7. And lastly it is more congruent and most for Christs honour that whereas Antichrist is Christs personall opposite therefore he should be suppressed by Christs personall presence Again it was a received thing in the primitive Church that Antichrists time and the end of the world shall coincidere fall in one as we reade 1. John 2. 18. Little children it is the last time and as ye have heard that Antichrist shall come even now there are many Antichrists whereby we know that it is the last time Thus by Antichrists time ye may know the last time and by the last time ye may know Antichrists time But here seems a difficultie in that S. John maketh the last time to be in his dayes I answer He speaketh this inchoativé to stirre up his children to watchfulnesse because then the last day was coming on and even then there were many Antichrists the forerunners of the main Antichrist that man of sinne Secondly Antichrist cannot be yet come by reason of the circumstances which holy Writ hath fastned to his time For in Antichrists time the daily sacrifice shall be taken away and the abomination of desolation shall be set up in place of it as appeareth Dan. 12. 11. and is confirmed by our Saviour Matth. 24. 15. For the abomination cannot be set up till the daily sacrifice be removed So in the figure after Antiochus had taken away the daily sacrifice from the Temple he set up in place of it the statue of Jupiter Olympius And this is further illustrated by the opposition between Christ and Antichrist For he that is Christs opposite cannot endure Christs service before his eyes but at this day neither is the daily sacrifice taken away nor the abomination of desolation set up for that no land of the Christians is yet divasted nor the temples of Papists or Protestants left desolate but the Christian world every where offer up their daily liturgies and the holy Eucharist Papists by themselves and Protestants by themselves without disturbance and therefore as yet that great Antichrist is not come who will take this away and set himself in place of it as S. Paul teacheth so that he doth sit as God in the temple of God which is the abomination and this abomination cannot be erected till Antichrist by his souldiers have made the temples of Christians desolate Therefore Beza translateth illam abominationem vastatricem the abomination making desolate and so our Church-Bible also translateth in Dan. 12. 11. Thirdly I shew this from the description of Antichrist which is this Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God or that is worshipped But as yet no man hath done thus Therefore as yet that Antichrist is not come The assumption is proved from particulars of importance The first beast the Romane Cesars have acknowledged and adored the multitude of Gods as Jupiter Mercurie Diana Venus c. The second beast the Turk to this day worshippeth a supreme God as he saith which is neither the Father nor the Sonne nor the holy Ghost and that with great devotion as our own countrey travellers report Lastly the Pope acknowledgeth the Father the Sonne and the holy Ghost as is manifest from the Apostles Creed the Nicene and Athanasian to this day used of him and from calling himself Christs vicar which is to say his substitute or vicegerent upon earth and from concluding all his prayers to God the Father per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum by our Lord Jesus Christ and from singing to the holy Trinitie Gloria Patri Filióque Spiritui sancto that is Glorie be to the Father to the Sonne and to the holy Ghost And that the Pope is not to be held for Antichrist I prove from S. Johns descriptions 1. Joh. 2. 22. Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is that Christ the same is that Antichrist that denieth the Father and the Sonne But the Pope denieth neither of both as is before declared and therefore he is not to be held for Antichrist A second description of Antichrist is in his fourth chapter of the same epistle in these words Every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God and this is that spirit of Antichrist From whence I thus reason Whosoever is not of Antichrists spirit cannot be Antichrist but the Pope is not of Antichrists spirit therefore he cannot be Antichrist The assumption is proved thus Antichrists spirit will not confesse that Christ is come in the flesh But the Pope confesseth that Christ is come in the flesh that he was born of the virgin Marie suffered death under Pontius Pilate for the sinnes of the world Therefore so long as the Pope holdeth this minde he cannot possibly be the Antichrist But Doctor Whitakers to crosse these two manifest demonstrations of Gods word affirmeth that though the Pope denieth not Christ to be come in the flesh verbo tenus and in the first yet that he denieth him in the second that is by consequent First saith he he denieth him to be the onely King Priest and Prophet of his Church and next in subjoyning to Christs merits and passion other subordinate means as the use of Sacraments penitentiall sorrow forgiving of injuries giving of almes the abundance of charitie and all the kindes of good works From whence it follows as Doctor Whitakers thinketh that where so many concurrent means are joyned to Christs death and merits there Christs coming and suffering in the flesh is in a manner or by consequence denied and diminished I reply that if we should understand Antichrists denying of Christ by such consequents and comments of our own brain then Luther should be the Antichrist who in his comment upon the epistle to the Galatians calleth Christ a sinner yea the greatest of all sinners by which blasphemie though Christs coming in the flesh is not absolutely denied yet his meriting in the flesh is absolutely denied by the former way of consequence because a sinner can make no satisfaction nor merit any thing Again by such sequence Calvine should be the Antichrist who absolutely denieth the sufficiencie of Christs bodily death and suffering for us thus writing Nihil actum erat si corporeâ tantùm morte defunctus fuisset Nothing had been done if Christ had died onely a bodily death Again Eam mortem pertulit quae sceleratis ab irato Deo infligitur He bore that death which is inflicted by the angrie God upon wicked men But if Christ were dead in soul and suffered hell-torments such as a damned man should do which are deprivation of grace and eternall torments then he could not have redeemed us as the worthy Doctor Bilson observeth upon this because he which is dead in soul can deserve nothing Yet God forbid I should put the term of Antichrist upon these my brethren because they opposed not Christ directé but indirectè obliqué
men shall dream dreams and your young men shall see visions In this vision Moses saw a bush burning with fire and yet was not consumed The bush burning expresseth the manners of Gods people in his house who are to him as thorns to his sides yet so mercifull is he that he doth not consume us though we be wood and he A consuming fire Can he ever be praised enough For his mercy endureth for ever After this God spake to Moses and bad him to put off his shoes because the place whereon he stood was holy ground From hence Gods house is called A Sanctuary that is to say a holy place and why in regard of Gods speciall presence and conference between him and man as God here spake to Moses and Moses to him about the delivering his people from the hand of the Egyptians Thus afterward the Tabernacle and the Temple were called Gods sanctuary because there was the visible signe of Gods presence called the Mercy-seat from whence God spake to the high priest and the high priest to the people So again to this day all our churches are called Sanctuaries as in many other regards so especially in regard of the Lords table or high Altar at the upper end of them which is Jesus Christs Mercy-seat because there the memorie of the everlasting sacrifice is made and presented to the holy Trinity But why was Moses here commanded to put off his shoes To teach us that when we come before God in his sanctuary we should reverence him by putting off our vices and especially our covetousnesse and earthly affections which cleave to our souls as the dust of the earth cleaveth to our shoes And according to this every sunday and holiday we shift our common and worldly clothes to insinuate that we should put off our secular thoughts and be endued with heavenly and spirituall thoughts not doing our own will nor speaking our own vain words but Gods words and his ordinances Fourthly Gods house is set forth in the old law by the Tabernacle which was a tent or pavilion to be pitched and taken up as they travelled to the land of Canaan the figure of heaven which signifieth that Gods Church in this life is a pilgrimage and a passing to the place above for which the 15 Psalmes of steps or degrees were made and used in the Temple to teach that we ought continually to travell from the valley of tears to the heavenly Jerusalem by all the holy paces of vertues and especially of charitie The Psalmist speaking of this travell saith They go from strength to strength till every one appeare before God in Sion Which if we apply to their Tabernacle and to our going into Gods house every time we go an holy strength and refreshing is supplied unto us toward heavens Sion In this Tabernacle first was a laver of pure water set at the doore of the Tabernacle of the congregation for the priests to wash before they executed any part of their service to which answereth our holy Font placed at the doore of our Sanctuaries to wash all Christs people with the water of regeneration before they be admitted to be of his number And this is to teach us that ever after we should come to this place with pure hearts to worship God and the holy Font is to put us in minde of it Next to this was the Altar of burnt-offering which continually burnt not with common fire but with fire sent from heaven as appeareth Lev. 9. But because the law is now altered from materiall things to spirituall things therefore our Altar next under the Altar of Christs sacrifice once offered is the Altar of our hearts and our fire is the heavenly fire of charity sent down into us from Christs Spirit and whosoever offereth with any other fire his sacrifice shall be no better accepted with God then Nadab's and Abihu's incense was Levit. 10. Besides this was the candlestick full of lamps shining with great light which signified the exceeding light of the Gospell prophesied Isaiah 30. 26. when the light of the moon should be like the light of the sunne and the light of the sunne should be seven-fold and like the light of seven dayes which cannot be understood but of the spirituall light of the Gospell in holy doctrine Wherefore to mend this among our selves let our light be the light of faith kindled with charity and not the light of idle and proud knowledge which can profit nothing Further there was the table of shew-bread and the pot in which Manna was put signifying the heavenly bread of Christs body from whence comes unto us the bread of his grace in holy charity by which all good desires and endeavours are fed and maintained in our souls as naturall heat is maintained by materiall bread Lastly there was the Altar of incense which figured the most pleasant and sweet sacrifice of Christ for us whereby we are brought into Gods favour after our many offences toward him And thus much for the Tabernacle Fifthly Gods house is described by the Temple at Jerusalem which was situate upon mount Sion the mountain of holinesse expressed in the 48 Psal. 1 2. Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised in the city of our God in the mountain of his holinesse Beautifull for situation the joy of the whole earth is mount Sion Again in Psal. 87. 1 2. God layed his foundations among the holy mountains The Lord loveth the gates of Sion above all the habitations of Jacob. Lastly in the 48 Psal. 3. Gods house is described by a kings palace God is well known in her palaces for a refuge from hence the fathers call our greater and mother churches Basilicae the palaces where the high King of heaven dwelleth and where God is a refuge to his people that call upon him there in any trouble or difficultie As when the subjects of a king are by their enemies assaulted if they can get into their kings palace then they think themselves safe enough so is it with Gods people who flie to his house for refuge But some will say I can pray and serve God as well at home in mine own house Thou mayest serve God there but not so well because God hath made choice of this house before all private houses in regard of his solemne and publick worship Therefore the Psalmist saith The Lord loveth the gates of Sion above all the habitations of Jacob. In this house God hath put his name and made promises to it above all places I have hallowed this house which thou hast built to put my name there for ever and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually If Gods heart be here then my heart shall be here too and if his eyes be here then will I humble soul and body before him lest I offend him Again God hath commanded his house to be a house of prayer by way of excellency Isa.
toward the more usuall and speciall place of his residence or resemblance which is the high Altar or the Lords table usually standing at the east end of Gods house Idque propter Christū qui est lux mundi ORIENS nominatur Zach. 6. 12. ab oriente etiam expectatur venturus SICUT FUL GUR EXIT AB ORIENTE ITA ERITET ADVENTUS FILII HOMINIS And this duty of bowing the knee when we first come before them that are great is so ancient and frequent that when we come before a noble man or man of worship before we speak a word we begin with bowing our knee to him Shall we give this reverence to man and neglect our Maker when we come before him Let us see holy presidents for this duty in Gods book Psal. 99. 5. Exalt ye the Lord our God and worship at his footstool for he is holy The Hebrew word is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which properly signifieth to bowe and by his footstool is meant his Ark which was his seat In the 12. of Exodus we reade that when Moses had told the children of Israel of the great benefit of the passeover the text saith Then the people bowed themselves and worshipped and in Isa. 45. and Rom. 14. we have a charge of this duty upon Gods oath I have sworn by my self the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousnesse and shall not return that every knee shall bowe unto me and no time fitter then when first we come before his presence or depart from his house And this duty was practised in the new Testament by S. Paul Ephes. 3. 14. For this cause I bowe my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. But many of our people come to Gods house as the horse goes into the stable without any reverence at all Yet anciently hath this duty been practised especially among women and at this day before they enter their pews some make their courtesy in the alley but it is with their faces either toward their masters and mistresses or toward some of their betters in the parish Now good men and women understand your duty You come not hither to serve men but God therefore the first reverence that you make because the house is Gods and not mans direct your aspect to Gods table which S. Paul calls the Lords Altar saying We have an Altar whereof they have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle This is the great signe of Gods residence in this holy place as the Ark was the signe of his presence in his tabernacle here the great sacrifice of Christs death for our salvation is in remembrance represented to God the Father and can we remember so great a benefit and not reverence the Father Sonne and holy Ghost for it I do not exhort you to give divine worship to Gods table but to worship God toward it For Gods Altar is not terminativum cultûs but motivum only as Daniel being in captivity turned his face toward Jerusalem when he prayed but prayed not to it Thus if we come before God in his house with due reverence then will he hold out his golden scepter of grace to us as the great king Ahasuerus held out his to Qu. Esther But if we slight God in his own palace and he hold out his iron scepter to us then let us be wise and learned Let us learn of our mother churches for there our reverend fathers the prelates and others make their reverence to God on this wise both at their entry and return Wherefore to follow their good and holy pattern we also are to do the like both at our first coming into Gods house and at our going out And this will I confirm to you out of Gods word The first is taught in Psalm 132. 7. We will enter into his tabernacle we will worship at his footstool The second is expressed in the second of Chron. where is shewed that when the sacrifice was ended the king and all that were present with him bowed themselves and worshipped And thus Elkanah came yearely both to worship and to sacrifice to the Lord in Shiloh upon which place saith Mendoza Mysterio non vacat quòd priùs adorârit postea sacrificârit ut quanta cum reverentia sacrificandum sit significetur It wanted not mysterie that he first worshipped and then sacrificed to signifie with how great reverence he did it S. Gregorie likewise hath it Adorans immolat quia quò humiliùs divinâ veneratione prosternitur eò summo claritatis illius blandimento suaviùs refovetur He worshipping sacrificed for by how much the more humble he was in divine veneration prostrate so much the sweetlier he was comforted with the pleasantnesse of his highest excellencie But what is the fashion of the vulgar as they come in with rudenesse so they run out like sheep at a gap except a few of our women and maids which to this day retain some remnant of this laudable duty Did we know what God is what we have had from him and what we are to have we would kisse the ground for his sake where he is and think nothing enough for his honour After our bowing to God followeth our falling on our knees in prayer For seeing Gods house is principally for prayer therefore next after our holy salutation it is fit to fall down unto him in our places and humble our selves more low in regard of the benefit we begge of him And thus did the man to Jesus in S. Matthew There came to him a certain man and fell down at his feet and said Master have pitie on my sonne for he is lunatick and sore vexed In S. Mark another came and kneeled to him and asked him Good master what shall I do that I may inherit eternall life This question deserved a double fee. Thus Peter kneeled down and prayed when he raised Tabitha to life and thus the disciples with their wives and children kneeled down and prayed on the shore before they took their leave of Paul when he departed from them And so frequent was this manner of praying in the primitive Church that Eusebius reporteth of S. James That his knees were benummed and like camels knees by reason of his often and much kneeling to God in supplication from which his singular sanctity he was called IUST The fifth office is To rise up from our seats when the Articles of our faith are read and this we are to do First by way of reverence because the Creed is the summe of Christs Gospel Secondly as when we ask God pardon for our sinnes past or beseech his heavenly Majestie for blessings needfull to sustain us in all reason our behaviour should be with all humilitie on our knees so in the profession of our faith our gesture of standing which argues constancie in our hearts best becomes us at that time to testifie before God and the
sacrifice of the old Law And according to this our Church-service enjoyneth us to come fasting and not full-gorged to holy feasts because as the book of Wisdome teacheth the body is heavy to the soul and thâ—â—â—ller it is the heavier it is Therefore S. Chrysostome saith that fasting and almes are to the soul wings to mount it up in prayer and contemplation to heavenly things Experience teacheth that the stronger the body is the weaker the spirit and grace is and that by the bodies delicates the soul becometh carnal and so adversary to things spirituall The ninth office is To sing holy psalmes and hymnes to Gods honour in his house and this is taught Ephes. 5. 18 19. Be not drunk with wine wherein is excesse but be filled with the Spirit Speaking to your selves in psalmes and hymnes and spirituall songs singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord. And again Coloss. 3. 16. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdome teaching and admonishing one another in psalmes and hymnes and spirituall songs singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. In which words is signified not onely the spirituall edifying of the soul in knowledge and understanding but further the speciall grace of holy singing in stirring up all our powers to praise God and to petition unto him with greater fervencie and alacritie By this trumpet of heart and mouth the devil is put to flight we encouraged to the spirituall warre and our sacrifice of praise pierceth the clouds And here by the way I am put in minde of the exceeding commendation which the ancient Divines give to the book of Psalmes above other Scriptures The tenth office respecteth Gods Ministers First in putting on the holy vestments for it is not fit that the maker of heavens ornaments should be served with common garments Gods house is a house of holinesse therefore holy vestments set apart for so high service best beseem it These intimate to all sorts in what a reverent manner God is to be served When the great Alexander the worlds conquerour came to Judea the holy nation to win it Josephus reporteth that the high priest Jaddus went out of Jerusalem to meet him wearing about him his priestly robes with which he served God in the Temple whom when he beheld in this solemne and sacred habit the storie sheweth that he reverenced him as Gods Minister fell prostrate on his face before the name of God which he bore on his breast-plate gave him his hand offered sacrifice to God according to his direction and granted what immunities and priviledges he would request for his nation It is likewise credibly reported by historians of no mean note and renown that Attilas king of the Hunnes in Germany who was called too truely as the Christians of those times by wofull experience testified THE SCOURGE OF GOD and TERROUR OF CHRISTIANS he having now made havock of the most part of Italy by sacking their towns burning their cities wasting their countrey demolishing their temples and savagely massacring â—â—ose primitive Saints in all furie and madnesse marches to Rome utterly to rase down that Metropolis of Europe At which time Leo firnamed for his pietie the GREAT being Pope came out in ornaments truely pontificall to meet him but after a pious and learned oration little prevailing yet the storie affirms Pontificali indutus ornatu ipsam religionis majestatem conspicuè arguente non precum pondere sed vultu gravi habitúque sanctimoniam indicante venerandam nè Roman vastatum iret benignè persuasit Apparelled in his priestly vestments which plainly proved the very majestie of religion not with the fervencie of entreaty but with gesture grave and habit declaring his reverend sanctitie he gently perswaded him not to lay waste Rome And were our Churches and Priests naked of this ornament when Turks and Ethnicks should enter them would they not say Is the God of Christians so mean that he is no better served By this is signified the principall robe of Ministers fit for this house and service which is righteousnesse signified by the Urim and Thummim on the high priests breast-plate and rehearsed in Psalme 132. 9. Let thy priests be clothed with righteousnesse For that Minister who liveth innocently towards his neighbours and holily towards God alwaies beareth about with him his Urim and Thummim one signifying the light of knowledge and the other the perfection of charitie The second and principall part of the Ministers office is not onely to be clotheâ— with righteousnesse and to be an honest and just man but it is further the true understanding distinct reading and decent ministerie of the Church-service contained in the book of Common prayer This is the pith of godlinesse the heart of religion the Spina or Vertebrae the backbone of all holy faculties in the Christian body Which way soever you turn you here you shall finde the saying of our Saviour fulfilled Thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousnesse Desire you new life here is Baptisme to give it Are you gone from it here is the Baptisme of tears and penance to restore it Want you weapons for the spirituall warre here is the Catechisme and Confirmation Need you food for the new life here is the bread and wine of Christs body and bloud Want you supply of vertuous young souldiers here is Matrimonie and Christian education Need you leaders and governours here are Christs Ministers Want you provision for the journey to the high Jerusalem here is the viaticum of the heavenly Manna expressed in the Communion of the sick After this a wise and discreet Sermon not made by every Minister but by a man of reading and discretion right well beseemeth this holy place Preaching is Gods mouth to his people therefore great care must be had that it be not abused either with false doctrines or unsavourie speeches In this case S. Paul makes his exclamation Who is sufficient for these things How this is regarded none but the learned see Not how well but a Sermon of the vulgar is expected But would you know what Sermons are fit for our holy assemblies they are such as are suitable to our book of Common Service and the two heads of religion faith and good life If you would know what faith we are to follow it must be that which S. Paul calleth the one faith As there was but one Tabernacle and one Temple in the old Law to preserve the unitie of their religion so here must be but one faith amongst us Christians to keep us from diversitie of opinions all the world over This one faith Titus 1. 4. is called the common faith and of Divines it is called the Catholick faith to shew that they which hold not it cannot be of the Communion of saints And this faith is contained in the three Creeds of the Apostles of Nice and Athanasius And the false faith is that which is contrary to this
and reasonable answer Quanquam res est in utramque partem disputabilis mihi tamen magis probatur ipsos verè in eum locum adductos esse Neque enim absurdum est quum Deus corpora animas habeat in sua manu mortuos ad tempus in vitam ejus arbitrio restitui dum ità expedit Tunc autem Moses Elias non sibi resurrexerunt sed ut praestò adessent Christo. Calvin Harm Evang. in loc Though the thing be disputable on both parts yet to me saith he it seemeth more probable that they were truely brought into that place Neither is it absurd seeing God hath in his hands bodies and souls that at his will the dead should for a time be restored to life when it is so expedient c. But for this businesse the coming of Enoch and Elias is most expedient for that it is said of Antichrist that he shall come after the working of Satan with all power and signes and lying wonders and therefore they who are to buckle with him had need to be more then ordinarie men such to whom none were like as Ecclesiasticus reporteth of Enoch and Elias and endued with true miracles And this is further confirmed by the prophesie of Malachi Behold I will send you Elias the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the Lord. But this our late Divines turn aside by applying it to John the Baptist and to Christs first coming according to that in Matt. 17. 12. I say unto you that Elias is already come To this I reply that as there are two comings of Christ a first and a second so there are also two Eliahs the true and proper Elias who was the Prophet and the spirituall Elias which was John the Baptist so called because he came in Eliahs spirit This spirituall Elias as our Saviour most truely reporteth came before Christs first coming and the proper Elias is to come before his second coming And this as Jansenius on this point in the Gospel saith communiter intelligitur Thus are both true Elias is come and not come The spirituall Elias is come and hath done his part but the proper Elias is yet to come because Malachi saith He shall be sent before the great and terrible day of the Lord. Now it is manifest that Christs first coming was not that great and terrible day because the scripture calleth it the day of salvation and the acceptable time Therefore it is left that the true and proper Elias is yet to come before the great and terrible day so called of the prophets because it is a day of judgement and revenge Vers. 5. Remember ye not that when I was yet with you I told you these things Vers. 6. And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time After the Apostle hath laid out the two antecedents of the worlds end the apostasie and the Antichrist now he confirmeth his doctrine and chideth these Thessalonians for being so soon removed from the tradition of the truth as if he should have said Did ye heare me so slightly that ye have so soon forgotten me I told you something then which is not fit to be written namely that the apostasie cannot yet be ripe nor the man of sinne be revealed for that the Romane Emperour will not suffer it He will admit no man to play Rex or to display the banner of Antichrist But the time shall come when his date shall be out then shall defection flourish and after that the man of sinne shall be in his colours This S. Paul would not write lest the publick prediction of the ruine of the Romane Empire should spurre them up to an exasperation against the Christian profession for it is not good to wake a sleeping dogge nor to draw troubles which will come too fast of their own accord When sheep are sent among wolves they had need to be wise as serpents and innocent as doves And this doctrine both S. Ambrose and S. Chrysostome confirm upon these words Ye know what withholdeth S. Ambrose saith Post defectum abolitionem regni Romani appariturum Antichristum After the defect abolishing of the Romane kingdome Antichrist is to appeare And S. Chrysostome 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 When the Romane Empire shall be taken away then shall Antichrist come Antichrists originall and seed Vers. 7. For the mysterie of iniquitie already worketh Here is demonstrated Antichrists seed and originall which is iniquitie Iniquitie in the Greek text is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 anomie or a life without law and is the mother of apostasie and apostasie is the breeder of Antichrist In the primitive Church before canons were made and government established men would preach what they listed for without law no man is confined and then were heresies broacht in plentie Satan wrought cunningly and by degrees upon their green wits and therefore their anomie S. Paul calls a mysterie Anomie began in the Apostles dayes and continued to Mahomets time apostasie stood up in Mahomets time and to this day expecteth Antichrists time The Turks daily look for their Mahomet and the Jews for their Messias when both these are met in one then shall be that great monster the man of sinne Then if we will not be deluded in the birth and originall of Antichrist we must look for him out of the apostasie there is the fittest matter of his breed He must be no Christian that shall be the Antichrist by reason of the opposition But it is wondered at that he should be so long in breeding for the mysterie began in the Apostles time and S. John saith that then were many Antichrists which were his fore-runners and yet as yet he is not come I answer As the great Comet is a longer time in gathering then the ordinarie stella cadens and as all great works have long and great preparations so hath this man of sinne In the first six hundred yeares after Christ he was an embryon since that time to this he hath been in his animation and now we expect his viperous birth Vers. 7. Onely he who now letteth will let till he be taken out of the way Why doth the Apostle applie this let onely to the Romane empire seeing there were other and farre higher causes of this dilation as Gods will of sufferance and the administration of angels Of the first it is said Psalme 115. 3. Our God is in heaven and he doth whatsoever he will And S. Paul Rom. 9. 19. saith Who hath resisted his will Of the second we reade in Daniel 10. 13. that the angel who was prince of the kingdome of Persia withstood that other angel who was prince of the holy nation untill Michael one of the chief princes came in to his help To this we say that where divers causes be concurring to one end there the naming of one doth not exclude the other but
the prudent Now from this demonstration of the two beasts ariseth this argument That the Antichrist could not rise up under the first beast he was his onely let And because there are but two of these beasts therefore it is left that he must rise up under this last as Antiochus Antichrists figure rose out of one of the foure horns of the goat in the end of that kingdome Dan. 8. 23. Therefore in the sixteenth of the Apocalyps he is yoked with this beast and the dragon under the title of the false prophet where is said And I saw three unclean spirits come out of the mouth of that dragon and out of the mouth of that beast and out of the mouth of that false prophet to go unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world to gather them to the battell of that great day of God Almighty By the Dragon is meant the Devil as S. John interpreteth by the Beast is understood the Turk which is the second and surviving beast because where the first beast ended there the second began therefore it remaineth that the false prophet in the last place should be the Antichrist that is that singular man whose name consisteth of these Greek letters 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and whose coming as S. Paul saith shall be after the working of Satan with all power and signes and lying wonders To these ends First to make the people to beleeve in him as the onely God the Turks as if their Mahomet were returned and the Jews as though their Messias were come And secondly as S. John testifieth to gather the world together to the battell of the great day of God Almightie which shall be at the worlds end Hence it is apparent that the second beast cannot be the Papacie as some have interpreted First because the Papacie rose up and to this day resideth where the first beast rose up that is out of the sea at Rome but the second beast as S. John sheweth rose out of the earth And secondly because the second beast and the false prophet conspire together but the Turk and the Pope are enemies one to another Thirdly because the blowing of the sixth trumpet and the pouring out of the sixth vial in Apoc. 9 and 16 as M. Fox and most interpreters do consent belong to the kingdome of Antichrist and is properly understood of the Turks dominions as appeareth from the circumstance of the river Euphrates where the foure angels were loosed to destroy the third part of men and the river dried up to prepare the way for Antichrists armie And if the Pope should be the second beast then we must make the Turk to be the third because he teareth more then the other and thus we should have one beast more then S. John saw So that now it lies between the Turk and the Pope who shall have the horns and let the wiser sort judge Lastly if the Pope should be the second beast or the Antichrist from him because all interpreters understand Antichrist to belong to the second beast as Doctor Whitakers writeth in his answer to Sanders then he must not arise at Rome which is the first beasts originall for that this is found contrary in Revel 13. and 11 verse being compared with the first verse But there remaineth a stumbling block to be removed which is the misapplying of the prophesie of the whore of Babylon in the 17 of the Revelation For all there understand the Whore to be Antichrist in regard of her cup full of abominations and fornications and the beast upon which she sitteth to be the citie of Rome or the governour thereof by a metonymie Verse 3. I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet-coloured beast full of names of blasphemie which had seven heads and ten horns These seven heads are by S. John expounded to be seven mountains in verse 9. Now it is confessed on both sides that this citie consisting of seven mountains is Rome and therefore the men which would have the Pope to be Antichrist affirm it because at this day the Pope sitteth on that seat I answer Though the Pope at this day sitteth on that citie which is called the beast because the first beast which was the devouring empire of ethnick Rome there resided yet the Pope shall not alwayes there sit except he sit beside his cushen because when the great Antichrist shall come toward the end of the world aided by the second beast which is the Mahometicall empire then shall the Pope be outed and the second beast and the Whore Antichrist shall come in where sitting by the space of three yeares and an half the Beast the Whore and the Citie for so I finde them conjoyned in this chapter as making but one bodie shall be drunken with the bloud of the saints and martyrs which they shall then shed in abundance and thus at last the second beast shall sit on the first beasts seat and so become as it were one beast as it is in the 8 verse of this 17 chapter where it is said When they shall behold the beast which was and is not and yet is The beast which was must of necessitie be understood of persecuting Rome in the time of the primitive Church That Rome at this day is not the beast is manifest because the Pope there now sheddeth no bloud Yet this first beast at this day is in his successour the second beast which is the Mahometicall empire doing all things that the first beast could as you may reade in the 13 chapter and 12 verse Thus the first beast shall be in his esse by the second beast and Antichrist the last of that wicked line in the end of the world and shall sit upon the seven-hilled Rome abounding with blasphemies spirituall fornications and bloud untill the moon be turned into bloud and the great and terrible day of the Lord be come And that Antichrist when he cometh shall sit at Rome I prove it first from S. Pauls testimonie saying that he shall sit as God in the temple of God Where by the temple of God we are not to understand the temple at Jerusalem as Bellarmine would have us for that was to cease with the old law and was long since demolished by Vespasian and Titus and when Julian the apostate would have built it again to increase the Jews and to lessen the Christians no sooner were the foundations laid but an earthquake cast them up again and fire from heaven consumed the tools of the workmen with the stones timber and other materials which is a signe that God will not have that temple to be built again But by the Temple we must understand the Temples of Christians which are our Churches because the Apostle wrote this to the Christians at Thessalonica and not to the Jews And thus Oecumenius interpreteth S. Paul saying 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 He doth not say the Temple at
56. 7. My house shall be called an house of prayer and our Lord in the Gospel confirmeth it Wherefore if God will heare the prayers of his people in all places then he will heare them sooner and with greater respect in his own house which is specially dedicated to prayer and his service Neither doth this any way derogate from his ubiquity but from his being ubique uniformiter for as his mercy although it is over all his works yet is it not equally in hell and in heaven or the measure of his justice equally poured forth upon saints and angels as upon the children of disobedience so likewise although this be Gods attribute to be every where yet he is not every where alike both in regard of the promise of his especiall presence made in Scripture in such houses consecrated to his name by which they become more especially holy as also because in this house God will heare for the presence of his Sonne For as S. Chrysostome saith Where Christ is in the Eucharist there is no want of angels where such a King is and such princes are there is a heavenly palace nay heaven it self It followeth now to shew what God is and that he is the great owner of this house Great is Gods house but greater is the owner because no house can hold him therefore my Text useth an exclamation which intimateth a great entity Holinesse becometh thy house O Lord God is far greater then his house for he not onely dwelleth in his house but in the hearts of men in the intelligences of angels and in all other creatures And because nothing can contain him he dwelleth in himself most perfectly Of all places the prophet David speaketh Whither shall I go from thy spirit or whither shall I flee from thy presence If I ascend up to heaven thou art there if I make my bed in the grave thou art there also If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea even there shall thy hand leade me and thy right hand shall hold me And in Isa. 66. 1. God challengeth the whole world for his house Heaven is my throne and earth is my footstool what house will you build for me saith the Lord hath not my hand made all these things Wherefore when we come to worship God in his house we must bring this thought with us to surrender up all our own thoughts of serving him and desire him to ayd us with his holy Spirit And when after this we have done our lowliest service and served him with our best devotions yet we must say Lord we can never serve thee enough because thou art infinite and we uncapable of thy greatnesse and worthinesse Thus farre have I spoken of God and his house but before we enter it it is fit to know our selves and how we are to be qualified for it From the highest to the lowest alas we are all poore creatures At the first originally we were born abroad in the fields our mothers name was the earth and our fathers name was nothing for from nothing God made all his creatures according to that in Heb. 11. 3. So that things which are seen were not made of things which appeare Seeing then we are so poorely descended what shall we do we must go to service we must seek some good house for our preferment The best house in the world is Gods house for he is owner of heaven and earth and able to advance all But what are the orders of this house what will here give content Holinesse becometh thy house O Lord. Would we know what this holinesse is It is no common but a superlative honour it is Gods honour which we call godlinesse and holinesse common honour belongs to all that have Gods image in them but holinesse reflecteth onely upon the high and mighty God For this cause our Saviour hath taught us to say Hallowed which is more then Honoured be thy name according to the Psalme Holy and reverend is his name And this holinesse respective to Gods house consisteth of certain holy offices The first is To adorn and beautifie it fit for his greatnesse as himself gave pattern in beautifying his tabernacle there was gold and silver precious stones silks with all precious colours the most choice woods and all things framed with the best cunning that God inspired Bezaleel and Aholiab and all the wise-hearted of that time Now to prosecute S. Pauls argument if that which was to be done away was glorious much more is that to be glorious which is to remain 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and Dei domus sort well together comelinesse and holinesse joyn hand with each other Thus saith my Text Holinesse becometh thy house O Lord. This office equity exacteth of us for seeing God hath made the worlds great ornament and our 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 our little world for our honour and use should not we proportion a due ornament for his house and service A mans house is his state and the greatest men are esteemed by it And according to this Ezra saith Blessed be the Lord God of our fathers which hath put into the kings heart to beautifie the house of our God that is in Jerusalem And the Psalmist saith Worship the Lord in the beauty of holinesse that is to say in the beautified sanctuary or as the Geneva translation expoundeth in the glorious Sanctuary But how are our Sanctuaries about us for the most part beautified If basenesse were not more then want of beauty I would hold my peace One beauty hath beat out another the beauty of preaching which is a beauty too hath preacht away the beauty of holinesse for if men may have a sermon prayer and church-service with the ornaments of Gods house may fit abroad in the cold Alas that the daughters should drive away the mothers Is it not a shame for us to see the houses of knights and gentlemen sweeter kept and better adorned then the houses of the King of heaven To the one one mans means is sufficient to the other the means of a whole town is liable and yet this latter nothing so beautified as the other is is not this a second shame Our Saviour telleth us that in his Fathers house there are many mansions Shall we look for glorious mansions in the kingdome of heaven and will we not prepare comely mansions in the kingdomes of the earth Doth not God challenge us where he challengeth his chosen people Is it time for you to dwell in your cieled houses and this house to lie waste Gods judgement follows Ye looked for much and lo it came to little and when ye brought it home I did blow upon it and why saith the Lord of hosts because of my house that is waste and ye come every man to his own house Therefore the heaven over you stayed it self from dew and the earth stayed
her fruit Then neighbours if you desire the cry of our poore to cease and the judgements of God to forbear us let us give God his due and respect his house There was a time when our holy fathers spared no cost nor labour to build Gods houses now let us take our time to adorn them as many of our devout brethren have begun So forward were good people in the old world to this service that Moses made proclamation to stay their devotions as we reade in Exod. 36. O that but half this willing heart were among us Christians to shew our love to God in this kinde The second office of holinesse is a holy preparation before we enter Gods house This is taught by Solomon Eccles. 5. 1. Take heed to thy foot when thou entrest into the house of God as if it had been said Thou canst not enter as thou oughtest without a preventing and preparing thought Why sayest thou not to thy self Whither goest thou what art thou about to do If thou sayest To serve God then consider what God is Is he not the maker of all things and the mover of all things made canst thou see any thing that is not his canst thou heare any thing which his hand hath not made canst thou wear any thing which his fingers have not spunne canst thou set thy foot on that which his power hath not founded All this week before thou hast sitten at his table and tasted of his cates and canst thou come at any time to his house to thank him for all this and not deeply consider what thou art to do The third office of holinesse is To reverence Gods Sanctuarie and as by other acts of reverence so by keeping off our hats while we stay in it whether there be Service or no Service and this reverence is commanded in generall Levit. 19. after such an emphaticall manner as if the breach of it were equall to the sinne of not keeping the fourth commandment for they are joyned together both in the same precept vers 30. Ye shall keep my Sabbaths and reverence my Sanctuarie I am the Lord. Where ye see why God commands his house to be reverenced because it is his house and the honour that is done in it and to it is done to himself I am the Lord. As the good usage which we give to the family of a nobleman reflecteth from the family to the nobleman so is it between God and his house When we go into our kings chamber where stands his chair of state though the king himself be not there yet we put off and are uncovered in remembrance of his majestie but our heavenly King as he is in all places because he is infinite so he is in this his palace by a more speciall resemblance of his holinesse but then chiefly when Gods people are met together there for Gods house is a little heaven on earth here dwels the Father Sonne and holy Ghost the Father in receiving our devotions the Sonne in directing them and the holy Ghost in sanctifying them Thus saith the Sonne of God Where two or three are gathered together in my name there am I in the midst of them Thou wilt say I cannot see either Father Sonne or holy Ghost in this place I answer God is a Spirit therefore not to be seen with bodily eyes yet hath he given thee bodily eyes to inform thy spirituall eyes Seest thou not Gods Minister here speaking to God and bowing his knees to him when he speaks Seest thou not the Sonne of Gods seat here the holy Altar at the upper end of this house and seest thou not the holy Font at the nether end where the holy Ghost is alwaies ready to receive all into his kingdome If the Sonne and holy Ghosts seats be at both ends of this house must not the Father needs be all the house over because both Sonne and holy Ghost proceed from him and are but one Spirit and one God Moses saith The Lord our God is one Lord. He is in the light that shines in at the window he is in thy breath by which thou prayest and speakest Thou mayst say further I cannot see the holy angels here attending on him Wilt thou beleeve no more then thou canst see then art thou no better then S. Thomas in this case to whom our Lord preferreth all them that beleeve have not seen See with S. Pauls eies in the 1. Cor. 11. 10. where men are directed to be uncovered on their heads in Gods house women to be covered because of the angels that is to say lest the holy angels in the congregation should be offended at the womens irreverent carriage with bare heads and long hair and at the mens hats on their heads Wherefore good fellow-brethren if you respect God and his holy place have a speciall care to maintain good orders and manners in it lest God and his holy angels be offended at us To conclude as all the holy saints in heaven behold Gods face there so all the saints of the earth are here in this lower heaven beholding the beauty of his holinesse Now if God be here his seat here his angels here his saints here his word and worship here then what reverence and holinesse becometh this house above all places in the world Wert thou in the kings chamber the king there speaking to thee and thou to the king how wouldest thou tremble what passions wouldest thou have within thee what thoughts of humilitie what cares of oversights But because thou canst see none but thy neighbours here here thou art bold and servest God with lesse fear then men serve the work of his fingers Si quis regem hominem saith Erasmus alloquuturus circumstante procerum coronâ nec caput aperiat nec genu flectat non jam pro rustico sed pro insano ab omnibus haberetur Quale est ergò illîc opertum habere caput erecta genua ubi Rex adest ille regū immortalis immortalitatis largitor ubi vener abundi circumstant aetherei spiritus nec refert si eos non vides vident illi te nec minùs certum est illos adesse quà m si videres illos oculis corporeis It skilleth not whether thou seest them when as they see thee for it is as certain that angels are present in Gods house at such times as if thou sawest them with thy bodily eyes Open therefore all thy eyes the eyes of thy minde and the eyes of thy body the eyes of thy body to behold the outward beauty of this house in divine service and the eyes of thy soul to behold the inward beauty of Gods holinesse majesty and greatnesse and thou canst not choose but be reverent more then our usuall manner is The 4 sort of reverence and office of this holinesse beseeming Gods house is at the entring in before we take our seats to bend the knee and to bowe our body to him
the private faith or fancie rather by which men beleeve to be saved by themselves absolutely without condition or regard of the faith of the Church And this is that which is mother and nurse to vice and enemy to all good life And that this is not the catholick faith it shall appeare because that faith hath not a speciall object as a mans private self or Gods speciall favour to this or that particular man which is hopes object but a catholick object which is the whole first truth and every member of Gods word as the School teacheth This faith goeth but to the truth and esse of divine things according to that of the Apostle Heb. 11. 1. Faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen Faith gives them a subsisting and being in our minde and after this Hope layes hold of them in the will and affections and applies them to our selves and Charity goes into them Again the Apostle saith He that cometh to God must beleeve that God is and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him not a rewarder of thee and me as if the Article of the faith were personall but of them that diligently seek him Here is the condition If thou and I seek him diligently then is he a rewarder of thee and me and not otherwise if the condition be kept the Article is just and the faith is stedfast Secondly if faith be to beleeve all the parts of Gods word then none can be absolutely sure of their salvation by faith because the threatnings against sinne which none are without do as much discourage us as the promises pull us on and the one must be beleeved as well as the other Thirdly whereas all hope of salvation depends upon the promises there is no promise but in one part of Gods word or other hath conditions tied to it as repentance after sinnes keeping of Gods law and perseverance to the end from whence it follows that none can be secure of the promises though he have all the faith in the world except he be sure of the conditions keeping of which none can be secure because no man is his own judge Fourthly if men might be saved by such a faith or by faith onely then prayer to God might sleep care of standing might stand by and good life which is the nearest bond of our conjunction with God might be forborn which God forbid Wherefore that we might preach the right way and you walk the right way we must joyn S. James justifying of works with S. Pauls justification by faith and then have we the two principalls of faith and good life observed by which the hope of our salvation is confirmed and strengthened and if you would have a breviary of good life it is to keep all the commandments of Gods law and the Canons of the Church as farre as we can it is to flie sinne to follow vertue to live justly to give to every one his own mercy to some and love and charity to all because Charity is the fulfilling of the law Thus much for Sermons fit for Gods house Where such cannot be had because such are not common there the distinct and sensible reading of the two lessons and the Churchhomilies with Sermons heard abroad sometimes upon occasions will supply this want and were these read as the Canon directeth aptly that is by just distinctions and by a sensible reader observing all the rules of reading with pronuntiation fit for the matter and with due attention of the hearer the profit and edifying would be much Thirdly and lastly to this office on the peoples part belongs attention and devotion without which the former office freezeth Attention is to separate our thoughts from all other things whatsoever and to give them onely to divine doctrine and service according to holy Ephrems counsel Cave nè aurum tuum aere vel plumbo misceas hoc est Nè animam improbis immundis cogitationibus contamines c. Take heed that thou mix not thy gold with brasse or lead that is Defile not thy soul with wicked or unclean thoughts For as a virgin espoused to an husband if she be deflowred by others becomes execrable unto him even so the soul distracted with filthy and immodest thoughts becomes abominable to Christ her heavenly bridegroom For these impure thoughts contaminate our attention which gives life to that we receive into us and devotion is the soul of that which goes out of us the one gives form to our hearing the other perfection to our praying Attention is commanded in Proverbs 5. 1. My sonne hearken unto my wisdome and encline thine eare unto my knowledge The enclining of the eare is attention without which Gods word goes in at the one eare and out at the other Attention is the souls concurrence with the eares and mouths organs What is the reason why Gods word read and the Church-service is to many so fruitlesse They attend it not they neither mark it nor respect it Wouldest thou have God to heare thee saith S. Chrysostome and thou hearest not thy self Had we a sermon preached by angels yet if we did not mark it what would it profit Gods service is common therefore it is not regarded The sunne shines daily is it therefore the worse every day we say the Lords prayer is it therefore the weaker No but Vis unita fortior Force united is stronger The sunne by its often beating upon the earth makes the greater heat so the oftener we beat upon Gods word and repeat the Church-prayers the more the Sonne of Gods light reflecteth upon us and the more heat of devotion is stirred up in us If God or the Church make a prayer for our use that is slighted but if men make an extemporarie prayer or frame a prayer of their own that is extolled For shame let us gather our wits together let us put a difference betwixt God and man and let us attend his stablished ordinance in his Church before the rolling wits of men So running is mans head that it will stay no where Should the best wits in the world make a new liturgie applauded of all yet would it not long be liked except it might roll as mens wits roll that is as continually to alter as the winde bloweth and the weather changeth People now are grown so cunning and proud in their learning that if the preacher speaks any thing which they distast they will fleere at it in the very house of God such come not to heare with attention but to sit judges on him they come to catch something from him as the Scribes and Pharisees came to take Christ in his doctrine This is contrary to sanctified attention and a vice to be shunned when thou comest to Gods house thou must not bring a chair with thee to sit down and judge but if thou canst not presently assent to all that thou
hearest carrie it home with thee and with the noble Bereans search in Gods word whether it may not stand with it and further because thou art a private man and S. Peter teacheth that no scripture is of any private interpretation therefore thou art not to rest in thine own sense but thou must go further to the preachers fellows and to them whose authority is prevalent in the Church and require their judgement because S. Paul saith The spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets and if the matter be too hard for them then thou must go to the Bishops who are Gods high priests and ask of them as we are directed in Deut. 17. Devotion as hath been said is the soul to prayer and the rest of Gods service because it is the daughter of the mother-vertue Charitie and this is a cheerfull and free giving of our selves to Gods service as his houshold servants Therefore this is the speciall act of religion And this devotion is derived à voto from a vow and is a frank gift and free binding of our selves unto it and a simile of this we have in Mephibosheth who when king David had awarded his lands to be divided between him and his servant Ziba gave all from himself for Davids sake saying Let him take all seeing my lord the king is come home in peace According to this when we consider what God hath done for us as Mephibosheth remembred what king David had done for him when we remember that he hath not onely made us but after this redeemed and saved us when we were but dead men before him as Mephibosheth and his fathers house were before king David and when we remember further that in his Sonne Christ he hath taken us as his own sonnes to be at his own table therefore now we are willing to forsake all for his sake to let the world and Ziba take all and to give our selves wholly to his service A second motive to this devotion is the consideration of our own defects For when we finde our selves too weak to persist in this purchased grace without his speciall aid we relinquish our own strength and providence to betake us to his protection and so we turn to be his household servants And because prayer is the principall mean to lay hold on Gods help therefore herein specially our devotion in Gods house is occupied And for that many after they have made good vowes by the worlds avocations are called off therefore my Text tells me that this holy service must not be for a time but for ever Holinesse becometh thy house O Lord for ever God is alwaies the same as saith the Psalmist Thou art the same and thy yeares fail not The proverb is Semper idem Wherefore if we be not the same alwaies to him as he is to us if we fail to serve him he will fail to save us because he is alwaies the same as well just as mercifull S. Jude teacheth that the angels which kept not their first habitation God hath reserved in everlasting chains to the judgement of the great day Of how much more punishment shall they be worthy which fall upon fall and finally fall away The angels fell but once and were immediately cast down but loose and carelesse men fall from God twice first in Adam whereby we have all warning and secondly in themselves in which if without repentance they persist then is grace contemned and their falling from God confirmed The devout Anna leadeth us a better example for she being a widow of about fourescore and foure yeares departed not from the Temple but served God with fastings and prayers night and day She would not go out of it but many of us will seldome come at it especially upon Saints dayes and fasting dayes when God should be served with greatest humiliation and strongest devotion because then the Saints in heaven joyn with us Joyn with us will you say how know you that Thus because in Wis. 3. 1. it is said The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God but Gods hand is ever in action therefore the souls departed must be so too What are they doing because they are of our body which is Christs Church they are in continuall care for us because S. Paul saith that the members should have the same care one for another What is their care in action it can be nothing but prayer for us because they themselves are past danger therefore all their desires are for us And this is represented after some manner by Gods ordinance towards the holy nation in getting the earthly Canaan for God would not give to the two tribes and half the land of Gilead but upon condition that they should aid the rest of their brethren and go armed with them into Canaan untill they were in as quiet possession as themselves Now if the Saints in heaven after their manner aid us with their prayers shall we be so base-minded as not to pray with them O ingratitude neither fit for heaven nor earth The Church our mother hath ordained holy-dayes to God for them to acknowledge their pains and labours which they took for Gods glory and our good before they went from us then let us upon these dayes blesse and praise God for them These dayes are the Saints obsequies their feast dayes their dayes of triumph O let us rejoyce with them let us reverence their memories let us imitate their vertues let there be a holy necessitude between them and us let us not be strangers We are all of the holy bloud and the bloud-royall we are all of Christs body therefore let us joyn together that God may be served of us the stronger In Cathedrall and Collegiate churches they serve God every day in the week this is the continuall burnt-offering commanded Exod. 29. In our countrey-churches we are commanded to serve God so too specially adding every Wednesday and every Friday the holy Letanie on Wednesday in memoriall of our Lords arraignment and on Friday in remembrance of his precious death And although in our particular churches we have not the people to attend the continuall burnt-offering in regard of secular businesse yet the priest is to do it and for the people This serveth to teach us that though we be not alwayes in the Temple as Anna was yet the Altar of our hearts should never be cold towards God nor the fire of his love at any time go out but alwaies burn in prayer and meditation and holy desires as God gave in charge by the figure Levit. 6. 12. The fire shall ever burn upon the Altar and never go out And according to this in the new law S. Paul saith Pray continually or without ceasing that is to say upon all occasions offered and again Praying alwayes with all prayer and supplication in the spirit In the old law were two principall sacrifices Juge
sacrificium holocaustum the continuall burnt-offering and the whole burnt-offering The whole burnt-offering teacheth that seeing God saveth us not in parts or halves but in whole therefore we should serve him also in whole with all that we have with soul body and goods The continuall burnt-offering preacheth to us that whereas God is good unto us not at spirts and whiles but perpetually therefore we should at all times be for him continually in habit and as often as we can in action in the morning in the evening at midnight and at noon-day and this the Prophet David comprehendeth in the compleat number of seven Psal. 119. 164. Seven times a day do I praise thee because of thy righteous judgements To conclude thus our Church by the continuall service daily hath brought religion into a practise among us but our Solisermonists and Solifidians do what they can to dissipate it for so they may have a sermon or two on the Lords day or other they take no thought for the weekly service nor other good works because faith falsly so called onely supplieth all to these fruitlesse men Holinesse becomeeth thy house O LORD for ever HAving shewed the holinesse that becometh Gods house now I must lay out the unholinesse which unbeseemeth it because things contrarie cannot stand together comelinesse with uncomelinesse will not agree The first kinde of unholinesse is a contrarie preparation to come to this house in vain glory ostentation in that manner ordinarily which S. Hierome renders of their goings into Gods house whom the Prophet Amos pronounceth a wo against namely qui pompaticè ingrediuntur domum Israel who come in hither with stiffe necks proud gates and unhumbled bodies in gradiendo videntur quasi 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I veluti 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as Clemens Alexandrinus hath it and seem to march as if they would exactly measure out the earth by their mincing or else leade some pompous train upon the stage Our Prophet saith Holinesse becometh this house but these take more care for braverie the newest fashions and the finest attires that can be bought for money for here we are lookt upon We should come hither to serve God but these come to shew themselves Knowest thou whose house this is knowest thou before whom thou comest hither is he not thy Maker Shall we then come before our Maker onely in our own making Shall we present our selves to his Majestie in our own majestie No let us come hither with humilitie in the most modest manner that may be It is holinesse lowlinesse the souls beautie that Gods eies are delighted in The Prophet Isaiah saith The high looks of man shall be humbled and the loftinesse of men shall be abased and the Lord onely shall be exalted in that day This house is Gods house and this day is Gods day here therefore let us exalt him and humble our selves Keep thy braverie rather for fairs and markets save thy new fashions and sumptuous dressings for great mens houses Thus saith our Saviour They which wear soft clothing are in kings houses Then suit the world with the world and Gods house with holinesse I am not so cynicall as to take from men and women their distinctions that we should not know the mistresse from the maid nor the maid from the mistresse This the angels dislike for they keep their order one above another Under them we see again how God hath not clothed the flowers alike but hath given more beautie to some and sweeter smell to others So let us keep our sorts and orders let us not make our selves better then we are and when we are in our best and richest let us be in our own eyes lowliest especially when we come before God This is comely The second kinde of uncomelinesse is that of men in this house who when Gods Minister is not in place and sometime when he is in place in stead of prayer and meditation in stead of turning the leaves of their book turn face to face and confabulate one with another as if they were in a faire or market This is like to the tables of the money-changers and the seats of the dove-sellers which Christ in his time threw out of the Temple Neighbours I am not here to flatter you nor so mean as to fear you I am Gods Minister to tell you of your faults and to speak for God and his house Let these things be amended they are neither holy nor comely S. Chrysostome in his 36 homily upon the 1. Corinth saith It is not lawfull in the Church to speak to our neighbour he means about secular businesse His words are emphaticall and therefore I will cite them at large 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 It is not lawfull to speak unto a neighbour or take acquaintance of an old friend in the Church as elsewhere but these things are to be done out of it and that for very good reason for the Church is not a barbours or apothecaries shop neither a place to plead in but a place of angels and archangels the palace of God yea heaven it self Therefore it is most fit that the best manners and respects possible should be maintained in it Thirdly as men profane Gods house at their coming in so they serve it before their going out Two or three or more will sit talking still upon their own matters as though Gods house were now changed and things set apart for his service may as well serve our private busines This common talk is fitter for other places then for the King of heavens palace As we fanne the darnell from the wheat so we must winnow all profane speeches out of the house of prayer You will say Our speeches are not profane Then know you what profanenesse is Is it any thing but what is common in respect of things sacred as S. Peter expresseth it Acts 10. 14. Lord I have never eaten any thing which is common or unclean And thus Esau is called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Heb. 12. 16. a profane person one that was for any thing I speak not against an orderly conference without brawling in parleying about the good of Gods house about the good of the Parish or for the poore and such like actions of piety and devotion for these are warranted 1. Cor. 16. 2. I speak onely against unnecessarie confabulations and for common matters they are fittest for common places Fourthly as some profane Gods house with their common talk so some profane it by their going forth with their hats on their heads as though when Gods service is done then Gods house is no more Gods house Such think that Gods house is like to our common houses Therefore if they come either before or after service they think no more reverence is to be shewed Yet still it is Gods house and he never is out of it and therefore still to be respected Fifthly Gods house is profaned by such as sit in
learn in these books what is good for thy bodie and not learn what is good for thy soul Open thy eyes wider and then thou shalt see that there could be no goodnesse in the creature except God had made it and that if the effect be good then the cause of this good must needs be infinitely more good and therefore he above all things is to be sought of us And this is so cleare a lesson that except a man will shut his eyes he must see it and understand it because the Apostle saith Rom. 1. 19 20. That which may be known of God is manifest in them For the invisible things of him that is his eternall power and Godhead are seen by the creation of the world being considered in his works that they should be without excuse And these preachers are of S. Paul acknowledged for preachers in the 10 chapter following and the 18 vers having relation to the 14 verse Have they not heard no doubt their sound went into all the earth and their words unto the ends of the world Secondly Gods Word is thy preacher And this is proved by the book of Solomon called Ecclesiastes for that book as the learned know signifieth a preacher Again turn to Acts 15. 21. and there the holy Ghost will tell thee that Moses was preached every day in the Synagogues while his words were read unto them If thou saist that Gods scriptures are too high for thy capacitie then what sayest thou to the 19 Psalm vers 7. which teacheth that the testimony of the Lord giveth wisdome to the simple And art thou so simple to think that when God gave his scriptures to the Church he gave them so darkly that men might not understand them then he might as well not have given them Thou wilt object that of the Eunuch in Acts 8. 30 31. where when Philip asked the Eunuch whether he understood what he read he answered How can I except I had a guide And I answer thee again that there is a great difference between the Eunuch and thee and this place of scripture which he read and the places of scripture which to thee are propounded for he was out of the Church which is the house of light and thou art in it Again that scripture was to him a mysterie but to thee it is no mysterie For in Isaiah no name is exprest but it is read He was led as a sheep to the slaughter but what he this was the articles of our faith expresse to the simplest that it was Jesus Christ the Messias of the world who was delivered by the Jews to Pontius Pilate to be slain for our redemption and therefore this excuse of darknesse is utterly taken from thee because the Gospel is the blazing of the Law and there is nothing so dark in one place but in some other it is so bright that the very blear-eied may see it Therefore Fulgentius saith In verbo Dei abundat quod perfectus comedat abundat etiam quod parvulus sugat Ibi est enim simul lacteus potus quo tenera fidelium nutriatur infantia solidus cibus quo robusta perfectorum juventus spiritalia sanctae virtutis accipiat incrementa In the word of God aboundeth that which the perfect man may eat and that which the little one may suck For there is both drink of milk whereby the tender infancy of the faithfull may be nourished and solid meat whereby the strong youth of the perfect may receive the spirituall increase of holy vertue Thirdly Gods holy Sacraments are our preachers while by visible and sensible signes they teach us what we are to beleeve for which they are of the learned called visibilia verba words visible Therefore when we see the water in Baptisme this bringeth to our remembrance the water and bloud which came out of our Saviours side and when we see the bread and wine this preacheth to us that his bodie was broken and his bloud shed for our sinnes as the water signifieth the washing away of our transgressions And these Sacraments do that for us that all the preachers of the land cannot do For they by their words can but onely teach us and enlighten our understanding but these preachers the Sacraments besides the light which they give to our understanding infuse through Christs power and effectuall ordinance grace into our souls and make us acceptable before God Yea so effectually do they this that they can never want grace after who rightly receive them and preserve the vertue of them Therefore our Lord said to the woman in John 4. 14. Whosoever shall drink of the water that I shall give him shall never be more athirst but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into eternall life This water is that grace which is bestowed upon us in Baptisme which after the Eunuch had received as we reade in Acts 8. 39. he went away rejoycing and we reade not that he heard any more sermons or received any other Sacraments for his well of water which he carried away with him into a farre heathen countrey was sufficient for him But oh the lamentation of our times Who shall make our people to beleeve that Christs Sacraments bestow grace they say they signifie onely and that faith cometh by hearing onely yet when they have heard what they can and beleeve what they will they shall never be saved without the grace of the Sacraments at least in desire I can shew you of some that are saved without the hearing of the word preached our baptized infants but I can shew you of none saved ordinarily without the Sacraments in regard of our Saviours exception in John 3. 5. Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdome of God Therefore the men which shut up all in the preaching of the word evacuate Christs Sacraments and do they know not what for preaching is but a preparation for the Sacraments and there the principall grace lies hid For this cause our Saviour said to his Apostles Matth. 28. 19. Go teach all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Sonne and of the holy Ghost For people must first be taught that God bestoweth grace in the Sacraments or els they will not receive them And the principall Sacrament is Baptisme because that onely bestoweth new life and the rest strengthen and preserve it Fourthly printed sermons are thy preachers For assoon as there is any rare sermon preached by and by it is put to print and from the presse it is disperst all the land over There is scarce a house in any town but one or other in it by reading can repeat it to thee Then how shouldest thou starve for want of preaching when the best preachers in the land such as thou never sawest nor they thee yet by this means continually preach unto thee Fifthly Gods Spirit
is thy preacher And to prove this see 1 John 2. 27. where it is written But that anointing which ye have received of him dwelleth in you and ye need not that any teach you but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things c. This anointing is nothing els but Gods Spirit and grace bestowed upon Christians in their Baptisme And of this Spirit and grace speaketh S. Paul 1. Cor. 2. 10. God hath revealed them to us by his Spirit for the Spirit searcheth all things yea the deep things of God Then if Gods word be true the Spirit of grace which he hath given to his children is another of thy preachers Sixthly thy conscience is thy preacher For assoon as thou hast done any thing amisse or left any thing undone that ought to be done that will by and by tell thee of it Thus Adam and Eves conscience when they had eaten of the forbidden fruit preached unto them that they had offended God and therefore they hid themselves and made them breeches of fig-leaves Who told thee said God that thou wast naked oh his conscience the first preacher had made a sermon unto him So again when David had cut off but a lap of Sauls garment privily his heart smote him for it and told him that he had wronged the Lords anointed And again when he had numbred the people his heart touched him for it Thus every mans conscience is his tutour to teach and govern him not onely after but before he hath done amisse Wouldest thou be thus dealt withall will it say Thou mayst bribe thy preacher with a gift and thou mayst stop the mouth of the parish-priest with a good tithe but nothing will stop the mouth of thy conscience that is a continuall preacher within thee And of this preacher the prophet Isaiah saith further in his 30 chapter vers 21. And thine eares shall heare a word behinde thee saying This is the way walk ye in it when thou turnest to the right hand and when thou turnest to the left This word behinde thee is the word of thy conscience thou canst turn thy self no way but that will speak unto thee If thou goest on thy left hand when thou shouldest go on thy right it will call to thee and tell thee Thou art out of thy way and when thou art in the way if thou goest too much to the right hand or too much to the left it will say to thee with the Preacher in the book of the Preacher Be not thou just overmuch neither make thy self over-wise play not the hypocrite nor the proud fellow for vertue is ever in the midst But how comes thy conscience to preach thus to thee from the law that is written in thine heart by the finger of Gods own hand as S. Paul teacheth Rom. 2. 15. Which shew the effect of the law written in their hearts their conscience bearing witnesse and their thoughts accusing one another or excusing If thou dost ill thy conscience will preach nothing to thee but the Law judgement but if thou dost well then nothing but the Gospel and mercie then thy conscience will be to thee a continuall feast as Solomon saith Besides thy conscience hath another law to inform thee and this is the new covenant of the Gospel spoken of Jer. 31. 33 34. This shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel After those dayes saith the Lord I will put my law in their inward parts and write it in their hearts and I will be their God and they shall be my people And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour and every man his brother saying Know the Lord for they shall all know me from the least to the greatest saith the Lord. Is this word of God true then how canst thou complain for want of teaching except thou wilt make Gods word a liar And here you shall further understand that there be two kindes of teaching the one outward the other inward The outward is that which comes from the mouth of man the inward is that which comes from the mouth of the conscience And this inward teaching because it is next to the heart worketh farre more strongly upon it then the outward doth When men had more of this inward teaching and lesse of the outward then was there farre better living for then they lived alwayes in fear of offending and assoon as they had done any thing amisse their conscience by and by gave them a nip and a memento for it Then they confessed their sinnes to God and their Minister for spirituall comfort and counsell then they endeavoured to make the best temporall satisfaction they could by almes prayer and fasting and other good works of humiliation but now outward teaching being not rightly understood hath beaten away this Faith onely justifieth saith the vulgar preacher Then saith the Solifidian and loose liver what need I care how I live no sinne can hurt me so long as I beleeve Thy preacher and thou are both in an errour because Gods word no where teacheth this but the contrary Ye see saith S. James how a man is justified by works and not by faith onely Thou wilt say The Fathers taught this doctrine and our own Church too But how and in what sense to shut out works before faith be come and to acknowledge faith to be the onely beginning in the preparations of our justification but our young preachers and hearers shut up all in faith onely and stay at the beginning and thus verbo tenus they prove but half-Christians Thine own conscience will preach better to thee for that will exclude no vertue and admit no vice And as for thee which art an hearer though thy principles be good yet thy apprehension cannot well digest them because they be somewhat above thy reach Therefore the Church in all ages hath provided that the common people should be content with the common faith as S. Paul calleth it Titus 1. 4. and that deep mysteries should be reserved for the learned who have their wits exercised to discern both good and evil Seventhly good life and conversation of Christians is thy preacher by which very heathens may be wonne and converted to God But you will say How prove you that Turn to 1. Pet. 3. 1. where you shall finde it thus written Let wives be subject to their husbands that even they which obey not the word may without the word be wonne by the conversation of the wives while they behold your pure conversation coupled with fear Here see the force of this preaching when the preaching of the word cannot prevail then men may be wonne by good conversation without the word preached while they behold your pure conversation coupled with fear Good life my brethren is better then a good sermon for that with many goes in at one eare and out at the other but a good life is a sermon in print it
the perfection of all apostasie This falling away began in the reigne of Heradius the Romane Emperour who lived in the yeare of our Lord 637. And from that time to this the issue of defection hath continued spreading it self over Asia and Africa being aided by the great Turk the successour of Mahomet who daily increaseth the monarchie of this defection by captiving of Christians making them his Basshaws and Janizaries and by taking in of Christian kingdomes to more then the third part of Europe And if Christian Kings do not by divine providence combine themselves against this beast 't is greatly to be feared that he will lick up all Christian kingdomes as an ox licketh up the grasse of the field Polychronicon sheweth that by the Christians discord this beast was bred of the Hagarenes And M. Fox in his historie of Turks affirmeth that the first letting in of Turks into Europe was by dissension of the Princes of Greece Discordiâ cuncta ruunt Be wise now therefore O ye kings be instructed ye judges of the earth And you Christians leave off your divisions which are the bridge for the Beast and Antichrist to passe over to us The river Euphrates was a famous defence unto Babylon but after that king Cyrus had divided it into foure hundred and threescore chanels the enemie at ease went in at the emptie and drie hollow and wonne the citie before invincible And right so if we Christians shall cut our main current into many small creeks by dividing our selves into divers sects of religion there is great likelihood that the Turk will overrunne us all That speech of some Christians hath alwaies been held of me for profane and heathenish that they had rather live under the Turk then under the Pope or the king of Spain But what is their reason because under the Turk they may have the libertie of their conscience And what will their conscience-libertie unbounded bring them to to break open hell gates to live without faith without law to do what they list to dispute of the Trinitie and to denie Christs divinitie as the Transilvanians and Hungarians Turkishly and Jewishly have begun For the passion of Christ good Christian brethren let us give over our hostile dissensions When two of the Hebrews in Egypt fought and quarrelled what said Moses unto them Sirs ye are brethren why do ye wrong one to another The Papists and we call one God our Father one Lord our Saviour one holy Ghost our Sanctifier and we have but one mean to unite us into this heavenly Unitrinitie which is holy Baptisme how then should we not be brethren and why then should we wrangle and fight one with another Said not Abner to Joab in that hot conflict of brethren Shall the sword devoure for ever knowest thou not that it will be bitternesse in the latter end how long then shall it be ere thou bid the people return from following their brethren If we shall fight and quarrell so long that Ottoman come in to make us his slaves because we will not enjoy Christs peace will not this be bitter Oh blessed Jesus raise up one to bid the people return Blessed be that peacemaker among men as the holy Marie is blessed among women Oh sweet Jesus smell a savour of rest Nulla salus bello pacem te poscimus omnes There is no health in warre saith the Poet we all desire peace Otium bello furiosa Thrace Otium Medi pharetrâ decori Shall furious Thracians and barbarous Medes desire rest from warre and we Christians delight in combates and quarrells are we not yet full with more then fourescore yeares bloud If we withdraw not will not Christ withdraw from us Oh that the prophesie were revived to beat our swords into plow-shares and our spears into pruning-hooks that we might unlearn to fight that the wolf might dwell with the lambe and the leopard lie with the kid and the lion and the fat beast might feed together Seek peace and ensue it saith David the sweet singer and the blessed Paul saith If it be possible as much as in you is have peace with all men Is it not possible that Christians should agree There be differences which hinder What then In the bodie though one leg be lame yet if the other set forward that will dragge after as well as it can Among the Greeks there were divers dialects and yet they had but one language they held together in the main So though Papists have a letter more then we or we one letter for another yet we may hold together in the radix If they sing Gloria Deo inexcelsis we may say Glory be to God in the high heavens The founder of Churches S. Paul he could bear with differences expecting Gods reformation Let us therefore as many as be perfect be thus minded and if ye be otherwise minded God shall reveal even the same unto you Then for the present let us be patient and afterward God will shew where the errour lieth Why should we presume so much of our skill while we are in our non-age and know but in part and prophesie but in part Have not better men then we been deceived Did not Elias say Lord they have killed thy prophets and digged down thine altars and I even I onely am left and they seek my life to take it away Yet God told him that he had reserved seven thousand men that had not bowed their knee to Baal And did not that blessed vessel Saint Paul say that he verily thought in himself that he ought to do many contrary things against the name of Jesus of Nazareth Then let neither side be too stiffe but let us trie all things let us follow our leaders let us hold that which we have till we see better But above all things let us put on charitie which is the bond of perfection Then as the clear eye helps the blear eye the sound hand aids the withered hand and the comely parts cover the uncomely so shall we Christians cover one anothers infirmities and help each other till Christ mend us all Let Protestants love the Papists because they have kept the holy oracles and sacred mysteries for them and let Papists love the Protestants because they are descended from them wear the badge of the covenant with them and by a light and oblique dissent provoke them to better life and more refined learning Have not dissenting Fathers and sliding Scholists been alwaies born with in points of religion To come again to the defection it is a matter not unneedfull to know by what means the falling away was first broacht and then disperst And this was by preaching of heresies and false doctrines Never were so many heresies set on foot as in the first five hundred yeares after Christ when preaching was at the most Then preaching of its own nature is indifferent and
Jerusalem but the Churches of Christ. And according to this sense our Saviour Matth. 24. 15. speaking of Antichrists seat doth not say When ye see the abomination of desolation stand in the temple at Jerusalem but he saith stand in the holy place that is to say in the Church which is more holy then ever was the temple at Jerusalem by reason of the time of grace And this reason also evinceth For if Antichrist should not have his residence in the Church among Christians what opportunitie could he have to tread under foot the holy citie by the space of fourty two moneths and to compasse the tents of the saints about and the beloved citie which is the Church of Christ prophesied of in the 11 and 20 chapters of the Revelation Lastly to this cometh the prophesie of Sibylla speaking of Antichrist in the 8 book of Oracles and quoted by Jewel upon the 2 Thess. 2. where she hath these words The greatest terrour and furie of his empire and the greatest wo that he shall work shall be by the banks of Tybur And to this agree the Remenses saying Credibile omnino est Romae sessurum Antichristum It is altogether credible that Antichrist is to sit at Rome Secondly this is shewed from the Fathers S. Hierome quaest 11. ad Algas saith He shall sit in the temple of God either at Jerusalem as some think or in the Church as we more truely suppose S. Chrysostome upon 2. Thess. 2. He shall command himself to be worshipped for God and to be placed in the temple not onely at Jerusalem but also in the Churches S. Augustine de Civit. Dei lib. 20. cap. 11. speaking of Antichrists persecution saith Haec erit novissima persecutio novissimo imminente judicio quam sancta Ecclesia toto terrarum orbe patietur universa scilicet civitas Christi ab universa diaboli civitate quantacunque erit utraque super terram This shall be the last persecution the last judgement hanging over our heads which the whole Church shall suffer in all the world that is to say the whole citie of Christ from the whole citie of the devil c. But to stop the mouth of these testimonies some perhaps may say that there is no Church at Rome To such will Calvin give answer in his fourth book of Inst. chap. 2. sect 12. Hinc igitur patet nos minimè negare quin sub ejus quoque tyrannide Ecclesiae maneant From hence it is plain that we denie not but that under his tyrannie the Churches may remain Likewise in the 11 section he hath Ut manebant olim inter Judaeos peculiares quaedam Ecclesiae praerogativae ità nec hodie Papistis adimimus quae superesse ex dissipatione vestigia Ecclesiae inter eos Dominus voluit As in time past among the Jews certain peculiar prerogatives remained so neither do we at this day take from the Papists the steps of the Church which the Lord would have to remain among them out of that dissipation Here again may some other ask why Antichrist may not as well make choice of some other Seas in Christendome as of Rome and namely among the reformed Churches I answer Of necessitie he must sit at Rome to fulfill the prophesie Revel 17. and because this was the seat of the first beast Reason also will runne with the prophesie for that conquerers will aim at the fairest as the Turk the second beast hath made choice of Constantinople as being the principall citie of the East Church The Papist and the Protestant strive about the seat of Antichrist the one would have it to be at Rome the other not In my judgement the Protestant sets the saddle on the right horse Wherefore if the Papist will be advised by me let him yeeld the horse and saddle too and save the rider Let him free the Pope amend his teaching especially whereby he shed so much Christian bloud and maintain peace and charitie with his brethren who dissent not from him in the main and let the devil and Antichrist take Rome when the time comes They had it at the first and they will have it again at the last sit the holy Father as sure as he can When the great deluge and overspreading shall come spoken of by Daniel and John then all shall down the Pope must stoup his Cardinals shall be off their hinges and his triple crown shall lie in the dust In the mean time God of his great goodnesse have mercie on us all Antichrists destruction Vers. 8. Whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth and shall destroy with the brightnesse of his coming In these words Antichrists destruction is prophesied to the great comfort of Christs little flock The overthrow is described to be given as it were by a double blow and a twofold weapon to shew the certaintie and inevitabilitie of it The Lord Christ shall utterly consume and destroy his enemie but how Spiritu oris sui with the spirit of his mouth that is as Carthusianus upon this place saith With his precept in commanding him to be killed by Michael the archangel or else in killing him by himself that is to say with his look or as Anselm hath it SPIRITU ORIS SUI id est invisibili virtute spiritûs sui c. WITH THE SPIRIT OF HIS MOUTH that is with the invisible vertue of his spirit which spirit is the holy Ghost proceeding from the Father and the Sonne and is the power of the Godhead In short he shall destroy him not by the preaching of his Ministers as some would have it but because he is his personall opposite he shall destroy him in his own person by his divine power and command whose command is to do not in the multitude of an armie nor in the strength of souldiers nor in the aid of angels but as darknesse is banished by the sunnes presence so by the lustre of Christs coming by the look of his countenance and by the breath of his nostrils he shall destroy him 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 By the brightnes of his presence when he shall say Ite maledicti in ignem aeternum Go ye cursed into everlasting fire Whether Antichrist be yet come I answer No because the scripture testifieth that he shall come in the end of the world for when he is come and hath reigned his three yeares and an half as is before declared then our text saith that Christ shall come to consume him with the spirit of his mouth and to destroy him with the brightnesse of his coming Some understand this of Christs spirit in his preachers by created graces but this cannot be good because the Greek hath 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifieth by the appearing of his substantiall or personall presence Secondly because the preachers of that time shall not kill Antichrist but be killed as appeareth in the prophesie of the two witnesses Revel 11. 3
allegation of scriptures with wisdome and ornament of speech with eminencie of miracles with promise of riches with terrour of threats with power and prosperitie with multitude of attendants All testimonies of scripture which prophesie of the Messias he shall apply to himself What man of the world would not be drawn with these enticing baits So great and so effectuall shall be his deceit that as our Saviour saith if it were possible the very elect should be beguiled with it For as Anselm upon this place of my text saith Illa Antichristi tentatio cunctis praeteritis major apparebit quando pius martyr corpus suum tormentis subjiciet tamen ante ejus oculos miracula tortor faciet Quis enim ad fidem convertatur incredulus cujus jam credentis non paveat concutiatur fides quando persecutor pietatis fiet etiam operator virtutis idémque ipse qui tormentis saeviet ut Christus negetur miraculis provocabit ut Antichristo credatur This triall of Antichrist shall seem greater then all former trials because when the godly martyr shall submit his bodie to torments even then he shall behold his tormentour to work miracles And again What unbeleever shall now be converted to the faith what beleevers faith shall not now be shaken when the persecutour of pietie is also a worker of vertue and the same man which is cruel with torments that Christ should be denied shall provoke with miracles that Antichrist should be beleeved Yet for all this he shall prevail onely as the Apostle saith in them that perish that is to say in the reprobates But as for Christs flock the gates of hell shall not prevail against it And our Saviour saith further My Father which gave them me is greater then all and none is able to take them out of my Fathers hand It is Christ which is dead which is risen again who is at the right hand of God who maketh request for us can Antichrist then carrie us away Who shall separate us from the love of Christ shall tribulation or anguish or persecution or famine or nakednesse or perill or sword As it is written For thy sake are we killed all the day long we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter Nay in all these things we are more then conquerers through him that loved us For if neither death nor life nor angels nor principalities nor powers nor things present nor things to come nor the height of heaven nor the depth of hell nor any other creature were it more potent can remove us from the love of God in Christ as the Apostle there sheweth then shall Antichrist be confounded And when he hath spent all his cruelties when he is bankrupt in all his flatteries when he is at the ground sheaves of all his deceits stratagems and policies yet still there shall be a remnant which will not yeeld to him Antichrists nation Vers. 10. Because they received not the love of the truth that they might be saved In the former part of this verse S. Paul shewed what kinde of people they were whom Antichrist should deceive that is the worser sort whose end is to perish and here in this second part is set down the reason why and that is because they received not the love of the truth that is of Christ who is the way and the truth and the life Hence is insinuated that the Jews are here especially meant because they above all other refused Christ when they cried Not this man but Barabbas And next this is manifest in Acts 13. 46. where S. Paul said thus to the Jews contradicting him and railing on him It was necessarie that the word of God should first have been spoken unto you but seeing ye put it from you and judge your selves unworthy of everlasting life lo we turn to the Gentiles These are they which beat away the Lord of the vineyards servants and killed his sonne and heir and cast him out of the vineyard And these are they of whom our Apostle in his second chapter of his former epistle to these Thessalonians saith Who both killed the Lord Jesus and their own prophets and have persecuted us and they please not God and are contrarie to all men and forbid us to preach to the Gentiles that they might be saved to fulfill their sinnes alwayes These therefore are they which had not received the love of the truth in S. Pauls time and to this day spurn against it expecting another Christ and therefore these he here intendeth because he speaks in the preterperfect tense then knew their aversion And as for the Gentiles they were then readie and willing to receive Christ therefore he excepteth the Thessalonians out of their number in the thirteenth verse of this chapter saying But we ought alwayes to give thanks to God for you brethren because that God from the beginning hath chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and the faith of truth But for the Jews which would not receive Christ when he came amongst them they are without excuse in that they looked for the Christ and the Gentiles looked for no Christ. And had their Christ whom they still look for come first and been born of a virgin according to the prophesie then might they with warrant reject him that should come after as the Antichrist for that there can be no Antichrist untill there be first a Christ in regard of the opposition but Christ is already come their own nation have preached him and the world have received him and therefore whosoever shall usurp this name after him he must of necessitie be either a false Christ or the Antichrist From hence by good consequence the Fathers have collected of what nation or kindred Antichrist shall be when he comes that is of the Jews For as they were the first that rejected Christ so in all reason they shall be the first that shall receive Antichrist because they to this day look for their Christ and they will admit none but of their own kindred in regard of the prophesie to this day observed of them in Deut. 18. 15. The Lord thy God will raise up to thee a Prophet like unto me from among you even of thy brethren unto him shall ye hearken Wherefore as Christ the true Messias was of the Jews so Antichrist the false Messias shall be of the Jews too and as Christ came first to the Jews of whom he was expected and after that adjoyned the Gentiles unto him so shall Antichrist come first to the Jews of whom he is looked for and after that he shall gather to him all other nations And that Antichrist shall be a Jew it is confirmed from his figure Antiochus Daniel 11. 21. And in his place shall stand up a vile person to whom they shall not give the honour of the kingdome but he shall come in peaceably and obtain the kingdome by flatteries Again