and mother-citie of the land where the kings Court is kept and where there is greatest concourse of people abundance of wealth and store of all things seruing either for the necessitie and vse of warre or the plâ—â—sure of peace then he saith thus vnto himselfe Surely now I see and knowe the very state and power of this Prince as well as I doo that man whose face I doo fully and stedfastly behold and yet all this while he neither is nor can bee admitted to see the very person of the Prince Euen so it fareth with vs in respect of nod for here on earth as it were in Dan or Bersheba or some other border-town of the land of Promise the happie kingdome of Chanaan wee haue a glimmering of the king But when wee come to the heauenly Ierusalem the Cittie of the great king there we see a thousand times mote then we did before and yet all that we see is but the riches power and glorie of the king as for his person and verie essence that is kept secret and shut vp in his priuie chamber or closet into the which none may or can enter for none but god knoweth God 1. Tim. 6. 16. the king of kings who onely hath immortalitie and dwelleth in light that none can haue accesse vnto whom neuer man saw neither can see yet although the nature of god be vnsearchable as a bottomlesse gulfe into the middest whereof whosoeuer plungeth himselfe in hope of sounding the depth of it wil without question be soon swallowed vp by it and confounded in al his imaginations yea thogh hee were indued with the wit of all the men and Angels in the world yet I confesse that as you say we may safely wade and swimme in the shallowe brinke of this great Ocean hauing the one hand on the shore or banke as a sure anchor to hold vs fast that wee bee not carried too farre into it by the violent blastes of presumption and curiositie and the other in the water wherewith to mooue our minds vp and down in a sober and modest contemplation of it Sect. 2. LEt vs therefore let loose into this deepe and bottomlesse sea of the nature of God not in any fond hope of attaining the perfect knowledge of it yet trusting in God that we shall not loose our labour and fish all night without catching any thing as on the other side it were madnesse to thinke of catching al the fish in the sea but rather returne to land with our vessels not emptie although not so full lade that they be readie to sinke by reason of the heauinesse of their burthen The knowledge therefore of the the natures of things is attained two waies to wit by sense and by imagination sense apprehendeth the qualities of things sensible by the which the minde is led to thenature and substance of the thing But as for those things which are not sensible wee must suppose imagine theÌ„ to be thus thus and so coine in our minds a forme and phantastical idea of them resembling them to something which wee haue sometime apprehended by sence and especially to that which is likest and commeth nearest vnto them Soh That to the searching out and the knowing of the nature of any insencible thing these three things belong must concurre First the obseruation of the effects or actions proceeding from it the which being sensible will giue vs some light to know the nature of the thing it selfe from the which they did proceed as we see the nature of the father to appeare in the sonne of the roote in the fruite and of the fountaine in the streams issuing from it Secondly when as by this and whatsoeuer other meanes we haue wee haue gotten some knowledge of the nature of it and to what kinde of things it iâ— to bee referred we must then as it were comming nearer to the purpose and bringing foorth into act the conceit of the minde resemble it to that thing the which of all other things in the world commeth nearest and is likest vnto it Yet wee haue not attained to that which we desire for we haue not the thing it selfe but onely a patterne or example a likenesse or resemblance of it and therefore in the third and last place we must adde to this example or patterne that which is wanting squaring it in all respects to the idea and conceit which we first had of the nature of the thing For example a man hearing much speech of y e Angels wold gladly know what and of what nature and essence they are to the effecting whereof he is desirous to see heare or feele one of them hoping by thiâ— meanes to know what they are as he vseth to bee by his sences taught the nature of other things But in the triall he findeth there can no good bee done by this meanes the Angelâ— being spirituall and insensible creatures â—nd that therefore hee must go some other way to worke and search out their nature by the eyes not of his bodie but of his mind and gesse at their natures by that which he hath heard and read of their effects functions and actions As touching the which hee findeth in scripture that they are Gods seruants continually attending his pleasure and praising him and readily performing whatsoeuer hee commaundeth Wherevpon hee inferreth surely the Angels liue for they mooue and they are not brute beastes but reasonable creatures yea not simple ideots but of great vnderstanding and wisedome without the which they could neuer dispatch those affairs aright about the which God imployeth them and further that they are not weaklings but of great strength for otherwise one of them could not haue destroyed in one night an hundreth fourescore and fiue thousand of the Assyrians as we read 2. Ki. 19. 35. and lastly that they are not base or contemtible but most glorious creatures fit to stand and serue in the presence of God Thus he conceiuing and imagining them to bee most mightie wise and glorious creatures to what thing in the world can hee resemble them more fitly then to the most excellent men in the world endued with the greatest measure of power glory authoritie knowledge and wisdome Now we are come as neare them as wee can in any one thing for there is nothing more like to an Angell then is an excellent man whereof it commeth that the name of an Angel is often giuen to men yet we haue not attained our purpose for there is yet great difference and oddes betwixt them therefore to make them euen wee must take from this excellent man this grosse body of clay and earth and giue vnto him a pure and spirituall body voyd of all mixture of elements and moysture the which debaseth and keepeth him downe beneathe the Angels who being not clogged and pressed downe with such heauie lumppes of clay nor hauing their cleare vnderstandings dimmed with soggie mystes of moysture excell him farre in
pleasant to behold And no doubt but that it is a great happinesse that a man hath this grace giuen him of God and his eyes opened to consider and acknowledge it in any measure For if the Queene of Saba were so rauished with the report and much more with the sight of Salomons wisedome appearing in his fit sound answeres sayings sentences and prouerbes containing in thē great depth of knowledge and also in the practise of his life whereby hee turned his speculatiue knowledge into practicall wisdome in the orderly constitution of his house and kingdome and the right contriuing of al matters belonging therunto that shee thought her trauell in comming to heare see and behold it well bestowed and the seruants of Salomon most happie men for that they making their daily attendance in his Court and presence had singular opportunitie of knowing and considering it how much more happie a thing are we to esteeme it to haue the wisdome of God reuealed vnto vs from the which as from the sunne shining in the firmament this dimme candle of Salomons wisedome receiued light If Salomons house and kingdome were so well appointed and so wisely ordered that it wrought in the beholders admiration yea astonishment and vnspeakeable pleasure how much more excellent shall we think the orders of Gods house to be whether we consider the world in generall which is the outward court into the which all both holy prophane are admitted but much more if we consider the Temple it selfe to wit his Church wherin he is serued and worshipped and wherein hee doth reueale his glory in Christ his Gospell after a speciall maner but most of all if we consider his glory in the holy of holiest to wit in y e heauens in the heauen of heauēs where the Apostle heard and we may imagin things not to be vttered First then when as wee come into the outward Court of his Pallace and consider eyther the whole frame of the world or the particular creatures therein contained how euery thing is so curiously contriued in it self so correspondent to the rest we shall see how truly wise Salomon doth acknowledge the incomparable wisedome of God in the creation of the world Prou. 3. Iy 20. The Lord through wisedome hath laid the foundations of the earth and hath established the heauēs throgh vnderstanding by his knowledge the depthes are broken vp and the Cloudes drop downe the deawe If wee should enter into particulars where should wee beginne or how should wee euer make an ende what profession is there in the world which would not thinke it great madnesse not to mention that about the which it is conuetsant as a most pregnant witnesse of the infinit wisdome of God how doth the Astronomer with endlesseadmiratiō and astonishment gaze vpon the starres and is neuer satisfied with beholding their brightnesse counting their number demonstrating their greatnesse obseruing their vertues and influence not to speake of those as not worthy to be mentioned who with the heathen worship the Sunne Moone and Starres by ascribing all operations and effects vnto thē neither yet to roue abroade in these large fieldes which yeeld as many arguments of Gods wisedome as the earth doth piles of grasse but to keep at home in our owne houses how infinitly and yet how worthely do Phisitians extoll the frame of mans body how euery part is so wisely and warely deuised to auoide all harmes and inconueniences which might happen neither do our bodies alone that but euen the lowest flower that groweth out of the earth the which if it can be but rudely counterfeited in wood stone or colour workmen think their cunning and Princes their Pallaces highly aduanced yea the silliest worme that creepeth on the groūd and the least flie that floteth in the ayre declare the same For the which purpose the studie of naturall Philosophie is to bee accounted as pleasant so also very profitable and worthy tobe followed by Christians as their gifts and callings do permit for without question they that go downe into the depth of it see the wonderfull wisedome of God But if we enter into the inner Court of Gods Pallace to wit into his Church and there consider his dealings with it from time to time the small beginnings the slowe progresse the meane knowledge which it had in the first ages as it were in the infancie of it and how in these latter ages it hath so mightely preuailed so stretched it selfe so far abroad into the world still fleeting and moouing as doth the Sunne in the outward Court from the Easterne to the Westerne countries and kingdomes But if we step a little further into it and there consisider the deepe misteries of knowledge and wisedome contained in the bowels of the scripture the vnsearchable obscuritie of aenigmaticall Oracles mocking the sharpnesse of all humane wit the agreement of ceremonies with the body of the types with the things signified of punishments with sinnes but especially if wee consider in the three folde state of man himselfe first the stately building of this Pallace begun in Adam then the miserable ruine of it in his fall and lastly the glorious repairing of it'm Christ the second Adam◠it cannot bee but that we shall burst forth with the Apostle into admiration of it and say O the depth of the knowledge and wisdome of God how vnsearchable are his iudgements and his waies past finding out and agree to the truth of that Eph. 3. 10. that the wisdome of god shewed in the church is so great that the Angels in heauen do may well admire it and as it is Col. 1. 3. that in Christ and in the matter and mistery of the Gospell the very treasures of Gods wisedome are both hid and reuealed Lastly if we should draw a litle nearer and with confidence enter into the glorious presence of God in heauen where there are no cloudes or mystes to keepe from vs the cleare sunshine of his wisedome all his counsels decrees deuises and dealings beeing vnfolded and fully accomplished we should thē say as the Queene of Saba said of Salomons wisedome and the vnspeakable pleasure conceiued by the beholding it that the report which goeth on earth and in the church of the wisedome of God yea the conceit which we haue in our mindes of it how great soeuer it be is as nothing to the thing it selfe But I wil not be so presumptuous as to take in hand this argument or to attempt to set forth the wisedome of God as it shineth in the world and in the Church and much more fully although as yet not so plainly to vs in heauen It were an argument fitter for the tongues or pennes of Angels then of men and whereof we may say that if all should bee written that might bee brought to that purpose the whole world would scarce suffice to hold the bookes which would be written Sect. 4. Gent. VVHat followeth to bee considered in the nature
and of maintaining his iust honour against al vniust vsurpers whatsoeuer Thus the scripture teacheth vs that God is not onely carefull but euen curious as wee may say and as it selfe saith iealous of his honour the which he cannot abide that it shuld bee any touched or impared as hee doth openly professe of himselfe Es 48. 11. My glory I will not giue to any other Neither indeed will he suffer any to take it or any portion of it but doth straightway confound them all with all their deuices whosoeuer do any way obscure it much more such as haue most impiously yet more foolishly sought to vsurpe or participate it Thus were the aspyring spiriâ—s throwne from heauen into the place and pit of darkenesse to the which man also treading in the same steps of sacrilegious pride was sent out of paradise to beare them coÌ„pany Thus were the vaineglorious builders of the Tower of Babel confounded in al their deuises and thus the Lord slewe 50000. of the presumptuous Bethsemites who by looking into the Aâ—ke brought the name and presence of God into contempt Thus he made proude Nabuchadnesar who thought that hee might with the maiestie of his person and Pallace outface the sunne in heauen yea God himself whose glory filleth both heauen earth to become as a silly and miserable beast and thus he confounded Herode by a filthy disease that tooke to himselfe the glorious tytle of God which the flattering people ascribed vnto him Neither need we maruell that God is so carefull in maintaining his honour and glory it being the last and chiefe end of the creation of all things all which tend to this one end and euen bend their whole forces to maintaine vphold the glory of God as of the highest and greatest good euen as we see loyall subiects to endeauor nothing so much as to maintaine the maiestie and honor of their Prince as we read Rom. 11. 36. Of him by him and for him are all things to him be praise for euer For if God should suffer any false or fained God any man or Angell to vsurpe any royall prerogatiue belonging to the godhead and so himselfe to be disgraced and his maiestie diminished the confusion of all things as of the streames the fountaine being troubled must of necessitie follow And yet god is not so desirous of aduancing his name and glory but that he can on the other side debase himselfe when hee thinketh meete as beeing endued with humilitie in as great or rather in greater measure Gent. me thinks that humilitie doth not well agree with the nature of God and that there is small vse of humiliation in his doings Sch. As God doth aduance others beeing humble so he doth by his humilitie not debase but honour and magnifie himselfe for as wee see it to come to passe in Princes and other great personages that nothing doth make them to bee loued honoured and extolled so much as doth their gentle and familiar behauiour with their subiects and inferiours so God is exalted in his humilitie and made most glorious in it Psal 113. The Lord is aboue all Nations and his glory aboue the heauens who is like vnto our God that hauing his habitation in the highest heauen doth debase himselfe to behold things on earth Yea not onely to behold them a farre off but also to haue a hand and a part in them Princes do not vse to conuerse much with their subiects but that any of them should so farre debase himselfe as to take vpon him the condition of a subiect and to suffer his owne subiects to rule and insult ouer him yea to vse him despightefully and contumeliously that is a thing neuer heard of neither supposed to be possible to be brought to passe but that they wold rather loose both their kingdomes and their liues then suffer such a disgrace especially at the hands of their subiects But God the King of Kings did leaue his Throne of maiestie in heauen and made one litle Caue or hole of the earth all which before was but his footestoole his chayre of estate yea he tooke to himselfe the forme of weake and fraile man not of a Lord or King but of a base seruant yea of a vile and loathsome sinner hee suffered himselfe to be taunted and reuiled yea which is the greatest disgrace in the world to bee spit on as a most vile and filthy thing who can imagine must lesse alleadge an example of so great humilitie yet herein God is most glorious This one instance of his extreame humiliation maketh it needlesse to alleadge his familiar conuersing with men heere one earth his familiar conferring with Moses face to face as one friend doth with another his answering them to all their demaunds as it were comming at their call whereof wee haue many examples in the scripture as namely in Abraham pleading so hard for Sodome and in the story of Dauid 1. Sam. 29. 8 who there asketh one question after an other of God about his worldly affaires as if he had bene aduising with some familiar friend but that one example of his vnspeakeable humilitie shewed in his incarnation and in suffering all the miseries of our life and in the ende that most shamefull death is so notable that it can neuer bee sufficiently admired Sect. 2. THese two onely which haue bene declared of all those vertues which concerne our selues are attributed to god but of those which tend and reach to others many may very fitly and truly be ascribed vnto him to shew the manner of his dealing with men as namely iustice in recompeÌ„cing indulgence in forbearing faithfulnesse in performing promises and goodnesse in dooing good to men For the first namely iustice it doth belong vnto God in respect of that soueraigne authoritie which he hath ouer al the creatures in the world as well Princes as subiects as well men as Angels hee beeing by vertue of the creation wherein hee made them all of nought their most naturall King and the onely absolute Monarch of the world all other Kings and Rulers whatsoeuer being but his substitutes and vicegerents holding their Crownes and Kingdomes of him as uassalles of their liege Lord and maister and ruling by him from him and in his name and steed yea and by his lawes For howsoeuer God haue permitted the ordering of their subiects in great part to their will and discretion yet he hath giuen and published to the whole world his owne supreme and vniuersall lawes to the obseruing whereof all without any exception are bound by his commaundement and the violating whereof he doth most seuerely punish But as no state or Common-wealth can stand by penal lawes onely which restraine vice by threatnings and punish offences committed by due paines because it is needefull that there should also be rewards appointed whereby the vertuous endeauours of good subiects may be recompenced and encouraged in the right disposing and distributing whereof iustice hath place as well
to comprehend the infinit and know the secret essence of God But by your patience a litle is it now become a fault to seeke the knowledge of God in the knowledge and contemplation of whom not only the scripture and as I haue heard all diuines with one assent but euen Plato an heatheÌ„ Philosopher although somewhat smelling of the truth of religion do make our whole happinesse to coÌ„sist the infinitnesse of the nature of God doth hinder the full comprehension but not the true knowledge of it selfe to be in the minde of man the sight of the eye no not the whole eye is able to containe the body of the Sun and yet by it we do plainly beholde and truly know the Sun Moone Starres yea the whole heauen What thogh it be not lawfull evher to make any Image or to imagine any similitude of God yet we may consider of the nature of God by coÌ„paring it to the nature of the creature though there bee neuer so great inequalitie betwixt them Yea the infinitenesse of Gods nature is most plainly seene when it is compared to a finite and meane creature as wee knowe that the chearefull lightsomnesse and fairenesse of white is best perceiued when a darke and sad backe is laid by it that the hugenesse of an Eliphant is most admired when wee thinke of he smalnesse of a flie and a crooked building is best knowne by the straight line The whole bodie and compasse of the sun and moone may bee behelde in a little dishfull of wateâ— and why not God in his creatures especially in those which hee hath made according to his owne image and that as I am perswaded for this very end and purpose But although the nature of god might be by some means in some measure conceiued and knowne yet you doubt of the lawfulnesse of the attempt but your doubting is without cause or rather as I am perswaded without trueth and in shewe onely The propitiatorie is now remooued and the Arke vncouered so that we may be bolde to looke into it the vaile of the Temple is rent a sunder yea quite broken downe and therefore wee need not any longer stand aloofe but may with confidence enter into the holy place approach vnto the throne of grace It is not with God as it is with mortall and sinfull men who of set purpose and in good pollicie doo in many cases withdraw themselues from the sight and view of others least that by bewraying their infirmities they shuld bring their persons into contempt but God is not ashamed of himselfe neither afraid of being knowne seene and censured Men the further they are off from vs the greater they seeme and the lesse they are known thâ— more they are esteemed the more familiaâ—ly that they are acquainted the more likely to bee contemned but it is not so with God who the more he is known the more he is admired the nearer he approcheth to vs the more he amazeth astonieth with his â—urpassing glorie and maiestie so that he may not vnfitly be compared to the cloude which the Prophet Elias or rather God himselfe raised out of the sea 1. King 18. 14. which a farre off seemed no bigger then the palme of a mans hand but when it came neare it couered the whole face of heauen I confesse indeed that the essence of God cannot be fully comprehended by any creature and that if God should shine vppon vs with the bright beames of his glorie wee could not but bee confounded as we see our eyes to be dazeled and our sight dimmed by gazing on the bright shining sunne For this the word of God is plaine Exod. 33. 20. where God saith to Moses My face that is my full glorie and maiestie no man can see and liue but as for my hinder partes that is some part or shadow of my glorie that I will shew vnto thee Yet the doth not proue that this great and greedie yea insatiable desire which this holy man of God had of seeing and knowing still more and more of God yea after that God had many waies reuealed himselfe more fully to Moses then euer hee had done or did since to any man liuing should bee condemned as rash and preâ—umptuous which rather is to be commended and imitated of vs by hauing a most earnest care and desire to know so much of Gods essence as may bee knowne yea much more and euen the whole nature of God if so it stood with his good pleasure For this is the onely happinesse which we aspire vnto hope for in the life to tome that whereas now we see God but darkly in part and as it were his image in a glasse theÌ„ we shall see him face to face 1. Cor. 13. that is in farre more ample manner then now wee doo although not so fully and amply as hee is indeede vnto the which absolute perfection of the knowledge of Gods essence I doo easily graunt you that neither the Saints nor the Angels in heauen can possibly attaine And therefore seeing that my request is no other then both I may wel and lawfully make and you easily performe I pray you doo not shift mee off with this excuse which I am perswaded you made thinking as it is indeed that you Schollers â—an by your logick and schoole-tricks perswadevs simple people to think what you list make vs beleeue that as the prouerb is The moon is made of green cheese but rather at my request take in hand the explication of this poynt which of all other is most needfull to be knowne and most woorthie to bee sought out with all care and diligence as beeing that wherevnto all our knowledge yea our whole life is to be referred Sch. I am glad sir that I haue by this means ferreted you out of this deepe dissimulation wheerin you haue hitherto so closely lurked although indeed I did thinke so much wheÌ„ I first heard you speake did suspect you to be the man whoÌ„ now I finde you to be I am perswaded that you who are so cunning in crauing could if you list bee as bountifull in giuing but seeing the bargaine is made it is now no going backe neither will I looke backe vnto the speech which you haue made of the lawfulnesse of attempting and the possibilitie of attaining the knowledge of Gods nature in some sort It was true and therefore cannot be confuted yet was full and sufficient and therefore need not bee enlarged You doo well to confesse that the infinit essence of god cannot be fully comprehended no not by the Angels in heauen yet that it may in some sort be knowne euen by men here on earth For euen as when a traueller desirous to see straunge countries and fashions arriueth in some coast towne of any forraine kingdome hee may euen there gather some coniectures and get some knowledge of the condition state and power of that Prince but when he commeth to the chiefe