vp some thinges whetin before for want of leasure and time I could not geue to my self any reasonable conteatation as also to a dioine certaine new chapters which partly in mine owne concept and partly also vpon information of others I thought not vnmeet for the furnishing of this first argument and subiect of Resolution And standing determined vpon this as also comprehending in mind and cogitation the whole general corps of that which was to ensue in th' other two bookes I wel saw that I should not be able according to my first designement to compact the whole in one reasonable volume and therfore I resolued to deuide the same into two Waerof the first should conteine matter of discourse know edge speculation and confideration to moue vs to resolue the second should handle things appetteining to exercise vse and practise for putting in execution our good desires after resolution This being my cogitation and the matter now wel forward for the print I was enformed of two other editions come forth of my forsaid booke without my knowiedge the one by a Catholique as it seemeth who perceuing ai copies of the former print to be spēt for satisfying of them that desired the booke procured the same to be set forth againe albeit somewhat incorrected and very disordrely not hauing the consent or aduise of such as therin should haue geuen him best direction The second was published by one Edmund Bany minister at Bolton Percy as he writeth in the liberties of Yorke who with publicke licence vnder my Lord Archbishop of Yorke his protection set forth the same to the benefice of his brethren but yet so punished and plumed which he termeth purged as I could hardly by the face discerne it for mine when it came vnto my handes and I tooke no smale compassiō to see how pitifully the poore thing had bene handled Of this edition then of M. Buny letting passe th' other as a matter onely of a discretion without malice I haue to a laertise the reader some few things as wel for mine own discharge wherin I am charged by him as also for the readers admonishment not to thinke in deed that booke to be mine which in my name this preacher hath published And for vttering that which I haue to say in some kinde of order and conueniencie of methode I shal touch breefly in this preface thos principal pointes insuing First how this booke came foorth from me in the first edition Secondly how it was set foorth afterwardes by M. Edm. Buny Thirdly what he meaneth by his treatise annexed therunto tending as he saith to pacification Fourthly how the same booke commeth foorth at this present and how the discret reader may vse it to his best commoditie of the first edition TO shew how this booke came foorth at the first it shal be requisite perhaps to repeate breefly ī this place the things that I saied in my first preface induction which preface and induction M. Buny hath left out in his edition protesting That he durst not in conscience and in dutie tovvardes God commend the same in my vvordes vnto the reader And yet trulie was ther nothing in effect therin Gentle reader but that which here in this place shal be repeated First that the primatiue occasion inducing me to thinke vpon this worke was the sight of a booke intituled The excrcise of a Christian life writen in Italian by Doctor Loartes of the Societie of IESVS and translated some years since by a vertuous learned gentilman of our countrie Which booke for that I vnderstood of certaintie to haue profited many towardes pietie and deuotion I was moued to cause the same to be printed againe with certaine ample additions to the furnishing of some matters which that author had omitted deuiding my whole purpose into three seueral bookes wherof the first was to persuade mē vnto true resolution the secōd to instruct vs how rightely to beginne the third how a man may hould but and perseuer Secondly I shewed that being entred into the worke and hauing set downe an other order and method to my self then that treatise of D. Loartes did obserue and hauing begunao the first booke touching resolution whereof no part was handled in that other treatise I found by experience that I could not wel conioine th' one with th' other if I would satisfie either th' order or argument by me conceaued and therfore that I was inforced to resolue vpon a further labour then at the first I had intended and this was to draw out the whole three bookes my self not omitting any thing that was in the said exercise or other like good treatisses to this effect And al this to the end that our countriemen might haue some one sufficient directiō for matters of spirit and vertuous life among so many bookes of controuersies as haue bene writen are in writing daily Which bookes said I albeit in thes our troblesome and quarrelous times they be necessary for defence of our faith against so manie seditious innouations as now daily are attempted yet help they litle oftentimes to good life but rather doe fil the heades and hartes of men with a spirit of contradiction and contention which for the most part doe hinder deuotion which deuotion is nothing els but A quiet calme and peacable state of our soule induced 〈◊〉 a iotful promptnes and alacritis to the diligent execution of al things that doe or may apperteine to the honour and seruice of almightbe God For which cause the holie Apostle dehorted greatly his scholer Timothie from this contention and contradiction of wordes affirming clearly that it was profitable to nothing but to subuect the hearers I affirmed further that our forfathers were most happie in respect of vs who receauing with humilitie one vniforme faith without contention or contradiction from their mother the holie Catholique Church did attend onlie to build vpon that foundatiō good workes and vertuous life as holie scripture commandeth vs to doe wheras we spending now al our time in iangling about this first foundation of faith haue no leasure to build either gould or siluer theron as th' Apostle exhorteth vs but doe weary out our selues and our owne contentious spirits without commoditie dying with much labour and litle profit with great disquiet and smale reward For which cause I exhorted the discret reader of whatsoeuer religion and faith he were to moderate this heate and passion of contention and to enter into the careful studie and exercise of good deedes which are alwayes better among true Christians then wordes assuring him that this is the right way to obteine at Gods hāds the light of true beleefe if he were amisse Alleaging for example therof the most famous conuersion of Cornelius the Gentile whos vertuous life praiers and almouse deedes obteined at the hands of almightie God as S. Luke doth testifie that S.
the causes of my large and ample additions in this booke And yet was ther besides al thes one cause more which also I conceaued by information of others An I this was that diuers persons as I was tolde hauing desire in them selues to reade the former booke but yet being weake and feartul to be touched so nere in conscience as they imagined this booke would doe durst neuer intermedle therwith being informed that ther was nothing in the same wherwith to intertaine them selues but only such vehement matter of persuasiō as would troble and afflict thom For remedie of which inconueniencie if it were an inconueniencie I haue inserted diuers chapters and discourses of matters more plausiole and of them selues more indifferent whervvith the reader may solace his minde at such times as he findeth the same not willing to feele the spurre of more earnest motion to perfection And to the end he may the better be able to serue him self at al times and to al purposes of whatsoeuer is contayned within this booke I haue thought good to set downe in the end of al a short draught or methode for the particuler vse of euery part and parcel therof how it may sorue either to prayer or meditation or els to instruction exhortation consolation or other effect according to the time and place or to the neede state condition other qualetie of the person that shal come to reade the booke Now then good reader and my deare Christian brother hauing nothing els at this time to admonishe the of I wil end this preface and remit the to the reading of the booke it self that followeth exhorting the most earnestly for thine owne soules sake in the tender bowels of our sweet Sauiour IESVS that thou reade the same with attention as matter that appertaineth nearest of al other vnto the and with al to yeld most hartie and humble thākes to almightie God that in his Catholique Church fayleth not from time to time to sende diuers strange and stronge meanes whereby to stirre vp men to consideration of their estate and to the gayne of their saluation in the life to come This I say by almightie Gods diuine goodnes and prouidence is ordinarie in his spouse the Catholique Church wher his spirit abideth vntil the worldes end and it is so in her alone as it is her proper and peculier possession and neuer trulie to be founde in them who liue out of her albeit for a time and in some pointes they maye haue a shewe or shadoe therof This we see fulfilled in al heretiques and sectaries both of old and of our daies who albeit some times they wil seeme to writ bookes of institutions to manners and good life yet their doctrine therin being as wilde as their faith is wandering they neuer bring any thing to passe but from worse to worse wherof the whole world at this daye doth giue experience The reason of this in general may be taken from the nature and spirit of heretiques described vnto vs for our admonishment in holie scripture wherof one principal point is that they shal be as S. Paul saith Sine pace without al rest or peace and consequently alvvaies learning and neuer attaining to the knowledge of truth They shal bestow al their time in iangling and quarreling and in the meane space as S. Peter wel noteth they shal vvalke according to their ovvne concupiscences albeit they talke neuer so much of mortification and of their quickning spirite for which cause he calleth them also illusores mockers and deceauers that is as S. Paul seemeth to interprete the same fellovves that vvith seigned vvordes shal make their ovvne gaine and vvhich hauing a shevv of pietie shal in life deny the force or vertue thereof And this why heretiques in general can neither teach true pietie and deuotion not yet giue example therof in their owne liues But now if we looke into the particuler sectes that are of this our most vnhappie time we shal finde a more peculier reason why they in special much lesse may doc the same For that in truth the very groundes of their opinions doc resist altreating of such affaires neither can you vrge almost any one point of true pietie but that 〈◊〉 must impugne some principal article of their doctrine As may appeare by that which hath bene declared before concerning the places both of fathere and scriptures thrust out by M. Buny in my former booke wherof also it were not hard to make diuers most cuident demonstrations in this place For if for example sake you exhort men to labour for their owne saluation as S. Paul did Philip. 2. ver 12. then you teach them to put confidence in their owne workes which with protestantes is abhominable If you encourage men to suffer in respoct of rewarde as Christ did Matth. 5. ver 12. then fal you flatly vpon the doctrine of merite If you tel them that heauen is put in their owne handes to gaine as our Sauiour did Math. 11. ver 12. then allow ye not only of morite but also of free wil. If you wish men to liue in feare and trembling in respect of Gods secret iudgements and of the vncertaintie of our saluation as S. Paul did Phi. 2. ver 12. Hob. 3. ver 14. and S. Peter 2. ep 3. ver 17. then impeach you the certaintie of protestantes predestination If you counsail men to make amendes by good workes forth 〈◊〉 euil life past as S. Iohn Baptist did Luke 3. ver 8. then you reach satisfaction If you terrifie them with the feare of hel and with the declaration of the paines in the world to come as Christ did Math. 8. ver 12. then with them you offer iniurie to Gods infinit mercie If you exhort men to fasting praying loue of virginitie desire of pouertie chastesing their own bodies restitutió penance and the like as al the course of holie scripture doth then runne you into plaine and open papistrie And then deare Christian brother what treating can ther be of pietic in life wher none of thes important matters may be once named Truly good brother wel may a man vainlie talke in the aire of a quick ening spirite and mstrification as they are wonte in pastime to doe but nothing in sinceritie-wil euer be brought to passe where thes weightie pointes be not soundly and seriously handled For take away the mention of thes thinges forth of holie scripture it self together with the large and frequent exhortations that therin are made vnto them and very litle wil remaine about other affaires the cheefe indeuour of Gods holie spirit being bent as is manifest to the setting forthe and inculcating of thes matters aboue al other vnto Christian people Which spirit of almightie God the Catholique Church his holie and deare spouse taking vpon her to imitate after the foundation of true faith once laide calleth vpon her children both daily
what eche tribe should attaine after his death by drawinge of lottes Againe the same Moyses forsawe and fortolde in publique hearing of all the people how in tymes to come longe after his death the Iewes should forsake God and for their synnes be cast into manie banishementes and finallie be forsaken and the Gentiles receaued in their roome as in deed it came to passe And whence trow you could he learne this but from God alone In the booke of Iosue there is a curse layed vpō the place where Iericho stoode and vpon what soeuer person should goe about to rebuild the same to wit that in his eldest sonne he should lay the foundations and in his yongest sonne should he builde the gates therof which is to saye that before the foundations were layed and gates builded he should be punished with the death of all his children Which thing was fulfilled almost fiue hundred yeares after in one Hiel who presumed vnder wicked kinge Achab to rebuild Iericho againe and was terrified from the same by the suddaine death of Abiram and Segub his children as the booke of kinges reportech according to the vvorde of our Lord vvhich he had spoken in the hande of Iosue the fonne of Nun And since that tyme to this no man ether Iewe or Gētile hath taken vpon hym to raise againe the said Citie albeit the situation be most pleasant as by relation of Stories and Geographers appeareth In the third booke of kinges it is recorded that when Ieroboam had withdrawen ten tribes from th' obedience of Roboam kinge of Iuda to th' ende they might neuer haue occasion to revnite thē selues againe to Iuda by their goinge to sacrifice in Ierusalem as by the law they were appointed he builded for them a goodlie gorgeous highe Aulter in Bethel and there cōmanded them to doe their deuotions And when he was one day thero present hymself and offering his incense vpon the said Aulter and all the people lookinge on there came a man of God sayeth the scripture and stoode before the Aulter and cried out aloude and spake thes wordes O Aulter Aulter this sayeth our Lorde behold a childe shal be borne of the hovvse of Dauid vvhose name shal be Iosias and he shal sacrifice vpon thee thes idolatrous priestes that novv burne francomsense vpon the and he shal burne the bones of men vpon thee Thus spake that man of God in the presence and hearinge of all the people more then three hundred yeares before Iosias was borne and it was registred prosentelie according to the manner of that tyme which I haue noted before and with the same were registred also the miracles which happened about that fact as that the Aulter clefte in two vpō the mans wordes and Ieroboam extendinge owt his hande to apprehend hym lost presentelie the vse and feeling therof vntill it was restored againe by the said holie mans prayers who notwithstanding for that he disobeyed Gods commandement in his returne and dyd eate with a prophet of Samar a which was forbidden hym he was slaine in his way homeward by a Lion and his bodie was brought backe againe buried in Bethel nigh the said Aulter amongest the sepulchers of those idolatrous preestes of that place but yet with a superscription vpon his tombe conteining his name and what had happened There passed three hundred yeares and Iosias was borne and came to reigne in Iuda And one daye cōming to Bethel to ouerthrow the Aulter and to destroye the sepulchers of those idolitrous priestes that had bene buried i that place whē he began to breake their tombes he fownde by chance the sepulcher of the said man of God with the superscription vpon it By which superscription and by relation of the citizēs of Bethel when he perceaued that it was the sepalcher of hym that had fortolde his byrth his name and his doinges so manie hundred years before he was borne he lett the same stande vntouched as the fowerth booke of kinges doth declare Now consider whether among anie people in the world but onlie amonge the Iewes ther were euer anie such prophetie so certaine so particuler so longe fortolde before the tyme and so exactelie fulfilled But yet the holie scriptures are full of the lyke and tyme permitteth me onlie to touch some few of the principal Esay the prophet is wonderful in fortelling the mysteries and actes of the Messias his natiuitie his life and all the particulers that happened in his passiō In so much that S. Ierome sayeth he may seeme rather to write a storie of deedes past then a prophetie of euentes to come But yet among other thinges it is to be noted that he liuing in a peaceable and prosperous tyme in Iuda when the Iewes were in amitie and greate securitie with the Babyloniās he forsawe and fortolde the destruction of Ierusalem by the said Babylonians and the greeuous captiuitie of Iewes vnder them as also the destruction of Babylon againe by Cyrus kinge of Persia whose expresse name and greatnes he published in writing almost two hundred yeares before he was borne saying in the person of God First to Ezechias king of Iuda that reioysed in the frindshippe he had with Babylon behold the dayes shall come vvhen all that thou and thye fathers haue layed up shall be caried avvay to Babylon and thy children shal be eunuches in the king of Babylons Palace And next to Babylō he said the destruction of Babylon vvhich Esay the sonne of Amos savve c. houle crie for that the day of our Lorde is at hande c. And thirdlie to Cyrus not yet borne who was preordained to destroye the same and to restore the people from banishemēt to rebuild the temple in Ierusalē he sayeth thus I say to Cyrus thou art my shepheard and thou shalt fulfill all my vvill I say to Ierusalem thou shalt be builded againe I say to the temple thou shalt be founded again This sayeth our Lord to my amointed Cyrus I vvill goe before thee vvill humble the glorious people of the earthe in thy presence I vvill breake their brasen gates crushe in peeces their yron barres for my seruant Iacobs sake haue I called thee by thie Name and haue armed the vvher as thou knovvest not me Can anie thing be more clearlie or miraculouslie spoken in the world then to name a heathé not yet borne that should conquerre so stronge a Monarchie as Babylon was at this tyme should builde againe the temple of Ierusalem which others of his owne religiō had destroyed before hym what cause what reason what lykeliehode could be of this yet Esay speaketh it so confidentelie as he sayeth that he savve it and he nameth two witnesses therof that is Vrias and Zacharias that were not borne in manie yeares after saying and I tooke vnto me tvvo faithful vvitnesses Vrias the prieste and Zacharias
his rickes of corne And to the negligent it is said on th' other side Egestatem operata est manus remissa The lazie and slouthful hand doth worke vnto his maister nothing els but beggarie And finally the more to confound our foly lazines in this point and to make deeper impression therof in our hartes we are by holy writ referred euen vnto the schoole and instruction of vnreasonable creatures in this behalfe Goe thou slouthful and lither sellovv sayeth the wisdome of God vnto the Ant or emmote and consider his vvayes and by hym learne vvisdome He hath neither gouernour nor maister to teach hym and yet doth he in sommer make prouision of soode vvheron to liue and sustaine hym self in vvinter By which wordes we are admonished not only what is our dutie in this life concerning labour and trauaile in good workes but also that the most excellent and supreme point of wisdome which possibly can be imagined is to gather store in this time present for the time to come and to make our bancke here in this world wheron to liue in the countrie wherunto we take our iourney This is that great and rare wisdome which is called in scripture the vvisdome of Saintes or rather as S. Paul termeth it the wisdome of God him self not knowen to the world That wisdome which Esay calleth diuitias salutis the treasure of saluatiō That wherof the wise man saith cogitare de illa sensus est consummatus to thinke onlie and ponder vpon this kinde of wisdome is most perfect vnderstanding and prudent knowledge And againe God loueth no man but hym that dvvelleth or remayneth vvith vvisdome And finallie to stirre vs vp to this kinde of wisdome he maketh an ample exhortation with a declaration of the nature dignitie vtilitie therof in thes wordes Come to this wisdome as he that soweth vpon hope of haruest haue patience for a tyme to expect her fruites Thou must labour and take paines a litle in her worke and soone after shalt thou taste of the commodities she bringeth forth Oh how vngrateful is she to the ignorant and a foole will not abide her She is not reueiled to many but to whom she is once knowen with them she remaineth vntill she bringe them vnto the sight and presence of God hym self c. Harken therfore my sonne follow her wayes with all thy force c. For that at the last daye thou shalt finde rest in her she shal turne thee to great ioye and consolation This was that blessed and wise mans counsaile and for fulfilling of this counsail as also for obtaining the rest ioye final consolation wherof here is mentiō S. Paul crieth so vehementelie vnto vs exhorting vs euerie wher to doe good workes and that abundantelie instantelie in al tymes to all men vpon al occasions with immoueable constancie assuring vs that our labour herein shall not be lost but that the tyme shall come whē we shall reape incessantlie To which purpose also appertaineth the parable propounded by our Saueour of the prudent Steward with a verie effectual exhortation in the ende that in this life we should purchase our selues friendes by the vse and distribution of our wicked mammō which friendes maye afterward make vs place in heauen To this effect are directed all those admonitions of holie scripture VVorke your ovvne saluation And againe bretheren be ye careful to make your vocation and election sure by good vvorkes And yet further S. Paul adioyneth an other circumstance therby to moue vs the soner saying VVbile vve haue tyme lett vs doe good vvorkes insinuating hereby that this tyme present was allowed vs onlie for that purpose and that this tyme being past ther would be no more place for such matters a cording to that sage admonishement of our Saueour hym self the night vvill come vvhen no man can vvorke any more For preuenting of which night and to take the tyme while it serued verie straunge it is to cōsider the paines watchfulnes and diligence which auncient holie Christians in former ages did vse and the sensles forgetfulness wherin we passe our dayes now They imitated the good husbandman who is careful to cast his seede into the grounde whiles faire wether lasteth and the diligent marchāt who euer stippeth not to lay owe his money while the good market ēdureth They knew the tyme would not be lōge which they had to worke in therfore they bestirred thē selues seriously whiles opportunitie was present Hereof among other thinges proceeded all thos goodlie 〈◊〉 of almes-deedes and charitable workes yet exstant to the world as witnesses of their excercise in this kinde of wisdome So many commō wealthes established so many churches builded and indued with abundant maintenāce so many By shopprickes deanries Archedeaconries Chanonries Prebendes Chantries and Benefices So manie Hospitales and houses of Orphanes fatherles infantes as also for the reliefe of other poore impotent and distressed people So many Seminaries Schooles Halles Colleges and Vniuersities for increase of learninge So many Bridges highe-wayes Caussies Townhouses and other publique commodities So many places of prayer and deuotion as Monastaries Abbayes Priories Couuentes Nunries Eremitages Cells Oratories and other like for repose of vertuous people that would leaue the worlde and betake them selues onlie to contemplation of heauenlie thinges and excercise of a more holie and retired life Al which charitable deeds and many more that can not be recounted came out of the purses and coffers of godlie Christians in auncient times who very often gaue not only of their abondance and superstuities but spared also from their owne sustenance and necessarie releefe as also tooke awaie and aliened many things from their owne children and posteritie to emploie thē in thes charitable vses for the benefite of their soules Wheras on the contrarie side we that now liue in this miserable corrupt time are so farre of from geuing away our necessaries and plucking from our owne bodies to thes offices of charitie that we make no scruple at all to spoile the poore and godlie of thes benefites and releefes which were left vnto them by our holie forefathers And as for our owne superstuities and excesses we seeke commōlie to emploie them rather on haukes and dogges and other brute beastes as sometimes also vpō much more vile vses then in charitable deedes to the releefe of our poore brethern and to the ease of our owne soules in the life to come So vtterly faileth the whole world at this daie in performing this point of doing good deedes Wherfore to drawe to a conclusion of this whole chapter it may appeare by that which hitherto hath bene said first what a perfect and most excellent creature a good Christian is whos life is nothing els but a continual warfare and resistāce of al sinne both I thought word and deed and an incessant exercise of al pietie and
loue and how can I haue the harte to offend thee hereafter seing thou hast preuented me so manie wayes with benefites euen when I demaunded not the same Can I haue hādes euermore to sinne agaīst thee which hast gyuen vp thine owne handes to be nayled on the crosse for me No no it is to great an iniurie agaīst thee ô Lord and woe worth me that haue dōneit so oftē heretofore But by thy holy assistāce I trust not to returne to such iniquitie for the time to come to which I beseeche the for thy mercie sake from thy holie throne of heauen to saye Amen OF WHAT OPINION WE SHAL BE CONCERNING THE MATTERS AFORsaid at the time of our death As also vvhat our state shal be at that passage and hovv different our iudgement from that it is novv CHAPT X. THE holy scriptures doe teach vs and experience maketh it plaine that during the time of this life the commodities prefermentes pleasures of the world doe possesse so stronglie the hartes of manie men and doe hold them chained with so forcible enchauntmentes being forsaken also vpon their iust desertes of the grace of God that saye and threaten what a man can and bring against then all the whole scripture euen from the begynning of Genesis to the end of the Apocalips as in decde it is al against synne and synners yet wil it preuaile nothing with them being in that lamentable case as either they beleeue not or esteeme not what so euer is saide to that purpose against their setled lyfe and resolution to the contrarie Of this we haue infinite examples in scripture as of Sodome and Gomorra with the cities ther about which would not heare the warninges that good I ot gaue vnto thē Of Pharao also and his court whom al that euer Moyses could doe ether by signes or sayinges moued nothing at al. Of Iudas in like maner who by no sweet meanes or sharpe threatninges vsed to him by his maister could be brought to change his wicked resolution But especially the holy Prophets sent by God from tyme to tyme to dissuade the people from their noughtie life and consequentlie to deliuer them from the plagues that hanged ouer them doe gyue abundant testimonie of this matter complaining cuerie where of the hardnes of synners hartes that wold not be moued with al the exhortations preachings promisses allurementes exclamations threatnings and thunderinges that they could vse The Prophet Zacharie shal testifie for all in this behalf who faieth of the people of Israel a litle before their destruction This sayeth the Lord of hostes iudge iustije wherunto presentlie he addeth And they vvould not attende but turning their backes vvent avvaye and stopped their eares to the ende they might not neare and they did obdurate their hartes as an adamant stone to the end they might not heare the lavve and the vvordes vvhich God did send in his spirite by the handes of the former Prophetes vvherby godes great indignatiō vvas stirred vp against them This then is and alwayes hath bene the maner of dissolute worldlinges and reprobare people to harden their hartes as an adamant stone against any thing that can be told them for the amendement of their liues and for the sauing of their soules Whiles they are in health and prosperitie they wil not know God as in an other place himself complaineth But yet as the Prophet saieth God wil haue his daye with thes men also when he wil be knowen And this is cognoscetur Dominus iudicia saciēs God wil be knowen when he begineth to doe iudgmēt which is at the daye of their death being in deed the next dore to their iudgement according as S. Paul testifieth saying it is appointed for al men once to die and after that ensevveth iudgement This I saye is the day of God most terrible sorowful and ful of tribulation to the wicked wherin God wil be knowen to be a righteous God and to restore to euerie man according as he hath donne vvhile he liued or as the Prophet describeth it he vvilbe knovven then to be a terrible God and such as one as taketh avvaye the spirite of princes a terrible God to the kinges of the earth At this daye as there wil be a great change in al other thinges mirth being turned into sorow laughinges into weepinges pleasures into paines stoutnes into feare pride into despaire and the like so especiallie wil there be a strange alteration in the iudgement and opinion of men for that the wisedome of God wherof I haue spoken in the former chapters and which as the scripture saieth is accounted folie by the vvise of this vvorld wil then appeare in her likenes and as it is in verie deede wil be confessed by her greatest enimies to be the onlie true wisedome and al carnal wisdome of worldlinges to be meere folie as God calleth it This the holie scripture setteth downe clerelie when it describeth the verie speeches and lamentations of the wise men of this world at the last daye concerning the state of holy men whom they despised in this life We senseles mē did esteeme their life to be mere madnes their end to be dishonorable but looke how they are now acconnted among the children of God and their portion is with the sainctes We haue erred from the waye of trueth and the light of righteousnes hath not shined before vs nether hath the sunne of vnderstanding appeared vnto vs. We haue weried out our selues in the waye of iniquitie and perdition and we haue walked craggie pathes but the waye of our Lord we haue not knowen Hytherto are the wordes of holie scripture wherby we may perceyue what great change and alteration of iudgement there wil be at the last daye from that which men haue now what consessing of folie what acknowledging of errour what hartie sorow for laboure lost what fruiteles repentance for hauing runne a-wrie O that men would ponder and consider attentiuely these thinges now VVe haue vveried out our selues saye thes miserable men in the vvayes of iniqnitie and perdition and vve haue vvalked craggie pathes What a description is this of lamentable wordlinges who beate their braines dailie and wearie out them selues in the pursute of vanitie and chasse of this worlde for which they suffer notwithstanding more paine often times then doe the iust in purchasing of heauen And when they arriue at the last daie to the gate of death weried and worne out with trouble and toyle they finde that al their labour is lost all their vexation taken in vaine For that the litle pelfe which they haue scraped together in this world for which they haue struggled and drudged so extremely wil auaile thē nothing at that instant but rather encrease exceedingly the burden of their afflictions Which afflictions shal be so manifold greeuous and intollerable in the wicked as no mind created
as we reade that the conscience of wicked Cain was after he had slain his own brother and of Antiochus for his wickednesse done to Ierusalem and of Ludas for his treason against his maister as our Saueour also doth signifie generallie of al naughtie men when he saieth that they haue a worme that gnaweth their consciences both day and night The reason wherof the holie scripture openeth in an other place when it saieth al vvickednesse is sul of feare geuing testimonie of damnation against it self and therfore a troubled conscience alvvaies presumeth cruel matters That is to say it presumeth cruel thinges to be imminent ouer itself as it maketh account to haue deser ued But yet further aboue al other holie Iob most liuelie setteth furth this miserable state of wicked mens consciences in thes wordes A vvicked man is proued al the dayes of his life though the time be vncertaine hovv long he shal playe the tyrant The sound of terrour is alvvaies in his eares and although it be in time of peace yet he alvvay suspecteth some treason against him He beleeueth not that he can rise againe from darknesse to light expecting on euery side the svvord to come upon him VVhen he sitteth doune to eate he remembreth that the day of darknesse is redy at hand for him tribulation terrefieth him and anguish of minde enuironeth him euen as a king is enuironed vvith soldiars vvhen he goeth to vvarre Can any thing be expressed more effectuallie louing brother then this matter is here let doune by holie writ it self what creature may be imagined more miserable and pittiful than this man which hath such a boucherie and slaughter house within his owne brest and harte what feares what anguishes what desperatiōs are here declared S. Chrisostome discourseth most excellentlie vpō this point Such is the custome of sinners sayeth he that they suspect al thinges in so much as they doute their owne shadowes they are afeard at euery litle noise and they thinke euery man that cometh towardes them to come against them If men talke together they thinke they speake of their sinnes Such a thing is sinne as it bewrayeth it self though no man accuse it It holdeth alwayes the sinner in extreme feare albeit ther be no appearance of any danger to wardes hi. Heare how notablie holy writ describeth this feare of sianers the iust mās libertie The vvicked man flieth though no man pursue him And whie doeth he flie if no man pursue him for that he hath within his owne conscience an accuser that doth pursue him the which accuser he alwayes carieth aboute with him And as he can not flie from him self so cā he not flie from this accuser that resteth within his conscience but where soeuer he goeth he is pursued beaten and whipped by the same and his wounde is incurable But the iust man is nothing so The iust man saveth Salomon is as consident as a lion Hitherto are the wordes of S. Chrisostome VVHERBY AS also by the scriptures before alleaged we take notice yet of an other prerogatiue of vertuous life which is a most liuelie hope or cōfidence of eternal saluation this being one of the greatest treasures and richest Iewels that Christian men haue left them in this life For by this we passe through al afflictiōs al tribulations and aduersities most ioyfullie By this we say with S. Paul VVe doe glorie in our tribulations knovving that tribulation vvorketh patience and patience proofe proofe hope vvhich consoundeth vs not This is our most strong and mightie comfort this is our sure ankor in al our most tēpestuous times and stormes according as the same holie Apostle auoucheth when he saith that it is a most strong solace and comfort vnto vs when we make our refuge to the hope that is proposed by God that can not lie which hope we hold as the sure infallible anker of our soule This is that noble helmet of saluation as the same Apostle calleth it which beareth of al the blowes that this world can laye vpon vs. And finallie this is the onelie rest set vp in the harte of a vertuous man that come life or come death come health or come sickenesse come wealth or come pouertie come prosperitie or come aduersitie come neuer so violent seas and waues of persecution he fitteth doune quietlie and sayeth calmelie with the Prophet my trust is in God and therfore I feare not vvhat flesh can doe vnto me Nay further with holy Iob amiddest al his miseries he singeth this most confident dittie si occiderit me in ipso sperabo if God should kil me yet would I put my trust in him And this is as the scripture sayed before to be as confident as a Lion whose propertie is to shew most courage when he is in greatest peril and neare vnto most troubles But now as the holy Ghost sayeth non sic impij non sic The wicked can not saie thus they haue no parte in this cōfidence no interest in this consolation Quia spes impiorum peribit sayeth the scripture the hope of wicked men is vaine and shall perish And againe praestolatio impiorum furor the expectation of wicked men is furie And yet further spes impiorum abhominatio animae The hope of wicked men is abhomination and not a comfort vnto their soule And the reason hereof is double First for that in verie deed though they say the contrarie in wordes wicked mē doe not put their hope and confidence in God but in the world in their riches in their strength friendes and authoritie finallie in the deceauing arme of man euen as the prophet expresseth in their persone when he sayeth VVe haue put a lye for our hope That is we haue put our hope in thinges transitorie which haue deceaued vs. And this is yet more expressed by the scripture saying the hope of vvicked men is as chasse vvhich the vvinde blovveth avvay and as a buble of vvater vvhich a storme disperseth and as the smoke vvhich the vvinde blovveth abrode and as the remembrance of a guest that stayeth but one day in his inne By al which metaphores the Holie Ghost expresseth vnto vs both the vanitie of the thinges wherein in deed the wicked doe put their trust and how the same faileth them after a litle time vpon euery smal occasion of aduersitie that falleth out This is that also which God meaneth when he so stormeth thundreth against those which goe into Egypt for helpe doe put their confidence in the strength of Pharao accurfing them for the same promising that it shal turne to their owne confusion which is properlie to be vnderstoode of all those which put their cheef confidence in worldlie helpes as al wicked men doe whatsoeuer they say or dissemble to the contrarie For which cause also of dissimulation they are called hypocrites by Iob
Church did leaue vnto them from the Apostles time They saw wel and were so tould by the Apostles them selues that ther was no other certaine waie to vnderstand and hold the truth first planted but to stick to this tradition for vnderstanding of scriptures which should passe from hand to hand from bishope to bishope frō doctor to doctour from Councel to Councel frō Church to Church from age to age vntil the worldes end and without this they saw by experience of thos first heresies that euery heretique would make his part as good as the catholique Church from time to time by interpreting the scriptures after his owne deuise To the end thē that Christes Catholique people might stād together firmly in vnitie of faith and arme them selues iointly to the contempt of this world suffering for their master thes holy men did so carefully crie vpon them hauing heard at the Apostles own mouthes as it may be supposed how detestable a thing heresie was ī the sight of God and whersoeuer it entred that ther was no more hope of any vertue or other good thing to saluation For which cause it is recorded in like maner that diuers of thes first martyrs being brought foorth to die in the company of certaine heretiques that offered to die also for defence of Christian religion they refused to goe forth or die in their company affirming thē in truth to be enimies to IESVS Christ howsoever otherwise they made profession to die for him This be spoken by the way concerning thes notable mens zeale in detestation of schisme and heresie and of new expositiōs of holy scripture against the tradition of antiquitie which no man can thinke to be from our purpose if he consider the times wherin we liue and how litle this tradition is now regarded by many in respect of their own new deuises and fresh inuentions But now it foloweth in the forsaid storie of Eusebius that S. Irenaeus in processe of smal time came also to make his combat for the confession of his maister in the citie of Liōs in France wher after infinit torments and afflictiōs that he suffered he ended his life the xxviij day of Iune vnder th' Emperour Seuerus But before this he was sent into Asia to the Christians there from the Christians in France that liued in persecution and in the way he had letters also to the bishop of Rome Eleutherius in his own commēdation Which letters doe wel declare what a reuerend opinion the martyrs of God had of him And th' other letters that he carried into Asia doe set foorth the maruailous trial that our Sauiour vsed at that time vpon his seruantes wherof for our instruction as also for our comfort in aduersities that fal vnto vs I haue thought good to recite some part also in this place The letters beginne thus The seruantes of IESVS Christ that dwel at Lions and Vienna in France send peace in our Lord IESVS vnto their brethern in Asia and Phrigia who haue the same faith and hope of redemption c. The greatnes of our afflictions which grow vpon vs in this place and the multitude of torments that we suffer neither can we nor any man els by writing expresse And then they shew first how they were forbid by publique edict to enter into any common house boothe or market place or to come abrod out of their own dores Secōdly frō their owne houses they were fetcht out by officers led to the market place and in the way reuiled and spit on by the people beaten with stones and other weapons which ech mā had in his hand their apparel pulled from their backes and this before iudgement was geuen against thē while yet they expected the comming of the President to determine their cause Who whē he came demaunding no other question of them but only whether they were christiās or no commaunded al maner of torments to be exercised vpon thē And for that a noble yong gentilman named Vetius began to speake a word or two in their behalf he was also condemned among the rest as aduocate of the christians Thirdly they shew that al their frindes acquaintance and kindred among the Gentils at that time forsooke them Their owne seruants for feare of tormēts came in and accused them most falsly of eating of mans flesh and that which greeued them most of al ten of their companie vpon the first sight of torments abiured Christ openly And yet al this notwithstāding they declare that Christ their Sauiour forsooke thē not in thos extremities but cōforted thē aboue al measure by the noble cōfessiōs and cōbates of diuers others wherof they recite very strang examples namely of one Sanctus a deacon who for al the torments the enemies could vse vpon him from morning vnto night could not be inforced to answere the President to no one question that he demanded but onely by those two latin wordes Christianus sum I am a Christian. Thes two wordes saith the storie serued for answere to whatsoeuer he was asked either touching him self or others The like they write of one Blandina a noble woman which wearied out al her tormentours and therfore in a rage towardes the end of the day they tied her to a great beame and hanged her vp in the aire Which beame for that it represented the forme of a Crosse as shee hanged vpon it did comfort both her and al other Christians infinitly They declare besides that their holy old bishope named Pothenus in whose place Irenaeus succeded after being four score and ten yeares old and not able so much as to stād on his feete was caried to the place by the hands of souldiours and there ended his life with incredible fortitude And of the foresaid Blandina they write that being put downe from the beame againe she was beaten with whippes rent with yron hookes set vpon a burning frying pan and after that wrapt in a net and cast amōg wilde bulles In al which torments she kept a mery countenance thanking God most hartelie for this benefit and for that shee had sene her owne children die constantly in the same place for the same cause before her They report also of one Attalus a man of great name authoritie in that cittie who being drawē forth of his house was first lead about the place of spectacle with a table borne before him wherin was writen in great latine letters This is Attalus the Christian and afterward he was abused by the people in al kinde of most extreme villanous maner but yet because of his calling the president durst procede no further against him vntil he had writē to Rome to the Emperour and receaued answer which soone after was had he in the meane space being kept in prison wher he did singuler much good then vpō the solemne day of the publike faires that were in Lions he was brought forth againe and first
Hales Scotus Durand Iandun Capreolus and others of that profession shal easily see that in this matter ther is no comparison and consequently that M. Bunis litle studie in the scholemen is lesse then nothing at al not knowing so much as the very subiect and argument which they handle or the manner how they handle the same But al this was spoken by M. Buny for a vaine florish and to persuade his reader that as him self was very learned so al that was in this booke being taken out of Dunsies as now in England they tearme scholemen might appeare more contemptible in euery mans iudgement and so in reason stand the more subiect to M. Bunis learned censure to put out cut of mangle change pare away whatsoeuer it pleased him Yet protesteth he forsooth very solemly That he allovveth vvel of the matter in general and that he is glad that some of vs also haue taken paines in this kinde of labour and that others of our prosession are sometimes occupied in reading such bookes As who would say that this were a strange and rare matter in our behalfe either to write or reade bookes of this qualitie or argument But here I would demande of M. Buny in sincerite where or when any of his religion did either make or set forthe of them selues any one treatise of this kinde or subiect I meane of deuotion pietie and contemplation Of ours I can name infinite both of times past and present As in times past S. Bernard S. Bonauenture S. Auselme Iohn Gerson Thomas de kempis Dionisius Cathusianus and others whom no man wil deny to haue bene al of our religion For this time present the most excellent writinges of Ludouicus de Granada Diegostella Polancus Angerius and this present booke with infinite others writen in this kinde doe testifie that this argument is not strange among Catholiques but rather proper and peculier vnto them alone seing that M. Buny is not able to name one on his side from the first heretique that cuer wrote vnto this daie which of his owne accorde hath employed him self in this subiect except it were of enuie and malice to defile and corrupt an other mans labours to the end they should not worke that good effect which otherwise they would as M. Buny hath now done mine and as one Rogers an other like companion whom also he nameth hath corrupted in englishe the most excellent worke of Thomas de Kempis of the imitation of Christ striking out without conscience whatsoeuer he pleaseth whereas the same booke before was truly set forth in our natiue tongue by a Catholique An other also of the same crue hath vsed the like violence vnto the holie meditations of S. Augustin and Saint Bernard putting out and in what liked him best and making thos blessed men to speake like protestātes against whom they were most opposite enimies The same hath M. Buny done vnto me throughout my whole booke and to most of the ancient Fathers therin named also as afterward shal be declared And this shameles shift of corrupting other mens bookes is an old occupation of heretiques from the beginning as may appeare by the often complaintes of most ancient fathers whos workes they were not ashamed to infect and corrupt whiles they were yet liuing In respect of which impudencie the holie Apostle S. Paul wel prophetied of them to his scholer Timothie that they should haue cauteriatam conscientiam a seared and yron-burned cōscience And againe that they should sinne wilfully and damnably in their owne knowledge and iudgement So we reade that old heretiques aduentured to corrupt not only priuate mens workes and treatises but also the holic Canons of general Councels them selues wherof therwere so many witnesses yet liuing to controle them This may appeare by the greuous complaint which holie Athanasius made in his time against the Arians for corrupting the first Nicen Councel and other fathers after him for like heretical attemptes in their times especially against the sacred text of diuine scripture in corrupting whereof al heretiques from time to time haue bene most malepert bold and impudent for shadowing their sectes with some shew of holie write And to the ende M. Buny may not here eskape and tel his reader that this was a spirit of heretiques in old time and not to be found in the protestantes of thes daies I doe referre him not only to the collections which diuers Catholiques of this age haue gathered against them touching thes attemptes but also to the testimonies confessions and accusatiōs of protestantes them selues one against and other for like impudencie Especially against the Sacramentaries or thos that folowed th' opinion of Zuinglius wherof I thinke M. Buny wil not deny him self to be one whom Martin Luther the father of al protestantes doth affirme to be the most horrible corrupters of other mens bookes that euer were concluding his whole inuectiue against them with this sentēce Their opinion of the Sacrament they began vvith lies and vvith lies they do desend the same and they broch it abrode by the vvicked fraude of corrupting other mens bookes The like he saieth and much more of their corrupting the holie scriptures in diuers places But what was Martin Luther him self irreprehensible in this pointe wherin he accuseth so vehemently the Sacramentaries No truly if we beleeue Zuinglius who termeth him both A foule corruptour and horrible salsifier of Gods vvord one that folovved the Marcionistes and Arians that rased out such places of holie vvrite as vvere against them Beza accuseth Occolampadius together with al his brethren the diuines of Basile for great impietie ī abusing the sacred scriptures traslated by them The like he doth but with much more vehemencie against Castalio an other brother affirming his dealing with holie scripture to be both bold pestilent sacrilegious and ethnical Carolus Molineus was a brother also of the same blood and yet he cōfesseth of Caluin That he made the text of the Gospel to leape vp and dovvne at his pleasure that he vsed violence to the same and added of his ovvne to the very sacred letter for dravving it to his purpose This same authour testifieth and crieth out of Beza quod de facto 〈◊〉 mutat that actually he is not ashamed to change in his translations the very text of holie scripture when it maketh against his purpose I might passe on further in stirring this euil sauoured sinke of heretical iniquitie discouered and moued by their owne brethren for such is alwaies the agreement of like mates were it not that the matter it self is vnfit for thes pages and the dealiag of M Buny with me in this booke shal easilie dec are their spirit and practise if nothing therin were alleaged besides Now then I come to shewe how dexterously he hath behaued him self in this edition of my booke FIRST IN A L places wher conueniently he maye he maketh
me speake after the phrase of Protestantes as for example page 204. of his booke wher I talke of Catholique preestes that heare confessions he maketh me saie men that be skilful to giue Counsail c. Againe page 229. wher I saie out of holie scripture here hence doe proceede al thos large promises to virginitie chastitie voluntarie pouertie c. he maketh me saie hence doe procede thos promises to mortification and nevvnes of life he striketh out the scriptures which I alleage for the other In like maner page 368. when I saie penance satissaction He maketh me saie toile of amendment And so in infinite other places which were to long here to recite M. Buny maketh me to speake like a good minister of England Neither dealeth he only thus with me but ī like maner also with the ancient fathers so long as by that meanes he can hold in with them and when he can not then he breaketh of and biddeth them a dieu Let one or two examples serue for al page 374. he ronneth on a whole halfe lease with S. Augustine turning euery wher the wordes penance and satisfaction into repentance vntil at légth S. Augustine saieth that this penāce must be inioined to the penitent by the preest and ther M. Buny leapeth ouer that but yet after a line or two ioineth with him familiarly againe and so runneth on vntil he cometh to an other blocke that cā not be remoued wher he is inforced againe to leape ouer So in like maner page 209. wher S. August recounteth the storie of S. Antonie the monke of Egipt M. Buny leaueth out the name Monke and teacheth S. Augustine to say S Antonie that had professed a priuate and solitarie life in Egipt And then wher S. Augustin writeth that ther vvas a Monasterie of the same monkes norished by S. Ambrose vvithout the vvalles of Millan M. Buny maketh him to leaue out the names of Monkes Monasterie as also the name and almes of S. Ambrose to say onlie that others as he then heard did the like euen in Millan it self And finally he frameth euery mans speech wher he can to such a stile as though he had bene trained vp in Iohn Caluins schole SECONDLY when he hath not commoditie to change the very wordes or els dareth not for that they are scripture then seeketh he to salue the matter with inserting some parenthesis as though the same were of th' authour him self So page 39. I say that our Sauiour being demanded by a certaine prince how he might be saued would geue him no other hope albeit he were a prince but if thou vvilt enter into life kepe the commandementes Wher M. Buny helpeth the matter out with this parenthesis saying He vvould geue him no other hope so long as he sought saluation by his vvorkes but keepe the commandementes c. As though this prince had sought his saluation erroniously that Christ had answered him in his error so deceaued him In like maner page 229. wher I alleage out of S. Paul and out of the reuelations that men shal be crowned in heauen according to their fight in this life M. Buny bodgeth in this parenthesis in some good measure therby to limite the Holie Ghost in his meaning Semblably page 229. when I alleage plainly the wordes of scripture No man knovveth vvhether he be vvorthie of loue or hatred in Gods sight He addeth this parenthesis by outward things as who would say that by inward things ech man might know the same which the Holie Ghost in this place did not forsee THIRDLY when he can not accōmodate the matter ether by changing the wordes or by putting in a parenthesis then maketh he oftentimes certaine amotations in the margent wherof certaine be idle and foolish some be ridiculous and absurd and other be wicked and tending to impietie Of the first kinde you may see examples page 171. wher for that I saie that our natural passions moderated may serue vs to vertue he maketh a longe and fond annotation that we doe hold that the soule doth follow the temperature of the body and thervpon doe grounde that our Lady was borne without original sinne and other such docttines which is neither so no so nor the good man vnderstandeth what he saieth in this point nor what we hold albeit if you will beleeue him he hath studied the schoelmen Page 228. wher I saie that ther was no reason in our fight whie almightie God should so much abuse his owne only sonne in this world as to suffer so many indignities as he did this man saith in a margical note that ther vvas great reason in it And so consequently doth bring the inscrutable misterie of the sonne of God his abasement wherat S. Paul so often times wondered and wherat the very Angels remaine astonished within the compasse of humane wit reason which euery simple man by nature may comprehend Of the second kinde which are absurde you may finde examples page 153. wherby a marginal note he discrediteth the beleefe of S. Cyprian about the knowledge that we shal haue of our fathers mothers and other acquaintance in heauen as though one Cyprian with Christian men of reason weighed not more in the affaires of our soule then ten coople of Bunis were they neuer so vendible So againe page 214. vpon the religious rule of life which S. Augustine reporteth to haue bene reuealed to his mother for him to follow M. Buny writeth That it vvas but a more careful indeuour in the vvay of godlines And page 212. he addeth to the same That it vvas but such as vve al saieth he are bound vnto But yet he that shal reade either S. Augustine him self or els Possidonius his scholler declaring the particulers of that rule which he saw S. Augustine obserue in life and prescribe vnto others he wil easily confesse I thinke that how soeuer the ministers of England may be bounde therunto by M. Bunis word in this annotation yet that they doe obserue but few partes therof in conuersation especially touching wiuing I am of opinion that M. Buny wil not denie S. Augustins rule to containe some-what more thē he and his fellowes at this day doe practise To like fond absurditie appertaineth that which is noted by him page 300. wher I affirming that Gods secret iudgement of ech mans particuler predestination is vncertaine to vs he noteth in the margent that calling and iustifying are very plaine and infallible tokens therof and so far is it not vncertaine to the faithful as who would saie that it were an easie mater for him that hath faith to know who are so called or iustified as is requisite to assure a man of his particuler predestination whereas notwithstanding Christ saith of the first that many are called vvhich are not chosen and of the second S. Paul saith in him self that he vvas guiltie of nothing and yet
gouernour of Iurie when S. Paul began to talke of iustice chastitie and gods iudgmentes before hym he was wonderfullie a feard and said to Paul that he should departe for that tyme and that he vvould call for hym againe aftervvard vvhen occasion should require But he neuer dyd and what was the cause For that as Iosephus testifieth he was a wicked man Drusilla his fayre ladie that was with hym at S. Pauls speeche was not his true wife but taken by allurement and violence from an other and therfore it offended them both to heare preaching of chastitie This then is one principall cause whie men of this world will not enter into consideration of their owne estate and of gods cōmandementes least they should reade and see their owne faultes beare witnesse against thē selues of their owne condemnation Wherunto the scripture annexeth an other cause not far vnlike to this which is that worldlie men doe so dro vne them selues in the cares and cogitations of this life as they leaue in their mindes no place to thinke vpon gods affaires which are the busynes of their owne soules This expresseth Ieremie the prophet most effectuallie when hauing made his complaint that not withstānding his preaching and crying in the temple-gate for long tyme together where all the people passed by hym and heard hym yet no man sayeth he would enter into consideration or say with hym self vvhat haue I donne wherof he addeth presentlie the cause and reason omnes enim conuersi sunt ad cursum suum quasi equus impetu vedens ad praelium All men are sett vpon their owne courses and wayes and doe runne in the same with as great vehemēcie and fearse obstination as a furious armed horse whē he heareth the trompett in the beginning of a battaile By which cōparison the holie ghost expresseth verie lyuelie the irrecouerable state of a setled worldlie man that followeth greedilie his owne designmentes in the negotiation of earth Thes are two of the chyefe causes of inconsideration I meane wilful malice and obstinate occupation in the vanities of this life And yet mētioneth the scripture a third sorte also of inconsiderate men who nether of direct malice nor yet of greate occupatiō in worldlie affaires doe neglect consideration but rather of a certaine lightenesse and idle negligēce for that they will not trouble their heades with any thing but disporte and recreation of whom it is written aestimauerūt lusum esse vitā nostra They esteeme this life of ours to be but a plai-game And in an other place of the same mē ita securi viuunt quasi iustorum facta habeant They lyue as securelie and considentlie without care or cogitation as if they had the good workes of iust men to stand for them But as the holie Ghost pronoūceth in the same place hoc vanissimum this is vanitie and folie in the highest degree For as in thinges of this life he were but a foolish marchant that for quietnes sake would neuer looke into his accōptbookes whether he were behind hand or before and as that ship-master were greatelie to be laughed at that for auoiding of care would sett downe and make good cheere let the shippe goe whether she would so much more in the busines of our soule is it madnesse and follie to flye consideratiō for eschuyng of trouble seing in th ende this negligence must needes turne vppō vs much more trouble and irremediable calamitie For as Ieremie sayeth to all such men in nouissimo dicrum intelligetis ca in the ende of your dayes you shall not chuse but know see and vnderstand thes thinges which now for delicacie you will not take the paines to thinke of But when shall this be trow you he telleth plainlie in the same place vvhen the furie of our lord shall come foorth as a vvhirle vvinde and shall rushe and rest vppon your heades as a tempest then shall you know and vnderstand thes thinges It seemeth that the Babylonians were a people verie faultie in this pointe of cōsideration as all wealthie people are not only by that which before hath bene touched of the daughter of Babylon that would not consider her endinge dayes but also for that not long before the most terrible destruction of that greate Citie by the Medes and Persiās God cried vnto her in thes wordes My deerlie beloued Babylō put aside the table and stand vppon thy watch rise vp you princes from eating and drinking take your targetes in your handes goe and set a watcheman vppon the walles and what so euer he seeth let hym tell you And then was there a watcheman sett vppon the wales and a Lyō to denounce with open mouth what soeuer danger he saw comming towardes them And God taught the people to crie in this sorte to their sentinel or watchman Custos quid de nocte custos quid de nocte Thow watcheman what seest thou coming towardes vs by night what espyest thou ò sentinel drawing on vs in the darkenesse By all which circūstance what els is insinuated but that god would haue vs stād vppon our watch for that his iudgementes are to come vppon the world by night when men least thinke therof they are to come as a theese at mid-night as also in an other place we are admonished and therfore happie is the man that shal be founde watcheful But now the dore and sole entrance into this watch wherof the securitie of our eternal life depēdeth can be nothing els but consideration For that where no cōsideratiō is there can be no watch nor fore-sight nor knowledge of our estate consequentlie no hope of saluation as holie S. Bernard holdeth which thing caused that blessed man to wryte fyne whole bookes of consideration to Eugenius Consideration is the thing which bringeth vs to know both god and our selues And touching god it layeth before vs his Maiestie his mercie his iudgementes his commandemēts his promisses his threatninges his proceeding with other men before vs wherby we may gather what we also in tyme must expect at this hādes And for our selues consideration is the keye that openeth the dore to the closet of our hart where all our bookes of accompt doe lye it is the looking glasse or rather the verie eye of our soule wherby she taketh the vew of her self and looketh into all her whole estate Into her riches her debtes her dueties her negligēces her good guiftes her defectes her saftie her dāger her way she walketh in her course she followeth her pace she holdeth and finallie the place and ende wherto she draweth And without this consideratiō she runneth on hedlong into a thousand brakes and bryars stumbling at euerie steppe into some one inconuenience or other and continuallie in perill of some great and deadlie mischiefe And wonderful trulie it is that in all other busines of this
vpon the words of Ieremie before recited in which for that he findeth the Messias to be called Iehoua which word in hebrue is compounded of the three letters Iod and Vau and He twise repeated this doctor maketh his discourse by arte Cabalist in this maner Euen as sayeth he the letter He in Iehoua is compounded of two other letters named Daleth and Vau as appeareth by their forme so shall the Messias that is signified by this word Iehoua be made of two natures th' one diuine th' other humane And as in Iehoua there is twise He and consequentelie two Daleths and two vaus conteined therin so are there two birthes filiations or chyldehodes in Messias th' one wherby he shal be the soÌ„ne of God and th' other wherby he shal be the sonne of a virgine which Esay calleth the Prophetise And as in Iehoua the letter He is twise putt yet both Hes doe make in effect but one letter so in Messias there shal be two distinct natures and yet shall they make but one Christ. Thus playeth this Cabaliste vpon the letters of Iehoua according to the maner of their diuinitie and draweth great mysteries as ye see from letters endes In which kinde of reasoning albeit we putt no grounde or strength at all yet is it sufficient to shew that amoÌ„g th' elder Iewes it was a knoweÌ„ and confessed doctrine that Christ should be both God and man and haue two natures conioyned distinctelie in one person which is the same that we Christians doe affirme Nay I will adde further and this is greatly to be obserued that the self same auÌ„cient Iewes as some also of the later doe holde proue by scripture that christ shal be for alwayes they speake of the Messias to come the verie sonne of God verbum Dei incarnatum and the worde of God incarnate or made fleshe And for the first that he shall be the soÌ„ne of God they proue it out of diuers places alleaged by me before as for example out of Genesis wher the latine texte hath the scepter of Iuda shall not be taken avvaye vntil he come that is to be sent the Hebrue hath vntil Silo come which Silo Rabbi Kimhi proueth by a longe discourse to signifie so much as siliê° eiê° his sonne that is the sonne of God The same they proue by the place of Esay wher the Messias is called germen Iehoua the seede or sonne of Iehoua Which the Chaldaye Paraphrase turneth the Messias of Iehoua They proue the same also out of diuers Psalmes wher Christ is called plailie the sonne of God as where it is said he shall saye vnto me thou art my father c. I vvill put hym my eldest sonne more higher then all the kinges of th' earth c. Iehoua said vnto me thou art my sonne this daye haue I begotten thee c. Kisse the sonne ye kinges and iudges of the earth and happie are all they that place their hope in hym Which last words can no waye be vnderstoode of the sonne of anie man for that it is writen cursed is the man that putteth his trust in man Wherfore Rabbi Ionathan Rabbi Nathan Rabbi Selomoth Aben Ezra and others doe conclude by thes and other places which they alleage that the Messias must be the verie sonne of God And for the second pointe they goe yet further affirming this sonne to be verbum patris the word of God the father Which the forsaid Ionathan in his Chaldaye Paraphrase doth expresse in many translations as for example wher Esay sayeth Israel shal be saued in Iehoua vvith eternal saluation which Iehoua signifieth Christ as all men confesse Ionathan turneth it thus Israel shal be saued by Gods vvord So againe wher God saith by Osee I vvil saue the house of Iuda by Jehoua their God which is by Christ IonathaÌ„ traÌ„stateth it thus I vvill saue Iuda by the vvorde of their God In like maner wher Dauid writeth Iehoua said to my Lord sitt at my righte hand c. IonathaÌ„ expresseth it thus Iehoua said vnto his vvorde sit at my right hand So Rabbi Isaac Arama writing vpon Genesis expoundeth this verse of the psalme he sent his vvorde and healed them c. to be meát of Messias that shal be Gods worde And Rabbi Simeon the chief of all the Cabalistes vpon those wordes of Iob I shall see God in my flesh gatheretn that the worde of God shall take flesh in a womans bellie So that this doctrine was nothing straunge among th' auncient Rabines For further confirmation wherof also seing the matter is of so greate importance consider what is recorded in a treatise called Zoar of highe authoritie amonge the Iewes where Rabbi Simeon that was last before alleaged citeth a place oute of olde Rabbi Ibba vpon thes wordes in Deuteronomie Iehoua our Lord is one Iehoua Which wordes the said auncient Rabbi Ibba interpreteth thus by the first Iehoua in this sentence being th' incommunicable name of God is signified sayeth he God the father prince of all thinges By the next wordes our Lorde is signified God the sonne that is fountaine of all sciences And by the second Iehoua in the same sentence is signified God the holie Ghost prooceeding of them both To all whiche is there added the word One to signifie that thes three are indiuisible But this secrete shall not be reueiled vntill the comming of Messias Hytherto are the wordes of Rabbi Ibba reported in Zohar by Rabbi SimeoÌ„ where also the said Rabbi Simeon interpreteth thes wordes of Esay Holie Holie Holie Lord God of Sabaoth in this maner Esa. by repeating three tymes holie saith he doth as much as if he had saide Holie father holie sonne and holie spirit which three holies doe make but one onlie Lord God of Sabaoth Finallte I will conclude this controuersie betwene the later Iewes and vs with th' authoritie of learned Philo who liued in the verie same tyme with Christ and was sent Embassadour twise to Rome in the behalf of his Nation in AlexaÌ„dria that is first in the. 15. yeare of Tyberius th' Emperour which was three yeares before Christes passion and the very same yeare wherin he was baptised by S. Iohn and the second tyme about eight yeares after to witt in the first of the reigne of Caligula This man that was the learnedst that euer wrote among the Iewes after the writers of holie scripture ceased made a special booke of the banishment of his countrimen where he hath this discourse insueing What tyme maye be appointed saith he for the returne home of vs baninshed Iewes it is hard to determine For by tradition we haue that we must expect the death of a high priest But of those some die quickelie and some liue longer But I am of opinioÌ„ that this high priest shal be the verie worde of God Whiche shal be
will conclude this whole matter with th' expresse wordes of God hym self concerning the ceremonies and preceptes of the olde law Dedreis praecepta non bona iudicia in quibus non viuent I gaue vnto them preceptes that were not good and iudgementes wherin they shall not lyue That is they were not good to continue perpetuallie nor shall they lyue in them for euer but vntill the tyme by me appointed of which tyme he determineth more particulerlie by Ieremie the prophet in thes wordes Beholde the dayes shall come and I vvil make a nevv Couenant or Testament vvith the house of Israel and Iuda not according to that Couenant vvhich I made vvith your fathers vvhēn brought them foorth of the land of Egypt Where you see that at the comming of Christ into this world for of hym and his birth he talketh at large in all this chapter there shal be a new Testament conteining a different law from that of th' old testament which was giuen to the Iewes at their going foorth of Egypt Thus much then hytherto hath bene shewed that Christ in all ages was fortolde promissed that he should be God and that his authoritie should be to chāge the law of Moyses that was gyuen but for a tyme and to establishe a new law and Couenant a new Testament of his owne that should endure and continue for euer AND ALBEIT thes thinges be very wounderfull and sufficient to establishe any mans beliefe in the world whē he shall see them fulfilled which shal be th' argument of my second Section yet resteth not the scripture here but passeth further and fortelleth euerie particuler acte accident and circumstance that shall fall oute of importance aboute the Messias in his comming incarnation birthe life death and resurrection As for example at what particuler tyme and season he should appeare Gen. 49. v 10. Dan. 9. v. 26. That he should be borne of a virgine Esay 7. v. 14. That the place of his birth should be the Toune of Bethleē Mic. 5. v. 1. That at his birth all the infantes rounde about Bethleem should be slaine for his sake Ierem. 31. v. 15. That the kinges of the easte should come and adore hym and offer gold and other giftes vnto hym Psal. 71. v. 10. That he should be presented by his mother in the Temple of Hierusalem Malach 3. v. 1. That he should flee into Egypt and be recalled thence againe Osee 11. v. 2. Esa. 19. v. 1. That Iohn Baptiste should goe before hym and crie in the desert Esa. 40. v. 3. Malach. 3. v. 1. After this that he should beginne his owne preaching with all humilitie quietnes and clemencie of spirit Esa. 42. v. 2. That he should doe straunge miracles and heale all diseases Esa. 29. v. 8. 35. v. 5. 61. v. 1. That he should die for the sinnes of all the world Esa. 53. Dan. 26. That he should be betrayed by his owne disciple Psal. 40. v. 10. 54. v. 14. 108. v. 8. That he should be solde for thirty peeces of siluer Zach. 11. v. 12. That with those thirtie peeces there should be bought afterward a field of Potshards Jerem. 30. That he should ride into Hierusalem vpon an asse before his passion Zacha. 9. v. 9. That the Iewes should beate and buffet his face and defile the same with spitting vpon hym Esa. 50. v. 6. That they should whippe and teare and rent his bodie before they putt hym to death Esa. 53. v. 2. Psal. 37. v. 18. That they should putt hym to death among thieues and male factours Esa. 53. v. 12. That they should gyue hym vineager to drinke deuide his apparel and cast lottes for his vpper garment Psal. 68. v. 22. 21. v. 19. That he should rise againe frō death the third daye Psal. 15. v. 19. Osee. 6. v. 3. That he should ascende to heauen and sitt at the right hande of God his father for euer Psal. 67. v. 19. 109. v. 1. All thes particularites and a number more were reueiled in scripture touching the Messias some fower thousand years some two thousand some a thousand and the last of all aboue fower hūdred yeares before Christ was borne Which if we laye together and doe consider withal how exactelie they were fulfilled afterward in the person of Iesus as in the next section shal be declared if we adde also to this that we haue receyued thes prophesies and predictions from a Nation that most of all other doth hate vs and that the same are to be seene and reade in their Bibles euen worde for word as they are in ours if you holde in memorie also what inuincible proofes were alleaged before in the second chapter for th' infallible truth certaintie of those Hebrue scriptures you shall fynde that hardlie anye thing can be imagined for manifestation of a truth before it come to passe which God hath not obserued in forshewing the Messias AND ALL THES cōsiderations are touchinge the Iewes There remaineth some what to be said of the Gētiles Who albeit they were to receyue their principal knowledge in this affaire from the Iuishe Nation to whom the Messias was first and principallie promissed and from whom the Gentiles had to expecte both their Saue our and his Apostles as also the scriptures for testimonie and witnesse of them both and finally all their certaine knowledge and sounde vnderstanding in the mysteries of Christ Yet had they also among them selues some kynde of notice and forwarning in this matter whiche being ioyned with that whiche I haue set downe before of the Iewes and examined at the light of Gods diuine propheties before alleaged it will make verie muche for confirmation of our Christian veritie And therfore this last consideration shal be of the fore-knowledge of Gentiles in this behalf For better vnderstanding wherof it is to be noted that besides all knowledge of the Messias that diuers Gentiles might haue by the Hebrue scriptures whiche as I haue shewed before were in the Greeke language diuers ages before Christ was borne or by th' instruction conuersation of Iewes with whom manie Pagans did liue familiarlie there remained three wayes peculier to Gentiles wherby they receyued some vnderstanding forwarning of this great mysterie The first was by tradition and writinges of their auncestours The second by propheties of their owne The third by admonishement of their Idoles Oracles especiallie when the tyme of Christes appearance drew neare And for the first way it is euident that as the Iewes receyued diuers thinges by succession from their forfathers they againe from Moyses Moyses from the Patriarches Iacob Isaac and Abraham who was the first man from whom that whole natiō proceeded and in whō they were distinguished from all other people in the world so had the Gētiles other Natiōs their succession also of
finallie we may consider that Constantine was the first publique Christian Emperour and liued within 300. years after Christ whē the recordes of the Romās were yet whole to be seene He was a religious wise and graue Emperour and therfore would neuer haue bestowed so muche labour to confirme suche a thing at such a tyme to such an audiēce had not the matter bene of singuler importance And thus much of the second pointe touchinge prophetes among Gentiles There remaineth onlie a worde or two to be spokē of the thirde which is of the confession of deuils and Oracles concerning Christs comminge especiallie whē the tyme of his appearance drew neare and that they begā to forefeele his power and vertue Wherin as I might alleage diuers examples recorded by the Gentiles them selues so for that I haue bene somewhat longe in the former pointes and shall haue occasion to saye more of this matter in an other place hereafter I will touche onlie here two oracles of Apollo concerninge this matter Th' one wherof was to a priest of his owne that demaunded hym of true religion and of God to whom he answered thus in greeke ô thou unhappie priest vvhy doest thou aske me of God that is the father of all thinges and of this most renoumed kynges deare and onlie sonne and of the spirit that conteineth all c. Alas that spirit vvill inforce me shortelie to leaue this habitation and place of oracles Th' other oracle was to Augustus Gaesar euen about the verie tyme that Christ was redy to appeare in flesh For where as the said Emperour now drawinge into age would needes goe to Delphos and there learne of Apollo who should reigne after hym what should become of thinges whē he was dead Apollo would not answere for a greate space notwithstanding Augustus had bene verie liberal in making the greate sacrifice called Hecatombe But in th' ende when th' Emperour began to iterate his sacrifice againe and to be instant for an answer Apollo as it were inforced vttered thes straunge wordes vnto hym An Hebrue childe that ruleth ouer the blessed Gods commaundeth me to leaue this habitation and oute of hand to gett me to hel But yet doe you'departe in silence from our Aulters Thus much was Apollo inforced to vtter of his owne miserie and of the cōming of th' Ebrue boye that should putt hym to banishment But yet the deceptful spirit to holde still his credire would not haue the matter reueiled to many Wherupon Augustus falling into a greate musinge with hym self what this answer might importe returned to Rome and builded there an Aulter in the Capitole with this latine inscription as Nicephorus affirmeth Ara primogeniti Dei Th' Aulter of Godes first begotten sonne Thus then haue I declared how that the cōming of Gods sōne into the world was for tolde both to Iewe and Gentile by all meanes that possiblie in reason might be deuised that is by propheties signes figures ceremonies tradition and by the confession of deuils them selues Nor onlie that his comming was fortold but also why and for what cause he was to come that is to be a Saueour of the world to die for sinne to ordeine a new law and more perfect common wealth How also he was to come to witt in mans fleshe in likenes of sinne in pouertie humilitie The tyme likewise of his appearance was foresignified together with the maner of his birth life actions death resurrection and ascensiō And finallie nothing can be more desired for the fore knowledge of anie one thing to come then was deliuered vttered cōcernīg the Messias before Christ or Christians were talked of in the world Now thē remaineth it to consider examine whether thes particularities fortolde so lōg agoe of the Messias to come doe agree in Iesus whom we acknowledge for the true Messias And this shall be the subiect argument of all the rest of our speeche in this chapter Hovv the former predictions vvere fulfilled in Iesus at his being vpon earth Sect. 2. ALbeit in the pointes before recited which are to be fulfilled in the Messias at his comming we haue some controuersie and disagreemēt with the Iewe as hath bene shewed yet our principal contention in them all is with the Gentile and heathen that beleeueth no scriptures For that in diuers of the fornamed articles the Iewe standeth with vs and for vs offereth his life in defence therof as farre foorth as if he were a Christiā In so much that the Gētile oftē times is inforced to maruaile when he seeth a people so extremelie bent against an other as the Iewes are against Christiās and yet to stand so peremptorilie in defence of thos verie principles which are the proper causes of their disagreement But hereunto the Iew maketh answer that his disagreement from vs is in th' application of thos principles For that in no wise he will allowe that they were or may bee verified in Iesus And herein he standeth against vs much more obstinatelie then doth the Gentile For that the Gentile as soone as he commeth once to vnderstande and beleeue the propheties of scripture he maketh no doubt or difficultie in th' application thereof for that he seeth the same most euidentelie fulfilled in our Saueour Which is the cause that fewe or no Gentiles since Christs appearance haue come to be Iewes but that presentelie also they passed ouer to be Christians But the Iewe by no meanes wil be moued to yeeld albeit he haue neither scripture nor reason nor probabilitie for his defence Which among other thinges is a verie great argument to proue that Iesus was the true Messias in deed seing that among the markes of the true Messias set downe by Gods Prophetes this was one that he should be refused by the Iuishe Nation Herehence are those wordes of the Holie Ghost so longe before vttered The stone vvhich the builders refused is made the head stone of the corner this is donne by God and is maruailous in our eyes Hence is that great complainte of Esay touching th' incredulitie obstinacie of this people against their Messias at his comming which Moyses also longe before Esay expressed most effectuallie It maketh then not a litle for our cause gentle reader that the Iuishe Nation is so wilfullie bent against vs and that they refused Christ so peremptorilie at his being among them For whom so euer that Nation should receyue and acknowledge it were a great argument by scripture that he were not in deede the true Messias But yet to demonstrate 〈◊〉 worlde how litle shew of reason they haue in standing thus against their owne saluation and in refusing Iesus as they doe I will in as great breuitie as I may runne ouer the chief pointes that passed at his being vpon earth and therby examine by the testimonies of his greatest enimies whether the forsaid propheties and all other
of publishing their lawes and procuring authoritie to the same then to write them with their owne handes and in their life time to establishe their promulgation So Lycurgus Solon others among the Grecians Numa to the Romanes Mahomet to his Sarasins and diuers other in like maner But Iesus to shew his Diuine power in directing the penne and stile of his Euangelistes would not leaue any thing writing him self but passed from this world in simplicitie and filence whithout any further shewe or ostentatiō of his own doings meaning notwithstāding by his eternal wisdome that the prophetie of Ezechiel should be fulfilled which foresignified the being of his fowre irrefragable witnesses which daie and night without rest should preache extolle and magnifie their Lord and Maister to the worldes ende Foure then were fore-prophetied and foure as we see by Gods prouidence were prouided to fulfil the same prophetie The first and last are two Apostles that wrote as they had sene The two midle are two diseiples who registred thinges as they had vnderstoode by conference with the Apostles The first Ghospel was written by an Apostle to giue light open the waie to al the rest And the last in like maner was written by an Apostle to giue authoritie and confirmation to al the former The first was writtē in Hebrue or Iewish tongue for that Iesus actions were dóne in that countrie to th' ende that therby eyther the whole Nation might beleeue them or the obstinate impugne them The other three were written in the publique tongues of al other nations that is in the Greeke and Romane languages if it be true which diuers holde that S. Marcs Ghospel was first written in Latin They wrote their stories in diuers countries eche one remaning farre distant frō an other and yet agreed they al as we see most exactly in the verie same narration They wrote in diuers times the one after the other and yet the later did neither correct nor reprehend anie thing i the former They published their stories when infinite were aliue that knew the factes and many more that desired to impugne them They set doune in most of their particuler narrations the time the day the houre the place the village the house the persons the men the women and other the like Which circumstances the more they are in number the more easie to be refuted if they were not true Neither did they in Iurie write of thinges done in India but in the same countrie it self in Townes Cities that were publiquely knowen in Bethania and Bethsaida villages hard by Ierusalem in the Suburbes and hiles about the Citie in such a Streete at such a Gate in such a Porch of the Temple at such a fishpoole which al people in Ierusalem did euery daie beholde They published their writinges in their owne life time and preached in worde so much as in writing they had recorded They permitted the same to the iudgment and examination of al Christs church especially of the Apostles who were able to discerne euerie least thing therin contained So Marke set forth his Ghospel by the instruction and approbation of S. Peter as also did Luke by the authoritie of S. Paul They altered not their writinges afterward as other authours are wont in their later editions nor euer corrected they anie one iote of that which they had first set doune And that which neuer happened in any other writinges in the world besides nor euer Prince or Monarch was able to bring to passe for credite of his edictes or sanctions they gaue their liues for defence and iustefying of that they had written Their maner of writing is sincere and simple without al arte amplification or Rhetorical exornatiō They flatter none no not Iesus him self whom they most adore nor in confessing him to be their God and Creatour doe they conceale his infirmities of fleshe in that he was man as his hunger and thirst his being wearie how he wept his passions of feare and the like So lykewise in the Apostles that were the gouernours superiours and heads of al the rest doe thes Euangelistes dissemble hide or passe ouer no such thinges as were defects and might seeme to worldlie eies to turne to their discredites As for exāple how Christ rebuked them for their dulnes in vnderstanding how after long instruction they proposed notwithstanding verie rude and impertinent questions vnto him how Thomas would not beleeue the attestation of his fellowes how S. Ihon and S. Iames the sonnes of Zebedee ambitiouslie sollicited to haue the preheminence of sitting nearest to Christ ī his glorie Which later clause beīg set doune clearly by S. Marke while yet S. Ihon the Apostle was liuing the same was neuer denied nor taken yll by the said Apostle neither S. Markes Ghospel the lesse approued by him albeit he liued longest and wrote last of al the rest Nay which is more and greatly no doubt to be obserued thes Euangelistes were so sincere and religious in their narrations as they noted especiallie the impersections of them selues and of such other as they principally respected So S. Mathew nameth him self Mathevv the Publican And so S. Marke being Peters disciple recordeth particulerly how S. Peter thrise denied his maister S. Luke that was scholler and dependent of S. Paul maketh mention alone of the litle differences betwene Paul and Barnabas in the storie of S. Stephens death after al his narration ended he addeth a clause that in humane iudgement might haue bene left out to witt Saulus erat consentiës neci eius Saul was cōsenting culpable of Stephens death Wherby we may perceaue most perspicuouslie that as thes men were plaine sincere and simple and farre from presuming to deuise any thinge of them selues so were they religious and had scruple to passe ouer or leaue oute any thinge of the truth in fauour of them selues or of any other whosoeuer Thes mens writinges then were published receyued for vndoubted truth by all that liued in the verie same age and were pryuie to the particulers therin cōteined They were copied abrode into infinit mens handes and so conserued with all care reuerence as holie and diuine scripture They were read in churches throughout all countries and Nations expounded preached and taught by all pastours and commentaries made vpon them by holie fathers from tyme to tyme. So that no doubt can be made but that we haue the verie sa ne writinges incorrupt as th' authours left them for that it was impossible for anie enimie to corrupt so manie Copies ouer al the world without discoucrie and resiitance And the same very text wordes and sentences which from age to age the learned fathers doe alleage out of thes scriptures we fynde them now as they had them at that tyme. As for example S. Iohn that lyued longest of all th' Apostles and Euangelistes had amōge other
her but by calling them reformers Illuminates vnspotted bretheren and such other names that are different from Catholiques He that protesteth with S. Ierom that he doth abhorre all sectes and names of particuler men as Marcionistes Montanistes Valentinians and the like he that doth confesse sincerlie with blessed Cyprian that one priest for the time is to be obeyed by gods ordinance as iudge in Christes roome by the vniuersal brotherhode of al Christianitie he that is modest quiete sober voide of contētion obedient as S. Paul describeth a true and good Catholique he that is humble i his owne cōcept and aggreinge to humble thinges firme in faith not variable nor delighted vvith nevv doctrines he that can captiuate his vnderstandinge to the obedience of Christ which is to beleeue humblie such thinges as Christ by his church proposeth vnto him albeit his reason or sense should stande against the same And finallie he that can be content at Christes commandement to heare the Church in al thinges without doubt or exception and obey the Gouernours therof albeit in life they be Scribes and Pharises and consequentelie can say trulie sincerlie with the whole College of Christes Apostles together Creda sanctam Ecclesiam Catholicam I doe belieue the holie Catholique vniue sal Church and what soeuer that Church doth set furth teach holde or beleeue that man no doubt is in a most sure case for matters of his faith and can not possiblie walke awry therin but may thinke hym self a good Christian for this first pointe which is for matters of beliefe THERE FOLLOVVETH the second parte of Christian profession concerning life and manners which is a matter of so much more difficultie then the former by how many more wayes a man may be lead from vertuous life then from sincere faith Wherin ther can be no comparison at all seing the pathe of our beliefe is so manifest as hath beneshewed that no mā cā erre therin but of inexcusable wilfulnes Which wilfulnes in errour the holie fathers of Christes primatiue Church did alwayes referre to two principal and original causes that is to pride or ouerweening in our owne concepts and to malice against our superiours for not giuing vs contentation in things that we desire Of the first doe proceede the deuising of new opinions new glosing expounding and applying of Scriptures the calling of holy writ it self in question the contempt of auncient customes and traditions the preferring of our iudgments before al others either present or past the debasing of holie Fathers priests prelates Councels ordinances constitutions and al other thinges and proofes what so euer that stand not with our owne good liking and approbatiō Of the second fountaine are deriued other qualities conformable to that humour as are the denying of Iurisdictiō and authoritie in our Superiours the contempt of Prelates th' exaggeration of the faults and defectes of our Gouernours th' impugnation of al Bishoplike dignitie or ecclesiastical eminentie and especially of the Sea Aposto lique wherunto appertainet the correction of such like offendours finally for satisfying this deuilishe and most pernicious veine of malice thos wicked reprobates doe incite and arme the people against their spiritual pastours they enkindle factions against Gods annointed substitutes they deuise a new Church a new forme of gouernment a new kingdome and ecclefiastical hierarchie vpon earth wherby to bring men in doubt and staggering what or whom to beleeue or wherunto to haue recourse in such difficulties as doe arise Thes two maladies I save of Pride and Malice haue bene the two causes of obstinate errour in al heretiques from the beginning as ful wel noted that holy and auncient martir S. Cyprian when he said so longe agoe Thes are the beginnings and original causes of heretiques and wicked schismatsques first to please and like wel of them selues and then being puffed vp with the swelling of pride to cōtemne their gouernours superiours Thus doe they abandone and forsake the church thus doe they erect a prophane Altar out of the church agaīst the church Thus doe they breake the peace and vnitie of Christ and doe rebell against Gods holie ordination Now then as thes are the causes either only or principal of erring ī our beleefe most facile and easie as we see to be discerned so of errour in life maners ther are many more occasions causes ofspringes and fountaines to be found That is to saye so many in number as we haue euil passions inordinate appetites wicked desires or vnlauful inclinations within our mynde euery one wherof is the cause oftentimes of disordered life and breach of Gods commandementes For which respect ther is much more set doune ī Scripture for exhortation to good life then to faith for that the errour herein is more ordinary and easie and more prouoked by our owne frailtie as also by the multitude of infinite temptations Wherfore we read that our Saueour Iesus in the verie beginning of his preaching straight after he was baptised had chosen vnto hym S. Peter and S. Andrew Iames and Iohn some other few Disciples wēt vp to the moūtaine ther made his first most excellēt famous and copious sermon recited by S. Mathew in three whole chapters wherin he talketh of nothing els but of vertuous life pouertie meekenes iustice puritie sorowe for sinne patience in suffering contempt of riches forgyuing of iniuries fasting prayer penance entring by the strait gate and finally of perfection holines and integritie of cōuersation and of the exact fulfilling of euery iote of Gods lawe and commaundementes He assured his Disciples with greate asseueration that he came not to breake the law but to fulfil the same and consequentelie whosoeuer should breake the least of his commaundementes and should so teache men to doe that is should perseuer therein without repentance and so by his example drawe other men to doe the like should haue no place in the kingdome of heauen Againe he exhorted thē most earnestlie to be lightes and to shyne by good workes to all the world and that excepte their iustice did exceede the iustice of Scribes and pharises which was but ordinarie and external they could not be saued He told them plainlie they might not serue two masters in this life but either must forsake God or abandon Mammon He cried vnto them Attendite stand attent and consider well your state and condition and then againe seeke to enter by the straite gate And lastlie he concludeth that th' onlie trial of a good tree is the good fruite which it yeeldeth without which fruite let the tree be neuer so faire or pleasant to the eye yet is it to be cut downe burned that not euerie one who shal say or crie vnto hym Lord Lord at the last daye should be saued or enter into the kingdome of heauen but onlie such as did execute in
lyfe for then and not otherwise are we true Christians if we fulfill in workes that wherof we haue made promisse in wordes that is in the daye of our baptisme we promissed to renounce the pompe of this world togyther with all the workes of iniquitie which promisse if we perfourme now after baptisme thē are we true Christiās and maye be ioyful And in an other place the same holie father addeth this For that diuers men are Christians in profession and faith onlie and not in life herehence it is said by the voice of truth it self Not euerie one that shall say to me Lord Lord shall enter into the kingdome of heauen And againe vvhie doe you call me Lord Lord and doe not perfourme the thinges that I tell you Herehence it is that God cōplained of his olde people the Iewes saying this people ho noureth we vvith their lippes but their hart is sarre of from me And the Prophet Dauid of the same people they loued hym vvith their mouth and vvith their tongues they lyèd 〈◊〉 hym Wherfore lett no man trust that his faith may saue hym without good deedes seing that we know it is writen expresselie that faith vvithout vvorkes is dead and consequentelie can not be profitable or saue vs from damnation Hytherto S. Gregorie Which verie conclusion S. Chrysostome maketh with great vehemencie vpon consideration of that woesull chaunce and heauie iudgemet that happned vnto him who in the Ghospel was admitted to the feast of Christian faith and knowledge but for lacke of the ornament or garment of good life was most cōtumeliouslie depriued of his expectatiō of whō S. Chrysostoms wordes are thes He was īuited to the feast brought into the table but for that by his fowle garment he dishonored our Lord that had īuited hym heare how miserable and lamentable a punishemēt he suffered He was not onlie thrust from the table banquet but also bounde hand foote and cast into vtter darkenes wher ther is eternal weepinge and gnashing of teeth Wherfore lett vs not deare bretheren lett vs not I saye deceyue our selues and immagine that our faith will saue vs without good worckes For except we ioyne pure lyfe to our beleefe and in this heauenlie vocation of ours doe apparrel our selues with worthie garmentes of vertuous deedes wherby we may be admitted at the mariage daye in heauen nothing shall be able to deliuer vs from the damnation of this miserable man that wanted his weddinge weede Which thingt S. Paul well noteth when hauinge said vve haue an euerlasting hovvse in heauen not made by mans handes he addeth presentelie this exception sitamen vestiti non nudi inueniamur that is if we be founde at that daye well apparreled not naked Would God euerie Chistian desyrous of his saluation would ponder well this discourse and exhortation of S. Chrysostom And so with this alone to conclude our speech in this chapter without allegation of further matter or authorities which are infinite to this effect it may appeare by that which hath already bene set doune wherin the true profession of a Christian consisteth and therby eche man that is not partial or blinded in his owne affection as many are may take a vewe of his estate and condition and frame vnto him self a verie probable coniecture how he is like to speed at the last accompting daie that is what profite or dōmage he may expect by his knowledge and profession of Christian religion For as to him that walketh vprightly in that vocation and perfourmeth effectually euerie waye his professed dutie there remaine both infinite and inestimable rewardes prepared so to him that strayeth a syde and swarueth from the right path of lyfe or faith prescribed vnto him there are no lesse paines and punishmēts referued For which cause euery Christian that is careful of his saluation ought to fixe his eye verie seriouslie vpon them both and as in beleefe to shew him self constant firme humble obedient and in one worde Catholique so in life and conuersation to be honest iust pure innocent and holie And for that this second point concerning life and maners is of more difficultie as hath bene shewed then the other of beleefe wherof notwithstanding we haue also treated sufficiently in the former chapters the rest of this whole worke shal tende to the declaration of this later part I meane of good life therby to stirre vp and awake if so it may please the merciful goodnes of our blessed Saueour the slouthful hartes of Christians to the cogitatiō of their owne estate and make them more vigilant in this greate affaire wheron dependeth their endles woe or welfare ANNOTATION THE PRINT BEING come to this place M. Bunneys edition of this booke vvas deliuered to me out of vvhose infinite corruptions maymes and māglinges diuers thinges shal be noted hereafter in the margent OF THE TWO PRINCIPAL POINTES THAT DOE APPERTAINE TO A Christian life that is to saye To resist all synne and to excercise all kynde of vertue vvith the meanes and methode hovv to perfourme them both CHAPT VI. SVPPOSINGE that in the partes of this booke which ensue we are to deale only with suche as are instructed and settled in true Christian faith wherunto we haue proued before that vertuous life and good deeds are necessarily to be adioined it semeth conuenient in this place to treate of the pointes or prīcipal partes belonging therunto Which partes are briefly prescribed by God hym self in the writinges of Dauid Esaie and other prophetes of the olde testament exhorting men to decline from vice and to embrace vertue But much more plainly by S. Peter S. Paul and other Apostles of the Euangelical law the first affirming that the fruite and effect of Christes death and passion was that vve being dead to sinne should liue to Iustice and the other adioining that the grace of God our saueour appeared to al men instructing vs to this ende that vve renouncing al vvickeanes should liue iustly and godly in this vvorld By which testimonies of holy write is made cleare and euidēt that the whole dutie of a good Christian is reduced to thes two heades or principles to wit to the resistance of al euil and to th' exercise of al pretie and vertue In respect of the first wherof our life is called in holie scripture a warfare vpon earth and vertuous mē are termed souldiours for that as good souldiours doe lye in continual wayte to resist their ennemies so vigilant Christians doe carefully stand vpon their watche for resisting the suggestions and temptatiōs of sinne In regarde of the second pointe we are named labourers husbandmen sowers marchātes bankers stewards fermers and the like and our whole life is termed a marte and trafique for that as thes kinde of people doe attēd with diligēce to their gaine and encrease of tēporal riches in this life so ought we to applie
men in this life For of this were vttered thos wordes especiallie beare in minde the last end of all thinges and thon shalt iot synne euerlastinglie Which holie Dauid seemed to haue experienced in hym self when he wrote as foloweth I haue obserued the vvayes of my Lord neither haue I committed vvickedness against my God for that his iudgements vvere alvvaye in my sight and his iustice I haue not cast out of my mynd And by thes meanes I shal be vnspotted in his presence and vvill keepe my self from committing iniquitie Hence it is that the blessed Prophet Moyses when he saw the people of Israel careles in committing synne cried out in zeale ō foolishe Nation vvithout vvisdom or councel vvould God they had vvitt and vnderstanding and vvould forsee the end of thinges to come As who would say if they had so much witt as to consider this and what accompt they must gyue to God at the last day of their doinges they would not offend hym as they doe But as the scripture saith in an other place for that this day of reconing is disterred and for that Gods iudgment is not pronounced presentelie against the vvicked the children of men doe commit vvickednes daylie vvithout ail feare We haue then to consider in this place for our owne instruction and good admonishement in life what maner of accompting daye this shal be whos remembrance is so much and often commended vnto vs in holie scripture For better conceyuing wherof we shall deuide this chapter into three principal heades or pointes The first wherof shal be of preparatiōs or preābles assigned to goe before this daye The second of thinges that shall passe and be executed at that daye The third of that which is to ensue vpon the sentence gyuen and the iudgement ended CONCERNING THE FIRST it is to be noted that for the more dread and Maiestie of this great daie the eternal wisdome of God hath ordained and reuealed vnto vs that before the comming therof when it approcheth nere thershal most wonderful and horrible preparations signes and tokens appeare in the world The first wherof shal be the garboiles tumultes and commotions of all Nations kingdomes and people vpon earth Which our Saueour hymself described in thes wordes to his Apostles VVhen you shal heare the fame or brute of vvarres and vprores be not afraid for that thes thinges must be and yet presently the ende of the world shal not ensue One nation shal rise against an other and one kingdome shal impugne another ther shal be great earth-quakes pestilence and famine most terrible signes and tokens from heauē Vpon which wordes of our Saueour the blessed father S. Gregorie hath this discourse The last tribulation must haue many tribulations going before it and by thes manifold afflictions precedēt are declared the eternal afflictions that must ensue And therfore Christ said that after warres and vprores the ende should not immediatly folowe for that it behoueth that many transitorie calamities should goe before to denounce vnto vs the endles woes which are to come after Thes warres tumultes and most dreadfull confusions here signified by Christ are specified more plainly in other places of holie writ but especially by Ezechiel Daniel and S. Ihon in his reuelations Wher it is prophetied that a litle before the last general daie of iudgment ther shal be reuealed the man of sinne called Antechrist who after the conquest of many kings kingdomes shal make hym self the Monarch and absolute owner of the world and shal exercise vpon good Christians more barbarous crueltie and shed more innocent blood within the space of three yeares and a half which shal be the terme of his outragious tirannie then al other ennimies of God haue done from the beginning The matter is described most strangely by the Prophete Ezechiel Who after declaration of one most bloodie bataile to be fought by Ierusalem wherin he saieth figuratiuely that the weapons of such as shal be slaine shal be sufficient to make fire for seuen yeares after he adioyneth in the person of God this narration I haue spoken in my zeale and in the fire of my wrath haue I promised that in the last daies when Gog and Magog shal come into the world by thes names are signified the armie of Antechrist ther shal be a great commotion vpon the earth and the fishe of the sea the birdes of the aire the beastes of the field al that crecpeth on the groūd together with al humane generation which liueth vpon the face of the earth shal be in an vprore before my face Hilles shal be ouerturned hedges shal be broken doune euery strong wal shal fal to the ground I wil cal against them the sword from the toppes of al mountaines and euery mans sword shal be bent against his owne brother My iudgment shal be in pestilence and blood and vehement stormes in huge stones that shal fal doune I wil raine fire and brimstone c. And thou sonne of mā tel vnto al the foules birdes of the aire and to al the rauenous beastes of the field assemble your selues make haste come together from al quarters to feede of the sacrifice which I shal prepare vnto you a great sacrifice vpon the mountaines of Israel You shal eate the flesh of stoute champions and shall drincke the blood of Princes You shall feede of their fat vntil you be cloide and you shal drincke their bloode til you be druncke You shal be filled at this my table and al Nations shal see this my iudgement that I haue exercised and in what maner I haue stretched out my potent hād vpon them Thus much hath the word of God and muche more which for breuitie I doe omit of the greate miseries cōfusions that shal be among men some litle time before the daie of iudgment Which time being expired ther shal ensue other preparations in the heauens and eliments of the world much more dreadful then thes Which by Christ hym self and his Saintes are described in this maner At that daie ther shal be signes in the Sunne in the Moone in the starres The sunne shal be darkened the moone shal giue no light the starres shal fal from the skies and al the powers of heauen shal be moued The firmament shal forsake his situation with great violence the elements shal be dissolued with heat and the whole earth with al that is in it shal be consumed with fire The firme land shal moue and leaue her place and shal flie away like a doae the pressures of Nations vpō earth shal be inestimable by reason of thes thinges and through the confusion of hideous noise from the sea and floudes and men shal wither away and drie vp for feare and expectation of the thinges which at that day shal happen to the vniuersal world Thus farre out of the Ghospel But S. Iohn the
infinite and consequently deserueth infinite hatred and infinite punishment at gods handes Hereof foloweth the reason of diuers thinges both sayed and donne by God in the scriptures and taught by diuines towching the punishments of sinne which seeme verie straunge vnto the wisedome of the world and in deede to them scarce credible As first of al the most dreadful punishment of eternal and irreuocable damnation of so manie thowsandes or rather millions of Angels that were created to glorie with almost infinite perfection that for one onlie sinne but once committed and that onlye in thought as diuines are of opinion Secondlie the rigourous punishment of our first parents Adam and Eue and al their posteritie for the eatinge of a seely aple for which fault besides the chastisinge of the offenders themselues and al the creatures of the earth for the same and al their children and ofspring after them both before our redemption and after for albeit we are deliuered frō the guilte of that sinne yet tēporal punishmētes doe remaine vpon vs for the same as hunger thirst cold sicknes death and a thousand other miseries besides also the infinite soules damned for the same before the comming of Christ by the space offower thousand yeres as also since as wel infidels which are not baptized as others besides al this I say which in mās reason maye seeme seuere enough gods wrath and iustice could not be sufficiētly satisfied except his owne onlie sonne had come downe into the worlde takē our flesh vpon him and by his paines death made satisfaction for the same And when he was now come into the world had in our flesh subiected him self vnto his fathers iustice albeit the loue his father bare vnto him were infinite and euery litle paine that he endured for vs or at leastwise euery droppe of bloode which he shed for our cause had ben sufficient for the whole satisfactiō for that his fleshe being vnited to his godhead made euerie such satisfactorie action of his of infinite value and merite and consequently of infinite satisfaction correspondent to the infinitie of our first parents sinne yet to the ende that God might shew the greatnes of his hatred and iustice against the said sinne and al other he neuer ceased to adde affliction to affliction and to heape tormentes vpō the bodie and flesh of this his most deare and blessed sonne for by Esaye he sayeth that him self was the doer therof vntil he had brought him vnto that most rueful plight that his flesh being all mangled and most lamentably torne in peeces retained no one droppe of blood within it He spared him not I saye euen then when he beheld him sorowful vnto death and bathed in that agonie of blood and water when he hard him vtter thos most dolorous and compassionable speeches O my father if it be possible let this cuppe passe from me And after that againe muche more pitifully vpon the Crosse O my God my God vvhy hast thou forsaken me Notwithstanding al which cries and lamentatiōs his most merciful father louing him as he did would not deliuer him but for satisfying of his Iustice laied vpon him stripe vpon stripe paine vpon paine torment after torment vntil he had rendred vp his life soule into his sayed fathers handes which is a wounderful dreadful documēt of godes hatred against sinne I might here mention the sinne of Esau in selling his inheritance for a litle meate of which S. Paule sayeth he founde no place of repentance after though he sought the same vvith teares Also the sinne of Saule whos sinne beinge but one and that onlie of omissiō in not killinge Agag the kinge of Amalech and his cattel as he was willed was notwithstanding vtterlie cast of by God for the same though he were his annointed and chosen seruāt before could neuer get remission therof albeit both he and Samuel Gods holie prophet did greatly lament and bewaile and made intercession in that behalfe In like maner might I alleage the exāple of kinge Dauid whose two sinnes albeit vpon his hartie repentance God forgaue yet notwithstanding the said repentance and sorrow and all the weepinge fastinge watchinge lyinge on the grounde wearinge of sackloth and other bodilie chasticementes which this holie prophet recordeth that him self did put in vre God punished him besides with maruelous seueritie as by the death of his dearlie beloued childe by manie other continual afflictions and temporal punishementes during the rase of his whole life And al this to shew his hatred against sinne thereby to terrifie vs from committinge the same Of this also doe proceede al those harde and seuere speeches of holie write touching sinners which comming from the mouth of the Holie Ghost and therfore no doubt both true and certaine may iustlie yeeld greate cause of feare to al such as liue in sinful state As for example where it is saied death bloode contentiō edge of svvorde oppression hunger contrition and vvhippes all thes thinges are created for vvicked sinners And againe God shal raine snares of fyre vppon sinners brimstone vvith tēpestuous vvindes shal be the portion of their cup. And yet further ī manie other places thes most dreadful speeches and comminations are to be founde God wil be knowen at the day of iudgement vpon the sinner who shal be taken in the workes of his owne handes manie whippes belong vnto a sinner let sinners be turned into hell God shal scatter al sinners and shal dash ther teeth out of their mouthes God shal scoffe at a sinner when he seeth his daye of destructiō cōmeth on the sworde of sinners shall turne into their owne hartes The armes of sinners shal be crushed and broken and they shal wither and dry vp like haye from the face of the earth desire not the glorie and riches of a sinner for thou doest not know the suddaine subuersion which shall come vpon hym for God hath gyuē him riches to deceyue him therwith beholde the daye of our Lord shal come a cruel daye and ful of indignation wrath and furie to make desolate the earth and to crush in peeces her sinners within her Thē shal the iust man reioice seinge this reuenge and shal wash his handes in the blood of sinners Thes loe my deare brother and innumerable other such sentēces of scripture pronounced by the holie spirit of God against sinners maye instruct vs of their pitifull estate of the vnspeakable hatred of his diuine Maiestie against thē so lōg as they persist in their sinful life and cōuersation Of all which considerations the self same holie scriptures doe gather certaine conclusions greatelie to be obserued wherof the first and more general is that sinne bringeth al people to miserie secondlie and more particulerlie that he vvhich loueth sinne bateth his ovvn soule Or as the Angel Raphael
hartie repentāce and other such means of holie Sacramentes as God hath left for this purpose in his Church he had discharged his conscience of the burden of sinne and made an attonement betwene his soule Saueour O merciful Lord how dangerous is his estate vntil he haue donne it how manie wayes may he fal into thos heauie handes of his eternal iudge wherof S. Paul conceyued horrour in onlie thinking One litle stone falling from the house toppe as he passeth by one slippe of his horse as he rideth one assault of an enimie whē he thinketh not vpon him one poore ague by a surfect or other distēperature one suddaine mischance of a milliō that may fal vnto him is able to bereaue him of this life to cast him into thos termes of euerlasting calamitie wherehence the whole world shal not be able to deliuer him And is not this then a matter to be feared is not this a case to be preuented O how trulie saith the holie scripture blessed is the man vvhich alvvaies is fearful and he that hath a hard hart shal fal into perdition Our Lord God of his mercie gyue vs his holie grace to feare him as we should and to make such accounte of his iudgementes and iustice as by threatning the same he would haue vs to doe for th' auoiding of sinne And thē shal not we delaye the time but shal resolue our selues to serue him whiles he is content to accept of our seruice and to pardon vs al our offences if we would once firmelie make this resolution from our hart AN OTHER CONSIDERATION FOR THE FVRTHER IVSTIFYING OF Gods iudgementes and manifestation of our grieuous offence Taken from the inestimable Maiestie of him vvhom vve offende and of the innumerable benifites vvhich he hath bestovved vpon vs. CHAPT IX ALBEIT the most parte of Christians through their wicked life arriue not to that state when holy Dauid was when he sayed to God thy iudgementes ô Lord are pleasant vnto me as in deed they are to all those that lyue vertuouslie and haue the testimonie of a good conscience yet at leastwise that we maye be inforced to confesse with the same Prophet that the iudgementes of our Lord are true and iustified in them selues I haue thought expedient to adde a reason or two in this chapter wherby it maye appeare how great our offence is in sinnīg against God as we doe and how righteous his iudgemētes iustice are agaist vs for the same AND FIRST OF AL IS to be considered the maiestie of hym against whom we sinne For most certaine it is as I haue noted before that euerie offence is so much the greater and more grieuous by how much greater and more noble the person is against whom it is done and the partie offending more base and vile And in this respect almightie God to terrifie vs from offending hym nameth hym self oftentimes with certaine great and dreadful titles of maiestie as to Abraham I am an omnipotēt Lord. And agayne to Esay heauen is my seate the earth is my footestole And at an other time he cōmaunded Moyses to beare to the people in his name this ambassage harden not your neckes any longer for that your Lord and God is the God of godes and the Lord of lordes a greate God both potent and terrible vvhich accepteth nether person nor bribes First then I saye consider gentle Christian of what an infinite maiestie he is whom thow a poore worme of the earth hast so often and so contemptuously offended ī this lyfe We see in this world that no man dareth to offende openly or say one worde against the maiestie of a temporal Prince within his owne dominions But what is the maiestie of all earthly princes put together if it be compared to the thowsand parte of Gods incomparable inestimable maiestie who with one worde made both heauen and earth and all the creatures therin and with halfe a worde could annihilate and destroie the same againe Whom all the creatures which he made both Angels heauens Starres and elementes doe serue at a becke and dare not once offend vnder vvhom as holy Iob saieth doe croucb and trēble euē they that beare vp susteine the vvorld Onlie a sinner is he which emboldeneth hym self against this maiestie and feareth not to offēd the same whom as the holye Catholique Church doth professe day lie in her preface to the blessed sacrifice the Angels do praise the dominations doe adore the powers do tremble and the highest heauens together with Cherubins and Seraphins thrones and al other multitudes of celestial spirites doe continually praise with hymnes of glorie Remember then deare Christian brother that euerie tyme thou doest commit a capital sinne thou gyuest as it were a blowe in the face to this great God of eternal maiestie whos mansiō as S. Paul describeth is in a light inaccessible such as no man in this vvorld can endure to behold Wherof S. Iohn th' euangelist gyueth good testimonie by his owne experiēce who notwithstādig he were an Apostle and most dearly beloued of his God and maister yet when Christ appeared vnto him after his Resurrection with certaine sparcles only of his dreadful gloric vttering words of most sweet consolation vnto hym he was for al that so astonied oppressed with feare that he fel doune starke dead as him self confesseth vntil the same his Lord and Maister vouchsafed to raise him vp againe The like trial of this inexplicable maiestie had Moyses the familiar friend and trustie seruant of God who after many conferences desiring once in his life to see him whos wordes he had so often heard made humble petition for the same But God answered that no man might see hym and lyue Yet notwithstanding to satisfie his request and to shew him in parte what a terrible and maiesticall God he was he promised Moyses that he should see some part of his glorie how beit he added that it was needfull he shoulde hyde him self in the hole of a rocke be couered with Gods owne handes for his defence whiles he or rather his Angel as diuines doe interprete did passe by in glorie Who being once past God remoued his hande and suffered Moyses to behold the hynder partes only of the Angel which was notwithstanding most terrible and dreadful The same maiestie was reuealed also in some part to Daniel who sawe God as he writeth placed vpon a most glorious throne his apparell vvas as vvhit as snovv bis beare lyke vnto fyne vvoolle bis throne vvas of a flame of fyre and his chariottes vvere a burning furnace a svvift flud of fyre ranne from his face thousand thousandes did serue him and ten thousand hundred thousands did assist him Al this and much more is recorded in holy scripture to admonishe vs therby what a wonderful prince of maiestie he is whom a synner doth offend Which thing that iust and
in the ende If thou shouldest be bound to sit stil al thy life in one place without mouing it would seeme grieuous and intollerable albeit no man did torment thee in that place What then wil it be to lie eternally that is to say world without ende in most extreme torments and inexplicable desolatiōs is it any way to be comprehended how they may be suffered ô blind iudgement of man that maketh no more accounte of preuenting thes calamities And yet might I here adioine an other circumstance of thes punishmētes which holie scripture it self omitteth not when it saith that al these torments shal be suffered in darkenes a thing dreadful of it self vnto mans nature as you know For that there is not the stoutest hart made of flesh but if he found him self alone destitute and naked in some desolate place of darkenes and should heare the voices and cries of infernal spirites drawing towardes him he would be striken with feare in respect of the place it self albeit as yet he felt no hurt vpon his body For that nothing is more terrible to mans imagination then to conceaue perils at hand which the eye can not discouer nor any thing more ful of extreme desolation thē hauing our sight to want for euer the vse and obiect therof This then is the most pitiful and desolate state of such as are damned that their insupportable euerlasting paines are sustained in darknes whereunto also may be added an other circumstance recorded by the prophet to knit vp al the rest which is that God shal laugh at them in thes their miseries an affliction perhappes to be numbred amongest the greatest of al others For as in this life to be moned by a mans friendes in time of aduersitie is exceeding great cōfort so to be derided and laughed at especiallie by them who onelie may help and redresse our miseries is a great and intolerable encrease of calamitie AND NOVV AL THIS that I haue hitherto treated is but one onlie part of a damned mans punishment called by diuines paena sensus the paine of sense or feeling that is the paine or punishment sensiblie inflicted vpon the soule and bodie But yet beside this ther is an other part of his punishmēt called poena damni the paine of losse or dammage which by al learned mens opinion is either greater or no lesse then the former And this is the infinite losse which a damned man indureth in being excluded for euer euer from the sight of his Creator and from his glorie Which sight onelie being sufficient to make happie and blessed al thos that are admitted therunto must nedes be an infinite miserie to the damned man to lacke the same eternallie And therfore this is put as one of the first and chiefest plagues to be layed vpon him Tollatur impius ne videat gloriam Dei Let the wicked man be taken away to hel to the ende he may not see the glorie of God And this losse containeth al other losses and dommages in it as are the losses of eternal blisse and ioye of eternal glorie of eternal societie with the Angels and the like which losses when a damned man considereth as he can not but consider them perpetuallie he taketh more grief thereof as diuines doe proue then of al other sensible torments that he abideth besides And hereof proceedeth that great and general torment which is so often repeated in holie write by the name of the vvorme of our conscience so called for that as a worme lieth eating and gnawing the wood wherein she abideth so shal the remorse of our owne conscience lie within vs griping and tormēting vs for euer And this worme or remorse shal principallie consiste in bringing to our mindes the meanes causes of our present extreame calamities To wit our folie and negligēce whereby we lost the felicitie which other men haue gotten And at euery one of thes considerations this worme shal gyue vs a deadlie pinche gripe which shal reache euen to the verie bottome and intrals of our hart As when it shal lay before vs al the occasions that we had offered to auoide the miserie wherin now we are fallen and to gaine the glorie which we haue lost how easie it had bene to haue done it how nigh oftentimes we were to resolue our selues to doe it and yet how vnfortunatlie we left of that cogitation againe How many times we were foretolde of this daunger and yet how litle care and feare we tooke of the same How vaine thos wordlie trifles were wherein we spent our time and for which we lost heauen and fel into thes most intolerable miseries How they are now exalted whome we thought fooles in the world and how we are now proued fooles and derided who thought our selues wise Thes things I say a thousand more being laied before vs by our owne conscience shal yeld vs infinite griefe and desolation for that it is now to late to amend them And this griefe is called the worme or remorse of our own conscience which worme shal more enforce mē to weepe and houle at that day then any torment els considering how negligentlie foolishlie and vainlie they are come into those so insupportable torments that now there is no more time place or leaue to redresse their errors Now onlie is the time of weeping wailing and of euerlasting lamentation for thes mē and yet al in vaine Now shal they beginne to freat and rage and maruaile at them selues saying where was our wit where was our vnderstanding where was our Iudgement when we folowed vanities and cōtemned thes affaires of our saluation This is the talke of sinners in hel sayeth the scripture vvhat hath our pride or vvhat hath the glorie of our riches profited vs They are al novv vanished like a shadovv vve haue vvearied out our selues in the vvay of iniquitie and perdition but the vvay of our Lord vve haue not knovvn This I say must be the euerlasting song of the damned and tormented conscience in hel eternal repentance without auaile By which extremitie he shal be brought to such desperatiō as the scripture also noteth that he shal turne into furie against him self teare his owne flesh rent his owne soule if it were possible inuite the fiendes and furies to torment him more for that he hath so beastlie behaued him self in this world as not to prouide in time for this principal matter onlie in deede to haue bene thought vpon O if he could now haue but an other short life to lead in the world how wold he passe it ouer with what diligence with what seueritie But this wil not be graunted neither is ther anie price of value to purchase it Onlie we deare brethren that are yet aliue doe inioye this inestimable grace treasure of time for our amendement if we were so happie as to resolue in deed to make our gaine and commoditie
liberal pay for so litle paines king Dauid discoursing with him self on a certaine time how his owne palace being richly builded of Cedar timber the arke of his Lord and maken was lodged only vnder a poore tēt resolued with him self to erect a house and temple for the same Which onelie cogitation God tooke in so good parte as he sent Nathan the prophet vnto him presentlie to refuse the thing but yet to tel him that for so much as he had determined such a matter God wold build a house or rather a kingdome to him and his posteritie which should last for euer and from which he wold neuer take away his mercie what sinnes or offences so cue they committed Which liberal promisse we see now fulfilled in the Church of Christ descended originally from that noble family What should I labour to heape together moe examples to this effect Christ him self gyueth a general note hereof when he calleth the workemen and payeth to ech man his wages so duelie as also when he sayeth of him self behold I come quicklie and my revvard is vvith me By which places it is euident that God suffereth no labour in his seruice to be lost or vnpayed And albeit as hereafter in place conuenient more amply shal be shewed he payeth also and that abundantlie in this life present yet as by these two texts appeareth he deferreth his chiefe paye vnto his comming in the end of the day that is after this life in the resurrection of the iust as him self saieth in an other place OF THIS PAIMENT then reserued for gods seruants in the life to come we are now to consider what maner a thing it is and whether it be worth so much labour and trauail as the seruice of God requireth And first of al if we beleeue the holie scripture calling it a kingdome a heauenlie kingdome an eternal kingdome a most blessed kingdome we must nedes confesse it to be a maruailous great reward seing that in this world hardlie can there be found so bountiful a Monarch as wil bestowe a kingdome vpon his seruant in recompēse of his seruice and if he would and were able to performe the same yet would it be nether heauenly nor eternal nor blessed kingdome such as this is which God hath promised vnto his seruants Secondlie if we credit that which S. Paul saieth of this reward that nether eye hath seene nor eare beard nor hart of man conceyued how great a matter it is thē must we yet admit a greater opiniō thereof For that we haue sene many wounderful things in our dayes we haue heard more wounderful we may conceyue most wounderful and almost infinit How then shal we come to vnderstand the greatnesse and value of this reward surelie no tongue created either of man or Angel can expresse the same no imagination conceyue no vnderstanding comprehend it Christ him self hath said nemo scit nisi qui accipit No man knoweth it but he that enioyeth it And therfore he calleth it hidden manna in the same place Notwithstanding as it is reported of a learned Geometrician who finding the length of Hercules foote vpon the hil Olimpus drew out his whole bodie by the proportion of that one part so we by some things set doune in holy scripture and by some other circumstances agreing therunto may frame a coniecture of the matter though it be farre vnequal and inferiour to the thing it self I haue before declared how this reward in holy writ is called a heauenly euerlasting most blessed kingdome By which wordes is signified that al shal be kinges and most happie kinges that shal be found worthie of this reward To like effect is it called in other places a crovvn of glorie a throne of Maiest c a paradise or place of pleasure a life euerlasting S. Iohn the Euangelist being in his banishment by special priuilege made priuie to some knowlege and feeling thereof aswel for his owne comfort as for ours taketh in hād to describe it by comparison of a citie affirming that the whole bodie therof was of pure gold inuironed with a great and high wal of the pretiouse stone called Iaspis This wal had also twelue foundations made of twelue distinct pretious stones which he there nameth also twelue gates made of twelue riche stones called Margarits and euerie gate was an entire Margarit The stretes of the citie were paued with gold interlayed also with pearls and pretious stones The light of the citie was the clearenesse splēdour of Christ him self sitting in the middest thereof from whose seat proceded a riuer of water as cleare as cristal to refresh the citie and on both sides of the bankes there grew the tree of life geuing out continual and perpetual fruit There was no night in that citie nor any defiled thing entered thereinto but they which are within shal raigne sayeth he for euer and euer By this description of the mostriche and pretious things that this world hath S. Iohn wold geue vs to vnderstand the infinite finite value glorie Maiestie of this felicitie prepared for vs in heauen though as I haue noted before it being the princelie inheritance of our Saue our Christ the kingdome of his father the eternal habitation of the holie Trinitie prepared before al worldes to set out the glorie and to expresse the power of him that hath no end or measure ether in power or glorie we may verie wel thinke with S. Paul that nether tongue can declare it nor hart imagine it When God shal take vpon him to doe a thing for the vttermost declaration in a certain sorte of his power wisdome and eternal Maiestie imagine you what a thing it wil be It pleased him some time to make certaine creatures to serue him in his presence and to be witnesses of his glorie and thereupon with a word he created the Angels both for number and perfection of nature so strange and wonderful as the cogitation therof astonieth our vnderstanding For as for their number they were almost infinite passing the number of al the creatures of this inferiour world as diuers learned men and some ancient fathers are of opinion albeit Daniel according to the custome of holy writ doe put a certain number for an vncertaine when he sayeth of Angels a thousand thousands did minister vnto him that is vnto God and ten thousand times a hundreed thousand did stand about him to assist And for their perfection of nature it is such being as the scripture saieth celostial spirits and like burning fire as they farre surpasse al inferiour creatures in natural knowledge power beautie and al other excellēcies which i one Angel are more for perfectiō of nature not respectig grace then in al other creatures of the world put together What an infinit Maiestie thē doeth this argue in the Creator After this when many of these Angels were now fallen it pleased
foote not able once to moue as the scripture expressie noteth The third gift and qualitie is supernatural strength wherewith the glorified bodie shal so abound as Anselmê° saieth that he shal be able to moue the whole earth if he wold and contrariwise the damned body shal be so weake and impotent as he shal not be able to remoue the verie wormes frome his owne face and eyes The fourth qualitie is penetrabilitie or free power of passage whereby the glorified bodie shal be inabled to pearse and penetrate any other bodies what soeuer as walles doores the earth or firmament without any resistance quite contrarie to the nature of a corruptible bodie So we see that Christs bodie glorified after his resurrection entered the house wher his disciples were the dores being shut and pearsed also the heauens at his AscensioÌ„ The fift rare qualitie is most absolute health whereby the glorified body shal be deliuered from al diseases paines of this life and from al troubles encombrances belonging to the same as are eating drinking sleeping and other like and shal be set in a most perfect and florishing state of health and freedome neuer decayable again whereas the damned bodie in contrarie maner shal be filled and stuffed with innumerable diseases paines and torments which no tongue of man is able to expresse The sixt perfection is delite and pleasure wherewith the glorified bodie aboue al measure shal be replenished al his senses together finding now their peculier and proper obiects in much more excellencie then euer they could in this world Now I say euerie part sense meÌ„ber and ioint shal be filled with exceeding delectation and pleasure according as in the damned ech part and sense shal contrariwise be afflicted and tormented I wil alleage S. Anselmus his wordes for that they expresse vnto vs this matter most liuelie Al the whole glorified body layeth he shal be filled with abundance of al kind of comfort the eyes the eares the nose the mouth the hands the throte the lungs the hart the stomacke the backe the bones the marowe and the very-entrales them selues and euery part thereof shal be replenished with such vnspeakable swetenesse and pleasure that truelie it may be sayed that the whole man is made t drinke of the riuer of Gods diuine delites and made-dronke vvith the abundance of Gods house In contrarie wise the damned bodie shal be tormented in al his partes and members eueÌ„ as if you saw a man that had a burning yron thrust into his eyes an other into his mouth an other into his brest an other into his ribbes and so through al the ioints partes and members of his bodie Would you not thinke him miserable and the other man happie The seuenth and last excellencie of a glorified body is called perpetuitie or securitie of life wherby it is made assured neuer to die or alter more from his felicitie according to the saying of holie scripture the iust shal liue for euer And this is one of the chiefest prerogatiues most excellent dignities of a glorified bodie wherby al care doubt and feare is taken away al danger of hurt and noyance For if al the world should fal together vpon such a bodie it could not hurt or harme it any thing at al where as the damned bodie lieth alway in dying and is subiect to the griefe of euery blow and tormeÌ„t laied vpon it so must remain for al eternitieÌ„ Thes seuen most excellent qualities prerogatiues dignities and preemineÌ„cies shal adorne and beautifie or rather deifie in a certaine sorte the bodies of the iust in the life to come And albeit this vniuersal happinesse be but accidental as I haue sayed and nothing in deed to the essential felicitie of the Queene mistres her self that is our soule yet is it a matter of no smal importance as you see but such as if any bodie in this life had but any one iote of the least part therof we should esteeme it most happie And to obtaine so much in this world many men wold aduenture farre whereas to get theÌ„ al together in the life to come no man almost wil moue his fingar But now to leaue this to come to the most excelleÌ„t essential point of this felicitie that is to the part which pertaineth to the soule it is to be vnderstood that albeit there be many things that doe coÌ„curre in this felicitie for the accoÌ„plishment perfection of ful happinesse Yet the fontaine of al is but one onelie thing called by diuines Visio dei beatifica the sight or visioÌ„ of god that maketh vs happie Haec sola est summuÌ„ bonuÌ„ nostruÌ„ sayeth S. Augustin this onelie sight of god is our intire happinesse Which Christ also affirmeth wheÌ„ he sayeth to his father this is life euerlasting that men knovv the true god and Iesus Christ vvhome thou hast seut S. Paul also putteth our felicitie in seing god face to face And S. Iohn in seing god as he is And the reason of al this is for that al the pleasures delites and coÌ„tentations of this world wherin mortal meÌ„ doe solace them selues being nothing els but litle peeces crummes of Gods incomprehensible felicitie the same are coÌ„tained much more perfectlie and excellentlie in god him self from whom they are deriued then they are in their owne natures imparted vnto man as also al the perfections of Gods creatures are more fullie in him theÌ„ in them selues Whereof it foloweth that who soeuer is admitted to the visioÌ„ presence of almightie God the Creatour and fontaine of al delites he shal ther finde al the goodnesse and perfections of worldlie thinges compact and vnited together and presented vnto him at once So that whatsoeuer may delite either bodie or soule there he shal enioye it wholie knit vp together as it were in one bundle and with the presence thereof shal be rauished in al partes both of mind and bodie in such sort as he shal not be able to imagine think or wish for anie one ioye whatsoeuer but there he shal finde the same in his ful perfectioÌ„ There he shal finde al knowledge al wisedome al beautie al riches al nobilitie al goodnes al pleasure and whatsoeuer besides may deserue either loue or admiration or woorkethanie pleasure or contentation vnto man Al the powers of our mind shal be filled with this sight presence and fruition of God al the senses of our bodie shal be satisfied passinglie contented with the same God shal be the vniuersal felicitie of al his saints containing in him self alone al particular felicities without end number or measure He shal be a glasse to our eyes musike to our eares honie to our mouthes most swete pleasant balme to our smel He shal be light to our vnderstaÌ„ding contentation to our wil continuation of eternitie to our memorie In him shal we
purpose but yet calmelie without any troublesome cunctation according to his nature and maners wherby he differed alwayes greatlie from me in the better parte After this we went in together to my mother we tel her the whole matter she reioyseth we recite vnto her the whole order of the thing she exulteth triumpheth and blesseth thee ô Lorde which art more strong and liberal than we can aske or vnderstand for that she sawe now much more graunted to her from thee touching me than she was wont to aske with her pittiful lamentable sighes For thou haddest so cōuerted me now to thee that I nether sought for wyfe nor any other hope at al of this world lyuing and abiding in that rule of fayeth in which thou diddest reueale me vnto her so many yeres before And thus thou diddest turne her sorow now into more abundāt solace than she could wish and into muche more deare chast ioye then shee could require by my children her nephues if I had taken wife O Lorde I am thy seruant I am now thy seruant and childe of thy handmay de thou hast broken my chaines and I wil sacrifice to thee therfore a sacrifice of praise Let my harte and tongue praise the and let my bones say to thee O Lorde vvhoe is like vnto thee Let them saye it ô Lord and doe thou answere I beseeche thee and saye to my soule I am thy saluation Hitherto are S. Augustines own wordes Now then deare Christian brother in the miraculous example of this famous mans conuersion there be diuers things to be noted bothe for our comfort and also for our instruction First is to be marked the great conflict he had with his ghostely enemie before he could get out of his possession and dominion which was so much the more no dowt for that he was to be so greate a pillar afterward in Gods Church And we see that his fellow Alipius found not so great resistance for that the enemie sawe there was much lesse in him to hurt his kingdome than in S. Augustine which ought greatlie to animate and comfort them that feele great resistance and strong temptations against their vocation assuring them selues that this is a signe of more grace and fauour if they manfullie goe through So was S. Paul called as we read most violentlie being striken down to the grounde made blinde by Christ before his conuersion for that he was a chosen vessel to beare Christes name vnto the Gentiles Secondly is to be noted in the same example that although this man had most strong passions before his conuersion that in the greatest and most incurable diseases which cōmonlie afflict worldlie men as in ambition couetousnes and sinnes of the flesh according as him self before cōfesseth which maladies possessed him so stronglie in deede as he thought it vnpossible before his conuersion euer to subdue and conquer the same yet afterwarde he proued the contrarie by the help of Gods omnipotent grace Thirdlie also is to be considered that he had not onelie the victorie ouer these his passions afterward but also found great sweetness in the way of vertuous life For a litle after his conuersion he writeth thus I could not be satisfied ô Lord in those dayes with the maruailous sweetnes which thougauest me O how much did I weepe in thy himnes canticles being vehementlie stirred vp with the voyces of thy Church singing most sweetlie Those voyces did runne into my eares thy trueth did melt into my hart thēce did boyle out an affection of pietie and made teares to runne from me and I was in most happie state with them Fourthlie is to be remembred for our instruction and imitation the behauiour of this holy man about his vocation First in searching trying out the same by his repaire to S. Ambrose to Simplicianus others by reading of good bookes frequenting of good companie and the like which thou oughtest also good reader to doe whē thou feelest thy self inwardlie moued and not to lye dead as manie are wont resisting openlie the holie Ghost with al his good motions not so much as once to geue eare to the knocking of Christ at the dore of their consciences Moreouer S. Austen as we see refused not the meanes to know his vocation but prayed wept and often retired him self alone from companie to talke with God in that matter Which many of vs wil neuer doe but rather doe detest and flie al meanes that maye bring vs into those cogitations of our conuersion Finallie S. Austen after he had once seene clearlie the wil and pleasure of God made no more staye of the matter but bracke of stronglie from al the world and vanities therof gaue ouer his rhetorike lecture at Millan left al hope of promotion in the court and betooke him self to serue almightie God through lie and therfore no maruaile if he receaued so great consolation and aduauncement from God afterward as to be so worthie a member in his holy Church Which example is to be folowed of al them that desire perfectiō so farforth as ech mans condition state of life permitteth And here by this occasion I may not let passe to aduertise thee good reader also by S. Austens exāple to forewarne thee that who soeuer meaneth to make this resolution throughlie must vse some violence to him self at the beginning For as a fire if you rushe in vpon it with force is easilie put-out but if you deale softlie putting in one hand after an other you may rather hurt your self then extinguish the same so is it with our passions who require manhode and courage for a time at the beginning Which who soeuer shal vse together with the other meanes set doune in the second booke of this treatise he shal most certainlie finde that thing to be easie which now he thinketh heauie and that most sweete which now he esteemeth so vnsauorie For proofe wherof as also for conclusion of this chapter I wil alleage a shorte discourse out of S. Barnard who after his fashion proueth the same most fitlie by an authoritie alleaged out of the holy scriptures His wordes are thes Christ sayeth vnto vs take my yoke vpon you and you shal find rest This is a maruelous noueltie but that it cometh from him vvhich maketh al things nevv He that taketh vp a yoke findeth rest he that leaueth al findeth a hundred times so much He knew wel this I meane that man according to the hart of God which sayed in his psalme Doth the seate of iniquitie cleaue to thee ô Lord vvhich feignest a labour in thy commandement is not this a feigned labour deare brothren in a commandement I meane a light burden a sweet yoke an annointed crosse So in old time he saied to Abraham take thy sonne Isaac vvhom thou louest and offer him to me in sacrifice
the temptations of the world and deuil the resisting wherof is much more difficult in time of peace and wealth then in time of external affliction and persecution for that thes enemies are stronger in flatterie then in force which a godly father expresseth by this parable The sunne and wind saieth he agreed one day to proue their seueral strengthes in taking a cloke from a waiefaring man And in the forenoone the wind vsed al violence that he could to blow of the said clok But the more he blew the more fast held the trauailer his clock and gathered it more closely about him At after noone the sunne sent forth her pleasant beames by litle and litle so entered into this man as he caused him to yeeld to put of not onely his cloke but also his cote Whereby is proued saieth this father that the allurementes of pleasure are more strong and harder to be resisted then the violence of persecution The like is shewed by the example of king Dauid who resisted easily many assaults of aduersitie but yet fel dangerously in time of prosperitie Wherby appeareth that vertuous men haue no lesse warre in time of peace then in time of persecution Nor euer wanteth there occasion of bearing the crosse and suffering affliction to him that wil accept of the same And this may susfice for this first point to proue that euery man must enter into heauen by tribulation as S. Paul saieth The second part TOVCHING THE second why God wold haue this matter so it were sufficiēt to aunswer that it pleased him best so without seeking any further reason of his meaning herein euen as it pleased his diuine Maiestie without al reason in our sight to abase his sonne so much as to send him hither into this world to suffer and die for vs. Or if we wil needes haue a reason hereof this one might be sufficiēt for al that seing we looke for so great a glory as we doe we should labour a litle first for the same and so shew our selues worthie of Gods fauour and exaltation But yet for that it hath pleased his diuine Maiestie not onely to open vnto vs his wil and determination for our suffering in this life but also diuers reasons of his most holy purpose and pleasure therin for our further encouragement and consolation that doe suffer I wil in this place repeate some of the same for declaration of his exceeding great loue and fatherlie care towardes vs. THE FIRST cause then and the most principal is to encrease therby our merit and glorie in the life to come For hauing appointed by his eternal wisdome and iustice that none shal be crouned there but according to the measure of his fight in this world the more and greater cōbates that he geueth together with sufficient grace to ouercome them the greater crowne of glorie prepareth he for vs at our resurrection This cause toucheth S. Paul in the wordes before alleaged of the saintes of the olde testament to wit that they receaued no redemption from their miseries in this world to the end they might find a better resurrection in the world to come This also meant Christ expresselie when he saied Happie are they vvhich suffe persecutiō for theirs is the kingdom of heauen happie are you vvhen men speake euil and persecute you c. reioyse be glad I saye for that your revvard is great in heauē Hereunto also appertaine al those promises of gaining life by leesing life of receauing a hundred for one and the like Herehence do procede al those large promises to virginitie and chastitie and to such as geld them selues for the kingdom of heauen to voluntarie pouertie and to the renouncing of our owne wil by obedience Al which are greate conflictes against the fleshe world and our owne sensualitie and can not be performed but by sufferings and affliction Finally S. Paul declareth this matter fullie when he sayeth that a litle and short tribulation in this life vvorketh a beape of glorie aboue al measure in the hight of heauen THE SECOND cause why God appointed this is to draw vs therby from the loue of the world his professed enemie as in the next chapter shal be shewed at large This cause S. Paul vttereth in these wordes VVe are punished of God in this life to the end vve should not be damned vvith this vvorld In like maner as a Nurse that to weane her child from the loue and liking of her milke dothe anointe her teat with Aloes or some other such bitter thing so our merciful Father that wolde retire vs. from the loue of wordlie delites wherby infinite men doe perish daily vseth to send tribulation which of al other thinges hath most force to woorke that effect as we see in the example of the prodigal sonne who could by no meanes be stayed from his pleasures and retired home to his olde Father but onelie by affliction THIRDLIE God vseth tribulation as a most present and soueraine medicine to heale vs of many diseases otherwise almost incurable As first of a certaine blindenes and careles negligence in our estate contracted by wealth and prosperitie In which sense holy scripture saieth that affliction geueth vnderstanding And the wise man affirmeth that the rodde bringeth vvisdom This was shewed in figure when the sight of Tobie was restored by the bitter gaule of a fish And we haue cleare examples in Nabuchodonasor Saul Antiochus and Manasses al wich came to see their owne faultes by tribulation which they wolde neuer haue done in time of prosperitie The like we read of the brethren of Ioseph who falling into some affliction in Egypt presentlie entred into their owne conscience and sayd VVe suffer those thinges vvorthely for that vve sinned against our brother And as tribulation bringeth this light wherby we see our owne defectes so helpeth it greatlie to remoue and cure the same wherin it may be wel likened vnto the rodde of Moyses For as that rodde striking the hard rockes brought foorth water as the scripture saieth so this rodde of affliction falling vpon stonie harted sinners mollifieth them to contrition and often times bringeth forth the fluddes of teares to repentance In respect wherof holy Tobie saieth to almightie God In time of tribulation thou forgeuest sinnes And for like 〈◊〉 it is compared also to a file of yron which taketh away the rust of the soule In like maner to a purgation that driueth out corrupt humours And finallie to a goldsmithes forge which cōsumeth away the refuse metals and fineth the gold to his perfection I vvil trie thee by fire to the quick saieth God to a sinner by Esay the prophet and I vvil take avvaie al thy tinne and refuse metal And againe by Ieremie I vvil melt them and trye them by fire This he meant of the fire of tribulation whose propertie is according
Angels nor principalities nor powers nor things present nor things to come nor strength nor height nor depth nor any creature els shal be able to separate vs frō the loue of God which is in Iesus Christ our Lord. Finallie this was the resolution of al the holie Martyrs and Confessors and other seruantes of God wherby they haue withstood the temptations of the deuil the allurementes of flesh and bloode and al the persecutions of tirants exacting things vnlauful at their handes I wil alleage one example more out of holy scripture and that before the comming of Christ but yet nigh vnto the same and therfore no manuaile as the holy fathers doe note though it tooke some heate of Christian feruour and constancie towardes martyrdome The example is wounderful for that in mans sight it was but for a smal matter required at their hādes by the tirantes commandement that is onelie to eate a peece of swines flesh for thus it is recorded in the scripture It hapened seuen brethren to be apprehended together in those dayes and to be broght with their mother to the tyrannous king Antiochus and there to be cōpelled with tormentes of whipping and other instrumētes to the eating of swines flesh against the law At what time one of thē which was the eldest said what doest thou seke or what wilt thou learne out of vs ô king we are readie here rather to die then to breake the auncient lawes of our God Wherat the king being greatlie offended commanded the frying pānes and pottes of brasse to be made burning hote which being redie he caused this first mannes tongue to be cut of together with the toppes of his fingers and toes as also with the skinne of his head the mother and other brethern loking on after this he caused him to be fried vntil he was dead Which being done the second brother was brought to torment after his heare pluckt of from his head together with the skinne they asked him whether he wold yet eate swinnes flesh or no before he was put to the rest of his tormentes wherto he answered noe thervpon was after many tormentes slaine with the other Who being dead the third was taken in hand and being willed to put forth his tongue he held it forth quicklie together with bothe his handes to be cut of saying confidentlie I receaued both tongue and handes from heauen and novv I despise them bothe for the lavve of God for that I hope to receaue them al of him againe And after they had in this forte tormented and put to death six of the brethrē euerie one most cōstantly protesting his faith and the ioye he had to die for Gods cause there remained onelie the yongest whome Antiochus being ashamed that he could peruert neuer a one of the former endeuoured by al meanes possible to draw from his purpose by promising and swearing that he should be a rich and happie man and one of his checi frēdes if he wold yeld But when the youth was nothing moued ther with Antiochus called to him the mother and exhorted her to saue her sonnes life by persuading him to yeld which she feigning to doe therby to haue libertie to speake to her sonne she made a most vehement exhortation to him in the hebrew tongue to slād to it and to die for his conscience which speech being ended the youth cried owt with a loud voice and vttered this noble sentence worthie to be remembred Qucon suslinetis non obtempero praecepto regis sed praecepto legis Whom doe you staye for I doe not obey the commandement of the king but the commādement of the law of God Wher vpon both he and his mother were presentlie after many and sundrie tormentes put to death This then is the constant and immouable resolution which a Christian man should haue in al aduersitie of this life Wher of S. Ambrose saieth thus Gratia praeparandus est animus exercenda mens stabilienda ad constantiam vt nullis perturbari 〈◊〉 possit terroribus vullis frangi mole sliis nullis suppliciis cedere Our minde is to be prepared with grace to be exercised and to be so established in constancie as it may not be troubled with anie terrours brokē with any aduersities yeld to anie punishmentes or tormentes whatsoeuer IF YOV aske me here how a man may come to this former resolution I answere that S. Ambrose in the same place putteth two waies how to attaine the same the one is to remember the endles intolerable paines of hel if we haue it not or doe yeld against our own cōscience for feare the other is to think of the vnspeakable glorie of heauen if we perseuer constant Whereto I wil adde the thirde which with a noble hart may perhappes preuaile as much as either of thē both and that is to consider what others haue suffered before vs especiallie Christ him self and that onelie of mere Ioue and affection towardes vs. We see that in this world louing subiectos doe glorie of nothing more then of their daungers or hurtes taken in bataille for their prince though he neuer tooke blowe for them againe What thē would they doe if their prince had bene afflicted voluntarilie for them as Christ hath bene for vs But if this great example of Christ seeme vnto the to high to imitate looke vpon some of thy brethren before thee made of flesh and blood as thou art see what they haue suffered before they could enter into heauen and thinke not thy self hardlie dealt withal if thou be called to suffer a litle also Saint Paul writeth of al the Apostles together Euen vnto this houre we suffer hungar and thirst lacke of apparel we are beaten with mennes fistes we are'vagabondes not hauing where to staie we labour and worke with our owne handes we are cursed and we doe blesse we are persecuted and we take it patientlie we are blasphemed and we pray for them that blaspheme vs we are made as it were the verie out-castes and purgings of this world euen vnto this day That is though we be Apostles though we haue wrought so many miracles and conuerted so many millions of people yet euen vnto this day are we thus vsed And a litle after describing yet further their liues he saieth we shew our selues as the ministers of God in much patience in tribulations in necessities in distresses in beatinges in imprisonmentes in seditions in labours in watches in fastinges in chastitie in longanimitie in sweetnes of behauiour And of him self in particular he saieth In laboribus plurimis c. I am the minister of God in many labours in imprisonments more then the rest in beatinges aboue measure and oftentimes in death it self Fiue times haue I bene beaten of the Iewes and at euery time had fortie lashes lacking one three times haue I bene whipt with roddes once I was stoned three times haue I suffered ship
in the successours And he which holdeth the name therof by descēt only without vertue is a meere monster in respect of his auncestours for that he breaketh the limites and nature of nobilitie Of which sort of men God saieth by one prophet They are made abominable euen as the things vvhich they loue their glorie is frō their natiuitie from the bellie and from their cōception It is a miserable vanitie to begge credit of dead men wher as we deserue none our selues to seek vp old titles of honour from our auncestours we being vtterlie vncapable therof by our own base maners and behauiour Christ clearlie confounded this vanitie when being descended him self of the greatest nobilitie and rase of kings that euer was in this world and besides that being also the sonne of God yet called he him self ordinarilie the sonne of man That is to say the sonne of the pore virgin MARIE for otherwise he was no sonne of man and further then this also called hi self a shepheard which in the world is a name of contempt He sought not vp this that old title of honour to furnish his stile withal as our mē doe Nether when he was to make a king first in Israel did he seeke owt the auncientest blood but tooke Saul of the basest tribe of Iewes and after him Dauid the poorest sheepheard of al his brethren And when he came into the world he soght not out the noblest men to make princes of the earth that is to make Apostles but tooke of the poorest simplest therby to cōfound as one of them saieth the folish vanitie of this world in making so great account of the preeminence of a litle flesh and blood in this life THE FOVRTH vanitie that belongeth to ambition or pride of life is worldlie wisdome wherof the Apostle saieth The vvisdom of this vvorld is folie vvith God If it be folie then great vanitie no dowbt to delite and bost so much in it as men doe It is a strange thing to see how contrarie the Iudgmentes of God are to the iudgmentes of men The people of Israel wold needes haue a king as before I haue said and they thought God would haue geuen them presentlie some great mightie prince to rule ouer them but he chose out a poore man that folowed asses vp down the countrie After that when God wold displace this man againe for his sinnes he sent Samuel to anoint one of Isay his sonnes and being come to the house I say brought forth his eldest sonne Eliab a lustie taule felow thinking him in deed most fitte to gouerne but God answered Respect not his countenance nor his taulnes of personage for I haue reiected him nor doe I iudge according to the countenance of man After that I say brought in his second sonne Abinadab and after him Samma and so the rest vntil he had shewed him seuen of his sonnes Al which being refused by Samuel they maruailed much and said there was no more left but onelie a litle read headed boye that kept the sheep called Dauid which Samuel caused to be sent for And as sone as he came in sight God said to Samuel this is the man that I haue chosen When the Messias was promised vnto the Iewes to be a king they imagined presentlie according to their worldlie wisdome that he should be some great prince and therfore they refused Christ that came in pouertie Iames and Iohn being yet but carnal seing the Samaritanes contemptuouslie to refuse Christes disciples sent to them and knowing what Christ was thought streight way that he must in reuēge haue called downe fire from heauen to consume them But Christ rebuked them saying you knovv not of vvhat spirit you are The Apostles preaching the crosse necessitie of suffering to the wise Gētiles and Philosophers were thought presentlie fooles for their labours Festus the Emperours lieutenant hearing Paul to speake so much of abandoning the world and folowing Christ said he was madde Finallie this is the fashion of al worldlie wise men to condemne the wisdome of Christ and of his Saints For so the holie scripture reporteth of their own confession being now in place of torment nos insensati vitam illorum aestimabanins insaniam we fond men esteemed the liues of Saintes as madnes Wherfore this is also great vanitie as I haue said to make such accoumpt of worldlie wisdome which is not onelie called folie but also madnes by holie scripture itself Who would not thinke but that the wise men of this world were the fittest to be chosen to doe Christ seruice in his Church Yet S. Paul saieth non multi sapientes secundum carnem God hath not chosen many wise men according to the flesh Who wold not think but that a worldly wise man might easilie also make a wise Christian yet S. Paul saith no except first he become a foole stultus fiat vt sit sapiens If any man seeme wise amongest you let him become a foole to the end he may be made wise Vaine then of no account is the wisdome of this world except it be subiect to the wisdome of God THE FIFTH vanitie belonginge to pride of life is corporal beautie wherof the wise man saith vaine is beautie and deceauable is the grace of a faire countenance Wherof also king Dauid vnderstode properlie when he said Turne avvaye my eies ō Lord that they beholde not vanitie This is a singular great vanitie dangerous and deceatful but yet greatlie esteemed of the children of men whose propertie is to loue vanitie as the prophet affirmeth and experiēce teacheth Beautie is cōpared by holiemen to a painted snake which is faire without and ful of deadlie poison within If a man did cōsider what infinite ruines and destructiōs haue come by ouer light geuing credit therunto he wolde beware of it And if he remembred what foule drosse lieth vnder a faire skinne he wolde litle be in loue therwith saith one holy father God hath imparted certaine sparcles of beautie vnto his creatures therby to drawe vs to the consideration and loue of his owne beautie wherof the other is but a shadow euen as a man finding a litle issue of water maye seeke out the fountane therby or happening vpon a smal vaine of gold may therby come to the whole mine it self But we like babes delite our selues onelie with the faire couer of the book and neuer doe consider what is writen therin In al faire creatures that man doth beholde he ought to reade this lesson saith one father that if God could make a peece of earth so faire and louelie with imparting vnto it some litle sparke of his beautie how infinite faire is he himself and how worthie of al loue and admiration And how happie shal we be when we shal come to enioye his beautiful presence wherof now al creatures doe take their beautie If
probabilite had bothe sene him and heard him in his life This man then hauing liued verie long in this his charge of bishoprike being now a hundred and twentie yeares olde was in the time of Traian the Emperor S. Iohn the Euangelist being dead a litle before accused by certaine heretiques who then first as Egisippus saith who liued in the same time beganne to shew them selues openly in the world hauing liued secretly in corners before for that al the holy Apostles and others which had heard our Sauiour speake were now dead and therfore thes heretiques deuised now what new expositions vpon scriptures liked them best And for that this man was the only or cheefe piller that stood against them for defence of the Catholique faith and apostolical traditiō at that daie they caused him coningly to be apprehended and presented before Atticus then gouern our of Iurie for the Emperour Who after many allurementes and threates vsed vnto him when by no me ās he could moue him to relent from his cōstancie in Christes seruice he caused him to be beaten with whippes and to be tormented many daies together which the old man indured with most wonderful corage in so much that Atticus being astonied saith our author that one of six skore years of age could beare so many torments commanded him finally to be nailed on a crosse as his master Christ was and so he died At the very same time liued therin Asia a man of singuler name for his holines called Ignatius disciple to the apostles by them or deined bishop of Antioche after that S. Peter had lest the same This mā being accused for his faith to the gouernour of Syria and standing constant in the confession therof was condemned by him to be torne in peeces of wild beastes But for that he was a person of great marke he was sent prisoner to Rome vnder the custodie of ten soldiars to suffer ther. And albeit thes soldiars vpon the way vsed him very discurteously and kept him straite yet founde he meanes either by speech or letters to comfort al Christians as he passed by them But especially as Eusebius noteth he inculcated two pointes to be remembred of them Primum vt haereses quae tum primò emergere caeperunt maxime praecaue ēt deinde vt apostolorū traditioni 〈◊〉 adhaerescerēt first that they should aboue al other things take heed of new opinions and heresies which then first began to creepe abroad and secōdly that they should sticke and cleane most firmely to the tradition of th' Apostles for the true vnderstanding and interpretation of scriptures that is to say they should admit no other interpretation but that which al churches by general and vniforme consent had receaued from th' apostles insinuating hereby that this should be an infallible rule to guide men by vnto the worlds ende Besides this the good man got time also and opportunitie in his iourney to write diuers epistles to sandry churches which Eusebius in his storie setteth downe And among other things either he being informed or fearing of him self that the Christians in Rome hearing of his comming would make means to the Emperour to get pardon for his life and so depriue him of martyrdome he write a most earnest letter vnto them beseeching them not to doe so Out of which letter both Eusebius and S. Hieron doe cite thes most excellent words following In this my iourny saieth he from Syria to Rome I am inforced to fight day and night with ten leopards that is with ten soldiars sent to keepe me Who the more benifites I doe bestow vpon them the worse and the more cruel they are towards me But their iniquitie is my instruction and yet hereby I am not iustified Would God I were once come to inioy thos beastes that are appointed to deuoure me I desire greatly that it may be hortly that they may be stirred vp to eate me quickly least perhapes they abstaine to touch me as they haue done from the bodies of other martyrs But if they should refuse to set vpon me I wil intise them on my self Pardon me my children for I know what is good for me Now I begine to be Christs true disciple desiring nothing that is sene in this world with mans eyes but only IESVS Christ my Sauiour Fire crosse beastes breaking of my bones quartering of my members tearing and renting of my body and al th' other tormentes that the diuel can inuent let them al come vpon me only that I may inioy my IESVS Thus far doth Eusebius cite the words of his own epistle which yet is exstant And S. Irenaeus S. Ierom doe 〈◊〉 yet further that when he came to suffer and heard the roringes of the lions redy to come forth vpon him he vsed thes words I am Gods corne and the teeth of thes wild beastes must grinde me to the ende I may be pure and good bread for Christs table He suffered saith S. Ierome in th' eleuenth yeare of Traians reigne and his reliques were carried backe againe by Christians from Rome to Antioche and ther are kept without the gate called Daphnitica Here we see the feruour of this seruant of God we see his constancie his corage his comfort in suffering And how came he deare brother to this most happie and blessed estate We heare him say of him self that novv he began to be Christes true disciple vvhen he desired nothing that mans eye can behold but only his Lord and Sauiour IESVS Christ. This burning loue then of IESVS did consume in him al other loue and affection that stayeth worldly men from like resolution He was no frende or louer of this world Heare the saying of an other light and lanterne of Gods church which liued at the very same time and suffered so one after him for the same cause and spake with him in his iourney toward Rome I meane S. Policarpus who wrote thus of Ignatius presently after his martyrdome vnto the Philippenses I beseech you brethren to yeld al obedience wher it is due and to vse al patience in your afflictions according to the example which you haue seene in Ignatius and other martyrs as also in S. Paul and the rest of the Apostles assuring your selues that thos men ranne not in vaine but in faith and iustice and therfore are gone to the place which was due vnto them being now with their Lord of whos afflictions they were made partakers in this life They were no louers of this world but they loued their maister who suffered death for our loue and rose againe for our glorification Thus far Policarpus And for that we are fallen into the mention of this rare and worthie man Policarp who albeit he sawe not Christ hī self in flesh yet did he liue most familiarly with diuers of the Apostles especially with S. Iohn Euāgelist whose domestical disciple he
the first in doinge of that seruice whersoeuer he came therby to touch his holy body He praied vehemently in the fier and gaue immortal thankes vuto almightie God that had made him worthy of that daies combate during which time the fier diuided it self in two partes and would not touch him in so much that the magistrate was constreined to send one to ronne his body through with a sword wherwith he died Thus far repeteth Eusebius out of the epistle of thes men that were present at his martyrdome they doe adde further thes wordes in the same epistle that the Iewes and Gentils ther present did suggest to the Magistrate to take heede least we did steale away his body and so begin to honour him in stead of our God crucified Vpon which suggestion his body by commandement was burned ther in our presence after it was dead but yet we afterward gathered vp his bones out of the ashes and laid them vp as things more pretious then gold or pretious stones in a place conuenient for such a treasure hoping that one day God wil permit vs to come togither in peace and to celebrate the festiual day of this his holy martyrdome I haue bene the lōger in setting downe the cōbat and end of this glorious Sainct for that he was a most rare and singuler man and his example may serue vs for our instruction to diuers purposes but especially how we ought to be firme and cōstant in holding the general vniforme doctrine and interpretation of scripturs deliuered by tradition from th' apostles in the Catholique church with detestation of al new opiniōs as also S. Ignatius warned vs before The holy bishop and martyr of God Irenaeus that liued in his time and went from Liōs in France vnto Asia to see and heare him reporteth certaine things of this blessed man which I can not in this place omit notwithstanding I make haste for that they may greatly profit such men in thes our dayes as haue grace to be moued or holpen with any thing Policarpe saith he was not only instructed by th' apostles them selues but also made bishop by them of Smirna He liued familiarly with many that had sene and spoken with our Saueour in flesh and we in our youth saw him in Asia for he liued long and ended his life by a most famous martyrdome He taught alwaies thos things which he had learned of the apostles which the Church deliuereth and which are only true Which may be proued by the consent of al the churches of Asia and by the bishopes which haue succeded after him He was a more faithful witnes of the truth then Valentinus or Marcion or al the body of other heretiques together which haue brought pestilent new sectes into the Church He wēt to Rome Anacetus being thē bishop and reduced to the church and true religion diuers that were peruerted by the for said heretiques and protested openly that he had receaued of th' apostles them selues that only and sole truth which is deliuered by the Catholique church Ther are yet a liue that haue heard him tel how that S. Iohn th' apostle of our Saue our being once at Ephesus going into a common bath and seing Cerinthus the heretique to be within ranne out againe in hast saying to them that were with him let vs flee from hence least the bath fal downe and destroy vs in which the enimie of God Cerinthus remaineth The same Policarpe at the same time when he was at Rome meeting by chance with Marcion the heretique ther and being demanded of him whether he knew him or not answered vea I know the for the cheefe child of Satan So wary were the holy apostles and their schollers not so much as to talke with such fellowes as indeuored by their new commētaries and expositiōs of scriptures to change the truth before receaued And so S. Paul warneth vs al to doe when he saith Auoid an heretical man after one or tvvo admonitions assaring thy self that such a one is peruers and sinneth being condemned by his ovvne proper iudgement Hitherto are the words of holy Irenaeus The same Irenaeus writing to one Florinus his old acquaintance in schole of Polycarpus now beginning to be an heretike in Rome as foloweth Thes opinions of thine O Florinus to speake frendly are not true nor wholsome Thes opinions are repugnant to the Church Thes opinions thou receauedst not by tradition from the Preestes that before vs were scholers to the Apostles I did see thee when I was but a child with Polycarpus in Asia at what time thou liuing very gorgiously in the Emperours court diddest indeuour to hold a good opinion with Polycarp I remember those times wel they stike in my mind more firmly then other things that passed since In so much that I can tel at this time the very place wherin this blessed man did sit whē he spake vnto vs. I can tel the order and maner of his comming in the forme and fashion of his life the shape of his body the maner of his disputing of his preaching to the multitude I remember how he was wont to recompt vnto vs the familier conuersation that he had with S. Iohn th' Euangelist with diuers others who had seene our Sauiour I remember how he would tel vnto vs their speaches what he had heard them say of Christ of his miracles vertues and doctrine which they had seene with their owne eyes and heard with their eares which were al agreing with the scriptures that now we haue Thes things through the great mercy of God towards me I heard at that time both diligently and attentiuely not so much committing them to inke papire as to the inward cogitation of my minde And while I liue I doe and shal by Gods holy grace most carfully renewe the memory therof And now here before almighty God I may truly protest that if this holy and Apostolical preest Polycarp should haue heard of such new opinions as you defende he would haue stopped his eares and cried out according as his fashion was O good God vnto what miserable times hast thou reserued me to heare thes things And presently would haue risen and runne away from the place where he had bene standing or sitting when such doctrine should haue bene vttred Hitherto Irenaeus AND NOVV deare Christiā brother who would not be moued with the graue and zelous speeches of thes reuerend men that liued so nighe to the times of the holy Apostles and of our Saueour him self How exceeding great was their care amiddest al their other tribulations and at the very last time when they were to depart out of this world for Irenaeus also soone after suffered martyrdome to forwarne Christiā people to beware of heresie and schisine and to detest al maner of new commentaries expositiōs vpon holy scriptures other then the vniuersal traditiō of the
iustitiae sperate in domino doe you sacrifice vnto God the sacrifice of righteousnes and then trust in him Wherwith S. Iohn agreeth when he saith If our hart or conscience doe not reprehend vs for wicked life then haue vve confidence vvith God As who wold saie if our conscience be guiltie of lewde and wicked life we resolued to dwel and continue therin then in vaine haue we confidence in the mercies of God vnto whose iust iudgemēt we stand subiect for our wickednes It is most wonderful and dreadful to consider how almightie God hath vsed him self towardes his best beloued in this world vpon offence geuen by occasion of finne how easelie he hath chaunged countenance how soone he hath broken of frendshippe how straitlie he hath takē accompt and how seuerelie he hath punished The Angels that he created with so great care and loue and to whom he imparted to singular priuileges of al kinde of perfections as he made them almost verie Goddes in a certaine maner committed but onelie one sinne of pride agaīst his maiestie and that onelie in thought as diuines doe hold and yet presentlie al that good wil and fauour was chaunged into iustice and that also so seuere as they were throwen downe to eternal tormentes without redemptiō designed for euer to abide the rigour of hel fire and intollerable darkenes After this almightie God made to him self an other new frend of flesh blood which was our first father Adam in paradises where God conuersed with him so frendlie and familiarlie as is most wounderful to consider He called him he talked with him he made al creatures in the world subiect vnto him he brought them al before him to the end that he and not God should geue to them their names He made a mate and companion for him he blessed them both and finallie shewed al possible tokens of loue that might be But what ensewed Adam committed but one sinne and that at the entisement of an other and that also a sinne of smal importance as it may seeme to mans reason being but the eating of an aple forbidden and yet the matter was no sooner done but al frendship was brokē betwene God and him he was thrust out of paradise condemned to perpetual miserie and al his prosperitie to eternal damnation together with him self if he had not repented And how seuerelie this greuous sentence was executed afterward maie appeare by the infinite milliōs that went to hel for this sinne for the space of fower thousand yeres that passed before it was ransōmed which finallie could not be done but by the comming downe of Gods owne sonne the second person in Trinitie into this flesh by his intolerable sufferinges and death in the same The two miracles of the world Moyses and Aaron were of singular authoritie and fauour with God in so much as they could obtaine any thing at his hādes for other men And yet when they offended God once them selues at the waters of contradiction in the desert of sin for that they dowted somewhat of the miracle promised to them by God and therby did dishonour his maiestie before the people as he saieth they were presentlie rebuked most sharpelie for the same And albeit they repented hartelie that offence and so obtained remission of the fault or guilt yet was there laid vpon them a greuous punishment for the same that was that they should not enter them selues into the land of promise but should die when they came within the sight therof And albeit they entreated God most earnestlie for the release of this penance yet could they neuer obtaine the same at his hādes but alwaies he answered thē seing you haue dishonoured me before the people you shal die for it and shal not enter into the land of promise In what special great fauour was 〈◊〉 with God when he chose him to be the first king of his people caused Samuel the prophet so much to honour him and to annoint him prince vpō Gods own inheritance as he calleth it when he commēded him so much and tooke such tender care ouer him And yet afterward for that he brake Gods commandement in reseruing certaine spoyles of warre which he should haue destroied yea though he reserued them to honour God withal as he pretended yet was he presentlie cast of by God degraded of his dignitie geuen ouer to the handes of an euil spirite brought to infinite miseries though he shifted out for a time and finallie so forsaken and abandoned by God as he slew him self his sonnes were crucified on a crosse by his enemies and al his familie and linage extinguished for euer K. Dauid was the chosen and deare frend of God honoured with the title of one that vvas according to Gods ovvne hart But yet as so one as he had sinned the prophet Nathan was sent to denounce Gods heauie displeasure and punishment vpon him And so it ensued not with standing his greate and voluntarie penance that him self added for the pacifying of Gods wrath by fasting praier weeping wearing of sacke-cloth eating of ashes the like By which is euident that how great Gods mercie is to them that feare him so great is his iustice to thē that offend him The holie scripture hath infinite examples of this matter as the reiectiō of Cain and his posteritie streight vpon his murder The pitiful drowning of the whole world in the time of Noe. The dreadful consuming of Sodom and Gomorra with the cities about it by fire brimston The sending downe quicke vnto hel of Chore Dathan and Abiron with the slaughter of two hundred and fiftie their adherēts for rebellion against Moyses and Aaron The suddain killing of Nadab and Abiu sonnes of Aaron and chosen preestes for once offering on the Aultar other fire then was appointed them The most terrible striking dead of Ananias and Saphira for retaining some parte of their owne goodes by deceit frō the Apostles with many more such examples which holie writ doth recount And as for the grecuousnes of Gods iustice and heauines of his hand when it lighteth vpon vs though it may appeare sufficientlie by al thes examples before alleaged wherin the particular punishmentes as you see are most rigorous yet wil I repeat one act of almightie God more owt of the scripture which expresseth the same in wounderful sort and maner It is wel knowne that Beniamin among al the twelue sonnes of Iacob was the dearest vnto his father as appeareth in the booke of Genesis therfore also greatlie respected by God and his tribe placed in the best part of al the land of promise vpon the diuision therof hauing Ierusalem Iericho other the best cities within it Yet notwithstanding for one onelie sinne committed by certaine priuate men in the citie of Gabaa vpon the wife
impediment this forte of men ought to lay before their eies the labours of our Sauiour Christ and of his Saintes the exhortatiōs they vsed to other men to take like paines the threates made in scripture against them which labour not the condition of our present warfare that requireth trauaile the crowne prepared for it and the misery ensewing vpon idle and lazie people And finally if they can not beare the labour of vertuous life which in deed is accompanied with so many consolations as it may not rightfullie be called a labour how wil they abide the labour and tormentes of the damned life to come which must be both intollerable euerlasting vnto them Saint Paul saieth of him self others to the Thessalonians we did not eate our bread of free cost when we were with you but did worke in labour and wearinesse both day and night therby to geue you an example of imitation denouncing further vnto you that if any man would not worke he should not eate Christ in his parable went forth into the streetes twise in one day til reprehended greeuouslie thos that stoode idle saing 〈◊〉 hic statis tota die otio ī Why doe ye stād here al the day idle and doing nothing I am a vine saieth Christ my father is a husband man euery branche that beareth not fruit in me my father wil cut of and cast into the fire And in an other place Cut doune the vnprofitable tree vvhy doth it stand here and occupie the ground for nothing And againe the king dome of heauen is subiect to force and men doe gaine it by violence and labour For which cause the wise man also saieth what soeuer thy hand can doe in this life doe it instantlie for after this there is neither time nor reasō nor wisdome nor knowledge that we can employe to any profite And againe the same wise man saieth The lazie hande vvorketh beggarie to it self but the industrious and ualiant hande heapeth vp great riches And yet further to the same effect The slouthful man vvil not sovv in the vvinter for that it is cold and therfore he shal beggein the sommer and no man shal take pitie of him Al this pertaineth to shew how that this life is a time of labour and not of idlenes and is appointed vnto vs for the gaining of heauē It is the Market wherin we must buye the batail wherin we must fight and gaine our crowne the winter wherin we must sowe the day of labour wherin we must sweate and gaine our pennie And he that passeth ouer lazilie this day as the most part of mē doe must suffer eternal pouertie and neede in the long night to come as in the first part of this booke more at large hath bene declared Wherfore the wise man or rather the Holie Ghost by his mouth geueth ech one of vs a most vehement admonition and exhortation in thes wordes Runne about make haste stirre vp thy frind geue no sleepe vnto thy eies let not thine eye liddes slumber skippe out as a doe from the handes of him that holdeth her and as a bird out of the hād of the fouler Goe vnto the Emmet thou slothful man and consider ber doinges and learne to be vvise She hauing no guide teacher or captaine prouideth meate for her self in the sommer gathereth together in the haruest that vvhich maye serue her to feed vpon in the vvinter By which wordes we are admonished in what order we ought to behaue our selues in this life and how diligēt careful we should be in doing of al good workes as S. Paul also teatheth considering that as the Emmet laboureth most carnestlie in haruest time to lay vp for the winter to come so should we do for the next world and that sloth falnes to this effect is the greatest and most dangerous-let that ' may be For as the Emmet should die in the winter most certainlie for hunger if she should liue idlelie in the sommer so without al doute they are to suffer extreme neede and miserie in the world to come who now for sloth doe omit to labour Of Negligence THE SECOND impediment is called by me in the title of this chapter Negligence But I doe vnderstand therby a further matter then commonly this word importeth For I doe comprehend vnder the name of negligent al careles and dissolute people which take to hart nothing that pertaineth vnto God or godlines but onelie attend to worldly affaires making their saluation the least parte of their cogitations And vnder this kinde of negligence is contained both Epicurisme as S. Paul noted in some Christians of his daies who beganne onelie to attend to eate and drinke and to make their bellies their God as our Christians now doe and also a secret kinde of Atheisme or denying God which is to denie him not in wordes but in life and behauiour as S. Paul expoundeth it For albeit thes men of whom I speake doe in wordes confesse God and professe them selues to be as good Christians as the rest yet secretlie in deed they doe not beleeue God as their life and doings doe declare Which thing holy scripture discouereth plainlie when it saith vae dissolutis corde qui non credunt Deo woe be vnto the dissolute and careles in hart who doe not beleeue God That is albeit they professe that they beleeue and trust in him yet by their dissolute and careles doings they testifie that in their hartes they beleeue him not for that they haue nether care nor cogitation of matters pertaining to him This kinde of men are thos which the scripture noteth detesteth for plowing with an oxe and an Asse together for sowing their ground with mingled seede for wearing apparel of linsie wolsie that is made of flaxe and wool together Thes are they of whom Christ saith in the reuelations I vvould thou vvere ether colde or hoate But for that thou art luke vvarme and netber cold nor hoate therfore vvil I beginne to vomite thee out of my mouth Thes are they who can accorde al religions together and take vp al controuersies by onely saying that ether they are differences of smal importance or els that they appertaine onelie to learned men to thinke vpon and not vnto them Thes are they who can applie them selues to anie companie to any time to any princes pleasure for matters of life to come Thes men forbid al talke of spirite religion or deuotion in their presence onelie they wil haue men eate drinke and be merie with them tel newes of the courte and affaires abrode sing daunce laugh and plaie at cardes and so passe ouer this life in lesse consideration of God then doe the very heathens And hath not holie writ great reason then deare brother in saying that thes men in their hartes and workes are in deede verie Atheistes yes surelie And it
Peter was sent vnto him for his instruction and establishment in right faith I adioined moreouer that ther being two parts of Christiā diuinitie the one Theorike or speculatiue belonging principally to knowledge discours and beleefe the second called practique or actiue appertaining cheefly to action and execution the first is more easy and common then the second bicause it is more easy to know then to doe to discourse then to worke to beleeue as we ought then to liue as we should and the things that a man hath to beleeue are fewer then the things he hath to doe learned in shorter time and with lesse difficultie thé the other are executed Euen as we see by experience that a breefe Cathechisme instructeth a man sufficiently in his faith but al the bookes and sermons that we can read and heare can not persuade the least part of men to performe so much in life as by their vocation is required For which cause I said that both our Saucour and his Apostles did treate much more in their speaches and writings of things to be done then of things to be known of vertuous liuing then of right beleeuing The like I saied of Holie fathers and Doctours in the Church after them as it may be sene in their homilies sermons exhortations treatises commentaries and expositions For this cause I saied also that I had chosen to say some thing of this second part of Christian diuinitie appertaining to manners and direction of life allotting to my self three principal pointes to be handled therin and to be treated in three seueral bookes The first wherof to conteine the reasons and motiues which may stir vp a Christian man to make a firme and sound resolution The secōd to prescribe the particular meanes how a man without errour may put in vre and practise his resolution made The third to declare certaine helpes and instructions wherby to be able to perseuer vnto the end The first of thes bookes was then set downe and published The secōd and third vpon necessarie causes were deferred for a time And this is the summarie of al that was writen in my former preface and Induction suppressed now by M. Buny for meere conscience sake as he protesteth Wherin notwithstanding I doe not easilie see what may be accompted either so heinous or intollerable as his scrupulous conscience should be a fraide to let the same passe vnto the readers eare except it were for that in a certaine aduertisement I desired eche Catholique to pray for our persecutours or for that perhaps in the lines before repeated I doe affirme faith and beleef to be more common and easy then vertuous life which notwithstanding I thinke many Protestants in England wil confesse to be true and wil easilie proue the same by the liues and actions of their own preachers and ministers So much then for this now let vs behold how M. Buny hath set foorth the same booke with his purgation of M. Bunis edition M. Buny hauing taken this booke into his correction as also into my Lord Archbishop of Yorke his protection geueth it this title A booke of Christian exercise c. Perused and accompanied vvith a treatise tending to pacification by Edm. Buny And vnder the title he writeth this sentence of scripture IESVS Christ yester day and to day and the same for euer The misterie why he set thes wordes ther him self alone as I thinke vnderstandeth and hard it were for other men to coniectare If he had taken the wordes immediatly following in the same sentence of S. Paul they had bene more cleare if not more also to the purpose For they ar thes Be not caried avvay vvith variable and strange doctrines But let vs permit M. Buny to folow his kinde The holie fathers that write against auncient heretiques doe note it for an old tricke of thos companions to delight them selues and deceue others with obscure places of scripture And S. Peter expresly signifieth of the same men that principally they vsed to take the said obscure sentences out of S. Paul whence this by M. Buny is also cited And this for the first page In the next page he placeth my Lord of Yorkes armes accompanied with a paire of goodly crosse keyes and a croune set ouer thé Vnder which he writeth two latin verses that say thus much in English Thes armes haue bene noble in times past by ancient gentry and commendation of learning but novv they are made more noble by the honour of Peter adioined vnto them So that now as ye see it is both good doctrine and very commendable in my Lords grace of Yorke to clame both keyes croune from Peters seat which in the Byshop of Rome is made so hainous and so bitterly inueighed against daily After the armes insueth the dedication of the whole booke treating of mortification and contempt of the world vnto his good Lordship The reason of which dedication M. Buny vttereth in thes wordes For that hauing had saieth he so longe experience of the vvorld as your Lordship haue very liklihood teacheth that needes you must grovve more and more from the loue therof And it is sufficiently knovvn vnto al that hauing found this mercy your self you haue in like sort in this long course that God hath geuen you much called on others to doe the like In which wordes we see that touching the first pointe of my Lords wearines of this world M. Buny proueth it very slenderly by a bare likelihood only Albeit in the second of his Graces calling vpon others to like mortification he alleageth the commō and sufficient knowledge of al wherunto in reason eche man must yeld And in truth I haue heard how ther want not of diuers sortes and sexes also who can witnesse by experience of my Lordes good mortification and how hotely he hath poursued them of late for such affaires and therfore no doubt but that this booke was very fitly dedicated to his Lordships protection After the epistle dedicatorie vnto my Lord ther foloweth a preface to the reader wherin M. Buny saieth That by the litle that he hath bestovvedin the studie of schole men he vvil perceaueth that this booke vvas gathered out of them vvho liuing in the corrupter time of the Church as he speaketh did most of al by that occasion treate of reformation of life vvhen as others vvere rather occupied in controuersies To which I answer that by the litle which M. Buny here vttereth he sheweth him self scarse worthy to be my Lord Archbishops chaplaine albeit to that dignitie much learning be not required for that whosoeuer shal looke vpon the homilies sermons commentaries and other workes of S. Ambrose Augustin Gregorie Maximus Bede Bernard Anselme and other that were not scholemen and shal compare the same touching exhortation and instruction to good life With the questions distinctions speculations and subtilties of Peter Lumbard
therby he vvas not iustified Of the third kinde of annotations which are both wicked impious ther might many examples be alleaged but thes few insuing shal suffise to discouer M. Bunies spirite First then page 212. as concerning the life of that holie and most wonderful man S. Antonie the first monke of AEgipt whom al antiquitie so much admired and whom S. Athanafius in writing his life so highely extolled and whos doinges S. Augustin so hartely reuerenced as he made the same a principal motiue paterne to his owne conuersion especially for that he tooke thos wordes of our Sauiour Goe and sel al thou hast and geue to the poore as spoken to him self in particuler vpon this mans conuersion I say most wonderful life M. Buny maketh this scorneful irreligious note that it may vvel be doubted vvhether he had in that place sufficient ground-vvorke of thos his doings vnles he had some other special motion besides Condemning herin not only S. Antonie but also S. Athanasius S. Hierome S. Augustine al other fathers that so highely commend S. Antonie for putting in execution thos wordes of our Sauiour To like purpose or rather more vvickedlie he maketh an other annotation page 308. vpon the most famous conuersion of S. Augustin recorded by the pen of that holy father him self to vvit that some pointes of the storie vvhich S. Augustin vvriteth are such as a man may as vvel doubt they proceeded of Sathan as of God therby to bring in question that excellent mans cōuersion But of al other that annotation of his is most ridieulous and yet blasphemous wher he wil needes bring in our blessed Ladie to haue brokē fower seueral commandemēts forsooth at one clappe for that she defended not her sonne vpō the Crosse. For page 369. wher I in commendation of the confessiō which the theefe made said in my booke that it was at such a time when al the world abādoned our Sauiour and the very Apostles thē selues either doubted or lost their faith of his Godhead this man noteth in the margēt that the blessed Virgin likevvise vvas by and saied nothing that vve reade of in his defence a plaine breach saieth he of the first fist sixt ninth cōmandomentes A strange matter that thes men should be so desirous to skore vp make Catalogues of our Ladies sinnes which she neuer committed But let vs see with what shew of reason He saith that she brake fower commandementes at one time Let vs then examine them what they are The first commandemēt according as S. Augustine in old time Catholiques now a daies are accustomed to number them is Thou shalt haue no strāge Godes before me nor make vnto thy self any grauen Idole to adore the same The fift is Thou shalt not kil The sixt Thou shalt not commit adulterie The ninth Thou shalt not couet thy neighbours wife And this as Catholiques doe number the commandementes But according as some protestantes wil recon the same The fift is Honor thy father thy mother The sixt Thou shalt not kil The ninth Thou shalt not beare false vvitnes against thy neighbour Now thē gentle reader consider with indifferencie how in reason it may be said that the blessed Virgin the sacred mother of God for not defending her sonne vpon the Crosse against the Magistrates soldiers did breake any of thes fower commandementes that is to say did either make vnto her self any strange God or Idole or did dishonour her father and mother or did cōmit murder or adulterie or did beare false witnes against her neighbour or did couet her neighbours mate whether I say it be credible that in not defending her sonne at that instant she committed any one of thes hainous mortal crimes and much more whether she cōmitted fower of them together as M. Buny affirmeth Let I say the indifferent and Christian reader iudge of this accusation as also consider whether M. Buny be not worthio of a very good fee at the deuils hādes for indeuoring to bring into his clawes so rich a pray as was the most excellēt pure sacred mother of our Sauiour by accusing her of fower deadlie sinnes together AND THVS much of annotations passing ouer diuers other thinges that might be examined if time and place did not prohibite But the greatest shift of al others which M. Buny hath to ridde his handes when nether changing of the wordes not putting in of pareutheses nor annotations in the margent wil cleare and pacific the matter is to strike and thrust out what so euer he misliketh whether they be my wordes or els the discourses of ancient fathers yet authorities them selues of sacred scripture For vnderstanding wherof it is to be cōsidered that first generally whersoeuer he findeth the mētion of certaine thinges that please him not as of abstinence fasting chastesing the bodie penance satisfaction virginitie merit hier gayning of heauen laboring for reward or the like he commonly striketh al out together with th' Authours that treat therof or els so mangleth the same as is pitiful to behold Secōdly whatsoeuer authoritie commeth in his way which he cānot mangle out it goeth without redēption be it Father Doctor Counsel or Scripture Herof you may see exāples Page 29. of his booke wher he thrusteth out S. Hierome and Ioannes Cassianus for that they mētiō Mōkes of the primatiue Church So againe page 98. he thrusteth out S. Cyprian Possidonius for that they geue testimonie of an apparitiō which Christ our Sauiour made to a godly man at his death In like maner Page 109. he trusteth out S. Ambros S. Augustin S. Gregorie and S. Bernard together for that they persuade men by their examples to be affeard of Purgatorie Further Page 98. he striketh out S. Augustin S Gregorie and venerable Bede with their large discourses which they make concerning appatitions of certaine Angels to godlie people So againe Page 305. he thrusteth out the exāple of S. Paul the first heremite with the authoritie of S. Hierome that wrote his life And this in hatred of Monkes and heremites After that againe Page 374. he thrusteth out S. Augustin with al that he cā alleage about satissactiō and final penance Page 60. he thrusteth out the weping fasting watching lying on the ground wearing of sack clothe and other bodilie punishmētes that King Dauid vsed vpon him self albeit they be recorded and set downe in holie scripture Page 169. he thrustath out the exāple of S. Paul th' Apostle how he was assisted made able by Gods holie grace to resist ouercome the temptatiōs of the flash to the end by like that no man should take courage by that exāple to fight resist thes temptations as he did Page 2. he striketh out the promisses made in scripture to virginitie chastetie golding of our selues for the kingdome of
in all other thinges creatures and actions of this world that passe from the Creator we see proportion order iustice wisdome and prouidence obserued so much more must we assure our selues that the same is obserued in the same Creators actions and proceedinges towardes man that is the cheefe princiral of all his other creatures Now then we see and be hold that all other creatures are directed to their endes by nature and doe receyue cōforte and contentation as longe as they hold that course And losse disease gricfe as soone as they breake or swarue from the same Onlie man hath reason gyuen hym whereby to know and iudge of his Ende as also free will and election wherby he maye ether directe his way to the same by vertue or turne a straye by following of wickednes When upon it insueth that in all equitie and instice there must remaine rewaide for such as doe well and follow the right pathe assigred the to their ende and felicitie which is by good lyse and punist on ente forth ' other that abandone the same for pleasure and sensualitic But we see in this worlde saith the Thilosopher that moste wicked men doe receyue leaste punishement and manie there bee as princes and highe potentates whose liues and actions be they neuer so vitious yet are they aboue the correction of moitall men and manie poore men in the contiarie parte who for their vertue patience honestie receyue nothige in this lyfe but enuie malice cōtempte reptoche despite and oppression Wherefore sayeth he ether wanteth there prouidence equitie in the gouerment dispositió of thes great affaires which we see not to want in thinges of lesser moment or els must there be a place of punishement rewarde in the lyfe to come vpō the soules of such as passe from hence a iuste and powerful iudge to make recompence of thes inoqualites and iniustices permitted in this world Which iudge can be none but the Creator hym self And so hytherto haue I declared how euerie particuler science among the Gentiles had particuler meanes and wayes to demonstrate God by cōtemplation of his creatures and by force of reason which no man could denie Now remaineth it to shewe how the Iewe or faithful Israelite before Christs appearance was able to confirme this veritie to a heathen which shal be the subiect of the sectiō insueinge Hovv the Ievves vvere able to proue God Sect. 3. THe people of Israel that for manie yeares and ages were the peculier people and partage of God as they dwelt enuironed with Gentiles of ech side that impugned their religion and worshippe of one God an I had manie weakelinges amōg them selues that were oftē tempted to doubt of the same religiō by th' exáple of so manie nations and countries aboute them that made profession of a contrarie religion so had the diuines and learned mē of this people diuers forcible proofes and most reasonable argumentes peculier to themselues besides the gifte of faith or anie other demonstratiō that hy therto hath bene alleaged to cōfirme their brethren in the belief of one God and to cōuīce all atheistes or infidels in the world And albeit thes proofes which they vsed were manie as the Creation of the world by one God the deriuing of th' hebrue religiō frō the beginning the cōuersation of God withe Abraham of whome the Iewes descended the miraculous deliuering of that nation from Egipt the law receaued from gods owne mouth by Moyses the straunge enterance of Iewes into the lāde of promisse th' extinguishig of the Gentiles which before inhabited there th' erectiō of the Iuishe Monarchie and protection therof against all other natiōs the miraculous deedes sayinges of Prophetes and a thousand thinges and reasons besides which confirme most euidētelie that the Iewes God was the onlie true God yet for that all thes thinges sayinges with an infidel had no more credite then the writinges or scriptures wherin they were recorded hereby it came to passe that all which a Iew could say for profe of God more then a Gētile depended onlie vpon th' authoritie of his scriptures And for this cause he referred all his proofes and argumentes to make euident the truthe and certaintie of thes scriptures which thing once performed the being of one God can not be called in controuersie for that thes scriptures are nothing els but a narration of th' actes gestes of that onlie one God which the Iewes professe We are now to see then what the Iewe was able to saye for proofe of his scriptures and consequentelie for demōstration of God and of his iudgementes declared theri Which discourse as it was profitable in old tyme for staye and cōfirmation of all such as were or might be tempted with infidelitie So can it not be but verie comfortable to vs Christians of thes dayes to behold the certaitie of thes scriptures layed before vs vpon which the foundation of our whole faith dependeth FIRST THERFORE the Iewe for proofe of his scriptures alleagethe the greate and wonderful antiquitie therof For as God saith he was before idoles truth before falshod so was the scripture which is the storie of the true God longe before the wrytinges of Panymes or infidels Nay further he sheweth that the most parte of thinges recompted in the Bible were donne before most of the Panime Godes were exstante and that the verie last writers of the Hebrue Canon which are Esdras Aggaeus Zacharias Malachie almost six hundred yeares before the cōming of Christ when the secōd Monarchie of Persiās begā were before the most of heathen aunciēt historiographers to wit before Hellanic ' Herodot ' Pherecides Thucy dides and Xenophon And albeit the Gétils had some Poetes before as Orpheus Homer Hesiod Lycurgus the Lawmaker that liued a good while after yet th' eldest of thes arriued no higher then the dayes of king Salomó whiche was fyue hundred yeares after Moyses the first wryter of the Bible After whose tyme the most parte of heathen godes were longe vnborne as Ceres Vulcan Mercurie Apollo A Elculapiu Castor Pollux and Hercules as the Gentiles themselues in their Genealogies doe confesse And as for Abraham that liued fyue hundred yeares before Moyses he was not onlie elder thē thes lesser Gods which I haue named but also the Iupiter Neptune Plato and such other who for dignities sake and antiquitie are called by the Gētiles Dij maiorum gentium the Godes of greater Nations And yet before Abraham doe the scriptures conteine the storie of two thowsand years or there about So that by this it is euident that the wrytinges of heathés the multitude of their godes are but late fables īrespect of th' old venerable antiquitie of Hebrue scriptures consequételie th' authoritie of thes scriptures must in reason be greater then of all other writinges in the world besides seing they were exstant before
all others in those first tymes of simplicitie and sinceritie were in parte translated into diuers liguages before the Monarchie of the Persians that is before any storie of the Gentiles were writen as Eusebius out of manie heathen authours declareth NEXT TO the reason of antiquitie is alleaged the manner of wryting authorising cóseruing thes scriptures which is such as greatelie cōfirmeth the certaintie of thinges conteyned therin For first what soeuer is sett downe in these wrytinges was ether taken immediatelie frō the mouth of God as were the propheties and bookes of the law or els collected from tyme to tyme by general consent according as matters miracles sell out as were the booke of iudges the bookes of Kinges and Chronicles and some other that conteine recordes and histories of tymes Which bookes were not gathered by some one priuate man vpon hearsaye or by his owne imagination longe after thinges donne as heathen histories and other prophane recordes monumtes are but they were writen by general agreement in the self same dayes when thinges were in sight and knowledge of all men and so could not be seigned Secondlie when bookes were writen they were not admitted into the canon or authoritie of scriptures that is of gods worde or diuine writinges but vpon great deliberation and most euidēt proof of their vndoubted veritie For ether the whole cōgregatió or Synagoge who had th' approuing here of and among whom commonlie were diuers prophetes did know most certainlie the thinges and miracles to be true as did also the whole people that were recorded in thes writinges conteining histories or els they saw the same confirmed frō God by signes and wonders as in the bookes of their prophetes of their-law gyuer Moises it fell out Thirdlie when anie thing was writen and admitted for scripture the care of cōseruation therof was such and the reuerence of Iewes therunto so great as may easilie assure vs that no corruption or alteration could happen vnto it For first the thig was copied out into twelue Autentical Copies for all the twelue tribes and then againe in euerie tribe ther were so manie Copies made as were particuler synagoges within that tribe All was donne by special Notaries Scribes ouerseers and witnesses The Copies after diligent renewe taken were layde vp by the whole Cōgregatiō in the treasure-howse of the temple vnder diuers lockes and keyes not to be touched but by men appointed nor to be vsed but with singuler reuerence To adde diminish corrupt or alter was present death by the lawes of the Nation And how then was it possible sayeth the Iewe that among thes writinges ether falshode should creepe in or truth once receaued could afterwardes be corrupted It is not possible sayeth he in reason and therfore obserueth he an other thing in this case which ī truth is of verie great consideration to witt that no other Nation vnder heauē did euer so much esteeme their owne writīges that they would offer to die for the same as the Iewes were redieto doe for euerie sentēce and syllable of their scriptures Wherof also it did proceede that in all their miseries and afflictions wherin they were a spectacle to all the world in all their flightes and banishementes to Egipt Babylon Persia Media and other corners of the earth in all their spoiles assaults and deuastations at home they yet euer had special care to conserue these writinges more then their owne lyues and so haue kepte the same without may me or corruptiō more ages together then all Nations in the world haue donne any other monumentes THE THIRD persuasion which is vsed by the Iewe for the veritie of his scriptures is the consideration of the particuler men that wrote them who were such as in reason can not be suspected of decept or falshod For as I haue said the Stories of the Byble were writen from tyme to tyme by publique authoritie and by the testimony of all men that saw and knew the thinges that are rehersed The bookes of propheties were endited by the prophetes them selues who were plaine simple and sincere mē authorized from God by continual miracles and yet so scrupulous and timerous of their owne speeches as they durst say nothing but only our Lord saith this the God of Hostes commaundeth that c. And when they had preached and reade their writinges in the hearinge of all the people they protested that it was not mans worde but gods and that for such they left it in the publique treasurie of their Nation vntill by tracte of tyme th' euent and fulfilling of their propheties should proue thē true as alwayes it did and their owne both liues and deathes declare that they meant no falshode their liues being such as were not subiect to the corruption pride vanitie or ambitiō of this life as other prophane and heathen writers were and their deathes for the most parte offered vp in holie martirdome for defence of that truthe whiche they had preached writen as appeareth in Esay that was sawed in peeces by kīg Manasles in Ieremie that was stoned to death by the common people in Ezechiel that was slayne by the capitaine of the Iewes at Babylō in Amos whose braines were beaten oute by Amasias the wicked idolitrous priaest in Bethel in Micheas whose necke was broken by prince Ioam sonne to kinge Achab in Zacharie that was slaine at th' Aulter and the lyke And this for the Prophetes of later tymes amōg the Iewes But now if we cōsider the first Prophete of all that wrote among that people I meane Moyses that was not only a Prophet but also an Historiographer a Law giuer a Captaine and a Prieste the first that euer reduced that people to a common wealth and the first that putt their actes gestes in writing or rather th' actes and gestes of almightie God towardes them this man I say if we cōsider hym onlie I meane the circūstances of his person the Iewe thiketh this a sufficiēt motiue to make anie mā of reason beleeue what so euer he hath lefte writen in the Bible without further confirmatiō And first for his antiquitie I haue spokē before and the heathēs doe confesse it for miracles donne by hym the greatest ennemies that euer he had in the world that is Appiō in his fowerth booke agaīst Iewes and Porphirie in his fowerthe booke agaīst Christiās d ee acknowledge them and Porphirie adioyneth more for proofe therof that he fownde the same cōfirmed by the storie of one Saconiathō a Gentile who liued as he saith at the same tyme with Moyses But what all those miracles say they were donne by artemagicke not by the power of God as Moyses boasted But thē asketh thē the Iew wher Moises a shepheard could learne so much magick or why could not the Magitians of Pharao whose studie was in that profession from their infancie ether doe the
nothing Where as cōtrarie wise in the scriptures it is in euerie battail recorded God deliuered them into their enimies handes God ouertbrevv them God gaue the victorie Againe consider the lawes and law makers among the Gentiles as Lycurgus Solon Draco Numa and the like and see whether you may finde any one such law or tending to such an ende as this is of the Iewes thou shalt loue thie God vvith all thie hart and vvith al thie soule and shalt loue thy neighbour as thie self Consider in all the Southesayers and Diuiners amōg the Gentiles whether they vsed to say ī their predictions as the prophetes of Israel did Dominus dixit our Lord hath spoken it or els Ego dico I doe speake it Compare their Versifiers and Poetes with those of the scripture and see whether they haue laboured in the praise of men or of God And where as heathen Poetes haue filled vp their bookes as also the most parte of ours at this day with matter of carnal loue marke whether anie of thē euer brake forth into such pangues of spiritual chaste loue as Holie Dauid did whē he said I will loue the my God my strēgth my firmament my refuge my deliuerer my helper my protector and the horne of my saluation And againe in an other verse What haue I desired vpon earth besides thee my flesh and harte haue fainted for thee thou God of my hart thou God that arte my parte and portion euerlasting By all which is euident that as prophane writinges and writers which doe treate of men extoll men seeke the grace of men referre all to the commoditie and good liking of men doe proceede of the spirite of mā are subiecte to those infirmities of falshode errour vanity wherwith man is intangeled in this life so the scriptures which handle matters aboue the compasse of flesh and blood that referre all to God and supernatural endes could not proceede of nature or of humane spirit For that by nature the Iewes were men as the Gentiles were and had their infirmities of flesh blood as th' other had And therfore it must needes be concluded that thes high and supernatural writinges amonge them proceeded from God that specially directed them gaue them lighte of vnderstanding aboue all other nations people in the world NEXT AFTER the argument and Ende of the scriptures the Iew willeth vs to consider the peculier stile and phrase which they vse for that sayeth he it being different from all other maner of writing in the world and vnimitable to man it doth discouer the fingar of God by which it was framed For where as humane writers doc labour much in adorninge their stile and in reducing their wordes to number weight measure and sounde with addition of manie figures and other ornamentes for allurement of the reader the scripture taketh quite an other course and vseth a most maruelous simplicitie therby to accommodate it self to the capacitie of the weakest but yet alwayes carying with it so greate profunditie as the best learned in searche therof shall confesse their owne ignorance For examples sake consider but the verie first wordes of the Bible In the beginning God created heauen and earth and the earth vvas emptie and voide and darkenes vvas vpon the face of the depth and the spirit of God vvas caried vpon the vvaters and God said lett light be made and light vvas made c. What can be more plaine and simple then this narration to instruct the most vnlearned aboute the beginning and creation of the world and yet when learned men come to examine euerie pointe therof how what and where and in what manner when thinges were donne it astonisheth them all to cōsider the difficulties which they finde and the depthe of so infinite inscrutable mysteries Besides this there goeth in the same simplicitie a straunge Maiestie and grauitie of speech declaring sufficientlie from how greate and potent a prince it proceedeth For as great Monarches in their edictes and proclamations are wonte to speake vnto their subiectes not in figures and rhetorical phrases but plainlie breeflie and peremptorilie to shew their authoritie so the scriptures to declare whose edictes they be doe vse the like maner of phrase and stile to all the world without alluring or flattering anie man and without respect of Monarche Emperour prince or potentate Fac hoc viues doe this and thou shalt liue Si peccaueris in me morieris in aeternum if thou sinne against me thou shalt die euerlastingly And albeit as I haue said the scripturs doe vse this simplicitie of speech and doe not admitte that kynde of painted and artificial stile which humane writers dos so much couet yet in persuading instructing mouing of affections and all other effectes whiche speech or writinge can worke there is no comparason a thing most wōderful betwene anie other writinges in the world and thes Wherof I. could alleage manie proofes and examples but that it were to longe Let anie man reade attentiuelie but the first chapter of the prophetie of Esay and cōpare it with anie one parte or parcel of Tullies or of Demostines oratiōs see whether the difference of wordes be as great as the difference of motions Let diuers hymnes and holie psalmes of the scriptures be cōferred with the most pathetical poemes that mans wit hath inuēted and see whether there be anie comparason in styrring and fiaring of affections or no This am I sure that Iosephus the Iew who for glorie of his eloquence had his image of mettal erected by Titus the Emperour ī the market place of Rome wrote the same storie which the scriptures conteine and bestowed much labour and humane cūning therin But yet euen in thos places when he endeuoured most to shew his arte as in the sacrifice of Isaac by his father and in the meeting of Iephte with his onely daughter which by vow he was cōstrained to put to death the scriptures are able to pearse the hart wring owt teares of the reader whom Iosephus will not greatelie moue with his rhetorical narration though otherwise verie learned and artificiallie penned Aristaeus that learned Gētile of whom we haue made mention before who was in special fauour with Ptolomie the second greate Monarche of Egipt aboute 300 yeares before Christes natiuitie and a chief doer in procuring the translation of the Hebrue Bible into the greeke language reported of his owne knowledge to that king two straunge accidentes which had happened in his time which he had vnderstoode of the parties themselues to whom they had happened The first was of Theopompus an eloquent Historiographer who hauing translated certaine thinges out of the Bible and endeuouring to adorne the same with vaine colours of eloquence could not perfourme his desire but was strokē with a suddain maze and gyddines
in the head and was warned in his sleepe not to proceede further in that worke after that sorte for that such manner of style was to base for so high matters as the scriptures conteined The other example was of one Theodectes a writer of tragaedies who tolde Aristaeus that once he attēpted to bring certaine matters out of the Iewes Bible into a pagan tragedie and that theruppō he was presentlie strikē blīd wherwith he being asto nished and falling to repentance for that he had donne and decisting from the enterprise as also Theopompus did they were both of them restored againe to their healthes And thus much did thes three Paganes confesse of the authoritie diuinitie and peculier sacred stile of our scriptures BVT NOVV further it insueth in order that after the subiect and phrase we should consider a litle the contentes of thes scriptures whiche will perhappes more clearlie direct vs to the vewe of their authour then any thing els that hytherto hath bene said And for our present purpose I will note onlie two special thinges conteined in the Bible The first st albe certaine high hiddē doctrines which are aboue the reach and capacitie of humane reason and consequētlie could neuer fall into mans braine to inuent thē As for example that all this wonderful frame of the world was created of nothing where as philosophie saith that of Nothing nothing can be made that Angels being created spirites were damned eternallie for their sinnes that Adam by disobedience in Paradise drew all his posteritie into th' obligation of that his synne and that the womas seed should deliuer vs from the same That God is one in substance and three in persons that the secōd of thes persons beig God should become man and die vpon a Crosse for mankinde that after hym the way to all felicitie honour should be by contempt suffering and dishonour Thes doctrines I say and many more conteined in the Bible being thinges aboue mans capacitie to deuise and nothing agreinge with humane reason most euidentlie doe declare that God was th' authour enditer of the scripturs for that by hym onlie and from no other thes highe and secret mysteries could be reueiled The second thing conteined in scriptures that could not proceede but from God alone are certaine propheties or fortellinges of thinges to come Wherin God hymself prouoketh th' Idoles of the Gentiles to make experience of their power in thes wordes Declare vnto vs vvhat shall insue hereafter thereby vve shall knovv that you are Godes in deed Which is to be vnderstoode if they could fortell particulerlie plainlie what was to come in thinges meerlie contingent or depending of mans will they should therby declare their power to be diuine For albeit thes Idoles of Gentiles as Apollo and other that gaue foorth Oracles which were nothing els in deed but certaine wicked spirites that tooke vpon them these names did some times happen vpon the truth and fortel thinges to come as also some Astrologers Southsayers and Magitians doe ether by forsight in the starres other elementes or by th' assistance of thes wicked spirites and deuils yet are the thinges which they pronosticate ether natural and not contingent so may be forseene fortolde in their causes as raine heate colde wīdes the like or els if they be meere accidental thes predictions of theirs are only coniectures and so most incertaine and subiecte to errours This testifieth Porphyrie the greate patron of Paganisme in a special booke of th' answers of his Godes wherin he sweareth that he hath gathered trulie without addition or detraction the Oracles that were most famous before his tyme with the false and vncertaine euent therof In consideration of which euent he setteth downe his iudgment of their power in predictions after this manner The Godes doe fortell some naturall thinges to come for that they doe obserue the order and coniunctiō of their natural causes But of thinges that are contingēt or doe depend of mans vvill they haue but coniectures only in that by their subtilitie and celeritic they preuent vs. But yet they often tymes doe lye and deceaue vs in both kyndes for that as natural thinges are variable so mans vvill is much more mutable Thus farre Porphyrie of the propheties of his Godes whereunto agreeth an other heathen of greate credit among the Graecians named Oenomaus who for that he had bene much delighted with Oracles more deceaued wrote a special booke in th' ende of their falshod and lies and yet sheweth that in manie thinges wherin they deceiued it was not easie to cōuince them of opē falshod for that they would inuolue their answers of purpose with such obscurities generalities equiuo cations and doubtefulnes as alwayes they would leaue them selues a corner wherin to saue their credites when th' euent should proue false As for example when Craesus that famous riche Monarche of Lidia cōsulted with Apollo whether he should make warre against the Persiās therby obtaine their Empire or no Apollo desirous of bloodshed as all wicked spirites are gaue his oracle in thes wordes for deceauing of Craesus If Craesus vvithout feare shal passe ouer Halys this was a riuer that laye betwene hym and Persia he shal bringe to confusion a greate riche kingdome Vpon whiche wordes Craesus passed ouer his armie in hope to get Persia but so one after he lost Lidia by euel vnderstanding of this doubteful prophetie This then is th' imbecilitie of both humane angelical power ī pronosticatig things to come which are mere cōtingēt In which kinde not withstanding seing that the scriptures haue manie and almost infinite propheties fort old manie yeares some tymes ages before they came to passe sett downe in plaine particuler and resolut speech at such tymes as there was nether cause to coniecture them nonprobabilitie that euer they should be true deliuered by simple and vnlearned persons that could forsee nothing by skill or arte and yet that all thes by their euentes haue proued most true and neuer anie one iote in the same haue fayled this I say alone doth conuince most apparentlie all proofes and reasons and other argumentes laid a syde that thes scriptures are of God and of his eternal and infallible spirite And therfore of thes propheties will I alleage in this place some few examples Abraham the first father and special Patriarche of the Iewes had manie propheties and predictions made vnto hym as of his issue when he had yet none nor euer lyke to haue of his inheritinge the land of Canaan and the lyke But this which followeth is wōderfull of his posterities discent into Egipt of their tyme of seruitude and manner of deliuerauce thēce the same being fortolde more thē fower hundreth yeares before it was fulfilled at that tyme whē no likelihode therof ī the world appeared The wordes are thes
could gather their forsight of thinges by Astronomie or Astrologie that is by contemplation of the starres as some fond Gentiles did pretēde though Ptolomie denye that such thinges can be forrolde but only by inspiratiō frō God nether yet were they so sharpe witted as to attaine to prophetie by stronge imaginations as most vainlie Auerroes and his followers hold that some man may nor finallie were they so delicatelie fed as by exacte dyet and rules of Alchymie to come to prophetie as Alchymists dreame that a man may doe and that Apollonius Thyanaeus did who by Stellified meates as they speake came to be Stellified hym self and so by helpe of his glasse called Alchymusi to fortell some matters and affaires to come Our prophetes I say knew none of thes phantasticall deuises being for the most parte poore simple vnlearned men as in particuler is recorded that Dauid was a shepheard Amos was a keeper of Oxen yea often tymes they were women as Marie the sister of Aaron called in scripture by the name of Prophetesse Debora the wife of Lapidoth Anna the mother of Samuel Elizabeth the mother of Iohn Baptist Anna the daughter of Phanuel and finallie the most holy and blessed virgine Marie with the daughters of philippe and many such other both in the olde and new testamēt who prophetied stranglie nor could possiblie receyue suche forknowledge of thinges to come but only from the spirite of God and by inspiration of the Holie Ghost which is a manifest demonstratiō of th' excellencie of Holie write and of the certaintie conteined therin AND NOVV albeit this might seeme sufficient in the iudgement and consciēce of euerie reasonable man as the Iew supposeth to proue that the scriptures be onlie from God and cōsequentlie by thē that there is a God yet hath he one reason more to confirme their sinceritie which I will alleage in this place and therwith make an ende His reason is that although thes Holie writinges whiche proceede of Gods spirite doe not take their testimonie or confirmation from mā yet for more euidencie of the truth God hath so prouided that all the principall and most straunge and wonderful thinges recompted in scripture should be reported also and confirmed by insidels Pagās Gentiles and heathē writers them selues albeit in some poynctes they dyffer from the scripture in the manner of their narration for that they adioine superstitions therunto Which maketh the more for approbation of the thinges for that hereby it appeareth they tooke not their stories directelie from the Bible but by tradition and most auncient antiquities of their owne First then he sheweth that the creation of the world which is the maruaile of all maruailes with the infusiō of mans soule from God is both graunted and agreed vpon by all those heathen Philosophers whiche I haue cited before albeit the particularities be not so sett downe by them as they are in the scriptures by all other that doe sce in reason that of necessity their must be yelded some Creator of thes thinges Next to this the flud of Noe is mentioned by diuers most auncient heathē writers as by Berosus Chaldaeus Ieronymus Egyptius Nicolaus Damascenus Abydenus and others according as both Iosephus and Eusebius doe proue And in Bresile and other countries discouered in our age where neuer teachers were knowen to be before they talke of a certaine drownig of the world whiche in tymes past happened and doe say that this was left vnto them by tradition from tyme out of minde by the first inhabitantes of those places Of the longe life of the first Patriarches according as the scripture reporteth it not onlie the former authours but also Manethus that gathered the historie of the Egyptiās Molus Hestiaeus that wrote the actes of the Phaenicians Hesiedus Hecataeus Abderida Helanicus Acusilaus Ephorus doe testifie that thes first inhabitantes of the world liued commonly a thousand yeares a peece and they alleage the reason therof to be both for the multiplication of people and for bringing all sciences to perfectiō especially Astronomie and Astrologie which as they write could not be brought to sufficient perfection by anie one mā that had liued lesse then 600. yeares in which space the greate yeare as they call it returneth aboute Of the Tower of Babylon and of the confusion of tongues at the same Eusebius citeth the testimonies at large both of Abydenus that liued about king Alexanders time and of Sibylla as also the wordes of Hestiaeus concerning the lande of Sennaar where it was builded And thes Gentiles doe shew by reason that if there had not bene some such miracle in the diuision of tongues no doubt but that all tongues being deriued of one as all mē are of one father the same tongues would haue retained the self same rootes and principles as in all dialectes or deriuations of tongues we see that it cōmeth to passe But now saye they in manie tongues at this day we see that there is no likelihode or affinitie among them but all different th' one from th' other and therby it appeareth that they were made diuers and distincte euen from the beginning Of Abraham and his affaires I haue alleaged some heathen writers before as Berosus Hecataeus and Nicolaus Damascenus But of all other Alexander Polyhist or alleageth Eupolemus most at large of Abrahams being in Egypt and of his teaching them Astronomie there of his fight and victorie in the behalf of Lot of his entertainement by king Melchisadech of his wife sister Sara of other his doinges especiallie of the sacrifice of his sonne Isaac To whome agreeth Melo in his bookes writen against the Iewes and Artabanus And of the straunge lake wherinto Sodoma Gomorra were turned by their destruction called mare mortuum the dead sea wherin nothig can liue both Galen Pausanias Solinus Tacitus Strabo doe testifie and shew the particuler wonders therof From Abraham downe to Moyses writeth verie particulerly the fornamed Alexander albeit he mingle some tymes certaine fables wherby appeareth that he tooke his storie not owt of the Bible wholie And he alleageth one Leodemus who as he sayeth liued with Moyses and wrote the same self thinges that Moyses did so that thes writers agree almost in all thinges touching Isaac Iacob Ioseph and all their affaires euen vnto Moyses and with thes doe concurre also Theodotus a most auncient Poet Artabanus and Philon Gentiles Aristaeus in like maner aboute Aristotles time wrote a booke of Iob. Of Moyses and his actes not onelie the fornamed especiallie Artabanus in his booke of the Iewes doe make mention at large but manie other also as namelie Eupolemus out of whom Polyhistor reciteth verie longe narrations of the wonderful and stupēdious thinges donne by Moyses in Egipt for which he sayeth that in his time
he was worshipped as a God in that countrie and called by many Mercurius And that the Ethiopians learned circuncisioÌ„ of him which afterward alwayes they retained and so doe vntill this day And as for his miracles donne in Egypt his leading the people thence by the reade sea his liuing with them fortie yeares in the desert the heathen writers agree in al things with the scriptures sauing onely that they recoÌ„pt diuers things to the praise of Moyses which he hath not writen of him self adding also his description to witt that he was a longe taule man with a yeolowe bearde and longe heare Wherwith also accordeth Numenius Pythagoricus touching the actes of Moyses whose life he sayeth that he had reade in the auncientest recordes that were to be had But the fornamed Eupolemus goeth yet forwarde pursueth the storie of Iosue of the Iudges of Saul Dauid of SalomoÌ„ eueÌ„ vnto the building of the temple which he describeth at large with the particuler letters writeÌ„ about thatmatter the king of Tyrus which Iosephus sayeth were in his dayes kepte in the recordes of the TyriÌ„aÌ„s And with Eupolemê° agree Polyhister Hecataeus Abderita that liued serued iÌ„ warre with king AlexaÌ„der the great and they make mention amongest other thiÌ„ges of the inestimable riches of SalomoÌ„ and of the treasures which he did hyde and burie according to the fascion of that tyme in the sepulcher of his father Dauid which to be no fable though not mentioned by the scripture Iosephê° well proueth for that Hircanus the highe Priest and kinge of Iurie being besieged in Ierusalem by Antiochus surnamed Pius not manie yeares before Christs natiuitie to redeeme hym self and the cittie and to pay for his peace opened the said sepulcher of Dauid and fecht out of one parte therof three thousand Talentes in redy monie which amounte to six hundred thousand powndes Englishe if we accompt the talentes but at the least size of talentum Haebraicum And as for the thinges which ensued after Salomon as the diuision of the tribes among them selues and their diuers warres afflictions and transmigrations into other coÌ„tries manie heathen writers doe mention and recorde them and among other Herodotus and Diodorus Sieulus And the fornamed Alexander Polyhistor talking of the captiuitie of Babylon sayeth that Ieremie a Prophet tolde Ioachim his kinge what would befall hym and that Nabuchodonosor hearinge therof was moued therby to besiege IerusaleÌ„ Of the flight of Senacharib from the siege of Ierusalem how he was killed at his returne home by his owne childreÌ„ in the temple according to the prophetie of Esay and storie of the booke of kinges for that he had blasphemed the Lord God of Israel Herodotus witnesseth and that after his death he had a Statua or image of metal erected in his memorie with this inscription in greeke He that beboldeth me lett hym learne to be godlie Conferre Xenophon also in his seuenth booke de Cyropaedia and you shall see hym agree with Daniel in his narrations of Babylon And finallie I will conclude with Iosephus the learned Iewe that wrote imediatelie after Christs ascension and protesteth that the publique writinges of the Syriaus Chaldaeans Phenicians and innumerable hystories of the Graecians are sufficieÌ„t to testifie the antiquitie truth authoritie and certaintie of holie scriptures if there were no other proofe in the world besides The coÌ„clusion of the chapter vvith th' applicatioÌ„ Sect. 4. THus farre haue I treatede of the wayes and meanes which haue bene left to the world from the beginninge therby to know vnderstande their Maker In treating which point I haue stayed my self the longer for that it is the grouÌ„d foundatioÌ„ of all that is or maye be said hereafter It is the first final chiefest principle of all our eternal saluation or damnatioÌ„ and of the total weale or woe that must befail vs possesse vs for euer Which grounde and veritie if it be so certaine and euident as before hath bene shewed by all reason and proofe both diuine and humane and that the matter be so testified and proclamed vnto vs by all the creatures of heauen and earth and by the mouth and writing of our Creator hymself as no ignorance or blindnes can excuse the same no slouthfulnes dissemble it no wickednes denie it what remaineth then but to consider with our selues what seruice this God requireth at our hádes what gratitude what duetie what honour for our creation to th' eÌ„de that as we haue proued hym a most bountiful Creator so we may fynde hym a propitious iudge munificent rewarder For it is not probable that his diuine maiestie which hath appointed euerie other creature to some action for his owne glorie as hathe bene declared at large before should leaue mankinde onelie whiche is the worthiest of all the rest without obligation to his seruice In which one pointe not withstanding though neuer so cleare such is the fondnesse of our corrupt nature without gods holie grace fayled thos auncient wise men of the world of whom S. Paul speaketh so much in his epistle to the Romans taking compassion of their case and callinge them fooles and all their great learniÌ„ge philosophie meere fondnesse for that vvheras by the meanes before mentioned they came to knovv God they did not seeke to glorifie hym as appertained vnto God not yet did render hym due thankes but vanished avvaye in their cogitations c. That is they tooke no profitt by this knowledge of theirs but applied their cogitations vpon the vanities of this worlde more then vpon the honour and seruice of this their God For whiche cause S. Paul adioyneth presentelie in the same place that forso much as they did thus did not shew foorthe by their lyfe and workes that they had the knowledge of God in deede God deliuered them ouer to a reprobate sense and suffered them to fall into horrible synnes which S. Paul doth name and detest in all that chapter and finallie concludeth that their euerlasting perdition ensued principallie vpon this one pointe that wheras they knevv the iustice of God by all the wayes and argumeÌ„tes that before haue bene declared yet would they not vnderstand saith he that death was due to all such which liued in wickednes as they did And the same Apostle vpon consideration of thes matters wherin he standeth long for th' importance therof pronounceth in sine this general sentence with great asseueration and vehemencie of spirit that the vvrath of God is reucaled from heaueÌ„ vpon al impietie and iniustice of thos men vvho holde the knovvledge of God in vnrighteousnes that is who beig indued with the knowledge of God doe liue notwithstanding vnrighteouslie or as he saidbefore doe consume their dayes in vanitie not makiÌ„g accompt of the seruice which they doe owe to that God for their Creation and
contende This yet maketh the Patriarche Iacob more plaine who prophesing at his death of the comminge of Christ hathe thes wordes the scepter or gouernment shall not be taken from the house of Iuda vntill be come that is to be sent and he shal be the expectation of Nations Which later wordes the fornamed Chaldie paraphrase as also great Onkelos both of singuler authoritie amōgest the Iewes doe interprete thus Donee Christus seu Messias veniat c. vntil Christ or the Messias come which is the hope and expectation of all Nations as well Gentiles as of vs that are Iewes the gouernment shall not ceasse in the house or tribe of Iuda By which sentence of scripture and interpretation of the Iewes thē selues we come to learne besides the promisse for the Messias two cōsequences in this matter against the Iewes of later tymes First that if their Messias must be the hope and expectation as well of Gentiles as of Iewes then can he not be a temporal kinge to destroye the Gentiles as the latter Iewes would haue it but a spiritual king to reigne ouer them and to bring in subiection their spiritual enimies for them I meane the fleshe world and deuil as we Christians doe beloeue Secondlie if the temporal kingdome of the house of Iuda where of Christ must come shall ceasse and be destroyed at the comming of Messias as this scripture auoucheth how then can the Iewes expect yet a temporal king for their Messias as most fondlie they doe But to leaue this controuersie with the later Rabines and to goe forward in declaration of that which we tooke in hand that is to shew howe Christ was fortolde fore-promissed to the Iewes it is to be noted that after the death of Iacob last mentioned there is litle recorded in scripture of the doinges of his people during the fower hundred yeares of their bondoge in Egypt But yet the tradition of that Nation teacheth that as soone as they were deliuered out of Egypt and were in the desert towardes the lande of promisse the three sonnes of Chore called Aser Eleana Abiasaphe of whome there is mention in the sixth chapter of Exodus and other where made diuers songes and Psalmes in the praise and expectation of the Messias to come and that the holie men of that tyme did solace thē selues with singing the same and that king Dauid afterward in the second parte of his Psalmes begining from the 41. vnto the 87. gathered the most parte of those olde songes together as yet they are to be seene in his psalter But Moyses who liued with that people gouerned them in the wildernes had a cleare reuelatiō from God of this Messias in thes wordes I vvill raise vp a Prophet to this people from amongest their brethren euen as thy self and I vvill putt my vvordes in his mouth and he shal speak vnto them all thinges vvhich I shal ordaine vnto him and he that shal refuse to heare the vvordes vvhich he shal speake vnto thē in my name I vvill he reuenged vpon that man Which wordes that they can not be vnderstoode of anie other Prophet that euer liued after Moyses among the Iewes but onlie of Christ it appeareth plainelie by this testimonie of the holye ghoste And were arose not anie other Prophet in Israel like unto Moyses c. After Moyses about fower hundred yeares ensued Dauid whoe for that he was a holie man and the first king of the howse of Iuda out of whose linage the Messias was to come the particulers of this mysterie were more abundantlie and manifestlie reueiled vnto hym then vnto anie other And first for assurance that Christ should be borne of his stocke and linage thes are the wordes of God vnto hym I haue svvorne to Dauid my seruant I vvil prepare thie seed for eternitie and vvill build vp thie seat to all generations Which wordes albeit the later Iewes will applie to king Salomon that was Dauides sonne and in some sense they may so bee for that Salomon was a figure of Christ to come yet properlie thes wordes and his kingdome shal stand for euer and for all eternitie which are so often repeated in this and other places of scripture can not be verified in Salomō whose earthelie kingdome was rent torne in peeces straight after his death by Ieroboam and not longe after as it were extinguished but they must needes be vnderstoode of an eternal king which should come of Dauids seede as must also thes other wordes of God in the psalmes Thou arte my sonne this day haue I begotten the I vvill gyue vnto thee the Gentiles for thine inheritance Which was neuer fulfilled in Salomon nor in anie temporal king of Iurie after hym And muche lesse thes wordes that follow He shall endure vvith the sunne and before the moone from generation to generation There shal rise vp in his dayes peace vntil the moone be taken avvay he shal reigne from sea to sea vnto the endes of the vvorld All kinges shal adore hym and all Nations shal serue hym for that he shal deliuer the pooreman that had no helper he shal saue their soules and deliuer them from vsurie and from iniquitie all tribes of the earth shal be blessed in hym and all Nations shal magnisie hym Thes wordes of Christs eternal kingdome of his enduring to the worlds ende of his vniuersal raigne ouer Iew and Gentile of his adoration by all Nations of his deliuerie of soules from bondage of iniquitie and finallie of his making blessed all tribes of the earth can not possiblie be applied to anie temporal kinge that euer was among the Iewes or euer shal be but onlie to Christ. This promisse made vnto Dauid for Christ to come of his seede is repeated after his death by manie prophetes and confirmed by God as in Ieremie where God vseth thes wordes Behold the dayes come on and I vvill raise vp to Dauid a iust seede and he shal reigne a kinge and shal be vvise and shal doe iudgement and iustice vpon earth And in his dayes shal Iuda be saued and Israel shal dvvel confidentlie this is the name that men shall call hym OVR IVST GOD. All this was spoken of Dauids seede aboue fower hundred yeares after Dauid was dead Whiche proueth manifestlie that the former promisses and speeches were not made to Dauide for Salomon or for anie other temporal kinge of Dauids lyne but for Christ who was called so peculierlie the sonne and seede of Dauid for that Dauid was the first king of the tribe of Iuda and not onelie was Christs Progenitor in flesh but also did beare his Type and Figure in manie other thinges For which cause likewise in the prophet Ezechiel who lyued about the same tyme that Ieremie did the Messias is called by the name of Dauid hym self For this God spake at that tyme vnto Ezechiel I vvil saue my
doctrine monumeÌ„tes euen from the beginning albeit the lower they went the more corrupt they were and more obscured in diuine knowledge by their excercise iÌ„ idolat ie So wee know that the Romans had their learning from the Grecians the Graecians froÌ„ th' Egyptians th' Egyptians from the Chaldaeans who were the first people that receyued instruction in diuine matters from Adam Methusalem Noe others of those first and auncient fathers Now then it is to be considered that by consent of writers there were three famous men that liued together in those auncient times to witt Abraham who descending from HEBER was the father and beginner of the Iewes or Hebrues And wth hym Iob and one Zoroastres that were not of that linage of Heber but as we call them for distinctioÌ„s sake either heathens or Gentiles albeit that difference was not then in vre And of Iob we know by the testimonie of his booke that he was a most holie and vertuous maÌ„ Of Zoroastres we know onlie that he was greatelie learned and left monumeÌ„tes therof vnto his posteritie This Zoroastres liuing in Abrahams time might by accompt of scripture see or speake with Noe. For that Abraham was borne aboue three skore yeares before Noe disceassed And Noe was borne aboue fyue hundreth yeares before Methusalem dyed which Methusalem had lyued two hundred and fortie yeares with our first father Adam that had enioyed conuersatioÌ„ both with God Angels And therby no doubt could tell many highe and secrete mysteries especiallie touchinge Christ in whom all his hope for redemption of his posteritie did consist Which mysteries hidden knowledge it is not vnlike but that AbrahaÌ„ Iob Zoroastres and others who lyued at that tyme with them might recevue at the third hand by Noe and his children I meane Sem Cham and Iaphet who had lyued before the Fludde and had seene Methusalem which Methusalem lyued as I sayed so many yeares with Adam Herehence it is that in the writinges of Zoroastres which are yet exstant or recorded by other authours in his name there are founde verie many plaine speches of the sonne of God whom he calleth Secundam mentem the second mynde And muche more is it to be seene in the writinges of Hermes Trismegistus who lyued after in Egypt receyued his learninge from this Zoroastres that thes first heathen philosophers had manifest vnderstanding of this second person in Trinitie whom Hermes calleth the first begotten sonne of God his onlie sonne his deare eternal immutable incorruptible sonne vvho Sacred name is inessable thos are his wordes And after hym againe among the Graecians were Orphens Hesiedus others that vttered the like specches of the sonne of God as also did the Platonistes whose wordes and sentences were to longe to repeate in this place But he that will see them gathered together at large lett hym reade either Origen against Celsus the heathen or els S. Cyril in his first booke against Iulian th Apostata And this shall suffice for this first way wherby the Gentiles had vnderstanding of Christ. For the second thing which I mentioned it is to be vnderstoode that amonge the GeÌ„tiles there were certaine prophetisses or women prophetes called Sibyllae which in the greeke tongue as Lactantius gathereth maye signifie so much as either Councelours to God or Reutilours of Gods Councel And thes women being endued as it seemeth with a certaine spirit of prophetie did vtter from tyme to tyme though in such termes as most GeÌ„tiles vnderstoode them not most wonderful particularities of Christ to come agreiÌ„g as it were wholie with the prophetes of Israel or rather setting downe manie thinges in much more plaine and euident speeche then did th' other th' one of them beginning her greeke meerer in thes verie wordes knovv thie God vvhich is the sonne of God c. An other of theÌ„ maketh a whole discourse of Christ in greeke verses called Accrostichi for that the begiÌ„ning of euerie verse is by some letter appointed in order foorth of some one senteÌ„ce that runneth through the whole As for example the sentence that passed throughe the beginning of those verses whiche now we talke of was this Iesus Christ Sonne of God Saueour Crosse. And there were so manie verses in the whole discourse as there are letters in this senteÌ„ce The total argumeÌ„t beiÌ„g of the incarnatioÌ„ life death glorie and iudgement of the sonne of God And the last two verses of all the meeter are thes He that hath bene here described by our Accrossike verses is an immortale Saueour and a Kynge that must suffer for our sinnes And for that thes propheties of the Sibylls are of marueilous importaÌ„ce to coÌ„firme the veritie of our Christian religioÌ„ and are alleaged ofteÌ„ for that purpose by the most graue learnedst fathers of our primatiue churche as for example by Iustinê° the martyr in his apologie for Christians by Origen against Celsus by Arnobius and his scholler LactaÌ„tius against Gentiles by S. Cyril against Iulian th' apostata by S. Augustine in his Cittie of God by Eusebius and Constantine th' Emperour and others I will say somewhat in this place for th' authoritie and credite of thes verses least anie man perhappes might imagine as some Gentiles in olde tyme would seeme to doe that they were deuised or inuented by Christians And the most of my proofes shall be out of a learned oration writen in latine by the foresaid Emperour to a Councel of Prelates in his dayes wherein he indeuoureth to shew the vndoubted authoritie of thes Sibyll propheties which he esteemed so much after diligent search made for their credite and sinceritie as they seeme to haue bene a great cause of his constant zele and feruour in Christianitie First then he sheweth that thes predictioÌ„s of the Sibylles could not be deuised or seigned by Christians or made after the tyme of Christes natiuicie for that Marcus varro a wost learned RomaÌ„ who liued almost a hundrethe yeares before Christ maketh mention at large of thes Sibylles who in number he saith were ten and of their writinges countries ages as also of the writers or authours that before his tyme had left memorie of them And both he and Fenestella an other heathé doe affirme that the writinges of thes Sibilles were gathered by the Romans from al partes of the world wher they might be heard of and layed vp with diligence and great reuerence in the Capitole vnder the charge and custodie of the highe priestes and other Officers in such sorte as no man might see or reade them but onlie certaine Magistrates called the Fistine and muche lesie might any man come to falsifie or corrupt them Secondlie he sheweth that Sibylla Erythraea who made the former Acrostike verses of Christ restisicth of her self that she liued about 600. years after the fludde of Noe and her
signes which haue bene frō the beginning to fortell vnto vs the true Meisias were fulfilled in hym and his actions or no. And for that the matters are manie and diuers that will come herein to be handled I will for order sake reduce all to fower considerations Wherof the first shal be touching the tyme foreprophetied of the comming of Meisias and whether the same agreed with Christes Natiuitie or no. The seconde shal be of diuers particulers that passed in Christes incarnation birth circumcision and other accidētes vntill the tyme that he began to preach The third shal be of his life conuersatiō miracles and doctrine The fowerth and last of his Passion death resurrection and Ascensiō In all which as I sayed before I will vse no one Authour or testimonie of our owne side for prouing anie thing that is in controuersie bytwene vs but all shall passe by trial either of their owne scriptures or of manifest force and consequence of reason or els by expresse recorde of our professed enimies FOR THE first then concerning the tyme which is the principal and head of all the rest it is to be noted that by consent of all writers both Pagan Iuishe Christian Iesus whom we beleeue and confesse to be true Christ was borne the 25. daye of December in th' ende of the 41. yeare of th' Emperour Augustus reigne which was 15. years before his reigne ended Also in the beginning of the 33. yeare of Herodes reigne in Iurie which was 4. yeares and more before his death And from the beginning of the world as some accompt 5199. And as other 4089. for that in this pointe betwene the Hebrues and Graecians there is a differēce of some litle more then a hundreth years concerninge their reconinge The state of the worlde at Iesus Natiuitie was this The three Monarchies of the Assyrians Persians and Graeciās were past ouer and ended the Romans were entered into the fowerth that was greater then anie of the rest according to the prophetie of Daniel 500 yeares before Octauius Caesar surnamed Augustus after fyue ciuil warres by hym self waged and after infinit broyles and bloodshed in the worlde reigned peaceablie alone for many yeares together in tokē of an vniuersal peace ouer all th' earth he caused the temple gates of IANVS to be shutt according to the custome of the Romans in such cases albeit this had happened but twise before from the buylding of Rome vnto that tyme. And the verie same daye that Christ was borne in Iurie Augustus commaūded in Rome as afterward was obserued that no man should call hym LORDE therby to signifie the free libertie rest ioye securitie wherin al mē were after so longe miseries which by continual warres the world had suffered By this we gather first that this tyme of Iesus birth agreed exactelie with the prophetie so longe before sett downe in Daniel who lyued in the first Monarchie that after his tyme there should be three Monarchies more and the last biggest of all at whose appearinge the Messias should come and build vp Gods kingdome throughout all the world Secondlie we see that fulfilled which Esay aboue a hundreth yeares before Daniel fortold that at the cōming of Christ people should sitt in the beautie in peace And againe there shal be no ende of peace And yet further he shall be Prince of peace And kinge Dauid longe before hym againe in his dayes there shal ryse iustice and abundance of peace Which thinge though especiallie it be to be vnderstoode of th' internal peace and tranquilitie of our myndes and soules yet considering that external peace also was necessarie for a tyme for the quiet plantinge publishinge of Christes Gospel and seinge that the same wās brought to passe most miraculouslie vpon the suddain when in reason men least might expect the same for th' infinite warres wherin the worlde a litle before had bene and by reason of the Roman Monarchie so freshelie established whiche in their begininges are wont to be troublesome this peace I saye can not be but a greate argument that this was the proper tyme of the Messias his comminge And this for the state of the world in general But now for the particuler state of Iurie at Iesus natiuitie thus it was according as Iosephus the Iew who was borne within fyue yeares after Christ his passion describeth the same One Herod a straunger whose father called Antipater came out of Idumaea was rysen to acquaintance and fauour with the Romans partelie by his said fathers meanes who was as Iosephus wordes are a vvell monicd man industrious and sactious and partelie also by his owne diligence and ambition being of hymself both wittie beautiful and of excellent rare qualities By which cōmendatiōs he came at length to marry the daughter of Hyrcanus kinge of Iurie that was descended liniallie of the house of Dauid and tribe of Iuda And by this mariage obteined of his father-in-law to be Gouernour of the prouince of Galilie vnder hym But Hyrcanus afterwardes fallinge into the handes of the Parthyians that caried hym into parthia Herod ranne away to Rome and there by the helpe and special fauour of Antonie that ruled in company together with Octauius he obteined to be created kinge of Iurie without all title or interest ī the world For that not onlie his said fatherinlaw Hyrcanus was yet a lyue in Parthia but also his yonger brother Aristobulus and three of his sonnes named Antigonus Alexander and Aristobulus and diuers other of the blood Royall in Iurie Herodthen hauing procured by thes meanes to be kinge of Iurie procured first to haue into his handes the forsaid kinge Hyrcanus and so put hym to death as also he brought to the same ende his yonger brother Aristobulus together with all his three sonnes He putt to death also his owne wife Mariamnes that was kinge Hyreanus daughter as also Alexandra her mother And soone after two of his owne sonnes by the said Mariamnes for that they were of the blood Royal of Iuda And a litle after that againe he put to death his third sonne named Antipater He caused to be slaine at one tyme 40. of the chiefest noble men of the tribe of Iuda And as Philo the Iewe writeth that liued at the same tyme with hym he putt to death all the Sanhedrin that is the seuentie and two Senatours of the tribe of Iuda that ruled the people He kylled the chief of the sect of Pharisies He burned the genealogies of all the kinges and princes of the house of Iuda and caused one Nicolaus Damascenus an Historiographer that was his seruant to draw out apetidegree for hym and his line as though he had descended from the auncient kinges of Iuda He translated the highe priesthode solde it to straungers And finallie he so rased dispersed and mangled the house of
Iuda as no one iote of gouernment dignitie or principallitie remained therin And when he had donne all this then was Iesus of the same house and line borne in Bethleē the proper Cittie of Dauid which Dauid was the founder and first authour of Regalitie in Iuda Now then consider the prophetie of Iacob concerning the particuler tyme of Christes appearāce almost two thousand years before thes thinges fell out Come hyther my childrē said he that I may tell you the thinges vvhich are to happē in the later dayes c. The scepter shall not be taken from Iuda untill he come vvho is to be sent and he shall be th' expectation of Nations Which prophetie that it was fulfilled now at Christes Natiuitie when Herod had extinguished all gouernment in Iuda no man can denie that will acknowledge the thinges sett downe before which are recorded by writers both of that tyme and of the Iuishe Nation and religion And that it neuer was fulfilled from Dauids dayes who began the gouernment to the house of Iuda vntil this time appeareth plainlie by all histories and recordes both Diuine and Prophane For that frō Dauid who was the first kinge vnto Zedechias that was the last and died in the Captiuitie of Babylon the Scripture sheweth how all kinges descended of the house of Iuda And during the tyme of the captiuitie in Babylon which was 70 yeares the Iewes were alwayes permitted to chuse to them selues a gouernour of the house of Iuda whom they called RESCHGALVTA And after their deliuerie from Babylon Zorobabel was their Captaine of the same tribe and so others after hym vntill ye come to the Machabies who were both Captaines priests for that they were by the mothers side of the tribe of Iuda by the fathers side of the tribe of Leui as Rabbi kimhi holdeth And from thes men downe to Hyrcanus and Aristobulus whom Herod slew there continued stil the same line as Iosephus declareth So that by this prophetie it is euident that Iesus was borne at the propper tyme appointed for the Messias whē there was neither king nor Captaine nor highe prieste nor Councelour nor anie one gouernour of the house and tribe of Iuda left in Iurie An other prophetie ther is no lesse euident then the former wherin it is affirmed that the Messias shall come before the secōd Temple of Ierusalem that was builded by Zorobabel after the Iewes returne from their captiuitie in Babylon should be destroyed by the Romans For better vnderstanding wherof it is to be noted that the Temple of Ierusalem was builded twise first by Salomon which lasted about 442. yeares and then it was burned and destroyed by Nabuchodonosor kinge of Babylon Wherfore aboute seuētie yeares after it was builded againe by Zorobabel who reduced the Iewes frō Babylon and so it continued vntill it was destroyed the second tyme by Titus sonne to Ve pasian the Roman Emperour about fortie yeares after Christs Ascension At what tyme it had lasted from Zorobabel almost six hundred yeares And from Salomon aboue a thousande And as in tyme of the second building the people of Israel were poore and much afflicted in respecte of their late longe banishement though much assisted to this worke by the liberalitie and munificēcie of Darius kinge of Babylon so was the building and workeman hippe of this seconde temple nothing comparable for excellēcie to the first building of Salomō when the Iewes were in the flower of their glorie and riches This testifieth Aggaeus the Prophet who was one of the builders and he testified the same to Zorobabel and to the rest of thos that were with hym by Gods owne appointement in thes wordes The vvorde of God vvas made to Aggeus the Prophet Tell Zorobabel the sonne of Salathiel Captaine of Juda and Iesus the sonne of Iosedec highe prieste and the rest of the people VVho is there leste of you that savv this temple in his first glorie before our transinigration vvhat say you to this vvhich Novv vve see is it not in our eyes as though it vvere not at all that is is it not as though it were a thinge of nothing in cōparison of the former temple which Salomon builded Thus said Aggaeus by Gods commissiō of the material building of this second Temple And yet to comfort the Iewes withall he was commaunded presentelie in the sane chapter to say thus Comfort thie self Zorobabel and comfort thie self Iesu sonne of Iosedec high priest and comfort your selues all ye people of the earth saith the Lord God of hostes doe ye the thinges vvhich I couenanted vvith you vvhen ye came foorth of the land of Egypt and feare not for that my spirit shall be among you Thus sayeth the Lord of hostes a litle time yet remaineth vvhen I vvill moue both heauen and earth both sea and lande vvith all countries in the vvorld And then shall come the DESIRED OF ALL NATIONS and I will fill this hovvse or temple vvith glorie sayeth the Lord of hostes Siluer is mine and gold is mine sayeth the Lord of hostes great shal be the glorie of this ast hovvse or temple more then of the first sayeth the Lord God of hostes Hytherto are the wordes of God by Aggaeus and the often repetition of the Lord God of hostes is to signifie the certaintie great weight of the matter promissed Now consider then that wher as God had said immediatelie before that this second temple was nothing in respect of the first for pompe and riches of the material building which the olde men in the booke of Esdras did testifie by their weeping when then they saw this seconde remembred the first yet now God saith that Gold and seluer is his ovvne as though he made no accompt of th' abundāce therof in the former temple or of the want of the same in this and that not withstanding the pouertie of this second building yet shall it be filled and replenished vvith glorie and that in such sorte as it shall farre passe in glorie the former and that shall bee as both here is expressed and other where most plainlie by the comming of Christ into the second temple which shal be a greater dignitie then anie dignitie what soeuer was found in the first building of Salomons temple Concerning which point it is to be cōsidered that the learned Iewes besides the material difference of building before mentioned doe note fiue thinges of great importance to haue bene wanting in the seconde temple which were in the first To witt the fire sent from heauen to burne the Holocaustes The glorie of God or Angels appearing among the images of Cherubins that stoode in the temple The manifeste inspiration of Gods spirit vpon Prophetes for that prophetie fayled in the second temple The presence of the Arcke And last of all the Vrim and Thumim All which great wantes and differences not
withstanding God saith as you see that the glorie of this second temple shal be much greater then the first by the comminge of Christ into the same Which thing Malachie the prophet that lyued at the same tyme when the second temple was in buildinge confirmeth yet more expresselie in thes wordes Beholde I send my Angel and he shal prepare the vvay before my face And straight after shal come to his temple the Lord or ruler vvhom you seeke and the MESSENGER OF THE TESTAMENT vvhome you desyre Beholde 〈◊〉 cometh cometh saith the Lord of hosles and vvho ca imagine the day of his comming or vvho can stande or abyde te see him for he shal be as a purging fire c. By all which is made euidēt that Christ must come and appeare in the seconde téple before it be destroyed as Iesus did and therfore he can not be new to come seing the laid temple was destroyed aboue 1500. year past by the Romas as hath bene said Which destruction and final desolation was prophetied by Daniel to ensue soone after the byrth and death of Christ in thes wordes After sixtie and tvvo heb 〈◊〉 Christ shal be slaine And a people vvith their Captaine to come shall destroye the Cittie and the Sanctuarie and th' ende therof shal be vastitie or spoile And after the vvarre ended there shall ensue th' appointed desolation Which prophetit to haue fallen out lytterallie about fortie yeares after Iesus was put to death when Ierusalem was destroyed and the temple ouerthrowen by Titus the storie of Iosephus the learned Iewe who was a Captaine against Titus in that warre doth manifestlie at large declare AND for that we haue made mention here of Daniels prpohetie concerning the particuler tyme of Christs comming and of his death which confirmeth the purpose we treate so perspicuouslie as nothing can be said more euident it shall not be amisse to examine the same before we passe anie further For better conceyuinge wherof it is to be vnderstood that this greeke worde Hebdomada signifying seuen doth sometyme importe a weeke of seuen dayes accordinge to our commó vse and then it is called in scripture Hebdomada dierum a weeke of dayes as Dan. 10. v. 2. where Daniel sayeth that he did mourne three weekes of dayes But at other tymes it signifieth the space of seué yeares and is called in Scripture Hebdomada annorum a weeke of yeares As in Leuiticus wher it is said Thou shalt number to theoseuen vveekes of years that is seuen tymes seuen vvhich make fortie and Nine years Now then it is certaine that Daniel in the prophetie before alleaged where he assigneth 62. weekes to the tyme of Christs death could not meane vveekes of dayes for that he appointeth onlie seuen weekes to the rebuilding of the cittie of Ierusalem of the Temple of the walles aboute which were not ended but in fortie and nyne yeares after as may be gathered by the bookes of Esdras which 49. weekes doe make iust seuen weekes of yeares And therfore it is certaine that such Hebdomades of yeares are meāt here by Daniel in all the prophetie First then when th' Angel came to cōfort hym and to open vnto hym secretes for the tyme to come he said thes words Marke my speech and vnderstand the vision The seuentie hebdomades or vveekes are shortened or hastened vpon thy people and vpon thie holie Cittie to th' end all preuarication and sinne may take an ende and iniquitie be blotted out euerlasting iustice be brought in place therof to th' ende that visions and propheties may be fulfilled and the HOLIE OF HOLIES may be annointed In which wordes it seemeth that the Angel did allude by naming seuentie vnto the seuētie yeares of captiuitie prophetied by Ieremie after which ended the people should be deliuered frō their tēporal bondage in Babylō And therfore Daniel now being ī that place perceauing the same time to be expired prayed to God with great instance to fulfill his promisse made by Ieremie Wherto th' Angel answered that it should be donne And as after the expiration of seuentie years God was now to deliuer them from the bodilie captiuitie of Babylon so was he also after seuentie hebdomades more to deliuer them from bondage of sinne and preuarication and that by th' annointed MESSIAS which is indeede the Holie of all Holies This I say may be the reason of naming seuentie hebdomades therby to allude to the number of the seuentie years of that Babylonical seruitude For that immediatelie after the Angel appointeth the whole exacte nūber to be three skore and nine hebdomades that is seuen to the building of the cittie and temple three skore and two from that to the death of Christ in thes wordes Knovv thou and marke that from the ende of this speech to the tyme that Ierusalem shal be builded and vnto Christ the Captaine there shal be hebdomades seuē and Hebdomades sixtie tvvo and the streetes and vvalles of Jerusalem shal be builded againe though vvith much difficultie of the tymes and after sixtie and tvvo Hebdomades Christ shal be slaine And the people that shal denie hym shal not be his c. And then vnto consummation and ende shal perseuer desolation Now then if we putt thes yeares together whiche are here mentioned by Daniel that is first the seuen Hebdomades which make fortie and nyne yeares and then the three skore and two from the restauratiō of Ierusalem which make fower hundred thirtie and fower more we shall fynde the whole number to be 483. yeares Which being begonne from the first yeare of Cyrus as some wil for that he first determined the Iewes reduction or from the second yeare of Darius as other will for that he confirmed and putt the same in execution or from the twēteth yeare of the said Darius for that then he made a new edicte in the fauour of Nehemias and sent hym into Iurie euerie waye they will ende in the reigne of Herod and of Augustus vnder whome Christ was borne or in the reigne of Tyberius Caesar vnder whome he suffered And by no interpretation in the world can it be auoided but that this tyme appointed by Daniel is now owt aboue a thousand fyue hūdred yeares past whyle yet the temple stoode and was not putt to desolation And therfore of necessitie Christ must be come about that tyme and neuer more hereafter to be looked for THE traditions and obseruations of th' old Iewes thē selues doe maruelouslie confirme this belief of ours for that they all did runne to this one pointe that aboute the tyme of Augustus his reigne wherin Iesus was borne the Messias should appeare It is often repeated in the Thalmud that one Elias left this traditiō that the worlde should endure six thousand yeares two thousand before the law of Moyses two thousand vnder the same law
and two thousand after that vnder the Messias Which last two thousand yeares by all computation could not beginne much from the birth of Iesus And the Rabbines a great while gone complained in their Talmud that ther seemed to them in thos dayes seuen hundred fourtiene yeares past since Christ by the scriptures should haue appeared and therefore they doe maruaile whie God so longe deferreth the same Another obseruation they haue vpon the wordes of Esay paruulus natus est nobis a lytle childe is borne vnto vs. In which wordes for that they finde th' Ebrue letter MEM to be shutt in the middest of a worde which is strange in that tongue for that MEM is wont to be open in the middest of wordes and shutt onlie in the ende they gather manie secretes And amonge other that seinge MEM signifieth six hundred years so longe it should be after Esay vntill the tyme of Christe Which accompt of theirs falleth out so iust that if you recone the yeares from Achaz kinge of Iuda in whose tyme Esay spake thes wordes vntil the tyme of king Herode vnder whome Christ was borne you shall perceyue the number to faile in litle or nothing A muche like obseruation hath Rabbi Moses the sonne of Maimon whom the Iewes doe holde in extreme greate reuerence calling hym the doctor of iustice in his epistle to his countrimen of Africa concerning the tyme of Christs appearance Which he thinketh to be past accordinge to the scriptures aboue a thousand yeares in his dayes he lyued about the yeare of Christ. 1140 but that God deferreth his manifestation for their sinnes To which purpose also apperteineth the tradition of one Elias as Rabbi Iosue reporteth it iÌ„ the Thalmud that the Messias was to be borne in deede according to the scriptures before the destruction of the second temple for that Esay sayeth of the Synagoge before she vvas vvith child she brought foorth and before the greefe of trauaile came she vvas deliuered of a man child That is saith he before the Synagogue was afflicted and putt to desolation by the Romans she brought forthe the Messias But yet sayeth he this Messias for our sinues doth hyde hym self for a tyme in the sea and other deserte places vntill we be worthie of his comming To the like effect is th' obseruation of the Talmud it self and of diuers Rabbines therin concerning the wicked manners of men that should bee at Christs appearance vpon earth of whom they doe pronounce thes wordes The vvise men in Israel shal be extinguished the learning of our Scribes and Pharisies shal be putrisied the scholles of Diuinitie shal be stevves at that tyme. Which thig Iosephus that liued in the same age with Christ affirmeth to be fulfilled in the time of Herod in so much that if the Romans had not destroyed them without doubt sayeth he either the earth would haue opened and swallowed theÌ„ doune or els fire from heaueÌ„ would haue consumed theÌ„ All then runneth to this ende both by scripture tradition obseruation and instincte of God hym self that about Herodes tyme the true Messias should be borne And hereof came that common and publique fame that is recorded by Tacitus Suetonius and Iosephus which was also writen in open sight vpon the chiefest Tower of the Cittie of IerusaleÌ„ that out of Iurie should rise a general Lord of th' vniuersal vvorld Which prophetie as the Romans either contemned or turned an other waye applying the same afterwarde to Vespasian so the Iewes vnderstood it of their Messias and Herode feared the matter greatelie and for that was so watchefull to exstinguishe the line of Dauide as hath bene shewed Hereof also it did proceede that the Magi or wise men of the Easte attended so diligentelie about that tyme to expect the Starre that Balaam had promissed at the comming of this kinge Herehence also it was that the whole people of Iurie remained so attent at this tyme more then euer before or sence in expecting the Messias Where vpon as soone as euer they heard of Ihon Baptist in the desert they ranne vnto hym askinge if he were Christ As afterward also they flocked to Iesus demauÌ„ding art thou he vvhich is to come or doe vve expect an other Which wordes importe the great expectation wherin that people remained in thos dayes Nether wanted that expectation in the chief gouernours theÌ„ selues as may appeare by that speech of theirs to Iesus hovv loÌ„ge vvilt thovv kill vs with this expectation if thou he Christ tell vs plainlie Of which fame expectation and greedie desire of the people diuers deceyuers 〈◊〉 occasion to call them selues the Messias in those dayes and the people followed them presentelie which thing had not happened in any age before And among other there is named one Iudas Gaulonites or Galilaeus as S. Luke calleth him and an other Iudas the sonne of Ezeehias both of them verie wicked and liceÌ„tious felowes One also called AtoÌ„ges a Shepheard and two other named Theudas and Egyptius most notable deceyuers And aboue all there was one Barcozbam who as the Talmud saith for thirtie years together was receyued for the Messias by the Rabbines them selues vntil at last they slewe hym for that he was not able to deliuer them from the Romans Which facilitie in the people when Herode sawe he caused Nicolaus Damascenê° as I noted before to deuise a petigree for hym from the auncient kinges of Iuda And so he as well as other tooke vpoÌ„ hym to be the Messias whom-diuers carnal Iowes that expected the Messias to be a magnificent king as Herod was would seeme to beleeue diuulgate abrode and therof in the Gospell they are thought to haue bene called Herodiani that is Herodians or followers of Herod who came to tempt Christ with the scribes and pharisees Wherfore to conclude at length this weightie pointe of the tyme of Christs appearing seing that about the birth of Iesus vnder Herodes reigne there coÌ„curred so many signes argumeÌ„tes together as the general peace of the Roman Empire the defection of the line and regimeÌ„t of Iuda the open decaye of the second temple the iust calculation of Daniels hebdomades the attestation of Oracles th' obseruation of Rabbines the publique fame and expectation of all the Iewes together with the palpable experience of more then fiftien hundreth yeares past since Iesus appeared wherin we see the Iuishe people in vaine to expect an other Messias they being dispersed ouer all the world without temple law sacrifice Prophet or promisse for their redemptioÌ„ which neuer happened to them vntill after Iesus death for that in all other their banishementes captiuities and afflictions they had some prophetie consolatioÌ„ or promisse for their deliueric Thes thinges all I say considered and putt together we may moste vndoubtedlie and assuredlie conclu le that Iesus was borne
my eyes sleepe or rest to the temples of my head vntill I find out the place that is appointed for my Lord the tabernacle or house for the God of Iacob And then the mysterie being reueiled vnto hym he sayeth presentely Beholde vve haue heard of it novv in Ephrata or Bethleem vve haue founde it out in the fieldes of vvoode And to shew how he reuerenced the place for that cause he addeth immediatelie vve vvill adore in the place vvher his seete haue stoode Wherby he for prophitieth not onlie th' adoration vsed after in that place vnto Iesus by the Magi or three kinges of th' east but also of all other adoratiō vsed in the same place in the memorie of Iesus by other deuout Christians vntill this daye For which respect Origē sayeth that the place of Bethleem was most famous and renoumed in his dayes For th' Angels appearing to the shepheardes in the night of the Natiuitie there can be no more said but the credite honestie and simplicitie of them that reported it and likelie it is they would neuer feigne a thing that might haue bene refuted by testimonie of the sheapheards them selues if it had bene false Of the name of IESVS gyuen to hym in his circumcision it was to be seene sett downe in a booke that how so euer it were not scripture yet was it extant in the worlde before Christ was borne I meane the fowerth booke of Esdras which hath thes wordes in the person of God the father Beholde the tyme shal come vvhen the signes shall appeare that I haue tolde c. And my sonne IESVS shal be reueiled vvith these vvho are vvith hym c. And after those yeares my sonne CHRIST shall dye and th' earth shall render thos that sleepe therin Rabi Hacadosch also proueth by arte Cabalist out of manie places and textes of scripture that the Messias name at his comming shal be IESVS And among other he addeth this reason that as the name of hym who first brought the Iewes out of bondage into the lande of promisse was Iesus or Iosue which is al one so must his name be Iesus that shall the second tyme deliuer thē from the bondage wherin they are and restore them to their olde aunciēt possession of Iurie which is the chiefe benefite they expect by the Messias Finallie it is not probable that the virgine Marie should feigne this name of her self for that among the Iewes there were manie other names of more honour and estimatiō at that tyme as Abraham Isaac Iacob Moyses and Dauid And therfore if she would haue feigned any it is like shee would haue taken one of thē as soone as this which had not bene the name of anie greate Patriarche THERE followeth the comming of the three Magi or wise men from th' easte of whom Cyprians wordes are it is an olde tradition of the churche that the Magi of th' easte vvere kinges or rather litle Lordes of particuler places Which is to be vnderstood such litle kinges as Iosue slew thirtie in one battaile And it is to be noted that S. Mathew maketh mention of the comming of thes kinges to Hierusalem as of a knowen and publique matter wherof all Ierusalem and Iurie was able to beare hym wituesse For he talketh of their open comming to Ierusalem and of their inquirie for the new borne king of their speech and conference had with Herod as also of Herodes consultation with the Scribes and Pharasies about the place of the Messias birth And finallie he sheweth the most pittiful murder that insued of almost infinite infantes in all the circuite of Bethleem for this matter Which could not be a thinge vnknowen to all Iurie much lesse feigned by S. Mathew for that he should haue gyuen his aduersaries the greatest aduātage in the world if hè had begunne his Ghospell with so notorious and opē an vntruth which might haue bene refuted by infinite persons that were yet a liue Epiphanius is of opinion that thes kinges arriued in Hierusalem two yeares after Christs Natiuitie for that Herod slew all infantes of that age But other hold more probablie that the starre appeared vnto them two yeares before Christs Natiuitie so that they came to Bethleē the thirtienth daye after Christs birth according as the Church doth celebrat th' epiphanie S. Basil thinketh that they were learned men and might by their learning and art magike wherin those countrimen at that tyme were verie skilful vnderstand and feele that the power of their heathē Godes was greatlie deminished and broken They might also be stirred vp with that commō brute and general prophetie spred ouer all th' east in those dayes as both Suetonius and Iosephus doe recorde that oute of Iurie should come an vniuersal Kinge ouer all the vvorld By thes meanes I say and by the prophetie of Balaam left a nonge them from Moyses tyme for he was a Gētile wherby was signified that a starre should rise and declare a greate and mightie king in Israel they might be induced at the sight of this Starre to take so longe a iourney as they did towardes Iurie This Starre as I haue said was fortold by Balaam a heathen Prophete aboue 1500. yeares before it appeared And after Balaam againe it was prophetied by Dauid that kinges of Arabia Saba and other Eastren countries should come and adore Christ and offer both gold and other gystes vnto hym The murder also of those infantes of Bethleem was presignified by Icremie in the weeping of Rachel for thee slaughter of her children which Rachell was buried in Bethleem and for that cause thos infantes were called her children albeit she were dead aboue 2000. yeares before they were slaine and aboue 1500. before Ieremie wrote the prophetie Amongest which infantes Herode also for more assurance slewe an infant of his owne For that as Philo noteth he was descended by his mother of the lyne of Iuda Which crueltie comming to Augustus eares he said as Macrobius reporteth that he had rather bee Herods swyne thē his sonne for that he being a Iewe was forbidden by his religion to kill his swine though not ashamed to kill his sonne The same Starre wherof we speake is mentiōned by diuers heathen writers as by Plinie vnder the name of a Comete for so they termed all extraordinarie Starres which appeared in the later ende of Augustus daies and was farre different from al other that euer appeared And therfore contrary to the nature of thos kind of Starres it was adiudged by the whole college of Southsaiers to portend vniuersal good vnto the earth and for that cause had an image of metal erected to it in Rome and as Plinies wordes are Is Cometa vnus toto orbe colitur that only Comete is worshipped throughout the whole world Origine also writeth of one Chaeremon a Stoike that was much moued with
putt to death vpō a Crosse by the Gentiles The testimonie of Iosephus may suffice for all herein whose wordes are that the principal Ievves ofbis countrie hauing accused and deliuered ouer Iesus to Pilat that vvas Gouernour of Iurie for the Roman Emperour he adiudged hym to the Crosse. The same doe all other Iewes Gentiles recorde and in this they take great offence and scandale that we should attribute diuinitie vnto a man that had suffred on the Crosse. But if we shew that this was th' eternal preordination and appointement of God for sauing of mankinde and that the same was fortolde both to Iewe Gentile from the beginning and so vnderstood also by the Iuishe Doctors of elder tymes then euerie reasonnable man I trow will remaine satisfied and preferre Gods diuine wisdome before mās follie First then consider that when Christ had ended his preaching and wrought so manie miracles as seemed sufficient to his eternal wisdome and when the tyme was come preordained for his passion wherof he tolde publiquelie his disciples before he went vp to Hierusalem of purpose to receyue his death and made a solemne entrie into that Citie vpon an asse which was prophetied of hym by Zacharie manie yeares before Reioyce daughter of Sion Bcholde thie I VST KING SAVEOVR shall come vnto thec vpon an asse And after his abode some dayes in that place he was betrayed and solde by his owne disciple as Dauid beforehande in manie places had foretolde should come to passe Then folowed his apprehension and most seruile abusage by the Iewes wher of it was foreprophitied in his person by Esay I gaue my bodie to them that beate it and my cheekes to them that bussited the same I did not turne my self avvay from them that reproched mee nor yet from them that did spitte in my sace After this barbarous intreatie by the Iewes they deliuered hym ouer to Pilat a Gentile and neuer ceased to solicite and pursue their vnquenshable hatred against him vntil they sawe him on the Crosse. Where also he was vsed in the highest degree of spiteful dealīg Wherof the foresaid Dauid made mention longe before in the person of the Messias when he said they pearsed my handes and seete they deuided among them my apparaile and vpon my vpper Garmente they did caste lottes And aganie of another crueltie he cōplaineth saing they gaue me Gaule to eate and in my 〈◊〉 they refreshed me vvith vinegar And finallie that Christ should die for the sinnes of mankind ys a common principle bothe prefygured and foretolde throughout all the olde scripture Prefigured by the sacrifice of Isaac by the raising vp of the Brasen Serpent and by all other sacrifices that were in that lawe Fortolde not onely by the scriptures before aleadged but also must plainely by Daniel who was tolde by an Angel that after a certaine time by him there apointed vngetur sanctus senctorum The Saint of Saintes shal be anointed occidetur Christus this anointed Saint or Christ shal be put to death Zacharie also about the same time doth not onely fortel his death but also the kinde therof and from what people he should receyue the same for thus he saith in the person of Christ him self The inhabitantes of Icrusalem at that daye shal looke vpon me vvhom they haue Crucisied But if ye will reade the whole storie of Christs passion set downe at large 600 yeares before it fel out I referre you to a narration of Esay who to signifie the straungnes of the case begineth with this preface vvho vvill gyue credit to that vve shal reporte c. And then after a litle he goeth on in thes wordes He shall mount vp as a tvvigge from a drie earth He hath no fourme or beautie vpon him VVe beheld him and ther vvas no countenance in him vve savve him the most contemtible and dispised man in the vvorld A man full of paines and experienced in infirmitie His countenance vvas obscure and despicable and vve made no accompt of him Truly he tooke vpon him self our greefes and did beare our paines VVe accompted him as a leaper as a mā stricken and punished by God But he vvas vvounded for our iniquities and crushed in peaces for our vvickednes The discipline or correction of our peace lieth vpon him and by his vvoundes vve are made vvhole VVe haue all erred gone astraye like sheepe euery man after his ovvne vvayes and God hath layde vpon him the iniquitie of vs all He vvas offred vp for vs because he vvould soe he shal be led le to his slaughter as a sheepe and as a Lambe he shal be silent before his Shearours For the sinnes of my people haue I stricke thyn saith God He hath donne no iniquitie neither vvas there decepte founde in his mouth Yet vvould our Lord crush hym in infirmitie But if he shal gyue his life for sinne then shal he see a long seede or generation and the vvill of our Lord shal be derected in his hād And for so much as his soule hath susteined labour it shal see and be filled And this MY IVST SERVANT in his knovvledge shal Iustifie many and beare their iniquities And I vvil allotte vnto hym verie many people and he shal deuide the spoiles of the stoute for that he hath deliuered his soule vnto death and vvas accompted among the vvicked prayed for his transgressours Thus particularlie as ye see was the death and Passion of Christ foretolde by the Prophettes of Israel to that Nation Now heare ye the prophetie of Sibylla if ye please wherin she foreshewed the same to the Gētiles Thes are her wordes set downe by Lactātius He shal appeare miserable Ignominious and descurmed to the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 may giue hope vnto the miserable Aftervvard he shall come into the handes of most vvicked 〈◊〉 faithlesse men they shal busset hym vvith their sacrilegious fistes and shal spitte vpo hym vvith there vncleane mouthes He shal yeelde his innocent backe to the vvhippe and shal say nothing vvhile he receyueth the stripes to th end he may speake to those that are deade He shal 〈◊〉 Crovvne of thornes and they shal giue hym Gaule to eate and vinegar to drinke And this shal be the hospitalitie he shal finde amonge them What thinge can bee more plainly described then this Neither doe the Auncient Rabbines and teachers among the Iewes dessent from this For that in their Talmud that was gathered aboue 1200. yeares gone the plaine sentēce of diuers are sette downe that their Messias at his comming shal be put to death And as for Rabbi Ionathan Authour of the Chaldaie paraphrase who died a litle before Christ was borne he applieth the whole narration of Esay before recited as needes he must to the murder of the Messias by the Iewe. Whereupon RabbiSimeon that liked the next age after writeth thes
them selues their successours to the worlds end this I say being once brought to passe and the litle stone that was cut out of a hill without handes being now made a huge mountaine that had spreed it self ouer the whole face of the earth according to Daniels prophetie thē thos holy and sage Apostles for preuenting of al new doctrines and false errours that might afterwardes arise as by reuelation from Iesus they vnderstood there should doe many most earnestly exhorted and with al possible vehemēcie called vpon the people to stand fast in the documents and traditions then receaued to holde firmly the faith and doctrine already deliuered as a Depositum and treasure committed to be safely kept vntil the last daie And aboue all other thinges they most diligently forewarned them to beware newfangled teachers whom they called Herctiques who should breake from the vnitie of this vniuersal bodie already made and knit together and should deuise new gloses exposition and interpretations of Scripture bring in new senses doctrines opinions diuisions to the renting of Gods Church and Citie now builded and to the perdition of infinite soules For discerning of which kinde of most pernicious people as S. Austen and other holie fathers doe note for more perfecte distinction betwene them and true Christians the said Apostles inuented the name Catholique and set doune in their cōmon Creede that clause or article I beleeue the Holie Catholike Church By whiche word Catholike that signifieth vniuersal they gaue to vnderstand to al posteritie that whatsoeuer doctrine or opinion should be raised afterward among Christians disagreeing from the general consent doctrine and tradition of the vniuersal Church was to be reputed as errour heresie and vtterly to be reiected And that the only Anckor staie and securitie of a Christian mans my nde in matters of beleefe for his saluation was to be a Catholike that is as all aunciēt fathers doe interprete the same one who layīg aside al particuler opinions and imaginations both of hym self and others doth subiect his iudgment to the determination of Christes vniuersal visible and knowen Church vpon earth embrasing whatsoeuer that beleeueth and abādoning whatsoeuer that reiecteth And this is that plaine direct sure and infallible waye among Christians whereof we spake out of Esaie and other prophetes and Saintes of God before wherin no man can erre though neuer so simple but only of wilful and obstinate malice which is declared in this maner followinge The Ghospel of Christ being once preached and receyued vniformely ouer al the world and Churches of Christianitie erected throughout all Countries Prouinces and Nations in the Apostles time as hath bene said it is to be considered that this vniuersal church bodie or kingdome so gathered foūded established was to continue visibly not for one or two ages but vnto the worlds ende For so it was foreshewed and promissed most perspicuouslie by Daniel when he foretelling the soure great Monarchies that after him should ensue adioineth thes euident wordes of the church and kingdome of Christ In the daies of thes kingdomes shal God raise vp a Celestial kingdome vvhich shal indure for euer vvithout subuersiō that kingdome shal not be deliuered ouer to any other people By which last wordes as also by diuers promisses of Christ hym self in the Ghospel we are acertained that the very same visible congregatiō Church bodie common weale gouernment and kingdome which was established by the Apostles in their time should endure and continue by succession of folowers vnto the worlds ende neither should it passe ouer or be deliuered to any other people that is no new teachers or later doctrines dissenting from the first should euer finallie preuaile against it Which prophetie to haue bene fulfilled frō that day vnto this is made euident and most apparant by the recordes of al ages wherin albeit diuers errours and heresies haue sprong vp and made great blustering and disturbance for a time yet haue they bene repressed and beate doune againe by the same Church and her visible pillars in the ende For examples sake in the first age there rose vp certaine seditious fellowes amōg the Iewes making some cōtention about their ceremonies as also did Simon Magus Nicolaus Cerinthus Ebion and Menander that were heretiques Against whō besides the Apostles stoode ī defence of that which was published before their Disciples S. Martialis S. Dionisius Areopagita Ignatius Policarpus others In the secōd age rose vp Basilides Cerdon Marcion Valentinus Tacianus Apelles Montanus and diuers others against whom stoode in the battaile Iustinus Martyr Dionisius bishop of Corinth Irenaeus Clemens Alexandrinus Tertulian and their equals And so douneward frō age to age vnto our daies whatsoeuer heresie or different opinion hath bene raised contrary to the general consent of this vniuersal bodie it hath bene checked and controlled by the watchmē pastours chief gouernours of this bodie and finally hath bene condemned and anathematized by their general assemblies consent and councelles gathered from time to time as occasions serued in al partes of the world Wherby it is most manifest that he who relieth vpon this general consent of Christes Church in earth and adhereth to nothing against the iudgmēt of the same cā not possibly erre in matters of beleefe but walketh in that sure secure and infallible path wherin Esaye sayeth that a very foole can not goe amisse Wherfore to conclude this first parte of our present speech cōcerning the trial of our faith and beleefe he that is a true Catholique and holdeth hym self within th' obedience of this general and vniuersal Church which hath descended by succession from Christ and his Apostles that is as olde Vincentius said eleuen hundred years agoe in his most excellent treatise against innouations of heretiques he that Ioueth the Churche and bodie of Iesus Christ so much as he preferreth nothinge in the world before the Catholique and vniuersal doctrine therof not any priuat mans authoritie loue wit or eloquence not reasons of nature or pretēce of scriptures against that which before hym was beleeued by all men he that followeth vniuersalitie antiquitie and consent in his beleefe and standeth firmelie to that faith which hath bene held from time to time in al places in al seasons by al or the most parte of Bishopes Priestes and Doctours in Christianitie he that cā say with S. Augustine that he trulie followeth that vniuersal Church which had her beginninge by the enteringe in of Natiōs got authoritie by miracles was increased by charitie and established by continuance which hath her succession of bishopes from the Chaire of Peter vntil our time that Church whiche is knowen in the worlde by the name of Catholique not onlie to her friendes but also among her enimies for that euen heretiques in common speech doe terme her so hauinge no other meanes to distinguishe them-selues and their followers from
Apostle writeth he that yeeldeth to 〈◊〉 becòmeth the bondslaue of sinne And the holy spirite of God in an other place saieth the vvicked man is vvrapt in the bades or chaines of his ovvne vvickednes Which bandes and chaines are so nexed knit and strongly lincked together in a sensual man that being once entangled within the compasse therof he is drawen from lincke to lincke compassed about with so many foldes that he seldome can escape vntil he come to the ende therof which is fastened euen in hel it self This thing doe the holie Fathers of Gods Church expresse by this deduction to wit that in careles and negligent Christians Suggestiō which is the begining of this daūgerous and infernal chaine draweth after it cogitation cogitation draweth affection affection delectation delectation consent consent operation operation custome custome desperation of Gods mercie desperatiō bringeth in the defending of sinnes cōmitted after which foloweth immediatelie both vaūtinge bosting and glorying in wickednes which is the next inseparable lincke to damnation it self To thes miseries loe and inexplicable calamities is the world brought by not resisting the temptations of sinne but yeelding to euery vnlawful motion of our sensual appetites According as it was foretolde so long ago If thou permit thy soule to haue her concupiscences she vvill make thee a ioye and pray to thy enimies Oh ye children of Adam whye consider ye not this thinge ô worldlinges ô careles Christians whie forget ye this pointe so necessarie to be pondered is it possible that men should be so negligent in their owne apparent and irremediable daungers The world is come now to that desperate cōdition described by Iob wherin men drinke vp sinne as beasts doe water that is without all difficultie scruple remorse of conscience feare of hell care doubt examination or cogitation We are now come to that obstinate cōtempt foreprophetied by Daniel vvicked men vvil doe vvickedlie and vvill not vnderstande Nay the most parte of men are entered into that dreadful most horrible plight wherof the wisman said The vvicked and impious man vvhen he is come to the deapthe of vvickednes contemneth all But what are the wordes immediatlie ensuinge His ignominie shall follovv hym Which S. Paul expoundeth more plainlie in this maner VVhose ende shaibe death or destruction vvith confusion Wherfore he that is a good Christian in deede and desireth to enioye the fruite of that vocation lett hym beware of this perilous laberinthe and learne to resiste his fleshlie appetites betime Let hym crushe the head of the serpent at the first enterance of vnlawful suggestions as in the second parte of this directorie he shal more particule lie be instructed to doe In the meane 〈◊〉 this alredie spoken shal be sufficient to declare the greate importāce weight and necessitie of this affaire and the manifolde mischiefes which ensue vnto the world for wante of watchefulnes and diligence in this warre AND THVS HAVING shewed how euil souldiars we are in resisting our enimie it remaineth to cōsider how prudent marchātes and labourers we are for encrease of our gaine and spiritual riches by the exercise negotiation and trafique of good workes About which point is to be obserued that man from his first fal in paradise was assigned to trauaile and take paines in this kinde of exercise and in no sort to be idle For so it is plainlie set doune in the booke of Genesis man vvas placed in paradise to labour And after that in diuers other places of the olde testainent the spirite of God exhorted men to be paineful industrious and diligently to til such land as God hath lent them for their gaine Which the prophet Osce interpreteth thus Seminate vobis Iustitiam enrich you selues by sowing iustice And the wise man more plainly vvhat soeuer thy hād can doe doe it instantly The reason of which exhortation is set doune by the same instrumēt of Gods spirite in an other place Anima operantium impinguabitur The soule of such as labour and take paine shal be fattened And againe Seminanti Institiam merces sidelis To hym that soweth iusticc or good deeds ther remaineth a faithful and sure reward In respect wherof in the description of a blessed and fortunate mā it was put for one principal qualitie by the prophete that he receyued not his soule in vaine but laboured and employed the same to his greatest benefite And this in the old testament But in the new wherin the most excellent merites of Christ doe yeeld inestimable dignitie to al good workes that are done in his name this precept of labouring hath much more place and is more seriouslie recommended for that by Christes spirite and aboundance of grace we are more enhabled to performe the same as may appeare by the wordes of God him self in Ezechiel wher foretelling the times of the Messias to come saieth At that day vvil I place my spirite in you and vvil bring to passe that you shal vvalke in my commaundements and shal labour and take paines Which labour is to be vnderstoode in performance of good workes according as S. Paul describeth the condition of Christian people when hecalleth thē an acceptable people clensed by Christes blood to be a folovver of good vvorkes And in an other place he defineth a good Christian to be the had vvorke of God created ī Christ to vvalke in good vvorkes And yet further Christ him self in the Ghospel declareth plainly what the state and condition of Christiās is in this life by the parable wherin he likeneth hym self to the riche banker who committed diuers summes of money to his seruantes with this charge Negotiamini dum venio Make ye your trafique and commoditie vntil I come and cal for an accompt By al which is most manifest that the life and vocation of a Christian in this world is to labour and make his gaine by the talentes that God hath lent him and to fructesie in al good vvorkes as S. Paul exhorteth vs. Hereby also doth appeare that the time of this our life is nothing els but a certaine season alotted vs wheri to sowe plant nothing els but a fayer or marte wherin to trafique negotiate make our exchaunge for the kingdome of heauen In which affaire and negotiation he that is diligent painful industrious is accompted a vvyse man euen by Gods owne mouth as on the contrary part the careles slouthful and negligent mā is called the childe of confusion voide of wit and subiect to al miserie contempt and beggarie Herehence are thos speeches of holie Scripture Manus sortium dominabitur The hande of him that laboureth with courage shal preuaile and be potent And againe Robusti habebunt diu tias The stout painful shal haue welth at wil. And yet further he that diligently tilleth his soile shal aduance to great hight
what maruelous and dreadful maiestie feare terrour thunder and sound of trumpets the ten commandements of God which containe the perfect forme of a vertuous life were pronounced by Angels vnto the people of Israel Which terrour and maiestie S. Paul applieth expressie to this meaning that we should greatly tremble to violate or transgresse this law which was deliuered with such circumstance of dread and horrour seing that the lawes of great princes potentates are exacted commonly and executed vpon the offendours with much more terrour then they were proclaimed Secondly the same in part may be conceyued if we consider what Iudge or Auditour we shal haue in this accompt Which S. Paul declareth plainly in thes words VVe must al be sommoned before the tribunal seate of Christ and euerie man receyue either good or euil according as he hath behaued him self vvbiles he liued vpon earth Which thing Christ hym self confirmeth in diuers parables when he promiseth to take accompt of al his talents lent vnto his seruants in this world And in S. Mathews Ghospel he expresseth the particuler maner of that accompt saing The Sonne of man shal come vvith his Angels in the glorie of his Father to take an accompt and then shal he giue vnto euerie man according to his vvorkes And yet more particularly and seuerely of the same matter and daie I saie vnto you that euerie idle vvord that men shal speake they shal giue accompt therof in the daie of iudgment By which speech of our Saueour we are admonished not only that we shal giue an accompt of our doinges but also that we shal yeeld the same to him self who saieth in an other place Ego sum Iudex testis I am both Iudge and witnes in this accompt We are instructed also that this accompt shal be most exact and exquisite not omitting the least errours and offenses that haue passed in our life That particuler reward or punishment shal be assigned to eche mā cōfourme to the qualitie of his accompt And finally that this accompt or day of reconning for declaration of the terrour maiestie that shal be vsed therin is called here by Christ a iudgment and tribunal wherin sentence of life or death is to be pronounced Of which iudgmente or accompting daye the scripture noteth vnto vs two kindes The first wherof is called a particuler iudgment for that it is exercised vpon euerie soule immediately after her departure from the bodie according to the wordes of holie S. Paul It is appointed for euery man once to die and after that to haue his iudgment The second is called a general iudgment for that it shal be executed vpō al the world together at the last daie when mankinde shal be translated from this terrestrial habitation And of this iudgement are to be vnderstood aswel thos former wordes of Christ touching his cōming in glorie as also infinite other places and passages of Scripture which doe forewarne and admonish vs of this most dreadful daie And albeit in the first particuler iudgment eche soule that departeth hence receyueth an irrevocable sentence either of life or death eternal as may appeare by the examples of Lazarus and of the riche glutton wherof the one was determined to euerlasting repose and the other to eternal torments immediatly vpon their separation from this world yet are ther alleaged by the holie Saintes of God diuers most cleare facile and euident reasons why his diuine wisdome besides that first priuate and particuler daie of trial hath ordained also this second which shal be publicke manifest and vniuersal The first wherof is that the bodie of man rising from his sepulcher at that daie may be partaker of eternal punishment or glorie with the soule euen as in this life it was participant of the vertues or vices which the soule did exercise The second reason is for that as Christ was contemptible in this world and dishonoured publiquily and put to confusion with his Saints after him in the sight of al men so was it conuenient that once in this world he should shewe his power and maiestie and that in the sight of al his creatures together but especially of his wicked enimies who after that daie are neuer to see or beholde him more The third is that both wicked sinners blessed Saītes of God might receyue their rewardes and final paimentes openly in the sight and hearing of eche other to the more hart breake and confusion of the impious and triumphāt ioye of the vertuous who commonly in this world were contemned ouerborne and troden doune by the other The fourth and last is for that men when they die doe not commonly cary with them al the good or euil which they haue wrought hauing left behinde them diuers thinges which may encrease their merite or demerite after their deathes as are their examples their instructions gyuen to other their temporal faculties or abilities bookes preachings exhortatiōs other like meanes wherby good or euil may proceede after their departure The reward wherof can not so conueniently be assigned vnto thē whiles this world endureth for that their ioyes or punishmentes in the places wher they are may daily be augmented by the hurt or good that may be wrought in the world by thos meanes which they left behind them So diuines doe holde for examples sake that the glorie of S. Paul is encreased daily in heauen and shal be vnto the worlds ende by reason of them that daily doe profite by his writing and rare examplar life vpon earth as also on the contrarie part that the tormentes of Arrius Sabellius and other wicked heretiques are continually augmented by the numbers of thē who frō time to time are corrupted with their seditious and pestilent writiges The like they holde of dissolute Poets and other loose writers which haue left behind them lasciuious wantō and carnal deuises as also of negligent parents maisters or teachers who by their rechelesnes and euil examples gaue occasion to corrupte the children cholers or seruants committed to their gouerment and instruction But after this general daie of iudgment once past their shal be no more place of meriting either good or euil for that the world then and ther shal receyue an ende and a final sentence be pronounced of what soeuer hath passed from the first foundation and establishment therof Of this last and general iudgment then which containeth a confirmation or ratefying of the particuler going before as also a final conclusion clearing and knitting vp of al accomptes and reckonings with mākinde for his trafique stewardship in this worldlie pilgrimage The holie Scripture of God amoni heth vs most carefully to haue continual remembrance and consideration as of the greatest and most important busines that euer we shal deale in and as the forceblest means to restraine vs from sinne that possiblie may be deuised among 〈◊〉
dearly beloued disciple of our Saueour setteth out the same more at large according as it was reuealed vnto him i this maner I heard saieth he a voice like the sound of a thunder saing come and see and I did see And beholde a white horse and one that sat vpon him that had a bowe and he went to conquere After which folowed a blacke horse and he that rode vpon him had a paire of balance in his hande After him passed forth a pale horse and he that sat vpon him was called DEATH and HEL folowed behinde him and he had authoritie giuen to him to slea by sword by death and by the beastes of the earth The earth did shake the sunne grewe blacke like a sacke the moone like blood the Starres fel from heauē the skie doubled it self like a folded booke euery hil and Iland was moued from his place the kinges of the earth and princes and tribunes and the riche and stoute hid thē selues in dennes and in the rockes of hilles Then appeared ther seuen Angels with seuen trumpetes and eche one prepared him self to blowe his blast At the first blast came ther haile and fire mixt with blood At the second blast came a whole mountaine of burning fire into the sea and the third part of the sea was made blood At the third blast fel ther a great Starre from heauen named Absinthiū burning like a torch and infected the riuers and fountaines At the fourth blast was stricken doune the third part of the sunne moone Starres an egle flewe into the element crying with a hideous voice woe woe woe to al them that dwel vpon the earth At the fifte blast fel an other starre from heauen which had the keye of the pit of hel he opened the pit and ther arose a smoke as from a great fornace and ther came forth certaine locustes like scorpions who tormented al such as had not the marke of God in their foreheads And at thes daies men shal seeke death and shal not finde it And thes locustes were like barbed horses with Crounes on their heads Their faces like men their heare like women their teeth like lions and the noise of their winges like the noise of many chariotes running together their tales like scorpiōs and their stinges were in their tailes their king was an Angel of hel named Abbadō which signifieth an vtter destroier At the sixt blast of the trumpet were loosed foure Angels tied before then rushed forth an army of horsmen in number twentie hundreth times tē thousand And I sawe the horses and they which sat vpon them had brestplaces of fire and brimstone The heads of thes horses were as lions out of their mouthes came fire smoke and brimstone wherby they slewe the third part of men which had not repented and their strength was in their tales which were like serpentes Then was ther an Angel which putting one foote vpon the sea an other vpon the land did sweare by him that liueth for euer and euer that after the blast of the seuenth trumpet ther should be no more time And so when the seuenth Angel had sounded ther came great voices from heauen saying the kingdome of this world is made to our Lord and his Christ and he shal raigne foreuer And I heard a great voice saying to the seuen Angels goe and poure out seuen cuppes of Godes wrath vpon the earth and so they did And the first brought forth cruel woundes vpō men The lecōd turned the sea into redde blood The third turned the riuers and fountaines into like blood The fourth afflicted men with fire and made them blaspheme God The fifte made them eate their owne tongues for sorowe The sixt dried vp the water And I sawe three foule spirites like frogges issue out of the mouth of a dragon And finally the seuenth cuppe being poured out ther came a mightie voice from the throne of God saying it is dispatched And ther folowed lightenings and thunders and voices and earthquakes such as neuer were since men dwelt vpon the earth Thus farre this Apostle Euange list and prophet S. Iohn And now tel me my good Christiā brother is it possible for any tongue either humane or Angelical to expresse a thing more forceblie thē this is here set doune what mortal hart can chuse but tremble euen at the reading and remembrāce only of thes inspeakable and incomprehensible terrours What maner of daie will that be trowest thou when the heauens shal mourne the whole earth shal shake the sunne and moone loose their light the Starres fal doune the sea and floods forsake their chanels and natural courses al the elementes be dissolued the face of the earth ouerflowed with blood and the vniuersal world on a flaming fire Is it maruaile now if the Scriptures auouch that the iust men and Angels them selues shal be afraid of that daie And then to reason as S. Peter doth if innocency Iustice shal scarsely esteeme them selues secure in that fearful trial what shal become of sinne and iniquitie what shal become I saie of the careles and dissolute Christian when he shal see so infinite a sea of miseries rushe vpon him O that mē would thincke vpon this daie while they haue yet time O that they would awake and prepare them selues by vertuous life to stand secure confident at this woful houre Who is ther now a daye which taketh that care that holy Ierome did who was wont to saie hauing much lesse cause then wee that he did neuer eate nor drincke nor sleepe nor take any other action in hand without the fearful remembrance of this accompting daie And this of the preparations There foloweth the execution of thinges done in that iudgment VVHEN THE FORMER preparations shal be fulfilled and finished and the whole world brought to that pitiful state and plight which I haue described then saieth the Scripture shal the signe of the fonne of man appeare in the skie and al the tribes of the earth shal see him cōming in the cloudes of heauē amiddest al his Angels with much power and glorie in great authoritie and maiestie And ther in a moment in the twinckling of an eye he shal send his Angels with a trūpet with a great crie at midnight they shal gather together his elect from the foure partes of the world euen from heauen to earth Hitherto are the wordes of holie Scripture Wherin is set doune the first act of this dreadful iudgment which is the cōming of the Iudge to his throne and tribunal seate so much the more terrible and ful of maiestie in this his second appearāce by how much more contemptible he was and despised in his first being vpon earth for the worke of our redemption So S. Iohn affirmed that he which was siaine as a lambe should come againe to iudge as a Lion Of which
any more the one the other And that which shall be as great a grief as any of the rest the sonne or daughter going to rest and ioye shal not take pitie of their owne parents or friends that are caried to calamities but rather shall reioice therat for that it redoundeth to Gods glorie for execution of his Iustice O my soule which now art here considering of thes thinges a farre of and thē shalt be present to see them actuallie before thine eyes what a doleful separation wil this be what a fare-wel what a parting whos hart would not breake at that daie to abide this intollerable seuering if a hart could then breake therby make some ende of his paines But so much ease wil not be permitted O yee children and louers of this world wher will al your delights recreations and vanities be at this daie Al your pleasant pastimes al your pride and brauerie in apparel your glistering in gold your sweet sauours of perfumes your honours of cappe and knee your adulation of flatterers your delicate faire and daintie dishes your musike your wanton daliances and pleasant entertainments Wher are all your good friēdes and merie compagniōs accustomed to laugh and disport the time with you Are al now gone O vanitie of vanities now when you haue most need of them they are furthest of from you and the remēbrāce therof shal doe nothing but tormēt you O my deare brethern how soure wil al the pleasures past of this world seeme at that howre How doleful wil the cogitation therof be vnto vs how friuolous a thing wil al our dignities riches offices and other preferments appeare wherin we take such excessiue delight now and doe weary out our spirites for gaining the same And on the contrarie side how ioyful wil that man be at this instant who hath attended to lead a vertuous life in resisting of finne doing good works albeit it were with much paine and contempt in this world Most happie creature shal he be that euer he was borne and ouer-whelmed with al ioye that euer he tooke that path in hād and no tongue but Gods can expresse his happines Wherfore here my louing brother to make an ende and to frame no other cōclusion of al this whole declaratiō but only that which Christ himself doth make vnto vs who being the chief actour that shal deale in this affaire knoweth best of al other what counsail to giue let vs cósider with our selues euē in the very bottō of our hartes how easie a matter it is now in this life with a litle paine and diligéce to auoide the danger of this most dreadful daie For which cause also it is most certaine that the same is foretolde vs and so often vrged in holy write to our remembrance as in like manner so particulerly described by our most merciful iudge Saueour to the ende we should by thes seuere earnest admonishmits be stirred vp to prepare our selues for it So Christ himself doth most euidentlie declare whē after al his former threatniges he cōcludeth in thes most sweete wordes of exhortation Looke about your selues watch and praie for you knowe not whé the time shal be But as I saie to you so I saie to al men be watchful And yet further in an other place he adioineth Attēd vnto your selues that your hartes be not ouercome with eating and drincking with the cares of this life and so that daio ouertake you vpon the suddaine c. Be you therfore watchful and alwayes praye that you may be worthie to escape althes thinges which are to come and to stand confidently before the sonne of mā at that daye Thes are the words and forewarnings of thy Iudge and Saueour vnto thee my soule And what more friendly and fatherly exhortation couldest thou desire Canst thou plead ignorance in this affaire hereafter If thou thincke so heare yet a further admonishment of his chief Apostle The daie of our Lord saieth he shal come as a theef when men thincke not of it In which the heauens and elemēts shal be dissolued and al the earth with her inhabitants shal be consumed with fire Which being so what maner of men ought we to be in holie conuersation and pietie expecting and going on to meet with this daie of our Lord c. In which wordes of S. Peter is diligently to be noted that this meeting with the daie of Iudgment wherunto he exhorteth vs is nothing els but the due examination of our present perilous estate and the speedie amendment of our life to the workes of pietie and holy conuersation which in deed is that onlie soueraine remedie wherof the wise man forwarneth vs when he saieth Prouide a medecine before the maladie and examine thy self before iudgment and so shalt thou finde fauour in the sight of God Wherunto S. Paul wel agreeth saying If vve vvould iudge our selues vve should not be iudged But for that no man entreth into this due iudgemét of himself his life state and actions here of it cōmeth that so few dot preuent this dangerous daie so few prepare themselues so fewe doe accept of the good counsaile of Christ so feweare watchful and so infinite doe fal a sleepe in the ignorance of their owne peril to their remediles destruction and vnauoidable damnation Our blessed Lord giue vs his holie grace to looke better about vs. OF THE NATVRE OF SINNE AND OF THE VNVVORTHINES OF HIM that committeth the same For iustifyinge the seueritie of gods iudgement setdoune and declared in the chapter going before CHAPT VIII TO THE ende that no man may iustly complaine of the seuere accoumpte whiche God is to take of vs at the last daye or of the rigour of his iudgemēt set doune in the chapter before it shal not be amisse to cōsider in this place the cause why God doth shew such seueritie against sinne and sinners as both by that which hath bene saide may appeare that he doth as also by the whole course of holy scripture where in euerie place almost he denounceth his extreme hatred wrath and indignatiō against the same as where it is sayed of hym that he hateth al those that vvorke īiquitie And againe that both the vvicked mā and his vvickednes are hateful in his sight And finallie that the whole life of sinners their thoughts wordes yea and their good actions also are abominations vnto him whiles they liue i sinne And that which yet is more he can not abide nor permit the sinner to praise him or to name his testament with his mouth as the Holie Ghost testifieth and therfore no meruaile if he shew such seueritie against him at the last daye whom he so extremelie hateth abhorreth in this life Of which great hatred there might be manie reasons alleaged as the vndutiful transgressiō cōtēpt of godes cōmandementes the great ingratitude of a sinner in respect of his diuine
benefites and such other which might iustifie sufficientlie his indignation and seuere hatred against him But there is one reason aboue al the rest which openeth the verie fountaine and origine of the matter and this is the intollerable iniurie donne vnto almightie God in euerie mortall sinne that we commit which in deede is so opprobrious abhominable an iniurie as no meane worldly potentate could beare the same at his subiectes handes and much lesse God him self being the omnipotent Lord of al glorie and Maiestie may in reason tollerate an outrage so often iterated against him as is sinne daily committed by the wicked For the better vnderstanding of which iniurie we are to consider that euerie time we cōmit a mortal sinne there doth passe thorough our hart minde though we marke it not a certaine practik discourse of our vnderstandinge as there doth also in euerie other electiō whereby we lay before vs on the one side the profit of that sinne which we are tempted to commit that is to saie the pleasure which allureth vs therunto and on thother parte the offence of God which is the leesinge of his grace and friēdshippe by that sinne yf we yeeld vnto it And thus hauinge as it were the balances there before vs and setting God in one end therof and in the other the aforesaide pleasure we stand in the middest deliberatinge examininge the waight of both partes and finallie doe make choise of the pleasure and reiect almightie God that is we chuse rather to loose the fauour of God together with his grace and whatsoeuer he is worth besides then to lacke that pleasure and delectation of sinne Now then what can be more opprobrious and horrible then this what cā be more reprochful to God then to prefer a most vile pleasure before his infinite Maiestie is not this farre more intollerable then the disgrace offred to him by the Iewes when they made choise of Barrabas the murderer and reiected Iesus their Saueour surely how hamous soeuer that sinne of the Iewes were yet in two poites this doth seeme to exceede the same First in that the Iewes knew not whome they refused in their choise as we doe Secondly in that they refused Iesus but once wheras we refuse him both daily and hourly whensoeuer in our hartes we giue consent vnto mortal sinne And is it meruaile then that God dealeth so seuerely sharplye with sinners in the worlde to come whoe doe vse hym so opprobriouslie and contemptuouslie in this life Vndoubtedly the malice of a sinner is greate towardes God and he doth not onlie dishonour hym by contempt of his commaundementes and by preferring most vyle creatures before hym but also beareth a secrete hatred grudge against his maiestie and woulde if it lay in his power offer his endeuour to pull hym out of his seate or at the least wise 〈◊〉 in his hart there were no God at all to punish sinne after this present lyfe Let euerie sinner examine the botome of his conscience in this point whether he could not be content there were no immortalitie of the sowle no reckoninge after this life no iudge no punishment no hell and consequentlye no God at al to the ende he might the more securelie enioye his pleasures And because God who searcheth the harte and reynes seethe well this most vndutiful trayterous affectiō towardes hym lurking within the bowels of sinful men how smoth so euer their wordes may be here of it commeth that in the whole course of holie Scripture he denounceth them for his enimies and professeth open warre and hostilitie against them And then suppose yoa what a pitiful case thes vnfortunate men are in being but seely wormes and wretches of the earth whē they haue so puissant an enimie to fight against them as doth make the verie heauens to tremble at his looke And yet that the case is so heare what himself sayeth what he threatneth what he thundreth out against them After he had by the mouth of Esaye the Prophet re peated many sinnes abhominable in his sight as the taking of bribes oppressing of poore people and the like He defieth the doers therof as his open enymies saying This saieth the Lord God of hostes the stronge Lord of Israel Beholde I vvi be reuenged vpon mine enimies and vvill comfort my self in their destruction And the Prophet Dauid as he was a man in most high fauour with God and made preuie to his secretes aboue many other so he more than any other doth expresse this seuere meaning of God his infinite displeasure against sinners calling them his enimies vessels of his wrath and ordayned to eternal ruine and destruction and complaineth that the world will not beleeue this point An vnvvise man saieth he vvill not learne this neither vvill the foole vnderstand it And what is this ô holy Prophet it foloweth That siners and vvorkers of iniquitie after they haue appeared i the vvorld doe perishe euerlastingly And what is the reason of this he answereth immediatly because toy enimies o Lord thy enimies I saie o Lord shal perishe til they that vvoreke iniquitie shal be cosumed Wherby we see that all sinners be enimies to God and God to them as also vpō what grounde and reason But yet for the further iustifyinge of godes seueritie let vs consider in what measure his hatred is towardes sinne how great how far it proceedeth withi what boundes it is comprehended or whether it haue any limites or bondes at all or rather be infinite and without limitation And to vtter the matter as in trueth it stādeth if all the tongues in the world were made one tongue and all the vnderstandinges of all creatures I meane of Angels and men were made one vnderstandinge yet could nether this tongue expresse nor this vnderstanding conceiue the great hatred of gods harte towards euery mortall sinne which we commit And the reason hereof standeth in two pointes First for that God by how much more he is better than we are by so much more he loueth goodnes and hateth synne than we doe And for that he is infinitelie good therfore his loue to goodnes is infinite and his hatred to euil immesurable and consequentlie his rewardes to them both are infinite the one in hell with euerlasting miserie thother in heauen by eternal felicitie Secondlie we see by experience that how much more great and worthie the person is against whom an offence is cōmitted so much greater is alwayes the offence as for example the self same blow or iniurie offred to a bond-slaue and to a prince differeth greatlie in qualitie and in the nature of offence and consequentlie deserueth farre different hatred and punishment And for that euerie mortal sinne which we commit is donne directlie against the person of God hym self as hath bene declared before whose dignitie is infinite therfore the offence or guilt of euery such sinne is
vttereth the same ī otherwordes they vvhich commit sinne are enimies to their ovvne soules Wherfore they laye downe to al men this general seuere most necessarie commaundement vpon al the paines before recited Flee from sinne as from the face of a snake And againe Bevvare thou neuer consent to sinne For how soeuer the worlde may make litle accounte of this matter by whome as the scripture noteth the sinner is praised in his lustes and the vvicked man is blessed for his vvickednes yet most certaine it is for that the spirite of God auoucheth it that he vvhich committeth sinne is of the deuil and therfore is to receyue his portion amonge deuils and damned spirites at the latter daye And is not al this sufficient most deare brother to breed in vs a detestation of sinne with feare and horrour to commit the same Is not this of force and strength sufficient to shake the hartes of them that wallowe perpetually in the pudle of sinne and doe commit the same daylie without scruple remorse or consideration what desperate obstinacie obduration is this Surely we find now by experiēce that the holye Ghost prophesied ful truelie of thes men when he sayed sinners alienated from God are possessed vvith a surit like a serpent and like a deafe cocatrise vvhich stoppeth her eares against the enchaunter This surie I saie is the furie or madnesse of willfull synners which stoppe their eares like serpentes to all the holy enchauntmentes that God can vse vnto them for their conuersiō that is to all his internal motions and good inspirations to all remorse of their owne consciences to all threatninges of holie scriptures to al admonishmentes of gods seruauntes to al examples of vertuous liuers to al the punishementes that light vpon the wicked and to all the other meanes which God can vse for their saluation Good Lorde what man would commit a mortal sinne for the gayning of ten thowsande worldes if he considered the infinite dōmages hurtes inconueniences mileries which doe ensue by cōmitting of the same For first who soeuer sinneth mortallie leeseth the grace of God inherent in his soule which is the greatest gift that can be gyuen to man in this life cōsequētlie he leeseth al those thinges which did accompanie that grace as are the vertues infused and the seuen giftes of the Holy Ghost wherby the sowie was beautified in the sight of her spouse and armed against al assaultes of her ghostlie enimies Secondlie he leeseth the fauour of God and consequentlie his fatherly protection care and prouidēce ouer him enforceth hym to be his professed enimie Which how great a losse it is we may esteeme in part by the state of a worldly princes seruant and fauorite who being in highe grace and credit with his Soueraine should by some one great offence lose al his fauour at one instant and incurre his mortal hatred and displeasure Thirdly he leeseth all his inheritance clayme and title to the kingdome of heauē which is due onlie by grace as S. Paul wel noteth and consequentlie he depriueth hym self of all dignities and commodities depending therupon in this life as are the condition and high priueledge of being the sonne of God the communion of Sainctes the protection of holie Angels and the like Fourthlie he looseth the quiet ioye and tranquillitie of a good conscience and all the fauours cherishmentes consolations and other comfortes wherwith the holie Ghost is wont to visite the mides of the Iust. Fifthly he looseth the merit and rewarde of his good workes done al his life before and whatsoeuer he doth or shal doe while he continueth in that miserable and sinful state Sixtlie he maketh hym self guiltie of eternall punishment and enrolleth his name in the booke of perdition and consequentlie byndeth hym self to althose miseries and inconueniences wherunto the reprobate are subiect that is to saie to be an inheritour of hel and damnation to be in the power of the deuill and his Angels to be thral to synne and euerie temptation therof and his sowle which was before the temple of the holy ghost the habitation of the blessed Trinitie the spouse of God place of repose for holy Angels to visit now to be a dēne of dragons a nest of scorpions a dongeō of deuilles a sincke swine-stie of al filth and abhomination and hym self a companion of the miserable damned spirites Lastlye he abandoneth Christ and renounceth al the interest and portion he had with hym treading hym vnder his feete defiling his most pretious blood Crucifying hym againe as S. Paul auoucheth in that he sinneth agaist him who died for sinne and maketh hym self a persecutour of his redeemer For which cause the same Apostle pronounceth a most hard and heauie sentence against such men in thes wordes If vve synne vvillfullye novv after vve haue receyued knovvledge of the trueth there remaineth no more sacrifice for synnes but rather a certaine terrible expectation of iudgement and rage of fyre vvhich shall consume the aduersaries To which S. Peter agreeth when he saieth It had bene better not to haue knovvē the vvay of iustice thē after such knovvledge to slyde backe agayne from the holye commaundement vvhich vvas gyuen This being so let sinful worldlinges goe now and solace them selues in their vanities and watōnes as much as they lift Let them excuse and pleasantlye defend the same by saing pryde is but a pointe of gentrye glouttonie good fellowship anger and reuenge but an effect of courage lecherye and wantonnes a trycke of yowth they shall one daye finde that these excuses will not be receyued but rather that al such pleasant deuises toies wil be turned into teares al such fond concepts into doleful lamentations They shall proue to their great cost that God will not be iested with but that he is the same God still and will aske as seuere accounte of them as he hath done of other before although now it pleasenot them to keepe any accounte at al of their life and actions but rather to turne all to disporte and pleasure persuading them selues that how soeuer God hath delt before with other yet vnto thē he wil pardon al. But this is a mere madnes and a voluntarie deluding of our selues for that God hym self by his sacred word instructeth vs to reason after an other sashion Which I wil here breefly touch exhorting euery prudent Christian seriously to examine the same At what time the great Apostle of the Gentiles S. Paul tooke vpō him to make a comparison betweene the grieuous sinnes of his nation the Iewes for which they were reiected and made reprobate by God and thos which Christians doe commit after their Redemption he framed this collection concerning Gods iustice due vnto them both saing If God spared not the naturall boughes take heede least he spare not thee And there-vpon he inferreth this admonition
holie man Iob considering and hearing but one word vttered by his friend which in his conceit did sauour of presumption against this God burst forth into thes wordes Whom wilt thou teach my friend wilt thou teach him which hath inspired breath into man which hath stretched out the heauens ouer the vacuitie of this world and hath hanged vp the earth in the aire without staie before whom hel is wide-open and ther is no couering from perdition The pillers of heauen doe tremble and quake at his only fight And if we should heare but the lest whispering of his speech who should be able to abide the thunder of his maiesties greatnes Imagine then novv my louing brother after althes testimonies that thou seest before thy face this great and mightie king sitting in his chaire of maiestie with chariottes of fire vnspeakable light and infinite millions of Angels aboute him Imagine further which also is most trew that thou seest al the creatures in the world stand in his presence and trembling at his maiestie and most carefullie attending to doe that for which he created them as the heauens to moue aboute the Sunne moone and Starres to geeue lighte and influence the earthe to bringe foorth her sustenance and euerie other creature diligently to labour for perfourmance of the dutie assigned vnto him Imagine besides that thou seest al these creatures how bigge or litle soeuer they be to hange and depende onlie of the power and vertue of this God and therby only to stande moue and consist and that there passeth from God to eche creature in the world yea to euerie parte that hath motion or being in the same some beame of his vertue euen as from the sunne we see infinite beames passe into the ayer Consider I say that no one parte of anie creature in the world as the fishe in the sea the grasse on the ground the leaues of trees or the partes of man vpon the face of the earth can grow moue or consist without some litle streame of vertue and power deriued to it continuallie from God So that thou must imagine God to stand as a most glorious and resplendent Sunne in the midle or center of al thinges created and from him to passe foorth innumerable beames and streames of vertue to all the creatures that are either in heauen earth the ayer or waters to euerie parte and particle of the same and that vpon thes beames of his deuine vertue all creatures doe depend in so much as if he should stop or diuert but any one of them al it would destroye and annihilate presentlie some creature or other This I saye if thou shalt consider touching the maiestie of God and the infinite dread that all creatures haue of him except onlie a sinner for the deuils also doe feare him as S. Iames affirmeth thou wilt not meruaile at the seuere iudgemēt appointed for his offence For sure I am that very shame of the world maketh vs to haue more regarde in offending the poorest friende we haue in this life thē a wicked man hath in offending almightie God which is an intollerable contempt of so great a maiestie such a cōtempt in deed as God him self doth account to pro ceede of plaine infidelitie For wheras at a certaine time he had declared his owne great power by the mouth of Ieremie threatened manie punishmentes to the Iewes for their wickednes thei werenothig moued therwith Wherupō he cōmaūded hī to returne againe vnto thē to say thes wordes Heare thou folishe people vvhich hast no hart you that haue eyes and see not eares and heare not And vvil ye not then feare me vvil ye not trēble in my sight vvhich haue sett the sandes for a bounde vnto the sea and haue gyuen him an eternal precept vvhich he shal not breake c. This people hath a faithles hart c. Which is as much as if he had said that this lacke of feare in the Iewes proceeded of their defect of faith For if they had belieued him to be in deed so powerful terrible ful of maiestie as the holie scripture setteth him doune they would haue conceyued more feare in offending him BVT NOVV IF VVE adioine to this contemplation of maiestie an other consideration of his benefites bestowed vpon vs our default wil grow to be far greater For that to iniury him who hath done vs good is a thinge moste detestable euen in nature itself And there was neuer yet so fearce a harte no not among brute beastes but that it might be wonne with curtesie and benefites But much more among reasonable creatures doth beneficence preuaile especiallie if it come from great personages whose loue and friendshippe declared vnto vs but in small gyftes doth greatlie by nde the hartes of the receyuers to loue them againe Consider then deare Christian the infinite good turnes and benefites which thou hast receyued at the handes of this great God therby to winne the to his loue and that thou shouldest leaue of to offende and iniurie him And albeit no tongue created either of man or Angel can expresse the one halfe of thes giftes which thow hast receyued from him or the value therof or the great loue and hartie good will wherwith he bestowed the same vpon the yet for some better helping of thy memorie stirring vp thine affection to be grateful I will repeate certaine generall and principall pointes therof wherunto the rest may be easilie referred First then cal to minde that he hath bestowed vpō thee the benefite of thy creation wherby he made the of nothing to the likenes of hymself and appointed the to so noble an ende as is to serue him in this life and to raigne with him in the life to come hauing furnished thee besides for the better attainmēt therof with the vse seruice and subiection of al his other creatures The greatnes of which benefite may partly be conceyued if thou doe imagine thy self to lacke but any one parte of thy bodie as a legge an arme an eye or the like and that one should freelie euen of pure good wil and loue supplie thy want and gyue the same vnto thee Or if thou wantest but any one of thy senses as that thou were deafe blynde or dumme and some man should restore thy sight hearing or fpeech vnto thee howe wouldest thou esteeme of this benefite how much wouldest thow professe thy self beholdig vnto him for the same And if the gyft of one of these partes onlie would seeme vnto thee so singuler a benefite how greatly oughtest thou to esteeme the free gyfte of so manie partes together Adde now hereunto as I haue sayde that he hath created the to thee lyknes of no other thing but of him self to no other ende but to be his honorable seruante in this world and his compartener in kynglie glorie for all eternitie to come and this he hath done to the
diuers times he hath vsed and doth vse therby to gaine vs and our sowles vnto his eternal kingdome by stirring vs vp to abandon vitious life and to betake ourselues to his holy and swete seruice Al which most rare and excellent benefites being measured either according to their inestimable value in themselues or according to the loue of that harte from which they do proceede or els if we respect the maiestie of the giuer or meanesse of the receyuer ought in reason to moue vs most vehementlie to gratitude towardes so bountiful a benefactour And this gratitude shoulde be to resolue ourselues at length to serue him vnsaynedlie to preferre his fauour before al wordlie or mortal respectes whatsoeuer Or if we can not obtaine so much of ourselues yet at leastwise not to offende him anie more by our sinnes and wickednes There is not so fearse or cruell a nature in the world as I noted before but is mollisied allured and wōne by benefites And stories do make reporte of straunge examples in this kinde euen among brute beastes as of the gratitude of lyons dogges and other like towardes their maisters and benefactours Onliean obstinate sinner is he among all the sauuage creatures that are whom neither benefites can moue nor curtisies can mollifie nor promises can allure nor gyftes can gayne to the faithfull seruice of God his Lord and maister The greatest synner that is in the world if he geeue his seruante but twentie nobles a yeare or his tennant some litle farme to liue vpon if they for this should not serue him at a becke he crieth out of their ingratitude But if they should further malitiouslie seeke to offende him and to ioyne in amitie with his professed enimie how intollerable a matter would this seeme in his conceit And yet him self dealing much more ingratfullie and iniuriouslie with almightie God esteemath it a matter of smal consideration easely pardonable He dealeth I saie far more ingratfullie with God for that he hath receyued a thousand folde for one in respect of all the benefites that one mortal man can gyue vnto an other Seing that of God he hath receyued al in al the bread which he eateth the grounde he treadeth the light he beholdeth the aire he enioyeth and finally what so euer he possesseth ether within or without his bodie as also the minde with al her spiritual endumētes wherof eche one is more worth then ten thousand bodies Of this extreme ingratitude and iniurie God himself is enforced to complaine in diuers places of holy scripture as where he saith they repaied me euil for good And yet much more vehemētlie in an other place he calleth the heauens to witnes of this iniquitie crving out Obstupescite caeli super hoc O you heauens be you astonished at this As if he should saye by a figuratiue kinde of speech goe out of your wittes you heauens with meruaile at this incredibile iniquitie of man to wardes me For so he expoundeth the whole matter more at large in an other place Audite cals auribus percipe terra c. Harken oye heauens and thow earth bende hither thine eares I haue nourished vp children and haue exalted them and now they doe cōtemne me What a lamentable complaint is this of almightie God against most vile and base wormes of the earth But yet he amplifieth this iniquitie more vehemētly by certaine examples and comparisons The oxe saieth he knovveth his ovvner the asse knovveth the manger of his Lord and maister but yet my people knovveth not me VVoe be to this synful nation to this people loden vvith 〈◊〉 to this noughtie seede to vvicked children What complaint can be more vehement then this what threatning can be more dreadfull then this woe comming from the mouth of him which may punishe vs at his pleasure Wherfore deare brother if thou haue grace cease to be vngrateful to God any longer cease to offend him which hath by so many waies preuented the with benefites cease to render euil for good hatred for loue contempt for his father lie affection towardes the. He hath done for the al that he can he hath geeuen the al that thow art yea and in a certaine maner al that he is worth hym self and meaneth besides to make the partaker of al his glorie in the world to come and requireth no more for al this at thy handes but loue and gratitude O my louing brother why wilt thou not yelde vnto him this his desire why wilt thou not doe as much to him as thou woldest haue an other mā to doe to the for lesse then the ten thousand parte of thes benefites which thow hast receyued for I dare bouldly saye if thow haddest gyuen but an almes to a poore man at thy dore thou wooldest thike him bounde to loue the for it al beit besids this ther were nothing in the that greatly might deserue his loue But thy Lord and maister setting a parte al his giftes bestowed vpon the hath infinite causes to drawe thy loue vnto him that is to saye all the causes which any thing in the world hath in it to purchase loue and infinite more besydes For if all the perfections of thinges created both in heauen and in earth that may procure loue were ioyned together in one as al their beautie al their vertue al their wisdome al their sweetnes al their nobilitie al their goodnes and other like excellencies yet thy Lord Sauy our whom thou contemnest surpasseth all thes and that by infinite and infinite degrees for that he is not onlie all thes thinges together but morouer he is verie beautie it self vertue it self wisedome it self sweetenes it self nobilitie it self goodnes it self and the verie fountaine and welspring from which by litles peeces and parcels al thes thinges are deriued vnto his creatures Be a shamed then good Christian of this thine ingratitude to so great so good and so bountifull a Lord and resolue thy self for the tyme to come to amende thy course of life and former behauiour towardes him Say at lēgth with the Prophet hauing considered thine owne ingratitude O Lord pardon me mine offences for they are great in thy sight I know there is nothing ô Lord which doth so much displease the or drie vp the fountaine of thy mercie or so byndeth thy handes frō doinge good as doth ingratitude in the receyuers of thy benefites Wherin hitherto I haue exceeded al others But I haue done it ò Lord in mine ignorance not considering thy infinite giftes bestowed vpon me or what account thou wouldest demaunde againe of the same But now seing thou hast vouchsafed to make me woorthie of this special grace also wherby to see knowe mine owne errour default I hope hereafter by direction of the same grace to shew my self a better childe towardes the. O my God I am vāquished at lēgth with cōsideratiō of thy
come to the highest top of his felicitie Thou soole euen this night thy soule shal be taken from the and then vvho shal enioy al that vvhich thou so painfully hast scraped together O deare Christiā it is impossible for any mortal tōgue to expresse the doleful state of a worldlie man in this instāt of death when nothing of al that he hath gathered together with so much labour and toile and wherin he was wont to repose so great affiance wil now auaile him any longer but rather afflict his soule with the memorie therof cōsidering that now he must leaue al to others goe him self to gyue accounte for the gathering and vsing of the same and that perhaps to his eternal damnation whiles in the meane time other companions in the world doe liue merilie and pleasantlie vpon that he hath gotten litle remembringe and lesse caring for him that perhaps lieth burning in vnquēcheable fire for thos riches vnrighteously heaped and left vnto them This vndoubtedly is a most woful and lamentable point which shal bring manie a man to greate sorow and anguishe of harte at the last daye when al earthlie ioyes must be left al pleasures and commodities foreuer abandoned O what a doleful daye of partinge wil this be what wilt thou saie my frende at this daye when al thy glorie al thy welth al thy pompe is come to an ende What art thou the better now to haue liued in credit with the world in fauour of princes exalted of men feared reuerenced and honoured of al sortes seing at this instant al thy iolitie pride and pompe is at an ende al thy former felicitie is arriued now to her euerlasting periode BVT NOVV BESIDES al this there is a third thing which more then al the rest wil make this daie of death to be most dreadful miserable vnto a worldlie man to witt the consideration what shall become of him both in bodie and soule And as for his bodie it wil be no smal horrour to thinke vpon that saying of holie scripture the end of the vvicked 〈◊〉 fleshe shal be fire and vermine and his inheritāce shal be serpentes beastes and vvormes that is it must be throwen out to be the foode of vermine That bodie I meane which was before so delicatelie entertained with al varietie of meates softe pillowes and beddes of doune so trimlie set forth in apparel and other ornamentes wherevpon the winde might not be su fred to blow nor the sunne to shine that bodie I saye of whose beautie there was so much pride taken and wherby so great vanitie and sinne was dayly commited that bodie which in this world was accustomed to all pampering and nicenes might abide no austeritie or discipline at al must now be forlorne and abandoned of all men and left only for apraie to be deuoured of wormes Now the time is come when thos wordes of God must be fulfilled which he vttered by his Prophet against delicate people In that day God shal pul of al ornamentes chaines braselets ringes Iuels pomanders c. and then shal be in steed of svveet sauours stinch ī place of rich girdles 〈◊〉 for could heare 〈◊〉 c. Al which bodilie disgrace and miserie albeit it can not but breed much horrour in the hart of him that lieth a dying yet is this nothing in respect of the dreadful cogitations which he shal haue touching his soule to wit what shal become therof whether it shal goe after her departure out of the bodie And then considering that she must appeare before the iudgement seate of almightie God and there receyue sentence either of vnspeakeable glorie or insupportable paines he falleth to consider more in particuler the daunger therof by comparing godes iustice and threates set doune in holy write against sinners with his owne life he begineth to examine the witues which is his conscience and findeth the same readie to laye infinite accusations against him when he commeth to the place of iustice And now deare Christian brother beginneth in deed the inexplicable miserie of this poore afflicted man now doe al the multitude of his sinnes present thē selues before his face now doth he in deed see verified that sentence of sacred Scripture In fine hominis denudatio operum The workes of euery man are laid open at his ende Now doe master before his eyes all Gods threats against wicked liuers nether is ther any one seuere saying of holy writ pronounced against sinners which now doth not offer it self vnto his minde Our ghostlie enimie which in this life laboured to keepe al these thinges frō our cōsideration therby the more easely to entertaine vs in sinne and pleasure wil now laye al and more before our face amplifying and vrging euerie point to the vttermost and alleaging our conscience in euery thing for his witnes Which when the poore soule in dying can not deny she must needs therby most vehemently be terrefied and so we see it daily come to passe euen in many most vertuous and holie men whereof S. Ierome reporteth a verie memorable example of blessed S. Hilarion whos soule being greatly frighted with thes confiderations and exceeding loth to depart from his bodie at length after long conflict he tooke hart said goe forth my soule goe forth vvhy art thou so sore affraid thou hast serued Christ almost threescore ten yeres art thou novv so fearful to depart To like effect also the holie martyr of god S. Cyprian telleth of avertuous and godlie bishoppe which dyinge in his time was greatlie terrified at the houre of death notwithstanding he had liued verie vettuouslie vntil at length Christ appearing vnto him in the forme of a goodlie yong man rebuked him in thes wordes you are affraid to suffer and out of this life you vvil not goe vvhat thē shal I doe vnto you which wordes and example S. Austen did often vse to recount talking of this matter as his scholar Possidonius recordeth in his life Now then if good men and saintes are so a fearde at this passage yea such as had serued God with al puritie of life perfect zeale for the space of three score and ten yeres together what shal they be which scarcely haue serued him in deed one daye in al their liues but rather haue spent their yeres in sinne and vanitie of this world shal not these mē trow you be in greate extremitie at this passage Surely S. Augustine describeth the same verie effectuously in one of his sermons and according to his manner doth gyue a notable exhortation vpon the same If you wil know dearlie beloued saith he with how greate feare paine the soule of man doth passe from the bodie marke diligently what I shal saie vnto you The Angels at that hower shal come to take the soule and bring her before the iudgement seate of a most dreadful iudge and then she callinge to minde
her wicked deedes shal beginne exceedingly to feare and tremble and would gladlie flie and leaue her deedes behinde her seekinge to entreate the Angels and to request but one hower space of delaye But that wil not be graunted and her euil workes crying out al together shal speake against her and save we wil not staye behinde or parte from the thou hast done vs and we are thy workes and therfore we wil follow the whether soeuer thou goest yea euen vnto the seate of iudgement This loe is the state of a sinners soule which partinge from his bodie with most horrible feare goeth onwardes to iudgemēt loden with sinnes and with infinite confusion Contrariwise the iust mans soule goeth out of his bodie with greate ioye and comforte the good Angels accompaininge her with exultation Wherefore brethren seinge these thinges are so doe you feare this terrible hower of death now to the ende you maye not feare when you come vnto it Foresee it now that then you maye be secure Thus farre S. Augustine And for that this holie father learned Doctour in Christes Church maketh mentiō in this place of good and euil Angels which are redie at the houre of death to receyue the soules of such as depart out of this life it shal not be from our purpose to note that oftentimes God doth permit the apparitions of Angels both good and euil as also of other saintes to some men lyinge on their death beddes for a tast ether of comforte or sorow touchinge that which shal ensue in the world to come And this is also one singuler priuiledge among other belonging to this passage And concerning the iust I haue shewed before an example out of S. Cyprian and S. Augustine touching one to whome Christ appeared at the hower of his death And S. Gregorie the greate hath diuers like narratiōs to that purpose i the fourth booke of his dialogues As for example sake of one Vrsinus to whom the blessed Apostles S. Peter and S. Paule appeared But as concerning euil spirites and wicked Angels which shewed thē selues vnto diuers sinners at the houre of death and denounced vnto them their eternal damnation and horrible tormentes appointed in hel we haue manie and most terrible exāples recorded in many graue aunciēt writers As among other that recorded by S. Gregorie of one Chrisorius a greate riche man but as ful of sinne as of wealth to whome lying on his death-bed the infernal fiendes in most vglie māner appeared shewing how now he was deliuered into their power and therfore would neuer depart from him vntil he dying left his soule vnto thē to be caried to eternal tormentes The like examples doth venerable Bede recount to haue happened in our countrie about his time And among other of a certaine wicked Courtier in great fauour with king Coenride to whom lying in the panges of death and being now a litle recouered both the good and euil Angels appeared visibly the one laying before him a verie smal booke of his good deedes the other a greate huge volume of his enormous crimes Which after they had caused him to reade by the permissiō of the good Angels they seazed vpō him assignig also vnto him the certaine houre of his departure according as both him selfe confessed openlie to al that came to visit him and as by his horrible desperate death ensuinge at the very hower by them appointed he manifestlie confirmed The like storie recordeth he in the chapter folowing of one whom he knew him self and as both he S. Gregorie and S. Cyprian also doe note al these such other visions were permitted for our sake which doe yet liue and maye take commoditie by the same and not for their good that died whom they nothing at al auailed Which being so deare Christian brother that is this passage of death being so terrible so daungerous yet so ineuitable as it is seing so manie mē doe perish and are ouer whelmed daylie in passing ouer this perilous gulfe as both holie scriptures and auncient fathers doe testifie by examples recordes vnto vs what man of discretion would not learne to be wise by other mens dangers or what reasonable creature would not take heede looke aboute him being warned so manifestlie and apparantlie of his owne peril if thou be a Christian and doest belieue in deede the thinges which Christiā faith doth teach the thē doest thou know an I most certainlic belieue also that of what state age strength dignitie or condition so euer thou be now yet must hy self which now in health mirth doest real this point and thinkest the same litle appertainig vnto thee one of these daies and that perhaps very shortlie after the readinge hereof come to proue al these thinge in thine owne person that is thou must with sorow and griefe beenforced to thy bed and there after al straggliges with the dartes of death thou must yelde thy bodie which thou louest now so dearly to be the baite of wormes and thy soule to the trial of iustice for her doinges in this life IMAGINE THEN my friend euē thou I saye which art so fresh and froelicke at this instant that the ten twentie or two yeres or perhaps two monethes or daies which thou hast yet to liue were now come to an ende and that thou were euen at this present stretched out vpon a bed wearied and worne with dolour and paine thy carnal frindes about the weepinge and howlinge and desiring thie goodes the phisitions departed with their fees as hauing gyuen the ouer and thou lyinge there alone mute and dumme in most pitiful agonie expecting from moment to momēt the last stroke of death to be gyuen vnto the. Tel me in this instāt what would al the pleasures and commodities of the whole earth auaile the what comfort or ease would it be vnto the now to haue bene of honour in this world to haue gathered wealth and purchassed much to haue borne office and enioyed the princes fauour to haue left thy children and kinred in aboundance to haue trodden donne thine enimies to haue stirred much and borne greate swaye in this life what pleasure I saye or benefite would it be to the to haue bene beautiful to haue bene gallant in apparel goodlie in personage glittering in golde would not al thes thinges rather afflict then profit thee at this instant No doubt but now thou shouldest wel see throughlie perceaue the vanitie of thes trifles thou shouldest proue true the saying of the wise man non proderūt diuitie in die vltionis riches wil profit nothing in the day of Gods reuēge That most excellent demaunde of holie Iob would oftentimes offer it self vnto thie remembrāce Quid ad cum pertinet de domo sua post se What hath a man to doe with his house familie or kinred after he is gone what good what comfort shal he take therby VVho vvil
length to crie out my soule doth thirst after God that is the liuelie vvel-spring vvhen shal I come and appeare before the face of God So that from the feare of death which is the first effect that springeth of the remembrance meditation therof he was come now to the loue and most earnest desire of the same which is the highest degree of comfort and the most supreme felicitie that saintes doe arriue vnto in this life Endeuour then my deare Christiā brother by frequent and diligent premeditation of this passage to attaine to this felicitie or at least wise to some parte or degree therof Feare death now that thou maist not feare it then For as God by his holie spirite assureth the he that feareth novv shal be in securitie at the last in the day of his departure Nay as holie Iob further describeth the matter he shal laugh at that day whē other mē are in spoile famine he shal not feare the beastes of the earth his legue shal be with the stones of Nations that is he shal be no more moued or terrified with comming of death then stones are he shal see that his tabernacle shal be that day in peace he shal enter into his sepulcher in al aboundance as a mow of corne in the haruest time that is he shal departe hence in aboundance of al grace and merit at the houre of his death which to a vertuous man is the day of haruest wherin he shal reape the rewardes of his good deedes which he hath sowen in this life Thus describeth Iob the blessed departure of a godlie man cōcluding his whole discourse with this admonition and exhortatiue clause Ecce hoc ita est quod auditum mente pertracta Behold this thing is as I haue said which thou hauing vnderstoode passe it not ouer sleightlie but reuolue and discusse the same diligentlie in thie minde OF THE GREATE AND SEVERE PAINES AND PVNISHMENTES APPOINted by God for sinners after this life As also of tvvo kindes and sortes herof the one temporal for them that shal be saued th' other eternal for the damned CHAPT XI AMONGST all the meanes which God vseth towardes the children of men in this life to moue them to the resolution wherof I entreate the strōgest most forcible is the consideratiō of punishmentes prepared by him for rebellious sinners and transgressours of his cōmaundemēts Wherfore he vseth this motiue often as may appeare by al the prophetes who doe almost nothing els but threaten plagues and destruction to offendours And this meane hath oftentimes preuailed more then anie other that could be vsed by reason of the natural loue which we beare towardes our selues and consequentlie the natural feare which we haue of our owne danger So we reade that nothing could moue the Niniuites so much as the fortelling them of their imminent destruction And S. Iohn Baptist albeit he came in a simple and contemptible maner yet preaching vnto the people the terrour of vengeance to come and that the axe vvas novv put vnto the tree to cut dovvne for the fire al such as repented not he moued the verie publicanes souldiers to feare being otherwise people of verie harde metal in such sort as they came vnto him vpon this terrible embassage and asked what they should doe to auoide these punishmentes For which cause hauing now cōsidered in the former chapters of death and of godes seuere iudgment ensuing thervpon wherin euerie man hath to receyue according to his workes in this life it followeth that we consider also of the punishmentes which are appointed for thē that shal be founde faultie ī that accounte hereby at leastwise if no other consideration wil serue to induce Christians to this resolution of seruinge God For as I haue noted before if euerie man haue naturallie a loue of him self and desire to cōserue his owne ease then should he also haue feare of peril wherby he is to fal into miserie calamitie This expresseth S. Bernard verie excellently according to his wonte O man saieth he if thou haue left al shame which appertaineth to so noble a creature as thou art if thou feele no sorow as carnal men doe not yet loose not feare also which is founde eué in brute and sauage beastes We vse to loade an asse and to werie him out with laboure and he careth not because he is an asse but if thou wouldest thrust him into fire or flinge him into a ditch he would auoide it as much as he coulde for that he loueth life and feared death Feare thou then and be not more insensible thā a beast Feare death feare iudgment feare hel This feare is called the beginning of wisdome and not shame or sorow for that the spirite of feare is more potent to resist sinne then the spirite of shame or sorow Wherfore it is saide remember the ende and thou shalt neuer sinne that is remember the final punishmentes appointed for sinne after this life Thus far S. Bernarde First therfore to speake in general of the punishmentes reserued for the life to come if the scriptures did not declare in particular their greatnes vnto vs yet are there manie reasons to persuade vs that they are most seuere grieuous and intollerable For first as God is a God in al his workes that is to saye greate wounderful and terrible so especiallie he sheweth the same in his punishmentes being called for that cause in holy scripture Deus iustitiae God of iustice as also Deus vltionum God of reuenge Wherfore seing al his other workes are maiestical and exceeding our capacities we may likewise gather that his hande in punishment must be also most wonderful God himself teacheth vs to reason in this maner when he sayeth And vvil ye not then feare me and vvil ye not tremble before my face vvho haue set the sande for limites to the sea and haue giuen the vvaters a commaundemēt neuer to passe the same no not then vvhen they are most troubled and the vvaues therof most outragious As who would say if I be wonderful and doe passe your imagination in these woorkes of the sea and other of this world which you behould dailie then haue yee iust cause to feare me considering that my punishmētes are like to be correspondent to the greatnes of my other actions An other coniecture of the great and seuere iustice of God in punishing may be the consideration of his infinite and vnspeakable mercie which as it is the verie nature it self of God and consequently without ende or measure as his godhead is so is also his iustice And these two are the two armes as it were of his diuine Maiestie embracing kyssing one th' other as the scripture saieth And therfore as in a man of this world if we had the measure of one arme we might easely cōiecture the length of the
that he shal escape al paine or punishment For he that differred the fruites of repentance vntil the next life must be perfited in purgatorie fire this fire I tel you though it be not euerlasting yet is it passing greuous for it doth far exceede al paines that mā can suffer in this life Neuer was there founde out yet so greate a paine in flesh as that is though martyrs haue abidden straunge tormentes and many wicked mē haue suffered exceeding greate punishmentes To like effect doth S. Gregorie write of the seueritie of this punishment expounding those wordes of Dauid O Lord rebuke me not in thy surie nor correct me in thy vvrath This is as if he said saith S. Gregorie I know that after this life some must be clensed by purging fire And other must receyue sentēce of eternal damnation But because I esteeme that purgīg fire though it be transitorie to be more intolerable then al the tribulation which in this life may be suffered therfore I doe not onlie desire not to be rebuked in the furie of eternal damnatiō but also I greatlie feare to be purged in the wrath of transitorie correction Thus far S. Gregorie And I might adde a hundred like other sayinges out of the auncient holie fathers touching the extreame seueritie of this purging fire after death and of the greate feare which they had therof But that this alredy spoken may be sufficient to gyue admonishment to Catholique men that agree with thes Saints in beleef of this doctrine more carefully to looke vnto them selues for auoiding the rigour of this fier especially by thes two principal meanes of Almes-deedes and teares wherunto S. Augustine most earnestly exhorteth them in the place before alleaged wher also he frameth this notable collection We see sayeth he what men doe or may suffer in this life what racking what tearing what burning and the like and yet al this is nothing in respect of that fire Thes thinges therfore which we suffer heere are much more easie then that fire and yet you see that men wil doe any thing rather then suffer the same how much more then ought we to doe that litle which God commaundeth vs to auoide that fire which is by many degrees more grieuous This was the feeling which learned S. Augustine had in thes affaires And truly it is verie straunge and wonderful to consider how great feare and terrour holie men of auncient time conceyued at the verie cogitation of this fire and how slenderly we passe the same ouer now a daies hauing infinite more cause to feare then they had Among other that blessed deuout mā S. Bernard who lead so examplar and strict a life as the world doth know entering into contemplation of this matter brake forth into thes words ensuing O would God some man would now before hand prouide for my head abundance of water to mine eyes a fountaine of teares for so perhaps the burning fire should take no hold where running teares had clensed before And againe I tremble and shake for feare of falling into Gods hands I wolde gladlie present my self before his face alredie iudged of my self and not to be iudged thē of him Therfore I wil make a reckoning whiles I am here both of my good deedes and of my badde My euil shal be corrected with better woorkes they shal be watered with teares they shal be punished by fasting they shal be amended by sharp discipline I wil rip vp the verie bottome of my wayes workes to the ende he may finde nothing vntried at that day or not fullie discussed to his handes And then I hope in his mercie that he wil not iudge the same faults againe as he hath promised Hitherto are the wordes of S. Bernard The like great feare vttered holy S. Ambrose in thes wordes O Lord if thou reserue any thing in me to be reuenged in the next life yet I humblie beseech the that thou gyue me not vp to the power of wicked spirits whiles thou wipest away my sinnes by the paines of Purgatorie And againe in an other place I shal be searched examined as lead in this fire and I must burne vntil al the lead be melted away And if then there be found no siluer metal in me woe be vnto me for I must be thrust doune to the profoundest partes of hel or els wholie waste away as straw in the fire But if anie gold or siluer be found in me not through my workes but by grace and Christes mercie and through the ministerie of my prestoode I shal also once say surelie they that trust in the shal neuer be confounded And thus much of this temporal punishment reserued euen for the purging of Gods seruants in the life to come BVT NOVV TOVCHING the reprobate such as for their wickednesse are dessigned to eternal death we must Imagine that with them the case standeth much more hardlie for therunto may be applied that saying of our Sauiour to the good women of Hierusalem who lamented his case when he was going to his passion If they doe these things in grene vvord vvhat shal become of the drie which wordes S. Peter seemeth in some parte to expounde when he saieth If the Iudgement of God begin vvith vs vvhich are his seruants vvhat shal the end of vvickedmen be As who wold say that in al reason their ende must be intollerable For more particuler conceyuing whereof because the matter is of great importāce for al Christiās to know it shal not be perhaps amisse to consider brieflie what the holie scriptures auncient fathers of the Catholique Church directed no doubt by the holie Ghost haue reueiled vnto vs touching this punishment And first of al concerning the place it self of punishment appointed for the damned commonlie called hel the scripture in diuerse languages vsed diuerse names but al tending to expresse the grieuousnesse of torments therin to be endured As for example in the latin tongue it is called INFERNVS that is a place beneath or vnder ground as most of the olde fathers doe interprete But whether it be vnder ground or no most certaine it is that it is a place most opposit to heauen which is said to be aboue and from which lucifer was throune doune And this name is vsed to signifie the miserable deiection and hurling doune of the damned to be troden vnder the feet not onlie of almightie God but also of al good men for euer For so sayeth the scripture Beholde the day of the Lord commeth burning like a fornace and al proud and vvicked men shal be stravv to that fornace and you that feare my name shal tread them dovvne and they shal be as burnt ashes vnder the soles of your feet in that day And this shal be one of the greatest miseries that can happen to the proude and stoute potentates of the worlde to be thrown doune with
and to come the memorie with the remembrāce of pleasures past the vnderstanding with consideration of the felicitie lost and the miserie now come vpon them O poore Christian what wilt thou doe amiddest the multitude of so intollerable calamites It is a wounderful matter and able as one father sayeth to make a reasonable man goe out of his wittes to consider what God hath reueiled vnto vs in the scriptures touching the dreadful circumstances of this punishment and yet to see how litle the rechelesse mē of this world doe feare it For first touching the vniuersalitie varietie greatnesse of the paines not onely the reasons before alleaged but also diuerse other considerations in the scriptures doe declare the same As where it is sayed of the damned cruciabuntur die nocte they shal be tortured day and night And againe Date illi tormentum geue her torment speaking of Babilon in hel By which wordes of torture and torment may wel appeare that the paines in hel are exercised not for chastisment but for affliction onlie and torment of the patients And we see commonlie in this world that tortures and torments are so great violent and extreame as the wit of man can reach to deuise Imagin then good brother when God almightie shal bend his endeuour infinit endles wisdome to create torments as he hath done in hel what maner of tormēts they are like to be If creating an elemēt here for our comfort I meane the fire he made the same so insufferable as it is in such sorte as a man wolde not holde his onelie hand therin one day for to gaine a kingdome what a fire think you hath he prouided for hel which is not created for comfort but onelie for torment of the parties Our fire hath a thousand differences from that and therfore is truelie said of the holy fathers to be but as a painted or fained fire in respect of that For first our fire was made to comfort as I haue said and that onlie to afflict and torment Our fire hath neede to be fedde cōtinuallie with wood and fuel or els it goeth out that burneth eternallie without feeding and is vnquencheable for that as Esay saith the breath of Godes owne mouth doth blow feede and nourish the same Our fire giueth light which of it self is comfortable that admitteth none but hath his desolation of inexplicable darkenes Ours is out of his natural place and situation and consequentlie of lesse force then it would be ther for which cause also we see that it indeuoureth with al force to mounte vp and get from vs. But that of hel is in the natural and proper place wherin it was created and therfor hath al his ful strength and abideth perpetuallie Ours consumeth the foode that is cast into it and therby in short space dispatcheth the paines that afflicteth and tormenteth but consumeth not to th' ende the paines may be euerlasting Our fire is extinguished with water and the rage therof greatlie abated by the coldenesse of the ayer and other elemētes about it that hath no such abatement or qualification at al but his absolut force remaining in al surie And finallie what a straunge and incredible kinde of fire that is may appeare in part by thes wordes of our Sauiour so often repeated in the Ghospel There shal be vveeping and gnashing of teeth For that weeping seemeth properlie to be referred to the effect of extreme burning in that fire seing the paines of scalding and burning doe enforce teares sooner then any other paines as appeareth in them who vpon the sodain doe put anie burning thing in their mouthes or doe vehementlie scald anie tender sensible part of their body And gnashing or chattering of teeth as euery man knoweth proceedeth principallie of great and extreme cold Imagine then my brother what a fire this may be which hath so contrarie extreme effects both of heate and cold O mightie Lord what a straunge God art thou how wonderful and terrible in al thy workes and inuentions how bountiful art thou to those that loue and serue the and how seuere and terrible to them which cōtemne thy commaundements Hast thou deuised away how they which lie burning in a like of fire and brimstone shal also be tormented with extreame colde what vnderstanding of man can conceyue how this may be but thy Iudgements ô Lord are a depth without bottom therefore I leaue this to thy onelie prouidēce praising thee eternallie for the same But now besides these general paines common to al that be in that place the scripture signifieth also that there shal be particular and seueral torments peculiar both in qualitie quantitie to the sinnes and offences of ech offendour For to that ende sayeth the prophet Esay to God thou vvill iudge in measure against measure And God saieth of him self I vvil exercise Iudgement in vveight Iustice in measure And that is the meaning of al those threates of God to sinners where he sayeth that he wil paie them home according to their particular workes and according to the inuētions of their owne harts In this sense it is saied in the Apocalipse of Babylō now throwen downe iuto the lake Looke hovv much she hath glorified herself and hath liued in dolites so much torment and affliction geue her Whereof the holy fathers haue gathered the varietie of tormēts that shal be in that place As there be differences of sinnes so shal there be varietie of torments sayeth old Ephraem for the adulterour shal haue one kinde of torment the murderer an other the thiefe an other the drunkarde an other the liar an other And so he foloweth on shewing how the proude marshal be trodden vnder feet to recompence his pride the glutton shal suffer inestimable hungar the drunkarde extreme thirst the delitiouse mouth shal be filled vp with gaule and the delicate bodie seared with hote burning yrons This is the contemplation of this holie auncient father And trulie the holie Ghost signifieth such a thing when he sayeth in the scriptures of the wicked worldling His breade in his belly shal be turned into the gaul of serpēts he shal be cōstrained to vomet out again the riches vvhich he hath deuoured God shal pul them forth of his belly he shal be cōstrained to sucke the gaules of cocatrices and the tongues of adders shal slea him he shal beare the smart of al that euer he hath done and yet shal he not be consumed but shal suffer according to the multitude of al his deuises By which wordes is plainlie shewed that wicked men shal receyue particular torments for their gluttonie for their delicate fare for extorsion the like Which torments shal be greater then any mortal tongue can expresse as may appeare by thes vehemēt and dreadful wordes which are here vsed to insinuate the same And yet further besides al this vniuersalitie particularitie rigour
greuousnes and horrour which hitherto hath bene declared to be in thes paines and tormentes the holie spirit of God reueileth vnto vs an other condition or qualitie no lesse terrible then the former which is the most seuere straitnes therof without al possibilitie of anie one iote of help aide ease intermission relaxation respiration or comfort This is signified by thos seuere wordes of our Saueour so often times repeated that the daned shal be cast into hel bounden hand and foote that is without al habilitie of resistance or strugling against their tormentes Also by that most dreadful shutting vp of the gate wherof our Saueour spake in such dolful maner when he said clausa est ianua the gate is shut vp and made fast for euer that is to say in hel the gate of al mercie of al pardon of al ease of al intermission of al comfort is shut vp foreuer and that both from heauen from earth from the creator and from al creatures in so much that no consolation is euermore to be hoped for as in the miseries of this life there is alwaies some but extreme desolation for al eternitie This straitnes is likewise most liuelie expressed in that dreadful parable of the riche glutton in hel who was driuen to that necessitie as he desired most pitifullie that Lazarus might dippe the top onlie of his fingar in water therwith to coole his tōgue in the middest of that fire wherein he was tormēted yet could not he obtain it A smal refreshing it semeth that it wold haue bene vnto him if he had obtained his request but yet to shew the straitnesse of the place it was denied vnto him O ye that liue in sinful welth of the world consider but this one example of Gods seueritie and be a fearde This man was in that russe iolitie a litle before as he wolde not gyue the verie crommes of his table to buy heauen and now wolde he gyue a thousand worldes if he had them for one drop of water to coole his tongue Good God what demaund could be lesse then this what request more humble He durst not aske to be deliuered thēce or to haue his torments diminished or to haue a great vessel of water wherwith to refresh his whole bodie but onely so much as would sticke on the top of Lazarus fingar to coole his tongue To what extreme need was this poore man now driuen what a strong imagination had he of the force of one drop of water to what pitiful chaunge was his tongue now come that was accustomed to be so daintelie bathed and diligentlie tended with al kindes of pleasant liquors O that one mā can not take example by an other ô that Ooliba wil not learne to be wise by seing the punishmentes of her elder sister Oolla God reueiled the calamitie of the former inflicted for her wickednes therby to terrifie the latter from the like sinne but for that she profited nothing by that exāple he saieth for so much as thou Ooliba hast walked in the waies of thie sister Oolla this saith God vnto the I wil lay the cup of thie sister vpō the thou shalt drinke it as she did both in depthe and largenes thou shalt drinke it vp euen vnto the verie dregges Thus said the prophet of God then to Hierusalem that would not be warned by the punishemētes of Samaria and thus saith the sonne of God now to al men that wil not be terrified by thes tormētes of the damned Glutton and if al this be true as it must be except the wordes of our Saueour could be false then what wonderful people are we that seing our selues in danger of this intollerable miserie doe not seeke with more diligence to preuent the same In respect of these extremities strait dealings of God in denying al comfort consolation at this day holie scripture sayeth that men shal fal into rage furie and vtter impatience blasphening God cursing the day of their natiuitie with eating their own tongues for griefe and desiring the rockes and mountaines to come and fal on them therby to ende and finish their paines But now if we adde to al this the eternitie and euerlasting continuance of these torments we shal see that it encreaseth the matter beyond al hu nane cogitation For in this world there is no torment so great or affliction so violēt but that time either taketh away or diminisheth the same For either the tormentor or the tormented dieth or some other occasion happeneth wherby the extremitie of the tribulation is mitigated But here no such hope or cōfort may be expected for that as holie writ affirmeth Cruciabuntur in saecula saeculorū in stagne ardente igne sulphure They shal be tormented for euer and euer in a poole that burneth with fire brimstone As long as God is God so long must they burne therin Neither shal the tormentour or the tormented die but both must liue eternallie for the eternal miserie of him that suffereth O sayeth one holie father in a godlie meditation if a sinner damned in hel did know that he had to suffer those torments no more thousand yeres then there be sandes in the sea and grasse leaues on the grounde or no more thousand milliōs of ages then there be creatures in heauē hel and in earth he wold greatlie reioice for that he wolde comfort him self at the least wise with this cogitation that once yet the matter wold haue an ende But now saieth this good man this word Neuer breaketh his hart considering that after a hundred thousand millions of worldes if ther might be so many he hath as farre to his iournies end as he had at the first day of his entrāce into thos torments Consider good Christian what a length one houre wold seme vnto the if thou haddest but to hold thy hand in fire and brimstone onelie during the space thereof or to be stretched on a racke or other torture We finde by experiēce that if a man be grieuouslie sick though he be laid vpon a verie soft bed yet one night seemeth a long time vnto him He turneth and tosseth him self from side to side telling the clock and counting euerie houre as it passeth which seemeth to him a whole day And if a man should saye vnto him that he were to abide that pain but seuen yeres together he wold goe nigh to dispare for griefe Now if one night seeme so long and tediouse to him that lieth on a good soft bedd afflicted onelie with a litle ague what wil the lying in fire and brimstone doe whē he shal know euidentlie that he shal neuer haue ende thereof O deare brother the satietie of continuance is lothsome euen in things that are not euil of them selues If thou shouldest be bound alwaies to eate one onelie meate albeit otherwise of it self it were not ingrate yet would it be displeasant vnto the
placed to be despised and not to be honoured How great honour was that trow you which he did to Abraham in the sight of so many kings and princes of the earth as of Pharao Abimelech Melchiseedech and others How great honour was that he did to Moyses in the face of Pharao and of al his court by the wonderful signes that he wrought by him What excessiue honour was that he did to holie Iosue when in the sight of al his armie he stayed the sunne and Moone in the middest of the firmament at Iosues appointement obeying therein as the scripture saieth to the voice of a man what honour was that he did to Esay in the preface sight of king Ezechias whē he made the sunne to goe backe tenne degrees in the heauens what honour was that he did to helias in the sight of wicked Achab when he yelded the heauens into his hands and willed him to say that neither raine nor dew should fal vpon the ground for certain yeres but by the wordes of his mouth onely what honour was that he did to Elizeus in the sight of Naaman the noble Syrian whom he cured onelie by his word from the leprosie whos bones also after his death raised vp by onelie touching the dead to life inallie not to alleage more examples herein what singular honour was that he gaue to al the Apostles of his sonne that as many as euer they laid handes on were healed from al infirmities as S. Luke affirmeth Nay which is yet more the verie girdles and napkins of S. Paul did the same effect and yet more then that also so many as came within the onelie shadow of S. Peter were healed from their diseases Is not this maruailous honour euen in this life was there euer Monarch prince or potentate of the world that could vaunt of such points of honor And if Christ did this to his seruantes euen in this world whereof notwithstanding he saith his kingdome was not what honour shal we think he hath resesued for the life to come where his kingdome shal be in al fulnes and where al his seruants shal be crouned as eternal kings with him Lastlie for some further declaration of this matter and for expressing th' incomparable excellencie of heauenlie blisse some diuines doe vse a consideration of the three different places wherunto man by his creation is ordained albeit in al pointes it be not necessarie to hold the same iust proportion The first of which places is our mothers wombe the second this present world the third is coelum Empireum which is the place of blisse in the life to come Now in these three places say the learned we must hold some like proportion by al reason betwene the third and second place as we see sensiblie to be obserued betwene the second and first So that in what proportion the second doeth differ from the first in like measure must the third be different from the second on rather much more for that eternal and heauēly thinges doe exceede al comparison of trāsitorie thinges amōg themselues By this proportion then we must say for exāple sake that as farre as the whole world doth passe the wombe of one priuate woman so much in al beautie delites and Maiestie doth the place of heauēlie blisse passe al this whole world with the ornamentes therof And as much as a man liuing in the world doth exceede a child in his mothers bellie for strength of bodie beautie wit vnderstāding learning and knowledge so much and farre more doth a Saint in heauen passe al men of this world in al these excellencies and infinite more besides And looke how great horrour a mā of perfect age would conceaue to returne into his mothers wombe againe so much and farre greater would a glorified soule haue to come back from that eternal blisse into this vale of miserie The nine moneths also of life in the mothers wombe are not so litle in respect of any mans age in the world as is the longest life vpon earth in respect of euerlasting life in heauen Nor the blindenesse ignorance and other miseries of the child in his mothers wombe are any way to be compared to the cecitie darknes folie other calamities of this life in respect of the cleare light most excellent knowledge deuine vnderstāding other singuler prerogatiues of the Saints in heauen So that by al thes reasons laid together ther may a general coniecture be framed of the most infinit and incomprehensible excellencie of this reward wherof we treate BVT NOVV TO CONSIDER the same thing somewhat more in particular it is to be noted that this reward or glorie of heauen shal comprehend in it self two partes or members the one called essential belonging to the soule the other termed accidental belonging to the bodie The essential part consisteth in the vision or sight of God as afterward shal be shewed The accidental consisteth in the change and glorification of our flesh after the general resurrectiō wherby this corruptible bodie of ours shal put on incorruption as S. Paul sayeth and of mortal become immortal Al this flesh I say of ours that now is so combersom and aggreeueth the minde that now is infested with so many inconueniences subiect to so many mutations vexed with so many diseases defiled with so many corruptiōs replenished with so infinit miseries and calamities shal then be made glorious most perfect to endure for euer without change or mutation and to raigne with our soule euerlastinglie And for this purpose as diuines doe proue the same shal be endued with certaine excelles qualities and giftes from God which S. Anselm whom in this matter I wil folow doth reckon to be seuen to wit beautie agilitie fortitude penetrabilitie health pleasure perpetuitie Al which excellencies either doe want in the damned bodies or else their contraries are found therin And first of al concerning the priuiledge and high excellencie of beautie how singuler it shal be in the bodies glorified our Saueour him self in some part declareth when he sayeth At that daie shal the Iust shine as the sunne in the kingdome of their father A maruailouse speech and in humane sense almost incredible that our putrefied bodies should shine and become as cleare as the sunne Whereas in the contrarie part the bodies of the damned shal be as black and vglie as filth it self The second prerogatiue assigned to the bodies of the iust is agilitie or velocitie whereby their flesh is deliuered from al lumpish heuinesse wherwith it was pestered in this life and made as light as the Angels them selues which are spirits and doe passe from place to place with infinit swiftnesse as also doe ascend and descend of them selues against the nature of corruptible bodies whereas in the meane space the damned bodies shal be bound both hand
vnde pendet aeternitas This life is the momēt wherof dependeth al eternitie of weal or woe hereafter If it be but a moment deare brother and yet a moment of so great consequence and importance how is it passed ouer by earthelie men with so litle care and cogitation what reason may be alleaged of this so dangerous a negligence what cause may be assigned of so extreme a follie Al the creatures of earth heauen and hel euen from the very first to the last if thou examine them al may be argumentes and motiues vnto thee to leaue this perilous course wherin thou art al are or may be bookes lessons and sermōs vnto thee preaching and protesting some by their punishment some by their glorie some by their beautie and al by their creation that thou oughtest without delay to make resolution of an other kinde of life and that al is vanitie al is folie al is iniquitie al is miserie besides the onelie seruice of thie Lord and maker And so with this wil I make here an ende of this first part reseruing some other things to be spoken in the second for remouing of such impedimēts as our spiritual aduersarie is wont to cast against this good worke of Resolution as against the first step and degree of our saluation Our Lord God Sauiour Iesus Christ who was content to paye his own pretious blood for the purchasing of this noble inheritance of his kingdome vnto vs geue vs his holy grace to esteeme of it as the great weight of the matter requireth and not by negligence to loose our title and portion therin The end of the first part containing motiues to resolution THE SECOND PARTE WHICH TREATETH OF THE LETTES and impedimentes that hinder resolution THE PREFACE IN the former parte of this booke gentle reader ther haue bene layed doune sundry reasons and considerations wherby to stirre vp men to the firme resolution of seruing God which might be sufficient no doubt to that effect the nature of vertue being also cōsidered which of her self draweth reasonable men to loue and admiration of her were not the subtiltie of our spiritual enimie very greate and dangerous in this behalfe and his indeuours most diligent against our purpose For so it fareth that when he seeth by the former reasons and demonstrations alleaged that the iudgement of man is conuinced in the pointes which are treated and that it can no longer resist or deny but that the onlie true wisdome were in deed to breake of from the vanities and sinful life of this world and to be-take our selues to the gainful 〈◊〉 mightie God then this infernal foe 〈◊〉 able further to delude our iudgemente 〈◊〉 blynd our vnderstandings imployeth him self by al meanes possible for retaining of his pray to stay our wil from yelding consent vnto our iudgement all eaging for his dissuation either the difficultie of obtaining pardon or the paines and hardnes of vertuous life or the losse of worldlie honour and earthlie commodities or some other such like fraude or trifle wherby to let and hinder our resolution or at least wise to prolonge it so farre forth as he may be in hope that we shal neuer make it afterwards to our gaine or comfort For preuenting of which malitious and most perilous indeuour of our ghostelie aduersarie this second parte is adioined conteining the cheefe and principal impedimentes that vsuallie doe rise against resolution the remooual and confutation of which lettes and impedimentes shal bring no smal light vnto the studious reader for the true vnderstanding both of his owne estate and of the deceptes and illusions vsed towards him by his enimie Read then this parte also deare Christian brother vvith no lesse diligence then the former for that the profit therof shal be equal and thy contentement perhapes farre greater in respect of the varietie of matters handled therin and of the manifold comfortes which thy soule in perufing shal receaue therby OF THE FIRST IMPEDIMENT THAT IS WONT TO LET SINNERS from resolution VVhich is the mistrust and diffidence in Gods mercie through the multitude and grieuousnes of their offences CHAPT I. AMONG al other gricuous and most perilous cogitatiōs which in this world are accustomed to offer them selues to a mind entangled and lode with great sinnes this vsually is the first thorough the nature of sinne it self and craftie suggestion of our ghostly enemie to fal into distrust and despaire of Gods mercie Such was the cogitation of most vnhappie Cain one of the first inhabitantes of mankind vpon earth who after the murther of his owne only brother and other sinnes by him committed brust furth into that horrible and desperate speech so greatly offensiue to his Lord and Maker mine iniquitie is greater then that I may hope for pardon Such was in like maner the desperate conceit of wicked Iudas one of the first of them that were chosen to the peculiar seruice of our Redeemer who feeling his conscience oppressed with manifold enormous iniquities and most of al with the prodition of his owne Lord maister tooke no other ware of amendment or redresse but to destroie him self both in bodie and soule adioining only thos words ful of miserable distrust and desperation I haue sinned in betraying the innocent and iust blood By which wordes and most wreched ende he more grieuouslie offended and iniuried his most louing merciful Saueour then by al his former iniquities committed against him This then most louing brother is the first and greatest rocke wherat a sinful soule ouerburdened with the charge of her owne iniquities and tossed in the waues of dredful cogitations by the blastes and stormes of Gods threats against sinners doth commonlie make her shipwrake This is that most horrible depth and dungeon wher of the holie Scripture saieth The impious man vvhen he is come into the botome and prosonditie of his sinnes contemneth al. This is that remediles sore and incurable wound wherwith God him self charged Ierusalem when he said Insanabilis fractura tua Thy rupture is irremediable And the Prophet Michaeas considering the same people thorough the multitude of their wickednes to eneline now to despaire of Gods goodnes towards them brake forth into this most pitiful complaint for this vvil I vveepe and lament extremely I vvil strippe of my clothes and vvander naked I vvil rore like vnto Dragons and sound out my sorovve as Strutbious in the desert for that the vvound and maladie of my people is desperate This is that great and maine impediment that stoppeth the conduits of Gods holie grace from flowing into the soule of a sinful man This is the knif that cutteth in sunder al thos heauely blessed cordes wherwith our sweet Lord and Saneour endeuoureth to draw vnto repentance the hartes of sinners saing by his prophete I vvil pul them vnto me vvith the chaines of loue and charitie For by this meanes
euery sinful conscience commeth to answere almightie God as did Ierusalem when being admonished of her sinnes exhorted by his prophet to amendment of life she said Desperaui nequaquam faciam I ame become desperate I wil neuer thincke of any such thing To which lamentable estate when a sinful man is once arriued the next steppe he maketh is for auoiding al remorse and trouble of consciēce to engulfe him self into the depth of al detestable enormities and to abandone his soule to the verie sincke of al filth and abhominations according as S. Paul said of the Gentiles in like case that by despaire they deliuered them selues ouer to dis solute life therby to commit al maner of vncleanes Which wicked resolution of the impious is the thing as I haue noted before that most of al other offences vpon earth doth exasperate the ire of Almighty God depriuing his deuine Maiestie of that most excellent propertie wherin he cheifly deliteth and glorieth which is his infinite and vnspeacable mercie This might be declared by diuers and sondrie examples of holy writt how be it two only shal suffice for this present The first is of the people of Israel not long before their banishment to Babilon who being threatned from God by the Prophet Ieremie that manifold punishments were imminent ouer their heads for their grieuous sinnes committed against his Maiestie begāne in stead of repentance to fal to desperation and consequently resolued to take that impious course of al dissolute life alleaged before out of S. Paul for thus they answered God exhorting them by his threats to reforme their wicked liues VVe are novv grovven desperate therfore vve vvil hereafter folovve our ovvne cogitations and euerie one sulfil the vvickednes of his ovvne conceite Wherat God stormed infinitely and brake forth into this vehement interrogation Interrogate Gentes quit audiuit talia horribilia Aske and enquire of the verie Gentiles whether euer among them were heard any such horrible blasphemies And after this for more declaration of this intollerable iniurie herin offerred to his Maiestie he commaunded the Prophet Ieremie to goe forth of his owne house and to get him to a potters shope which in the village was framing his vessels vpon the wheele Which Ieremie hauing done he sawe befor his face a pot crushed and broken by the potter al in peeces vpō the wheele and thincking therby that the vessel had bene vtterly vnprofitable and to be cast away he saw the same clay ptesently framed agayne by the potter into a new vessel more excellent then before Wherat he maruailing God said vnto him Doest not thou thinck Ieremie that I can doe with the house of Israel as this potter hath done with his vessel Or is not the house of Israel in my handes as the clay is in the handes of this craftesman I wil denounce vpon the sodaine against a Nation and kingdome that I wil roote it vp and destroye it and if that nation or kingdome doe repent from their wickednes I also wil repent me of the punishment which I intended to laie vpon them And then he proceedeth foreward declaring vnto Ieremie the exceeding greif and indignation which he conceaueth that any sinner what soeuer should despaire of mercie pardon at his hands The second example is of the same people of Israel during the time of their banishment in Babilon at what time being afflicted with many miseries for their sinnes and threatned with many more to come for that they changed not the course of their former wicked conuersation they beganne to despaire of Gods mercie and to saie to the Prophet Ezechiel that liued banished among them exhorted them to amendment vpon assured hope of Gods fauour towards them Our iniquities and sinnes doe lye greeuouslie vpon vs and vve languish in them and vvhat hope of life then may vve haue At which cogitation and speech God being greatly moued appeared presently to Ezechiel said vnto him Tel this people I doe liue saieth the Lord God of hostes I vvishe not the death of the impious but rather that he should turne from his vvicked vvaies and liue VVhy vvil the house of Israel die in their sinnes rather then turne vnto me And then he maketh a large and vehement protestation that how greuously soeuer any person shal offend him how great punishments soeuer he shal denounce against him yea if he had giuen expresse sentence of death and damnation vpon him yet Si egerit paenitentiam a peccato suo seceritque iudicium iustitiam that is if he repent him self of his sinne and exercise iudgement and iustice for the time to come al his sinnes that he hath committed shal be forgiuen him saieth almightie God for that he hath done iudgment and Iustice. And this now might be sufficient albeit nothing els were spoken for remouing this first obstacle and impediment of true resolution which is the dispaire of Gods infinite goodnes and mercie Neuertheles for more euident clearing and demonstration of this matter and for the greater comfort of such as feele them selues burdened with the heauy weight of their iniquities committed against his deuine Maiestie I haue thought expedient in this place to declare more at large this aboundant subiect of Gods endles mercie towards al such as wil truly turne vnto him in what time state condition or age soeuer in this life which shal be shewed and set doune by thes foure points and partes that doe ensue FIRST OF AL by the infinite and incomprehēsible loue that almightie God beareth vnto man which loue is alwaies the mother of fauour grace and mercie If you demaund of me in what sort I doe proue that the loue of God is so exceeding great towardes man I answere as the Cosmographer is wont to doe who by the greatnes and multitude of the streames and riuers doth frame a coniecture of the fountaine frō which they flowe The proper riuers which are deriued and doe ronne forth of loue are good turnes and benefites which seing they are infinite endles and inestimable bestowed by God vpon man as in place before hath bene declared and the whole vniuersal frame of this world doth aboundantly beare witnesse it foloweth most euidently that the origine fountaine welspring of al thes fauours graces and good turnes must needs be infinite immeasurable and farre surpassing al compasse of mans vnderstanding If you require of me the cause and reason why almightie God should so wonderfully be affected towards man I can directly yeld you none at al but rather meruaile therat with holy Iob why so soueraine a Maiestie should set his hart vpon so base a subiect Notwithstanding the holy Scripture seemeth to alleage one principal reason of this loue when it saieth Nihil odistieorum quae secisti parcis omnibus quia tua sunt Domine quidiligis animas That is Thou O Lord which louest soules
him to laie doune a price for vs which he so infinitely esteemed what shal we thincke that he wil doe vnto vs now we being made his owne by our redemption if we returne willingly vnto him whē onr receauing shal cost him nothing els but only a merciful looke vpon vs which is not so much from the infinite bowels of his botomeles mercie as is one droppe of water from the most huge gulfe of the maine Ocean sea And this shal suffice for this first point of Gods loue declared vnro vs by the three most sweete and comfortable names respectes of Creator Father and Redeemer NEXT AFTER VVHICH we are to consider in what maner God is accustomed to expresse and declare this loue of his in his dealings proceedīgs towards sinners And first of al the wise man hauing had long experience of this matter beginneth to describe and set it forth in this sort saing vnto God himself Thou O Lord doest dissemble the sinnes of men to geue vnto thē time of repentance And thē when they wil not vse this benefite of his forbearing but wil needs enforce him to punish and correct them he saieth further of this correction Such as vvilfully doe runne astraie O Lord and vvil not turne vnto the thou doest correct thē svveetly by litle litle admonishing and exhorting them to leaue their sinnes and to beleeue in thee Thes two pointes then of exceeding clemencie by the testimonie of the wise man are found in almightie God first to winke at the wicked life of men and to expect their conuersion with inspeakable patience and longanimitie according as also the Prophet Esay beareth witnes adioining the cause therof in thes wordes Your Lord doth attēd your conuersion to the end he may take mercie on you and therby be exalted And secondlie for the same respect when he is enforced by reason of his Iustice to chastice them yet doth he the same with such moderation and mildnes as alwaies in this life he reserueth place of pardon And to thes two we may adioine yet a third propertie of his mercie more admirable perhaps then the former which is as Tertulian excellently noteth that he being the partie offended yet first and principally desireth reconsiliation he hauing receaued the wrong and iniurie yet doth he most busely entreate for amitie attonment And wheras in al right and equitie he might denie vs pardon and for his power take reuenge of vs at his pleasure yet doth he not only offer vs peace of his owne accord but also sueth vnto vs by al means possible to accept therof humbling in a certaine maner his deuine Maiestie to our basenes and vilitie and behauing him self in this respect as a prince that were inamoured of his bondslaue and abiect seruant This might be declared by many of his owne speeches and doinges in holy Scripture but one place out of the Prophete Esaie shal serue for al wher almightie God so earnestly wooeth the conuersion of Ierusalem as no louer in the world could vtter more signes and testimonies of a hart inflamed and set on fire with loue then he doth towards that citie which so highly had offended him For first after many threats poured out against her if she did not returne lest she might perhapps fal into despaire he maketh this protestatiō in the beginning of his speech Indignatio non est mihi c. Angrie I ame not ò Hierusalem but what soeuer I haue spoken I haue spoken of good wil and loue Secondlie he entreth into this dispute and doubt with him self about punishing her for her sinnes what shal I doe Shal I tread her vnder my feete and put her to the fiar or els vvil she staie my puissant hand and make peace vvith me vvil she I saie make attonment vvith me After which doubt and cunctation he resolueth him self to chāge his maner of stile and to fal a litle to chide with her and then saith harken O yee deafe inhabitants of Ierusalem looke aboute you ye blind folke that vvil not see vvho is blind and deafe but my seruant that vvil not regard or listen to the messingers vvhich I send O thou vvhich hast opē eares vvilt thou not heare And then a litle after he beginneth to smooth and speake faire againe saing Euer since thou hast bene gratious glorious in mine eyes I haue loued the and for thy soule vvil I yeue vvhole natiōs Feare not for that I ame vvith the. Wherwith she being litle or nothing mooued he returneth to a sweet maner of complaint saing Thou hast enthralled me by thy sinnes and vvith thine iniquities thou hast greatly afflicted me Which being said and she somewhat wonne therby to loue him as it seemeth he turneth vnto her with this most comfortable and kind speech I ame he I ame he vvhich cancelleth thine iniquities for mine ovvne sake and vvil neuer thincke any more vpon thy sinnes Al which being done and they now reconciled and made fast frends together his diuine Maiestie beginneth a verie louing conference as it were and sweet expostulation with her saing in thes wordes Cai thou to memorie the things that are past and let vs iudge our selues here together Tel me if thou haue any thing vvherby thou maiest be iustefied Thy first parent vvas a sinner c. Wherat she being ashamed and hauing nothing in the world to answere for her self almightie God comforteth her and knitteth vp the whole matter in this most kind and amiable sort Feare not for I wil power out my spirite vpon the and vpon thy seed and my benediction shal be vpō thine ofspring thy children shal budde vp and florish as willoes planted by the water side Thus saieth the Lord and king of Israel the Lord of hostes that is thy redeemer I ame the first and the last and besides me ther is no other God Be mindful of this thou house of Iacob I haue dissolued and dissipated thy sinnes as a cloud is dissolued in the aire be mindful of this and haue an assured confidence Thus farre continueth the treatie betwene God and his citie of Ierusalem And now tel me deare Christian brother whether it be possible for any hart or tongue in the world to conceaue or expresse more waies or significations of most vehement good wil and burning affection then of Gods part in this treatie hath bene declared What louer or enamoured person vpon earth what passionate hart could wooe more earnestly sue more diligently sollicite more artificially complaine more pitifully expostulate more amiablie conferre more intrinsically remit offences more redely offer benefites more aboundantly conclude more sweetly and giue more pregnant testimonies of vnfeined loue or more assured certaintie of eternal league amitie thē doth almightie God vnto this natiō that so grieuouslie had offended him who wil not confesse now with the prophet Dauid that
sueing vnto sinners for their conuersion it followeth that we should in this third place examine some what more in particuler what certaine assurance his diuine Maiestie geueth of vndoubted pardon and ful remission of their sinnes to al such as vnfainedlie shal resolue them selues to make their refuge vnto him Which thing albeit euerie mā by that which before hath bene treated may sufficientlie conceaue yet for th' importāce of the matter it shal not be amisse in this place also to adde a word or two for more plaine and euidēt demonstration therof And this shal be donne by setting doune both the wordes and deedes that is both the promisses and perfourmāce which almightie God hath vsed and excercised in this behalf to al such as haue offended him whatsoeuer And for the first which are his promises most apparent it is as wel by the thinges which before haue bene discussed as also by the whole course bodie drift of holie scripture that the promises of mercie and pardon which his diuine Maiestie hath made to synners and wherunto by his sacred word he hath in a certaine maner obliged him self are both manifold vehement absolute resolute vniuersal VVho so euer shal depart from his vvicked vvayes and turne vnto me saith almightie God I vvil receaue him Behold the vniuersalitie of al people and persons without excluding any And then further At vvhat day soeuer an impious man shal returne vnto me from his impietie his vvickednes shal not hurt him saith the same L. God of hostes see the vniuersalitie of al times seasons without exceptiō But yet harken what God addeth besides Leaue of to doe peruerselie saith he to the Iewes c. and then doe you come and finde fault vvith me if you can For if your sinnes vvher as red as skarlet they shal be made as vvhite as snovve c. Consider the vniuersalitie of al kind of synnes be they neuer so greeuous so horrible or haynous And finallie God talking to a soule that hath oftentimes fallen most infinitelie offended him he saith thus it is a common receaued speech that if a womā depart from her husbād and doe ioine her self to an other man she may not returne to her first husband againe for that she is defiled and made contaminate And yet wheras thou hast departed from me and hast committed fornication with many other louers doe thou returne vnto me againe and I wil receaue the saith almightie God By which wordes is expressed the fowerth vniuersalitie containing al states qualities and conditions of men how many waies or how oftentimes or how contemptuouslie soeuer they haue committed sinnes against his diuine Maiestie And what may be added now more vnto this was ther euer prince that made so large an offer vnto his subiectes or was ther euer father that gaue so ample and vniuersal promise of pardō vnto his children Who can now mistrust him self to be excluded from this assurance of mercie wherin al sortes of people al kindes of sinnes al times and seasons al states and qualities of sinners are comprehended O most miserable and infortunate man that excludeth him self whom God excludeth not What is ther in this general and vniuersal promises wherof anie man in the world should haue pretence to make any least doubt or question Of the meaning perhapes and intent of him that promiseth O deare brother it is onlie loue and tharitie and consequentlie can not deceaue vs. Of the truth and suertie of his promisses It is infallible and more certaine then heauen and earth put together Of the power that he hath to perfourme his promisse It is infinite and not restrained by any boundes or limitation wherof thē may we doubt or in which of thes three pointes may we not conceaue most singuler consolation heare the comfortable meditation that blessed S. Bernard made vpon thes three particulers which wee haue now mentioned Tria considero saith he in quibus tota spes mea consistit charitatem vocationis veritatem promissionis potestatem redditionis c. That is I doe consider three thinges saith this holie mā wherin al my hope cōsisteth wherby it is made inuincible First the exceeding loue and charitie of him that calleth me to him by repentance secondlie the infallible truth and certaintie of his promise which he maketh to me of pardon and mercie thirdlie the endles power and abilitie he hath to perfourme whatsoeuer he promiseth This is that triple or threefold rope and chaine which holie scripture saith is hardlie broken for that by this rope let donne vnto vs from heauen which is our contrie into this world that is our prison we may ascende and mount vp if we wil euen vnto the sight and possession of Gods eternal kingdom and heauēlie glorie Thus farre that blessed father But now to the second pointe if we consider how faithfullie almightie God hath put in execution thos promises of his from time to time how no one man vpon earth so many ages as the world hath continued was euer yet frustrate of his hope in making his conuersion vnto his Maiestie if he made it from his hart we shal finde further cause for vs to confide For so much as it is not probable or ī reason to be imagined that he which neuer failed in times past wil breake his promise for the time to come especially seing now in Christianitie when we haue this aduantage aboue other former times as S. Iohn doth also note that he who was and is our iudge is become also our aduouocat to pleade our cause Cast backe thine eyes then my louing deare brother and take a vew of al ages times and seasons past and gone Beginne from the first creation of the world and come donneward euen vnto this daye examine indifferentlie whether in al this wide compasse of times persons places most greeuous offences committed against his diuine Maiestie ther were euer yet any one sinner vpon earth that returned vnsay nedlie and was not receaued The sinne of our first parentes was presentelie forgeuen vnto them vpon their first signification of greefe and sorowe for the same And not onlie this but our Saueour also Iesus Christ was promissed to be sent for restoring them and their posteritie to the glorie and felicitie which by their fal they had lost After this vntil the time of Abraham and of the people of Israel as some workes of Gods iustice are recorded in holie writ that were excercised vpon irrepentant offendours so are ther many more celebrated of his mercie and onlie two persons in particuler are mentioned who notwithstanding some sorow which they seemed to haue of their offences were yet reiected the first wherof was the murderer Cain who at the beginning denied his wickednes vnto God and then being conuicted despaired of remission The second was Esau whom S. Paul calleth a profane fornicator who
God which in them selues are most iust reasonable holie and easie Da amantem sayeth S. Austen speaking of this matter sentit quod dico Si autem frigido loquor nescit quid loquar Geue me a man that is in loue with God and he feeleth this to be true which I say but if I talke to a cold Christian he vnderstandeth not what I say And this is the reason whie our blessed Saueour talking of the keeping of his commandementes repeateth manie times this word LOVE as the onelie sure ground wheron their whole regard reuerēce obseruation depēdeth for want of which loue among men in this life the most part of the world neither respecteth nor keepeth them And herehence it is that in the same our Saueour vseth thes and other like speeches If you doe loue me then keepe my commandementes And againe he that hath my commandementes and keepeth them he is he that loueth me And yet further He vvhich loueth me vvil keepe my commandement and he that loueth me not keepeth not my commandementes In which last wordes some doe note that to him that loueth he sayeth his commandement in the singular number for that to such a one al his commandmentes are but one commandement according to the saying of S. Paul That loue alone is the fulfilling of al the lavv for that it comprehendeth al in al. But to him that loueth not Christ saieth his commandmentes in the plural number signifying thereby that they are both many and heauie to him for that he wanteth loue which should make them few and easie The effect of which point S. Iohn also expresseth when he sayeth this is the loue of God vvhen vve keepe his commādementes and his commandementes are not heauie That is to say they are notthing heauie to him which hath loue otherwise no maruaile though they be most heauie for that euerie thing appeareth burdenous and intollerable which we doe against our liking and so by this also deare Christian brother thou maiest make a coniecture whether the true loue of thie Lord and Saueour be in thee or not AND THESE ARE two meanes wherby the life of vertuous men is made easie in this world There folow diuers other to the end that thes negligent excusers may see how vniust vntrue their excuse is concerning the pretended hardnes of liuing in Gods seruice Which in verie deede is indued with infinit priuileges of cōfort aboue the life of most prosperous sinners euē in this world Wherof the next that I wil name for exāple sake is a certaine special and peculiar light of vnderstanding pertaining to the iust and called in scripture prudentia sanctorum the wisdome of Saintes which is nothing els but a certaine sparkle of heauenlie wisdome bestowed by singular priuilege vpō the vertuous for their direction in this life wherby they receaue most comfortable light and vnderstanding in spiritual affairs touching their owne and other mens saluation and in thinges necessarie therunto Of which knowledge the prophet Dauid meant whē he saied not as mihi fecisti vias vitae thou hast made the waies of life knowen vnto me as also whē he said of him self Super senes intellexi I haue vnderstood more then old men And againe in an other place Incerta occulta sapientiae tuae manisestasti mihi thou hast opened to me the vnknowen and hidden secretes of thy wisdome This is that most excellent light wherwith S. Iohn saieth that Christ our Saue our lighteneth his true seruantes as also that vnction of the Holie Ghost which the same Apostle teacheth to be geuen to the godlie thereby to instruct thē in al thinges behoofful for their saluation This is in like maner that writing of Gods law in mens hartes which he promised by the prophet Ieremie so long agoe to be performed in the time of grace as also the instruction of men immediatlie from God him self fortold by the prophet Esaye And finallie this is that soueraine vnderstanding in the law commandementes and iustifications of almightie God which holy Dauid so much desired and so often demānded in that most diuine Psalme which beginneth with this vehement protestatiō Blessed are the vnsputted in the vvay that is in this life and blessed are al sucb as doe vvalke in Gods lavv By this heauenlie light of vnderstanding by this supernal illumination imparted to the good for their direction the way of vertue is made very easie and passing comfortable For as in bodilie sight and in viages of this world it falleth out that he which hath good eyes and seeth perfectelie goeth on his way with far greater alacritie ioy securitie then doth an other that either lacketh that sense or hath it very dimme So in the course of our soule in this life it is of no lesse importance and comfort but rather of much more for a mā to haue this celestial vnderstānding for gouerning him self to his saluation that is to know what he doth see wher he walketh discerne wither he goeth cōceaue what he expecteth and to be in that happie state wherof S. Paul saith that a spiritual ma is able to iudge of al thinges Whereas in the meane space the carnal and sensual man as the same Apostle testifieth is so blind as he cā neither see nor conceaue tbe thinges that are of Gods spirit Of which sort of men the Prophet Esay saith in their owne person expressing their miserie vve haue groped like as blinde men doe for the vvalle and vve haue stumbled at middaye euen as if it bad bene in darkenesse By which wordes is set forth vnto vs the exceeding great calamitie of wicked men who see not wher they goe what state they are in how farr of or how neare they are to perdition but doe liue in continual darkenes and most vncomfortable blindnes which they cōfesse also in an other place of holie scripture saing the light of iustice hath not shined vnto vs and the sonne of vnderstanding hath not appeared to our eyes vve are vveried in the vvay of iniquities The lacke then of this heuenlie light is wearisome miserable vnto the wicked and consequentlie the inioying therof most comfortable to the vertuous NOVV THEN to proceed an other principal matter which maketh the waye of vertue easie and pleasant to them that walke therein is a certaine hidden and secret consolation which God-poureth into the hartes of them that trulle serue him I call it secret and hidden for that it is knowen to none but to such onelie as haue felt and receaued part therof For which cause Christ him self calleth it hidden manna knovven to them alone that doe inioye it To which effect also the Prophet Dauid said to almightie God Great is the multitude of thy svveetnes o Lord vvhich thou haste laid up and hidden for them that feare thce And againe in an other place
for where as the wiseman saieth the hope of vvicked men shal perish Iob saieth the hope of hypocrites shal perish calling wicked men hypocrites for that they say they put their hope in God where as in deede they put it in the world Which thing not only Scripture but also experience teacheth For with whom doeth the wicked man consult in his affaires and doubtes with God principallie or with the world to whom doeth he seeke in his afflictions whom doeth he cal vpon in his sickenes from whom hopeth he to receiue comfort in his aduersities to whom yeeldeth he thankes in his prosperities When a worldly man taketh in hande any worke of importance doeth he first consult with God about the euent thereof doeth he fal downe on his knees and aske his aide doeth he referre it wholie or principallie vnto his honour if he doe not how can he hope for aide therein at his hādes how can he repaire to hym for assistance in the daungers and lettes that fal out about the same how can he haue any cōfidence in hym which hath no part at al in that woorke It is hypocrisie then as Iob truely saieth for this man to affirme that his confidence is in God whereas in deede it is in the world it is in Pharao it is in Egypt it is in the arme of man it is in a lie He buildeth not his house with the wise man vpon a rocke but with the foole vpon the sandes and therfore as Christ wel assureth him vvhen the rayne shal come and studdes descend vvindes blovv al together shal rush vpō that house which shal be at the hower of his death thē shal this house sal the sal of it shal be great Great for the great chaunge which he shal see great for the great horrour which he shal conceaue great for the great miserie which he shal suffer great for the vnspeakable ioyes of heauen lost great for the eternal paines of hel incurred great euery way assure thy self deare brother or els the mouth of God would neuer haue vsed this word Great And this is sufficiēt for the first reason why the hope of wicked men is vaine for that in deede they put it not in God but in the world The second reason is for that albeit they should put their hope in God yet liuing wickedlie it is vaine and rather to be called presumption than hope For vnderstanding wherof it is to be noted that as there are two kindes of faithes recounted in holy scripture the one a deade faieth without good woorkes that is which beleeueth al you say of Christ but yet obserueth not his commaundementes the other a liuelie iustifying faieth which beleeueth not onelie but also woorketh by charitie as S. Paules woordes are So are there two hopes folowing these two faithes the one of the good proceeding of a good conscience where of I haue spoken before the other of the wicked resting in a guiltie conscience which is in deede no true hope but rather presumption This S. Iohn proueth plainlie when he saieth Brethren if our hart reprehend vs not then haue vve confidēce vvith God That is if our harte be not guiltie of wicked life And the wordes immediatlie folowing doe more plainly expresse the same which are these VVhat so euer vve aske vve shal receaue of hym for that vve keepe his commaundementes and doe those thinges vvhich are pleasing in his sight The same confirmeth S. Paule when he saieth that the end of Gods commaundementes is charitie frō a pure harte and a good conscience Which wordes S. Austen expounding in diuers places of his workes proueth at large that without a good conscience there can no true hope be conceaued S. Paul saieth he addeth from a good conscience because of hope for he vvhich hath the scruple of an euil conscience dispareth to attaine that vvhich he beleeueth And againe Euery mans hope is in his ovvne conscience according as he feeleth hym self to loue God And againe in an other booke the Aposlle putteth a good conscience for hope for he onelie hopeth vvhich hath a good conscience and he vvhom the guilt of aneuil conscience doeth pricke retireth backe from hope and hopeth nothing but his ovvne damnatiō I might here repeate a great many more priuileges prerogatiues of a vertuous life which make the same easie pleasant and comfortable but that this chapiter groweth to be long and therfore I wil onelie touche as it were in passing bie two or three other pointes of the most principal vvhich notwithstāding would require large discourses to declare the same according to their dignities THE FIRST wher of is the inestimable priuilege of libertie freedome which the vertuous doe enioy aboue the wicked accordig as Christ pmiseth i thes words If you abide i my cōmademēts you shal be my scholers in deed you shal knovv the truth and the truth shal set you free Which wordes S. Paul as it were expounding saieth vvhere the spirit of our Lord is there is freedome And this freedome is meant from the tyranny and thraldome of our corrupt sensualitie and concupisēce called by diuines the inferior parte of our minde whereunto the wicked are so in thraldome as neuer was any bondslaue more to a most mercilesse cruel and bloody tyrant This in part may be conceaued by this one example If a man had married a riche beautiful and noble gentlevvoman adorned with al induments which might be deuised or desired in that sexe and yet notwithstanding should be so sotted entangled with the loue of some foule and dishonest begger or seruile maide of his house as for her sake to abandone the company friendship of his saied wife to spende his time in daliance and seruice of this base houswife to rūne to goe to stād stil at her appointment to put al his liuing and reuenues into her handes for her to consume and spoile at her pleasure to deny her nothing but to waite and serue her at a becke yea and to compel his saide wife to doe the same wolde you not think this mans life miserable and most seruile And yet surely the maner of seruitude whereof we talke is farre greater and more intolerable than this For no woman or other creature in this world is or can be of that beautie or nobilitie that ladie Reason is to whom mā by his creatiō was espoused which notwithstanding we see abandoned contemned and reiected by hym for the loue of Sensualitie her hand-maid a most deformed creature in respect of reason in whose loue notwithstanding or rather seruitude we see wicked men so drouned as they serue her day and night with al paines perils and expenses and doe constraine also reason her self to be subiect to al the beckes and commaundementes of this new tirannical and vile mistresse For wherefore doe they labour wherefore doe they watch wherfore doe
which should haue many children crying to her at once for meate she hauing no bread at al or not sufficient to breake vnto them so the wicked man being greedilie called vpon without ceasing by almost infinit passions to yeld vnto their desires must needes be vexed and pitifullie tormēted especiallie being not able to satisfie any one of the least of their petitions An other cause of vexation in thes mē is for that thes passions of disordinate concupiscence be oftentimes contrarie the one to the other and doe demāde most opposite and contrarie thinges representing vnto vs most liuelie the confusion of Babel where one tongue spake against an other and that in diuerse and contrarie languages So we see oftentimes that the desire of honour saieth to his maister spend here but the passion of auarice saieth hold thy handes Lecherie saieth venture here But pride saieth No it may turne thee to dishonour Anger saieth reuenge thy self here but ambition saieth it is better to dissemble And finallie here is fulfilled that which the prophet saieth vidi iniquitatem contradictionem in ciuitate I haue seene iniquitie and contradictiō in the self same citie Iniquitie for that al the demandes of thes passions are most vniust for so much as they are against reason her self Contradictiō for that one contradicteth the other in their demandes From al which miseries God hath deliuered the iuste by geuing them his peace vvhich passeth al vnderstanding as the Apostle saieth and which the world can nether geue nor taste of as Christ hym self affirmeth And thus many causes may be alleaged now besides many other which I passe ouer to iustifie the veritie of our Saue ours wordes affirming that his yoke is svveet and easie to wit the assistance of grace the loue of God the light of vnderstanding the internal consolation the quiet of cōscience the confidēce therof proceeding the libertie of soule and bodie with the sweet rest and peace of our spirites both towardes God our neighbours and our selues By al which meanes helpes priuileges and singuler benefites the vertuous are assisted aboue the wicked as hath bene shewed and their way made easie light and pleasant TO AL VVHICH yet we may adioine one other great priuilege as the last but not the least comfort to them that walke vnder the yoke of Christs seruice and this is the promise and most assured expectation of reward to wit of eternal glorie and felicitie to the good and of euerlasting damnation and tormētes vnto the wicked O good God what a matter is this to comfort the one if their life were paineful and to afflict the other amiddest their greatest pleasures and swetest delectations The labourer when he thinketh of his good paye at night is encouraged to goe thorough with the heat of the day though it be painful vnto hym Two that should passe together towardes their countrie the one to receaue honour for good seruice done abrod th' other as prisoner to be arraigned of treasons committed in forraine dominions against his Soueraigne could not be alike merie in their inne vpon the way For albeit he that stood in danger should sing or make shew of courage and comfort and set a good face vpon the matter yet th' other might wel thinke that his hart had many a cold pul within hym as no doubt but al wicked men haue when they think with themselues of the life to come If Ioseph and Pharaos baker had knowē both their distinct lottes in prison to wit that on such a day one should be called furth to be made Lord of Egypt and th' other to be hanged vpon a paire of new gallowes they could hardly haue bene alike merie whiles they liued together in the time of their imprisonmēt The like may be sayed and much more truely of vertuous and wicked men in this world For when the one sorte doe but thinke vpon the day of death which to thē is to be the day of their deliuerance from this prison their hartes can not but leape for verie ioye considering what is her after to ensew vnto thē But th' other are afflicted and doe fal into melancholie and extreme desolation as oftē as mention or remembrāce of death is offered for that they are sure that it bringeth with it their eternal bane according as holy scripture saieth The vvicked mā being dead there remaineth no more hope vnto hym Wel then deare Christian brother if al thes thinges be so what should stay thee now at length to make this resolution wherunto I exhort thee wilt thou yet say notwithstanding al this that the matter is hard and the way vnpleasant or wilt thou beleeue others that tel the so albeit they know lesse of the matter then thy self Beleeue rather the word and promisse of thy Sauiour Christ which assureth thee the contrarie Beleeue the reasons before alleaged which doe proue it most euidentlie Beleeue the testimonies of them which haue experienced the matter in them selues as king Dauid S. Paul S. Iohn Euangelist and others whos testimonies I haue alleaged before cōcerning their owne proofe Beleeue many hundredes which by the holy grace of God are conuerted day lie in Christendome frō vicious life to the perfect seruice of their Lord al which doe protest that them selues haue found much more facilitie and comfort thē ether I haue said in this place or can say in the matter And for that perhaps thou mayest replie that such men as haue experiēced this in them selues are not now liuing in the place wher thou art to geue this testimonie of their owne experience I can and doe assure thee vpon my consciēce before almightie God that I haue had conserēce with no smal number of such persons my self and that to my singuler comfort in beholding the strong hand and exceeding bountifulnesse of Gods sweetnes towards them in this case Oh deare brother no tongue can expresse what I haue seene herin and yet sawe I not the least part of that which they inwardly felte But yet this may I say that they that attend in the Catholique Church to deale with soules in the holy sacrament of Confession are in deed thos of whom the prophet saieth that they vvorke in multitudes of vvaters and doe see the maruailes of God in the depth In the depth I say of mens conscieuces vttered with infinit multitudes of teares whē God toucheth the same with his holy grace Beleeue me good reader for I speake in truth before our Lord IESVS I haue seene so great and exceeding consolations in diuers great sinners after their conuersion as no hart can almost cōceaue and the hartes which receaued thē were hardlie able to-containe the same so abundātlie distilled doune that heauēlie dewe from the most liberal and bounteful hand of God And that this may not seme strange vnto thee thou must know that it is recorded of one holy man called
This was a feigned labour in a commandement For Isaac being offered he was not killed but sanctified therby Thou therfore if thou heare the voice of God within thy hart willing thee to offer vp Isaac which signifieth ioy or laughter feare not to obey it faith fuilie and constantlie What soeuer thy corrupt affection iudgeth of the matter be thousecure Not Isaac but the Ramme shal die for it thy ioy shal not perish but thy stubburnes onelie whose hornes are entangled with thornes and can not be in thee without the prickinges of anxietie Thy Lord doth but tempt the as he did Abraham to see what thou wilt doe Isaac that is thy ioy in this life shal not die as thou imaginest but shal liue onelie he must be lifted vp vpon the wood to the end thy ioy may be on high and that thou maiest glorie not in thine owne flesh but onelie in the crosse of thy Lord by whom thy self also art crucified crucified I say but crucified to the world for vnto God thou liuest stil and that much more then thou diddest before THE THIRD IMPEDIMENT THAT STAYETH DIVERS MEN FROM REsolution in Gods seruice VVhich is the feare they conceaue of persecutution affliction losse danger or tribulation CHAPT III. THER want not many persons in the world who either moued by the reasons and considerations before recited or conuicted by their owne experience for that they behold daily no smal numbers of godly persons to liue as contentedly as them selues doe yeld thus much vnto vertuous life that in very deed they esteeme the same to be easie and pleasant inough to such as are once entered in therunto And that in good sooth for their owne partes they could be content to embrace and folow the same if they might doe it with quiet and peace of al handes But yet to request them vnto it in such time or place or with such order and circumstances as tribulation affliction or persecution may fal vpon them for the same they think it a matter vnreasonable to be demaunded and them selues verie excusable both before God and man for refusing it But this excuse deare brother is no better then the other going before of the pretēded difficultie for that it standeth vpon a false ground as also vpō an vniust illation or consequent inforced vpō that ground The ground is this that a man may liue vertuouslie and serue God truelie with al worldlie ease without any affliction tribulation or persecution which is false For that albeit external contradictions and persecutions be more in one time then in an other more in this place then in that yet can there not be any time or place without some both external and internal Which although as I haue shewed before in respect of the manifold helpes and consolations sent from God in cōterpoise of the same they seeme not heauie nor vnpleasant vnto the godlie yet are they in them selues both great and weightie as would appeare if they fel vpon the wicked and impatient Secondlie the illation and consequēce made vpon this ground is vniust for that it alleageth tribulation as a sufficient reason to abandone Gods seruice which God him self hath ordained for a meane to the contrary effect that is to draw men therby vnto his seruice and from the seruice of the world For better declaratiō wherof the matter being of verie great importance I wil handle in this chapter thes fower pointes insuing First whether it be ordinarie for al that must be saued to suffer some kinde of persecution tribulation or affliction that is whether this be appointed an ordinary or vsual meane of mans saluation in this life Secōdlie what are the causes whie God louing vs as he doth wold chuse appoint thes sharpe meanes of our saluation Thirdlie what principal reasons of cōfort a man may haue in his tribulations and afflictions Fourthlie what is required at his hādes in hat state which fower pointes being declared I doubt not but great light shal appeare in this whole matter which seemeth to flesh and blood to be so ful of darknes and improbabilities The first part AND TOVCHING the first there needeth litle proofe for that Christ him self hath affirmed to his Disciples by them to al other his seruantes In mundo pressuram sustinebitis In the world you shal sustaine affliction And in an other place In your patience shal you possesse your soules that is to say by suffering patientlie the aduersities that shal be layd vpon you which S. Paul yet vttereth more plainlie when he sayeth Al they that vvil liue godlie in Iesus Christ shal suffer persecution Yf al then none can be excepted And to signifie yet further the necessitie of this matter bothe S. Paul and Barnabas also did teach as S. Luke reporteth that vve of necessitie must enter into the kingdome of God by many tribulations vsing the worde oportet which signifieth a certaine necessitie And Christ him self yet more plainly reuealeth this secret whē he sayeth to S. Iohn th' Euangelist that he chastiseth al those vvhō he loueth Which wordes S. Paul as it were expounding to the hebrewes sayeth flagellat omnem filium quē recipit he whippeth euery child whom he receaueth And S. Paul vrgeth this matter so farre in that place as he affirmeth plainlie al those to be bastardes and no children of God who are not afflicted by him in this life The same position he holdeth to Timothie Si sustinemus conregnabimus if we suffer with Christ we shal raigne with Christ not otherwise Wherin also cōcurreth holie Dauid when he sayeth Multe tribulationes iustorum The iust are appointed to many tribulations The same might be proued by many other meanes as by that our Sauiour sayeth He came not to bring peace but the svvord into the vvorld Also by that S. Paul sayeth That no man can be crovvned except he fight laufullie But how can we fight if we haue no enemie to oppugne vs The same signifieth Christ in the Apocalips when he repeateth so often that heauē is onelie for him that conquereth The verie same is signified by the shippe wherinto Christ entered with his disciples which was tossed and tumbled as if it wold haue bene drouned this I saie by al the auncient Fathers exposition was a figure of the troubles and afflictions that al they should suffer which doe saile in the same shippe with Christ our sauiour The same also is proued in that the life of man is called a warfare vpon earthe and by that he is appointed to labour and trauaile while he is here also in that his life is replenished with many miseries euen by the appointement of almightie God after mans fal The same also is shewed in that that God hath appointed euery man to passe through the paines of death before he come to ioye In like maner by the infinite
contradictions and tribulations bothe within and without left vnto man in this life As for exāple within are the rebellions of his concupiscence other miseries of his minde wherwith he hath continualie to make warre if he wil saue his soule Without are the world and the deuil which doe neuer cease to assault him now by faire meanes and now by foule now by flatterie now by threates now alluring by pleasure and promotion now terrefying by affliction and persecution Against al which the good Christian hathe to resist manfullie or els he leeseth the crowne of his eternal saluation The verie same thing also may be shewed by the examples of al the most renowned saintes from the begining who were not onelie assaulted internallie with the rebellion of their owne flesh but also persecuted afflicted outwardlie by diuerse aduersities therby to confirme more manifestlie this purpose of almightie God vnto vs. This we see in Abel persecuted and slaine by his owne brother as sone as euer he begāne to serue God sincerly The same we see in Abrahā afflicted diuerslie after he was once chosen by almightie God Of the same cuppe dranke al his children and posteritie that succeded him in Gods fauour as Isaac Iacob Ioseph Moyses and al the prophetes of whom Christ him self geueth testimonie how their blood was shed most cruellie by the world The affliction also of Iob is wonderful seing the scripture affirmeth it to haue come vpon him by Gods special appointement he being a most iust man But yet more wonderful was the afflictiō of holie Tobias who among other calamities was stricken blinde by the falling doune of swallowes dung into his eyes of which the Angel Raphael tolde him afterwarde Because thou vvere a man grateful to God therefore it vvas of necessitie that this tentation should proue thee Beholde the necessitie of afflictions to good men I might adde to this the example of Dauid and others but that S. Paul geueth a general testimonie of al the saintes of the olde testament saying That some were racked some reproched some whiped some chained some imprisoned other were stoned cut in peeces tempted and slaine with the sword some went about in heare clothe in skinnes of goates in great neede pressed and afflicted wandering and hyding them selues in wildernesses in hilles in caues and holes vnder grounde the worlde not being woorthie of them Of al which he prononceth this comfortable sentence to be noted of al men Non suscipientes redemptionem vt meliorem inuenirent resurrectionem That is God wolde not deliuer them from these afflictions in this life to the end their resurrection and rewarde in the life to come might be more glorious And this of the saintes of the olde testament But now in the new testament founded expresselie vpon the crosse the matter standeth much more plaine and that with great reason For if Christ could not goe into his glorie but by suffering as holy scripture affirmeth then by the most reasonable rule of Christ affirming that the seruant hathe not priuilege aboue his maister it must needes in reason folowe that al haue to drinke of Christes cuppe which are appointed to be partakers of his glorie And for proofe herof looke vpon the dearest frendes that euer our Sauiour had in this life see whether they had parte therof or no Of his mother old Simeon prophesied and tolde her at the beginning that the svvorde of tribulatiōs should pearce her harte signifying therby the extreme afflictions that she felt afterward in the death of her sonne and other miseries heaped vpon her Of the Apostles it is euident that besides al their labours trauailes needes sufferinges persecutions and calamities which were infinite and in mans sight intolerable if we beleue S. Paul recoūting the same besides al this I saye God wold not be satisfied except he had their blood also spent in his seruice and so we see that he suffered none of them al to die naturallie or in his bed but onelie S. Iohn by a special priuilege particulerlie granted to him from Christ albeit if we consider what S. Iohn also suffered in so long a life as he liued being banished by Domitian to Pathmos at an other time thrust into a tonne of hoate boyling oyle at Rome as Tertulian and S. Ierome doe reporte we shal see that his parte also was no lesse then others in this cuppe of his maister I might reckō vp here infinite other exāples but it needeth not for it may suffice that Christ hathe geuen this general rule in the new testament He that taketh not vp his crosse and folovveth me is not vvoorthie of me By which is resolued plainelie that there is no saluation now to be had but onely for them that take vp that is doe beare willingly their proper crosses and therwith doe folow their captaine walking on with his crosse vpon his shoulders before them But here perhappes some man may say if this be so that no man can be saued without a crosse that is without afflictiō and tribulation how doe al thos that liue in peacible times and places where no persecution is no trouble no affliction or tribulatiō To which I answere first that if there were any such time or place the mā liuing therein should be in verie great danger according to the saying of the prophet they are not in the labours of other men nor yet vvhipped punished as others are and therfore pride possessed thē and they vvere couered vvith iniquitie and impietie and their iniquitie proceeded of their fatnesse or abundāce Besides this albeit men suffered nothing in this life yet as S. Austen largelie proueth if they died out of the state of mortal sinne they might be saued by suffering the purging fire in the next according to the saying of S. Paul that such as build not gold or siluer vpon the true foundation but wood straw or stuble shal receaue dammage thereof at the day of our Lord to be reueiled in fire but yet by that fire they shal be saued Secōdlie I answer that there is no time and place so voide of tribulation but that there is alwaies a crosse to be found for them that wil take it vp For euer is there either pouertie sicknesse slaunder enemitie iniurie contradiction or some like affliction offered continually For that thos mē neuer want in the world wherof the prophet saied They that doe render euil for good did detract me for that I folovved goodnesse At the least wise there neuer wāt thos domestical enemies of which our Sauiour Christ for warneth vs I meane ether our kinred and carnal friends who commonly resist vs if we beginne once throughly to serue almightie God or els our owne disordinate affections which are the most perilous enemies of al other for that they make vs warre vpō our own ground Again there neuer want
as the scripture saith to purge and fine the soule as fire purgeth fineth gold in the fornace For besides the purging and remouing of greater sinnes by consideration and contrition which tribulation woorketh as hath bene shewed it purgeth also the ruste of infinite euil passions appetites and humours in man as the humour of pride of vaine glorie of slouth of choler of delicate nisenes and a thousand more which prosperitie ingendreth in vs. This God declareth by the prophet Ezechiel saying of a rustie soule put her naked vpon the hote coles and let her heate there vntil her brasse be melted from her and vntil her corruption be burned owt and her ruste cōsumed There hath bene much labour and sweate taken about her and yet her ouer much ruste is not gone out of her This also signifieth holy Iob when hauing sayed that God instructeth a man by discipline or correction to the end he may turne him from the thinges that he hath done and deliuer him from pride which is vnderstoode of his sinful actes he addeth a litle after the maner of this purgation saying his flesh being consumed by punismentes let him returne againe to the daies of his youth That is al his fleshlie humours palsions being now consumed by punishmentes and tribulations let him beginne to liue againe in such puritie of soule as he did at the beginning of his youth before he had contracted these euil humours and diseases by prosperitie NETHER ONELIE is tribulation a strong medicine to heale sinne and to purge awaye the refuse metalles in vs of brasse tinne yron lead and drosse as almightie God by Ezechiel sayeth but also a most excellent preseruatiue against sinne for the time to come According as good king Dauid saied thy discipline o Lord hath corrected me for euermore That is to say it it hath made me wary and watchful not to commit sinne againe according as the scripture sayeth in an other place Agrenous infirmitie or afflictiō maketh the soule sober For which cause the prophet Ieremie calleth tribulation virgam vigilantem A watcheful rodde that is as S. Ierome expoundeth it a rodde that maketh a man watchful The same signified God when he saied by Ose the prophet I vvil hedge in thy vvaye vvith thornes That is I wil so close thy life on euerie side with the remembrance and feare of affliction that thou shalt not dare to treade awrie lest thou treade vpō a thorne Al which good Dauid expresseth of him self in these wordes before I was humbled broght lowe by affliction I did sinne and offend the ô Lord but after that time I haue kept thy commandementes OF THIS ALSO appeareth yet an other cause why God afflicteth his elect in this life and that is to preuent his iustice vpon them in the world to come I mean that Iustice which otherwise remaineth to be executed vpon euery one after their departure hence in that most greuous purging fire wherof I spake before Touching which S. Barnard sayeth thus Oh vvold to God some man vvolde novv before hand prouide for my head abundance of vvaters and to mine eyes a fountaine of teares for so happely the burning fire should take no hold vvhere running teares had clensed before And the reason of this is as that holy man him self noteth after for that God hath said by Naum the prophet I haue afflicted the once and I vvil not afflict thee againe there shal not come from me a double tribulation SIXTHLIE God sendeth tribulation vpō his seruants to examine proue them therby whether they be fatheful constant or no that is to make thē selues and other men see and confesse how faithful or vnfaithful they are This in figure was signified when Isaac wold grope and touche his sonne Iacob before he wold blesse him And this the scripture expresseth plainlie when talking of the tribulations layed vpon Abraham it addeth tentauit Deus Abraham God tempted Abraham by these meanes to proue him And Moyses saied to the people of Israel Thou shalt remember hovv thy God ledde thee fortie yeres about the desert to afflict thee and tempt thee to the end it might appeare vviat vvas in thy hart vvhether thou vvoldest keept bis commandemētes or na And againe a fewe chapters after Your God and Lord doth tempt you to the end it may be manifest vvhether you loue him or no vvith al your hart and vvith al your soule In which sense also the scripture sayeth of Ezechras after many praises geuen vnto him that God left him sor a time to be tempted that the thoughtes of his hart might therby be made manifest And that this is Gods fashion towards al good men king Dauid sheweth in the persone of al when he sayeth Thou hast proued vs ò Lord thou hast examined vs by fire thou hast layed tribulation vpon our backes and hast brought men vpon our heades And yet how wel he liked of this matter he signifieth when he calleth for more therof in an other place saying Trie me ò Lord and tempt me burne my reines and hart vvithin me That is trie me by the way of tribulation and persecution search out the secretes of my hart and reines let the world see whether I wil sticke to the in aduersitie or no. Thus sayed that holie prophet wel knowing that which in an other place the holy Ghost vttereth that as the fornace trieth the potters vessels so tribulation trieth men For as the sounde vessels onelic do hold when they come to the fornace and thos which are crased doe breake in peeces so in time of tribulation and persecution the vertuous onely stand to it and the counterfeit bewraye them selues according to the saying of Christ In tempore tentationis recedunt They depart from me in time of temptation THE SEVENTH reason whie God layeth tribulation vpon the vertuous is therby to make them runne vnto him for aide helpe euen as the mother to make her child to loue her more and to runne vnto her procureth the same to be made afearde and terrified by others This God expresseth plainlie by the prophet Ole saying of them that he loued I vvil dravv thē vnto me in the ropes of Adam in the chaines of loue and vvil seeme vnto them as though I raysed a yoke vpon their iavv bones By the ropes of Adam he meaneth affliction wherby he drew Adam to know him self as also appeareth by that he addeth of the heauy yoke of tribulation which he wil lay vpon the heades and faces of his seruantes as chaines of loue therby to draw them vnto him This chaine had drawen Dauid vnto him when he saied O Lord thou art my refuge from the tribulation of sinners As also thos wherof Elay saieth they saught the out ò Lord in their affliction Also thos of whom Dauid saied Infirmities vvere
multiplied vpon them and after that they made hast to come And God saieth generallie of al good men They vvil rise betimes in the morning and come to me in their tribulation Wherfore holy king Dauid desiring the weale of certaine men and to winne them to God saieth in one of his psalmes Fil their faces o Lord vvith shame and confusion and then vvil they seeke vnto thy name And this is true as I said in the elect and chosen seruantes of God But in the reprobate this rope draweth not this yoke holdeth not nor doth this chaine of loue winne them vnto God wherof God him self complaineth saying In vaine haue I stricken your children for they haue not receaued my discipline And againe the prophet Ieremie saieth of them to God thou hast crushed them and they haue refused to receaue thy discipline they haue hardened their faces euen as a rocke and vvil not returne to thee Behold they haue rent the yoke and broken the chaines OF THIS NOVV ensueth an eight reason why God bringeth his seruantes into affliction to wit therby to shew his power and loue in deliuering them For as in this world a princelie mind desireth nothing more thē to haue occasiō wherby to shew his habilitie good wil vnto his deare frend so God almightie which hath al occasions in his owne handes and passeth al his creatures together in greatnesse of loue and nobilitie of mind worketh purposely diuers occasions and opportunities wherby to shew and exercise she same So he brought the three childrē into the burning fornace therby to shew his power and loue in deliuering them So he brought Daniel into the liōs dēne Susanna vnto the point of death Iob into extreme miserie Ioseph into prison Tobie vnto blindnes therby to shew his power and loue in their deliuerance For this cause also did Christ suffer the shippe to be almost drouned before he would awake S. Peter to be almost vnder water before he would take him by the hande AND OF THIS one reason many other reasons and most comfortable causes doe appeare of Gods dealing herin As first that we being deliuered from our afflictions might take more ioy and delite thereof then if we had neuer suffered the same For as water is more grateful to the waiefaring man after a long drouth a calme more pleasant vnto passingers after a troublesome tempest so is our deliuerie more sweet after persecution or tribulation according as the scripture saieth Speciosa misericordia Dei in tempore tribulationis the mercie of God is beautiful and pleasant in time of tribulation This signified also our Sauiour whē he saied your sorovv shal be turned into ioy that is you shal reioice that euer you were sorowful This had Dauid proued when he saied thy redie o Lord and thy staffe haue comforted me that is I take great comfort that euer I was chastised with them And againe according to the multitude of my sorovves thy consolations haue made ioiful my mind That is for euery sorow that I receaued in time of afflictiō I receaue now a consolation after my deliuerance And again in an other place I vvil exult and reioice in thy mercie ô Lord. And wherfore good king wilt thou so reioice it foloweth immediatly For that thou hast respected my abasement and hast deliuered my soule frō the necessitie vvherin shee vvas and hast not left me in the handes of mine enemie This then is one most gracious meaning of our louing and merciful father in afflicting vs for a time to the end our ioy may be the greater after our deliuerance as no doubt but it was in al thos whom I haue named before deliuered by Gods mercie I meane Abrahā Ioseph Daniel Sidrach Misach and Abdenago Susanna Iob Thobias Peter and the rest who tooke much more ioy after their deliuerance then if they had neuer bene in affliction at al. When Iudith had deliuered Bethulia and returned thither with Holofernes head there was more hartie ioy in that citie then euer there would haue bene if it had not bene in distresse When S. Peter was deliuered out of prison by the Angel there was more ioy for his deliuerance in the Church then could haue bene if he had neuer bene in prison at al. OVT of this great ioy resulteth an other effect of our tribulation much pleasant to God and comfortable to our selues and that is a most hartie and earnest thankesgeuing to our Lord for our deliuerance such as the prophet vsed when he saied after his deliuerance I for my part vvil sing of thy strength and vvil exalt thy mercie betimes in the morning for that thou hast bene my aider and refuge in the daey of my tribulation Such hartie thankes and praise did the childrē of Israel yeeld to God for their deliuerance when they were passed ouer the read sea in that notable song of theirs which beginneth Cantemus domino and is registred by Moyses in Exodus From like hartie affect came also thos songes of Anna Debora and Iudith moued therunto by the remembrance of their afilictions past And finally this is one of the cheefest things that God esteemeth and desireth at our hādes as he testefieth by the prophet saying cal vpon me in the day of tribulation I vvil deliuer thee and thou shall honour me BESIDES AL thes effects God hath yet further reasons of laying persecution vpon vs as for example to the end that by suffering perceiuing in deed Gods certaine assistance and consolation therin we may come to be so hardie bold and constant in his seruice as nothing afterward can dismay vs. Euē as Moyses albeit he were first afeard of the serpent that was made of his rodd and so fled away from it yet afterwardes whē he by Gods commandement had once taken it vp by the taile he feared it no more This the prophet Dauid expresseth notablie whē he saieth God hath bene our refuge and strēgth and helper in our great tribulations and therfore vve vvil not feare if the vvhole earth should be troubled and the mountaines cast into the middest of the sea What greater considence can be imagined then this AGAINE by persecution afflictiō God bringeth his children to the exercise and perfect possession of al the holy vertues belonging to a Christian man As for example faith is exercised in time of tribulation by considering the causes of Gods permission and beleeuing most assuredlie the promises he hath made for our deliuerance Hope is exercised in conceauing assuring our selues of the rewards promised to thē that suffer patiently Charitie is exercised in considering the loue of Christ suffering for vs and therby proueketh the afflicted to suffer againe for him Obediece is exercised in cōforming our willes to the wil of Christ. Patience in bearing quietlie
wrake A day and a night was I in the bottome of the sea oftentimes in iourneys in dangers of fluddes in dāgers of theeues in dangers of Iewes in dāgers of Gentiles in dangers of the citie in dāgers of wildernes in dangers of sea in dangers of false brethren in labour and trauaile in much watching in hungar and thirst in much fasting in cold and lack of clothes and besides al thes external thinges the matters that dailie doe depēd vpō me for my vniuersal care of al Churches By this we may see now whether Christs holy Apostles taught vs more by wordes then they shewed by their owne examples about the necessitie of suffering in this life Christ might haue prouided for them if he would at leastwise thinges necessarie to their bodies and not haue suffered them to come into thes great extremities of lacking clothes to their backes meate to their mouthes and houses to pat their heades in He that gaue thē authoritie to doe so manie other miracles might haue suffered them also to haue procured sufficient maintenance for their bodies which should be the first miracle that worldly men would worke if they had such authoritie Christ might haue saied to Peter when he sent him to take his tribut from out of the fishes mouth take so much more as wil suffice for your necessary expēces when you trauaile ouer foraine countries But he woulde not nor yet diminish the great afflictions which I haue shewed before though he loued them as dearely as euer he loued his owne soule Al which was done as S. Peter interpreteth to geue vs example what to folow what to looke for what to desire what to comsort our selues in amiddest the greatest of al our tribulatiōs Saint Paul vseth this as a principal consideration when he writeth thus to the Hebrewes vpon the recital of the sufferinges of other saintes before thē Wherfore we also brethren saieth he hauing so great a multitude of witnesses that haue suffered before vs let vs lay of al burdens of sinne hanging vpon vs and let vs runne by patience vnto the battaile offered vs fixing our eyes vpon the authour of our saith and fulfiller of the same IESVS who putting the ioyes of heauen before his eyes sustained patiētly the Crosse contemning the shame and confusion therof and therfore now sitteth at the right hand of the seate of God Thinke vpon him I say which sustained such a contradictiō against him self at the hādes of sinners be not wearie nether faint yee in courage For you haue not yet resisted against sinne vnto blood and you haue for gotten perhaps that comfortable saying which speaketh vnto you as vnto children My sonne doe not contemne the discipline of our Lord and be not vvearie vvhee thou art chastised of him For whom God loueth he chastiseth and he whippeth euery sonne whom he receaueth Perseuer therfore in the correctiō laied vpon you God offereth him self to you as to his children For what child is there whom the father correcteth not if you be out of correction wherof al his children are made partakers then are you bastardes not children Al correction for the present time when it is suffered seemeth vnpleasant and sorowful but yet after it bringeth foorth most quiet fruite of iustice vnto them that are exercised by it Wherfore strengthen vp your wearie handes and loosed knees make way to your feete c. That is take courage vnto you and goe forward valiantly vnder the Crosse laied vpon you This was the exhortation of this holy captaine vnto his countrie man souldiers of IESVS Christ the Iewes Saint Iames the brother of our Lord vseth an other exhortation in his Catholike epistle to al Catholikes not much different from this Be you therfore patient my brethren saith he vntil the cōming of our Lord. Beholde the husbandman expecteth for a time the fruite of the earth so pretious vnto him bearing patientlie vntil he may receaue the same in his season be you therfore patient and comfort your hartes for that the cōming of our Lord wil shortlie draw neere Be not sadde and complaine not one of an other Beholde the Iudge is euen at the gate Take the prophetes for an example of labour and patience who spake vnto vs in the name of God Beholde we account them blessed which haue suffered You haue heard of the sufferance of Iob and you haue seene Isa e that our Lord is merciful and ful of compassion I might here alleage many things more out of the scripture to this purpose for that the scripture is moste copious herein and in verie deed if it should al be melted and poured out it would yeld vs nothing els almost but touching the crosse and patient bearing of tribulatiō in this life But I must end for that this chapter groweth to long as the other did before And therfore I wil onelie for my conclusion set down the confession and most excellent exhortation of olde Mathathias in the time of the cruel persecution of Antiochus against the Iewes The storie is thus reported in the scripture At that time the officers of Antiochus said vnto Mathathias thou art a prince of greatest estate in this citie adorned with children and brethern come thou therfore first and doe the kinges commādement as other men haue done in Iuda and Ierusalem and thou and thy children shal be the kings freends and enriched with gold and siluer and many giftes frō him Wherto Mathathias answered with a loude voice if al nations should obey Antiochus to depart from the obedience of the lawes of their auncestours yet I my children and brethern wil folow the lawes of our fathers Let God be merciful vnto vs at his pleasure c. And the daies came of Mathathias his death and then he saied vnto his children Now is the time that pride is in her strength Now is the time of chastisemēt towardes vs the time of euersion indignation is come Now therfore ô Children be you zelous in the lawe of God yeld vp your liues for the testament of your fathers remember the workes of your auncestours what they haue done in their generations and so shal you receaue great glorie and eternal name Was not Abraham found faithful in time of temptation and it was reputed vnto him for iustice Ioseph in time of his distresse kept Gods commandementes and was made Lord ouer al Egypt Phinees our Father for his zeale towardes the lawe of God receaued the testament of an euerlasting presthode Iosue for that he fulfilled Gods word was made a captaine ouer al Israel Caleb for that he testified in the Church receaued an inheritance Dauid for his mercie obteined the seat of an eternal kingdome Elias for that he was zealous in zeale of the lawe was taken vp to heauen Ananias Azarias and Misael through their beleefe were deliuered from the flame of the fire Daniel for
as Christ here signifieth then to alleage the testimonie proofe of some which hath tasted and proued them al that is to say of such an one as speaketh not only by speculation but also of his owne experience and practise And this is the wise and mightie king Salomon of whom the scripture reporteth wounderful matters touching his peace prosperitie riches glorie in this world as for example that al the kings of the earth desired to see his face for his wisdom and renowned felicitie that al the princes liuing besides were not like him in wealth that he had six hundred sixtie and six talents of gold which is an infinite somme brought him in yerelie besides al other that he had from the kinges of Arabia other princes that siluer was as plentiful with him as heapes of stones and not esteemed for the great store abundaÌ„ce he had therof that his plate and Iewelles had no end that his seat of maiestie with stooles lioÌ„s to beare it vp and other furniture were of gold passing al other kingely seates in the world that his pretious apparel and armour was infinite that he had al the kinges from the riuer of the Philistians vnto Egypt as his seruantes that he had fortie thowsand horses in his stables to ride and twelue thousand chariottes with horses and other furniture redie to them for his vse that he had two hundred speares of gold borne before him and six hundred crownes of gold bestowed vpon euerie speare as also three hundred bucklers and three hundred crownes of gold bestowed in the guilding of euery buckler that he spent euerie daie in his howse a thousand nine hundred thirtie and seuen quarters of meale flower thirtie oxen with an hundred wethers beside al other flesh that he had seuen hundred wiues as Queenes three hundred other as concubines Al this and much more doth holie scripture report of Salomons worldlie wealth wisdom riches ê“speritie which he hauing tasted and vsed to his fil pronounced yet at the last this sentence of it al Vanitas vanitatum omnia vanitas Vanitie of vanities and al is vanitie by vanitie of vanities meaning as S. Ierome interpreteth the greatnesse of this vanitie aboue al other vanities that may be deuised Nether only doth K. Salomon affirme this thing in word but doth proue it also by examples of himself I haue bene king of Israel in Ierusalem saith he and I purposed with my self to seeke out by wisdom al things And I haue seene that al vnder the sunne are meere vanities and affliction of spirit I said in my hart I wil goe and abound in al delites and in euery pleasure that may be had and I saw that this was also vanitie I toke great workes in hand builded houses to my self planted vineyardes made orchardes and gardens beset them with al kind of trees I made my fish-pondes to water my trees I possessed seruantes and hand-maides had a great familie great heardes of cattel aboue any that euer were before me in Ierusalem I gathered together gold siluer the riches of kings and prouinces I appointed to my self musitians and singers both men and women which are the delites of the children of men fine cuppes also to drinke wine and what soeuer my eyes did desire I denied it not vnto them nether did I let my harte from vsing any pleasure to delite it self in these thinges which I had prepared And wheÌ„ I turned my self to al that my handes had made to al the labours wherin I had taken such paines and sweat I sawe in them al vanitie and affliction of the minde This is the testimonie of Salomon vpon his own proofe in these affaires if he had spoken it vpon his wisdom onely being such as it was we ought to beleeue him but much more seing he affirmeth it of his own experience But yet if any man be not moued with this let vs bring yet an other witnesse owt of the new testameÌ„t such a one as was priuie to the opinioÌ„ of our Sauiour Christ herin and this is the holie Euangelist apostle S. Iohn who maketh an earnest exhortation to al wise men neuer to intangle them selues with the loue of worldly affaires vsing this reason for the same mundus transit concupiscentia eius the world is traÌ„sitorie al that is to be desired therin that is to saie it is vaine fleeting vncertaine and not permanent and then comming to shew the substance of this transitorie-vanitie he reduceth them al to three general heades or branches saying vvhat so euer is in this vvorld is either concupiscence of the flesh or concupisceuse of the eies or pride of life By the first he comprehendeth al sensual pleasures vsed in cherishing and pampering the flesh by the second al beautie and brauerie of riches by the third he signified the vanitie of ambitioÌ„ in worldly honour and estimation Thes then are the three general and most principal vanities of this life wherin wordlie men doe wearie owt their braines to wit ambition couetousnes and carnal pleasures wherunto al other lesser vanities are addressed as to their superiours And thersore it shal not be amisse to consider of thes three in this place together with their dependents for that eueric one of thes three haue diuers branches depending of them especially the first which here I wil handle called by S. Iohn Ambition and pride of life wherunto belong thes six members that ensue FIRST vainglorie which is a certaine disordinate desire to be wel thought of wel spoken of praised and glorified of men and this is as great a vanitie though it be common to many as if a man should runne vp and doune the streetes after a fether flying in the ayer tossed hither and thither with the blastes of infinit mennes mouthés For as this man might wearie out him self before he gate the thing which he folowed and yet when he had it he had gotten but a fether so a vain-glorious man may labour a good while before he attaine to the praise which he desireth and when he hath it it is not worthie three chippes being but the breath of a few mennes mouthes that doth alter vpon euery light occ sion and now maketh him great now litle now nothing at al. Christ him self may be an example of this who was tossed to and from in the speech of men some said he was a Samaritan and had a deuil other said he was a prophet other said he could not be a prophet or of God for that he kept not the Sabboth day others asked if he were not of God how he could doe so many miracles So that there was a scisme or diuision among them about this matter as S. Iohn affirmeth Finally vpon Palme sunday they receaued him into Ierusalem with triumph of Hosanna casting their apparel vnder his feet But the
the most barraine places therof as they can tel which haue seene their mines What a base matter is this then for a man to tie his loue vnto God commāded in the ólde law that what soeuer did goe with his breast vpon the ground should be vnto vs in abhomination How much more then a reasonable man that hath glewed his hart and soule vnto a peece of earth VVe came naked into this vvorld and naked vvee must goe soorth againe saieth Iob. The mille whele stirreth much about and beateth it self from daie to daie and yet at the yeres end it is in the same place that it was ī the beginning so riche men let them toile labour what they can yet at their death must they be as poore as at the first daie wherin they were borne When the riche man dieth saith Iob he shal take nothing with him but shal close vp his eies and finde nothing Pouertie shal laie handes vpon him and a tempest shal oppresse him in the night a burning winde shal take him awaie and an hurle winde shal rushe vpon him and shal not spare him it shal binde his handes vpon him and shal hisse ouer him for that it seeth his place wether he must goe The prophet Dauid in like wise forewarneth vs of the same in these wordes Be not afraid vvhen then seest a man made riche and the glorie of his house multiplied For vvhen he dieth he shal take nothing vvith him nor shal his glorie desiend to the place vvhether he goeth he shal passe into the progenies of his aunceslours that is he shal goe to the place where they are who haue liued as he hath done vvorld vvithout end he shal see no more light Al this and much more is spoken by the Holie ghost to signifie the dangerous vanitie of worldlie wealth and the folie of those men who labour so much to procure the same with the eternal peril of their soules If so many phisitions as I haue here alleaged scriptures should agree together that such or such meates were poisonned and perillous I thinke fewe men wold geue the aduenture to eate therof though otherwise in taste they appeared sweet and pleasant How thē cometh it to passe that so manie earnest admonitions of God himself can not staie vs from the loue of this dangerous vanitie Nolite cor apponere saith God by the prophet that is set not your hartes vpon the loue of riches Qui diligit aurum non iustificabitur saith the wise man he that loueth gold shal neuer be iustified I am angrie greatlie vpon riche natiōs saith God by Zacharie Christ saith Amen dico vobis quia diues difficilè intrabit in regnum calorū Truelie I saye vnto you that a riche man shal hardlie get into the kingdome of heauen And againe vvoe be to you riche men for that you haue receaued your consolation in this life Finallie S. Paul saith generallie of al and to al They vvhich vvilbe riche doe fal into temptations and into the snares of Satan and into many vnprofitable and hurtful desires vvhich doe drovvne them in euerlasting destruction and perdition Can any thing in the world be spoken more effectualie to dissuade from the loue of riches than this must not here now al couetous men of the world ether denie God or condemne them selues in their own consciences Let them goe now and excuse them selues by the pretēce of wife children kinsfolke as they are wōt saying they meane nothing els but to prouide for their sufficiencie Doth Christ or S. Paul admit this excuse wher Gods seruice and their own saluation commeth in question ought we so much to loue wife or children or other kinred as to endanger our soules for the same Tel me deare Christian brother what comfort may it be to an afflicted father in hel to remember that by his meanes his wife and children doe liue wealthelie in earth that for his eternal woe they inioy some few years pleasurs No no deare brother this is vanitie a mere deceate of our spiritual enemie For within one moment after we are dead we shal care no more for wife children father mother or brother in this matter thē we shal for a mere straunger and one penie geuen in almes while we liued for Gods sake shal comfort vs more at that daie thē thousandes of poundes bestowed vpon our kinred for the natural loue we beare vnto our own flesh blood The which one poīt would Christ al worldly men could consider and then no doute they would neuer take such care for kinred as they doe especially vpon their death beddes whence presentlie they are to depart to that place where flesh and blood holdeth no more priuilege nor riches haue any power to deliuer but onely such as were wel bestowed in the seruice of God or geuen to the poore for his names sake And this shal be sufficient for this point of riches THE THIRD branche of worldlie vanities is called by S. Iohn concupiscence of the flesh which conteineth al pleasures and carnal recreations of this life as are banquetting laughing playing and such other delites wherwith our flesh is much comforted in this world And albeit in this kind there is a certaine measure to be allowed vnto the godly for the conuenient maintenance of their health as also in riches it is not to be reprehēded yet that al thes worldly solaces are not onely vaine but also daungerous in that excesse and abundance as worldly wealthie men seeke and vse them appeareth plainlie by thes wordes of Christ. VVoe be vnto you vvho novv doe laugh for you shal vvepe VVo be vnto you that novv liue in fil satietie for the time shal come vvhen you shal suffer bungar And againe in S. Iohns gospel speaking to his Apostles and by them to al other he saith you shal ' vvepe morne but the vvorld shal reioise making it a signe distinctiue betwene the good and the badde that the one shal mourne in this life and th' other reioise and make them selues merie The very same doth Iob confirme both of the one th' other sort for of worldlinges he saith that they solace them selues with al kind of musicke and doe passe ouer their dayes in pleasure and in a verie moment doe goe doune into hel But of the godly he saith in his owne persone that they sigh before they eate their bread And in an other place that they feare al their workes knowing that God spareth not him which offendeth The reason whereof the wise man yet further expresseth saying That the vvorkes of good men are in the handes of God and no ma knovveth vvhether he be vvorthie of loue or hatred at Gods handes but al is kept vncertaine for the time to come And old Tobias insinuateth yet an other cause when he saith VVhat ioy can
I haue or receaue seing I sit here in darknes speaking litterallie of his corporal blindnes but yet leauing it also to be vnderstood of spiritual and internal darknes Thes are then the causes beside external affliction which God often sendeth why the godly doe liue more graue sadde and feareful in this life then wicked men doe according to the counsaile of S. Paul and why also they sigh often and weepe as Iob and Christ doe affirme to wit for that they remember oftentimes the seuere Iustice of almightie God their owne frailtie in sinning the secret iudgement of his predestination vncertaine to vs the vale of misery and desolation wherein they liue here which made euen the very Apostles them selues to grone as S. Paul affirmeth albeit they had much lesse cause then we haue In respect wherof we are willed to passe ouer this life in carefulnes watchfulnes feare and trembling In regard wherof also the wiseman saith It is better to goe to the house of sorovv then to the house of feasting And againe VVhere sadnes is there is the hart of vvisomē but vvhere mirth is there is the hart of fooles Finally inconsideration of thes things the scripture saiths Beatus homo qui semper est pauidus Happie is the man which alwaies is feareful Which is nothing els but that which the holy Ghost commaundeth euery man by Micheas the Prophet solicitum ambulare cū Deo To walke carefully and diligently with God thinking vpō his commaundementes how we keepe and obserue the same how we resist mortifie our members vpon earth how we bestowe our time talents and riches lent vnto vs how we labour in good workes for the gaining of heauen what accompt we could yeeld if presently we were to die c. which cogitations if they might haue place with vs would cut of a great many of thos worldly pastimes wherwith the careles sort of sinners are ouerwhelmed I meane of thos good feloushippes in eating drinking laughing singing disputing and other such vanities that distract vs most Hereof Christ gaue vs a most notable aduertisemēt in that he wept often times as for example at his natiuitie at the resuscitation of Lazarus vpon Ierusalem vpon the Crosse. But he is neuer redde to haue laught in al his life Her of also is cch mans own natiuitie and death a signification and figure which two extremities I meane our beginning ending being reserued by God in his own handes to dispose are appointed vnto vs in sorow greef and weeping as we see and feele But the midle parte therof which is our life being left by God in our own hādes we passe it ouer with vaine delites neuer thinking whence we came nor whether we goe A wise trauailer passing by his Inne albeit he see pleasāt meates set before him to banquet at his pleasure yet he for beareth and restraineth his appetite vpon cōsideration of the price and of the iourney he hath to make and taketh nothing but so much as he knoweth wel how to discharge the next mornig at his departure But a foole layeth handes on euerie delicate bayt that is presented to his sight and playeth the prince for a night or two But the next morning when it cometh to the reckning he wisheth that he had liued onelie with bread drinke rather then to be so troubled as he is for the paiment The custome of Gods Church is to fast the euen of euerie feast and then to make merie the next daye following which is the festiual it self And this representeth the abstinent life of goodmen in this world therby to be merie in the world to come But the fashion of the world is contrarie that is to eate and drincke merilie first at the tauerne and after to let the host bring in his reckning They eate drinke and laugh and the host he skoreth vp al in the meane space And when the time cometh that they must paye many a hart is sadde that was pleasant before This very self thing holy scripture affirmeth also of the pleasures of this world Risus dolore miscebitur extrema gaudij luctus occupat Laughter shal be mingled with sorow mourning shal ensue at the hinder end of mirthe The deuil that plaieth the hoste in this world and wil serue you at an inche with what delite or pleasure you desire writeth vp al in his booke and at the daie of your departure which is at your death he wil bring in the whole reckoning charge you with it al and then shal folow that which God promiseth to worldlinges by the prophet Amos Your mirth shal be turned into morning and lamentation Yea and more then this if you be not able to discharge the rekoning you may chaunce to heare that other dreadful sentence of Christ in the Apocalips quantum in delitiis fuit tantum date illi tormentum Looke how much he hath taken of his delites so much torment doe you lay vpon him Wherfore to conclude this point and therwithal this first parte of the parable touching vanities truelie may we saie with the prophet Dauid of a worldlie minded man Vniuersa vanitas omnis homo viuens The life of such men conteineth al kind of vanitie That is to saie both vanitie in ambition vanitie in riches vanitie in pleasures vanitie in al things which they most esteeme And therfore I may wel end with the wordes of almightie God by the prophet Esay vaevobis qui trahitis iniquitatem in funiculis vanitatis Wo be vnto you which doe draw wickednes in the ropes of vanitie These ropes are those vanities of vainglorie promotion dignitie nobilitie beautie riches delites and other such like before touched which alwaies draw with them some iniquitie sinne For which cause holie Dauid saith vnto his Lord Thovvhatest ô Lord obseruers of super fluous vanities And the scripture reporting the cause why God destroied vtterlie the familie and linage of Baasa king of Israel saith it was For that they had prouoked God in their vanities And lastlie for this cause the holy Ghostpronounceth generallie of al men Beatus vir qui non respexit in vanitates insanias falsas Blessed is that man which hath not respected vanities and the false madnes of this world The second point of the parable NOVV COME I to the second part proposed in this chapter which was also the second point contained in Christes parable to shew how this world with the commodities therof are not onelie vanities but also deceites for that in deed they performe not vnto their folowers thos idle vanities trifles which they doe promise Wherin the world may be compared to that wretched and vngrateful deceiuer Labā who made poore Iacob to serue him seauen yeeres for faire Rachel and in the end deceiued him with foule Lia. What false promises doth the world make daily To one it pmiseth
of a Leuit God punished the whole tribe in this order as holy scripture recounteth He caused al the other eleuen tribes to rise against them first to come to the house of God in Silo to aske his aduise and to folow his direction in this warre against their brethren And thence hauing by Godes appointement ioined battaile twise with the tribe of Beniamin the third daie God gaue them so great a victorie as they slew al the liuing creatures within the compasse of that tribe except onelie six hundred men that escaped awaie into the desert the rest were slaine both man woman children and infantes together with al the beastes and cattel al the cities villages and howses burnt with fire And al this for one sinne committed onelie at one time with one woman And who then deare Christian brother wil not confesse with Moyses that God is a iust God a great God and a terrible God Who wil not confesse with S. Paul that it is horrible to fal into the handes of the liuing God Who wil not say with holy Dauid A Iudicijs tuis timui I haue feared at the remembrance of thy iudgementes If God would not spare the destroying of a whole tribe for one sinne onely if he would not perdon Chore Dathan and Abiron for once the sonnes of Aaron for once Ananias Saphira for once if he would not forgiue Esau though he demaunded it with teares as S. Paul saieth if he would not remit the punishment of one fault to Moyses Aaron albeit they asked it with great instance if he would not forgiue one proude cogitation vnto the Angels nor the eating of one apple vnto Adā without infinite punishment nor would passe ouer the cuppe of affliction from his own deare sonne though he required the same thrise vpō his verie knees with the sweate of blood and water in his presence what reason hast thou my brother to thike that he wil let passe so many sinnes of thine vnpunished what cause hast thou to induce thy imagination that he wil deale extraordinarilie with thee breake the course of his iustice for thy sake Art thou better then thos whom I haue named or hast thou any priuilege from his Maiestie aboue them If thou wouldest consider the great and strange effectes of his iustice which we see dailie executed in the world thou shouldest haue litle cause to persuade thy self so fauorablie or rather to flatter thy self so daungerously as thou doest We see that notwithstanding Godes mercie yea after the death and passion of Christ our Sauiour for sauing of the whole world yet so many infinite millions be damned daily by the iustice of almightie God so many insideles heathens Iewes and Turkes that remaine in the darknes of their owne ignorance and among Christīans so many heretiques and misbeleuers and among Catholiques so many euel liuers as Christ truely said that few were they which should be saued albeit his death was paid for al if by their own wickednes they made them selues not vnworthie therof And before the comming of our Sauiour much more we see that al the world went awrie to damnatió for many thousand yeres together excepting a few Iewes which were the people of God And yet among them also the greater part perhappes were not saued as may be cōiectured by the speeches of the prophetes from time to time and specially by the sayings of Christ to the harisees and other rulers therof Now then if God for the satisfying of his justice could let so many millions perish through their own sinnes as he doth also now daily permit without any preiudice or impechement to his infinit mercie why may not he also damne thee forthy sinnes notwithstanding his mercie seing thou doest not onely commit them without feare but also doest confidently persist in the same The 2. part of the chapter BVT HERE now perhappes some man may say if this be so that God is so seuere in punishment of euery sinne and that he damneth so many thousandes for one that he saueth how is it true that the mercies of God are aboue al his other vvorkes as holy scripture affirmeth and that it passeth and exalteth it self aboue his iudgement For if the number of the damned doe exceede so much the number of thos which are saued it seemeth that the worke of iustice doth passe the worke of mercie To which I answere that touching the smal number of them that are saued as also of th' infinit quantitie of such as are damned we may in no wise doute for that besides al other prophetes Christ our Sauiour hath made the matter certaine and out of question We haue to see therfore how notwithstāding al this the mercie of God doth exceede his other workes And first his mercie may be said to exceede for that al our saluation is of his mercie and our damnation from our selues only as from the first and principal causes therof according to the saying of God by the prophet Perditio tua Israel tantummodò in me auxilium tuum Thy perdition is onely from thy self ô Israel and thy assistance to doe good is onely from me So that as we must acknowledge Gods grace and mercie for th' author of euerie good thought and acte that we doe and consequently ascribe al our saluatiō vnto him so none of our euil actes for which we are damned doe proceede from him but onely from our selues and so he is no cause at al of our damnation and in this doth his mercie exceede his iustice Secondlie his mercie doth exceede in that he desireth al men to be saued as S. Paul teacheth and him self protesteth when he saieth I vvil not the death of a sinner but rather that he turne from his vvikednes and liue And againe by the prophet Ieremie he complaineth greeuouslie that men wil not accept of his mercie offered Turne from your vvicked vvaies saith he vvhy vvil ye die a you house of Israel By which appeareth that he offereth his mercie most willinglie and freelie to al but vseth his iustice onelie vpon necessitie as it were cōstrained therunto by our obstinate behauiour This our Sauiour Christ signifieth more plainlie when he saith to Ierusalem O Ierusalem which killest the prophetes and stonest them to death that are sent vnto thee how oftē wold I haue gathered thy children together as the henne clocketh her chickins vnderneth her winges but thou woldest not behold thy house for this cause shal be made desert and left without children Here you see thee mercie of God often offered vnto the Iewes but for that they refused it he was enforced in a certaine maner to pronounce this heauie sentence of destruction and desolatiō vpon them which he fulfilled within fortie or fiftie yeares after by the handes of Titus and Vespasian Emperours of Rome who vtterlie ouerthrewe the citie of Ierusalem and the whole nation
of Iewes whom we see dispersed ouer al the world at this daie in bondage both of bodie soule Which worke of Gods Iustice though it be most terrible yet was his mercie greater to thē as appeareth by Christs wordes if they had not reiected the same Thirdlie his mercie exceedeth his iustice euen towardes the damned them selues in that he vsed many meanes to saue them in this life by geuing them freewil and assisting the same with his grace to doe good by mouing thē inwardlie with infinite good inspirations by alluring thē outwardlie with exhortatiōs promisses examples of others as also by sicknes aduersities and other gentle corrections By geuing them space to repent with occasions opportunities and excitations vnto the same By threatning thē eternal death if they repented not Al which thinges being effectes of mercie and goodnes towardes them they must needes confesse amiddest their greatest furie and tormentes that his iudgementes are true iustified in them selues and no waies to be cōpared with the greatnes of his mercies By this then we see that to be true which the prophet saieth Misericordiam veritatem diligit dominus God loueth mercie and trueth And againe Mercie and trueth haue met together Iustice and peace haue kissed on an other We see the reason why the same prophet protesteth of him self I vvil sing vnto thee mercie and iudgement ô Lord not mercie alone nor iudgement alone but mercie and iudgement together that is I wil not so presume of thy mercie as I wil not feare thy iudgement nor yet wil I so feare thy iudgement as I wil euer despaire of thy mercie The feare of Gods iudgement is alwaies to be ioined with our confidence in Gods mercie yea in verie Saintes them selues as Dauid saith But what feare that feare trulie which the scripture describeth whē it saith the feare of our Lord expelleth sinne the feare of God hateth al euil He that feareth God neglecteth nothing he that feareth God wil turne and looke into his owne hart he that feareth God wil doe good woorkes They which feare God wil not be incredulous to that which he saith but wil keepe his waies and seeke out the things that are pleasant vnto him They wil prepare their hartes sanctifie their soules in his sight This is the description of the true feare of God set downe by holie scripture This is the description of that feare which is so much commended and commanded in euerie part and parcel of Gods worde Of that feare I saie which is called Fons vitae radix prudentiae corona plenitudo sapientiae gloria gloriatio beatum donum That is the fountaine of life the roote of prudence the crowne and fulnes of wisdome the glorie and gloriation of a Christian man a happie gift Of him that hath this feare the scripture saith happie is the man vvhich feareth our Lord for he vvil place his minde vpon his comman lementes And againe the man that feareth God shal be happie at the last end and shal be blessed at the day of his death Finally of such as haue this feare the scripture saith that God is their foundation God hath prepared great multitude of sweetnes for them God hath purchased them an inheritance God is as merciful to them as the father is merciful vnto his children And to conclude Voluntatem timentium se faciet God wil doe the wil of those that feare him with this feare This holie feare had good Iob when he said to God I feared al my vvorkes And he yealdeth the reason therof For that I knevve that tbovv sparest not him that offendeth thee This feare lacked the other of whō the prophet saieth The sinner hath exasperated God by saying that God wil not take accompt of his doings in the multitude of wrath Thy iudgementes ò Lord are remoued from his sight And againe vvherfore hath the vvicked man stirred vp God against him self by saying God vvil not take account of my doings It is a great exasperation of God against vs to take the one halfe of Gods nature from him which is so make him merciful without iustice and to liue so as though God wold take no account of our life wheras he hath protested most earnestlie the contrarie saying that he is like a hard and couetous man which wil not be contēt to receiue his owne againe but also wil haue vsurie for the lone that he wil haue a straite reckoning of al his goodes lent vs that he wil haue fruite for al his labours bestowed vpon vs finallie that he wil haue account for euery word that we haue spoken Our Sauiour Christ in the three score and eight psalme which in sundrie places of the gospel he interpreteth to be writen of himself among other dreadful curses which he setteth down against the reprobate he hath these let their eyes be daseled in such sorte as they may not see povvre out thy vvrath my Father vpō thē let the furie of thy vengeance take hād fast on thē Adde iniquity vpō their miquitie let him not enter into thy iustice Let them be blotted out of the booke of life let them not be enrolled together vvith the iust Here loe we see that the greatest curse which God can laye vpon vs next before our blotting out of the booke of life is to suffer vs to be so blinded as to adde iniquitie vpon iniquitie and not to enter into cōsideration of his iustice For which cause also this confident kinde of sinning vpon hope of Gods mercie is accounted by diuines for the first of the six greuous sinnes against the holie Ghost which our Sauiour in the gospel signifieth to be so hardlie pardoned vnto men by his Father And the reason why they cal this a sinne against the holie Ghost is for that it reiecteth wilfullie one of the principal meanes left by the holie Ghost to retire vs from sinne which is the feare and respect of Gods iustice vpon sinners Wherfore to conclude this matter of presumption me thinkes we may vse the same kinde of argumēt touching the feare of Gods iustice as S. Paul vseth to the Romanes of the feare of Gods ministers which are temporal princes Wouldest thou not feare the power of a temporal prince saith he doe wel then and thou shalt not onelie not feare but also receiue laude and praise therfore But if thou doe euil then feare for he beareth not the sword without a cause In like sort may we saye to those good felowes which make God so merciful as no man ought to feare his iustice Would ye not feare my brethrē the iustice of God in punishmēt liue vertuouslie then and you shal be as voide of feare as lions are saieth the wiseman For that perfect charitie expelleth feare But if you liue wickedlie then haue you cause to feare
they had said trouble vs not moleste vs not with thy persuations spend not thy wordes and labour in vaine talke vnto others who are not yet setled let them take heauen that take it wil we for our partes are resolued we are at a pointe we haue made a league that must be kept we haue made a bargaine that must be perfourmed yea though it be with hel and death euerlasting It is a wonderful furie the obduration of a hard hart not without cause compared by the prophet as I haue shewed before to the wilful furie and rage of serpentes And an other place of scripture describeth it thus Durus es neruus ferreus ceruix tua frons tua aerea Thou art hard harted and thy necke is a sinowe of yron and thy forehead is of brasse What can be more vehementlie spoken to expresse the hardnesse of this mettal But yet S. Barnard expresseth it more at large in thes wordes Quid ergo cor durum and what is then a hard hart saith he and he answereth immediatlie A hard hart is that which is neither cut by compunction nor softened by godlines nor moued with prayers nor yeeldeth to threatning nor is any thing holpen but rather hardened by chastising A hard hart is that which is ingratful to Gods benefites disobedient to his counsails made cruel by his iudgementes dissolute by his alluremētes vnshamefast to filthines feareles to perils vncourteous in humane affaires recheles in matters pertaining to God forgetful of things past negligent in things present improuident for things to come By this description of S. Barnard it appeareth that a hard hart is almost a desperate and remediles disease where it falleth For what wil you doe saith this good father to amend it If you laie the greeuousnes of his sinnes before him he is not touched with compunction If you alleage him al the reasons in the world why we ought to serue God and why we ought not to offend and dishonour him he is not mollified by this consideration of pietie If you would request him and beseeche him with teares euen on your knees he is not moued If you threaten Gods wrath against him he yeeldeth nothing therunto If God scourge him in deede he waxeth furious and becōmeth much more hard then before If God bestowe benefites on him he is vngrateful If he counsaile him for his saluation he obeieth not If you tel him of Gods secret and seuere iudgementes it driueth him to desperation and to more crueltie If you allure him with Gods mercie it maketh him dissolute If you tel him of his owne filthines he blusheth not If you admonish him of his perils he feareth not If he deale in matters towardes men he is proude and vncurteous If he deale in matters towardes God he is rashe light and contemptuous Finallie he forgetteth what soeuer hath passed before hī towardes other men either in rewarde of godlines or in punishment of sinners For the time present he neglecteth it and maketh no account of vsing it to his benefite And of things to come ether of blisse or miserie he is vtterlie vnprouident nor wil esteeme therof laie them neuer so often or vehementlie before his face And what waie is there then to doe this man good Not without great cause surelie did the wise man pray so hartelie to God Animae irreuerenti insrumitae ne tradas me deliuer me not ouer ô Lord vnto a shamelesse and vnrulie soule that is vnto a hard and obstinate hart Wherof he geueth the reasō in an other place of the same booke Cor enim durum babebit malè in nouissimo for that a hard hart shal be in an euil case at the last daie Oh that al hard harted people would note this reason of the scripture But S. Barnard goeth on and openeth the terrour hereof more fullie when he saith Nemo duri cordis salutem vnquà m adepīus est nisi quem forte miserans Deus abstulit ab to iuxta prophetam cor lapideum dedit cor carneum There was neuer yet hard harted man saued except perchance God by his mercie did take awaie his stonie hart and geue him a hart of flesh according to the prophet By which wordes S. Barnard signifieth and proueth out of the prophet that there are two kindes of hartes in mē the one a fleshie hart which bleedeth if you but prick it that is it falleth to cōtrition repentance and teares vpon neuer so smal a checke for sinne The other is a stony hart which if you beate and buffet neuer so much with hammers you may as soone breake it in peeces as ether bend it or make it bleed And of thes two hartes in this life dependeth al our miserie or felicitie for the life to come For as God when he would take vengeance of Pharao had no more greuous waie to doe it then to saie Indurabo cor Pharaonis I wil harden the hart of Pharao that is as S. Austen expoundeth I will take awaie my grace and so permit him to harden his owne hart so when he would shew mercie to Israel he had no more forcible meane to expresse the same then to saie I vvil take avvaie the stony hart out of your flesh and geue you a fles hie hart in steade therof Which is to saie I will take away your hard hart and geue you a soft hart that wil be moued when it is spoken vnto And of al other blessings and benefites which God doth bestowe vpon mortal men in this life this soft and tender hart is one of the greatest I meane such a hart as is soone moued to repentance soone checked and controlled soone pearsed soone made to bleed soone stirred to amendement And on the contrarie parte there can be no greater curse or malediction laied vpon a Christian then to haue a hard and obstinate hart which heapeth euery day vengeance vnto it self and his maister also as S. Paul saieth and is compared by the same Apostle vnto the ground which no store of raine can make fruteful albeit it fal neuer so often vpon the same and therfore he pronounceth therof Reproba est maledicto proxima cuius consuinmatis in combustimem That is it is reprobate the next dore vnto malediction whos ende or consum nation must be fire and burning Which thing being so no maruaile though the holy scripture doe dehort vs so carefully from this obduration and hardnes of hart as from the most dangerous and desperate disease that possiblie may fal vpon a Christian being in deed as S. Paul signifieth the next dore to reprobatiō it self The same Apostle therfore crieth Nolite contristare nolite extinguere spiritum Dei doe you not contristate or make sadde doe you not extinguish the spirit of God by obduration by resisting and impugning the same Againe non obauretur quis ex vobis sallacia peccati Let no
the matter and thinke of it herafter I haue tolde thee my opinion hereof before Thou shalt neuer haue more abilitie to doe it then now and perhappes neuer halfe so much If thou refuse it now I may greatlie feare that thou wilt be refused hereafter thy self There is no waic then so good deare brother as to doe it presentlie whiles it is offered Breake from that tyrant which detaineth thee in seruitude shake of his chaines cut in sunder his bandes runne violentlie to Christ which standeth redie to embrace thee with his armes open on the Crosse. Make ioyful al the Angels and court of heauen with thy conucrsion strike once the stroke with God againe make a manlie resolution saie with that old couragious souldier of IESVS Christ Sainct Ierome If my father stoode vveeping on his knees before me and my mother hanging on my necke behinde me and al my brethren sisters cvilaren and kinssolkes hovviing on euery syde to retaine me in sinful life vvith them I vvould sting of my mother to the ground dispise al my kinred runne ouer my father and tread him vndermy seete therby tarunne to Christ vvhen he calleth me Oh that we had such hartes dcare Christian brother as this seruāt of God had such courage such manhood such seruent loue to our Maister Who would lie one daie drowned in sinne who would liue one daie in such slauerie as we doe who would eate swaddes with the prodigal sonne among swine seing he may returne home and be so honorablie receiued and entertained by his owne father haue so good cheere and banqueting and heare so great melodie ioye and triumphe for his returne I saye no more herein deare brother then thou art assured of by the word and promise of Godes owne mouth from which can proceede nether falshood nor deceit Returne then I beseeche thee laie handfast on his promise who wil not faile thee runne to him now he calleth whiles thou hast time and esteeme not al this world worth a strawe in respect of this one acte For so shalt thou be a most happie and thrise happie man and shalt blesse hereafter the houre and moment that cuer thou madest this fortunate resolution And I for my part I trust shal not be voide of some portion of thy good happe and felicitie At least wise I doubt not but thy holie conuersion shal treat for me with our common father who is the God of mercies for remission of my manifolde sinnes and that I may serue and honour him together with thee al the daies of my life which ought to be both our petitions and therfore in both our names I beseeche his diuine Maiestie to graunt it vnto vs for his deare sonne our Lordes sake IESVS Christ. Amen The end of this first booke treating of resolution A BREEFE METHODE HOVV TO VSE THE FORMER treatises chapters and considerations to diuers purposes according to the diuers qualitie of the person time state place or neede vvhen they are to be vsed An Annotation IT is to be remembred that al thes pointes and parcels of the booke which are here assigned for euery one to-applie to him self the same may be accommodated and practised by ech man towardes his frind or by the parēt towardes his child or by the master towardes his seruant or scholer and especially by the Confessour towardes his penitent persuading assigning or commanding him to reade such parcels of this booke as he thinketh may doe him most profite for his soule in the state wherin he standeth Of diuers states conditions and qualities of men IF a man either in him self or others doe feele his soule lumpish and heauie and vnwilling to heare or thinke of spiritual affaires let him reade the first chapt part 1. of inconsideration As also the last of al the booke touching Slouth and Negligence page 852. Let him examine also the cause of this vnwillingnes in him self according to the three causes ther set downe page 9. c. especially if he find in him self any horrour against reading of spiritual bookes as many doe He that should any way be tempted in faith hath many things in this booke for his confirmation and first if he be troubled with plaine Atheisme doe doubt whether ther be a God or no let him reade the whole 2. chapter page 25. If he confesse God but yet doe doubt of Gods particuler and infallible prouidence in desposing al matters of this world let him reade the fowerth argument of the Metaphisique page 44. If he doubt about the immortalitie of the soule let him consider the fift argument of the Metaphisique page 46. He that hath any suggestion against the infallible truth of the holy scriptures or any part therof let him reade the whole third section of the 2. chapter page 61. He that should haue any doubt or scruple about any thing in Christian religion let him reade the whole 4. chapter page 132. As for exāple if he should doubt whether Christ were fore promissed to be God man wherof page 132. or whether he should haue authoritie to change Moyses law wherof page 162. or the like He that should be resolued of the truth of Christian religion in general but yet among so many sectes and diuers opiniōs which are holden therin should doubt which to take or how to iudge of the certaintie therof let him read the first part of the 5. chapter treating of right faith page 298. also the whole fift chapter part 2. of the examples of true resolution page 747. If a man find him self or other careles confident nothing fearing the seueritie of Gods iustice let him read the 7. chapter page 349. of the accompting day Also the 11. chapter page 444. of punishmentes prepared after death Also the 6. chapter page 793. of presumption He that feeleth him self inclined to follow worldly designes and courses of ambition and thinketh that he may so doe yet come to heauen also let him reade the 3. chapter page 110. of mās final ende Also the third fourth fifth pointes of the 4. chapter concerning the world page 683. If a man feele him self desirous of the pleasures prefermentes and commodities of this world or els afflicted for that he hath them not let him reade the whole fourth chapt page 683. of the vvorld And in particuler if he loue honour see 700. If estimation of wisdome see 703. if beautie see 706. if braue apparel see 708. if riches see 711. c. He that findeth him self or others easy to fal into sinne and not greatly abhorring or fearful therof let him reade the 8. ch par 1. pag 378. of the nature of sinne sinners Also the first part of the 6. chapter page 326. of resisting sinne Also the 9. chapter page 400. of Gods Maiestie and benefites When a mar should feele him self to make smal accompt of the ioyes of
that in sinceritie demandeth the same A prayer to be vsed in the ende of our meditation BEhold ô my God behold ô my most merciful and patient Lord how I haue passed ouer this time of meditation and contemplatiō with thee With how much negligence sloth coldnes and distraction and with how litle feeling of thy good motions within me But thou ô Lord art wel witting priuie to mine infirmities and manifold miseries therfore of thee I craue pardon for the same I thanke thee also most hartely and humbly for al the good thoughts cogitatiōs and suggestiōs which haue presented them selues vnto my minde in the time of this meditation as most holy Embassadours sent from thie heauenly throne to deale with me for the gaining of thy kingdome Who 's blessed voices and most profitable speeches I beseech thy deuine goodnes to geue me grace that I may imprint in my hart seeke to put in executiō in the course of my life to come to the ende that my iudgement and damnation be not the more greeuous in respect of thes thy benefites but rather that my life being amended therby and my soule stirred vp to more zele in thy seruice I may finally be made partaker with thy true children of that eternal blisse which thou hast prepared for such as doe loue feare and serue thee and doe yeeld obedience to such holy inspirations as thou doest send vnto them for their euerlasting weale FINIS AFter this he may say Pater Aue Credo and other such his deuotions as he liketh best And as he shal feele his mind affected at that instant either with feare of his sinnes or with ioye and comfort vpon hope of amendment or els indued with other motions so may he recite either the Psalmes Miserere or Domine ne in furore tuo Or one of the Canticles Benedicice omnia opera Domini Domino or Benedictus Dominus Deus Israel Or finally one of the hymnes Te Deum laudamus or Veni Creator Spiritus or any the like Argumentes to meditate vpon THe first sorte of meditations being 20. in number which appertaine more peculierly to speculation discourse knowledge then to stirre vp affections therfore are sometimes to be vsed for varietie and recreation of the mind when she is either weary or not willing to be pricked forward by the other that are more vehement in exhortation They are deuided for more facilities sake into the times of Morning and Euening for ten dayes together The 1. day LEt him meditate from the beginning of the 2. chapt pag. 25. vnto the 2. section pag. 35. Hov euident it is by al Creatures that ther is a God From pag. 35. vnto pag. 48. let him contemplate the argumentes of the natural and supernatural philosophers vvherby they proue God The 2. day From page 48. vnto the ende of the section pag. 61. consider the proofes of moral philosophers for the same purpose From the beginning of the 9. section pag. 61. examine the first argumentes for proof of holy scriptures ending pag. 80. The 3. day From pag. 80. vnto 100. see the seuenth argument for scriptures containing ten propheties From pag. 100. vnto the ende of the chapt consider the 8. and last argumēt for scriptures cōcerning the approbation of heathen vvriters together vvith the conclusion of the chapter pag. 110. The 4. day The beginning of the 4. chapt 132. together with the first consideration of the first section touching Christ promissed which endeth pag. 152. The 2. consideration of the same sectiō how Christ was promissed to be both God and man From pag. 〈◊〉 vnto 162. The 5. day From pag. 162. vnto 184. containing the third and fowerth considerations hovv Christ vvas promissed to change the lavv of Moyses together vvith the particulers foretold of Christs life The fift consideration hovv Christ vvas fortold to the Gentiles both by Philosophers Prophetes and Oracles From pag. 169. vnto 184. The 6. day From the beginning of the 2. section pag. 184. reade vnto 205. of the time vvherin Christ appeared vvhether it vvere the same that vvas fortold or not From 205. vnto 218. consider the second consideration of Christes birth and infancie vntil the time of his preaching The 7. day From 218. vnto 229. contemplate the 3. consideration of IESVS touching his life and actions From 229. vnto the ende of the section pag. 245. meditate the fowerth consideration of IESVS concerning his Passion Resurrection and Ascention The 8. day Beginne the 3. section pag. 245. with the first consideration therof ending 251. of Christes Church and her vvonderful increase presently after his departure From 251. vnto 258. followeth the 2. cōsideration of Christs Apostles and their vvonderful doinges The 9. day From 258. vnto 264. is the 3. consideratiō of Christes Euangelistes and hovv their vvritings must needes be true From 264. vnto 274. insue the 4. 5. cōsideratiōs of Christs Martyrs and of the subiection of spirits in the primatiue Church The 10. day From 274. vnto 284. reade the 6. cōsideration of the punishmentes that sel vpon Christs enimies both Ievves and Gentiles From 284. vnto the ende of the chapter 297. reade the 7. consideration of the fulfilling of IESVS propheties together vvith the conclusion of the vvhole chapter The second sorte of meditations being 28. in number containing matter more proper to stirre vp our affections to pietie and deuotiō are deuided into 14. dayes that is to say tvvo vveekes allovving to ech day tvvo seueral meditations THE FIRST VVEEKE MVNDAY COntemplate the whole chapter of Consideration pag. 1. The whole chapt of mās final end pa. 110. Tevvsday The first part of the 5. chapter vvho is a true Christian cōcerning faith 398. vnto 310. The second part of the same chapter cōcerning workes 310. vnto the end VVednesday The first part of the 6. chap. touching resisting of sinne 323. The second part of the said chapt concerning labouring in good workes 336. Thursday The first part of the 7. chap. of the preparatiō that shal goe before the last accompting day 349. The 2. and 3. partes of the same chap. and of the sentence that shal ensue 364. Friday The 8. chap. of the nature of sinne and sinners 378. The 9. chap. of Gods maiestie and benefits 400. Saturday The 10. chap. of the day of death 419. The 11. chap. of the punishments after this life 444. Sonday The 1. and 2. partes of the 12. chap. of the reward of this life in general and particuler 479. The 2. part of the same chap. of the circumstances encreasing the same ioye 503. The second vveeke Munday The 1. part of the 1. chap. part 2. Of the exceeding loue which God beareth vnto mankind against the dispaire of Gods mercy 523. vnto
540. The 2. 3. partes of the same chap. how and by how many waies God expresseth his forsaid loue vnto vs and what assurance he geueth of pardon to such as repent from Pag. 540. vnto 560. Tuesday The 4. part of the same chap. containing exāples and instructions how to auoide temptations of desperation 560. The 1. part of the 2. chap. of the fallacie of suppused difficulties with the particuler helpes to ouercome the same Pag. 570. vnto 618. VVednesday The 2. part of the same chap. containing means and instructions for ouercomming of difficulties Pag. 618. vnto the end The first 2. pointes of the 3. chap. about Tribulatiō beginning Pag. 631. vnto 656. Thursday The second 2. pointes of the same chap. begīning Pag. 656 vnto the end of the cha The 1. point of the 4. chap. treating of the vanities of the world Pag. 688. vntil 720. Friday The other partes of the same chap. 720. vntil the ende The 5. chap. of examples of Resolution Saturday The sixt chap. against Presumption The 7. chap. of Delay Sonday The first part of the 8. chap. of Slothe vntil Pag. 861. The 2. and 3. partes of the same chap. treating of Negligence and hardnes of hart from Pag. 860. vntil the ende FINIS A TABLE OF THE PRINCIPAL MATTERS HANDLED in this booke A ACcompting day 349. Tvvo accompting daies or iudgements and the reasons therof 352. Angels appearing at the houre of death 434. Antichrist vvhat vvonderful slaughter he shal make at his comming 358. Apostles called by Iesvs 225. their miraculous doings 251. Archilaus Herodes sonne hovv he ended 275. Arist rus a Gentile vvhat testimony he giueth to our scriptures 79. Ascension of Christ proued 243. Atheists of old time 34. vvhat Zeno said of their deathes 〈◊〉 9. Tvvo causes of Atheisme in thes our daies 862. S. Augustins most notable conuersion 620. B S. Iohn Baptists behauiour to Christ and the vvhole story proued 118. Beautie hovv vaine a thing 706. Beginners in Gods seruice cheefly by God cherished 596. hovv they must behaue them selues 619. The better men they are to be aftervvards the greater cōflicts they haue at their conuersion 617. Benefits of God bestovved vpon vs 407. Bethleem appointed before for Christs Natiuitie 209. Bondage and slauery of vvicked men to their sensuality 607. Bookes of deuotion mere profitable then of controuersies praef 6. a. only vvriten by Catholiques 9 a. vvhy they can not be vvritē by Heretiques Ibid. 22. a. Buny hovv he hath set forth this booke of mine praef 10. b. vvhy he dedicateth the same to my L. of Yorke Ibid. 8. a His ignorāce 8. b. He maketh his aduersaries to speake like him self Ibid. 11. a. He inserteth parētheses Ibi. 11. b. He maketh marginal notes Ibid. 12. a. He thrusteth out Ib. 14. a. He mangleth Ib. 15. a. His foolish pacification Ibid. b. C Catholique vvhat it meaneth vvhy inuented 305. vvho is a good Catholique 308. Charitable deeds of our forfathers 343. Christ promised diuersly 141. promised as a spiritual and not a temporal K. 144. promised to be God and man 152. that he should change Moyses lavv 162. hovv he vvas fortold to Gentiles 169. false Christs diuers 203. Christs birth and infancy 207. Christs doctrine vvhat it vvas 220 his Passion and Resurrection 229. Christian Religiō proued pa. 131. It hath bene in substance from the beginning of the vvorld and none euer saued but by it 134. The definition of a good Christian. 338. Christian faith can not be obscure 300. Christian vvisdome vvherin it standeth 340. Christian vocation hovv perfect if it vvere fulfilled 344. Church of Christ hovv it encreased streight after he departed 246. Clemency and mercy hovv vvonderful in Christ. 558. Concupiscence and vvhat misery it bringeth men vnto by yeelding therunto 334. Consideration See the vvhole Chapter pag. 1. See inconsideration Consolation internal of Gods seruants 595. the force therof 593. Conuersion hovv it ought to be made 619. Item 628. VVhy it auaileth not ordinarily vvhen it is made at the last instant 835. The vvatche of Christians the dore vvherof is Consideration 13. D Death hovv terrible it vvil be See the vvhole 10. chap. 419. the causes of miserie to vvordly men in the same 413. the frequent premeditation of death most profitable 440. Delay of our conuersion from day to day hovv dangerous and hurtful See the vvhol 〈◊〉 chapt par 1. the cause vvhy the diuel persuadeth vs to delay 819. Dispaire of Gods mercie hovv greeuous a sinne and hovv to be auoided chap. 1. part 2. pag. 523. 524. 525. c. Hovv to resist al temptations of the diuel therunto pag. 561. 562. c. Difficulties vvhich are imagined in vertuous life remoued See al the 2. chapt 570. Doctrine of Christ vvhat it vvas 220. E The Ende for vvhich man vvas created cha 3. pa. 110. Enimies of Christ and Christians vvhat end they haue 274. Eternitie vvhat a thing it is and hovv to be esteemed 470. Euangelistes of Christes did vvrite most truly 258. F Fatherhood vvhat à thing it is by comparison of God tovvarde mankind 533. 534. c. Faith is easily discerned in Christian religion vvhich is the true 301 at large The vvaye to auoide al errour in beleefe 303. Faith vvithout vvorkes is not sufficiēt Feare of Godes iudgementes necessarie 398. lacke of feare proceedeth of infidelitie 406. the force of Feare 445. the praise of true Feare 810. tvvo kindes of Feare 813. Felicitie of man and beastes 54. G Gentiles hovv they had Christ fortold vnto them 169. vnto 184. Holy Ghost vvhat he did at his comming 247. Glorified bodies haue 7. priuileges 495. God is proued against Atheistes 25. God proued one by al sectos of Philosophers 51. Grace of God hovv strong and forcible 579. 580. c. H Hardnes of hart hovv dangerous an impediment 867. tvvo degrees thei of ibid. Heauen and the revvardes ther resorued see the vvhol 12. chapt Hovv the greatnes therof is found out 483. Heauen hovv it is bought 515. Heresies hovv they first rose and vvhy and hovv they are auoided 306. tvvo causes of Heresies vvith their effectes 311. Heretical practice in corrupting bookes prefat 9. b. Heretical pride Ib. 16. Herod Ascolonita or the elder vvhat he vvas hovv he rose and hovv he liued 189. hovv miserably he died 124. 8 274. Herod Antipas or the second his ende 124 175. Herod Agrippa hovv he died 125. 276. see the death of Herodias Ibid. Hel the names nature therof 456. The intollerable paines therof 459. Honour of the vvorld hovv vaine 701. Hope in the good bade hovv different 599. I Ievvishe nation hovv obstinate against Christian religion according as vvas foreprophetied 184. hovv they vvere chastened and destoyed 278. 279 c. Ignorance voluntarie hovv greeuous a thing pa 8. 9. Immortalitie of the soule proued therby also God being 47. Inconsideration soe chap 1.
that is if we can not reioyse at it in deede yet ought we to thincke it a matter in it self worthie of reioysing reprehending our selues for that we can not reach vnto it And if we cā not mount thus high nether as in deede we ought to doe yet in anie case to remēber what in an other place he saieth patientia vobis necessaria est vt reportetis promissionem You must of necessitie haue patience if you wil receaue Gods promisse of euerlasting life SECONDLIE we ought to doe as the Apostles did when they were in the most terrible tempest of the sea Christ being with them but a sleepe that is we must goe and awake him we must crie vnto him with the prophet Exurge quare obdormis domine O Lord arise why doest thou sleepe in our miserie This wakening of Christ doth please him wonderfullie as before hath bene shewed but especialie if it be done with that assured confidence of true affectioned children wherwith S. Marke describeth the Apostles to haue awakened Christ. For their wordes were these Maister doth it not appertaine vnto the that vve perish here As who would saie are not we thy Disciples and seruantes art not thou our Lord and Maister is not the cause thine is not al our trust and hope in the how chaunceth it then that thou sleepest and sufferest vs to be thus tossed tombled as if we appertained nothing vnto the With this zele and affection praied holy Esaye when he sayed attend o Lord from heauen looke hither from the holie habitation of thy glorie where is thy zeale where is thy fortitude where is the multitude of thy merciful bowels Haue they shut thē selues vp now towards vs thow art our father Abraham hath not knowen vs Israel hath bene ignorant of vs thow art our Father ô Lord turne thy self about for thy seruāres sake for loue of the tribe of thine inheritance Thus I say we must cal vpon God thus we must awake him when he seemeth to sleepe in our miseries with earnest with deuout with continual prayer alwaies hauing in our minde that most comfortable parable of Christ wherin he saieth that if we should come to our neighbours dore and knocke at midnight to borowe some bread when he were in bedde with his children and most loth to rise yet if wee perseuer in asking and beating at his dore stil though he were not our freend yet would he rise at length and geue vs our demaunde therby at least to be ridde of our crying And how much more wil God doe this saieth Christ who both loueth vs and tendreth our case most mercifullie But yet here is one thing to be noted in this matter and that is that Christ suffered the shippe almost to be couered with waues as th' Euangelist saieth before he wold awake therby to signifie that the measure of temptations is to be left onelie vnto him self It is sufficient for vs to rest vpon the Apostles wordess He is faithful and therfore he vvil not suffer vs to be tempted aboue our strength We may not examine or mistrust his doings we maye not inquire why he doth this or why he suffereth that or how long wil he permit the euils to raigne God is a great God in al his doings and when he sendeth tribulation he sendeth a great deale together to the ende he maye shew his great power in deliuering vs and recompence it after with greate measure of cōfort His temptations often times doe goe very deepe therby to trie the verie hartes and reines of men He went farre with Elias when he caused him to flie into a mountaine and there most desirous of death to saye They haue killed al thy prophetes o Lord and I am left alone and novv they seek to kil me also He went farre with Dauid whē he made him crie out why dost thou forget my pouertie and tribulation And in an other place againe I saied with my self in the excesse of my mind I am cast out from the face of thy eies ô Lord. God went farre with the Aposties when he enforced one of them to writ we wil not haue you ignorant brethren of our tribulation in Asia wherein we were oppressed aboue al measure and aboue al strength in so much as it lothed vs to liue any longer But yet aboue al others he went furthest with his owne deare sonne when he cōstrained him to vtter thos pitiful and most lamentable wordes vpon the crosse My God my God vvhy hast thou for saken me Who can now complaine of any proofe or temptation what soeuer laid vpon him seing God would goe so farre with his owne deare and onely sonne HEROF then enseweth the third thing necessarie vnto vs in tribulation which is magnanimitie grounded vpon a strong and inuincible faith of Gods assistance and of our final deliuerance how long soeuer he delay the matter and how terrible soeuer the storme doe seeme for the time This God require that our hādes as maye be seene by the example of the disciples who cried not vve perish before the waues had couered the ship as Saint Mathew writeth and yet Christ saied vnto them abi est sides vestra where is your faith S. Peter also was not a feard vntil he was almost vnder water as the same Euangelist recordeth and yet Christ reprehended him saying thou man of litle saith vvhy diddest thou doubte What then must we doe in this case deare brother surelie we must put on that magnanimous faith of valiant king Dauid who vpon the most assured trust he had of Gods assistance saied In deo meo transgrediar murum In the helpe of my God I wil goe through a wal Of which inuincible saith S. Paul was also when he saied Omnia possumineo qui me consortat I can doe al thinges in him that comforteth and strengtheneth me Nothing is vnpossible nothing is to harde for me by his assistance We must be as the scripture saieth quasi leo considens absque terrore Like a bolde and confident lion which is without terrour that is we must not be astonied at anie tempest atanie tribulation at anie aduersitie we must saye with the prophet Dauic experienced in thes matters I vvil not feare many thousandes of people that should enuironne or beseege me together If I should vvalke amiddest the shadovv of death I vvil not feare If vvhole armies should stand against me yet my hart should not tremble My hope is in God therfore I vvil not feare vvhat man can doe vnto me God is my helper and I vvil not feare vvhat stesh can doe vnto me God is my he per and protector and therfore I vvil despise and contemne mine enemies And an other prophet in like sense Behold God is my Sauiour and therfore vvil I deale considentlie and vvil not feare Thes were the speeches of holy prophetes of
men that knew wel what they saied and had often tasted of affliction them selues and therfore could say of their owne experience how infallible Gods assistance is therin To this supreme courage magnanimitie and Christian fortitude the scripture exhorteth vs when it saieth If the spirit of one that is an authoritie doe rise against thee see thou yeeld not from thy place vnto him And againe an other scripture saith striue for iustice euen to the losse of thy life and stand for equitie vnto death it self God shal ouerthrow thine enemies for thee And Christ him self yet more effectually recom nēdeth this matter in thes wordes I say vnto you my freendes be not a fearde of them vvhich kil the body and aftervvard haue nothing els to doe against you And S. Peter addeth further 〈◊〉 cōturbemini That is doe not onely not feare them but which is lesse doe not so much as be troubled for al that flesh and blood cā doe against you Christ goeth further in the Apocalips and vieth maruailous speeches to entise vs to this forticude For thes are his wordes he that hath an eare to heare let him heare what the spirit saith vnto the churches To him that shal conquere I wil geue to eate of the tree of life which is in the paradise of my God This saieth the first and the last he that was dead and now is a liue I know thy tribulation and thy pouertie but thou art riche in deed and art blasphemed by thos that say they are true Israelites and are not but are rather the Sinagogue of Satan Feare nothing of that which you are to suffer behold the deuil wil cause some of you to be thrust into prison to the end you may be tempted you shal haue tribulation for tēne daies But be faithful vnto death and I wil geue the a croune of life He that hath an eare to heare let him heare what the spirit saieth vnto the churches He that shal ouercome shal not be hurt by the second death And he that shal ouercome and shal keepe my workes vnto the end I wil geue vnto him authoritie ouer nations euen as I haue receaued it from my father and I wil geue him besides the morning starre He that shal ouercome shal be appareled in white garmentes and I wil not blot his name out of the booke of life but wil confesse his name before my father and before his Angels Behold I come quicklie hold fast that thou hast lest an other man receaue thy croune He that shal conquere I wil make him a pillar in the temple of my God he shal neuer goe foorth more and I wil write vpon him the name of my God and the name of the citie of my God which is new Ierusalem He that shal conquere I wil geue vnto him to sit with me in my throne euen as I haue conquered and doe sit with my father in his throne Hitherto are the wordes of Christ to S. Iohn And in the end of the same booke after he had described the ioyes and glorie of heauen at large he concludeth thus And he that fate on the throne said to me Write thes wordes for that they are most faithful and true Qui vicerit possidebit haec ero illi Deus ille erit mihi 〈◊〉 timidis autem incredulis c. pars illorum erit in stagna ardenti igne sulphure quod est mors secunda He that shal conquer shal possesse al the ioyes that I haue here spokē of and I wil be his God and he shal be my sonne But they which shal be fearful to sight or incredulous of thes thinges that I haue saied their portiō shal be in the lake burning with fire and brimstone which is the second death Here now we see both allurements threates both good and euil life death the ioyes of heauen and the burning lake of hel proposed vnto vs. We may streach out our handes vnto which we wil. If we fight and conquere as by Gods grace vve may then are we to enioy the promises laid doune before If we shew our selues ether vnbeleuing in thes promises or feareful to take the sight in hand being offered vnto vs then fal we into the danger of the contrarie threates euen as S. Iohn affirmeth in an other place that certaine noble men did amōg the Iewes who beleeued in Christ but yet durst not confesse him for feare of persecution HERE THEN must ensew an other vertue in vs most necessary to al tribulation and affliction and that is a strong firme resolution to stand and go through what opposition or contradiction soeuer we find in the world ether of fauning flatterie or of persecuting crueltie This the scripture teacheth crying vnto vs esto firmus in via domini Be firme and immouable in the way of our Lord. And againe State in side 〈◊〉 agite Stand to your faith playe the men And yet further conside in Deo mane in loco 〈◊〉 Trust in God and abide firme in thy place And finally 〈◊〉 nō dissoluantur 〈◊〉 vestrae Take courage vnto you and let not your handes be dissolued from the worke you haue begonne This resolution had the three children Sydrach Misach Abdenago when hauing heard the flattering speech and infinite threates of cruel Nabuchodonasor they answered with a quiet spirit O king we may not answere you to this long speech of yours For behold our God is able if he wil to deliuer vs from this furnace of fire which you threaten and from al that you cā doe othervvise against vs. But yet if it should not please him so to doe you must know Sir king that we doe not worshippe your goddes nor yet adore your golden Idole which you haue set vp This resolution had Peter and Iohn who being so often brought before the councel and both commanded threatned and beaten to the end they should talke no more of Christ they answered stil Obedire oportet Deo magis quam hominibus we must obey God rather then men The same had S. Paul also when being requested with teares of the Christians in Cesarea that he wold forbeare to goe to Ierusalem for that the holie Ghost had reuealed to manie the troubles which expected him there he answered what meane you to wepe thus and to afflict my hart I am not onelie readie to be in bondes for Christs name in Ierusalem but also to suffer death for the same And in his epistle to the Romanes he yet further expresseth this resolution of his when he sayeth what thē shal we saye to these thinges if God be with vs who wil be against vs who shal separate vs from the loue of Christ shal tribulation shal distresse shal hungar shal nakednes shal peril shal persecution shal the sworde I am certaine that nether death nor life nor