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<DATE>2014-02-20</DATE>
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<NAME>Anne Simpson</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
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*Observe divtop and divbottom material marking beginnings and ends of divisions, check that they are correctly tagged as HEAD, CLOSER, OPENER, ARGUMENT, EPIGRAPH, SIGNED, DATELINE, BYLINE, etc. X*Check for GAPs X*Check PB placement and completeness, ensure sequence of N="" x*Check ^, italic I / J, _Initals, space between &amp;c. x*Check for illustrations and correct usage of FIGURE. Add FIGDESCs if necessary. x*Check q; startq endq Q, Marginal quotations: Q REND="margQuotes" x*If appropriate, check for yoghs. x*If appropriate, check for Latin problems, e.g. oe and ae digraphs x*If appropriate, check for abbreviation and brevigraph problems. Brevigraph entities begin: (ampersand symbol)ab x*If appropriate, check for units of measure, symbols (alchemical, astronomical, etc.) and the like.
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<TEXT LANG="eng">
<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P>A SERMON PREACHED BEFORE HIS MAIESTIE AT THE COVRT AT GREENEWICH the 2. of IVLY. 1632.</P>
<P>BY GEO: IAY M^r^. OF ARTS AND LATE STV|DENT OF CHRIST-CHVRCH in OXON.</P>
<P>Imprinted at London by <HI>Au|gu&s;tine Mathewes.</HI> 1632.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="dedication">
<PB REF="2">
<PB REF="2">
<HEAD>TO THE RIGHT HONORABLE, THE COVNTESSE OF DENBEIGH, LADY OF HER MAIESTIES Bed-chamber, and Mi&s;tri&s;&s;e of her Robes.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>RIGHT HONORABLE,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>_SOme that have conceiv'd better of this then I can at the hearing (though it received little advantage by my delivery) thought it worthy to be publi&s;hed, to which when I was per&s;waded, I did not much &s;tudy to whom I &s;hould dedicate it. For to whom &s;hould I pre&s;ent my &s;ervice in this kind, but to her, who of all others hath given &s;o many notable examples of religion, and &s;o
<PB REF="3">much cheri&s;ht the profe&s;&s;ors of it, and my &s;elfe among&s;t the re&s;t. Religion and lear|ning in the&s;e latter dayes never found a greater Patrone&s;&s;e. You have beene the good Angell that when the waters were troubled have helpt the di&s;tre&s;&s;ed into the poole.
<NOTE PLACE="marg">Iohn 5.2.</NOTE> The grapes in Babell &s;ent upon a time to the Vine leaves in Iudaea de&s;iring their &s;hadow, lea&s;t they were parcht with the heate:
<NOTE PLACE="marg">Talmud Cholm. 62.1</NOTE> Our &s;uccorle&s;&s;e clu&s;ters need not &s;end &s;o farre for protection, did your branches &s;pread (under which the bea&s;ts of the field,
<NOTE PLACE="marg">Dan. 4.12.</NOTE> and the foules of heaven had their habitations) as heeretofore when the great Duke (my gratious Ma&s;ter for a moment) your illu&s;trious brother lived.
<NOTE PLACE="marg">During the intended expedition to Rochell.</NOTE> were your power as great as then, or as your di&s;po&s;ition is good, my hopes would live though his excellency and my noble Lord of Angle&s;ey, (whom I &s;hall ever name with honour and &s;orrow) are dead. And I make no que&s;tion but that J &s;hould only finde an exchange, not a lo&s;&s;e, and at la&s;t
<PB REF="3">a happy &s;ucce&s;&s;e of tho&s;e many gratious re|ferences, from his &s;acred Maje&s;tie (whom God pre&s;erve) for which I &s;hall ever thinke my &s;elfe bound to thanke your Ho|nour and your noble kin&s;eman Ma&s;ter <HI>Porter.</HI></P>
<P>How can I conceive otherwi&s;e &s;ince your Honour lately without reque&s;t free|ly, and voluntarily offered me preferment of your owne, untill you could procure mee better. I pre&s;ume you de&s;ire not to have this publi&s;ht,
<NOTE PLACE="marg">Math. 9.30.</NOTE> yet our Saviour that char|ged the two blinde men that they &s;hould tell no man,
<NOTE PLACE="marg">Luke 17.18.</NOTE> did not mi&s;like the turning backe of the thankefull &s;tranger: &s;hould I conceale it, I &s;hould not doe right to your &s;weete and noble di&s;po&s;ition, and leave in in &s;ome (it may be) a &s;u&s;pition of my un|thankefulne&s;&s;e: For which pious expre&s;|&s;ion of your favour unto me, as al&s;o your many precedent (be&s;ides the reward which &s;uch works of charity carry with the~) your Lady&s;hip &s;hall ever have my prayers and
<PB REF="4">thankes, and as the humble acknowledge|ment of my obligation to your Honour, &s;o any future &s;ervice when you &s;hall plea&s;e to de&s;cend &s;o low as to command it from</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Your Honours humble bead&s;-man to di&s;po&s;e of GEO: IAY.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="sermon">
<PB N="1" REF="4">
<HEAD>A SERMON PREACHED AT THE COVRT.</HEAD>
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>REVEL. 2.10.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Be thou faithfull unto Death, and I will giue thee a Crowne of life.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>_GOd is the be&s;t Payma&s;ter, he that labours in his Vineyard &s;hall be &s;ure of his hire though he comes at the la&s;t houre, <HI>Math.</HI> 20.9. They that doubled their ta|lents in the Go&s;pell received not verball but reall rewards, <HI>Math.</HI> 25.20. And a cup of cold water given in his name &s;hall not be un|paid for, <HI>Math.</HI> 10.42. And the faith of the thiefe upon the Cro&s;&s;e at the la&s;t ga&s;pe &s;hall bee recompenced with a place in Paradi&s;e,
<PB N="2" REF="5"><HI>Luk.</HI> 23.43. If <HI>Abraham</HI> will walke before God, and bee perfect, hee will make a cove|nant with him, and ble&s;&s;e him exceedingly, <HI>Gen.</HI> 17.1.2. Gods reward and mans &s;ervice are Relatiues: <HI>Po&s;ito vno, ponitur &amp; alterum,</HI> Say the one, and you cannot deny the other. If our obedience preceede, his ble&s;sings will follow, if one bee in the premi&s;es, the other will be in the conclu&s;ion; if we come before his pre&s;ence with prai&s;e, and thanke&s;giving, and &s;hew our &s;elues glad in him with <HI>P&s;almes,</HI> he will be mercifull unto us, and ble&s;&s;e us, and &s;hew us the light of his countenance, and be mercifull unto us; <HI>Fac hoc, &amp; viues,</HI> Doe this and thou art &s;ure of life everla&s;ting, <HI>Luk.</HI> 10.28. Sure to eate of the Tree of life, as in the &s;eventh ver&s;e of this chapter, &s;ure not to be hurt of the &s;econd death, as in the eleaventh ver&s;e, and according to my Text, <HI>E&s;to fidelis,</HI> and <HI>Corona vitae</HI> will follow, it is God that &s;aies it. <HI>Be thou faithfull, &amp;c.</HI></P>
<P>Which words you are to under&s;tand as &s;poken by Chri&s;t Ie&s;us the head to every faithfull member of his Church, to whom he propo&s;eth a duetie to be performed, Faith|fulne&s;&s;e unto death, and a reward to bee re|ceived, a crowne of life.</P>
<P>So as the divi&s;ion is ea&s;ie, a duetie, and a promi&s;e. In the duety I ob&s;erue two things. Fir&s;t the &s;ub&s;tance, or matter of it, Faithful|ne&s;&s;e, wee mu&s;t bee faithfull. Secondly the
<PB N="3" REF="5">Determination, Extent or Mea&s;ure of it, un|till Death.</P>
<P>In the Promi&s;e, I al&s;o ob&s;erue two things. Fir&s;t the reward it &s;elfe, a Crowne, I will giue thee a Crowne. Secondly the &s;pecification, or quality of the Reward, an immortall Crowne, I will giue thee a Crowne of life.</P>
<DIV2 TYPE="part">
<HEAD>Be thou faithfull, &amp;c.</HEAD>
<P>I beginne with the fir&s;t part, our &s;ervice: And good rea&s;on our &s;ervice &s;hould goe be|fore the Reward to our &s;ervice. Therefore fir&s;t we are to be faithfull. <HI>Be thou faithfull un|to Death, &amp;c.</HI></P>
<P>And I will proceed according to the or|der of nature, and con&s;ider fir&s;t the &s;ub&s;tance of faithfulne&s;&s;e, and then the continuance. And then I &s;hall tell you by this word faith|fulne&s;&s;e, wee are not to under&s;tand that habit of the &s;oule, whereby wee apprehend, and lay hold upon the mercy and favour of God in our regeneration, and fir&s;t conver&s;ion, which the &s;cripture cals faith, and whereby wee beleeue, and yeeld a&s;&s;ent unto all the articles of our Chri&s;tian doctrine, which is the roote and fountaine of all Chri&s;tian du|ties. But we are to conceiue it of that faith|fulne&s;&s;e which &s;prings as an effect or fruite from that roote, and includes a iu&s;t di&s;charge of tho&s;e duties which God requires at our hands: As al&s;o an vniver&s;all obedience to all
<PB N="4" REF="6">his Commandements. You know that wee are all Stewards unto the great Lord of hea|ven, and &s;ent into the earth to trafficke and negotiate with tho&s;e talents which hee hath committed to every one of us in our &s;everall places. Now &s;aith Saint <HI>Paul</HI> in the 1. <HI>Cor.</HI> 4. that it is required in a Steward, that hee bee found faithfull, that is iu&s;tly, and hone&s;tly to husband, and di&s;pen&s;e tho&s;e things that are intru&s;ted to his charge, according to the will and plea&s;ure of his Lord and Ma&s;ter.</P>
<P>Now the maine rule that mu&s;t direct us in the guiding and governing of all our purpo|&s;es, behaviours, and actions mu&s;t bee the glory of God; Hee hath created all things for his owne &s;ake &s;aith <HI>Salomon, Prov.</HI> 16. that is, for his owne glory. This is the tribute that he requires of every man, this mu&s;t ari&s;e unto him out of every action; Wee are not our owne &s;aith the Apo&s;tle, wee are bought with a price,
<NOTE PLACE="marg">1. <HI>Cor.</HI> 6.20.</NOTE> therefore glorifie God in your bodies and in your &s;oules. The whole man mu&s;t bee faithfull in giving God his glory; the thoughts that we thinke they mu&s;t bee re|ligiou&s;ly, and faithfully conceived to the ho|nour of God. I will giue thankes unto God &s;ecretly among&s;t the faithfull, &s;aith the P&s;al|mi&s;t, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 111.1. And yet not onely in our thoughts &s;ecretly, but in our words openly, in the congregation, as it followeth in the end of the &s;ame ver&s;e.</P>
<PB N="5" REF="6" MS="y">
<P>And as we mu&s;t bee faithfull in glorifying him in our thoughts and words, &s;o likewi&s;e in our deeds; the light whereof mu&s;t &s;o &s;hine before men, that they &s;eeing our good works may glorifie God our Father which is in Heaven.</P>
<P>And note what a &s;trict cour&s;e the Lord hath taken for the gathering up of this tribute of his glory out of every thing. He will call us to a reckoning for our &s;ecrete&s;t cogitations: Inqui&s;ition &s;hall bee made into our very thoughts. If you &s;peake but a word that doth not &s;ome way or other tend to his glory, tis an idle word, and we mu&s;t account for idle words in the day of iudgement; if then wee doe a deed that aimes not at this end, &s;hall we thinke not to bee que&s;tioned for it? Wee mu&s;t all appeare before the iudgement &s;eate of the Lord, to giue an account of tho&s;e things that we haue done in the body. There|fore our body and our &s;oule, our thoughts, words and deeds, mu&s;t all bee ordered, and husbanded &s;o faithfully and iu&s;tly, that God may haue his due, his Honour, and his Glo|ry by it. And if wee haue beene faithfull in a little, hee will make us Rulers over much, <HI>Math.</HI> 25.23. And by way of commendation tell us, <HI>It is well done good and faithfull &s;ervants,</HI> and then bid us enter into our Ma&s;ters ioy, where wee &s;hall haue a Crowne of life, if wee haue di&s;charged our duety as much
<PB N="6" REF="7">as in us lyes, and beene obedient and faithfull unto Death. And that is my &s;econd part, the continuance, extent or mea&s;ure of our thank|fulnes, <GAP DESC="foreign"> which hath a twofold mea|ning, and may yeeld us matter of in&s;truction both wayes. For fir&s;t, <GAP DESC="foreign"> is unto death, and then it &s;ignifies &s;uch a &s;ervice, and &s;uch faithfulne&s;&s;e, as will not &s;hrinke at any affliction, or pro&s;ecution what&s;oever, but goes on couragiou&s;ly, and re&s;olutely if need be to the laying downe of our life, and con|tinues faithfull even unto death. Secondly, <GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;ignifies untill death, and then it be|tookens &s;uch a &s;ervice, and &s;uch an obedience as continues all our life long, never failes of the di&s;charge of 'its duty as long as we haue a day to liue, but continues, and goes on from day to day, from yeare to yeare, as long as we haue any being, even untill death.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t then our duty mu&s;t be &s;trong, &s;ub&s;tan|tiall, well wrought, and clo&s;e woven, and &s;uch as will not &s;hrinke, neither with the water of affliction, nor with the fire of per&s;ecution, nor be &s;haken with the winde of temptation, but indure all extremities, even death it &s;elfe. We mu&s;t be faithfull unto death: And then it mu&s;t hang upon the &s;ame threed that our life doth, and both mu&s;t runne on together, and as long as the one la&s;teth &s;o long mu&s;t the other, and our &s;ervice mu&s;t be faithfull untill death.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t then of the couragiou&s;ne&s;&s;e of our &s;er|vice
<PB N="7" REF="7">that it mu&s;t not &s;hrinke at any thing, no not at death it &s;elfe. <HI>Omne majus continet in &s;e minus,</HI> that every le&s;&s;er thing is conteyned in the greater, is a ground, and principle in na|ture, which every man knowes. If then our &s;ervice mu&s;t be faithfull unto death which is <HI>extremum malorum,</HI> the greate&s;t of evills, then it mu&s;t bee faithfull unto per&s;ecution, impri|&s;onment, lo&s;&s;e of goods, di&s;graces and repro|ches, which are but le&s;&s;er evills, even petty, and &s;light afflictions as the Apo&s;tle calleth them. My &s;onne &s;ayth <HI>Solomon</HI> when thou entre&s;t into the hou&s;e of the Lord, prepare thy Soule for temptations: and our Saviour in the 10. of <HI>Matthew</HI> &s;ayes, if any man will fol|low me, and be my Di&s;ciple, let him take up his Cro&s;&s;e, and follow me, let him deny him|&s;elfe, not make dainty of any thing he hath, no not of his life. He that will &s;ave his life &s;hall lo&s;e it, and hee that de&s;ires to have a Crowne of life, mu&s;t bee faithfull unto death.</P>
<P>The way to Heaven is not paved with the plea&s;ures of this world, nor &s;trow'd with the flowers of humane delights, but through ma|ny tribulations wee mu&s;t enter into the king|dome of Heaven, &s;ayth Saint <HI>Paul</HI> in the 14. <HI>Acts</HI> 22. And our Saviour which is our head, he hath led the way and trod the path before us, and fir&s;t wore the crowne of Thornes, be|fore he put on his Crowne of glory, hee fir&s;t
<PB N="8" REF="8" MS="y">&s;erved his Father faithfully unto death, and then was rewarded with a Crowne of life. No &s;ooner doe we enter our &s;elves into the &s;ervice of God, and put on us the livery of him that is the Father of lights, but pre&s;ently the whole kingdome of darkene&s;&s;e is up in armes again&s;t us, the Prince whereof leads the battaile, and he warrs again&s;t us with all the temptations that his malice can &s;ugge&s;t. And not content with his owne &s;trength, hee &s;tirs up the world again&s;t us, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="3 letters">ur Saviour tels his Di&s;ciples, becau&s;e you are not of the world, therefore the world will hate you; and this hatred it will &s;hew by defaming our Credit, &s;poyling us of our goods, per&s;ecuting of our bodies, yea &amp; &s;ometimes by taking away our liues too. Nay further, this &s;ubtill adver&s;a|rie of ours like a politicke Stati&s;t, will not onely warre again&s;t us with open ho&s;tilitie, but he will &s;tirr up enemies within our owne gates, and kindle a fire in our owne hou&s;e, and rai&s;e up this traiterous and rebellious fle&s;h of ours, which we nouri&s;h in our owne bo&s;omes like a fal&s;e brother to &s;educe, and entrap us; this fle&s;h perplexeth us with feares, enveigles us with hopes, allures us with baites, di&s;tracts us with cares, and torments us with paines, and v&s;eth a thou&s;and &s;leights, and fetches to make us betray our Chri&s;tian profe&s;&s;ion, and revolt from that God to whom in our bap|ti&s;me we &s;wore our alleageance to be his con|&s;tant
<PB N="9" REF="8">&s;ouldiers, to fight under his banner, and to doe him faithfull &s;ervice in &s;pight of the world, the fle&s;h, and the Devill, or all extre|mities that can betide us, whether they are the mi&s;eries of nature, the frownes of fortune, yea or the lo&s;&s;e of life, even unto death it &s;elfe. This is the vow, this is the profe&s;&s;ion, and this is the promi&s;e that wee haue made in bapti&s;me: And wee haue it &s;ealed and confir|med with the &s;igne of the Cro&s;&s;e, the &s;acred &s;igniture, and character whereof &s;tands im|printed in our foreheads to te&s;tifie to the world, that we haue made &s;uch a vow to hea|ven, and to encourage us to confront any enemy being armed with an <HI>In hoc &s;igno vin|ces,</HI> and to convince us of cowardi&s;e if wee &s;hrinke or draw backe. Our life is a Warfare, and what &s;hould a coward doe in the warres that cannot endure the aking of a finger, is hee fit to bee the &s;ouldier of that Captaine that entred not into life, but by the gates of death? Our Countrie is in heaven, and the world is but our pilgrimage, and therefore they are much deceived, &s;aith Saint <HI>Augu&s;tine, Qui quaerunt vitam in regione mortis,</HI> that &s;eeke for life and plea&s;ure in this region of mi&s;erie, and death. A heathen man could &s;ay, <HI>Non e&s;t delicata res vincere.</HI>
<NOTE PLACE="marg">Seneca.</NOTE> heere is no Pa|radi&s;e, noe heaven on earth, but in the &s;afety of a good con&s;cience. Our time of raigning
<PB N="10" REF="9">and triumphing is re&s;erved for us in heaven, this is a time of duety and &s;ervice, and &s;uch &s;ervice as mu&s;t bee couragious, and not &s;hrinke at any thing, but continue con&s;tant, and faithfull unto death. And here let us de&s;|cend every man into his owne heart, and try, &amp; examine our &s;elues how we &s;tand affected to the performance of this duety, whether we could bee content to bee Gods faithfull &s;er|vants, and &s;ticke clo&s;e to him though it were to the lo&s;&s;e of goods, or our reputation, or our friends, or our life it &s;elfe, and be faithfull unto death; And I doubt not, but that wee haue pre&s;umption enough to flatter our &s;elues &s;o farre, as to beleeue, and profe&s;&s;e, and per|haps to bragge, and vaunt that wee are ready to follow our Captaine Chri&s;t Ie&s;us whither &s;oever hee goes, though it were to the &s;hed|ding of our bloods, the &s;pending of our liues even unto death. I make no que&s;tion but that wee beleeue this of our &s;elues, and wee would make the world beleeue &s;o too. But what &s;aies Saint <HI>Iames?</HI> &s;hew me thy faith by thy workes, let the world &s;ee our profe&s;sion by our actions, and let our vaunts bee made good by a reall, and actuall performance. Wheras if a man may be bold to iudge of the tree by the fruite, and to gue&s;&s;e at the faithful|ne&s;&s;e of the heart by the action of the out|ward man, and by tho&s;e things which are
<PB N="11" REF="9">daily pre&s;ented to our eyes, I thinke wee &s;hould haue much to doe to per&s;wade any ad|vi&s;ed, and con&s;iderate man, that our faithful|ne&s;&s;e is &s;uch as would endure all extremities. And that wee would faithfully follow our Captaine if <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters">ed were unto death. Why the very cen&s;ure of lewd, and reprobate per&s;ons is enough to flout us out of our Chri&s;tian profe&s;&s;ion, and we would faine doe God that faithfull &s;ervice which our owne con&s;cience tels us we owe him, but that wee are afraid we &s;hall fall into di&s;grace with the world, and that men will account us over preci&s;e, and too religious. This is but a &s;light paine, and far enough from the heart (a man would thinke) and yet even this as &s;light as it is, kils the faithfulne&s;&s;e of many &s;tout Chri&s;tians by their owne report, and makes them revolt from their captaine and turne renegadoes, I will not &s;ay turne Turke, but which is wor&s;e, cary a Turkes heart under a Chri&s;tians live|ry. Neither hath this beene the cowardli|ne&s;&s;e of the cur&s;ed multitude onely, but even of profe&s;&s;ed leaders and eminent comman|ders, even the Scribes and Phari&s;ees, we may &s;ee it in the twelfth of <HI>Iohn.</HI> There their con|&s;ciences were &s;o plainely convinced by the power of Chri&s;ts doctrine, and miracles that their hearts could not chu&s;e but tell them that he was the Me&s;&s;ias; yet &s;aies the Text, they
<PB N="12" REF="10">could not beleeue in him, nor make profe&s;&s;i|on of him for their reputation &s;ake; becau&s;e they loved the prai&s;e of men more then the prai&s;e of God, ver&s;e 42.43. Nay, a farre le&s;&s;e matter then this &s;carres us from our faithful|ne&s;&s;e. Let our Saviour come for faithfulnes, and call us to his &s;ervice, not into the field to venter our liues, but into the Church where is no danger of life or limme (except we are afraid perhaps of breaking our knees, but we will take order again&s;t that well enough, and therefore wee will bee &s;ure not to bow them) Let him I &s;ay but call for our faithfulne&s;&s;e and &s;ervice at Church, and wee haue our &s;ports to follow, our proiects to contriue, our vi&s;its to make, our Mi&s;tre&s;&s;es to court, and they their dre&s;&s;es and faces to order, and compo&s;e for all the day after; any thing &s;hall &s;erue turne to divert us from his &s;ervice, and to deny him that faithfulne&s;&s;e which wee are bound to performe unto him, what ever came of it, though it were to the loo&s;ing of our liues, for the duety that is here inioyned is faithfulne&s;&s;e unto death; Bee thou faithfull unto death. I haue done with <GAP DESC="foreign">, unto death. I come now unto <GAP DESC="foreign"> untill death. And then it puts us in mind of the con&s;tancie of our dutie, that it mu&s;t la&s;t and continue as long as our life doth; the Spirit of God hath ioyned them both together, let none of us
<PB N="13" REF="10">be &s;o hardy as to venter and &s;under them, but let them run on both together in Gods name, and as farre as our life goes, &s;o farre let our faithfulne&s;&s;e even untill death comes. In the affaires of this life it is a &s;hame for a man to beginne an enterpri&s;e and not to goe thorow with it, every man points at him with his fin|ger, derides, and geeres him; this man began to build, and was not able to fini&s;h it.</P>
<P>In the workes of our Chri&s;tian profe&s;&s;ion, the &s;hame is greater, the danger infinite, and therefore Saint <HI>Paul</HI> befooles his Galathians when they fell from their faithfulne&s;&s;e which once they profe&s;&s;ed, hee tells them they were bewitched, or el&s;e &s;uch a thing could never have befallen them.
<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Gal.</HI> 3.1.</NOTE> O ye fooli&s;h Galathians who hath bewitched you, are yee &s;o fooli&s;h as having begunne in the Spirit to end in the fle&s;h? If a Man beginne a peece of worke, and leave it off in the middle, hee hath taken a good deale of paines to no other purpo&s;e, but to leave a Monument of his folly, and vanity to the world. Hee that hath received the common graces of God, and many good gifts of his Spirit, which have enabled him to doe much good and faithfull &s;ervice, and then takes the grace of God and turnes it into wantonne&s;&s;e, and &s;mothers and quen|cheth the Spirit, comes neere unto dangerous &s;ymptomes of a more dangerous &s;tate. When
<PB N="14" REF="11">a man is in a faire way to heaven, and hath &s;ome time walkt on religiou&s;lly and faithful|ly, till hee hath come within &s;ome &s;ence of his reward, &amp; within &s;ome view of his Crowne by common enlightnings: then to turne out of the way; and Apo&s;tate into the broade way, what is it el&s;e but to tread in a path that without repentance will leade to de&s;truction. And therefore it is &s;aid in the 6. Chap. of the Epi&s;tle to the Hebrewes, that it is impo&s;&s;ible that they which were once enlightned and have ta&s;ted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Gho&s;t if they fall away, &s;hould bee renewed againe by repen|tance, &s;eeing they crucifie to them&s;elues the Sonne of God afre&s;h, and put him to an open &s;hame. Heere I could give you many exam|ples of revolters and back&s;liders, and &s;hew you to what a height of impiety they have growne when once they have for&s;aken God and that goodne&s;&s;e they have begun to pro|fe&s;&s;e, which for brevitie &s;ake I will omit and conclude this poynt with the exhortation of the Apo&s;tle in the 3. to the <HI>Hebr.</HI> ver. 12.13. Take heed brethren lea&s;t at any time there be in any of you an evill heart, and unfaithfull to depart away from the living God, but exhort one an other daily while&s;t it is yet called to day lea&s;t any of you be hardned through the deceitfulne&s;&s;e of &s;inne, for we are made parta|kers
<PB N="15" REF="11">of Chri&s;t, if wee hold the beginning of our confidence &s;tedfa&s;t unto the end, and my Text &s;ayes, If wee continue faithfull untill death, the God of life and death will give us a Crowne of life. And thats my &s;econd ge|nerall part.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 TYPE="part">
<HEAD>The Promi&s;e.</HEAD>
<Q><L><HI>I will give thee a Crowne of Life.</HI></L>
<L>Ego dabo tibi Coronam vitae.</L></Q>
<P>And heere every word yeelds matter of ob&s;ervation. I will begin with the fir&s;t word <HI>Ego,</HI> and that is either taken <HI>eminenter</HI> by way of eminencie. And then tis I the God of heaven and earth that decke my &s;elfe with light as with a garment, that make the clouds my chariots and ride upon the wings of the winde. I will give this Crowne.</P>
<P>Great per&s;ons give great gifts: <HI>Alexander</HI> gave a talent to a begger, not con&s;idering what was fit for the other to receive, but for him to give. Heere God &s;prinkles Crownes now and then one, a few in an age all the world over, but in the next life he makes them all Kings, as it were &s;howring and rayning Crownes from his glorious head, upon his glorified members.</P>
<PB N="16" REF="12">
<P>Secondly heere is <HI>Ego exclu&s;iv&egrave;,</HI> I, by way of exclu&s;ion. And then it is I, and none but I, that give the&s;e Crownes.</P>
<P>This preferment, the&s;e Crownes come nei|ther from the Ea&s;t, nor from the We&s;t, nor from the South, but from God alone.</P>
<P>Tis not S. <HI>Peters</HI> keyes that can open the doore of that kingdome, nor unlocke the trea|&s;ury where the&s;e Crownes are layd up, he keepes the key him&s;elfe.</P>
<P>And if you will give me leave to &s;lide from Spirituall to temporall Crownes, then I &s;hall tell you that God is the di&s;po&s;er of them al&s;o. By me Kings reigne.
<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Prou.</HI> 8.15.</NOTE> As was &s;ayd of him by a wi&s;er man then any of tho&s;e that ever u&s;ur|ped that power.</P>
<P>And tis but a ridiculous intru&s;ion <HI>extr&aacute; juri&s;dictionem jus dicere.</HI> To execute the power of a Iudge where a man hath no juri&s;|diction; Or to give that which he hath not in his owne power to be&s;tow, which is none of his. This is like the folly of the mad Athe|nian that tooke all the &s;hips in the haven to be his owne, and &s;o gave them away where hee pleas'd, as if he had beene the true and right Ma&s;ter of them: Or like the divell that tooke the Sonne of God into an exceeding high mountaine, and &s;hewed him all the kingdomes of the world &amp; the glory of them, proffering all unto him if he would fall downe and wor|&s;hip
<PB N="17" REF="12">him. When all tho&s;e kingdomes, and Crownes were his Lords inheritance, and the donation of them his prerogative. And they hold them but by a fal&s;e tenure that receive them from any other <HI>Donor.</HI> God is Iudge him&s;elfe, hee putteth downe one, and &s;etteth up an other him&s;elfe, the word is not idle, hee doth it him&s;elfe &s;ayes the P&s;almi&s;t. And for this crowne it is not to bee bought as <HI>Iulianus</HI> the Emperour bought the Roman Empire, nor to be &s;old as the Papall di&s;po&s;er of king|domes doth bargaine for it. But God him|&s;elfe be&s;towes it. Hee needs no Vicar upon earth for that purpo&s;e. His hands are long enough to &s;et the Crowne upon that head that mu&s;t weare it: the words are plaine in my text, <HI>Ego Dabo. Dabo,</HI> and thats the next word which plainely &s;hewes the manner how the&s;e Crownes are convey'd unto us, we have them not by a bargaine, or &s;ale, but by a deed of gift. This Crowne is no purcha&s;e but a do|nation.</P>
<P>Wee may talke, or we may dreame, of me|riting, or earning this Crowne, but we &s;hould bee but poorely rewarded, if God &s;hould deale with us according to the proportion of our workes. Our workes at the be&s;t are &s;tai|ned with the imperfections and blemi&s;hes of our corrupted nature; &s;o that the mo&s;t that we could hope for, was pardon for their de|fect.
<PB N="18" REF="13">And for a Delinquent that &s;hould &s;ue for his pardon to claime to &s;it in the throne with his Soveraigne, were a pre&s;umption &s;o intollerable, that if wee &s;hould be guilty of it, heaven and earth would cry out &s;hame upon us, and condemne us for idiots.</P>
<P>Ther's not a word in this part of my text, but will &s;erue for an exception again&s;t that ab&s;urd claime by merit. Take <HI>Ego</HI> an offended God, and what is he bound to doe in iu&s;tice? take <HI>Dabo,</HI> and what more free and <HI>non</HI> meri|ted then gift? wee mu&s;t &s;trike out that word if wee meane to make any claime by merit. Take <HI>Tibi,</HI> and what is man but a guilty male|factor. There is &s;uch a gulfe of &s;inne, betwixt <HI>Ego</HI> and <HI>Tibi</HI> that nothing can pa&s;&s;e betweene them by way of Iu&s;tice, but puni&s;hment and vengeance.</P>
<P>Or take man at the be&s;t, &amp; he is but an offen|der reconciled to grace and favour, and recei|ved to mercy, &s;o that every word cuts the throat of merit. Or take the word <HI>Coronam,</HI> &amp; and who that hath the di&s;po&s;ing of it, will &s;et it upon the head of a Captaine? Or put the o|ther word to it, and make it <HI>Coronam vitae,</HI> and what an impudent demand were it for him to claime the Crowne of life, who all the world knowes hath de&s;erved the &s;hakles of death. They are bold attempters that dare adven|ture to breake downe all tho&s;e barres; there
<PB N="19" REF="13">is not a word here but is a fen&s;e good enough to keepe out all that would take po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion of this Crowne by way of merit. For 'tis <HI>Ego dabo tibi. Tibi.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Tibi</HI> by way of Argument I haue handled already, but yet I will not let it goe untill I haue ob&s;erved it to our comfort. <HI>Luther</HI> &s;aies well, that there is a great deale of divinity in pronouns; giue me leaue to goe a little further, and to tell you that there is a great deale of comfort in pronouns too. Not onely &s;trong divinitie to ground an argument, but &s;trong con&s;olation to comfort a weake &s;pirit. <HI>Tibi</HI> is a word of &s;ingularity, and will con|tract Gods generall promi&s;es to every man in particular, if the fault bee not his owne. God Almighties promi&s;es are like a well made picture; though there bee an hundred in the roome in divers places and po&s;tures, yet the picture &s;eemes to looke upon every one of them in particular, and wee cannot avoyd the a&s;pect of it except wee turne our eyes a&s;ide.</P>
<P><HI>Tibi,</HI> doth particularize and brings downe this Crowne upon every mans head. And indeed a particular word doth well for <HI>Coro|na.</HI> For 'tis a &s;ingle head that mu&s;t be ingirt with a Crowne. <HI>Regnum non patitur con&s;ortem,</HI> A Crowne cannot bee &s;et upon the heads of two men at once, much le&s;&s;e upon a many
<PB N="20" REF="14">headded multitude. This Crowne will fit but a &s;ingle head, 'tis <HI>Ego dabo tibi Coronam.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Corona.</HI> A Crowne is the highe&s;t honour and happine&s;&s;e upon earth, 'tis a Circle that takes in all that the earth can afford. And therefore if wee will take a re&s;emblance of the Saints glory from any thing in this world earth cannot yeeld a higher, then to call it a Crowne. He that weares the Crowne &s;wayes and commands all within the orbe of his power. But the greate&s;t Scepter-&s;wayer that this world affords, is oftentimes over&s;wayed and borne downe by his owne pa&s;&s;ions and infirmities. But when this Crowne &s;hall be &s;et upon our heads, ther's not the meane&s;t va&s;|&s;ayle but &s;hall feele more content, in having dominion, and power, and free command over him&s;elfe, then the greate&s;t Monarch ever found, in being able to moue a whole Em|pire of &s;ubiects with the breath of his mouth. A Crowne is circular, when once you are in it, you may run round without end which caries it aboue the &s;pheare of mortalitie, and makes it truely a Crowne of life, and that's my la&s;t word.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 TYPE="part">
<HEAD>Corona vitae.</HEAD>
<P>I know not whether a man may &s;afely &s;ay that this pa&s;&s;age of ours from earth to earth, from the wombe to the tombe bee a life or
<PB N="21" REF="14">no. I thinke that which one &s;aid of men at &s;ea, that he knew not whether they might be reckoned among&s;t the living or the dead, may be as well &s;aid of all that are a &s;hoare; for he that now breaths with the greate&s;t &s;trength and freedome, may pre&s;ently breath out his la&s;t <HI>&s;piramus, expiramus;</HI> our breath, like the doue of <HI>Noahs</HI> arke, goes out, and comes in, goes out and never returnes againe. Saint <HI>Paul</HI> &s;aies, wee die daily. And our Saviour Chri&s;t that knew better how to tearme this naturall being of ours then wee our &s;elues, &s;ayes they are but dead men that carie others to Church. The dead bury the dead, <HI>Luk.</HI> 9. ver&s;e 60. Hee therefore that will thinke to find true contentment in a Crowne, mu&s;t &s;eeke it where no death is to bee found, here is nothing but &s;inning, therefore nothing but dying, in heaven nothing but obedience, and therefore nothing but life. There is <HI>Corona vitae,</HI> a Crowne that &s;hall la&s;t for ever, and that's the tearme for which wee hold it. Tis not given to vs and our heires for ever, but to us and our owne per&s;ons for ever. And this doth di&s;tingui&s;h it from all other gifts in the world. Men thinke to make thei<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> deeds, and grants immortall and to continue for ever, they are conveied to them, and their heir<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">s for ever. But the Prophet &s;ayes in the 37. <HI>P&s;alme,</HI> that another takes po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion of them
<PB N="22" REF="15">and he &s;ought them, and they were no where to bee found. Whereas this <HI>Ego</HI> in my text giues to this <HI>Tibi,</HI> this gratious ma&s;ter to his faithfull &s;ervant an immortall gift, a Crowne of life which &s;hall make him liue for ever.</P>
<P>And now if wee ioyne all the words to|gether, <HI>Ego daho tibi Coronam vitae.</HI> Wee &s;hall find that hee hath given us a gift in proporti|on, in weight, and mea&s;ure &s;o farre beyond our &s;ervice,
<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Rom.</HI> 8.18.</NOTE> that wee haue rea&s;on to confe&s;&s;e with Saint <HI>Paul,</HI> that our &s;ufferings and faith|fulne&s;&s;e is not worthy of the glory that &s;hall be revealed vnto us, the Crowne of life that &s;hall be be&s;towed upon us. And therefore we had need make a &s;tand and cry out with the Prophet <HI>David. O Lord what is man that thou art &s;o mindfull of him,</HI>
<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 144.3.</NOTE> <HI>or the &s;onne of man that thou &s;o regarde&s;t him.</HI> Had it not beene enough O Lord to make us little inferior to the Angels, but thou mu&s;t giue us a kingdome, and crowne us with honour and glory, and &s;uch a kingdome, and &s;uch honour, and &s;uch glory, as &s;hall haue no end. Though the Kings of the earth are crowned, and the Scripture call the~ Gods; Yet they are but mortall Gods, and weare but corruptible crownes; and the time &s;hall come that will lay the&s;e Gods, and the&s;e crownes low enough in the du&s;t, and the&s;e Gods and the&s;e crownes &s;hall bee turned into du&s;t into nothing. But let this bee their
<PB N="23" REF="15">comfort; as God hath loved them with an everla&s;ting loue, &s;o hee will crowne them hereafter with an everla&s;ting Crowne; A Crowne of &s;uch mettle that the ru&s;t of time &s;hall never eate into, not the continuance of eternity one for dimini&s;h the glory of it, it &s;hall bee an incorruptible crowne. Death it &s;elfe &s;hall haue no power over it, it &s;hall been Crowne of life. The Crowne &s;hall be fitted to the head, and the head to the Crowne, an incorruptible Crowne upon an importall head. As our bodies and &s;oules &s;hall liue for ever, So our Crowne &s;hall bee a crowne of life. <HI>Bee thou faithfull, &amp;c.</HI></P>
<P>Now the God that gaue us our being, en|able us to the performance of this duety, and incline our hearts to &s;erue him continually without interruption, faithfully without di&s;&s;i|mulation. Let our devotion be &s;incere, and then O Lord continue it untill death. And after that according to thy promi&s;e (and thou O God art iu&s;t in thy promi&s;es) crowne us with glory, and life to &s;erue thee in thy kingdome for evermore. Now to God the Father, &amp;c. Amen.</P>
</DIV2>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
