrican to sweare that he would not forsake neither Rome nor Italy his countrey which he thought to do with many Romanes more after the great ouerthrow of the Romanes by Haniball at the battel of Canne This Metellus is that old woman of which Sertorius said that he had whipt Pompey Syllas boy had not that olde woman Metellus comne which being told Pompey he answered I had rather be Syllas boy then Syllas fugitiue as Sertorius is Pompey himselfe within 34. yeares after was forced to follow Sertorius steppes and to flye from Caesar as Sertorius fled from Sylla for Caesar followed Pompey from the field Pharsalia to Egipt where Pompey was slaine as Pompey followed Sertorius from Rome to Affrike where Sertorius likewise was slaine Ambition therefore the secret serpent in euery common-wealth as you heard before among the Grecians among the Israelites and among the Romanes and yet in Athens there was one Aristides that resisted the ambition of Themistocles and in Rome one Cato that reprehended the ambition of Caesar and in Israel one Iothan that accused the ambition of Abimelech But as the Philosopher said the whole world is a common-wealth of contention that if strife and contention had no place in nature the generation of all things should be at a stay and therefore ambition and contention was allowed among the Lacedemonians by Licurgus lawe as a spurre to prick them forward to martiall actions Among the Athenians they thought it great pollicie to keepe men of state in equall authorities least any should excell either in greatnesse wealth wisedome honour or credit among the people and therefore Aristides was ioyned in all authorities with Themistocles and Phocion with Alcibiades for Themistocles and Alcibiades were noted ambitious men in Athens and Aristides and Phocion knowne to be found and iust and if any seemed to seeke singularitie through ambition or otherwise among the Athenians he should be banished out of Athens by the lawe of Ostracismus So likewise among the Romanes as among the Greekes nothing was so common as banishment as in Athens Aristides for his iustice Milciades for his victories Phocion for his good life Socrates for his vertues Solon for his sound
going riding or sitting of any king in Asia Augustus Caesar also reuenged on the Parthians Crassus death and brought againe to Rome all the Romaine Ensignes and all that Crassus lost in Parthia sauing Crassus himselfe his sonne and the Romans that died there The Greekes in like sort as the Romanes after they had giuen diuers ouerthrowes and gotten many great victories ouer the Persians as at the battell at Artemisium at the battell of Salamina and at the battell of Marathon where the Athenians wonne a famous victorie ouer the Persians who were ledde vnder Pisistratus a banished man out of Athens not like Themistocles who refused to fight but like himselfe a tirants sonne though a Greeke borne yet hee presented himselfe to Darius Hisdaspis king of Persia to lead his army into Greece his countrey where he was slaine and two hundred thousand Persians at the battell at Marathon by the Athenians for his welcome home who were conducted vnder Milciades and Callimachus two noble Captaines In this warre flourished Themistocles a young man and was as much commended by the Athenians for his prowesse and courage beeing so young as Alexander the great was in the battell at Cheronea or Scypio Affrican at the battell at Ticinum This young Themistocles was wont to say in his youth that he could not sleepe in his bed for the sound and report of Milciades triumphes The Greekes hauing so many victories and such good successe in theyr owne countreys ouer the Persians and others were as greedie as the Romanes were to win other countries the Greekes had the like lucke with the Syracusans as Mar. Crassus had with the Parthians who in both the battels at Syracusa the one by land the other by sea were ouerthrowne by the Syracusans by the rashnesse of Demosthenes who was Generall with Niceas in this voyage beeing maliciously counselled by Alcibiades to commence warre against the Syracusans but after these victories which the Syracusans hadde ouer the Athenians at the Riuer Asinanius where was the most cruell slaughter of the poore wretches the Athenians euen as they were a drinking vntill Niceas fell downe flat at Gilippus feete and yeelded himselfe Demosthenes beeing taken prisoner before not Demosthenes the Orator but an other Captaine in Athens of that name and hauing taken the residue of the Captaines vnslaine brought them together in troupes first vnarmed thē taking their weapons frō thē hung thē vp as tropheys vpō the goodliest young trees that grew by the Riuers side in token of triumph then they put on triumphing garlands on theyr heads hauing trimmed the horses in triumphant manner leading all the horses of the enemies shauen with some of the best captaines in chaines entered into the Citie of Syracusa with great pompe and after they had put all the Athenian captaines to death and had imprisoned the best and solde the slaues and poore wretches as bondmen and burned them in the forehead with the print of a horse The Syracusans decreed a feast for euer to bee celebrated in memorie of the Athenians in Syracusa called Asinarus after the name of the Riuer where the victorie was gotten by the counsell of Euricles the Orator with sacrifice to their goddes Niceas and Demosthenes both Generalls of the Athenians killed themselues by a word sent to them by Hermocrates to auoyd the furious crueltie of the Syracusans Yet the Syracusans did not so much annoy the Athenians as the Lacedemonians did theyr neighbours and countrey men in the great battell at the Riuer of Gotes where the Athenians were so ouerthrowne and the citie of Athens it selfe was destroyed vnto the verie ground by Lysander After Lysander had destroyed Athens Antipater king of Macedonia at the battell at Cranon which was the vtter destruction of the Greekes the rather for that Philip king of Macedonia before had giuen a great ouerthrowe to the Greekes in the battell at Cheronea by the meanes of Demosthenes who would neuer haue the Greekes to yeeld neither to Philip nor to his sonne Alexander the great and though Alexander after his father thought to haue made a full conquest of all Greece and began with Thaebes tooke the citie and rased it to the ground slew sixe thousand Thaebans solde thirtie thousand slaues and spared none but such as were friends and kinsmen to Pindarus the Poet whom Alexander loued no lesse then Augustus loued Arius the Philosopher for whose sake he spared the whole streete in Alexandria where Arius dwelt The miserie of the Thaebans by Alexander brought downe made the Phoceans the Plataeans the Athenians and all Greece to quake for feare of Alexander hee spared Priests and religious people and such as were kin to any of the Macedonian Lords and this did Alexander onely to terrifie Greece and to bring them in subiection without further warre so that the victory of Antipater at the battell of Cranon after that Philip and his sonne Alexander had brought Greece so lowe brake quite the backe of Greece for Antipater so tirannized ouer the Grecians that he spared none especially the Orators by whose meanes onely he knew Greece so long resisted kings Yet neither Philip king of Macedonia with his battell at Cheronea nor Alexander the great with his victory ouer Thaebes neither Antipaters victory at Cranon harmed Greece so much as their ciuill warres which is the ouerthrowe of all Common-wealths and the decay of all states whereof the example you may read Octauius Augustus after he had vanquished Mar. Antonius in their ciuill warres in a battell by sea at Actium from whence Antonius fled into Egipt after Cleopatra where Antonius and Cleopatra ryoting in Alexandria feasting and dauncing for fewe dayes vntill Antonius hearing that Augustus followed him as hee followed Cleopatra dispairing to haue any longer peace with Octauius slew himselfe whom Cleopatra buried and after in short time slew her selfe ouer whom triumphed Ostauius carrying her picture from Egipt in his triumph into Rome as Iu. Caesar his vncle in his ciuil warres betweene him and Pompey carried the pictures of Cato Petronius and others in his triumphes from Affrike vnto Rome at what time the greatest and most famous library of the world was burned which Pio. Philadelphus had prepared and gathered together in Alexandria in Egipt to the number of foure hundred thousand volumes at what time Philadelphus sent to Ierusalem to the high Priest Eleazarus for the Hebrew Bible and for seuentie two learned men to translate it out of the Hebrew into the Greeke tongue which were all burned and destroyed as well in the ciuill warres betweene Iulius Caesar Pampey as in the ciuill warres betweene Mar. Antonius and Augustus Caesar. The like library of Pisistratus in Athens was destroyed by Sylla
souldiers for all the force of king Iuba Cato Scipio and Affranius The souldiers of Epaminondas perceiuing that the winde blew away the labell which hangd as an ornament about Epaminondas speare and lighted vpon the graue of a dead Lacedemonian at the which sight the Thaebans were so frighted vntill Epaminondas said vnto them merily Ah worthie souldiers this signifieth the ouerthrowe of the Lacedemonians and forewarneth them of their buriall These wise stratagemes by noble captaines were to remoue feare and terrour from souldiers mindes which were so superstitious at the sight of any toy to doubt of victories Scipio Affrican sayling from Italy into Affrica at his going out of his ship had a fall which not a litle moued the souldiers who tooke it for a signe of no good lucke hee perceiuing by his souldiers that they were amazed and astonished at his fall spake vnto them presently with a merrie countenance and said Ludite milites Affricans oppressi Be merrie souldiers I haue ouercome Affricke and so by this stratagem he turned their doubts feare into boldnesse and stoutnesse As Scipio spake Affricam oppressi I ouercame Affrike so likewise we may speake through Christ that eternall Scipio staffe of saluatiō who ouercame not only Affrica but the whole world the prince of the same Satā The very like chaunce happened to Caesar who as he went to take shipping had the like lucke as Scipio had and least his souldiers should thinke it a signe of hard lucke he vsed this stratageme imbraced the earth fast and saide Terra te teneo mater which was interpreted by his soothsayers that he should conquer many lands and countries through victories Caesar after all his great fortunes and victories which he had in two and fiftie pitcht fields and set battels entered with his last tryumph of Ouation after foure great tryumphes had before ouer forraigne enemies being Consul Dictator and Emperour by his sword made a kinde of tryumphe of Ouation from mount Albanus to the Capitoll fiue moneths before the Ides of March which time Spurnia the soothsayer willed Caesar to take heede of at what time Caesar was slaine in the Senate house This was not to be called a tryumphe because it was done in the time of ciuill discord for that in ciuill warres among the Romanes it was decreed by the Senate that no Romane might tryumphe ouer another Romane so it was also among the Thaebans Epaminondas might not tryumphe ouer the Lacedemonians for his victorie at Leuctres Sylla might not tryumphe ouer Marius neyther Caesar ouer Pompey nor Octauius ouer Mar. Antonius Yet Caesar against the lawe tryumphed and carried the pictures of Cato Petronius others but refused to carry the picture of Pompey because hee knew it would offend many of the Romains and the rather for that Caesar gaue his daughter Iulia in marriage to Pompey Caesar after these his conquests was named the first Emperour of Rome the Romanes hauing had before seuen kings which ruled two hundred and fiftie yeares after kings Consulls which continued fiue hundred yeares For Valerius Publicola the first Consul after the kings in the battell betweene the wood called Arsia Sylua and the meadowe Aesuuia where two and twentie thousand sixe hundred Romanes were slaine where Torquine the proud was ouerthrowne In this battell Brutus one of the Consuls died who not by chaunce but of set purpose sought to encounter with Aruns king Torquines eldest sonne to execute the deadly malice they bare each other that fighting so desperately with such furie that one killed another dead at once The first tryumphe of Publicola being the first Consul he had this libertie graunted him that the doore of his house should open outwards into the streete which was neuer seene in Rome before but the greatnesse of this fauour came from Greece to Rome and Publicola had the first honours and libertie thereof and the first funerall sermon that euer was in Rome was made by Publicola for Brutus his fellow Consul slaine in this battell So that the name of Torquines was as odious in Rome as the name of Tyrants that the Romanes neuer suffered any King to gouerne after Torquine the proude neither could they abide euer after the name of a king In the second battell that Torquine prepared to recouer his kingdome hee went to the citie Clusiu◅ and had king Porsenna to promise him his aide in whose behalfe he sent his Herauld straight to summon the Romanes to receiue their king but being by the Romanes stoutly refused Porsenna proclaimed open warres in the which warres after much slaughter of the Romanes the citie of Rome had bene taken and Torquine restored again to his kingdom had not Horatius Cocles and the noble act of Mutius Scaeuola bene who had determined fully to kill king Porsenna and missing the king kild the next vnto him supposing him to be the king which being reprehended therefore and tortured holding his armes in flames of fire spake boldly vnto king Porsennas face that there were three hundred Romanes sworne to do the like enterprise as he did and had sworne Porsennas death which made him to forsake Torquine and Torquine to forsake Rome and to liue as a banished priuate man fourteen yeares after expelled from his kingdome The Romanes in memorie of these enterprises caused two Images made of brasse to be set vp in the temple of Vulcan to honour the name of Mutius Scaeuola and Horatius Clocles Thus was Torquinius Superbus the last king of the Romains for the rauishment of Lucretia Collatinus wife put from his kingdome and all the kings of Rome after him And after the kings the ouerthrow of the ten Commissioners called Decemuiri for the like offence by Appius Clau. to Virginea a Romane virgin so that the kings of Rome lost their kingdomes for the rauishment of Collatinus wife and the Decemuiri lost their place and offices for the rauishment of Virgineus daughter Therefore the glory and fame of the Romans grew by the Consuls which increased more and more vntill Caesars time who because he was denied the place of a Consul with their good will he became an Emperour against their will We leaue the Romanes thus marching from Kings to Consuls from Consuls to Emperours from Emperours without an Empire and will speake of the marching of other kingdomes The Scythians marched into Asia and wanne many great victories possessed many strong Forts gaue diuers battels to the Egiptians the Persians and builded many cities in diuers places as well in Greece as in Asia to whom Asia paied tribute for fifteene yeares So marched likewise the Saracens into Affrick where they had so many great victories that they wanne and possessed the most part of Hispaine vnder their gouernment welnigh eight hundred yeares So the Turkes marched into Europe and got the Empire of Constantinople out of the Romanes hands to the lamentable