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<DATE>2009-11-24</DATE>
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<NAME>Zev Berger</NAME>
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<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P>THE Magi&s;trates Authority, IN <HI>Matters of Religion;</HI> And the Souls Immortality, Vindicated in two SERMONS Preach'd at YORK.</P>
<P>By CHRISTOPHER CARTVVRIGHT, B.D. and Mini&s;ter of Gods Word there.</P>
<Q><P><BIBL>ISAIAH 49.23.</BIBL> <HI>And Kings &s;hal be thy nur&s;ing fathers, and Queens thy nur&s;ing mothers.</HI></P>
<BIBL>Aug. Contra Cre&s;con. l. 3. c. 51.</BIBL>
<P>In hoc Reges, &s;icut eis divinitus praecipitur, Deo &s;erviunt, in quantum reges &s;unt, &s;i in &s;uo regno bona jubeant, mala prohibeant, non &s;olum quae pertinent ad humanam &s;ocietatem, verum etiam quae ad divinam religionem.</P></Q>
<P><HI>LONDON,</HI> Printed for THO. UNDERHILL, and are to be &s;old at his &s;hop at the &s;ign of the Bible in great <HI>Wood&s;treet.</HI> 1647.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="errata">
<PB REF="2">
<HEAD>ERRATA.</HEAD>
<P>Pag. line 14. unto him. P. 8. l. ult. <HI>left out</HI> all Magi&s;trates, even Heathens and Infidels have this power, though all have not faculty or ability to u&s;e it as they ought. P. 20. l. 28. <HI>is.</HI> P. 21. there is an <HI>Hebrew Koph</HI> for a <HI>Mem</HI> four times, any one that can frame the Heb. Characters wil ea&s;ily mend it. P. 28. l. 11. make <HI>love</HI> have. P. 32. l. 5. execute.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="to the reader">
<PB REF="2">
<HEAD>An Adverti&s;ement to the Reader.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>READER,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P><Q>_THere have been lately vented (in this licenti|ous Age) divers &s;atyrical Pamphlets, nomi|nating and reviling &s;everal Members of the Hou&s;e of Commons, in one of which entitled, <HI>Prima pars de comparatis comparandis,</HI> I am thrice mentioned, <HI>p.</HI> 19. <HI>Colonel</HI> Leigh, <HI>a man of a fiery di&s;po&s;ition, who is generally made Chairman upon any bu&s;ine&s;s that doth [pro or con] concern the&s;e men</HI> (meaning the Pre&s;|byterians) <HI>&s;aid</HI> (as it hath been affirmed by &s;uch as heard him) that <HI>it was no matter, if there were not one of them &s;uffered to live in the Land, but were all either put to death or bani&s;hed,</HI> or to the like effect. p. 26.</Q> Mr <HI>Leighs fiery &s;peech.</HI> p. 39. Leigh <HI>that fierce, fiery fari&s;o Solomon</HI> &s;aith <HI>Prov.</HI> 26.4, 5. <HI>An&s;wer not a fool according to his folly, lest thou al&s;o be like unto him. An&s;wer a fool according to his folly, le&s;t he be wi&s;e in his own conceit.</HI> He heard that I &s;hould &s;peak &s;uch words, whence he concludes (and repeats it three times) that I am of a fiery di&s;po&s;ition. But what if tho&s;e which reported my &s;peech to him mi&s;took me, and I uttered no &s;uch words. I may &s;afely &s;ay that I never &s;pake tho&s;e words, for they are far from my judgment. What my judgment is of &s;uch Hereticks who raze the foundation, and &s;educe others, is to be &s;een in Print. But for others who erre not in Fundamentals, and are godly, and peaceable, I wi&s;h (if ever I come under their power) that I may but find as much mercy from them as I could
<PB REF="3">
willingly &s;hew to them. I am &s;ure &s;ome of tho&s;e who were complained of at the Committee where I was in the Chair, gave a very good te&s;timony of me, &amp; my carriage toward them. And for that which he writes that I was generally made a Chairman upon any bu&s;ine&s;s (<HI>pro</HI> or <HI>con</HI>) that concerned the&s;e men, that is as true as the other, for I was never Chairman in any other bu&s;ine&s;s but this, except for dividing of the Pari&s;hes neer <HI>We&s;tminster,</HI> (and once only at the Committee of Plundered Mini|&s;ters.) And had not been Chairman at this Committee at the fir&s;t (which procured me &s;o much envy though cau&s;le&s;ly) but that I was beleeve the fir&s;t day, that if I would then take the Chair at that time, another would take it afterward. What therefore this reviling Pam|phleter applies to me and others, that we are not Chri|&s;tians, and have not the mind of Chri&s;t, he may (upon a &s;erious review of his own virulent and unchri&s;tian car|riage all along in this Pamphlet) more fitly apply to him&s;elf. Let him look that he do not &s;it in the <HI>Chair</HI> of the &s;cornful, and (<HI>Diogenes</HI>-like) tax others of tho&s;e of|fences of which him&s;elf is mo&s;t guilty. I having &s;o fit an opportunity could not but write this for my own Vindi|cation, and hope all true Chri&s;tians wil exerci&s;e &s;omuch charity to me and others, who are unju&s;tly accu&s;ed, as not to beleeve us the &s;ooner faulty, becau&s;e others are &s;o bold in calumniating.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Thine, <HI>Edward Leigh.</HI></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="to the reader">
<PB REF="3">
<HEAD>To the Chri&s;tian Reader.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>READER,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P><HI>_I</HI> Pre&s;ent thee here with two Ser|mons which <HI>I</HI> wi&s;h may prove as profitable for thee as they are &s;ea&s;onable for the&s;e times; One is concer|ning the power of the Magi&s;trate in &s;pi|ritual things and matters of Religion; the other is to prove the immortality of the &s;oul. The fir&s;t was occa&s;ioned by the con|trary tenet of &s;ome which had relation to the Army, who being in the City of <HI>York</HI> (where this worthy Mini&s;ter Mr <HI>Cart|wright</HI> re&s;ides) there indeavored to maintain, that the Magi&s;trate hath no power to puni&s;h or re&s;train any that &s;hal vent never &s;o fal&s;e doctrines &amp; heretical opinions; which &s;tirred up the zeal of this Reverend Divine to choo&s;e that Text, <HI>Rom. 13.4.</HI> of purpo&s;e, and to handle the
<PB REF="4">
point <HI>ex profe&s;&s;o,</HI> as thou may&s;t perceive by the en&s;uing Sermon, which he fitted not for the Pre&s;s, but for his Auditory, aim|ing chiefly at their edification and &s;ta|bli&s;hing in the truth. If the&s;e Sermons therfore be not &s;o elaborate as they would have been if put out by the Author, let that be imputed unto me who pre&s;u|med, upon that intere&s;t I have in him, to publi&s;h without his privity tho&s;e Ser|mons. Thou &s;halt find them (like him&s;elf) &s;olid and judicious, and J hope the world &s;hal &s;hortly by a learned Treati&s;e upon <HI>Gene&s;is,</HI> have ample experience of the abilities of this my worthy Friend, and of his skil in the Oriental tongues and Rabbines. The &s;econd Sermon was prea|ched to confute that mo&s;t pe&s;tilent book, <HI>ip&s;o titulo execrabilis</HI> (as K. <HI>James</HI> &s;aid of <HI>Bertius</HI> his book <HI>de Apo&s;ta&s;ia &s;anctorum) concerning the mortali|ty of the Soul,</HI> though that writer que|&s;tions
<PB REF="4">
the very being of the Soul. <HI>M^r. Coleman</HI> preaching before the Parlia|ment &s;aid, none but they had to do in the government of the Church; M. <HI>Dell</HI> told them, they had nothing at all to do in re|forming the Church; M. <HI>Arrow&s;mith</HI> &s;aid before them, &s;ome took the middle way between the&s;e two extreams; <HI>I</HI> have declared my opinion el&s;where<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">In my <HI>Pro|legomena</HI> to my three-fold Treati&s;e of Divinity.</NOTE> concerning the power of the Civil Magistrate in the&s;e things; <HI>I</HI> &s;hal only here add the determi|nation of two reverend Divines, who can|not but be Authentick with the oppo&s;ers of this truth. The fir&s;t is <HI>D^r Ames</HI> who propounding this que&s;tion,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">L. 4. <HI>de con|&s;cientia</HI> c. 4. que&s;t. 61.</NOTE> <HI>An Haere|tici &s;int a Magi&s;tratu civili puniendi,</HI> whether Hereticks be to be puni&s;ht by the civil Magi&s;trate; thus an&s;wers, <HI>1.</HI> That Hereticks are to be &s;uppre&s;sed by all god|ly men according to that calling &amp; power which they have received from God. <HI>2.</HI> That the place and office of the Magi|&s;trate
<PB REF="5">
requires that he &s;uppre&s;s wicked di&s;turbers with the &s;word or the publick and external power, if need be; quoting tho&s;e two places <HI>Rom. 13.4. 1 Tim. 2.2.</HI></P>
<P N="3"><HI>3.</HI> If the Hereticks be manifest and publickly noxious, they ought by the Ma|gistrate publickly to be puni&s;hed. <HI>4.</HI> Jf they be manife&s;tly bla&s;phemous and obsti|nate in tho&s;e bla&s;phemies, they may al&s;o be capitally puni&s;ht; for although that Law, <HI>Lev. 24.15, 16.</HI> doth not oblige Chri&s;tians as it is a law, yet as it is a do|ctrine proceeding from God it belongs to the direction of Chri&s;tians in cau&s;es of the &s;ame kind. The other is <HI>M^r Cotton</HI><NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">The bloody Tenet wa&s;hed <HI>Co.</HI> 58.</NOTE> of <HI>New England,</HI> who &s;aith, in all civil Nations, who&s;e acts are recorded either in &s;acred or prophane Authors, their Ma|gi&s;trates have had not only a due care of justice and honesty,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Gen. 47.22. Dan. 3.29 &amp; 6.26 Ezra 7.26. &amp; 6.11.</NOTE> but a reverend care of Religion al&s;o; Jn <HI>Athens</HI> they had a law again&s;t irreligion, upon which &s;uffred
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three famous Philo&s;ophers, <HI>Socrates,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Mr <HI>Cotton</HI> biid. <HI>C.</HI> 33.</NOTE> <HI>Theodorus</HI> and <HI>Protagoras:</HI> The rea|&s;on of the law <HI>Deu. 13.9, 10.</HI> (which is the life of the law &s;aith he) is of eternal force and equity in all ages, <HI>Thou &s;halt &s;ure|ly kil him, becau&s; he hath &s;ought to thru&s;t thee away from the Lord thy God;</HI> This rea&s;on is of univer&s;al &amp; perpetual equity to put to death any Apo&s;tate, &s;educing Idolater or Heretick who &s;eeketh to thru&s;t away the &s;ouls of Gods people from the Lord their God. For that other opinion of the Souls Immortality, <HI>recita&s;&s;e e&s;t refuta&s;&s;e;</HI> and here J may apply what the Apo&s;tle &s;aith of tho&s;e which deny the Re&s;urrection, <HI>1 Cor. 15.</HI> if the Soul be not immortal, then is the Mini&s;ters prea|ching and our faith al&s;o vain; but as one &s;aith wittily of the Sadduces who denyed the Re&s;urrection, that at the day of Judg|ment the Sadduces &s;hal ri&s;e in that body in which they denyed the Re&s;urrection of
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the body, &s;o &s;hal the&s;e live with that &s;oul in w^c^h they denyed the immortality of the &s;oul, &amp; find, if not afore, yet at death that the &s;oul lives when the body dyes, and that man then cea&s;eth not to be, as the bea&s;t; but only exchangeth his being, and &s;hal be either everla&s;tingly happy or mi|&s;erable.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Thy faithful Wel-wi&s;her, EDVVARD LEIGH.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="errata">
<HEAD>ERRATA.</HEAD>
<P>Page 6. line 26. for <HI>&s;hine</HI> read <HI>&s;tirre.</HI> P. 25. l. 10. for <HI>mortal</HI> r. <HI>immortal.</HI></P>
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<Q><BIBL><HI>ROM. 13.4.</HI></BIBL>
<P>For he is a Mini&s;ter of God to thee for good; but if thou do that which is evill, feare, for he beareth not the &s;word in vain; for he is the Mini&s;ter of God, a revenger to exe|cute wrath upon him that doth evil.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>_AMong&s;t many heterodox and un&s;ound opinions, that are &s;tarted up in the&s;e times, there is one concerning the pow|er of the Magi&s;trate, <HI>viz.</HI> that it reacheth only to the 2. Table, civill affairs, not to the fir&s;t Table, matters of religion. So that let any hold and practice in reli|gion what they wil, let them vent and publi&s;h doc|trins never &s;o horrid and bla&s;phemous, yet according to this Tenet, the Magi&s;trate may not curb nor re&s;train them, he hath nothing to do to meddle with them. This opinion being mo&s;t fal&s; and of dangerous con&s;e|quence, is newly broached here in this City,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>York,</HI> Jan. 1646.</NOTE> and o|penly maintained by &s;ome, both in di&s;putation and in the Pulpit. And therefore I have thought meet to di&s;cu&s;s the Point at this time, that if any of you be ig|norant, you may be in&s;tructed; if wavering, you may
<PB N="2" REF="7">
be re&s;olved if mi&s;-per&s;waded and po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ed with error in this particular, you may be convinced and reclaimed. To this end I &s;hall endeavor by Gods help to manife&s;t the truth unto you, and to clear it from tho&s;e mi&s;ts that &s;ome ca&s;t about it, to ob&s;cure it. This premi&s;ed, I come to the words of the Text, <HI>For he is the Minister. &amp;c.</HI></P>
<P>For the coherence of the&s;e words, to fetch it no fur|ther then needs mu&s;t, the Apo&s;tle in the beginning of this Chapter begins to treat of the Magi&s;trate, and the dutie which people owe unto the Magi&s;trate. <HI>Let every &s;oul be &s;ubject to the higher powers. v.</HI> 1. <HI>Subjest, viz:</HI> either actiuely, if the thing commanded be law|full, pa&s;&s;ively if it be unlawfull. That this &s;ubjection is due unto the Magi&s;trate, the Apo&s;tle proves by two arguments. 1. for the ordainer of the Magi&s;trate, <HI>viz.</HI> God; It is God that hath ordained him, and therefore people ought to be &s;ubject unto him, and not to re&s;i&s;t him; for to re&s;i&s;t the Magi&s;trate, being ordained of God, is to re&s;i&s;t Gods ordinance, and &s;o to provoke Gods indignation. For there is no power, but of God; the powers that be, are ordained of God. <HI>Who&s;oever there|fore re&s;i&s;teth, re&s;i&s;teth the ordinance of God; and they that re&s;i&s;t, receive unto them&s;elves damnation. v.</HI> 1. &amp; 2. And then, &s;econdly, he proves it by an argument drawn from the end for which God hath ordained the Magi&s;trate, <HI>viz:</HI> the great good and benefit of people, to containe and keep them in order, to protect and defend them that do well, and to correct and puni&s;h them that do evil. For rulers are not a terrour to good works, but to evil, Wilt thou then not be afraid of the po|wer? do that which is good, and thou &s;halt have prai&s;e of the &s;ame. For he is the Mini&s;ter of God. &amp;c. v. 3.4. Then from the&s;e premi&s;&s;es he inferrs the con|clu&s;ion,
<PB N="3" REF="7">
therefore you mu&s;t needs be &s;ubject not only for wrath (for fear of puni&s;hment) but al&s;o for con|&s;cience &s;ake. <HI>i. e.</HI> out of con&s;cience towards God, who hath ordained the Magi&s;trate and hath given him his authority, and that for the pre&s;ervation and wel|fare of tho&s;e, who are under his authority. Thus I have brought you to the Text, and &s;omewhat beyond it; and this may &s;uffice to &s;hew the coherence of the words. For the explication of them, much needs not to be &s;poken, there being no great difficulty in them.</P>
<P>For he [<HI>viz.</HI> the Magi&s;trate, called the power, v. 3. Is the mini&s;ter of God,] that is, ordained of God, and &s;ub&s;ervient unto God, and that in &s;uch an eminent manner that God communicates his own name unto I have &s;aid ye are Gods, P&s;al. 82.6.</P>
<P>To thee [who&s;oever thou art, that art under his autho|rity for good] <HI>i. e.</HI> for thy good, that thou may&s;t do good, and receive good.</P>
<P>But if thou do that which is evil [<HI>viz:</HI> the evil of &s;in: For there is an evil of puni&s;hment, which though it be evil, as evil is taken for painfull, yet as evill is taken for &s;inful, &s;o it is not evil, but good, if it be inflicted on tho&s;e that do de&s;erve it, and by tho&s;e that have power and authority to inflict it. In this &s;en&s;e God him&s;elf is &s;aid to do evil, yea all evil that is done in this kind, is &s;aid to be done by him, who yet can do nothing but what is good, that is, ju&s;t and right. Shall there be evil (any evil, <HI>viz:</HI> of puni&s;hment) in a city, and the LORD hath not done it? Amos, 2.6. Be afraid [<HI>viz.</HI> of the power, <HI>i.e.</HI> the Magi&s;trate] as 'tis expre&s;&s;ed v. 3. If thou wilt do the evil of &s;in, look to &s;uffer the evil of puni&s;hment.</P>
<P>For he beareth not the &s;word in vain. [1. The Ma|gi&s;trate
<PB N="4" REF="8">
is not in vain armed with power and authority, but to this end, that he may &s;mite and puni&s;h &s;uch as do evil, for he is the mini&s;ter of God, a revenger &amp;c.] Private revenge is forbidden, Rom. 12.19. Avenge not your &s;elves. But the Magi&s;trate being a publike per|&s;on, and appointed of God to this end, to take ven|geance on tho&s;e that do evill, he may and ought to do it. This is not again&s;t that, Rom. 12.19. Vengeance is mine, I wil repay, &s;aith the Lord. No, what the Magi&s;trate doth by vertue of his office, to which God hath called, and of his authority, wherewith God hath inve&s;ted him, that is as done by God him&s;elf.</P>
<P><MILESTONE UNIT="Doct."> The words being thus explicated, the doctrin which I ob&s;erve from them, is this, That Magi&s;trates are ordain|ed of God, for the maintaining and defending of tho&s;e that do well, and for the re&s;training and puni&s;hing of tho&s;e that do evill.</P>
<P>This doctrine is clear and evident from the text, and being thus indefinitly propounded, they with whom I have had &s;omewhat to do already in conference and di&s;|pute, and with whom (<HI>i.</HI> with their opinion, I &s;hall &s;till have to do at this time) they, I &s;ay, do not deny, but they limit it, and wil have it under&s;tood only in things civill, not in matters of religion. This therefore is that which I &s;hall apply my &s;elf unto, to prove that the Ma|gi&s;trate hath a ju&s;t and lawful power, as well in things that concern the fir&s;t, as in things that concern the 2. Table; as well in matters of religion, as in civil mat|ters. But that none may mi&s;take, let this be known and con&s;idered, that we do not a&s;cribe &s;uch power to the Magi&s;trate, as the Papi&s;ts do to the Pope. We do not hold, that the Magi&s;trate may pre&s;cribe forms of religion, as he plea&s;eth: this was Ieroboams &s;in, 1
<PB N="5" REF="8">
King, 12.28. &amp;c. Nor that he may performe tho&s;e things which belong to the mini&s;ter, as to preach, bap|ti&s;e, &amp;c. This was it for which Vriah was Plagued, be|cau&s;e he would needs take upon him to execute the Prie&s;ts office, 2 Chro. 26.16, &amp;c. But we hold and main|tain, that the Magi&s;trate hath a power to erect, pre&s;erve and e&s;tabli&s;h that religion which God in his word hath commanded, and to cau&s;e both mini&s;ters and others to performe tho&s;e things (in re&s;pect of the outward act) which God doth require of them, and to re&s;train and puni&s;h them, if they tran&s;gre&s;s; not only in things con|cerning the 2. Table, but al&s;o in things concerning the fir&s;t Table. [And this is all that is meant by that title of &s;upream head, or &s;upream governer, which we give unto the King] which makes me to wonder much at&s;ome (whom otherwi&s;e I reverence &amp; e&s;teem for their works &s;ake) who have lately inveighed &s;ore again&s;t this Title, alledging the cen&s;ures of Calvin and the centuri&s;ts upon it, whereas it is well known, that the Engli&s;h Divines long before the&s;e times, have &s;hewed that Calvin and the Centuri&s;ts did mi&s;take the meaning of the Title, and &s;uppo&s;ed it to imply &s;uch an exorbitant power, as is attributed to the Pope by the Papi&s;ts; &s;o that the true meaning of it is no more, then what they, and all Orthodox Divines do yeeld unto the Magi&s;trate. This hath been made &s;o clear, that not only<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Ject. D. <HI>No|wel</HI> again&s;t <HI>Dorman,</HI> Dr. <HI>Rainolds</HI> Con|fer.</NOTE> forrain Pro|te&s;tants, but even<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Rivot</HI> in Decal. <HI>Hart</HI> in the Conf. with D. <HI>Rain.</HI></NOTE> Papi&s;ts al&s;o, &s;ome of them have been Satisfied.]</P>
<P>But to return to the point, and the proof of it, a|gain&s;t tho&s;e that would &s;o limit the Magi&s;trates power, and re&s;train it to civil affaires.</P>
<P N="1">1. It is a rule, <HI>Non e&s;t di&s;tinguendum, ubi lex non di|&s;tinguit,</HI><MILESTONE N="1" UNIT="Argum."> i. we mu&s;t not di&s;tingui&s;h, where the law
<PB N="6" REF="9">
doth not di&s;tingui&s;h. And therefore the Apo&s;tle not &s;o limiting the power of the Magi&s;trate, we may not &s;o limit it. The Apo&s;tle in the text, and the ver&s;e be|fore the text, Speaks of the Magi&s;trate as having power from God to puni&s;h evil doers, and to protect tho&s;e that do well, he doth not limit this to things that concern the 2 Table, neither is there any ground for this limi|tation. See al&s;o 1 Pet. 2.14.</P>
<P><HI>Exception</HI> 1. Yes, &s;ay &s;ome, the Apo&s;tle in the ver&s;es following, v. 6.10. doth limit that which goes before.</P>
<P><HI>An&s;w.</HI> Let that be con&s;idered, For, for this cau&s;e, &amp;c. ver&s;e 6. There the Apo&s;tle only &s;hews, that there|fore tribute is payd to Magi&s;trates and Rulers, be|cau&s;e they mu&s;t apply them&s;elves to the execution of that office to which God hath called them, <HI>viz.</HI> the rul|ing and governing of people, the protecting and prefer|ing of tho&s;e that do well, and the correcting and puni&s;h|ing of tho&s;e that do evil. And hereupon v. 7. he exhorts people to render unto Magi&s;tratrs, and not to them on|ly, but to all, that which is due unto them; Render therefore to all their dues, tribute to whom, &amp;c. And v. 8. proceeding in his exhortation, as it is generall, and concernes the rendering of that which is due unto all, he bids, Owe nothing to any man, but to love one ano|ther: Intimating that love is &s;uch a debt, that can ne|ver be &s;o payd, but &s;til its due. And to &s;hine up to a careful performing of this duty of love, which all con|tinually owe unto al, he &s;ets forth the excellency of love, Saying, for he that loveth another, hath fulfilled the law. And that love is of &s;uch an excellent nature, as that the whole law (viz: of the 2. Table, of which he &s;peaks; for he &s;peaks of that love which men owe one to ano|ther) is fulfilled in it, this he proves v. 9.10: for this, Thou
<PB N="7" REF="9">
&s;halt not commit adultery, thou &s;halt not &s;teal &amp;c. Love worketh no ill to his neighbour, whence he inferrs, Therefore love is the fulfilling of the law. Thus the whole Series, and Method of the Apo&s;tle's di&s;cour&s;e be|ing con&s;idered, it plainly appears that his mentioning of the duties of the 2. Table, is not to this end, to &s;hew that the Magi&s;trate hath power only in and about things of that nature, but quite to another purpo&s;e, viz. to prove that in loving one another is comprehended the &s;um and &s;ub&s;tance of that whole law, namely of the 2 Table, which concerns the duty of men towards one another.</P>
<P>Except, 2. Others therefore fetch the ground of their limitation from another place, viz: that Mat. 22.21. Render unto Cae&s;ar the things that are Cae&s;ars, and to God the things that are Gods.</P>
<P>An&s;wer: But &s;urely that place affoords no ground for it; our Saviour there indeed intimates, that &s;ome things belong unto God, which do not belong to Cae&s;ar, (of which we make no que&s;tion; for faith and affiance, re|ligious wor&s;hip, and ob&s;olute obedience in all things are due unto God, not &s;o to Cae&s;ar,) but that it belongs not unto Cae&s;ar to intermeddle in matters of religion, this our Saviour there &s;hews not; no, tho&s;e words, Render unto Cae&s;ar the things that are Cae&s;ars, and to God, the things that are Gods, were alwaies of force: there were always, &s;ome things (viz. tho&s;e before &s;pecified) belonging unto God, and not unto Cae&s;ar, yet it is mo&s;t vident and undeniable, that in &s;ome ages Cae&s;ar, <HI>i.</HI> the Prince and Ruler hath had, and exerci&s;ed this power which we now contend for, and that lawfully and lau|dably. And &s;o I pa&s;s to another argument drawn from the ju&s;t practice of good and Godly Magi&s;trates.</P>
<P N="2">2. Therefore I argue thus; The be&s;t of the rulers of <MILESTONE N="2" UNIT="Argum.">
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Gods people of old, have put forth their authority in matters of religion, and are commended for it. I will not &s;tand much upon the examples of David and Solo|mon, not becau&s;e they were types of Chri&s;t, as &s;ome have an&s;wered concerning David, and the &s;ame may be &s;aid of Solomon al&s;o, but becau&s;e they were Prophets as wel as Kings, and what they did in this kind, for the mo&s;t part they did not as Kings, but as Prophets, as appears by 1 Chron 9.22. &amp; 28.19. &amp; 2 Chron. 8.14. To let pa&s;s therefore the&s;e examples, I wil only urge the exam|ples of tho&s;e who were Kings only, and not Prophets, as of A&s;a, Jeho&s;haphat, Ezekiah and Jo&s;iah: How A&s;a put down Idolatry, and cau&s;ed the people to enter into a &s;trict and &s;olemn covenant to &s;erve the Lord, is re|corded 2 Chron. 15. Of Jeho&s;haphats care concerning religion, how he took away the high places &amp; the groves out of Iudah, and &s;ent Prie&s;ts and Levites throughout the land, to teach and in&s;truct the people, we read 2 Chron. 17. How Ezekiah re&s;tored religion, opening the doors of the Temple, which Ahaz his Father had &s;hut, cau&s;ed the Prei&s;ts and Levites to di&s;charg their of|fices, and the people generally to keep the pa&s;&s;over, &amp;c. we find 2 Chron. 29. &amp; 30. &amp; 31. And &s;o of Io&s;iah, how he de&s;troyed idolatry, repaired the Temple; and kept a mo&s;t &s;olemn Pa&s;&s;over, 2 Chron. 34. &amp; 35. Thus did al the&s;e famous Princes, &amp; that not by any peculiar power and authority, but &s;uch as is common to all Rulers and Magi&s;trates within the compa&s;s of their Iuri&s;diction. which wil further appear by the next argument.</P>
<P N="3"><MILESTONE N="3" UNIT="Argum."> 3. Therefore I argue from the commendable practice of heathen Magi&s;trates, who having the people of God &s;ometimes under their dominion, have made good laws and decrees concerning religion: which &s;hews that all
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they ought. See to this purpo&s;e <HI>Ezr.</HI> 6.14. &amp; 22. <HI>Ezr.</HI> 7.21.23.25.26.27. So whereas <HI>Nehemiah</HI> cau&s;ed the chambers belonging to the Prei&s;ts to be clean&s;ed, and the Sabbath to be ob&s;erved &amp;c. <HI>Neh.</HI> 1.3. He had his commi&s;&s;ion from <HI>Artaxerxes,</HI> Neh 2. See al&s;o what a decree <HI>Nebucadnezzar</HI> made, <HI>Dan.</HI> 2.29. and <HI>Darius</HI> Dan. 6.25, 26.</P>
<P N="4">4. If this power be not granted to the Magi&s;trate,<MILESTONE N="4" UNIT="Argum."> great evil and mi&s;chief wil en&s;ue, the Church wil be mo&s;t mi&s;erably pe&s;tered with Sects and Here&s;ies, and all manner of impiety. This is noted as the occa&s;ion of <HI>Micahs</HI> idolatry, that there was no King (<HI>i.e.</HI> no Ru|ler, or Magi&s;trate) in <HI>I&s;rael, but every one did what &s;eemed good in his own eyes.</HI> Judg. 17.6. And &s;o of the Idolatry of the children of <HI>Dan, Judg.</HI> 18.1. In the&s;e two places the want of a Magi&s;trate (<HI>who is to restrain and &s;hame them that do evil,</HI> Judg. 18.7.) Is noted as the occa&s;ion of that di&s;order that was in the Church, even as in two other places, <HI>viz. Judg.</HI> 19, 1. &amp; 21.25. It is noted as the occa&s;ion of that di&s;order that was in the Civil &s;tate.</P>
<P><MILESTONE UNIT="Object."> But &s;ome may &s;ay, that in the Apo&s;tles days, and along time after there was no Magi&s;trate to take care of religion, therefore no &s;uch nece&s;&s;ity of a Magi&s;trate in that re&s;pect.</P>
<P><MILESTONE UNIT="An&s;w."> I an&s;wer; that the Apo&s;tles were indued with an extraordinary power, which &s;ometimes they did exerci&s;e upon haynous tran&s;gre&s;&s;ors for the admo|nition and terror of others. Thus <HI>Peter</HI> &s;truck <HI>Anani|as</HI> and <HI>Sapphira</HI> with &s;udden death, Acts 5. <HI>And hereby great fear came upon all the Church, and upon all that heard of it.</HI> v. 11. So <HI>Paul</HI> &s;mote <HI>Elimas</HI> with blind|ne&s;s, <HI>Acts</HI> 13. <HI>Whereby the Deputy</HI> Sergius Paulus <HI>was
<PB N="10" REF="11">
a&s;toni&s;hed, and converted.</HI> v. 12. So that the extraordinary power of the Apo&s;tles might wel then &s;upply the want of a Chri&s;tian Magi&s;trate. And for the times after the Apo&s;tles, until <HI>Con&s;tantine,</HI> be&s;ides that the Church was continually under per&s;ecution, what a flood of here&s;ies did break in, appears by the writings of <HI>Irenaeus</HI> and <HI>Tertullian,</HI> who lived in tho&s;e times.</P>
<P N="5">5. It is promi&s;ed, that in the times of the Go&s;pel, <HI>Kings &s;hal be nur&s;ing fathers, and Queens nur&s;ing mothers to the Church.</HI> I&s;a. 49.23. But this they can|not be, except they have power, &amp; put forth their pow|er in matters of religion, which do e&s;pecially concern the Church, as wel as in Civil matters.</P>
<P><HI>Except.</HI> 1. Some an&s;wer, that <HI>Kings</HI> and <HI>Queens</HI> are promi&s;ed to be nur&s;ing fathers, and nur&s;ing mothers to the Church, in that being converted, they &s;hal hold forth the grace of Chri&s;t unto others.</P>
<P><HI>Reply,</HI> But &s;o may any of the Saints do, though of the meane&s;t rank and poore&s;t condition: its true, the examples of Kings and Queens are more con&s;picious, and more taken notice of; but to be nur&s;ing fathers and nur&s;ing mothers, imports a power and a care to cheri&s;h and maintain, to protect and defend, which is much more then to hold forth by example. Therefore the Apo&s;tle gives this as a rea&s;on, why we &s;hould pray, as for all, &s;o more e&s;pecially for Kings, and tho&s;e that are in authority, that under them, (<HI>i. e.</HI> under the wings of their protection) <HI>We may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godline&s;s, and hone&s;ty.</HI> 1 Tim. 2.1, 2.</P>
<P><HI>Except.</HI> 2. Some grant that protection and defence is implyed in the titles of nur&s;ing fathers, and nur&s;ing mothers; but this protection and defence, they wil have meant only in outward and civil things, not
<PB N="11" REF="11">
in things belonging to Religion.</P>
<P><HI>Reply.</HI> But 1. To be nur&s;ing fathers, and nur&s;ing mothers to the Church, as the Church; mu&s;t needs im|ply a protection and defence of the Church in matters of Religion; for it is Religion which gives being to the Church, and by Religion it is that the Church doth differ from the Civil State or Common-wealth. 2. Meer heathens and infidels may have, and u&s;ually have this benefit by their Kings and Queens, to be protect|ed and defended in their civil rights and liberties; but the Prophet &s;peaks of a &s;pecial benefit, which the Church &s;hal have by Kings and Queens above others. 3. The Apo&s;tle, 1 Tim. 2.2. requires us to pray for Kings, and tho&s;e that are in authority, that under them we may lead a quiet and a peaceable life, as wel in all godline&s;s (which concerns Religion) as ho|ne&s;ty.</P>
<P N="6"><MILESTONE N="6" UNIT="Argum."> 6. It is Prophe&s;ied in re&s;pect of the times of theGo&s;pel, <HI>Zech,</HI> 13.3. <HI>That if any &s;hal Prophe&s;y fal&s;ly to draw away unto Idolatry, his father and his mother that begat him, &s;hal &s;ay unto him, thou &s;halt not live; for thou &s;peake&s;t lies in the name of the Lord; and his father and his mother that begat him, &s;hal thru&s;t him through when he prophe&s;ieth.</HI> This &s;hews that in the times of the Go&s;|pel (of which times this is Prophe&s;ied, as appears by <HI>v.</HI> 1.) there &s;hal be a re&s;training and puni&s;hing of fal&s;e Prophets, fal&s;e teachers and &s;educers.</P>
<P><HI>Except.</HI> Some an&s;wer that all that is here held out unto us, is this, that in the times of the <HI>Go&s;pel,</HI> fal&s;e teachers that go about to draw from Chri&s;t, &s;hal be mo&s;t odious unto true beleevers.</P>
<P><HI>Reply.</HI> This is not all, but that they &s;hal al&s;o be re|&s;trained and puni&s;hed, as tho&s;e words plainly import.
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<GAP DESC="duplicate" EXTENT="1 page">
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<GAP DESC="duplicate" EXTENT="1 page">
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<HI>They &s;hal &s;ay unto him, thou &s;halt not live, and they &s;hal thru&s;t him through.</HI></P>
<P><MILESTONE UNIT="Object."> But it is objected, that the words are not to be taken literally, for that, &s;o parents &s;hould kil their own chil|dren, whereas it is unlawful for any private per&s;ons to kil others, and mo&s;t unnatural for parents to kil their children.</P>
<P><MILESTONE UNIT="An&s;w."> I an&s;wer, They are &s;aid to do it, becau&s;e they pro|cure it to be done, <HI>viz.</HI> by the Magi&s;trate, whom they &s;hal inform again&s;t tho&s;e &s;educers, that &s;o they may receive condigne puni&s;hment. A parallel place to this, and which doth &s;erve fully to illu&s;trate this, there is, <HI>Deut.</HI> 13.6, 10. <HI>If thy brother, the &s;onne of thy mother</HI> &amp;c. <HI>entice thee &s;ecretly, &s;aying, Let us go &s;erve o|ther Gods</HI> &amp;c. <HI>Thou &s;halt not con&s;ent</HI> &amp;c. <HI>neither &s;halt thou conceal him; but thou &s;halt &s;urely kil him, thine hand</HI> &amp;c. Mark here, <HI>Thou &s;halt &s;urely kil him.</HI> viz. Who|&s;oever thou be'&s;t that art inticed unto idolatry. But how is this under&s;tood? may any one take upon him to kil &s;uch as would draw him away from the true God? No, he mu&s;t not do it him&s;elf, but procure it to be done, by &s;uch as have power and authority to do it, as the words before do &s;hew; <HI>thou &s;halt not conceal him.</HI> i. <HI>thou &s;halt complain of him to the Magi&s;trate, and &s;halt inform him against him.</HI> So the words fol|lowing &s;hew as much, <HI>Thine hand &s;hal be fir&s;t upon him to put him to death, and afterwards the hands of all the peo|ple;</HI> i.e. Thou having witne&s;&s;ed again&s;t him, and the Magi&s;trate having condemned him, thou &s;halt throw the fir&s;t &s;tone at him. For &s;o the witne&s;&s;es u&s;ed to do, as we &s;ee <HI>Deut.</HI> 17.7. And mark al&s;o that which follows, v. 11. <HI>And all I&s;rael &s;hal hear and fear, and &s;hal do no more any &s;uch wickedne&s;s as this amongst you.</HI> This
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rea&s;on &s;hews the precept to be moral, and to bind in all ages, Q. <HI>d.</HI> The wickedne&s;s is exceeding great, and therefore he that is found guilty of it &s;hal die for it, that &s;o others may fear to do the like.</P>
<P>I wil add no more arguments, the&s;e may &s;uffice to prove that Magi&s;trates are ordained of God, for the protecting and pre&s;erving of tho&s;e that do wel, and for the correcting and puni&s;hing of tho&s;e that do evil; and that not in civil matters only, but al&s;o in matters of Religion.</P>
<P><MILESTONE UNIT="Objections. An&s;wered."> Some objections are made, which mu&s;t be an&s;wered.</P>
<P><HI>Object.</HI> Tit. 3.10. <HI>An heretick, after the first and &s;e|cond admonition, reject.</HI> Here, &s;ay &s;ome, the Apo&s;tle requires only that an <HI>heretick</HI> being ob&s;tinate be reject|ed. i.e. Excommunicated, ca&s;t out of the Church, not re|&s;trained and puni&s;hed by the Magi&s;trate.</P>
<P><HI>An&s;w.</HI> The Apo&s;tle wrote to <HI>Titus,</HI> and &s;ignified what he and the officers of the Church &s;hould do; as for the civil Magi&s;trate, the Apo&s;tle had no rea&s;on to men|tion him, there being as then none but &s;uch as were <HI>A|liens</HI> from <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> and the <HI>Go&s;pel.</HI> But doth it follow becau&s;e the Church mu&s;t reject and excommunicate an <HI>Heretick,</HI> that therefore the Magi&s;trate hath no power to re&s;train him from preaching and publi&s;hing <HI>Here&s;ie,</HI> and to puni&s;h him for it? Surely no more, then it follows, that the magi&s;trate may not puni&s;h for ince&s;t, becau&s;e the Apo&s;tle writes to the Church at <HI>Corinth</HI> to ca&s;t out the ince&s;tuous per&s;on. 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 5.</P>
<P><HI>Object.</HI> But they object again and &s;ay, what puni&s;h|ment doth the Go&s;pel appoint for <HI>Heretical</HI> teachers and maintainers of fal&s;e opinions in matters of Re|ligion?</P>
<P><HI>An&s;w.</HI> 1. I may demand al&s;o, what puni&s;hment
<PB N="14" REF="14">
doth the Go&s;pel appoint for theeves, murtherers, in|ce&s;tuous per&s;ons, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> I do not find the Go&s;pel to ex|pre&s;s any puni&s;hment to be inflicted by the Magi&s;trate more upon the&s;e then upon the other; expre&s;ly nothing, that I know, is pre&s;cribed again&s;t either, but by con&s;e|quence &s;omething is pre&s;cribed again&s;t both; in that the Go&s;pel doth approve, confirm and ratifie the Ma|gi&s;trate <HI>to be a terrour unto evil works, and a revenger to execute wrath upon tho&s;e that do evil,</HI> Rom. 13.3, 4. which (as hath been &s;aid) holds as wel in things concer|ning the fir&s;t as the &s;econd Table.</P>
<P N="2">2. As it is in re&s;pect of offences again&s;t the &s;econd Table; &s;o it is al&s;o in re&s;pect of offences again&s;t the fir&s;t Table; greater or le&s;&s;er puni&s;hment is to be in|flicted, as the offence is more or le&s;s heinous; That place, <HI>Zech.</HI> 13.3. being a Prophecy concerning the times of the Go&s;pel, &s;hews, that in &s;ome ca&s;e, death it &s;elf may and ought to be inflicted upon fal&s;e tea|chers.</P>
<P><HI>Object.</HI> But, &s;ay &s;ome, if the Magi&s;trate be allowed this power to pre&s;erve and maintain truth in matter of Religion, and to curb and re&s;train error; he may either through ignorance or malice, or both, happen to do quite contrary, to re&s;train truth and maintain error.</P>
<P><HI>An&s;w.</HI> It may &s;o happen indeed, and hath often &s;o happened, otherwi&s;e there had not been &s;o many Mar|tyrs. But what then? The power in it &s;elf is good, and being rightly u&s;ed doth work good, and &s;hal it therefore be denyed and di&s;anulled, becau&s;e it may be abu&s;ed, and &s;o work evil? By this rea&s;on the Magi&s;trate &s;hal have no power at all, not &s;o much as in civil things; for he may abu&s;e and pervert al&s;o this power, he may condemn &s;ome as being theeves,
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murtherers, traytors, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> who are no &s;uch men but mo&s;t innocent per&s;ons.</P>
<P><HI>Object.</HI> But &s;ome object that in the <HI>Parable of the tares,</HI> Math. 13. where the ma&s;ter would not let the &s;ervants pluck up the tares as they would have done, but bid them let them grow till the harve&s;t, and then they &s;hould be plucked up. Hence they gather that Hereticks and &s;uch as maintain fal&s;e doctrines, whom they under&s;tand by the tares, mu&s;t not be puni&s;hed nor re&s;trained, but let alone until the end of the world, which Chri&s;t him&s;elf &s;hews to be meant by the harve&s;t.</P>
<P><HI>An&s;w.</HI> This Parable makes no more for a toleration of Hereticks then of theeves, murtherers, and all wic|ked ones what&s;oever; for if we wil heed our Saviours own explication; by the tares are meant generally <HI>the children of the wicked one,</HI> v. 38. <HI>All things that offend, and they that work iniquity,</HI> v. 41. <HI>Object.</HI> But are all the workers of iniquity to be let alone until the end of the world? <HI>An&s;w.</HI> No, that's not our Saviours mea|ning, but the &s;cope of the Parable is to &s;hew, that how|ever &s;ome may imagine, yet there wil be a mixture of good and bad here even until the end of the world; and that then, and not before, &s;hal be a full and perfect &s;e|paration of the one from the other; The &s;ame is &s;igni|fied by the <HI>Parable of a draw-net,</HI> Mat. 13.47.&mdash; 50. Thus the Doctrine being &s;ufficiently confirmed, and the Objections made again&s;t it an&s;wered, let us come to the <HI>U&s;es</HI> of it.</P>
<P><MILESTONE N="1" UNIT="&V;&s;e."> And 1. It &s;erves to convince and recliam, if it may be, tho&s;e that are of the contrary opinion, and to teach and admoni&s;h all to beware of that opinion: It is an opinion injurious unto God, injurions to his vice|gerent,
<PB N="16" REF="15">
injurious to his people. 1. Injurious unto God, oppo&s;ing his ordinance. 2. Injurious to Gods vicegerent, the Magi&s;trate, deve&s;ting him of that pow|er wherewith God hath inve&s;ted him. 3. Injurious unto Gods people, depriving them of that benefit which they might and &s;hould have by the Magi&s;trate, and for want thereof expo&s;ing them to great and manifold inconveniences.</P>
<P N="2"><MILESTONE N="2" UNIT="&V;&s;e."> 2. To confute the Papi&s;ts, who though they &s;eem to give unto the Magi&s;trate this power, yet indeed they withhold it from him: For they make him only a Va&s;&s;al to the Pope, and tho&s;e of that Hierarchy; to execute their Canons and Decrees, to puni&s;h &s;uch as they have pronounced Hereticks, and to cau&s;e that doctrine which they propound to be embraced, and tho&s;e rites which they enjoyn, what ever they be, to be ob&s;erved. Whereas, if private per&s;ons mu&s;t <HI>prove all things and hold fa&s;t that which is good,</HI> 1 <HI>The&s;.</HI> 5.21. then much more mu&s;t Magi&s;trates do it; Though they mu&s;t not do things of them&s;elves, but mu&s;t advi&s;e with godly and able Mini&s;ters, and be in&s;tructed and di|rected by them out of Gods Word, yet mu&s;t they not tye them&s;elves to the dictates of men, but mu&s;t have the book of God, the holy Scripture, continually with them, and exerci&s;e them&s;elves diligently therein, and by it try things,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Deut. 17.18, 19, 20.</NOTE> before either they receive them them&s;elves, or cau&s;e others to &s;ubmit unto them.</P>
<P N="3"><MILESTONE N="3" UNIT="&V;&s;e."> 3. To &s;tir us up to pray continually unto God in the behalf of our Magi&s;trates, that they may be enlight|ned by his Spirit to di&s;cern of things that differ, that &s;o they may be able to u&s;e their power aright to edifi|cation and not to de&s;truction; for the &s;upporting of
<PB N="17" REF="15">
the truth, not for the &s;uppre&s;&s;ing of it; and that they may be incited and &s;tirred up to do it. Thus the Apo&s;tle exhorts and requires us <HI>to pray and make &s;upplications, as for all, &s;o more e&s;pecially for Kings and tho&s;e that are in authority, that under them we may lead a peaceable and a quiet life in all godline&s;s and honesty,</HI> 1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 2.2. We may &s;ee, and it is worthy to be ob&s;erved, that accord|ing as the Kings and Rulers of Gods people were good or bad, &s;o Religion either flouri&s;hed or decayed; under <HI>A&s;a, Jeho&s;aphat, Hezekiah</HI> and <HI>Jo&s;iah</HI> it flouri&s;h|ed: Under <HI>Rehoboam, Ahas, Mana&s;&s;es, &amp;c.</HI> it de|cayed.</P>
<P N="4"><MILESTONE N="4" UNIT="&V;&s;e."> 4. To &s;tir us up to prai&s;e and glorifie God for &s;uch Magi&s;trates when any good doth accrew unto the Church by them: As we mu&s;t honour the Magi&s;trates them&s;elves &s;o much the more, by how much the more they put forth them&s;elves and exerci&s;e their authority for the pre&s;erving and maintaining of Religion, and for the procuring of the welfare and happine&s;s of the Church, as they did <HI>Jehoiada</HI> the high Prie&s;t, who had been Tutor to King <HI>Joa&s;h</HI> in his non-age, and car|ryed him&s;elf worthily in that place of dignity and power; at his death they did him the honour to bury him among the Kings, <HI>becau&s;e he had done good in I&s;rael both towards God and towards his hou&s;e,</HI> 2 <HI>Chron.</HI> 24.16. So chiefly our care mu&s;t be to acknowledg the good hand of God upon us in vouch&s;afing to give us &s;uch Magi&s;trates, and to make them &s;o in&s;trumental to our good, and to give him the prai&s;e and glory of all; <HI>The King granted me</HI> (&s;aid <HI>Nehemiah) according to the good hand of my God upon me,</HI> Nehemiah 2.8. So of <HI>Ezra,</HI> it is &s;aid that <HI>the King granted him all his re|que&s;t (viz.</HI> which he made in the behalf of <HI>Ieru&s;alem</HI>
<PB N="18" REF="16">
and the &s;ervice of God) <HI>according to the hand of the Lord his God upon him,</HI> Ezra 7.6. And having rehear|&s;ed the decree that the King had made and the com|mi&s;&s;ion that he had given him concerning the wor&s;hip of God, and the affairs of the Church, he breaketh out into this doxology, <HI>Ble&s;&s;ed be the Lord God of our fa|thers, who hath put &s;uch a thing as this, in the Kings heart, to beautifie the hou&s;e of the Lord, which is in Jeru&s;alem: And hath exten|ded mercy unto me before the King and his Coun&s;ellors, and before all the Kings mighty Princes, and I was &s;trengthned as the hand of the Lord my God was upon me,</HI> Ezra 7.27, 28.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="sermon">
<PB N="19" REF="16">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>ECCLES. 12.7.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Then &s;hal the du&s;t return to the earth, as it was; and the Spirit &s;hal return to God that gave it.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>_IN the beginning of this Chapter <HI>Solo|mon</HI> bids, <HI>Remember thy Creator in the daies of thy youth;</HI> and he &s;hews why every one ought to have this care, <HI>viz.</HI> becau&s;e in old age we can neither be &s;o &s;erviceable, neither can our &s;ervice be &s;o acceptable; this is &s;ignified in tho&s;e words <HI>before the evil daies come, and the years draw nigh, wherein thou &s;halt &s;ay, I have no plea&s;ure in them:</HI> the daies of old age are evil daies, <HI>i. e.</HI> full of trouble and &s;orrow; in which &s;en&s;e <HI>Iacob</HI> &s;aid <HI>that his daies were evil,</HI> Gen. 47.9. Old age is &s;ubject to di&s;ea&s;es and di&s;tempers; <HI>Senectus ip&s;a mor|bus,</HI> it is it &s;elf a di&s;ea&s;e. And therefore al&s;o the years of old age are years wherein a man hath no plea&s;ure, &s;ee <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 90.10. and 2 <HI>Sam.</HI> 19.35. And are we then in old age fit to do God &s;ervice? Or is it fit to put off the &s;erving of God until old age? Shal we think that God wil have plea&s;ure in that &s;ervice which we put off till tho&s;e years come, wherein we our &s;elves have no plea|&s;ure? <HI>Solomon</HI> having thus generally &s;et forth in the fir&s;t <HI>ver&s;e</HI> how unmeet it is and unrea&s;onable to ca&s;t off the remembrance of God until old age come, he goes on in the next five <HI>ver&s;es</HI> to de&s;cribe old age and to &s;et
<PB N="20" REF="17">
forth the trouble&s;ome and uncomfortable condition of it more particularly: the de&s;cription is very elegant, but allegorical, and therefore ob&s;cure; I may not now &s;tand to explain it, but mu&s;t come to the 7. <HI>ver.</HI> which I am to in&s;i&s;t on, wherein he &s;hews what old age tends to, and what follows upon it, <HI>viz.</HI> death and judgment, <HI>Then &s;hal the du&s;t return &amp;c.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Then] viz.</HI> when old age hath worn and weakned the body and di&s;&s;olved the frame and temperature of it.</P>
<P><HI>Shal the du&s;t]</HI> i. e. the body which was made of du&s;t, <HI>Gen.</HI> 2.7.</P>
<P><HI>Return to the earth as it was,]</HI> According to that <HI>Gen.</HI> 3.19. <HI>In the &s;weat of thy face &s;halt thou eat bread, till thou return to the ground,</HI> (or earth); <HI>for out of it wast thou taken; for du&s;t thou art, and unto du&s;t &s;halt thou re|turn.</HI></P>
<P><HI>And the Spirit]</HI> i. e. the &s;oul, as the word Spirit is taken 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 6.20. and &s;o in other places.</P>
<P><HI>Shal return unto God]</HI> viz. as the Chaldee Paraphra&s;t dothwel interpret it, <GAP DESC="foreign"> <HI>i.e.</HI> to &s;tand (or ap|pear) in judgment before him, to be judged and &s;enten|ced by him. For it is appointed unto men to dye once, &s;o after this the judgment, <HI>Heb.</HI> 9.27.</P>
<P><HI>That gave it</HI>) that created it, and infu&s;ed it into the body, &s;ee <HI>Gen.</HI> 2 7.</P>
<P>The words being &s;ufficiently explained, I come to the Ob&s;ervations to be gathered from them.</P>
<P><MILESTONE N="1" UNIT="Ob&s;erv."> And the fir&s;t is this, That the body is mortal, <HI>Then &s;hal the du&s;t, i. e.</HI> the body, <HI>return to the earth, as it was.</HI> The Apo&s;tle cals the body, in re&s;pect of its condition here, <HI>mortal body, Rom.</HI> 6.12. and &s;o <HI>Rom.</HI> 8.11. Its called a Tabernacle, 2 <HI>Pet.</HI> 1.13, 14. &amp; 2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 5.1. A Tabernacle hath no foundation as a hou&s;e hath, on|ly
<PB N="21" REF="17">
is made fa&s;t with cords and &s;takes, but the cords are &s;oon loo&s;ed, and the &s;takes pluckt up, and &s;o the Ta|bernacle di&s;&s;olved. Its &s;aid <HI>Iohn</HI> 1.14. that the word was made fle&s;h, and <GAP DESC="foreign">, we read it,<NOTE PLACE="marg">See <HI>Beza.</HI></NOTE> dwelt a|mong us, but the word &s;ignifieth, to abide in a Taber|nacle, it imports that Chri&s;t had a mortal body.</P>
<P>But how comes it to pa&s;s, that the body is mortal? did God make it &s;o at fir&s;t? No, had man continued &s;uch as God fir&s;t made him, he had never died. His body indeed being compacted of corruptible matter, was naturally apt to be corrupted, but by a &s;upernatu|ral power it &s;hould have been pre&s;erved from corrup|tion. Augu&s;tine &s;peaking of man, as he was at fir&s;t created of God, &s;aith wel, <HI>mortalis erat conditione cor|poris animalis, immortalis beneficio creatoris,</HI> i. e. In re|&s;pect of the natural con&s;titution of his body, he was mortal, but through the goodne&s;s of his creator he was immortal. It was &s;in that brought mortallity. <HI>What day &s;oever thou do&s;t eate thereof</HI> [viz. <HI>of the forbid|den fruit</HI>] <GAP DESC="foreign"> <HI>dying thou &s;halt die,</HI> i. <HI>thou &s;halt certainly die;</HI> &s;o God threatned <HI>Adam, Gen.</HI> 2.17. Not that immediatly upon his tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion his &s;oul &s;hould part from his body, but immediately he &s;hould become mortal, and &s;ubject to death, as <HI>Symmachus</HI> did wel interpret it, <GAP DESC="foreign">, i. thou &s;halt be mortal. In this &s;en&s;e are the very &s;ame words u&s;ed, 1 <HI>King.</HI> 2.37 <HI>It &s;hal be</HI> (&s;aid <HI>Solomon</HI> to <HI>Shimei) that on the day thou goe&s;t over, and pa&s;se&s;t over the brook Kidron, thou &s;halt know for certain, that</HI> <GAP DESC="foreign"> <HI>dying thou &s;halt die,</HI> i.e. <HI>thou &s;halt certainly die.</HI> Shimei died not that very day but then immediately his life was forfeited, and he made him&s;elf liable to death, When&s;oever <HI>So|lomon</HI> &s;hould plea&s;e to inflict it upon him.
<PB N="22" REF="18">
And thus it was with <HI>Adam</HI> upon his eating of the for|bidden fruit; pre&s;ently the &s;entence of death pa&s;&s;ed on him, <HI>du&s;t thou art, and to du&s;t &s;hal thou return,</HI> Gen. 3.19.</P>
<P>Thus <HI>Adam</HI> by his tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion made him&s;elf mor|tal. Yea, and not him&s;elf only, but all his po&s;terity al&s;o. For all were included in him, and his &s;in was the &s;in of all, and &s;o in him all became mortal. <HI>In A|dam all die,</HI> 1 Cor. 15.22. <HI>viz.</HI> becau&s;e in <HI>Adam</HI> all did &s;in. <HI>By one man (namely Adam) &s;in entred into the world, and by &s;in death, and &s;o death went over all</HI> &amp;c. Rom. 5.12.</P>
<P><MILESTONE N="2" UNIT="Ob&s;er."> I pa&s;s to a 2. Ob&s;ervation, <HI>viz.</HI> this, That the &s;oul is immortal; the &s;pirit [doth not go to the earth, as the body, but] doth return to God that gave it.</P>
<P>True it is, there is a death of the &s;oul, <HI>a death in &s;in,</HI> Ephe&s;. 2.1.5. <HI>And a death for &s;in,</HI> Revel. 20.6. It is there called the &s;econd death, becau&s;e there is another death for &s;in before it, <HI>viz.</HI> The death of the body, which death (as hath been &s;hewed) came by &s;in, and for &s;in; but after this comes a &s;econd death for &s;in (if &s;in be not remitted through Chri&s;t) <HI>viz.</HI> The con|demnation of the &s;oul, fir&s;t, and afterwards both of &s;oul and body. The fir&s;t death is but temporal, but the &s;econd death is eternal.</P>
<P>But this death of the &s;oul, whether in &s;in, or for &s;in, is but metaphorically and improperly called death. The &s;oul dies not &s;o as to cea&s;e to be that &s;ub&s;tance which it was before; in this re&s;pect it is immortal. The bodie turns to du&s;t, but the &s;oul &s;ub&s;i&s;ts, and remains for ever. One in the&s;e times hath &s;et forth a book pur|po&s;ely to prove the &s;oul to be mortal in like manner as the body is mortal, maintaining, that when a man dies, his &s;oul dies as wel as the body. A mo&s;t gro&s;s opinion,
<PB N="23" REF="18">
and directly contradictory to the Text in hand, and to ma|ny other places of Scripture, which by no art or &s;ubtilty can be eluded. He would evade this Text that we have in hand, by &s;aying, that it imports no more then what is &s;aid, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 104.29. <HI>Thou take&s;t away their breath, they die, and return to their du&s;t.</HI> But the&s;e places are not &s;o parallel, as he &s;uppo&s;eth. <HI>For the taking away of the breath,</HI> which the P&s;almi&s;t &s;peaketh of, <HI>is a cau&s;e of death,</HI> and therefore, at lea&s;t in order of nature before death; for &s;o the cau&s;e is ever before the effect: becau&s;e God takes away from his creatures their breath, therefore they die; but here the &s;pirits going to God is a con&s;e|quent of death; Fir&s;t, a man dies, and then, as his body goes to the earth, &s;o his &s;oul goes to God. This clear|ly argues a &s;ub&s;i&s;ting of the &s;oul when a man is dead, and that the &s;oul doth not die together with the body. <MILESTONE N="2" UNIT="Te&s;t."> So el&s;ewhere in the Scripture the Spirit of God is plain, and plentiful in a&s;&s;erting the &s;ouls immortality. This day (&s;aid Chri&s;t to the repenting and beleeving malefactor) &s;halt thou be with me in Paradi&s;e. How &s;hould he be that day with Chri&s;t in Paradi&s;e? Not in re&s;pect of the body; for &s;o Chri&s;t him&s;elf was not that day in Paradi&s;e, but in the grave. And in re&s;pect of the body, the impenitent theif was as much in Para|di&s;e, as he to whom Chri&s;t made this promi&s;e. There|fore it was in re&s;pect of the &s;oul that he &s;hould be that day in Paradi&s;e; and con&s;equently the &s;oul dies not with the body, but &s;ub&s;i&s;ts &s;eparated from the bo|dy.</P>
<P>The an&s;wer which the adver&s;ary gives to this place, is to this effect (for it is &s;omewhat intricate) that therefore Chri&s;t told the penitent thief, that he &s;hould that day be with him in Paradi&s;e, though it
<PB N="24" REF="19">
&s;hould not be until the re&s;urrection (for he grants that the body &s;hal ri&s;e again, and then the &s;oul &s;hal be re-u|nited to it, but wil have neither &s;oul nor body to live until the re&s;urrection) becau&s;e there is but, as it were, a moment betwixt death and the re&s;urrection, for that while a man is dead, be it never &s;o long, he perceives no continuance of time, being altogether without &s;en&s;e and feeling. But what if a man be not &s;en&s;ible of time, is there therefore none for that? The 7 &s;leepers that are &s;aid to have &s;lept from the time of <HI>Decius,</HI> to the time of <HI>Theodo&s;ius,</HI> about 200 years, by this rea&s;on may be &s;aid to have waked the &s;ame day that they fel a&s;leep. Yea grant this mans opinion of the &s;ouls mor|tality to be true, and let the words of our Saviour be expounded, as he would have them; and what &s;ingular thing was promi&s;ed to that penitent malefactor? It might as wel have been &s;aid to <HI>Adam,</HI> that that very day that he dyed he &s;hould be with Chri&s;t in Paradi&s;e (though it &s;hould not be of, I know not how many thou&s;and years after) as it was &s;poken by our Saviour to this Malefactor that was Crucified with him.</P>
<P><MILESTONE N="3" UNIT="Te&s;t."> Again, 2 Cor. 5.8. <HI>We are confident [&s;aith the A|postle] willing rather to be ab&s;ent from the body, and pre&s;ent with the Lord.</HI> How (I wonder) are we pre|&s;ent with the Lord, when we are ab&s;ent from the body, if the &s;oul do not remain &s;eperated from the body? cer|tainly if the &s;oul die with the body, we are le&s;s pre&s;ent with the Lord after death, which is meant by ab&s;ence from the body, then before. Be&s;ides, that very phra&s;e of being ab&s;ent from the body, implyes that &s;omething of us, which can be nothing but the &s;oul, hath a &s;ub&s;i|&s;tance by it &s;elf out of the body, and therefore dies not with the body.</P>
<P><PB N="25" REF="19">To this place he an&s;wers, that the Apo&s;tle meant nothing el&s;e but the e&s;tate after the re&s;urrection. But how could the Apo&s;tle mean that? For is there then an ab&s;ence from the body, when as the body ri&s;eth again, and the &s;oul and it are again united?</P>
<P><MILESTONE N="4" UNIT="Te&s;t."> Again, <HI>Phil.</HI> 1.23. the Apo&s;tle &s;aith, <HI>That he de|&s;ired to be di&s;solved and to be with Chri&s;t, which was better for him, then to live &s;til here in this world.</HI> And v. 21. <HI>that it was gain for him to die.</HI> But except the &s;oul be mortal, how could this be? how could death be gain to him? How could he de&s;ire to be di&s;&s;olved that he might be with Chri&s;t, and &s;o be in a far better e&s;tate then here he could enjoy, if as his body died, &s;o his &s;oul &s;hould die al&s;o, and &s;hould be no more until the re|&s;urrection? Surely then it had been far better for him to live &s;til, yea (if it were po&s;&s;ible) not to die at all, but to remain until Chri&s;ts 2 coming, as &s;ome upon a mi|&s;take of Chri&s;ts words &s;uppo&s;ed <HI>John</HI> &s;hould, <HI>Ioh.</HI> 21.23</P>
<P>I wil add but one place more, <HI>viz.</HI> That 2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 12.2.3. where the Apo&s;tle &s;aith, <HI>that he knew a man in Chri&s;t,</HI> (meaning without que&s;tion him&s;elf) <HI>who was caught up to paradi&s;e, the third heaven, whether in the body, or out of the body, he could not tell.</HI> The&s;e words, which the Apo&s;tle twice repeateth, <HI>whether in the body, or out of the body, I cannot tell,</HI> to what purpo&s;e were they, if the &s;oul could not be &s;eparated from the body, and &s;ub&s;i&s;t in a &s;tate of &s;eparation? They nece&s;&s;arily imply thus much, that the &s;oul is a di&s;tinct &s;ub&s;tance from the body, and may &s;ub&s;i&s;t out of the body. And con&s;equently it is not mortal, it dies not with the body. But &s;ome objections are made which mu&s;t be an&s;wered.</P>
<P><MILESTONE N="1" UNIT="Object."> Man is mortal, and therefore the &s;oul being part, yea principal part of man is mortal.</P>
<P><MILESTONE UNIT="An&s;w."> I an&s;wer, it doth not follow, <HI>Totus homo moritur non
<PB N="26" REF="20">
totum hominis,</HI> i. the whole man dieth, but not the whole [not every part] of man; it &s;ufficeth that one part, <HI>viz.</HI> the body dieth. For <HI>quod convenit parti, convenit etiam toti &s;ecundum illam partem,</HI> i. That which agreeth to a part, agreeth al&s;o to the whole in re&s;pect of that part. Its &s;aid <HI>Gen.</HI> 2.7. <HI>that God formed man of the du&s;t of the ground;</HI> viz. <HI>becau&s;e God formed the body of man of the dust.</HI> As for the &s;oul it was not formed thereof, but infu&s;ed, as there its &s;aid, <HI>that God brea|thed into man</HI> i. <HI>mans body] the breath of life.</HI> If mans mortality did prove the mortality of the &s;oul, then be|cau&s;e Chri&s;t died, not only his &s;oul, but his divine na|ture &s;hould die al&s;o, which (I think) this Author him&s;elf wil abhor to &s;ay or think; for as man con&s;i|&s;teth of &s;oul and body, &s;o Chri&s;t of the divine and hu|mane nature. And therefore if Chri&s;t might die (as he did) and yet his divine nature be immortal; then is there no nece&s;&s;ity at all, why, becau&s;e man dyeth, the &s;oul therefore mu&s;t die al&s;o.</P>
<P><MILESTONE N="2" UNIT="Object."> Man became mortal becau&s;e of &s;in; but he &s;inned principally in his &s;oul. Therefore in re&s;pect of the &s;oul he ought principally to die.</P>
<P><MILESTONE UNIT="An&s;w."> The &s;oul through &s;in becometh liable to &s;uch a death as it is capable of <HI>viz.</HI> an exclu&s;ion from God and from all happine&s;s: but it is not capable of &s;uch a death, as the body is liable to, <HI>viz.</HI> a deprivation of all &s;en&s;e and feeling, and a corruption of the very &s;ub|&s;tance of it, for the &s;oul is a &s;pirit [as in the Text, and in other places it is termed) and therefore of an incor|ruptible nature.</P>
<P><MILESTONE N="3" UNIT="Object."><HI>In death there is no remembrance of God; in the grave who &s;hal give him thanks,</HI> P&s;al. 6.5.? <HI>The grave cannot prai&s;e him, death cannot celebrate him,</HI> I&s;a. 38.18.</P>
<P><PB N="27" REF="20"><MILESTONE UNIT="An&s;w."> The meaning is, that the dead cannot &s;o prai&s;e God as the living do, <HI>viz.</HI> to the in&s;truction and edifica|tion of others. <HI>The living, the living, he &s;hal prai&s;e thee, as I do this day; the father to the children &s;hal make known thy truth,</HI> &s;aith <HI>Hezekiah</HI> there immediately after, <HI>I&s;aiah</HI> 38.19. In this re&s;pect the godly have de&s;ired to live rather then to die, that they may edifie the Church, and to glorify God, which being dead they could not do. <HI>I wil not die, but live</HI> (&s;aith <HI>David,</HI> and why? he adds) <HI>and declare the works of the Lord,</HI> P&s;al. 118.17. See al&s;o, Phil. 1.23.24.25.</P>
<P><MILESTONE N="4" UNIT="Object."> Eccle&s;. 9.4.5. <HI>A living dogg is better then a dead Li|on. For the living know that they &s;hal die, but the dead know not any thing.</HI> And <HI>Eccle&s;.</HI> 3.19.20.21. <HI>That which befalleth the &s;onnes of men, befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them; as the one dieth, &s;o dieth the o|ther; yea they have all one breath, &s;o that a man hath no preheminence above a bea&s;t; for all is vanity. All go unto one place, all are of the du&s;t, all turn to du&s;t again. Who knoweth the &s;pirit of a man that goeth upward, and the &s;pirit of a beast that goeth downward to the earth?</HI></P>
<P><MILESTONE UNIT="An&s;w."> This is &s;poken in the per&s;on of carnal <HI>Epicures</HI> and <HI>Athei&s;ts,</HI> who think there is no other life after this, and therefore had rather live, though never &s;o ba&s;ely, then die, though never &s;o honorably. Certain it is, that the &s;pirit of God means nothing le&s;s, then that the wor&s;t alive, are better then the be&s;t being dead. <HI>For how then are they ble&s;sed that die in the Lord, even whiles they are dead?</HI> Apoc. 14.13. <HI>How is it gain to the godly to die, and far better for them then to live?</HI> Phil. <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter">.21.23. And that very que&s;tion, who knoweth the &s;pirit of a man that goeth upward, &amp;c. implyeth that in truth, the &s;pirit of a man dies not when the body dies, as the
<PB N="28" REF="21">
&s;pirit of a bea&s;t doth; although the <HI>Epicure</HI> and <HI>Athei&s;t,</HI> that lives like a bea&s;t, thinks that he &s;hal al&s;o die like a bea&s;t; that ther's no difference at all betwixt the death of a bea&s;t, and the death of a man, but that every way as the one, &s;o the other dieth al&s;o, <HI>viz.</HI> as wel in &s;oul, as in body. I pa&s;s to the 3^d and la&s;t ob&s;ervation.</P>
<P><MILESTONE N="3" UNIT="Ob&s;erv."> The &s;oul immediately after death, is judged of God. In this re&s;pect its &s;aid, when a man dies, to go to God, <HI>viz.</HI> to be judged by him; for otherwi&s;e it is not true of every &s;oul (not of any &s;oul of the wicked) that it goes to God, <HI>viz.</HI> &s;o as to live with him, and to love the ble&s;&s;ed fruition of him.</P>
<P>Now that the &s;oul immediately after its &s;eparation from the body, comes to judgment, appears by tho&s;e places pre-alledged, which &s;hew that the &s;ouls of the godly immediately after death, are in ble&s;&s;ed happi|ne&s;s; as 2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 5.8. <HI>Phil.</HI> 1.23. <HI>Apoc.</HI> 14.13. This argues, that judgment doth pa&s;s immediately upon the &s;oul, and that it is forthwith adjudged either to its reward, or puni&s;hment. The &s;ame al&s;o may be pro|ved by that of the <HI>rich man and Lazarus,</HI> Luk. 16. Which &s;eemes not to be (as &s;ome &s;uppo&s;e) a meer pa|rable, but a parabolical hi&s;tory, or a hi&s;tory related &s;omewhat after a parabolical manner. For that 1. <HI>Lazarus</HI> is there named, whereas in meer parables, the names of per&s;ons &s;poken of are not mentioned, becau&s;e the per&s;ons are but feigned. And 2. parables are ever drawn from things outward and obvious unto men; whereas our Saviour there &s;peaks of things done in the other world.</P>
<P><MILESTONE N="1" UNIT="Object"> But &s;ome may object that, 2 <HI>Tim.</HI> 4.8. <HI>Henceforth is laid up for me the crown of righteou&s;ne&s;s, which the Lord, the righteous judg, &s;hal give me at that day,</HI> viz. of
<PB N="29" REF="21">
Chri&s;ts coming to judgment in the end of the world. So <HI>Col.</HI> 3.4. <HI>When Chri&s;t, who is our life, &s;hal appear, then &s;hal we al&s;o appear with him in glory.</HI> By the&s;e, and &s;uch like places, it may &s;eem that there is no re|ward received after death until the general judgment. And &s;o divers of the ancients have thought that the &s;ouls are until the la&s;t judgment in certain receptacles, neither in pain nor plea&s;ure, but only in expectation of that which is to come.</P>
<P><MILESTONE UNIT="An&s;w."> But the meaning of tho&s;e Scriptures, which &s;eem to favour that opinion, is only this, that the ful and per|fect reward is not til the la&s;t judgment; not but that the reward in &s;ome mea&s;ure, and in great mea&s;ure too, is obtained before that time, as is evident by tho&s;e other Scriptures which have been cited. Yea compara|tively <HI>ju&s;t men departed out of this life, are &s;aid to be made perfect;</HI> Heb. 12.23. <HI>viz.</HI> in compari&s;on of what they were here in this world, though in compari&s;on of what they &s;hal be after the re&s;urrection, they be &s;til imperfect.</P>
<P><MILESTONE N="2" UNIT="Object."> But again it may be objected, If the &s;oul be judged pre&s;ently after death, what need is there of a judgment to come in the end of the world?</P>
<P>I an&s;wer, yes; 1. In re&s;pect of men, becau&s;e be|fore only one part of them, <HI>viz.</HI> the &s;oul is judged; but the body having been partner with the &s;oul, either in righteou&s;ne&s;s, or in &s;in, meet and requi&s;ite it is, that the body al&s;o be partner with the &s;oul, either in the reward, or in puni&s;hment. <HI>We mu&s;t all appear be|fore the judgment &s;eat of Chri&s;t, that every one may receive the things done in the body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or evil.</HI> 2 Cor. 5.10. The things were done in the body, and therefore, as wel the body as the &s;oul mu&s;t be rewarded, or puni&s;hed. Now this
<PB N="30" REF="22">
in re&s;pect of the body is not til the la&s;t judgment. 2. In re&s;pect of God al&s;o, be&s;ides the particular judg|ment, which is immediately after death, it is behove|ful, that there be a general judgment, as there &s;hal be in the end of the world; <HI>viz.</HI> that &s;o Gods ju&s;tice may be made manife&s;t. Hereby rea&s;on of the pro&s;perity of the wicked, and the adver&s;ity of the godly, the ju|&s;tice of God &s;ometime is que&s;tioned, yea denied. <HI>Mal.</HI> 2.17. &amp; 3.14, 15. Therefore God wil have his ju|&s;tice vindicated and cleared; <HI>All &s;hal di&s;cern between the righteous and the wicked</HI> &amp;c. Mal. 3.18. But the difference betwixt them immediately after death, is not di&s;cerned, it appears not; the judgment that then pa&s;&s;eth upon the &s;ouls of men, is &s;ecret, and unknown to us. Therefore meet it is that there be another judg|ment, a general judgment, wherein all &s;hal be judged, and that in the &s;ight of all, that &s;o Gods ju&s;tice may appear unto all. Therefore the Apo&s;tle &s;peaking of the la&s;t judgment, calls that day, a day of the revela|tion of the righteous judgment of God, <HI>i.</HI> a day where|in the righteous judgment of God &s;hal be revealed and made manife&s;t to all the world. See <HI>Mal.</HI> 3. and the la&s;t <HI>ver.</HI> with <HI>Mal.</HI> 4. and the two fir&s;t <HI>ver&s;es.</HI></P>
<P>To make &s;ome U&s;e and application of all.</P>
<P><MILESTONE N="1" UNIT="&V;&s;e."> Fir&s;t, let us learn, and be admoni&s;hed to prize &s;pi|ritual things above corporal, and to labour for the wel|fare of the &s;oul more then of the body. True it is, things needful for the body are to be looked after, the welfare of the body is not to be neglected. S^t^. <HI>John</HI> de&s;ired earne&s;tly that <HI>Gaius his body might pro&s;per and be in health,</HI> 3 Joh. 2. And S. <HI>Paul</HI> exhorted <HI>Timothy</HI> to have a care of his bodily health, 1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 5.23. But the things that concern the &s;oul are chiefly to be thought of; the welfare of the &s;oul is principally to be regarded,
<PB N="31" REF="22">
<HI>Fir&s;t &s;eek the Kingdom of God and his righteou&s;ne&s;s</HI> Mat. 6.33. Good rea&s;on, &s;eeing the body is mortal, but the &s;oul immortal. The body is but [as the <HI>Hebrews</HI> call it] <GAP DESC="foreign">; <HI>i. e.</HI> the clothing or covering of man; the &s;oul is the man indeed: Compare <HI>Mat.</HI> 10. 25 with <HI>Luke</HI> 9.25. <HI>Expende animam, impende in ani|mam.</HI> Con&s;ider the worth of the &s;oul, and &s;o take care for the &s;oul. This was the folly of that rich man, <HI>Luke</HI> 12. when his barns were full, he &s;aid <HI>Soul take thine ea&s;e, eat, drink and be merry, for thou ha&s;t much goods laid up for many years.</HI> Alas! tho&s;e goods were for the body; not for the &s;oul; that might &s;tarve in the mid&s;t of &s;uch plenty. This is the mi&s;ery of the wicked, what ever their outward e&s;tates be, yet their inward man, their heart, is little worth; as <HI>Solomon</HI> tels us, <HI>Pro.</HI> 10.20. On the other &s;ide this was <HI>Pauls</HI> comfort, <HI>that though his outward man</HI> (the body) <HI>peri&s;hed, yet his in|ward man</HI> (the &s;oul) <HI>was renewed day by day,</HI> 2 Cor. 4.16 This is the happine&s;s of the godly; that though other|wi&s;e they be in adver&s;ity yet their &s;oul pro&s;pereth, 3 <HI>Joh.</HI> 2. Though outwardly they be poor, yet inward|ly they are rich, <HI>Apoc.</HI> 2.9. Thus <HI>Lazarus</HI> was rich, though otherwi&s;e a poor begger, and therefore was infinitely more happy then he that had abundance of the unrighteous Mammon, but wanted the true riches. Labor we therefore for the&s;e riches, &s;piritual riches, let out hearts be &s;et on the&s;e which are eternal, not on the other that are but temporal. <HI>Labor not for the meat that peri&s;heth, but for that meat that endureth to ever|la&s;ting life,</HI> John 6.27.</P>
<P><MILESTONE N="2" UNIT="&V;&s;e."> Secondly, &s;eeing there is a judgment to come after death, and even a particular judgment immediately af|ter the &s;oul is departed from the body; let us think of it and prepare for it; the judgment of man may be
<PB N="32" REF="23">
evaded, but there's no evading of Gods judgment; <HI>Whoremongers and adulterers God wil judg,</HI> Heb. 13.4. Though man do not judg them yet God will: <HI>He will render to every man according to his deeds,</HI> Rom. 2.6. God doth &s;ometimes exact judgments here, but the&s;e are but <HI>preludia futuri judicii,</HI> tokens and fore-runners of the judgment to come; the judgments executed here are temporal, but that hereafter is <HI>eternal,</HI> Heb. 6.2. The pro&s;perity or adver&s;ity of this life is but for a mo|ment, but after death comes either that welfare or that wo, which endures for ever. What can work upon us, what can be of force to make us circum&s;pect and watchful, if not the con&s;ideration of the judgment to come? <HI>Augu&s;tine</HI> &s;aith it was <HI>metus mortis &amp; futuri judicii,</HI> the fear of death and of judgment after death that brought him out of the gulf of &s;in wherein he was almo&s;t &s;wallowed up and drowned. S. <HI>Paul</HI> al&s;o te&s;ti|fieth of him&s;elf, that knowing <HI>that there &s;hal be a re&s;ur|rection both of the ju&s;t and the unju&s;t; he did exerci&s;e him|&s;elf to have always a con&s;cience voyd of offence,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>Act.</HI> 24.15, 16. See 2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 5.9, 10, 11. <HI>Eccle&s;.</HI> 12.13, 14. But if we would be able to &s;tand in iudgment we mu&s;t not rely on our own righteou&s;ne&s;s, but renouncing it as in&s;ufficient to ju&s;tifie us before God, <HI>we must fly unto Christ and lay hold on him and his righteou&s;ne&s;s,</HI> &s;ee <HI>P&s;a.</HI> 143.2. <HI>Phil.</HI> 3.9 Let us be &s;ure that we be in Chri&s;t, and then we need neither fear death nor judgment after death; For <HI>there's no condemnation to them that are in Chri&s;t Ie&s;us,</HI> Rom. 8.1 But let us know and con&s;ider, that as there it follows, <HI>they only are in Chri&s;t Ie&s;us, who walk not after the fle&s;h, but after the Spirit. He that &s;aith that he abideth in him mu&s;t him&s;elf walk even as he walked,</HI> 1 Joh. 2.6. <HI>As many as walk according to this rule, peace &s;hal be upon them, and mercy, and upon the I&s;rael of God,</HI> Gal. 6.16.</P>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
