THe Poets tell of a Minerua (The raritie of Religion. where­by is vnderstood the knowledge of Arts and Sci­ences) begotten of Iupiters braine. The Philosophers speak of a first matter, which must be part of euery thing, and it selfe nothing, be­ing without forme: which matter is so efficacious, as nothing can bee with­out [Page 2] it, and yet of it selfe, so pure and simple, as it is not to be found in any thing. He that vndertakes to set forth Religion what it is, seemes to goe about the Fiction of a Minerua, or the description of a first matter: for the holy Ghost, who is the worker of all grace in a man, may not altogether vnfitly be resem­bled to the brayne or concei­uing faculty of God, as a man may with reuerence speake; and this first matter, Religi­on, is presumed in euery man, to be in himselfe, and yet is not to be found perfect in a­ny man.

Luke. 1.28. Religion persecuted.In the Euangelist Saint Luke, the Angell Gabriel pro­nounceth the Virgin Mary to be blessed amongst women; and yet examine her condi­tion [Page 3] vpon earth, you shall hardly find a woman more miserable; at the birth of our Sauiour she had not a house to put her head in, but was constrained to take vp her Lodging in a back Stable: no sooner was shee deliuered of that King (which was the cause why she was pronounced blessed) but shee must fly, to saue her Sonnes life, into Egypt; and all the time of our Sauiours being vpon earth, was a sha­rer with him in his persecuti­ons: whilst here shee liued, she was suspected of her best friend Ioseph, of incontinency: since she departed hence, yea to this day, is accused of sa­criledge, to rob God of his Worship, in being praied vn­to, and of blasphemy, to vn­dertake [Page 4] to command God to performe her own will. Thus fareth it with blessed Religi­on: when it comes into any Countrey or City, it findes euery dore shut against it, except it steale in at some backe dore, into the heart of some poore Christian; and if it make not the more spee­dy flight into some vn­knowne Countrey, or De­sart Wildernesse, sudden waight will be laid to cut off the very life of Religion; as we see it at this day chased out of its natiue countrie of Iury, and out of the seates of forraine Monarkes, into an Iland or two, and the confines of the earth: next, as it fell out with the Virgin Mary, so this Religion shall bee reputed a harlot, yea sus­pected [Page 5] by her owne friends, and supplanted by the Strum­pet of Heresie, if God should not assist her, and that sacri­ledge and blasphemy haue been euer layd to her charge, will appeare by the accusa­tions of her aduersaries.

Neither is good and true Religion reiected as odi­ous, impious, and erronious,Religion produced for the main­tenance of errors. but called to the patronage of all errors, vicious liuers, & wicked practices. The Pa­pist, because he holds the Ca­tholike faith, though stuffed with all manner of corrupti­on, he must be accounted Re­ligious: the Brownist, be­cause he will not endure the corruption of Church-dis­cipline, though hee forsake the Church, yet he must be counted Religious: the Ana­baptist, [Page 6] the Family of loue, the Pelagians, and all the rabble of the like Heretikes, because they acknowledge Christ, though neuer so full of erronious opinions, yet they must be accompted reli­gious: nay, the Turke that worships Mahomet; the Infidels, that worship the Sunne, the Moone, or other creatures; yea, some Nations that worship the Deuill him­selfe for feare of him, because they worshippe something, though neuer so much against reason or common sence, yet they account themselues to be Religious.

Religion the excuse of wicked li­uers.Tell the Drunkard, that Adultery is a sinne; he thankes God he is no adulterer, and he is of the right Religion, and he hopes it will goe well [Page 7] with him. Tell the Oppessor, that Drunkennesse, and A­dultery are sinnes; he thankes God, he is neither Drunkard, nor Adulterer, and he is of the right Religion, and hee hopes it will goe well with him. Tell the Swearer, that Drunkennesse, Adultery, and Oppression are sinnes; hee thankes God, he is neither Drunkard, Adulterer, nor Oppressor, and he is of the right Religion, and he hopes it will goe well with him. Tell any man of one sinne in another man, that he findes himselfe not giuen ouer vnto, though he liue in all other sinnes, yet he hopes he is not so badde as that man that liues in that sinne, and hee is of the true Religion, and hopes God will be mercifull [Page 8] to him in Christ, & it will go well with him. But there is a kinde of man that goes to Church vpon Sundayes, & re­ceiues the Communion once a yeere at the least, and that is at Easter, because hereby hee hopes to goe to heauen; be­leeues the Articles of the Creed, because he is taught so to doe; that hopes God is mercifull, because he lookes for a share in his mercy; that sweares not but small oathes, because to be a great swearer, is of ill report; that will not drinke extraordinary, be­cause it is chargeable; that is very painefull and diligent in his calling, because he desires to grow rich; that keepes touch in paiment of money, because he expects others should doe so to him; or if [Page 9] they do not, he will lay them as close as the Prison can keepe them; that giues to the poore at his doore, because he would not be hardly spo­ken of; that hath few suites in Law, because as neere as he can, he will wrong no body, that is either able or likely to goe to Law with him: in a word, he that liues the life of an ordinary ciuill man, and holds himselfe to be a good Protestant: And this man, if you esteeme him not a religi­ous man, will thinke you doe him great wrong. And yet there is another that goes be­yond this ciuill man, and that is hee that is vpright in his dealing for iustice sake; he that is a true pay-master of his debts for honesties sake; hee that is industrious for [Page 10] Prudence sake; he that is ab­steynious for temperāce sake; and he that is morally vertu­ous in any kinde (which is his Religion) for vertues sake; who for point of faith is con­tent with a generall beliefe, as the Church beleeues; and this man holds himselfe to haue climed vp to a high de­gree in Religion.

Religion the pretence of euill practi­ces.Farther, what is made the colour of most sedicious, blou­dy wars, and horrid practices, but Religion? As Sir Francis Bacō in his Essayes wittily ob­serues, they bring downe the holy Ghost in sted of the like­nes of a Doue, in the likenes of a Vulture or Rauen: & out of the Barke of S. Peter, set forth the flagge of a Barke of Pi­rates. When Demetrius the Siluer-smith, with all his fel­low [Page 11] workemen, found their trade like to go downe, if the Gospell of Iesus Christ were receiued at Ephesus, thē they cry out, that the magnificēce of the great goddesse Diana would bee destroyed.Act. 19.27. And what was pretended the cause of that tumultuous sedition, but y^e preseruation of their Re­ligion to their great goddesse Diana? Liu. in Histo­riâ Romanâ, Existimauit. Ancus Mar­cius, qu [...]nia [...] Numa in pace religio­nes institu­isset, à se bel­licae ceremo­niae produ­cerentur, &c. Liuie in the Historie of the Romanes, relates of Mar­cus Ancus, of the Progeny of Numa and his successor; that when he had receiued some iniury from the Latines; as vnlawfull taking away the commodities of his Realme, and holding diuers of his subiects captiue; and recei­uing, as he thought, an inso­lent answer, vpon demand of them to be restored, being [Page 12] minded to recouer them by warre, all his labour is to find out a faire pretence, and giue a faire challenge: and vpon these considerations he be­ginnes: that since his prede­cessor Numa had founded Religion in peace, it con­cerned him to ground his warre vpon Religion; where­upon his Ambassador being dispatched with Commission to proclaime warre,Audi, Iu­piter, ego sum pulib­cus nuncius populi Roma­ni: iustè pié (que) venio: si ego impiè illos ho­mines dedier, nuncio populi Romani mihi exposco, tum Patriae compo­tem me nun­quam sinas esse, haec qui­cunque ei ob­ [...]ius fuit, haec portum ingre­diens, haec fo­rum ingressus peragit. thus runs his message: Heare, O Iupiter, I am sent by the generall consent of the Roman peo­ple, and that what I do as Ambassador, is iust and reli­gious; I call thee to witnesse, and if I do herein vniustly, or impiously; then neuer suffer me to be a man thought fit for seruice, or worthy regard in my Country: and these [Page 13] things the Legate buzzed in­to euery mans eare that met him; thinking that when hee had made Religion the co­lour of his Masters warre, and inuoked God, that then hee might fairely denounce warre, for the effecting of his particular end. When the Pharises were almost ready to burst with malice against our Sauiour Christ, and could finde no rest within them­selues, till they had commit­ted that deuillish, matchlesse, and colourlesse murther vp­on him: (for Pilate confesseth he could find no cause,) they pretend he was a Sabbath-breaker, he was a Deuill, hee was a Blasphemer, he was a mouer of Sedition: and these things could not be tolerated in their Religion; & therefore [Page 14] away with him, crucifie him, crucifie him. So that here the maintenance of Religion, is the cloak of this horrible fact. But there are too many wit­nesses of later dayes before our eyes, of this truth. What vnsheathed the sword of so many Massacrers in France not long since, to the taking away of so many Christian soules in one night? They will tell you, Religion. What gaue boldnesse to that despe­rate Villaine, to make his So­ueraignes, the late King of France his bowels, the Scab­berd for his poison'd dagger? If he were aliue, he would tell you, Religion. What sharpe­ned the wits, and steeled the hearts of our Englishmen lately; that if there had bene a Councell called in Hell, and [Page 15] a company of grand Diuels sent vpon earth, for the exe­cuting of their designes, they could not haue found out a more damnable Plot, nor with greater resolution haue prosecuted it, then they did the Gun-powder Treason? All their excuse would be, that it was in the cause of Re­ligion. What hath plucked of late, the louing Husband from his Wifes tender im­braces, the beloued Sonne from his Parents carefull go­uernement, the diligent Ser­uant, from his Masters serious imployment; and the Loyall subiect from his Kings peace­able Dominions; and all from their natiue Country, either to make way for their en­terprises, thorow the bow­els of men, women, and chil­dren, [Page 16] or expose themselues to vnauoydable slaughter? Is it not, because men pretend Religion the colour of their warre, though they intend nothing but the getting of some Towne or Country? So that looke into men of all na­tions and conditions, you shall find euery man claime an interest in Religion; and yet how hard a thing it is, to find sincere and true Religi­on planted in any Nation (our owne excepted,) or particu­lar mans heart? Wherefore it is not altogether vnexpedi­ent for a man, as well as hee may, to informe himselfe, what true Religion is.

Some will haue the word, Religion, to be deriued from a Latine word,Rĕlĕgo. which signi­fies, to reade ouer againe, or [Page 17] to remember: but this see­meth not to bee so proper a deriuation; because reading is an act of the tongue, and conuersant aswell about fals­hood, as truth: and Religion is chiefly seated in the mind, and imbraceth nothing but truth. Againe, for remem­brance, it is of somthing fore­past: but neuer man yet knew what belonged to Religion, before it is wrought in him by the holy Ghost; and ther­fore cannot remember that, of which hee neuer had so much as a notion. Farther, if it should haue this former de­riuation, it should onely inti­mate a bare remembrance of a thing, and no way giue light to the nature of the thing.

There is a word which more fitly offers it selfe, and [Page 18] signifies in Latine,Religo. August. de vera relig. re­ligat ergo nos vera religio v­ni omnipotenti Deo, vnde reli­gio dicta est. to bind or tye. True Religion, sayes an ancient Writer, doth tye vs to the onely and Almightie God; and from this tying doth Religion take its name. Adam had no sooner trans­gressed the commandement of God, but takes his flight, seekes shelter vnder the trees of the Garden, to hide him selfe from the presence of the Lord God: but when God apprehends him with his cal, there is no longer keeping out. Adam being arraigned, and hauing receiued the sen­tence of his punishment, hee might yet bee like to many children or seruants, that when they haue once gotten a custome of running away from their Fathers or Ma­sters, they shall neuer keepe [Page 19] them at home, without they shackle, or tie them fast; and therfore God, to preuent this runnagacy in Adam and his posteritie, hath prouided this bond of Religion, to tie them fast to himselfe, as the reue­rend Father sayes.Ierem. super nonum cap. Amos. Eccle­sia est fascicu­lus, vnâ Do­mini religione constrictus, vnde & ipsa religio à reli­gando & in fascem domini vinciendo no­men accepit. The Church, sayes another, is a bundle tyed together with the wreath of Religion; whence, saies he, religiō takes the name from binding. Till the comming of our blessed Sauiour, the Church of God was only amongst the Iewes: but they, when he came into the world, refused subiection to him. Whereupon our bles­sed Lord sends his Apostles throughout all the World, to gather vp, as it were, heere a sticke, and there a Christian sticke; which being presented [Page 20] to God, hee makes a bundle, and tyes it vp with this wreath of Religion, and so hath made himselfe a new Church: and this latter word, binding, giues some insight into the nature of Religion; which is either a binding to, or a binding from a thing: a binding to, is a binding to faith and obedience; a bind­ing to faith in all that is de­clared in Gods Word, and o­bedience to all that is com­manded by Gods Word: the binding from, is from all er­rour and heresie in point of doctrine, contrary to Gods Word; and from all impiety in course of life, forbidden by Gods Word. And this latter deriuation of the word, reli­gion, seemes to make it more full: for as in the word, re­luctation, [Page 21] which signifies a strife or strugling, there is an opposition implyed; so this aduerbe, re, in religion, doth seeme to intimate an auerse­nesse in the nature of man, to what hee is required vnto by the Word of God. Where­upon consequently followes a third tye, or binding, which is to repentāce, for the prone­nesse of mans nature to euery thing, contrary to Gods will, and the wicked actions hee cannot chuse but fall into, out of that naturall and depraued inclination.Caluin. in 23. cap. Iob. Iobus adijcit se non ab ea recessisse: eo significa [...] ho­mines semper pru [...]itis quo­dam deflecten­di à recta via sollicitari. To which pur­pose Caluin, in his coment vp­on the 23. Chapter of Iob, out of Iob's resolution to walke in the way of God, adding these words, that he had not gone out of the same, hath this obseruation, that there is [Page 22] a certaine kind of itching de­sire in euery man, to swerue and decline from that cer­taine way; and therefore he had neede to be kept in with this hedge of Religion.

There are three words a­mongst others, which the Grecians haue giuen, to sig­nifie Religion: the one sig­nifies right or true worship. [...]. It is not enough to haue knowledge, nor to beleeue in God, though these are neuer seuered from Religion: but there must be a worship, and this worship must not be eue­rie worship, but a true wor­ship. Another of these words signifies the worship of God; [...]. so that in this name of Reli­gion, is included a worship, but not the worship of man, or any other creature; but [Page 23] the worship of God.

The third word is thought to take its deriuatiō from the name of the Thracians,Vers. 27. [...]. and is vsed by the Apostle in the first Chapter of Iames his E­pistle. But because the per­fectest knowledge man can haue of any thing, is from the causes thereof, therefore it will not be amisse for the vn­derstanding of the nature of Religion, to inquire into the causes of it more at large; som of which are shortly cō ­tained in the words before.

Amongst causes,God the ef­ficient cause of Religion. the effici­ent cause takes the first place, as well does this efficient of Religion deserue it, which was truly the first, yea, before the first thing in the World; God was before all things:Psal. 19.2. so that the efficient cause, and [Page 24] worker of true Religion, ei­ther in a publike estate, or priuate mans heart, is no o­ther then God himselfe: God is the worker of all grace;Iam. 1.17. all good giftes proceede from aboue. And Saint Paul, one of the master-workemen in this plantation of Religion, hath these words in his Epi­stle to the Corinthians;2. Cor. 12.4. No man can say, that Iesus is the Lord, but by the Spirit. There are diuersities of gifts, but the same Spirit: there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord: and there are diuersities of operations, but it is the same God that worketh all in all. In Eze­kiel, God first vndertakes to clense them of their false re­ligion, but leaues them not there; for then they were ne­uer the neerer; but in the next [Page 25] words saith,Ezek. 36.27. A new heart will I giue you, and also a new Spirit will I put within you; and I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walke in my Statutes: so that God takes to himselfe the worke of framing them to true Religion; and the whole Scripture is very full of proofes to this purpose. There was a worthy man, who out of his obseruation vpon these words of our Sa­uiour; I am the way, the truth and the life; brought in Christ speaking to the Chri­stian soule in this manner,August. in tract. 22. Ambulare vis? Ego sum via. Falli non vis? Ego sum veritas. Mori non vis? Ego sum vita. haec dicit Saluator tu [...], Non est quò eas nisi ad me, non est quā eas nisi per me. and answering himself; Wilt thou walke (saith Christ?) I am the way. Wilt thou not be deluded? I am the truth. Wilt thou not die? I am the life. This (saith the learned Man) is the speech of our Sa­uiour [Page 26] to this silly soule: Thou hast not whither to goe, but to me; nor any way to come to me, but by me: so that if we will walke in the way of Religion, we must walk with Christ, for he is the way; if wee will not bee seduced by errour, which is contrarie to Religion, we must be direct­ed by him, for he is the truth: if wee will liue religiously here, and gloriously hereaf­ter; we must liue by him, and in him, and he in vs, for hee is the life. The same Author sayes in another place;Ipsum donum Dei Spiritus cum Patre & Filio aequè in­cōmutabile co­lere & tenere nos conuenit. Wee ought to imbrace the gift of the Spirit of God, equally dispensed and vnchangeable from the Father and the Son.

Another reuerend Father sayes in his Comment vpon the first Chap. of Amos, vpon [Page 27] these words: God, Ierom, super primum cap. Amos; Deus versatur in vera religione, non in Jsrael vrbibus. or the Lord will roare from Sion, and vtter his voyce from Ierusalem. God is conuersant (saies he) in true Religion professed in Ierusa­lem, not in the Cities of Is­rael. So that from both these may be gathered, that as Reli­gion is the gift of God, yea, of the whole Trinitie: so where Religion is, God is; & where he is not, there is no true Religion; and from that that doth precede, the conclusion will easily arise, that God is the efficient cause of religion.

Neither is he only the effi­cient,God, the on­ly efficient cause. but the onely effi­cient cause. Man is a meere patient. No, not so much as a patient: for all matter is held to haue an aptitude, or an ap­petite, or at least, a possibilitie to receiue a forme. But such [Page 28] is the indisposition of mans depraued nature, that it hath no capacity, nay, it hath a contrary affection to the re­ceiuing of the forme of Reli­gion, which God puts vpon him. The Apostle Paul to the Romanes saith;Rom. 8.7. that the wis­dome of the flesh is enmity against God: [...]. where the word is very expresse, and signifies the best thoughts and affections; the same Apostle in his Epistle to the Ephesians, saith, that all men by nature are dead in sinnes and trespasses. Ephes. 2.1. And in the se­cond to the Philippians; It is God that worketh both the will and the deed. Phil. 2.13. In orat. pro Marco Mar­cello. Bellicas laudes solent quidam extenuare verbis, eásque communicare cum militibu [...], n [...] propriae sint Imperatorum, & certè in ar­mis millitum virtus, loco­rum opportu­nitas, multum iuuant: maxi­mam verò partem quasi suo iure for­tuna sibi ven­dicat. Tully in one of his Orations, commends Cae­sar aboue all things for his clemency, because that was his proper glory, & his only. In his victories, he tells him, [Page 29] he should haue sharers; the Captaines and common soul­diers would euery one claym his share; yea, a great part of the glory of those cōquests would bee ascribed to the cōuenience of the place, or to Fortune: but for his clemency, none could chalenge any part of that glory. So for outward workes, as building of hou­ses, planting of Vineyards and Orchards, husbanding of the earth, ordering and dis­posing of creatures, yea, and gouerning of nations (though God indeed be the giuer and gouernour of all; and it is his blessing that makes all things vsefull, and commodious to man, and so excludes For­tune;) yet in these things, hee hath giuen man leaue to ex­ercise his owne iudgement [Page 30] and industry, &, as it were, to share with him in his prayse: but for the working of Grace and Religion, whereby hee largely expresseth his cle­mency to man, there is none either admitted, or able to ioyne with him. A King hath certaine prerogatiues reser­ued to himselfe; as sealing of his Patents, stamping of his Coyne, chusing of his ser­uants, creating of his Nobili­tie, and the like: So God al­lowes of no Parents for Hea­uen, without they haue his broad Seale of Religion; al­lowes no Christian for cur­rant, except he haue his stamp of Religion; and whosoeuer shall counterfeite either of these, is guiltie of high trea­son: and as no man can chal­lenge to be the Kings seruant [Page 31] out of his owne desert, but holds himselfe highly regar­ded by the King, in being called to his seruice; and likewise expects continuall meanes from the King, to in­able him to serue him: So in this spirituall seruice of God, there is no mā worthy of him selfe, neither hath he inward abilitie to maintaine himselfe in the place that God calles him vnto, without a supply of grace from God, which worketh in him this Religi­on. And so to bee a Noble­man of heauen, is out of Gods meere fauour; and as you shall see in a meane man, created a Nobleman, a great alteration in his behauiour, in his spee­ches, in his actions, in his whole carriage; yea, in his mind he hath those thoughts, [Page 32] now hee is a Peere to the King, that neuer came into his head before: so more pro­perly you may discerne in a Christian man, a great change throughout body and soule, whose base nature is turned into a truly noble disposition, despising the trash of the earth, and all seruile conditi­ons; and aimeth only to con­forme himselfe in a religious course of life to his Soue­raigne, Iesus Christ, to whom hee is now made a Peere. Kings, when they make fauo­rites, for the most part, chuse such as are of small meanes, and an ordinary ranke, that the greater glory might re­dound to themselues; for therein they somthing seeme to resemble God in his Crea­tion, who made all things out [Page 33] of nothing: so these make a great man out of nothing, in comparison of what he is rai­sed to. Thus God in his work of regeneratiō, finds mā void of grace or religion, and assu­meth to himself the effecting of these things in him, where­by he is made a Child and Fa­uorite of God; and yet in this worke, doth not take from a man his humanitie, & naturall abilities; but so frames these, as they shal become conduci­ble to this effect, though no way operatiue; neither doth this giue any way to free-wil, that there is a vse of the facul­tie of will in man, yea, to­wards his regeneratiō. When a man is said to haue no free will, it is not to be conceiued in naturall actions; as to goe, or stand still; to speake, or to [Page 34] be silent; to doe this thing, or not to do it, as a natural actiō; or that the vse of the sences is not common & free to good and bad men, as seeing, hea­ring, & the like; or that a man hath no power in morall acti­ons, as to be temperate, & iust in his dealings, & liberall, and the like; or in the outward acts of Ecclesiasticall duties; as to go to Church, to receiue the Sacrament, and do things of that nature; or to forbeare the outward practice of some sins; as a drunkard, or a swea­rer may be hired not to drink, or sweare for a time, & yet in none of these, is to be found freewill to grace, which is de­nied to be in a man, and that is to be able out of his own free­will, to do these naturall acti­ons, and obserue these morall [Page 35] duties, & all other Religious duties, or forbeare euil, accor­ding to the Word of God, and in obedience to his com­mandemēts: for sin is a breach of the Law, and therefore, to doe good, [...]. is to doe what man does in obedience to the Law, which no man can doe of himselfe, but must re­ceiue a new forme put vpon him; and himselfe, and that naturall will, which is in its selfe actiue, must be meerely passiue: wherein is the diffe­rence betweene the Papist and the Protestant: the one sayes a man doth cooperate with the Spirit: the other, that the Spirit workes all, and that a man is a meere pa­tient. In the beginning of the world God made a Coas, a rude indigested substance, [Page 36] which had an actiue power in it selfe, but in relation to the seuerall formes God put vpon it, was a meere patient. So plants haue a vegetatiue and growing forme, but in regard of that sensitiue forme, which in all sensitiue liuing creatures, this vege­tatiue substance is to be consi­dered, but as the matter of the ensuing sensitiue crea­ture; and that sensitiue soule is but meerely passiue, in re­spect of the reasonable soule wherewith God informes a man. So is it with a man, he hath naturall power ouer his body, and in many morall du­ties, is able to put them in practice: but to attaine to Grace, he hath no abilitie nor will, but is a meere patient to the worke of the Spirit. [Page 37] The grand Patron of the Ro­mish profession,Bellar. in li. 3. de gratia, & libero arbitrio. hath gathe­red a definition of Free-will, out of the doctrine of one of the chiefeEx doctri­nae S. Thomae definitio col­lecta. Libe­rum arbitri­um, est libera p [...]testas ex his quae ad finem conducunt, v­num prae alio eligendi, aut vnum & idem acceptandi, vel pro arbi­trio respuendi, intelligenti naturae ad magnam Dei gloriam attri­buta. Schoolemen, which is this; that Freewill is a free power of chusing one of those things which tend to an end before ano­ther, or accepting or reie­cting out of its owne power, one and the same thing, and is attributed to an intelligent or reasonable nature: for the great glory of God, who shortly analising, or opening this definition,Liberum ar­bitrium est potentia, non ha­bitus vel a­ctus, quae po­tentia est ge­nus & libera differentia, & quia potentia omnis est ac­cidens subie­ctum liberi arbitrij, est in­telligens na­tura, obiectum liberi arbitrij est ex his quae ad finem conducunt. Siquidem liberum arbitrium non versatur circa finem, sed media: electio est proprius actus liberi arbitrij. sayes, that Free-will is a power, not a habit or act; and after he hath assigned power to be the ge­nus, or materiall cause, and an intelligent nature to be the [Page 38] subiect of it, and the meanes conuersant about the end, not the end it selfe to be ob­iect of it, concludes at last, that Election is the proper act of Free-will: where, be­sides that he brings in a de­scription for a definition, he seemes to m [...]k [...] that which before he said, to be neither habit nor act, but a meere power to be actiue in Electi­on. But admit him, that a bare power is the materiall cause, or the genus of Free-will: yet there is a learned Father will soone make it ap­peare, that this power is none of mans: for, saith he,August. in ex [...]ositione 12. Cap. Euang. Jo­hannis: Ne exist [...]nu­mus fidem nostram esse in libero arbi­trio, vt diuino non aegeat [...]d intorio: audi­amus Euan­gelistam di­centem, Dedit eis potes [...]at [...]m Filios Dei fie­ri. spea­king of Free-will, let vs heare the Euangelist, saying, God gaue them power to bee made the sonnes of God. So that this power spoken of, is [Page 39] the gift and Grace of God. And admit the Papist thus much, that man doth coöpe­rate with the Spirit, as Pro­testant Diuines hold, a rege­nerate man doth, yet this is no argument to proue Free­will, because a man may coö­perate without power of Ele­ction to the contrary.

Neither yet is man to de­pend altogether vpon this inward worke of God:The Word, the instru­mental cause of Religion. for he hath appointed his Word as an instrument of this blessed effect of Religion; and this Word is a plentifull Store-house of all instruments of Religion. The instruments of a souldier, are his armes. Let the spirituall Souldier go to Paul, one of the chiefe Offi­cers in that Armory, and hee will furnish him from head, [Page 40] to toe,Eph. 6. Chap. 14, 15, 16, 17. verses. with the Helmet of Saluation, the Brestplate of Righteousnesse, the Girdle of Verity, the Shield of Faith, the Sword of the Spi­rit, and the Shooes of the preparation of the Gospell. The instruments of a schol­ler, are his bookes. Let the Scholler in Gods Schoole, or Vniuersity, resort to this Library of the Word, and there he shall finde such Phi­losophy, as is beyond all o­ther Writers in that kinde; such History, as makes all other Historians that meddle with the same subiect, for point of truth, liers; and for Antiquity, nouices: such profound Prophesies verified by the performance of euery the least tittle, as make all o­ther prophesies appeare fa­bles: [Page 41] such Diuine Poetry, as makes all other Poets seeme bunglers, being compared with the sweete Singer of Israel, and the Wise Prea­cher: such elegancy, that if you looke into Esay, you shall find such a lofty stile, as is in no other booke but the Scripture. If you looke into the other Prophets, you shall find such hidden Rethoricke, as is no where to be found, but in holy Writ: if you looke into our Blessed Saui­ours speeches, you shall find such Metaphors, and Para­bles, and Wise sayings, as confounded all that rose vp to speake against him, and a­mazed all that heard him: if you looke into S. Pauls Apo­logeticall Orations, you shall find the famous Orator Ter­tullus [Page 42] put to silence,Act. 24.10. and a­sh [...]med to pleade any more against him; and Felix af­terward, trembling at what hee spake. But last of all, in his holy Word, you shall find such Diuinity, as whoso­euer vndertakes to set forth the excellency of it, shall giue it a blemish; and when man hath beaten his braine to the vttermost, he must breake forth onely into ad­miration, and say; Oh, the height, the depth, and the bredth of this vnsearcha­ble Mystery of Diuinitie! The Instruments of a builder are his tooles: and here in this Word, the Christian builder shall find a Masons hammer, to rough how the hard heart of man, and a two-edged sword, more ex [...]llent for [Page 43] that purpose, then any Saw to cut asunder the stony heart of man, and a Square to leuell and shape a man to some fit­nesse for this spirituall buil­ding. There are two maine Pillers of Religion, vpon which if it be firmely settled, it cannot sinke, and that is a well-grounded faith, and a well-ordered life. And how to establish Religion vpon these two, that Famous Cal­uine will teach a man. For the first, in his Comment vpon the twelfth Psalme, where he askes the question, whether or no at any time there do steale into a mans minde, any doubt of beleeuing in the pro­mises of God? which if there do, then he directs him how to fence himselfe against such a temptation, Let him pre­sently, [Page 44] sayes he,Cal. in Com. 12. Psalm. Quoties de fide promissio­num Dei ob­repit aliqua dubitatio, statim hunc clipeum oppo­nere conuenit sermones Dei esse puros. Cal. in Com. 23. Cap. Iob, Discamus bene & rectè vtuendi ratio­nem, quam Deus nobis probat, hanc esse vt pedes p [...]namus in via, quam non ipsi institui­mus, sed ipse nobis verbo suo common­strauit. take this into his hand for a shield or buck­ler, that all the words of God are pure. And for the second, how to frame a mans life, in his Comment vpon the 23. Chap. of Iob, he giues this in­struction: Let a man learne this to be the course which God doth allow of liuing well and vprightly, namely, to set his feete in a way, not such a one as he shall propose to himselfe, but such a one as God shall shew vnto him out of his Word: neither doth God vse this instrumen­tall cause of the Word, in working Religion in a man, as though hee needed it: for he was as well able, after the fall of man, to haue made him perfectly good againe, as he was before: but God saw [Page 45] this the fittest way: and some reason may be giuen to the apprehension of man, to per­swade him so much.

1 As that first, man might take notice of the grieuous­nesse, and greatnesse of his sinne in his fall, which had plunged him into such mise­ry, as he knew no way how to get out of it, except God had found a meanes for him how to escape, which, peraduen­ture, had God restored him to his former integritie, would not haue taken so deepe an impression in him as now it doth, when he is faine to labour and take paines in the meanes, and especially the Word of God, which e­uery man must do.

2 Secondly, God might vse this meanes of the Word, to [Page 46] let man know his infinit loue vnto him, in sending his Be­loued Sonne Iesus Christ in­to the world, to suffer for man: and our instruction in this point, is the scope of the whole Scripture; which Pas­sion of our Sauiour had not needed, if God had suddenly settled man in his former vp­rightnesse.

3 Thirdly, God may take this course, that a man may haue some comfort to him­selfe, in working out his owne Saluation, by the meanes. And this saluation is the end of Religion; not that a man doth exercise any power of his owne in the worke either of Religion, or saluation, farther then to ap­ply and subiect himselfe to the meanes; but God would [Page 47] haue man to see the depra­uation of all parts, inward, and outward, and worke them through the efficacy of the Word, to incline to Grace, & so to temper them, as to yeeld to the impression of Religion; with which the Holy Ghost is sealing him vp to eternall life. This cannot but bring a great deale of sweete comfort to the heart of man, which would other­wise be lost.

4 Fourthly, God may hap­ly the rather worke by his Word, because man might exercise all those good gifts which God gaue him in his creation; as meditation, dis­course, affection, and pra­ctice, for the vse of all which, a man shall receiue direction out of the Word; whereas if [Page 48] a man had beene made per­fect againe, he should haue had onely a willing and a di­uine contemplation and obe­dience, and neuer haue nee­ded the bent or intention of his minde, as now he doth.

5 Fifthly, Gods end in or­daining the chiefe meanes of a mans saluation, to bee his Word, wherein man must la­bour all the dayes of his life, may be, that man may bee brought to a higher esteeme of Heauen.

6 Sixtly, God may doe this, to expresse his Iustice, that those who wilfully perish, hauing the meanes of the Word offered them, may be left without excuse, and their destruction may be on their owne heads.

Worship the materiall cause of Re­ligion.Now it hath beene decla­red [Page 49] that God alone is the effi­cient, and the Word, the in­strumentall cause of Reli­gion. The next cause is,Worship, the materiall cause of Re­ligion. the materiall cause of Religion, and that is Worship. The Psalmist sayes,Psal. 145.17. The Eyes of all things looke vp and wayte vpon thee: and in an­other place,Psal. 148.1. calls vpon the Heauens, and all the crea­tures, to praise the Lord; which waiting, and praising may be taken as part of the worship of God: but as for vnsensible creatures, they on­ly are said to praise God, be­cause they set forth his praise: for sensible creatures, as in many things they seeme to haue that reason which is onely in a man, in chusing or refusing good or euill for themselues: yet this is no­thing [Page 50] but an inward instinct, without the discourse of the mind. In these creatures, there is a kinde of expecta­tion frō God, of good things; and an inward cheerefulnes, which is a kinde of acknow­ledgement, or thanksgiuing for good things receiued, and likewise, a patient mourning, or humiliation, as a man may say, vnder the hand of God, when they want his gifts, (wherein they may con­demne many men that are ready to murmur, vpon the withdrawing of the least of Gods mercies,) yet be­cause they do not this by the direction of reason, it can­not be properly called wor­ship.

There are diuers words which haue sometimes, and [Page 51] in some places, as well in Scriptures, as other writers, an equiualent or promiscu­ous signification, and in o­ther places, a more distinct construction; as the same words, [...]. which in the Greeke tongue more properly sig­nify worship, and honor, and seruice, are vsed all of them oftentimes, and in seuerall places, to expresse one and the same thing; and each of them signifies the same that any one of them does; as in the Worship of God, is vn­derstood and comprised his Honour, and Seruice; and in his Honour, his Worship and Seruice; and in his Seruice, his Worship and Honour.

Now this matter of Reli­gion, which is Worship, or Honour, is found to be ascri­bed [Page 52] to man, to Angels, and to Idols. To man, when the same words are vsed to set forth the reuerence or re­spect a child oweth to his Parents, or an inferior to a superior, or any man to ano­ther, for any extraordinary gift, that are vsed to expresse the Honour of God. The words of the commande­ment are, that a child should honour his Father and Mo­ther: and in the Poem of Phocilides, [...]. children are ex­horted in the first place, to honour God, and in the next place, their Parents. Paul, in his Epistle to Timothy, 1. Tim. 5.17. wil­leth, that the Elders that rule well, should be accounted worthy of double honour. And Xenophon sayes, [...]. that the Rulers vnder Cyrus worship­ped [Page 53] him, or reuerenced him as a Father.Lib. de beata vita: Virtu­tem vt Deos, & eius pro­fessores, vt antistites co­lite. Seneca would haue men to worship vertue, as the gods themselues; and the Professors of it, as the Antistites, which were the chief Priests of the Temples, and were ouerseers, and dis­posers of all things that did belong to the worship of the gods. [...]. In Pithagoras is requi­red a worship, or worthy esteeme of the vnmarried; in­timating an extraordinarie kinde of reuerence to bee giuen to them, that had ei­ther such a gift of continence, or power to keepe them­selues in a chast course of life vnmarried. This worship is likewise ascribed to Angels, as a worthy Writer hath not long since obserued.Beza, 2. Cap. ad Colos. Est forma Re­ligionis, quae ex speculatio­nibus c [...]riosis, & tamen re­conditae cu­iusdam sapi­entiae speci­men habenti­bus oritur, cruusmodi est [...]. There is a worship (saith he) which [Page 54] ariseth out of curious specu­lations, which yet makes a shew of certaine hidden wisedome; of which sort, is the worship of Angels. And Iohn in the Reuelation is said, To offer worship to the An­gel. Lastly, this worship or seruice, is attributed to Idols, as the word Idolatry will teach, [...]. which signifies the worship of Idols. The first of these acceptions of worship or honour, a it is applied to a man, is allowable; the other two acceptions, as worship, is attributed to Angels & Idols: the former of them requires a cautelous construction, lest it proue derogatorie to Gods Worship, and implies a wor­thy regard of them, for their excellent nature and imploy­ment: the latter, is absolutely [Page 55] sinfull, and directly forbid­den by God himself. Whence may be gathered a threefold distinction of worship, which is either a reuerend and re­spectfull esteeme of some creature, out of any duty be­longing to them; or any spe­ciall excellency in them, which may be expressed in a mans outward carriage; or such an application of a mans seruice to an Idoll, as that he sets it in the place of God: or lastly, the worship which God challengeth to him­selfe; and thus worship, or honour may be said in gene­rall to be giuen, as well to the creature as to the Crea­tor.

But it is the forme of euery thing that giues it being.The truth of worship to God-ward, the formall cause of Re­ligion. Now the forme of this Reli­gion [Page 56] may be taken to consist in two things. In the Wor­ship of God, and in the truth of that Worship. Here is not meant that forme spoken of by Paul to Timothy, 2. Tim. 3.5. [...], &c. which a man may haue, and yet deny the power of Religion; but that forme which is power­full to make a man truly reli­gious, & must informe a man what Religion is. So that he that will be religious, must worship God, and that in Trueth. First, he must wor­ship God. And what is God? Himselfe tels vs, that his Name is,Exod. 3.14. I AM, and Christ, in the Gospell of S. Iohn, Ioh. 8.58. be­ing asked of the Iewes; whe­ther he had seene Abraham, being not yet fifty yeers old, does not answer them; That before Abraham was, I was: [Page 57] but said vnto them; before Abraham was, I AM. And what is he? That I AM, saies God; and that is All, and that All, is All. Let a man mount vpon the wings of cogita­tion, (which is swifter then any flying bird,) into the highest Heauen, which is the Seate of Gods incomprehen­sible Maiestie; and there ima­gine an vnimaginable glory; that He is: let him come downe into the Firmament; and (if he can without daze­ling,) looke vpon that orient Ruby, and that splendent Di­amond, the bigger, and les­ser light, round beset with the sparkling Starres; all which doe as much excell in operatiue vertue, the most precious Stone the Earth af­foordes, as there is distance [Page 58] betweene heauen and earth: and that He is. Let him passe thorow the element of fire, and there make a little stay, where he shall stand in the middest of fire, and not burne, nor be sensible of the heate, if hee were bodily there; which fire sets on fire all other bodies, and that He is. Let him make a step lower into the element of Aire, and there hee shall finde such a friendly discord, as that nei­ther moisture shall quench heate, nor heate dry vp moi­sture; without temperature, no liuing creature could breathe: and that He is. Let him take a iourny to the vt­termost parts of the earth, and where-euer he comes, in­quire of God, and there hee shall here of Him; for the [Page 59] earth and the fulnesse thereof is the Lords. Psal. 24.1. Let him dis­cend into the Store-house of the earth, and search the se­uerall Cabinets of Gods Iew­els, and the whole Treasury of his Riches, and there hee is to be found:Psal. 104.5. For he hath laid the foundation of the earth. Let him go downe into the deepes of the water, and there take view of Gods crea­tures; which are for number incredible, and many of them for shape, proportion, and condition, accounted Mon­sters: and likewise thinke vp­on that common benefit, which all liuing creatures re­ceiue from this element of water (without which they could not subsist,) and there he shall vnderstand of Him; they are the words of the [Page 60] Psalmist,Psal. 135.6. Whatsoeuer pleased the Lord, that did he in the hea­uen, and in the earth, and in the sea. And when a man hath taken a sight of the Mycro­cosme, or great world, and receiued some apprehension of God therein, let him cast his eye vpon that Mycro­cosme, or little world him­selfe, wherein is as much con­tracted, and compacted, as is conteined in the whole Vniuerse: and see if there hee can receiue any farther infor­mation of God. There a man shall see (as it were the Sunne and Moone,) vnderstanding, and sence, placed in the vp­permost and sphericall part of his body. The opinion of the Naturalist is, that the Sunne and a man generate a man,Sol & homo generāt homi­nem. which in this fabricke [Page 61] is true; that the sunne of vn­derstanding working vpon the terrene and elementary parts of a man, makes vp a man, and withall, this glori­ous and Heauenly Planet sends forth light and influ­ence, whereby the whole man is continually directed and preserued. Here likewise may bee obserued the Quo­tidian motion of this Pla­net, which daily visiteth the whole man with sweete comfort and illumination, and the annuall motion, like vnto that yeerely progresse of the Sunne, wherein it takes a more particular and serious view of all the parts of the Earth. And indeed it is a good yeeres worke, for the swiftest contemplation, to take an exact consideration [Page 62] of all the faculties and parts of a man, and that inward, and estimatiue sence, which is called by some, the com­mon sence, and represents the Moone, receiues all the light it hath from the vnder­standing, whence commeth the Eclipse; as may be said of this Moone within a man, when the earthly, carnall, and externall parts of a man, are interposed betweene sence, and the light of the vnder­standing; and the like eclipse is there of the Sunne, which is resembled by the vnder­standing, when sence inter­poseth it selfe betweene a man, and true reason. Let a man looke into the firma­ment of thoughts and cogi­tations, which are in number and quality, like the twink­ling [Page 63] Starres of Heauen, whereof some are fixed, but most wandering; and hee shall easily discerne a simili­tude betweene the things compared, which is likewise to be found in the whole bo­die of a man. The shape of a man, as long as he is contei­ned in the round wombe of his Mother, is Globary, till that diuine part of him be in­fused, which requires a ma­iestike, and commanding stature: since God hath sub­iected all the creatures vnder his gouernement; which is liuely expressed by Ouid the Poet, who hauing set forth the Creation of the world, with the creatures inhabiting therein, proceeds with words to this purpose; There was yet wanting, (saith hee) a [Page 44] more perfect and sacred li­uing creature that should bee capable of transcendent knowledge,Ouid. Meta­morph. lib. 1. Sanctius his animal, men­tis (que) capacius altae, Deerat ad­huc, & quod dominari in caetera posset. Natus homo est, Prora (que) cùm spectent ani­malia caetera terram, Os homini sublime dedit, coelùmque videre, Iussit, & e­rectos ad side­ra tollere vul­tus. and might beare rule ouer all other things. Man was borne: and whereas all other creatures were fra­med, with their eyes cast downe vpon the earth; God gaue man a lofty counte­nance, and an vpright and stately proportion, comman­ding him to looke vp to hea­uen, from whence he came. But the elements retaine the same qualities and opposi­tion in the body of a man, which they had before this composition; for heate, and coldnesse, and moisture, and drinesse are in continuall strife, which shall haue the predominancy; and which is a strange thing, this discord [Page 65] is a cause both of the conser­uation, and destruction of the same subiect: for [...]ithout all the elements, there is no bo­dy could subsist; and yet this warre amongst the elements, is the ruine of euery body: in which warre, they are all conquerers, and yet all ouer­come: for the fire dries vp the water, and the water quen­ches the fire; the aire moul­ders the earth, and the earth expels the aire; and yet they haue a mutuall concord: for the fire and aire agree in heate; the aire and water a­gree in moistnes; the water & earth agree in coldnesse; and the earth and fire agree in drienesse; & they all agree in this, that none of them will depart the field, till they haue destroyed the subiect of their [Page 66] contention which is the bo­dy of a man: and in this is to be admired the wonderfull workmanship of God. But yet for all this search, the know­ledge of God is not to bee found: for he is incompre­hensible; and how can a man comprehend an incompre­hensible? He is a Spirit; and how can flesh and bloud ap­prehend a Spirit? God is infinite, not to be limited in time; he is euery where, and yet no where, either circum­scriptiuely or definitiuely; & how can a man circumscri­bed within two yards, re­ceiue a notion of him, that fils all things, and all places? He is omnipotent; and how can the weake braine of a man conceiue what He is? He is onely good; and how [Page 67] can a man that is onely euill, be able to vnderstand what He is, that is all good? He is Wisedome, Strength, Iustice, Fortitude, and all Vertue di­uine and morall, yea, in Him are comprehended all Arts and Sciences; what man is, He is; what any other liuing creature is, He is; yea, what is in heauen and earth, He is; for euill, it is a priuation, and therefore is not, nor cannot haue any being in him; and this is all the knowledge man can haue of God, that what he himselfe, or any other creature is not, that God is; yea, God onely is, and man is nothing but what he is in God: God is in man, and yet no part of mā; man is in God, and yet no part of God: yea, God is absolute without [Page 68] man; man is nothing with­out God; and this knowledge of God, as imperfect as it is, is yet sufficient to direct man to worship God, in whom he liues, moues, and hath his be­ing.

But how shall man wor­ship him whom he hath not knowne? The manner how to worship God, which is part of the forme of Gods worship, is in truth. Seneca, a heathē man, could make a di­stinction betweene Religion, and Superstition, or Idola­try,Religio Deos colit, super­stitio violat. when he sayes, That Re­ligion is an obseruation of God in his Worship, where­as Superstition is a violating of his Worship, in drawing it from truth and sincerity: but what the true Worship of God is, man can no way [Page 69] come to the knowledge of, but from God himselfe, be­cause no man doth in any de­gree of perfection know what God is. Now there are two Bookes, that God hath giuen man to study vpon; the Booke of Nature, and the Booke of the Word. In the Booke of Nature, although man may reade sufficient to condemne himselfe, yet there he shall finde nothing but what will confound him: In the Booke of his Word, God hath beene graciously pleased more at large to o­pen himselfe vnto man, and thereout to affoord him not onely instruments, to frame him fit for his Worship; but directions how to worship him aright. Euery naturall man walkes in darkenesse, as [Page 70] is wrriten by the Prophet Isaiah, [...]saiah, 9.2. The people that walked in darkenesse, haue seene a great light; that is, in the Gospell of Iesus Christ. The Word, sayes the Prophet in the Psalme,Psal. 119.105. Is a Lampe, or a Lan­terne to my feete, and a light vnto my pathes. And Dauid sheweth how he got vnder­standing, and was growne to a hatred of false-hood, and errour, namely, by the Pre­cepts, and Word of God. Sa­lomon, or Christ, is said to ride vpon the Word of Truth,Psal. 45.5. as one that would ride in triumph ouer all Heresie. Now euery man is content to haue some forme of Reli­gion; but this true worship doth so strictly tie the con­science to that forme and practcie of Religion, which is [Page 71] taught out of the Word of God, as that a man is ready to frame to himselfe any kinde of Religion, whereby he might haue some dispen­sation for his euill course of life, rather then to be held to so hard termes: and hence it comes to passe, that so many fall to Popery, who when they are loth to deny and crosse themselues in the lusts of the flesh, and yet are desirous to go to heauen, they imbrace this Religion, wherein they beleeue that though they commit neuer so great sinnes; yet if they can get Pardons of Indul­gences from the Pope, or ab­solution from the Priest, or do some workes of Charity, or such as are meritorious in their owne opinion; or pro­cure [Page 72] some intercession of Saints, or some prayers to be made for them after they are dead, they thinke God to be well satisfied for their sinnes, and well pleased with them: Nay, such is their grosse stupidity, as that they thinke the sprinkling of a little holy water, to be salu­tary for soule and body; which appeares plaine in those conjuring words spo­ken by the Priest, in diuine Seruice:In Manual. ad vsum ecclesiae Saris­buriensis. Exorcise te creatura salis, per Deum ✚ viuum. Sis omnibus te sumentibus sanitas animae & carporis, & effugiat atque discedat ab eo loco quo as­persum fuerit, omnis nequi­tia. I exorcise, or con­jure thee, O creature of Salt, that thou beest to all that shall partake of thee, sanitie of soule & body, and that all euill shall depart from that place, where thou art sprink­led. And farther he saith, I exorcise, or coniure thee, O creature of water, that thou [Page 73] mayest serue to the casting out of Diuels,Exorciso te creatura a­quae, in nomine Dei Pa [...]ris, vt fias aqua exorcisata ad effugandam omnem pote­statem inimi­ci, &c. Ad abijcien­dos daemones, morbósque pellendos, vt quicquid in domibus vel in locis fidelium haec vnda resper­sit, careat omni immun­ditiâ, libere­tur à noxa, non illîc resi­deat spiritus pestilens, non aura corrum­pens, &c. to the expel­ling of diseases, that vpon whatsoeuer thou art sprink­led in any house of the faith­full, it may haue taken from it all vncleannesse, it may be freed from all obnoxitie; that no pestilent spirit may remaine vpon it, nor any cor­rupt ayre. Let all the treche­ries of the hidden enemy de­part: and if there be any thing aduerse to the health, or quiet of the inhabitants, let it be chased away by the aspersion of this water. And then the Priest casts the salt into the water, crosse­wayes, after the manner of the Crosse, and sayes priuate­ly, Let there bee an equall cōmixture of salt and water. And thus is their Holy wa­ter [Page 74] made, and sprinkled. And who would not be a Papist, to haue this benediction of Holy water? And the like benedi­ction is there of the Bread. Nay, such is their horrible blasphemy, as that they hold y^e wax Candles to be inlight­ned, with the light of Gods heauenly Benediction, as they call it, and kindled at the fire of his most sweet clarity; and who would not be a Papist, to partake of this light? Farther, some of their Prayers for the dead, are these:

We commend vnto thee, O Lord, the soules of thy Seruants, that being dead, they may liue with thee for euer; and what sinnes they haue fallen into, through the frailtie of their worldly conuersation, doe thou wipe them away, by the Pardon of [Page 75] thy most mercifull goodnesse.

Another is this, God, which art the giuer of Pardon, and louer of mans saluation; we implore thy Clemency, that those Brothers and Sisters of our Congregations, which are gone out of this world, may come to the societie of thy euerlasting blessing, by the inter­cession of the blessed Mary, for euer a Virgin, & of Michael the Archangel, and of all the Saints.

A third is this, Make good, we beseech thee, O omnipotent, and mercifull God, that the soules of our Brethren and Sisters of our Congregations, for whom we offer vp to thee this sacrifice of Praise, being expiated by vertue of this Sacrament from all their sinnes, may receiue the blessing of thy euerlasting light.

And who would not be a Papist, to haue these Prayers [Page 76] said for him after his death, if they were effectuall? The Heathen, since they could not be so religious to God, as the light of Nature infor­med them, they ought to be, framed to themselues gods of men, that since they could not, or would not bee like God, they would make gods like themselues. And thus Saturne, and Iupiter, and di­uers other men, being famous vpon earth, for some extra­ordinary qualities, or ex­ploytes, were called gods af­ter their deaths. Seneca ob­serues, that amongst Heathen men that worshipped Iupiter, one will haue him to be win­ged, another will haue him to beare hornes, another ac­cuses him of Adultery, ano­ther complaines, that hee is [Page 77] cruell towards the gods. In all which, sayes the Authour, they intend nothing, but to take away the shame of sin­ning from men, who belee­ued such gods as these, and conceiued it no shame for them, to do as their gods did. And hereby appeareth the truth of the Worship of God declared in his Word, in that it opposeth sinne: and the reason why Idolatry and false religion draw away so many, is, because they either giue a liberty to sinne, or a Pardon of sinne, vpon easie conditions; but these men which are thus seduced, are of another mind, then Dauid was, who hid the Word of God in his heart, that hee might not sinne. He found no safety, so long as he conti­nued [Page 78] in sinne, nor any meanes to auoid sinne, but the Word of God, which is the Touch­stone to trie all metals of Religion. If a man doubt of the doctrine of Religion, let him bring it to this Touch­stone, and he shall soone dis­cerne, whether it be currant or no: If he bring his life, and actions to this Touch-stone, he shall quickly know, whe­ther they be good or no: If he bring his faith, and repen­tance, to this Touchstone, it will quickly shew, whether they be sound, or no: If hee bring his honesty and iustice to this Touch-stone, he shall easily discouer, whether they be counterfeit, or no. It is the speciall care of euery good Schoolemaster, to see that his Schollers performe all [Page 79] their exercises truly; so this Schoolemaster, the Word, which vndertakes to teach the Worship of God, di­rects to the true Worship of God.

And this truth, is not one­ly required in the outward practice of Religion, but in the heart and inward soule of a man. Behold, Psal. 51.6. thou requirest truth in the inward parts, saith the Psalme: and it is the complaint of God in Isaiah, Isai. 29.13. That the people drew neere vnto him with their mouthes, and with their lips did ho­nour him, but had remoued their hearts farre from him. A man may be a great Schol­ler, well read in all contro­uersies, able to distinguish betweene true Religion, and false opinions, well groun­ded, [Page 80] and of good vnderstan­ding, in the doctrine and discipline of Religion, or­thodoxall in point of faith, a carefull obseruer of diuine worship, a iust dealer amongst men, ciuill in his course of life, well reported of for hos­pitalitie, diligent in all his affaires, true in all his Words, and of a faire demeanor in all his actions: and yet, if this in­ward vprightnesse to God and man for conscience sake of Gods Commandement, be wanting to this man, hee may be wanting of true Reli­gion.Ioshua, 24.14. For Ioshua requires the people to feare the Lord, and serue him, but how? In sincerity, and truth. And Sa­muel commands them not onely to serue the Lord, but it must be done in truth, and [Page 81] with all their hearts. Reli­gion then appeares from the efficient cause thereof, to bee the worke of God; from the materiall cause, to bee wor­ship;The finall causes of Re­ligion, the glory of God, and mans salua­tion. Nihil sit fru­strà. and from the formall cause, to be true, and onely, and properly applied to God. But the Naturall Philosopher could reach so farre, as to ap­prehend, that nothing could be made in vaine; and there­fore if in that inferiour work­manship of God, in the fra­ming of all the creatures, was expressed a rare Art; and in this worke, there was inten­ded an end: then certainely, much more in the framing a man after Gods owne Image. Man must beleeue an end, yea, a more speciall end, by how much the effect is of a more excellent nature. There [Page 82] are two finall causes of Gods Workes, the one communi­cated to man, with all other creatures, which is the last, the vttermost and chiefest end, the other, onely for mans sake; the former of these ends, is the glory of God, to which end he made all that is made, and doth dispose of all things that are done; to which purpose are the words in the Reuelation, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to re­ceiue glory, and honour, and power, for thou hast created all things, &c. If God had not made the world (to our ap­prehension,) he had lost the glory of his power; if he had not made man perfect, he had lost the glory of his good­nesse; if man had not fallen (though God was not the [Page 83] Author thereof,) he had lost the glory of his Iustice; if he had not redeemed man, hee had lost the glory of his Mer­cy; if he had not continued man, he had lost the glory of his Prouidence; and if he had not beene the worker of Re­ligion in man, he had lost all his glory vpon Earth. For to what end was it to make a world, if man had not bene placed as a Gouernour ouer it? To what end was it to make man perfect, but to trie his obedience? To what end was it to continue man, but to wayt for his Redemption? To what end was it to re­deeme man, but to serue him in holinesse and righteous­nesse all the dayes of his life? And how could man so do, if God had not wrought this [Page 84] worke of Religion in him?

Neither is God onely a Creator of man, and Reli­gion in man, to his owne glo­ry; but a louing Father to man, in suffering him by this Religion, to worke out his owne saluation, which is the second finall cause thereof, as the holy Ghost sets it downe in the Philippians, where a Christian is commanded to worke out his saluation in feare and trembling. And the Apostle to Titus Titus 1.2. makes eternall life, the end of all Religion, and godlinesse; and in this is declared the won­derfull loue of God to man, notwithstanding his disobe­dience in his fall. What man buyes any cattell, but either to droyle them out, or fat them for the Shambles? but [Page 85] this God bought man from death, to life; yea, himselfe was ledde as a sheepe to the slaughter,Isai. 35.7. that he might saue man. What Master, when he hath hired a seruant, bids him imploy his time and labour, to his owne vse? But this God doth so to man, and bids him, if he want stocke to set vp withall, to come vnto him, and he will furnish him. What Land-lord, when the Rent-day comes, bids his Te­nant lay out his Rent for his owne best profit? But this God, the Land-lord of the World, whē man brings him his Rent, which is his Wor­ship in a religious life, bids him improue it for his owne good, and makes his owne saluation, the scope and end of all his labour. And is it no [Page 86] lesse then saluation, that a man aymes at in being Reli­gious? Was there euer any man, that had a slaue that ran away from him, and subie­cted himselfe to his deadly enemy, that would not onely spare him punishment, but make him a free-man? Yet behold, man that sold him­selfe as a slaue to the Deuill, is made a Free-denizen of Heauen. Was there euer any Souldier that rose vp in mu­tinie, that did not onely es­cape Martiall Law, but was sent home to inherit the Ge­nerals owne Land? Yet be­hold, man, that did not onely rise himselfe, but drew the whole Regiment of Iesus Christ, mankind, into muti­ny; he is sent to inherit the Kingdome of heauen, Christs [Page 87] owne inheritance. Was there euer any King, that when his subiect was conuicted of high Treason, would not onely spare his life, but make him one of his Priuy Cham­ber; or Bed-chamber, where hee should be neerest to his Person? Yet behold, when man had risen in rebellion a­gainst God; he is not onely pardoned his Treason, but is receiued into Gods Cham­ber of Presence in this world, which is the Church; and shall hereafter be made a Pri­uy Chamber-man of heauen. Why then, is it to no end to be Religious, when he shall not onely thereby promote the glory of his Creator, but purchase to himselfe an eter­nall Mansion in that new Ie­rusalem?

The effects of Religion, Obedience, Sanctitie, and Wise­dome.Neither is this Religion which proceeds from so ex­cellent causes, without the like effects, amongst which, these three may be noted; Obedience, Sanctity, and Wisedome. Obedience is either actiue, or passiue. For actiue obedience, God in his Couenant declared to his Children, by his Prophet Ezekiel, promiseth first to worke Religion in thē, A new heart will I giue you, and a new Spirit will I put within you; and what followes vpon this? Then (saith the Lord) you shall walke in my statutes, Ezek. 36.26. and you shall keepe my Iudgements and doe them. But this practicall obe­dience must be generall, such as is inioyned by God in the Prophesie of Ieremiah, Iere. 11.4. that they should obey his voice, [Page 89] and do the words of his Co­uenant, according to all that he had commanded them. And God threatens his peo­ple in Leuiticus, that if they would not doe all his Com­mandements, then he would appoint ouer them terror, consumption, and the like, Cursed is he that doth not abide in all, &c. Leuit. 26.14, 15, 16. It is farther requi­red, that this obedience should bee constant; there­upon our Sauiour grounds his promise, That hee that en­dureth to the end, Mat. 24.13. the same shall be saued. And it is the condi­tion that Christ propounds to his Disciples, in the Gospel of Saint Iohn, Ioh. 8.31. If ye continue in my Word, thē are ye my Disciples indeed. Passiue obedience, is to suffer with patience, all the afflictions that befall a [Page 90] man: for Paul hath giuen eue­rie Christian his doome, where he saies,2. Tim. 3.12. All that will liue godly in Iesus Christ, shall suffer persecution: And there­fore Christ exhorts his Dis­ciples to possesse their soules in patience;Luk. 21.19. of which Dauid is a singular example in suffe­ring the curse of Shimei; when he saies,2. Sam. 16.10, 11, 12. Let him curse, because the Lord hath said vnto him, Curse; and makes an excuse for Shimei, by way of extenu­ating his fault, since his owne sonne that came forth of his bowels, sought his life: and in conclusion, casts himselfe vpon the Lord, It may be (saith he,) the Lord will looke vpon my affliction. Neither is it e­nough to suffer calamity, but to be humbled vnder Gods hand in time of distresse, [Page 91] which is the admonition of Iames, Be afflicted, and mourne, Iam. 4.9, 10. and weepe, humble your selues in the sight of the Lord.

The next effect of Reli­gion, is Sanctity; the speech of Paul to the Thessalonians,Thes. 4.1, 3, 5, 6. is this, when we beseech you brethren, that as ye haue receiued from vs how ye ought to walke, (that is, in the way of Reli­gion) and please God, so you would abound more and more; for this is the will of God, euen your sanctification. And this sanctifying consists either in the forbearing sinne, to which purpose, the Apostle in the same place instanceth in two euils, from which they should abstaine, name­ly, the lust, and concupis­cence, or vncleannesse, and fraud, or deceit: or else it [Page 92] consists in the practice of ho­linesse; to which end God would haue the children of Israel to weare frindges on their garments,Num. 15.41. that they might remember and do all his Commandements, and be holy vnto God. And Peter setteth God, as a Patterne of holinesse, exhorting them as obedient children, to be holy in all manner of conuersa­tion,1. Pet. 1.14.15. as he that called them, is holy: and indeed this holi­nesse is a maruellous effect, whereby is wrought such a secret alteratiō in a true Con­uert, as that none knowes how it comes to passe, but his owne soule within him, which yet himselfe is not able to expresse, neither would any one take him to be the same man he was be­fore. [Page 93] Is it not a strange thing to find a man, that for twen­tie, thirty, forty yeeres toge­ther, hath swoom in abun­dance of all earthly things, hath denied himselfe no man­ner of pleasure that is to bee found out vnder the Sunne; hath had the generall ap­plause of all that knew him, for an vnderstanding, a iust, a temperate, and a liberall man; hath had continuall health; hath neuer knowne what the least misery is? To see this man all on a sudden, in the middest of his happi­nesse, perplexed, and trou­bled within himselfe, com­plaining of the miserable estate he is in; laying to his owne charge, blindnesse of mind, iniustice of his actions, a want of gouernment in his [Page 94] course of life, and neglect of charitable workes, accusing himselfe of all manner of sinne, and finding no comfort at all, till the same power hath raised him vp, that before had thus cast him downe; and then to see him changing his vaine company, disregarding his superfluous wealth, laying aside his vn­profitable and time-consu­ming pleasures, contemning popular applause, labouring for the true knowledge of God, and of the meanes how to serue him aright, perfor­ming all good workes in o­bedience to the Commande­ment of God; which before he obserued onely in a ciuill respect, and abstaining from those euill actions for con­science sake, which (haply) [Page 95] before he had forborne the practice of, for some sinister, or outward regard, and ma­king a sanctified vse of all Gods blessings, as of health, peace, libertie, and the like: Is not this a wonderfull alte­ration, which in some mea­sure is found in euery man, so soone as true Religion en­ters into his heart?

The third effect of Reli­gion, is Wisedome; & this is either Sapience, or Prudence.In definition. [...]. Ethic. lib. 6. cap. 5. [...]. Sapience is defined by Plato, to be a simple or incompoun­ded Science, or the know­ledge of Diuine and Eternall things, or a knowledge that proceeds from contempla­tion of the cause of things. And Aristotle, his Scholler, defines Prudence to be a true habit working with reason, [Page 96] vpon those things that are, good or euill to a man: but the chiefe Preacher and Tea­cher of Wisedome, hath in­cluded them both in one verse, where he saies, that Sapience is the reuerence of God, and Prudence the com­munion of Saints, as Tremel­lius interprets it, so that out of a true knowledge of God, infused by God himselfe, pro­ceeds this reuerence of God, which is Sapience, and the vertuous carriage of a mans selfe towards men, especially the Saints, is Prudence. The obiect of Sapience, is ens, or being, and the obiect of Pru­dence, is the chiefe good. Now God is the onely Be­ing, or I AM; and he is the chiefe, yea, the onely Good, and therefore Religion, con­taining [Page 97] the true knowledge and worship of God, workes this Wisedome in a man. There are foure things which accomplish a mans happinesse, pleasure, profit, honour, and long life to en­ioy them in: all which Solo­mon comprehends in Wise­dome, where he saies, that All other delights of a man are not to be compared vnto her, Prou. 3.15, 16. and length of dayes is in her right hand, and in her left hand riches and honour.

But there is no speaking of any thing vnder God,Man, the subiect of Religion. but it must haue a place of resi­dence. So Religion must haue a subiect to reside in, which is man that hath beene so of­ten named. And here Reli­gion sits like a Queene in her Maiestie, she keepes her Court in the soule of man, [Page 98] and her chaire of State, is the heart of man, so that to man may be well said, Let your doores stand open, you euer­lasting gates, and let the Queene of glory come in. She is so wise of her selfe, and so powerfull, as that she needes no coun­sell, onely she hath continu­ally waiting vpon her, two Secretaries of State, and a Recorder or Register, the first of these Secretaries is Vnderstanding; to this she referres the examining of all suites preferred, and the in­formation of what nature they are. The second Secreta­ry is the Will, and to this she referres the returning of An­swer to all Petitions made: the Recorder to this great Queene, is Memory, and here are registred all Peti­ions, with their answers, to [Page 99] the end that man might not be without a president for whatsoeuer he shall be a sui­tor; if here he can find, that such and such things haue beene to such and such per­sons, at such and such times, and in such and such a place gtanted, he may haue hope to obtaine his desire in that kinde: but if he finde, that such things haue beene deni­ed, and thought altogether vnfit to be asked, or granted, let him desist from Petitions, in this nature. In this office of the Memory, likewise are recorded all the Letters Pa­tents that euer haue bin gran­ted vnto any man; so that if he chance at any time to lose his euidence, or assu­rance, here he may take out a new Copie of it when hee will. In this Office likewise [Page 100] are entred all the Actions of man, that if at any time hee haue done any memorable seruice, hee may craue re­ward, (for this is a bountifull Queene,) or if he haue com­mitted any crime, he may sue for his Pardon; for God that hath placed Religion his Vicegerent vpon earth, is a mercifull God. Now the houshold seruants of this Queene, are the affections, so that where shee commands to loue, the Religious man loues; where she commands to hate, he hates; where she commands to reioyce, hee reioyceth; where she com­mands to sorrow, he sor­rowes; where she commands to feare, he feares; where she commands confidence, he is bold: so that all the actions are ready at her command. [Page 101] The common subiects of this Queene, (for she admits no Peeres in her Dominions,) are all the parts of the body; the eye, the eare, the hand, the foote, and all the mem­bers of a Christian mans bo­dy are gouerned by her, and receiue protection, and di­rection from her; she feedes the hungry mouth, clothes the naked backe, strengthens euery weake part, and su­staines the whole. The reue­nue of this Great Queene, is all that a man hath in this world; no sooner was shee entred into the hearts of the Christians in the Acts, but they came and laid all they had at the Apostles feete: where she bids Giue, man must giue; yea, if she call for his children, or himselfe, hee must bee ready with the an­swer, [Page 102] which Seneca reports Demetrius to make to the gods:Seneca, lib. cur. bonis vi­ris mala fi­unt. Hanc quoque animosam Demetrij for­tissimi viri vo­cem audiffe me mominisse hoc vnum, inquit, Dij immorta­les, de vobis queri possum, quod non an­tè mihi vo­luntatem ve­stram notam fecistis: prior enim ad ista venissem, ad quae nunc vo­catus sum. vultis liberos illos vobis su­stuli? vultis aliquam par­tem corporis? Sumite. Non magnam rem promitto, ci­to totum re­linquā. Vul­tis spiritum? quidni? nul­lam moram faciam, quò minus recipi­atis quod de­distis: à volen­te recipietis, quidquid pe­tieritis. quid ergo est? ma­lu [...]ssē offerre quàm tradere. Quod opus fuit anferre? accipere po­tuistis, sed ne nunc qui­dem ausere­tis, quia nihil eripitur nisi retinenti. There is one thing, O ye immortall gods, I haue to complaine of you, that you would not let me know your pleasure before-hand, for I would haue first offered my selfe, to what I am now cal­led by you: will you haue my children? I haue bred them vp for you: will you haue any member of my body? Take it: I promise no great matter; for within a short time I shall leaue the whole. Will you haue my life? what else? I will make no delay to hinder you from receiuing what you haue giuen: you shall willing­ly receiue whatsoeuer you re­quire: I had rather offer all to you vnasked, then deliuer it to you being demanded: you shall not need to vse any vio­lence, [Page 103] you may take them: nothing is said to be taken, a­way from him, that doth not withhold it, and I deny you nothing: where shee bids Keepe, man must keepe; if she call for all a man hath, he must part with it: if she bring ne­uer so great an increase, she must haue the disposing of all; yet she does not alwayes turne her Tenants out of possession; onely shee will haue them know, that they are but Tenants at will: and as this Religion is onely an adiunct to man (no man hath it borne with him,) so it is a subiect to diuers adiuncts.

The adiuncts of Religion,The proper adiuncts of Religion, knowledge, faith, loue, and feare. are either proper, or com­mon: the proper adiuncts of Religion, some of them may be these; knowledge, faith, loue, and feare.

This knowledge, which is a proper adiunct of Religion, is not an Historical knowledge, but a sauing knowledge, such a knowledge as is taught by him that workes Religion in the heart; which our Sauiour verifies,Mat. 1 1.27. in saying, That no man knowes the Father but the Sonne, and he to whom the Son reuealeth him. And this was the know­ledge that Paul was infused withall,2. Cor. 12.4. when he was caught vp to the third heauen: so that it is wrought together with Religion, and without which there is no Religion. The Philosopher obserues a twofold knowledge;A priori & posteriori. the one proceeding from the prece­dent causes, which are for the most part vnknowne: the o­ther from the subsequent ef­fects, and adioyning quali­ties; and the latter of these, [Page 105] is all the knowledge a man can likely haue in naturall things; but this is a cer­taine distinction in Diuinity, wherein both parts are to be noted for the naturall man, by obseruation, expe­rience, and discourse, may, out of effects and qualities, gather some knowledge of God and his Diuine being, and a worship to bee due to him, and an infinit power to be in him, and he may grope out so much (according to the words of the Author of the Acts of the Apostles) as will direct him to seeke out the true knowledge of God and his worship,Acts 17. [...]7. [...]. from God him­selfe; but this sauing know­ledge here spoken of, is such a one, as that no man can haue it in him, without the same God that giues it, reueale it [Page 106] to him out of those hidden principles wrought in the heart of man, which are not possible to be expressed.

The next proper adiunct is faith, which is so linked to the former of knowledge, as that who hath not the one, hath not the other; and who hath not true Religion, hath neither; and therefore the Apostle ioynes them toge­ther, as things vnseparable, and infallible tokens, or signes one of another; where he exhorts the Corinthians to try themselues whether they were in the faith, or no; but how should they try themselues? by no way, but by their knowledge; and therefore he asks them in the next words,2. Cor. 13.5. Do you not know your selues? and shewes them farther, how they come, by [Page 107] this knowledge, namely, Be­cause Iesus Christ was in them, except they were Reprobates. Is it not a strange thing, that Herod should send the Wise men to the Pharises, to informe themselues where Christ should be borne, and they could direct them to Beth­lem, and shew them what had beene prophesied, and yet could not beleeue in him? But this shewes the dif­ference betweene that know­ledge, and faith grounded thereupon, which was re­uealed to the Apostles by Christ himselfe; and that o­ther of the Pharises, which is none of this sauing know­ledge or faith which is pro­per to Religion.

The third proper adiunct of Religion, is loue, and that loue is not euery loue, but [Page 108] the loue of God, and our bre­thren for Gods sake, which loue is wrought in man, by the same Spirit that Religi­on it selfe is wrought: The Apostle saies,Rom. 5.5. That the loue of of God is shed abroad into our hearts, by the holy Ghost, which is giuen to vs. And in another place; hee acknowledges great thankes to be due to God, for the increase of faith, and abundance of loue, which was in the Thessaloni­ans,2. Thes. 1.3. where hee ioynes faith, and loue, as the gifts of God, that go alwayes together: neither let a man deceiue himselfe in this loue of God: for many men thinke they loue God, when indeed they loue onely themselues: as Christ vpbrayded them that followed him onely for loue of the loaues. Diuers Heathē [Page 109] people haue worshipped the Sunne, the Moone, the Starres. Ceres, the goddesse of Corne, Bacchus, the god of Wine, and the like, for the benefit they haue receiued from these crea­tures; and no question, herein had some generall notation of a deitie: but this loue of God, which flowes from true Reli­gion, must not be onely a loue of him for his goodnesse to­wards vs, no, not for that great gift of saluation to mankinde, but a loue of him, because he is so holy, and absolute perfecti­on; yea, though we receiued none of these mercies, yet this Religion will cause vs to loue him, for himselfe, and his chil­dren, in obedience to his Com­mandement, and for the com­munion they all haue in Christ; which is deliuered by Iohn, 1. Epist. Ioh. 3.21. in these words, And this comfort [Page 94] haue we from God, that he who lo­ueth God, loueth his brother also. And the Communion which all the Saints haue in Christ, re­quires the loue, which the A­postle to the EphesiansEphe. 4.15. saith, Is the knitting of the ioynts of Christs body, from whence it receiueth growth, and is built vp.

The last of the proper ad­iuncts, is Feare: and this againe must bee the Feare of God, which feare is neuer separated from true Religion; nor euer to be found where true Religion is not. In the Scriptures Wise­dome and Religion are often­times taken in the same signifi­cation; and therefore it is said, The feare of the Lord is Wisedome. Iob 28.28. And when a man is said to fi­nish that great worke of his sal­uation, which is an end of his Religion, he is aduised by the 2. Cor. 7.3.Apostle to do it in the feare of [Page 95] the Lord. Religion consists in the obseruing of the Law of God. Now, to feare God and obserue his Commandements, is the summe of the Law; but without the feare of God, there is no keeping of the Comman­dements, and that makes a com­pleat obedience. It is not pu­nishment that a man must onely feare, but feare God, because he is God; yea, though there were no punishment for offending him; and feare the committing of an euill act, because it is dis­pleasing to him, and contrary to his pure nature, which feare in the Corinthians is called the perfection of holinesse: and these foure qualities of know­ledge, faith, loue, and feare, are so linked together, as that they are not to be found one with­out another, but make a golden bracelet to adorne Religion [Page 112] withall; for out of knowledge a man must be able to giue a reason of his faith; as Peter 1. Pet. 3.15. ex­horts; and loue is the efficacie of faith,Gal. 5.6. as Paul affirmes: and true feare is distinguished from slauish feare by loue; as will ap­peare by comparing the Pro­phesie of Zacharias, which saies, That we being deliuered out of the hands of our enemies, Luk. 1.74. might serue him without feare; with the con­clusion of the Psalmist,Psal. 119. ve. 119.120. who professeth that he loued the Testimonies of God, and his flesh trembled before him, and hee was afraid of his Iudge­ments. Zacharias frees such as are redeemed by Christ,Q. d. non quidem à prae­sentia tua metuo vt A­dam, Gen. 3. nam contra illam mihi adesse expeto, sed ab infir­nutate mea ne prouocem iudicia tua. from a seruile feare: but the Psalmist sheweth what caused a childlike feare in him, namely, the loue of Gods Testimonies. Tremelli­us & Iunius render this exposi­tion of the feare spoken of by [Page 113] the Psalmist, it is, as if he had said; I feare not thy presence, (O God) as Adam did, but con­trarily, I wish thee alway with me: but I feare my owne weake­nesse, lest I should prouoke thee to iudgement. So that a Christian man may bee said to beleeue in God, because he spi­ritually knowes him; to loue him, because hee beleeues in him; and to feare him, because hee loues him.

Besides these proper adiuncts of Religion,The com­mon ad­iuncts of Religion, all morall vertues. there are common adiuncts of Religion, in the number of which, are Zeale, & Mildnesse, and Patience, and Temperance, & Iustice, and all morall vertues: for though these do not so neerely depend vpon Religion, as the other do, yet where there is true Religi­on, these are in some measure to be found. For Zeale, take the [Page 114] opinion of Paul, Gal. 4.18. That it is good to be zealous alwayes in a good thing. For Meekenes, take the words of Salomon, Pro. 2.34. Surely God scorneth the scorners, but giueth grace vnto the lowly. For Patience, take the pre­cept of Christ,Luk. 21.19. In your patience possesse ye your soules. For Tempe­rance, take our Sauiors inquiry, and blessing,Mat. 24.45. Who is a faithfull and wise seruant, whom his Lord hath made ruler ouer his houshold, to giue them meate in due season? Blessed is that seruant, whom his Lord, when he commeth, shall find so doing. For Iustice,Gen. 6.9. take Noah for a Pat­terne: Noah was a iust man & per­fect in his generations, and walked with God. And for all manner of morall vertues, there are Pre­cepts, Promises, and Examples to bee found in the Scripture, which directs all men to Reli­gion.

And now, out of what hath [Page 115] gone before, there may bee a gesse giuen what this Religion is, which is taken vpon them by many, but found in few. To de­fine Religion from its essentiall causes and internall, is not so easie; it being a difficult thing to find out the matter & forme of elementarie substances, and distinguish betweene them and their properties: much more hard then must it be, precisely to set forth the matter & forme of incorporall substances, and most difficult to giue a definitiō out of the essentiall causes of a spirituall thing; yet from what was taken before, to bee the matter and forme of Religion; this definition may bee giuen;Definition of Religion. Zanch. de re­lig. Thes. 1. vera religio quae idem est quod [...] in vero dei cultu posi­ta est. That Religiō is the true Wor­ship of God. It is first worship: it is secondly, the Worship of God in truth; and this is the de­finition of Zanchy: but where a [Page 116] definition may not be easily ga­thered, a description may giue more light; and a description of Religion may be this: That Religion,A descripti­ [...]n of Reli­ [...]ion. is the true Worship of God, wrought by God him­selfe in man, by meanes of his Word, which worketh in a man, Obedience, Sanctitie, and Wisedome; and is seated prin­cipally in the soule of man, whence it disposeth of, and di­recteth all the faculties of the mind, the actions of the body, and the whole estate of man to Gods glory, and the saluation of man, and is alwayes accom­panied with sauing knowledge, a liuely faith, loue of God and his Saints, and feare of God, and all vertues Spirituall and Mo­rall, in some measure: and this description is gathered out of all the consentany artificiall ar­guments of Logick. There was [Page 117] a Heathen man that describes Religion to bee that,Cic. 2. In­uent. Religio qu [...] superioris et iusdam naturam (quam diuinam. vo­caut) curam caeremoniem que aff [...]rt. which workes a care, and ceremonious obseruation of some superior nature, which, saies he, they call Diuine: but this man seemed onely to point at the outward forme of Religion, which in­deed was all the Religion they had. Caluin in one place, saies,Cal. in Com­ment. super 2. Cap. Iohan Vera antiqu [...] religio, quae in Christo sundata est. that true, and ancient Reli­gion is that, which is founded vpon Christ, where he seemed to direct onely to the true foun­dation; wherupon the doctrine of Religion was to bee groun­ded, namely, Christ Iesus.Mel. de simplicibus the­matibus reli­gio constat esse cultum Dei. Me­lancton defines Religion to bee the Worship of God; and though indeed God is not wor­shipped, but rather dishonou­red, where he is not truly wor­shipped: and so this definition may stand compleat; yet be­cause most pretended Religi­ons [Page 118] acknowledge a Worship of God: and many Learned Di­uines haue made a definition betweene true, and false wor­ship: and this Melancton him­selfe, in a description hee makes of Religion, saies, that Religiō is the Worship of God, which consists in the feare of God, and beliefe in God; inclu­ding in that description, two of the proper adiuncts, before na­med. In these regards, truth may not bee altogether super­fluously called, part of y^e forme of Religion; and yet is it not to be conceiued, that the forme of Religion is to be deuided; but truth to Godward of that worship, (which was taken to be the matter) may be receiued to mans apprehension, as a forme of Religion: and if these things are all true, notwithstan­ding so many claimes laid to [Page 119] Religion, as there are, yet it will appeare, that Religion is not so conuersant in the world, as euery man would haue it.

It were to be wished, that men would not rest content with a bare name of Religion, deceiuing themselues, whilest many of them thinke to de­ceiue others: certainely, some women that vse to paint them­selues, cōceiue that the colours which they vse for that purpose when they once are laid on by them, are the natural coluors of their faces: for else, why should they be proud, except it be of their skill in painting? So men that haue put on a guise of Re­ligion, imagine themselues to be such as they outwardly ap­peare to be: for else why should they glory in it, except it bee of their art in hypocrising? Nar­cissus seeing himselfe in the wa­ter, [Page 120] fell in loue with himselfe, and was turned into a Flowre; so a man, when he lookes vpon himselfe, in the waterie con­ceit of his owne swimming fan­cy, is subiect to grow in loue with himselfe, who yet shall proue but a fading flowre, sud­denly conuerting to rottennes: but if he view himselfe in the Christall Glasse of the pure Word of God, he shall appeare before Regeneration, to be a Leper, a Swine, a Dogge, a Diuell; yet notwithstanding, when this blessed forme of Re­ligion is put vpon him, he shall be here like Dauid, a man after Gods owne heart; and in hea­uen, conformed vnto the like­nesse of the Sonne of God, his elder Brother, and Sauiour, Iesus Christ.