A cedars sad and solemn fall. Delivered in a sermon at the parish-church of Waltham Abbey in Essex ... At the funeral of James late Earl of Carlisle. By Thomas Reeve, D.D. preacher of Gods word there.

II ZACH. 2.

Howle Fine-tree, for the Cedar is fallen.

ARma Virum que cano — My Diſcourſe muſt be this day of a man at Arms,Virgil. an ancient Colonel, the Commander of the Tower of Lebanon. Well, what need Lebanon with ſuch a Tower, and ſuch a Commander fear? Yes, very much, for, — pateant Carthaginis arces, Open thy doors, O Lebanon, Virgil. that is, thy Caſtle-gates, for the Commander in chief is to be fetched out. What is he? what is he?

— Quis facta Drovini neſcit? Claudius. who know not the noble Governour? an eminent man he was, for he hath his title of honour, a Cedar. A Cedar he was, but did he grow upon an immortal root? no,

Pulſa gemit crebris ſuccumbens ictibus arbos, Sil. Ital. the lofty tree is ſubject to the ſtroke of the axe, the Cedar is fallen; he is fallen, and may not others be frighted? yes, the blow of the axe, or the noiſe of the fall of the Cedar ought be heard with horrour through the whole forreſt,Virgil. — tonat omne fragore, the whole wood filled with a dreadful ſound; for if the Cedar be fallen, how ſhall the firre-tree ſtand? no, the fall of the Cedar will be [the deſtiny of the firre-tree.

— Ʋnum et commune periclum. Ovid. One common danger doth belong to both; the Cedar being fallen, all the firre-trees may ſhake at the top, and quake at the bottome. But ſhall the Cedar fall, and ſhall there only be an appalling apprehenſion of the general caſualty? no, there ought to be ſome honour done to the Cedar at his fall; a doleful ſhriek ſhould be heard through the whole wood, every tree ſhould have its dumb groan.Ovid. Ter conata loqui, ter fletibus ora rigavit, Thrice it ſhould deſire to ſpeak, and at laſt ſpeake rather with tears then words: Outcries are the beſt language at the fall of a Cedar; let there be ſighs and ſobs at ſuch a mournfull accident, that as the Cedar did grow, to the honour of the forreſt, ſo he might fall, to the anguiſh of the forreſt; yea, the lamentation ſhould be no leſſe then ejulation, every family apart, every firre-tree apart howling. Howle firre-tree for the Cedar is fallen.

Firretrees I ſee enough here, but are they not ſo taken with their own excellencies, that they cannot acknowledge anothers perfections? It is an hard thing to confeſſe, commend, praiſe, and prize the deſerts of our brethren. Envy is a bad praeco, an Encomiaſtick, and ſelf-love is almoſt as ill;Omnes ſibi melius eſſe velle quàm alteri. Terent. And. the one hath a ſquint eye, and the other hath a dumb tongue. Every one had rather hear his own praiſes then anothers. Their own birds are faireſt, there is no Hyacinth but that which doth grow in their own garden; their own temples muſt onely be filled with Laurell; Bavius and Mevius will detract what they can from Virgil's due praiſes. There is an Emulation that is a generous and noble imitation of another mans vertues;Aemulatio eſt dolor animi, cum al us potitur câ re quam tu concup • veris. Franciſ. Patric. and there is an emulation that is a baſe, and paſſionate vexation againſt another mans juſt honour for his vertue. Our friends envy is as dangerous as our enemies treachery, as Cleobulus ſaid: Aſinius Pollio will leap out of the room, if he doth hear Sextilius commend Ciccro; Simmias will not endure Pericles to be praiſed, nor Alcmaeon Themiſtocles. Caligula having a bald head himſelf cannot endure a comely buſh of hair upon other mens heads, for he ſent the young men of Rome to the ſhaving. Agathocles was ſo enraged to ſee Gelo have a ſtately ſepulchre erected to his honor by the Syracuſans, that he depraved Geloe's vertues, and raſed his tomb. For the work that is upright a man is envied of his very neighbour, Eccles. 4.4. Theſe are the dead flies which corrupt the ſweet ointment; none muſt wear a garland living, nor have an honourable exequy dying, but they. How then ſhall I get my Commander of the tower of Lebanon interred? what wayling ſhall I heare through the wood at his fall? what are ye the only men of deſert? ye may be worthy, praiſe-worthy, I do not deny your qualifications, ye are firre-trees; but may there not be a tree in the forreſt which may equal you, exceed you? yes, I do preſent you with a Cedar, a Cedar he was, a Cedar he is not; no, he is fallen. And what now? that which dieth let it dye, and that which falleth let it fall. Doth it not grieve you to ſee ſuch a goodly plant lye on the ground? then let no man tender a firre-tree, if the firre-tree do not value the Cedar; fall thou with ignominy, if thou doſt ſuffer ſuch an one to fall without due eſteem. Remember that he is fallen, and that it is the laſt good office which thou canſt do to him to lament his fall; to ſay of him, ſo long as he ſtood he ſtood with admiration, and now he is fallen, let him fall even to exanimation. Every good man amici caſum gemit, doth lament the death of ſuch a Country-Splendour; the loſſe of ſuch a valuable Cedar is even unvaluable; wiſh that thou hadſt his eminencies, wiſh that thou hadſt fallen in his ſtead; many a firre-tree might be ſpared in reſpect of ſuch a Cedar. But ſeeing it pleaſed the Lord of the forreſt that he ſhould no longer grow, look with a ſad eye upon the breach, the rent, the torn flagge, the deep hole he hath made at his fall. Oh that ſo many trees about him ſhould never enjoy his preſence again! that ſo many eyes which beheld this Cedar in his glory ſhould never be ſo happy as to behold him in his height again! but ſeeing there is no remedy, but this Cedar muſt be taken away, call him Cedar, and beſtow a volly of grones at his fall. I do not wiſh thee to fall with him; no, long maiſt thou grow upon thy ſtock and ſtemm; but if it be poſſible let thy top bow down, thy bark cleave, a little ſap drop out of thy rind at his fall; if any firre-trees have any ſenſe in them, let them looſen their pith at ſuch an accident; if they have any ſpeech in them let them howl. Howle firre-tree, for the Cedar is fallen.

1. We are this day at a great-mans Funerall, and it is fit we ſhould have a Scutcheon, and here it is in the perſon of honour, the Cedar.

2. And that we ſhould have an herſe, and here it is in the dead corps, that the Cedar was fallen.

3. And that we ſhould have a Mourner, and here he is in the firre-tree.

4. And that we ſhould have the right funerall cry, and here it is in the Howling; Howle firre-tree, for the Cedar is fallen.

Firſt, for the Scutcheon, in the perſon of honour, the Cedar. Are great men Cedars? then from hence obſerve, that Mankind hath heights in it, that is, One Superiour to another. There are lower trees, and taller trees. Are all Apoſtles? are all Cedars? no, The whole body is not one Member, 1 Cor. 12.14. there are the nobler and ignobler parts. All creatures have their diſtinctions, beaſts, birds, flowers, plants, and planets; amongſt men naturally there are diſtinctions, are all of the ſame height, ſtrength, beauty, wit? nay, there are diſtinctions in mans faculties, ſenſes, homogeneal and heterogeneal parts. Why then ſhould the ſtates and conditions of men be brought down to a parity, as if all men were alike, and muſt be alike for power, and poſſeſſions? no, this is but the Vagrants argument, or Spittle-houſe Logick: the Scripture doth tell us that there are abjects, Pſ. 35.15. the loweſt of the people, 1 Kings 12.31. Children of baſe men, viler then the earth, Job 30.8. and that there are the mighty of the land, 2 Kings 24.15. men of high degree, 1. Chron. 17.13. the ſheilds of the earth, Pſ. 47.9. and the foundations of the earth, Pſ. 82.5. ſome ſo great, that they are called the mountaines of Iſrael, Ezek. 36.1. and ſo high, that their height is like the height of Cedars, Amos 2.9. Shall the men of low rank then vie degrees with the Nobles of the land? no, the honourable man is the head, Eſ. 9.6.Plut. Have not all ſtates had theſe Superiours and inferiours? yes, the Lacedaemonians had the common people, and the chiefe Magiſtrates, which were called Phylarchae; Herodot. the Egyptians had ſeven orders, and the principal amongſt them were the Celaſyries and the Hermotybies. Herodotus doth prove that there were the like amongſt the Perſians, Indians, Scythians, Lydians, &c. Let us look upon Rome, the famous State of the world; Inqu • lini & cives. Sigon. de yu • Rom. I. 1. In the dayes of Romulus there were the baſer ſort of people, and true Citizens; and afterwards he ſetled them into Clients and Patrons, and Patricicians. In the days of Romulus there were but three Tribes, but in the dayes of Servius there were four Tribes; and afterwards they increaſed to 35 Tribes; and every one of theſe Tribes had five diviſions for ſeveral degrees, and ten Courts, where the Superiours executed juſtice upon the Inferiours, as Merula, Lazias, Toxita, Phileticus, Roſine, Lipſius, and many others, do report; yea, amongſt all ſorts of people there were ſtrange diſtinctions (as thoſe authors do affirm) by the want or enjoyment of outward privileges; the ſlaves ware long hair, and went either bare-headed, or with a ſordid covering; but the freemen had their heads ſhaven,Sagum paludamentum. and the right of a cap allowed them; the common ſouldiers might weare but a long cloak, but the General might wear a rich robe of honour; the ordinary Gentry had the right of the golden ring, and the Shooe with the half Moon upon it; but the high Nobility had the right of the Curule chair, and of Images. The Senators themſelves had ſeveral ſorts of Orders amongſt them, as the Conſuls, the Praetor, the Dictatour, the Decemviri, Aediles, Cenſors, Queſtors, &c. So then ſeeing all Nations allowed of mean men and chief men, ſhould the earthen pitchers hold themſelves to be made of as good materials as the beſt veſſels of a Commonwealth? no, the Nobles are ſaid to be comparable to fine gold, Lam. 4.2. If there were not a diſtinguiſhing dignity to be aſcribed to men of high place, why is Joſeph called the ſecond man of the Kingdom? Joſeph of Arimathea ſtyled an honourable Councellor? Feſtus ſpoken to by the name of noble? and Chriſt himſelf compared to a Nobleman? So then the forreſt of a Nation hath not all trees of the ſame growth, no, there is the low plant, and the Cedar. The Cedar.

Application.

1. Firſt then let the Cedar have his height, let Superiority be acknowledged. Oh that many men would crop the top of the Cedar, and make the peſant equal to the Peere. A generation of men there are in the world, which would have all wear home-ſpun, and dig with the ſpade; they were born to no patrimonies, and ſo would have other men ſhare inheritances with them; they came out of a drudges womb themſelves, and ſo are profeſſed enemies to all noble bloud: why ſhould any Nobleman enjoy ten thouſand, twenty thouſand pounds by the year, when this eſtate divided would ſerve many a good Chriſtian? a good Chriſtian! a ravening Chriſtian; for what Title haſt thou to another mans Birthright? did the noble Theophilus, Sergius Paulus, Oneſiphorus, Gaius, Saint Johns elect Lady, give over the right of their eſtates, or ſuffer others to come to ſhare portions with them when they embraced Chriſt? Is this to be a Chriſtian? No, it is to be a Nicolaitan. The Levellers golden age is to turn the whole wealth of a Kingdome into a Dividend. He ſeems to be but a Lapwing, to make a great noiſe where he doth fly, but if he were let alone, ye ſhould find him a Griffin or a Vulture.

But theſe Malecontents muſt hold them to their tatters, till Scripture, Nature, and Nations will provide them a better Wardrobe. I believe that theſe men doe labour but little with their hands, and ſo they hope to raiſe a fortune with the ſweat of their tongues; but it is hard getting eſtates by Paradoxes. Noblemen will not readily be decoyed out of what their Anceſtors left them by ſuch cut-purſe Profeſſors. Dare they compare their Crab-ſtock to the noble Cedar? No, if they doe believe Scripture, (for all their inſpirings, and aſpirings) they ſhall find it to be a ſin for Children to preſume againſt the ancient, 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 . Splendor generis. Ariſt. de. nat. an. c. 1. Nobilitas eſt eminentia. Gerſ. de nob. Gentiles homines. Dubdus de div. rep. c. 11. or the vile againſt the honourable, Iſa. 3.5. Let Noblemen then maintain their Creſts, their rights; they are the better born, the men to be reverenced, the Worthy, and perſons ſet apart, or ſevered from others to be ennobled: there is in them a ſplendour of birth. Nobility is Eminency, they are the Gentile men to be preferred before others. Let Noblemen take their Peerage, they are perſons of honour, for they are Cedars.

2. Secondly, this ſhould teach Noblemen to be gratefull men, even Mirrours of thankfulneſſe; for are ye Cedars? the higheſt to heaven in greatneſſe, and the loweſt to heaven in the ſenſe of Gods mercies? Know ye not that it is the hand of heaven which hath planted you, and the dew of heaven which hath watered you? then how juſtly might God blaſt your branches, and make you wither at the root? It was ill in Pharaohs Butler to forget Joſeph; then what is it in you to forget your great God? Memory is the beſt keeper of benefits, Memoria eſt Cuſtos beneſiciorum. Chriſ. and what have ye good Eſtates, and bad Memories? no, keep not your Court-rolls more ſtrictly then a Memoriall of Gods bounty. It was good Counſell of St. Auguſtine, Know that thou haſt much, and that thou haſt nothing of thy ſelf. Cognoſce te habere, & non ex te habere. Aug. Are thy deſerts anſwerable to thy abundance? no, thou mayeſt ſay with Jacob, I am leſſe then the leaſt of thy mercies; yea, thou mayeſt in a time of aſtoniſhment cry out with David, and ſay, Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my Fathers houſe, that thou haſt brought me hitherto? 2 Sam. 7.18. The beſt Noble family at firſt had but a poor Foundation-ſtone, as the beſt Cedar at firſt had but a poor root. Art thou a Cedar? God might have made thee a ſhrub, and thy firſt Progenitor had no loftier top; the times are well mended with thee, there is a large dowry come to thee for the needy portion that thy firſt Predeceſſor was born to. Canſt look backward? canſt ſee the rock out of which thou wert hewen? hath God out of a Chaos created ſuch greatneſſe? hath mercy by miracle made the cloud, which was no bigger then a mans hand, to over-ſpread the whole Heavens? O Spring-tide of favour! O extaſie of Divine Providence! and what haſt loſt thy eyes, or loſt thy tongue? alas poor blind and mute creature! hath fulneſſe ſtifled thee? or a ſurfet of bleſſings choked thee? art become ſhort-winded? canſt not breath through multiplicity of incomes and honours? hath ſo much brightneſſe quite dazled thee? hath this rank blood begot a fever? muſt God bring a dark sky before thou wilt recover thy ſight? muſt he open a vein before thou wilt be perfectly cured? muſt he recover his wooll and his flax before thou wilt conſider what ſtore God hath ſent in to thee? O unthankful creatures to ſuch a bountiful God! O that ever God ſhould pamper thee thus to forget thy Feeder! O unkind creature, that thou ſhouldſt force God to be ſevere to thee, becauſe thou wilt not know favour; or conſtrain him to puniſh thee, becauſe thou wilt not feel his embraces! Do ye thus requite the Lord, O fooliſh people? is this the wages that thou repayeſt to God for his carefull and watchfull feeding thee? a goodly price that he is valued at by thee; a Potter might have had as good a recompence from thee for a few drinking veſſels, or gallipots, or baſons, or pure Chinah-ſtuffe, as God hath for a whole vintage of bleſſings. Is this the Peace-offering, the Sacrifice of praiſe, which thou doſt offer for magnifying mercies, for bands of love, for the goodwill of him that dwels in the buſh, for the candle of the Lord ſhining upon thy head, for ſilver wings, & feathers of gold, for a lot fallen unto thee in a good place, for waters of a full cup, for waſhing thy ſteps in butter, for proſperity that hath riſen as the flood, for riding upon the high places of the earth, for excellency that mounts up to the Heavens, for an horn exalted like the horn of an Unicorn, for making thy neſt as the Eagle, for living as in Eden the garden of God, where every precious ſtone hath been thy covering, for being ſatisfied with favour, and being full of the bleſſing of God, for a hill of bleſſings, for ſhowers of bleſſings, for bleſſings poured out of the windowes of heaven in ſuch an abundance that there is ſcarce room to receive them? will not all theſe ſpokeſmen crying in thy ears make thee know thy God? will not the beams of ſuch a radiant favour make thee to ſee thy God? doth God heap benefits upon thee, & canſt not diſcern a hand of bounty? are there ſo many bleſſings ſinging in thy eares, and yet canſt not hear the ſounding of his bowels? when ſhall God ſpeak to thy heart? when ſhall he ſend tokens enough unto thee to make thee acknowledge him Friend? he hath made thee great, but when wilt thou aſcribe greatneſſe to him? thou haſt had the fruit of his mercies, when ſhall he have the fruit of thy lips? wilt never make him Prince? nor exhibit to him his true glory who hath ſet thee amongſt Princes, and made thee inherit the throne of glory? haſt been brought up thus long in the ſchoole of bounty, and canſt not learn the leſſon of thankfulneſs? hath God blown up ſuch a bright flame of proſperity for thee, and will not a ſparke of gratitude fly from thee? read over all thy patents, free deeds, leaſes, Courtrolls, Commiſſions, look upon thy porches, fanes, halles, dining-chambers, galleries, Banqueting-houſes, parkes, fiſh-ponds, gardens, orchards, and ſee if a dumb man ought to poſſeſſe all theſe; thou art ſo great, that thou art not able to manage all thy eſtate thy ſelf, but thou art enforced to have thy Steward, Sollicitour, Bayliffe, Auditor, Gardener, Park-keeper, Wood-man, and whom not? and is there not one amongſt all theſe which can tell thee what a bountifull God thou doſt live by? nor canſt not be thy own Remembrancer? If thou canſt not find God in thy large poſſeſſions abroad, nor in thy vaſt roomes at home, yet methink thou ſhouldſt find him in thy Chappell; Oh that ſame little Chappel (methink) ſhould ſhew thee the face of thy great God: oh when thou art bending thy knees to God, and lifting up thy eyes to God, and ſtretching out thy hands to God, and opening thy lips to God, and offering thy heart to God, methinks thou ſhouldſt have a clear and a dear, an actual and an effectual apprehenſion of thy God, thy precious and promoting God. Will not thy Chaplain pray or preach home this God unto thee? then thou ſhouldeſt be Prieſt to thy ſelf: Hath God given thee an honourable Family, and a noble fortune, onely to ſtretch out thy neck, or to be a man of appetite, or to enlarge thy border, that thou mightſt dwell alone upon the earth? then how art thou a Nobleman? no, thou art rather a proud, ſenſual, covetous man than a Nobleman; a true Nobleman doth diſdain thus to live, to the diſparagement of his Family, to the diſhonour of his God. Who calls thee Nobleman? Hinds and Peſants, and menial ſervants, and Yeomen, and Tradeſmen, and Gentlemen, and Citizens, and Courtiers may give thee that name; but God, his Angels, his Saints,Nihil conſtat eſſe bonum niſi quod ab ipſo dignoſcitur eſſe collatum. Caſſiod. thine own Conſcience do not ſo ſtyle thee: For how canſt thou eſteem thy ſelf a Nobleman, unleſs thou beeſt a thankful man? thy true greatneſs is in gratitude; elſe, how canſt thou call any thing about thee comfortable? no,Cum bona venarint benedicito Deo, ſic perſeverabunt bona & presp • ra. Chryſoſt. Nothing is good but that a which is acknowledged to come from God; elſe, how canſt thou reſolve that any thing will be permanent? no, When bleſſings come, extoll God, and ſo thy good and prosperous things ſhall have n eſtabliſſhment. Thy preſent uſe then, and the future perpetuity of all that thou doſt poſſeſs, is both legitimated and ratified by thankfulneſs: what then, thou haſt lands in many Countries, and amongſt all theſe canſt not find out the grand Landlord? thou art a Lord, but there is a Lord paramount over thee: thou art a man of honour, and thou haſt an houſe of honour, and wherefore, but to honour thy true Benefactor? yes, thou oughteſt to magnifie him, and deifie him.Grati as agere Deo poſſumus, referre non poſſumus. Caſſiod. in Pſ. 47. God hath given thee all for a breaſt and a tongue, if thou wilt not praiſe God thou wilt not requite him: the act of commemoration had need to be thine, for the act of recompenſation is beyond thy power: O then that thou wilt not pay thy quit-rent, thy pepper-corn! yes, do it, or elſe thou art blind in whatſoever thou doſt poſſeſs: For why hath God made thee a Nobleman? bring an argument, if thou canſt, but out of the Topicks of feee favour; he that made thee a Nobleman might have made thee a Drudgeman, he that made thee a Cedar might have made thee one of the under-trees which grow about thee: why doſt thou flouriſh in thy palace, when others have not a cottage to hide their heads in: why doth thy Rent-taille come to many thouſands by the year, when many have not mony enough to pay their houſe-rent? O! God might have made thoſe ſtrong ſhoulders of thine to have born burthens, and thoſe luſty arms of thine to have wrought for thy living, yea and with that diligence and ſtrictneſs, that If thoſe hands of thine out of idleneſs had kept one day an Holy-day, the next day might have been a Faſting-day. Si manus c • ſſaret, panis deſiceret. Caſſiod. There are a company of Egenoes in the land, an hoſt of needy people which wander up and down the Nation to beg neceſſary ſuſtenance; God might have liſted thee into this tattered Regiment, and made thee to have crouched for a piece of ſilver, and to have ſought thy bread out of deſolate places; but God hath ſo well provided for thee, that thy Table is continually ſpread, thy Coffers filled, and thy Wardrobe furniſhed: whatſoever the wants of others are for meat, money, rayment, thou canſt eat dainties according to thy appetite, take out gold and ſilver by the handful, put on changeable ſuits of apparel according to thy delight: others cannot ſleep enough in the night-time, nor keep their houſes in the day time, nor chuſe their work, but do any thing whereby they may get a livelyhood; but thou canſt lie in bed as long as thou liſteſt, and riſe when thou pleaſeſt; thou canſt either ſit at home at eaſe, or ride abroad at pleaſure, and thou canſt chuſe thy work, even chuſe whether thou wilt work at all; for what is thy labour? to waſh thy hands rather than to work with thy hands, to ſtretch thy ſelf in idleneſs rather than to ſtretch thy joynts in induſtry; to ſprinkle thy head with perfuming powders, rather than to oyle thine hair with thine own ſweat: alas, when others are enforced to look to herds and flocks, tilling, ſeeding, reaping, &c. thou lookſt onely to thy cuts and curles, thy knots and fancies, thy half-arms and half-waſtes, thy chapfallen boots and neckerchief knees: O then, hath God freed thee from the aking limbs, the warded hands and ſurbaten feet of other men, and haſt not leiſure enough to magnifie thy God? yes, God hath given thee all this liberty, opulency and affluency, meerly that thou mightſt praiſe the name of him that hath done wonderouſly for thee. If three ſhould not be an oblation kindled in private cottages, yet the Altar ſhould flame with ſacrifices in Noblemens families: God hath pricked out ſuch a ſong for thee, that it might be called the Noblemans Magnificat; yea, every member about thee might be a Queriſter to ſing in conſort, Glory be to God. God hath ſeparated that houſe of thine from all other imployment meerly to make it a chantry to himſelf, what then wilt thou not yet ſay, Awake Lute and Harp, I my ſelf will awake right early? wilt thou not cauſe thy glory to awaken? praiſe God with the beſt member thou haſt? praiſe him in the higheſt that he hath given thee cedar-height? yes, blazon Gods Coat of mercies better than thy progenitors Arms, and ſing in a louder tone for Gods rich bleſſings, than thou wouldſt if a triumphant chariot were prepared for thee; ſuch mercies deſerve a ſong of degrees, yea, the ſong might be appointed to the chief ſinger on Neginothai, or to him that excelled upon Hajjaleth Halſhahar; no ordinary Inſtrument is fit for this ditty, but even that which David calleth the Hind of the morning. If a poor man ought to praiſe God for a being, how much more the Nobleman for a well-being? if a poor man ought to praiſe God uppon a wel-tuned Cymbal, the Nobleman ought to praiſe him upon a loud-ſounding Cymbal; if a poor man ought to bring a Turtle Dove and two young Pigeons, a Nobleman ought to bring a whole burnt Offering, an Hecatombe; if the height of a Noblemans praiſes ought to be according to the height of his greatneſs, then let him conſider that God hath given him Cedar-height. The Cedar.

3. Thirdly, a Nobleman is from hence exhorted to be the better man, for as the Cedar is the excellent tree in the forreſt, ſo a Nobleman ſhould be the excellent Profeſſor in the Church. The Star of the great Magnitude ſhould yield the brighter light, the better plant ſhould bring forth the ſweeter fruit. God doth expect great duty from men of great dignity, and high ſervice from them upon whom he hath beſtowed high honour. Optimates optimi, mens graces and places ſhould carry a correſpondency; for theſe have a price in their hands, and they are called fools to their faces if their hearts be not anſwerable to their abilities; it is a ſin againſt Gods favours if theſe ſhould be the inferiour Saints, howſoever if they ſhould be the worſt of ſinners. A great man to be a great Libertine, or great Oppreſſor, is no more honour then to be a great Swine, or a great Tiger. The fall of that houſe (ſaith our Saviour) is great, ſo the fall of that noble perſon is great; then Jeconiah is but Coniah, and no more in effect but a broken Idol. Who honour Nimrod the great hunter, or Haman the great perſecutor, or Achitophel the great traytor? 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Men • n. Nobile malum. Sen. G • nus d •• icitur. Ariſt. 2. Rher. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Menaud. one Abraham which was the Father of the faithfull, one Job which was ſo righteous that there was not the like unto him upon earth, one Obadiah which feared the Lord greatly, is to be preferred before a thouſand of theſe Monſters and Miſcreants. Noblemen if they be wicked are but the greater Stains, for there is no Nobility in impiety, there is nothing noble there but a noble villany. The ſtock is there decayed, ſuch an one hath loſt his Arms, though he were born of a better Father then ever was Jupiter, ſaith Menander. It was an heavy thing when Ieremy went unto the great men, thinking that they had known the way of the Lord, and the judgements of their God; but theſe altogether had broken the yoke, and burſt the bonds in ſunder, Jer. 5.5. How is God offended when he had planted a noble Vine, and it turned into a degenerate plant? As God is ſerved in Heaven by the beſt Spirits, ſo he would be ſerved upon Earth by the beſt men. Bring unto the Lord O ye Sons of the Mighty; whoſoever do hold back, do ye bring; theſe, to be good precedents to others, ſhould have ſanctity ſeen in every thing that belongs to them, they ſhould have written upon their very horſe-bridles, Holineſſe to the Lord, Zack. 14.20. Why ſhould they promote Gods honour moſt? yes, he hath promoted them to the higheſt pitch of worldly greatneſs, for earthly privileges they are his grand Favorites, he hath created them Cedars. But how ſhall noblemen be true Cedars?

1. Firſt, if they be ſmooth, that is, courteous. Nobility is highly adorned with affability. Socrates ſaid that harſh manners were no more fit for converſation then harſh wine is for taſte. Better it is to be of an humble mind with the lowly, then to divide ſpoiles with the proud, Pro. 16.19. Proud men are the defiance of the earth. There is that speaketh words like the prickings of a ſword; now who will come near theſe ſharp-edged dagger-pointed lips? O it is a ſhame for great men to make humour their praiſe, or paſſion their dialect, as if they were never high enough except they expreſſed themſelves in high language, nor daſhing enough except they ſtorm in mens faces with tempeſts. But is the Euroclidon any pleaſing wind? is the Raver the acceptable Noblemen? no, he is the Darling of the Age which doth treat the world gently, like great Moſes, who was the meekeſt man upon earth, and great Mordecai, who ſpake peace to all his ſeed; theſe are the men which with Orpheus can tame Lions and Tigers, and with Amphion can move the hardeſt rocks. Is it ſeemly for great men to frame ſowre faces to themſelves (like Caligula) in a glaſs, that when they go abroad they might look the more formidably upon them whom they do not affect?Sueton. or to give no anſwer to Suitors till they have crouched down to their very toes, as if their eares lay in their feet, as Ariſtippus ſaid of Dionyſius? Diod. Si • u • . no, men of high deſcent and quality ſhould be moſt benign and placid in their expreſſions, as the Cedar, though it be high, yet it is not rough and knotty, but ſmooth.

2. Secondly, if they be uſefull; for as the Cedar is very good for building of houſes, ſo ſhould theſe Cedars be for building of the Common-wealth: the famous Nobleman is the famous Patriot, for if a mans Countrey be like another God,T • nquam alter D • us. as Hierocles ſaid, then a man ſhould ever be ſacrificing to this Numen; it is not enough for men of high degree to live competently and commendably upon their own means, (for every Snail and Dormouſe can live upon his own juice) but he muſt live ſplendidly and magnificently, in benefiting and bettering the ſtate of his native ſoil,I • veni late • i • iam, reliqui marmoream. that if he find it of Brick he ſhould leave it of Marble, as it is ſaid of Auguſtus. It is not honorable for a Nobleman to take the fat of the Land, and to pay no Rent for his birth and beeding, his rich poſſeſſions and large promotions; no, he ſhould give largeſſes living, or Legacies dying, or elſe his Children might be ſhut within their own walls, never to have liberty to trace that Countrey to which the Father was ſo unkind or unthankfull; it is baſeneſſe and not nobleneſſe to hoard up all to poſterity, and to do no memorable thing to the publick; they ſcarce deſerve a Tomb-ſtone, much leſſe an Epitaph. A Barbarian might as well dwell in ſuch a Country as a Native; Thiſtles do thus grow in a Land, and Vermine do thus creep up and down the Nation. Non nobis nati, we are not born for our ſelves onely, was the old ſaying; and is it ſo old, that it is like the Inſcriptions of an old decayed Monument, that few men can now read it? Well, they are the beſt Antiquaries that can tell the meaning, and fulfil the meaning of this National Adage. For are the mighty of the Land onely to ſhew their might and riches in preſerving what is left them, or in purchaſing in new Lordſhips and Royalties? no, this is ſelf-thrifty nobleneſſe; and I could name a great number of theſe Horſe-leeches in the Nation, of the greateſt rank and degree, which worſhip no other Deities but their Houſhold-Gods, which keep their hands within their boſoms, and have conjured their Eſtates within a circle, which know no Countrey but their coffers, nor no Common-wealth but their private wealth; which are politick, and yet not political; of the Nation, and yet not Nationall; great Pole-cats, high-flown Kites, honourable Lizards, noble Niggards; as gripple, and inhoſpital, and innational as ever was Laban, Nabal, Timon, Telemachus, Zarus, Calenus, Patroclus, Fabullus, Labullus, or any other which have been noted of ſordid and tenacious ſpirits. Now are theſe Cedars? are they uſeful for the general good? the general! no, ye are too general for them, they know nothing but their particular pouch; if they build, they build onely like Ravens, a neſt for their own lumps, and blackbirds, a goodly Manſion for Father-flint and his progeny; but not a Dormant, Pillar, Joyce, Stud or Tenon will theſe ſpare for the publick; therefore had as good a Bramble grow in the Forreſt as ſuch Cedars. But ought true Commonwealths-men to keep all their Timber within their own bark? no, they ſhould ſerve to repair the breaches of the Land, and to build up the old waſte places, Moſes, Nehemiah, Zorobabel, the Ruler in the Goſpel, Alcibiades, Ariſtides, Pericles, Porſena, Probus, Telegoras, Pompey the Great, Timeleon, Horatius Cocles, Valerius Publicola, all which have been renowned for famous Patriots, have done thus. All worthy men are beneficial to the Countrey where they have their being, for this is to be a true Cedar, to have pieces quartered out of them, to rear up ſtructures of honour to the Kingdom; then are they properly uſefull.

3. Thirdly, if they be fragrant; for as a Cedar doth give a ſweet ſent, ſo a kind of fragrancy ſhould come from a true Nobleman, his ſmell ſhould be like the ſmell of Lebanon, Hoſ. 14.7. But how ſhould this fragrancy be expreſſed? To God, the King, the People.

1. Firſt, to God; in purity of faith; for errour in judgemen is a bone out of joynt, a glaucome in the eye, an impoſthume or calenture in the brain; all Religion without an uncorrupt faith is a blazing Comet; ſuch a man is ſubverted, Tit. 3.10. He hath in him the myſtery of iniquity, 2 Theſ. 2.7. The root of bitterneſſe, 12 Heb. 15. The Doctrine of Devils, 1 Tim. 4.1. he hath (as Jeremias ſaith) broken in pieces Gods image, and ſet up a Foxes in ſtead of it. How neceſſary is it then that mens minds ſhould not be corrupted from the ſimplicity that is in Chriſt Jeſus, 2. Cor. 11.3. But hold faſt he faithfull word according to Doctrine? 1 Tit. 9. Away with all Heteroclites in Religion, and Hermaphrodites in the Church. Errour gives an ill ſent afar off, it is truth onely like the Cedar which doth yield the fragrant ſavour.

2. Secondly, to a King in Loyalty, Loyalty I ſay, and not contumacy. What is left to the beſt of the people but ſubjection? Submit your ſelves to every Ordinance of man, whether to the King as ſupreme. Be ſubject to principalities and powers. Let every ſoul be ſubject to the higher powers. Fear God and honour the King. The Fathers children muſt bow down before him that holdeth the ſcepter. Where then is there the leaſt ground for oppoſing Princes? they which ſay they are the Kings beſt ſubjects, muſt not onely help him into the Throne, but they muſt not diſturb him in his Throne; if they draw not a ſword till Scripture give them authority, I never look to ſee a pitch'd field fought againſt a Prince; for the Word of God will not ſuffer a ſword to be unſheathed againſt a lawful Sovereign. Doſt thou abhor Idols, and yet commit ſacrilege? ſo, doſt thou defie Popery, and yet take the Jeſuits Priming-powder? I like never an Article nor Particle of that Religion, and bluſh to think, that they which ſeem to be as great enemies to it as my ſelf, yet have fought battle after battle againſt their gracious King, as faſt as any Romiſh Catholique could: O, rebellion, I doubt, is worſe Popery than ſcrupled Ceremonies: I tremble at it the more becauſe I find Solomon threatning ſudden deſtruction againſt it, and St. Paul damnation. If it were but a matter of gallantry it were another thing, yet Joab's an Abner's Men playing this game was but mad ſport, there was bitterneſs in the later end; but when it comes to the loſs of a ſoul, and ends in damnation, this is horrour: let all them which are true Proteſtants beware of this luſty, bloudy, damning Popery. But what need I trouble my ſelf about this needleſs fear? though this were once an unhappy errour, yet it ſhall never be renewed: the Times are pacified, mens judgments more enlightned, their actions reformed, and their hearts ſetled in firm Loyalty; nothing but the peace of the Kingdom ſhall be ſtudied, and ſubjection to ſupreme Authority practiſed, no King ſhall ever ſuffer a broken nights reſt by a Proteſtant; a Proteſtant will take an Oath of abjuration againſt rebellion, as well as againſt the other erroneous opinions of Popery; whatſoever turbulencies, commotions and treaſons may be in other Religions, yet amongſt us there ſhall be ſeen nothing but the peaceable, obedient, and King-preſerving Proteſtant: Proteſtant, do it, for it is for the honour of thy profeſſion, thy conformity to Gods Laws, the inviolableneſs of thy Oath, the welfare of the Nation, and the bliſs of thy ſoul. If we be ſubjects, what can be more eminent in us than duty and ſubmiſſion? no, Obedience doth carry the palme. Sola obedientia palmam gerit. Aug. Subditis obſequij gloria relicta eſt. Tacit. Generale pactum eſt humanae ſocietatis obtemperare regibus. Aug. 2 Confeſſ. The glory of Obedience is left to ſubjects. It is a general covenant of humane ſociety to obey Kings. How is a King ſupreme if other men may meaſure heads with him? how do men take heed to his commandment if they give laws to him? how are they his Liege-men if they be League-men againſt him? how is that Oath which they take to him truly the Oath of God, Eccleſ. 8.2. if it may be ſworn down and ſworn againſt? let any man reconcile theſe contradictions. But we have no need of a Doctor of the chair to compoſe differences, or expound difficulties; for the whole Nation now doth ſpeak nothing but humble ſubjection, and ſo let it ever do; for Sedition hath an ill ſent, it is Loyalty that hath the true ſavour.

3. Thirdly, to the people in Patience, Juſtice and Charity.

1. Firſt, in Patience: It is the honour of a man to paſs by an offence, it is but the humour of a man to be revenged on an offence: The wiſdom which doth deſcend from above is gentle, peaceable, and eaſie to be intreated; but the wiſdom which doth deſcend from beneath is furious, ſpightful, and never to be intreated; and an implacable man is the incendiary of the Countrey, and the fiend of the Age. Is this to imitate David, who patiently endured Shimei's reproches? or Joſeph, who forgave his malicious brethren? or Chriſt, who pendebat & petebat, hung upon the Croſs, and yet prayed for his enemies?Aug. no, it is to imitate Cain, Eſau, Saul, Haman, and the Devil himſelf, who is the envious. Should we then for every diſtaſte require an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth? no, we that owe ten thouſand talents, had not need pluck our brethren by the throat for a few pence: Forgive thine enemy, and thou haſt given him a deadly wound. Funeſtam inimico dediſti plagam. Chryſ. in 5 Mat. Poſſe & nolle nobile. Is it honourable to work our teeme upon injuries? no, to be able to do a ſhrewd turn to an adverſary, and not to do it, this is noble. Revenge hath an ill ſent, patience is that which doth give the ſweet ſavour.

2. Secondly, in Juſtice: Let beaſts live by prey, but a true noble heart doth ſcorn to live by ſpoils; he hath nothing that he doth poſſeſs juſt, unleſs it hath been weighed out unto him by the ſtandard. He is ready to ſay with that noble Judge, Nolo denarium malè intrantem, I will not have a penny come over my threſhold the wrong way: the ſighs of his neighbours, the grones of his tenants, and the cryes of the poor are as terrible unto him as thunder; therefore he doth meaſure out all his actions by equity. Violence hath a bad ſent, but Juſtice is a very ſweet ſavour.

3. Thirdly, in Charity: Where God hath not ſpared bounty, it is ill for that man to ſpare more than is fit. A true Nobleman is the Almoner of his Countrey, he doth account hoſpitality his honour; he doth think that his whole eſtate is but a Leaſe of Gods free favour, and therefore he doth pay his rent ſtrictly; he doth ſuppoſe that he is not a Nobleman, unleſs he be a charitable man. If the clouds be full they will pour out rain: He dare not hide his eyes from his own fleſh, the poor is brought up with him as with his father: He doth think he can never ſay his prayers well, unleſs he doth liſten to the cries of the poor; for he that ſtoppeth his ears againſt the cryes of the poor, ſhall cry himſelf and not be heard. He doth think that he cannot juſtly beg his dayly bread, D • paululum ut recipias centuplum. Aug. if he doth not break bread to the hungry: He knoweth that there is no more thriving merchandiſe than alms-deeds, Forgive a little, and receive an hundred-fold. He doth remember, that the hand of the poor is Chriſts treaſury; Manus pauperis eſt gazophylacium Chriſt. Rab. Maurus. therefore he will not look God in the face till he hath ſent him a preſent by the hand of the poor. O! this is the man which doth ſmell ſweetly upon earth, which doth walk the ſtreets with a fragrancy, which hath the Cedar-ſent. Thus have I done with the Scutcheon in the perſon of honour, the Cedar.

PART II.

now let us come to the Herſe, the dead corps under it, in the word fallen, the Cedar is fallen.

From hence obſerve, that Natures greateſt glory is ſubject to the ſtroke of death, the Cedar is fallen. The magnificence of this world is but an apparition, the ſweeteſt Muſick but a ſemibrief: Are not my dayes few? what ſhould we talk of the pomp and Minſtrilſy which the fleſh doth afford? for thy pomp ſhall be brought down to the grave, and the noyſe of thy Viols. Death will ſtrip us out of our pompous robes, and caſe up our Viols: though thy windows be cloſe ſhut, and thou haſt mured up thy ſelf in hewen ſtone, yet Death will come up into the windows, and enter into the palaces, Jer. 9.21. Let thy veins, eyes and heart-ſtrings be never ſo quick and lively, yet thy eyes will be turned into thy head, thy veins will be broken, and thy heart rent aſunder with ſorrow. Oculi vertentur in capite, venae rumpentur, & cor ſcindetur dolore. Bern. Sit volu • t • rium quod eſt neceſſarium. Chyſ. Prima quae vitam dedit hora, carpſit. Seneca Thou hadſt as good yield up thy ſelf cheerfully to death, for, maugre all thy reſiſtance death will force thee into her back-room, her blind room, dark room, rotten room, carcaſe-hole; therefore let that be voluntary which is neceſſary. Thou tookeſt thy poyſon in the womb, and it will never leave working till it hath brought thee to the grave: the firſt hour which gave that life took it away, for if thou beeſt in thy young age thou art beginning to dye, if thou art in thy middle age thou art half dead, if thou beeſt in thy old age thou art at the point of death, and wilt ere long be quite dead: Theſe Chimes will ſoon leave going, this Lottery will be ſoon drawn forth, this Comedy will ſoon be acted out to the laſt Scene; ſleep will enter into our eyes, the Voyder will be brought upon the table, theſe ſhop-doors will be ſhut, theſe buzzing flies will betake themſelves to their Winter-rooms, theſe ſwelling torrents will be dryed up, the fair fruit will drop, the loftieſt Cedar will fall. The Cedar is fallen.

Application.

1. Firſt, this doth ſhew that Nature hath her caſualty.

Non eſt, crede mihi, ſapientis dicere, vivam. It is not (believe me) the part of a wiſe man to ſay I will live. Fools may thus chatter, but wiſe men will uſe no ſuch Soleciſms: yet how many of theſe Lunaticks have we that talk of nothing but of long life? let things happen here tanquam in choro, as it were in a fit of Muſick, yet they think the tune will never alter, nor the dance be done.Naz. We have many a Deaths-head worn upon our fingers, but when ſhall we find this Deaths-head in our ears, eyes, tongues or hearts? We ſee many a dead corps, but we do not think that this fleſh of ours ſhall ever be carcaſe-ſtrong: we behold many a Grave-ſpade, yet we are confident that it will be a long time ere that ſhall dig for us. But, O be not Fanaticks, beware of illuſions;Moriendo obliviſcatur sui qui vivens oblitus eſt Dei. Caeſarius admonit. 6. Quid perdidit homo, quid invenit. Anſel • r. in med. thou which wilt not mind death, perhaps at laſt ſhalt not mind thy ſoul. If thou muſt part with life, it were good beforehand to think of the ſeparation, leſt thou doſt meet with a general damage and a general curſe together: ſuch a careleſs wretch doth know to purpoſe, both what he hath loſt and what he hath found. Simple men, ye that cannot hide your ſelves from death, why do ye not endeavour to kill death by many a dying thought before it doth come to kill you? O that this whole Congregation ſhould not be full of dying men! O that this whole Congregation hath ſcarce three dying men in it! How many of you do that now living that ye would do at laſt dying? how many of you do kill thoſe corruptions now, which being here unmortified will kill you in another world? what can ye feel nothing till the Purſivant hath arreſted you? what do ye put off all your ſouls work to a deaths pillow? it is to be thought ſo? for weak men have not miſery enough about them to apprehend this, learned men have not wit enough to apply this: what is the reaſon? can any of you eſcape death? have any of you a writ of privilege to be freed from death? no, death hath you in her black roll, and every one of you ſhall be called forth in order: O therefore have an expectation of death, and a preparation for death, or elſe I ſhall ſay that there is a great deal of Knowledge, but little Vertue; a great deal of Profeſſion, but little Conſcience. Tell not me of your skill in the Metaphyſicks, get skill in the Phyſicks, this ſame ſtate of Nature; be well verſed in generation and corruption: I ſhall conclude that ye are ſome Conjurers, and addicted to familiar Spirits, and much given to Necromancy, if your knowledge of death do not teach you to dye, but onely to tell tales or death, and to propheſie of accidents in this world; they that ſtudy the Black Art do thus, and I doubt ye do little better. Would to God I could draw you, with the Magicians, to burn your books of curious Arts, and to turn this book of the Expiring art, the large Treatiſe of Corruption; as ſmall a book as ye do account it, I tell you it is more voluminous than the Pandects, or than all the Codes. To ſtudy this book well it will exerciſe the beſt wit to the height; ye will find more Aenigma's and Poſtula's in it, than in the Mathematicks; yea, more difficulties in it than in learning all the Eaſtern Languages: A crafty politician, for all his Mercurial brain, will be Lard put to it to unfold this State-riddle; a Doctor of the chair may be poſed in this intricate book. I tell you it hath ſo many branches in it, and is ſo copious in Canons and Axioms, and Aphoriſms, that it may be called the book in Folio, or the Library of the world, or a general Hiſtory, Annal, Ephemerides: It doth diſcourſe of all things from the Artique to the Antartique Pole, from the Creation to the later day of Judgment, it doth contain the ſtate of all Mankind. Ye muſt not go to any Stationer for it, for it is ſold onely in Tomb-ſtreet at the ſign of the Deaths-head; and thou canſt not buy it for any money, but onely laying down a mortified heart for it: Amongſt all thy pamphlets, or moſt claſſical Authors, it were good for thee to get this book, and to peruſe it ſeriouſly, and to begin to be skilled in it betimes; for I tell thee it is a neceſſary book, an hard book, and a large book; thou canſt not read it over in an hour, in a year; no, the Saints are learning it from the firſt hour of their converſion to the laſt gaſp: If thou wilt not get this book of thy ſelf, Death at laſt will thruſt it into thy hand, it will force thee to read it: If thou wilt not have it in thy Cloſet, it will be laid open before thee upon thy death-bed; and wilt thou neglect the getting of it, or the getting exact inſight into it till it ſhall be preſented to thee at that laſt hour, when thou ſhalt have a dark eye, and a blind heart? canſt thou with a dead hove upon thine eye-lids be a quick reader? O there are many ſentences at ſuch a time will trouble thee, eſpecially theſe; O Lord, I have waited for thy ſalvation. All the dayes of mine appointed time will I wait till my change come. Teach us, O Lord, to number our dayes, that we may apply our hearts unto wiſdome, By our rejoycing which I have in Chriſt Jeſus our Lord I dye dayly. Let your loyns be girt up, and your lamps burning, and be ye like men that wait for their maſter, when he will return from the wedding, that when he comes and knocks ye may open to him immediately. Walk whilſt ye have light, for the night cometh when no man can walk. Afterwards came the other Virgins alſo ſaying, Lord, Lord, open unto us: but he anſwered and ſaid, Verily I ſay unto you, I know you not. Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor hour when the Son of man will come. Afterwards he would have inherited the bleſſing, but he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he ſought the bleſſing with teares. Theſe and a thouſand other heart-breaking ſayings thou wilt meet with at that time, which will be as ill as Hieroglyphicks to thee to underſtand; if thou haſt but read a word or two of them in thy life-time, it will be confounding to thee to read a whole book of ſuch a perplexing character, and ſuch enigmatical precepts at the hour of death. O if all families would buy this book, and ſet Conſcience to mark the Contents of it, what a reformation ſhould we inſtantly ſee amongſt Lords and Ladies, Puffes and Browers, giddy heads and crafty ſouls, ſherking Merchants, and griping Officers, young Damne-me blades and old Uſurers, corrupt Judges and temporizing Clergymen, black Libertines and white Hypocrites? for ought not all to learn the art of dying? yes, it had need be their art, for it will be their fate; whoſoever doth ſtand he muſt fall. The Cedar is fallen.

2. Secondly, this ſhould ſerve to take men off from their high dependence, that becauſe they are Cedars therefore they ſhall not fall: O how many, becauſe they dwell in houſes of Ivory, cannot find the way to the houſe of c •• y! they have ſo many locks againſt theeves, tha • they think death cannot get an entrance to them; they have frighted ſo many inferiours, that they think to daunt the King of terrours: They full little think that a coffin at laſt muſt be their bed-chamber, and worms their chamberlains; that they ſhall be ſo eaten up, that no fragments ſhall be left of them but bones and skulls: ſhew them the dunghill, they think that they ſhall never be ſwept out to remain in the heap.; ſhew them the Sapypot, they think they ſhall never be diſſolved into meer gelly; hold this glaſs of mortality to their faces, they are confident that this ſhall never be their griſly complexion: they have enjoyed ſo much liberty, that they have no bands in death; they have ſo many conveyances lying by them, that they think they have gotten a covenant with death, and that they are at an agreement with hell: they take, make, much pleaſure in their flatterers, and do infinitely depend upon their phyſicians. But, O let them put off their falſe ſpectacles, and ſtop their ears againſt Siren-ſongs, and think that Patents and Patrimonies, Chimney-pieces and Head-pieces, Shields and Spears cannot defend them againſt the Purſivant of the grave. Thunderbolts ſtrike upon the higheſt mountains. There is no difference in death between the bodyes of the rich and the poor. God will take away the honourable and the counſellors, Feriuat que , ſumm • s fulm • na montes. Horat. Nulla d • ſer • tio inter cadav ra d • vitum & pauperum. Amb. in hexam. 3 Eſ. 3. The Nobles of Judah are ſlain, Job 39.6. The pillars of ſtrength ſall to the ground, Eze. 36.17. They of high ſtature ſhall be cut off, Eſ. 10.33. He ſlew the wealthieſt of them, Pſal. 78.31. He will deſtroy the fat and the ſtrong, and feed them with judgment, Eze. 34 16. The Nobles ſhall be called to the Kingdom, and there ſhall be none, Eſ. 34.12. Here is a leaf-fall or Nobles, or a Charnel-houſe for Peers: noble bloud will congeal in the veins, honourable breaſts are but the fairer mark for deaths fatal dart. God for his own uſe will beat the ſweeteſt ſpices in his Mortar, put the beſt herbs into his ſtreyner, feed his gueſts in the dark Ordinary with noble fleſh, have an handful of noble duſt, to ſhew that he is Lord of the Creation. What tree ſhall ſtand when his axe is lift up? no, He will conſume the glory of the forreſt, Eſ. 10.18. The Cedars ſhall fall. The Cedar is fallen.

3. Thirdly, this doth ſhew, that the greateſt are but temporary poſſeſſors of what they do enjoy, for death is an abſolute fall: the Cedar doth not bow or bend, ſhake or totter onely, but the Cedar is fallen; and when the Cedar is fallen what doth remain of it but a dead trunk? thou enjoyeſt much whilſt thou art living, but when thou art in thy grave what of thy revenue doth remain unto thee? no, thou art fallen, and all thy greatneſs fallen with thee. Where are they which were ambitious of the chariot of Authority? a Ubi ſant q • i mb ebant currum poteſtatis? ubi veſtes & oraamenta peregrina? ubi turba ſervorum? Aug. de mt. & grat Verae devitiae ſunt quas porrat conſcientia. Chryſ. Where are their gorgeous veſtures and outlandiſh dreſſes? where are their troops of ſervants? is there any thing left to themſelves but duſt and aſhes? Where then is the perpetuity of wealth or welfare? no, a man may ſay, that thoſe are onely a mans true riches which a good conſcience do carry away. As for theſe worldly riches, we know the date of their continuance, all muſt at laſt leave their free Deeds behind them, give up their Keyes, ſeal away their Eſtates to new heirs. What pleaſure hath a man in his houſe when the number of his moneths are cut off? Job 21.21. When his goods are increaſed he ſhall take nothing away with him, neither ſhall his pomp deſcend after him, Pſal. 49.16, 17. His ſubſtance ſhall not continue, neither ſhall he prolong the perfection thereof upon earth, Job 15.29. They have ſlept their ſleep, and all the men of might have found nothing, Pſal. 76.5. If this night thy ſont ſhould be taken from thee, whoſe ſhall thoſe things be? whoſe? name the man, thou canſt not name thy ſelf; no, whoſoever ſhall be left rich, if thou haſt not a ſecret ſtock thou ſhalt dye a very beggar: Ye talk much of your riches and your vaſt means, but ſo ſoon as ye have loſt your breath ye have loſt your right to them,Si veſtrae ſint, ollite vob • ſcum. Bern. for if they be yours then take them away with you. But was there ever heard of a proprietary in the grave? or of a great Land-holder in the land of forgetfulneſs? that a Coffin ſhould be a counting-houſe, or a dead carcaſe a free-holder? no, I will not give thee one years purchaſe for all thy grave-ſtock. If thou haſt no other livelyhood, there is not the pooreſt day-labourer which is worth but the clothes upon his back, which would change Eſtates with thee: what then? thou art yet perhaps a mighty Owner, and thou haſt liberty and ability to do eminent things; conſider, haſt nothing to do for the Church? God calls upon thee for this duty, Honour the Lord with thy ſubſtance: Haſt lived thus long under the Goſpel, and neither living nor dying wilt thou do nothing for the Goſpel? ſhall the Churchman be none of thy Legatee? wilt onely pay thy Tithes, and haſt never a free-will Offering? what, worſe than any Jew? wilt thou ſlip out of the world and leave no Offering to the Pulpit? would any Papiſt thus take his leave of his Maſſeprieſt? But if thou wilt thus die, farewel needy Goſpeller, we are well rid of ſuch a parcimonious profeſſor. But further, haſt nothing to do for thy fame? Seek thoſe things which are of good report; a good name is better than a precious oyntment. Hoc naturae theſauris reponimus quod famae commodis applicamus. Caſſiod. l. 8. • p. 23. Nature hath no greater treaſure than the golden wedge of Fame: I do not ſay, that there is a more imprudent, but that there is not a more impudent man, than he which doth contemn his own fame: Next to thy ſoul it is fame that doth carry the immortality. What therefore, doſt deſire never to be ſpoken of when thou haſt left ſpeech?Contemptio boni nominis eſt vitium cum impudentiâ. Plut. in Alcib. then pity it is that ever thou hadſt a name: let the Bearers carry thy ſappy body and thy carcaſe-memory together, and let them be buried together in one grave like entrails, and ſtench in one dunghill. What therefore wilt thou do nothing to eternize thine own fame? haſt means enough, but no mind to get a new life when thou art dead in the lips of the people? have ambitious men been deſirous of this, and ſhall not men of vertuous and generous reſolutions aſpire after this? what then, had Abſalon his pillar, and haſt thou no monument? then farewel fame-killer. Yet further, haſt nothing to do for thy ſoul? Make ye friends of this Mammon of unrighteouſneſſe, that when ye ſhall fail them they may receive you into the everlaſting habitations. Charge them to be rich in good works, ready to diſtribute and communicate, laying up a good foundation againſt the time to come. He hath diſperſed abroad and given to the poor, his righteouſneſſe remaineth for ever. God is not unjuſt, to forget your work and labour of love. Hath God then bleſſed you with liberal means and large poſſeſſions? how will ye diſpoſe of theſe at laſt? will ye look into heaven before ye ſeal away your eſtates? will ye caſt an eye upon your ſouls before ye make your Wills? Remember that ye are to leave all; to whom ſhall it be left? whatſoever ye give to poſterity, it may be ſcattered abroad within a few years; but whatſoever ye give to heaven, that will be kept ſure: whatſoever ye beſtow upon your acquaintance, they will thank you for it but for a year; but whatſoever ye ſhall beſtow upon your ſouls, theſe will thank you for it for ever. Love all then, be kind to Nature, let not Wives and Children, Kindred and Friends ſay, that ye were ſtrait-handed to them; they are your relations, and ſhew ye your dying reſpects to them; but let it never be ſaid, that when ye parted with all ye had no affection to heaven, no hearts towards your ſouls. Amongſt all that ye bequeath away ſhall there not be an Heavens-portion, a ſouls-legacy? I lament ſuch an Owner, yea I defie ſuch a Teſtator. Let him and his Will go together, let him have that heaven and ſouls-bliſs that his own ſeal hath aſſured to him. Can ye conſider this without fear? can ye think on it without horrour? O then, ſhall I not perſwade you to lay aſide a good benevolence for heaven, and to ſpare a large bag for your ſouls? yes, ye that have but a ſmall charge of children, give a quarter of your eſtates to heaven; ye that have no children, give half of your eſtates to your ſouls. This is the Doctrine which I do preach to mine own people, and I would ſend it abroad as a general cry to the whole Nation; that as I would here raiſe up an Almes-houſe, ſo if it were poſſible I would fill the whole Kingdom full of Almes-houſes. The firſt founders of our Proteſtant Church were magnificent in theſe works, and why are we fallen from their firſt love? O it grieves me to think how Princes and Prieſts, Noblemen and Gentlemen, Judges, Merchants, Phyſicians, rich Officers, in theſe later times have declined from their Forefathers noble examples. What are pious works become the windfalls of Religion, or the ſuperfluous branches of the fruitfull tree? the laſt ſentence will not adjudge them to be ſo; for, Come ye bleſſed of my Father, inherit Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry and ye gave me meat, I was thirſty and ye gave me drink I, was a ſtranger and ye lodged me, I was naked and ye clothed me, &c. Inaſmuch as ye have done it to one of theſe little ones, ye have done it unto me. Is this the laſt ſentence? and is it the Kingdom-tenure? and ſhall we think to be bleſſed of the Father without this motive of benediction? no, let us truſt the Judge, and prepare the right fruit for the ſentence: Whoſoever then poſſeſſe ſome of your means, let heaven have a part; whoſoever inherits a moity of your eſtates, be ſure that ye make your ſouls co-heirs: what will ye dye indebted to your ſouls, or leave year ſouls without a competent allowance to travel into another world? he is an unkind and an unnatural man that doth not love his wife and children; but he is a witleſs and a mad man, that doth love any better than his ſoul. It was a paſſionate ſaying of St. Ambroſe, He that placeth his treaſures onely upon earth, Qui collocat theſauros in terrâ, non habet quid speret in coelo. Ut quid respiciat in coelum, ubi nihil habet repoſitum? quicquid pro anima ſeceris hoc tuum eſt. Amb. in Mat. 6. hath nothing that he can hope for in heaven: why ſhould that man look up to heaven, who hath nothing there laid is? whatſoever then thou doſt for thy ſoul, that is onely thine own Let none then be dearer unto you than your ſouls. Though ye cauſe others to abound, yet let not your ſouls want: your devout Forefathers did thus, and be ye their religious charitable children: yea, I beſeech you by your progenitors eleemoſynary Wills, and by their ſoft bowels, by their gracious hearts & precious duſt, by their generous ſpirits & illuſtrious names, by their glorious remains, their honoured memories, their bright crowns, and their raviſhed ſouls, that ye would prove your ſelves to be right-born, uphold the honour of their families, exemplifie the copies which they have ſet you to write, grave your ſelves to be their true progeny in letters of gold, ſtay behind them to ſhine in their beams, to caſt a ſmell abroad with their odours, to ſhew their charitable hearts ſtirring quick in your boſoms, to follow after them with a cluſter of their fruits, to carry in your hands a tranſcript of their compaſſionate works, to ſettle their good foundations in another world; yea, to be attended upon with ſuch a glorious train of alms-deeds, as ye find waited upon them in bright liveries when they entred into heaven. If your old Proteſtant Anceſtors, or their old Proteſtant Faith; their glorified ſouls, or your ſouls, which may be glorified by their fruits, can ſtir your heart-ſtrings, enlarge your bowels, infuſe the like communicating, ſympathizing ſpirit into you: O give their rich portions, feed the world with their bread, ſacrifice their Offering of a fair eye, ſtretch out their diſtributing hand, preſerve their records, write out your ſelves worthy by their inſcriptions, leave behind you their monuments, enter heaven by their golden key, purchaſe a crown at their rate: If by all this you do find your ſelves prompted to the work, apprehend your opportunity, make uſe of your minutes, hear now the clock doth ſtrike, ſee how the glaſs doth run, behold how the ſhadows go off from the dial; conſider the naked skin and bare hand which ere long ye will have, look into deaths Inventory, remember that at laſt ye will be left nothing worth but coffin-reliques, worms-leavings, ſtench, gelly, ſappyneſs; for when we are dead all power and purpoſe, ſufficiency and efficiency, means and mind, fruit and freedom, enjoyment and enterpriſe, poſſeſſion and poſſibility, aſfluency and ability will be taken away from you. O! death is the old rifler, the grave the grand plunderer: what ſhall then be the end of you, O ye Cedars? where ſhall your tops then be? ye ſhall be hewen down, or blown down to purpoſe, not worth ſtock or branch, root or rind, pith or leaf; the tree is then at the mercy of the axe, a pitiful Cedar when a fallen Cedar; all the glory is thrown down to the earth, every one then will make ſpoil of it, it is ſubject to a general waſte, for the Cedar is fallen. Thus much of the Herſe, the dead corps under it in this word fallen.

PART III.

Now let us come to the Mourner, the Firre-tree. Why is the Firre-tree called upon to conſider the fall of the Cedar? to ſhew that Inferiours ought to bemoan the fall of their Superious. From hence obſerve then, that the death of eminent men is to be lamented; Shall ſuch be carried out of the world without ſolemnity? no, the Mourners ought to go about in the ſtreets, Eccleſ. 12.5. The bearers do but carry them out upon their ſhoulders, but theſe carry them out in their breaſts, their ſad hearts bear the weight of their Coffin. Others may make it a vulgar day, but theſe make it a a bitter day, Amos 8.10. others may not alter a poſture, bur theſe bow down heavily, Pſal. 35.14. others may remain dumb, but theſe cry Alas, Alas, Amos 5.16. others may have their delicious fare, but theſe have a diet by themſelves; they eat the bread of Mourners, Hoſ. 9.4. yea, eat aſhes like bread, Pſal. 102.9. others may ſpruſe up themſelves in rayment, but theſe have a dreſſe by themſelves; they will not ſo much as put on ornaments, Exod. 33.4. nor bind a tire upon their heads, or put on ſhooes, Ezech. 24.17. but they ſprinkle duſt upon their heads, Job 2.12. rend their clothes, Eſther 4.1. yea expreſly, wear mourning apparell, 2 Sam. 14.2. others may have pleaſant gradens, the frolicks of joyous times; but theſe have poſtures by themſelves, they put their mouths in the duſt, Lam. 3.29. they cover their lips, Mich. 3.7. they make their ſelves bald, Ezech. 27.31. they cut their beards, Eſ. 15.2. they taber upon their breaſts, Nah. 2.7. they teach their daughters wailings, and every one her neighbour lamentation, Jer. 9.20. There is a time for all things; and as others have their time for lawfull delights, as to plant and gather ſtones, and heale, and ſew, and dance, and embrace, and ſpeak out, and ſing out; ſo theſe have their time according to ſad accidents, to pluck up that which is planted, to caſt away ſtones, to wound, to rend, to mourn, to be far from embracing, and to keep ſilence. O that there can be a bright corner within that Hemiſphere where the Sun is in an Eclipſe! that there can be a chearfull look to that place where an eminent man doth die: wringing hands, blubbered cheeks, and doleful outcries, are as proper for the Funeral of a famous Patriot, as ſcornes, and taunts, and clapping of hands are for the herſe of a tormenter of his Country; let the one be buried with the burial of an Aſſe, ſaying, Rot thou bruit beaſt: Let the other be buried with the burial of an Heroe, ſaying, O that ſuch precious fleſh ſhould ever come to waſte under-ground. The fall of a cedar ſhould be the anguiſh of the firre-tree; living man look diſconſolately, the mirrour of the age is departed; firre-tree ſhake thy top to the ground-ward, the Cedar is fallen. Funeral mourning is a lamentable plaint for the deceaſe of dead men worthy in eſteem: Luctus eſt planctus pro mortuis ad • matis Aq in Pſ. 34. Luctus eſt animi aegritudo ex acerbo conce •• u interitus • jus qui nobis charus fuit. Fran. pat. de reg. l. 5. c. 17. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 . Eurip. yea, it is a fever upon the ſpirit, out of a ſad apprehenſion for the death of him that was dear to us. They are men of no bowels which can part with deſerving friends without teares and troubled bowels; for, as Quirinus ſaid, when can any rather ſhew themſelves to be true men then at ſuch a time, and at ſuch an accident? It is pity upon ſuch an occaſion (as Demonax ſaid) that there ſhould be three men found that had not water enough to ſprinkle upon ſuch a grave; they are fit their ſelves to be buried who ſtand not true Mourners at the burial of a Country-ornament; ſuch a Firre-tree doth not deſerve to have had ſuch a Cedar grow by him. With how much ſorrow and ſadneſſe were Jacob, Moſes, Samuel, Joſiah, Chriſt, St. Stephen, Juſtin Martyr, Ignatius, Polycarp and Cyprian, Gregory Nazianzen, Conſtantine the Great, Juſtinian the Great, Theodoſius the Great, Artemius, Procefius, Venanitus, Agathon, Maſcalon, Ʋſthazarus, Pontianus, Hilarius, Florentius, Pregentinus, Laurentinus, Armogaſlus, Aithalus, Abdon, Sennas, Tiburtius, Agrippitus, and a thouſand others which I could name unto you buried? O they were buried as if the Water-courſes and the Cataracts of peoples heads had been ſet open and let looſe; yea, as if they would have made their graves to ſwimme with tears. What then are the Naeniae and Epicedia, the ſorrowfull Mournings at Funerals unlawful? no, they were wont to be called, Juſta, true dead-rights: The harſh Muſick at ſuch meetings ſhould be Lachrymae, nothing but Threnodies ſhould then be heard; Nihi, nihi, plange, plange, as the old Hebrew ditty was. Wo and alas, ah my Brother! all my Siſter! the ſtrings of that inſtrument ſhould be heart-ſtrings, and the keys ſhould be cries, and the quaverings ſhould be quakings, and the ſoundings ſhould be ſwounings; the Firre-tree muſt not ſuffer the Cedar to fall without the mone of the Forreſt; no, Fitre-trees, daſh your tops together, raiſe a Lamentation amongſt your ſelves, know the pitiful, accident that is befallen: Firre-tree, the Cedar is fallen.

Application.

This ſerves to reprove them who know not the want, nor feel not the loſs of illuſtrious men. The cedar is fallen, but where is my firre-tree, which droops and bends, and is ready to bow down to the earth at the ſenſe of ſuch a fall? I read that as many as came to the place where Aſahel fell, they ſtood ſtill, 2 Sam. 2.23. and that when Elias was taken away, Eliſha cried after him, My father, my father, the chariots of Iſrael and the horſemen thereof, 2 Kings 2.12. and that David lift up his voice and wept beſide the ſepulchre of Abner, 2 Sam. 3.32. and gave him many an honourable teſtimony, as, Dyed Abner as a fool dyeth? Know ye not that a Prince and a great man is fallen in Iſrael? But I find no ſuch conſternation, commemoration or lamentation for the death of many a worthy man amongſt us: no, they let them fall like a ſcale from the back of a fiſh, like a ſtone out of a wall, like a tooth out of the jaw-bone, like an hair from the head, like things of no moment or price, and ſo let them go. Men are forgotten in the city where they have done good, Eccleſ. 8.10. Merciful men are taken away and no man underſtandeth it, Plind. 10. c. 43. Eſ. 57.1. I read that the people of Rome, for the death of a Crow that was wont to ſalute Tiberius, Germanicus and Druſus for Caeſars, were ſo afflicted that they performed exequies for it: and that L. Craſſus for a Lamprey dying,Marcob. l. 3. Saturn. c. 15. which he was wont to feed with his own hand, was ſo dejected, that he mourned for it in black, as if his dear daughter had been dead: and that Cypariſſus vexed himſelf to death,Virg l. becauſe a white Hart which he loved, died. But I find no ſuch deep grief divers times from many men for the death of perſons highly-meriting; they have no odours in their lips, nor no baſſom in their eyes, to preſerve theſe mens honours: they have ſcarce a wrinkled face, much leſs a wounded heart; yea, it were well, that inſtead of 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 , a grievous bewayling at their departure, there were not 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 , a malicious rejoycing at their departure: As the Athenians, ſo ſoon as they heard that Philip was dead,Plut in Demoſt. ſacrificed to their gods, and gave a crown to Pauſanias which murdered him:Eutrop l. 8. and Adrian, ſo ſoon as he heard that Trajan that famous Emperour was departed, he triumphed, reproched his vertues, and pulled down the bridge which he had built over the Danubius: and Lewis the Eleventh,Aemil l. 10. when tidings was brought him that Charles D. of Burgundy was ſlain at Nancey, he leaped for joy, and gave a liberal reward to the meſſenger which brought the news. Such maligners have we amongſt us, who are infinitely comforted when ſuch glorious Lamps as did outſhine them are extinguiſhed, and when ſuch lofty, Cedars as did over-top them are fallen. But is this thy neighbourhood, that thou which didſt grow ſo nigh to obſerve the height of the Cedar, is this thy humanity that thou which haſt known what fragrancy the Cedar had, ſhouldſt be pleaſed that the Cedar is fallen? no, rather perplexed; thy rind ſhould change colour, and thy ſap ſhould run down to the root, thou ſhouldſt be a Mourner, for this is the reaſon why the Firre-tree is ſpoken to, namely with anguiſh to conſider what is happened to the Cedar. Firre-tree the Cedar is fallen.

2. But ſecondly, the Firre-tree is to be a Mourner, becauſe the ſtate of the Firre-tree is as dangerous as that of the Cedar. The Cedar is fallen,Quis ſe exceptum putet à conditione moriendi, qui non fuit exceptus à conditione naſcendi? Ambroſ. Hâ lige intravimus ut exir • mus. Bern. a Firee-tree doth but grow upon a looſe root, and hath but a time of ſtanding. From hence obſerve, that death is a general lot; Cedars and Firre-trees muſt all down to the ground. Who ſhould think himſelf excepted from the condition of dying, which was not excepted from the condition of being born? upon this Law we entred into the world that we ſhould go out of it. This is the end of all men. I go the way of all the earth. We muſt all needs die. What man is he that liveth, and ſhall not ſee death? Non miſeretur inopiae, non reveretur divitias. Bern. Vide quis ſitſervus, quis ſit dominus; diſcerne ſi potes victum à rege, fortem à debili. Aug. The rich and the poor meet together. There Kings and Counſellors and the Priſoners reſt together, and the ſervant which is free from his Maſter. Death doth not pity the poor, nor fear the rich. See who ſhall be the Servant, who ſhall be the Maſter; diſtinguiſh if thou canſt between the Slave and the King: the Pigmee and the Giant, Robes and Raggs, Palaces and Cottages, Golden Chaines and Iron Chaines, Bevers and Bonnets, Bagges piled up, and the beggars pouch, are all one to death. The rich man is in deaths eye, and the poor man cannot hide himſelf; no, death hath a nimble eye that doth pierce into all corners. Do not think that becauſe thy ſtature is low, thou ſhalt be over-looked: No, thou which art poor doſt make ſuch a crying in the ſtreets for ſupply of wants, that death cannot but hear thee; thou walkeſt abroad ſo naked of attendance and followers, that death can ſtrike thee at eaſe; thy purſe is ſo empty to procure Phyſicians to preſerve life, that death can creep to thy heart without fearing or feeling an antidote. Death doth go a generall circuit; there is no ſuch Epidemical diſeaſe as death, it doth level all to the ground; Cedars and Firre-trees muſt fall. Firre-tree, the Cedar is fallen.

Application.

This doth ſerve to fray all the wood. Ye thought here would have been onely a Cedar-Sermon, but I have Firre-tree-Doctrine alſo. I know it pleaſed you highly to hear the Grandees menaced throughly; but rejoyce not too much, for I have threats for the infimates alſo. Come on then, Mechanicks, Tradeſmen; yea, the pooreſt Abjects here which are half-naked, and perhaps halfe-ſtarved, look to your ſelves, I hold up deaths arrow, and ſhew you that it will ſtrike in the breaſts of you all; for ye in the galleries, and ye upon the pavements; ye that ſit, and ye that ſtand; ye that have the vaſt Ware-houſes, and ye that have ſcarce a ſhop or ſhud of your own, are all going into the ſtrait paſſage, the narrow hole. Your luſty leggs will fail you, your quick breath will draw ſhort in your lung-pipes, ye are all fainting and failing, the Cedar is fallen, and the Firre-tree muſt fall. I ſee none but mortal faces amongſt you, I behold none but dying men. Death doth ſway an equal ſcepter to all mankind, impartial death doth ſpare no man. Communia toti genti sceptra tenens. Maphreus Vegius in append. Virg. Nullum ſaeva coput Proſerpina ſugit. Many of you have gotten a pardon for all your exorbitances, but death will ſeal no Act of Indemnity; ye have eſcaped the halter of many your fellow-miſcreants, but death hath ſet up her gibbet for you. Free your ſelves from this, and I will ſay that ye have more wit then the cunning Secretary, the crafty Judge, wily Gaol-keeper, and the politick Fanatick; but I ſee death ready to apprehend you, condemn you, and lead you forth to execution; what therefore have ye any wet eyes? ye will elſe ere long have dry eyes. Do ye bend your knees? if not, ye ſhall bend them lower; have ye held up your hands for mercy? if not, ye ſhall not have an hand to ſtir; have ye found the plague of your own hearts? if not, ye will die with the deadly marke upon you; have ye ſtilled the cries of the poor? have ye made ſatisfaction for your minglings, adulteratings, falſe-weights, ſlippery bargaines, uſuries, perjuries, ſpoiles, ſpights? if not, they will meet you at Gods judgement-ſeat. Think not that ye, becauſe ye can out-brave the pulpit, that there is nothing can tame you; yes, death is coming to right all the injuries that ye have done to the Ordinances. Who hath heard our voice? to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed? no, the Prophet is (ye ſay) a fool, the spirituall man is mad: But behold ye deſpiſers, and wonder. Ye ſhall anſwer for every Sermon which ye have diſdained, defied, vilified, or neglected: He that hath daſhed his foot againſt this ſtone ſhall be broken in pieces, it had been better for him that a mil-ſtone had been hung about his neck, and that he had been thrown into the midſt of the Sea. We are Meſſengers, but death is the powerful Preacher; it is the Church-mans pleader, or, if ye will, Gods Herald at Armes; it will force you to make reparation for all your contempts, and revenge them with fury. Here is a thundering teacher indeed, it doth preach the Funerall Sermon of the whole world, the laſt Sermon that every man ſhall hear, or, if ye will, the Repetition-Sermon. Thou ſhalt have but one Lecture, and if thou beeſt not converted by that, it will ſend thee away to the deep pit, the ſcalding furnace, the worm that will never die, the utter darkneſſe, to lament thy hard-heartedneſs. O therefore ſearch, for thou wilt be tried to the height; humble thy ſelf, or elſe there will be no place found for repentance; cleanſe, or elſe thou wilt remain ſpotted for ever; ſhine, for thou muſt be extinguiſhed; turn a living Saint, for thou wilt turn a dead corpſe. The Cedar is fallen, and Firre-tree thou muſt fall. I know that ye of the Inferiour rank have Superiour ſpirits, but for all your roughneſs and perverſeneſſe, your obſtinacy will not prevail againſt this prophet of the Sepulchre; Death is a ſharp preacher indeed, for it doth preach with a dart in the lips; and this preacher you muſt hear, and this dart ye muſt feel. Quit your ſelves of your ſins, for ye cannot quit your ſelves from the grave; leap out of hell, for ye cannot leap from death: Ye muſt all have griſly faces, fallen chaps, bloodleſs cheeks, breathleſs lungs, ſtaring eyes, and ſtark limbs; ye will be fit for nothing at laſt, but the land of darkneſſe and the pit of corruption. Potent and impotent, noble and baſe, rich and poor, Cedars and Firre-trees, muſt all fall. Firre-tree the Cedar is fallen.

But why did the Prophet call upon the Firre-tree to conſider the fall of the Cedar? could he not have called upon the ſhrubs, or myrtles, or thorn-trees, to lament the loſs of a Cedar? no, theſe had ill ſap in them, or a rough bark, and ſo fruitleſs and uſeleſs many of them, that they were fit for nothing but the fire; therefore he doth reject theſe, and apply himſelf to the firre-tree: For the firre-tree is a moſt beautiful tree, as Pliny ſaith, and purely white, and therefore it is called by ſome Gallica; it is full of delightfull ſtrakes within, and admirable for beams, and to bear the weight of buildings, and both the pars ſapina & fuſterna (as Authors call them) are of rare uſe for ſeveral employments: Cato would have his curious Preſſes made of them, and Solomon, next to the Cedar, doth call to Hiram for the Firre-tree to build his Temple with, as ye may ſee in 1 Kings 5.8. & 10. Verſes: a very ſingular tree it was, and though not ſo excellent as the Cedar, yet little inferiour to it. The Firre-tree then was the fitteſt judge of the worth of the Cedar, and well choſen out by the Prophet, as the moſt proper tree to lament the fall of the Cedar. Firre-tree, the Cedar is fallen. From hence then further obſerve, That they muſt be men of prime affections which muſt be ſelected to priſe the perfections of others. Deſert will want its honour if worthleſs men paſs ſentence upon it: what need have 1 of madmen? ſo what have we of low-gifted, or bad and baſe-minded men? Sus Minervam? ſhall the injudicious or profligate ſet out the fame of meriting men? no, what taſte is there in the white of an eggs? the heart of the wicked is little worth. Vertue will never have due commendation from the contemptible. Wiſdom is juſtified of her children. Indignitas & laus non habent concordiam. Seneca. They which have no dignity in themſelves leave the moſt laudable things with an indignity: honey is not ſweet to a diſtempered palate. Hercules ſhall be held but an half-man if Lycus give his opinion of him, who knew not how to handle either ſword, bow or ſpear: Cicero ſhall be counted a man of no wit, if Ceſtius may paſs ſentence upon him: Varro ſhall have no other name but that of Swine out of the mouth of Palaemon. So that as the Hircanians were wont to caſt, their dead bodies to dogs to be devoured, ſo we had as good have Maſtiffs as men to be judges of worthy mens qualities, if they have no good qualifications themſelves, for they will but tear and worry. Well then, if ye would have noble-ſpirited men to have their juſt Funeral-right, let thoſe which are praiſe-worthy themſelves give it them; as the Prophet here, when he would have the Cedar to fall with honour, he doth call to the Firre-tree to diſcharge this duty. Firre-tree, the Cedar is fallen.

Application.

This doth ſerve to ſhew, that the ignoble do but eclipſe the honour of the conspicuous. Theſe mens eyes are too dim to diſcern the brightneſs of orient colours, theſe mens voices are too harſh to ſing with melody this high-pricked ſong: they which are of ſordid ſpirits themſelves will never celebrate to the height the peerleſs parts of others: no, when this work is to be done, Come men and not dunghills, Adeſte homines, non ſterquilinia. as Diogenes was wont to ſay. Homer brake that potters veſſels which would be ſinging of his Verſes. They which have not two good qualities will ever be detracting from them which abound in variety of rare perfections; as Hiero told Xenophanes, that he which could not maintain two ſervants well, was continually diſparaging Homer which daily fed above ten thouſand. The ſtone of an eminent mans praiſe is too hard for him to break who hath not cad his teeth;Dentes non edidit. Adag. Neſcit capitis & inguiuis d scrimen. Juven. what hath he to limb out a rare Picture, which doth not know the difference between the head and groin? Away then with all the abjects and refuſe of mankind (which have neither wit nor virtues in them) when the excellent come to be magnified; for the Prophet here doth not call to them which were the ſcorn and ſhame of the forreſt to ſet out the praiſes of the Cedar at the fall, but the noble Firre-tree. Free-tree, the Cedar is fallen.

PART IV.

Now let us come to the right Funeral-cry in the word howling, Howle firre-tree. From hence obſerve, that the fall of a principal man ſhould carry a deep ſenſe with it. He which was admired greatly in his life-time ſhould be deplored greatly at his death; one tree ſhould begin the cry,

— at que omne querelis Impleri nemus.Virg. 8 Aeneid. —

the whole Wood ſhould be filled with doleful ſounds, yea, we ſhould ſee a whole Congregation

— inexpleto rumpentem pectora queſtu,

rending as it were their breaſts with paſſionate grones.Statius. It is not enough at ſuch a time to ſtep into the houſe of mourning, or to accompany the dead corps, or to ſtand by and behold the ſolemnity at the grave, but we ſhould be like thoſe which — viſcera vivis eripiunt, would even tear out their bowels alive: the hearts ſhould ake,Virg. 12 Aeneid. and the tongues ſhould howle, there ſhould be a doleful lamentation, Mic. 2.4. People ſhould cry bitterly, Eze. 27.30. They ſhould weep with the weeping of Jazer Eſ. 48.30. There ſhould be a mourning like the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the field of Megiddo, Zach. 12.11. Men ſhould weep till they have no more power to weep, 1 Sam. 30.4. Thoſe things which formerly were occaſions to us of pleaſure, Quae mihi erant voluptati maximae, xunt recordatione doloris exasperant. Amb de ob Satyri. Publico luctu tanquam parente orbati omnes eſſent. Plat. in Cleto. ſhould now exaſperate our grief at the remembrance of them. Titus that famous Emperour was brought to his grave with a gene ral mourning, as if people had been deprived of their common paront. When Pertinax was dead, the people did ſo ingeminate their griefs and cries, that they even fainted, as Cuſpinian reporteth. When Valdemar the Daniſh King died, the men with beating their heads, the women with diſhevelled hair, the husbandmen with filling the Woods with cries, and the Mariners with filling the ſea-ſhores with yels, ſo lamented his death,Saxo Grom. l. 15. as if the common funeral of the nation had been come upon them. Thoriſmund the renowned King of the Oſtrogathes, was lamented forty years together, for doing thoſe famous acts againſt the Gepides. Crantz. l. 2. Suec. c. 16. O then, men are not to be turned out of the world with ordinary grief, but paſſion; there ſhould not onely be ſobbing, but wayling; not mourning, but howling. Howle Firre-tree, the Cedar is fallen.

Application.

This ſerves to reprove them which are too ſoft-ſpeeched at the fall of a Cedar; no great noyſe heard through the wood, howſoever not ſhrieks, our Firretrees know not how to howle; no, the moſt deſerving men for the moſt part are buried in too much obſcurity, howſoever with too much ſilence; there is little dejection, or diſcruciation at the interment; an hired Mourner might do as much as they expreſſe; the greateſt black is to be ſeen in the Herſe-cloth, or the mourning apparel; no great heavineſſe ſeen, little howling heard, a man would think they were a brambles, and that there was ſcarce a good firretree left in the wood; Tanquam oculos d • foſſos. Baſil. Monod. de Naz. they do not as S. Baſil did at the death of Nazienzene, weep for their loſſe as if they were deprived of their eyes; or, with the people of Rome, at the death of Conſtantine the Great, ſhut up their bathes, forbid markets; ſome ſtand in the ſtreets as if they were aſtoniſhed,Sigon. l. 5. Imp. others ran up and down as if they had loſt their ſenſes, ſome lying upon the ground, and others knocking their heads againſt the wals, and a great company ſobbing and roaring, as if in the death of him they were half dead. No, we can part with our deareſt friends and the brighteſt ſplendours of a nation, without any great darkning in our ſelves: we may have a demure countenance, but no perplexed breaſts, no driery tears, no bitter howling. O! how do I bluſh when I hear the Trojans crying out, Hectora flemus, We lament our valiant Hector? and when I read that Alexander, upon the death of his dear Hepheſtion, was ſo afflicted, that he not onely beſtowed ten thouſand talents upon his Funeral, and hung Glaucus his Phyſician, becauſe he went to ſee a Play when he ſhould have been attending upon his Patient; but he threw down the pinacles of cities, forbad all Inſtruments to play within his Ten • s, cauſed his mules and horſes to be ſhaven, and ſate like a moſt diſconſolate creature in his Tent: and that we for our renowned Patriots have not the affections and afflictions, the griefs and grones, heavy hearts and doleful tones that the very Heathens had. We talk of Chriſtian burial, but what Chriſtian paſſages or paſſions are there? onely a Chriſtian company, or Chriſtian rites, but no Chriſtian commemoration of vertues, or Chriſtian lamentation for the loſſe of one that countenanced Religion, defended the State, adorned his Countrey with Clemency, Juſtice and Hoſpitality: no, the Prieſt doth all, the people have no other ſolemnity to afford but to yield their appearance. O firre-trees, is this your reſpect and reverence that ye owe to a cedar? ſhall he fall by you with ſo little ſorrow or aſtoniſhment? no, ye ſhould know what the loſſe of one ſublime, beneficial man is: there ſhould be nothing but ſhrill cries heard in that forreſt where ſuch a Cedar doth fall: not onely the Firre-tree ſhould grieve, but it ſhould howle. Howle firre-tree, the cedar is fallen.

Now let us conſider a little what there hath hapned amongſt us: hath there not been a fall? yes, and a very ſad one, ſo ſad, that it might make you drop and droop, ſigh and ſob, rend and roar: he that hath a breaſt, methink, ſhould groan, and he that hath a tongue, methink, ſhould howle. Here are many clad in black before you, and ye had need to be as black within as they are without: Never was there a greater occaſion amongſt you for a mournful meeting, a doleful congregation; the forreſt it ſelf may be afflicted, and they without the forreſt may lament. If ye ſhould hold your peace the ſtones would ſpeak; ſo if ye ſhould be ſilent, the dumb would open their lips, even ſtrangers and forreigners; as Germanicus at his death was lamented by the Barbarians; and Baldwin the Third was bewayled by Noradine, and the very Turks far and nigh. What Inhabitant will be ſo unworthy, or what neighbour ſo unkind, as not to beſtow a few drops and mones at the fall of ſuch an ornament of his Countrey, and (without offence I hope it may be ſpoken) a luſtre to his Nation? Had he ſuch fame by his life-time, and ſhall he have no honour at his death? yes, as Socrates ſaid, Frankincenſe doth belong to the gods, and praiſe to men: Thus di is, laus hominibus debetur. Give unto God his true worſhip, and unto this worthy Peer his due praiſe. If the fruitleſſe or ſapleſſe, the inferiour and vulgar trees ſhould not be ſenſible of the accident, yet let the nobler trees have an anxious apprehenſion of ſuch a fall; yea, let all the firre-trees howle; Howle firre-tree, for the Cedar is falle. And I ſay, the Cedar, for was he not a lofty tree in his time? yes, noble he was by birth,

— altis inclytum titulis genus. Clara domus ſatis haec nobilitate tuâ eſt.Sentea in Here. ſur.

Look upon his creſt,Ovid op. 16. and there ye ſhall ſee the ſoaring Falcon, which brought as much Land to his Predeceſſors, as that could with her ſwift wings meaſure out with one flight; the ſtory is known, and therefore I ſhall not need to beautifie it with language. But ſtemmata quid faciunt? had he had never a noble Anceſtor, (as he had many, both by the Fathers and Mothers ſide) yet he was worthy to have been created a Noble for his noble heart and his honourable qualifications,Ariſt. l. 2. • her. Nobilitas eſt quaedam lous veniens de meritis parentum. Boer. l. 3. Proſ. 6 de Coliſ. Phil. I ſid. Peluſ. l. 2. Ep. 126. which adorned him more then lineage and pedigree: for though Nobility be Majorum claritas, the brightneſſe of anancient family, and it is a kind of praiſe, when a man can derive a ſtock from deſerving parents, yet vera nobilitas à probis moribus nata eſt, as Iſidor Peluſota ſaith, nobility of good diſpoſitions, is better then nobility of a good deſcent; for what is the honour of blood to the honour of vertue? no, they which want the laſt, it may be ſaid of them as it was of the two Gracchi, that whoſoever could ſay that they were Great, yet no man could ſay that they were Good; but mine was not only the Great but the Good Nobleman; there was in him not onely 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 but 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 and 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 . To let paſs then the Cedar for his height, and to come to his properties. Had he not in him every thing that is requiſite for a Cedar? yes:

1. For firſt, was he not ſmooth? who can call him a knotty tree? no, Quo non alter amabilior, as it was ſaid of Auguſtus, then whom there was none more friendly, I may ſay of him as Agiſtrata ſaid of Agis, nimia tua bonitas, nimia manſuetudo, thy courteſie might ſeem too great, thy mildneſſe too great, the very Idea of humanity and gemme of affability; it did appear to all.

1. Firſt, where there was the neareſt conjunction; I mean betwixt him and his honourable Lady: Were there ever Eſpouſals with more inviolable affection? was the yoke of Wed-lock ever worn with more delight? was not he to her the covering of her eyes? Gen. 20.16, was not ſhe to him the very deſire of his eyes? Ezech. 24.16.Eadem erat illis mens & ſimillimi affe • tus. Ludov. Vives de Chriſt. ſem. l. 2. may I not ſay of them as Ludovicus ſaith of his Father and Mother, that there was ever between them the ſame mind and the ſame affections, as if they had been born under one Conſtellation, or had but onely two faces and one will? Match me ſuch noble paires, which ſpent out ſo many years in dear and reciprocal affection.

2. Secondly, for his ſervants; was there ever a great Lord that treated ſervants with more gentleneſſe? no, they lived with him rather as with a Father then a Lord, or as with a Friend then a Maſter; under ſome others, ſervants might be called as they were in Lacedemonia, Helot, ſlaves, but under him they might be called as they were in Creet, Chryſonetae, the golden ſervants; he preferred many, loved all; now where was there more freedom and freeneſs?

3. Thirdly, for his neighbours, was he not moſt affable? yes, another Adrian the great Emperour, who was as Dion ſaith, humilimorum amicus, a friend to the moſt humble; ſo was he a companion to the meaneſt, a Lord amongſt Lords, but familiar amongſt his neighbours; yea, he had rather loſe his life than his humanity, as the ſame Adrian ſaid, when her was taxed for uſing too much civility (as they thought) towards his Inferiours. I never remember any which knew better how to reſerve ſtate and preſerve friendſhip, to be both a Lord and a neighbour together. His courtefie then is evident, a great heart that carried in it a moſt heroick ſpirit, and yet was the ſoft boſome of kindneſſe.

2. Was he not uſeful? yes, what did he ſtudy more than the good of the Common-wealth? one of a moſt publick ſpirit, he honoured his Countrey as his Mother, as Pythagoras adviſed his ſcholars; and he was not onely born in a Famous Countrey, but he was dignus patriâ worthy of his Countrey, as Ariſtotle ſaid of a friend: how many good offices and noble favours could I reckon up to confirme this?

3. Thirdly, was he not fragrant? yes,

1. Firſt, for his faith: as he was well-gifted, ſo he was well-principled; he had a ſingular judgment and a ſincere heart, apprehenſive and ſteddy; that whereas ſome travel into far Countries to bring home an outlandiſh faith as well as outlandiſh manners, which think they are never witty enough till they be skilled in the Magick of Religion: he, though he had been amongſt the Inchanters, yet would he learn none of their ſorceries. Few Noblemen had been in more European Countries than he himſelf, and there where the Crafts-maſters dwelt, yet none of theſe could corrupt him or ſeduce him, he returning home a true Engliſh Proteſtant: when his Mother-Church had given him his grounds, he hated that a Step-mother ſhould be his new Miſtriſs: he ever hated errour and novelty, and was ſound both in doctrine and diſcipline: It is true, the jewel was his own, yet he came often hither to have it filed; for as he ſtored the Church with the ableſt men he could find, ſo he was a diligent frequenter of the Sanctuary, and a reverent hearer; and thoſe which he found to be intelligent and invariable, he both countenanced and honoured them: that as it was ſaid of Pertinax, that he was pater Senatus, & pater omnium bonorum, The father of the Senate, and the father of all good men: ſo he was the Patrone of Orthodox Doctrine and Orthodox Teachers. And as he lived ſo he dyed; for a little before his departure he made a ſolemne profeſſion of his faith, and then ſaid that he died a profeſt adverſary to all Romiſh doctrine, and a true Son of the Church of England according to the 39. Articles. And thus ye find him fragrant concerning his faith.

2. Secondly, was he not fragrant towards his King? yes, name me a more loyal Peer. He was lapis quadratus, a ſquared ſone; neither Sequeſtrations, nor Impriſonments,Baſil. Compoſitions, Taxations or Decimations could make him fickle or falſe; he had rather have been ſick of any diſeaſe, then have had the Leproſie of diſloyalty to have appeared in his forehead. He was (as it were) one of the ſtedfaſt Angels which remained firm, when Lucifer and his train rebelled. His fidelity in this kind was ſo eminent, that it was Gods high mercy that it did not once coſt him his life at home; and it drew him when he got free often to hazard his life abroad; and when he returned, how was his Eſtate drained, till it almoſt fell into an Epilepſie? So then for his Loyalty, he is come to his grave with this honour, that he lived and died an unblemiſhed and an unſtained Royaliſt, fragrant he was to his Prince.

3. Thirdly, was he not fragrant towards his neighbours? yes,

1. Firſt, in patience; I hope there is not here or elſewhere, the moſt impatient or pacified man that can accuſe him to have been an irefull man. It is true, he had an high magnanimity of ſpirit to defend his juſt Rights and Royalties, but for common injuries he regarded them no more then Northern blaſts;Suidat. he did not with the Athenians ſet up a ſpear to run that man to the heart which had injured him, or offered him an abuſe. But when he was provoked divers times to compell ſatisfaction for high affronts and contemptſ, he thought it was beyond his Religion and his nobleneſſe to right himſelf for every trivial diſtaſt; no dart would ſtick in this water: Telum in aqua non remanet. Chryſoſt Non m • m ni me percuſſum. yea when he had been highly irritated, he was ready to ſay with the Philoſopher, I do not remember that I was ſtricken. He had learned that of Solomon, ſay not I will do to him as he hath done to me, and that of St. Paul, why do ye not rather ſuffer wrong? who of his degree and quality lived more peaceably amongſt his neighbours? or had a more relenting heart? or troubled the Age leſſe with vexatious ſuits?

2. Secondly, was he not fragrant in his Juſtice? yes, he might be ſet up for the Standard. The Lamb can as ſoon bite as he could gripe or oppreſſe; another Pericles, that never cauſed any man to go in a ſad garment for his rapines. He might have ſaid with Samuel, whoſe oxe have I taken? whoſe aſſe have I taken? or to whom have I done any wrong? bring me that man that can ſay truly, that he hath a Tenement belonging to him that he hath gotten by the wreſt; or one furrow of Land in his whole Eſtate which doth cry out againſt: him for injuſtice.

3. Thirdly, was he not fragrant in Charity? yes, Town and Country can teſtifie that odoriferous ſent. His houſe was a kind of Hoſpital, a Store-houſe to haile and ſick; his White Wood-ſtacks and his black pots can never be forgotten. Thoſe which came, went not away empty; and thoſe which did not come, he would ſeek them out and relieve them; his heart was the poores Guardian, and his hand was their Treaſurer: He had troops of poor attended upon him, as it was ſaid of Henry the third, a German Emperour; and whereſoever he met them, either in ſtreets, high-waies, or fields, his ſympathiſing ſpirit melted towards them, and his communicating hand dropped bounty to them; thus every way his fragrancy was felt. A right Cedar he was in all reſpects, and though he be fallen, yet as the forreſt will want him, ſo it ſhould not ſee him caſt to the ground without an heart-ſtroke, a lip-roar, yea a paſſionate howling. Howl Firee-tree for the Cedar is fallen. But ſaith one, when you have magnified your Cedar to the height, I ſee a ſpot in him; doſt thou? ſo did he in himſelf, and I hope that his repentance hath prevented thy cenſure, and his remorſe thy rancor. To me, to others he often lamented his errours; and with fervent prayers and bitter tears begged pardon at the hands of God Almighty. And is God reconciled to him, and wilt thou be inexorable? But what was his ſpot? haſt not thou the ſame? haſt not thou more? haſt not thou worſe? He was no Perſecutor, he was no Traitor, he was no Temporizer, he was no Hypocrite. There are many ſpots, and the Leper may be apt to cry out of anothers foul skin. It is good for every one to ſttitch up his own rents, before he do complain of a ſeam-rent place in anothers garment, or to waſh his own face clean before he do find fault with a ſpray in anothers checks. Who can ſay my heart is clean? I am clean from ſin? in many things we offend all. If thou Lord ſhouldſt be extreme to mark what is done amiſſe, who is able to ſtand? But let his ſpot be what it will, I truſt he hath prayed it away, and we have prayed it away, that by the vertue of his tears and his friends tears (for God was reconciled to Jobs friends for his prayers and ſacrifices) or howſoever by the infallibility of Gods Covenant, and efficacy of Chriſts blood it is rinſed away. To give thee all the aſſurance that by the judgement of Charity is requiſite, that be died a true Penitent: Conſider what I am now to propound unto thee. A little before his departure like a man that had his deaths ſtroke in his boſom, and a yearning for divine favour in his conſcience; he fought for nothing but mercy, and thirſted for nothing but reconciliation: he abounded in tears, was frequent in ſupplications, forced himſelf beyond his ſtrength to the prayers of the family, had often the prayers of divers Church-men in his Chamber, and would lift up his hands devoutly at thoſe things which moved him: he wanted no Counſel, and embraced Counſel, delighted to have the Bible read to him, even eight Chapters at a time; he called for mercy whilſt he had freedom of ſpeech; and when for four dayes together he lay in a manner ſpeechleſſe, yet God gave him liberty to utter theſe words, Lord, Lord, have mercy, Lord, Lord, have mercy; and theſe were the onely words it that long ſpace which came from him diſtinctly to the hour of his death; God taught him (I truſt) the language with which he ſhould breathe out his laſt gaſp, or God himſelf (which is very likely) ſpake for him. But if he had never ſhed tear, nor uttered prayer, the tears and prayer of his friends if there be any power in Chriſtian interceſſion) I hope have beaten out a way to Heaven for him; for his friends were ſeldom without watery eyes, & we were ſeldom off from our knees; ſo that God I truſt hath received our prayers, and received his ſoul; he went like Elias with a whirl-wind and a fiery Chariot into Heaven. Come on then ye Firre-trees, will ye ſuffer ſuch a Cedar to be carried off from the ground without a forreſt-claſhing, and beating your tops one againſt another? no, let the wilding-tree, the aſpe-tree, the ſloe-tree the beech-tree and wicl — ree be ſilent if they will, but let all the Firre-trees joyn together in a generall mourning for when ſhall we ſee his equall? when ſhall we behold his Superiour? do ye bury him with thrilling ſpirits and torn hearts; make all the wood to ring, and rend, and roar at his fall; yea, do ye break out into an abſolute howling. Howle Firre-tree, the Cedar is fallen. Well, ſince he is fallen, let us leave him to the Lord Paramount of the Forreſt, onely let his Memory be precious, and his fragrancy ſweet in our noſtrills; let us for a farewell to him, call him the Mirrour of worth, and the Monument of honour: Let us hope that God hath but taken him away, becauſe he hath uſe of ſome Cedar above for his own building; and that he that planted him hath diſpoſed of him for the honour of his own Court; yea, that he ſent ſpecial Meſſengers, even the bleſſed Angels, to carry him from hence upon their ſhoulders, and to lay him within the Court-gate, to be made a Pillar in the Temple of God: There lie thou, thou noble Cedar, and remain to thy everlaſting honour and bliſſe. Onely he being gone, God give us grace to think on our own fall, that we that howl for his fall, may not howl at or after our own fall, but fall with comfort, and be carried away at laſt to the building of God, an houſe not made with hands, but eternall in the Heavens.

FINIS.