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<DATE>2012-05-03</DATE>
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<NAME>Colm MacCrossan</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
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<ITEM>Proofed and reviewed.</ITEM>
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<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P>Miranda, Stupenda. OR, THE WONDERFVLL and a&s;toni&s;hing Mercies which the LORD hath wrought for ENGLAND, in &s;ubduing and captivating the pride, power and policy of his enemies. PRESENTED IN A SERMON PREACHED <HI>July</HI> 21. 1646. Before the honorable Hou&s;e of COMMONS in <HI>Margarets</HI> Church <HI>We&s;tm.</HI> being the day appointed for Thank&s;giving for the Surrender of <HI>OXFORD.</HI> By HENRY WILKINSON, <HI>B. D.</HI> Pa&s;tor of <HI>Dunstans</HI> in the Ea&s;t, <HI>London,</HI> and one of the A&s;&s;embly of Divines.</P>
<Q><BIBL>EXOD. 15. 11.</BIBL> <HI>Who is like unto thee, O Lord, among the gods! who is like unto thee, glo|rious in holine&s;&s;e, fearfull in prai&s;es, doing wonders!</HI></Q>
<P>LONDON: Printed by <HI>T. B.</HI> for <HI>Christopher Meredith</HI> and <HI>Samuel Gellibrand</HI> in <HI>Pauls</HI> Church-yard, 1646.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="dedication">
<PB REF="2">
<PB REF="2">
<HEAD>TO THE HONOURABLE HOVSE OF <HI>COM|MONS</HI> A&s;&s;embled in PARLIAMENT.</HEAD>
<P><HI>_IT is impo&s;&s;ible to travell in a great Road, or take his journey to a great Emporium, but he mu&s;t needs meet with pa&s;&s;engers in his way; and there|fore if I have fallen in with the con|ceptions of others, I &s;uppo&s;e I &s;hall be no more blamed then they, who writing of poverty or griefe, or death, have made u&s;e of</HI> Seneca <HI>or</HI> Plutarch. <HI>or they that have handled Politiques, have con&s;ulted with</HI> Ari&s;totles <HI>maximes, or have borrowed of</HI> Thucidides, <HI>and</HI> Tacitus, <HI>and</HI> Polybius, <HI>and</HI> Philip de Comines, <HI>and</HI> Lip&s;ius &amp; Guicciardine <HI>who have &s;catte|red excellent notions concerning that &s;ubject; only herein I mu&s;t crave pardon, that treating on the &s;ame argument which others have handled, there is wanting that skill and</HI>
<PB REF="3"> <HI>excellency in the handling of it: It was the unhappine&s;&s;e of</HI> Silius Italicus <HI>to come after</HI> Virgil, <HI>and handle the &s;ame thing; and &s;o al&s;o of</HI> Grotius <HI>to treat of the &s;ame matter with</HI> Tacitus, <HI>and of</HI> Paulus Jovius <HI>to be engaged in the &s;ubject with</HI> Titus Livius: <HI>Yet certainly it is &s;o with the choyce&s;t works of the be&s;t Divines, we may &s;ub&s;cribe them as I find at the end of divers famous Authors,</HI> plurima de&s;unt &amp; multa de&s;iderantur; <HI>and many have been as happy in their &s;upplements and additionals, and</HI> conjecta|nea, <HI>as the Authors the~&s;elves in the main &s;ubject. You were plea&s;ed to call me to preach upon the occa&s;ion of the rendi|tion of</HI> Oxford, <HI>and al&s;o you have comanded me to print the Sermon: had I all the learning of a &V;niver&s;ity, I could as willingly have laid it out in the behalfe of that place, and upon this &s;ubject which I have &s;pent my thoughts upon as any other what&s;oever. I have made bold to propound &s;ome things to your con&s;ideration concerning</HI> Oxford, <HI>in order to the reformation of it; which though perhaps they may &s;eem to be but contemptible and poore, and &s;uch as are never like to ri&s;e to any glorious perfection; yet it is cer|taine, that he that will build very high, mu&s;t dig low for his foundation; and let not any one despi&s;e the day of &s;mall things, for we know there is no River navigable in the Fountaine, nor any Country where the Sunne &s;hines hot at the peeping of the day: Perhaps &s;ome things may &s;eeme &s;trange, but let not any one condemne me for this, becau&s;e it is a ca&s;e which never was before you till now, and there|fore we mu&s;t not condemne that for ill which is only extra|ordinary; this were to doe as that Norwegian, who when he &s;aw red Ro&s;es fir&s;t, he dur&s;t not handle them for feare of burning his fingers. There be &s;ome will tell you, there is no &s;uch need of a reformation of the &V;niver&s;ity, and in|vent
<PB REF="3"> prai&s;es for it; but I look upon &s;uch as they that are very partiall, as he was that made the Preface to the &V;ni|ver&s;ity Statutes, who &s;peaking of Queen</HI> Maries <HI>dayes, hath his</HI> opranda temporum faelicitas <HI>for them; or el&s;e</HI> <NOTE PLACE="marg">A Book inti|tuled, <HI>E&s;&s;ays of certaine Para|doxes.</HI></NOTE> <HI>perhaps they have a mind to exerci&s;e their wits, as he did which invented pray&s;es for</HI> Bu&s;yris, <HI>and made an Apolo|getique for</HI> Nero, <HI>and Encomiums or</HI> Richard <HI>the third</HI> <NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg"><HI>Joh. Donne</HI> his <HI>Juvenilia.</HI></NOTE> <HI>and</HI> Julian <HI>the Apostate; or el&s;e perhaps they have a mind to imitate &s;ome who&s;e crimes are vertues with them, and paradoxes truths, who maintaine the mo&s;t ab&s;urd things, and incon&s;istent with truth and piety, onely as a specimen of their wit, to &s;hew how they can put a kind of lustre and beauty on a monster. However &s;ome may</HI> <NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Vid.</HI> Reform|ed Prince.</NOTE> <HI>think meanly of this de&s;igne of yours for the reformation of</HI> Oxford; <HI>yet I think I may truly &s;ay of this what</HI> Balzac <HI>did of a great enterprize of the French King, that the modesty of an oratory &s;tile doth not be&s;eem an action &s;o &s;trange: Poets only have right to that, it appertains to their heroique language; it is worthy of the enthu&s;ia&s;me of their pompous and figurative de&s;criptions; &s;ure I am, there is &s;carce any thing more worthy all the contributions which a Parliament can afford, then the &s;etling of the &V;niver|&s;ity upon the ba&s;is of learning and Religion. You have an opportunity of laying a foundation, and of building too, which &s;hall be beyond the reach of envy, again&s;t which the gates of hell &s;hall not prevaile; but it &s;hall be matter of wonder and rejoycing to &s;ucceeding generations, who &s;hall with triumphant acclamations cry grace, grace, unto it: The Lord that hath called you to work for him, afford you the a&s;&s;i&s;tance of his mo&s;t glorious power, the direction of his infinite wi&s;edome, and crowne you with incom|parable
<PB REF="4"> &s;ucce&s;&s;e here, and give you an immarce&s;&s;ible crowne of glory hereafter. So prayeth he who counts it his happine&s;&s;e to be</HI></P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Your humble Servant HENRY WILKINSON.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
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<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="sermon">
<PB N="1" REF="4">
<HEAD>A THANKSGIVING SERMON, Preached before the ho|nourable Hou&s;e of COMMONS, <HI>July</HI> 21. 1646. for the &s;urrender of OXFORD.</HEAD>
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL>NUMB. 23. 23.</BIBL>
<P>Surely there is no enhantment again&s;t Jacob, neither is there any divination again&s;t I&s;rael: According to this time it &s;hall be &s;aid of Jacob, and of I&s;rael, what hath God wrought?</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>_THESE Words are part of the confe&s;&s;ion extorted out of the mouth of <HI>Balaam,</HI> who was a Chaplain fit for <HI>Balak</HI> in that cur&s;ed de&s;ign of his again&s;t the I&s;raelites, who was re&s;olved if he could not <HI>flectere &s;uperos, Acheronta movere:</HI> Now when this Witch had tryed all his skill in the black Art, and improved all his intere&s;t in the Devill, he is forced to break out into this acknowledgment, <HI>Surely,</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<P>In the words there is a Confe&s;&s;ion fir&s;t; &s;econdly, a Decla|ration.
<PB N="2" REF="5"> In the Confe&s;&s;ion, there is his owne &s;in implyed; for it is as if he &s;hould have &s;aid, If divinations, or enchantments, or &s;pels, or witchcraft and conjuring in any kind, could have brought downe cur&s;es on I&s;rael, they &s;hould have been cur&s;ed with a vengeance: 2. In the confe&s;&s;ion there is a tacite acknow|ledgement of the over-ruling hand of God, which was too hard for all the powers of darkne&s;&s;e, who pre&s;erved I&s;rael, maugre all that the wit and &s;trength of malice can doe to the contrary.</P>
<P>Secondly, in the Declaration there is &s;et downe what God had done for his people, or what God might doe, or may doe, or would doe; for the words have all the&s;e ver&s;ions, <GAP LANG="heb" DESC="foreign" RESP="OXF">; our tran&s;lation, <HI>What hath God wrought?</HI> reach|eth the Originall: the Sept. <GAP LANG="grc" DESC="foreign" RESP="OXF">. The Syriack. <HI>Quid operetur Deus.</HI> The Cald. paraphr. <HI>Quid operatus &s;it Deus.</HI></P>
<P>The Samaritan pentat. is the &s;ame with our tran&s;lat. <HI>Quid fecit Deus;</HI> and this &s;hall I follow.</P>
<P>In all which &s;en&s;es and ver&s;ions, we may ob&s;erve; fir&s;t, the &s;trangene&s;&s;e and wonder of the things which God would work for his people: for as it was a very &s;trange thing in the eyes of <HI>Balaam,</HI> that by all his &s;orceries he was able to doe no mi&s;chiefe at that time; &s;o according to that time for the fu|ture the Lord would pre&s;erve as miraculou&s;ly his &s;ervants: Se|condly, you have the effect that the&s;e wonders &s;hould work in the hearts of them that &s;ee them, and that is admiration, a &s;uitablene&s;&s;e of affection to the greatne&s;&s;e and wonder of the things wrought by God for his people.</P>
<P>There be &s;everall Doctrines might be rai&s;ed hence, but ac|cording to the two generals, I will pre&s;ent two propo&s;itions onely: The fir&s;t is a Doctrine of it &s;elfe, but you may take it thus:</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, that all the &s;orceries, witchcraft and &s;tratagems, con|trived and carried on by the wit and malice, and power of hell again&s;t the Church of God, &s;hall prove vaine and &s;ucce&s;|le&s;&s;e.</P>
<P>Secondly, the wonderfull things which God hath wrought and will work for his Church and people, &s;hall be, and al&s;o
<PB N="3" REF="5"> are matter of a&s;toni&s;hment and wonder unto all.</P>
<P>I &s;hall in&s;i&s;t at pre&s;ent on the latter of the&s;e two Doctrines, as being very &s;uitable to our condition in this Kingdome, which of late hath been a theater of wonders, &s;o that we may call its name as <HI>Abraham</HI> did, <HI>Gen.</HI> 22. 14. of that place where he was to offer <HI>I&s;aac, Jehovah jireh.</HI> In the handling of which I &s;hal propound, fir&s;t, what things God hath or will work; &s;econd|ly, How? thirdly, When? fourthly, Why? fiftly, The U&s;es which may be made of the Doctrine.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, What are the wonders that God hath wrought? Fir&s;t, they be rare, they be &s;uch as u&s;ually and frequently are <NOTE PLACE="marg">1. What are the wonders which God hath wrought?</NOTE> not brought to pa&s;&s;e; &s;uch things as happen rarely, are mat|ter of wonder, and draw the eyes of men to them, though they have naturall cau&s;es; as Eclip&s;es, &amp;c.</P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>Incognita,</HI> &s;uch things of which the world is not acquainted withall, who&s;e cau&s;es and ends men cannot reach unto, they being <HI>ultra captum.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, <HI>In&s;perata,</HI> &s;uch things as are beyond ordinary hopes, &s;o they are <HI>ultra &s;pem,</HI> as well as <HI>ultra captum,</HI> as being out of the compa&s;&s;e of nature, &s;uch things are beyond power and parts lying out of the &s;pheare of naturall po&s;&s;ibility.</P>
<P>Fourthly, <HI>Repugnantia,</HI> &s;uch things as are contrary to the cour&s;e of nature, and are abhorring from the naturall &s;treame and tide of the creature: All things that carry the&s;e chara|cters on them are matter of wonder.</P>
<P>Now the things which God doth for his people, they are <NOTE PLACE="marg">The wonder|full things which God doth for his people are of two &s;orts.</NOTE> iether &s;pirituall or temporall.</P>
<P>The&s;e &s;pirituall things in order to &s;alvation are indeed <HI>ad|miranda;</HI> let but any one con&s;ider from whence to what a &s;tate we are recovered, and he mu&s;t &s;ay, as it is, Rom. 11. 33. <HI>O the depth of the riches both of the wi&s;dome and knowledge of God! &amp;c.</HI> that we &s;hould be rai&s;ed from a &s;tate of privation, being deve&s;ted of all good; from a &s;tate of enmity, again&s;t all good; a &s;tate in which we were lyable to the cur&s;es written and unwritten, &amp;c. to be rai&s;ed from &s;o low, and vile, and mi&s;erable, and abominable &s;tate, to be the children of God. <HI>John</HI> puts an <HI>Ecce,</HI> a note of admiration on it, 1 <HI>John 3. 1, 2. Behold what manner of love the Father hath be&s;towed upon us, that we &s;hould be called</HI>
<PB N="4" REF="6"> <HI>the &s;onnes of God, &amp;c.</HI> That we that &s;ate in darkne&s;&s;e and in the &s;hadow of death, &s;hould be rai&s;ed up to &s;it together in hea|venly places in Chri&s;t Je&s;us, <HI>Ephe&s;.</HI> 2. 6. this is wonderfull, and we may truly &s;ay, <HI>What hath God wrought?</HI> That we that have &s;o many wayes provoked the Lord to de&s;troy us, &s;hould be pardoned is wonderfull: the Church &s;peaks of it by way of wonder, Micah 7. 18. <HI>Who is God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and pa&s;&s;eth by the tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion of the remnant of his heri|tage?</HI> Is it not matter of wonder that God &s;hould &s;ay, I, even I am he that blotteth out thy tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion, &amp;c. I&s;a. 43. 25. to them he &s;peaks that had not called on him, that were weary of him, that did not &s;acrifice to him, that would not &s;erve him, but made him to &s;erve with their &s;innes, ver&s;e 22, 23. To goe over all the particulars that might be in&s;i&s;ted on, would be a va&s;t thing; I proceed therefore to temporals, and &s;hall con&s;ider what great things God hath wrought in them.</P>
<P>Secondly, for temporall things, there is abundant matter of wonder in them: He is wonderfull in his protection and pre&s;ervation of his people; the Church may alwayes fing the 124. P&s;alme, If it had not been the Lord who was on our &s;ide. &amp;c. they had &s;wallowed us up quick, &amp;c. for a company of Sheep and Lambs to live in the mid&s;t of whole Heards and Droves of Wolves and Tygers, and all &s;orts of Bea&s;ts of prey is much; for the Bu&s;h to burn, and not to be con&s;umed; for the ve&s;&s;ell of the Church to be full of waves &s;ometimes, and not to be drowned; for the male child newly borne to be kept from the Dragon with &s;even heads and ten hornes, <HI>Revel.</HI> 12. 3, 4. that the Lilly &s;hould live in the mid&s;t of Thornes, and not be torne in pieces; that the people of God &s;hould be &s;afe in the mid&s;t of principalities and powers, and &s;pirituall wick|edne&s;&s;es, which bring out all their traine of Artilery, that come furni&s;hed with all the ammunition and magazine of hell: This is wonderfull pre&s;ervation.</P>
<P>Secondly, he is wonderfull in his &s;alvation and deliveran|ces of his people out of the greate&s;t dangers and out of many deaths; when God delivered his people from the power of the <HI>Aegyptians,</HI> then <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> in his Song, <HI>Exod.</HI> 15. 11. &s;ay, <HI>Who is</HI>
<PB N="5" REF="6"> <HI>a God like unto thee, &amp;c. working wonders?</HI> When the people of God were delivered out of captivity, they were like men in a dream, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 126. 1. nay, the heathen them&s;elves &s;aid, the Lord hath done great things for them, <HI>ver.</HI> 2.</P>
<P>Thirdly, he is wonderfull in the de&s;truction that he brings by them on their enemies, <HI>I&s;.</HI> 41. 14. 15, 16. that a worm &s;hould be as a new thre&s;hing in&s;trument to thre&s;h the mou~tains, and beat them &s;mall, and fan them, &amp;c. is a wonder: that <HI>I&s;rael</HI> a poore contemned people, &s;hould be the battle-axe of God, and his weapons of warre, to break in pieces the Nations, and to de&s;troy Kingdomes, &amp;c. <HI>Jer.</HI> 51. 20, 21. this is won|derfull; that a poore captivated people, even <HI>Jeru&s;alem,</HI> bro|ken and undone, &s;hould be a cup of trembling to all round about, and a burthen&s;ome &s;tone for all people, and cut them in pieces, &amp;c. <HI>Zech.</HI> 12. 2, 3, 6. that the &s;tone cut out of the mountaine without hands, &s;hould break in pieces the iron the bra&s;&s;e, the clay, the &s;ilver and the gold, <HI>Dan.</HI> 2. 45. In this re&s;pect it may be &s;aid, and it &s;hall be &s;aid, <HI>What hath God wrought?</HI></P>
<P>Fourthly, he is wonderfull in his provi&s;ion for them: It is the lot of the people of God to be driven into great &s;treights and extremities, as the people of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> were in the Wilderne&s;&s;e; yet as God did &s;till provide a &s;upply for them, &s;o he will al&s;o for his people, I&s;a. 41. 17, 18, 20. <HI>When the poore and needy &s;eeke water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thir&s;t, I the Lord will heare them, &amp;c. I will open Rivers in high places, &amp;c.</HI> and P&s;al. 34. 10. <HI>The young Lyons doe lacke, and &s;uffer hunger, but they that &s;eek the Lord &s;hall not want any thing.</HI></P>
<P>The&s;e things which God works in his owne wonderfull way, they are &s;uch, fir&s;t, as nature never doth; or &s;econdly, he doth work them &s;o as that they are not brought to pa&s;&s;e in the order and method of nature; or thirdly, not by the principles of nature; now they are &s;aid to be <HI>miracula quod &s;u|perent captum ingenii, ac homini incutiunt &s;tuporem,</HI> Funger. Ety|mol. Latin. grae.</P>
<P>The &s;econd thing propounded was, How the Lord would <NOTE PLACE="marg">2. How will, or how hath the Lord wrought the&s;e wonders?</NOTE> work wonderfull things for his people.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, when contraries are made to produce effects oppo&s;ite
<PB N="6" REF="7"> to them&s;elves: As when out of the greate&s;t di&s;advantages he <NOTE PLACE="marg">1. When con|traries pro|duce effects oppo&s;ite to them&s;elves: This is three wayes.</NOTE> works the greate&s;t advantage; out of greate&s;t lo&s;&s;es he extracts the greate&s;t gains, out of ruines he works a reparation: When God &s;uffers his people to be beaten into victories, and routed into triumphs, and undone into riches, &s;o that it may be &s;aid many times <HI>perii&s;&s;ent, ni&s;i perii&s;&s;ent:</HI> this is done, fir&s;t, when he works on the affections, when he carries them again&s;t their owne &s;treame and tide, turnes cur&s;es into ble&s;&s;ings, as in <HI>Ba|laams</HI> ca&s;e, and hatred into favour, and malignity into mercy, and &s;pite into love, as he did in <HI>Laban</HI> toward <HI>Jacob,</HI> Gen. 30. 24. and in <HI>E&s;au,</HI> Gen. 33. 6. and in <HI>Abimelech</HI> toward <HI>Abraham</HI> Gen. 20. 14, 15, 16. The&s;e however they were as Wolves in their purpo&s;es and re&s;olutions, yet the i&s;&s;ues were mo&s;t like Lambes. This is wonderfull, and we may &s;ay, Who is a God like unto thee, that can&s;t thus work?</P>
<P>Secondly, when God turnes wi&s;dome into folly, that there &s;hould be the wi&s;e&s;t Coun&s;els, and the mo&s;t fooli&s;h re&s;ults and i&s;&s;ues, 2 <HI>Sam.</HI> 17. 1, 2, &amp;c. by making the wi&s;e&s;t men give the advice of fools, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 29. 14. the wi&s;dome of the wi&s;e &s;hall pe|re&s;h, &amp;c. and <HI>Joh</HI> 12. 16, 17. <HI>He leads Coun&s;ellours away &s;poyled, and maketh the Judges fooles;</HI> or, when he makes u&s;e of &s;uch as are accounted fools to confound the wi&s;e, 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 1. 27. then it may be &s;aid, Who is a God like unto thee?</P>
<P>Thirdly, when weakne&s;&s;e produceth &s;trong effects, then it may be &s;aid, the Lord works wonderfully, 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 1. 27. we have an in&s;tance, <HI>Judges</HI> 7. 20. and <HI>Jo&s;hua</HI> 4. 20. that the &s;oun|ding of Rams hornes, like &s;o many Rams again&s;t the wals of <HI>Jericho,</HI> &s;hould batter them downe, that <HI>Jonathan</HI> and his Ar|mour-bearer &s;hould rout an Army, 1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 14. that <HI>Shamgar</HI> with an Oxe Goad &s;hould &s;lay &s;ix hundred men, <HI>Judges</HI> 3. 31 that <HI>Samp&s;on</HI> with the Jaw-bone of an A&s;&s;e &s;hould &s;lay a thou|&s;and, <HI>Judges</HI> 15. 16. that <HI>David,</HI> a puny, &s;hould encounter with, and conquer <HI>Goliah,</HI> a man of war armed, with a &s;tone in a &s;ling, is wonderfull; or el&s;e, when &s;trong and probable <NOTE PLACE="marg">2. When there be great di&s;|appeintments of great hope: and this is done four wayes.</NOTE> cau&s;es produce weak effects; as if a mighty Army &s;hould come again&s;t a &s;mall weak City, and not be able to take it, <HI>Eccle&s;.</HI> 9. 14, 15.</P>
<P>2. When there be &s;trange fru&s;trations of very great expe|ctations;
<PB N="7" REF="7"> fir&s;t, when a de&s;igne is built on power and po|licy, and carried on with skill and dexterity, then there be great hopes; now to have &s;uch teeming hopes &s;trangled in the birth, or even when they are betwixt the womb and the world, is matter of very great wonder; not to obtaine where there is great probability, a bare di&s;appointment in &s;uch a ca&s;e is much; for the wit of hell to be puzzelled, and non|plu&s;&s;ed, for the power of men and devils, to be confounded in their full carreer; when they are riding po&s;t, for their Cha|riot wheels then to then to be taken off when they run mo&s;t &s;moothly and &s;wiftly, this is a great di&s;appointment; <NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">&mdash;<HI>Recoctus &s;criba ex quin|quevivo corvu~ delu&s;it hia item</HI></NOTE> to fru&s;trate a man when he is with open mouth ready to take in a prey, or even to fetch it out from between his <NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg"><HI>Bolus creptus faucibus, Cru|cior</HI> &s;aid <HI>Te|rence (in &s;cip|ip&s;um excru|ciante) bolum tantum e&s;t mihi e&s;&s;e creptum a faucibus.</HI></NOTE> teeth, as it is <HI>Amos</HI> 3. 12. as the Shepheard taketh out of the mouth of the Lyon two legs, or a piece of an eare, &amp;c. this is wonder|full fru&s;tration: nay, when they have &s;wallowed downe the prey, and it is now under the &s;econd concoction, then to di&s;|appoint them is more &s;trange, <HI>Job</HI> 20. 15. <HI>He hath &s;wallowed downe riches, and he &s;hall vomit them up againe:</HI> when the wicked have eaten and devoured the Saints, and as the Whale did by <HI>Jonah,</HI> &s;wallow them downe al&s;o, &s;o that they &s;eem to be dead and buried, and the <HI>conclamatum e&s;t</HI> hath pa&s;&s;ed upon them, and no returning or recovery <NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg"><GAP LANG="grc" DESC="foreign" RESP="OXF">: as one in <HI>Athe|naeus</HI> &s;peaks of one pa&s;t reco|very, and as <HI>Lucretius</HI> l. 3. expre&s;&s;eth it; <HI>Mortalem vi|tam mars cui immortalis a|demit.</HI></NOTE> lookt for, yet then to make the&s;e Whales to ca&s;t up all their <HI>Jonahs</HI> and to land them &s;afe, for the&s;e that were dead and buried to ri&s;e againe, is an extraor|dinary di&s;appointment, and a wonderfull and a&s;toni&s;hing thing, <HI>Revel.</HI> 11. 7, 8, 9,-11.</P>
<P>Secondly, there be great di&s;appointments, when expectati|ons are made ones de&s;truction, when hopes fall on the authors head and da&s;h his braines out, when one is not onely di&s;ap|pointed of the good that he lookt for from the child of his hopes, of which he travelled, but this child, like <HI>Adramelech</HI> and <HI>Sharezer,</HI> &s;onnes to <HI>Senacharib,</HI> kill their father that begat them, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 37. 37, 38. We read of the wicked, <HI>Jer.</HI> 16. 16. how they are called Hunters and Fi&s;hers, becau&s;e they hunt and fi&s;h, and per&s;ecute the people of God; now that the&s;e hunters &s;hould be taken in their owne toyles, and the&s;e fi&s;hers &s;hould be caught by their owne Angles, hanged on their own hooks,
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<PB N="8" REF="9"> tangled in their owne Nets, is wonderfull: We have many in&s;tances, <HI>Judges</HI> 5. 28, 29, 30. how full of hopes was the Mother of <HI>Si&s;era</HI> and the re&s;t with her, and yet what ruine followed, even by them which they had &s;wallowed up in their purpo&s;es and expectations, <HI>Exod.</HI> 15. 9. the enemy &s;aid, <HI>I will pur&s;ue, I will overtake, I will divide the &s;poyle, my lu&s;t &s;hall be &s;atisfi|ed on them, I will destroy them:</HI> And yet all fell out not onely <HI>praeter &s;pem,</HI> but <HI>contra,</HI> as much as could be: So, <HI>Judges</HI> 7. 22. &amp; 1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 14. 20. &amp; 2 <HI>Chron.</HI> 20. 22, 23. they that brought weapons of cruelty to de&s;troy the people of God, are &s;o farre from doing them any hurt, that they kill and de&s;troy one another: How was <HI>Haman</HI> and the enemies of <HI>Daniel</HI> di&s;ap|pointed, and by their owne plots ruined, <HI>He&s;ter.</HI> 8. &amp; <HI>Dan.</HI> 6. 24. thus doth God take the wicked in their owne craft, <HI>Job</HI> 5. 12, 13, 14, 15. and he that digs a pit for another, is buried in his owne grave, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 9. 15, 16. which is matter of great wonder, and to which <HI>David</HI> affixeth, <HI>Higgaion Selah.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, when there be &s;trange di&s;coveries beyond all pro|bability or expectation, when plots &s;ecretly and wi&s;ely conti|nued and managed, and almo&s;t ripe for an i&s;&s;ve, it is a great di&s;appointment, then in that nick of time, to be di&s;covered: As it fared with that <HI>monstrum horrendum, informe, ingens</HI> (and when fire was ready to be given, the match and powder were now meeting) <HI>cui lumen ademptum:</HI> I need not tell what I mean, every one knowes the Powder-trea&s;on to be even as the fir&s;t|borne of Hell and <HI>Rome</HI> together: How did the Lord di&s;co|ver the Coun&s;els of the King of <HI>Syria,</HI> when they were ready for execution, 2 <HI>Kings</HI> 8. 9. And how did the Lord di&s;cover that plot again&s;t the death of <HI>Paul,</HI> Acts 23. 14, 15, &amp;c.</P>
<P>Fourthly, when coun&s;els and de&s;ignes in their pro&s;ecution running in a full &s;treame, have been turned cleane another way, by &s;ome unlookt for emergency, 1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 23. 26, 27, 28. <HI>Saul</HI> in a hot pur&s;uance of <HI>David,</HI> is taken off by a me&s;&s;enger that came and told him, the <HI>Phili&s;tians</HI> had invaded the Land: by this meanes very often it is, that the wicked are a ran&s;ome for the righteous, <HI>Prov.</HI> 21. 18. <NOTE PLACE="marg">3. The third way which God takes to work wonders for his people</NOTE></P>
<P>A third way that God takes to work the&s;e great things, is when by him&s;elf or by &s;ome of his creatures, he brings &s;trange
<PB N="9" REF="9"> confu&s;ion on his adver&s;aries, and &s;trange deliverance for his people: How did the Lord with a mighty hand deliver the people of I&s;rael out of <HI>Aegypt,</HI> and with a mighty hand de&s;troy their enemies, <HI>Exod.</HI> 7, 8, 9. chap. &amp; 15. 10. the Lord did blow with his wind, and the waters covered them; &s;o when with his Angel he de&s;troyed in a night one hundred forty five thou&s;and men: he delivered <HI>Eli&s;ha, 2 Kings</HI> 6. 18, 19. by &s;mi|ting the enemy with blindne&s;&s;e; he withered <HI>Jeroboams</HI> hand, &s;tretched out again&s;t the Prophet, 1 <HI>Kings</HI> 13. 4. God &s;ome|time doth let forth &s;ome vi&s;ible demon&s;trations of his wrath again&s;t his enemies, &s;o that it may he truly &s;aid, <HI>What hath God wrought?</HI> How did God &s;mite <HI>Arrius?</HI> how did God take vengeance on him,
<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><LG>
<L>Arrius <HI>in foelix, qui curva per avia rectum</HI></L>
<L><HI>flectere vi&s;us iter, foveam delap&s;us in atram,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Corruit, &amp; tetri mer&s;us petit ima profundi:</HI></L>
<L><HI>tam vacuus &s;en&s;u, justae quam tempore poenae</HI></L>
<L><HI>Vi&s;ceribus fu&s;is vacuus quoque ventre reman&s;it,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Caelius Sidulius.</HI>&mdash;</L>
</LG>
<P>Vid. Paurentii Pudovici, Orat. 1. eccle&s;. vet. nov.</P>
<P>Vid. Franci&s;c. Baldwinum Jctum,</P>
<P>De Con&s;tantini Imp. legibus ecclefia&s;t. atque civil, l. 1.</P>
<P>Camerar. Cent. 3. c. 3. Nathan Chytraeus in viatico itine|ris extemi.</P></NOTE> cau&s;ing a &s;udden con&s;ternation of mind to fall upon him, who betaking him&s;elfe to a Privy, did emp|ty his bowels there? the death of <HI>Julian</HI> and <HI>Herod</HI> was mo&s;t eminent from Gods hand immediately; the death of that he|retick <HI>Olympius</HI> was remarkable at that time, when he vented his herefie again&s;t the Trinity, he was &s;mitten with fiery darts from heaven; and <HI>Anasta&s;ius</HI> the Emperour, when he would needs have a quaternity wor&s;hipped, was &s;truck with a thun|derbolt from heaven; &s;o that in this re&s;pect al&s;o we may tru|ly &s;ay, <HI>What hath God wrought?</HI> I might be large in in&s;tances out of Eccle&s;ia&s;ticall &s;tory, but I forbeare.</P>
<PB N="10" REF="10">
<P>Fourthly, when the Lord doth &s;eem to alter and overthrow the cour&s;e of nature in the deliverance of his people, and the ruine of their enemies: It is ob&s;erved by <NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg"><HI>Vid more Ne|vech.</HI> p. 2. c. 29</NOTE> <HI>R. Mo&s;es Maiemoni|des,</HI> that the Prophet <HI>I&s;aiah,</HI> when he &s;peaks of the de&s;truction of a people, and the deliverance of his Church, he makes u&s;e of expre&s;&s;ions of wouder and a&s;toni&s;hment; as of the falling of &s;tarres, the peri&s;hing of the heavens, the darkning of the Sun, the deva&s;tation of the earth, &amp;c. <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 13. 10, 13. prophe|&s;ying of the ruine of <HI>Babel,</HI> he u&s;eth &s;uch expre&s;&s;ions of won|der; and <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 24. 23. prophe&s;ying of the ruine of <HI>Sennacharib,</HI> he &s;ayes the like; both the&s;e were inveterate enemies of the Church: So al&s;o he &s;peaks of the re&s;cue and deliverance of the Church, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 30. 26. &amp; 34. 3, 4. &s;peaking of the ruine of <HI>Edom,</HI> which had long afflicted the people of God, and &s;o would prove &s;afety and deliverance unto them, he u&s;eth words of terrour and wonder: <HI>All the ho&s;t of heaven &s;hall be di&s;|&s;olved, and the heavens &s;hall be rolled together as a &s;croll, and all their ho&s;t &s;hall fall downe as the leafe falleth off from the Vine, and as a falling fig from the Fig-tree:</HI> &s;o al&s;o <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 51. 6. he &s;peaks his con&s;ola|tion here, with chiding them for forgetting him that had made the heavens and earth, &amp;c. then <HI>ver.</HI> 16. when he &s;peaks of what great things he would doe for <HI>Zion,</HI> he &s;ayes, <HI>That he will plant the heavens, and lay the foundations of the earth, and &s;ay to</HI> Zion, <HI>Thou art my people.</HI> We read the like expre&s;&s;ions el&s;where as <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 60. 20. 65. 17. &amp;c. <HI>Ezek.</HI> 32. 7. <HI>Joel</HI> 2. 10. <HI>Hag.</HI> 2. 7. <HI>Joel</HI> 2. 11,-30. In the&s;e and the like places the Lord u&s;eth &s;uch expre&s;&s;ions and words, as if he would alter and overturn the whole frame of the Univer&s;e, and begin the world anew, when he purpo&s;eth to doe great things for his people: We read of very &s;trange and prodigious things in the Roman &s;to|ry, &s;cattered up and downe, which God wrought, then e&s;peci|ally when he had a purpo&s;e to bring &s;ome notable confu&s;ion on the enemies of Gods people; there be <NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg"><HI>Julius ob&s;i|qutus de prodi|gris Polydore,</HI> Virgill. 3. <HI>de Prodigiis,</HI> &s;peaks of the&s;e prodigies with &s;omcu&s;e to the Church.</NOTE> divers that have taken paines to &s;et downe the&s;e wonders, but without any re&s;pect to the mind of God in them with reference to his Church; yet <HI>Jo&s;ephus</HI> <NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Jo&s;ephus l. 7 c. 82. <HI>De bello Judaico,</HI> he complaines of the great neg|lect of the&s;e &s;trange things which God wrought, for &s;ayes he, &s;pea|king of the wonders, <GAP LANG="grc" DESC="foreign" RESP="OXF">, &amp;c. <HI>Pliny</HI> al&s;o tels us of a &s;trange appa|rition in the Heavens ob|&s;erved by <HI>Hip|parebus,</HI> who lived toward the end of the Grecian Mo|narchy, about 120. yeers be|fore Chri&s;t: Which prodi|gious &s;tar then appearing, did by the con&s;ent of the learned fore&s;hew the declining of the Greek Monarchy, and the ri&s;e and &s;trength of the Roman Empire.</NOTE> hath taken notice of many &s;ignes in
<PB N="11" REF="10"> the heavens and earth before the de&s;truction of <HI>Jeru&s;alem:</HI> one of the mo&s;t famous alterations in the Heavens w^c^h hath had its mo&s;t remarkable influences below, was in the yeer 1572. when there appeared a &s;trange light, exceeding in the appa|rent brightne&s;&s;e thereof all the fixed &s;tars, and &s;hewing forth a bright and maje&s;ticall lu&s;tre, not in the night onely, but at noon day al&s;o: It was the wonder of the world, and the work and bu&s;ine&s;&s;e of all the A&s;tronomers of <HI>Europe;</HI> but <HI>Ti|cho Brahe</HI> a Noble man of <HI>Denmark</HI> treateth of this &s;tarre in above 500. pages of his book, called by the name of <HI>Astrono|mica Progymna&s;mata:</HI> In which book he &s;peakes of the influ|ences of this &s;tar, and the overthtow of States and Kingdoms, and reparation and glory of the Church: I make mention of the&s;e onely to &s;hew how the Lord doth great things, even overthrowing or changing and altering the frame and cour&s;e of nature: As for the operations or portending &s;ignification of &s;uperiour lights, I think it cannot be denied, but that ex|traordinary wonders vi&s;ible in the heavens may have their &s;ignifications and impre&s;&s;ions al&s;o: nor may it be altogether incongruous literally to interpret tho&s;e words, <HI>Joel</HI> 2. 30. <HI>I will &s;hew wonders in the heavens and the earth,</HI> partly of that fla|ming &s;word, like the Comet <NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg"><HI>Ege&s;ip. de ex|cid. urbis Hie|ra&s;ol.</HI> l. 5. c. 44. <HI>Nam per an|num fere &s;upra templum ip&s;um Comites, pa&s;&s;im ignis &amp; gladii quandam prae|ferens &s;imilitu|dinem denunci|abat quo&abque; ferra &amp; igni gentis &amp; regni urbi&abque; ip&s;ius vastita|tem futuram: quid enim &s;i|militudo gladii ni&s;i bellum? quid ignis ni&s;i incendium de|nunciaret.</HI> The third thing propoun+ded, is concer|ning the &s;ea|&s;on and time when it &s;hall be &s;aid, What God wrought?</NOTE> that appeared as a forewarner of the de&s;truction of <HI>Jeru&s;alem.</HI></P>
<P>The third thing propounded was, when it &s;hall be &s;aid <HI>What hath God wrought?</HI> for the time:</P>
<P>When creature helps faile; fir&s;t, in point of prudence they know not how to advi&s;e: &s;econdly, in point of power, they know not how to deliver or &s;ave, <HI>Deut.</HI> 32. 35, 36. thirdly, in occa&s;ionall emergent difficulties, &s;uch as could neither be fore&s;een nor prevented: fourthly, in great extremities and &s;treights, when enemies are very high and the Saints are very low; when heaven and earth and hell &s;eem to joyne i&s;&s;ue, when God him&s;elfe &s;eemes to take part again&s;t the Church, then &s;he is in the greate&s;t extremity, ahd when &s;he is in this ca&s;e, then doth God ari&s;e and help her.</P>
<P>Indeed Gods &s;ea&s;on is, when it &s;eems to be pa&s;t &s;ea&s;on, his time is when it is pa&s;t time, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 33. when the people of God
<PB N="12" REF="11"> are in a forlorne condition, given up for lo&s;t, then God, <HI>ver.</HI> 10. &s;ayes, <HI>Now will I ari&s;e, now will I he exalted, now will I lift up my &s;elfe:</HI> Now, now, now, he repeats it three times with va|riety of language, there is &s;omething more then ordinary in that expre&s;&s;ion, &s;o trebled as it is, to encourage their &s;inking &s;ouls, who thought God would not, or could not, or had alto|gether laid a&s;ide the thoughts and care of helping them; when the wound is pa&s;t cure, then he undertakes the cure, <HI>Jer.</HI> 30. 12, 13. there it is &s;aid, <HI>Thy wound is incurable,</HI> and ver. 17. It is &s;aid, <HI>I will cure thee:</HI> When all pa&s;&s;ages are blockt up, when there is a clo&s;e &s;iege of difficulties and impo&s;&s;ibilities, when dangers are inextricable, and the matter pa&s;t recovery, then is Gods time; when the &s;hip is full of waves, <HI>Mat.</HI> 8. 24. when <HI>Lazarus</HI> was dead and buried, <HI>John</HI> 11. 21, 32, 39. when the woman had &s;pent all &s;he had upon Phy&s;itians, and there was as little hope as mony left, <HI>Luke</HI> 8. 43. then is the Lords time to work and fetch out of the fire as it were, <HI>Zech.</HI> 3. 2. and from the dead, <HI>Revol.</HI> 11. 11. and from the ruines and de&s;tru|ction of death, <HI>Ezek.</HI> 37. 7, 10, 11.</P>
<P>The fourth thing propounded was, why doth God thus <NOTE PLACE="marg">The fourth Particular pro+pounded, was concerning the rea&s;on, why doth God thus appeare in &s;uch a won|derfull man|ner for his people. The fir&s;t rea|&s;on re&s;pects Gods glory.</NOTE> appeare for his people; fir&s;t, to magnifie his owne glory more; the fir&s;t end re&s;pects Gods glory: there be three things in the wonderfull proceedings of God that magnifie him very much: Fir&s;t, there is a my&s;tery in the proceedings of God; my&s;teries affect with wonder and admiration, and the Lord doth carry on his work in a very my&s;terious way, and in a hidden manner: <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 45. 15. it is &s;aid, <HI>Thou art a God which hide&s;t thy &s;elfe,</HI> &s;poken with reference to the great things which he would doe for his people: &s;o al&s;o, <HI>Hab.</HI> 3. 4. <HI>He had hornes came out of his hand, and there was the hiding of his power:</HI> there be many intricacies of providence, <HI>Ezek.</HI> 1. 16. and perplexed and involved difficulties; &s;o <HI>Zech.</HI> 1. 8. the Lord Chri&s;t is in that vi&s;ion pre&s;ented in a Wood, and in a bottome, not ea&s;i|ly di&s;cerned, when he comes to work for his people; my&s;te|ries doe affect with wonder more, and they magnifie the Lord more.</P>
<P>Secondly, there is a maje&s;ty in the&s;e wonders, and this doth
<PB N="13" REF="11"> cau&s;e men to admire al&s;o &amp; to magnifie the Lord; he &s;eems to goe in &s;tate as it were, when he will doe great things for his people, <HI>Deut. 33. 26. The Lord rideth on the heavens for thy help, and his excellency on the skie:</HI> &s;o <HI>Hab.</HI> 3. 8, 9. the Lord appeares in his Maje&s;ty there, and <HI>ver.</HI> 10, 11, the Sun and other crea|tures &s;eem to be trembling and wondring; and <HI>Nahum</HI> 1. 3, 4. the Lord is brought in, in a glorious manner; and then, <HI>ver. 5. The mountaines quake, &amp;c.</HI> this al&s;o doth magnifie the Lord, and &s;hew forth his glory.</P>
<P>Thirdly, there is a peculiar excellency in Gods great workes which doth affect the heart with wonder; the ex|cellency of his wi&s;dome &s;hewes it &s;elfe in infatuating and bla|&s;ting the councels of the wi&s;e, and of his power that &s;hines in breaking their &s;trength, in which the wicked are &s;o confi|dent; the excellency of his ju&s;tice that appeares in the execu|tion of the wicked, and vindication of his peoples cau&s;e; the excellency of his faithfulne&s;&s;e and truth breaks out in ma|king good his Word, and fulfilling his promi&s;es. This is the fir&s;t rea&s;on why God doth work wonders for his, in which there is a my&s;tery, a maje&s;ty, and a peculiar excellency ap|peares.</P>
<P>A &s;econd thing re&s;pects the enemies of Gods people; fir&s;t, <NOTE PLACE="marg">The &s;econd rea&s;on re|&s;pects the ene+mies of the Saints two wayes. 1. That the confu&s;ion of the enemies might be the more notable.</NOTE> that &s;o the greater confu&s;ion and &s;hame may come on the e|nemies of the Saints; for God to deliver his Saints from many, and mighty, and malicious enemies is a wonder, e&s;pe|cially when it is with great confu&s;ion on the adver&s;aries. There is by &s;o much the greater confu&s;ion on the wicked, by how much the more &s;ure they made them&s;elves of the ruine of Gods people, and by how much the more the enemy was exalted, as it is <HI>Obad.</HI> 3. 4. the Lord orders it &s;o in his provi|dence, that the confu&s;ion and &s;hame of the wicked &s;hall have all the ingredients in it, that &s;o the wonder may be the grea|ter: fir&s;t, they &s;hall conceive great hopes of accompli&s;hing their de&s;ignes. Secondly, they &s;hall carry on tho&s;e hopes with much &s;ucce&s;&s;e even almo&s;t to a de&s;ired i&s;&s;ue; they &s;hall plow, and &s;owe, and be ready to reape. Thirdly, there &s;hall be di&s;ap|pointment &s;udden, unexpected, unavoidable, irrecoverable.
<PB N="14" REF="12"> Fourthly, that which they lea&s;t of all looked for &s;hall come to pa&s;&s;e, even that them&s;elves &s;hould be de&s;troyed by them whom they thought to de&s;troy, <HI>Zech.</HI> 12. 2, 3. <HI>Jeru&s;alem</HI> is a cup of trembling, &s;he that was rather as a cup of wine that might invite an adver&s;ary to drinke it up, for &s;weet wine being in a cup tempts more then being in a Butt or Barrel, and is in dan|ger of being &s;wallowed downe; now that this cup which is &s;o expo&s;ed to every one that goes by, &s;hould be a cup of poy|&s;on and ruine to them that thought to devoure it, carries much &s;hame and confu&s;ion. It is &s;aid that it &s;hall be a bur|then&s;ome &s;tone; it is not &s;aid it &s;hall be as a mil&s;tone, or a mountain to cru&s;h in peeces, for if the Church were of a migh|ty bulke and greatne&s;&s;e able to make its part good with an adver&s;ary, then perhaps they would not be &s;o eager again&s;t it. There is no man going by a &s;tone of many loads and of a mighty weight will attempt to remove it, but a little &s;tone that lyes in ones way that may be &s;purn'd w^c^h the foot, or take~ up in the hand &amp; ca&s;t away: a &s;tone, fir&s;t, that is little; &s;econd|ly, that lyes ready in the way to be ca&s;t a&s;ide, or made u&s;e of. Thirdly, in which is a fitne&s;&s;e for u&s;e to ones &s;elfe; &s;uch a &s;tone carries a kinde of temptation with it to one to carry it away; &s;uch a &s;tone the Church &s;eemes to be in the eyes of her enemies; the Church of God lyes in the way of wicked men, as a little contemptible &s;tone that they need not take much pains withall, but &s;uch as they may kick out of the way with the foot, or ea&s;ily ca&s;t it away with their hand; now that this &s;tone &s;hould be like many mil&s;tones and mountains to da&s;h the wicked in peeces, that is the greater confu&s;ion and &s;hame.</P>
<P>A &s;econd re&s;pect is in regard of the great terrour, as well as <NOTE PLACE="marg">2. That there might be the greater terror brought on the wicked.</NOTE> the great &s;hame which God bringeth on the wicked, <HI>Exod.</HI> 15. 14, 15, 16. when God had wrought that wonderfull delive|rance for his people, and confu&s;ion of their adver&s;aries, the enemies round about were afraid; &s;o it was al&s;o <HI>Jo&s;h</HI> 2. 9, 10, 11. &amp; 5. 1. &amp; <HI>Deut.</HI> 2. 25. &amp; <HI>Numb.</HI> 22. 2, 3, 6. <NOTE PLACE="marg">The third rea|&s;on re&s;pects the people of God them|&s;elves.</NOTE></P>
<P>The third rea&s;on why God will worke &s;trange things for his people again&s;t their enemies, re&s;pects the people of
<PB N="15" REF="12"> God them&s;elves; that they might appeare the more glorious, and be knowne to be &s;aved by the Lord, <HI>Deut. 33. 29. Happy art thou O I&s;rel, who is like unto thee? &s;aved by the Lord, &amp;c.</HI> &s;o al|&s;o 2. <HI>Sam. 7. 23. What one Nation in the earth is like thy people, even like I&s;rael, whom God went out to redeem from a people to him&s;elfe, and to make him a name, and to doe for you great things and terrible? &amp;c.</HI> this was it which did make the people of God &s;o famous and glorious that God had done &s;uch wonders for them.</P>
<P>Now we &s;hall proced to u&s;e, fir&s;t, of caution: God hath <NOTE PLACE="marg">The fift parti|cular propoun+ded was, what u&s;e may be made of this which hath bin &s;poken of the&s;e wonders of the Lord. The fir&s;t U&s;e is a U&s;e of cau|tion.</NOTE> wrought great things for you: (Honourable and beloved) take heed lea&s;t by your ingratitude, you cau&s;e him to doe great things again&s;t you: It hath been &s;aid, what hath God wrought for you? beware that it be not &s;aid, what hath God wrought again&s;t you? he hath made you the wonders of his mercy, take heed that he doth not make you the wonders of his fury: It hath been &s;aid, what hath God wrought, that hath magnified his wi&s;dome in carrying on your affaires; take heed he doth not leave you to your &s;elves, and &s;o you be|come the wonders of folly and madne&s;&s;e to all the world; he hath magnified his power in your behalfe, take heed he doth not di&s;mantle you, and lay you naked, and make you won|ders of weakne&s;&s;e, and expo&s;e you as a prey to the mo&s;t contemptible enemy: he hath made you the wonders of his protection and love, take heed he doth not make you the wonders of his rejection, as it was with I&s;rael.</P>
<P>I &s;uppo&s;e a caveat now cannot be thought un&s;ea&s;onable, in regard I find that the greate&s;t temporall mercies which ever God gave to his people, were given with the greate&s;t caveats and many provi&s;oe's, they were given under lock and key as it were, a mercy and a caution, as a keeper to goe along with it to &s;ee to the good behaviour of him that hath it in the u&s;e of it: The Lord did nurture the I&s;raelites, being to enter into <HI>Canaan,</HI> and he did di&s;cipline them beforehand, and give them many caveats, <HI>Deut.</HI> 4. 1, 2. there is an exhortation to obedi|ence being to enter into <HI>Canaan,</HI> &amp; ver. 5, 6. &s;peaking of go|ing in thither, <HI>take heed therefore,</HI> &s;ayes he, <HI>ver.</HI> 9. &amp; 14, 15, 16. he &s;peaks to the &s;ame purpo&s;e, &amp; <HI>ver.</HI> 22, 23. &amp; 38, 29, 40.
<PB N="16" REF="13"> <HI>take heed, &amp;c.</HI> then againe, <HI>chap.</HI> 6. 10, 11, 12. &s;peaking of the plenty of <HI>Canaan, then beware,</HI> &s;ayes he to them; and <HI>Deut.</HI> 8. 10, 11. <HI>take heed,</HI> againe: <HI>David</HI> gives <HI>Solomon</HI> (&s;peaking of great things that he &s;hould enjoy) warning to beware; and Chri&s;t &s;aid to him that he healed, <HI>John 5. 14. Sin no more, &amp;c.</HI></P>
<P>Now there is great rea&s;on of this, becau&s;e upon the receipt of great mercies, we are in danger of great &s;ins: we find that they which have been the wonders of the world in regard of great favours from God, have been the wonders of the world after, for great &s;ins again&s;t God: <HI>Noah</HI> had the favour to be pre&s;erved in the Arke from that univer&s;all deluge when the world was drowned, and <HI>Noah</HI> not long after was drowned in drunkenne&s;&s;e. <HI>Lot</HI> had that great mercy &s;hewed him to be delivered out of <HI>Sodom,</HI> and after! that he turned <HI>Zoar</HI> into a <HI>Sodom</HI> by his uncleanne&s;&s;e: How &s;hamefully did <HI>David</HI> fall, after tho&s;e multitude of favours he had from God 2 <HI>Sam.</HI> 12. 7, 8, 9. How did <HI>Hezekiah</HI> &s;hew him&s;elfe to be very unthank|full, after &s;uch mercies as all the world might wonder at: How did <HI>Jonah</HI> qvarrell with God pre&s;ently after after he came out of the Whales belly: How did <HI>Peter</HI> deny his Ma&s;ter with an oath, that had the honour (be&s;ides other favours) to &s;ee him transfigured in the mount? We are in danger, fir&s;t, <NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">It is reported of <HI>Philip</HI> King of <HI>Macedon,</HI> that he appoin+ted a Lad to come to him every morn|ing before any other, and &s;ay to him three times, <HI>Philipe homo<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">es,</HI> lea&s;t upon the &s;uc|ce&s;&s;e of his vi|ctories over the Athenians he might for|get him&s;elfe, <HI>Aelian. variar. Histo.</HI> l. 8. c. 15 that of <HI>Tacitus</HI> is &s;ure, <HI>acrius explorant ani|mum respro&s;pe|rae quam ad|ver&s;ae,</HI> Terrul. in Apologet. Arrian, l. 3.</NOTE> of pride, of being lifted up above our &s;elves: It was the &s;in of <HI>&V;zziah,</HI> 2 Chron. 26. 16. when he waxed &s;trong his heart was lifted up: &s;econdly, we be in danger of forgetfulne&s;&s;e, <HI>Dent.</HI> 8. 16. thirdly, <NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">They that write of the ruine of King|doms &amp; Com|mon-wealths, do give this as on cau&s; &amp; that a chief one, <HI>to wit,</HI> pro&s;perity <HI>Althus. Polit.</HI> l. 23. c. 7. <HI>Val. max.</HI> l. 7. c. 2. <HI>Alex. ab Alex.</HI> l. 3. c. 20. <HI>lip&s;.</HI> lib. 6. and the Scripture is frequent and full in this particular.</NOTE> we are in danger of luxury and riot, we quickly &s;urfet and wax wanton with mercies: fourthly, of carele&s;ne&s;&s;e, you need not advi&s;e one that is poore or ready to be &s;taryed, to look out for provi&s;ion, &s;uch will be too care|full; but you had need advi&s;e them that are rich and full, lea&s;t they grow negligent and &s;upine, and carele&s;&s;e in their duty to God, and laying out what they have for his glory: fiftly, we are in danger of relap&s;es, after recovery out of great dangers and di&s;ea&s;es, &amp;c. if there be not great care, we fall into the old trade and way againe, daily experience te&s;tifies this truth: &s;ixtly, we are in danger of great judgements, <HI>Ezra</HI> 9. 13, 14. in all the&s;e re&s;pects, we have a much more &s;lippery &s;tanding
<PB N="17" REF="13"> then we had before: A Paradi&s;e is a much more dangerous place for us to be in then a Wilderne&s;&s;e.</P>
<P>But what mu&s;t we beware of chiefly: Fir&s;t, that we doe not forget our low e&s;tate before God wrought the&s;e wonders for us: For this con&s;ideration doth much advance Gods won|ders, by how much the lower our &s;tate &amp; condition was, when he began to work for us, by &s;o much the greater is the mer|cy, and therefore God will not have us forget our low e&s;tate. The Lord doth very often make mention of the deliverance he wrought for I&s;rael, and he makes expre&s;&s;e mention of <HI>Ae|gypt,</HI> and the hou&s;e of bondage; he &s;peaks of it, fir&s;t, in giving of the Law, <HI>Exod.</HI> 20. 1. &s;econdly, when he in&s;tituted the Sa|crifices, <HI>Levit.</HI> 22. 33. thirdly, when he makes the promi&s;e of ble&s;&s;ings to them, <HI>Levit.</HI> 26. 13. fourthly, in reckoning up his great works he had done for them, <HI>Deut.</HI> 4. 32, 33, 34. and when he &s;peaks of the favours he would be&s;tow, <HI>Deut.</HI> 6. 10, 11, 12. fiftly, he reckons it as a great &s;igne of his love, <HI>Deut.</HI> 7. 8. &s;ixtly, when he di&s;&s;wades them from ingratitude, <HI>Deut.</HI> 8. 14. &s;eventhly, when he in&s;tituted the pa&s;chall Lamb, <HI>Deut.</HI> 16. 6. eightly, when the Angel reproved the people, <HI>Judges</HI> 2. 1. ninthly, when he purpo&s;ed to give them victory over the Midianites, <HI>Judges</HI> 6. 8, 9, 10, &amp;c. tenthly, when they were about to &s;et up a King, 1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 10. 18. how frequent is the Lord in making mention of <HI>Aegypt</HI> upon every occa&s;ion? &s;urely to put them in mind of their low e&s;tate, <HI>Revel.</HI> 2. 5. the Church of <HI>Ephe&s;us</HI> is bid to remember from whence &s;he was fallen; and &s;urely we mu&s;t not forget from whence we are ri&s;en, <HI>Jer.</HI> 2. 6, 7. that it may with greater wonder be &s;aid, What hath God wrought for us that were &s;o low? for God him&s;elfe takes occa&s;ion to amplifie his favours upon this con|&s;ideration, <HI>Ezek.</HI> 16. 3, 4, 5. &s;o <HI>David</HI> reckons it among the miracles of mercies, that God remembred them in their low e&s;tate, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 136. 23. we mu&s;t not forget who they were that owned us and the cau&s;e we undertook, in our low e&s;tate: It was confe&s;&s;ed that our Brethren of <HI>Scotland</HI> did &s;uch &s;ervice for us, that they de&s;erved much at our hands, as much at lea&s;t as <NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">In his Ser|mon intituled <HI>New Englands &s;ence of old England and Irelands &s;or|rowes.</HI></NOTE> Ma&s;ter <HI>Hooke</HI> in his Sermon gives them, when he &s;tiles
<PB N="18" REF="14"> them, that honourable Nation that united in a Cove|nant again&s;t the Prelats; we may have cau&s;e enough to think on them, as Ma&s;ter <HI>Cotton</HI> doth in his Sermons on the Vials, where he apprehends that God made u&s;e of them to poure out his Viall upon the &s;eat of the Bea&s;t, and his King|dome <GAP LANG="grc" DESC="foreign" RESP="OXF">, he thinks that the word there cleerly point|ed out the <NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg"><HI>Vide</HI> 5. Vial</NOTE> Scots: Of whom he &s;ayes; <HI>Nor doe I know that any of the former Vyals have been poured out by any men, who&s;e loynes have been more girt about with truth, and who&s;e cloathing hath been more pure and white, then the&s;e &s;ervants of God have been girt with, and cloathed withall.</HI></P>
<P>II. We mu&s;t beware we doe not forget the &s;peciall provi|dences of God which goe along with his great mercies, for the&s;e doe put a very great price upon the favours you receive: God &s;ends you a Cabinet in &s;uch a mercy, you mu&s;t open it, and you &s;hall find many jewels in it: he doth di&s;member a mercy that doth not take it in all its dimen&s;ions, nor can God have the full prai&s;e of a compleat mercy, when we our &s;elves doe not &s;ee into all the parts of it; we mu&s;t therefore look at the mercy, and, Fir&s;t, the &s;ea&s;on of the mercy, in the Mount; extremity was Gods opportunity; when thy &s;pirit would have failed, if God had not then come, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 57. 16. then to afford mercy, when the full time to have mercy was come, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 102. 11. is a ble&s;&s;ed fit time; or perhaps it was at &s;uch a &s;ea&s;on, when we were praying and fa&s;ting, or pre&s;ent|ly after; God is plea&s;ed to time his mercies which he be|&s;towes; for it is &s;aid, <HI>I&s;a. 49. 8. In an acceptable time have I heard thee;</HI> and <HI>David</HI> &s;ayes, <HI>P&s;al. 69. 13. In an acceptable time have I prayed;</HI> it is a ble&s;&s;ed &s;ea&s;on for God to be giving when we are praying, as it is <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 65. 24. <HI>Whil&s;t they are &s;peaking, I will heare:</HI> How oft have our Thank&s;giving dayes trod on the heels of our Fa&s;ting dayes? how oft have Victories come flying on the wings of prayer &s;o fa&s;t, that they have taken us upon our knees?</P>
<P>Secondly, we mu&s;t not forget the many difficulties and in|tricacies through which our mercies have been conveyed to us; we mu&s;t look at the cro&s;&s;e, perplexed pa&s;&s;ages of provi|dence;
<PB N="19" REF="14"> there hath been many a time in our great affaires, an appearance, as it were a wheels within a wheele, <HI>Ezek.</HI> 1. 16. &s;o that God manife&s;ted his mervailous loving kindne&s;&s;e, as <HI>David</HI> &s;peaks, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 57. 7. when he hath given a ble&s;&s;ed i&s;&s;ue in &s;uch ca&s;es.</P>
<P>Thirdly, we mu&s;t not forget this providence, when God makes many meanes con&s;pire for our good, when he com|mands a con&s;tellation of means of different complexions to coutribute their influences for our good; when men of a con|trary temper and di&s;po&s;ition one from another and aver&s;e from me, &s;hould yet be over&s;wayed to combine for my good, this is an admirable providence.</P>
<P>Fourthly, we mu&s;t not forget how &s;uddenly and unexpe|ctedly the Lord hath done things for us: The Lord hath not wearied us out with waiting; that which lookt like a work of two &s;even yeers, he hath di&s;patched in the &s;pace of two &s;even moneths; many a victory hath come &s;o &s;uddenly, that it hath even &s;urprized us, that we have been as men in a dreame, as the children of the captivity, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 126. 1, 2.</P>
<P>Fifthly, we mu&s;t not forget the fruitfulne&s;&s;e of our mercies; one mercy hath been pregnant and big with child with many: our victories carry in their wombe, our lives, our liberties, our intere&s;ts and priviledges, our Go&s;pel and Reformation; none of which we &s;hould enjoy, if &s;o be the enemy had con|quered: God hath given us many mother mercies.</P>
<P>Sixthly, the &s;mall lo&s;&s;e of blood and men, this mu&s;t not be forgotten; we might have purcha&s;ed many things at a deare rate; if the&s;e victories and &s;urrenders had come &s;wimming in blood, or if there had been the demoli&s;hing Cities, Univer&s;ity and Townes, we might have wept over our victories, as the children of I&s;rael did when they had conquered their Brother <HI>Benjamin,</HI> Judg. 20. 2.</P>
<P>Perhaps tho&s;e that have been engaged in the&s;e tran&s;acti|ons, and whom God hath made in&s;trumentall in his &s;ervice, are able to &s;peak of many particular experiments of provi|dence, which we that are at a di&s;tance, are not able to di&s;cern: Let them whom it doth mo&s;t concerne have a &s;peciall care
<PB N="20" REF="15"> that God lo&s;eth none of his honour in tho&s;e remarkable pa&s;|&s;ages of his providence towards them that have enjoyed them.</P>
<P>Thirdly, we mu&s;t not forget how we have provoked God, how we have murmured, how we have di&s;tru&s;ted, how &s;ome|times we have been lifted up with &s;ucce&s;&s;e, and then we thought we &s;hould never be removed, as <HI>David</HI> &s;aid, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 30. 6, 7. and when the Lord hid his face, how were we troubled? &s;ometimes we have been in a full tide, and then againe at a dead low ebbe. This is it which the Lord pre&s;&s;eth on his people, <HI>Deut. 9. 7. Remember and forget not how thou provoked&s;t the Lord thy God to wrath in the Wilderne&s;&s;e, from the day that thou depar|ted&s;t out of</HI> Aegypt <HI>untill ye came unto this place, ye have been a rebel|lious people.</HI></P>
<P>Fourthly, we mu&s;t beware that we do not forget our Vows, Prayers, Fa&s;ts, Covenants, Prote&s;tations: The &s;ervants of God do drive a great trade with Heaven by the&s;e, they have inter|cour&s;e with God; we &s;hould take notice of our revenues &amp; re|turns hereby: now we are too apt to forget our engagements to the Lord; and hence it is that God pre&s;&s;eth Covenant on his people when they &s;hould come into <HI>Canaan,</HI> Deut. 4. 23. <HI>Take heed</HI> (&s;ayes he) <HI>lea&s;t ye forget the Covenant of the Lord your God &amp;c.</HI> remember, as it is, to offer unto God Thank&s;giving, and pay thy Vowes to the mo&s;t high; keep Covenant, and re|member Vowes and Promi&s;es made with God, with your friends, with your enemies: It is a complaint (God grant it be not found to be true) that Articles are not kept on our part with the enemy; I &s;hall onely mind you of that pa&s;&s;age, <HI>Jo&s;hua</HI> 9. how the I&s;raelites did keep their Covenant with the Gibeonites, though they were undermined, and it were to their prejudice: <NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">The formes of Covenants among the Romans and o|thers were very &s;trict, and their ob&s;ervation of them al&s;o; after the invocation of their gods, they did bind them&s;elves under a cur&s;e after this manner: <HI>Si prior de|fecit</HI> (&s;peaking of the Pop. Rom.) <HI>publico con&s;ilio, dolo malo tu illo die Jupiter Pop. Rom. &s;ic ferito, ut ego hunc porcum hodic feriam: tantoque magis ferito, quanto magis potes, polle&s;que: Id ubi dixit, porcum &s;axo &s;ilice percu&s;&s;it</HI> T. Liv l. 1. <HI>de faedere inter Tullum Hostilium &amp; Alba|nos percu&s;&s;o agens.</HI> Vid. Barn. Bri&s;&s;. de form. l. 4.</NOTE> The Heathens and Gen|tiles, &amp;c. have been mo&s;t preci&s;e in this particular; now we ought to beware that we doe not forget all
<PB N="21" REF="15"> the&s;e con&s;iderations, in re|gard <NOTE PLACE="marg"><P><HI>Pau&s;anias in Arcadicis ob&s;ervavit, ubi &s;cribit</HI> Philippi Macedonis <HI>Regis liberos propterea tantis calamitatibus affectos fui&s;&s;ae, quod ip&s;e fidem in pactis conventis, confae|deratis datam, nihil faceret. Camerarius oper. &s;ub&s;ic.</HI> l. 2. c. 78. How doth <HI>Agamemnon</HI> in <HI>Homer</HI> cry out again&s;t the breach of faith in the Trojans. which he &s;ayes, God will avenge; who&s;e &s;en&s;e we have in the&s;e Ver&s;es:</P>
<LG>
<L><HI>Et &s;uperiuros violato foedere Troas</HI></L>
<L><HI>Jupitere Coelis prae&s;enti haud puniet ira,</HI></L>
<L><HI>At quandoque graves magno cum faenore poenas</HI></L>
<L><HI>Hi cum coniugibus &amp; tota &s;tirpe rependent.</HI></L>
</LG>
<P>The very Heathen have &s;et it as a brand on &s;ome peo|ple for breach of faith: Hence <GAP LANG="grc" DESC="foreign" RESP="OXF">, Tit. 1. 12. he cites <HI>Epimenides</HI> for this, who &s;ayes, <GAP LANG="grc" DESC="foreign" RESP="OXF">, &amp;c. So <HI>dolus Troianus in Plauti P&s;eudolo &amp; Punica&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">les,</HI> are taken up as Proverbs of reproach; &s;o that this &s;in had alwayes a note of ignominy among the Heathen. <HI>Grat. de iure belli,</HI> l. 2. c. 13.</P></NOTE> they all do add much to the wonder of Gods mercies: For fir&s;t, may it not be truly &s;aid, <HI>What hath God wrought,</HI> who hath rai&s;ed us from &s;o low a &s;tate to this condition, that he &s;hould be plea&s;ed to take notice of us, when none dur&s;t owne us? Se|condly, may it not be &s;aid <HI>What hath God wrought,</HI> in al the&s;e admirable providen|ces afforded to us? Third|ly, may it not be truly &s;aid, <HI>What hath God wrought,</HI> who pre&s;erved us when we pro|voked him? Fourthly, may it not be truly &s;aid, <HI>What hath God wrought,</HI> who had re&s;pect to the prayers, fa&s;ts, &amp;c. of his un|worthy &s;ervants? wherefore if we &s;hould forget the&s;e, we &s;hould much di&s;honour God, and take off from the wonder of his mercies.</P>
<P>Fifthly, we mu&s;t beware that we doe not forget the low condition of others: It is a &s;inne which tho&s;e that enjoy tem|porall accommodations, are incident unto, even to forget others that are in want and mi&s;ery: You know how <HI>Ireland</HI> cryes aloud for help, and can find none; &s;hall we think to &s;it downe in peace, when <HI>Ireland</HI> is in blood, and even bleeding to death? We read <HI>Numb.</HI> 31. how the I&s;raelites did give a ve|ry great overthrow to the Midianites, and what &s;poyle they took, and <HI>chap.</HI> 32. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. we read how the children of <HI>Ruben</HI> and <HI>Gad,</HI> having a great multitude of Cattle, therefore they de&s;ired of <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> that they might &s;tay in that Country which the Lord had &s;mote before the Congregation of I&s;rael, it being a very commodious place: but <HI>ver. 6. Mo&s;es</HI> &s;aid to them that made this reque&s;t, <HI>&s;hall your Brethren goe to warre, and &s;hall yee &s;it here, &amp;c.</HI> he chides them, <HI>ver.</HI> 7, 8, &amp;c. and tels them
<PB N="22" REF="16"> <HI>ver.</HI> 14. that <HI>they were ri&s;en up in their Fathers &s;tead, an encrea&s;e of &s;infull men, &amp;c.</HI> So &s;ay I, if we &s;hall now &s;it down and take up our re&s;t, and think our work is done, when <HI>Ireland</HI> hath no re&s;t, and is in a manner undone, this may provoke the Lord again&s;t us: I hope you will remember them in their low e&s;tate as God hath remembred you in yours.</P>
<P>The &s;econd U&s;e &s;hall be of Exhortation, that &s;ince God hath wrought &s;uch deliverances as the&s;e, and hath given &s;uch wonderfull mercies to you, that you would labour to walke in a way corre&s;pondent to the&s;e mercies, that you would be wrapt up with wonder in the contemplation of them; we may make u&s;e of the &s;ignification of the word <HI>Mi|rari,</HI> and &s;tirre you up to your duty, and goe no further then the Word affords: Fir&s;t, it &s;ignifies <HI>intente intueri,</HI> for it comes from the Hebrew, <GAP LANG="heb" DESC="foreign" RESP="OXF">, <HI>e&s;t vi&s;us,</HI> &s;o that we fir&s;t won|der: <NOTE PLACE="marg">Martin. Lexic. vocab. Miror.</NOTE> Fir&s;t, Take a view and &s;urvey our mercies, look into them; this I have &s;poke of before: &s;econdly, we &s;hould <HI>mirari, (i.) cum voluptate intueri,</HI> we &s;hould as <HI>David,</HI> P&s;al. 13. 5, 6. re|joyce in the Lord, and &s;ing unto him, becau&s;e he hath dealt bountifully; we &s;ee the Church often upon the receipt of mercies, rejoycing, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 61. 10. and el&s;where: thirdly, we &s;hould wonder <HI>(i.) Intueri cum &s;tupore,</HI> break out into holy a&s;to|ni&s;hment; the Church upon the contemplation of the mer|cies of God, &s;tands as one amazed, <HI>I&s;a. 25. 9. In that day it &s;hall be &s;aid, Loe, this is our God!</HI> an <HI>ecce,</HI> a note of wonder put upon it; then it followes, We will rejoyce in his &s;alvation: fourth|ly, we &s;hould wonder and &s;ay, <HI>What hath God wrought! (i.) magnifacere &amp; venerari,</HI> we &s;hould exalt and magnifie the Lord for his mercies; thus <HI>David</HI> teacheth us this le&s;&s;on in his owne practice, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 34. 2, 3. he cals upon others to magnifie the Lord with him for his mercies: this magnifying of the Lord &s;hould be done with holy and humble veneration: We find <HI>Revel.</HI> 4. 10, 11. when the four and twenty Elders give prai&s;e to God, they fall downe before him, and ca&s;t their Crownes before the Throne, &amp;c. &s;o al&s;o <HI>chap.</HI> 5. 8. &amp; 7. 11. &amp; 11. 16, 17. they fall downe and give thanks to the Lord God, be|cau&s;e he had taken to him his great power, and had reigned;
<PB N="23" REF="16"> and <HI>chap.</HI> 19. upon the great judgement on the Whore, <HI>ver.</HI> 4. the four and twenty Elders and the four Bea&s;ts fell down and wor&s;hipped God that &s;ate on the Thronc, &s;aying, <HI>Amen Allelujah.</HI></P>
<P>I &s;hall now propound &s;ome con&s;iderations to you, taken from &s;ome of the wonderfull things which God hath done for us, that by them I may rai&s;e up your hearts to the highe&s;t &s;traines of admiration and gratitude, and quicken you up to an&s;werable walking, according to the great mercies of God be&s;towed on us.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, it hath been &s;aid, <HI>What hath God wrought,</HI> who hath brought this warre (in a manner) to an end, which every one almo&s;t did think would have ended our liberties, lives? &amp;c. now by way of gratitude, let us all labour to put an end to the warre, one among, and one again&s;t another: I could heartily wi&s;h that the Sea of Ordinances were Chry&s;tall, very pure, and not gla&s;&s;e, and freed from fire, that contentions were bani&s;hed from us, <HI>Revel.</HI> 15. 2. me thinks we &s;hould not quarrell; that one word in which we all agree, <HI>viz.</HI> Saints, Brethrne, Members; nay that reconciling word, Chri&s;t, for we are one Chri&s;t, 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 12, 12. I &s;ay, any of the&s;e words &s;hould compo&s;e all differences among us; how often have &s;ome noble Commanders, by a word &s;ometimes, &s;uch as that, <HI>commilitones, Quirites,</HI> &s;etled the di&s;tempers of a mutinous Ar|my; why &s;hould not that word Chri&s;tians, like that word <HI>Peace, be &s;till,</HI> &s;poken by Chri&s;t to the winds and waves when they were mo&s;t boy&s;trous, bring a great calme among us, as that did once? <HI>Mark</HI> 4. 39. The i&s;&s;ue of our divi&s;ions and ani|mo&s;ities is generally the &s;ame in effect as I have read in a &s;tory concerning two Doctors of Phy&s;ick, the one a Galeni&s;t, and the other a Paracel&s;ian, who met at a fea&s;t, and fell into a di|&s;pute: the Galeni&s;t di&s;cour&s;ed of the retentive faculty in the &s;tomack, how the meat is there depre&s;&s;ed for a time, and made fit for dige&s;tion, and thence a milkie juyce is &s;ucked by the <HI>Me&s;araicae venae,</HI> which forthwith is conveyed to the work|hou&s;e of blood, thence to the heart the &s;tore hou&s;e of &s;pirits, and &s;o the&s;e two, like two carefull Purveyors, &s;end their pro|vi&s;ions
<PB N="24" REF="17"> by the veynes and arteries, as by two common road wayes, into every part of the little Common-wealth of mans body: The Paracel&s;ian, a profe&s;&s;or and practi&s;er quite contra|ry to the other, as well in his order of dyet as cure, oppo&s;eth him&s;elf again&s;t all the&s;e a&s;&s;ertions, partly out of opinion that he was in the right, and partly out of a contentious humour and &s;pleen which he bore to the others profe&s;&s;ion; they fall from argument to railing, and at la&s;t to deadly war and bitter defiance, whereby the meale they then made was hindred in dige&s;tion, choler encrea&s;ed in the one, and malancholy in the other, and the blood enflamed in both, &s;o as they were both taken away (without &s;aying grace) de&s;perately &s;ick; the Galeni&s;t of a &s;haking ague, and the Paracel&s;ian of a dead pal|&s;ie: there needs no application, it is well knowne that the Galeni&s;t and Paracel&s;ian men of contrary judgements, doe &s;ometime fall to di&s;putation, from this to railing, from this to di&s;temper and &s;ickne&s;&s;e of &s;pirit, by which meanes God lo&s;eth the glory due to him, and many times both lo&s;e both them&s;elves and the truth to boot: It is a &s;ad thing to me to think that they which look on one another as Saints, &s;hould behave them&s;elves each to other as the Jewes had wont to doe toward Hea|thens <NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg"><P>Hence we read of tho&s;e words in the new Te&s;t. <GAP LANG="grc" DESC="foreign" RESP="OXF"> <HI>alieni|genis;</HI> &s;o it is often objected by <HI>Jo&s;ephus</HI> again&s;t the Jewes, <GAP LANG="grc" DESC="foreign" RESP="OXF"> whence that of <HI>Juvenal</HI> concerning the Jewes,</P>
<P><HI>Non monstrare vias, eadem ni&s;i &s;acra colenti,</HI> and that of <HI>Tacitus,</HI> Hi&s;t. 5. <HI>apud ip&s;os fides ob&s;tinata, mi&s;ericor|dia in promptu adver&s;us omnes ho&s;tile odium:</HI> What a mi&s;erable thing is it, that this Jewi&s;h carriage and di|&s;tance, the&s;e excommunicating termes &s;hould be made good among tho&s;e that are received into the bo&s;ome of the &s;ame Chri&s;t? <HI>Althusius</HI> in his Politiques, c. 31. &s;ayes, <HI>Exitus di&s;cordiarum e&s;t, aut univer&s;orum interi|tus, aut victoris dominatus &amp; regnum,</HI> vid. Bodin. l. 4. c. 1. there was a &s;ad i&s;&s;ue of tho&s;e names of difference the Guelphs and the Gibbelines, the Calvini&s;ts and Lutherans, the Samaritans and the Jewes; let us learne from them to lay a&s;ide charactericing names, which <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters">&s;e at length into factions and tumults.</P></NOTE>.</P>
<P>Secondly, it may be &s;aid <HI>What hath God wrought</HI> for you in re&s;toring your cap|tivated liberties, your en|&s;alved priviledges, your lawes made arbitrary once by u&s;urpation and tyran|ny, and of late by nece&s;&s;i|ty in time of warre: In a common fire and confla|gration, many hou&s;es mu&s;t be pluckt downe to &s;ave the re&s;t <NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">H. Grotius, l. 3. de jure belli, c. 1.</NOTE>; and many things
<PB N="25" REF="17"> are lawfull in a time of warre, which otherwi&s;e could not be permitted: Since therefore God hath done this for you, let it by way of gratitude be &s;aid, what hath this Parliament done, in labouring to &s;ettle the peace of the Church: He hath done your work very quickly; &s;et clo&s;e to his and doe it quickly: or el&s;e you may have Chri&s;t come quickly as he threatned, <HI>Revel.</HI> 2. 5. and remove your Candle&s;tick from yo; and as it is <HI>ver. 16. Repent, or el&s;e I will come quickly and fight again&s;t thee, &amp;c.</HI> and <HI>Revel. 3. 11. Behold I come quickly, &amp;c.</HI> the adver&s;ary makes ha&s;te to pluck up, and to pull down and to un&s;ettle the Church of God, and build up his own Babel of fancy and opi|nion and fal&s;hood: whil&s;t the Ordinances of God are un&s;etled in their purity, power, glory and perfection, in their full com|pa&s;&s;e and latitude, the enemy gets ground. Bi&s;hop <HI>Jewell</HI> <NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Jewel</HI> in ep: de conc. Tri|dent. tract. <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 word"> de Papa &amp; Cardinal. &amp;c.</NOTE> &s;peaking of the &s;ubtilty of the Pope and Cardinals, to fru|&s;trate the Councell of <HI>Trent,</HI> or to retard it, makes u&s;e of a Story which may be applied to our ca&s;e: It is reported of the Athenians, that when they began to build their wals which were ca&s;t downe, the Lacedaemonians (that &s;o they might have them in their power) &s;ent to them to &s;urcea&s;e: But <HI>Themi&s;tocles</HI> being very wi&s;e, perceiving that the &s;afety of the Country was in jeopardy, promi&s;ed that he would come to them, yet he did purpo&s;ely create delayes and excu&s;es, pre|tending that their agreements did not like him, and then &s;ay|ing that he would &s;end Amba&s;&s;adours to treat with them: In the meane time while he baffles them with delayes and pre|tences, the building of the wals goes on, and in the time they are di&s;puting the matter, the bu&s;ine&s;&s;e is di&s;patched, and the wals are built, and now pluck them downe that dare or can. It is certainly the de&s;igne of &s;ome to keep you off by delayes and plau&s;ibilities and faire pretences, from &s;etting in its full power the government of Chri&s;t, but in the meane time the wals of <HI>Athens</HI> goes on; and ere long, if you doe not make the more ha&s;te, they will be fini&s;hed, and then you may pluck them downe if you could tell how: And as God hath deli|vered you from arbitrary government, &s;o doe you leave as little to arbitrement in the State as can be: A good Law is bet|ter then the be&s;t Lawyer <NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg"><HI>Melius e&s;t legibus, ac con|&s;uetudinibus bonis &s;idere, quam octimis hominibus</HI> Cardan. l. 5. de Sapient.</NOTE>.</P>
<PB N="26" REF="18">
<P>Thirdly, it may be &s;aid <HI>What hath God wrought?</HI> who hath &s;ubdued your enemies in the Field, many, mighty, malicious; who as they called you Rebels formerly, and think you &s;o &s;till, &s;o they would have u&s;ed you as Rebels; by way of gra|titude labour to &s;ubdue Gods enemies in your hou&s;es and hearts, tho&s;e reigning &s;innes that captivate you, and ride in triumph over you. Is not that true which we read, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 60. 14. The &s;onnes al&s;o of them that afflicted thee, &s;hall come bending unto thee, and all they that de&s;pi&s;ed thee, &s;hall bow them&s;elves downe at the &s;oales of thy feet, &amp;c. how &s;hould you &s;tirre up your &s;elves to mortifie your lu&s;ts? It was the glory of the King of <HI>Arragon</HI> that he conquered him&s;elfe when he conquered his enemies: And it was the blot on <HI>Alexanders</HI> conque&s;ts, that him&s;elfe was conquered with wine: and on <HI>Hannibal,</HI> that cruelty was his Ma&s;ter. We find in Stories ma|ny &s;coffes of Souldiers ca&s;t on their triumphing Commanders in this kind. <NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg"><HI>Gallias Cae&s;ar &s;ubegr, Nico|modes Cae&s;arem Ecce Cae&s;ar nunc triu~phat, qui &s;ubegit Gallias. Nicomodes non triumphat, qui &s;ubegit Cae&s;a|rem,</HI> Sueton in Jul. c. 49. and al&s;o c. 40. concerning the &s;ame, they that wai|red on <HI>Cae&s;ar</HI> in his triumph by way of mockery. <HI>U bani &s;ervate uxores, Mae|chum calvum adducimus. Auro in Gallia &s;tuprum emi&s;ti, hic &s;umpsi&s;ti mutuum.</HI> So true is that di&s;tich. <HI>Fortior e&s;t qui &s;e quam qui for ti&s;&s;ima vincit Maenia, nec virtus altius ire pote&s;t.</HI></NOTE> Let us downe with the &s;trong holds of the De|vill. Ale-hou&s;es generally are the Devils Ca&s;tles, the meet|ing places of Malignants and Sectaries, they are the <HI>campus Martius</HI> of Satan, he hath his traine of Artillery, his chiefe Ammunition, his head quarters are there, e&s;pecially if any pe|&s;tilent Prie&s;ts &s;teeped in the gall of Antichri&s;tiani&s;me be among them: It is mo&s;t requi&s;ite that &s;uch meetings, &s;uch places be di&s;&s;olved. I could wi&s;h that garri&s;on of rancorous and imbittered &s;pirit were utterly &s;lighted and demoli&s;hed in us all; this one thing hath overthrowne whole Kingdomes many times <NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">vid. Jun orat. Tom. 1 orat. 1 de colleg. con|cordia &amp; orat. 2.</NOTE>; God forbid it &s;hould act its part among us, I tru&s;t God will never give us over to that unquiet, de&s;tructive &s;pirit.</P>
<P>Fourthly, God hath in a &s;trange manner purged out from among you many rotten members, which you could never have ca&s;t out, if they had not excommunicated them&s;elves, by a voluntary &s;eparation and bani&s;hment from you, and de&s;pe|rate engagement again&s;t you; &s;o that in this re&s;pect it may mo&s;t truly be &s;aid, <HI>What hath God wrought?</HI></P>
<P>By way of gratitude, you mu&s;t fall to purging and reform|ing; God hath &s;hewed you the way, who hath di&s;tingui&s;hed
<PB N="27" REF="18"> betwixt the precious and the vile, which you mu&s;t al&s;o doe; for the iron and clay will never incorporate, <HI>Dan.</HI> 9. 42. take heed you doe not give the Lord occa&s;ion to &s;ay, as it is <HI>Ezek. 24. 6,-13. Her &s;cumme is not yet gone out. In thy filthine&s;&s;e is lewd|ne&s;&s;e; becau&s;e I have purged thee and thou wa&s;t not purged, thou &s;halt not be purged from thy filthine&s;&s;e any more, till I have cau&s;ed my fury to re&s;t upon thee.</HI> The &s;cum of &s;wearers, drunkards, &amp;c. abounds among us. But be&s;ides the&s;e, there is a more dangerous &s;ort of people of choyce parts, po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ed with the &s;pirit of Antichri&s;t, of as cro&s;&s;e a grain to reformation as any men what&s;oever, be|ing &s;oaked in malignity; if the&s;e have the liberty of the Pul|pit, they have liberty and opportunity to diffu&s;e their poy|&s;on; the&s;e ought to be purged out of Pulpits e&s;pecially. It is reported of <HI>Cato Cen&s;or,</HI> when <HI>Carneades</HI> the Philo&s;opher came to <HI>Rome</HI> in an Emba&s;&s;ie, that the young men of <HI>Rome</HI> flockt to him, being allured with the &s;weetne&s;&s;e and maje&s;ty of his eloquence and learning, gave coun&s;ell in open Senate, that they &s;hould give him di&s;patch with all &s;peed, lea&s;t he &s;hould infect and inchant the minds and affections of the Youth, and bring in an alteration of the manners and cu|&s;tomes of the &s;tate. <HI>Cato's</HI> advice will &s;uit well with this which is propounded concerning &s;uch men before &s;poken of: You have an Univer&s;ity and a Kingdome to purge, which lyes like the Augean Stable, and it is a very va&s;t bu&s;ine&s;&s;e to doe it; but as it is reported of <HI>Hercules,</HI> being to clean&s;e the Au|gean Stable (in which was kept three thou&s;and Kine, and it had not been clean&s;ed for thirty yeers together) but <HI>Hercules</HI> letting in the River <HI>Alpheus,</HI> did that with ea&s;e which was thought impo&s;&s;ible: So you by letting in the waters of the Sanctuary &s;poke of, <HI>Ezek. 47. 2. The River which refre&s;heth the hou&s;e of God &s;hall purge it;</HI> &s;o &s;hall it be &s;aid, What have you wrought?</P>
<P>Fifthly, the Lord hath protected you in a mo&s;t &s;trange and admirable manner, &s;o that it may be &s;aid, <HI>What hath God wrought?</HI> by way of gratitude be you a &s;word and a &s;hield; to the truth a &s;hield, and to errour and here&s;ie a &s;word: It was &s;aid of <HI>Fabius,</HI> that he was <HI>Romanorum clypeus,</HI> and of <HI>Marcellus</HI>
<PB N="28" REF="19"> that he was <HI>Romanorum en&s;is,</HI> becau&s;e it was the chiefe care of the fir&s;t, to &s;afeguard his Souldiers from the danger of <HI>Annibal,</HI> and of the other to de&s;troy him: Certainly it may be &s;aid of you as it was Deut. 33. 29. <HI>Happy art thou O I&s;rael; who is like unto thee O people! &s;aved by the Lord the &s;hield of thy help, and who is the&s;word of thy excellency: and thine enemies &s;hall be found lyars unto thee, and thou &s;halt tread upon their high places.</HI></P>
<P>Sixthly, the Lord hath appeared eminently in executing judgement on your enemies; we may &s;ay, as it is <HI>P&s;al. 9. 16. The Lord is knowne by the judgement which he executeth, the wicked is &s;nared in the work of his owne hand:</HI> Higgajon Selah. by way of gratitude doe ju&s;tice, execute right judgement. There be ma|ny &s;ad complaints of partiality and affection in Committees, of retarding of cau&s;es, of pleading for delinquents, of oppre&s;|&s;ing of right, it is <HI>vox populi,</HI> which is &s;ometime called <HI>vox Dei:</HI> It was your honour to put downe tho&s;e bloody Courts of the Star-chamber and High-commi&s;&s;ion, and the arbitrary pro|ceeding of the Councell-table, and I hope it &s;hall be your care that there be not a <GAP LANG="grc" DESC="foreign" RESP="OXF">, a tran&s;lation of the &s;pi|rit of tho&s;e Courts into the Parliament; they did turne judg|ment into wormwood, and leave off righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, as it is <HI>Amos</HI> 5. 7. but I hope that judgement &s;hall now run downe as waters, and judgement as a mighty &s;treame, <HI>ver.</HI> 24. God re|fu&s;eth to have any thing to doe with his people, till they came to doe ju&s;tice, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 1. 16, 17. then &s;ayes he, <HI>Come let us rea&s;on to|gether,</HI> the Lord pre&s;&s;eth it on them, <HI>Ezek.</HI> 45. 9, 10.</P>
<P>Seventhly, the Lord hath done great things for us in the &s;urrender of OXFORD; if all things be well con&s;idered it is a great mercy: The &s;trength of the place, the provi&s;ions of all kinds within; the re&s;olution of the men to hold out a &s;ul|len &s;iege, the danger of demoli&s;hing an Univer&s;ity, famous as any in the world, the danger of breaking our Army; the ad|vantages which hereby we have of being a&s;&s;i&s;tant to <HI>Ireland,</HI> together with the advantages that you may have of promo|ting the reformation, in that place above others; all the&s;e put together make it a great mercy.</P>
<P>Now by way of gratitude, make it your bu&s;ine&s;&s;e and care
<PB N="29" REF="19"> now to purge and reforme that place above others: Give me leave to propound &s;ome things to your con&s;ideration con|cerning that place, with &s;ubmi&s;&s;ion &s;till to your wi&s;dome herein: I doe it the rather becau&s;e I know there ought to be had a more then ordinary care of &s;uch places as that is; for a Fountaine, a Garden and a Nur&s;ery mu&s;t in a &s;peciall manner be lookt unto; for it is a rule that <HI>quod initio e&s;t vitio|&s;um, tractu temporis non convale&s;cet;</HI> and it is a rule concerning Phy&s;ick, that an errour in the fir&s;t concoction is not cor|rected in the &s;econd; be&s;ides, there ought to be a &s;peciall care of what is put into new and fre&s;h Ve&s;&s;els, and what mold is to be laid on tender plants and young trees: the&s;e things laid together, make me the bolder to propound &s;ome things to your wi&s;dome, with reference to that place.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, if there be any &s;uch to be found there, which by rea|&s;on of nece&s;&s;ity have been con&s;trained to live in that place; yet they have that mark on their fore-heads, which is to cry <NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">What <HI>Taci|tus</HI> &s;peaks of a Prince I doubt not but you will ob&s;erve, <HI>Non poena &s;emper &s;ed &s;a|pius poenitentia contentus e&s;&s;e.</HI> Agric. <HI>Poenam igitur si tuto poterus, dona|bis; sin minus, temperabis,</HI> Sen. dc Clem. 1.</NOTE> for alll the abominations of it, as it is <HI>Ezek.</HI> 9. 4. or if there be any that &s;hall be found, which now remember their doings and wayes, wherein they have defiled them&s;elves, <HI>Ezek.</HI> 20. 43. if there be any &s;uch who (what&s;oever they have been here|tofore) epi&s;copall, &amp;c. yet if now they &s;hall doe that hearti|ly which the adver&s;aries of the captivity did but pretend to doe <HI>Ezra</HI> 4. 1, 2. help you to build, and &s;eek God as you doe, if perhaps in all things they &s;hall not come up to clo&s;e with every particular with you, yet they will be quiet, will not oppo&s;e or hinder you: I hope you will doe by the&s;e as <HI>Here|kiah</HI> did by them that were not clean&s;ed, and did eat the Pa&s;&s;e|over otherwi&s;e then was written, 2 <HI>Chron.</HI> 30. 18. he prayed for them, the Lord pardon the~ that prepare their heart to &s;eek the Lord, &amp;c. <HI>ver.</HI> 19. and <HI>ver.</HI> 22. he &s;pake comfortably to the Levites, &amp;c. Not that I would have a toleration of practice for any error, but a tender u&s;age and re&s;pect to &s;uch, of whom we cannot &s;ay, they will not, but for want rather of a cleerer di&s;covery, have not, doe not &s;ee what for the future perhaps they may a&s;&s;ent unto: It &s;hall be your glory to recover and gaine &s;uch as the&s;e with love and the &s;pirit of meekne&s;s, rather then to ca&s;t them out <NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">&mdash;<HI>Peragit tranquilla po|testas quod vi|olenta nequit, mandataque fortius urget Imperio&s;a qui|es,</HI>&mdash;Claud. Paneg. <HI>Adhibenda e&s;t moderatio, quae &s;anabilia inge|ma distingucre a deploratis &s;cia,</HI> Sen de Clem. 1.</NOTE>.</P>
<PB N="30" REF="20">
<P>Secondly, if upon due &s;earch made and cognizance had, you find that the Fountaine is become bitter, like the water of Marah, <HI>Exod.</HI> 15. 23. if there be <HI>mors in olla,</HI> as there was in that pot which was &s;et on for the &s;onnes of the Prophets, 2 <HI>Kings</HI> 4. 38, 40. if it be found that the &s;alt of the earth be un&s;avoury, <HI>Matth.</HI> 5. 13. if the light be extingui&s;hed; if it be &s;o that the Garden be overgrowne with Nettles and Bram|bles, and Weeds <NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg"><LG>
<L><HI>Infoelix lolium, &amp; &s;teriles dominantur avenae,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Pro molli viola, ac purpureo narci&s;&s;o</HI></L>
<L><HI>Carduus, &amp; &s;pinis &s;urgit palinurus acutis.</HI></L>
<L>Virgil.</L>
</LG></NOTE>, and Thornes.</P>
<P>If <NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg"><P>Whither that of <HI>Fr. Petrach</HI> concerning <HI>Rome,</HI> may not in &s;ome &s;ort be true here let others judge.</P>
<LG>
<L><HI>Errorum ludus, &s;ectarum nobile templum</HI></L>
<L><HI>Roma quidem fueras, nunc es Babylonia fallax,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Ex qua tot luctus, gemitu&s;que feruntur in orbem,</HI></L>
<L><HI>O fraudum mater, carcer teterrimus irae,</HI></L>
<L><HI>Carnificina boni, &s;ed iniqui &s;edula nutrix.</HI></L>
</LG></NOTE> it be found that &s;he which &s;hould have been a mother, hath proved a &s;tep-dame; if that which &s;hould have been a nur&s;ery of holine&s;&s;e and Religion, be found a &s;inke of pro|phane&s;&s;e; if that place which &s;hould have been a mint of the precious coyne, that &s;hould pa&s;&s;e currant every where without controll or contradiction, be found to be a forge of counterfeit coyne and fal&s;hoods, again&s;t God and the Parlia|ment; if that which &s;hould have been a <HI>Go&s;hen</HI> be found an <HI>Aegypt</HI> rather; if that which &s;hould have been as <HI>Zion</HI> be a <HI>So|dome,</HI> and that which &s;hould have been as <HI>Jeru&s;alem</HI> be a <HI>Baby|lon,</HI> then I know every one will &s;ay, you had need be&s;tir your &s;elves here above all other places what&s;oever.</P>
<P>But what is here to be done? I dare appeale to prudentiall
<PB N="31" REF="20"> men among our adver&s;aries: Put the ca&s;e the Parliament had po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ed <HI>Oxford,</HI> and the Divines which adhered to that had &s;heltred them&s;elves there, and were in all tho&s;e places of maintainance and tru&s;t which they have which are oppo&s;ite to the Parliament and their cau&s;e: had the King prevailed and taken the place, as now you have done, I appeale to any impartiall men, what would they have done? you may if you plea&s;e make that good, the children of this world are wi&s;er in their generation then the children of light; I doe beleeve it &s;hould never have come into debate, whither you or any that have eminently engaged for and with you, &s;hould have compounded for e&s;tates; it may be you would have thought it happine&s;&s;e and favour enough to have redeemed your lives. The&s;e things being premi&s;ed, and there be truth in the&s;e &s;up|po&s;itions, then I think you need not have any one to tell you what to doe; never any did begin a plantation among weeds and brambles.</P>
<P>But it will be &s;aid, the&s;e be men of excellent parts and accu|rate learning; what &s;hall we doe with them? I an&s;wer, as one &s;ayes of the Je&s;uits, <HI>quo meliores e&ograve; deteriores,</HI> concerning whom I &s;ay further, as <HI>Age&s;ilaus</HI> did of his adver&s;ary <HI>Farnaba|&s;us, talis cum &s;is, utinam no&s;ter e&s;&s;es:</HI> I could wi&s;h for my owne part that all wayes were u&s;ed to gaine them, if it might be; and I could wi&s;h heartily that the Univer&s;ity had been con|quered as well as the Garri&s;on, and Chri&s;t had captivated learning, as our Army did the Militia, and that the <HI>Militia togata</HI> as well as <HI>armata,</HI> (I could wi&s;h they had been di&s;tingui|&s;hed) had yeelded up it &s;elfe to God and you: Put the ca&s;e they have been never &s;o bad, and have appeared never &s;o much again&s;t you, yet if they &s;hall doe as <HI>Benbadads</HI> &s;ervants did to the King of <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> who &s;aid, <HI>Behold we have heard that the Kings of I&s;rael are mercifull Kings,</HI> and they put <NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">&mdash;Igno&s;|cere pulchrut iam mi&s;ero, pae|naeque genus vidi&s;&s;e precan tem, <HI>Claud.</HI></NOTE> &s;ack-cloath on their loynes and ropes on their heads, and &s;o they came to him, 1 <HI>Kings</HI> 20. 30, 31, 32. if tho&s;e that have publi&s;hed you Re|bels in the Pre&s;&s;e, and preached you Rebels in the Pulpit, and di&s;cour&s;ed you Rebels in their conference, and fought again&s;t you as Rebels, in the Field, yet if they &s;hall doe as <HI>Benba|dads</HI>
<PB N="32" REF="21"> &s;ervants did, I &s;uppo&s;e you would let them know, you are &s;uch ab&s;olute conquerours of your &s;elves, that you can and will pardon &s;uch; and likewi&s;e be&s;tow (where no reward is due, but the mo&s;t extreame puni&s;hment) favours and bene|volence. I doe beleeve that many of them will never put you to it, to turne them out, if you would hire them to keep their preferments with great rewards, upon your termes, they would not doe it; nay, rather then u&s;e the Directory, take the Covenant, &s;ubmit to the Di&s;cipline, &s;toop to Parliamen|tary power, promote your de&s;ignes, engage in your way of reformation, all which are contrary to their principles (un|le&s;&s;e your conque&s;ts have had the like effect which <HI>Peters</HI> Ser|mon had, or that God hath wrought upon them) they will &s;uffer very much, rather then goe again&s;t their con&s;ciences, in &s;ubmitting to that which they cannot &s;ub&s;cribe to.</P>
<P>In the third place, I hope you will have an extraordinary care in the placing of fit men in the Univer&s;ity: There be three &s;orts of men you are to look after: Fir&s;t, profe&s;&s;ors of languages and &s;ciences: Secondly, Governours of hou&s;es: Thirdly, Fellowes and Schollers. As for the fir&s;t, if <HI>England</HI> cannot furni&s;h you, I hope <HI>Europe</HI> will; for if there be one better then another, let him be the man, whatever it co&s;t: the&s;e are fathers in the faculty, and progagate the &s;ciences; they have the ward&s;hip of learning committed to them: the&s;e Fathers of the Arts if they have not drawne in the ma&s;culine vigour and life of the Mu&s;es, they beget but a weak and di&s;|ea&s;ed i&s;&s;ue: It is here as with naturall Parents, &s;trong and able Parents have like Progeny <NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg"><HI>Quanta per|vicacia in ho|&s;tem, tanta be|neficentia ad|ver&s;us &s;uppli|ces utendum</HI> Tac. Ann. 12.</NOTE>; be&s;ides, he that undertakes <NOTE PLACE="marg">g <HI>Fortes crean|tur fortibus, &amp; bonis; e&s;t in juvencis; e&s;t in equis patrum virtus, nec im|bellom feroces Progenerant a|quila colum|baus,</HI> Hor. l. 4. od. 4.</NOTE> &s;uch places upon a &s;mall and weak foundation, it is as if he &s;hould traver&s;e the Ocean in a Cock-boat, &s;uch run a hazard from the Haven, and are like to prove famous onely by their errours and delinquencies.</P>
<P>The &s;econd &s;ort that we are to &s;peak of, is Governours of hou&s;es, of whom there ought to be had by &s;o much the greater care, by how much the greater influence they are like to have, and impre&s;&s;ion on others, what the Apo&s;tle &s;peaks of &s;uch as are to be <GAP LANG="grc" DESC="foreign" RESP="OXF"> in Scripture,
<PB N="33" REF="21"> &s;hould be found in &s;uch as are to be heads of Hou&s;es; men exemplary in holine&s;&s;e and grace, who&s;e life (as one &s;peaks of the life of a Prince) &s;hould be <NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">Pan. Troj.</NOTE> <HI>cen&s;ura publica,</HI> as a publick &s;ta~dard, le&s;t haply if they come to be engaged in an er|ror or &s;infull cour&s;e, <NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">Sen. cont. 1.</NOTE> <HI>imitatio alienae oulpae</HI> be counted <HI>innocentia:</HI> the deformities &amp; infirmities of &s;uch as we love &amp; honour, &s;o often are doted on, and made patternes of our imitation: Men <NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">&mdash;Ama|torem quod a|micae tur pia deciplunt cae|cum vitia, aut etiam ip&s;a de|lectant vetuti Balbinum Po|ly pus agnae. Hor. Serm. l. 1. Sat. 3.</NOTE> of &s;ingular &s;elf-deniall, and of a &s;trict conver&s;ation, are the fitte&s;t for &s;uch places: that which <HI>Cicero</HI> notes as an errour in <HI>Cato</HI> the &s;econd, when he writes to his friend <HI>Atticus,</HI> I take as a vertue required in a Governour; <HI>Cato optime &s;entit</HI> (&s;ayes he) <HI>&s;ed nocet interdum Reip. loquitur enim tanquam in Rep. Platonis, non tanqua~ in faece Romuli.</HI> There is in &s;ome an eminent &s;uitablene&s;&s;e of &s;pirit, a notable frame of heart fitting a man for government; this is of great concernment; and although perhaps there may be wanting &s;ome perfections and accompli&s;hments which others have, yet there may be enough in the&s;e, thus qualified as I have &s;poken, to doe the work. It was &s;aid by <HI>Themistocles</HI> being asked to touch a Lute, that he could not fiddle, but he could make a &s;mall Towne, a great State: what he &s;pake ar|rogantly of him&s;elfe, may be truly &s;aid of the&s;e, that though they cannot fiddle, yet (through the ble&s;&s;ing of God) they, of a place infamous for the pre&s;ent, may make a glorious Uni|ver&s;ity. There is an Academicall genius which animates &s;ome men, and &s;uch will live be&s;t in that element which is mo&s;t na|turall: Perhaps &s;ome may be thought on that are of excel|lent parts, and fit for honourable employments, who may be thought to put downe others; yet as it was noted of <HI>Philip</HI> King of <HI>Macedon,</HI> that he would needs undertake to correct a curious Mu&s;ician in his art; but he was an&s;wered by him, God forbid that your fortune &s;hould be &s;o bad, as to know the&s;e things better then I: This may be &s;aid in this ca&s;e; &s;ome men have &s;erved &s;everall apprenti&s;hips in the Univer&s;ity, and of ne|ce&s;&s;ity have been engaged in the &s;tudies of the Arts, and &s;uch kind of learning; and have been engaged in a way of employ|ment which may be counted below the education of &s;uch who&s;e fortunes have afforded a &s;ub&s;i&s;tence otherwayes, and &s;o
<PB N="34" REF="22"> by this means are brought into a capacity and fitne&s;&s;e for that place which is not proper for another. Let them be men of gravity and autho|rity, <NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">In that que&s;tion an <HI>Juvenes in numerum conciliario|rum principis cooptandi &s;int?</HI> the &s;ame that is &s;aid again&s;t them will hold good here. Vid. Tiraq de jure primig. praef. n. 9 1. Bodin de Rep. l. 3. c. 1. <HI>Non po&s;&s;unt (inquit) u|venes in concione Pop. quae utiba &s;unt ac iusta, per&s;uadere: nec &s;enibus, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters">ec iuvenibus probantur, al eri enim idae a|tis &s;e illis aequales, alteri &s;apientia &s;uperiores arbitrantur.</HI> Pet. Gregor. l. 24. de Rep. c. <HI>expedit omnino iuxta an|no&s;as arbores plantas novas in &s;erere, &amp;c.</HI></NOTE> who&s;e experience and yeers, together with their wi&s;e and &s;ober carri|age puts a maje&s;ty on go|vernment, and &s;trikes an awe and re&s;pect in others to reverence and honour the place for the Per&s;ons &s;ake. Let them be &s;uch who &s;hall be able and meet, and will re&s;olve to beare the burden and heat of the day, and who &s;hall in their owne per&s;ons, not by proxies or deputation, di&s;charge the duty of the place they &s;hall be called unto.</P>
<P>The third &s;ort, which are Scholers and fellows of hou&s;es, to be cho&s;en to places, I may &s;pare my paines concerning them; yet I hope you will take &s;peciall care that &s;uch places as here|tofore were, may not be vendible things; but that parts and and learning may be the onely friends to plead for &s;uch pla|ces. What was &s;aid of <NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg"><HI>Vendit</HI> A|lexander <HI>cla|ves, altaria, Chri&s;tu~; Eme|rat ille prius, vendere iure pote&s;t. Vid.</HI> Ideam reformand. Antichri&s;t. <HI>Vid.</HI> Busbaq. Ep. 1.</NOTE> <HI>Alexander</HI> the &s;ixt, may be too truly &s;aid of &s;ome in places of government: Welfare the Turks, who&s;e cu&s;tome it is to preferre none but &s;uch who&s;e parts and endowments have advanced them above others. I might here take occa&s;ion to repre&s;ent the many defects and indeed di&s;or|ders that are in Grammer-Schooles: Fir&s;t, in regard all are taken into Schooles without any re&s;pect to the capacity, or to future employments, whence many inconveniences doe ari&s;e: Secondly, many that are &s;et to be Ma&s;ters and Teach|ers of others, doe not onely want skill in the Languages, but al&s;o that genius and dexterity whereby they &s;hould have a &s;utablene&s;&s;e to the forming of that <HI>ulum &amp; molle lutum</HI> which is in children; there is great cunning in fitting the &s;eed to the &s;oyle: Thirdly, the anticipation and preoccupating of time; many will venture to goe before they can &s;tand, and to the Univer&s;ity they mu&s;t goe, whereas it were fitter for them to be under the <HI>ferula.</HI> What an ab&s;urd thing is it to come to
<PB N="35" REF="22"> the Univer&s;ity to con&s;true Logick with the help of a Dictio|nary: we feele the mi&s;erable effect of the&s;e things, and I might &s;et downe much more, but that I hope you will have all the grievances in this kind pre&s;ented to you from the hands of them that have better skill.</P>
<P>Your third care mu&s;t be concerning the pre&s;ent and future peace of the Church, which depends much upon the corre&s;|pondence of judgement and opinion among them which &s;hall be placed in the Univer&s;ity; for if that prove a Seminary of divi&s;ion, and a &s;eed plot of &s;chi&s;me and contention, it will not end where it began, but as water from a Fountaine dif|fu&s;eth, and &s;parkles from a common fire &s;catter, &s;o will it be here: Of what &s;ad con&s;equence had it like to have proved, the divi&s;ion betwixt Doctor <HI>Whitaker regius</HI> profe&s;&s;or in <HI>Cambridge,</HI> and <HI>Petrus Baro Margaret</HI> profe&s;&s;or; they going con|trary one to the other in &s;ome great poynts of di|vinity: <NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">1 <HI>De ami&s;&s;ione gratiae.</HI> 2 <HI>De certitudine &s;alutis.</HI></NOTE> <HI>Baro</HI> affirming, and <HI>Whitaker</HI> denying? by meanes of which, one &s;ayes there was great di|&s;traction among the &s;cho|lers in the Univer&s;ity <NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg"><HI>Profe&s;&s;orum di&s;putatio (ut &s;olet) inventutem diu <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 word"> partes traxit, &amp;c.</HI> Manu&s;cript lat. hac de re.</NOTE>: what mi&s;erable confu&s;ion and di&s;traction did the contention breed in Chri|&s;tendome, which aro&s;e from <HI>Arminius</HI> profe&s;&s;or at <HI>Leyden,</HI> who was oppo&s;ed by <HI>Franci&s;cut Gomarus,</HI> in that grand controver&s;ie co~cerning the ab&s;olute Decree <NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg"><HI>Arminius tenuit, Deum non ab&s;olute quo&s;dam homines, ex &s;olo beneplacito &s;uo, &s;ed po&s;t lap&s;um, iterum per fidem in Christum credentes ad aeternam beatitudinem ordina&s;&s;e; &s;i|militer de Reprobatione, nem nem ab&s;olute, &s;ed ob infideli|tatem Reprob sic deo prateritos &amp; aternis poenis de&s;tin a|tos:</HI> Gomarus <HI>pro &s;ententia contraria disputationem in|&s;tituit:</HI> Vid. <GAP LANG="grc" DESC="foreign" RESP="OXF"> di&s;&s;ect. Belgii per Solom. Theo|dotum.</NOTE>? Of what ill con|&s;equence was that difference between <HI>Epiphanius</HI> Bi&s;hop of <HI>Cy|prus,</HI> and <HI>Johan. Chry&s;astomus,</HI> concerning the Books of <HI>Origen;</HI> the former condemning of them, and the latter appoving them? tho&s;e that loved neither of them, made u&s;e of the&s;e coales between them, to &s;et on fire the Church of God: The&s;e two famous and renowned Fathers fell into bitter language one again&s;t another, and meeting one another, <HI>Epiphanius</HI> &s;aid
<PB N="36" REF="23"> <HI>Chry&s;o&s;tome, &s;pero be minime moriturum epi&s;copum, Johannes:</HI> And <HI>Johannes Chry&s;o&s;t.</HI> to him againe, <HI>&s;pero te minime ad eccle&s;iam tuam rediturum:</HI> Both the&s;e pa&s;&s;ionate &s;peeches proved true in the event <NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">Eccle&s;. vetus. Nov. edit. cura Abrah. Sculteti. O|rat. 4.</NOTE>. How all &s;orts of people &s;uffer many times in the dif|ferences of learned men, we are able to &s;peak, and Eccle&s;ia&s;ti|call &s;tory fully repre&s;ents <NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg">Videl. l. 3. c. 2. de prudentia vet. eccle&s;.</NOTE>. I could al&s;o relate divers particu|lars in the Univer&s;ity of <HI>Oxford</HI> to this purpo&s;e, when tho&s;e fancies and opinions of the Arminians, Socinians, Pelagians, Semipelagians, Papi&s;ts, &amp;c. began to gather &s;trength among us: it may be in le&s;&s;er differences (as <NOTE N="s" PLACE="marg"><HI>Ut in fidibus ac tibiis atque cantu ip&s;o ac vocibus con|centus e&s;t quidam tenendus, &amp;c.</HI> l. 2. de civit. Dei.</NOTE> <HI>Austin</HI> &s;peaks of di&s;&s;ona~cy in the &s;trings of an in&s;tru|ment, there may be har|mony: and as <HI>Junius</HI> ob|&s;erves, there may be &s;ome good come from <NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">Jun. orat. 7. de colleg. concord. <HI>ut ho&s;tis muris &s;em|per imminens facit ut circum&s;pecta &amp; &s;olicita civitas sit, sic &s;ententiarum diversitate fit, ut nihil agatur dicaturque temere, &amp;c.</HI> Camerar. l. 3. c. 6. Hor. Sub&s;eciv.</NOTE> them; yet in the&s;e greater points of controver&s;ie, common|ly there be the &s;adde&s;t effects: and therefore I hope it &s;hall be your care to place &s;uch there who &s;hall be of one mind, and walke by the &s;ame rule as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes, <HI>Phil.</HI> 3. 16.</P>
<P>4ly. let it be your &s;peciall care that all due encouragements to learning be continued, and what are wanting may be &s;up|plyed: It hath been a reproach (and it is well it is a reproach) ca&s;t on the Parliament, that you are no friends to the Mu&s;es: What <HI>Saul</HI> &s;aid 1 <HI>Sam. 22. 7. Will the Son of Je&s;&s;e give every one of you Fields and Vineyard, &amp;c.</HI> hath in like manner been &s;aid of you: will the Parliament make you Bi&s;hops and Deanes, &amp;c. It is confe&s;&s;ed they will not; but they &s;hall doe better if they take their revenues, and di&s;po&s;e of them &s;o as to &s;upply the defects and wants of many, which heretofore did maintaine the lu&s;t and pride of one or few: The Lord him&s;elfe hath had a great care of pre&s;erving Learning and the Arts, in re|gard he hath couched all kind of learning in the bowels of
<PB N="37" REF="23"> Scripture: He hath al&s;o &s;till in his providence, rai&s;ed up &s;ome or other to maintaine and &s;upport it, when it hath been mo&s;t violently a&s;&s;aulted. Be&s;ides, we find that there is a neere affi|nity betwixt learning and Religion; hence it is that &s;till the Libraries and Churches joyned neer together; the very Hea|thens did ob&s;erve &s;o much: As in <HI>Rome,</HI> the Library in the Ca|pitoll, and <HI>Augustus</HI> Library neer the Temple of <HI>Apollo:</HI> So <HI>Trajan</HI> and <HI>Domitian</HI> did the like, and &s;o have Chri&s;tian Supe|riours; the rea&s;on is given, <HI>quad Religionem fine libris non con&s;er|vari putarunt</HI> <NOTE N="v" PLACE="marg"><HI>De legibus</HI> Con&s;tant. Baldwin. Socrat. l. 7. c. 25. Eu&s;eb. in vita <HI>Con&s;tantin.</HI> l. 1. c. 35.</NOTE>: <HI>Constantine, Theodo&s;ins,</HI> &amp;c. have been eminent examples in this kind, for advancing and favouring both learning and Religion.</P>
<P>Fifthly, I hope you will endeavour to &s;ettle a faithfull, able godly Mini&s;try in that place, and there is as much cau&s;e as in any place (I doe beleeve) in <HI>England;</HI> for that place which hath or &s;hould have bin a <HI>Go&s;hen</HI> for light, hath had Aegyptian dark|ne&s;&s;e in it, ignorance of Chri&s;t in the mid&s;t of the Schooles of the Prophets; the very &s;alt-pit hath proved un&s;avoury in a great mea&s;ure; the eye hath been blood&s;hot or dark, or affe|cted with ill humours; the brea&s;ts have had little or no milk; there htth been a Wilderne&s;&s;e in that Garden, and drought in the mid&s;t of plenty; there is &s;carcely more rudene&s;&s;e, igno|rance &amp; barbari&s;me in the Kingdome then in that very place: I need not &s;pend much time in this, for you have begun that work already, and I doe not doubt but it will be your care to promote and continue it; &s;o by this meanes I hope it &s;hall be &s;aid as it is <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 54. 1, 2, &amp;c. <HI>Sing O barren thou that did&s;t not bear; break forth into &s;inging, and cry aloud thou that did&s;t not travell with child, for more are the children of the de&s;olate then the children of the married wife; enlarge the place of thy Tent, &amp;c.</HI> By your care (I hope) the Wilderne&s;&s;e and the &s;olitary places &s;hall be glad, and the de&s;ert &s;hall rejoyce and blo&s;&s;ome as the Ro&s;e; it &s;hall blo&s;&s;ome abundantly and rejoyce even with joy and &s;ing|ing; and the glory of <HI>Lebanon</HI> &s;hall be given unto It, the ex|cellency of <HI>Carmel</HI> and <HI>Sharon.</HI> &amp;c. <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 3. 1, 2. I hope as it fol|lowes, <HI>ver.</HI> 5, 6, 7, &amp;c. that it &s;hall be fulfilled, <HI>The eyes of the blind &s;hall be opened, and the eares of the deaf &s;hall be un&s;topped, and</HI>
<PB N="38" REF="24"> <HI>the lame man &s;hall leap as an Hart, and the tongue of the dumb &s;hall &s;ing, for in the Wilderne&s;&s;e &s;hall waters break out, and &s;treames in the de&s;ert, &amp;c.</HI> I hope the Lord will &s;ay to that place as it is <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 54. 11, 12, &amp;c. <HI>Behold, I will lay thy foundations with Saphires, and I will make thy windowes of Agates, and thy gates of Carbuncles, and all thy borders plea&s;ant &s;tones, and all thy children &s;hall be taught of God, &amp;c.</HI> I hope that the prophe&s;ie, <HI>Ezek.</HI> 47. 1, 2, 3, &amp;c. &s;hall have its accompli&s;hment in a great mea&s;ure there, and that the wa|ters &s;hall flow from thence, &s;hall ri&s;e up to the neck, and that every thing which liveth and moveth in tho&s;e waters &s;hall live, <HI>ver&s;e</HI> 9. and that all trees &s;hall be planted by tho&s;e wa|ters, which &s;hall bring forth their fruit in &s;ea&s;on, <HI>ver&s;e</HI> 12. If it be your care (as I hope it will) thus to lay out your in|tere&s;ts and paines in this place, as I have pre&s;ented to you, it &s;hall be your crowne and comfort, and po&s;terity I hope &s;hall have cau&s;e to &s;ay, as it is <HI>I&s;a. 25. 1. O Lord thou art my God, I will exalt thee, I will pray&s;e thy name, for thou ha&s;t done won|derfull things.</HI></P>
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<OPENER><DATE><HI>Die Mercurii 22. Julii</HI> 1646.</DATE></OPENER>
<P>ORdered by the Commons a&s;&s;embled in Parliament, that Ma&s;ter <HI>Henry Herbert</HI> doe from this Hou&s;e give thankes unto Ma&s;ter <HI>Wilkin&s;on</HI> for the great paines he tooke in the Sermon he preached ye&s;terday at the entreaty of this Hou&s;e at St. <HI>Margarets We&s;t|min&s;ter,</HI> (it being the day of publique thank&s;|giving) and to de&s;ire him to print his Sermon; and he is to have the like priviledge in prin|ting of it as others in the like kind u&s;ually have had.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>H. El&s;ynge Cler. Parl. D. Com.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
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