wicked in the darke conceit euery thistle to be a tree euery tree a man euery man a diuell afraid of â—uery thing they see yea many times of that they doe not see Polydore Virgil writes that Richard the 3. had a most terrible dreame the night before Bosworth field in which hee was slaine hee thought all the diuels in hell halled and pulled him in hideous and vgly shapes Id credâ— non fuit somnium sed conscientia scelerum I suppose saith Polydore that was not a fained dreame but a true torture of his conscience prâ—saging a bloodie day both to himselfe and all his followers The penner of the Latine Chronicle de vitis Archiepiscoporum Cantuariensium in the life of Archbishop Hubert records a will of a couetous oppressor in this forme Lego omnia bona mea domino regi corpus sepulturae animam diabolo The godly mans will alway runnes in this stile Terram terra tegat daemon peccata resumat Mundus res habeat spiritus astra petat I bequeath my bodie that is earthly to the earth my sins which are diuellish vnto the diuell my goods that are worldly to the world my soule that is heauenly to heauen but this vnhappie wretch in great despaire yeelded vp his coyne to the King whom hee had deceiued and his soule to the diuell whom he had serued It is written by Procopius that Theodoricus as he was at supper imagined he saw in a fishes head the visage of Symmachus a Noble man whom hee had vniustly slaine with which imagination he conceiued such terror as that he neuer after enioyed one good houre but pining away ended his vnfortunate daies Cardinall Crescentius the Popes Vicegerent in the Chapter of Trent on a time writing long letters vnto Rome full of mischiefe against the Protestants and cause of Religion had a sudden conceit that the diuell in the likenesse of a huge dogge walked in his chamber and couched vnder his table the which affrighted him so much as that notwithstanding the counsell and comfort both of friends and Physitians hee died a disconsolate death To conclude this argument the diuell Iudas out of the hell of his conscience was Bailiffe Taylor witnesse Iurie Iudge Sheriffe deaths-man in his owne execution Thus as you see the wicked haue no peace with man no peace with God no peace with themselues The very name of peace betweene man and man is sweete it selfe more sweete like the pretious ointment vpon the head of Aaron that ranne downe vnto his beard and from his beard to the skirts of his clothing Yet the peace of conscience is farre sweeter a continual feast a daily Christmas vnto the good man as the rich Epicure Luke 16. so the godly fareth deliciously euery day The man that trusteth in the Lord is fat saith Salomon he feedes himselfe on the mercies of God and merits of Christ. And so the peace of God passeth all these for it passeth all vnderstanding without which one gift all other are rather curses then blessings vnto vs. As Cyril excellently Dominâ— priuante suo gaudio quod esse potest gaudium It is the consolation of Israel and solace of the Church Reioyce greatly ô daughter Sion shout for ioy ô daughter Hierusalem for behold thy King commeth vnto thee That God is our God that Christ is our Christ that the King of all Kings is our King that he is reconciled vnto vs and we to him is a ioy surpassing all ioyes a iubilation as the Scripture termes it which can neither be suppressed nor yet expressed sufficiently How wretched then are the wicked in being debarred of all this sweete of all this exultation of all these iubilees of ioy for if they can haue no peace abroad no peace at home no peace with themselues no peace with other no peace with man no peace with God assuredly the proposition is most true There is no peace to the wicked Yea but you will say there is none good except God all of vs are gone astray if we say wee haue no sinne the truth of God is not in vs. Of what kinde of wicked is this then vnderstood Answere is made that this onely concernes incorrigible malicious impenitent senselesse sinners For when once men feele their sinnes and repent for their sinnes grieuing much because they can grieue no more then in such as sinne aboundeth grace superaboundeth all things worke for their good euen sinne which is damnable to other is profitable to them occasioning repentance neuer to be repented Remember the speech of God to Rebecca The greater shall serue the lesser Albeit our spirituall enemies are stronger and our sinnes greater then we yet they shall serue for our good the greater shall serue the lesse God who can bring sweet out of sower and light out of darknesse shall likewise bring good out of euill Such offenders haue peace with men so far as is possible with all men indeuoring to keep the vnity of the spirit in the bond of peace Secondly being iustified by faith they haue peace toward God in Christ Rom. 51. Lastly Christ dwelling in their heart they want not peace of conscience but abound with ioy in the holy Ghost Rom. 14.17 When sinners are rather passiue then actiue in sinne when it is rather done on them theÌ„ of them albeit their conscience accuse them of the fact yet it doth not condemne them of the fault and so there is all kind of peace to the penitent no kind of peace to the wicked impâ—nitent saith my God Hitherto concerning the thing proclaimed I come now to the person proclaiming in these words saith my God The subordinate proclaimer is Esay the principall God himselfe As heretofore the Prophet so now the Preacher is not onely the mouth of God as Luther cals him but as Iohn Baptist said of himselfe The very voice of God For albeit we speake yet it is Christ who by vs and in vs calleth vnto you 2. Cor. 5.20 See Epist. dom 3. Gospel dom 1. and 4. in Aduent If then the Lord hath said it let no man doubt of it Heauen and earth shall passe but not a iot of his word shall passe he is not like man that he should lie or like the Sonne of man that he should deceiue Yea that we might the better obserue it Almighty God hath spoken once and twice as it is in the 62. Psalme For the Lord had made this proclamation once before in the 48. chapâ—er at the last verse So that as Augustine in the like case verba toties inculcata vera sunt viua sunt sana sunt plana sunt One text repeated twice pressed againe and againe must needs be plaine and peremptory And assuredly beloued if we further examine the person of this Chiefe we shall finde him able to make this war because God and willing to maintaine this war because My God
lines are so farre foorth to be followed as they swarue not from our chiefe copie Christ. In sin we may not follow the good much lesse the wicked of the world be they neuer so many neuer so mightie we may not be drunken because it is the fashion among the most nor liue lasciuiously because commonly great ones are wantons In this point the scriptures are plaine and peremptory The gate is wide and way broad that leadeth to destruction and many goe in thereat Ergo we must not follow the most Doe any of the Rulers beleeue in Christ Ergo we must not fashion our selues according to the greatest In the old world many were drowned only Noah and his familie saued in Sodome many wicked beasts destroied onely Lot and his house deliuered there were two malefactors hanged one Christ crucified two extremes one vertue many thornes one lilie Cantic 2.2 Like a lilie among the thornes so is my loue among the daughters It is said Apoc. 20.12 that at the last day the bookes shall be opened and another booke which is the booke of life Where some note that the booke wherein Gods elect are registred is but one but the bookes of the reprobate are many The number of fooles is infinite but Gods people which are truly wâ—se a little flocke Christendome is the least part of the world they that prosesse Christ aright are the least part of Christendome and of this little part many be called but few chosen professing they know God in their words but denying him in their works arrant heretikes as one wittily not disputing against religion but liuing contrary to religion marching vnder Christs colours and yet fashioning themselues according to the world Here some will obiect If I fashion not my selfe like the world I shall be plaied vpon and made a very Tabret I shall become the by word and song of the people First according to the rules of reason he is base that dependeth on vulgar breath Qui pendet ab errore opinione vulgi Pendet magis atque arbore quipendet ab alta Augustine who reckoned out of Varro 288. diuers opinions concerning the chiefe good affirmes notwithstanding that no man euer was so mad as to place his happinesse in common fame because that is but wind and of winde it is said in the scripture that no man knoweth whence it commeth and whither it goeth As the childes loue so the peoples commendation is gotten and forgotten in an houre Socrates in Plato suspected euermore that to be bad which the vulgar extolled for good And Plinie gaue this rule in the schoole That hee declamed worst who was applauded most Secondly it is an axiome in the Bible that amity with the world is enmitie with God Hee that is a parasite to men is not the seruant of Christ. It is an vnhappy thing to coÌ„uerse with vngodly wretches in the tents of Kedar to be brother vnto the Dragons and companions to the Ostriches Yet Noah must not follow the fashions of the old world Lot must not follow the fashions of Sodome Iob must not follow the fashions of Vz we must not follow the fashioÌ„s of our corrupt age but as Paul exhorteth in the midst of a crooked and naughty generation wee must be pure and blamelesse shining euen as lights in the world striuing euermore to walk in the narrow path and enter in at the strait gate Againe we may not conforme our selues according to the greatest Ego rexmeus is no good plea when God shall reckon with vs at the last and dreadfull day Some men are so much at other mens seruice that they neglect altogether Gods seruice That thou didst follow such a Lord and humor such a Gentleman that there were better men in the company when thou diddest this villanie that vanity will not goe for a currant excuse when Almighty God shall come to iudgement then scepters and sepulchers shall be all one Princes and pesants shall bee fellowes As in Chesse play so long as the game is in playing all the men stand in their order and are respected according to their place first the king then the queene then the bishops after them the knights and last of all the common souldier but when once the game is ended and the table taken away then all are confusedly tumbled into a bag and happily the king is lowest and the pawne vpmost Euen so it is with vs in this life â—â—e world is a huge theater or stage wherein some play the parts of Kings other of Bishops some Lords many Knights other Yeomen but when our Lord shall come with his Angels to iudge the world all are alike For if great men and meane persons are in the same sinne they shall be bound together and cast as a fagot into hell fire And therefore let vs not fashion our selues according to the wicked whether Prince or people Secondly we must not fashion our selues according to the vanities of the world and that for two causes especiallie 1. Because they be transitory where note the worlds mortality 2. Because they be not satisfactory where note the soules immortality For the first all the things of this world are of such a fashion as that either they will leaue vs or else we must leaue them They leaue vs All riches haue their wings and make their flight like an Eagle We leaue them As the Partridge gathereth the young which she hath not brought forth so he that getteth riches and not by right shall leaue them in the midst of his daies and at his end shall bee a foole The Partridge as Ambrose writes in his 48. Epistle maketh a nest of egges which she laied not but so soone as the birds are hatched the true mother cals them all away from the stepmother So it is saith Ieremy with the couetous man incubat auro like a brood goose or as an hen that sits incubo for so the Latines terme him hee keepes his nest and sits as it were brooding but when his chickens are hatched he heares a voice from heauen O foole this night will they fetch away thy soule from thee and then whose shall these things be which thou hast prouided Indeed many men reputed him wise while he liued but at his end when by the finger of God wee see that his goods are otherwise disposed either excheated to the King or restored to the true masters or else by some small error in his will caried away by those whom he neuer loued at his end when euery Partridge shall call his young then those that are wise shall account him a very foole Lo this is the man that tooke not God for his strength but trusted in the multitude of his vncertaine riches and strengthened himselfe in his wickednesse And therefore loue not the world neither the things of the world for the world passeth away and the
to be with mâ— she gaue me of the tree and I did eat Eua must needs be a virgin because so soone as she was made she was maried and yet the text calles her woman at that time when there could bee no time for man to corrupt her On the right hand we must shun the rockes of Valentinus and Nestorius of Valentinus who taught Christ had not his body from Mary but that he brought it with him from heauen and passed thorow the wombe of the virgin as water thorow a conduit pipe contrary to the text here made of a woman Ex muliere non in muliere not in a woman but of a woman And the preposition ex notes the matter as an house is made of timber and stone bread is made of wheat wine of grapes and therefore Christ had the materials of his body from Mary so some copies haue it here 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 not 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Yet Christ had not his formale principium of Mary for the holy Chost was agent in his wonderfull conception and therefore fitly said here to be borne or as we reade to be made not begotten of a woman By this also we may shun Nestorius his rocke who thought Mary might not be called the mother of the Sonne of God for the text is plaine God sent his Sonne made of a woman Ergo the Sonne of God was the sonne of Mary For the confutation of this error the famous Councell of Ephesus was assembled wherein it was concluded and that in the first canon that Mary should be called the mother of God See before the Creed Art Borne of the virgin Mary Bond to the law Though he were Lord of the law yet made he himselfe subiect to the law circumcised according to the law and presented in the Temple according to the law yea it executed vpon him all the iurisdiction it had ouer vs. It doth by good right accuse conuince condemne vs. For alas all of vs are sinners and by nature the children of 〈◊〉 but Christ did no sinne neither was there guile fâ—und in his mouth yet notwithstanding the law was no lesse cruell against this innocent and blessed lambe then it was against vs cursed and damnable sinners yea much more rigorous For it made him guilty before God of all the sinnes of the whole world It terrified and oppressed him with such an heauinesse of spirit that he sweat blood and in fine condemned him to death euen the death of the Crosse. Thus Christ was made bond vnto the law to redeeme them which were bond vnto the law for hee died for our sinnes and indured all this for our sakes and so being vnder the law conquered the law by a double right first as the Sonne of God and Lord of the law secondly in our person which is as much as if our selues had ouercome the law for his victory is ours And therefore remember alway this sweet and comfortable text in the midst of all dangers all assaults of tyrants all temptations of Satan in the houre of death especially saying to the law Thou hast no power ouer me for God the Father hath sent his Sonne to redeeme mee from thy bondage thou dost accuse terrifie condemne in vaine for I will creepe into the hole which bloudy Longinus made with his speare in my Sauiours side There will I hide my selfe from all my foes I will plunge my conscience in his wounds death victorious resurrection glorious ascension besides him I will see nothing I will heare nothing The sting of death is sinne and the strength of sinne is the law But thanks be vnto God which hath giuen vs victory through our Lord Iesus Christ. The Nouelists exception against our translating naturall sonnes is idle for our Communion booke doth not call vs naturall sonnes as Christ is Gods naturall Sonne by eternall generation but as it were naturalized by spiritual regeneration adopted through election and grace so Paul elsewhere termeth vs Coheâ—res with Christ. Neither doth this paraphrase wrong the Patriarks before the law nor the Prophets vnder the law for as I haue noted out of Martin Luther Chirst who came in the flesh once comes in the spirit daily crying Abba Father as it followeth in the text he is one yesterday and to day and shall be the same for euer Yesterday before the time of his comming in the flesh today now he is reuealed in fulnesse of time For euer the same lambe of God slaine from the beginning of the world The Fathers then had Christ in spirit which holy spirit made them free from the bondage of the law so that they and we are saued by one and the same grace by one and the same faith in one and the same Christ. How the blessed Spirit crieth in our hearts assuring our spirit that we are the children of God helping our infirmities and making request for vs with sighes which cannot be expressed see before The grace of our Lord Iesus Christ c. This Epistle doth accord with the Gospell which intimates in particular how Christ became the Sonne of man that hee might make vs the sonnes of God how Christ is Iesus and Emmanuel Both fit the time that in the midst of Christmas our soule might magnifie the Lord and our spirit reioice in God our Sauiour who was made of a woman and made bond vnto the law to redeeme those who were bound vnto the law that wee might bee sonnes and heires of God through him The Gospel MATTH 1.1 Liber generationis Iesu Christi filij Dauid filij Abraham SVmma Theologiae Scriptura summa scripturae Euangelium summa Euangelij 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 summa summarum Iesus Christus filius Dauid filius Abraham ille primus ille postremus Alpha legis Omega Euangely principium 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Amen Velatus in veteri Testamento reuelatus in nouo in illo praedictus in isto praedicatus Vno spiritu dicam breuissimè nihil aliud continet verbum Domini nisi verbum Dominum Innuit hoc in praesentiâ—itulo Matthaeus annuit Paulus ad Corinthios primâ— Non statui quicquam inter vos scire nisi Iesum Christum crucifixum Apertiùs ait Augustinus confessionum quinto cap. 4. Infoelix homo qui scit caetera omnia te autem nescit beatus autem quite scit etiamsi illa omnia nesciat qui verò te illa nouit non propter illa beatior sed propter te solum beatissimus Est ars artium scientia scientiarum ea legere agere quae narrantur in hoc libro generationis filij Dauid filij Abraham Cuius frontispicij duo sunt luminae Inscriptio Euangelij Descriptio Christi Inscriptionis vt ita loquar duo praecipus sunt radij respâ—cientes Euangelium 1. Quod 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 2. Quòd 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Descriptionis item duo
manifesting himselfe to the world that he was the Messias of the world As if he should argue thus If you belieue not my words yet credit me for my wonders I make the blind to see the deafe to heare the lame to goe I cure all kind of diseases euen with the least touch of my finger and least breath of my mouth I heale the leper I heare the Centurion The leper was a Iew the Centurion a Gentile the leper poore the Centurion rich the leper a man of peace the Centurion a man of warre Insinuating heereby that God is no accepter of persons but that his benefits indifferently belong to men of all nations and all fashions Iâ— Christ there is neither Iew nor Grecian neither bond nor free Yet Christ did first cure the Iew then the Gentile For saluation was offered first to the Iewes he touched the Iew but cured the Gentile with his word He visited Ierusalem in his owne person but healed other nations by the Preachers of his Gospell In the leper 2. things are remarkable the Weaknesse of his body sicke and sicke of a leprosie Vertues of his mind Faith Adoration Wisdome Patience Confession In Christ also two things are to be considered his Mercy that would so readilie Might that could so easily cure this distressed Lazer Aleper All weaknesse originally proceeds from wickednesse either from some defect in our conception or disorder in our conuersation as Mephibosâ—eth had his lamenesse by falling from his nurse so euery man his sicknesse by falling from the Lord. Christ who was free from sinne was also free from sicknesse but vnto men carying about them bodies of sinne diseases are as it were a sermon from heauen wherein Almighty God accuseth of sins and shewes his wrath against sinners But the condition of a leper as we reade in the law was of all other sicke most insupportable First he must liue alone separated from the fellowship of Gods people as vnworthy to come into cleane company Secondly he did weare foure markes to be knowne by his garments torne his head bare his mouth couered and he must cry I am vncleane I am vncleane For griefe whereof assuredly some pined away being forlorne in their sorrow destitute of all good comfort and company Yet this leper indued with a liuely faith is not hopelesse howsoeuer haplesse For he comes and saith vnto the great Physitian of the world Lord if thou wilt thou canst make me cleane though he knew that his sicknesse in the worlds eye was incurable yet he did beleeue that vnto God nothing is impossible He felt his owne misery to be great yet hoped Christs mercy was more great and therefore comes vnto him as Ludolphus aptly Non tà m passibus corporis quà m fide cordis If thou wilt thou canst A strong faith in a weake body Faith comes by hearing and the reason why this leper extraordinarily desired to heare Christ and heare of Christ was his vncleane disease so that the weaknesse of his body brought him vnto the Physitian of his soule Note then here with Paul that all things happen for the good of such as are good It was good for Dauid that he was in trouble good for Naaman that he was a leper for his vncleannesse brought him vnto the Prophet and the Prophet brought him vnto the sauing knowledge of the true God It was good for Paul that he was buffeted by Satan for otherwise peraduenture through abundance of reuelations he would haue buffeted God Of all herbes in the garden as one wittily Rew is the herbe of grace Many times our woe doth occasion our weale for as pride doth breed sores of salues so faith on the contrarie doth often make salues of sores altogether renouncing her owne merit and wholly relying vpon Christs mercie Tanto desiderantiùs ad Christum contendit quòd suam indignitatem immunditiam probè sentiret as Luther and Ferus accord in this and that so truly that as a Papist said If Bonauentura had not been a Romish saint he would haue been reputed an asse So the Protestant if Ferus had not been a Romish asse he might haue proued in the Church a renowned saint The second vertue to bee considered as a fruite of his faith is adoration a spiritual fee for a spirituall physitian as the bodily Doctor must be paied so the ghostly prayed He therefore worships Christ and that with all humblenes of Thought humblenes of Word humblenes of Deede He comes to Christ as a vassall to his Lord Domine non tanquam ad dominum titularem sed tanquam ad dominum tutelarem If thou wilt thou canst Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh and therefore beleeuing in his heart that Christ was the Lord willing and able to helpe confesseth it also with his mouth If it be for my good I am sure thou wilt and I beleeue thou canst attributing all to Christs might and mercie nothing to his owne either worth or woe Vttering this also with humble gesture For as S. Mark reports hee kneeled and as S. Luke he fell on his face teaching vs in prayer to fall down and kneele before the Lord our maker Hee that worships God irreuerently shewes himselfe not a Christian but a Manichee who thought God made the soule but not the bodie Thirdly note the lepers wisedome who did obserue Circumstances of Place not pressing to Christ on the mount but expecting him in the valley Circumstances of Time not interrupting Christ in his sermon or disturbing his auditory Circumstances of Person speaking in a succinct stile Lord if thou wilt thou canst make me cleane Giuing vs to vnderstand that in suing vnto men which are wise and in praying to God who is wisedome we need not vse many but pithie words See Gospel Dom. 2. quadrages The fourth vertue is his patience who was content notwithstanding his extreame miserie to stay Gods leisure and Christs pleasure First seeking the kingdome of God and then desiring that other things might be cast vpon him In y e first place giuing God glory Lord if thou wilt thou canst In the second praying for his own good Make me cleane not as I will but as thou wilt O Lord prescribing neither the time when nor place where nor manner how but referring all to Christ possessing his soule with patience The last vertue to be regarded in this leper is conâ—ession He knew the Pharisies hated and persecuted al such as confessed Christ yet he calles him Lord and worships him as a Lord and proclaimes him in the presence of much people to bee the Lord. It is well obserued that Gods omnipotent power and infinit mercies are the two wings of our deuotion whereby faith in the midst of all trouble mounts into heauen Here the leper acknowledgeth openly Christs omnipotencie for hee saith not intreate
disciples came to him and awoke him Almighty God likes in our necessity this importunity Psal 50.15 Call vpon me in the time of trouble Psal. 91.15 He shall call vpon me and I will heare him And therefore learne by this example to come to Christ to cry to Christ in all extremity renouncing your selues and relying vpon him onely Master saue vs or else we perish He said vnto them Why are ye fearfull O yee of little faith It was great faith in that they followed Christ into the ship but little faith in that they feared He saith not O ye of no faith but O ye of little faith It was impossible to come vnto God and call vpon Christ without faith in saying we perish they shewed infidelity but in praying saue vs they manifested faith Againe he doth not say yee of little courage or ye of little charity but ye of little faith because faith is the ground of all other vertues and in aduersity most vsefull If we belieue that Christ is our Captaine in the ship with vs who can be against vs And therefore Paul Ephes. 6.16 Aboue all put on the shield of faith wherewith ye may quench all the fiery darts of the diuell Then he arose and rebuked the winds and the sea Christ reprehends the disciples a little but instantly grants their requests his reprehensions had not so much sting as honie for a great calme followed a little chiding at his word the stormy wind ariseth which lifteth vp the waues of the sea They are caried vp to heauen and downe againe to the deep their soule melteth away because of the trouble They reele to and fro and stagger like a drunken man and are at their wits end But when they cry to the Lord in their trouble he deliuereth them out of their distresse for he maketh the storme to cease so that the waues thereof are still A great calme followed a great tempest Decet enim magâ—um magna facere Christ spake but one word to the violent windes and vnruly seas and they both obeyed his command He doth at sundry times and in diuers maners speake to vs and yet wee will not hearken vnto his voice The spectators of this act might therefore wonder to see the senslesse water and weather obey more then man indued with reason and religion The men maruelled Ideo premantur iusti vt pressi clament clamantes exaudiantur exauditi glorificent Deum A great storme caused in the disciples a great feare great feare great deuotion great deuotion occasioned Christ to worke this great miracle this great miracle moued this great admiration What is this man that commands as a God And when he was come to the other side Two points are to be considered in this miracle principally the Gratiousnesse of Christ in curing two possessed of diuels Vngratiousnesse of the Gergesites preferring a peece of bacon before the Gospell hogs before Christ. Such as respect their tithe pig more then their Pastor are Gergesites and deserue that Christ should depart out of their coasts I will not in particular examine these but in stead thereof insert a few notes vpon the last verse of the first Chapter appointed to be read at morning praier this Sunday preached at Pauls Crosse. Ian. 29. 1608. ESAY 57.21 There is no peace to the wicked saith my God This text is a proclamation of warre against the wicked enemies to God and his Gospell wherein obserue the thing proclaimed No peace to the wicked An heauy doome whether we consider the time the matter or the men for there is no time no peace no wicked if impenitent excepted person proclaiming the Prophet as Herald Lord as chiefe CoÌ„mander able to make this war because God willing to maintaine this war because my God This sentence would not be so grieuous if it were not so generall if any wicked man at any time could inioy any kind of peace but the proposition is an vniuersall negatiue non est pax impiâ—s Our and other translations haue it not in the time past non erat there was no peace nor in the future non erit there shall be no peace but in the present there is no peace Or as it is in the originall indefinitely without a verbe naming no time that wee might feare this iudgement at all times Cognatum imò innatum omni sceleri sceleris supplicium In the words of Saint Paul the wages of sinne is death as the worke is ready so the pay present nec aufertur nec defertur if impiety no impunity When sin is finished it hath his hire scelus aliquis tutum nemo securum tulit If we consider a wicked man out of Christ he hath neither here peace of grace nor hereafter peace of glory but as he passeth from sinne to sinne he goeth as it were from diuell to diuell euen from hell to hell from the flashes to the flame from hell internall to hell eternall As this includes all time so likewise excludes all peace For albeit Harding found a great difference between no bread not bread yet Interpreters here make no difference betweene not peace and no peace For the wicked haue no peace with man no peace with God no peace with themselues None with man for as it is said in the verse before my text The wicked are like the raging sea whose waters cast vp dirt and mire They are of their owne nature turbulent but if we stir them a little then they fume and some like the sea both actiue saith Musculus and passiue being neither peace makers nor peace takers For nature and scripture tell vs plainly that righteousnesse is elder sister to peace So said Aristotle natures chiefe Secretary that agreement in euill is not loue but conspiracie So Dauid a man after Gods owne heart and a penner of Gods owne will iustitia pax osculatae sunt righteousnesse and peace haue kissed each other As Augustine vpon the place fiat iustitia habebis pacem if thou wilt haue peace worke righteousnesse first eschew euill and doe good then seeke peace and insue it Psal. 34.13 Nay you need not seeke it for it will finde you peace will come of it selfe to kisse righteousnesse On the contrary no truth no mercy where there is no loue of good there can be no good of loue no true friendship except it be Christi glutino copulata glewed together in Christ a man can hardly be true friend to any that is not first truly friend to truth it selfe It was an excellent speech of Constantius how can they be faithfull vnto their Prince who are persidious and vnfaithfull vnto their God I tell thee saith Augustine to Martianus albeit you were mine old acquaintance yet neuer my friend vntill you were my louer in Christ. And therefore when Iehoram said vnto Iehu Is it peace Iehu replied
He is stiled elsewhere the Lord of hosts and therefore all creatures as his warriours are ready pressed to reuenge his quarrels and to fight his battels His souldiers against the wicked are either celestiall or terrestriall all the Creatures in heauen and on earth In the beginning God created the heauen and the earth Gen. 1. and all that therein is Exod. 20. And in this acception according to the Bible which is a lantern vnto our feet and a guide vnto our paths I finde three heauens as Paul saith he was taken vp into the third heauen the 1. Airy 2. Starry 3. Glorious Airy heauen is all the space from vs vnto the firmament so the birds which flie betweene vs and the starres are called in holy writ the fowles of heauen In this heauen are meteors haile wind raine snow thunder lightening all which are at Gods absolute command to serue such as serue him and to fight against them that fight against him As when the wicked old world was filled with cruelty The windowes of heauen were opened and the raine was vpon the earth forty daies and forty nights insomuch that this one souldier of the Lord destroied all his enemies euery thing that was vpon the earth from man to beast onely Noah Gods holy seruant remained and they that were with him in the Arke whom the raine did not hurt but rather helpe for the deeper the flood the safer the ship the water had peace with Noah and his company but open warre with all the rest of that old world So likewise the Lord out of heauen rained fire and brimstone vpon the Sodomites and hailestones out of heauen vpon the cursed Amorites at Bethoron and they were moe saith the text that died with the haile then they whom the children of Israel slew with the sword But what need we looke so far the great wind this yeere the great frost the last yeere sensibly demonstrate this point What a wracke on the sâ—a what a worke on the earth occasioned by the one what a dearth and so by consequence what a death ensued vpon the other If God cast forth his ice like morsels who is able to abide his frost Psal. 147.17 To step higher the second heauen is the firmament coelum quasi coelatum because it is ingrauen as it were enameled with glorious lights as Moses in the first of Genesis God made two great lights the greater to rule the day the lesser to gouerne the night he made also the stars and placed them in the firmament of heauen Now this heauen declares the glory of God and the firmament shewes his handy worke though they want vnderstanding and are dumbe yet they trumpet forth his worthy praises in such sort that there is neither speech nor language but their voice is heard among them And as they speake for God as schollers so they fight also for God as souldiers for the starres in their course fought against Sisera Iosua 5.20 and when Duke Iosua fought against the wicked Amorites he said in the sight of Israel Sunne stay thou in Gibeon and thou Moone in the valley of Aialon and the Sunne abode and the Moone stood still vntill the people of God auenged themselues vpon their enemies the Sunne abode and hasted not to goe downe for a whole day Iosua 10.13 O Lord our gouernour how excellent is thy name in all the world When I consider the heauens euen the works of thy hands the Sun and the Moone which thou hast ordained what is man that thou art so mindfull of him or the son of man that thou shouldst thus regard and gard him The third heauen is called by Philosophers empyreum by Diuines the glorious heauen by scriptures heauen of heauens or heauen aboue the visible heauens In this heauen Almighty God hath two sorts of tall wariours Angels Saints Angels are heauenly souldiers ministring spirits of God instruments of his mercy toward the good executioners of his iudgements vpon the bad When Iosua was about to sacke Iericho an Angel appeared vnto him as a Captaine with a drawne sword to fight for his people When Zenacherib and his innumerous host came against Israel the Angel of the Lord in one night slew one hundred eighty and fiue thousand 2. Kings 19. The first borne of Egypt slaine by an Angell Exod. 12. blasphemous Herod smitten with an Angell Acts 12.23 To conclude this argument Angels at the last and dreadfull day shall binde the tares that is make fagots of the wicked and cast them into hell fire As they pitch their tents about Gods elect being the Saints guard and nurses as it were to carry them in their armes lest at any time they hurt their foot against a stone so contrariwise speedy messengers and Ministers of Gods anger vnto the reprobate Now for Saints albeit they be milites emeriti as the Romans speake souldiers discharged the field past fighting past sighing for all teares are wiped from their eies euen so saith the spirit they rest from their labours and their good works follow them Apocalyp 14.13 Theâ— be past warfare and now liue in eternall welfare crowned as conquerors in heauen where there is neither militia nor malitâ—a Though I say their fight be ended and they rewarded with an immortall crowne of glory yet for as much as there is a communion of Saints a fellowship betweene the triumphant Saints in heauen and the militant Saints on earth the blessed soules departed and deliuered out of the miseries of this sinfull world howsoeuer they be secure for themselues yet are they carefull for vs as our Churches in their Harmonie speake de foelicitate suà securi de nostrà salute soliciti they wish well vnto vs and pray still for vs in generall albeit they know not our wants in particular Howsoeuer they fight not any longer against Gods enemies with pen or pike with paper or powder yet they continually fight against them with push of praier as Saint Iohn expresly The soules of them that were killed for the word cried with a loud voice saying How long Lord holy and true dost not thou iudge and reueâ—ge our blood on them that dwell on the â—arth Albeit they contend not with earthly weapons yet they maintaine Gods quarrell with heauenly wishes in generall against Satan and his kingdome out of zeale and heat to Gods cause not out of any spleene or hate to any of the wicked in particular I dare not say so for wheâ—e the spirit hath not a pen to write the Pastor must not haue a tongue to speake not the people an eare to heare but that the blessed soules in heauen pray for vs against our enemies in generall is an article of faith and an euident truth of the Bible I come from Gods selected band in heauen to the common band the host of his creatures on earth the which containes both sea and land and