beautify the moone when it is at full and leaveth no part of it which doth not sparkle with heavenly light O mother O sonne How pleasing are those doue-like glances which you cast vpon one another How doe they inflame both your harts with the purest love and set your affections on fire with mutuall correspondence How sweete are those cheeks saluted with each others lips as a bed of sweete spices and followers and as a pomegranat when it is broken How pleasing are those imbracements and a thousand expressions of love and esteeme which it is not for peâ— to vndertake but a devouâ—e soule may imagin and yet fall short because the sonne is infinite and the mother hath been capable of that infinite of which no other creature hath been thought capable O blessed mother May I be so bold as to salute those little hands of thy greate sonne or to kiffe his feete I am not worthy give me leave at least to put my head vnder theÌ„ acknowledging him to be my Lord my God my soveraigâ—e and commander whome I will eternally obey O sacred feete tread downe the pride of my hart give me grace to treade the steps of thy humilitie and thy patience and thy meeknes and thy obedience O blessed feete why are they so â—aâ—e but that thou lovest Puritie How come they so warme but that thou lovest Charitie And nothing can make them cold but my want of love of thee O love give me grace to love thee III. Love Puritiâ— that thou mayest be welcome to this payre of turtles VVash thy hands and feetâ— thy works and they affections from all filth and dust let thy lips breath nothing but the prayses of this mother and this sonne and of whateuer hath relation to them let thâ— eyes bee modest thy comportment humble thy thoughts respectfull and sit vnder the shadow of this most fruitfull tree for the shade will be delightfull and the fruite sweete to thy tast Passe from branch to branch and see whether hâ— bâ— more lovely in his cralde or in his mothers armes comforting old Simeon or incouraging good S. Ioseph in his flight to â—gypt in the Temple preseâ—ted or found in the midst of dostours working at his trade or praying vpon his little knees lifting vp his sweete hand and eyes for thee to his heavenly Father O â—esus have mercy vpon me a synner I put myâ—sel into thy hands and begge that thou wilt have me in thy thoughts The second seate the seate of Authoritie I. HEre we are to represent vnot vs our Saviour as he was preaching in the Synagoges of the Iewes with power and Authoritie and not as the Scribes at which and at his doctrine they were greately asâ—onished Sit downe therfore at his feete as S. Paul at the feete of Gamaliel behold his countenancâ— his gesture his comportment his fervour in reprehending tempered with vnwonted mildnes his zeale of Gods glorie and the good of every particular The Prophecie of Esay being fullfilled in him according as himself declared The spirit of our Lord is vpon mee for that he hath annointed me to evangelize to the poore he hath sent me to heâ—le the contrite of hart to preach deliverance to captives light to the blind remission to the bruised to denounce the acceptable yeare of our Lord and the day of retribution And the more thou findest want in thyself of spirit and spirituall oyntment of contrition of sight of freedome apply thyself with the more attention to heare his words for the words which he speakes are spirit and life Begge that he will open thy eares and say thou as followeth in the Prophet But I doe not gayne say I have not gone back Stirte vp thy affection not only to imbrace his doctrine with courage and love because a greater a wiser a more consrderate a more infallible teacher thou canst not have as in whome are all the treasures of wisdome and knowledge hidden And really they are treasures of wisedome which only can inrich a soule and affoord it plâ—ntie and content for all eternitie They are hidden vnder the outward shape of an ordinarie man a Carpenters Sonne from the eyes of worldly given thoughts but not from the eye of faith which enters further thâ— corporall eyes caÌ„n reach andZ he that hath spirit will find hidden Manna in him II. From the Synagoges passe with him to Mount Olivet where he often preached but chiefely give care to that prime sermon of his when opening his sacred lips he proclaymed those eight blessings which the world accounteth rather follie and miserie Blessed be the poore of spirit Blessed the mâ—eke Blessed they that mourne Blessed they that hunger and thirst after instice Blessed be thâ— mâ—rcyfuâ—â— Blessed the cleare of harâ— Blessed the peace-makers Blessed they who suffer persecution And inlarging himself vpon this last point declared what Kind of perâ—ecution we ought to account happines to wit when they shall revilâ— you and speake all naught of you vntruly for my sake Be thou ever praysed Lord God of heaven and earth who hast hidden these things from the wisâ— and prudent and revealed them to the little ones Doe not paâ—â—e these steps lightly over but see how he did not only preach but practise theÌ„ and made theÌ„ steps to his eternall glorie aÌ„d the glorie of all his saincts Happy is he whome truth doth teach by himself III. Then follow him with multitudes of people round about the Countriâ—s sowing his celestiall doctrine and curing all disceases commanding the winds and the sâ—a and the euill spirits Heare the people with admiration saying never man spake as this man speaketh what word is this For with power and aâ—ctoritie hâ— commandeth thâ— vncleane spirits and they go forth See how he enters the Temple and casts out the traffickers there with â—is majesticall countenance and a small little whip of cords Magnifie him with his disciples for if thou hold thy peace the very slones willcry him vp O stony hart of myne that is so hard so covered and incombred with earth so much inclined allwayes downewards that this heavenly Master caÌ„not find 〈◊〉 into it Soften it I beseech thee with thy most 〈◊〉 blood hold it vp with thy powerfull hand 〈◊〉 from the earthly thoughts which clog it and if it 〈…〉 strike it with thy heavenly Charitiâ— that som 〈◊〉 at least may fly out of it and take in the tinder 〈…〉 doctrin to inlighten and inflame my soule which without it will be eternall darknes froÌ„ which sweete Iesus dâ—liver me Amen Exercise thy power and authoritie over my passions as thou didst over the winds and sea saying Peacâ— be still Teach me to doe thy will in all things instruct me how to performe the particular obligâ—tions of my state and calling with perfection Teach me above all how I may prepare my self for thy loving presence here in the most
what he indured for even in the garden after his prayer he was another man then when we went in Then he was sorrovvfull as he sayed vnto death and it appeared in his very countenance and cariage but novv he was couragious and ready to meete his enimies and in all the affronts and indignities which were offered him either at Cayphas or Herods or Pilats palace he did not blanche III. Yet it could not but be very irksome and paynfull to him and with whar a Crosse did they load him when he was scarce able to stand and hovv cruelly did they rend of his garments from his bleeding shoulders and streach him and vnmercifully nayle him This is the sword of which old Simeon told me so many yeares since it cannot but pearce my very hart and soule with griefe and though he sayed he would rise againe the third day and I veryly beleeve it will be so yet what hart can think of these things and not even burst with sorrovv It will be night with me till that day comes which he hath promised O light of my â—yes when shal I see thee Me thinks I still heare him crying with a lovvde voyce Father into thy hands I commend my spiritt O Father returne this happy soule so commended returne it againe with glorie that we may see his face as in mount Thabour which mount Calvarie hath so defaced I â—ommend my soule into thy hands O hands of pitty Thou hast done justice enough vpon thy Sonne restore him that we may joy togeather in the meane time I shall expect with sorrovv yet resigned to thy will as he hath taught me Not my will hut thyne be done Amen Introduction to the Mysteries of the Resurrection of our Saviour I. THe Mysteries of the Resurrection of our Saviour being full of ioyful Communication with him who is in himself the fountaine of all happines and to vs hath been and is the source and conduitâ— of all goodnes the affections which are properly to be raysed and someÌ„â—ed by the consideration of them be those of love and ioy and Congratulation Admiration also and prayse of his loving goodnes desire of his presence in this world and in the next horrour of being separated from him detestation of the least beginning of a gap or distance betvvixt our soules and him And in these and in the like our time is more to be bestormed then in discourse 〈◊〉 every action and word indeavouring to fall vpon some such short reflection as may â—indle in ouâ— hart these flames of love II. The chiefe ground wherof the Apostle doth represent vnto vs and placeth in that God who is rich in mercy his exceeding Charitie wherwith he loved vs even when we were dead by synns quickned vs togeather with Christ and raysed vs up with him and made vs sit with him in the Celestiales Chiefly therfore we are to ponder from what and to what we are raysed where we lay and where we might justly have been layed by our offenses and where he offers to seate vs if we concurre with his grace and love Hovv Rich he hath been tovvards vs in what infinite proportion his Charitie hath exceeded and doth exceed When we were dead he gave vs life when we were buryed in synns he raysed vs and hath made himself our Harbinger going before to prepare a place for vs at the right hand as his father with him III. O Iesu is it possible that I should 〈◊〉 Companion to thee in Glorie who hast been so farre from consorting with thee in thy will and commandment O vnspeakable love ô vnconceivable Goodnes I wretched synner not worthy to lift vp my eyes to heaven with thee in the heavenly places ô Charitie exceeding all thought ô Mercy with out bound or measure What can I say of myself but that I am worthy of all confusion and thou preparest Glorie for me I have nothing to say for myself but that I have synned Blessed be thy infinite Mercyes towards me and blessed be thou with the Father holy Ghost for ever and ever Amen Our Saviours going downe to limbus Patrum I. NO sooner had our Saviour given vp his blessed Ghost but troopes of Angels who wayted against that houre attended him as after his victorie in the desert and accoÌ„panied his glorious soule towards limbus PatruÌ„ with songs and hymnes farre more full of lubilee then that which they sung at his nativitie The infernall fiends hovvled and roared at the arrivall of his forerunners commanding them to avoyde but much more at his glorious and triumphant presnce shining brighter then the sunne at noone day and more resplendent then all the heavenly hoast togeather Here they were forced to adore his glorified soule who had refused due homage at first to thier Creatour when themselves might have been in glorie by one act of humble dutie what a corrasive was this to them VVhat a document to vs VVhat comfort to the iust that had been confined so long to darknes novv to see so much light approching II. But he appearing in the midst of them and saluting them with the like salutation as aftervvards his Apostles Pax vobis what exultation VVhat Jubilee was there VVhat wellcomes on all sides VVhat congratulations tovvards him in regard of his victorie Tovvards themselves in regard of thier speedy releasement And if he appeared vnto them with his glorious body also as many affirme what admiration VVhat acts of compassion VVhat wondering that he would retaine the marks of his wounds What are these wounds in the midst of thy hands sayd Zacharie the Prophâ—t and he ansvvered these I received in the house of them that loved me And David remembred that prophecying he had sayed they have digged into my hands and feete and have numbred all my bones S. Ihon Baptist most ioyfull of any repeated his wonted saying Behold the lambe of God behold who taketh away the synne of the world and hath born the smart of it vpon his ovvne shoulders And all generally from Adam to the good thiefe extolled his mercies and novv not only vnderstood of what they had beeÌ„ a figure but gave him the ioy of having fullfilled all to his greater glorie III. Our Saviour also tooke particular content to see them all at once who had been subservient to the mysteries which he had accomplished and congratulated the iust for concurring with his graces tovvards the preserving of thier iustice and with the penitent for having recourse to his mercyes with those who had suffered persecution torments and death for his love and lavv for thier fidelitie and constancie giving them all novv with more feeling to vnderstand hovv wei bestovved was all that which they had done or suffered in the world and hovv greate mercy it was that they persevered to the end among so many millions who fayled and that they were not overvvhelmed in the deluge of synne but preserved in that of his sacred blood
leaving thier malice they may beleeve in thee ô Lord Therfore he picked out a choosen people to shevv his wonderous povvre more signally to all the world by them that hearing all his precepts they should say behold a wise and vnderstanding people a greate nation Therfore he came himself and tooke flesh vpon him to satisfie for the synnes of everre one of vs and to give vs example of obedience to the lavv of God which he came to promulgate and aftervvards sent his Apostles and thier successours into the whole world with commandment to preach the Ghospell to every creature testifying that with the like assistance he will be with us to the end of the world II. To this vniversalitie belongeth the sweetnes of the lavv of Grace and the easynes by which we may come to the remission of our synns and to saluation for what ceremonie could be instituted more easy then that of baptisme VVhat means of remissioÌ„ of synns aftervvards committed more indulgent then that of private confessionâ— For whatever people ill disposed may think of it if an earthly Prince had appointed such a way of pardon for crimes committed who would not runn vnto it And this not once or tvvice but ten thousand thousand times to be had and in fine as oft as we shall have offended and when ever we will have recourse vnto it after never so long delayes or relapses VVhat shall I say of the helps internall by remorse and inspiration and externall by exhortation and example of which in the Church of God there is continuall succession and abundance what of the presence of our blessed Saviour in the Sacrament continually as it were wayting vpon vs and by it inviting vs. and puting vs in mind of our duty tovvards him That he would be in every Countrey Church attending vs is no small token of his vniversall love tovvards vs refusing no body neither rich nor poore nor lame nor blind nor the most noylomest creature that we can imagin Come to me allyee that labour and are burdened and I will refresh yee III. That he refuseth no synner though never so greate is particularly to be pondered as a signe of the vâ—niversalitie of his love of which though we see dayly example the Apostle testifyeth it in himself extolling this grace and giving speciall thanks that though before he was a blasphemer and a persecutour and contumelious in his thoughts and speeches tovvards Christ our Saviour yet he received mercy Ponder the hardnes which naturally we find among men to forgive offenses and compare it with what we experience in God and be confounded at thy ingratitude have recourse to his mercyes inlarge thy haâ—t in hope and confideÌ„ce and give not way to thoughts of diffidence for if thy synns be as scarlet they shall be whitened as snow and if they be as red as crimson they shall be white like wooll He gave vnto Salomon latitude of hart as the sand which is on the sea shore but what is this compared with the largenes of thy mercyes my God ready to forgive more offenses then there be sands on the shore and to receive into thy armes more offenders then the whole world is capable of One drop of thy pretious blood was capable to satisfie for millions of worlds what a sea then of mercyes hath all humane kind offered vnto it by thee my God to plunge and cleanse itself to the full O let me not be vngratefull Amen The love of God towards vs is vniversal because to every one in particular I. THis is testifyed vnto vs by the Apostle when magnifying the grace received by Christ he sayth I live in the fayth of the Sonne of God who loved me and delivered himself for me And is seconded by ovr Saviour to S. Gertrude saying Behold thou seest how for thy love I did once hang vpon the Crosse naked contemptible disjoynted in every member and wounded in every part of my body and yet to this very day my haâ—t is so sweetely affected towards thee by love that if it were convenient for thy good and that thou couldst not othervvise get to heaven I would for thee alone suffer all that which I suffered then for the whole world O my God! what am I in particular that thou shouldest thus lovingly expresse thyself Or what doth my particular import thee that thou shouldst be so tender of me O that I had the loves of all in particular to bestovv vpon thee who deservest all Blessed is he that vnderstandeth what it is to love Iesus c. II. That which our Saviour sayed to S. Bridget expresseth an other degree of latitude in this love for thus he is recorded to have spoken My love tovvards mankind is novv as greate and as incomprehensible as it was at the time of my passion And if it were convenient that I should die as many deaths as there be damned souleâ— in hell I would most willingly and with the greatest love that may be deliver my body to be tormented and would suffer the same death and passion againe for ech soule in particular which I indured for all This infinite charitie seemeth strange to men who measure the perfections of God by thier ovvne imperfection But the heavenly wisedome pronunced rightly of him Thou loâ— vest all the things which are and hatest nothing of that which thou hast made neither hast thou ordayned or made any thing hating it In so much that the very damned soules are punished though excessively yet beneath the desert of synne and hovvever he be a rigorous judge yet he desiâ—eth that in the later day he might find nothing to be punished for which end he gives vs day to repent to the very last and so many means to blot out synne and the remaynders of it III. To this end he reserved the blessed marks of his sacred wounds even in his glorifyed body that we should â—â—nd as it were so many gates layed open to his mercyes and that these might be a never dying memoriall of his paâ—t and future love both to vs to excite vs and to his heavenly Father with our further words to plead for vs for though neither he nor his heavenly father doe need incitements to love vs or remembrances not being subject to forget or to forgo thier ovvne loving natures yet out of thier superabundant goodnes they would that these marks should be reserved more efficatious to assvvage thier anger against synne then could the rayne bovv be against a second diluge O Blessed wounds layed wide open for my sake it seemes by you that the divine soule of my Saviour had more love for me then the earthen vessell of his body could contayne O that my soule were capable to receive the remaynder I did runne in the way of thy commandments when thou didst dilate my hart sayed they holy Proâ—het supply it with thy ardent affection stretch it to all
vniversalitie of spirit professe themselves to be ready to assiste all nations and confine themselves with in no bounds of countreyes or persons or pious imployments by which they may any way advance the salâ—ation of thier Neighbours to the end that having once opened thier mouth and hart to God in this vniversalitie they doe not aftervvards relent aÌ„d our of pusillanimitie or self love streighten the bouÌ„ds which they have once promised should be none at all IV. O blessed Apostl who couldst say I most gladly will bestow and will myself more over be bestowed for your soules though loving more I am loved lesse How well didst thou Follow the example given thee by thy Saviour who bestowed vpon vs all that which we have and himself moreover in â—o large and loving a manner as to man is incomprehensible and is so slenderly rewarded by vs labour and miserie and much watching hunger and 〈◊〉 and much fasting cold and nakednes could not streighten thy love not whatsoever danger of thy life be a means to inlarge this spirit in the harts of those who have dedicated themselves to the like imployments The height of the charitie of our Lord. I. THe height of the charitie of God and of our Saviour is the supetexcellencie of his love for love being two fold one by which we love because we doe or may receive benefit the other by which we I ove to benefit it is evident both that this second is the more excellent and that the love of God â—ovvards vs could not have the imperfection which the first doth involue Let vs love God because God hath first loved vs sayth the beloved disciple which considering before we were we could not love is of itself apparent and considering to what end he loved vs to wit to communicate himself to vs first by sayth then by cleere sight and inioyment of his glorious self we may take a scantling according to our weake apprehension or dull affection of the excellencie of his love tovvards vs seeing nothing can be more eycellent then to see and injoy God All that we see or heare of in the world was created for our benefit yet all that is nothing compared to one minute of time what then to an eternitie of injoying God O if thou hadst seen the eternall crownes of saincts with how much glorie they now exult who were contemptible and not thought worthy to live c. II. A second degree of excellencie of the love of God is that which the Apostle doth reflect on and with reason doth dilate himself vpon it to wit that not only when we were nothing but when we were synners when we were enimies when we were weake and infirme full of vlcers and sores he loved vs and was beneficiall vnto vs when we deserved his hatred he did not only not execute it to the full vpon vs as we miserable creatures are wont to doe vpon one another but spared vs had compassion on vs releeved vs. God commendeth his charitie towards vs in that when we were yet synners Christ dyed for vs This is charitie which surpasseth all knowledge and all conceite of man for as the same Apostle discourseth A body can scarce be willing to diâ— when of necessitie he must or when by justice he is condemned perhaps for a good cause or for defence of that which is right a body may dare to die but for his enimie for one that taketh away his good name and as much as is in him his life who is there that would thinke of offering himself to die O my God in this thou shewest thyself to be God that is all goodnes and all love give me grace to love thee at least for this thy love and die that I may not die by syn III. Yet a third excellencie is to be reflected on which the same Apostle suggesteth to wit that God did not spare his owne Sonne but delivered him for vs all In the infinite treasure of his divine knowledge and goodnes there could not but appearâ— divers means to expresse his love and exercise his mercy towards vs yet this offering itself as the most convenient in all respects he did not spare it though the most pretious jewell of his heavenly Cabinet the neerest and deerest treasure of his divine breast but gave it for vs and who are we You are bought with a greate price it is reason we should glorifie and beare God not in our minds only but in our body also in our harts in our tendrest affections and let nothing have place where nothing can be spared from him who sparing not his owne Sonne gave vs all things with him and in him more then all what can the world give thee with our Iesus He that findeth Iesus findeth a greate transure Th. a K. l. 2. c. 8. n. 2. How we are to imitate the superexcellencie of the love of God I. PART I. TO love God to benefit him more theÌ„ allready injoyeth is impossible we may notwithstanding comply with the excellencie of his love by wishing him all the good which he hath and being 〈◊〉 glad that he is as he is which is the part of a frend to an other frend that is superiour to him And we may dilate our thoughts and affections of this nature congratulating him his Eternitie his Immenâ—itie his Omnipotencie his Bountie his perfection in all kinds and professing ourselves to be hartily glad that he is so This is the expression which the Seraphims doe make who assist before the throne of God covering thier feete as short in conceiving or affecting so greate perfections but yet stirring vp one another to prayses such as they are able repeating Holy Holy Holy is the Lord God of Hosts full is heaven and earth of thy Majestie II. To this Kind of love belongs the desire that all the world should know him and serve him and the sorrow that he is offended and that we are so short of vnderstanding what he is and of loving him as he deserves let vs therfore say with the VViseman Glorifying him so much as you can be will yet exceed and wonderfull is his magnificence Blessing him exalt him so much as you can for he is greater then all prayse Exalâ—ing him put forth all your strength be not wearied for you shall not comprehend him Many things are hidden greater then these for we have seen few of his works To this also belongs the desire of even being with God in Prayer and in other services belonging to him not for the benefit which comes to vs by it though it be greate but because he deserves to be continually attended and served which was the ground vpon which our Saviour retired himself so often to Prayer and spent whole nights in it and when he was but twelue yeares old answered his Mother did you not know that I must be about those things which are my Fathers
should depend vpon our correspondence with his graces and consequently that his infinite merit should be in a manner in greate part lost by our vntovvardnes or at least hazarded which as on the one side to those who indeavour to make vse of his love it is a greate incitement to love him the more who for the fruite in a fevv would suffer and taketh from all men all occasion of despayre so on the other side by reason of our weakenes it doth necessitate vs not to presume but to live in feare for the time of our seiourne and to labour by good works to make sure our vocation and Election VVhich designe of his we must everence and lovingly submiting to his divine ordination industriate ourselves to concurr the more diligently with it and with his love tovvards vs in it III. The depth of his love appeareth in the extraordinarie vocations of some and graces extraordinarie bestovved vpon persons oftimes in which we cannot only not discover any merit but rather much demerit and desert of the contrarie of whom that saying of God and of the Apostle comes to be verifyed I will have mercy on whom I have mercy and I will shew mercy to whom I will shew it And with good reason for he is Lord of his gifts and free to give of them more or lesse to whom and when he will So that as we may admire and must reioyce and not envy when he doth bestovv them so we must not grudge when and where he doth not bestow them but attend that our eye become not naught because he is good as our Saviour himself once answered IV. O my God! give me grace so to consider this thy love that I may increase in love tovvards thee give me grace that by measuring this thy greatenes I may grovv greater in thy favour and by reaching to thy height wax higher in thy sight and by diving into the bottomles depth of thy infinite charitie sink deeper into thy love that being wholy absorpt in it I may ever find myself wholy drovvned in thee my God my love Amen The depth of the love of God II. PART I. FInally in this matter of the love of God it will be profitable to reflect with a devout personage of this age I. First that it was not possible for God to create man after a heigher modell then according to the image and similitude of God 2. It was not possible to create him for a heigher end then the cleere vision and fruition of God 3. It was not possible to give him a greater Gift then God himself and all creatures 4. It was not possible to give him a heigher or more noble imployment then to serve God and in some sort to serve himself of God to deâ—â—â—e in a manner himself and others 5. It was not possile to give him a more perfect Guide in his pilgrimage then our Saviour and the holy Ghost 6. It was not possible to feed him with more choyce sustenance then the body and blood and divinitie of our blessed Saviour 7. It was not possible to expresse a greater esteeme of man then by shedding his blood for him 8. It was not possible to give him a greater motive to abhorre synne then that God dyed to abolish it 9. It was not possible to give a greater ground never to despayre then by constituting himself his Advocate 10. It was not possibble to inable synfull man to coâ—rrespond to these and other his benefits but by giving him the merits of Christ dignified infinitely in his divine person by which we satisfie to the full for our offenses and gayne a proportion in our good works to the rewards promised II. O infinite goodnes O immense charitie O love imcomparable Where shall I find either conceptions or words or strength to expresse the least part of my greate obligation to thy love â—hat hart can love thee enough 〈◊〉 tongue prayse thee VVhat forces serve thee as thou deservest Help me yee blessed Angels and saints of heaven Assiste me all yee oreaâ—utes of my loving God O that I had so many tongues to prayse him so many harts to love him I knovv not what to say but with hart confounded and blushing countenance to offer my love and service such as it is conioyned with his because he is so pleased and begge of him that he will please himself with it and with his ovvne merits for otherwise whatever I can offer is nothing and that all creatures in whom he is most pleased will incessantly praysâ— him and glorifie him Amen The coming of the holy Ghost vpon the Apostles in firie tongues I. PART I. OVr Saviour vpon his Ascension had willed the Apostles to remayne in Hierusalem till they should be induâ—d with power from above which they observed carefully persevering together in prayer with our blessed Lady and others when behold the tenth day â—arely in the morning there was suddenly heard a sound from heaven as of a mightie wind and it filled the whole house where they were sitting and there appeâ—â—ed to them parted tongues as it were of â—ire and it sat vpon every one of them and they were all filled with the holy Ghost and began to speake with divers tongues as the holy Ghost gave them to speake Prayer and obedience and agreement together were dispositions novv as well as afterwards effects of the holy Ghost He came suddenly vpon them to teach vs perseverance in our devout imployments for we know not at what houre our Lord will come in prayer or reading or charitable action the wind was a token of dispersing the Cloudes of ignorance and deceite to which we are subiect with out the assistance of the holy Ghost and no wonder that is was a strong wind considering hovv closse the fallaciâ—s of the world doe stick vnto vs and hovv they are apt to possesse themselves of every corner of our house that is of soule and body The parted tongues as of fire signified the spirituall flame and fervour infused into thier harts and was then to manifest itself by thier tongues publikly and privately to be imployed in the prayses of our Saviour and of his law according as the holy Ghost gave to every one Begge of him every one of these his gifts and dispose thyself to receive them II. Consider that though the wind and firy tongues were figures of the inward operation yet the gift this day communicated was not only the proportionable effects wrought by the holy Ghost but the very person of the holy Ghost communicated vnto them and vs working these effects And as in the Incarnation of our Saviour the holy Ghost in person overshaddowed our blessed Lady so here he descended vpon the Apostles and the rest there gathered together though in such different measure as he thought good to communicate himself where we have cause to admire and adore the goodnes of God who would imploy his owne person in our
Finally it is greatest because it is the most lasting and worketh greatest and most lasting effects Charite never fayleth Faith instructs hope rayseth our mind to heâ—venly things Charitie vnites vs to God and makes vs one spirit with him And as in nature so in grace love breakes through all difficulties and accordingly we may see the efficacy of it in the Apostles and Apostolicall men in the Martyrs and Confessours Eâ—emites and Virgins by things done and suffered beyond all compasse of other consideration then of love Our Obligation to love God II. PART I. VVE may love those things which we have nor seen with our eyes we cannot love that which doe not some way know we know God by Fayth by discourse or contemplation and by fruition or injoying him The readyest and easyest way is by Faith as we may discover by the difficultie which the greatest wits of the world anciently had with out Fayth to know there was a God one eternall Omnipotent all seeing all disposing Therfore we must both thank God for the light of Faith and often exercise acts therof submitting all contrarie suggestions vnto it This kind of knowledge was delivered first from hand to hand by our forefathers to thier Children successively then renewed in the old law by God appearing pearing to Moyses and the children of Israël lastly by the sonne of God himself our Saviour coming into this worldâ—â— confirming by signes and miracles both the being of one God and that himself was sent to establish his law in the harts of men and to vnfold and perfect all that which formerly was delivered and practised in figure of what was to come The record wherof is holy Scripture and Tradition both which concurring are a proofe so invincible that vnder heaven there is not any more forcible II. We may confirme this knowledge by discourse and contemplation as for example finding nothing to be in this world which hath not some cause or many causes concurring to its being we begin to think there can be nothing which hath not some cause wherby it begins and yet in all absolutely it cannot be so and consequently there must be a first cause caused by nothing els and that is God Then the order and government of the world and seasons of the yeare shewes there is some greate thing that governeth it as order among men cannot be without a directour and the like We must not think notwithstanding that we can comprehend his Essence or his attributes which are in him one single Essence but by admiring them and adoring them and acknowledging our owne weakenes to decipher them we shall come to vnderstand more of him for if we know allmost nothing of these inferiour things but the outward appearance of them and cannot dive into the substance and essence of them though we see them and touch them how shall we be able to comprehend the least attribute of God in whom nothing is not infiniâ—e III. Perfect inioying of God is not the state of this life neither can any creature even in any life come vnto it but by the speciall grace of God vouchsafing to communicate himself yet in some measure through his graceâ—â— we may even in this life inioy him and so increase also in his knowledge by beleeving him to be as he is allwayes present with vs and that there is not a place or creature in which he is not giving it life and motion and subsistence and consequently loving him for this continual and loving assistance and ioying in it for as by continual conversation with men we come to knovv them so God is also knowne by looking vpon him and because all that is in him or proceeds from him is good there cannot but be insinite cause of loving him with out any cause at all of distast which can hardly ever be among men Blessing him therfore exalt him so much as you can for he is greater then all prayse Exalting him put forth all your strength be not wearied for you shall not comprehend him Our obligation to love God III. PART I. THou shalt love thy lord God By how many titles is he Lord First he is God 2 Creatour 3. Conserver 4. Prince over all the kings of the earth 5. Redeemer 6. Sanctifyer 7. Judge 8. Rewarder And even those qualities which naturally are awefull are not in him without motives of love for though he be judge he is also our Advocate and our Father and though he be so greate a Prince he haâ—h particular care of vs all and doth nothing injustly III. How many wayes is he thyne As Creatour and Conserver and Prince he gives himself in all creatures which are all for our vse and in them and with them he is continually serving vs. As Redeemer and Sanctifyer he gives vs againe himself and as the Apostle argues He that spared not his owne Sonne but delivered him for vs all how hath he not also given us all with him Finally as Rewarder he gives himself eternally and in so compleat a manner that nothing can be mote desired III. What is there in the world among the things which either we accouâ—t or desire to be ours which are more ours or more to be desired then God Honour Pleasure Wealth Quiet Power Frends in the world are all short superficiall transitorie short because they satisfie but part of our desire superficiall because they are â—ore outward then inward 〈◊〉 our mind transitorie because soone lost and oftimes so soone as we think we have them All things which are desired cannot come in comparison sayth the VViseman If all things fall short certaynly every thing in particular is much shorter and who in the world hath all but he that loveth God who is all in all And againe if honour be to be desired the greater honour is more to be desired and so of wealth and pleasure which greatnes nothing vnder God can clayme IV. As therfore by naturall obligation be thou also by thy owne choyce wholy his acknowledging thy subjection to him and doing him due homage by observing all his commands and follovving his counsels and flying all things which may breed a distance Let thy tongue attend vpon his prayses thy eares harked vnto his inspirations thy eyes behold his wonderous works thy feete be ready to go vpon his errands thy hands to labour in his affayres and thy hart be wholy his c. Our Obligation to love God IV. PART I. THou shalt love thy Lord thy God with thy whole hart when he sayth with thy whole hart he leaveth no part of thy life vacant no place to be given to any other love Secondly love him with thy whole hart that is with much heate and affection not coldly and remisly Thirdly with thy whole hart that is solidly constantly vndantedly not giving way to whatever opposeth and bearing whatever crosseth and going through whatever concerneth the divine love Fourthly with thy whole hart
Intertaynment of our Saviour as spouse of our soule I. S. Gregorie vpon the parable delivered by our Saviour of a king who made a mariage for his Sonne sayth that God the Father did then make a mariage for his eternall Sonne when he joyned him to humane nature in the wombe of the blessed Virgin and againe when through this mysterie of his Incarnation he did as it were wed him to Holy Church According to that of the Apostle speaking of Matrimonie This is a greate Sacrament or Mysterie but I say in Christ and in the Church to wit perfected and compleated in the loving coniunctioÌ„ of Christ with his Church and consequently with every soule that in it doth conserve his grace and love VVhich conjunction he doth renew and confirmâ— with new demonstrations of love every time that we doe worthily receive him in so much that we may iustly make account that every such time he sayth vnto vs as in Ozea the Prophet I will betroth thee unto me for ever I will betroth thee unto me in iustice and sanctitie and in iudgement over thy enimies and in mercy taking pitty of thy infirmities and in fayth and fidelitie vnto thee O my souleâ— VVhere shall I have thoughts and forces sufficient to thank my Saviour for such exceeding love or what doe I stand so long demurring as if there could be an offer made more honourable or more beneficiall O mercy incomparable prostrate at thy feete I doe adore thy love and by thy mercy doe promise faythfullnes vnto thee II. The day of mariage is a day of ioy the bride is as costly attired as her state will affoard frends and kinsfolk are invited and gifts presented So we read in S. Jhon speaking of the last act therof of which this is a figure let vs be glad and reiâ—ycâ— and give glorie to God because the mariage of the lamb is come and his wife hath prepared herself and it was given her that she should cloth herself with silk glittering and white and the silk are the iuâ—tifications of the saints VVith these by the grace of God which is given vs we must prepare ourselves before hand not satisfyed with slight indeavour but imitating the diligence and care of Gods saints and exercising acts of vertue which may deserve the name of silk and not of courser sturf and with the like care conserving our soules white and resplendent in the sight of our spouse with out spot of synne or too much affection to what ever creature O saints of God! VVhere shall I find these silks I give glorie notwithstanding to my God that he doth not despise my povertie It is a rule approoved by thee According to thy abilitie be mercyfull If thou hast much give abundantly if thou have but little give willingly a little That which I have I give wholy vnto thee and doe begge that by thyself and by thy saints thou wilt supply my wants and take compassion of me who doest not turne away thy face from those that caâ—â— vpon thee III. Reflect more particularly vpon the greatenes of this match and the beneficiallnes of it for in all matches the Bride is made noble by the noblenes of the bridegroome groome and he indowes her with his person and substance wher vpon the Prophet foretells that the Church of God and every faythfull soule shall have a new name which the mouth of our Lord shall give it and that he will reioyce or take contentment in such a soule as a bridegroome doth in the bride and she shall be to him as a crowne of glorie and a royall diademe that is so much esteemed by him And the argument of the Apostle is here also in force He that hath delivered for vs his owne Sonne how hath he not also with him given vs all things So that honour and profit inviting vs what can we say but humbly yeald ourselves his servants admiring his goodnes beyond all desert and indeavouring not to dishonour ourselves and him by any base act whatsoever all sorte of greevous synns being tearmed in holy writ spirituall adulterie in regard of the fidelitie which we owe to him and the linke of love which he desires should be betwixt vs and the obligation which we have vnto it Intertaynment of our Saviour as he is the good shepheard I. This title he gives himself and with-all the qualities of the good shepheard I am the good shepheard The good shepheard giveth his life for his sheepe Call to mind the life of our Saviour from the beginning to the end and thou wilt easily discover how truly he may say he hath given it all and wholy for thee and with much more reason then Jacob sayed to Laban day and night I was parched with heate and cold and sleepe did depart from my eyes and so for twenty yeares I served thee and then standing betwixt the infernall wolfe and vs he suffered himself to be torne in peeces rather then we should perish O loving Iesus Whence cometh it that thou doest thus owne vs for thyne and take so much care of vs It is thy owne mercifull goodnes that puts thee to this troble and payne with vs sylly creatures and apt to be led astray I acknowledge myself vnable to defend myself thou art my protectour in thee I doe place my hope c. II. The benefit which we reape by this his care is in comparable he performing towards vs that which he foretold and promised by Ezechiel I will seeke that which was lost and bring back that which was driven away and will bind vp that which was broken and strenghten that which was infirme and preserve that which is strong and in good liking Which is that which he sayth of himself in S. Jhon I came that they should have life and should have more abundantly that is more easy and more plentifull means towards saluation and dayly grow more perfect by this his care and liberalitie And againe as my Father knowes me and doth acknowledge me for his Sonne with love due from a Father to a Sonne so doe I know and acknowledge my sheepe and am as teÌ„der of theÌ„ as of childreÌ„ III. In consequence wherof he sayth further that he knoweth every one of his sheepe by name and taketh particular notice of every one none excepted he goeth beforâ— them to shew them the way by his owne example and puts them to â—o hardnes which himself hath no indured for them he provideth them pasture and such as the world cannot sufficiently admire That at which the Angels tremble and dare not freely fixe thier eyes vpon that is our food to him we are vnited and made one flesh with him who can expresse the power of our Lord and set forth all his prayses VVhat shepheard doth feed his sheepe with his owne blood Many Mothers doe put forth thier Chrildren to others to nurse He hath not indured
the Messias who would instruct her in all those high matters whervpon our Saviour differred her no longer but told her he was the Messias expected which she instantly proclaymed with greaâ—e ioy through the whole citty from whence she came and he was received in it with much satisfaction O powerfull word I am he who speakes with thee It is the Saviour of the world who doth thus familiarly impart himself vnto vs. Too greate a person to be put in balance with whatever thing created and his blessed presence too greate a favour that any thing should be admitted to stand in competencie with it Come and sâ—â— the man who is able to satisfy you in all your doubts and from whome you shall receive all goodnes take these things into your consideration that you may inioy the living waters which he promiseth and in which you will find eternall comforâ— V. His disciples returning from the toâ—ne with provision wondered to find him talking with the woman but 〈◊〉 more when inviting him to take his refection vpoâ— what they brought he answered that he had other meatâ— to feed on which they knew not and to take away thier â—ondering he declared himself that his food was to doâ— the will of his father and wheras it was then neere harvest time his harvest was the good of soules in all things indeavouring to rayse our thoughts from these temporall things to that which doth infinitely more import vs to wit our spirituall food and the harvest of which we arâ— to make ouâ— eternall living for which end he would remaine with vs continually vnder the shapes of bread and wine that as we cannot forget nor forgo for any thing our corporall food so we should be as mind full at leas of our spirituall food and sustenance and not neglect it or differâ—e it long for any temporall occasion whatsoever O Lord my God prevent mâ— with the sweetnes of thy blessings that I may devoutly and worthily approch to thy Sacrament stirre vp my hart towards thee and â—ake away the heavy dullnes â—hich possesseâ—h me Tho◠〈◊〉 Kemp. lib. 4. c. 4. Intertaynment of our Saviour with the penitent Magdalen I. S. Mariâ— Magdalen is set before vs as a patterne of the best love after harty repentance for our synns her teares bearing testimonie of her sorâ—ow her incessant kissing of our Saviours feete witneâ—â—ing her love and her annointing them her desire of making satisfaction to her power which three though at all times it behoveth vs to practice yet chiefly in order to the holy table of our Lord before and after receiving him wich might be the cause among others why he ordered her conveâ—sion to happen while he was sitting at board with the Pharisee whose invitation he accepted the rather because as in the Samaritan he had other food to feede on then was outwardly set before him and accordingly he wished him to take notice of what this woman was then doing to receive instruction how it had beeâ—â—itting for him to have behaved himself towards our Saviour in his receptiopn by discoverie of his errours comâ—itted in it II. The paâ—able which our Saviour vsed to the Phaâ—isee of two debters wherof one owed a greate summe of money the other a lesse and were both forgiven may serve vs for the first document and â—each vs that we are all debters to our Saviour more or lesse and that he that â—hall think himself lesse debter then another shall runne greate hazared to be grossely mistaken as we find this Pharisee was and that other who comparing himself with the Publican however in his owne eyes he thought he deserved better was found in the eyes of God to be farre behind Let every one therfore retire himself into the closet of his hart and looke over his obligations new and old he will not find them all cancelled if those for which he was eternally to lye in chaynes have been delivered vs vpon repentance and promise of amendment as to the servant that fell at his Masters feete and craved his patience let vs looke whether the obligation which we have to our Neighbour to deale by him as God hath dealt by vs be dischaâ—ged And if we fiâ—d no greate summes of this nature owing yet besides infinitâ— little debts which we dayly incurre we have the greate debt of his patient forbearance still lying vpon vs and of his more then patient love out of which he hath not been overcome with our often offenses but still favored vs with his graces in regard of all which we must prostrate ourselves with the Magdalen at our Saviours feete with teares acknowledging our Arriers More in numberâ— then the hayres of our head and poure them out largely as water confessing that all we can doe is not sufficient to discharge even this new obligation of his gracious admitting vs poore synners to his table What doth this pious condescendencie meane and this frendly invitation How shall I dare to approch who have nothing good wheron to presume Th. a Kempis lib. 4. c. 1. n. 3. III. But â—o draw so neere as we can to our discharge we must chiefly in this occasion practise acts of love which is two fold towaâ—ds God fignifyed by her incessant kisses and towards our Neighbour signifyed by the oyntment bestowed vpon our Saviours feete These two are the fullfilling of the law and in these two consisteth our Plenarie Indulgence and remissâ—â—â— for having received â—bsolution of all greate offenses which we could remember in the Sacrament of confession in this are forgiven more fully those which we could not remember and what other veniall synns we may have committed since confession being sory for them with purpose â—o amend and by acts of love and true contrition which are proper to this Sacrament of love much of the payne due to synne is â—eleased and the more the more we love as our Saviour sayed in conclusion of this blessed saint Many syns are forgiven her because she loved much he that finds lesse forgiven him it is signe he loved lesse And of that love which we owe our Neighbour the holy Ghost telleth vs that almes giving or works of mercy deliver from all synne and from death and will not suffer a soule to goe into darkenâ—sse Lord what is my confidence in this life or what greater comfort among all things vnder heaven is it not thou my Lord God IV. The Magdalen vnderstood her vnworthynes yet did not forbeare to approch to our Saviour but knowing the greatenes of her disease she came with humilitie to the Physitian whom she found able and willing to cure her she placed herself behind 〈◊〉 his feete shame commanding her to be bashfull love drawing her on to a reverent confidence she began with teares but never ceased to kisse his feete for whoever hath least cause to weepe hath most cause to love his synns being either forgiven him or prevented She considered what
with as much love and confidence say vnto him Lord it is good for vs to be here and insteed of the tabernacles of Moyses and Elias make vse of the figures of the old testament which represented this blessed mysterie as the Sacrifices of Abel and Abraham here accomplished and the Manna outgone by many degrees and the Paschal lambe and the bread of proposition and the dayly Sacrifices and what ever elâ— is recorded in all the ceremonialls with all the prophecies and consider how much the person of our Saviour and the manner of his being present with vs and the inrent and effect of this my sterie doth exceed all that is gone before and taking vp thy rest in the tabernacle of thy hart with our Saviour say often to him how amiable are thy tabernacles o Lord of hosts My soule longeth and languisheth after the cours of my Lord my hart and my flesh have exvlted in my living God c. II. S. Paul had a desire to be dissolved that is even to dye that he might be with Christ esteeming better then life or any thig that that this life can affoard that was a desire of seeing him in an other world yet if we did conceive things in thier right value we should in reason with as much fervour lay aside all worldly busines to be with Christ in this blessed action at convenient times saying with the same Apostostle To me to live is Christ and to die is gayne that is Christ is my life and though I forsake all the world to be with him I shall be a gayner by iâ— Who therfore shall sever vs from the Charitie or love of Christ. Tribulation Or distresse or famine Or nakâ—dnes Or danger Or persecution Or the sword I am sure that neither death nor life nor Angels nor Principalities nor Powers neither things present nor things to come nor might nor heigth nor deapth nor other creature shall be able to separate c. I desire to be dissolved from this mortall body that I may see thee face but seeing it is thy pleasure that I only injoy thy in this covert manner I willingly forgo all worldly content all companie all pastime or intertaynment to be with thee for thou art my God and all things III. S. Andrew with another seeing our Saviour once passe alone by him and hearing S. Jhon Baptist whose disciple then he was say Behold the lambe of God accosted our Saviour and asked him Master where dwellest thou And he sayed come and see they came and saw where he abided and taried with him that day VVhat can be more beseeming thee in this blessed action then even out of compassion to aske our Saviour where he dwelleth here below seeing his glorious habitation is so adorable in heaven VVhat are our Churches be they never so sumptious And how many of them are more like stables then Churches And what is thy breast Come neere and home to thyself and see where and how thou intertaynest him and how long thou vsest to stay with him S. James and S. Ihon vpon occasion that the Samaritans once did with discurtesie refuse to give passage to our Saviour through thier citty would have commanded fire from heaven vpon them which zeale though our Saviour repâ—ehended as vnreasonable yet it behoveth vs to reflect how deepely we are apt to take an indignitie offered where ourselves are concerned and how slight oftimes we make of this so greate a curtesie of our Saviour though it wholy concerne vs and againe how that really that punishment was not exorbitant considering the person contumeliously rejected and yet how little oftimes we value him IV. Finally therfore joyne with S. Ihon who deserved the name of the beloved disciple and seeing our Saviour is pleased to remayne in thy breast as he gave vpon his a resting place to S. Ihon be not backward nor streight laced in point of love but as the favour is greater so to thy abilitie straine thyâ—elf to greater love give him his full rest in thy soule doe not disquiet him with vâ—â— quiet thoughts words or deeds Begge of him that he will stay with thee even beyond the time limited by the species say with the two disciples Mane nobiscum Domine quoniam advesperascit And with the devout Thomas a Kempis VVould to God that thou wouldest totally inflame me by thy presence stretch forth thy hand with S. Thomas and touch his sacred syde and hands and frete and kissing them say My Lord and my God Intertaynments of our Saviour with the Angels and Saints I. VVHile the Apostles at our Saviours Ascension were looking towards heaven after him two Angels appearing sayed what stand you looking into heavon This Iesus who is taken vp from you into heaven shall so come as you have seen him going into heaven And really if we should consider only the worth and dignitie of his person it were but fitting he should in all occasions appeare in so much and much greater glorie but stooping to our weaknes and to our commoditie behold how he cometh not clad with glorie but clouded vnder the shapes of bread and wine yet this is the same Iesus who then taken vp into heaven sitteth at the right hand of his heavenly Father in glorie Stand therfore and looke earnestly into this heavenly mysterie Admire and love his goodnes once he will come to judge but to doe mercy vpon vs to increase his graces to bestow himself in so frendly a manner he comes millions and milleons of times and will continue so till the end of the world This is Iesus this is my Saviour my Redeemer my all things O that I could say he shall never be taken from me Come sweet Jesus and come so that I may ever inioy thee Amen II. His taking vp into heaven betokeneth not any need that he had of assistance for he ascended of himself but the reception or intertaynment which the Angels and Saints gave him at his ascension all the nine quiers ranking themselves in order from the highest to the lowest heaven and taking him in the midst of them singing prayses of his divinity and humanitie and of the wonderous things which he had done and suffered for mankinde and rejoycing at his exaltation even above themselves the Cherubims not daring to stretch thier wings over his head as anciently over the Arke and the Seraphins hiding thier faces in reverence of the splendour of his glorious countenance the Thrones and Dominations and Principalities proftrating themselves vnto him as king of kings and Lord of Lords and the rest of the heavenly court doing homage every one in his degree VVhy stand we looking only vpon him And not industriating ourselves to doe him with the holy Angels all the honour and homage thar lyeth in our powre or perhaps doe not so much as looke after him but let our thoughts aÌ„d feete waÌ„der instantly after other
arise so it be an hundred fold so it be worth an hundred so it please comfort delight and be to be beloved an hundred times more then other things what madnes is it that men are so slow in leaving a single thing for an hundred fold where is the covetous what is become of the ambitious VVhere are those who trafficke in this world Doth not he in vayne doe evill who might more advantagiously and more plesantly serve God then serve the world Workemen hired into the Vineyard I. THe Kingdome of heaven is like a house holder who 〈◊〉 forth early in the morning to hire workemen into his vâ—â—neyard and having covenanted with the workemen for penny a day be sent them into his vineyard And going forth about the third houre he saw others standing in the market plaâ—â— idle and he sayed to them go you also into the vineyard and 〈◊〉 what shall be iust I will give you And againe he weÌ„t forth about the sixt aÌ„d the ninth houre and did likewise And about the eleventh houre he weÌ„t forth and found others staÌ„ding and he sayth to them what stand you here all the day idle They say to him because no body hath hired vs He sayth to them go you also into the vineyard The vineyard is the Church and every on s soule the market place is the world the workemen the Apostles aÌ„d Apostolicall meÌ„ aÌ„d every one is workemaÌ„ to his owne vineyard wages is promised to the first the second and third to the last nothing is promised but yet if then they do their worke God will not be behind hand with them For any man to say he is not hired is an excuse of the idle God is the greate householder who froÌ„ the beginning of the world to the eÌ„d therof doth not cease to hire vs to doe his worke which is ours also for ours is the benefit if we performe it though however his is the glorie of it VVe have reason to acknowledge his goodnes who in all ages doth admonish vs of our dutie and is not fayling to send helps to instruct vs and to set the worke forward and seeketh our good to the last period of our dayes II. When the evening was come the Lord of the vineyard sayd to his Baylie call the workemen and pay them their hire beginning from the last to the first Therfore when they were come who came about the eleventh houre they received every one a penny But when the first also came they thought that they should receive more and they also received every one a penny and receiving it they murmured against the goodman of the house saying The last have continued one houre and thou hast made them equall to vs who have borne the burden of the day and the heates This largesse seemed to these men iniust but what answer did they receive VVhat instruction was given them The iustice of this distribution was not revealed to them neither were they admitted to view the hidden secret but to the end that they should refrayne from scanning Gods iudgements the goodnes of the mercy-full householder and the power of him that ordayneth all things according to his will was layed before them as if that of the Apostle had been sayed vnto them Who art thou that thou doest answer God III. He answering sayed to one of them frend I doe thee no wrong didst not thou covenant with me for a penny Take that is thyne and go I will also give to this last even as to thee Or is it not lawfull for me to doe what I will Or is thy eye naught because I am good So shall the last be first aÌ„d the first last for many be called but few elect The penny promised to all is life everlasting which is coÌ„mon to all that shall be saved yet in the same life there be degrees of glorie as betwixt starre and starre in the firmament If therfore we be admitted to life everlasting vve can have no wrong it being above any thing we can deserve and they who came later may have equaled the longer time of the former by their fervour and surpassed it we are not good iudges in our owne case it must be left to him who cannot be vniust Our eye cannot arrive to comprehend neither what in goodnes nor what in justice God may doe If we will keepe him our frend let vs not be over curious but apply ourselves to our vvorke and for the rest stand to his mercy which is infinite Many are called Take heed thou differre not to come because thou art assured to receive thy penny when ever thou comest say not to thyself He vvill give every one as much wherfore should I take more paynes VVhat he will give and what he will doe is locked vp in his owne breast Come wheÌ„ thou are called Equall hire is promised all but about the houre of working their is greate question Yong men may say we will come at the eleveÌ„th houre but no body hath promised thee that thou shalt live till the seventh see that thou doest not by differring bereave thyself of that which he otherwise vpon his promise would give thee Few indeed are choosen but those are of the elect who not despising their caller follow him aÌ„d beleeve him for men beleeve not but of their owne free choyce The raysing of Lazarus I. PART 1. THere was a certaine sickman Lazarus of Bethania of the towne of Marie and Martha her sister His sisters therfore sent saying Lord behold He whome thou lovest is sick and Iesus hearing sayed to them This sicknes is not to death but for the glorie of God that the Sonne of God may be glorisied by it And Iesus loved Martha aÌ„d Marie ad Lazarus As he heard therfore that he was sick he taried in the same place 2. dayes The faithfull are diversly tried some by losse of frends others by losse of goods and severall other vexations would to God I could see my flesh infirme and weakened that I lived not in flesh but in the faith of Christ for greater oftimes is grace in infirmitie then in health Sicknes and death are no signes of lesse love but as the sicknes was not to death because death itself was not to death but for the glorie of God so our infirmities are more for the glorie of God then our weake nature will give vs leave to imagin and when God delayeth the restoring vs to health we are so much the more to conforme ourselves by how much we acknowledge that his wisedome is greater and his love by taxying nothing the lesse I whom I love doe rebuke and castise sayth our Saviour in the Apocalips II. Then he sayth to his disciples let vs go into Iewrie againe the disciples say to him Now the Iewes sought to stone thee and goest thon thither againe Iesus answered are not their twelve houres of the day If a man walke in
This must be our study and profession in this life to mayntaine the beauty and due proportion of this image which we beare that our vnderstandings and our wills be not blurred with things vnbeseeming God claymes it as his due He hath put his owne stampe vpon vs which can never be razed quite out so long as we have a soule it will be found to be the image of God however it be vsed III. That day the Saducees came to him who say there is no resurrection and asked whose wife shall she be that had seven husbands Iesus sayed to them you erre not knowning the scriptures nor the power of God for in the resurrection neither shall they mary nor be maried but are as the Angles of â—od in heaven And concerning the resurrection have you not heard that of God saying I am the God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Iacob He is not God of the dead but of the living These men had the Scriptures but had not the right vnderstanding of them because in the reading of them they did not take with them the right rule of vnderstanding them which is tradition and humble submission to approved authoritie they also doe erre not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God who condemne in this life those who doe not mary or doe vow virginitie which state notwithstanding being approved by our Saviour himself hath by all ancient Fathers and continuall practise of the Church been esteemed an Angelicall life vpon earth In like manner is prayer to saints a holy practise for they are not to be esteemed as dead but living and knowing much more by the power of God then by nature they could and more powerfull to doe good then ever they were in this life however strange things God was pleased to worke by them even here on earth The greate Commandment I. THe Pharisees hearing that he had put the Saducees to silence came together and one of them a doctour of the law asked him tempting him Master which is the greate commandment in the law Iesus sayed to him Thou shalt love the Lord thy God from thy whole hart and with thy whole soule and with thy whole mind This is the greatest and first commandment It is the first and greatest commandment because first in order of promulgation first in dignitie by reason of the person whom we are commanded to love first also in perfection because love is the chiefe of our passions and placed vpon so noble an object doth greately innoble a soule it is the greatest because it comprehends all other vertues and draweth them after it aÌ„d vpon it dependeth our whole good and salvation and in regard of the greatenes of God and his infinite deserving to be loved it requireth that no part of vs be vacant from being imployed in his love our whole hart and affection our whole soule and invention our whole mind and application must be to his love Iâ— And the second is like to this Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thy self On these two commandments dependeth the whole law and Prophets Our Saviour answered the doctour more then he demanded and put him in mind that he was not to aske such questions by way of tempting but doe what the law prescribeth that is doe by others as we would be done by Love thy neighbour as thyself This commandment is like the former because we must love our neighbour also in his degree with our whole hart and soule and mind and not suffer hatred to possesse the least part of vs It is like the first because as we love God for himself so must we love our neighbour not for our owne sakes but for his and for God It is like the first because vpon this as vpon the other depends our salvation and that of S. Jhon is very true He that loveth not his brother whom he seeth God whom he seeth not how can he love III. Then Iesus spake to the multitude and to his disciples saying vpon the Chayre of Moyses have sitten the Scribes and Pharisees all things therfore whatever they shall say vnto you observe yee and doe yee but according to their works doe yee not for they say and doe not To shew vs how truly and how sincerly we are to practise the love of our neighbour by this document he giveth vs to vnderstand that however he misliked the proceeding of the Pharisees and often reprehended them sharpely yet he had care of their honourand authoritie and held with them so farre as was reason He teacheth vs also not to carpe at superiours being men as others and subiect to be misled for in what their authoritie leads them in order to the instruction of others God hath so much providence over every body that he doth particularly assist them besides that every one is more apt to say then to doe well The Pharisees sayeth S. Augustin did that in their life which was their owne but an others that is moyseses chayre did not suffer them to teach what was their owne They benefited many by teaching that which they did not but they would have benefited farre more if they had done what they taught Sonne he that indeavoureth to withdraw himself from obedience withdraweth himself from grace The fifteenth Application to the most Blessed Sacrament I. GEntils desired to see our Saviour S. Philip and S. Andrew were their mediatours and brought them to his sight if we follow the conduct of the Apostle and Apostolicall men teaching what they have received from hand to hand we shall be able to see our Saviour really present in the most Blessed Sacrament and how that graine of wheate comes to die from what it was and to be transsubstantiated into the body of Christ by the powerfull word of our Saviour This is my body This word a multitude of misbeleevers will have to signifie otherwise then it is taken by holy Church but as our Saviour concerning the voyce which came from heaven declared that it was neither thunder nor an Angel that spake but a voyce for our sake so this word by which the Sacrament is perfected he commands should for our sake be spoken in his Church and that done by it which he then did at his last supper in perpetuall remembrance or commemoration of him and of his death for our sake so that as he then did really give his Apostles what he sayed This is my Body so their descendents who are commanded to doe the same thing which he did doe really consecrate and give the same body by vertue of the same words of our Saviour By this the name aÌ„d power and love of our Saviour is glorified to the end of the world For what a poore thing had it been to have left only bread and wine for a memorie of him and of his vnspeakable love in dying for our sakes But leaving himself vnder these shapes and leaving himself so as by the consecration of them
the knowledge and vnderstanding though not without feruent acts of the will and resolution Contemplation hath more of the acts of the will imploying itself vpon things already known II. From the morning till Mid-day the sunne is in continuall motion yet still sending forth its beames with heate proportioned to the height in which it is At noone it resteth in a manner and hath doble the heate which at other times it had So must our soules endeavour to mouÌ„t vp by degrees to contemplation and be still increasing till we arrive to that posture of altitude to which God shall be pleased to rayse vs in this life then we must not think that we are licensed to decline againe but be rising still as to another world better and in which are things stranger and more admirable then in this It being therfore our ayme in this life to coÌ„e as neere the happines of the other as we can and that happines consisting in the perfect knowledge and love and fruition of God we must be continually vsing means to come neerer and neerer to that fruition beginning it here soe farre as is possible III. The practise of Meditation is the high way to it yet as travellers cannot so continually walke but that they must have their resting places to refreth themselves and gather new strength and those resting places are so farâ—e from hindering their journey that they doe much advance it so in this our spirituall journey besides Meditaeion by which we increase in knowledge and besides those heates which that knowledge breedeth still carrying vs along with good purposes and actions sureable if we take vp our rest now and then at some principall station we shall find so much refreshment that we shall not so much feele the wearynes which oftimes may come vpon vs in our journey as be lightened as after an houres or a nights rest and be fresher then when we first set forth IV. According therfore to the seven dayes of the weeke I have disgested seven resting places or Seates wherin siting downe without much discourse we may looke vpon our beloved in them and take that content and profit which may be for our advaucemeÌ„ut for as a green field sowed all through with severall Kinds of flowers doth recreate the eye and refresh the brayne without labour and if there be varietie of hills and plaiâ—es about it it is the more pleasing so will the sight of our beloved delight our soules and refresh our wearyed vnderstanding and the severall positions in which we find him may make the sight of him the more delightfull not that he is not allwayes exceeding delightfull but because severall people are of severall humours and the same partie is not allwayes of the same and varietie doth naturally both please and ease vs for which cause also that which is here set downe at every station or seate may serve as a short declaration of the intent of this discourse but is no wayes meant as a paterne for any body to follow much lesse to consine himself vnto for as vpon a ground in musick severall artists doe make severall Kinds of division and the same man doth varie as his phancie leads him much more doth the holy Ghost in every body suggest diversitie of loving expressions towards the beloved of our soules of whome he is the infinite love O Blessed spirit allwayes one and allwayes manifold being one I beseech thee by thy many graces to that one love of my Saviour which I ought only to have that being one vvith him in this life I may inioy him in the life to come with the many whose multitude being but one hart and one soule cannot divide me from him but increase my love towards him by their never divided affection to him Amen The first Seate the Seate of Puritie I HIs seate of Puritie is in the armes of the blessed Virgin his mother for she was immaculate from the first instant of her Conception and did not only preserve but increase that Puritie to her dying day that of the Canticles being verifyed in her Thou art all beautifull my love and there is no spot in thee And againe How beautifull art thou and how comely my deerest in delights Or spirituall delicacies bestowed vpon thee Salomon is reported to have made for himself a greate throne of Ivoris and to have adorned it with the finest gold there was not such a thrâ—ne in all the kingdomes of the world Our Saviour did no lesse for our Blessed Lady adorning her puritie with all kind of vertues and chiefly with as much charitie and love towards her blessed sonne as could be found among Creatures and there was not such a creature not only in the world below but not in the kingdome of heaven itself Admire this Puritie with the Angels and say Who is this that cometh forth and advanceth as the aawning of the day when it first riseth fayre as the moone choosen and cleare as the sunne This is the bed and seate of the true Salomon which threescore valiant men doe compasse of the most valiant of Israel to defend it from the beginning to the end from all incursions of whatever enemie she is beautifull and sweete and comely as the heavenly Hierusalem and there is not a cittizen of it among vs that is to be compared to her How truly might she say of herself my soule doth magnifie our Lord and my spirit exult in God my Saviour because he hath done greate things for me even he that is powerfull for if there be any greatenes in heaven or earth it is to be found in her in measure incomparable The moone is fayre but not fayrer then shee the lilly is white but not whiter then shee as a lilly among thornes so my love among the daughters All are but as thornes to her If thou knowest it not by reason of thy humilitie o fayrest of women go forth after the foote steps of all the companies of heaven and earth and thou wilt find that neither Cherubins nor Seraphins not Principalities nor dominations nor any of the quires of Angels or Saints will contend with thee but reverence thee and admire thee and love thee as a well ordered armie of all excellencies within thyself How beautifull are thy marches o daughter of a Prince And mother of the Prince of Princes II. But as a tree is much more beautifull when it hath the proper fruite hanging on it and a vine when it is full of ripe bunches of grapes so is the blessed Virgin with her blessed sonne in her armes A sonne who alone is to her as a thousand sonnes having all the perfections in him of which the world is capable A sonne who did nothing prejudice her puritie but raysed it to a value inestimable the remayning a perpetuall Virgin both before and after he was borne and in conceiving him A sonne who beautified her soule as the sunne doth
blessed Sacrament and there wherâ— thou art in glorie when it shall please thee to call me to â—hee Amen The third seate the seate of Majestie I VVHen the Sonne of man shall come in his majestie aÌ„d all the Angels with him theÌ„ he shall sit vpoÌ„ the seate of his majesty and all nations shall be gathered together before him If his countenance were terrible when he tooke outhoritiâ— vpon him in this world what will it be when mounted on high vpon the Cloudes he shall have all the World before him at once and come with thousands of attendance to doe justice against all and coâ—vince all the impious of all the works â—f their impieâ—ie and shall thunder out that terrible sentence against those who shall have deserved it Go yee accursed into fire everlasting Art thou able to looke vp to that terrible seate Or rather looke downe into thy hart and wash it quickly with reates that that fire may not find where to take hold of thee That day is a day of â—ratâ— â— day of tribulation and anguish a day of calamitie and miserie a day of darkenes and mist a cloudy and stormy day a day of trumpâ—t and alarme against the strongest and highest that people â—hall even wither away with feare and expâ—ctation of what will come vpon them He preached here an acceptable day if here we receive what he preached we may be there accepted of if we neglect here that day will be little wâ—lcome to vs a dismall day to those who have here spent their dayes vnprofitably Iâ— S. Ihon in his Apocalyps describeth this seate saying I saw a greate white throne and one siting vpon it from whosâ— sight earth and heavâ—n fled and there was not plâ—ce found fâ—â— them and I saw the dead greate and little stand in the â—ight of the throne and bookes were opened and anothâ—r booke was opened which is of life and the deaâ— wereâ—â—dged of thosâ— things â—hich were written in the bookes aâ—cording to their workes and the sea gave thâ— dead that were in it and death and hell gave their dead that wâ—re in them and it was iâ—dged of every one according to their workes And death and hell were cast into the poole of firâ— This is the second death And he that was not found 〈…〉 in the bookâ— of lifâ— was cast into the poole of fire Behold againe and againe this greâ—te seatâ— of the judge and his Assessours behold the inhabitants of 〈…〉 declining as much as they can this sight but that they found no place to fly from him behold the dead of all sorts greate and little rich and poore Kings and slaves and no difference to be seen among them but by their workes Behold the bookes of every ones conscience layed open not only to the iudge and to every one of his Assessours but to all the standers by so that thousands and millions will be looking into thy secretest thoughts and actions and see that which thou wouldest not have God to have seen if it had been possible and not only thy actions but thy intentions so oft dissembled aÌ„d laboured to be cloked with I know not what Caâ—st thou abide these lookes Now thou canst not then of force thou must to thy vtter shame and confusion no wonder that the wicked are described to begin to say to the mountaines fall vpon vs and to the hills cover vs. For it will be an intollerable disgrace to be thus looked on How willingly would the allready damned have remained where they were and not have here appeared But death and hell must of force give vp their dead and the sea and the earth and wherever they were concealed Finally looke if thou canst for feare and trembling into that poole of fire so vast that it is capable of a whole world of corpses as stinking and as filthy as they are see how it gapes vpon thee see the vggly smoke that riseth from it Go downe into it living that thou mayest escape it dying III Doe not mistake thyself and think that this day so dreadfull is farre of it will be represented vnto thee as the greate world in a little mal at whatever houre thou shalt come to dy then the sunne will be darkened as to thee and the moone will not give the light all thy pretenses will fall to ground as so many starres on which thou wert gazing and the powers of those heavens in which thou hast placed thy hopes and thy felicitie will all fayle thee Anguish and confusion and troble and feare will â—eise thee if before hand thou hast not provided so that when the signe of the sonne of man shall appeare thou mayest say with S. Andrew O good Crosse long desired and now prepared for my loving soule I come vnto thee secure and ioyfull receive me also ioyfully who am the disâ—iple of him who did hang vpon thee O mercyfull Saviour who art to be my Iudge by thy infinite mercy I'beseech thee that thou wilt now protect me that I may be then protected delivet me from evill now that I may then be delivered in that evill day If thou be good to me here it will be then well with me for if God be for vs who will be against vs and he delivered thee for vs all as a pledge of his love and mercy towards vs as a mediatour for vs betwixt his mercy and his iustice Who then shall separate vs from the Charitie of Christ With which either he doth love vs or we him I am sure that neither death nor life nor Angels nor things presâ—nt nor things to come shall separate vs. c I reioyce with the multitude of Angels and Saints at thy victorie over thy eâ—imies and at thy iust iudgements over them Give me grace to ovbercome them here that with thee Lord God Omnipotent we may reigne for ever and ever Amen Alleluiâ— The fourth seate the seate of love I. HIs seate of love is the most blessed Sacrament of the Altar For what can be more lovely then Christ in our hands in our mouths in our breasts in our soules Here he doth act all the parts which possibly love can expresse he desireth to be continually with vs he accomodateth himself in a way that he may be witâ— vs and within vs with out all manner of offence because in the shape of bread and wine he beareth wtih our infintie and hourely imperfections and doth not avoyde vs for them He is continually giving vs himâ—elf in whome are all treasures And because it is neither necessarie nor fitting that he should againe die for vs yet he is so pleased with his death for vs that he will have it dayly commemorated and in a divine kind of manner acted and represented in this blessed Sacrament The bread and the Câ—alice being consecrated severally into his body and blood as if one were separâ—ted from the other He acts the part of a father
REmembring the excessive labour and paynes which our Saviour tooke day and night for our sake journiig and preachiâ—g and offering his help to every body begge of him knovvledg how thou mayest be gratefull to him for it and a will to put iâ— practise what thou knowest And First I. Consider that as the Jevves out of envie and emulation against our Saviour were the more mad against him the more good he did and the more wonders he wrought and they met in councell and studied â—ow they might apprehend him by somâ—â—raft and lay hands on him and kill him so we contrarievvise considering he hath done so much for vs and is still doing must with all diligence study how we may serve him with a sincere hart often begging and often offering it to God now specially when we see before our eyes in his passion so maniâ—est and so vnquestionable signes of his sincere and constant and vnchangeable love towards vs. II. Consider secondly that as the Jewes though thier malice were greate yet feared the people and sought therfore privately by craft to circumvent our Saviour so we in the service of God must not be afrayd what people will thinke or say of vs but banishing all humane respects and worldly reasons go on with that which we know to be good and acceptable to God with Courage and resolution in the face of the world for the grearer glorie of God as much as provident reason will allow III. Consider thirdly As the divell entred into Iudas as a fit instrument for the Iewes towards thier malitious intents and he of his ovvne accord went and offered himself for mony to find means to betray our Saviour so detesting his treacherous and covetous minde begge earnestly of the holy Ghost that he will vouchsafe to take possession of thy hart and soule and body and of all that thou hast to vse it as a means and an instrument for his glorie and with a noble resolution offer thyself voluntatily to doe whatever lyes in thee for the honour of God and seeke convenient occasions to advance it though it be with pauning thyself and all that thou hast to redeeme him and his blessed sonne our Saviour from disgrace c IV. And againe consider 4thly As the Ievves weâ—e gladd of this offer of Judas and accepted it and concluded the bargain with him and he watched vpon thâ— occasion of betraying our Saviour without tumult so out whole joy must be to happen vpon any special means or occasion of serving our Saviour to accept of â— when it is offered and to enter covenant betvvixt God and ourselves to performe it and to bethinke ourselves how and by what means and when we may best effect it without noyse in regard of discretion and humilitie and yet though it be with noyse in regard of good example and the hinderances with which oft times we must be forced to breake or els â—othing will be done Prayer To our Saviour offering to him as is a foresaid chiefly a sincere hart voyde of humane respects couragious resolute and watchfull by all convenient means to doe him service See the prayer of the sunday with in the Octave of the Ascension A meditation of the Paschall Lambe Matth. 26. Luke 22. I. THe first day of the feast of vnlevened bread the disciples came to Iesus and sayed where wilt thou that we prepare for the to eate the Passover VVherin we may reflect that we must not allvvayes expect to be bidden but prevent rather the time in things belonging to order and approved custome and shew therin our esteeme of the service done to our Saviour and be constant in it and though the benefit therof redound also to ourselves yet our intention and desire must be chiefly fixed in him for himself and hovv to prepare a place in our soules which he may thinke worthy of him II. And Iesus sayed goe into the citty and there will a man meete you bâ—aring a pitcher of waterâ— follow him and say to the master to the house our master sayth my time is at hand with thee I make my Passover O welcome nevves come ô Lord and doe not delay doe not decline this poore habitation Lord I am not worthy yet come and with thy grace prepare my soule give me the water of sorrovv teares of true compunction grace to follovv thy commands bearing the crosse which thou shalt lay vpon me for thou doest follovv with the revvard of thy companie those who doe thus follovv thee VVhen shall I come into that 〈◊〉 where I shall meete with the fountaine it self of living 〈◊〉 which here I beare but in an earthen pitcher subiect to be broken by infinite chances and doe beâ—â—e it with labour and difficultie but there is câ—ase and securitie III. And he will shew you a large roome furnished there make ready Hovv readily should we at all times and all occasions welcome our Saviour and those whom he accounteth his though they be poore and in distresse and then most of all Enlarge thy hart tovvards his service and furnish it with thoughts and deeds befitting him and see that it be allvvayes furnished for him for we knovv not the time which he hath chosen see that it be not taken vp by others Our Saviour and his Apostles had no certaine accommodation yet God provided Consider thier punctualitie in observing the lavv though it were but a figure of that which thou receiâ—est O blessed lamb of God slayne fot our sakes and broyled vpon the crosse be thou my everlasting food both in this dangerous passage and for all Eternitie Amen A meditation of our Saviours washing his disciples feete 10. 13. Preamble Beholding our Saviour with a bason of water in his hand and a tovvel ready girt and vpon his knees begge of him that thou mayest profit by this admirable action of his And first I. COnsider that our Saviour knowing that his houre was come that he should pâ—sse out of this world to his father when he had loved his who were in the world he loved them to the end and to shew his love the more he applied himself to this humble and necessarie action We that knovv not at what houre we shall passe out of this world but may every moment be taken avvay have the more need to cleanse our soules and wash them by humble confession and harty conâ—rition hovv â—ls shal we shevv that we love ourselves to the end for which we should Or how shall we shevv that we love God and our Saviour as we should Specially seeing our Saviour sayd to S. Peeter Vnlessâ— I wash thâ—â— â—hou shalt not have parte with me Amplius lava me aâ— iniquitate mea c. II. Consider secondly That hovvsoever we may find repugnance in laying open our soules to our Ghostly Father either by reason of the troble of searching into ourselves or the foulenes of our offenses or the frequency of our negligences or for bashfulnes or
thousands and thousands that would negligently vnreverently vnvvorthily misuse his blessed presence labour thou to be none of these IV. Consider fourthly How our Saviour giving outvvardly this blessed bread of life did invvardly inlighten the harts of his Apostles and tâ—ach them that this was the bread which he had promised before bread in outvvard shape but really his bodie and blood And hovv they according to thier weake capacitie as then appâ—chending and beleeving it were filled with admiration and love and thanksgiving which are the acts which we must exercise begging that he will strengthen our faith establish our hope and take possession of our soule and bodie and make vs wholy his transforming vs into himself by love and perfect vnion with him A meditation of our Saviours Prayer in the Garden Matth. 26. Preamble Beholding our Saviour sadd and heavy and full of feare and agonie and the blood trickling dovvne his forehead while he was earnest at his prayers begg of him that thou mayest profit by this dolfull sight I. COnsider first if thou didst truly love thy Saviour how thou wouldst compassionate him seing him so sadd so pale so pensive with teares in his eyes beginning to trickle dovvne his cheeks novv hanging dovvne his head novv looking vp to heaveÌ„ sighing and scarce able to bring forth three words togeather yet at last breaking forth into this mournefull note my soule is sorrowfull vnto death And with this he suddenly leaves his disciples and having gone but a stones cast he falls dovvne vpon his knees and vpon his face and prayes a long houre Father if it be possible let this Chalice Passe from me but not my will but thynâ— bâ— done II. Consider secondly That it is God who suffers this Agony to come vpon him for thy sake to teach thee hovv thou oughtest to take the Crosses which thou foreâ—eest or feelest For condescending to our infirmitie he shevveth that we may earnestly begge of God to be delivered from them In which respect thou oughtest greately to love him and thank him for his compassion over thee And on the other side hovv we must begge with Resignation to his holy will in regard that these Crosses may be many wayes beneficiall to ourselves and much for the glorie of God And it is reason we should leave ourselves in his hands it being a fearefull thing to be out of them at our ovvne choyse and say often from our hart that which we say dayly in our Pater noster thy will be done III. Consider thirdly That at the end of his first prayer he comes againe to his disciples as it were â—o refresh himself and also to instructe them and â—ebuks S. Peeter for sleeping when he should have prayed so couldst thou not watch one houre with me And returnes againe to his wonted prayer and so againe the second time To shevv vs that he is willing we should take comfort by the help of creatures though our chiefest comfort must still be in God For creatures of themselves have it not in them though we imagin they have it and oftimes they breed more affliction insteed of comfort as it could not be but some affliction to our Saviour to see his beloved Apostles in steed of helping him and arming themselves by prayer to sleepe and as it were forget both him and themselves IV. Consider fourthly Hovv at his last returne he fell more earnestly to his prayers and out of meere anguish and agonie svveating blood that it fell in greate dropes vpon the ground an Angell came and comforted him with which he went couragiously on to death Shevving vs that in our afflictions we must never leese our courage and our hope For when crosses are in thier height and we in our greatest agonie then comes the Angell of comfort and the spirit of God and either blovves all over if it be expedient for his Glorie and our good or puts nevv courage into our harts and makes vs bold to looke death and disgrace and losse of frends and fortunes in the face and rise and goe forvvards to meete them Prayer To our blessed Saviour that he will vouchsafe by the merit of this blessed action of his to give me courage both in my prayer to persever with constancie till the end and in all other occasions of difficultie and distast to conforme my self to his blessed will A meditation How our Saviour was betrayed and apprehended Preamble Reflecting hovv busy Iudas and the Jâ—vves were about thier mischievous intentions while our Saviour savv all at his prayer begge of our Saviour grace to profit by his behaviour in this action I. COnsider first with what peace and quiet of mind our Saviour after his last prayer came to his disciples and sayd vnto them sleepe now and rest with what courage he attended the blow and when he savv the officeâ—s dravv nigh sayd againe to his Apostles Rise let vs go He doth not say let vs fly but go and meete and confront our adversaries Behold hovv vndauntedly he went and met them and asked them whom seeke yee and told them I am he Admire all and in all the povver of the grace of God and of a good resolution settled vpon that sole povverfull grace for of ourselves we are weake but let vs to our povver ply God as our Saviour did and we shall have his grace II. Consider secondly Hovv little malice can prevayle against good but when God sees time and permits it I sat by you dayly sayth our Saviour teaching in the Temple and you held me not but this is your houre and the power of darkenes We must therfore neither be wrath nor over fearefull but discreetely confident in the povver and providence of God for his glorie and we shall see his wonders and multitudes of Good spirits to defend vs. III. Consider thirdly Hovv vsuall a thing it is for vs to be accounted-and spoken of and handled as male-factours But this is our glorie that doing well people should detract of vs as S. Peeter sayth as of malefaâ—tours You have come sayth our Saviour as to a theeâ—e with swords and cluâ—s to apprehend me Let vs not leeâ—e our patience but remember for whom and like to whom we suffer vndiscreete defending of ourselves by words or actions makes the matter worse as S. Peters striking IV. Consider fourthly Hovv the Traytour kisseth the officers apprehend and binde and hale thy lord avvay with shoutes aâ—d cryes and taunts and a thousand iniuries And all this for thy synns O what have my synns deserved He on the other side like a lambâ— suffers himself to be bound and led as they please he speaketh mildly to Judas Frend wherfore comest thou He healeth the eare of Malchus appeaseth Peâ—câ—rs vntimely wrath offers himself to drinke the chalice of his passion though he could have had thovvsands of Angellâ— to defend him Indeavour to benefitt thyself by all The Prayer O my love Draw me after thee and we will
indeed bevvayle thee alone for what will it avayle vnlesse I bevvayle myself also and my synnes and bevvayle them so as not to fall againe Hovvever it is resolved I must weepe what will then become of me whose eyes are so dryed vp with hardnes of hart that there is no apparance I will at least help to cary his Crosse and take of from him so much of the burden by amendment of my life and declare myself to be one of those that doe follovv him with love and esteeme and respect and not as the multitude of vnbeleevers and synners III. And forget not that not only thou must not be loaded with synne if thou pretend to follovv our Saviour but that it is also vp the hill against the streame oftimes with much difficultie and that it is vp Mount Calvarie where the sight and contemplation of a deaths head will avayle thee more then the sight of all the beauties of the world and that all must end with death whatever the world can afford or doth esteeme By the contemplation wherof we come to overcome the bitternes of death and make that svveete and desirefull which othervvise is so abhorred Repetition of the mysteries of the Passion of our Saviour V. PART I. VPon the mount the Sunne the Moone the earth the rocks the dead mens graves teach vs what to think and doe That it is God that doth suffer his povver not being diminished tovvards the preserving of every thing in its wonted course but his incomprechensible proceedings astonishing them They are ready to revenge his iniuries he is holding his hands fast nayled to the Crosse and commanding them to forbeare Father forgive them for they know not what they doe The Crâ—atures otherwise insensible protest themselves sensible of these indignities and those who have sense and reason doe not resent them The sunne in effect sayth why should I give light seeing the fountayne of light ecclypsed And the moone where should I borrovve it the sunne of justice being thus obscured The earth trombleth at the hidjousnes of these offenses among which myne are not the least and I doe not tremble with it Memento mei Domine othervvise I cannot escape vtter ruine I acknovvledge that I deserve to be svvallovved vp and that in it I should be but justly punished Nam digna factis reciperem But here thy mercies exceed thy justice Memento mei but I am not worthy to be thought on Memento Domine David omnis mansuetudinis ejus Looke also vpon thy blessed Mother to whom in thy beloved disciple thou hast commended me and doe not forsake me II. He is in the seate of mercy and beggeth forgivenes for vs and yet is doing justice vpon them that by thier ovvne concurrence doe not apply the meritts of his bitter Passion tâ— themselves in particular for of the tvvo malefactours crucified with him he saveth but one and him that by confessing of his synnes to this high priest craves pardon acknovvledgeth his deserts and beggeth admission into his kingdome In ipsa patibuli specie sayth S. Leo monstratur illa quâ— in judicio omnis hominiâ—â—st facionda discretio what can we expect at the later day if in this there be such rigour III. Pater in manus tuas commendo spiritum meum I joyne with thy blessed Sonne and say father for seeing he hath vouchsafed often to rearme himself my brother I may with the more confidence call thee Father and with him that doth not envy thy mercyes as the elder brother to the prodigall childe but even craves them for me and craves them with bleeding eyes cum clamore vâ—ido lachrimis with him I commend my soule also into thy mercifull hands and doe commend it novv with the more humble suyte because it cannot be but that thou wile grant what ever cometh novv commended by him pro suâ— reverontia for the respect which thou bearest him and which he ever and at this instant did beare tovvards thee O hâ—avenly Fâ—ther looke vpon the bleeding hands of thy beloved Sonne there thou wilt find me also written with letters of love though farre vndeserving through these I commed my poore soule vnto thee for I have not hands of my ovvne that dare appeare before thee to offer any thing in them Manus manus sunt Esau hands of vndeserving Esau that hath so often sold his birthright for a Messe of portage but the fragrancie of the merits of this they Sonne joyned with his Mothers intercession will obtayne an abundant blessing for me Amen Of the Solitude of the Blessed Lady I. THe evening and the Sabboth coming on the companie was forced to leave the sepulchre and retire every one to his home S. Ihon accompanics our blessed Lady bt still her thoughts were vpon her Sonne some times looking back tovvards mount Calvarie some times tovvards the garden and sepulchre not farre of then saying to herself and to S. Ihon here he turned to the daughters of Hierusalem and wished them not to weepe here he faynted lo yonder is the palace of Pilate where he was whipped and crovvned with thornes O cruell people that could misuse him so what hart can think of it and not melt into teares O hovv hath he been cryed vp in these streets and novv to be this vilâ—fied One that was made of so much goodnes that he was ever obliging people with his admirable worth and even at last prayed for those that did most cruelly butcher him Father forgive them they know not what they doe O that they had knovvne so much as I they would never have fallen into such extremities O my Sonne My Sonne But why doe I say my Sonne Sonne of the living God his naturall and only and eternall Sonne Why wert thou thus forsaken VVhy didst thou thus abandone thyself thou hadst povver at will thou sayedst to Pilate Thoâ— shouldest not have any power at all against me vnlesse it had been given thee from above And why given VVas there no other means but this to save man kind O Blessed Sonne II. S. Jhon to give her some comfort in this her sadnes peradventure sayed there is nothing indeed more to be admired then that his Father would choose and he yeald to this means only he foretold vs of it oftimes and not many dayes past but we could not believe it even wheÌ„ he pointed vs out the Traytour O wicked Traytour but when I accompaned him into the garden of Gethsemani and savv him fall extraordinarily to his prayers and call vpon vs to pray and that he had even svveat blood with anguish and earnestnes crying out alovvde that we could heare him at a distance Father not my will but thyne be done not as I will but as thou and still repeating it I began to feare the worst And it is novv my only comfort to think that it was his and his Fathers will it should be so and certaynly it gave him strength and courage to indure
in darknes We know that we are transferred from death to life because we love our brethren he that loveth not remaynes in death And the colder our love is the more signes of death He layed downe his lifâ— for vs and we must lay downe our lives for our brethren He fedd vs with his whole life by example by word by labour by day and by night feede my lambs with tender love feede my sheepe with solid love feede every one to the proportion of his necessitie but with no small proportion of love III. Peeter was grieved because he was asked the third time but the asking shevves the necessitie of our inquirie and searching into our breasts whether there doe not lurke something that doth gaynesay our affirming and as for the comparative we must allvvayes avoyde it with S. Peeter here novv learneder then at the last supper when he sayed Though all be scandalized in thee yet not I. Lord thou knowest all things the secrets of my hart are secret from myself hovv oft have I been deceived in myself and hovv apt to be still deceived Yet I cannot but say I doe love thee and if I doe not I wil love thee I desire to love thee more and more Love all for Iesus love Iesus for himself Iesus Christ alone is singularly to be loved Thomas a Kempis lib. 3. cap. 8. num 4. Our Saviour foretelleth S. Peeter of his death I. VErily Verily I say to thee when thou wert yonger thou didst gird thyself and walk where thou wouldest but when thou shalt be old thou shalt stretch forth thy hands and another shall gird thee and lead thee where thou will not This he sayed signifying by what death he should glorifie God and when he had sayed this he sayed 〈◊〉 him follow me It is a kind of death also by which God is greately glorified when for the love and service of our neighbour we let him gird vs that is restrayne vs from that to which of ourselves we have a mind and doe yeald to anothers weakenes in that which is no offense to God or beare patiently even with offenses VVe may also learne here that the elder we grow the more we shall see that it is wisdome to suffer ourselves to be guided by others and not wed ourselves to our ovvne dictamens and desires specially if we reflect what hath been oftimes the result of follovving ourselves Confine thyself to the Tenets of the Church to the commandments of God and of his Church and to the will of thy superiour in that in which thou art subiect II. He say to Peeter follow me perhaps parting from the rest he intended to instruct Peeter more particularly concerning his Church and the government of it and desired that the rest should vnderstand it so but by occasion of it we may reflect hovv greate a dignitie it is to follovv Christ greater then whatever promotion and that those who have charge of others or pretend to the loâ—e of Christ more then others must follovv closer imitating his vertues and suffring for him Peeter turning saw the disciple whom Iesus loved following and sayed Lord and this man what Not thinking much that he followed also though not spoken to but for the love and courâ—esie which was betvvixt them he was desirous to knovv what was to become of him as well as of himself III. Iesus sayed to him so I will have him remayne till I come what is it to thee As if he should have sayed attend to thyself and thy ovvne busines leave the disposition of this matter to me when it shall be time I will manifest my will concerning him Follow thou me A document not to be inquisitive concerning others and also to beare willingly a reprehension in things which we doâ— or say with good zeale and intention Begge incessantly and labour to remayne with our Saviour to the end as the thing which most importeth vndervaluing whatever els in comparison of this O that I could remayne with him so that is beloved as the disciples worthy to be admitted to leaâ—e vpon his breast so pure so illuminated or rather so that is with that patience and love as our Saviour is content to remayne with vs in the blessed Sacrament and in our neglected if not synfull soules Dive not too farre into future things which are ever vncertaine Harken to our Saviour speaking sonne suffer me to doe what I will with thee I knovv what is good for thee Them à Kemp. l. 3. c. 17. He appeareth to the Apostles while they were at table I. LAstly he appeared to the eleven as they sat at table and checked them for thier incredulitie and hardnes of hart because they did not beleeve those that had seen him risen againe Lament thy ovvne slovvnes or slendernes in beleefe and hardnes of hart and observe hovv strictly he requires that we beleeve others and that we be not obstinate though we ourselves doe not see the grounds and depth of that which is raught vs Here he condescends to thier weakes because they were the first that were to teach others and presented himself to all because some had doubted but by this reprehension he gives them to vnderstand that thier doubts were not allwayes to de satisfied that way II. And he sayed vnto them Going into the whole world preach the Ghospell to every creature neither Ievv nor Gentil excepted he that shall beleeve and be baptized shall be saved but he that shall not beleeve shall be condemneâ— Reflect that the whole courâ—e and intention of Christs coming into this world and preaching and sufferring did not tend to the gaining to himself or vs any worloly prosperitie or delight but that we shouâ—d beleeve and knovv God to be our chiefe Lord and Master obey his commands and orders and so after this life come to be saved of which the promises to the Ievves of milk and hony were but a figure Christ reserving to his ovvne coming the increase of light in these supernaturall things and the extension of his favour to all nations In this knovvledge and dutie and in no other we excell all creatures fayling of it we become like beasts and in worse condition because subiect to eternall condemnation for not having lived like men subiect by nature to God and his lavves Give God thanks for giving thee this beleefe and life at this time when with ease thou mayest come vnto it III. Them that beleeve these signes shall follow In my name they shall cast out divells they shall speake with new tongues they shall take up serpentâ— and if they drink any deadly thing it shall not hurt them They shall lay hands vpon the sick and they shall be well these signes when ever it is necessarie doe still follovv and continue in the Church of God as we see by dayly experience buâ— mystically as S. Bernard and others doe discourse they dayly dâ—e happen for by the abundance of Gods grace
depart not in his love he leaveth not vs but we die leaving him Othervvise so long as we live he inviteth vs and worketh vs to his love desiring nothing more then that his love and ours should be Eternall III. O svveete Eternitie O strong and never fayling but ever loving Eternitie VVhat can a mortall and ever fading creature doe in requitall of such immortall love Of mortall to immortall of temporall to Eternall of man to God what comparison is there Betvvixt such bitternes as we offer him and such infinite svveetenes of love with which he inviteth expecteth and receiveth vs betvvixt such weakenes of affection on our parte and such infinite strength on his what equaliâ—ie may be expected Ours lyeth dead a long time before it begin his ever liveth with out beginning ours when it beginneth to live languisheth yet betvvixt life and death and staggereth oft whether it shall choose to live by loving him or die by leaving him though the difference betvvixt such a loving life and such a hatefull death be infinite his lasteth and liveth never decaying never wavâ—ting never fayling but allvvayes follovving and persuing vs till our dying day when both life and love must either live our die Eternally O love Eternall The first means to perpetuate our love to God by desires that our love had been eternall I. IT is not possible that our love should be eternall without beginning for our life is not with out beginning as there was a time in which we were not so there was a time in which we could not love 〈◊〉 was no time in which God was not he 〈…〉 time and before all time he loved vs VVhat shall we doe in recompense of this love Let vs at least stretch forth the armes of our soule which are our desires and fervently wish our love had been eternall without beginning shall we wish we were God For nothing is eternall with out beginning but God perhaps nothing can be so eternall but God alone But it is the propertie of love not to consider whether the things be possible which it desireth or not possible it is sufficient if affection be satisfyed in doing all that it can doe and in desiring a greate deale more then it shall be ever able to effect And even these impossible desires as they are pleasing to men when expressed by some outvvard signe because by them we see the harts of those that doe affect vs much more are they pleasing to God to whom all harts are open and who doth not measure our love so much by the shevv of the worke as by the poyse of the affection if the worke be not wanting when there is means to performe it let vs therfore wish that our love had no beginning but had been eternall as God not only in himself but also in his love tovvards vs is eternall God is more loved then vnderstood sayth Hugo Victorinus love entreth where knovvledge stands with out O that I could from all Eternitie have been with God and loved him Eternally as 〈◊〉 deserveth II. Let vs wish againe that at least from the first instant of our Conception we had been so happy as to have no sooner begun to be then begun to love that infinite goodnes by whom we had our beginning For as all gifts when they deserve least doe yet deserve we should love the giver this being of ours being the beginning of all other gifts even then deserved our love and if it had been possible for vs we should have presently turned our harts to God and as S. Ihon Baptist not long after his conception in presence of our Lord have leaped for ioy and love at the voyce of our creatour commanding vs to bee For even then he did greate things vnto vs and things most worthy of his povverfull hand when out of his infinite love he made vs capable of loving him That which was wanting then let vs supply novv and with inflamed affection love him the more fervently the more time hath been spent before We began to love him III. O Blessed Virgen Mother of the eternal lovel thrice happy doe I account thee though it were but for this alone that even when thou weret in thy Mothers wombe thou didst more perfectly love the giver of thy life then did ever pure humane creature love him in most perfect yeares were it not possible for vs novv to supply this want which we find in ourselves of love tovvards thy loving Sonne VVe may I hope by thy assistance and by conioyning our love with thyne not only love him from the beginning of our life but from the beginning of both thy life and love and restore him not only as many yeares as are past of our love but in recompense of former losses give all those yeares which betvvixt this and that time in which thou first didst begin to live thou didst spend in his love Therfore humbly trusting in thy favour but what doe I say I feate I am too bold Noe. Thy love doth beare it his love deserveth it all love requireth it I humbly conioyne my love and life with thyne that this little drop of my love being drovvned in that sea of thyne and both made but one life and love as a drop is made one with the liquor into which it is infused I may love him as he deserveth noâ— only as soone but before I began to be O blessed coniunction Thou didst desire that thy love had been Eternall to make it such thou didst ioyne it with the love of thy blessed Sonne and Eternally with him thou desiredst and beganst to love him My love therfore being novv one with thyne and thyne one with his all three make but one eternall love which triple knot of love God of his infinite goodnes ever please to continue Amen The miserie of most men bewayled and the happines of younger yeares I. THe happy coniunction which we may make of our love with the love of God and of our blessed Ladie may be an exceeding comfort to vs farre greater comfort would it have been if besides the condition of being but in time there had been no further distance But alas Hovv often besides have we made a breach of love betvvixt vs and God we were no sooner Masters of our love but we began to wast it lavishly as the prodigall child did his substance in a farre country from God cleaving in affection to the husks of his Creatures which the swine doe eate the externall appearance of the things of this world in which worldlings doe delight For they never enter by consideration into the substance of things created to feed thier soules with the goodnes and mercy and wisdome and povver and other infinite perfections of God who made them neither doe they consider to what end they were made to wit to incite vs and help vs the more to his love but as the psalmist speaketh like a horse or a mule who have no
understanding they rest in that to which sense doth lead them and like svvine feede greedyly vpon the husks and attend to fill thier bellies that is thier inordinate appetite with things which for the present and by reason of thier vnbridled hunger and distempered mind doe seeme to content them and in the meane time let thier soules pine avvay for want of the food they were created to feed on II. VVhat a dreadfull distaÌ„ce is there betvvixt such soules and God when not thier love by which alone we caÌ„ approch to him but thier hatâ—ed by which we goe further and further from him begins by little and little to be eternall tovvards him who deserveth eternall love for the too much love of Creatures doth insensibly breed disâ—ast of the Creatour the cleaving to the visible blinds vs â—owards the invisible the eye that lookes much vpon earth is loth to looke vpon heaven as too farre from its purpose If wishes will supply with what weeping and lamenting ought we to wish that such a gap had never been made but that at least we had begun the love which we ovve eternally to God so soone as it was in our power â—o love him and that when we began first to have the vse of reason we had reflected how greate reason there was not to desire to live but only for his love III. Happy are they who have thier yeares before them for by the benefit of thier age having not settled â—hier affections vpon any thing els they have them still wholy in thier hands to bestow vpon him who beft deserveth our love for all things beside him are either naught or nothing in comparison to him Happy yeares which make thier possessours able to say to God my loving Lord Thy infinite love hath been towards me eâ—â—rnall without beginning because the being of thyself was the beginning of thy love both eternall without beginning This beginning therfore of my life shall also be the beginning of my love tovvards thee that when by thy grace and continuall assistance I shall enter into that other Eternitie which hath no end my love may be found to have been so long as my life both equally eternall for it would be a greate confusion to me in that doubtfull day of thy judgment to have it layed to my charge that I had lived longer then I had loved thee who hast not lived one moment longer then thou hast loved me IV. Thrice happy in this kind oâ— blessed Gonzaga who coulâ—st lovingly glorie that at seaven yeares of age thou didst perfectly turne thyself to God and with greate fervour of mind consecrate thyself wholy to him Thou knewest then how gratefull to God would be these first fruits of thy love Begge of him pardon for my neglect and vnmindfullnes and promote the desires of those who are yet yong that they may follow thy steps and place thier love betimes where if it be not placed it will finally either be lost or mispent lost if bestowed vpon things which doe not deserve our love mispent if vpon things which rather deserve our hatred O hatefull expence of love that is so preâ—ious A second means to perpetuate our love towards God I. THey who have let sâ—ip time so pretious â—ust repayre thier losse so well as they can not with often sighs and sorrowes only for that which is past buâ— with constant purposes for the time to come and say with the Psalmist Now I begin o Lord to love thee This love by thy grace I will continue for ever till it be perfected after this changeable life in thy never changing Eternitie O that I were able to say with they Apostle or rather with that confidence and with that love which he did Cerius sum I am certayne thaâ— neither death nor life nor Angels nor Principalities nor Powers neither things present nor things to come neither might nor heigth nor depth nor other creature shall be able to separate me from the charitie which I owe which I beare to thee my God for thy loving self and for thy loving Sonne Christ Jesus our Lord. II. But how oft have I sayed thus to God And may not I with reason feare least he slight my words having experienced that the worke doth so slowely follow Of this I am 〈◊〉 that were not his goodnes immeasuâ—able he would long care this have loathed so much instabilitie of hart and so often change of love no maâ— would have abided it Buâ— God knoweth himself and knoweth vs He knoweth himself to be eternall ever permanent ever the same He knoweth that as we have had a beginning in this life and shall have an end so all our life standeth vpon beginnings and endings and consequently it is no wonder that we have in vs so many changes but even this condition of ours must be to vs an incitement every houre in the day and every moment to begin as if that houre or that moment were the first and last of our life How many have been to thier ovvne and others thinking able and strong and likely to outlive many dayes and yeares and have been suddenly taken avvay Let vs therfore make vse of this our nature and beleeve this truth that we have not one day nor one houre certayne of life why therfore should we neglect this houre and not imploy it wholy in his love III. O that our love were tovvards God so fervently earyed as it is some times foolishly bent towards creatures hovv short would these dayes of our life most iustly seeme to bee O love hovv justly may I complayne of thy sottish ignorance and blind measure Greate and long love towards creatures little and short towards our Creatour what a monster is it Few be the dayes of my life â— my God the dayes of my life be few compared with the Eternitie of the love which I ovve thee they be fevv compared with the love which I wish thee O that I had a thousand lives to bestovv in they love from this houâ—e if I had them I would bestovv them all in thy love from this houte I doe consecrate all the houres and minutes of my life hovv long or hovv short soever thou knowest it will be wholy and intirely to thy love Hovv to wish it I cannot tell The longer I live the oftener I offend against thy love perhaps the more I shall doe or suffer for thy love here thou must be the chooser grant me only thy grace that that which is and shall be may be wholy thyne Grant that hovv long soever I live it may seeme little in respect of the greatnes of thy love which I desire to shew cersaynly it will be little in comparison of that which â—â—ou deservâ—st my God my love Amen Of the desire of being dissolved I THe greate saincts of God out of the abundance of love which they beare him doe oftimes desire most earnestly that this thier miserable life were quickly at
an end not because they are weary of troble with themselves or others but because love is increased and established by the presence of the parties who doe love and especially by such an all seeing and all inioying presence by which we discover infinitely more the infinite perfections of God with out the least alay of imperfection infinitely more then we can possibly arrive to vnderstand in this life by all the naturall and supernaturall knovvledge which we have and by this blessed preseÌ„ce we are ourselves perpetually coÌ„firmed in love without any danger of fayling in the least duty of correspondence and finally we are made more capable and never weary of loving him because we still discover more and more that he infinitely and incomprehensibly deserveth the eternall continuance and perseverance of our love towards him Say therfore with the Apostle I desire to be dissolved from these mortall bonds which aggravate and depresse my soule from that perfection of love which a sincere hart desireth and thou my God deservest I defire to be dissolved if not out of perfect love which excludeth feare yet out of such love as breadeth a filiall feare of offending and lothnes to continue in the least danger of leesing or lessening thy love II. O dreadfull danger a danger worse then death itself With what exquisite manner of all corporall death would I not willingly redeeme this hazard What hazard would I not most joyfully runn to purchase an eternitie of never offending my God O pretious Eternitie One thing I have asked of my lord God this I will againe and againe require that the very houre and moment that he seeth me inclining to offend he will rather call me out of this life then permit me to fayle in his love Happy man If I be thus prevented who will give me wings as of a dove and I will fly from this death of synne which doth hang over my head ô love of my deare God! How long shall I abide this hazard of leesing thee who art my only true life III. I doe not envy any thing more in the blessed sainâ—ts and Angels of heaven then that thier love to God is continuall with out intermission constant without waâ—ering certayne without feare of leesing it or of relenting Eternall with out end of loving neither can death be truly welcome for any other end more then that it may be a beginning of this loving Eternitie O Eternitie of love what time can be sufficiâ—â—t to dwell vpon so loving a consideration What houre or minute of my life should passe in which I should not be found still loving thee my God and still exercising acts of thy love in haâ—â— and deed Print this thy love sweet Jesus in my hart by thy bitter Passion and by â—hy sacred wounds what better seale then thy loving self VVhat stronger wax then thy sacred blood What highter â—ire then thy eternall love O that my soule were â—he whitest parchment worthy to receive such a noble impression which being presented and vnfolded in thy eternall Consistorie nothing might appeare written in it from the beginning of my life to the end therof but Jesus my love my love sweete Jesus Amen How we ought to imitate the Eternitie of the love of God in the love of our Neighbour I. THe â—ternitie of love which we indeavour after our meane kind of measure to expresse in ourselves towards God in answer to his eternall love towards vs the same it is fit we should practise towards others in imitation of this first excellencie of his infinite love both to fâ—ee ourselves from that inference which S. Jhon makes that if any say I love God and hatâ—â—h his brother be is a lyer and from that imperfection to fullâ—ll the commandment which we have of it for so the same beloved disciple assureth vs This commandmâ—◠〈◊〉 have from â—â—d thaâ— who loveth God loveth also his â—rother and againe he that hath my commandments and keepeth them he it is that loveth me II. VVe must therfore love our neighbour even before he loves vs and when he gives vs no occasion to love him but rather occasion of hatred by his â—hvvart demeanour tovvards vs or ill cariage tovvards God Againe we must never be weary of loving him or of doing good vnto him or for him we must with greate patience and longanimitie beare his dayly and continuall imperfections and offenses neither wondering nor impatiently grudging at his often falling or hard measureâ— nor pusillanimously sitting dovvne thinking hovv to fly and retire from such companie to others with whom we imagin we shall have no such troble but imitating the charitie of God and patience of Christ and saying with S. Augustine if the vessels of flesh be narrovv let the bounds of charitie be enlarged that is let men be infirme and troblesome and synfull hard to be ruled harder to accommodate themselves to my disposition or conceiâ—e it is the nature of flesh and blood to be so my charitâ—â— shall not be so scant as not to out-reach all this and persever to the end in bearing that so I may fullfill the lavv of Christ and imitate his love III. O love of my God more strong then death for death could never have overtaken my God vnlesse love had yealded him into his hands This brought my deere Saviour to the death-bed of the crosse and did not suffer him to come dovvne from it for any of the vpbrayding-scoffs with which the Ievves did taunt him nor for any weaker motive which humane frayletie might have suggested nor for any fayre seeming reason which worldly wisdome might have invented but being stretched vpon it to the vtmost as he had began to love vs from the beginning of his not only mortall but immortall life so hâ— resolved to yeald vp his last breath and blessed Ghost for vs that this his â—ying for our sake might be a most evident testimonie of his never dying love seeing he choose rather to leave this life then to forgo our love O that my hart and soule were wâ—oly absorpt in this thy eternall love that I might dye by thy love who didst die for the love of me and die rather then relent in the least point of love tovvards thee or tovvards my neighbour for thee Amen The latitude or Vniversalitie of the love of God I. THe latitude of the charitie of God is the Vniversalitie of his love extending itself to all in generall and to every one in particular He will have all men to be saved sayth the Apostle and to come to the knowledge of the truth and the beloved disciple he inlighteneth every man that cometh into this world Therfore when he had created man he added his commandments and precepâ—s that if he would keepe his commandments they should keepe him Therfore he punisheth synners in this life by peeces puting them in mind of that in which they have offended that
thy commands that as there was nothing which thou refusedst for the love of me so there may be nothing at which I may shrinke which ought to be done suffered for the love of thee Amen How we may imitate the vniversalitie of the love of God I. PART I. THe vniversalitie of the love of God may be imitated first by loving and esteeming all that he loveth and esteemeth and disesteeming and hating all that he disesteemeth and hateth To which we must indeavour to attayne by continuall mortification and inure ourselves not to affect things which deserve not our affection that is all earthly things so farr as they have not connection with his service vsing them meerely as instruments to doe him service and othervvise wholy neglecting them and making no account of them nor giving them any place in our thoughts or affections which is that to which the Apostle exhorteth vs by his example allwayes bearing about in our body the mortification of Iesus that the life also of Iesus may be manifested in our hodys Hovv came it that some saynts were so perfect and so contemplative because they laboured to mortifie themselves alltogeather from all teâ—rene desires II. How large accordingly this measure of love towards God was in the Apostle himself and in divers other Saints is apparent in thier lives and writings and in some of them we find it expressed not with inke but with the spirit of the living God not written in tables of stone but in the tables carnall of thier hart and body such as may say with the same Apostle from hence forth lâ—t no man be troblesome to me that is let no man think he shall be able to take Christ from myhatt for I beare the marks of our Lord Iesus Christ in my body In which kind S. Francis founder of the Order of friars minors might justly glorie in our Lord for having expressed his love towards God in that strict povertie and perfect renuntiation of all things to the end to give himself by prayer and good works wholy to God Our Saviour testifyed to the world that he was wholy his printing the marks of his sacred passion in his hands feete and side and as it were designing in his body that longitude and latitude and height and deepth of love which was long before ingraven in his soule ô blessed Sainct c. III. Blessed Mother Teresa of Iesus for her exceeding love towards him had a favour not farr inferiour when the saw and felt another Seraphim digging in her hatt with a daâ—t of gold to make way for the incomprehensible greatenes of the love of God towards her and to inlarge her hatt that it might be more capable of love towards him And S. Francis Xavier late Apostle of lapan was also often seen and heard when walking in the garden at home or on his journies abroad he inlarged his garments with both his hands to give scope to the love which burned in his breast or by externall cold to suppress from outvvard shevv the internall fire with which he was excessively inflamed often repearing those words It is enough O Lord it is enough IV. These blessed Saincts and many more had enough of that of which no body can ever have enovgh because though in effect they never had so much but that they desired more and eveÌ„ then when they sayed they had â—nough not content with what they had they enlarged themselves to receive yet more which is a pregnant signe that indeed they had very much VVe that feele not these inflamed desires because we never were throughly possessed by love and none but such caÌ„ ever feele theÌ„ not being able to inlarge our harts into such fervent affections what can we doe lesse then by attentive ponderation of his love and thiers and humble indeavour try whether by often striking the steele of our consideration vpon our stony harts we may at last beate-out some one sparke of of true love which taking in the tinder of our affections and blowne with the most svveete breath of the heavenly spirit may increase into a greater and never quenched fire of love Amen How we may imitate the Vniversalitie of the love of God II. PART I. AN other means of imitating the Vniversalitie of the love of God is by exteÌ„ding it to the love of our Neighbour in that measure as we see God doth to vs and his Saints have done in imitation of him God out of his meere goodnes when we were not gave vs our being and all the good which we have and though we deserve it not continues his goodnes tovvards vs making his sunn which he hath at command rise over good and evill and rayning over just and injust which kind of love he requires we should beare towards others not considering what they deserve but what is sitting for vs to doe to the end to be like God in love tovvards them and therfore also it is sayed the second commandmeÌ„ is like the first because it mâ—st have the conditioâ—s of the first that is as we love God with our whole haâ—t our whole soule our whole vnderstanding and our whole strength so must we imploy all these wholy vpon our Neighbours good not loving him by halfs or coldly and remissely but with much heate of affection solidly constantly couragiously nobly not giving way to what ever opposeth it and imbracing largely whatever may be for his advaÌ„age aÌ„d prosecuting it with our whole streÌ„gth aÌ„d forces II. This vniversitie requireth also that we extend our love â—o all sorts of people to the poore as well as to the rich to the infirme as well as to the strong and the more infirmities we discover in another the more should we be inclined to assist him in imitation of our Saviour who where iniquities did abound gave superabundance of his grace and of S. Paul who out of the largenes of his hart sayed to the Cotinthians who gave him not the best satisfaction our mouth is open to you O Corinthians for your 〈◊〉 instruction our hart is dilated you are not streightened in â—â— And againe to the same Corinthians when I was free from all I made myself a servant of all that I might gayne the more To the weake I became weake that I might gayne the weake to all men I became all things that I might save all III. In conformitie to this love our good God hath not only set a part in his Church those of the Clergy to attend to the help of all sorts of people by administration of the holy Sacraments and of his divne word but hath instituted all sorts of religions both of men and women that those might be houses of refuge for all sorts of humours and that at least by prayer and example others might be benefitted by the most retired the obligation of which vocations is duly to be considered and specially of those who out of an
points enough both for beleefe and practise which might have averted them Prayse God for all and have confidence in him c. The Mysterie Of the Mysterie of the most Blessed Trinitie I. A Principall effect of the coming of our Saviour into this world was the declaration of the Mysterie of the most Blessed Trinitie hidden even from the Iewes though the chosen people of God and not mentioned but in very darke and hidden resemblances But our Saviour did openly proclayme it specially after his resurrection commanding his Apostles to baptize all nations in the name of the Father and of the Sonne and of the Holy Ghost as three persons equall in all things and one in name that is in povver auctoritie and essence wherin we have cause to admire and adore the force of the light of the holy Ghospell by which our Saviour intending to abolish the beleefe and worship of many Gods brought in by the craft of the divel working vpon mens corrupt affections and desires established the beleefe of one true God yet so that they should beleeve in that one essence three persons equall to one another though vnder Appellations which according to our meane expression might signifie inequalitie it being impossible for vs to conceive the divinitie cleerely as it is â—ayth therfore must supply that which reason cannot comprehend and with reverence submit to what our vnderstanding cannot reach Adoring equally in three and one the Omnipotencie Eternitie infinite knowledge and goodnes and all Perfection the Immensitie the Immutabilitie the Beautie the sanctitie of God contayning all and more then we can imagin by the help or comparison of all creatures and all most perfectly and with out multiplicitie in one II. Adore the Father as the incomprehensible source of the divinitie with out beginning and of all things created in time when he thought fit to give them a beginning Adore the Sonne who being equall to the Father vouchsafed for our sakes to take vpon him our humane nature to instruct vs by word and example and by his sacred blood shed vpon the crosse to wash avvay our synns and open vs avvay to the eternall inioying of God by perseverance in his commandments Adore the Holy Ghost as the mutuall and recipâ—ocall love of the Father and Sonne the Auctour of our love tovvards God the cause of our adoption by his grace infused and by himself inhabiting in our soules the spirit of truth which leadeth vs into all truth and by his heavenly lights disperseth the clouds of darknes and facilitates our way to heaven by his heavenly vnction III. Adore all three in one one in nature one by consent one in operation Begge of him that we may be one with him by submission to him and to his blessed will one by constant fayth one by never decaying love one by operation esteeming ourselves in all our woâ—ks as instruments of his divine pâ—wre and goodnes and so disposing ourselves in thought and action that we may not differ from him in the least which he of his goodnes grant Amen The obligation which we haveto love God I. PART I. SO soone as Moyses had declared to the people of â—srael that God was one he instantly inferres the commandment of loving him Heare Israel our Lord God is one Lord. Thou shalt love thy Lord God wiâ—h thy whole hart c. And our Saviour in his answer to the lawyer tells vs it is the greâ—test and the first commandement and with reason ought we to think so and accordingly apply ourselves to love him For as we were worse then beasts if we did not love those who are beneficiall to vs much more if welove not God from whom we have absolutely all that we have The law therfore of nature doth impose this vpon vs so soone as we come into the world vpon which account S. Thomas and other divincâ— doe hold it a greate offense if so soone as we come to the vse of reason in our Childhood we doe not turne ouâ—â—arts to God with loving acknowledgment that he is ouâ— creatour and Lord. And the holy Text infinuates as much presently after the commandment saying And these words which I command thee this day shall be in thy hart and â—hoâ— shalt 〈◊〉 them thy Children to wit that they may knovv thier duty in time II. It is also the first commandment in dignitie and excellency for it hath the highest obiect that can be to wit God and the noblest way of service to wit for love not for feare of punishment oâ— hope of reward but riseth vpon consideration of his greate excellencie With in himself and greate goodnes tovvards vs. And besides it gives vs the greatest excellency that we can attayne vnto in this world and prepareth farre greater in the world to come for as by loving base things we become base and contemptible so by loving God and other things as they belong to God we become â—onoâ—rable in the â—ight of God and men and there can be no greater honour and excellency imagined then that to which those have risen who have loved God in perfection Iâ—I It was like wise first in the intention of the lavvgiveâ—s all other commands and directions and indeed all the works and wonders of God which he hath shevved vs tending finally and properly to this that in thought word and deed we should expresse our love to him for how could any thing subsist if it had not been thy will or been preserved if not called by thee Thou sparest all because they are thyne â—o Lord who lovest soules As he therfore did and doth all things out of love so is it expected from vs that all should proceed from love and further more as in the naturall love of one an other we must not only not shew aversion from the thing which our srend doth not synfully love but even observe his wayes of proceeding much more ought we to love that which God loves and commands because we love him and he loves vs for which reason the Apostle sayth The fullnes of the law is love even of our neighbour because we love him for God IV. It is the greatest command because most necessarie of all other precepts as with out which no other iâ— thoroughly avaylable or â—â—â—ly commendable Foâ— the feare of God is but an introduction to love and some way or other must be perfected into some degree of love els it will fall of the effect we desire and how many things doth the Apostle reckon which are nothing with our Charitie If I have the tongues of Angels if Prophecie if Fayth if knowledge if I give my goods to the poore if my body to the fire and have not Charitie it avayleth me nothing On the other side it doth set an inestimable price vpon the least of our actions when ever they are done for the love of God so that with out it all with it nothing is lost V.
that is with a noble and large hart imbracing whatever may be for the advantage or will and pleasure of God II. Thou shalt love God with thy whole soulâ— Desire conjunction with him as the soule doth with the body and be as loth to be separated labour for dispositions fiting this conjunction Have feeling of no thing but what is for him or against him be ever moving towards him both thyself and others also VVithout the soule what is the body VVorse is the soule without God have a horrour from this separation both for it self and for the difficultie of returning to returne to life is a greate miracle so is this III. Love him with thy whole mind and strength that is imploy the whole force of thy mind and body to love him let nothing occur to thy mind out of which thou doest not draw some occasion to love him Be wholy transformed into love such as our Saviour expressed when that saying of the Prophet was verified in him the zeale of thy house hath consumed me making no reckoning of temporalls in comparison of the love of God Aspirations tending to the increase in the love of God in our soules The first Paragraphe O My God my love Blessed be thy infinite goodnes and Charitie by whose only gift it cometh that I may tearme thee my love O love â—ternall O that my love had been towards thee continuall as I find and feele thine to have been ever permanent towards me II. O love to whom it is never too late to come though in regard of thy all-deserving love all delay is long all coming is late because coming is a signe that there I was not before whether I now only come III. Alas where was I That now only I may say I come I know not where I was it is a shame for me to say it is a griefe for me to think where I was This certaynly I know and must confesse to all that I was not with thee in that measure of love which thou ever deservedst of me O measure without measure why doe I so measure my affections as not to give them to theâ— without any measure IV. I say I come and I think it is pleasing vnto thee aâ—d so it is for thou art easyly pleased and pleased with a little But in reason I should not still say I comes because so long as I come there is some distance betwixt thee and me which distance yet if it were only so that thy Creature cannot be even with thee My God and Creatour in love as I cannot be even with thee in nature and Essence I could be wel content because nothing ought to content me more then thy infinite perfection in all things to which no Creature can arrive But as long as I say I come there is some thing els betwixt thee and me and not only thy sole infinite goodnes which causeth this distance V. And this grieveth me againe and to think that there should be any thing betwixt thee and me or that there should be any creature so bold as to take part of my love from thee or rather I so foolish as to give it froÌ„ thee towards whoÌ„ it is apparent injustice not to give full abuÌ„daÌ„t measure which caÌ„not be without giving intirely all VI. Come therfore without measure to me and supply I beseech thee with thy infinite love the many defects which thou findest in myne Come who art never absent neither from those who absent themselves too too often from thee but standest at the doore and knocest expecting when we will open againe vnto thee Behold deere God now my hart is wholy thyne take it possesse it vse it fashion it as thou pleasest that it may still be more capable still more perfect in thy love Amen The second Paragraphe I. ABove all things give me grace to be ever preseÌ„t with thee who art never absent from me Ever in thee as thou art in me Present with thee by walking in thy sight who ever seest all things and to whom nothing is hiddeÌ„ that I caÌ„ think say or doe in the very secretest corner of my hart every twinkling of my eyes thou markest every glancing of my thoughts thou judgest Give me grace to marke them and to judge them myself that I may allwayes as I ought adjuge them to thee and direct them for thee to whom only they are wholy due and to no other but for thee II. In the light of the sunne who is nâ—t ashamed to offend if men looke much 〈◊〉 what if a Master a judge a king from whome reward or punishment is certaynly to be expected What if my love Shall I before his face reprochfully turne myself from him and imbrace in his sight whome he doth disdayne O eyes of pitty pardon that which is past forgiveme my love my many offenses committed in thy sight and let this thought of thy Allseeing eye ever fixed vpon me be a stay to my thoughts a temper to my actions that nothing may passe vnbeseeming thy presence III. Behold o my soule that God doth behold thee O dreadfull ô loving sight ô that I had allwayes lovingly feared thee and respectfully loved thee my God that thy eyes might have beheld with content thy worke vnde filed but now give me grace at least to bathe myself with teares and bitterly to bewayle my many losses that so I may appeare before thee with lesse shame and remayne more constant in thy service through the memorie of my finnes which in all reason I ought to endeauour to counterpoise with ten thousand times more love and more attendance vpon thee The third Paragraphe I. GRaunt me that I be ever in thee with a right intention and with pure Affection doing all things for thee and loving nothing in all that is but thee alone who art the life the love the All of all things II. I know there is no Creature that can in reason aske any thing of me but for thee but it will happen some times as there are many of them many times vnreasonable they will demand vnreasonably I myself too too often shall be inclined vnreasonably Graunt me that I give them but that which is reason And what can be reason which is not for thee Nothing Graunt me that I give them nothing but for thee no thought no word no worke no Affection but distast of all things where I find not thee III. The whole world is a booke the fayrest the learnedost the greatest that ever was made â— verie creature is a letter Everie Accident a line Everie motion a sentence Everie disposition a lesson the whole a most eloqvent Oration a most ample Treatise full of all Rhetoricall persuasions pregnant in teaching forcible in moving pleasant in delighting sounding out thy divine prayses speaking thy wonders inviting to thy service withdrawing from thy offence inflaming in thy love O that my vnderstanding were so instructed my will so inclined
out such fire to rise thier continuance is but short and they are but of little force IV. O my God my love when I think of the multitâ—de of waters and forcible streames of severall distractions which are wont to be heaped all the day vpon this little burning flash the little fire of â—ervour which I may rayse what can I doe but turne myself to thee and with what courage and strength I can not of myne owne but of thyne offer myself vnto thee and cast myself into thy armes and say Here take me I am thyne vse me as thou wilt I will not from thee put me to what thou wilt so thou allwayes keepe me thyne for thyne I will be whaâ— soever come of me The seaventh Paragraphe I. THou tendrest vs all as thy decrest Children created to thy Image redeemed with thy blood exalted to be thy frâ—eÌ„ds fellow heyres and spouses give 〈◊〉 grace so to behave myself so to deale with others as allwayes I may have this in mind if thou graunt me this I shall never have the face to be careles of myself or disdaynefull of others but shall beare due respect and love towards all desirous to doe for them all that I may for the love of thee II. It is true there be many things which may easily make me enter into misconceite of others and grow into neglect and by little and little into contempt of thy servants if I take not heed as thier imperfections of mind and body but I know it is my part and I hope thou wilt give me grace to remember it to weigh most of all myne owne many miseries both of body and soule many which shew themselves without and many more which lye hidden within me which thou only knowest and therfore to humble myself in the sight of all And in them to consider the many gifts of nature and grace which thou hast either bestowed vpon them or peradventure layed vp in store for them and perchance in heaven I shall be glad to sit at thier feete III. O that this and such like considerations could befixed in my mind how affable meeke how servicable should I be to all It is thy only lesson in a manner or most properly thyne when that which thou hadst shewed by thy example coming downe from heaven to live among vs in that manner as thou livedst thou declarest in words saying learne of me because I am meeke and humble of hart IV. It is besidâ— the way to gayne others to thee in whatsoever state they be it breedeth in them confidence and freedome and openes of minde which is the only true way that bringeth a soule to thee where as rudenes sadnes vntimely ieasts or vnconsiderate gestures rising of passion in one kind or other be the breeders of distast and the overthrow of all much more to contend or to wrangle with those with whom we deale Rather I must yeald not only to betters or to my equalls but even in many things to my inferiours and follow thier opinion against my owne when otherwise there is no speciall inconvenience The eight Paragraphe I. O My God infinite is the Circumspection which I see I must have to live in this world to give satisfaction to all and above all to thee I see I must be carefull of not shewing any particular or otherwise inordinate affection to any or disaffection from any though there should seeme iust cause â— must be patient in bearing where I perchance may have received the wrong patient in hearing whatsoever complaints of myself or others if it be committed to my charge to have any little care of others Never making shew of much hast or of greate busines much lesse of vnwillingnes to give free accesse to any though the parties seeme importune prolix passionate vnapte to receive satisfaction impertinent though tempted against myself but with all mildnes intertayning them when they shall require it and if busines will not permit appointing them with all quiet some other certaine houre II. I must not my God be easy of beleefe but esteeme it as it is the ruine of the household whersoever shall live the disvnion of those with whom I shall deale It is the bane of charitie to give facill hearing and easy credit to that which is first related I know that many things are sayed otherwise then they are even by vertuous and holy persons not faynedly falsly or allwayes with offense of God but good men being men as others be they may be also in these things deceived Wherfore one eare must be kept for the contrarie part and my mind rather incline to excuse then to condemne to defend rather then to oppresse to all meeknes and lenitie rather then to rigour and austeritie as much as the order of true charitie will permit III. Moreover I know thou wouldest have me to have a speciall care of the credit and good opinion of all not only in my owne mind to think well of them and not easyly settle my iudgement though vpon somewhat apparent defects But also with all others concealing thier defects whersoever it may be done and when any seeke to amend thier faults be they never so greate receiving them and esteeming them as if never any thing had happened amisse for so thou of thy infinite goodnes dealest with vs forgeting our offenses where thou findest repentance and rewarding vs in all things farr above our deserts The ninth Paragraphe I. O Patience O longanimitie O perseverance O evenes of mind and externall cariage O courage and magnanimitie O indifference O confidence O feeling of thy providence O my God where shall I find all this but in thee my God my love whose nature is goodnes whose works is mercy Jf we see a poore creature we are moved with pittie we give what we can to releeve his necessitie Thou seest my wants I need not say thou art rich in all this and much more I need not say thou art good and infinitely good or that thou art mightie and infinit I mightie coÌ„ceive it would be enough that thou seest my thoughts in which are both ever represented thy riches and my poveâ—tie I say no more I trust in thy goodnes that thou wilt assist me I am assured in tâ—y love that thou wilt help me more certaine I am that thou wilt help thyself and dispose all things so as they may be best for thy glorie which when thou doest thou satisfiest me who am the slave of thy honour born to nothing els but to attend thy ever blessed will and pleasure II. I must confesse I would oftimes be shut of those distractions me thinks in humilitie I ought to desire it because I am not so much as worthy of the name of thy vnprofitable servant Me thinks charitie towards them whom thou lovest and among whom I live requireth no lesse but seeing thou ordaynest so I have no cause to complayne or to â—hrink The greatest humilitie is
to be subiect to thee the greatest charitie is to conforme myself to thy holy disposall I yeald myself therfore wholy and freely to thee for I will be no more myne owne but thine III. But this in love and â—inceritie I must make bold to tell thee that the lesser my abilitie is or my vertue thyne must be the greater care for I account myself to be but thy instrument in what soever good worke thou art the directour thou art the workman I am as it were the Playne or chisill in thy All-skisfull hand Jf therfore I be blunt or crooked the more is thy payne the more is thy care I in so good a hand cannot but doe well only give me grace not to shrinke out of thy hand but to remayne as thou hast made me for the very remayning will better me the very benefit of thy vsing me in thy service will give me new servour and set a sharper edge on my decayed desires IV. To thee a greate deale more then to me it appertayneth that thy businesse be well done Watch therfore and be carefull and vse me as thou pleasest I know thou doest not vse me because thou needest me but only of thy infinite goodnes for thy glorie and my good as therfore thou art carefull of thy glorie and desirous of my good so carefull art thou and so desirous of my faithfull discharge The tenth Paragraphe I. VVHat more to say I know not not because there is not infinitely more to be sayed of thy infinite goodnes and of my wants but because I know not where well to beginne or when I should end if I should enter any further I feele besids that all finally must be resolved in this that thou must help me thou must instruct me thou must guide me thou must strenghthen me thou must be All in all and I suffer myself in thy hand to be dealt with as thou pleasest I see not what I need greately say more but yeald myself ioyfully to thy disposition and dayly purpose and indeavour by thy grace not to hinder thy worke and seeke to redresse what I may find doth disturbe it II. But alas whether shall I go to seeke Here againe I enter into an other wood and how shall I get out of so many busshes such thorny briars and deep-rooted brambies as I find in my soule well may I be pricked among them with sorrow and griefe well may my soule be rent with affliction but to pull them all away and give thee free passage how shall I doe it It is possible to thee to whom nothing is impossible but for me iâ— is wholy and absolutely impossible III Yet why doe I say it is absolutely impossible I remember a greate servant of thyne was wont to say that if we did but in a whole yeare roote out one only vice we should be quickly perfect O infinite goodnes hast thou so greate patience or is it possible to be so Iâ— is doubtlesse for thou leavest not thy frends to be so fouly deceived as they should be if it were not so Therfore seeing it is so I dare be a little more bold and offer vnto thee my indeavour not every yeare alone but everie month oâ— two to doe the best I can to roote out some one thing that I may find to be a hinderance to thee In which I have this comfort that fighting against one â— I shall certainly together with that one pull vp manie more besids because when I pull at one principall one I shall shake the roots of all that be about it and dependant of it and plucking it out I shall pull the rest with it IV. And not so must Iayme at one but that of all I must have a speciall care O infinite care No I presume if I can sometimes in the day amidest all my trobles recall my mind to thee it will be sufficient thy grace will be ready when at other times busines will not leâ— me be so attentive to thee if when I can I be carefull to accustome myself to think of thee Yet more trust I in thy infinite goodnes that though sometimes I should be so carelesse as not to think vpon thee when there is occasion yet if I be carefull to enter into myself and acknowledge and iudge my offenses though it were but once in a day and bewayle them in thy sight in my secretretirement with purpose of amendment and humble confideÌ„ce in thy grace â— trust I say in thy infinite goodnes thou wilt perdon me for the present and give me plentie of thy grace to be more watchfull over myself an other day and more mindfull of thee my God ever after The eleventh Paragraphe I. BEhold o my love how bold I am with thee how farre I have stretched and strayned thy love thy infinite goodnes Beginning with sorrow that I was not wholy with thee and ending with care that I be not wholy from thee O Creature that I am what can I say other but that it is the propertie of all creatures in this changeable world to be thus subject to change Thoâ— knowest it better then I myself that feele it and smart dayly for it And therfore thou hast patience with me greater then I can many times find in my hart to have with myself and yet alas I have too too much patience or rather Indulgence when I see and say nothing and let myself go so farre that where to find myself I cannoâ— oftimes tell but only that I am sure I am too too farre from thee II. O my God my love Behold I come againe and desire to draw as neere thee now as I was farre gone before I am bold to say so I am bold to doe so because of thy infinite and ever permanent love which cannot be overcome with ten thousand times ten thousand changes of myne in this kind thou lovest me though I leave thee that I may returne vnto thee Thou lovest me when I approch vnto thee that I may be ever more inward with thee love me now for ever that I may ever stay with thee for this is my only desire never more to part from thee III. To this purpose I give myself wholy vnto thee now and for ever This gift of myne I dayly intend to renew till that everlasting day comes when there will be no more renewing because transformed into thee we shall be allwayes new and ever permanently conjoyned in love with thee without decay which that it may quicly be I humbly beseech thee my God my love Amen The twelfe Paragraphe I. O happy day when shall I see thee O everlasting day when shall I injoy thee Too too long be these short and ever decaying dayes the evens of that one day which never fayleth when will they passe Too too many be these changing dayes the fore-running nights of that which never changeth when will they be at an end O end The breake of that
day which will never end when wilt thou come My soule is weary of this wearisome life I will send forth my speech against myself I will speake in the bitternes of my mind I will say vnto God When shall I see the good things of my Lord in the land of the living My soule hath thirsted after thee my God when shall I come and appeare before thy face My teares are vnto me my dayly bread while it is sayed vnto me everie day where is thy God II. Alas everie day it is here sayed vnto me where is thy God And betwixt so many dayes and nights as I find dayly and hourely in myself now rising now falling while I loose thee and I leave thee through my manifold imperfections and doe scarce for one minute perfectly hold thee what a life doe I live VVhat death had I not rather die That once with thy thrice happy spouse having passed these transitorie dayes and these too too doâ—btfull nights I may say I have found whome my soule doth love I hold him and I will not let him go III. Here if one aske me where thou art my God I must confesse thou art a farre of because a farre of thou doest behold those which are not humble Thou turnest away thy face and I am filled with affliction sorrowes of death doe compasse me round about daungers of Hell doe presently assalt me and whether to turne myself to seeke thee and to find thee I cannot tell Shew me O my love where thou feedest where thou restests at noone day when the heate of temptation scorcheth my soule that flying vnder the shaddow of thy wings I may feed where thou feedest and reste where thou restest and not beging to wander after the droves of these vnperfect comforts in which there is no quiet rest no solid foode IV. Shew me rather my God that everlasting noone in thy heavenly cittie where neither sonne nor Moone doe shine but thou art the ever permanent comfortable light of all the inhabitants that there I may rest and feede with thee without danger of resting in any other but in thee or of feeding of any thing but of thy only self for in this world I see there is no rest but continuall tumbling and tossing from one thing to an other and who is he that amidst so many boisterous winds and wayes can continually hold thee Since thy blessed Apostle the beloved disciple giveth Sentence vpon vs all that we are subject not only to loose thee by many distractions but also to leave thee by synnes by too too many and dayly imperfections V. And who knoweth but thou o my loving God! whether in this very desire of myne to be ever with thee in blisse since I cannot be ever with thee in this fearefull banishment there lies not secretly hidden more love of myself then perfect love of thee O hard vncertantiâ— I am delighted with the love of God and drawne to desire to injoy it everlastingly there where it only ever permanently lasteth I desire it and begge it according to the inward man but I see another love which I feare creepeth in with it repâ—gnant to that perfect love and pure desire which I should have of thee Vnhappie man that I am who shall deliver me from this doubtfull and vncertayne state VI. I am in streights on everie fide if I remayne I am in doubt whether I shall ever remayne with thee rather I am certaine I shall often shrink from thee for iâ— many things we doe all offend Jf I desire to be dissolved and to be with thee thy Apostle sayth it is a thing much more better and yet he himself what he shall choose he knoweth not because to abide in flesh is necessarie for thy service But alas what necessitie can there be of me that am so vnprositable Thou wilt say that all must think and say of themselves that they are vnprofitable Servants even when they have doone thier very best in thy service Jt is so And therfore be I profirable or vnpâ—ofitable I know not what more to say or doe but yeald myself wholy into thy hands to doe with me as thou pleasest Take me or leave me as thou thinkest good Hastenme or differre me as thou seest reason I refuse not the labour if thoâ— thinkest me profitable I will beare patiently to be differred if thou judge me vnworthy yer still I am streightened of the two having desire to be dissolved and desire to be with thee which is by thy owne Confession in thy blessed Apostle a thing much more better Intertaynments of our Blessed Saviour when we receive him in the Blessed Sacrament First as God I. AT the birth of our blessed Saviour the swathing bands did not hinder vs from beleeving that infant to be God or stop the Angels from singing Glorie to God in the higest degree and from adoring him but doe incite vs the more to admire and love his goodnes the resemblances of bread and wine remayning after consecration in this blessed Mysterie must not in like manner be any hinderance to vs from beleeving the truth contayned vnder them delivered in our Saviours owne words This is my body this is my blood that is the living body and blood of our Saviour and consequently his blessed soule and divinitie God and man the eternall word made flesh for our sakes And as in them we adore his power we admire his wisdome we imbrace his infinite goodnes we doe not argue from his immensitie that he could not be contayned in the manger nor from his vnitie in essence with the Faiher and the holy Gost that he alone could not be man nor from his immortalitie that he could not suffer but doe submit as to the manner and doe beleeve the substance soe we must rayse our thoughts in this Mysterie to beleeve his reall presence though in a way incomprehensible to our short vnderstanding and adore the person of the Sonne of God our Saviour not arguing from his quantitie that he cannot confine himself to so little roome nor from his vnitie that he cannot at once be in so many places nor from his Majestie that he will not stoope to so meane an action as to be dayly handled and received by vs but so much the more admire his goodnes that as there once so here dayly he doth give himself vnto vs. O blessed Angels who in multitudes did adore him at his coming into the world though in a disguise farre different from your apprehensions with you I doe willingly submit my weake conceits and doe adore here present the living God the eternall word made flesh for vs. O blessed host with how much reverence art thou to be handled and received seeing the ground on which Moyses stood when God appeared to him was holy for here the holy of holyes is contayned after a more sublime manner put my Soule thy
see no more such effect we say it is dead In which respect charitie or the love of God being the life inherent in our soules S. Gregorie sayth that the proofe of charitie is the exhibition of the worke and our Saviour himself He that bath my commandments and doth keepe them he it is that loveth me our Saviour in nature of a Phisitian cometh to vs to strengthen this life by the cordiall compound of his owne pretious body and blood delivereâ— vnto vs vnder the shapes of bread and wine that by the devout receiving we may both breath out the superfluous and corrupted humours remayning after our purgation and cure and with more rigour apply ourselves to the exercises of Christian dutie to which by his charitable assistance we must concurre first by giving time to the working of this heavenly receite by some little recollection and not instantly ingulfe ourselves in our wonted worldly affayres and secondly by renewing our good purposes in his presence and begging of him that he will blesse them and those most in which we feare we shall have most difficultie to accomplish towards which also we may justly expect he will suggest some speciall remedie to a willing mind Intertaynment of our Saviour as he is our Redeemer I. THe word Redeemer doth import that the redeemed being once eâ—ther free or in the power of one cometh to be subiect to another and is bought out of that subiection so was man by his creation wholy Gods and being left free as to his will he fell by synne vouÌ„ltarily into the possessioÌ„ and powre of the divel and as his captive and prisoner was loded with a thousand miseries and egged on dayly from one synne to another till dying in synne he should be eternally condemned to the prison and paynes of hell fire and no power vnder God being able to rescue him the Sonne of God our Saviour offered to pay his ransome and to give him againe his freedome wherby he might remaine in Gods possession perpetually by his owne free choyce as well as he was by nature and come to inioy the happines which God had layed vp for him The price where with he was ransomed was the body and blood and life of our Saviour layed downe for vs vpon the crosse i this very body and blood and life himself doth here present vs in the Sacrament that we may make a gratefull oblation of it to our heavenly Father as the price of our redemption in particular and represent vnto him with ioy and thanksgiving our freedome to serve him proâ—essing that we will never give way to any other to possesse vs. II. This benefit of our redemption will appeare in a better light if we consider the miserie of the slaverie in which we were or are by synne And first by synne from reasonable creatures we turne vnreasonable and the longer we continue in synne the more vnreasonnable we become not vnlike the man mentioned in the Ghospell whose habitation was not among men but in the fields and dens among beasts and beastly company â—aked having lost all shame and could not be held within any compasse but ranged about breaking through all bonds of the law of God and man and being possessed by a legion of Divels did not vnderstand that they were his masters who did egg him on to his owne destruction in so much that he cut his owne flesh and did make nothing of it and when our Saviour or any good body came neere him he raged the more crying out with a lowde voyce what have you to doe with me or I with you VVhich state of a synner however while one is in it he doth not heed it in itself notwithstanding is extreame miserable and men of reason see it to be so And how much this man did afterwards acknowledge himself obliged to our Saviour when being delivered from this legion of Divells he quietly sat at his feete clothed and well in his wits much more ought we to thank our Saviour for our redemption our spirituall slaverie being infinitely more preiudiciall and more to be lamented III. Our Saviour in S. Luke asketh this question who among you having a servant ploughing or keeping cattle will say to him returning from the field go sit downe and sayth not rather make ready for me and serve me and afterwards thou shalt eate and drink This is the practise among men one to another but our Saviour more indulgent to vs not weighing that we are indeed but his slaves bought at so deere a rate as his most pretious blood and from so base and vnworthy a slaverie as is that of synne and so iniurious to himself doth notwithstanding coming from our owne worldly occasions noâ— much thinking of his service in them invite vs to his owne table that is to his owne most pretious body and blood intreating vs to pattake of so heavenly a banket at which the Angels doe reioyce and doth not passe for many a spoâ— dust that stick vpon vs though we have washed away the dirt and filth it were our dutie to be as cleane as out of the font of baptisme but ô the weakenes of man O the goodnes of God Who notwithstanding our vnworthynes when least vnworthy doth extend his kindnes vnto vs so farre beyond all humane kindnes or capacitie He out of whome he had cast the legion desired to be with him still in his companie and he did not admit of him but bad him go home and recount how mercyfull God had been to him How much more ought we to retire ourselves for a while into the closeth of our hart and reckon vp the mercyes of God towards vs and put this in the head of them that notwithstanding so lately voluntarie slaves to his enimies he doth vs this greate mercy and favour to admit of vs not only to his presence but to his table Intertaynment of our Saviour as Judge I. THe coming of a Judge to a citty or house is generally not without some apprehension and feare in the parties to whom he comes for if they be gylty they have reason to feare if they be not giltie they know not how the Judge may be informed concerning them That our Saviour is our Judge is vndoubted the Father hath given judgement to the Sonâ—e sayth our Saviour of himself yet at this his coming vnto vs in the blessed Sacrament we have not so much cause of feare first because his rigorous judgement is reserved till after this life in which respect himself sayth God did not send his Sonne into the world to judge the world but that the world should be saved by him Secondly there is no danger that he should be misinformed of vs. Thirdly when he comes to judge he comes in majestie with the attendance of all his heavenly courte here he comes disguised of set purpose because we should know that he comes in a familiar way to doe vs honour and
Communion Thomas a Kempis lib. 4. cap. 7. num 4. Intertaynment of our Saviour as a frend I. OVr Saviour is plâ—ased to stile his Apostles his frends and the condition which he Puts gives vs ground to extend this favour to all that observe the condition You are my frends if you doe the things which I command you An easy condition if we consider with the Apostle that the fullnes of the law is love Love God love our Neighbour and we have fullfilled the law and become frends with God though indeed God is our frend before we love for so we have in S. Jhon God first loved vs. And it could not â—e otherwise for he first created vs and the wiseman assureth that he loveth all things which are and hateth not any thing which he hath made neither out of hatred did he make any thing But it is in our choyce whether we will be frends with God or no and all our miserie came and comes to this day through our choosing the negative by breach of his commandments Our Saviour as a frend exhorteth vs to the affirmative and here in the most blessed Sacrament and Sacrifice of the Altar represents vnto vs what God and he have done for vs to reclayme vs to his love our mercyfull and gratious Lord hath left a memoriall of his wonders food for those that feare him sayth the Royall Prophet O wonderfull incitement to love Our Saviour in person to be ever soliâ— citing vs as if it did concerne him as much as vs and to be dayly present with vs desiring nothing more then to be one with vs and therfore he did institute this blessed Sacrament vnder the formes of bread and wine to be taken inwardly by vs that as bread and wine so taken are turned into our substance and made one thing with vs so we by receiving him should become one with him transformed into his love and imitation which is the sense of that which the Apostle sayth of himself I live 〈◊〉 not I but Christ lives in 〈◊〉 II. And indeed a frend should be as it is sayed alter â—go not properly another but as it were the same againe through conformitie in thier humours and wills and proceedings How farre our Saviour doth indeavour this he makes sufficient demonstration when he sayth to his Apostles I call you frends because all whatever I have heard from my Father I have made knownâ— vnto you and againe aske and it shall be given you seeke and you shall find knock and it shall be opened to you For as in all frendship so in this much more it is supposed that we will not aske things either vnlawfull or hurtfull to ourselves And wheras frends because they cannot be the same in person desire to be allwayes at least in place and companie together our Saviour you see doth not fayle in this being content with any kind of accomodation in the poorest parish Church or Chappel rather then to be from vs and so iâ— our soules so they be in grace III. Moyses by often treaâ—ing with God grew to that confidence that once he sayed to God If I have found favour in thy sight shew me thy face that I may know thee and God answered I will shew thee all good When the promise came to be performed iâ— could not be otherwise then by a little hole in the rock and God passing in a cloude and covering that little hole so as to conceale most part of his glorie for as the Apostle witnesseth God dwels in a light inaccessible no man ever saw him nor can see him In the person of oâ—r Saviour while he lived vpon earth God was seen vnder the vayle of his humanitie here he is seen vnder the resemblances of breade and wine that his intention is to shâ—w vs finally his glorie this blessed Sacrament he hath left vs for a pledge therefore the beloved disciple recordeth before the washing of the feete and before the institution of the blessed Sacrament that wheras he had loved his who werâ— in the world he loved them to the end It is our duty to be carefull that he be not frustrated of this end and we fayle of that eternall frendship which he desires we should have with him The Counsel of the Wiseman is Say not to thy frend go and come againe to morrow I will give it thee when thou mayest presently give we know not how soone our end is when it will be too late to give our love to him which we may doe presently and the more having so loving an imitation and so sure a pledge of his love Intertaynment of our Saviour as our Brother I. OVr Saviour after his resurrection appearing to the women bad then go and tell his brethren of it honouring his Apostles and disciples with this title in regard that by his goodnes thy had one heavenly Father his by nature â—hiers by adoption one eternall inheritance as the Apostle witnesseth tearming vs Heyres to God and coheyres to Christ. VVhich Brotherhood being derived vnto vs by the grace of God and by Charirie or the love of God poured into our harts by the holy Ghost which is given vs we are the more beholding to our Saviour because by this holy Sacrament received he doth confirme vs in this grace of adoption and increaseth it and strengtheneth it more and more making the etetnall inheritance belonging to it more sure vnto vs so farre is he from envying vs his Fathers love as Iosephs brothers did or not rejoycing at our returne into grace after our going astray as the elder brother to the prodigall child or contending about the inheritance as two brothers in the Gospell II. The wiseman telleth vs that a brother that is assisted by his brother is like a strong citty and thier counsels like the barres of citty gates VVhy therfore should we distrust the overcoming or keeping ouâ— our Ghostly enimies from the castle of our hart seeing our Saviour doth so lovingly offer vs his assistance not only incouraging vs by his words and exhortation but himself puts himself into our hart to defend it with vs so that we â—ay with Esay the Prophet confidently say He that doth iustifie me is by me who shall gayne-say me let vs stand together who is my adversarie let him come And indeed if we do not faintly or treacherously flinch from him we shall be impregnable III. By which we may vnderstand how much they wrong themselves and others who diâ—wade from often â—ecoiving this blâ—ssed food vnder pretence perhaps of more devotion but indeed not well vnderstanding how to order thier devotions for as it is the counsel of physâ—tiaâ—s and experience teacheth that they who have weake stomacks should eate often and of things that are of good nutriment so it fares also with our soules which of themselves are weake and as to the fimilitude in
which we are they are numbred amoÌ„ng the six whome God doth hate who sow discord betwixt brethren And certaynly to keepe vs from often intertayning this our brother must needs be the seed of discord betwen him and vs for by neglect of the Sacrament we grow lesse able to resisâ— temptations and consequently are the easyer drawne into synne which only can make a distance betwixt him and vs IV. Finally by this title we are put in mind that we Christians being all brethren should labour to maintayne brotherly love among vs so much the more by how much our Saviour is also our brother and we know that generally one brother taketh vp the quarel of another brother and it is not for our purpose to have our Saviour against vs Therfore particularly when we are to receive or have received we must according to the counsell of S. Peâ—ter lay a side all malicâ— all deceite and dissembling and â—nvy and all detraction to the end to mayntayne this brotherly love as being of one familie with Jesus Christ and feeding vpon the same supercelestiall bread of his sacred body and dispose ourselves to all meekâ—es and affabilitie that there be no dissention nor hartburning not any occasion of it by word or dâ—ed but aâ—â—ist one another in what we can with no lesse promptitude and readynes then one hand is ready to help the other Intertaynment of our Saviour as he is the sacrifice of the law of grace I. SAcrifices were practised in the law of nature from the beginning of the world and instituted in the law of Moyses as the prime act of worship due to God as he is the author and giver of all things and as due to none but God And because none can deserve better then he who is the fountaine and giver of all the light of nature did dictate and the law prescribe that the best things and prime fruits should be offered nothing â—ame nothing corrupted nothing which was not perfect in its kind So Abel is commended for offering the first begotten and the fat of his flock Cain not looked vpon because defective And because life is the best thing that we have and most esteemed and for the mayntayning of it all other things serve God commanded Abraham to offer him the life of his only sonne Isaac as a testimonie that he was Lord of life and death that is supreme over mankind and secondarily as his acknowledgement of it and obedience Content notwithstanding with the demonstration of his willingnes and not pleased that we should exercise that vpon one another which would turne to crueltie and barbariâ—me he furnished him with a ram to sacrifice and in conformitie all the sacrifices of beasts or fowle or what other thing offered were testimonies and acknowledgements that what we did to them was due to be done in our ownâ— persons God of his goodnes accepting other things in lieu of vs as afterwards he appointed in the law that the first begotten Children should be redeemed with mony where besides the truth of the thing We may see how pleasing it must needs be to God to part with life and goods and the contentments of this world rather then offend or that we may serve him better and persever for every such act is a sacrifice and hath the nature and meâ—it of the highest act of religion II. Christ our Saviour coming into this world to perfect the written law of Moâ—ses and to institute the law of grace could not leave this law of his with out a more perfect sacrifice then had been before therfore being to compleate all the sacrifices of the old law by the sacrifice of himself vpon the altar of the Crosse and to provide a continuall sacrifice not inferiour to any for his people and Church to the worlds end the day before his death he instituâ—ed this blessed sacrifice of the altar â—hat is his owne self to be offered and noâ— only in words but by a publick ceremonie common to the wholâ— Church and to be really sacrificed not bloodyly as once vpon the Crosse for that would have been incompetent to him and inconvenient to vs but yet so that his death should be dayly not only represented but in a manner acted the words of consecration dividing as it were the body from the blood and the blood from the body by being pronounced severally vpon severall matters not that the blood of our Saviour is not also in the sacred host and his body in the chalice but it is not there immediatly by force of the words but accidentally because the body and blood is now living as at the last supper VVhen our Saviour sayed This is my body which shall be delivered for you this is my blood which shall be shed for you And againe doe this in memorie of me Ordering the same sacriâ—ice to be continued successively in his Church by his Apostles and those who were to succeed them in thier Priâ—stly function so that here is the best thing offered for vs and offered in the highest way of expression of our acknowledgement towards God the only Sonne of God the first born of all creatures Who as God contayneth all things in himself O unspeakable grace O wonderfull favour O immense love expressed towards man what shall I render to our Lord for this grace for so excessive love I cannot give him a thing more gratefull then wholy to deliver him vp my hart and intirely vnite it vnto him Thom a Kemp. lib. 4. cap. 13. num 3. III. As in the sacrifices of the old law so in this our Saviour would have all his people partake of this sacrifice and therfore did institute it vnder the forme of bread and wine and not in the proper shape of flesh and blood bread and wine being things both most vniversall and best agreeing with every bodies taste and from which generally people not only have least aversion but most vse and doe best signifâ—e the effects of this holy sacrifice as it is also a Sacrament to wit the spirituall nourishment and fortifying of our soule by the presence of our Sauiour in person and by speciall graces flowing from him in which respect our Saviour tearmeth his body and blood truly meate and drinke and that he that eateth this bread shall live for ever because as by often eating and drinking we mainâ—â—yne our bodily life so by this bread we may maintaynâ— ouâ— spirituall life which is to remayne for ever O how grâ—eate and honourable is the office of Priests to whom power is given with sacred words to consecrate our Lord of Maiestie with thier lips to blesse him in thier hands to hold him to receive him in thier mouth and to minister him to others O how pure ought those hands to be how cleane that mouth how holy that body how vnspotted that hart into which the authour of Puritie doth so often enter Thom a Kemp. 1. 4. c. 11. n.
confesse his owne wants aÌ„d vnworthines and everie one of vs may with much more reason say It is I who have reall need of this sacred ceremonie from thy hands who alone canst wash away my synnes it is I who have dayly and hourely need of washing my synnes and imperfections are so greate and so many It is I that ought to vndergo this shame of confessing them having not been ashamed to coÌ„mit them It is I who owe the debt and must pay it to the uttermost farthing vnlesse thou by thy Sacraments and by thy mercyes doest forgive me Iesus answering sayed suffer it now for so it becometh us to fullfill all iustice Many conveniences may offer themselves to thy infinite wisdome for which it may become thee thus to humble thyself but for me it is necessitie it is my dutie it cals vpon me by all the titles of a creature and a synner and a subject and a servant and infinite other obligations these are titles of iustice which if I doe not fullfill I shall beare the smart thou fullfillest all this with out any obligation to doe so but of thy goodnes to correct our backwardnes in doing that which is fitting for vs to doe VVhat is there that will not become me to doe to the vtmost be it never so meane or seeming to be below me seeing thou hast stooped thvs low to thy servant III. Iesus being baptized forth with came out of the water and lo the heavens were opened to him and he saw the spirit of God descending as a doue and coming vpon him and behold a voyce from heaven saying this is my beloved sonne in whome I am well pleased Three signes of the effects of the baptisme which those receive who are washed in the water sanctifyed by our Saviour The gates of heaven are opened vnto them the holy Ghost descends vpon them and they are made the adoptive sonnes of God But our Saviour was his natural and eternall sonne eternall beloved and now vpon a new title of his superexcellent obedience as man and charitie towards mankind coming into this world with the innocencie and meekenes of a dove not to punish but to spare and to forgive Have recourse vnto him while the heavens are thus open delay not thy conversion prepare thy hart with puritie to receive the spirit of God and his graces bee meeke and humble and peaceable because such are styled the Sonnes of God love that thou maiest be beloved indeavour to Please God aboue all and for no mans pleasure displease him How sweere and how rich is the name of Sonne which he vouchsafed vs from heaven and in order to the heavenly inheritance Sonnes of men how long heavyharted To what purpose doe you love vanitie and hunt after a lie The only true honour and true riches is to be the sonne of God The fast Temptation and Victorie of our Savionr I. THen Iesns was led by the spirit into the desert to be tempted by the divel and when he had fasted fourtie dayes and fourtie nights afterwards he was hungrie He was led by the same spirit that had descended vpon him at his baptisme to the holy actions of retirement from worldly occasions and of fasting and by occasion of that to be tempted by the enimie of all wholsome exercises His food all that time was prayer and the fervent desires of performing in life and death the will of his heavenly Father by which he taught vs how to arme ourselves against the assalts of the divel and not to thinke because we are sorely now and then set vpon that therfore we are deserted of God and of his spirit How also to prepare ourselves to what ever imployment God doth call vs vnto And though hepersevered so long without touch of hunger at last he was hungrie stooping to the infirmitie of man whose nature he did beare and whome he had vndertaken to instrvct the tempter not being able to dive into the deapth of the mysterie of the IncarnatioÌ„ yet by many circuÌ„stances coÌ„iâ—cturing tooke hold of his being hungrie and approching sayed If thou be the sonne of God command that these stones be made bread knowing that it was much easyer to doe so then what had been done in creating all of nothing Our Saviour did not yeald vnto his motion because as S. Augustine reflects The Tempter is not overcome but by contemning him but answered Not in bread alone doth man live but in every word which proceedeth from the mouth of God For the Children of Israel themselves in thier fourty yeares pilgrimage in the desert were not maintayned so much by the Manna as by the divine providence concerning both body and soule Rayse thy thoughts to this spirituall food and to confidence in God who will not suffer vs to be tempted above that which we are able but with the temptation will give vs issue that we may sustaine it II. Then the divel tooke him vp into the holy ciâ—â—y and â—et him vpon the pinnaâ—le of the Temple and sayed if thou bee the Sonne of God cast thyself downe for it is written he will give his Angels charge of thee and in thier hands they shall hold thee vp c. No man can pretend to be free from temptation seeing the divell so bold with our Saviour and the neerer we come to holynes and higher we are taken into the favour of God the more we must beware for the temptations are allwayes the more secret and cloked with some preteÌ„ce of good as heece with the words of scripture misapplyed if thou bâ— the Sonne of God doâ— not cast rhyself downe to things inferiour to God and his service doe not permit thyself to be taken vp by a high conceite of thyself remayne rather in the desert if thou be taken out live notwithstanding in feare be not rash doe not thrust thyself into occasions which may be dangerous Our Saviour answered Thou shall not tempt thy Lord God Gape not after extraordinarie comforts vnusuall lights new conceits go vp and downe by the vsuall degrees of vertue practised by saints allowed by the Church and by those who in it have the place of directing vs. He hath indeed given his Angels charge of vs but we must not be head-long or head-strong in our wayes III. Againe he tooke him vp into a very high mountaine and shewed him all the kingdomes of the world and the glorie of them saying all these will I give thee if falling downe thou a dore me VVhether doth not pride and ambition carie a mind that is once poisoned with them of what doth it not brag though never so false as here the divell as if all had been his to give and to take away at his pleasure I will give thee all the kingdomes as if all did consist in present wealth and glorie and pleasure and command They who have had all at will what is become of them All these what are they
meate She sayth to him how doest thou being a Iew aske of me to drinke who am a Samaritan for the Iewes doe not communicate with the Samaritans Iesus answered if thou didst know the gift of God and who he is who sayth to thee give me to drink thou perhaps wouldst have asked him and he would have given thee living water It is not for nothing sayth S. Augustin that Iesus the power and strength of God is wearied it is not for nothing that he is wearyed by whome all who are wearyed receive refreshment We find Jesus strong what can be stronger then he who made all things with out labour or pains taking We find Jesus infirme the word was made flesh and dweleth among vs. By his strength he created vs by his infirmitie he repayred vs. and againe our inobedience our backwardnes our dulnes is wearysome to him see how this womaÌ„ holds back O if thou didst know who he is and yet there comes in a perhaps on our part where we find none on his she replyes againe neither hast thou wherin to draw and the well is deepe whence therfore hast thou living water Art thou greater then our Father Iacob who gave vs this well and himself drunk of it and his Children and his cattel How doe we preferre our earthly commodities before better things How fast doe we stick to that to which we are accâ—stomed VVhat power hath Father Children cattel with vs How slow are we to beleeve that which we doe not see The well is deepe by our owne falâ— II. Our Saviour besides his owne naturall goodnes which lead him into this conversation was pleased with the womans religious scruple of not commoning with a Jew and with the esteeme she had of Jacob and of that which he had laboured for posteritie yet two things were wanting to wit a desire of that which was better and a vessel fit to râ—â—â—ive it He therfore continuing his discourse sayth every one that drinketh of this water shall thirst againe but he that shall drinke of the water which I will give shall not thirst for ever But the water which I will give shall become in him a fountaine of water springing vp to life everlasting And she begging Syr give me this water that I may not thirst nor come hither to draw though her desire were imperfect and for low ends Yet our Saviour goeth on and sayth to her call thy husband and come hither Giving her occasion to confesse her falt as she did saying I have no husband which our Saviour shewed her that he knew before telling her that she had had five husbands but he whome now she had was not her husband and commended her for saying the truth III. Vpon this the woman perceiving he was a prophet put an other question concerning religion whether the mountaine in Samaria or Hierusalem were the place where God was to be adored Our Saviour graciously answered that the saluation was to be frrom the Iewes but that the time was at hand when neither to Hierusalem nor to that mountayne they should be confined but as God is a spirit and every where so every where he should be adoreal in spirit and truth for such the heavenly Father requireth And she refeâ—ring herself to the coming of the Messias our Saviour sayed to her I am be who speake with thee Here the fountaine of living water springing vp to life everlasting discovered itself more playnly to this sincere and humbly religious creature then to many others who had other means to find it out Not he that only dippeth but every one who shall drink of this water shall not thirst after worldly contentments nor desire to come back to earthy channels to draw with vnprofitable and often with dangerous labour a small pittance of transitorie comfort in creatures Water in a well sayth S. Augustin is worldly pleasure running in a darke deepnes and hardly drawne vp with the bucket of desire This breeds a troblesome thirst and doth not quench it The living water is the grace of devotion the love of God the knowledge of holy Scripture these fill our desire with good things Lord give me this water that I may not thirst nor come hither to aravv The conversion of the Samaritan II. PART I. THe â—voman therfore left her pitcher and vvent into the citty and sayth to those men come and see a man that hath told me all things vvhatsoever I have done is not he Christ They vvent forth of the citty and vvere coming to him She caryed not her earthly pitcher home but full of the heavenly grace and doctrine of our Saviour she made hast to instruct others Our Saviour had bid her call the man with whom she lived she not content with that out of her zeale summoned the whole towne and doubtlesse by our Saviours instinct he being desirous to be invited that he might be the more beneficiall to them all Come thou also and behold the man from whome nothing is concealed come greedely that thou mayest receive the more plentie of his gifts invite him kindly to thy poore cottage he will not refuse thee II. In the meane time his disciples being returned desired him to eate of vvhat they had brought But he sayed to them I have meate to eate vvhich you knovv not They say to one an other hath any man brought him to eate â— Iesus sayed My meate is to doe the vvill of him that sent me and to perfect his vvorke You doe say there be foure months to haruest but lift vp your eyes and see the countreys they are allready vvhite for the haruest VVhat meate is more pleasing then to doe the will of God This is the food of Angels to obey the commands of thier Creatour S. Jhon Chrysostome sayth moreover that our Saviour tearmed the saluation of man meate to declare how greate care he had of vs and with how much affection he desired our good The Apostlâ—s were as yet vnacquainted with these metaphors and wondered of what meate he should speake therfore he bids them lift vp the â—yes of thier mind and behold the spirituall harvest the gathering in wherof was his imployment and his ayme and must be thiers specially the time being come preordayned by his heavenly father wherin all regions of the world were now ripe for it O dullnes that we know not our owne happines but turne that oftimes into vineger which would be hony to vs if we would behold the will of God in it III. And many of that citty beleeved in him for the word of the woman giving testimonie that he had told her whatever she had done and when they were come to him they desired he would tary there and he taryed there two dayes and many more belâ—â—ved for his owne word saying ourselves have heard and doe know that this is the Saviour of the world indeed This woman represents vnto vs the Church of God particularly
this time forvvard thou shalt be taking men and having brought thier ship to land leaving all things they follovved him Miserable creatures who fall out of the net in which our Saâ—iour hath taken them more miserable those who teare it Happy they who are called and imployed to assist that it be not torne They will be filled with heavenly graces and though they be often ready in a manner to sink vnder the burden they will be relieved in time so that they shall suffer no prejudice Fall downe before our Saviour with admiration and thanks and acknowledgment of thy vnworthynes Peeter doth not aske to be forfaken but that he may not with the successe be puffed vp with pride Leave all things rather then leave thy Saviour c. Second Application to the most blessed Sacrament I. OSonne of the highest o depth of mercy and love I a synfull man and thou not only to receive me into thy ship but into thyself for so are thy words he that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood remayneth in me and I in him O deepth vnsearcheable the life of the fish is to be in water it thinks it death to be in the net and struggles to get out But here is a net out of which no man that is wise will be because the more he is in it the more water he hath and the more scope to doe whatever is fitting to be done His precious wounds are as so many messhes which captivate vs to Christ yet doe let in vnto vs the fountaines of living vvater promised to the devout Samaritan fresh sweete pleasant springing vp to life everlasting in which we may live and drink when ever we will Lord give me the right tast of this vvater that I may not go other where and thirst when I have done I am not worthy to approch vnto thee because I am a synfull man but thou hast ordayned this sea of vvater to the end that plunged in it we should both be cleansed and refreshed and live eternally in thee O that we did knovv how greate a gift this is fall dovvne at his knees and aske he is not sparing of his gifts who so freely and bountifully giveth his owne self vnto thee II. O prodigious bounty O wonderfull dulnes of such as hearing and knowing that Iesus comes thus dovvne from heaven for our reliefe doe not make hast vnto him How insensible are we of our dangers and our diseases we have but one soule which ought to be more deere vnto vs the any Sonne to his father it lyeth gasping oftimes for life and here is life which offereth itself and we are slow in accepting it VVhen a sick person begins to have no heate in his fecte we say he begins to die what are the feete of our soule but our affections If these be not warmed with this fire of love which is our Saviour what can we thinke of ourselves Lord come dovvne before my soule dye O stupiditie of mankind can this Lord of Lords come dovvne lower then he hath done he came into a Virgins wombe into the Crib vnto the Crosse into the jawes of death and yet here he comes lower then in all these into thy bosome into thy breast Go and beleeve and obey readyly his commands and his Angels will meete thee and bring thee the ioyfull tidings of health and thou wilt know that that houre most of all will be the time in which thy feaverish distempers will leave thee III. Be not still asking with Nicodemus in the cold night of thy tepiditie hovv can these things be done But buyld vpon the testimony of our Saviour who speakes vvhat he knovves will be done vpon his word this is my body God so loved the vvorld as to give his only Sonne this sonne hath no lesse love to the world then his father He giveth himself and is dayly giving in this admirable manner noâ— contenting himself to be once only for three and thirtie yeares and vpward vpon earth he will be with vs to the worlds end really present among vs that after-ages need not envy those yeares of his visible appearance having the selfsame Sonne of God here present vnder these visible shapes more vniversally through the whole world and more for our present vse and necessities Exalt him as Moyses did the serpent in the desert Behold him with a devouâ— and loving eye and he will preserve thee Cast out all earthy conceites and tumultuous busineses from the temple of thy hart and make it as it ought to be specially in this coniuncture of time a house of prayer a house of thanksgiving a house of prayse and of magnifying thy loving Saviour who hath done so greate things for thee and this greatest of all that he vouchsafeth to be within thee O invisible creatour of the world how wonderfully doest thou deale with vs how sweetly and graciously with thy elect offering thyself vnto them to be received in this Sacrament His fervourin preaching and divers cures I. ANd they enter into Capharnaum and forth with vpon the Sabboth going into the Synagog he taught them and they were astonied at his doctrine for he taught as having power and not as the Scribes And there was in the Synnagog a man possessed with a vncleane spirit who cryed out what to vs and to thee Iesus of Nazareth art thou come to destroy vs I know who thou art the holy of God And Iesus threatened him saying hold thy peace and go out of the man And the uncleane spirit tearing him and crying out with a lowde voyce went out and did not hurt him And they all marvelled and questioned among themselves what thing is this What is this new doctrine For with power he commandeth the vncleane spirits and they obey And the bruitâ— of him went forth presently through the whole country we have no lesse reason to admire and rejoyce and magnifie his name and his power which he retaynes over all evill spirits and his wonderfull wholsome doctrine and to begge he will ever exercise the same power over them to restrayne thier malice and over vs by the force and vertue of his doctrine to over-power all that may contradict it in vs for we find a law within vs striving against the law of our mind which is reason and vertue and captivating vs vnder the law of synne vnhappy that we are who shall deliver vs But the grace of God by Iesus Christ. This law as it were teareth vs in peeces yet doth not hurt vs vnlesse we voluntarily consent vnto it for it is left in vs not to damnation but for exercise and reward if we fight couragiously II. Going forth of the Synagog they came into the house of Andrew and Simon Simons wifes Mother lay sick of a greate fever and they besought him for her and taking her by the hand he commanded the fever away and it left her and she presently rising ministred vnto them
III. And here most of all must we take our Saviour as he is and as he is pleased to present himself vnto vs vnder the shapes of bread and wine and whatever wind of contradiction rise from our sense or from our weake ynderstanding say vnto it Peace be still and beleeve the power of the mighty hand of God who wiâ—h a word made all things and the infinity of his love who as he gave himself to be rudely handled by the Iewes gives himself here to be lovingly handled by vs vnworthy creatures not valuing that he is sometimes also misused by vs wherin his love is the more manifest and more to be valued by vs. Present him thy hart and soule as a pillow to rest on and attend him resting Afford him the curtesie which the spouse in the canticles received doe not rayse him nor cause him to awake till he wilâ— himself He sleepes but his hart watcheth over thee Let not thy eyes go of from him least through thy negligent attendance thou receive not with him the fruite which he bestoweth vpon the watchfull I rose sayth the spouse to open to my beloved I opened the bolt of my doore for my beloved but he was gone a side and passed away my soule was melted when he spake I sought and did not find him I called and he did not answer me Be devour and quiet and Iesus will stay with thee He rayseth the daughter of Iayrus and cureth the woman of her bloody issue I. THere cometh one of the rulers of the Synagog named Iayrus and seeing him faleth at his feete and besought him much saying my daughter is at the point of death come and lay thy hand vpon her that she may be saved and live And he went with him and a greate multitude followed and thronged him In diseases and death of our soule what expressions ought not we to vse These bring vs truly to the last cast for after our temporall death there is another death to be feared farre more grievous because ever and never dying In these occasions therfore bestirre thyself fall at our Saviours feete beseech him follow him thou seest his readynes to concurre with thy indeavours and to go along with thee feare not that the multitude feare not that the greatnes of thy synnes will divert him from thy help if thou prostrate thyself with a syncere hart and beseech pardon as thou oughtest II. And a woman who was in an issue of blood twelve yeares and had suffered much from many physitians and haâ— bestowed all that she had neither was any thing better but rather worse when she heard of Iesus came behind him in the presse and touched the hemme of his garment for she sayed if I shall touch but his garment I shall be safe and forthwith the fountaine of her blood was dryed vp and she felt in her body that she was healed of that maladie Search into the causes of thy long diseases consider how thou spendest thy time and thy spirituall and temporall substance and vpon whome and why thou goest rather backward then forward come with humilitie and confidence to the Sacraments Let the very name of Iesus give the assurance of remedie specially if thou touch with reverence the garment with which he is pleased to cover his sacred body in the holy â—ucharist which are the resemblances of bread and wine in which he gives vs his sacred flesh and blood and doest not come rudely and disorderly vpon him as the multitude for when Christ remaynes in vs he cooleth the raging law of concupiscence he strengthens devotion and quailes the vnbridled motions of our mind And Iesus turning sayed who hath touched my garments His disciples sayed thou seest the multitude thronging thee and sayest who touched me But the woman fearing and â—remkling fell downe before him and told him the truth and he sayed daughter thy faith hath made shee whole go in peace See how he takes notice of the reverent and not of the rude and how greate a grace it was that she who was ashamed to be seen was not ashamed to confesse her imperfections hide not thy falts acknowledge that which he knowes allready III. As he was speaking they come to the ruler of the Synagog saying thy daughter is dead why doest thou troble the Master any further But Iesus sayth to him feare not only beleeve And be admitted not any to follow him but Peeter Iames and Ihon And seeing folk weeping and wayling sayth why weepe you so She is not dead but sleepeth and they derided him but he having put forth all but the Father and Mother and them that were with him taking her by the hand sayth wench I say to thee rise and forthwith she rose vp and walked and they were greatly astonished and he commanded them earnestly that no body should know it and bad that some thing should be given her to â—ate and the fame of it was spread through the whole countrey God so disposing that the more we are carefull that the good which we doe should be secret God should be more glorifyed by it She rose and walked because a sonle raysed from syâ—ne must be stirre itself that it fall not into a relapse but be dispersing noysome thoughts and dispositions by vertuous actions it must also cast of the multitude of worldly occasions and weepe and wayle those losses only which most of all deserve the name of losses converse with a few and good exercise the fayth of Peeter the hope of Iames the love of Ihon finally frequent the Sacraments to the end to get strength and vigour after so dangerous infirmities He cureth the sickman at the Poole I. IN Heerusalem there was a Poole having five porches in these lay a greate multitude of sick persons blind lame withered expecting the stirring of the water and an Angel of out Lord descended at a certaine time into the poole and the water was stirred and he that had gone downe first into the poole after the stirring of the water was made whole of whatever infirmitiâ— he was holden God in all ages and all times even among the faithfull provideth certaine places where constantly miracâ—es are wrought for the increase of the devotion of the faithfull and to confirme thier fayth of the omnipotent power of God who as he created all with a word can in an instant restore all things to thier perfection yet will not doe it with out our particular concurrence and according to the times and wayes which in his wisdome he hath ordayned But for our spirituall diseases he hath left in all places present remedie with out expecting times and seasons for the holy baptisme may in necessitie be administred by any body and for the Sacrament of penance there be in all places those who are appointed nor for one only or for the first or second but for all and the sooner the infirme come vnto it the better
shall prevayle against it I say vnto thee I whose saying is doing The Keyes which he promiseth signifie wisedome to discerne and power wherby he may refuse the vnworthy and receive the worthy into the Kingdome Buyld confidently vpon this rock submit thyself to these Keyes for our Saviours word and promise cannot fayle Heaven and earth shall passe away but my word shall not passe away Christ foretelleth his Passion I. FRom thence forward he began to shew his Disciples that he must go to Hierusalem and suffer many things from the Scribes and chiefe Priests and â—e Killed and the third day rise againe And Peeter taking him vnto him began to rebuke him saying Lord bee it farre from thee this â—hall not happen to thee who turning sayed to Peeter Go after me Satan thou art a scandal to me because thou savourest not the things that are of God but the things which are of men The more knowledge he imparted to them of his divinitie the more he did inculcate to them that he was to suffer that by the beleefe of his power as God they might be the lesse trobled when they should see him suffer as man but hope as then in his resurrection so ever after in thier owne aflictions for his assistance from above Peeter vnderstood not as yet how these things might stand together and out of his affection to our Saviour and naturall aversion from suffering measured his desires that they might both he happy without suffering Our Saviour ranketh him among the instruments of Satan as withdrawing him 〈…〉 â—ourse which God had appointed and teach 〈…〉 we must not only beleeve that it ought to have 〈…〉 but to find sweetnes in it in regard that it is God 〈◊〉 To whom all things savour as they are and no◠〈…〉 are sayed or esteemed to be he is truly wise and â—aught rather by God then by men II. Then Iesus sayed to his Disciples If any man will come after me let him deny himself and take vp his Crosse and follow me for he that will save his life shall loose it and he that shall loose his life for me shall find it You forbid me to suffer but I say vnto you not only if I doe not suffer it will be hurtfull for you but if you also doe not dye you cannot be saved nor any body els man or woman rich or poore and yet observe that he doth not say vnlesse a man dye whether he will or no but he that will loose his life Now what it is to deny ourselves we may easyly learne if we consider what it is to deny another and who ever by denying himself flyeth synne must labour to increase also in vertue for therfore it is added let him take vp his Crosse and follow me III. For what doth it profit a man if he gaine the whole world and sustaine damage of his soule For the Sonne of man shall come in the glorie of his Father vvith his Angels and then vvill he render to everyone according to his works For we have not another soule to put in place of that which we loose Here thou mayest give teares and almes and fasting There such things will have noe place if differred for the judge jndgeth of thingh past Doest thou feare this kind of death Harken how he promiseth glorie Doest thou feare a Crosse Behold the Angels coming to receive thee And remember that he will render to every one according to his workes there is no acception of Persons rich or poore not the man but the worke is regarded In all things have regard to the end and how thou wilt stand before the severe Judge froâ— whome nothing is hidden Th. a Ke. l 1. c. 24. The seaventh Application to the most Blessed Sacrament I. THe miracle of the five loaves multiplyed so as to serve five thousand people was fore-runner to the mysterie of the most blessed Sacrament admirable in very many things and in this particular that one and the same Body of our Saviour vnder the shapes of bread and wine is distributed in the whole Christian world to millions of people at one and the self same instant oftime and consecrated in millions of places at once by the word of our Saviour pronounced by so many severall Priests but as then our Saviour by his divine power did not make of One loafe many but still multiplyed the same loaves till all were satisfyed and had notwithstanding a remaynder of twelue baskets fâ—ll of the fragments so now by the same divine power he gives vs his self-same body in many pleaces at once and not only while we are actually receiving as the heretiks fayne by their faith but afterwards to be reserved for the occasions of sick and dying people and for the continuall comfort of Christians that as he is ever present to the Church triumphant in heaven so the Châ—rch militant might not want the continuall comfort of his actuall and reall presence with it There be many Priests and in many places Christ is offered that the grace and love of God may appeare so much the more towards men by how much the more this holy communion is spread through the world Thanks be to thee sweete Iesus eternall pastour who hast vouchsafed to refresh vs poore banished people with thy most pretious body and blood II. They who looke no further then naturall reason and ordinarie principles of Philosophie doe lead them will be apt to say in this particular and many others concerning this blessed Sacrament with the Jewes How can this man give vs his flesh to eate And the winds and waves of contrarie arguments will rise so as to indanger to over whelme vs unlesse confident vpon our Saviours woâ—d we tread them vnder foote and doe not suffer our Faith to grow cold and weake in it It is I that say it sayth our Saviour â—e not affrayd to give credit to my word in this more then in any other mysterie of your faith in which you will find full as much contrarietie to human reason as in this if you fall to questioning how can this be So Nicodemus did in the point of baptiâ—meâ— How can theâ—e things be done so did the Arians in the blessed Trinitie How can the Sonne be equally eternall with the Father O thou of little faith werfore didst thou doubâ— And by doubting experience the wind to grow stronger and stronger against thee so as to be ready to sink wheras at first vpon his word thou wert confident and didst walke without feate Lord save me that I may not perish with the incredulous III. I am not worthy ô Lord to partake of this bread of Angels it were enough for me to stand a looâ—e and feed vpon the crumbs which fall from the table of that heavenly court But â— the goodnes and greatnes of our Saviour not content to feed vs with the comfort of holy Scriptures nor wiâ—â—
Our glorie must be in our hope of heaven and that by Gods goodnes we are in a way towards it all other thingâ—â—vayle vs little but as these are accoÌ„panied with humilitie and other vertues Whosoever rejoyceth in that which another hath not by his very abundaÌ„ce he becometh the worse because his joy is noâ— of the common good but of his private interest III. In that very houre he rejoyced in spirit and sayed I confesse to thee Father Lord of heaven and earth because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent and hast revealed them to little ones and turning to his disciples he sayed Blessed are the eyes that see the things that you see for I say vnto you many prophets and Kings desired to see those things which you see and saw them not and to heare the things that you heare and heard them not Our Saviour rejoyced not at the synne of those by whose falt and presuming to be wise these things were hidden from them but at the goodnes of his heavenly Father who did not disdayne to reveale thâ—Ì„ to those who in the world were coÌ„teÌ„ptible And what are these things But that by humilitie and by suffering we must go to glorie and that in this is the happines of this life not in the wealth and honour and pleasurs which men so much hunt after and think themselves only then happy when they injoy them at will and miserable whenever they are bereaved of any of them Blessed are the eyes which see these things in our Saviours life and doctrine now as well as when the Apostles saw him vpon earth Many Prophets and Kings before our Saviours coming desired to see and heare them we have the same blessing according to his owne saying to S. Thomas Blessed are they that have not seen and doe beleeve The ninth Application to the most Blessed Sacrament I. HEre we are to admire the goodnes of God and of our Blessed Saviour towards vs who notwithstanding that we are so imperfect and all the good we do if we do any so much mingled with things distastfull to him that we deserve to be kept aloofe of as the lepers and oftimes perhaps to be shutout of the citty of heaven for greater offenses yet vpon our crying to him for mercy and shewing ourselves to the Priests in the Sacrament of confession he admitteth vs so familiarly to his holy table O with what gratitude should we magnifie him for so great mercy and love with what humilitie should we cast ourselves vpon our faces before his feetâ— giving thanks and purposing to be perpetually mindfull of so greate a benefit But where are our thoughs oftimes eveÌ„ when we should most attend Our repeditie and negligence is much to be lamented and pittyed that we are not drawne with more devotion to receive our Saviour Christ. In whome is all the hope of them that be to be saved and all their merit If one in ten of out thoughts be imployed this way we think it a greate matter wheras our whole atteÌ„dance were indeed nothing in coÌ„parison of that which this greate goodnes of our Saviour deserveth II. Our Saviour to cure the blind man and to give him his sight layed clay vpon his eyes which seemed quite contrarie to the cure we also if we will see the truth of this mysterie must close vp our eyes to humane reason according to that which our Saviour answered the Iewes vpon this occasion for they asking him Are we also blind He sayed to them if you were blind you should not have synne but now you say we see your synne remayneth S. Lewis of FraÌ„ce when his courtiers brought him newes that there was a little child to be seen in the Priests hands as he was lifting vp the sacred host would not stirre to see it but answered that he beleeved the reall preseÌ„ce of our Blessed Saviour vpon better ground then that sight could affoard him He was truly illuminated with the light of faith shutting his eyes to curiositie and opening them to the words of our Saviour who is true light and cannot deceive I am the light of the world He that followeth me walâ—eth not in darkenes however darke the mysteries of faith seeme to be III. And if we reflect vpon the other title which he giues himself of good Pastour In what could he shew his goodnes more then that having once offered that greate oblation of himself vpon the Crosse and given his life for vs he resteth not content with that but dayly would have it offered for vs yea hourely through the whole world for our greater comfort and satisfaction providing that his sheepe may never want so fertill a pasture but vpoÌ„ all occasioÌ„s may haue such celestiall food at haÌ„d See how they who record the passioÌ„ aÌ„d sufferings of our Saviour in time of the holy sacrifice drinking of the spirituall fountains springing from that â—orrent of love doe delight themselves with sweete teares above all delicacies And how much sweetenes they do suck into their soules inquiring and consâ—dering where their God is Certainly this one word and this one consideration that God is so neere them not only as to the whole world but in this particular familiar and constant way is able to melt the hart of any loving soule and abundantly to fill it with all delight â—â—This good Pastour giverth his life for his sheepe in that he delivereth his Body and Blood in this Sacrament and with the substance of his owne flesh doth feed the sheepe which he redeemed The parable of the man wounded in his way to Iericho I. ANd behold a certaine lawyer stood vp tempting him and saying Master by doing of what thing shall I possesse life everlasting He sayed to him in the law what is written How readest thou He answering sayed Thou shalt love thy Lord thy God with thy whole hart and with thy whole soule and with all strength and with all thy mind And they neigbour as thyself And he sayed to him thou hast answered right doe this and thou shall live How many doe say would to God I knew the direct way how to be saved or how to overcome my passions And having it before their eyes they heed it noâ— the weake resolution or difficultie which they have about forsaking either their will or their companie or their wonted steps blinding them life everlasting when they think of it is a greate attractive and deservedly but whether they perswade themselves thoroughly that it deserves so much paines as they conceive is to be taken that is the question and yet as this man confesseth the way is love which makes all things in the world easy for vnlesse worldly people did love their employments they would find no lesse difficultie in serving the world then they apprehend in serving God Love God and they neigbour and nothing will be hard II. But â—e desirous to iâ—stifie himself
consider vvho gave him that plentie and that it comes more by Gods blessing then by humane industrie and labour Secondly he did not reflect vpon the end wherfore God doth bestow plenty vpon others to wit to relieve the needy and to doe works with it which may turne to Gods glorie and not only to rest and eaâ—e and drinke and make good cheare or the like meerely temporall ends O foliâ—h words sayth S. Basill for if thou hadst the soule of a hog what couldst thou have sayed more like a hog Thou mights have answered with farre more ease I will feed the hungrie I will imitate Ioseph and relieve a whole countrie He should have takeÌ„ into consideration the casualities of the world and the vncertaintie of his ovvne life vvherby he might have moderated his intemperate affection to his vvealth and provided better for an other vvorld as vvell as for this we have not one night certaine of either life or goods Thou foole this night vvhen thou doest little think they vvho have povver of life and death shall require at thy hands as a thing depositated for a time thy soule vvhich imports thee more then all thy goods vvhich thou knowest not whose they shall be and vvhen thou art gone neither thou vvilt care vvhose they are nor they vvho have them care for thee III. So is he who layeth vp treasure to himself and is not rich to Godward A generall saying of vvhich every body shoâ—ld take notice least vvhile he seemes vvise to himself God call him foole and prove him so All our thoughts all our actions all our endeavours in what kind soe ever must have a tincture of Gods service and be done in some measure for him or els vvhile vve think ourselves rich we shall prove poore as he in the Apocalips vve are not forbiden to lay vp treasure but vve must looke â—o vvhat purpose vve lay it vp least insteed of advantaging vs it prove our ruine as it doth to most men who have no other end but themselves The tenth Application to the most Blessed Sacrament I. IN the most blessed Sacrament we have indeed plenty of fruite not produced by our owne industrie but sent vs from above as the celestiall Manna nor of one yeares growth but dayly growing from the fountaine itself our Blessed Saviour The barnes are our hart which though we have cause to inlarge with love yet vve shall not need to destroy any thing but vvhat is of itself ruinous and by the very ruine wherof we buyld Here we may freely and with out danger say to our soule soule thou hast many goods layed vp in this small roome for many yeares and for thy vvhole life time and after this life for all Eternitie take vp thy rest eate drink and make good cheare for this is the lambe slayne for vs from the beginning of the world This is the fat calfe with which the father of the prodigall child feasted him at his repentant returne This is the hidden Manna promised in the Apocalips to him that overcometh his greedines of worldly commodities and feedeth himself with this This is the food of Angels prepared for vs from heaven without any labour of ours having in it all delight and the savour of all kind of sweetenes O foolish people who either for worldly cares care not for thâ—s treasure or for waÌ„t of due consideration of the benefit of it or of the goodnes of the benefactour doe neglect it wheras after due receiving though that night vnexpectedly they should require our soule we should not need to feare but that we should be eternally his then which happenes what can we desire more II. Give vs this day our dayly bread In the primitive Church when the number of Christians were few but fervent they received dayly S. Hierome sayth of his time I know that in Rome the customâ— is that the faithfull doâ— allwayes receive the body of our Saviour And S. Ambrose argueth If it be our dayly bread why doest thou stay a yeare before thou receivest it as the Graecians in the East are wont Receive that every day which may dayly benefit thee live so as thou mayest deserve to receive dayly Christians being multiplyed and among many many not being so well disposed or so fervent the councell of S. Ignace the Martyr is to be imbraced Endeavour often to meete and Communion for when you meete often the power of Satan is weakened and his firy darts inciting vs to synne fly back vpon him with out indamaging vs. He that eaâ—eth of this bread hungers no more because the grace of this Sacrament is so full and the vnderstanding of it is so satisfactorie that whoever comes to the notice of this abundance having found out the vtmost of all perfection carying Christ about him in his breast and bearing him in his mind sounds forth by word and deed his prayses with greate ioy and is continually singing songs of thanksgiving III. No man can think but that S. Martha and her sister Marie and Lazarus did take exceeding content so oft as our Saviour came to their house and never thought he came too oft but indeavoured ever to be ready to receive him and to be diligent and respectfull at his receiving Martha did not think she did too much when she desired her sister should help her but she thought that both of them could not doc enough she complayned that she was left alone to wayte vpon him let vs looke that our Saviour have not reason to complayne of vs that we doe leave him alone he ministring to vs and we either doo not come to him or whe we have received him doe not attend him Here he presents vs not with a part but with his whole self VVho is there among the faithfull that can make any doubt but that at the instant of the consecration the heavens are opened at the Priests voyce That at that SacrameÌ„t of our Saviour Iesus Christ quires of Angels are present The high and the low are coupled togeather earth and heaven are ioyned visible and invisible are made one thing VVho therfore that is right in his senses will despise or neglect this reverend and dreadfull mysterie The watchfull and diligent servant commended I. LEt your loynes be girded and candles burning in your hands and you like men expecting their Lord when he shall returne from the mariage that when he doth coâ—and knock forthwith they may open vnto him It 〈◊〉 the custome of the Eastren people to go in long garmeÌ„tâ— therfore he bids vs have our loynes girt That we maâ— be free sayth Tertullian from the impediments of a loose life intangling our feete so that we cannot be quick in walking but ready at every step to stumble and burning lights in our hands that is our mind burning with a lively faith and shining with the light of good workes Thus we must expect our
doctâ—ine and miracles of our Saviour bred a desire in the Gentils to see him our Saviour vpon notice of this honour retireth his thoughts to his passion and death The houre indeed is at hand in which I shall be glorified by the conversion of the Gentils to me but it will not fully come till I die I rejoyce much that I shall be then glorified but first I must indure the pangs of death This is the way to my glorie and in very truth I say vnto you that be a body of never so fine a graâ—ne yet if falling to the ground and acknowledging from whence he was taken he die not to all worldly content he will not bring much fruite for he that loveth his life and maketh too much of it shall lose it and he that hateth his life in this world and vseth it accordingly doth keepe it to life everlasting A greate and strange saying how a bodies loue should turne to his ruine his hatred to his exaltation If thou love evilly thou hatest if thou hatest well thou lovest Happy are they who preserve themselves by hatred that they may not perish by love II. If any man minister to me let him follow me and where I am there also shall my minister be if any man minister to me my Father will honour him Now my soule is trobled and what shall I say Father save me from this houre but therfore came I into this houre father glorifie thy name The hatred which our Saviour requireth is not without comfort in this life and reward in the next The comfort in this life is that we have our Saviour going before vs we follow him who cannot misse of the way we follow him who as he is farre greater theÌ„ we so have we the farre lesse reasoÌ„ to shrinke froÌ„ him aÌ„d the greater incouragement to follow him The reward is to be where he is to be not only rewarded but honoured by God himself Now our soule is trobled with the thought of this death but what shall we sayâ— Shall we desire to be freed from itâ— No it were neither for ourgood nor for his glorie Therfore we câ—Ì„e into this world to be ordered as God should see best to this we wust conforme and we shall find it best for vs also Sonne suffer me to doe with thee what I will I know what is expedient for thee thou thinkest as man thou iudgest in many things as humane affection perswades thee Father glorifie thy name for in this is my full content III. A voyce therfore came from heaven Both I have glorified it and I will glorify it The multitude that stood and heard sayed it thundered others sayed an Angel spake to him Iesus sayed this voyce came not for me but for your sake Now is the iudgment of the world now the Prince of this world shall be cast forth And I if I be exalted from the earth will draw all things to myself and this he sayed signifying what death he should dye Conformable to our Saviours humilitâ—e the voyce sayed not I have glorified thee and I will glorify thee but I have glorifyed it that is my name which is thy desire and the desire of all that are perfect what ever become of me be thou glorified The multitude though hearing vnderstands not this language but is rather terrified with it as some people with thunder but it is the language of Angles and of God himself Sonne say thus in every thing If it be pleasing to thee let this be done thus ô Lord. If it be an honour to thee let it be done in thy name This proceeding of God condemnes the ludgment of the world and by it the Prince of this world who domineers over most part of it by the synfull life of worldlings is to be cast forth By the death vpon the Crosse our Saviour drawes mens harâ—â— after him even against the naturall inclination which wâ— have to ease and pleasure and yet so as they doe willingly and joyfully follow him Doe not think that thou art drawne against thy will love also draweth the mind Have our corporall senses their delights and shall not the mind have its delights also The spowse sayth draw me â—e will runne after thee in the odour of thy oynements Our Saviour teacheth that he is not only man but God I. THe multitude answered him we have heard out of the law that Christ abideth for ever and how 〈◊〉 thou the sonne of man must be exalted Who is this Sonne of man Iesus sayed to them yet a little while the light is among you Walke while you have the light that the darkenes overtake you not He that walketh in darknes knoweth not whether he goeth While you have the light beleeve in the light that you may be Children of the light These things Iesus spake and nent away and hid himself from them See how necessarie it is besides the law which the multitude had heard and many of them doubtlesse had read to have a right interpreter of the law It was very true that Christ was to abide for ever and yet it was also true that he was to dye and not to stay here visibly for ever In like manner there be many things in holy Scripture which seeme to be contrarie one to the other and yet are not being rightly vnderstood be not therfore easyly moved or trobled when they occurre but referre thyself to the Church and to the teachers therof The light of the truth was among the Jewes for a time by their obstinate refusing to give full credit to our Saviour they fell into the darkenes in which we see them and they know not alas whether they go with them that among them beleeved the light did continue and they became the Children of light Beleeve also that the light may not forsake thee Our Saviour went away and hid himself partly by reason of the obstinate Pharisees who sought his destruction before his time partly to avoyde the honour which others were ready to give him vpon the voyce speaking to him from heavaven II. Wheras he had done so many signes before them they beleeved not in him yet of the Princes also many beleeved in him but for the Pharisees they did not confesse that they might not be cast out of the Synagag for they loved the glorie of men more then the glorie of God O the miserable captivitie of people desirous to please men They contemne God but stand in owe of men and will doe any thing to yet their favour Besides signes and miracles there must be a pious inclination to beleeve otherwise vpon an obstinate hart they seldome worke good life also helps oftimes for they who are vnwilling to leave their synns ate loth to heare any thing that may move then to it III. But Iesus cryed and sayed he that beleeveth in me doth not beleeve in me but in him that sent me and he that seeth me
me not to eate I was thirstie aÌ„d you gave me not to drink I was a stranger c. And these shall goe into punishment everlasting but the iust into life everlasting A terrible saying Go yee away from me who am all happines all goodnes all ioy and content from me who have spent my hart blood for you as you see by these markes of my wounds reserved Go yee away you accursed not by my fathers privie ordinatiâ— but by your owne disorders which have brought this curse vpon you goe into fire everlasting not prepared originally for you but for the rebellious spirits whose directions seeing you choose rather to follow then myne it is reason you should rather beare them companie then mee and as you were vnmercifull to your companions looke for no mercy here but punishment and that everlasting If now a little suffering doe make thee so iâ—patient how wilt thou be able to abide the everlasting torments The sixteenth Application to the most Blessed Sacrament I. THe coming of our Saviour at the later day will be very terrible and the more terrible the slighter we make of his loving and gracious coming vnto vs here as therfore he advised vs to make frâ—ends of the Mammon of iniquitie that when we sayle they may receive vs into the eternall tabernacles Much more ought we indeavour carefully to intertayne his frendship here that there also we may find him our frend For if here we think it tedions to be with him how can we think that there he can be so very loving towards vs It is very true that by acts of trne repentance we purchase his favoâ—r but there is difference in favours as there is in merits and it is the token of a meane spirit to be content with the least when it is in our power to have greater and also that we have not in our thoughts the right value of such favours besides the danger of leesing them here by slighting them and there by iust punishment The foolish Virgins were once in favour they had not that care of preserving it as they ought to have had they were shut out with I know you not Because you did not know mee nor the greatnes of my favours towards you The conclusion was watch therfore be not carelesse be not disrespectfull doe not slumber when you are to come to this holy banket nor after it To slumber before we sleepe is before death to grow remisse in the busines of salvation II. Behold the bridegrome cometh go forth to meete him In the later end of the Apocalyps when our Saviour had proclaymed I am the roote and the stock of David the bright morning starre the spirit and the spouse or bride sayed come and it followeth And he that heareth let him say come aâ—d he that thirsteth let him come and he that will let him take the water of life gratis That is freely without cost or charge As much as to say as vpon the least notice of our Saviours loving aproch he that hath spirit and the hart and loving disposition of a bride will instantly imbrace his coming and be as ready to invite him as he inviteth vs if not it is a signe that either we are thick of hearing or dull in vnderstanding his worth or soe altered with worldly occasions that we thirst not the true water of life If we were rightly disposed what ioy what content what comfort what readines and diligence what care and circumspection what speed what alacritie would not this newes bring the bride groome cometh Beware that because it is not so greate newes but that dayly this voyce is heard because dayly he offereth himself thou be not the lesse taken with it wheras so greate a benefit so often offered is so farre from lessening the favour that it becomes inestimably greater by it III. The structure of the Temple of Hierusalem was admirable nothing but gold and sylver and pretious stones was seen in all the furniture of it though all the sacrifices performed in it were but figures of this one sacrifice offered dayly in the Church of God How rich should in reason our Temples be Specially that of which the Apostle speaking sayth doe you not know that you are the temple of God The honour of God and the dignitie of him that was worshipped in it did then require such ornament much more doe our soules require seeing we doe really receive the same God who was in the other represented by faith and by some extrinsecall relation to it And can it be thought sakth Salomon at the dedication of his Temple that truly God doth dwell vpon earth For if heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot receive thee how much more this house which I have built And yet here truly he dwelleth Invite the heavens and the dwellers in them to magnifie this greate worke of his and to supply the want thou findest in thy house Begge and imitate the knowledge of the Cherubins the love of the Seraphins the quiet of the Thrones the courage of the Dominations the noblenes of the Principalities the fortitude of the Powers and the pieâ—ie of the Vertues the provident care of the Archangels the diligence of the Angels the hope of the Patriarchs the faith of the Apostles the constancie of the Martyrs the reverent respect of the Bishops and Doctours the humilitie and mortification of the other Confessours the puritie of Virgins VVith greate devotion and with ardent love and with the whole affection and servour of my hart I desire ô Lord to receive thee as many Saints and devout persons when they did communicate did desire thee c. SEVEN SEATS OF OVR BLESSED SAVIOVR WHEREIN BY A LOVING AND RESPECTFVLL SOVLE HE MAY BE FOVND IN THE SEVEN DAYES OF THE WEEKE AND CONVERSATION HELD WITH HIM WITH SPIRITVALL SATISFACTION THE INTRODVCTION I. THE bride in the canticles addressing herself in a loving way to the Bride groome maketh this request Shew me o thou whome my soule doth love where thou feedest where thou lyest in the mid-day as much as to say shewe me how I may come to know thee how I may come to love thee in perfection feeding representing knowledge because it is with labour of searching and ruminating lying or resting representing love which is a content and satisfaction in the beloved Knowledge in the way of spirit of which we speake was represented to the Propher Esay in the two wings of the Seraphins with which they did fly love in the foure wings with which they did cover Gods or their owne face and feete for to come to perfection the acts of the will and of love ought to be double to those of the vnderstanding and knowledge these being as the steel and stone struck one vpon the othe as the fire and tinder taking those are the needle these ars the thread which remaineth in the worke and accordingly that which we call meditation hath more of
in providing such sustenance for vs of a mother and nurse in feeding vs at his owne breast of a frend iâ— comforting and assisting vs All these kindnesses require loving coâ—respondence on our part let vs â—leare ourselves of as many imperfections as ws can that we may be lesse troblesome accommodate ourselves to his will and pleasute in all things and be continually giving ourselves even to death for his sake if he so require and be sure never to be from him by any grievous offence II It is sayed in the first of kingâ— that the soule of Ionâ—thâ—s was ioyned fâ—st to the soule of David and Ionathas lovâ—d him as he owne soule and they entred aleague and Ionathas striped himself of the coate where with he was clothed and gave it to David and thee rest of his garments vnto his sword and bow and vnto his belt Such ought to be our love towards our blessed Saviour in this most blessed Sacrament not only to be able to say with S. Paul Who shall separate vs from the Charitie of Christ Tribulation or distresse or famine or nakednes or danger or persecution or the sword But we must indeavour to have so tender a love towards him that we be as it Were one soule and one body for this is the inteÌ„t of this his loving and familiar communication of himself vnto vs forâ— as melted waxe if it be poured into other waxe they are throughly mingled one with the oother so he that receiveth the blessed body and blood of our Saviour is ioyned vnto him so that Christ is to be found in him and he in Christ. He being sonne to the king of heaven striped himself of his glorie to cloth vs with glorie and gave vs the rest of his garments that is his verâ—uous life and example to imitate of what should not we strip ourselves to offer vnto him Specially our passions of Anger and splâ—nâ— and revenge so contrarie to this Sacrament of lâ—ve and lay them at his feete never to take them vp but in his defence and purely in his cause III Our everlasting happines consisteth in our ever permanent vnion with God in celestiall blesse Of this happines this blessed Sacrament is a beginning and a pledge who would not be ever greedy to inioy it Entring into the ioy of his Lord so oft as â—e could and because knowledge is the greatest sput to love who would not be ever â—â—minating and ever loving his perfections and with the Cherâ—bins and Seraphins saying Holy holy holy Thoâ— art my God my Crâ—atoâ—r my Redeemer infinite in power in Wisedomâ— in goodnes in mercyes in liberalitiâ— in patienâ—e iâ— humilitie in all things imaginable Thou art the giver of all good gifts and fountaâ—â—e of living watâ—rs the â—â—tidotâ— against all evills my strength o Lord and my refuge with thee I wâ—ll dwell because thee have I choosen possesse thou I beseech thee my hart Absorbeat quaeso 〈◊〉 meam ignita ac melliflua vis amoris â—ui vt â—more amoris tui moriar qui amorâ— amoris mei dignatus es mori Amâ—n The fift seate the seate of Compassion I. THe seate of Compassion is the Crossâ— on which he hung At the foote wherof finding the Magdalen I will first with her bewayle my synns which have been cause of so painefull and so disgracefull a death of so happy and so worthy a person O synne what can setforth thy enorâ—itie more theâ— that to get pardon for thee and to deface thee it behoved thâ— sonne of God â—o suffer No blood could wash the away but the blood of this lambe of God O stayne in grayne no mâ—decine cure thee but the sacred flesh of this immaculaâ—e body thus brused O venome intollerable Who will give to my head water and to my eyes a fountâ—ine of teâ—râ—s and I will â—eepe 〈◊〉 â—â—ment day and night the death of this King of all â—ations slaughtered for my synns a King crowned with thornes which ought every one of them to pearce my hâ—rt and puâ—ish in me the pride and sensualitiâ— of which he never was guyltie O nayles in his hands and feete You have miâ—taken the place where you should have been struck They are my hands and feetâ— which have synned this man whâ—t harme hath he done I find no cause iâ— him O God my God wherfore hâ—st thâ—â— thou forsaken him aâ— given him over to such a cruell death O death I will be thy dâ—â—th I will be thy mortall bit â— Hell For ioyning myself With his powerfull grace and by the merits of this victorious death I will synne no more and die rather a thousand death then offend him II. Sorrow full 〈◊〉 my soulâ— vnto death And what wonder For if I follow thee from the place where thou didst make thy last supper to the â—rosse I find nothing but teares or blood nothing but tants and scâ—ffs nothing but bloâ—â—s â—nd stripes â—othing bâ—t wouâ—ds and tâ—rments nothing but 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 against thee my God my Saviour my love What doth this thy Prayer signifie Father if it be possiblâ— let this Chalicepasse from â—e O bitter Chalice Which so much sweetnes as was in thee would not alay I doe not say it could not for certainly the request thou didst make was possible to be granted but thou wouldest not Thou didst offer thyself uÌ„to it becausâ— thou wouldest Yet this doth not excuse me from compassionating thee for however there was a Kind of necessitie put vpon thee O hard necessitie O that from my eyes there could trickle downe such drops of blood as then from thy whole body O drowsie head of mine Why doe I sleepe in this occasion Behold the Traytâ—ur sleepeth not What doe these clubs and sâ—aves and swords about this mild and innocent lambe He was dayly in the Temple among you what did you heare from him but good Their eares are stopped they hale him away by night they buffet him they misvse him they condemne him to dye as guiltie of what What â—ccusâ—tion bring you â—â—â—inst this man I am the mâ—lefactour I â—m â—e that haâ—h synned I have done wickedly this lambe what hath he done Let this â—and I bâ—sâ—â—ch thee be turned vpon me and vpon the house of my soule which hath harboured so many vnlawfull tumultuoâ—s and â—iotouâ— guests against the law of God and man III. Harken what a sound the lashes give which were loded vpon his tendeâ— skin perhaps for houres together behold the â—urroâ—es which they hâ—ve made in his sacred flesh and hold thy eyes from weeping if thou be so stoutâ— and thy hart from faynting if it be so hard O shame O confusion Behold the mâ—n Is this the man so cryed vp not long â—ince and now so much cryed downe as to be set behinde a murtherer and a thâ—â—fâ— and a seditioâ—s fellow O sencelesse change Take him away 〈◊〉 him away cruciâ—ie him O cry vnmercyfull Take him into thy