Which puts me in mind of a saying among the Jewes The doore that is not opened to the poore shall be opened to the Physicians Vnfruitfullnesse God punisheth men for it 1 With leaving them to the wide world What could I have done more to my vinyard that I have not done in it wherefore when I looked that it should bring forth grapes brought it forth wild grapes and now goe to I will tell you what I will doe to my vinyard I will take away the hedge thereof and it shall be eaten up and break downe the wall thereof and it shall be trodden downe Isa 5. 4 5. 2 Taking away the means of making them fruitfull It shall not be pruned nor digged but there shall come up briars and thornes I will also command the cloudes that they raine no raine upon it ib. v. 6. 3 Taking away the power and meanes of being fruitfull gifts and talents Take therefore the talent from him and give it unto him that hath ten talents Mat. 25. 28. So that for unfruitfullnesse the sinne they have unfruitfullnesse the punishment When he saw a fig-tree in the way he came to it and found nothing thereon but leaves only and said unto it let no fruit grow on thee hence forward for ever and presently the figtree withered away Mat. 21 19. 4 Cutting downe as trees that have left bearing It was John the Baptist's doctrine every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewen downe and cast into the fire Mat. 3. 10. And it was our Saviours too in in the same wordes chap. 7. 19. Luk 13. 7. He that had hid his talent in the ground had his doome to be cast into outer darknesse Mat. 25. 30. Vnthankfull sinning I meane sinning against more then ordinary mercy For otherwise all sinning hath Vnthankefulnes in it It hath been threatned 1 With God's anger although the party were one that God loved exceeding well Hezekiah rendred not againe according to the benefit done unto him for his heart was lifted up therefore there was wrath upon him and upon Judah and Jerusalem 2 Chr 32. 25. 2 God 's not pardoning them or forbearing to punish them How shall I pardon thee for this Thy children have forâ—aken me sworne by them that are no Gods When I had fed them to the full they then committed adultery and assembled themselves by troupes in the harlots houses Jer 5. 7. 3 God's punishing them severely You only have I knowne of all the families of the earth therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities Am. 3. 2. How tenderly does God take it to have hatred thus returned him for his good will even as a father does to be hated by his children whom he hath not onely begotten but bred up with a great deale of love and paines and care One may plainly see it in the manner of his expressions Of the rock that begat thee thou art unmindfull and hast forgotten God that formed thee And when the Lord saw it he abhorred them because of the provoking of his sons of his daughters Deu 32. 18 19. Because of the provoking of his sons and his daughters If they had been strangers their Provoking had not been so odious nor their Sins so provoking Deu 32. 18 19. Heare O heavens and give eare O earth for the Lord hath spoken I have nourished and brought up children and they have rebelled against me The Oxe knoweth his owner and the Asse his masters crib but Israel doth not know my people doth not consider Isa 1. 2 3. Heare O Heavens As if creatures onely naturall would be sensible of such an unnaturall thing viz for children to forget him that nourished and fed them In that place of Deuteron last quoted where we translate formed the Sept. translate 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that nourished thee So in Hos 11. 3. in the Latine translation the words are I as Ephraim's nursing father bare them in my armes And indeed these expressions viz of nourishing and a nursing father doe aggravate ingratitude much more then making or begetting or being a father For many fathers doe hate their children and many cause them to be made away as soone as they are borne Being a father is not so much a matter of love At least there is no love in so being but only from unlesse it be by adoption so as God is a father in Jesus Christ For they to whom he is so may well say Behold what manner of love the father hath bestowed upon us that we should be called the sons of God 1 Joh 3. 1. He did not love us as fathers love their naturall children which is usually by force of nature so that they cannot help it But he bestowed his love upon us freely To have been indeed the sons of God had not been matter of love but being not the sons of God but the children if wrath yet to be called the sons of God here was love It may be seen likewise viz how tenderly God takes sinning against his love in another comparison which God often useth viz of a wife forsaking her husband Among other places I refer you especially to Ezek. 16. 32. For in that Chapt. the Prophet seems to have made it his businesse to set forth the greatnesse of the peoples ingratitude recounting first Gods mercies from vers 4. to 14. and after that their sins notwithstanding those mercies See the complaint concerning Ephraim Hos 7. 13. 15. and the threat pronounced against them vers 16 See also Ch. 11. 3. 4 Deniall of mercy under punishment which is a very sad thing When the Israelites cried ro the Lord for help being invaded by the Ammonites his answer was this Did not I deliver you from the Egyptians and from the Amorites from the children of Ammon and from the Philistines The Zidonians also and the Amalekites and the Maonites did oppresse you and yee cryed unto mee and I delivered you out of their hand Yet yee have forsaken mee and served other Gods wherefore I will deliver you no more Judg 10 11 12 13. It hath been punished and threatned 1 With many sorts of judgements Such as the Jewes at severall times met with before theiâ— captivity The Levites in their confession at the time of the fast after the peoples returne to Jerusalem relating the manner of God's dealing with their ancestors by mercies and punishments and their behaviour towards him still made the cause of their punishments to be their sinnes after the receit of mercies as you may see in Nehemiah c. 9. Not once nor twice nor twenty times in the Old Testament when there is either an exhortation to the Jewes to remember or a reproofe for forgetting the Lord their God their deliverance out of the land of Egypt is presently mentioned in these words Which brought them forth out of the land of Egypt See 2 King 17. 6 7. Deut. 13. 5 10. c. The mention of this mercy alone God knew
righteousnesse then after they have knowne it to turne from the holy commandement delivered unto them 2 Pet 2 21. Those who are Christ's enimies are thus threatn'd He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh The Lord shall have them in derision Ps 2 4. Oh fearfull threat how sad is the conditon of those men at whose calamitie God rejoyceth or at whose wickednesse he laughes suffering them to run on in their sinnes because he seeth that their day of punishment is coming Ps 37 13. Give me any anger rather then a laughing anger whether of God or man See the threats Ps 59 8. Prov 1 26. Those to whom Christ is a scandal Whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken Mat. 21 44. In Luke you have the same words cap. 20. 18. The like threat you have in Isaiah cap. 8. 15. Many among them shall stumble and fall and be broken and be snared and be taken Blessed is he saith Christ himselfe whosoever shall not be offended in me Mat. 11 6. If a man shall be blessed only for not being offended at or not disliking him whom he is bound to like and whom it is for his owne good to like and whom he hath no cause to dislike how can his condition be better then cursed who notwithstanding all this is offended at him and disallow's him and rejects him as unsit to build upon Those who have no Vnion or Commumunion with Christ Verily verily I say unto you except ye eate the flesh of the Son of man and drink his bloud ye have no life in you Joh 5 3. Ye have according to Beza's translation and not ye shall have according to Erasmus and the Vulgar because saith Beza otherwise it may be thought that Christ did not give life to us but only keep it for us I apply not this to those who do not imitate Christ especially in his passion as Grotius does for as upon most other places he endevor'd to be as little mysticall and spirituall as he could be so I think upon this he was more Socinian then he should be for thus he speakes Hoc ergo est edere bibere Christi uti exemplo Christi perfestisimum est exemplum tum virtutum aliarum tum praecipuè dilectionis quam imitari Compendium est praeceptorum Nam sicut cibus potus in corpus admissi hominem nutriâ—nt ita bona exempla in animum admissa eum mirabiliter confirmant But whereas he sayes Christ was a most perfect example of love and makes imitation of him to be the highest thing intended in the Gospel for doubtlesse eating Christ's flesh and drinking his blood was expressed as the highest and most principle of christianity let me aske wherin this love which he ackowledges did appeare I believe I shall not be answer'd by those of his mind in his dying a Sacrifice for us for then certainely example and imitation cannot be the thing hee came for And yet that in this chiefly both his love the love of the Father did consist appears by the words of John Herein is love not that we loved him but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sinnes 1 Ep 4 10. To conclude If eating Christs flesh and drinking Christs bloud be imitating his example how did our Fathers imitate him who were before him and yet did all eat the same spirituall meat and did all drinke the same spirituall drink for they drank of that spirituall rock that followed them and that rocke was Christ 1 Cor 10 3 4. Church not heard If he neglect to heare the Church let him be unto thee as a heathen man and a publican Saith our Saviour to his Disciples concerning one Christian offending another Mat 18. 17. Clothes of men and Women promiscuously worne The woman shall not weare that which pertaineth to a man neither shall a man put on a womans garment for all that do so are an abomination to the Lord thy God Deut. 22 5. Some do make this prohition to belong to the second Commandement and for these two reasons First because the word which we translate abomination is usually spoken of Idolatry but this is no reason for it is as usually spoken of other things both in the Proverbes and elsewhere Secondly Because Maimonides saith it was the custome of Idolatrous Jewes if they were men to stand with the â—mbrodered garments of women before the starre Venus and if they were women with mens armour before Mars another of the Planets in imitation of the Heathen That there was such a custome is very likely and there seemes to be somewhat spoken in â—avour of this report in Deuteronomy ch 17. because in the second verse both sexes are mention'd If there be found c. man or woman c. and in the verse immediately following there is mention made of worshiping the Sun or Moone or any of the host of heaven as if it had been said or any of the Planets such as Mars and Venus and the rest but however if they make the prohibition to relate to this custome onely because they thinke the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 translated here that which pertaineth to a man to signifie nothing but armour I shall not take this for a reason neither for they cannot deny that this word hath of it selfe a more generall signification even as generall almost as when we say a man's or woman's things as may appear by twenty places which being so methinkes it is farre better to make the more speciall word used for the woman viz. garments to expound this rather then this which is a more generall word to exclude that at least let it be that which containes armour and clothes too viz. the Habit of a man Communicating or partaking of Christs body in the Sacrament unworthily It is threatned with being held guilty of the body and blood of Christ as if he who does not care to remember him in the best manner he can now he is dead if he had lived when he did would have been little troubled to have seen him put to death Whosoever shall eat this bread and drinke this cup of the Lord unworthily shall be guilty or shall be held guilty for he is guilty already of himselfe of the body and blood of the Lord 1 Cor. 11 27. It hath been punished with sicknesse and death For this cause many are weake and sickly among you and many sleep 1 Cor. 11 30. Chrysostome speakes of some possessed with the divell after it and Cyprian hath recorded divers examples of men thus punished one way or another for the most part they were sure to have 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 some judgement or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to be judged or punished and it was well for the Saints they were for it may be otherwise they might have been 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 quite and cleane condemned or damned as the men
destroyed And the Lord shall scatter you among the nations and ye shall be left few in number among the heathen whither the Lord shall lead you And there ye shall serve gods the worke of mens hands wood and stone which neither see nor heare nor eate nor smell But if from thence thou shalt seeke the Lord thy God thou shalt find him if thou seeke him with all thy heart and with all thy soule Deut. 4. 25 to 29. 10 Shame viz for being guilty of such desperate folly and madnesse Confounded or ashamed be or shall be all they that serve graven images Ps 97. 7. And Moab shall be ashamed of Chemosh as the house of Israel was ashamed of Bethel Jer. 48. 13. 11 Death temporall by vertue of a Law He that sacrificeth unto any god or unto god for so much onely is expressed in the originall save unto the Lord onely if he worship God yet if he worship an image too it is nothing he shall be utterly destroyed Exod. 22. 20. See Deut. 13. 13 14 15. This Law was executed by Elijah upon the Prophets of Baal 1 King 18. 40. And when the Kings neglected to execute it upon their subjects because they were addicted to Idolatry themselves it was executed upon themselves by God by the hands of their subjects and serants For so died Kings of Israel 1 Zachariah 2 King 15. 10. 2 Pekahiah v. 24 25. 3 Pekah v. 30. Kings of Judah 1 Amon 2 King 21. 21 23. 2 Amaziah 2 Chron 25 27. whose idolatry was the worse and is so taken notice of that he worshiped the Idols of those people whom he had conquered and those Idols which he had brought away by violence and which he found by his own experience could not deliver their owne people out of his hand vers 15. See a most angry threat Ezek. 14. 8. denounced in very angry expressions 12 Death eternall Be not deceived neither fornicators nor Idolaters c. shall inherit the Kingdome of God 1 Cor 6. 9 10. See Rev. 21. 8. These are the Punishments wherewith they are punished Themselves But there are punishments likewise inflicted upon their Families after them or if you will upon Them in their families according to the threat in the second Commandements Read the extirpation of the family of Jeroboam threatned by Ahijah the Prophet 1 King 14. 9 10 11 fulfilled by Baasha his successour who left not to Jeroboam any that breathed no not so much as a dog to pisse against the wall ch 15. 29. The Odiousnesse of this sinne in the sight of God and the dangerousnesse of it to those that commit it may be gathered out of the Scriptures severall other wayes viz 1 By the Severity of the punishment inflicted upon those that enticed others to it who were to be stoned to death Deut. 13 10. neither shall thine eye pity him neither shalt thou spare neither shalt thou conceale him But thou shalt surely kill him c vers 8 9. Surely In the vulgar translation it is presently And they say that whereas in the execution of punishment for ordinary crimes the malefactor had a day and a night after sentence pronounced to thinke what to speake for himselfe for this and so likewise for being a false Prophet for stealing things out of the Temple and for lying with an Idolatrous woman or if a Priest had medled with holy things being uncleane the custome was to put the malefactor to death forthwith 2 From the Curse pronounced even against such as should either make an Idol themselves Cursed be the man that maketh anygraven or moltē image an abomination unto the Lord the worke of the hands of the craftsman and putteth it in a secret place Deut. 27. 15. Or but onely keep it in their houses when it had been made by others Neither shalt thou bring an abomination into thy house lest thou be a cursed thing like it c. chap. 7. 26. 3 By the Passionate expressions if I may so speake of God in his threats against it such as those of wiping Jerusalem as one would wipe a dish 2 King 21. 13. Plucking them up by the roots 2 Chron 7. 02. and such like 4 By the passionate actions and expressions of godly men in detestation of it Such was Moses his breaking the two Tables which God himselfe gave him and wherein were the ten Commandements written with God's owne finger out of extremity of anger for the molten Calfe Exod 32. 19. And such was that prayer of Isaiah against the Jewes That God would not forgive them ch 2. 8 9. Their land is also full of Idols c. Therefore forgive them not 5 And lastly By the names that are given 1 To the sinne it selfe as Adultery Whoredome Fornication Jer 1. 16. c. 3. 17. Not that these sinnes are greater but that the Jewes accounted them greater or to shew that God was as angry with his people for committing this sinne as a man will be with his wife whom he loves for committing adultery whence his anger is usually called Jealousy and he a Jelous God being as jealous of worship as married people are of love and not giving his glory to another Isa 42. 8. 2 To the Idols Those names that are giuen to the Idols some expresse their odiousnesse such as 1 Semel Hakkinah the Image of Jealousy Ezek. 8. 3. 2 Gillulim which signifies dung Ezek 22. 3. So the God of the Ekronites otherwise called Beelzebu B i. e. the God of flies 2 Kings 1. 3 in the Gospel is called Beelzebu L i. e. The God of dung or dirt Mat. 10. 25. 3 Aven which signifies iniquity Isa 66. 3. 4 Hhetzeb which signifies griefe because God is grieved with them Jer 22. 28 or because they bring griefe to men also at last according to that in Ps 16. 4. 5 Tizrim which signifies tortures for the same reason Isa 4. 5 16. 6 Tohhebah which signifies abomination because God does and men should abominate and loath them The Jewes in the detestation of Christ call him Tahuth i. e. an Idol Other names expresse the hurtfulnesse of them such as 1 Michshol a stumbing blocke Ezek 14. 3. 2 Mokesh a Snare Exod 23. 33. 3 Bosheth Shame either because men should be willingly or because they shall be by force at last ashamed of them Hos 9. 10. 4 Miphletzeth Horrour or a Bugbeare because men should be afraid to come neere them 1 Kings 15. 3. I will conclude with an expression or two of such as were neither Jewes nor Christians against Idolatry 1 Against the Idolatry of the Egyptians worshiping herbs and beasts Cotta in Cicero Ecquem tam amentem esse putas qui illud quo vescatur deum credat esse doe you think any one so mad as to believe that which may be meat can be a God 2 Against the Idolatry of the Roman-Heathen worshiping men and women Xenophanes being asked of the people of Elea
know because they are spiritualy discerned 2 They stumbled at it because of the plainnesse and simplicity of it And thus especially the Grecians who were Schollers and Philosophers and all for the words of man's wisedome To the Jewes a stumbling block to the Greeks foolishnesse 1 Cor 1. 23. viz because they could see no wit nor reason nor Philosophy it it The Apostle in expressing the stumbling of the Greeks expresseth what they stumbled at but of the Jewes he only saith that Christ was a stumbling blocke as if they had had no cause at all of stuÌ„bling at him worthy the naming but only because they would stumble at him because they were thereunto appointed 1 Pet. 2. 8. No cause Isay or that which was worse then none even a cause why they should not stuÌ„ble at him viz the Liberty preached by his Apostles Liberty from such a number of ordinances to which they were subject Coloss 2. 20. Liberty from such weake beggerly elements to which they were in bondage Gal 4. 9. Liberty from the grievous yoake of circumcision which neither their fathers nor they were able to beare Acts 15. 10. Which one would have thought should have prevailed to entice them to it and not have deterred them from it And yet so it was insomuch that even Liberty from circumcision as if it were the main thing they stumbled at is by Paul called the Scandall of the Crosse Nay it was that for which he suffered most persecution of the Jewes and Judaizing Christians If I yet preach circumcision why doe I yet suffer persecution then is the offence of the Crosse ceased Gal 5. 11. P. 90. After Gen. 34 23. In allusion to this covetousnesse of theirs the Jewes call'd him that turned Pharisee for love of gaine Pharisaeum Shechemitam a Shechemite Pharisee Pag. 123. In the margin against 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 See this word perhaps better expounded in the end of Intemperance P 126. After Mat 11. 13. So Mark after he had related this speech of our Saviour's immediatly addes Because they said He hath an uncleane spirit c. 3. 30. P. 133. Before Some have c. But I must confesse this Hebrew word is more usually rendered a Basilisk which makes mee take the more notice of the word used for colour in the verse before viz 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifies Eye Because they say a Basilisk hath such a venemous eye that he will poyson a man at a distance but with this condition if you doe not see him before he sees you Be sure therefore to see the wine first before it see thee I mean to see it with thy minde before thou seest it with thine eye and consider wel the danger of it if thou take too much for so it will doe thee no hurt In that place above cited viz. Prov. 23. 29. where it is said Who hath sorrow In our Hebrew it is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 But the vulgar translation renders it cujus patri to whose father is sorrow And indeed there is too many a parent who hath had many sorrowes by meanes of this sinne in their sonnes p. 166. Among the Jewes whereas the law was for the Theruma or heave offering of the floore that it should be the sixt part of the whole If a man gave the fourth part they called it Theruma Hhajin jopha the offering of a faire eye if the fifth part Benonith of a middle eye but if he gave but the sixt part just as much as was required and no more They called it Theruma Hhajin Rahha the offering of an evill eye P. 176. After slight of hand See Eph. 4. 14. P. 395. After Ezek 3. 18. See Heb 13. 17. p. 614. Over against adoption in the margin Is not he thy father that hath bought thee Deut. 32. 6. FINIS ERRATA Pag. 20. read with p. 45. read Use p. 56. No break at Sinne but at I have been p. 59. Scycophants b 10. for one are p. 116. Christs obedience as pure obedience p. 108. reconciliation p. 120. blot out against the p. 232. Jer. 8 17. d. 171. increase p. 238. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 v. p. 273. punished p. 315. blot out read p. 329. before the figure 7 read Gen p. 339. He went p. 405. blot out Thirdly p. 576. for In Sinne To sinne p. 568. Eph. 5. 11. p. 574. 1 John 2. 22. * Cic lih de clar orator * Beza upon Matth. 19. 9 saith that this law was not executed in Christs time because then Christ would not have spoken of putting away I see not how it does necessarily follow for doubtlesse the husband might put away his wife and the law might put her to death too hee might do it though he need not do it which is all that Christ would have in that place * It is said John 8. 5. Moses in the Law commanded us that such shold be stoned which I know no need Grotius had to take such paines to reconcile with this opinion for first t is but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 such and I hope 〈◊〉 betrothed woman is such And secondly for ought that appeare the woman-taken in adultery was a betrothed woman 〈◊〉 the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 adultery will beare it well enough according his owne opinion upon Gal. 5. 19. a Grotius agreeing with the Jewes as he doth too often in the opinion above mentioned gives this reason why the betrothed womans punishment was greater because saith he she was not in her husbands custodie as stealing a sheep out of the field is punished worse then stealing him out of the fold but hee might as well have given such reasons as these first shee gave away her virginity which her husband most esteemed secondly she brake her promise viz in so doing see Deut. 22. 13. to 18. thirdly she wrought folly in her fathers house Deut. 22 19. where the Scripture it selfe seemes to goe about to aggravate her fault Fourthly shee was not onely dishonest to her husband in her first love but shee dishonoured also her first borne whose honour and priviledge among the Jews was very great nay and God himself to whom the first born belonged Num 8. 17. To conclude you cannot say her punishment should be lesse because she was not another mans wife for she is call'd a neighbours wife Deut. 22. 24. and therefore is it said verse 22. married to an husband as if the party were her husband before See also for this purpose Deut. 20. 7. ch 28. 30. Ezek. 23. 3 8. The later Jonathan a The Septuagint in the old Roman edition though not in the Complutensis in translating the Commandements set down Adultery befâ—re Murther and so doe Marke chap. 10. 19 Luke chap. 18. 20. aud Paul Ro. 13. 9. b The Jewes say these were the men that would have abus'd Susanna that they were put to death by the King's coÌ„mand not by the Jews The Gemara saies that they suffered for enticing the