more deserued large allowance If the people bee bound so to honour the meanest minister how much more should people inferior ministers honor the greater I know som wil here babble say that tenths wer leuiticall ended with Leui. I answer it is vntrue to insinuate that Tenths were onely and first peculiar to Leui for tenths were giuen to the Priest Melchisedech when Le ui was in the loynes of Abraham Nor can it be imagined that the ancient Heathen did so de cimate to their Priestes but for that they had the example thereof traditionally froÌ„ the beginning of Sacrifice Secondly it followeth not tha because it was ceremo niall togither with sacrifice that therfore it must cease with sacrifice no more then because the Tabernacle Temple and ministers were ceremoniall therefore all ecclesiastique houses ministers are to be abolished but rather this looke what ceremoniall signification the Tenth might haue that ceaseth with Christ as the ceremoniall signification of the bullock Sheep goat did but not therfore the number of Ten nor the vse of Beasts abolished To vse them continueth but not to vse them so Some learned and reuerend do conclude that the Tenth is meerly morall and so alwayes a duty Of whome I desire leaue to interpose my opinion and the reason which howsoeuer not â—…e same yet it shall bee nothing behind that for the good of the ministry It seemeth vnto me that â—…ogither with the burial of the Iewish ceremony and policy there was a ceasement of decimations for the christiaÌ„ chur ches then established wer often taught to coÌ„tribute vnto their ministry but neuer to decimate wheras the apostle so often handling the argument by law a Pharise it were very strange he should omit the pressing of that which shold be â—…oral the nomber of tenth if not moral and I leaue that Thesis to bee maintained of theÌ„ which haue the strength I lack it then is to bee held Iudâ—…cial a nomber of maintenance iudiciallye held fitting of the maiestrate for the minister The primitiue churches at first were so zealous feruent in deuotion as they sold all gaue vp all to the ministers leauing the disposall thereof to their discretions But as finest flowers soonest vanish so that deuotion soone cooled And that may appeare in the Apo stles much pressing the Churches with the conscionable care they ought to haue of all due prouision for their ministry as hauing already lost their first loue in that matter if in that then also their first loue was lost to the holy religion For neuer was religion loued and the ministry neglected The Egiptian people wil witnes that in the prouision was made for their priests when all the peo ple generally were pinched and consumed of famine But me thinks I heare one say I like it wel that Tenths should be moral and so from God rather then from the Prince Dost thou so then speak out plainly what may be thy reason This if moral then as the minister is to haue no lesse seing God commaunds so much so hee is to haue no more seeing hee onelye commands the Tenth And I thought asmuch Thou likest it not simply but respectiuely that is in respect of auantage But stay it followeth not be cause God mediately oâ—… immediatly coÌ„mandeth the tenth therefore hee commandeth no more For to Leui was commanded a tenth other things besides the tenth Not to presse the cities they had c. thou shaâ—…t find that of diuâ—…s things offered vnto the Lord a good moity came to the priest for the furnishing of his table as if the lord could not be serued and the minister vnprouided Nor hath the grace of god appearing by christ taught vs to Iessen our loue towardes his ministry but rather teacheth vs to honour him in honouring them with doble maintenance But ô base age we liue in men seeke honour in dishonoring the ministry but an honour that sticks to their houses mannors accordingly to the very gnawing consuming of their names and houses from the face of the earth Let them then that serue at the Altar liue honourably by the altar and that I am sure is morall so much briefly of Leuies maintenance The other particulars I must handle more briefly and so vnto Sacrifice Section 5. VNcleanenesses were of sundry â—…orts For there were beastes birds by Ceremony vncleane and so continued till the partition wall of ceremony was remooued and then it was lawfull to arise kill and eat alimentally phisically S. Peter was taughte in Act. 10 that the Gentils were figured therby and that therefore he should not now stand aloofe from them as of yore for that the tyme was com wherein God wold purifie their heartes by faith Secondly there was certain of mankind ceremonially pronounced vncleane Once in respect of the liuing hauing issues menstrual or seminall flowing from them hauing vnlawfull copulations and contagious diseases vppon them Againe in respect of the dead seeing the â—…ouching of theÌ„ or their bones was a ceremonial vncleannesse All these importing such thoghts words works as make vs vncleane and noysom to our selues and others specially vnto God before whom we are called to walke in holinesse all the daies of our life Mixtures ceremoniall were these Garments of Linsy-woolsy the sâ—…w ing of ground with miscellain the yoaking of Ox and Asse togither All these were forbidden ceremonially as actions ab hominable And they denote to Christians singlenes of heart singlenes of word singlenesse of work for as the Lord caÌ„ not brook the persoÌ„ that hath â—…ebh velebh a hart a hart so neither caÌ„ it be that communion can be betwixt christ and Belial â—…ghteousnes vnrighte ousnes light darknes therfore says theapostle com out from amongst them and touche no vnclean thing Touche the dead in sinne and drawe with the vnsacrificeablâ—… Asse we doe when by affection or action wee like and approoue theyr euill From such touching and drawing wee are to withdrawe our selues but not as Fantastiques would haue it by forsaking the Churches communion and fellowship in God The apostle neuer taught the Corinths to seperate so nor Moses before him For as to ioyn with euery thing in the Churches members requires no conning so to separate from all in the Church any Asse can doe but to trie all things and keepe that is good and then to maintaine the good so far as one hath calling throgh good report and bad report plenty and pouerty â—…ife and death hoc opus hic labor est this requires the spirite of discretion faith loue and much patience And onely the children of wisedome haue such grace for wise some is iustified of her children There bee also ceremoniall Festiuities that bring with them glorius memorials of Gods singular Loue and care for the good of his church teaching all for such respects to do as the Apostle inioyneth when hee
the promise of none effect Thus from the worlds beginning Adam hauing sinned vnto the guift of the Law morall iudiciall ceremoniall at Sinai or Horeb euen som 2513 years was the promised seed set out vnder ceremoniall shadows not now first giuen at the mount to the sons of Leui. A DISCOVRSE VPON Leuiticus 1. Section 1. THIS booke is tearmed of the christiaÌ„ church LEVITICVS for that it intreateth of the publique Leitourgy or common form of seruice which the Lorde imposed vpon the tribe of Leui one of the twelue families deriued from old Iacob or Israel wherupon also these ceremonies are ordinarilye termed Leuiticall ceremonies The booke in the originall beginneth thus vaiâ—…krá ael Móshe vaiedabar Iehouah c. word for word thus And he cryed vnto Moses euen the lord spake c where the first letter V in proprietie signifieth AND howsoeuer somtimes it couples not but explaineth somewhat afore spokeÌ„ which letter V called Vah did euen so begin Exodus likewise beginneth the following book of Nombers kniting so the books Genesis Exodus Leuiticus Nombers togither As for Deuteronomy it is not so coopled for that it is but a repetition of the things of Moses The coo pling of the first fowre books of Moses togither doth so teach vs one the same faith sealed by god the father in his son as also that the same Leui discouered in Genesis taught the forme of a diuine house or tabernacle in Exodus is the same to whoÌ„ the publick form of worship is prescribed in Leuiticus whose parioch-peple with certain their gests is counted in Nombers Som reseÌ„blaÌ„ce may be between these 4 books the 4 Euangel Gen. begins with the word whereby all was made S. Iohn with the same word made flesh for effecting a better creation theÌ„ the natural For how soere S. Iohns Euan. is pla ced last of maÌ„ yet of the word incarnate hee was most highly beloued writ of that word most highlie Exodus beginneth with the generation of Israel that went down into Egipt and S. Mathew beginneth with Iesus which came of that generation according to the flesh who also of his Israelitish parentes was had into Egipt till out of Egipt God called his son The book of Leuiticus beginneth with sacrifice imposed on Leui S. Luke beginneth also with Zacharie a Leuite sacrificing and informed touching Him that was the end of that ceremoniall lawe The booke of Nombers beginns with a Catalogue of the Heades of Israell with their naturall generation and the Gospell according to S. Marke beginneth with the spirituall Heades of the Church by whome was continued the spirituall Israel of God As for Deuteronomy contayuing the seuerall Gests of Israel it may well bee matched with the Acts and Gests of the Apostles who with their spirituall weapons didde more then al the natural Israell could with theyr carnall weapons warfare As for any doctrine in the olde Testament taught after the bookes of Moses it was to haue his reference to and his ground in Moses euen so the doctrin einsuing the former writings of the 4 Euangelists was in nothing thereto to bee contradictorye This booke of Leuiticus diuideth it selfe into ceremoniall Persons and ceremoniall things Section 2. THe ceremoniall Persons are of 2. sorts the first is God himselfe the secoÌ„d is the people of God the terme Ceremoniall I giue as an Attribute vnto God for that he manifests himselfe vnto his people no otherwise then by ceremony or sacramentall signes Such Ceremonyes or signes of his presence as were the fiery piller and clowd in the wildernes And such was the externall sound of the word in the eares of Adam and al the ancieÌ„t patriarchs as also to vs at this day But here in this book of Leuiticus he plentifully declares his might iustice mercy c. vnder types and ceromoniall shadowes And how shold the creatur which is finite attaine to anie knowledge of the creator in whome all is infinite sauing by his humbling himselfe vnto vs by some finite forms for so the Gentiles behoulding the visible creature came to som knowledge of the inuisible creator and that argues also his exceeding loue towards vs who will vouchsafe as vnto Moses a view of his back when otherwise wee coulde not behold his face and liue The ceremoniall people be the twelue tribes of Israell whereof one tribe is of the Lord assumed for the work of the ministry that is Leâ—…i the other eleauen trybes are left to bee administred vnto and they bee the trybes of Iudah Beniamin Reuben Simeon Zebulun Issachar Dan Gad Asher Nephtali Ioseph which one of Ioseph is somtimes considered in the families of his two sons Ephraim Manasses Now for the ministring Tribe Leui euery familye thereof did not minister alike for those that came of his Sonne Kohath were deputed to the peculiar function of priesthood but such as came of his other two sons Gershom and Merari they were allotted vnto inferior seruices as appeareth largelye in the booke of Nombers neither these that came of Kohath were all alike interessed in the priestlye function for Aaron and so the eldest after him by ordinarie rule were preferred in the office as going before the rest in daily alter-duty as also onely appointed and allowed to enter into the thirde part the most secret part of the Tabernacle called the holy of holies All which not to presse the misteries large ly handled in my thirde and fourth parte of my laboures on Salomons songue doth commend to the Church for euer the Equity first of sufficiency secondly of order for publique administration of diuine duties Sufficiency of these Leuites appeared first in being free from all bodily vnsoundnesse and vnproportionability seing filthy diseases and lacke of some member would debarre them though Leuites This no doubt in Figure did fignifie that the Archprieste of our profession shoulde bee voyde of blemish and lackes for the integrall worke of our redemption But yet not only this but that the subordinate of Christ should bee as Paule speaketh Kosmios turned somtimes Modest but in the nature propriety of the word it signifieth a seemlinesse neatnesse and all in proportion good order such as the frame of the World is set out of Gods hand whereupon man is tearmed in the good sense Micro-cosmos a little world And coÌ„sider anye of the prophets or Apostles or Euangelists called of God and christ Iesus it seemeth that the rule was sanctified by their example seing wee neuer heare of any vnfeatured person allotted vnto such superinteÌ„dency The peoples weaknes doubtles was in such case tendered for that they be ouerready to except and flout at any infirmitye in the minister But yet this beeing a let to the entrance whereas necessity causeth not a dispensation from the common rule it intendeth not a lawfull occasion of remoouing any from the ministry who since their entraÌ„ce
the nomber a fewnes 2 in obseruatioÌ„ easines 3 in their signification worthines as for Antichristianisme it properly in S. Paul S. Iohns sense consisteth not which to few haue marked either in an Antithesis or opposition vn to christs external order or yet in an opposition to the Iudicial or moral law EueÌ„ such oppositioÌ„s are hainus wicked but do not therefore coÌ„clude Antichristianism al euil euen in the members of christ is condeÌ„nable but they not therfore AntichristiaÌ„ nor it antichri stianisme Antichristianity in the newe testaments sence is an opposition to the newe couenant of Grace called of the apostle another gospel that is glad tydings in som other then in christ And such were they that went out wherof S. Iohn speaketh seking iustifica tion by another meanes then christ as by the obseruatioÌ„ of the moral law or the law of Ceremonies or the like This â—…oint held and it is easie to be held Antichrist being Antikeâ—…nos the layer of an opposite foundation it quasheth to ground all our fanatique spirites that make any thing in our church yea all our Church it selfe to bee Antichristian because of some morall wants or somwhat otherwise euill onely in theyr fancie I woulde they would once smite their hand on their thigh and saye what haue I done But for pressing this one pointe some yeares passed I haue therefore beene pricked in the eyes euer since therefore to God I leaue such saying Heauenly Father forgiue the 〈◊〉 for they know not what they doe for thy Sons sake suffer not thy people to be â—…onger captiued of them 5. The last question may be this when shal ceremonies altogither end I answer wheÌ„ the world is coÌ„sumed the heauens earth analysed or more plainly ceremonies shal cease when Faith ceaseth Faith ceaseth when wee haue fully got the thing we faithed or beleeued for ceremonies bee but as a waggon for conuaiing faith to his iournies end Faith beeing the apprehension of things vnseene for I speake of the most excellent kind of faith when once they and wee come togither into full possession and that is not till wee attaine heauens glory then Faith stinteth Being come to the period or ful point it can reach no further nor hope that held the thing beleued and hoped for And in this respect it is that Charitie in the 1. Cor. 13. is preferred before hope faith they then ceasing but loue towards god and our fellow members continuing for euer And for such continuaÌ„ce eternall it is also that God neuer cal led by name of faith or Hope is called of saint Iohn by the name of Loue or Charitie O God of AbrahaÌ„ Isaac Iaakob a god of the liuing that liue vnto thee eternally but more speci ally ô thou the father of our Lord Iesus Christ whome in respect of Adams fall thou didst appoint to be a new and a liuing a way for iustification and saluation vnto all such as shoulde come vnto thee by him Heauenly father wee haue broken thy Lawe actually in our selues so well as originally in our fore-patents and therefore haue deserued that all the curses of the Law should fall vppon vs so far bee wee from beeing able to bee iustified by doing the workes of the Law And therefore flying from all hope of health by that old Law Do and liue we come vnto thee by the newe and liuing way Beleeue and liue eternally We belieue ô Lord helpe our vnbeliefe Increase our faith for apprehension of all the promises sealed vpp in Christ with Yea and Amen for they be all true and hee the waye trueth and life Keepe vs in this wildernesseworlde with our backes vpon slauish sinful AE gypt wherein too long we serued Sathan worse then Pharaoh and giue vs to keepe our face still towardes heauens Rest better theÌ„ CanaaÌ„s rest vntil we attain that new land wherein shall dwel only righteousnes And in falling in this worlde vouchsafe as thou didst to Moses to giue vs sighte from aboue for discerning seuerall lots and inheritaunces in that rest for if there were not seuerall mansions ô Father in thy house thy Sonne would otherwise haue tolde vs but loe hee is gone before to prepare a place for his people Giue vs grace to see and in seeing giue vs to exulte in thee with care of becomming more conformeable vnto thee To that end blesse the Ministrye of thy Sonnes Gospell vnto vs that so his loue may constrayne vs tó loue the dooing of all his commaundementes Blesse Gouernours and Gouerned High and lowe ritche and poore with a divine care to doe not onelye the holye and righteous duties that appertaine to them as they be christians but also as they be christiaÌ„s of such and such places that so thy name may bee more generally bonored amongest vs and in thy sauing mercies sealed vp in Christe Iesus this greeuous pestilence maye bee farre remooued from vs. Heare vs for the sake of thy sonne our sole Sauiour whom in worde and sacrementes thou hast exhibited mercifullye vnto vs. To whome with thee and the blessed spirit three distinct persons but one true and euerliuing GOD bee all kingdome power and glorye ascribed both by Angells and men this time and for euer Amen Faults escaped Page 1. line 10. min reade mind pag 3. lin 6. sheh read isheh page 7. line 16. Noah the read Noah through the floud the c. page 14. lin 1. vah read vaf pag. 15. line 9 Euangel read Euangels pa. 24. lin 1. fourth read and fift pag. 34. lin 19. a read as page 70. line 11. god reade good pag. 93. lin 9. waits read waights pag. 133. line 20. Ma. read Mathe vv pag. 136. lin 15. ar read far pag. 144 lin 10. not suf read not only a suff pag. 169. lin 14. meetnes read meeknes pag. 171. lin 14. liue reade line pag. 178. line 1. meri reade merit pag. 189 line 9. vs read as A reason of this Epistle This certaine were more then now would be knowne for som are turred for meer aduantage 〈◊〉 in coâ—…ners tâ—…ey be mar tins disciples still Som yet in the ministry as Fa'coners do lead the people hood winked they know not whither looking for their day as the Papistes for theyr day hauing one speeche in publique another 〈◊〉 priuate A prety iest â—…o the shame of partiall spi â—…ts Three sondry Sects vnder one Generâ—…ll head of reformation a Iehouah Iebrue oberuaâ—…ions b Adam a Korban b Iehouah c Korban d Gnólah e Tamim f Hebr. The son of the Beef a Gâ—…ólah sheh b Reiaâ—…h â—…icoach c Ièrèk d â—…nólah ishâ—…h a Helr The 〈◊〉 of the pigeon b Kir c The feathers about the mâ—… a Iude 6. Gen. 3. 15. c. Shem liued 600 years Eabâ—…s in his 2. b. 2. 〈◊〉 Exodus 〈◊〉 tâ—…ache Neophâ—…t to noâ—…ber the times better Leuiticus What it in â—…endeth Ceremonial persons Rom. 1. Psal. 19. 1. Nom. 3.
saith Reioyce in the Lord alway againe I say reioyce and to conclude with the Psalmist thus This is the day the Lorde hath made let vs reioyce and be glad in it But of such feast daies I haue largely spoken in the third part of my labors vpon Salomons songue where I speak of Chronological and arithmeticall shadowes For ceremoniall vowes they be in respect of thâ—… matter of two kinds the one animate or breathing as men beasts or inanimate breathles as houses fieldes and the like the maÌ„ner of which vowes and their redemtion is laid down in the last chapter of this book as the very conclusion of ceremonies The mayne thing it intends I doubt not is this that whatsoeuer we vowe to the furtherance of Gods glory it beeing in our power so to vowe for else why should we suffer our lips to sinne it oughte to bee payde faithfullye vnto the Lord. for so saith Salomon in Eccles. 5. 3. When thou hast vowed 〈◊〉 vowe vnto God deferre not â—…o pay it for he delighteth not in fools pay therefore as thou hast vowed 4. It is better thou sholdst not vow then thaâ—… thou sholdst von and not pay it c and that can Ananias and Saphir witnesse who vowing largely with their lips paying niggardlye with their hands did so bring vpon theÌ„ the swift iudgment and heauy hand of God Many such Ananiasses I haue heard of who soÌ„times wroong by the spirit of God to vowe a guâ—…t to the needy and that which is more to vowe in future times as Dauid did Psal. 119. 106 the keping of Gods righteous iudgements haue afterwards withdrawne from so doing returning in Gods iust iudgement to their aunciente hardnes of heart and prophanity making so their latter end worse then their beginning Such things as were ceremonially deuoted to the Lord they were prized of the Priest not of the vower to bee had againe without giuing the price and a fift parte ouer that so the Lord his church might be sure of their owne with the best Many of yore haue vowed smaller greater things to the furtherance of Christs church his worship this was their Genus or generall scope howsoeuer there might be failment in specie in som specialty now haue they taken the voteâ—… back againe not satisfying the church largelye therfore If they did they had the most right But 〈◊〉 nefanduÌ„scelus sacrilegium immane they haue robd the church of all they caÌ„ finger who neuer gaue to the church so much as a barly corn The fathers gaue and the children steale away whereupon cannot but follow beggerly ministers a contemptuous religion as hauing no promises of this world wheras godlinesse hath promise of both Let this sinne remaine the great sinne of England fastned vppon many of the Gentrye fleecing and vpon some of the Ministers sellinge they re fleece for a lock of wool Eate on and giut your selues with the spoile of the Lords Temple quâ—…ffe in the deuoted vessells as did Babilons Bel azar but in the end it will be grauell in your mawes and without repentance fling you and your houses out of the Lords ballance I speake not as hauing lost any thing of the Church for I neuer yet possessed peny of her dowry but espying plots for the Churches suâ—…uersion I caÌ„not but witnesse against their abhomination So much cursoriwise of Leuies maintenance ceremoniall vncleannesses vnlawfull mixtures holy festiuities and ceremoniall vowes Now I com to my main purpose the Sacrifices Section 6. SVndry Greeks and Latines of old haue dealt vpon this argument but not all with like successe for what marueile if the latter came a little neerer the marke wheÌ„ they had first the eies of their ancients to see by then theyr own for prying a little deeper But of all the ancients Origen deserued best in asmuch for any thing I see al the rest of them euen vnto this last age did speak almost nothing which argued not their candle to haue receiued light from his O that hee had beene so happy in establishing the Letter In this last age sundry haue aduentured on Leuiticus but in our language almost none And these that haue writ ten with far better successe then the ancients I wold I could add vnto theÌ„ but euen that which I see to be lacking But it is far easier to espie a defect in a building then to amend it Why then shold I write For these causes first for that the Leuiticall ceremony is in our language almost vnhandled except in generall termes 2 for that I hope to make soÌ„what I handle eueÌ„ the substaÌ„ce of it more plain then for rainers haue who rather writte for satisfaction of scholers theÌ„ of the common people But in the very beginning I heartily lament one lack in them which for any thing I see must remaine a lacke still for me Some haue diuided and subdiuided dichotomizd and subdichotomizd the kinds of sacrifice labouring so to put euery kind into his own place But alas not once able to say what the sacrifice in the 1. chapter is in respect of the particulâ—…r end whereto it was to be referred nor when for the time it was to be administred it so hath come to passe that ignorance of this hath made their diuision imperfect yea sometimes distinct sacrifices by this sorte haue been confounded The consideration wherof I labouring of the same disease doth moue me to passe by that strait and to cast aboute for more sea-roome The sacrifices all of them bee either such as bee offered vp directly for expiation of sin or secondly for testifâ—…ing dueâ—…full thankfulnesse vnto God for fauours receiued Sacrifice for sin I terme all such as broght with them effusion of blood and sprinkling of the same seeing all such argued as the apostle to the Hebrewes largelye presseth the Messiahs blood which should bee shed for the remission of sin and this sacrifice was animate consisting of breathing creatures the second kind which testified thankfulnes were vnbloody offrings consisting of creatures in animate breathles bludles Of this kind were flowr oyle frankinsence salt eares of corne And in the offring vp of this kind they thankfully acknowleged that al came from God wherewithall they were sustayned It was through the goodnes of god that the staffe or strength of their bread was not brokeÌ„ yea that their dough was not cursed in the trough that which is more that their bread was not blasted in the eare or spoiled with mel dewe By which breade also they were ledde vnto him that is the bread of life But ô prophane times we liue in Our people haue long heard our Sa uiour say in S. Iohns gospell Labour not for the meate which perisheth but for the meate that endureth vnto euerlasting life which the Son of man shall giue vnto you but who looks after this who holds out the hand and saith Lord