and state Those that liue Godly here the world will hate But God doth euer them most highly prize Who here are meanest in the wickeds eyes The World will you deride and say that this But some vaine peeuish single humor is Or some light idle motion which doth rise From some meane ignorant conceited wise Despise their censures for I certaine know The spirit whence such heau'nly motions flow What care I how their worldly wisdome deeme Of them So they with God be in esteeme Oh! were my words now written in a booke That who so list to learne on them might looke Or with a Diamonds point engrauen plaine On Adamant for euer to remaine I know that my Redeemer true and iust Liues and shall raise vs at the last from dust And though the wormes my skin and flesh destroy I God shall in my body see with ioy Eu'n with mine owne and with no other eyes But now my spirit begins so high to rise As if she meant to leaue this habitation And flye to heau'n by holy contemplation Oft hath she striu'd to rise before this day As weary of her brittle Tent of Clay But hath beene by the weight thereof deprest But now shee feeles her selfe from thence releast I cannot last my Lampe so fast doth spend And now burnes clearest nearest to the end Farewell deare sonnes my Blessing on you all Continue to your after-Ages shall Oh God of Life now thou dost me denie The Powre to liue me willing make to die These all are those twelue Tribes of Israel Which good old Iacob blest and wished well Besides the blessing to each seuerall Wherein he told them what should after fall And now as Ioseph erst he made to sweare So chargeth he eu'n all his Children there To lay him in that place of Buriall Where his fore-fathers were interred all Thus when his swan-like song was at an end And all commanded that he did intend He plucked vp his feete into the Bed And was vnto his people gathered Oh happy man saith Pharoh God me send Eu'n such a life and such a happy end Lo farther Pharoh did that day command That all his Peeres and Nobles of the Land Should goe with Ioseph and his Brethren all To honour holy Iacobs funerall Where they seu'n dayes made so great Lamentation They draue the Cananites to admiration And after he was buried in this sort Ioseph returnes againe to Pharohs Court His Brethren vnto Goshen where in peace They Liued and did mightily increase Till Ioseph was an hundred ten yeares old So that he Ephraims children did behold To their third Generation and the seede Of Machir eldest of Manasses Breed Sate on his knees Then saith he lo I die But God will visit you assuredly And in that Land a place for you prepare As he to Abram Isaack Iacob sware Then as I sware to Iacob to me sweare Thither my Bones with you from hence to beare His Brethren sware So Ioseph as I told Dide honourably being very old Whose Body they imbalmed in a Chest And after carryed to the land of Rest Where they erect a Pillar on his graue And thereupon this Epitaph engraue FINIS IOSEPHS Epitaph HIs Fathers Darling mothers deare delight Obiect of Satans malice Brethrens spite To Master iust chaste faithful to his Dame In Prison free coÌ„demn'd yet void of blame From Dungeon raisd to highest reputation By Wisdome Counsell Dreames and DiuinatioÌ„ Thus God by him a great deliuerance wrought In sauing them who his destruction sought A diligent wise prouident Obseruer And therefore of Mankinde a great preseruer In Padan borne In Canaan nourished In Midian bound in Aegypt honoured From whence his soule flew to eternall Rest His Bones here in like expectation rest He sau'd from Famine King Priests People all For which his seede and Nation they enthrall Vnworthy Aegypt of this sacred Vrne Who such rewards for merits dost returne SVSANNA was of all thy Poems best But IOSEPH her excels as shee the rest 1. Kin. 4.21 Gen. 15.18 called there the riuer of Egypt A cittie so called Gen. 25.13 Called Ostracina or Cheres Plin lib. 5. cap. 22. Iosephus ad Heroum oppidum Iacobo occurrit Ios. lib. 2. Antiq. ca. 4. Iosephus ibidem a Sex aut septem miliaeria a capite Delta admare rubrum Gorop Hisp. lib. 6. Herod plus distantiae poâ—it lib. 2. b Psamni thus Egyptorum Rex hoc tentauit sed oraculo interpellatus desutit Herod ibidem c Eedam significat aggerem perpetuuÌ„ nullo modo rumpendum Gorop lib. 6. Hisp. d Cimbrica seu Germanica Gorop e Dam significat aggerem fluctibus Maris aquarum oppositum Gorop Herm lib 4. Ee. significat firmum f Hebraite sic vocatur sic vocandae est g Etham dicitur vel ab Hebraeo Thaam permecathesin qd significat geminum quiae inter duo maria positum est vel ab Ethah quod significat curro quia EthaÌ„ olim futurus est locus vbi mare currat h Athas mons celissimus factus est nauigabilis à Xerxe Plut. Iust. alij i Quales sunt obelisci 4. quorum v. nusquisque erat 480. cubitorum longitudine 1 Ruben 2 Simeon 3 Leui. 4 Iudah 5 Zabulon 6 Isachar 7 Dan. 8 Gal. 9 Aser 10 Napthalim 11 Ioseph 12 Beniamin
face behold Without the Lad be there except I would Bring on my Fathers house such wrechednesse As no mans Tongue is able to expresse With that like Iordanes flouds his teares doe fall And as he wept so wept his Brethren all But Ioseph then no longer could refraine But biddes forbeare there may not one remaine Within with him whilst he himselfe declares Vnto his Brethren with such cryes and teares That the Egyptians and Pharoh heare His loud laments and scarcely can forbeare To mourne with him who kept them all from mourning But Ioseph to his Brethren soone returning Saith I am Ioseph doth my Father liue Feare not my Brethren I you all forgiue As when a King that he discouer may Some traitrous plot his body doth array In such an habit as none can descry Him from one of that close Conspiracy Till hearing all the Traitours Coniuring He shewes himselfe to be their Lord and King So that they all stand mute and in a maze And gastly one vpon another gaze So stand the ten one looking on another To see so high their late betraied Brother Thus at the last the wicked men shall hide Their face at sight of him they Crucifide When on his Throne his glory they behold Like Iosephs who shall like to him be sold. But Beniamin poore harmelesse innocent After he had endur'd this chastisement At hearing Iosephs name lifts vp his eyes And lowder now for Ioy then Sorrow cryes So shall the innocent at last appeare To be absolued by their Brother deare Then Ioseph saith my Brethren all draw neare I am your Brother Ioseph doe not feare That very Ioseph you to Egypt sold But be not greeu'd therewith nor doe it hold A cruell thing For God me sent before For to preserue your liues with millions more This is the second yeare fiue are behinde When none shall reape or mow or sheaues vp binde God sent me to preserue your Progeny And saue you by a great deliuery Not you I say but God me hither sent And made me here to your astonishment Great Pharoh's Father and giu'n free command Ore all his House and ouer all his Land Hast to my Father Tell him in a word Thus saith thy Ioseph God hath made me Lord Of Egypt Tarry not but soone come downe And thou shalt dwell on Goshens fruitfull downe Thy Children Childrens children and thy flocke Beasts Asses Camels all thy store and stocke Lo there I sustenance for thee will finde For those fiue yeares of Famine yet behinde Your owne eyes see and Beniamins behold I all in your owne tongue haue truly told My glory here then to my Father tell As you haue seene and hither hast to dwell So weeping he vpon the necke doth fall Of Beniamin and he on his so all He kisses and doth after with them talke Familiarly as they together walke As when a Treasure in the earth is found Fames Trumpet doth it farre and neere resound So Fame this newes in Pharohs Court doth tell Which pleased him and all his seruants well Therefore he thus to Ioseph out of hand Thy Brethren send with Corne into their Land To bring their Father and his family That they may eate my Lands fertilitie Besides I will my Charrets thou command For to conuey your Father to my Land With Wiues and Children let them leaue their stuffe Egypt shall furnish them with store enough Then Ioseph hasting them away to send Peace by the way doth thus to them commend I will not now things past commemorate Your griefe and sorrow more to aggrauate For God hath turn'd your morne of griefe and sadnesse Vnto a day of Feasting Ioy and gladnesse Yet patiently my louing Counsell heare And by your former harmes learne to beware Let not that wicked Enuyer of mankinde Breede discords strifes or quarrels in your minde Nor question or dispute one with another Who 's most in fault for selling of your brother Each of his sinne vnfainedly repent And giue God glory who me hither sent And all the euill you against me thought Turning to good this great deliuerance wrought I send now Charrets by the Kings command To bring my aged Father to this land Ten Asses laden all with Egypts good I likewise send my father for his food And ten she-Asses lade with corne and bread That by the way you may thereof be fed Changes of Rayment I to each assigne These fiue my dearest Beniamin are thine With these three hundred siluer peeces So He hath his right yet you no wrong I do Let not your eye cause I am good be ill 'T is reason good enough to say I will Yet Nature may informe you of another He is my onely brother by my mother Enuy him not because he in mine eyes Most gracious is nor shall he you despise Brethren in loue and amitie combind Are like small stickes we in a fagot bind No force them bends whilst they remaine in one Disioynd a child will breake them all alone Hast Fare-you-well fall not out by the way W'offend against my Father by your stay Lo thus they flie from Nile to Iordans shore To tell their Father all you heard before Ioseph is yet aliue saith Iudah and Is Gouernor of all King Pharohs land Alas saith Iacob come you me to flout Ioseph now liues in heau'n I make no doubt He was the Prey long since of cruell beast I haue his bloody Coate still in my chest Ah! saith Dan to Gods glory we confesse Who hath laid open all our wickednesse That we our brother out of enuy fold When we at Dothan pastured our fold To Ishmaelites who after for their gaine In Egypt where we found him sold againe His colourd Coate which doth with thee abide We dipt in bloud our fowlest sinne to hide Lo now thy sonnes on knees before thee fall And for this our offence beg pardon all Ioseph vnaskd our trespasse did remit Therefore good father also pardon it As Indian merchant on the sodaine told His ship is safe arriu'd all lade with gold Which long since to be cast away he feard Because he neuer tidings of her heard First wauers and it hardly can beleeue Fearing lest he too sodaine credence giue But when he sees the Porters bringing in The golden Oare and Ingots doth begin For to reuiue Eu'n so old Israel Misdoubts when first he heard his children tell Of Iosephs life and glory great at Nile But when he thus had wauered awhile And saw the goodly charrets Ioseph sent To bring him and his houshold from their tent To Egypt and his dearest Beniamin Confirm'd it all for Truth Behold within The old mans spirit doth againe reuiue And cryes with Ioy Ioseph is yet aliue God pardon you all your Iniquitie I will goe downe and see him ere I die The end of the third Booke of Ioseph THE FOVRTH BOOKE OF IOSEPH NOw Iacobs tents abound with such great store Of corne which they had wanted heretofore As if God had
Because she gratious was in Iacobs eyes Now him that neuer did or thought you ill Because my father loues me you will kill To him once I confesse I did relate An ill report I heard not for least hate Or malice that my brethren I did beare But that you knowing it might better cleare That which my father did but folly deeme To tell mine idle dreames will you esteeme It capitall oh brethren deare forbeare If not for loue or pittie yet for feare Of vengeance which will follow fratricide Cains curse shall euer on that house abide If all consent your Brother here to slay Iacob hath lost eleu'n sonnes in one day And whence shall then that blessed one proceede God promisd in our father Isaacks seede That cursed Cham from whom these nations come Which here inhabite neuer yet haue done So foule a sinne nor Nimrods cruell sword Was ere in his owne brothers blood engor'd A brothers sight rough Esaus fury chaces And makes him fall to kisses and embraces Looke on my youth not halfe so loth to die As to be slaine by brethrens crueltie Looke on my innocence Behold my teares Respect your and my Fathers grayer haires Who cannot but with griefe and sorrow die For losse of me by Brethrens Butchery Oh! neuer hope this murther to conceale For though you your owne lips should all vp seale These beasts stones trees my bloud to heau'n will cry For vengeance on this bloudy Felony And that which now you thinke in secret done Shall be made plaine and clearer then the Sunne Now Isaack like I lye vnder your knife And willingly as he could leaue my Life Were I perswaded 't were the heaun'ly will But herein Satans purpose you fulfill And your malicious enuy satisfie But Lord accept me as I guiltiesse die These words proceeding from a Soule opprest With anguish wrought so in his Brethrens brest That though they willingly all wish him slaine Yet each from bloud-shed would his hands retaine Wherefore they him into a dry pit cast With cold and hunger there to pine and wast And suddenly they sit them downe to eate Ne're pitying Ioseph that must sterue for meate So haue I seene tenne hounds of bloudy kinde Who long haue chas'd to kill the harmelesse Hinde When they haue lodg'd her in the hunters gin Whence neuer one escapes if enterd in Turne to their Lodge where for their labours meede They on the heart and bleeding intrailes feede Poore Ioseph had thy Brethren now thee slaine Thou long since hadst beene rid out of thy paine But whilst thou seek'st by teares thy life to saue Thou now art buried quicke within thy graue What canst thou looke for in this Dungeon vast But eu'n with cold and hunger here to waste Depriu'd of Sunnes most comfortable Light And euill Sp'rits with horrour thee to fright Yet as a fauour this was done to thee Thus are the wickeds mercies Crueltie But Lord the childe to heau'n cries from the pit And doth to righteous Iudge his cause commit Lord thou dost know how innocent I die Me saue and pardon their iniquitie As when fierce Caine out of base enuying That God should best accept his offering Had Abel slaine His bloud to heau'n did cry So this childs grieuous Lamentations flye Into Gods eares who sends the Ishmaelites First persecutors of the Israelites From Brethrens malice Ioseph to set free And saue his life though lose his Libertie So he that late escaped being slaine Is raised vp out of the pit againe Whom to be rid off and for present pay His Brethren sell to be conueid away And now large shadowes from the Mountaines fall And Heau'n with his blacke mantle couers all Phebus for rest in Sea his Steedes bestowes And from her Sea of rest the Night arose When Iacobs sonnes amongst themselues deuise To couer their inhumane cruelties And as we euer see that one foule sinne Begets another to lye hidden in As some their foule adultery to hide Haue first vs'd Drunkennesse then Homicide So these vniustly 'gainst their Fathers will One of the Kiddes then in his Flocke doe kill And dipping in his blood the colourd coate Of Ioseph it vnto their father brought And say Now see good father dost thou know Whether this be thy Iosephs coate or no As Turtle deare when seeking for her loue She finds at cu'n the feathers of a Doue Begoard with blood late party colourd gay Concluding now her mate hath beene the prey Of cruell hawke sends out most piteous cries And in those dearest blooded feathers dies So good old Israel whose dimmer sight Could scarce discerne of colours by the night Yet seeing Iosephs coate begoared red Which lately was so finely coloured For whom though long he look'd and did enquire Yet saw nor heard least newes of his retire Cries out 't is Iosephs coate with blood defild Some wicked beast deuoured hath the child I sent him out alone vnwittingly And therefore guilty of the crueltie So grieuous were his groanes and lamentation They turne to sorrow all his habitation And though his sonnes and daughters all arise To comfort him the best they can deuise Yet still the good old man doth groane and crie Ioseph is lost I in his coate will die He with wilde beasts is into peeces torne I le sooner cease to liue then cease to mourne Father saith Dina then th' vnlucky maid Why should you without cause be thus dismaid Before times I haue often heard you say Gods Angell you conducted in your way From hence eu'n vnto the Assyrian plaine And thence from Laban brought you home againe Oh why should you despaire then thus and feare As God of yours had not as great a care What because here a bloody coate you see Must it be Iosephs needes or if it bee He may whilst he from cruell beasts did flie Forsake his coate to scape more speedily He that this coate found loose vpon the ground Not any signe of murthering him found Nor found he either hand head foot or bone Onely this bloody coate lay all alone Blooded it seemes with iawes of cruell beast Which on some other prey had made his feast Thus can the whole to sicke good counsell giue And easier 't is to teach well then to liue But Ruben Iudah all his sonnes may rise And daughters all to comfort him deuise He rends his clothes puts sacke cloth on his loines And for his Ioseph long time weepes and pines And mourning will goe downe vnto his graue To Ioseph whom he here shall neuer haue Meane while to Nile the Midian merchants hie Laden with Balme with mirrhe and Spicerie When Ioseph whom if they could truely prize Was farre more worth than all their merchandize Did bondage base vnto his noble minde More bitter then death to his body finde But hauing none to whom to make his mone Goes sighing sobbing to himselfe alone Vntill a merchant willing him to cheare That hee might fairer looke and sell more deare Enquireth of