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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A09445	Of the calling of the ministerie two treatises, discribing the duties and dignities of that calling. Delivered publickly in the Vniuersitie of Cambridge, by Maister Perkins. Taken then from his mouth, and now dilligently perused and published, by a preacher of the word with a preface prefixed touching the publishing of Maister Perkins his workes, & a catalogue of all such particulars thereof, as are to bee expected.	Perkins, William, 1558-1602.; Crashaw, William, 1572-1626.	1605 (1605)	STC 19733; ESTC S102894	75,919	204

behold how thou art beholden to a godly Minister who when Adam had lost both himselfe and thee that Iewell of righteousnesse which was and is the whole wealth of thy soule can truly tell thee where it is and howe it is to be had againe and who when the deuill haleth thee to the barre of gods iustice to receaue triall for thy sinnes can drawe thee there such a declaration as the deuill himselfe shall not bee able to answere and who when thy soule is sicke to death euen to damnation can heale the deadly wounds thereof A good Minister therefore is worthy as the Apostle saith of double honour whose duty we see is to declare vnto man his righteousnesse And to conclude this point also the consideration of the height of this office of a Minister may encourage fathers to dedicate their sonnes to this holy calling for the Phisitions care for the body or the Lawyers for thy cause are both inferior duties to this of the Minister A good Lawyer may be one of te●●e a good Phisition one of 20. a good man one of 100. but a good Minister is one of a 1000. A good Lawyer may declare the true state of thy cause a good Phisition may declare the true state of thy body No calling no man can declare vnto thee thy righteousnesse but a true Minister And thus wee see the office or function of a Minister Now followeth the blessing Then will he haue mercy vppon him The fourth generall part of this discription is the blessing which God giueth to the labours and function of a true Minister then that is when a man by the preaching of the lawe is brought to true humiliation and repentance and by the preaching of the Gospell to true faith in the Messias then wil hee that is God haue mercy on him that is on the penitent and beleeuing sinner Behold heere the admirable simpathy and the cooperation of God and the Ministers office Man preacheth and God blesseth Man worketh on the hart and God giues grace a Minister declares vnto man his righteousnesse and God saith so be it he shall be righteous a Minister pronounceth mercy to a penitent sinner and forthwith God hath mercy on him Heere we see the great and glorious account which God makes of the word of his Ministers by them truly taught and rightly applied namely that he as it were tieth his blessing vnto it for ordinarily till a man knowe his righteousnesse by the meanes of an Interpreter God hath not mercy on him but as soon as he doth knowe it then as wee see heere God will haue mercy on him and wil say deliuer him c. This is no small honour to Ministers to their Ministerie that God himselfe giues a blessing vnto it and worketh when they worke and as it were stayeth waiting when they declare vnto a man his righteousnesse and then hath he mercy on him so powerfull and so effectuall is the word spoken by a Minister of God This is that which Christ auoucheth whatsoeuer you binde in earth shall be bound in heauen and whatsoeuer you loose in earth shall bee loosed in h●auen Will you knowe the meaning heereof read Saint Iohn whose sinnes soeuer you remit they are remitted whose you retaine they are retained will they haue the meaning of both read Esay God destroyeth the tokens of Sou●● sayers and makes v●sards and Astrologers Fooles ●●●neth worldly wisemen backward and makes their knowledge foolishnes but he confirmeth the word of his seruants and performeth the counsell of his Messengers Thus God bindeth and looseth with them remitteth and retaineth with them by confirming their word and performing their counsell for example A true Minister seeth a sinner hardned in his sins and stil rebelling against the will of God he therefore declareth vnto him his vnrighteousnes his sinne denounceth vnto him the miseries curses of Gods iustice as due vnto him for the same heere he binds on earth here he retaines on earth this mans sins are likewise bound and retained in heauen On the other side he seeth a man peniten● and belieuing hee pronounceth forgiuenes of sins happines vnto him for the same he looseth him from the band of his sinnes by declaring vnto him his righteousnes this mans sinnes are likewise loosed remitted in heauen and God himselfe doth pronounce him cleere in heauen when the Minister doth on earth Thus God confirmeth the word of his seruaunts and performeth the counsell of his Messengers The vse of this doctrine is first for Rulers and great men of this worlde this may teach them to be nursing Fathers nursing Mothers vnto the Church whose authority they see is so great ouer them as that their decree stands ratified in heauen Therefore though their place be great they be Gods vpon earth yet must they withall acknowledge that in iustifying a sinner in interpretation in declaring vnto man his righteousnes in binding loosing their power also is immediate from God aboue theirs and they themselues as they are men must submit themselues to this powerfull word of the Ministers to be taught by it and to be reconciled by meanes of it and highly must they receiue it for though a man speake it yet is it the word of God this is to licke the dust of Christs feete which the Porphet speaketh of not as the Pope would haue it to hold the stirrop and lead the horse and hold the water to the Pope to kisse his toes to hold their kingdoms of him as tenants at will or by curtesie but reuerently to acknowledge the ordinance to be Gods the function and duty to be high and excellent to acknowledge the power of their keyes censures being rightly applied their promises their threatnings to be as from God and to submit to them accordingly Secondly Ministers themselues here must learne when they take the word of reconciliation into their hands and mouthes to call to mind whose it is euen the Lords and that hee worketh with them hath the greatest hand in the work and that therfore they must vse it in holy maner with much feare reuerence It is not theyr owne they may not vse it as th●y list And lastly Hearers are heere taught first ●o see how mad such men be which carelesly ●nd fildome heare sermons but vpon any oc●asion fly to wisards and charmers which are ●he deuils prophets for see the difference of ●hese two the wisard and charmer hath socie●ie with the deuill the Preacher with God the ●harmer hath his calling from the deuill the Preacher his from God the charmers charme 〈◊〉 the deuils watchword when he charmeth the deuil doth the feare the Preachers doctrine is Gods watchword when hee truly applyeth it GOD himselfe ratifieth and makes it good wherefore let all men feare to haue thus to doe with the deuill by seeking to his slaues let them

vnto the Church her tenthes againe But as Popish Abbies stole them so a popish state kept them and to their shame some of th●se good Professors of our Religion haue restored such as were in their bands and there is hope that all our Professors vnlesse they care not to be accounted hipocrits will make some conscionable restitution We doe not craue that they wold with Zacheus restore ●oure●old though it is apparant that the Tenthes were got from vs in old time by most false and forged Cauillations we onely craue our owne we would aske no more nor willingly take lesse for our whole dutie is still required then why should not our whole due be payd And yet that the world may learne of vs contentednes as well by our practise as our doctrine we would for the present take in good part and rest contented with a part of our owne and some competent portions out of the Impropriations proportioned to the quantitie ●f the charge imposed and the gifts and paines required would for a time bee a reasonable satisfaction to our Ministerie vntill our state found it selfe either better enabled or more straightly tied in Conscience to full restitution But as I sayd this is a worke of God himselfe f●r if man could doe it so many Parliaments would not haue slipt it but some of them would haue ete●nized it selfe with this honorable name to all posterities The Parliament that restored Impropriations but till that or some other course as good be taken it is both vnseasonable and vnreasonable to complaine of the Ignorant or to c●aue a learned Ministerie For shall the Oxes mouth be mousled which treads out the corne or shall a man goe to warre at his owne cost and hath not God ordained marke it is his Ordinance that those who teach the Gospell shal liue of the Gospel But alas how shall the Ministerie of England liue of the Gospell when my small experience can showe that in one Corner of one County of this Kingdome wherein there are some 150. parishes or parochiall Chappell 's almost a 100. of them if not a full 100 are Impropriate and amongst them I can showe the most parishes haue but 10. pound or thereabouts some 8. li. some 6 li. some 5 li. some 4 pound some not 4 pound yearely liuing for the Minister and those impropriations worth some 300 pound many 200 pound almost all 100 pound per an yea there is one worth 400 pound per an where there were but 8 pound left for the Minister vntill of late with much adoe 10 pound more was obtained for a preacher and so there is out of 400 pound 8 pound shared for a Minister and 10 pound carued for a preacher in that parish where there are 2000 Communicants Of all the rest the Crowne hath some 100 pound rent or not so much and the remainder of 280 pound being a rich liuing for a worthy learned Minister a competent liuing for 2 and more then some 7 painfull and able Ministers 〈◊〉 I knowe not what becomes of it vnlesse it goe to the feeding of Kits and Cormorants Are not these goodly liuings for learned men and may not wee expect a learned Ministerie where there is such maintenance and I hartely wish that other countries be not able to showe the like Presidents haue the rather made relation heereof that our high Court of Parliament may see how great cause they haue to goe forward with that motion already by them made for the establishing of a learned Ministerie But if they bring it not to passe what then remaineth but to hope that the great God of heauen will put into the hart of the God on earth our noble King into wh●se hands he hath put the sword of soueraigne authoritie an irreuocable and vnresistable resolution to execute his supreme power for the reformation of this euill which as Maister Perkins saith in this treatise may well be called the Kings euill for it will hardly be healed but by the will and powere of a king In the meane time this Treatise of that worthy man may be a motiue to our zealouse professors who haue any impropriations in their owne hands to excite and prouoke them to a conscionable restitution in whole or in part as their estates may beare or their conscience shall mooue them For heerein are layd downe and mixed together both the duties to be done by faithfull Ministers and the Dignities due vnto them for their duties and so seeing the dignities of that calling to bee most honorable and the duties so chargeable it cannot but grieue their Christian harts to see the maintenance so miserable This Treatise I first of all send to you and vnder your names to the world and to you first for as I am sure you loued the Author and honored those excellēt gifts of God in him so you cānot but accept this after birth of his as a fatherlesse child for the fathers sake And for my selfe to conceale all personall and priuate respects in the name of many thousands in the Northeren Countries I praise God for the good done in those parts by your painfull courses and religious care not doubting but if your selues or the like be imployed there to asist our Honourable and Religious Lord President that the multitude of Popish Priests there lurking will bee daily lessened the number of painfull preachers augmented Poperie put d●wne and the Gospell maintained more and more Which blessing God grant to that and all other Countries of this Kingdome for his mercies sake giue vnto you all others in your place the spirit of courage and constancie in these declining daies that beeing faithfull in your great charges vnto the end you may receiue the Crowne of life for which he hartily prayeth who will euer rest Your Worships in the Lord W. Crashawe A TREATISE OF the dignitie and dutie of the Ministrie Esay 6.5 Then I said woe is me I am vndone for I am a man of pollut●d lips and dwell in the midst of a people of polluted lips for my eyes haue seene the king and Lord of hosts 6 Then flewe one of the Seraphins vnto me with an hotte coale in his hand 7 Which he tooke from the alter with the tonges and touched my mouth and saide Loe this hath touched thy lips thy iniquity shall be taken away and thy sin shall be purged 8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord saying whom shal● I send who shal go for v●●●hen said I here am I send me and he saide goe IN the fiue former Chapters are contained such Sermōs as the Prophet had made vnder Vzziah king of Iuda At this Chapter begin such as he preached in the raign of Iotham so forward But before he either preach or prophecie of any thing in King Iothams dayes or his successors the Lord in this Chapter giues a new cōmission to the Prophet a new confirmation to this calling the old

them quite out of themselues finding nothing in themselues but cause of feare and astonishment then powres hee the oyle of grace and of sweete comfort into their hearts and refresheth their weary soules with the deawe of his mercy this point needes no further proofe for looke into the scriptures and wee shall finde God neuer called any man to the state of grace or to any notable worke or function in his church but he first humbled them and then brought them out of all cōceit with themselues then wrought in them and by them his wonderfull workes The vse of this doctrine is first of all to teach all men to esteeme aright of the afflictions that God layeth vpon them in this world cōmonly men take them impatiētly our nature grudgeth hagainst them but let a Christian man consider with himselfe how God hath alwaies dealt with his children and he hath cause not to thinke so for doth God laye some great affliction on thee it may be he hath some mighty work of his grace to worke in thee or some great worke of mercy to bee wrought by thee in his Church and hereby prepareth thee for the same Say therefore with the holy Prophet I helde my tongue ● Lord and spake nothing because it was thy doing and what God may intend in his so doing to thee thou canst not tell and therefore in silence and patience possesse thy soule Againe here is a comfort to all such as are distressed in minde in sence of their sinnes and sight of Gods wrath their states is not miserable much lesse desperate for they are in the high way to grace and fauour God iustifieth not but him that repents God exalts not but him that is humbled God comfort not but him that is distressed God hath mercie on none but such as both knowe and feele they want it and knowe also that they knowe not where to haue it but at his hands Happy therfore is that soule that feeles the waight and burden of sin for to him wil Christ bring most ease and comfort Gods Misnisters therefore are hereby to comfort distressed consciences to assure them that if with this Prophet they bee so deepely touched with sight of their sins and Gods iustice as that they cry Woe is me I am vndone Then euen Then are they most capable of comfort and best prepared to receiue it as here it fell out to the holy Prophet Thirdly here is the way taught vs how to attaine to any excellēt graces of God either for our own saluation or the good of the Church namely to labour for a sencible feeling of the want of them in our selues for God vseth to bestowe no gifts on any man but such as do in humility lowlinesse confesse to God acknowledge in themselues the want of them So the blessed Virgin singeth God f●lleth the hungry with good things but the rich hee sendes empty away And so the psalmist God satisfieth the hungry soule and filleth the empty soule with goodnesse So then if thou be rich in thy conceits God hath not for thee but if thou be hungry hee i● ready to fi●● thee with good things and doest thou acknowledge thy soule emptie then behold treasures of goodnesse to feede and fill thee and art thou cast downe with the Prophet and is thy soule empty of hope and fraught with feare then behold euen then God and his Angels ready to raise thee vp to fil thee with cōsolatiō T thus much for the time of his cōsolation the minister by whom was One of the Seraphims The 2. circumstance of his consolation is the Minister by whom it was done An angel One of the Seraphims that is an Angell of that order so called out of which we learne First that there are diuers degrees seuerall orders of Angels though wee knowe not the true distinction thereof nor thinke it lawful to imagine them to be 9. nor to set them down particularly as the Church of Rome doth who make many of their owne deuises which they cal traditiōs of equal authority with the scriptures Secondly that these holy Angels are the glorious guard of God and do continually stand about the throne of his glory attend his holy wil both in heauen and in earth Thirdly that they are also by the merciful appointment of God the guard of Gods children and ministring spirits sent out as it were with a commission for the good of the elect All these points because they are plaine in the scripture and do lesse cōcerne our general scope which is concerning the Ministery I passe them ouer Fourthly here it is apparāt that as the Angels are sent out for the help and seruice of the elect so specially of Gods ministers as is plaine in this place where the Prophet being afrighted a holy Angel is ready to giue him comfort and so ouer the whole course of the Prophets and at this day their protection and comfortable assistance is no lesse present to the godly Ministers of the newe Testament though not in such sencible signes and such visible manner as in the olde for if they bee ministring spirits sent out for the good of them which shal bee saued howe much more for their good which shall both bee saued themselues and saue others also A doctrine of great comfort and much good vse to all Ministers who first of all may here learne contentment in their calling for howsoeuer no calling hath more crosses so none againe hath more comforts and howsoeuer none bee more disgraced by euill men yet none is more honoured by the holy Angels and howsoeuer in this world they aboue any calling are seruants to all mē yet none hath the seruice attendance of Angels so much as they for though wee haue them not to helpe vs to do the outward actions of our ministery with vs or for vs as some Popish Doctors teach that in their Masse Amen is not said to one collect because the Angels say Amen to it yet doubtlesse they are presēt alwaies as at all holy exercises and lawfull actions so especially at the publike seruice of God performed by the Ministers and beside that they are witnesses thereto and of the paines and diligence and faithfulnesse of a good Minister they also do Minister vnto them oftentimes bodily strength and assistance many comforts in their troublesome trauels which they know not how by any naturall manes they come vnto them And as this Doctrine doth thus yeelde them contentment against the contempt so also courage against the danger of this calling For what though thou hast mighty men of this world against thee when thou hast angels for thee what though thou fightest against principallities and powers when thou hast Cherubins and Seraphims on thy side Godly Ministers haue many enemies but if by the eye of faith they can see as well who are with them as with the eye of reason who

and to doe the will of God Where we learne First what excellent seruants of God the holy Angels bee which so readily willingly and speedily execute the will of their Lord. This must teach al Gods seruants to doe the like and to imitate them in this excellent obedience And the rather because wee pray dayly to God Thy will bee done in earth as it is in heauen In earth of vs as it is in heauen of the holy angels But they doe it most cheerefully and without all lingring therefore so ought we Magistrates in their places and Ministers in theirs and euery man is his functiō is to apply this to himselfe and to be stirred vp thereby to a cheerfulnesse and quicknesse in their duties for therein they resemble the blessed angels then their deeds accord with their prayer but contrarywise he that doth his dutie vnwillingly and vnreadily is like the Diuel which indeed doth Gods will and yet against his will and surely vnto such obedience there belongeth no reward But as God loueth a cheerfull giuer so doubtlesse loues he a cheerfull worker Secondly we see here how great loue angels beare vnto Gods children especially vnto godly Ministers how willingly they are imployed to doe them good Willingnesse and readinesse to doe good to any man must needes come from loue and yet alas all men euen the best and all Ministers euen the best are creatures farre inferior to the angels Here Magistrates and Ministers must learne to be farre from contempt of their inferiours and to doe their duties of ruling and teaching carefully though the people be farre their inferior● it is the nature of loue to make any man do seruice most willingly to him that he loues though he bee farre meaner then himselfe If therefore Princes loue their subiects they will not spare any care cost nor paines nay they will reioyce to doe them good and they will labour to be like the angels who are as farre greater then men as they are then their subiects And if Ministers loue their people they will forget their owne dignitie which oft times they might stand vpō and will make themselues euen seruants to all that they may winne some And seeing angles do flie so fast to giue helpe and comfort to good Ministers this must teach them further First euery one to labour to bee a good Minister for then are they sure of the loue of angels and then most willingly doe the angels any seruice to them Againe let it teach them to flye as fast to the discharge of their duties to Gods Church as the angel● flye to doe them seruice so shall Gods angels thinke their diligence and carefull seruice well bestowed vpon them Lastly this diligence of the angels and their willingnesse proceeding frō loue must stirre vp al Christians to performe all duties of godlinesse to God and of loue vnto his Church with alacritie and cheerfulnesse So doe Gods angels we looke to be like the angels in glory in the world to come then be like the angels in diligence loue faithfulnesse in this world The Wiseman saith He that is slouthfull in his businesse is good for nothing but the diligent man shall stand before the King And surely he that is willing and diligent in the duties of Christianitie shall stand before the King of kings in heauen And let this suffice for the Angels seruice and his diligence in his seruice Now let vs see what instrument the Angell vsed A coale fr●m the Altar The fourth Circumstance of this consolation is the Instrument which it pleased God the angel should vse to minister comfort to the Prophet a strange instrument for so great a worke A coale of fire Here let humane reason hide it selfe and wordly wisedome bee confounded to see the wonderfull works of the Lord God could haue healed the Prophets infirmities and giuen him comfort against his feare courage in his calling without means but he wil vse meanes And what a weake meanes nay a meanes that seemes contrary A coale of fire must touch his lippes that which in all reason would haue made him speake worse by Gods appointment and the power of his word shall make him speake better Out of which practise of God we learn many points First see how God magnifieth meanes hee can worke without them and so he did in the Creation giuing light to the world diuers dayes before there was Sunne but since the order of nature was established hee generally vseth meanes not onely in his ordinarie but euen in his miraculous actions and though hee vse not alwayes the ordinarie and direct meanes yet meanes hee generally vseth though they seeme contrary as heere in this place and the same will bee found true in almost all the miracles both of the Old and New Testament This therefore commends vnto all men the vse of such good meanes as Gods prouidence hath ordained of any duties or effecting of any thing that doth belong vnto vs to doe and not to depend vppon immediate helpes from Heauen as many fonde and fantasticall men doe who are therefore oftentimes iustly forsaken of GOD and left destitute of all helpe and so exposed to shame and reproach Secondly see here the mightie power of Gods ordinance how it appeareth in weakenesse such are all his great workes In the Creation hee brought light out of darknesse In our Redemption hee brought vs life out of death In our Conuersions hee workes vpon vs by his Worde and by it hee drawes vs to him which in all reason would driue vs from him and by it confounds the wisedome of the worlde which is starke foolishnesse to the wisedome of the Lord. And so heere hee cleanseth the Prophet by a Coale of fire which would rather defile him and seasoneth his mouth with it which in reason should haue burnd him so great so admirable and so powerfull are the ordinances of GOD though they seeme neuer so contrarie or so weake in themselues or in their meanes Let this teach al men not to contemne the Sacraments though the outward Elements Bread Wine and Water bee weake and common and dead creatures in themselues nor the Ministerie of the Word though it bee exercised by a weake man mortall and miserable as others are for that God which can season the Prophets mouth and clense his heart by a coale of fire no maruell though hee worke vppon the consciences of men by his word and Sacraments And againe when we see Grace and Holinesse conueyed into mens hearts by the Word and Sacraments let vs learne not to ascribe it to the dignitie either of the Minister or the Elements but to the supreme power of the mighty God who can purge the Prophet by a coale from the Altar Neither is it altogether without Misterie that God here sanctifieth the Prophet by touching his lippes with a fierie coale for it signifieth that the apt and sufficient teacher must haue a fierie