c. The title ouer Christ on the crosse was written in 3. tongues Hebrew Greeke Latine Although it may not bee vrged that all these Threes haue full relation to the Trinitie seeing they fall not out by chaunce wee are not to despise the pleasant harmonie and comfortable vse of them but to thinke that the wisedome of God hath contriued saluation into such a sweet Art that verie children may learne the same and therefore the Scripture is called verie fitly a shallow water and a deepe fountaine shallow that the Lambe may wade and deepe that the Elephant may swimme Foure Is a square number and vsuall Heber the Fourth after the floud Iuda the Fourth Sonne of Iacob Square signifieth true Religion The Lord came in the 4000. yeare of the world Moses Fourth Son in the 4. age was sacrificer to the tribe of Dan. Times 7 Iubiles the time of Christs death The forme of the heauenly Ierusalem Fiue The Letters of Iehouah The 5 Vowels the sinewes of all tongues Christ feedeth 5000. with 5 Loaues Six The day of Adams creation which number is oftentimes vsed in the scripture to put vs in mind of the Creation Hundreth Thousand fighting men came out of Egipt Hundreth yeares old was Noah at the floud Times 7 standings had the children of Israell in the Wildernesse Yeeres was the Land of Canaan in conquering Cities of refuge for one that killed a man by chaunce and not of malice had the Iewes to flie vnto Times did the children of Israell fall before Dauids time in the time of the Iudges Seuen The number of the Sabbath which number of 7. as it is famous for the creation so God continueth the same proportion throughout the Bible to the redemption For as God the Father made the world in six daies and rested the seuenth so God the Son hauing performed his Fathers will resteth the seuenth day in the graue Is a yeare of Grace Planets in the Firmament which Plato compareth to the number of Seuen Starres in Ap. 1. Yeares was the Land of Canaan plagued for that Ioseph the beloued of the Lord should haue been slaine by his brother Stones in the Temple Gods Seuen-fould wisedome or prouidence in all his actions Seuen eyes to looke vpon the building of euery stone in the Temple of Ierusalem Yeares the Land of Canaan was setled in rest Yeares the Temple was in building Yeares Nebucadnetzer was a beast for destroying it Gates in the Temple before you come to the Holy of holiest Braunches did the Candlesticke in the Temple stand vrpon which had 42. knobbes signifying the six dayes worke and the Seuenth day of rest in the creation Moneths was the Tabernacle in building Iubiles was the Arke in the house of Ioseph Trumpeters is a great number that doe alwaies sound Gods praise Henoch the seuenth from Adam Heber the seuenth from Henoch Isaack the seuenth from Heber Moses the seuenth from Abraham Iosua the seuenth from Ephraim Elias taken vp in the seuenth age from Samuel Ioram the seuenth from Dauid Salomons Temple was consecrated in the seuenth moneth answerable to the birth of the Fathers The ceremonie of the Feast of Tabernacles continued seuen dayes After the comming from Egipt it was seuen times seuen daies before the law was giuen Seuen times seuen daies after Christs resurrection descended the holy Ghost The stories of the Scripture goe by seuens From Moses till Christs death thus Seuen yeares the land of Canaan was in conquering Seuen fifties for the glorie of Iosephs house Seuen seuenties for the house of Iuda Seuen tennes for the captiuity From the captiuitie to the death of Christ seuen seuenties Moses ceremonies for the most part were in the seuenth moneth The Manna that was gathered on the sixt day serued for the seuenth The seuenth yeare the Iewes might not plowe sowe nor reape In the end of seuen seuens was the yeare of Iubilee In the seuenth seuen from Cyrus the walles of Ierusalem were built Seuen times seuen Thousand of the Iewes came from captiuitie Ioakim endeth the seuenth seuentie with affliction Seuen yeeres plenty Seuen yeeres dearth in the land of Egipt figured by seuen eares of corne and seuen kine Noah liued seuen Iubilees after the flood Seuen Thousand in the booke of Kings mentioned that neuer bowed their knees to Baal Kaines house cut off in the seuenth age How often shall I forgiue my brother till seuen times I say vntill seuen times seuenty times alluding vnto Daniels Seuens The number of the persons saued in the Arke The day of circumcision Ten is a full number and the highest of last of simple numbers All Nations after the number of Ten beginne againe for plaine teaching and plainenesse in reckoning Ten is the yeare of iudgement or accompt You haue Ten woordes for the creation of the world and Ten words for the gouernment of the whole world The Tenth is a holy number as in Tythes which is giuen to vs to acknowledge our duties In the Tenth moneth the waters of the floude abated Sem liued to see the Tenth age a great blessing Ten plagues were the Egiptians plagued with for afflicting Sems house Ten spyes in the Wildernes misbelieued Ten tribes fell away at Roboams time Daniels beast hath Ten hornes which doe represent Ten cruell Kings The beast in the Reuelation hath Ten hornes The Pope had Ten stately kingdomes to assist him Noah is the Tenth from Adam Abraham the Tenth from Noah Twelue signes in the Zodiacke Twelue monthes in the yeare Twelue Fathers from the floude to Iacob Twelue Sonnes of Iacob Twelue Fountaines in the Wildernesse Twelue stones in Iordan Twelue stones in Aarons breast Salomon had Twelue Stewards and Dauid Twelue valiant Captaines Salomon at Twelue yeares of age discided the controuersie betweene the women for the dead Childe Christ at Twelue yeares of age is founde disputing among the Doctors He likewise ordayneth Twelue Apostles and Twelue times did he appeare after his resurection and in the reuelation of euery Tribe is sealed Twelue thousand The heauēly Ierusalem is described to haue Twelue foundations of Twelue precious stones Twelue gates and Twelue Angels and the names written of the Twelue Apostles and through the Citie there runneth a pure riuer and on either side of the riuer the Tree of Life which beareth Twelue manner of fruites and beareth fruite euery moneth in the yeare and the leaues of the Tree doe serue to heale the Nations with NOw the reason why God in the beginning layd downe in close signification and such easy proportions the whole scope of his gouernment to the worlds end is to shew that his wisedome is infinite and that nothing in the Scriptures doe fall out by chaunce but by his fore-purpose according to the secret counsell of his own will to make vs still looke backe vnto the Creation 130. Seth borne ge 5. when Adam is 130. yeares old ADam was made in the Image of God but Seth is begotten in the
he had no affliction in Canaan onelie hee was driuen to goe to Abimelech King of the Philistims and dwelt in Gerar where he was somewhat iniured Abraham praying for Ismael that God would blesse him he saith I will make of him a mightie nation but in Isaack shall thy seede be called It is written that Abraham had two sonnes one by a seruant and one by a free woman But he which was of the seruant was after the flesh and he which was of the free woman was by promise which things are spoken by an allegorie For these mothers are the two Testaments the one which is Hagar of mount Sinay For Hagar or mount Sinay is a mountaine in Arabia which gendreth vnto bondage and it answereth to Ierusalem which now is and shee is in bondage with her children But Ierusalem which is aboue is free which is the mother of vs all for we are after the maner of Isaack children of the promise But as then he which was after the flesh persecuted him that was borne after the spirit euen so is it now But what saith the scripture put out the seruant and her sonne for the sonne of the seruant shall not bee heire with the sonne of the free woman then wee are not children of the seruant but of the free woman Gal. 4. 2113 Ismael Hagar are expelled Abrahams house Gen. 16. It was sayd vnto Abraham that his seede should be afflicted in a land that is not theirs 400. yeeres and should serue them and they should intreat them euill Now if wee reckon the time of the abode of the children of Israel in Egypt wee shall finde it but 215. yeeres for Iacob goeth into Egypt 185. yeeres after the Promise of the 400. yerees So that they were not in Egypt full 400. yeeres but they were afflicted first and last 400. yeeres For Ismael the Egyptian flowteth Isaack and beginneth the 400. yeere And Pharaoh the Egyptian in the end of 400. yeere afflicteth the Seed of Isaack And as the Seede of Sem were afflicted by Cham 400. yeeres so afterwards about that time were they also afflicted by Iaphet It may be obiected How is Ismael an Egyptian seeing he is of Abraham He is by the mothers side an Egyptian for Hagar was of that countrey And by this exposition it falleth out to bee true Wee haue for to warrant this the like in the storie of the Kings where one being an Egyptian is called of the Kings seed because one of his ancestors married with a wife of Iuda This storie is mentioned in 1. Chro. 2. It is thus said Shesan had no sonnes but daughters and Shesan had a seruant an Egyptian named Iarchthange and Shesan gaue him his daughter to wife In 2. King 25. After that the King of Babell had ouerthrowne Ierusalem he left people in the land of Iuda to til the ground and to exercise manuell trades which were made tributaries and he set Godoliah ruler ouer them Then came Ismael the sonne of Nethaniah to Godoliah to Mizpah And Godoliah sware vnto them that they should not feare to serue the King for by that meanes it should bee well with them and they should dwell with them in the land But in the seuenth moneth Ismael the sonne of Nethaniah the sonne of Elishama of the Kings Seede came and slew Godoliah and he died Heere Ismael which was by his fathers side Iarchthange an Egyptian is called of the Kings seed sixteene ages after because his auncestor Iarchthange married one of Iuda And surely it is likelie by this that the Kings seede was wonderfully decayed when as one by an Egyptian his great Grandfather hauing onely married in Iuda should be called of the blood Royall And without question Shesan was very wicked in despising the glory of the tribe of Iuda which he openly shewed when hee married his daughter to an Egyptian His name in Hebrew answereth to Ismaels manners afterwards for the Hebrewes affirme that Iarchthange is so harsh and lothsome to be pronounced as no word of like tediousnesse in all the Hebrew tongue So likewise Ismaels manerâ— are as detestable as the earth can afford Thus you see how Ismael Abrahams son may rightly be called an Egyptian Sara reasoneth with Abraham concerning the sending away of Hagar and Ismael Shee might haue great cause to bee grieued at the flowting of Ismael For wee may imagine her to haue vsed such like speeches as these haue bin content to haue gone with you from Vr of the Chaldeans from my fathers house mine own kinred Besides the tediousnesse of trauell I haue susteined great vexation and disquietnesse by the feare which I might haue when you went to fight with the foure Kings For my behauiour towards you it hath alwayes bene pleasing My selfe being barren I gaue you my maide that yet by her I might haue children for this euen Hagar despiseth me It had bene better for me to let Eliazar of Damascus haue enioyed the blessing Now God hath sent me a sonne see how hee is flouted Surely if you doe mee right and that which appertaineth to iustice you must driue out this bondwoman and her sonne for this sonne of the bondwoman shall not bee heire with my sonne Isaack This dealing of Sara God approueth and willeth Abraham to heare her voyce though it seeme grieuous to him Heere we see by the mocking of Ismael that the wicked euer persecute the godlie Asa maketh a law that whosoeuer will not seeke the Lord God of Israel shal be slaine The wicked make as seuere lawes But heere is the difference the lawes of the godly are so reasonable that euery one may see presently the equitie of them on the contrarie it is enough in the lawes of the wicked that it is the Kings pleasure or that it satisfies their humors To returne we may gesse that Isaack was fiue yeeres old when Ismael mocked him for otherwise Isaack could not haue perceiued it Ismaels flowting might be after this sort Is this he that shall haue the promise in whom the Nations shall be blessed a goodlie one I warrant you what continuance or strength can there be in him seeing at the time of his birth his father and mother were very old and decayed in strength and yet when he is weaned there must be great feasting and iollie cheere If we consider what an offence it is esteemed if one being a subiect or otherwise inferiour should contumeliously and despightfully taunt and vpbraide the heire apparant to a kingdome we will thinke this an iniurie not sufferable If wee obserue the time when the children of Israel came out of Egypt which was about Easter and that this time of flowting and that time maketh 400. yeeres we shall find that this mocking was likewise about Easter 2126. Sale died Gen. 11. being 514. yeeres olde IOsephus thinketh that Isaack was appointed to be sacrificed at 35. yeeres Codomanus is of opinion that Isaack at this time was offered being now 32.
mother Mary and fleeth into Egypt Mat. 2. And properly putteth meat into the childs mouth 2280. Er and Onan died Gen. 38. ER and Onan hauing committed horrible sinne before God are slaine and no seed left vnto them Then according to the custome Thamar thought to haue had the third sonne Selah to haue raysed vppe seede But Iuda neglecting it shee attyred her selfe like a light woman and lay in the way as Iuda should goe to the sheepe shearing whom Iuda knew and at the time she bare two children Phares and Serah for which fact Iuda would haue burnt her Whereby we may know that before the law giuen by Moses they had the same equitie of iustice for punishing of sinne that they had afterwards In Moses Law a Magistrate might not be condemned vnder three witnesses Thamar condemneth Iuda by three witnesses his Seale Bracelet Staffe From this deede of Iuda we may vnderstand that the prerogatiue That his brethren should praise him could not be meant of himselfe but herein is manifest the gifts of God to be of grace and not of nature For if Iuda had bene rare for godlinesse the prerogatiue of nature might seeme to haue caused Christ to haue come of him 2288. Isaack died Gen. 35. being 180. yeeres old HEe is the longest liuer after Heber and liueth longer then Abraham To shew that he was a child of Promise For if Abraham begetting him when he was old he should haue died quickelie what rare blessing had it beene to Abraham And therefore that the power of God might be seene euen in the weakenesse of man Isaack hath a longer life than Abraham or any after him Heereuppon it may bee concluded the booke of Tobias to bee false because it maketh Tobies life so long and thereby seemeth to crosse Iacobs blessing Besides wee shall finde that in Nehemiahs time they which came out of captiuitie doe out-liue any in the Scriptures that come after and these men were accounted old The longest liuer of them commeth short of Isaacks age Ezrom borne of him nothing is spoken  2298. Iacob goeth into Egypt Gen. 47. Hee is nourished of Ioseph 17. yeeres NOw for this number of 215. how is that performed Genesis 17. where God saith to Abraham Thy seede shal be euill intreated in a land that is not theirs 400. yeeres Seeing they continue in Egypt but 215. yeeres they were afflicted by some of Egypt 400. yeeres For Ismael the Egyptian by Hagar mocketh Isaack in the beginning of the 400. yeeres and that mocking in the Scripture is called persecution and in the end of 400. yeeres they were afflicted vnto the comming out of Egypt so that they were not in Egypt 400. yeeres but they were afflicted first and last 400. yeeres Psal 105. Israel came into Egypt and Iacob was a stranger in the land of Cham to confirme the couenant that he made with Abraham and the oath that he sware vnto Isaack which he appointed to Iacob for a law to Israel for an euerlasting Testament saying Vnto thee will I giue the land of Canaan the lot of your inheritance When as yet there were but a few of them and they strangers in the land what time as they went from one Nation to another and from one kingdome to annother people hee suffered no man to doe them wrong but reprooued euen Kings for their sakes saying touch not mine anointed and doe my Prophets no harme Yet he called for a dearth vpon the land and destroyed all the prouision of bread But hee had sent a man before them Gen. 45. Euen Ioseph which was sold to be a bondseruant whose feet were hurt in the stocks and the yron entred into his soule vntill the time that his cause was knowne The word of the Lord tried him This famine ouer all the land of Canaan may appeare to be a punishment on Iacobs familie for selling Ioseph into Egypt IAcob goeth into Egypt and there telleth Pharaoh that he was 130. yeeres old Though Pharaoh in his demaund meant no more than a heathen man would to wit to know his yeeres and the age of his life Yet God so disposeth Iacobs answere that he signifieth vnto him that his comming into Egypt with seuentie soules is answerable in a contrarie degree to the first scattering of the seuentie families at the building of the tower of Babell In the 4◠yeeres there came three discents from Iacob Whereby it appeareth that Iuda and Pharez could not bee much elder when they begot children than Salomon was when hee begot Roboam which was about twelue yeeres of age By meanes of which speedie encrease there were of these seuentie in 215. yeeres sixe hundred thousand fighting men besides women and children godlie and of the household of faith to shew how God could performe his promise to Abraham that hee would make his seede as the starres of heauen and as the sand of the sea shoare Hereupon Abacuck saith that the counsels of God are eternall thereby teaching vs to marke diligently the time wherein God performeth his promises which may be made familiar by examples in this sort It is said Gen. 3. The seede of the woman shall breake the head of the serpent This was not performed till Christ tooke flesh of the Virgin and became man which was 4000. yeeres wanting but 70. after the promise made to Adam Satan to trie this tempteth Christ and is ouerthrowne Abraham goeth forth of his countrey to embrace the promise that God would giue him a land 430. yeeres before his seede should enioy it But the true performance was long after that is to say in Christ as Zacharias speaketh Luke 1. To performe the oath which he sware to our Father Abraham that would giue vs. God speaketh as though it should presently fall out but seeing one thousand yeres in his sight are as one day we must marke how his counsels are eternall It was spoken in King Achaz dayes by Esay 7.14 Beholde a Virgin shall conceaue a sonne He nor his seed sawe the performance thereof so was Isaack a figure of Christ and the Lambe kept it in memorie Daniel in his time prophesieth of 70. seuens or 490. yeeres before Christ the King should be killed to performe euerie vision and prophecie 2315. Iacob died in Egypt c. Gen. 49. HE is brought from Egypt to Canaan to bee buried in Hebron with Abraham and Isaack as a signe that he looked for the resurrection and enioying of the spirituall Canaan This place Caleb afterwards claimeth for an inheritance when he commeth into the lande for it was the first purchase and a signification of our pilgrimage in this life hauing here no abiding place Now let vs compare the iourneys of Abraham Iacob Iacobs sonnes and Christ together Abraham Iacob Iacobs sonnes Christ Was borne in Mesopotamia Hee goeth to Canaan Hee returneth to Egypt Hee dieth in Canaan Was borne in Canaan Hee goeth to Mesopotamia Hee returneth to Canaan Hee goeth into Egypt Hee is brought
him by faith It is sayd that this commaundement of embracing Christ is the first for if this were not the other were to small purpose Now that the Iewes should not be amazed at sixe hundred and thirteene Lawes seuen weekes betweene their comming out of Egypt and the giuing of the Lawe were allowed them for meditation And yet as they made nothing of the Lambe so Antichrist treadeth vnder foot the sufferings of Christ This Commandement of thy God they brought out of Egypt Clemens Alexandrinus saith That Egypt is a signe of the wicked world therefore euerie man must looke by the Redeemer to bee deliuered And wee must remember Moses Law You shall not doe after the manner of the Nations from whence ye came nor whither you goe Concerning the Ceremonie of Sitting Standing at the Passeouer This is the consent of the Iewes they of fit yeares did sit Those which were young did stand vnlesse they were bidden to sit At the first instituting of the Passeouer the gesture was prescribed being fit for them who were presently with speed to passe away When it is repeated againe when they are in the Land this action is left out Christ sat with his Apostles after the manner of the wild Irish on the ground From this we may gather that it is left to the circumstance of time and place and which fitteth best in discretion the manners and comlinesse of the Countrey Therefore the best is that which the common weale alloweth Fiftie dayes after his ascention Christ sendeth downe his spirit And thereby maketh the preaching of the Gospell equall in maiestie to the giuing of the Law Concerning the day no day is prescribed therefore the Church thought good to appoint the first Sabbath after the full moone For Easter mention is made of the Lords day in the 20. Actes 1. Cor. 16. in cap. 1. The next thing to be handled is the giuing of the Law GOd calleth simple men out of Egypt and willeth them to heare and iudge of his Lawes and telleth them Heare Israel I am the Lord thy God which brought thee out of the land of Egypt c. In this first sentence you haue the Gospell taught in these wordes Thy God For by this is vnderstood the Redemption by Christ For though God in respect that he is Creator is God both of the wicked and the Godlie yet he neuer calleth himselfe The God of the wicked Hitherto is all the Lawe referred For all the prophesies in Christ are Yea and Amen This entrance to the Law by the Gospell is exceeding necessarie For seeing if we behold the infinite maiestie of God in our weaknesse there is no cause but of trembling and feare it pleaseth God in the face of Thy God the Redeemer to shew himselfe fauourable and reconciled whereby we may approch with boldnesse Yet this doctrine of the preaching of the Gospell in the Law hath beene verie much doubted of and hath beene thought erronious But I will aske them Seeing the Law comprehends all righteousnesse and there is no righteousnesse but which is there commanded if to beleeue in Christ which is the Gospell is not there commanded to doe it must needs be sinne And Saint Paul for commaunding beleife in Christ had bene by law lawfully put to death if Moses in his law had not commaunded it All our men which write Catechismes do apply the Sabbath and the Sacraments together so against their wils they confesse that the doctrine of the Sacraments is in the Law Saint Paul if he were demaunded this question would answere to this as Christ himselfe doth The Pharisees demand of Christ Which is the first Commandement He answereth them demandeth another question Whose sonne is the Messias They answere Dauids If he be Dauids sonne how then doth he in spirit call him Lord For if he be his Lord how is he then his sonne And thereupon because the Iewes vnderstood not this he pronounceth against them a great many of Woes This is yet thought doubtfull seeing the Creed hath beene taken for a distinct and diuided thing from the Law But if they marke they shall finde the verie same taught in the Creed which is taught in Heare Israel thy Lord thy God For I beleeue in God the Father Almightie and in Iesus Christ his onely sonne our Lord hath the very same sentence with the former Heare Israel I am the Lord thy God And surely they little know what they teach that doe not in such reference applie the Lawe and the Gospell together God deliuereth the Law in this sort I Am the Lord thy God which with a mightie hand and stretched-out arme shewing my wonders in the land of Egypt haue brought thee out of bondage It is therefore reason that seeing I onely haue done these things for you that you reuerence no Gods but me And seeing I neuer shewed my selfe in any bodily apparance and the Creatures doe but in a sort expresse my infinite power and wisedome it is reason that you should not after the manner of the Nations which I destroy make any image to represent my glory And seeing that hee hath commaunded Holinesse because he himselfe is Holy therefore we must take heed of foolish and vaine calling and talking of the name of God Now for as much as these things may the better be considered hee hath appointed a day of Rest that thereby calling to mind the Creation the fall and restoring we may sanctifie the Lord in our soules And hath appointed it the seuenth day because we should keepe in memorie how God rested from Creating and thereby learne that the true knowledge hereof is the Rest and life of the soule But seeing these things cannot be done without mainteining of policie therefore it is commanded that their should bee honour giuen to Superiors as to Fathers and loue performed by them to subiects as to children which is preserued if Murther Adulterie Theft False witnesse and an vniust desire of thâ— which is not ours be auoided These Lawes are so certaine and plaine that the heart of the simplest cannot but acknowledge them righteous For they may see likewise how one commaundement dependeth of another as lincks of a golden chaine The Cabalists say that these lawes were giuen to man for the sinne of the serpent that is to say not for vs to accomplish for wee cannot attaine thereto but to shew vnto vs how farre the infection of that venome hath carried vs away from that duetie which God requireth of vs which end of the lawe is greatly enlightned into vs by the comming of the Messias in that he teacheth vs that the Lawe is not satisfied with an outward and Pharisaicall obedience by hypocrisie but by the vncorrupt obedience of the heart and by the acknowledgement of our disobedience And Moses and the Prophets commaunded circumcision of heart the offering of prayse and obedience and to abstaine from vnhallowing the Sabbath day with vnrighteousnesse therefore the seruice which
must cast to end iust with the death of Christ or else howe doth Christ according to Daniel the 9. end the ceremonie oblation and the wisedom of God hath taken such order that where the Scripture seemeth to leaue off to reckon there the heathen keepe a iust account nothing at all crossing Daniels Seuens For the Iubilee which the Iewes and Romanes obserue there is no colour of Religion in it nor warrant in Moses for them Therefore we leaue them to obloquie as not worth the handling amongst the rest of their grosse errours which they against Scripture foolishly maintaine 2611. Aod Eightie yeares HE was of the Tribe of Beniamin The Children of Israel committed wickednesse in the sight of the Lord and the Lord strengthned Eglon King of Moab against Israel But when they cryed vnto the Lord hee stirred them vp a Sauiour Aod the Sonne of Gera the Sonne of Beniamin a man lame of his right hand and the Children of Israel sent a present by him vnto Eglon King of Moab and Aod made a sharpe Dagger and carried it priuily and when he had deliuered the Present he thrust it into him and killed him and they slue the same day ten Thousand Moabites so Moab was subdued vnder the hand of Israel and the Land had rest Fourescore yeares Iudg. 3. 2671. Eglon oppresseth Eighteen yeares Iudg. 3.  2691. Baracke and Deborah Fortie yeares Baracke was of Nephtali and Deborah of Ephraim THe Children of Israel began againe to doe wickedly in the the sight of the Lord when Aod was dead and the Lord sold them into the hand of Iabin King of Canaan whose cheefe Captaine was called Sisera Then they cryed vnto the Lord For Sisera had Nine hundred yron Chariots and Twentie yeares hee had vexed them And at that time Deborah a Prophetesse the wife of Lapidoth iudged Israel And shee called vnto her Baracke the Sonne of Abinoam and she went with Baracke to Kedesh against Sisera and the Lord destroyed Sisera and all his Chariots at the waters of Maggeddon in the Reuelation the ouerthrow of Antichrist is compared to the ouerthrow of Sisera at Mageddon Then sange Deborah and Barack the same day saying Praise ye the Lord for auenging of Israel c. to the last verse of the Chapter So let thine enemies perish O Lord but they that loue him shall be as the Sunne when he riseth in his might and the Land had rest Fortie yeares Here is perfourmed Gen. 49. Where Iacob blessing Nephtali saith Hee shall bee a Hinde let goe giuing goodly words Hee was in the pursute of Sisera as swift as a Hinde and gaue goodly words with Deborah Iudg. 5. 2711. Sisera oppresseth Twentie yeares Obed of Ruth IN the time that the Iudges ruled there was a dearth in the Land and a man of Bethelem in Iuda went for to soiourne in the Country of Moab The name of the man was Elimelech and the name of his wife was Naomi and his two Sonnes Mahlon and Chilion Ephrathites of Bethlehem and they came into the Countrey of Moab and continued there and they tooke wiues of the Moabites the name of the one was Ophrath and the name of the other Ruth and so read through the first and second Chapters of the Booke of Ruth We haue the like commendation of Ruth that is spoken of Abraham That she left her Father and Mother and the Land where she was borne and came into a people whome shee knewe not in times past And withall she is blessed in these words The Lord recompence thy worke and a full reward be giuen thee of the Lord God of Israel vnder whose winges thou art come to trust Ruth 2. So Booz tooke Ruth and she was his wife and the Lord gaue that she conceiued a Sonne and called his name Obed the same was the Father of Iessay the Father of Dauid Ruth 4. In that Christ chooseth to come of Rahab of Cham of Ruth of Moab he purposed not to come into the world by the prerogatiue of nature or as the Iewes looked he should come in most tryumphant sort but by grace offering grace to Cham recompencing the loue of Lot to Abraham and opening the eyes of all the Gentiles in the world and causing the dumbe Nations that knewe not that the seed of the woman should breake the Serpents head to speake the prayses of God in their owne tongue Againe if his Parents had been from time to time of vertuous life vnspotted as many of them were the woonderfull graces of Christ would haue been attributed vnto the generalitie of his Fathers But hee preuented euerie obiection that the peeuish vnbeleeuing Pharisees might imagine by comming of such as the Iewes held as vncleane before God 2731. Gedeon Fortie yeares Gedeon Baracke Sampson Iephte Dauid Samuel and the Prophets obtained promises but receiued not the promise Heb. 11. AGaine the Children of Israel committed wickednesse in the sight of the Lord and the Lord gaue them into the hands of Madian Seuen yeares so Israel was exceedingly impouerished by the Madianites Therefore they cryed vnto the Lord and when they cryed the Lord sent a Prophet vnto them who sayd vnto them Thus saith the Lord God of Israel I haue brought you vp from Egipt and haue brought you out of the house of bondage and I said vnto you feare not the Gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell but you haue not obeyed my voice And Gedeon of the Tribe of Ephraim was threshing of wheat to hide it from the Madianites Then the Angell of the Lord appeared vnto him and sayd The Lord is with thee thou valiant man And the Lord looked vpon him and sayd vnto him Goe in this thy might and and thou shalt saue Israel out of the handes of the Madianites Haue not I sent thee The multitude of the Madianites and the Amalekites and all they of the East lay in the valley like Grashoppers and there Camels were without number as the sand by the sea-shore But Gedeon with three Hundred destroyed the Madianites To shew that victorie consisteth not in strength of men or multitude of Camels but in God who giueth the Victorie For at the sounding of Gedeons Trumpet the enemies ranne and cryed and fledde and the Lord caused them to kil one another Thus was Midian brought lowe before the Children of Israel so that they lift vp their heads no more and the Countrey was in quietnesse fortie yeares in the dayes of Gedeon This Gedeon had Seuentie Sonnes begotten of his bodie for hee had many wiues and he had a Sonne by a Concubine whose name was Abimelech So Gedeon died in a good age and was buried in the Sepulchre of Ioash his Father in Ophrath Read the 6 7 and 8 Chapters of Iudges Madian oppresseth Seuen yeares  2771. Abimelech Three yeares the Sonne of Gedeon of the Tribe of Ephraim When Gedeon was dead the children of Israel turned away and went a whoring after Baalim
reckoned not according to their age but according to their dignitie as Gen. 5. The Sonnes of Noah Sem Cham Iaphet are so rehearsed that in the first place there is mention made of Sem who for all that was not the first borne neither could be borne in the Fiue hundreth yeare of Noah sith two yeares after the flood in which yeare hee begat Arphachsad hee was but an Hundreth yeares old Now the first of this opinion whome I follow was Caluine that most famous Doctor of the Church of Geneua who in his Commentaries vpon Gen. 11.27 expresseth it in plaine words Him followed Beroaldus who did much in the illustrating of time and Mangoldus This demonstration is set downe Act. 7. Abraham is sayd to goe out of Haran after his Father Terah died Now Terah liued Two hundred and fiue yeares And Abram went out of Haran in the Seuentie and fiue yeare of his age which yeeres if you subtract from Terahs age there remaines One hundred and thirtie yeares in which Abrams natiuitie falleth The same may be confirmed by Sarahs age Abrams wife who is thought to be the Daughter of Abrams Brother Abram exceeded her no more but Ten yeeres wherevpon it followeth that hee was borne long after him that was both his brother and father in law Abram therefore was called and began his peregrination in the Two thousand Eightie and fourth yeare of the world the verie same day that his posteritie went out of Egypt namely the Fifteenth of Nisan as it is sayd in Exod. 12. The third ioynct of this first time which containeth the diuine couenant of Abraham endeth in the yeare when the law was giuen in which the Israelites by the goodnesse of God were brought forth and deliuered out of Egypt by many and strange miracles This containeth foure Hundred and Thirtie yeres which is confirmed by the testimonie of Saint Paul who expresly sayth Gal. 3.17 That the Law began foure Hundred and Thirtie yeares after the confirming of the couenant or testament And concerning the confirmation of which couenant he speaketh he expresseth in that which went before namely of that same which was made when being called of God he went out of Haran For in vers 8. he cyteth the same promise In thee shall all the nations of the earth be blessed which Gen. 12. is rehearsed in the narration of his calling Vers 3. Hetherto also it appertaineth which is written Exod. 12. Vers 40. The peregrination of the children of Israel as learnedly and truely translateth that worthy man Beroaldus which they dwelt in Egypt was Foure Hundred and Thirtie yeares Which surely the Seuentie Interpreters so translate that they account the peregrination of the Fathers made in the Land of Canaan in this dwelling Neither doth the place of Gen. 15. Vers 13. concerning the seed of Abram to be aflicted foure Hundred yeares hinder it For Abrahams peregrination is to be deriued from his calling and his seed began to be afflicted when Isaack the Sonne of promise borne fiue and twentie yeares after his calling being a childe peraduenture of fiue yeares old suffered the scoffings of Ismael borne of the hand mayd which surely the Apostle Gal. 4.29 expressely nameth persecution Adde hereunto the rest which Isaack and Iacob suffered amonge strangers Now that time wherein the Israelites abode in Egipt that it is farre wide of foure Hundred yeeres is cleerer than the light at noone day to them which consider that Kaath the Son of Leui went downe into Egipt and liued One Hundred Thirtie and Three yeares and that his Son Amram liued one hundred thirtie and seuen yeres Exod. 6. and that Moses his Sonne was Eightie yeares old when he went out of Egipt All which make but Three hundred and Fiftie yeares and if from these those yeares bee subduced which they liued after their Sonnes were borne the yeares remayning would be few But these things Doctor Berwildus and others haue learnedly set forth Those notable men Bullinger Phlinspachius Scaanger and others agree vnto it It is sayd that Terah being Seuentie yeares old begetteth Abram Haran and Nachor The Iewes say That Abraham was the eldest but thereby they bring notable absurdities for they agree that Sara was Harans Daughter she is but Ten yeres yonger than Abram and then Abram being elder than Haran and yet married his daughter but Ten yeares younger than her husband Haran must needes beget her at Nine yeares of age which is impossible Therefore it is certaine that Nachor and Haran were elder than Abram For if wee looke to Gen. 12. and consider that Abram being Seuentie and fiue yeares old receiued the promise and to Saint Stephens Oration Act 7. by which it appeareth that Terah was dead before Abram had the promise or else the promise might haue had a reference to Terah as well as to Abram we shall by good Arithmeticke cast Terah at the birth of Abram to be One hundred and thirtie yeares old for take Seuentie and fiue yeres out of two hundred and fiue which is the time that Terah liued and there remaineth One hundred and thirtie the age of Terah when he begat Abram To enlarge this further If Abram had beene the eldest Sem would not haue giuen him the blessing for then hee should haue died before Sem and men doe not giue their inheritance to their Sonnes which die in their life but hee would rather haue kept it for Isaack with whom he liued Fiftie yeres This may be made plaine by another of the same sort Rebecca being with child and they both striuing in her womb asketh counsell what should become of her The question is of whom Sem being dead it is manifest either of Heber or of Abraham Thus you may see that without the knowledge of the times wee could not auoid these errors 2018. Sara borne She is thought to bee Iiscah the daughter of Haran and so she is for Abraham calleth Lot brother which could not be but in respect of mariage For Lot was the Sonne of Haran and brother to Iiscah Therefore in that meaning Abram speaketh truely Sara is the same in signification that Iiscah is For Sarah signifieth Queene so doth Iiscah her name was afterwards called Sarai that is My Queene You haue a verie easie reckoning of the times if you beginne at Sarahs Fifteenth yeare of age when she was fit as it were to be a Tabernacle for Abraham These comparisons prooue the prouidence of God to be plaine and his counsels easie From Sarahs Fifteene yeares of age to the building of Moses Tabernacle 480 From thence to the Building of Salomons Temple 480 Third of Cyrus when the proclamation went forth for building the second Temple 480 Gouernement of Poncius Pilate in whose time Christ did build his spirituall Temple 480 The promise is giuen to Abraham That is Christ is promised to Abraham after the flesh Gen. 12. Foure hundred and thirtie yeres before the giuing â—f the law The promise to
that married one of Iuda The story whereof hath beene mentioned before in the storie of Ismael the Egyptian The Iewes call themselues Hebrewes to keepe the storie of Heber in remembrance Concerning Moses education God so prouideth that hee is brought vp for the sonne of Pharaohs daughter He is instructed in all the learning of the Egyptians which was the Mathematicks and other humane arts The ouerflowing of Nilus compelled them to be skilfull in Astronomie His Arithmeticke and Geometrie is apparant in the Tabernacle and things therein appointed For though God gaue him instructions yet it could not be that hee should performe them without taking great delight in the proportions themselues which could not bee without great skill in the arte In the candlesticke the Iewes reckon fortie two peeces sixe seuens so you haue in this proportion the remembrance of the Creation and of the Sabbath and of those holy men who were speciall Seuens Basile in his Treatise vppon the Creation affirmeth that there was one to wit Moses the seuenth from Abraham vppon whom after a sort the Iewes should depend God giueth likewise to the heathen the knowledge of these things that thereby looking to the Creation they may admire his eternall wisedome and worship him as Creator And Moses himselfe so layeth them downe that a heathen by his skill in these arts may vnderstand the reason of them The summe of all is God saueth the world by Christ and vseth all humane knowledge as a seruant to teach the Redemption by Christ So Saint Paul speaketh in the acts that all his doctrine was nothing but Moses and the Prophets and their 's nothing but Christ In that sence likewise the Greeke tongue perteineth to Christ Moses knew that hee should bee a deliuerer and therefore seeing an Egyptian misvsing an Israelite hee killeth him Afterwards hee seeth two Hebrewes striuing together and hee commeth to them and telleth them they are brethren why then should they bee at variance They vpbraide him with the slaughter of the Egyptian Hee thought they would haue knowne him their deliuerer But hearing that this was knowne hee fleeth into the land of Madian Of this Saint Paul speaketh in the Epistle to Hebrewes cap. 11. By faith Moses refused to bee called the sonne of Pharaohs daughter and chose rather to suffer affliction with his brethren than to enioy the pleasures of sinne which last but for a season Thus Moses at fortie yeeres old sheweth himselfe a true Christian Hee marrieth Zephora Marie shee despiseth her because shee was of Chush but indeed she was of Abraham by Keturah for Madian one of her sonnes ouerrunneth Chush and so inioyeth the blessing by being of Abraham that Cham should be a seruant of seruants to Sems posteritie Therefore Zephora not inferiour to Marie Maries sinne for despising her was very great yea though it were of ignorance But if shee knew her generation and then through malice contemned her her sinne was so much the greater But whether shee vsed her ill of malice or ignorance wee cannot tell this wee may be sure of her sinne was haynous in the sight of God therefore shee was a leaper Moses ordeined of God to feed Israel was now a shepheard and kept the sheepe of his father in lawe Iethro Duke of Madian where Christ appeared to him in a flame of fire in a bush of thornes who afterwardes in the dayes of his flesh hauing fulfilled Moses and conquered Satan is crowned whith a crowne of thornes euen with the same kinde of plant wherein hee appeared when hee called Moses Cle. Alexandrius Philo a Iewe is verie vsuall in the comparison betweene a shepheard and a King And Homer maketh King Agammenon the shepheard of the people For as sheepe will followe headlong through the gappe which the first brake though it bee euen to their perishing so is the rage of the people strengthned by errour and blindnesse of their nature Thus you see the plainesse and sweetnesse for pleasure of these fortie yeares Moses after this is sent by God to Pharaoh with an Ambassage which hee confirmeth by diuers miracles whereof Pharaohs Enchaunters did some the like This is applyed of Saint Paul against the Antichristian Heretickes as Iannes and Iambres resisted Moses so they resisted the truth but their madnesse shall bee made manifest to all men as theirs was 2. Tim. 3. Pharaoh is plagued with Ten seuerall Plagues The First plague The waters are turned into blood for Seuen dayes that they might bee punished for the death of the children which Pharaoh caused to be drowned in the Riuer that they might knowe that wherein one sinneth therein hee shall be punished The Second plague Frogges are ouer all the Land of Egipt The Antichrists haue spirits like Frogges The Third plague The dust bringeth Lice This the Magitians of Pharaoh could not doe here their madnesse is made knowne They cry that Moses wrought by the finger of God That Christ vseth against the Egyptia call pharisees Mat. 12. If I by the finger of God cast out Diuels c. The Fourth plague Sundrie Swarmes of diuers Vermine plague the Egiptians So Ap. 9. the Antichristian Idolatrers are likened to Scorpions are plagued with stinges of Scorpions The Fifth plague The Egiptians Beasts die of the Plague So Ap. 16. the Romane beast both causeth plague and is plagued The Sixt Plague Byles are vpon the Egyptians men and beasts So Ap. 16. sore and grieuous byles are vppon those that beare the name of the beast and worship his Image The Seuenth Plague Hayle and fire falleth vpon man and beast and on the grasse in the field So Ap. 18. In the rising of the Antichrist is haile and fire mixed with blood and in Ap. 16. great haile falleth vpon man so that men blaspheme God for the stroke of the haile The Eight Plague Locusts are ouer all Egypt So Ap. 9. out of the smoke of Papistrie went forth Locusts ouer all the earth The Ninth plague The Egiptians were Three dayes in darkenesse So Ap. 16. the Kingdome of the Beast is made darke and they bite their tongues for sorrow and blaspheme the God of heauen but doe not repent them of their workes The Tenth plague The Fourteenth day of Nisan in euerie house of the Egiptians some one is slaine So Ap. 19. a greater slaughter and more generall so that all the fowles of the ayre are called to take the Carkasses By Faith they ordayned the Passeouer and the effusion of blood least he that destroyed the first borne should touch them Heb. 11. Christ our Passeouer is offered for vs therefore let vs keepe the Feast 1. Cor. 5. Now follovveth the deliuerance out of Egipt Moses bringeth Israel out of Egipt Exod. 12. FOure hundred and thirty yeres after the promise giuen to Abraham as Exod. 12. when the foure hundred and thirtie yeares were expired euen the selfe-same day departed all the host of the Lord out of the Land of Egipt This foure
hundred hath relation to the time that Ismael and Hagar were expelled Abrahams house for Ismaels flowting of Isaack Here is the performance of Gods promise to Abraham Gen. 15. Thy seede shall be in a strange Land foure hundred yeares but the people whome they shall be in bondage to will I iudge saith God Which was made plaine in the ten plagues of Egipt and in the ouerwhelming of Pharaoh and his Chariots in the red sea as Exod. 14. and Psal 78. Maruailous things did the lord in the sight of our Fathers in the land of Ham euen in the field of Zoan he diuided the Sea and let them go through he made the waters to stand on an heap and led forth his people like sheep and carried them in the wildernesse like a flocke And Psal 114. When Israel came out of Egipt and the house of Iacob from among the strange people Iudah was his Sanctuarie and Israel his Dominion The Sea sawe that and fledde Iordan was driuen back this was performed at the beginning of the Law The Mountaines skipped like Rams and the litle hils like yong sheep c. And Psal 105. Egipt was glad at their departure for they were affraid of them And Psa 106. He rebuked the Red Sea and it was dryed vp he led his people through the deepe as through a wildernesse As for those that troubled them the waters ouer-whelmed them and there was not one of them left Then the children of Israel beleeued his words and sange praise vnto him But within a while they forgat his workes and would not abide his counsell but lust came vpon them in the wildernesse and they tempted God in the desert And Psa 78. They forgat what he had wrought in Egipt and his wonders in the field of Zoan How he led them in the day with a cloud and all the night through with a pillar of fire Hee claue the hard Rockes in the wildernesse and gaue them drinke thereof hee brought waters out of the Stonie Rocke so that it gushed out like the Riuers But they prouoked the most highest in the wildernesse and tempted God in their harts saying Shall God prepare a table in the wildernesse He smote the stonie Rocke indeed and the streames flowed withall but can he giue bread also or prouide flesh for his people wherewith the Lord was wroth so hee rained downe Manna from heauen So man did eate Angels food for hee sent them meat ynough At their desire he brought quailes and hee filled them with the bread of heauen hee rayned flesh vppon them as thicke as dust and feathered fowles as the sands of the sea he let it fall amonge their tents euen round about their habitation so they did eat and were filled for hee gaue them their owne desire they were not disappointed of their lust but while the meat was in their mouths the heauie wrath of God came vppon them and slue the wealthiest of them and smote downe the chosen men that were in Israel But for all this they sinned yet more Againe psal 106. They angred Moses in their Tents and Aaron the Saint of the Lord. So the earth swallowed vp Dathan and couered the congregation of Abiram and the fire was kindled in their companie the flame burnt vp the vngodly They made a Calfe in Horeb and worshipped the moulten Image Thus they turned the glorie of God into the similitude of a Calfe that eateth hay So he sayd he would haue destroyed them had not Moses his chosen stand before him in the gappe to turne away his wrathfull indignation yea they thought scorne of that pleasant Land and gaue no credence to his words but murmured in their Tents they ioyned themselues with Baal Peor and eat the offerings of the dead Thus still they prouoked God vnto anger with their inuentions and the plague was great amonge them But Phinees stoode vp and prayed and the plague ceased and that was counted to him for righteousnesse throughout all posterities for euer They angred him also at the waters of strife so that he punished Moses for their sakes because they prouoked his spirite so that he spake vnaduisedly with his lips Neuerthelesse he thought vpon his couenant and pitied them according to the multitude of his mercies as appeareth 2. Esdr 9 Thou camest downe vpon Sinay and spakest to them from heauen and gauest them right iudgements true Lawes good Commandements and Statutes and declaredst vnto them thy holy Sabbath and commaundedst them Precepts Ordinances and Lawes by the hand of Moses thy seruant and gauest them bread from heauen when they were hungry and broughtest forth water out of the Rocke for them when they were thirstie and promisedst them that they should goe in and take and possesse the Land but they were proude and became obstinate and heady but God forgaue them and was gracious and mercifull patient and of great goodnesse and forsook them not although they made a moulten Calfe and said These are our Gods that brought vs out of the Land of Egipt and did speake blasphemously yet hee forsooke them not in the wildernesse according to his great mercie Fortie yeares long made he prouision for them in the wildernesse so that they lacked nothing their clothes waxed not old and their feete swelled not In this Fortie yeares of their being in the wildernesse many things are to be vnderstood God chose these Forty that all the world might knowe of the Redemption by Christ It standeth of Foure Tens This time is made more famous by the Storie wherein a speciall thing is to be obserued that in all these Forty yeres you haue but three yeares storie and a halfe And thus it is cast One yeare is spent in the Tabernacle halfe a yeare after the Spies are sent to view the Land Vpon their Storie God sweares that they shall not enter into his rest From thence you haue no Storie till the two last yeares of the conquest of Ob and of Maries death This one would not thinke of if the bare Storie did not compell him For comparison with this three yeares and a halfe I will speake more hereafter You haue in the wildernesse the Lambe which represented Christ and Manna which Christ expounds in Ioh. 6. I am the true bread that came from heauen Your Fathers did eat Manna and are dead hee that eateth of this bread shall liue for euer The Rock signified Christ The lifting vp of the Serpent his death Balaam he prophecieth of Christ There shall come a Starre from Iacob and a Scepter shall rise from Israel Kittim and Assur shall afflict Heber but they also shall come to destruction at the last This prophecie begins in the sixt yeare of Ezechias THe time was in the Moneth Abib which Moneth containeth part of March and part of Aprill The Seuentie Interpreters call it Tanda the Moneth of greene blades for about this time of the yeare corne beginneth to shew it selfe aboue the ground Their yeare before
If you demaund by what words in Moses it may be gathered that hee sawe the Reuelation I answere it is prophecied in Balaams prophecie Num. 24. That Kittim shall afflict Heber but he shall perishin in the end So there vnder the terme of Kittim the Italians afflicting the Church of God vnto the end of the world are signified So by this wee see the generalitie of this rule that Moses saw the summe of saluation for he saw the fall and restoring of Adam the destruction of the world by the flood how the families fell away in flowting Sem and their curse by their scattering and the calling of the heathen I will prouoke you by a foolish Nation and by those who are not my people This sentence out of Deut. 13. Saint Paul cyteth Rom. 10. to prooue that the Gentiles likewise were elected and should bee called in the time appointed Amongst the Iewes Moses was had in such reuerence that they haue cast all his sentences into numbers for whereas wee vse figures they vse the Hebrew letters and so exactly that if any letter or vowell be either added or left out they can presently tell Withall they are so perfect that they will tell where their Prophets tooke from Moses By this obseruation Sanctus Pagninus giueth a rule that the truth of the Scriptures will neuer appeare in her right cleerenesse neither by the Latine translation nor by the exposition of the Fathers for the Latine it is not agreeable with the Hebrew For the Fathers because the most of them are verie ignorant in the storie therfore many things they expound by allegories which should by storie and euent be manifested so to haue come to passe As where Iacob prophecying of Iudah Gen. 49. describeth the pleasantnesse and fertilitie of the soyle by these circumstances Hee shall wash his garments in wine and his mantle in the blood of grapes The Fathers make an Allegorie of this and apply it to the passion of Christ but of what force is this exposition against the Turke Now followeth to be handled the standings in the Wildernesse THere were two and fortie Standings in the Wildernesse Wee must obserue that it is not lawfull to frame Allegories out of our own braine for it is ynough for vs to embrace those which the scripture hath laide downe We must further note that the plaine expounding of a storie is no allegorie And when we shall finde things diuers times repeated we must know that it is done to this end that we might the better remember our owne estate and therefore they are directions vnto vs. This is prooued by Saint Paul in the Epistle to the Corinthians where hee calleth these Standings in the Wildernesse a stampe of our owne nature This may serue for an introduction into the treatise following The text noteth that where the cloude stood still there they pitched their Tents In the mention of these Standings in Numbers there be some places rehearsed which are not repeated in the former description to wit in Exodus We may not gather from hence any contrarietie but we must learne that those places which are not repeated again are some little Townes or Villages hard by as well knowne as the other and as it were the verie same and then it is free to vse the one or the other The Standings are Two and Fortie for comparison with these you haue Two and Fortie bowles knobs and flowers in the Candlesticke of the Tabernacle 42 Of Omri Sonnes slaine 42 Children destroyed by Beares 42 Generations of Christs kindred from Abraham Saint Augustine saith that the numbers in the Scripture containe rare and excellent matters euen the rudest of them This opinion of Saint Augustine in this number of Two and Fortie will prooue true For this Two and Fortie consisteth of sixe Seuens which number of Sixe and of Seuen keepeth in memorie the Creation By this the Nations are compelled to admire the wisedome of God in the Creation for they could not thinke that it came by chaunce that there should bee iust Two and Fortie Standings in the Wildernesse and no more Iob sayth of God O thou that doest order all my steps And if in our life we meditate on these Two and Fortie Standings we will endeuour to auoid the like sins which the Israelites coÌ„mitted in the Wildernesse least wee be ouertaken with their punishments The place was diuers and variable sometimes pleasant and sometimes vnpleasant so is it with vs in our life and in this we see our pilgrimage resembled If we consider the place it selfe it was the fittest for to teach all Nations from this storie the true Religion seeing they were either borderers or came thither On the one side was Ismael called also Pharan on the other side Esau named also Iumea By it Madian where Moses tooke his wife Sinay also where the Lawe was giuen Iacobs Sonnes dwelt thereabout Arabia was neere which Saint Paul in the Galathians calleth a mixed Nation Naâ—ors twelue Kings thereabouts Moab and Ammon there This in generall for the place Now follow the Standings THe first Station was Ramesis which signifieth Wormes This is handled where we are admonished not to lay vp our treasure in this life where wormes and rust consume but in heauen where these things annoy vs not 2. Station Succhoth Which signifieth poore Cottages so is euerie ones state in this life 3. Etham Which signifieth Hard ground so was their state The Lord there went before them by day in a pillar of a cloude to lead them the way and in a pillar of fire in the night to giue them light Exod. 13. This fauourable dealing of the Lord Esay applyeth vniuersally to the Church saying The Lord will make vpon euery dwelling house of Mount Sion that is vpon all the assemblies of it A Cloud for the day time and a smoke and brightnesse and a flame of fire for the night Es 44. Ap. 10. Christ the mightie Angell hath his feet in a pillar of fire 4. Piahiroth Which signifieth Contention There Egypt stroue with Israel and they murmured against Moses whereof the name was afterwards giuen to that place They goe thorough the red Sea the seuenth day of vnleauened bread as the Iewes hold with one consent By faith they passed through the red Sea as by drie land which when the Egiptians assayed they were drowned Heb. 11. Our Fathers were all vnder the cloud and all passed through the Red Sea and were all baptised vnto Moses in the Sea 1. Cor. 10. 5. Marah Which signifieth Bitternesse There they could find no waters to drinke for the waters were bitter therefore the place was called Marah and they murmured against Moses as Saint Paul testifieth Let vs not murmure as some of them murmured and were destroyed of the destroyer 1. Cor. 10.10 The next is Elim Grace Where were Twelue Fountaines of waters and Seuentie Palme trees Thus we see that none can come to Elim Grace but first they must abide pouertie
Chams house and yet God of his especiall grace gaue her the light of his countenance and was mercifull vnto her because she beholding the impieties of the vncleane Cities of Canaan and their reward and the Storie of Lots wife which no doubt was famous the loathsome life of the Egyptians and their plagues embraced the Couenant to Abraham and the oath that hee sware vnto Isaack The manners of these Egyptians are expressed by the woman in the Gospell which had her daughter possessed with a Deuill Christ telleth her that it is not lawfull to take the Childrens bread and to cast it to Dogges As if Christ should say Moses in his lawes and religion hath cut you off like Dogges to whome precious things must not bee throwne and therefore I am not in mercie to regard you She answereth It is true Lord that wee are cursed and by Moses law cut off from saluation and it is likewise true that wee are not the Children yet wee see that the little Dogs eat of the crummes which fall from the Childrens table And Moses himselfe hath a law that if any will learne the Religion of Iuda hee shall be admitted so that yet there is some hope for the Dogs Goe thy way saith Christ thy faith hath saued thee And no doubt as this poore womans daughter was possessed with a Deuill in bodie so the mindes of the Egyptians had many Deuils seeing they were full of superstition witchcraft and coniuring They worshipped one Ammon a Deuill yet there were many of Chams house saued This I inferre because Rahab was of Cham. And this opinion is confirmed by her Storie who was saued when Iericho was destroyed Shee telleth the Spies I knowe that the Lord hath giuen you the Land for we haue heard how the Lord dryed vp the Redde Sea before you for the Lord your God hee is the God in heauen aboue and in the earth beneath thereby shewing that she embraced the promise made to Abraham that in his seede all Nations in the earth should bee blessed It is testified of both these women that their faith did saue them The Lord likewise in the dayes of his flesh went into Iericho the Citie of Rahab long agoe accursed 2610. The first Iubilee IT hath his name from Iobal a Horne because in the beginning of the Feast trumpets of Rammes hornes were to bee blowne and thereby the yeare was proclaimed It was the Fiftieth yeare after the setling the people in the Land as Leuit. 25. You shall reckon to you seuen Seuens of yeares and the Fiftieth shall be a yeare of Iubilee c. And it was to be kept solemnely vntill the death of Christ The cause of keeping it was to put them in minde of the great victories which God had giuen them ouer their enemies in the Land of Canaan so that by this ceremonie likewise the Redemption by the conquest of Christ ouer our spirituall enemie which the yeare of Iubilee signified was also proclaymed For if they considered the promise made to Abraham concerning this Land and their deliuerance out of Egypt being in bondage and how they were placed in the Land by Iesus their Captaine the death of Christ which deliuered them from the snares and bondage of the Deuill must needes bee made plaine vnto them Iobal doth signifie Ioyfull In it all Lands that were bought of any of the Tribes was to returne to the old Possessor then all prisoners were set at libertie Figuring that ioyfull yeare of the Lord wherein we should be freed from the bondage of Satan wherof Esay speaketh He shall heale the broken heart and bring the gladsome tidings of the Lord Iustice shal be the girdle of his loynes and faithfulnesse the girdle of his reynes then the Woolfe shall dwell with the Lambe and the Leopard shall lye with the Kidde and the Calfe and the Lion and the fatte beast and a little Chila shall lead them the sucking Child shall play vppon the hole of the Aspe and the wayned Child shall lay his hand vppon the Cockatrice hole then shall none hurt nor destroy in the mountaine of mine holynesse for the earth shall bee full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters that couer the Sea Es 11. The meaning is that the prophane beasts of the world which nowe know not Christ shall in this ioyfull yere be lightned with the brightnesse of his glorie and shall reioyce and be glad for so great saluation and shall be members of one head Christ Iesus louing one another as Christians whose ioy is expressed verie largely in the 35. of Esay The desert and the Wildernesse shall reioyce and the wast ground shall flourish as a Rose it shall flourish aboundantly and shall greatly reioyce also and ioy the glorie of Lebanon shall be giuen vnto it the beautie of Charmell and of Sharon they shall see the glory of the Lord and the excellencie of our God strengthen the weake hands and comfort the feeble knees say vnto them that are fearefull Be stronge feare not behold your God commeth euen God with a recompence will come and saue you then shall the eyes of the blinde be lightned and the eares of the deafe be opened then shall the lame man leape as an Hart and the dumbe mans tongue shall singe for in the Wildernesse shall water breake out and riuers in the desart and euerlasting ioy shall bee vppon their heads they shall obtaine ioy and gladnesse and sorrow and mourning shall flye away To returne to the obseruation of the time of the Iubilee Moses saith You shall reckon to you seuen Seuens of yeares and the Fiftiet◠shall bee a Iubilee Leuit. 25. Wherein wee may behold the wonderfull prouidence of God for them so long as they kept his Sabbaths for the Nine and fortieth yeare did yeeld corne for three yeares No doubt this must needs make the Nations astonished to see that the Children of Israel had such a God as could in one yeare giue them corne for three yeares so that they should neither sowe nor reape when themselues had scarce corne with great labour for one yeare Amos in his prophecie findeth great fault with those which hoard vp corne and pronounceth a woe vnto them for so doing But wee are to vnderstand that when the Israelites neglected their Sabbaths and forgot the great benefites they had receiued becomming Idolatrers and polluted with the abhominations of the land into which they came their ioy was turned into sadnesse and their Iubilees vnto their destructiō For in the seuenteenth Iubilee they hauing despised the prouidēce of God they haue Sedechias a most wicked King set ouer them and in Iehoiakims time they are carried quite away into Babylon and there are as dead bones for Seuentie yeares vntill the land had payd her owne Sabbaths which they had omitted when they dwelt vpon it Therefore wee are to note that wee shall neuer keepe our religion easie and plaine but by casting the Iubilees right which we
groues and high places prophaned the name of the mightie God of Iacob Whose sin saith the Prophet Ieremie c. 17. is written with a pen of iron and with the point of a Diamond grauen vpon the table of their hearts and vpon the hornes of their Altars They shall serue their enemies in the land which they know not for they haue kindled a fire in the Lords anger which shal burne for euer saith the Lord. For where the Lord said Take heede to your soules and beare no burthen on the sabbath day nor bring it in by the gates of Ierusalem but sanctifie the sabbath as I commanded your fathers they obeyed not neither inclined their eares but said desperately surely we will walke after our owee imaginations and doe euery man according to the stubbornnes of his wicked heart Therefore thus saith the Lord The Virgin of Israel hath done very filthily will a man forsake the snowe of Lebanon which commeth from the rocke or shall the cold flowing waters that come from an other place be forsaken I shall scatter them with an East winde before the enemie and I will shew them the backe and not the face in the day of their destruction their children shall be deliuered vp to famine and they droppe away by the force of the sword their citie shall be desolate and an hissing and they shall eate the flesh of their owne children For the Lord will visite them according to the fruit of their workes and kindled a fire to deuoure them round about For his kindred he was of Nimrod of Chams house and partaker of the ancient curse Gen. 10. For we doe not reade that euer he acknowledged the Redemption by Christ which is the summe of al saluation though he by punishments was forced to acknowledge the power of God in his iudgments This is the case of all wicked His countrie was called Babel or Shinear Babel signifying Confusion Shinear Shake off God gaue him a stroke ouer al the world but the glory of captiuing Sems house was the greatest honour this was a wonderfull blessing of God to make himselfe knowne in Babylon rather than among other heathen if he had rightly embraced it but we cannot finde that euer he came to any hope of grace But it was a wonderfull iudgement vpon the Iewes for God thereby shewed himselfe to be better knowen in Babylon though but barely confessed Creator than he was in Dauids kingdome at home who neither acknowledged him Redeemer nor Creator This conquest of Nebucadnetzar ouer the Iewes was prophesied of long before by Ieremie cap. 25. in these wordes From the thirteenth yeare of Iosias the sonne of Amon King of Iudah the word of the Lord came vnto me and I haue spoken vnto you rising earely and speaking but ye would not heare Therefore thus saith the Lord of hostes because ye haue not heard my wordes I will send and take to me all the families of the North and Nebucadnetzar the King of Babel my seruant that is in executing Gods iudgments and will bring them against this land and this whole land shall be desolate and these nations shall serue the King of Babel seauenty yeares This by faith they might haue preuented as did the Niniuites For the Lord promised if they would turne euery one from his euil way and from the wickednesse of their inuentions they should dwel in the land that the Lord had giuen them and their fathers for euer and euer and that he would not punish them But in this we see the purpose of God to be eternall He suffereth his chosen to be tryed and chastised with the afflictions of wicked men that thereby the condemnation of the vngodly may be the swifter against themselues This victorie which God gaue vnto the Babylonians ouer the Iewes was not in that they in any thing deserued the fauour of God but to the end he might the sharplier be auenged of them as Ier. 25 And when these seauentie yeares are accomplished I will visite the King of Babel and that Nation saith the Lord for their iniquities euen the land of the Chaldeans and wil make it a perpetuall desolation and will bring vpon that land all my wordes which I haue pronounced against it for many nations and great Kings shall euen serue themselues of them Thus will I recompence them according to their deedes and according to the workes of their owne handes For loe I beginne to plague the citie where my name is called vpon and should you goe free yee shall not goe quite saith the Lord of hosts When the Lord hath accomplished all his worke vpon mount Zion and Ierusalem I will visite the fruit of the prowd King of Ashur and his glorious and prowd lookes because he said By the power of mine owne hand haue I done it and by my wisedome because I am wise Shall the axe boast it selfe against him that heweth with it or the saw exalt it selfe against him that moueth it therfore shall the Lord send among his fat men leannesse and vnder his glory he shall kindle a burning like the burning of fire and shall consume the glory of his forrest and of his fruitfull field both soule and flesh and he shall be as the fainting of a Standard-bearer For the Lord of hosts shall make the consumption euen determined in the middest of al the land Therefore O people of Sion be not afraid of Ashur he shall smite thee with a rodde nor shall lift vp his staffe against thee after the manner of Egipt But yet a very little time and the wrath shall be consumed and the Lord of hostes shall raise vp a scourge for him according to the plague of Midian in the rocke Oreb as his staffe was vpon the sea so he will lift it vp after the manner of Egipt For behold the day of the Lord commeth cruel with wrath and fierce anger to lay the land waste and he shall destroy the sinners out of it He will visite the wickednesse of the world and their iniquity vpon the wicked and will cause the arrogancie of the prowd to cease and will cast downe the pride of tyrants Their children also shall be broken in peeces before their eyes their houses spoyled and their wiues rauished For Babel the glory of kingdomes the beautie and pride of the Chaldeans shal be as the destruction of God in Sodom and Gomora It shall not be inhabited for euer neither shall it bee dwelt in from generation to generation neither shall the Arabian pitch his tents there neither shall the sheepheards make their fouldes there But Zijm shall lodge there and their houses shall be full of Ohim Ostriges shall dwell there and the Satires shall dance there And Iim shall crie in their places Then shalt thou take vp this Prouerb against the King of Babel say How hath the oppressor ceased and the gold-thirstie Babel rested the Lord hath broken the rodde of the wicked and the scepter of
the Rulers which smote the people with a continuall plague and ruled the nations in wrath The whole world doth sing for ioy they that see thee shall looke vpon thee and consider thee saying Is this the man that made the earth to tremble and that did shake the kingdomes he made the world as a wildernesse and destroyed the cities thereof and opened not the house of his prisoners All the Kings of the nations sleepe in glory euery one in his owne house but thou art cast out of thy graue like an abhominable branch and like the rayment of those that are slaine thou shalt not be ioyned with them in the graue because thou hast destroyed thine owne land and slaine thy people for the seede of the wicked shall not be renowned for euer Prepare a slaughter for his children for the iniquitie of their fathers let them not rise vp and possesse the land nor fill the face of the world with enemies for I will rise vp against them saith the Lord of hostes and will cut off from Babel the name and the remnant and the sonne and the nephewe saith the Lord and I will make it a possession to the Hedg-hogge and pooles of water and I will sweepe it with the beesome of destruction saith the Lord of hostes For the Lord hath sworne saying like as I haue purposed so it shall come to passe and as I haue consulted it shall stand That I wil breake to peeces Ashur in my land and vpon my mountaines will I tread him vnderfoote so that his yoke shall depart from my people and his burden shall be taken from off their shoulder for the Lord will haue compassion on Iacob and will yet choose Israel and cause them to rest in their owne land and the stranger meaning the Gentiles shall ioyne himselfe vnto them and they shall cleaue vnto the house of Iacob and the people shal receiue them and bring them to their owne place and the house of Israel shall possesse them in the land of the Lord for seruants and hand-maides and they shall take them prisoners whose captiues they were and haue rule ouer their oppressors and the light of Israel shal be as a fire and the holy one thereof as a flame meaning that God is a light to comfort his people and a consuming fire to destroy his enemies and it shall burne and deuoure these thornes and briars in one day And at that day shall the remnant of Israel and such as are escaped of the house of Iacob stay no more vpon him that smote them but shall stay vpon the Lord the holy one of Israel in truth the remnant shall returne euen the remnant of Iacob vnto the mightie God For though thy people O Israel be as the sand of the sea yet shal the remnant of them returne the consumption decreed shall ouerflowe with righteousnesse and there shall be a path to the remnant of his people which are left of Ashur like as it was vnto Israel in the day that he came out of the land of Egipt In that day also shall the great trumpe be blowne and they shall come which perished in the land of Ashur and they that were chased into the land of Egipt and they shal worship the Lord in the holy Mount at Ierusalem as it was promised Leuit. 26. Then will I remember my couenant with Iacob and my couenant with Isaack and my couenant also with Abraham will I remember the couenant of olde when I brought them out of Egipt in the sight of the heathen that I might be their God I am the Lord. And thou shalt say in that day O Lord I wil praise thee though thou wast angry with me thy wrath is turned away and thou comfortest me Behold God is my saluation I will trust and will not feare for the Lord God is my strength and song he also is become my saluation Therefore with ioy shall yee drawe waters out of the welles of saluation and yee shall say in that day Praise the Lord call vpon his name declare his works among the people make mention of them for his name is exalted Sing vnto the Lord for he hath done excellent things this is knowne in all the world Crie out and showte O inhabitant of Sion for great is the holy one of Israel in the middest of thee In that day also shall this song be sung in the land of Iudah We haue a strong citie Saluation shall God set for walles and bulwarkes Open ye the gates that the righteous nation which keepeth the truth may enter in By an assured purpose wilt thou preserue perfect peace because they trusted in thee Trust in the Lord for euer for in the Lord God there is strength for euermore for hee will bring downe them that dwell on hie the high citie will he abase euen to the ground will he cast it downe and bring it to dust The way of the iust is righteousnes thou wilt make equall the righteous path of the iust the wicked O Lord will not behold thy high hand but they shall see it and bâ— confounded But Lord vnto vs thou wilt ordaine peace for thou hast also wrought all our works for vs. O Lord our God other Lordes besides thee haue ruled vs but we will remember thee only and thy name Thus we see that God doth not vtterly forsake his elect though sometimes he leaueth them for the triall of their faith to their owne infirmities but for euer destroyeth the wicked and vngodly We haue the like storie of Gods iustice in the affliction of Abrahams seede in Egypt God tolde Abraham that his seede should bee euill intreated in a land that was not theirs foure hundred yeares but the people to whome they are in bondage too will I iudge saith the Lord Gen. 15. The afflicters both of Cham. The afflicted both of Abraham It is said in the 25. of Ieremies Prophecie that the fourth yeare of Iehoiakim King of Iuda was the first yeare of Nebucadnetzar King of Babel And in the first of Daniel it is said In the third yeare of Iehoiakim King of Iuda came Nebucadnetzar King of Babel vnto Ierusalem and besieged it The question is how these two places are reconciled the one to the other It is certaine that it is in the third yeare accomplished and in the beginning of the fourth for though Nebucadnetzar began to raigne in the third yeare of Iehoiakims raigne yet that yeare in Ieremie is not counted because it was almost expired but in Daniel it is laid down to make plaine the first yeare of the seauenty which they were to bee in captiuity In the second yeare after this captiuity Nebucadnetzar seeth a great Image whose head was of fine gold his brest and armes of siluer his belly and his thighes of brasse his legs of iron and his feete part of iron part of clay he beheld also till a stone was cut without hands which smote the image vpon his feete that were
it euen so the whole meditation is so vnited and knit together that by despising any one part we bereaue our selues of the benefite of the whole After that Iacob was come to Haran he serued 7 yeres for Rachel Laban giueth him Leah and deceiueth him and vseth this excuse That it was not the vse of the countrey that the yonger should be serued before the elder Leah is said to be contrite Here we may see what it is to enioy the truth of Gods religion and to worship him truly Leah committeth a great sin and though God make her fruitfull yet this euent excuseth not the fault before coÌ„mitted She knew verie well that she could not enioy saluation by staying with her Father and wee are to make the best collection of the actions of the best women therfore no doubt the zeale that she had to know God made her to venture so farre No doubt this was a great sinne and yet a farre greater to haue been maried to an vâ—faithfull husband for therby there was no hope left for saluation And we see that Christ chooseth to come of Leah by Iuda rather than of Rachel God himselfe onely knoweth how farre he will pardon so great offences Then he serueth 7 yeres for Rachel Leah is fruitfull shee hath Reuben and saith The Lord hath looked on my tribulation Then shee conceiued and bare Simeon and saith Because the Lord heard that I was hated therefore he hath giuen mee this Sonne Shee conceiued againe and bare Leui and sayth Now my husband will be ioyned vnto me therefore she named him Leui Ioyned Then she bare Iudah and sayd Now will I praise the Lord. The heathen by the light of nature will confesse that the Lord looketh on their tribulation and helpeth them that he heareth their hatred and reuengeth it but they cannot for all these benefites praise the Lord. Therefore she as a prophet knowing that Christ should come of Iudah praiseth God for so glorious a blessing Then she left bearing a time Rachel giueth Bilhah to Iacob she beareth Dan Iudgement and saith God hath giuen sentence on my side afterwards Nepthali Wrestling Leah doth the like and giueth Iacob Zilpah who beareth Gad a Companie and Asher Happie Leah after beareth Isachar Wages or Reward then Zabulon God hath giuen me a goodly Dowrie and last Dina a daughter Iudgement So God shewed Iudgement to the Sichemites for rauishing of her 2260. Fourteen yeres after Ioseph is borne A rare man And we commonly see that rare men haue great expectation before their birth After this Iacob like a good philosopher enricheth himselfe by vsing rods of diuers colours Ioseph in Egypt vseth a kinde of policie to take away the lands from the people and to bring them to the King These actions at the first might seeme vnlawfull because the cause is hid from vs though afterwards the purpose of God appearing they are approoued Iuda borne HE was the fourth Sonne of Iacob his mother nameth him Praise God whereby it appeareth that shee looked for Redemption by Christ respecting the promise concerning the Seede of the woman to be accomplished in him It could not so haue appeared by naming Reuben Simeon or Leui. For a wise philosopher might haue giuen those names but Iuda contayning a name of heauenly comfort sheweth a spirite gouerned by the holy Ghost 2264. Iacob goeth from Laban Gen. 30. WHere he had bene 20. yeres two seuens and a sixe In which number is conteined the creation and the Sabbath And as one may gather closely expressed 7. yeeres plentie 7. yeeres dearth As hee returned from Laban he feared his brother Esau but the Angell of God met him to comfort him therefore calleth the name of the place Mahanaim that is Gods hoste This campe of Angels is repeated in the song of songs and applied to Christ as the companie of an armie So Dauid likewise affirmeth that the Angels of God doe pitch their tentes about them that feare him When Absalom is destroyed Dauid and his campe were at Mahanaim the place where the Angell met Iacob Wherein we are to learne that God so disposeth the actions of his elect that he regardeth their goings out and their commings in and marketh all their pathes that whether they be at home with their father or abroad among strangers they are shadowed vnder the defence of the most high whose dwelling is in eternitie After this hee wrastleth with the sonne of God that is in the likenesse of the same nature which he afterwards tooke vpon him vntill the breake of the day and would not let him goe till he had blessed him Therefore he called him Israel a conqueror This expounded in Oseas By his strength he had power with God to shew that as hee had power with God he should preuaile with men Then he erected an Altar and called it Penuel for saith he I haue seene God face to face This storie of Iacob is repeated in Iohn 1. Where Christ saith to Nathaniel Beholde a true Israelite in whom there is no guile Nathaniel is called the true Israelite in that he acknowledged Christ to be the Son of God which he might know by casting Daniels seauens Afterwards hee is reconciled to his brother Esau and beyonde Iordan he dwelt neere Sichem where Dina is deflowred Er borne Onan borne Selah borne Er Onan Were married to Thamar and committed grieuous sins before God therefore he destroyeth them 2276. Ioseph is sold into Egypit when he is 17. yeeres old so long was he nourished at home of Iacob IOseph dreameth that the Sunne Moone and eleuen starres worshipped him Gen. 37. Meaning his father mother and his eleuen brethren of whom in the creation the twelue signes in the Zodiacke had a full reference shewing thereby that God in his Counsell at the creation had a great regard to the number of the sonnes of Iacob which were to be borne more than 2000. yeeres after Hee hath the like regard at the confusion of tongues in setling Canaan and his eleauen sonnes in a soile which Iacob sonnes should afterwards possesse For declaring this dreame The poyson of the serpent possessing his brethrens hearts they were moued with enuie and sold Ioseph into Egypt Iuda caused him to be sold to saue his life but Iudas Iscariot that is which falleth away for reward sold Christ to loose his life Iacob deceiued his father Isaack with a kid Gen. 27. When Ioseph is sold his brethren sprinkle the blood of a kid vpon his partie-coloured coat and brought it home to their father and said a wilde beast had slaine him Iacob was 20. yeeres froÌ„ his Father Isaack did not see his face Ioseph was 20. yeeres from his Father Iacob before hee seeth his face To shew that wherein a man offendeth therein he shal be punished Ioseph the sonne of Iacob fedde Israel in Egypt as putting meate into the mouth of a child Ioseph the sonne of Iacob taketh the child Iesus and his
and prouideth for the building of the Temple Thus we see how God is still true in his promises Cursed be Canaan a seruant of seruants shall he be Iob he goeth to Sems house for his possessions thereby shewing his religion which would not enioy earthly possessions amongest those whome God had cursed And wee may see in this the law of nature obserued that euerie one is to resort to his eldest brothers house Thus much concerning the place The next circumstance is of what kindred he is HE is of Abraham by Keturah for it is said that he was the richest of all the men of the East This cannot be meant generally for no doubt the kings of the east exceeded him in riches But if we take it of those of Abrahams house by Keturah to whome Abraham gaue gifts and sent them away it is true Besides hee calleth his friends which come to comfort him his brethren for hee sayth My Brethren are like Riuers of water This were improperly spoken if he were not of Abraham he cannot be of Esau for how could that then be true that Esau I haue hated being likewise cursed for despising the promise if so rare a man for godlinesse and sinceritie and that before Moses should be of Esaus kindred Ieremie speaketh in his Lamentations in this wise Lament 4. Reioyce thou Edom in the Land of Huts From hence some conclude that seeing Huts is in the Land of Edom and Iob of Huts therefore he is of Esaus kindred and not of Abraham by Keturah This obiection though it may seeme at the first sight of force yet it is easily answered by marking the times for many ages had passed betwixt Iobs age and Ieremies prophecie Esaus posteritie might at this time haue brought Huts vnder his subiection but in Iobs time wee doe not reade hee had done so And the scripture makes plaine that Abrahams Sonnes by Keturah went and dwelt East-ward And considering Iobs Religion which no doubt was not embraced in Esaus house we must needs thinke notwithstanding this obiection that Iob was of Abrahams kindred Thus much for the circumstance of his kindred ELihu whome God approoueth is of Aram by Milcah who hath Bethuel God is risen the Father of Rebecca and the Father of Aram of whome Elihu These two names containe in them great Religion for the rest of Nachors Sonnes they signifie nothing Here wee see Saint Paules rule true If the vnbeleeuing man will dwell with the beleeuing woman let them not depart for the vnbeleeuing man is sanctified by the beleeuing woman And I rather thinke that Milcah named these two than Nachor thereby to shew her faith in God hauing obtained that prerogatiue at her husbands hand for Nachor must needs learne Idolatrie from Terah his Father Wee may likewise obserue from Iobs kindred what a care Abraham had yea euen in his old age to teach his posteritie the law of God seeing hee instructed Keturah and her Sonnes And this care God affirmeth when hee sayth Gen. 18. That hee cannot keepe secret from Abraham his Counsels for he will teach it his posteritie Therefore we shall find that this booke of Iob is a Commentarie on this sentence Now we come to the question and the summe of the Booke THe question is not concerning Adams fall or the goodnesse and purenesse of workes they doubt not of the Resurrection nor of the Trinitie nor of any other points of faith but it is only a Question of Practise that is to say Whether a man which aboundeth in wealth and being brought to pouertie can be in fauour of God and whether God do so gouern the world that those whom he loueth he will suffer to see affliction Iob is declared to be merueilous great his blessings multiplied in his sonnes in his daughters in Sheepe Oxen Asses and Cammels He himselfe could not bee old perhaps at this time sixtie yeeres for they say they had then liuing elder then his father and after his temptation he liued 140. yeeres and we must take heed we make him not to outliue Isaack Now all his wealth is taken from him himselfe in great miserie remembreth Iacobs storie going with his staffe and his scrip ouer Iordan and by the remembrance thereof comforteth himselfe and confesseth Chap. 1. Naked came I out of my mothers wombe and naked shall I returne thither the Lord giueth and the Lord taketh away blessed therefore be his name Saint Paul in the 1. Tim. cap. 6. Tels him that godlinesse is great riches if a man be content with that he hath for we brought nothing into the world and it is certaine we can carrie nothing out And the children of Israel euery yere when they came to offer after the Priests had taken the basket of first fruits and set it before the Altar of the Lord were wont to say Deu. 26. A Syrian was my father to wit Iacob who went ouer Iordan with his staffe and his bagge and after he returned into Canaan and being readie to perish went downe into Egypt and soiourned there with a small company and grew there vnto a nation great mightie and full of people This confession was not miraculous in Iob. For the heathen could say thus much as they cōfesse in their Epigrams that naked they came out of the earth and naked they shall goe thither Sathan touched his bodie and left him him nothing free but the flesh of his teeth and his tongue that with his tongue he might by desperation blaspheme God Suidas thinketh his torments endured seuen yeeres by matters mentioned in his orations which likelihood could not fall out sooner as that euery one mocked him and fleed from him Then it was a great while after that his kins-men heard of his temptation yet they could come being Dukes and great men and dwelling farre When they come they tarry seuen dayes without speaking any word so great was his griefe vpon him that all this while it droue them into an amazednesse Then they begun to dispute with him Their disputations are true and voide of oathes they make mention of the Sabbath the inueigh against adulterie and other sinnes of the second table they confute iustification by workes they pray not to Saints departed for Iobs recouerie By their orations wee may easily learne to confute these fond opinions which Popery holdeth His friends may seeme to stacker concerning his saluation by reason of his rauing and speaking so doubtfully of the truth for the which God condemneth him after and asketh Iob 38. Who is he that obscureth knowledge with many words Eliphas therefore beginneth thus Chap. 4. Wilt thou be grieued if one assay to commune with thee but who can hold himselfe from speaking Thou thy selfe hast taught many and hast strengthened the weary hands Thou hast had great hope patience and confidence And yet I can tell thee thy case is very ill and if thou dost not repent thou wilt not be saued For who euer perished being an innocent Indeed the
shall raigne and prosper In his dayes Iuda shall bee saued and Israel shall dwell safely and this is the name whereby they shall call him The Lord our righteousnesse In the 110. Psalme the Lord sware and will not repent thou art a King for euer after the order of Melchisedech the King of righteousnesse In the first Epistle of Saint Iohn it is thus expounded If any man sinne wee haue an Aduocate with the Father Iesus Christ the righteous The Seuentie Interpreters translating the place of Ieremie And this is his name The Lord our righteousnesse because they knew the Egyptians could neuer vnderstand the meaning of the Lord our righteousnesse they translate it thus And he shall be called the Sonne of Iehosadach which is in signification Ichouah Tzedek The Lord our righteousnesse but thereby the Grecians thought hee was the Sonne of Iehosadach Where Saint Paul speaketh Philip. 2. That at the name of Iesus euerie knee should bow both in heauen and in earth We thinke that the meaning is the outward bowing of our knees and of an externall worship to be giuen at the sound of this word Iesus That is not so but this is the meaning That his Maiesty is so omnipotent that all the creatures both in heauen and earth must be subiect to him And this Christ himselfe prooued by his miracles when the fishes obeyed when the Deuils resisted not when the water bare him vp and the winde was calme at his word Wherefore if wee admit the first exposition wee commit a grosse errour for so soone as wee heare Iesus pronounced we begin to worship by bending our knees though that name be not meant of Christ As in the Epistle to the Hebrewes it is sayd If Iesus had setled the people in rest c. Here is meant Iesus the Sonne of Nun and yet this Iesus shall haue bowing of knees Now compare Iesus with Iesus As Iesus the Son of Nun receiued the gouernment and law from Moses before Iesus Iordan opened Iesus caused the Sunne to stay in the firmament So Iesus Christ fulfilled all the same before Iesus Christ when he was baptised at Iordan the heauens opened Iesus Christ caused the sun to be darkened in the firmament If Iesus had setled the people in rest c. IEsus which signifieth Sauiour with Eleasar who is surnamed Aaron which signifieth Christ Annointed setled the Israelites in an earthly rest in the outward Canaan Iesus with Eleasar brought the Iewes out of the captiuitie of Babell and set them in their Land againe Iesus Christ the Annointed Sauiour hauing in halfe a Seuen conquered Hell and Sathan hath setled our mindes and set vs in an heauenly rest in the spirituall Canaan So the holy Ghost speaketh for if Iesus had setled the people in rest then would not Dauid after this haue spoken of another rest Moses giueth instruction to Iesus for the Conquest of the Land and goeth not thither himselfe So Moses vnprofitable except Christ had come and performed it THis Fiftie sheweth that the reckoning of the yeare of Iubilee here beginneth The Seuen sheweth that the people of Israel were sixe yeres in conquering the Land of Canaan and the Seuenth yeare setled in rest as the world was six dayes in making and the Seuenth day appointed for rest The Fiue and Fortie will approoue this true in the Fourteenth of Iosua Caleb saith Fortie yeares old was I when Moses sent mee to spie the Lands Now the people of Israel were Two yeares in the Wildernesse before the Spies were sent When the Land is fully conquered hee sayth I am this day fiue and Fortie yeres old since Moses sent me from Cadesbarnes to view the Land From which fiue and Fortie if you take away Seuen there remaineth Thirtie and Eight to which if you adde the other two in which they were in the Wildernes before the Spies were sent you haue Fortie so long they were in the Wilnernesse and the other Seuen they were in conquering the Land For comparison with this Seuen you haue Seuen Fifties for the house of Ioseph so Hoseas the Prophet speaketh while Ioseph spake there was great terrour Then Seuen Seuenties to the Captiuitie Ten Seuens the Captiuity and Seuen Seuenties to the death of Christ The proofe of this is layd downe in the 25. of Leuit. where they are cōmanded vpon their setling in the Land to number vnto them sixe yeares for tilling and plowing their ground and the Seuenth to be a Sabbath that is holy vnto the Lord. And Seuen Sabbaths of yeares thou shalt likewise number then thou shalt cause to blowe the Trumpet of the Iubilee and that was the next yeare after the seuenth Seuen Theodoretus saith Moses prophecied that Iesus should be Seuen yeares in conquering the Land and thereby likewise expresseth the Iubilee and thereby sheweth the Fiftie yeares after they should ouerthrow Chusan So the first Iubilee hath a wonderfull victorie God had an especiall purpose in his prouidence that the land should not bee conquered in one day which he could haue performed because from obseruing the wonderfull order of Iesus victories the nations farre and neere might bee stirred vp to enquire after their God and if they would not yet hereby to bee made vnexcusable Suidas noteth that hee came into a Countrey where hee found certaine blacke pillars erected wherein this was engrauen Iesus the spoyler droue vs out of Canaan Cadmus builds Thebes while the Grecians flourished and there was continuall enmitie betweene the Athenians and the Thebanes and if you cast the ages to Dauids time you shall find that Iesus draue him out likewise Now followeth the diuiding of the Land which is particularly handled in Ioshua 15 16 17 18 19. NOw the curse is performed Gen. 10. Cursed be Canaan a seruant of seruants shall he be For his posteritie the most part of them are driuen out of their Land being replenished with all good things and Sem doth raigne our him Seuen Nations onely were driuen out the rest God would not as yet vtterly roote out but reserued them to bee spurres in the sides and thornes in the eyes of the Israelites if they should at any time bee stout and forget God This conquest of Sems house vppon Canaan God purposed when hee first setled them in the Land at the scattering of Nations as Moses testifieth Deut. 32. When the most high God diuided to the Nations their inheritance he appointed the borders of a people according to the number of the Sonnes of Israel Our translation is faultie in that place and thereby obscureth the meaning of the place For we say When the most high diuided to the Nations their inheritance hee appointed the borders of the people according to the number of the children of Israel which any man knoweth to be infinite and therfore not proper for the vnderstanding of the text For looke what Countreys Iacob gaue in his will and described Iesus and Eleasar performed in possession to
Iacobs Sonnes By this wee may be perswaded that our life dependeth on the prouidence of God and that all our wayes are numbred There were in all Three hundred Twentie and Foure Townes wherein the Israelites inhabited and neither Bethlehem nor Nazareth in the tribe of Iuda named and yet they were of speciall vse for the reuealing of the birth of the Messias The reason may be thus rendred God would not in plaine termes manifest it to the end we should be more diligent and careful to know those things which so much concerne our saluation Micheas knew by Dauids birth in Bethleem a figure of Christ and by Beniamins that Christ should there bee borne And so the Doctors of the Lawe answere Herod cyting the testimonie of Micheas the Prophet Esay saith hee sawe a Nazarite a sprigge from the roote of Iessay The Iewes to crosse the certaintie of Christ to bee the Messias say there is no such Towne Yet God tooke such order that the heathen should beare witnesse againg them for it is mentioned in Plinie and other heathen writers The Leuites had allotted to them Fortie and Two Townes and sixe for refuge one of euerie Seuen thereby to signifie that we must obserue the like proportion if wee will haue Religion to flourish The rest of the Tribes had the lot of their inheritance appointed them so that euerie Tribe was distinct by himselfe and so obserued vntill the comming of Christ that the kindred of Christ might not be obscured but that he might be knowne to be the seede of Abraham the Lion of the Tribe of Iuda the blossome of the roote of Iessay Concerning their possessions Reuben was beyond Iordan and Gad Simeon and Leut scattered amonge the Tribes Iuda in the best soyle for he shall binde his Asse to the Vine and his Asses foale to the best Vine Beniamin next Ioseph next him the Sonnes of the hand maides Iesus Christ in the daies of his flesh in his pilgrimage goeth through all the Tribes as Iesus the Conqueror and Eleasar the high sacrificer had diuided them He is conceiued in the tribe of Zabulon at Nazareth He is borne in Bethleem of Iuda In Egypt hee goeth through the tribe of Simeon He teacheth in the Temple in the tribe of Beniamin He turned water into wine at the mariage of Cana in Galile in the Tribe of Aser At Sichem in the Tribe of Ephraim hee prooueth himselfe to bee the Messias At Naum in the Tribe of Nephtali hee rayseth Lazarus from the dead In going through the tenne Cities hee is in the Tribes of Reuben Gad and part of Manasses 2570. Iosua or Iesus dieth being One hundred and Ten yeares old answerable to Ioseph who died being One hundred and ten yeares old HE was the Seuenth from Ephraim in whom the blessing of Moses concerning Ioseph is sweetly performed who sayth His horne shall be like to the first borne Bullocke He therefore hath a Bullocke his scutchion to shew that hee is of Ioseph by Ephraim Some doe muze from whence we gather to giue them armes they may bee resolued if they search the antiquities of Gen. cap. 49. Thus much for Ioshua ⧠Now followeth the Storie of the Iudges THis is first generally to bee obserued That where it is sayd When Othoniel Aod or any of the rest had ouerthrowne Chusan Eglon or Sisera or any of the oppressors that the Land had rest Fortie or Eightie or Twentie yeares that the Land rested not so long for the plaine Storie crosseth it but the meaning is from Iosuas death or from Othoniels death or from Aods death after so many yeares the land had rest hauing been oppressed by such and such for the verie natiue translation is the things repeated in Eglons Storie and Aods are the actions of fourescore yeares if you adde to them Othoniels Fortie yeares In the Prophesie of Abacucke Cap. 3. There ye haue an abridgement of all the Stories of the Iudges and so continuing till Dauids death He beginneth at the 17. verse For Iniquitie I saw the Tents of Chusan and the curtaines of the land of Midian did tremble Was the Lord angrie with the Riuers or was thy wrath against the floods Meaning the ouerthrowe of Sisera whose host was discomfited at the Riuer Kyson and so proceedeth in the Chapter The meaning of the Prophet is to comfort the Iewes which now were afflicted by the neighbours about them and assureth them that they shall be deliuered For afore-time they had great deliuerances from the like oppressors and therefore namerh Chusan not that hee was that Chusan that is mentioned in the Iudges but being one of Chush his house and is a Chusan of double impietie for by this time Abrahams Sonnes by Keturah were mixed with Cham and those afflicters which bordered on the Iewes are here meant as Ismael and Nachors Sonnes and Edom and Cham c. Wee are likewise to vnderstand that these Iudges did not rule as Kings or Magistrates Fortie yeares or Twentie yeares but the Land being for their sinnes plagued from time to time by these oppressors the policie did choose some especiall man out of the Tribes to bee cheefe Captaine during the time of their affliction Amongst whom Iosephs house had the chiefest glorie but Iuda had the first prerogatiue They fell away sixe times in the time of these Iudges before Dauids time and that was the cause that these vngodly Nations had such a stroke ouer them Thus much for them in generall 2571. Othoniel of the tribe of Iuda is the First to shew that they should looke for their deliuerer which should end all the visions and prophesies and perfecteth all righteousnesse to bee of Iuda THe Three hundred thirtie and nine is the exact number of the whole time of the Iudges The Foure hundred and Fiftie sheweth the whole time of Iudges with the oppressors yeares The Lord stirred vp our Sauiour to the Children of Israel and hee saued them euen Othoniel the Sonne of Kenar Calebs younger brother and the spirite of the Lord came vpon him and hee iudged Israel and went out to war and the Lord deliuered Chusan Rishathaim King of Aram into his hand and his hand preuailed against him so the Land had rest Fortie yeares and Othoniel died Iudg. 3.9 2603. Chusan oppresseth Eight yeares HIs Country was Mesopotamia The Children of Israel did wickedly that is they dwelt amonge the vncleane Nations that were left in the Land and tooke their Daughters to bee their wiues and gaue their Daughters to their Sons and serued their Gods contrarie to the commaundement of Moses the man of God Deut. 7.3 When you shall come into the Land c. Therefore the wrath of the Lord was kindled against Israel and he sould them into the hand of Chusan and they serued him Eight yeares Booz of Rahab Borne By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them which obeyed not when shee had receiued the Spies peaceably Heb. 11. Rahab was of
though he speaketh good things of him and knewe he should succeed him in the Kingdome yet hee persecuteth him This is to runne headlong against the light of Gods truth So the Deuill tempted Christ though he knew thereby he encreased his damnation Sauls punishment was verie great for he is slaine at Easter by himselfe then vndertaking battailes when he should haue celebrated the Lords feasts That it was at Easter it may be gathered by the Witch preparing him vnleauened bread Ionathan the Sonne of Saul loued Dauid as his soule therefore it may be concluded he was saued for hee loued Dauid the beloued of the Lord and therefore beleeued in Christ of whome Dauid was a figure This may be prooued by the new Testament for in the Epistle to the Hebrewes Chap. 11. the Battailes of Gedeon Baracke Sampson and of others are rehearsed of whome this is added that they all by faith subdued Kingdomes and receiued the promise and in these Ionathan is included This testimonie of the holy spirite is of no small glorie Saul goeth to a Witch called Ob which had a Hobgoblin Herein he sinned greatly against the gouernment of God layd downe in Moses The hid things for God those reuealed for you and your children to doe them He fell to this wickednesse because hee killed those which ware the Ephod and therefore God answered him not by Vrim and Thummim God suffereth him to take reuenge of himselfe for being a King hee was the highest Magistrate and not to be put to death by his inferiours His posteritie was likewise plagued because they kept not the Couenant with the Gibeonites which Iosua had made Thus much for Saul Dauid borne in Bethlehem Which the Prophet Micheas Cap. 5. calleth Little because it was a little Village and little in quantitie The Euangelist Math. 2. calleth it not little because it was famous in that Christ and Dauid were borne there His name signifieth The beloued of God so is Christ called in Hoseas and Ezechiel by this name and oftentimes in the song of songs So that after the heart of God and this name Dauid is all one Bethlehem is as much to say as the House of Bread there Dauid the Shepheard the feeder of Israel was borne as a figure and token that Christ the great Shepheard and true bread of life should bee borne there Dauid raigneth Forty yeres Seuen yeares and a halfe in Hebron and Thirtie two yeares and a halfe in Ierusalem HErein is a comparison with Christ for as Dauid was King proclaimed at Easter ouer Iuda so Christ by his resurrection at Easter was prooued King ouer the whole world Dauid after the death of Saul asketh God whether hee shall goe God answereth To Hebron This is not without speciall obseruation that God should commaund him to goe thether The monuments of places are of great force to bring Stories into remembrance For in Hebron Sara was buried being the first purchase which Abraham made Isaacke and Rebecka were buried there Iacob and Leah there there Caleb challenged his inheritance So that Dauid being King there is ioyned in a kind of purchase with these Fathers and their glorie herein matched So the Hebrewes apply it Hebron is called Consociation The Seuen yeares King is a comparison with the Seuen yeares of conquering the Land so that looke what glorie is reaped in the conquest thereof the same you may gather in the time of Dauids gouernement in Hebron Further it was requisite there should be proofe of the sufficiencie of his gouernment by gouerning Hebron before hee should rule so stately a kingdome as Ierusalem was His Two and thirtie yeares and sixe Moneths haue a comparison with Christs liuing on earth He began his gouernment there exactly One thousand yeares before Christ was baptized at the verie same time that Christ began so you see all Gods dealings cast in a fine and sweet proportion Dauid commeth of Iessai in this respect Christ is called the roote of Iessai The ages of Dauids Auncestors calleth in minde Abrahams yeares at the birth of Isaacke and so remembreth his Storie About Seuen yeares before he was King he fights with Goliah the Philistine who came of Mitzraijm which filled Egypt the cursed Nation of Cham. Dauid is hereunto encouraged by a miracle being made Victor ouer a Lion and a Beare and thereupon hee concludeth This vncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them Goliah challengeth all Israel and defieth them Dauid trusting in the strength of the Lord vnarmed onely with stones in his bagge and his sling slayeth the Philistine He was about this time Three and Twentie yeares old This is the vse Looke what this Goliah and the Philistines were to the state of Israel so is the Deuill and his Angels to the children of God And as Dauid the beloued by trusting in the beloued Sonne of God ouercame so shall we if we beleeue as he did putting on the armor of God The summe in regard of the Iewes is this that as he being of Iuda subdued this Philistine so likewise in all other battailes they should couragiously follow him seeing he of Iuda should come after the flesh which fought for them from heauen Saul giueth Dauid his Daughter to wife it hath been a receiued opinion that the Iewes might not marrie out of their Tribes This is onely to be vnderstood of the heires because inheritance might not goe from one Tribe to another but if they were not heires they might As we see Dauid of Iuda marrieth one of Beniamin Now for his Victories THe 60. and 108. Psalme speaketh shortly of them in this sort Giliad is mine Manasses is mine Ephraim the strength of my head Iuda is my Law-giuer Moab is my Washpot ouer Edom will I cast out my shooe vppon the Philistines will I triumph The meaning of it is Christ will come and subdue all Nations vnto himselfe and erect his kingdome for euer And yet as all these Nations Moab and Ammon and Edom striue against Dauid so will the Gentiles against Christ And yet why doe the Gentiles rage and the people imagine a vaine thing The Kings of the earth stand vp and the Rulers counsell together against the Lord and against his annointed and yet all in vaine for hee will bruse them with a rodde of yron for hee hath giuen him the ends of the world for his Dominion therefore are the heathen fooles In the Reuelation you haue the like striuing by the Emperours against Christ but the Mountaine is cast into the fire In the Acts of the Apostles Pontius Pilate and the rest did that which the Lord decreed In these battailes of Dauid Saint Paules rule taketh place the sound of them was heard to the ends of the world For Dauids victories being gained not in one but being fortie yeares allotted to the accomplishment of them no doubt were an astonishment vnto the nations and by them to be greatly obserued Here wee haue the like comparison of the Fortie yeares
on the mercies of God acknowledging his power and his iustice which they neglecting to embrace God to shewe his iudgements hardneth their hearts to follow that which shall bee their owne destruction as Amasias did who contrary to the coūsell of the Prophet of God goeth vp against Ioash king of Israel After him the kingdome of Iuda was voide Eleauen yeares 3201. Azarias two and Fiftie yeares HIs name was also called Vzzias All is one in Hebrew it signifieth Might or Strength In his dayes Amos the Prophet the Father of Esay did prophecy so did Oseas the prophet Amos beginneth to preach two yeares before the Earth-quake which was in his time Azarias did vprightly in the sight of God according to al that Amasias his father did and he sought God in the daies of Zechariah which vnderstood the visions of God and when he sought the Lord God made him to prosper for he went forth and fought against the Philistins and brake down the wall of Gath and the wall of Iabneth and the wall of Ashdod and built Cities in Ashdod and amonge the Philistines and many valiant things did he But when he was stronge his heart was lifted vp to his destruction for he transgressed against the Lord his God and went into the Temple of the Lord to burne incense vpon the Altar of incense vsurping the office of the Sacrificers and is stroken with leaprosie and therefore dwelt apart being cut off from the house of the Lord and so continued vnto the day of his death From hence wee may learne what a grieuous thing it is in the sight of God to meddle in the office of the Sacrificers which the Lord had forbidden Num. 18. We may also learne from hence not to forget God in our prosperitie least therby we procure our owne destruction In Antiochus time the Leuites who were appointed of God onely to sacrifice and offer incense before him will vsurpe into the kings seat and beare rule vpon the like successe in victories And then God plagueth thē with a spirituall leaprosie more foule and filthy than that of the bodie being from Pharisees become Saduces denying the resurrection and the life of the soule departed from the bodie This Azarias king of Iuda saw the daies of Eight kings of Israel wherein the word of God remaineth true The wicked shall not liue out halfe their dayes 3253. Iotham Sixteene yeares HIs Fathers plague causeth him to rule indifferently well His Sonne Achaz succeeding is farre worse Micheas the Prophet teacheth in the dayes of Iotham King of Iuda 3268. Achaz Sixteene yeares HE walked in the wayes of the Kings of Israel and made moulten Images for Baalim Moreouer he burnt incense in the valley of Benhinnom and burnt his Sonnes with fire after the abhomination of the heathen whome the Lord had cast out before the Children of Israel He sent for helpe to Tiglah Pilueeser and the rest of the Kings of Ashur which was not lawfull to seeke helpe of Infidels Then the Prophet Esay prophecied and by him God giues a prophesie for when Ierusalem was besieged for the wickednesse of Achaz God sendeth Esay to Achaz and willeth him to aske a signe Who answereth hee will not tempt God Esay 7. The Prophet replyeth Is it not a small thing to grieue men but you must also grieue my God therefore the Lord will giue you a signe A Virgin shall conceiue and beare a Sonne and she shall call his name Emanuel God with vs. Thereby to shew Achaz the greatnesse of his impietie for seeking to the Nations for helpe For seeing God spareth not his owne Sonne but giueth him to death for vs will not he likewise send strength to Iudah He was buried in the Citie of Ierusalem but not in the Sepulchres of the Kings of Iudah 3281. Ezechias nine and Twentie yeres A new Heber HEre we see some recouerie of the state For in the yeare that Azarias died Esay sawe the Lord sitting in the Temple the Seraphins stood vpon it euerie one hauing sixe winges and one cryed to another Holy Holy Holy Lord God of Hosts And God speaketh Ye shall heare me but not vnderstand yee shall see plainely and not perceiue Esay asketh How longe Lord vntill the Cities be wasted the house without a man and the Land vtterly desolate Thereby meaning their captiuitie wherein there shall be tenne forsakings in Ezecchias time two in Manasses one Iosias time one the fift in Iehoachaz time the Sonne of Iosias the sixt in Iehoiakim the Seuenth when he rebelled after he had serued the King of Babell three yeares the Eight in Ieconias time the two last which makes the Tenth vnder Zedechias himselfe being carried to Babell his eyes put out and his Sonnes slaine and after the house of the Lord burnt and all the Citie carried captiue so the Lord is in his Temple beholding the actions of men and his skirts fill the Temple the least of Gods mysteries excelling all the wisedome of man and the Angels proclaime Holynesse to God this Esay confessed for he saw nothing but woe vnto himselfe being a man of polluted lippes that so by faith in the Sonne of God his sinne might bee put away In Ezechias time Esay speaketh of nine Nations plagued which were borderers on Iudea From this we might gather that seeing their wickednesse was equall they should receiue the like measure of punishment Hee goeth further and telleth what Assur shall speake and Babell and prophecieth of Cyrus one hundred yeares before he was borne answerable to the prophecie that was of Iosias in Ieroboams time concerning the taking vp of the bones of the Prophets Esay in Ezechias dayes prophecieth of Christ and saw the promise a farre off and embraced it and shewed the particulars as if they were now perfourmed by Pilate This would not haue mooued a prophane man but he being a prophet knew that God was faithfull who had promised And the men in his time gathered together Salomons Prouerbs Yet for all this we shall finde that fewe were saued and Christ saith that many Kings desired to see that which you see and saw them not Ezechias was verie desirous to haue his posteritie to keepe the Kingdome in the true Religion Esay commeth vnto him and willeth him to set his house in a readinesse for he should die for any thing yet reuealed Hee wept not for feare of death seeing he had great assurance of Gods fauor and thereby his saluation made certaine but to remember the wickednesse of the Kings before and how through their impiety Iuda was humbled and that now hee should sleepe with his Fathers not leauing a godly one to succeed him He hath a Sonne but it had been better that Manasses his Sonne had neuer been he was so wicked This Ezechias committeth a grieuous offence in shewing his wealth to the Embassadors of the king of Babell Thereupon saith the prophet because thou trustedst not in God but in thy wealth therefore one of Babell
the vision wherein God restored these bones to life some reason they had thus to esteeme of themselues for they were carried away captiue the land of Iuda desolate for religion and the neighbours about them amazed In Babylon policie they could haue none nor any exercise of Religion If they prayed it must be after the manner of Daniel in his Chamber and so no doubt Ezra and Salathiel and the rest did So that their age was euen as a dead time in the world Besides God sayth Esay 52. My name is euill spoken of because of you amonge the heathen so that one of Babylon might say to his neighbour You see here a Nation vild and of no account yet they haue a hope that they shall be deliuered out of captiuitie after Seuentie yeares and here is one Ieremie which taketh a stone and casteth it into the Sea and so saith he head-long shall Babylon bee ouerthrowne and they haue one Daniel who prophecieth that the great King Nebuchadnetzar shall be a beast that is shall haue the heart of a Beast giuen him because hee doth not worship their God but haue destroyed their temple They despise to march with vs looking still for their deliuerance This no doubt would cause them to be hated and the name of God ill spoken of From this wee may gather a deepe meditation for our owne estate and to looke to our wayes that they be the Lords wayes and not our owne least through misbeleefe wee fall into the like sorrowes As Ezechiel compareth them to dead bones so they themselues were as men in graues for so the 126. Psalme speaketh When thou leddest captiuitie captiue then were wee like men that dreamed for wee thought no more that this had come to passe than the dreames which appeare from the vanitie of our thoughts Now if wee make vse of these things by comparing our state in this life with theirs in Babell wee shall doe well for may not euerie one of vs say with Iacob Genes 47. Our dayes are fewe and euill and full of sorrowe and wee doe not attaine to the dayes of our Fathers All the Kingdomes of the earth since this time in respect of their policie are called Babell In the Reuelation the godly are admonished to come out of Babell seeing they are Gods people otherwise they shall bee partakers of their plagues and as longe as wee liue wee shall bee in Babell and confusion our tongues so confounded as not able to speake the mysteries of God aright this is the case of euerie one of vs. Now the Iewes in Babylon seeing they cannot restore policie they perfourme outward obedience for ciuill actions and turning their faces to Ierusalem the sight of peace they praise God in their soules so we seeing our case is no better than theirs in this life wee must meditate on the Sonne of righteousnesse and settle our affections on high that after this life wee may enioy the heauenly Ierusalem our conscience hauing embraced that peace of God which passeth all vnderstanding not going about to restore policie but in intreating the Lord to teach vs to number our dayes that yet so we may apply our selues vnto wisedome To this purpose the 137. Psalme is full of comfort for we must consider there is no Land nor no law that can hinder vs to be godly And though there bee wicked lawes decreed as when Nebuchadnetzar erected the Image and commanded a worshipping of it yet their end is but to trie the faith of Gods Children that euen as Gold seuen times purified is not consumed but made more glorious so the Furnace seuen times more hot shall not so much as make our garments to smell thereof for God is in the middest of his chosen Thus much for the Seuentie yeares in generall Now a little for the particulars IT had three captiuities The one when Daniel was carried away The second Seuen yeres after when Ieconias was caried away The third eleauen yeres after when Sedechias was carried away so they were wholy but Fiftie yeares in captiuitie in Babel a full Iubilee this opinion hath been crossed but you shall see it must needs be so Then it is sayd that captiuitie begins when men are led captiue Besides seeing God calleth the people of the Iewes Daniels people and the Citie his Citie shall we thinke that hee being in such fauour with God God made no account of his captiuitie seeing by these titles giuen vnto him it is apparant God esteemed more of him than of all the men in the earth Further if you reckon it from Iehoiakims you then make it Seuentie seauen which is more than the scripture warrants Now for the place in Ezechiel from the time of our captiuitie It is certaine the Prophet there speaketh onely of the carrying away of the Kings Ieremie telleth that the Babylonians shall rule but Seuenty yeares and they must be in captiuitie but to them and therefore you must beginne your captiuitie from the time that Daniel was carried away otherwise you will make more or lesse than Seuentie Now if we examine why the Iewes would not beleeue this we shall finde the reason by a common disease amongst our selues For we all know we shall die but yet there is none so old but thinketh hee may liue till to morrow euen so they knewe they should bee ledde away captiue but euerie one perswaded himselfe not in his daies and so destruction came suddenly vppon them Besides there was a prophecie Habac. 1. I will worke a worke in your daies which you will not beleeue though one should tell you Saint Paul speaketh this to the Gentiles and applies it to Christ We may marke another thing Israel is carried away captiue in Hoseas time of whome this is not added that hee continued in the sinnes of Ieroboam and by this we may gather hee was the best of the Kings of Israel Iuda is carried captiue in Iehoiakims time and yet Manasses as wicked a King as he From hence wee see that Christ is Palmoni who numbreth wayeth and diuideth and the wicked shall drink vp their portion the iudgment of God which neither the goodnesse nor wickednesse of any can hinder to cause to come sooner or later Babylon the Lion 3401. Nebuchadnetzar raigned 45. yeares HIs name signifieth The bewayling of iudgment or the sorrowing of pouertyâ— this was true both in himself in the Iews whom he captiued In himselfe in that God being a fiery iudge sitting vpon a throne exalting Kings and putting downe Kings abased the high estate of Nebucadnetzar King of Babel and threw him from the house which he had built wherby he continued not in honour but was made like to the beasts that perish and compelled to bewaile his owne miserie It was true in the Iewes in that they forgetting the law of Moses Leuit. 26. neglected their Sabbaths erected Altars worshipped strange Gods and forsooke not the abhominations of the Nations whose land they possessed but in
euer were in 3680. Seleucus Callinicus the fourth Horne HE slew his Step-mother Berenice and her young Sonne But out of the budde of her rootes as Dan. 11.7 shall one stand vp in his stead meaning that Ptolomeus Euergetes the fift Horne after the death of his Father Ptolomeus Philadelphus should succeede in the Kingdome being of the same stock that Berenice was and he shall come with an armie and shall enter into the fortresse of the King of the North meaning Seleucus Callinicus to reuenge Berenice his sisters death Wherfore Seleucus Callinicus Sons that is Seleucus Ceraunus and Antiochus the Great Dan. 11.10 shall bee stirred vp and shall assemble a mightie great armie Seleucus died whiles the warres were preparing but Antiochus the great prepared a wonderfull great armie hee had Sixe thousand horsemen and Threescore thousand footmen and grew to be verie great But the king of the North that is Ptolomeus Philopater the eight horne when he saw Antiochus the great take away so many of his Dominions in Syria and that hee was also readie to inuade Egypt he prepareth a great armie and withstandeth Antiochus the king of the North. But it did not preuaile for not onely Antiochus came against him but also Philip king of Macedon and they brought a great power with them as Dan. 11.14 And at that same time there shall many stand vp against the King of the South Also the rebellious children of thy people shall exalt themselues to establish the vision but they shall fall She here meaneth by the rebellious children certain Iewes which vnder the conduct of Onyas retyred with him into Egypt vppon the false alleadging of a place out of Esay 19.19 In that day shall the Altar of the Lord bee in the middest of the Land of Egypt and a pillar by the border thereof vnto the Lord c. And Dan. 11. So the King of the North shall come and cast vp a mount and take the stronge Citie and the armes of the South that is The power of the Egyptians shall not resist neither his chosen people neither shall there bee any strength to withstand But hee that is Antiochus the great shall come and doe vnto him that is Ptolomeus Epiphanes what hee list and none shall stand against him and hee shall stand in the pleasant Land which by his hand shall be consumed meaning that hee shall not onely afflict the Egyptians but the Iewes also the people of the pleasant Land Againe hee shall set his face to enter with the power of his whole Kingdome and his confederates with him and thus shall hee doe And hee that is Ptolomeus Epiphanes shall giue him a Daughter of women that is one Cleopatra the Daughter of Antiochus to destroy her but shee shall not stand on his side neither bee for him For hee shall turne his face toward the forts of his owne Land that is for feare of the Romans hee shall flye to his holds Then shall stand in his place in the glorie of the Kingdome one that shall rayse taxes that is Seleucus Philopater shall succeed his Father Antiochus but after fewe dayes he shall be destroyed neither in wrath nor in battell that is not by forraine enemies or battell but by treason and in his pâ—ace shall stand vp a vilde person that is Antiochus Epiphanes the little Horne of the fourth beast to whome shall not bee giuen the honour of the kingdome but hee shall come in peaceably that is pretending peace and obtaine the kingdome by flatteries according to the S. of Daniel And out of them that is out of the Hornes of the Goat Bucke there came forth a litte Horne which waxed verie great toward the south and toward the east and toward the pleasant Land meaning Antiochus who was of a seruile and flattering nature and by subtiltie depriueth three other that were betweene him and the Kingdome and is called the little Horne because hee should continue but a little while and in him was found neither princely conditions nor any other thing worthy to obtaine a kingdome Hee beganne his raigne in the One hundred thirtie and seuenth yeare of the Grecians 1. Mach. 1. and raigneth Twelue yeares He maketh Battels against Ptolomeus Philometor A prophane Schoole was erected in Ierusalem and in the One hundred fortie and three yeare of the Grecians he spoyleth the Temple of Ierusalem and burned all the bookes of Moses and put to death all persons with whom they were found and after two yeares hee sendeth Appolonius and placeth a garrison in Ierusalem on the Fifteenth of Cislen in the One hundred fortie and fiue yeare of the Grecians they builded an Altar vpon the holy Altar an abhomination of desolation and placeth an Idoll of Iouis Olympij in the holy Temple as Dan. 11.38 And in the 2. Thess 2. Saint Paul compareth the Antichrist with this Idoll Also Ap. 20. Saint Iohn compareth Gog and Magog with this historie speaking of the Antichrist as Saint Paul doth Antiochus by letters Patents graunteth the Iewes their owne religion after One thousand two hundred and ninetie dayes since the Temple was prophaned in their One hundred fortie and eight yeare the Fifteenth of their Month Xanticus which differeth from the Iewes account to whome the Fiue and twentie of Cislen or Nouember commeth before this time about One hundred eightie and fiue dayes and after two and fiftie dayes in the yeare One hundred fortie and nine Antiochus dyeth of a notorious strange sicknesse and acknowledgeth the hand of God to bee vpon him after the Temple was prophaned One thousand three hundred fortie and fiue dayes Dan. 12.7 It shall tarrie for a time two times and halfe a time and when hee shall haue accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people all these things that is all the troubles of the Iewes shall be finished Here it falleth out that was spoken Dan. 8.25 He shall resist the Prince of Princes and shall be broken without hands Here Iudas Machabeus recouereth the gouernment of Iudea from Antiochus Thus the legges of yron and clay nothing cleauing together by marriages are made weake not any more treading downe the Iewes but rather are beaten to dust by Christ the Stone The Fourth beast is cast into the fire by Christ his fierie iudgement the little Horne is broken the Saints that is the Iewes possesse their Kingdome Gog and Magog are ouerthrowne The rest of the Kings of Syria because they are not expressed in the Sinay sight and in Daniel nothing spoken of them I passe them ouer Wherefore Christ in the dayes of his flesh Ioh. 10.22 celebrateth the feast of this deliuerance After this time God shaked the kingdome of Syria by Ligranes King of Armenia vntill it came to the hands of the Romanes On the Fiue and twentie of Cisleu or Nouember in the One hundred fortie and eighth yeare of the Grecians the Altar was restored 1. Mac. 4.25 And Iudas
the end of the seauenth seauen THE time from the first proclamation by Cyrus for the building of this Temple is seauen seauens that is Nine and fortie yeares but being hindred vntill the third yeare the exact time is but six fortie yeares according to Iohn 2. Fortie and six yeares was this Temple in building The meaning is that the Temple and walles of the Cities were now fullie reedified by Nehemiah This nine and fortie yeares was the twentieth yeare of Artaxerxes the godly Neh. 6.25 By the way here is to be vnderstoode that presently after the building of the Temple all prophesying fayled The Prophets that were in these times after the captiuity of Babylon were Esdras Nehemias Haggai Zacharias and Malachi All the other Prophets as Esay Amos Micheas Oseas Ieremie Sophonie Obadias Ionas Nahum Abacuk or Ioel were before the captiuity and Daniel and Ezechiel in the captiuity After him succeeded Xerxes the fift King of the Persians The time when he first warred with Grecia is not certainely set downe After him Artaxerxes Longi-manus the sixt King of Persia Then Ochus Artaxerxes Darius Nothus the seauenth Artaxerxes Memor the eighth Arses Artaxerxes and then Darius the last King of the Persians conquered by Alexander according to Dan. 10. Behold I goe away and the King of Grecia commeth Here the Ramme is ouerthrowne by the goate bucke Alexander the horne in the forhead of the Bucke ouercommeth him as Dan 8. I saw in a vision in the Pallace of Shusan in the Prouince of Elam being by the riuer Vlai a Ramme with two hornes and the Ramme pushed against the West against the North and against the South so that no beasts might stand before him nor could deliuer out of his hand but he did what he listed and became great And as I considered behold a goate bucke came from the West ouer the whole earth and touched not the ground and this Goate had a horne that appeared betweene his eyes and he came to the Ramme that had the two hornes and ran vnto him in his fierce rage and he smote the Ramme and brake his two hornes and there was no power in the Ramme to stand against him but he cast him downe to the ground and stamped vpon him and there was none that could deliuer the Ramme out of his power Therefore the Goate waxed exceeding strong and when he was at the strongest his great horne was broken and for it came vp foure that appeared towardes the foure windes of the heauen This Ramme is the kingdome of Media and Persia the two hornes are to distinguish the kingdomes and doe represent the Meeds Persians they are also the Beare the armes and brest of siluer Here the Beare is cast into the fire by Christ the fierie iudge and the armes and brest of the image are punned to dust and the Ramme that boasted himselfe in his strength stamped vnder foote And heere endeth the glorie of the Persians IT is sayd Dan. 11. Behold there shall stand vp three Kings in Persia and the Fourth shall be farre richer than they all Now hee meaneth that there shall be but Foure Kings in Persia for the Plaine crosseth but from Cambyses who at this time raigned there should be foure Kings that should bee enemies to the Iewes that is Cambyses Smerdes Darius the Sonne of Hystaspis and Artaxerxes or Darius whome Alexander ouerthrew This Darius was of wonderfull power hee had in his armie Nine hundred thousand men Yet he was not able to withstand Alexander the Horne in the fore-head of the Bucke The reason was he trusted in his strength and not in God And againe God had promised Alexander the victorie One hundred yeares before As touching their confused names ye shall vnderstand that among the Persians Darius signifieth he that subdueth Xerxes a Warriour Also that this name Assuerus is drawne from the Hebrewes in stead of Artaxerxes Further that Artaxerxes was the common name of all kings of Persia as Pharaoh was the common name of the kings of Egypt and Caesar of the Romane Emperours Therefore where ye finde many indifferently named Darius or Artaxerxes or both together you must diligently examine the Storie and the difficultie of vnderstanding vnder what king that happened which is recited in the Bookes of Esdras Nehemias and Ester will easily be made plaine Here the old Testament ends and Malachi prophecieth of the comming of Iohn Baptist vnder the name of Elias Mal. 3. Behold I send you Elias Christ himselfe expoundeth this of Iohn Baptist Mat. 11. This is he of whome it is written behold I send mine Angell before thy face which shall prepare thy way before thee for all the Prophets and the lawe prophecied vnto Iohn and if ye will receiue it this is Elias which was to come He that hath eares to heare let him heare Here endeth also the Hebrew tongue And though Schollers write Hebrew yet vpon the first sight it is apparant to be the writing of man so farre it disagreeth from the stile of the holy spirite Now all prophecying ceaseth And where the old Testament leaueth there the new beginneth The old Testament beginnes with describing the earthly habitation for man and the tree of life The new Testament ends with description of the heauenly habitation of the soule of man that is the heauenly Ierusalem and the tree of life The old Testament ends with grace that is Iochanan or Iohn The new Testament both begins with grace and ends with grace that is to say with Iohn Baptist and Iohn the Euangelist ⧠Here beginneth the Kingdome of the Grecians to flourish 3591. Alexander the great raigneth Twelue yeares HIs name signifieth Conquerour His Countrey was Macedonia or Grecia Iauans Countrey that is where Iauans Sonnes were scattered at the confusion of tongues He is of Iaphet by kindred In his conquest ouer the whole world there is the wonderfull loue of God to bee vnderstood and that is that by his meanes the Greeke tongue wherein the newe Testament was afterwards to be written was made famous ouer all the world that when the holy Ghost should penne the Booke it might bee easie to all This blessing was to Iaphet in recompence of his vertuous action with Sem in couering their Father For Noah prophecied that Sem should first be blessed and then Iaphet should haue a larger glorie This blessing concerning Iaphets house began in the successe of Darius of Iaphet with Cyrus of Sem against the Babylonians enlarged now by Alexanders conquest and by making the Greeke tongue famous but most of all after Christ when Iohn was banished into Iaphets Country to see the glorious forme of the heauenly Ierusalem and a Booke in the Greeke tongue deliuered vp to all the world containing the graces of Christ and the glad tidings of the euerlasting Gospell The comfort of this is vnspeakable being duly embraced but especially to vs of Iaphets house that is the Ilands of the ends of the
earth seeing by the benefite thereof we haue the true vnderstanding of eternall life The vse of this compelleth vs to search the Stories of our antiquities which wee may finde in the 10. of Genesis About this time Solon the wise flourished and made a law that Homer the Poet who was long before him should be read in the publike assemblies on holy dayes and festiuall dayes as the Epistles and Gospels bee read in our Churches This Homer in a trifling argument of the warre at Troy layeth downe all the excellencie of the Greeke tongue About this time also the Seuen wise men of Greece were famous and all their disputations be vpon Homer as Plato Aristotle and Zenophon c. The Grecians affirme that Homer was translated into the Indian tongue and other languages that so he might be knowne and vnderstood of other nations also Againe Alexander being of great possessions hee must haue many vnder-officers to belong vnto him then he that would beare any office or bee in any credite must be skilfull in the greeke tongue Caesar Seuen and Fortie yeares before Christ speaketh of the Denides learning greeke in England Tullie pro Archia the poet reasoneth thus Though Archias the poet be not by nature a Citizen yet he deserueth to bee thought so to bee seeing by birth hee is a Grecian and of Antiochia a populous Citie and of great account from whence flowed learned men and liberall studies And if any man shall thinke a lesser fruite of glorie to be reaped from greeke verses than from latine hee erreth in good sadnesse because those thinges which are written in greeke are read almost into all nations those which are in latine are contained with their owne borders which in good sooth are verie narrowe Thus by Tullies testimonie the greeke tongue stretched ouer the whole world At Augustus Caesars time the latine beganne to flourish and the greeke tongue ceased as if the holy ghost should haue aduised the Grecians to haue written no more For Plutarch and Athenaeus doe not write any new storie but either cōment on that which was written before or abridge it And any one skilfull in the greeke tongue may easily perceiue from what notable place of Plato Homer or other greeke writers euerie phrase in the newe Testament is deriued and those which are not there to bee found in those authors are fetched from the hebrew of the old Testament from whence all the rootes of the greeke tongue are drawne So that to the exact knowledge and vnderstanding of the new testament two things are requisite cunning in the greeke authors and in the old Testament Let vs returne to Alexander He is the great Horne in the forehead of the Goat Bucke Hee is also the Leopard but the foure heads of the Leopard are foure Captaines to whome after his death his Kingdome was diuided He is also the belly and sides of brasse Alexanders great power is broken for when he had ouercome all the East he thought to returne to Grecia to subdue them that there had rebelled and so hee died by the way after he had raigned twelue yeares Here the bellie and sides of brasse are beaten to dust by Christ the Stone The Leopard is cast into the fire by Christ the fierie Iudge The great Horne is broken by Christ truely Palmoni hauing secrets numbred Who numbreth wayeth and diuideth This sentence doth extend to the vse of all men in the world For God numbreth all our wayes and wayeth vs in the ballance of his iustice but entreth not into iudgement with his seruants knowing whereof they be made He diuideth his mercie vnto vs farre beyond the compasse of our desarts whereby we crie Abba Father Now after Alexanders death the whole gouernment was diuided vnto foure of his Captaines which are the foure heads of the Leopard The bodie of the Leopard was himselfe and his entier gouernement the winges the speedie spoyle that he made of the Persians The names of his Captaines were Cassander Seleucus Antigonus Ptolomeus who had Macedonia Syria Asia the lesse Egypt And in a short space after the gouernement came into two heads that is it was ruled by Seleucus king of Syria and Ptolomeus Lagi king of Egypt the King of the North and the King of the South and their gouernment and the succession of their gouernment are the beast with tenne Hornes and the legs of yron and clay they are also called Gog and Magog in Ezechiel The whole gouernement or Kingdome is the beast the tenne hornes are tenne cruell Kings that shall arise out of that kingdome namely Seleucus Nicator Antiochus Soter Antiochus Theos Seleucus Callinicus Seleucus Ceraunus Antiochus the great Seleucus Philopater Ptolomeus Euergetes Ptolomeus Philopater and Antiochus Epiphanes 3620. Seleucus Nicator one of Alexanders Successors HE held Asia two and fortie yeares Here beginneth the tyrannicall gouernment of the tenne Hornes and the hardnesse of the yron legges for yet the legges are yron Hee is the first Horne that rusheth against Iudea exacting all duties as if he had been their king From this time to Antiochus Epiphanes is reckoned one hundred thirtie and seuen yeares 1 Mach. 1.11 3663. Antiochus Soter the second Horne HE is made king in his fathers life Hee falleth sicke for loue of his Fathers wife and afterwards marieth her and within few yeares dyeth in recompence of that villanie 3663. Antiochus Theos the third Horne HE marrieth Berenice the Daughter of Ptolomeus Philadelphus king of the South or Egypt hauing a former wife Laodice by whome hee is poysoned and Berenice with all her Assistants slain This is handled Dan. 11.6 And in the end of yeares they shall bee ioyned together for the Kinges Daughter of the South shall come to the king of the North to make an agreement but she shall not retaine the power of the arme neither shal he continue nor his arme but she shall be deliuered to death and they that brought her and hee that begat her and hee that comforted her in these times Thus it appeareth how the legges of yron and clay cleaue not together This Ptolomeus Philadelphus king of Egipt being desirous to bee famous for Bookes getteth a Librarie of all the bookes hee could heare of Amongst which he heard of a booke that the Iewes had at Ierusalem which was the Bible so hee sent for Seuentie Iewes to translate the booke out of hebrew into greeke which they did in Seuentie dayes Now they knowing that it was not of any deuotion of religion that he desired it but to furnish his Librarie they thrust in likewise into the Bible diuers of their owne fables as the storie of Susanna of Bell the Dragon of Esdras the bookes of Tobie and Iudith la the bookes that we call Apocripha because they knew that God had no purpose to saue them being Egiptian Dogs and because they would not throwe pearles to swine they thrust into the ages before the flood more yeares by a thousand than