when he sayth According to our own image and likenesse which is the second thing we haue to note For by these wordes he plainely declareth that he mindeth to make a worke the like wherof was not before and to draw our an image more agreeable to his nature and more worthy his Maiesty then he had done before amongst all the worksâ— of his hands For although he had already idomed and replenished the whole heauens 〈◊〉 gooâ—y lights yea al thee 〈◊〉 and residue of the world with all sorts of creatures yet there was not one creature vnder heauen which he had made capable of vnderstanding and reason to know and glorifie God the creator of the whole world And 〈◊〉 the Angels being 〈◊〉 spirits had this vnderstanding and knowledge yet he would haue man besides vpon earth for whose sake chiefly he had created the world to the end hee might know and glorifie him together with his Angels Therefore Moses addeth the third thing which we haue to consider in this deliberation of mans creation thereby the better to let vs know the excellency of this creature aboue the rest when hee declareth that God would create him that he might rule ouer the rest of the liuing creatures and ouer the whole earth as if man should be his Lieutenant and as it were a litle terrene god vnder the great soueraigne God that created him But some man may aske with whom God maketh this deliberation For he speaketh as though he would haue some helpers and companions in the making of this so excellent a work The Prophet Isaiah answereth to this saying Who was his counseller or who hath giuen to him first and he shal be recompensed For he had no other counsaile or helpe but of himselfe and of his heauenly and eternall wisedome as it is testified by Salomon Therefore we must not thinke that he had the Angels for counsellers and helpers either in the creation of man or of any other creature whatsoeuer as some haue presumed to imagine and to affirme For that were to derogate too much from the nature and maiestie of God and to take from him the title of Almightie which agreeth to him onely For the creature cannot be a creator And as there is but one onely God so there is but one creator of all things For the worke of the creation can agree to none but to God only But Moses by this maner of speaking in the plural number meant to giue out some obscure knowledge of the trinitie of persons that is in the vnitie of God and that vnion which they haue together in the worke of the creation which is common to the Father with the Sonne and the holy Ghost as are all the other workes of God For although there bee distinction of persons in one and the same diuine essence yet there is no diuision betweene them nor separation And as they are vnited together in one and the same essence so likewise are they in all their works For the Father doth nothing but by the Sonne that in the vertue of the holy spirite Therefore the Prophet addeth immediately God created the man in his image in the image of God created he him he created them male and female We see here that Moses doth not propound vnto vs three Gods or three creators but one onely And in that he doeth twice repeate this that God created man in his image it is to let vs vnderstand that this point ought to be well considered of and weighed as that wherein consisteth all the excellencie of man and the true difference that is betweene him and the other liuing creatures which are but brute beasts We shall know where we ought to seeke this image of God in man after we haue heard the rest of the historie of his creation For after that Moses hath briefly and summarily spoken as wee haue saide he taketh the same matter againe into his hand and intreateth thereof more specially He saith then That the Lo 〈◊〉 of the dust of the ground breathed in his face breath of life that the man was a liuing soule Wherby he sheweth euideÌ„tly that God did not create the body soule of maÌ„ both at one time as he had created the beasts but the body first then the soule which he ioined therwith not only to giue life vntoit as it is giuen to brute beasts by the soule which they haue but also to make it capable of vnderstaÌ„ding as we shal vnderstand more at large hereafter For we speak not now by what means or at what time the soule is ioined with the body in the coÌ„mon ordinary generation of men but only of the mean order which God obserued in the creatioÌ„ of the first maÌ„ according to the rehearsall which Moses maketh Now touching the matter wherof he made him because the chiefest most apparant was taken froÌ„ the earth it is said expresly that he was made therof that he should return thither as we see it true in the death of euery one But this is most certain granted of al the great philosophers yea euideÌ„t to be seen that mans body is compounded of the 4. elements of all their qualities as also all the other bodies of creatures vnder heauen And because the greatest part which remaineth of that which wee see of man is of the earth therefore it is said that he returneth to earth although whatsoeuer is taken of the other elements in the compositioÌ„ of his body doth likewise turne againe into theÌ„ For the flesh of man agreeth aptly with the earth his vital spirits with the aire the fire his humors with the water The sence of seeing agreeth with the fire that of hearing with the aire that of tasting w e the element of water the sence of touching with the earth that of smeling with the aire and fire as we shall vnderstand more at large hereafter when we handle them Yea there is no piece so small in the whole frame of man wherein euery one of the elements doth not intemeddle his power qualities although one of theÌ„ doth alwaies command aboue the rest This is to be seen in the blood which is the first chiefest of those 4. humours in the body is properly of the nature of the aire For the muddy dregs which coÌ„monly thickeÌ„ settle in the bottoÌ„ of it are of the nature of the earth are called Melancholy the pure blood that swimmeth in the midst doth represent vnto vs the aire that humour that swimmeth in a rounde circle is watrie sleame and the skumme that appeareth aboue is the choler which is of the nature of the fire If we coÌ„sider the ordinary generation of men the matter is humour naturall heate is as it were the master buylder drynesse hardneth the body and colde refreshings doe not onely moderate the heate that the moyst matter should not bee
fiue They which make fiue sortes distinguish betweene the common sense the imagination and the fantasie making them three and for the fourth they adde Reason or the iudging facultie and for the fift Memorie They that make but three kinds differ not from the other but onely in that they comprehend all the former three vnder the common sense or vnder one of the other twaine whether it be the imagination or the fantasie As for the Sensitiue facultie it comprehendeth the vertues of the fiue corporall senses of which wee haue spoken before As for the Motiue vertue it comprehendeth the moouing of all the outward parts of the body from one place to an other especially of the feete and legges which is to walke and of the handes which is to apprehend and to gripe This moouing is done by the sinewes muscles and filaments as we haue already declared but not without knowledge and will as the other that are more properly called naturall motions of which we may speake in their order And this motion is led by the imagination in regard of beastes but in regard of men by reason But because we haue already handled at large these two last powers of the soule namely the Sensitiue and Motiue when we spake of the externall members of the body we wil now speake especially of the first which comprehendeth the internall senses spoken of by me euen now which answere to the externall senses according to the bond agreement and communication which the body and soule haue together And because wee cannot know the faculties vertues of the soule but only by means of those instruments whereby it worketh as we haue shewed in our former discourses the nature and vse of the externall members and howe the soule is serued by them so now we will do the like by the internall parts to the ende that we may the better knowe the nature of the soule by her operations and instruments as the labourer that worketh by his instruments and frameth those woorkes that are before our eyes For the soule being of a spirituall nature and not bodily we cannot see it in it owne substance and nature nor haue any knowledge thereof but by the effectes by which wee may iudge and conclude of their cause as also by those testimonies of the soule which the Lorde affordeth vs in his worde And although the vnderstanding of man can not attaine to an entire and perfect knowledge of the soule yet that smal knowledge which wee may haue doeth exceedingly profite end delight vs. For seeing it is the most excellent creature that is created vnder the cope of heauen yea more excellent then the heauens themselues or any of the celestiall bodies because the soule only is endued with reason and vnderstanding there is no doubt but the knowledge thereof is more excellent profitable pleasant and necessary yea more worthy admiration then of any other thing whatsoeuer as that which alwaies yeeldeth profit to the greatest things that can be Therfore we ought not to set light by that knowledge of it which wee may attaine vnto For there is in it so great varietie beauty and harmony yea it is so wel adorned and set forth that no heauen nor earth is so wel painted or bedecked with such beautifull liuely and excellent images and pictures as that is On the other side she is the Mistresse and Authour from whence proceedeth the inuention of all Artes and Sciences and of all those wonderfull woorkes that are made throughout the whole course of mans life Therefore no man can beholde her or thinke vpon her without great pleasure and admiration And seeing the fountaine and well-spring of all the good and euill that befalleth vs is in the soule there is nothing more profitable for men then to know it well to the ende they may labour more carefully to keepe this fountaine pure and well purged that all the riuers of their actions and workes may issue and flowe pure and cleane from thence For that man can neuer gouerne his soule wel nor be master of himselfe that doeth not knowe himselfe If wee desire to knowe what workes wee are to looke for of a workeman what hee can doe or what may befall him what hee is good for and for what hee is vnmeete hee must first of all bee knowen what hee is Therefore that sentence of which we haue already spoken that saith Know thy selfe ought heere especially to take place and to bee practised For it is a harder matter to knowe the nature and qualitie of our soule and of our minde the vertues and affections thereof to enquire and consider of it well and to knowe what may be knowen thereof as also the diuerse and holow lurking holes the turnings and windings therein then to know the bones flesh sinews and blood of our bodies with all the matter whereof it is made and all the partes and members thereof Seeing then wee are to make enquirie of the nature and powers of the soule by the effects thereof according as I haue already spoken and seeing the principall effect is the life which it giueth to all liuing creatures let vs first consider of the difference that is betweene the creatures void of life and those that haue life in them Afterward let vs looke into the sundrie sortes of liues that are in liuing creatures as that which will helpe vs well to the vnderstanding of that wee seeke for First then wee must note that all creatures are either spirituall or bodily All they are spirituall creatures that are without bodies and which cannot be perceiued by any bodily sense and such are the Angelles both good and bad and the soules and spirites of men The bodily creatures are all those that are visible and that may bee felt and perceiued by corporall senses amongst which some haue no life and some haue life Againe those creatures that haue no life differ in two respects for some of them haue no naturall motion as stones metalles mineralles and such like creatures Others haue their naturall motion among which some are mutable corruptible and subiect to change others are immutable incorruptible continuing alwaies firme in their estate during the course of this world The water the aire the windes and the fire are creatures hauing motion albeit they haue no life but they are subiect to corruption and so are all the creatures that are compounded of the elements whether they haue life or no. For being made of contrary matters and qualities they corrupt and change not in respect of their first matter and substance which can neuer perish according to the testimony of Philosophers notwithstanding it alter in forme but alwayes returneth to the first nature Stones and metalles albeit they be very hard yet are they not freed from corruption and consuming through vse But the celestiall bodies are of that matter and nature that they mooue continually and yet abide
of their places in mans body I meane in the whole masse and distribution of the blood and in the coniunction they haue together euen as the elements haue their places each after other For as the fire of it owne nature is light and therefore laboureth alwayes to ascend vpward to attaine to his naturall place so the cholerike humour which agreeth with the nature thereof occupieth the highest place among the humours mingled with the blood as we may perceiue by that that hath beene already spoken of the floure and skimme of blood according to that comparison which wee made betwixt blood and wine The like may be saide of the rest For as the aire is lightest next to the fire and the neerest element vnto it and to the rest of the celestiall fires so the blood properly so called keepeth the place of the aire among the humours of the body For it is not so light as the fire nor so heauie as the water or the earth And so consequently the flegmatike and melancholike humours occupy the lower places according to their degrees as the water and the earth doe in this great world For this cause all these humours besides their common offices and effects haue others more speciall agreeable to their nature as God willing we wil declare heereafter And namely the flegmatike humour that holdeth of the nature of the water is to be considered of For as in this great visible world there are waters both aboue and beneath I meane those that are contained and retained within the clouds in the ayre those that are in the sea in riuers kept within their bounds assigned them for their course so the like is to be foūd in the litle world which is mā Nowe hitherto haue wee learned howe the water and the other humours are carried with the blood throughout the body aswell vpwarde as downewarde by meanes of the veines which water all the partes of it howe high or lowe soeuer they be and therewithall carrie vnto them their foode and nourishement And this agreeth fitly to the woonderfull worke of GODS prouidence in nature which of the vapours arising out of the earth gathereth the cloudes together and these like to sponges sucke vp vapours from the waters of which themselues are engendered and which afterward they cary about as it were in chariots to distribute them into all quarters of the worlde according as it shall please God to dispose of them by sending his blessing vpon the earth by the meanes of raine wherewith being watred it nourisheth all those herbs trees plantes and fruites which it bringeth foorth not onely for the sustenance of men but also of beasts Let vs then imagine before vs a garden wherein is infinite varietie of trees and plantes of all sortes and that this garden is watred either by raine from heauen or by pipes and conduites whereby the water is brought thither and dispersed in all places thereof We shall see that in this great diuersitie of nature there is but one and the same nourishment for them all and but one place And albeeit the liquor that affoordeth this nourishment to so many sorts of plants be but one neuerthelesse it is conuerted into the nature of all those things which it nourisheth so that the nature of it is changed according to the distinct propertie of each of them For there are plants and herbes of all qualities and of all tastes and colours Some are hote others colde some drie others moist either in the first or second or third or fourth degree or else are tempered and intermingled according to their seuerall natures As for their tastes some are sweet others sharpe or bitter or of no certaine taste In a worde there are of all kindes of tastes both simple and compound And yet the humour or liquor is but one that receiueth all these qualities as in wormwood it becommeth bitter and in the Vine or Figge-tree sweete And if the herbes bee either for food or for physicke or of a poysonfull nature the same may be saide of the humour that nourisheth them The like is seene also in colours Neither doe wee obserue all this by experience onely in some great diuersitie of trees and of all sortes of plantes but euen in eche of them seuerally For I pray you what difference is there in euery herbe or in euery seuerall tree I meane betweene the roote and the stalke the body and the branches the boughes and the leaues the floures seedes and fruites And yet all these sundry partes receiue nourishment from one Mother and from one and the same substance and liquor Moreouer we see that as man and all other liuing creatures haue their heart in the midst of their bodies which is the fountaine of life so all trees herbes and plantes haue their heart in the middest of them according to their nature without which they could not liue For we call their heart the inwarde part within which their pith remaineth which is vnto them as the heart is to liuing and sensible creaatures Whereupon we haue further to note in regard of those herbes that haue weak stalks especially hollow ones or such as haue strawes insteede of stalkes that the prouidence of God hath giuen vnto them knots seuered as it were into sundry smal knees which are vnto thē in place of their stomack and of other nutritiue members to reteine their nourishment the longer to concoct it the better as also to strengthē them thereby And this we may euidently see in all sorts of corne and pulse Euen so doth nature or rather the prince therof worke in a mans body which is as it were a garden that hath a soule Wherein the Creator of this whole frame sheweth himselfe no lesse wonderful nay rather much more then in this great garden of the whole earth and of the great world of both which he is the Gardener that watreth them to nourish all the fruits they bring forth to cause them to grow For frō whence proceed or are nourished the bones gristles ligamēts sinews arteries veines flesh kernels fatte together with all the other partes of which the body is compounded May not the like be saide of the eyes of their coats and humors of the eares nose tongue teeth belly stomack guts liuer spleene kidneies of all the other bowls and inward parts And if we come to the hands and feet and to the other outward members to al the other parts called Instrumentall distinguished according to their office we shall finde that onely through the alteration of their foode into liquor they all receiue such nourishment as is proper to eche of them Yet notwithstanding one and the same sustenance is offered to so many sundry members beeing made familiar and of the same nature with that part vnto which it is ioyned For if it goe to the eyes it becommeth of the same temperament that the nerues and spirites
belonging to the sight are of which bring the facultie and vertue of seeing vnto the eyes as likewise it is of the same temperament with the coats and humors of which the eyes are compounded being diuided and distributed to eche sundrie part by a naturall propertie inherent in them The like is done in the eares and in other members and instruments of the corporal senses and in all the other partes of the body euen to the very nailes and haires thereof Wherein truely wee see wonderfull alterations and a most admirable woorke of Gods prouidence whether it bee considered in the whole earth and in this great world or in man who is the litle world Now for the sequele of our speech before wee come to speake of the speciall offices and effectes of the three humours ioyned with the blood of which wee haue heere spoken wee are to consider besides this distribution made of the nourishment by meanes of the veynes as it hath beene tolde vs of another meane by which these humours and especially the flegmatike ascend vp vnto the braine whereby it commeth to passe that in man as well as in the great world there are waters aboue and belowe which are the cause that mans life swimmeth in the middest of a great danger Also wee are to knowe why the soule and the blood are often taken eche for other and to be instructed in the temperature of the humors necessarily belonging to the bodie for the health and life thereof as likewise to consider of the causes of health and sicknesse and of life and death But this shall bee for to morowe when thou ASER shalt vndertake the discourse of these things so farre foorth as is requisite for vs to know The end of the eight dayes worke THE NINTH dayes worke Of the vapours that ascend vp to the braine and of the waters and cloudes conteined therein and in what perils men are thereby why the soule and blood are put one for another of the temperature of the humors necessary for the health and life of the body of the causes of health and of diseases and of life and death Chap. 65. ASER It is the saying of an ancient Philosopher that they which saile vpon the water are not aboue two or three fingers breadth distant from death namely so farre off as the thicknes of the plankes and timber of the ship is in which they are caried into the Sea For if that timber were taken from vnder them they cannot auoyd drowning vnlesse they can swimme like fishes But not to saile on the sea or vpon a lake or riuer to approch neere to death we haue it a great deale neerer vs when we cary about vs infinite causes and meanes whereby we are euery houre in danger of stifling and as it were of drowning and that both waking sleeping eating and drinking within doores and without at all times and in al places whersoeuer we become Insomuch that of what estate and disposition soeuer men are we are oftentimes astonished to heare tydings of a mans death sooner then of his sickenesse whom wee saw not long before mery cheerefull and in good health Now we may learne some chiefe causes hereof by this dayes handling of that matter Subiect which was yesterday propounded to bee discoursed vpon And first we must know that besides the distribution of all the humours together with the blood into all parts of the bodie by the veines and that for the causes before learned there is yet another meane whereby these humors especially the flegmatike humour which is of the nature of the water ascend vp vnto the braine by reason of vapours arising vpward out of the stomacke like to the vapour of a potte seething on the fire with liquor in it and like to vapours that ascend vp from the earth into the ayre of which raine is engendred Now when these vapours are come vp to the braine they returne to their naturall place and into the nature of those humours of which they were bred as the vapours that are held in the aire turne againe into the same nature of water of which they came Therefore as the waters are contained within the cloudes in the region of the aire allotted vnto them so is it with our braine which is of a colde nature and of a spongie substance fitte for that purpose So that we alwayes carie within it as it were cloudes full of water and of other humours that distil and runne downe continually by the members and passages which God hath appointed to that ende as wee haue alreadie hearde And these places albeit they serue especially to purge seuerall humors as hath beene tolde vs yet oftentimes they voide them altogether both by reason of their mingling and coniunction as of their ouer great abundance Yea many times they are so plentifull namely the flegmatike humour that because the braine cannot sufficiently discharge it selfe of them by the ordinary way these humors ouerflowe on all sides wheresoeuer they can finde any vent and issue euen as when a thundering cloude bursteth asunder So that the water runneth not downe as it were a milde and gentle raine but as a mighty flood that bringeth great ruines with it or as a riuer passing his ordinary course breaketh downe both banke and wall and ouerfloweth euery where Therefore we may well say that many times we haue floods of water enclosed within our heads and braines when wee neuer thinke of it nor yet consider in what danger we are Which the more secrete and vnknowen it is vnto vs the more perillous it is and greatlier to be feared especially considering it is so neere vs and that wee haue fewer meanes to auoyde it as wee haue daily examples in many who being in health and mery are sodainely choked by catarrhes which like to floods of waters runne downewards as the very name deriued from the Grecians doeth import as much or by some sodaine Apoplexie how healthy soeuer before they seemed to bee Others also there are who if they be not presently choked with such floods from the brain yet they are taken with palsies lamenesse and impotencie in all their members or at leastwise in some of them as if some waterflood had caried them away so that nothing had beene saued but the bare life and that more fraile and miserable then death it selfe I speake not of gowtie persons who although they be not assaulted with such great and vehement floods of waters and with euill and superfluous humours so that some few droppes onely of which they are so called fall vpon some partes of them yet are they greatly tormented constrained to crie out and that oftentimes in extreme distresse Which consideration ought to stirre vs vp to know wherein our life and preseruation thereof consisteth and of whom we holde it And on the other side although we had no examples of floods and inundations of waters of earthquakes and such other
themselues vnder the vale thereof to the end that men should not take theÌ„ for such as they are indeed as also that they might keepe company with the best But in their hearts amongst their companions they mocke laugh at al religion at al feare of God whatsoeuer els is taught vs by his word touching any other life theÌ„ this wherin ioy is prepared for the good and torments for the wicked Nowe if there were nothing els to doe but to conuince such men of errour lying the matter were easie for they cary all their witnesses and their condemnatioÌ„ with them but they are not so easily confounded For a man is conuinced when he is constrained to acknowledge in his conscieÌ„ce that he hath no reason wherby he is able to withstand gainsay that trueth which is shewed vnto him which condemneth him But if he be obstinate head-strong wickedly giuen fâ—oward he will neuer leaue kicking against the pricke but perseuere in his headinâ—sse and obstinacie in his maliciousnes and peruersenes For wheÌ„ reason faileth him he armeth himselfe with impudencie like to a bold murtherer or to a shamelesse harlot that will blush at nothing Therefore Chrysostome said not without reason that heretiks may wel be conuinced but not confounded For they do but wipe their mouth as Salomon speaketh of an harlot which presently after boasteth that she is an honest woman But howsoeuer wicked men striue to blindfold their vnderstanding to harden their heart against the iudgement of God yet it is neuer propounded vnto them but will they nill they they feele themselues pricked and pressed with some sence thereof True it is that it is not so with them as the childreÌ„ of God are touched as they of whom it is written that after they had heard the preaching of Saint Peter they were pricked in their hearts whereby they were led to true repentance because they had bin touched to the quicke by the word But it is said of the reprobate and of them that are hardened of which sort are all Atheists that God hath giuen them a pricking spirite by reason of their bitter hâ—â—â—t which causeth them alwaies to increase in bitternesse to fret and chafe against God when they feele themselues pressed by his word and by his iudgement Therefore I am of opinion my companions that for this cause and for those reason which ASER recited vnto vs we are now to call to memory all the testimonies that we can bring of God of his prouidence of his iudgement and of the immortalitie of mens soules by the consideration of the nature of man and of his parts the body and soule expecting when sometime hereafter God shall giue vs grace to contemplate the selfe same things in euery nature and in all this great visible world For no doubt but such kind of contemplation will furnish vs sufficiently with arguments to conuince all Epicures and Atheists to constraine them to acknowledge in their conscience a diuine iustice and an eternall life The heauens saieth the Prophet declare the glory of God the firmament sheweth the worke of his hands This hie ornament this firmament so cleare and face of heauen so sumptuous to behold is a thing full of greatnesse Therein we may behold the Master builder thereof clothed with the whole frame as with a garment which is a sure testimonie of his power and vertue He who cannot fall within the compas of mans grosse sences maketh himselfe as it were visible in his terrible workes This worlde is vnto vs a learned schoole wherein the praise of God doth preach it selfe It is a goodly large rich shop wherein this soueraigne and most excellent workman layeth open all his works to this end that he might be knowen by them It is a temple wherein there is no creature so little but it is as it were a similitude and resemblance of the creator thereof to shew and manifest him vnto vs. In a word it is a Theatre where the diuine essence his iustice his prouidence his loue his wisedome haue their working by a wonderfull vertue in euery creature euen from the hiest heauen vnto the center of the earth Aske the beasts saith Iob and they shall teach thee and the foules of the heauen and they shal tel thee or speake to the earth and it shall shew thee or the fishes of the sea and they shall declare vnto thee Who is ignorant of all these but that the hand of the Lorde hath made these But truly there shineth in man more then in all other creatures a beame of the diuinity a proportionable image and similitude of his nature in that God hath framed him of an immortal soule capable of vnderstanding of reason to make him partaker of his eternal glory and felicity O Lord saith the Psalmist who marueilous is thy name in all the wolde What is man that thou art mindfull of him and the sonne of man that thou visitest him Thou hast made him a litle lower then God and crowned him with glory and worship Thou hast made him to haue dominion in the works of thine hands thâ—â— hast put all things vnder his feete But withall as God hath more expresly created man after his owne image then any other visible nature and therefore more excellent then the heauens or the earth or any thing contayned in them so he hath singulerly bound him to know and to honour him in which thing he hath placed his soueraigne Good But man being exalted by God to that honour that he might attaine to so great felicitie could not conceiue or acknowledge it which is the cause that we see so many who following the corruption of mans nature are not onely become like to brute beastes but much more vnthankefull yea farre more forgetfull miserable then they are The Oxe knoweth his owner and the Asse his masters crib but man will not know God his creator of whome he holdeth body soule and goods What a horrible shame is it that the Oxe the Asse which are such dull beasts should giue greater honor and obedience to man of whom they receiue their food then man doth to God of whom he hath and dayly doth receiue so many benefits Let vs make hast therefore my companions to go to the schoole of nature For if we profite well therein I doubt not but we shall easily come to the knowledge of the creator thereof and of the chiefe end of our being ARAM. All things created haue their proper motion which they follow according to that loue that euery one of them beareth to his natural disposition For the heauens continue alwayes constant in their naturall motions And as the fire and ayre naturally loue to be aboue and therefore drawe thitherward without ceasing so the water and earth loue to keepe below so that they alwayes bend that wayes So that none of the elements can find any
all natures contayned therein if it shall please God to giue vs grace as he hath giuen vs wils to performe it True it is that we haue now taken in hand a very long piece of worke and not greatly necessary in respect of the principall cause of our meeting together if we meant here to make an entire and perfect Anatomy of mans body This duetie belongeth to Physicions which we will not take vpon vs but it shall suffice vs to open a gappe to the consideration first of the matter whereof the body is made and of the diuersitie thereof then of the fourme which God hath giuen vnto it and lastly of the profit and vse of them both For through a litle vnderstanding and knowledge which wee may haue of these things if we consider them as we ought we shal haue great occasion to maruayle at the worke of God in the frame of the body yea wee shall see therein store of testimonies of his almighty power knowledge wisdome goodnesse and prouidence But as for the soule we will labour to make her to behold herselfe in the glasse of her wonderfull actions so farre forth as she is able to contemplate herselfe and to measure her greatnesse by her owne compasse Wherefore we will here make as it were an Anatomy of the soule and of all her partes powers vertues and faculties instructing our selues at large in the consideration of her nature creation and immortalitie and eschewing in all our discourses as much as we may obscure words and phrases subtill curious and vnprofitable disputations which the ancient Philosophers haue vsed in the searching out of such matters we wil apply our selues to the greatest number of such as haue not haunted the schooles of philosophy that we may profit many and instruct our selues in the truth by familiar speaches so farre forth as our weake iudgement is able to comprehend being directed by the gift and grace of God and made coÌ„formable to his word which is the true touchstone whereby all doctrine is to be examined Moreouer we wil obserue in our discourses the same order which we kept in our Academical treatises but only that I thinke it meetest for our present purpose that euery one of vs after he hath discoursed of some point should offer matter subiect to his companion to prosecute and speake of as if he gaue him instructions concerning that thing which he propoundeth vnto him And thus we will deale all foure of vs euery one in his course making one discourse round in the morning and another the afternoone continuing vntill we haue finished as it were a naturall history of man and of his parts the body and soule First therefore thou shalt instruct vs ASER in the creation of first man and in the matter whereof mans body is made Par la prieres Dieu m'ayde ¶ THE FIRST DAYES worke of the second part of the French Acadamy Of the creation of the first man and of the matter whereof the body of manis made Chap. 1. ASER God only hath his being of himselfe therefore he is eternal without beginning without end But because hee would not be alone he created the creatures and by their creation gaue being to that which was nothing before Therefore all natures tooke their beeing and essence and do hold it of that first euerlasting essence Thus also he answered to Moses who asked of him what his name was I will be that I will be or I am that I am Moreouer he said Thus shalt thou say to the children of Israel I am hath sent me vnto you We see heere what name hee giueth himselfe whereby hee sheweth that he onely is and hath an immutable essence and existence which onely to speake properly a man may call a Being Wherefore seeing God is the first essence and that onely that hath being of it selfe and from which all others proceede as riuers from their spring and fountaine we shall easily come vnto the Eternitie of God if we know how to ascend thither by the degrees of the essences of all those creatures which descended from his eternall and vnchangeable essence by reason whereof he is called Iehouah by the Hebrews If then we consider our selues euery one of vs shal know that he had a beginning that he made not himselfe neither came into the worlde but by the help of another This consideration wil leade euery one to his father and mother that begat him being come so far he wil passe on and ascend step by step to his ancestors making the like iudgement of al his predecessors as of himselfe For he wil by and by think that they came into the world after the same maner that he did and not otherwise and that they were not the first men Thus if a man ascend vp stil from father to father he must needes in the ende come to some one father that was the first father of all of whome all others tooke their beginning as hee that was the stocke of all mankinde This first father must either haue his being of one or be eternall or come of some eternall matter like to God or bee God himselfe Which because heâ— coulde not be â—hee must needes haue some beginning and bee borne after another fashion then they were that descended of him Now what 〈◊〉 can we say he had but the Creator of the whole world Being come to his first beginning wee can mount no higher but must stay there and conclude that this first builder of nature was without beginning that he is infinite and eternall otherwise we shall neuer find place to stay at Thus we see how the creature leadeth vs from essence to essence proceeding from one to another vntill it come to the first essence which is infinite and eternall the spring and fountaine of all others which we call God But let vs speake of this creation of the first man After the almighty power of 〈◊〉 Eternal had within nothing and of nothing made the onely matter of the world had seucred out of this Chaos the ayre the fire the earth and the water inriched the whole with celestiall lights herbes plants earthy ayery and watry liuing creatures Let vs sayd he make man in our owne image according to our likenesse and let them rule ouer the 〈◊〉 of the sea and oâ—er the foule of the heauen and ouer the beasts and ouer all the earth and ouer euery thing that creepeth and moouethon the earth Nowe we will note here in the first place three things well worthy of consideration First that God did not barely command that man should be made and created as he commanded for the other creatures but he speaketh as though some great king or prince should ideliberate with his Councill about the making of some great worke declaring afterward himselfe why he tooke this way in the cruation of man onely and not in the creation of the other creatures like wise
insensible as the bones gristles are neither can they giue any motion or sense as the sinewes can but serue only for baÌ„ds to tie the bones one to another to knit the other members vnto them But the sinews which proceede either from the braine or from the marrow of the backe bone whose originall is from the braine are of a teÌ„der soft white substance of that nature that they haue al sense which they impart to al the sinewy parts of the body And of theÌ„ also some giue both sense motion together Therfore their substance is not so dry nor so hard as that of the ligaments neyther yet is it so soft tender as is the substaÌ„ce of the flâ—sh or of the kernels or of the skinnes of such other like parts wherof we wil speake hereafter As for the pannicles cords or filaments which are litle long threeds slender white solide strong we may comprehend them vnder the name of sinews ligaments because they take part of both natures For some of them haue sense with the sinewes others haue none with the ligaments The office of the pannicles which are litle skins made of sinews ligaments is to defend to knit together the members to impart to many of them sense as to the liuer the heart the lungs the splene the kidneis And as for the filaments they serue the body some to draw nourishment others to retaine and keep that which is meete to nourish the body and some to driue forward and to cast forth those excrements and superfluities which help not to nourish it but are only a burthen and griefe vnto it The veines are thinne and slender pipes carying the thicker blood wherewith the body is nourished and they haue their beginning from the liuer For in that the hollow veine is greater and larger then the rest and out of that all the other veines extend themselues into all the body as it were branches proceeding from the body of a tree Herein as we will do in all our discourse we follow the common opinion approued of the late learned Philosophers Physicions Anatomists For Aristotle wrote that the heart was the original of the veins But Hippocrates taught otherwise whom Galen followed confuting Aristotles opinion As for the Arteries or pulses they are pipes that proceed froÌ„ the heart For in that is the great artery planted which is the stock of al the rest which serue to cary the vital spirits throghout the body they are couered with litle skins that are strong thick to keep the spirits from breathing out for the same cause they haue their passages more streight So that they haue two skinnes or couerings whereof that which is vnderneath is fiue times thiâ—ker then the skinne of a veine To conclude the Arteries and veines are ioyned together to the ende that the vitall spirites might draw and receiue from the veines conuenient matter for their nourishment as also that by their heat they might warme the blood that is within them For there are certaine mouthes in them both for this mutuall communication both that the spirit might draw his nourishment from the veines as flame fetcheth the preseruation of his light from the lampe and also that the veines might receiue spirit and heat from the arteries As for the flesh it is a substance of blood which is then made when the thickest part of it is as it were congeled and with that all the members of the body are clothed outwardly Wee must speake more largely of the vses and properties of all these simple partes which wee haue here laid open in few wordes In the meane time in this litle that hath bin discoursed wee see a maruailous prouidence of God who hath disposed and tempered the matter of the body in such wise that hee made it so apt to effect that worke which hee purposed that by proportions and mixtures so well contriued from one degree to another as he hath done in the elements to the end that all the partes of the body might the better be preserued one by an other And although mens bodies are compounded of earth and of the other elements as we haue already touched yet God sheweth himselfe very wonâ—e full in this whole worke and matter of man For as he turneth the earth into diuers natures so that of one peece hee maketh gold of another siluer of this brasse iron and other metâ—alles of that mineralles of another pretious stones of sundâ—y sortes which are as it were â—he bones of the earth besides a great many other things of diuers kinds which were infinite to rehearse so of one selfe same matter appointed for the composition of the body hee maketh vaâ—iety of workes that 〈◊〉 may be framed and furnished in al respects For we see what difference there is betweene the bones which partes are most earthy and so consequently driest hardest and coldest because of al other partes they dâ—aw nearest to the nature of the earth Then the gristles obtaine the second degree next after the bones for agreement of nature as that which is in then iddest betweene the bones and the ligaments as the ligaments are of a middle nature betweene the gristles and the filaments and the filaments betweene the ligaments and the sinewes and so of the rest Therefore as God the great workmaster of nature hath framed all the partes of mans body of matter taken from all the elements so also hee hath tempered his matter according to the worke he meant to make and to that office which it pleased him to appoint vnto euery part and member of the body So that the matter of some partes holdeth more of the earth of other partes it hath more water or aire or fire or else is more or lesse mingled of all together Whereby it appeareth how aptly this workemaster can apply himselfe vnto his worke Wee haue also another notable testimony of his prouidence in that hee hath made the ligaments so strong and firme according to the necessitie of their office hauing ordained them to knit the bones in their ioynts and to bee as it were bands cords to tie and conioyne them together euen as the thongs of harnesse keepe the parts thereof bound and tied one to another We may say as much of the filaments but chiefly of the sinewes which in their places serue for bands to the body And here wee haue also to note that because God hath created them to giue both motion and sense to the body therefore hee hath planted their roote partely in the braine partly in the marrow of the backebone which is also deriued from the braine as the originall of the ligaments is either in the bones or in the gristles or in the skinne and the beginning of the filaments both in the ligaments and in the sinewes according to that vse for which they were made And that the motion
there were alwayes equalitie wee shoulde neuer be affected with hunger or thirst nor with any appetite to eate or drinke And if this appetite were not wee shoulde not haue those pleasures which wee receiue by meates and drinkes and by their diuers tastes and relishes So that wee shoulde not haue such a notable testimonie of the goodnesse and bountifulnesse of God towardes vs and of his care as wee haue by the sense of taste which hee hath giuen vnto vs. Wherein also he admonisheth vs in such sort of our mortall nature through the necessitie wee haue of foode for the preseruation of our life as that withall hee supplieth this want and necessitie that wee may the better know and taste the sweetnesse of his loue towards vs. For whereto would those creatures serue that are good for our nourishment if we had no vse of them And how could wee vse them if we stood not in neede of them Therefore seeing the matter standeth thus it appeareth euidently that wee are nourished by such things as are familiar and like to our nature and are healed by things contrarie to that which hurteth vs. For the nearer any thing approcheth to our nature the sooner it is conuerted into it So that amongst those meates that are familiar vnto vs they nourish best that draw neerest to our nature For this cause babes newe borne that are litle and tender haue milke for their foode which is very meete for them by reason of the agreement that is betweene it and the matter whereof their bodies are made For as wee haue alreadie heard the milke is made of the selfe same blood wherewith they were nourished in their mothers wombe and whereof they were before ingendred and conceiued forasmuch as the parents seede of which they were framed is deriued from their owne blood Wherevpon it followeth that the matter of their bodies is of the same substance and so that food which draweth neerest vnto it is most natural and meete for them For this cause we said before that all things are not seruiceable for meate drinke and nourishment but those only that haue a nature agreeable thereto and that for the reasons specified by vs. Here then we must call to minde that which we haue already touched elswhere namely that seeing the body of man is compounded of all the elements it is therefore needfull that the nourishment wherewith it is to be preserued vpholden should participate of all the elements to the end that all euery part of a mans body should be maintained preserued by that which is like to it selfe Therefore God hath wel prouided to this purpose as we see in the matter wherof our bodies are made For we haue heard what differēce there is according to the sundry parts and diuersity of members in the body yet the whole matter of thē all is taken from the substance of the same elements and the difference betweene them commeth of this only that some parts participate more of some elements others of other elements Hereof it is that the hardest parts of the body as the bones are most earthy and so consequently of all the other partes as they haue eyther more or lesse of all the elements and of their qualities For this cause all the parts and members of the body must haue food agreeable to the nature of the elements whereof they participate according to the portion of matter which is in euery one of them Wherein we see a goodly testimonie of the bond and agreement that is among all creatures yea in all nature it selfe together with the correspondencie that euerie creature hath with it like Therefore if wee want ayre for breathing wee drawe it in euen as it is of it owne nature together with those qualities which it bringeth with it selfe If wee desire drinke onely to refresh and to moysten the bodie and the meate it taketh pure water serueth that turne which is common drinke for all creatures and sufficient for the whole life of man although there were no other But God hath giuen this aduantage to men aboue beasts that besides this drink cōmon to them both they haue others not onely more pleasaunt to their taste but also more forceable to nourish them For if the question bee of taking sustenance eyther by meate or drinke we must haue such meates and drinkes as are more firme then the ayre and the water and which are able to sustayne the body according to it owne substance and nature For as the water and the ayre whereof the bodie is made could not consist in the composition thereof but woulde slide and fall away if they were not intermingled with some other matter that is more earthie and solide thereby to keepe and knitte them together euen so if foode consisted onely in liquide and moyst things that had no other substance of more earthie and solide qualitie in which the vertue of heate might remaine and which might bee conuerted into the greatnesse and massinesse of the bodie the liuing creature would alwayes haue an appetite and neuer leaue eating Therefore God hath so framed those creatures which he hath giuen to man for meate that whatsoeuer is earthy therein doeth not still retaine the nature of the earth as if it were nothing but simple earth and so likewise that which is of the nature of fire or of the water or of the ayre but all is so well mingled and tempered one with another that the taste and sauour thereof is pleasaunt and fitte for all the partes of the bodie that are to bee nourished And according as the qualities of the elements are mingled one with another so the meates and drinkes compounded of them haue their sundry tastes together with their other qualities For if God had not so prouided for it man could haue no taste therein and if he tasted not he would haue no appetite and so could neither eate nor drinke And if hee coulde neither eate nor drinke he could not liue as wee may iudge by that which wee haue alreadie hearde Nowe as hee cannot liue without eating and drinking so it is requisite that he eate and drinke with that moderation that he take in no more meate and drinke then he ought to doe For if he take too litle he cannot be sufficiently nourished and if hee take too much instead of being satisfied he shal be burdened and in stead of preseruing his life hee will kill himselfe Therefore it is verie necessarie that euery one shoulde alwayes obserue great sobrietie otherwise God will correct our riot our gluttonie and drunkennesse But the danger that commeth by not keeping a mediocrity is a great deale more to be feared on the one side then on the other For there are but fewe that breake not square oftener in eating and drinking too much then to litle Nowe to ende this speech wee haue farther to gather such good instructions as all men haue in
dispensed to the eyes and sounde to the eares in good measure and moderation For if the light bee too great the eyes cannot receiue it insomuch that they will bee hurt and offended in steade of receiuing delight On the other side if it bee too little it will not suffice them and therefore it must bee betweene both And as euery mans sight is sharper and stronger or more dull and weaker so must the light bee dispensed according to that measure The like may bee sayde of soundes in regarde of the eares and of all other thinges in respect of those sences vnto which they agree And if this moderation bee requisite for the outwarde sences it is no lesse necessary in respect of the inward senses and of all the powers of the soule Therefore as God is incomprehensible and infinite so is hee receiued with delight of that part of the soule which commeth neerest vnto his nature and which is most incomprehensible most ample and most infinite in regarde of other partes and that is the Spirite and Vnderstanding On the other side because there is no proportion or agreement in greatnesse and infinitenesse betweene GOD and the Soule shee receiueth and comprehendeth him by such meanes whereby hee may bee applied vnto her and shee made after a sort capable of him For if hee shoulde present himselfe vnto her such as hee is in his high and diuine maiestie especially man beeing in this estate wherein hee is in this mortall life shee coulde not beare so high maiestie as beeing too exceeding great for her So that insteede of receiuing pleasure ioy and delight shee shoulde not onely bee very much frighted but euen wholly ouerwhelmed and swallowed vp as a droppe of water woulde bee consumed beeyng throwen into a great fire as wee may iudge by so many examples as are in the holie Scriptures to this purpose For when God manifested himselfe to the Patriarkes hee neuer appeared vnto them in the greatnesse of his maiestie but tooke vnto him alwayes some shape and vsed such meanes as were agreeable to their nature Therefore also it is verie requisite that GOD shoulde descende and applie himselfe vnto our small capacitie to the ende wee may enioy him and his Goodes and take pleasure and delight in them For this cause hee hath not onely appointed the ministerie of his worde and Sacraments to shewe and communicate himselfe vnto vs by them applying himselfe vnto our nature and capacitie but hath also manifested himself in flesh in the person of his sonne Iesus Christ to become more like vnto vs and to drawe neerer vnto vs in our owne nature to this ende that wee might enioye him and all his benefites the better and receiue more true and entire delight in them And thus much for this poynt of the agreement that ought to bee betweene the thing that delighteth and that which receiueth pleasure Next wee are to note that a man may take pleasure by all those partes whereby hee may knowe as well by the internall as the externall senses and by all the powers of the minde and soule Whereupon it followeth that as euerie one is more or lesse addicted to any of these partes so hee delighteth most in those pleasures which hee may receiue by that part vnto which hee is most giuen Therefore wee see that the baser and more vile sort of people and such as are most rude and ignoraunt are more mooued by corporall and externall thinges which moue the bodily senses then by spirituall and high things that are more meete for the spirite and wherein it taketh greater pleasures But with prudent and wise men and such as are more spirituall it is otherwise So that as euery ones nature is more noble and excellent or more vile and abiect and according to the nature of those things wherein euery one delighteth so is the delight either more noble and excellent or more base and contemptible more pure quiet or more impure and troublesome of longer or of shorter continuance and hath moe or fewer pleasures and those either more or lesse tedious Now among those delights which a man may take by the bodily senses the basest and most abiect of all is that which is receiued by the sense of touching For as it is most earthy of all the external senses so are the pleasures that are taken by it That delight which is taken by the sense of tasting is a litle more honest and lesse contemptible and yet is it brutish enough As for the delight that may bee receiued by the sense of smelling it is very light and nothing so pleasant as the yrkesomnesse that commeth of the contrary is vnpleasant For a good smel bringeth not so great pleasure as an euill smell causeth displeasure besides that this sense of smelling is not so sharpe in man as in beasts And concerning those pleasures which a man may receiue by the eares they haue some more beautie and excellency in them For the more they holde of the nature of the ayre they are so much the lesse earthy and brutish And those which we receiue by the eyes are yet more excellent then all the rest because the eyes are of the nature of the fire which commeth neerest to the celestial nature And thus much for those pleasures which a man may receiue by the corporall senses of which the noblest and best are baser and of lesse excellency then the least of those which we may receiue by the basest parts powers of the soule For as much as the soule is more noble and more worthie then the body so much is the least thing in it greater and more magnificall then that which is most noble and most excellent in the bodie And as there are diuers degrees of pleasures according to the varietie of the externall senses and according to the difference that is betwixt them and the powers of the soule so is it betweene the powers of the soule as some of them are more noble and more diuine then others For those which appertaine to the nourishing and generatiue powers are more corporall earthy and brutish then those that belong to the vitall partes and to the heart And those that are proper to the spirite and minde are purest and best of all among which that delight that is in contemplation is the chiefest as we may iudge by that which we haue alreadie spoken Wherefore if we would consider well of all these degrees of delight and pleasure and could iudge well of them we should not be so deceiued in them as commonly we are preferring the least before the greatest the basest before the noblest those that are most earthy before them that are most heauenly and those that fade soonest before them that continue longest Besides the very enioying of euery one of them ought to suffice to make vs know their nature and the difference betweene the one and the other and how farre one is to be
the originall of sinne and hee that hath it shall powre out abomination till at last he be ouerthrowen And a litle after Pride was not created in men neither wrath in the generation of women And indeede God hath made man of a milde and communicable nature apt to societie and to liue with companie not solitarily as sauage beastes vse to doe Therefore there is nothing more contrarie to his nature and to that ende for which he was created then this vicious pride whereby he is so puffed vp and swelleth in such sort as if he were of some other nature and condition then humane and as though he meant to liue in some other estate and degree then of a man By which doing hee degenerateth from that first nature in which hee was created whereupon Ecclesiasticus concludeth That pride is hatefull before God and man Now the more arrogant and proude a man is the more ignoraunt may he bee saide to be of true goods and such as are eternall and whereas he should wish for and long after these his whole affection is turned to the desire of worldly glory and of earthly things Which desire proceedeth from that inconsiderate loue that euery one beareth towards himselfe which keepeth a man from the knowledge of himselfe For if be knew himselfe well he might see in himselfe nothing but such matter as shoulde cause him to abase and to humble himselfe not to be puffed vp and to presume of himselfe in any respect Hereupon it followeth that they are naturally most enclined to pride which are most ignorant most rude most abiect most inconsiderate most hastie and headstrong For they that are skilfull and wise sharpe witted moderate and well stayed who looke into and take a viewe of themselues and know well what is within them such men vnderstand and are able to iudge very well that there is nothing in man that should cause him either to swell or to be blowne vp with pride Therefore we commonly see that they which haue most excellent vertues in them that haue greatest gifts of God and could finde in themselues most matter of pride are notwithstanding most modest and most humble And contrariwise the greatest blockheads and such as are most vnapt to euery good thing most destitute of all good and excellent giftes of nature are for the most part the loftiest most proude so that a man may well say of them that they are proude pesants especially when they are blowne vp like bladders with some winde of prosperity when their noses are perfumed or their eies dimmed with some smoake of honours or of worldly wealth Many other causes of pride might be noted in the nature of man For those that are of a hote and burning nature as cholericke persons are more subiect to this vice then many others and that chiefly for two reasons For holding of the nature of fire which alwayes ascendeth vpwarde if they followe their naturall inclination they will take also of the nature thereof aspiring continually vnto high matters And as the fire is light quicke and violent so will their iudgement and all their affections be which will carie them away headlong and greatly trouble them It is very requisite therefore that water should be cast vpon this fire Now as pride breedeth arrogancie so enuie ill will anger rancour and desire of reuenge doe followe and accompanie it together with impatience indignation selfe-will obstinacie and other such like vices For a proude person waxeth enuious at the good of another as if he thought himselfe only worthie or as if hee accounted all greatnesse in others a hinderance to his owne And because hee supposeth that he is neuer so well esteemed of as he deserueth he waxeth very angry being desirous to reuenge himselfe if there be any meanes Besides to the end he might alwayes seeme to be better then others he neuer ceasseth boasting and bragging For pride being nothing els but winde that puffeth vp the heart euen as fire causeth water to swell and to send forth great waumes if the proude man should not finde some issue for this winde hee woulde burst asunder Therefore he speaketh bigge he chideth and threatneth thundreth and lighteneth and waxeth so insolent that both for his wordes and deedes hee becommeth vntolerable vnto all And because he cannot giue place to any if he stand in cōtention for any thing he holdeth his opinion with inuincible obstinacy insomuch that no authority whatsoeuer no truth how apparantly soeuer it be laid before him no benefit or profit shal be able to turne him from that which he hath once imagined For his desire to be preferred before all and in all matters is so hote and feruent that he feareth nothing more then to be accounted inferiour in any one matter to any other body whosoeuer he be And this causeth him also to bee vnteachable and vnapt to learne For by reason of his pride he is ashamed to learne Besides the ambition and insatiable desire of glorie that is in him causeth him that hee cannot suffer any admonition but continueth resolute in that which he had once taken hold of And he is so farre from suffring patiently that any man should condemne him or any word or deede of his that hee will haue his vices taken for vertues and looketh to bee commended for them Yea some are so passionate and caried away with so great impatience and furious indignation that they storme and rage not onely against men but also against God euen so farre foorth as to despite and blaspheme him openly For the ignorance inconsideratenes that engendreth pride is so blockish and rash that it giueth vs no leisure to consider of and to iudge what good things are in vs neither from whence they come or who it is that giueth them or in what manner or for what reason To be short God commeth not at all into our thought neither doe wee attribute anything vnto any other besides our selues And although many proude persons dissemble these damnable affections and dare not oftentimes lay their heartes so open but rather thinke there is no such matter in them neuerthelesse it is so in trueth and in effect so that all men woulde iudge them to bee such if they were able to see and knowe as God seeth and knoweth Moreouer we are to note that pride is such a vice that it is a harder matter for a man to bee at peace and concord therewith then with any other whatsoeuer Whereupon Salomon saieth That onely by pride doeth man make contention Yea there is alwayes strife and dissention amongest the proude themselues when euerie one desireth to bee preferred one before another and cannot As for humbling and abasing themselues there is no talke of that vnlesse they drawe a little backewarde that they may the better leape forwarde and debase themselues that they may ascende vp higher And as for friendship a proude man hath neuer
iudgementes of God whereby he punisheth men neuertheles these water-floods which we alwaies carie about vs ought to admonish and induce vs to feare him to call vpon him by prayer and day and night yea hourely to recommend our life vnto him seeing he can take it from vs by stopping our breath yea by a very small matter or at least depriue vs of all motion and sense as though our bodies had neither soule nor life in them but were like to poore dead carkases For the doing hereof hee needeth not to thunder or lighten from heauen against vs but onely to cause a small showre of water to powre downe from our head which is the highest the goodliest and most noble part of all the bodie and as it were the heauen of the litle world or if it please him to cause a fewe droppes onely to distill downe vpon the sinewes and ioyntes it will torment men more grieuously then if they were in some continuall torture as the daily songs of such gowtie persons doe testifie who are impatient and voyde of the feare of God Now besides this profitable aduertisement which euery one may take by that which hath bin here vttered wee ought on the other side to consider the prouidence and goodnesse of God towardes men in that as he holdeth vp in the aire and cloudes the water that hangeth ouer vs not suffering them to breake downe vpon vs all at once to ouerwhelme all the earth by them with all the beastes and other creatures conteined in it but distributeth them by good and iust measure so dealeth he with the humours that ascend vp continually and are kept in our braine where they haue their vessels to retaine them in as it were in sponges which yeeld foorth water according as they are either loosened or restrayned and closed together And as for that which is said of the testimony which we haue of the frailtie of our life appearing in the principal and most noble part of our bodie as the like was shewed vs before in that instruction which we learned by the office that God assigned to our lungs and to the passages allotted by him for the taking in end letting out of the aire so wee haue a very notable lesson in the consideration of the liuer and of the blood of which that is the forge and fountaine and of the distribution thereof into all the partes and members of the bodie by meanes of the veynes as wee hearde yesterday For as a man may iudge by outward appearance that the life of man consisteth in his breath and that he giueth vp both soule and life when hee dyeth as it were in giuing vp the last gaspe so it seemeth also that it is placed in the blood as that which goeth as it were with the blood so that when the blood is drawen out of a mans bodie the life also may seeme to bee drawne out therewithall Herevpon as the soule is oftentimes in holy Scripture put for the life because it giueth life to the bodie so it is also put for the blood and the blood likewise called soule because it is the instrument and meanes whereby the soule giueth life and when the Lorde forbiddeth his people to case the flesh with his soule that is the blood thereof Whereby his meaning is to teach men to abhorre the effusion of mans blood and therefore hee sayeth further I will require your blood euen the blood of your soules Wherefore hee that sheadeth blood doeth as much as if hee drewe the soule out of the bodie Nowe forasmuch as the blood is so necessarie vnto life wee are likewise to vnderstande that as it is either pure and sounde or vnpure and corrupted so is it disposed either to health or sicknesse and to life or death For as the naturall life of man consisteth especially in heate and moysture so a man may easily iudge that as euery thing is bred by meanes of them chiefely liuing and sensible creatures so nothing can bee preserued in this bodily life without these two qualities that are proper to the ayre and to blood as wee haue alreadie hearde But these qualities must bee so tempered that there bee no excesse on either side And for this cause GOD woulde haue all the humours to bee mingled together with the blood that so it might bee tempered as is requisite for the life of man For if it bee too hote and drie or too moyst and colde it cannot doe that office for the performance whereof it is ordayned but in steede of bringing health and life it will breede diseases and in the ende cause death For naturall death commeth onely of diseases amongest which olde age is to bee reckoned which is an incurable sicknesse that lasteth vntill death Neither doe diseases proceede but onely of the distemperature that is in mens bodies and in the humours of which they are compounded For as long as they are in a good moderate and proportionable temper and are distributed to all the partes of the bodie according as neede requireth so that none of them exceedeth then is there an equalitie in all the bodie which doeth not onely preserue it in life but in health and good disposition For there is the like concorde and harmonie betweene these humours that is betweene the partes of a good consort of musicke agreeing well together or of an instrument of musicke well tuned from which you shall heare nothing but pleasaunt melodie Whereas if all the partes thereof agree not well together there will bee no musicall harmonie but onely a very vnpleasant discorde The like may bee saide of all the concordes and discordes that may fall out in the humours of our bodies And therefore GOD had so tempered them in the first creation of man as was requisite so that hee woulde haue preserued him in a perpetuall life if by true obedience hee had alwayes beene knit and vnited vnto God his Creatour But since man fell at variance with God through sinne all this goodly concorde which God had placed not onely in mans bodie but also betweene the rest of his creatures hath been troubled and turned into discord by meanes of sinne So that all this goodly temperature and harmonie of the humours in which mans bodie was created was dissolued and broken asunder and that in such sort that it was neuer since sounde and perfect in any man of howe good constitution soeuer hee hath beene For euen in the best complexions there is alwayes some defect or excesse in some of the humours so that if there were no other cause yet no body coulde naturally bee immortall For alwayes in the ende the excesse or defect that is in it woulde cause it to decay and finally bring it to corruption But besides this there are so many other wantes and superfluities throughout the whole life of man whereby this euill alreadie become naturall is so much augmented that there die moe without
this corporall life consisteth in the preseruation of those instruments which the soule vseth in the body and that the chiefest of them is heate the second moysture agreeable to the heate which must needes haue something to feede it and keepe it in a moderate stay Lastly wee learned that the nourishing and cherishing of the heate is the preseruation of the moysture and therefore those liuing creatures that are best able to mainteine and keepe these two qualities within themselues are of longest continuance in life So that the chiefe naturall cause of the long continuance of life consisteth in euery mans composition namely if it be hot and moyst by due proportion both in the sinewes and in the marrow in the liquors and humors and in the spirits The second cause consisteth in the long continuance of this temperature which being interrupted and marred by diseases the instruments of life are thereby also spoyled so they failing life it selfe must needes cease Whereupon death ensueth euen as when the instruments and tooles of some handicraftes man are worne and faile him it cannot be but that his arte and occupation should also be at an ende So that death is a defect of those instruments of the soule whereby life is prolonged For the soule leaueth the body by reason of the defect of instruments and not for any disagreement that is betweene the body and it as may appeare by this that it was not any proportion or agreement that ioyned the soule and the body together For albeit a workeman vseth his instruments yet there is no proportion and agreement betweene him and them in regard of the matter and forme of him and of his tooles vnlesse peraduenture this proportion may be imagined 〈◊〉 be betweene the arte of the workeman as he is a workeman and betweene the aptnesse of the toole he vseth whereby it is made fit for the doing of that which the workeman hath in hand Seeing then all life consisteth both in heate as we haue already sayd and also in moysture requisite for the heate wee call that naturall death when heate faileth by reason that the moysture is dryed vp through the heate that drinketh it vp which heate also in the end vanisheth away euen as a lampe doeth when the oyle of it is consumed But that is called a violent death when through some accident either the moysture is drawne out of the body or the heate is put out and extinguished either by some inward or els some outward oppression and violence Internall violence is either by poyson or by gluttony and drunkennes or by such excesse as a when a lampe goeth out because there is too much oyle powred into it And if this oppression be done outwardly it is called externall as when the ayre and breath that refresheth the heart is shut vp and reteined either in the sharpe artery or in the mouth For it is as if a fire were suddenly couered and choked by some great heape of stones or of earth or of ashes layde vpon it We heard before that if the Lungs had no respiration by the mouth nostrils no man could breath but he should be choked by and by as we see it by experience in them that are strangled The reason hereof is because the pipe that reacheth from the Lungs to the throat is so closed vp that it is altogether stopr or at least so narrow and strait that there is not space enough for the ayre and breath to passe in and out by We see also dayly how this windpipe is troubled if whiles wee eate or drinke there fall into it a litle crumb of bread or meate or els a drop of water or of wine or of any other drinke yea although it were but a little drop of our owne spettle For the breath that ascendeth vp from the lungs by this pipe will not suffer any other thing to enter in thereat except it be as subtill and thinne as the ayre is but it driueth it vpward insomuch as when that happeneth to any man hee is in great paine and as it were stifeled for the time We see the like also in the cough For from whence proceedeth it but onely of those distillations that descend from the braine vnto the lungs by this pipe And truely the consideration of all this ought to be vnto vs in place of an other speciall testimony of the infirmitie of our nature that wee may alwayes learne the better by this to humble our selues For what an excellent gift is this life which God hath giuen to man and yet a matter of nothing will depriue him of it For let his breath onely bee taken away which is but a little winde and beholde hee is stifled and dead by and by And for the taking away of his breath and so of his life withall there needeth nothing else but the stopping of his mouth and nosethrilles or of his windepipe onely which is soone done and hee is dispatched presently without all help and remedy by man Therefore Esay hath a good speach depart saieth he from the man whose breath is in his nosethrilles for wherein is hee to be esteemed In a worde his meaning is that man is but as it were a little winde and blast as if hee had his life in his nosethrilles and as if it were as easie a matter to take away his life as his breath Moreouer the mixture and temperature of all the elementary qualities and of all the humours is so necessary for life as wee haue already heard that if anie one be wanting our life can not continue But the chiefest and most necessary of all are heate and moisture placed in the blood which is so necessary for the maintenance of life that after it is out of the body death followeth presently Concerning the members of the body it hath beene tolde vs already that there are som of thē without which the body can not keep life nor bee kept therein amongest which the heart is the chiefest of all for the reasons which wee haue already heard Nowe these things standing thus wee must consider what difference there is betweene the death of bruite beastes and that of man namely this that the soule of beastes perisheth vtterly in their death as doeth the vigour of mens senses in the death of man But the soule of man suruiueth after the death of his body and continueth alwayes in beeing and in life For considering that beastes doe in this life all that can bee done by them according to those giftes which they haue receiued of nature therefore they liue and die heere altogether hauing nothing bestowed vpon them for an other better life But forasmuch as GOD hath giuen vnto man a diuine and immortall spirite which hath heere great impediments and can not well exercise all his offices it is requisite that it shoulde haue an other life wherein it may display all the vertues it hath and