The Soldiers Honor, Part 2
The Battell.
Then was warre in the gates. If Israel giuegive God an Alarme of wickednesse, God will giuegive them a Battell of wretchednesse. If thou, O Israel, wilt peccare in extremo tuo, God will punire in extremo suo: if thou sinne in thy extremitie, God will punish in his extremitie. Idolatrie is an extreame impietie; therefore against it the gate of heauen is barred.1. Cor 6.9. Know yee not, that no Idolater shall inherite the Kingdome of God? The Idolater would thrust God out of his Throne, therefore good reason that God should thrust him out of his Kingdome. The punishment is also extreame: and hath in it a great portion of miserie, though not a proportion answerable to the iniquitie. For it deserues not only warre and slaughter in the gates of earth, but eternall death in the gates of hell. But not to extend the punishment beyond the proposed limits; nor, where it offers the companie a mile, to compell it to goe with vsus twaine: let vsus view it, as it is described. And we shall find it aggrauated by three circumstances.
A Natura. Warre; there's the Nature of it.
A Tempore. Then; there's the Time of it.
A Loco. In the gates; there's the Place of it.
There is Quid, Quando, Vbi. What, When, and Where. Warre, that's the Quid. Then, that's the Quando. In the gates, that's the Vbi. Then was warre in the gates.
The Nature of it; What, warre.
Warre is that miserable desolation, that finds a land before it like Eden; and leaues it behinde it like Sodome and Gomorrah, a desolate and forsaken wildernesse. Let it be sowed with the seed of man and beast, as a field with wheate; warre will eate it vp. Bellum, quasi minime bellum: or rather in vicinitie to the name, mos belluarum. For men, Solummodo iustum, quibus necessarium: not iust, but when it is necessarie, and cannot well be auoided. Not to be waged by a Christian without obseruation of Saint Augustines rule. Esto bellando pacificus. In warre seeke peace: though thy hand be bloudie, let thy heart be peaceable. Pacem debet habere voluntas, bellum necessitas. Let necessitie put warre into the hands: religion keepe peace in the heart. In it selfe it is a miserable punishment. This is the Nature; What.
The time, or Quando: Then.
When was this warre? Tempore Idolatrico; in the time of Idolatrie. They chose new gods; Then. When we fight against God, we incense him to fight against vsus. Indeed wee hauehave all stricken him: which of vsus hath not offered blowes to that sacred Deitie? Our oathes proffer new wounds to the sides of Iesus Christ: and our mercilesse oppressions persecute him through the bowels of the poore. Saul, Saul, why pesecutest thou mee? Act. 9.4.Saul strikes vponupon earth, Iesus Christ suffers in heauen. Yet if timely repentance step in, we scape his blowes, though hee hath not scaped ours. Hee is readie to say, as Cato to the man that hurt him in the Bath, (when in sorrow hee asked him forgiuenesse) Non memini me percussum; I doe not remember that I was stricken.
But if Israels sinnes strike vp alarme, Israels God will giuegive battell. If they chuse new gods, the true God will punish. Then was warre.
It is a fearefull thing when God fights. When God tooke off the chariot-wheeles of the Egyptians, Exod. 14.25.they cryed; Let vsus flee from the face of Israel, for the Lord fighteth for them against the Egyptians. The heathen gods could not defend their friends, nor subdue their enemies, nor auenge themselues.
Mars vltor galeam quoque per didit, & res
Non potuit seruare suas.
Their stout god of warre might loose his helmet, his target, the victorie; vnable to deliuer himselfe. But God is the Lord of Hostes: Psal. 62.11.God hath spoken once: twice hauehave I heard this, that power belongeth vntounto God. Once, twice, yea a thousand times hauehave we heard it, read it, seene it, that God is powerfull. That as Augustin: Verba toties inculcata, vera sunt, viua sunt, sana sunt, plana sunt. Things so often repeated and pressed, must needes be plaine and peremptorie. God hath souldiers in heauen, souldiers on earth, souldiers in hell, that fight vnderunder his presse. So that hee hath Mille nocendi artes; a thousand wayes to auenge himselfe.
In heauen hee hath armies; of fire to burne Sodome: of flouds to drowne a world: of haile-stones to kill the Amorites: of starres, as here Debora sings. They fought from heauen: Ver. 20.the starres in their courses fought against Sisera. And whilst Israel slew their enemies at their Generalls prayer;Iosh. 11. the Sunne stood still in Gibeon, and the Moone in the valley of Aialon. Yea there are heauenly souldiers. 2. King. 19.35.Luke 2. Suddenly there was with the Angel a multitude of the heauenly hoste. One of these celestiall souldiers slew in one night aboue an hundred thousand Assyrians.
Below hee hath Seas to drowne Pharaoh; Swallowes of the earth to deuoure Corah. With fierce Lyons, fell Dragons, hissing Serpents, crawling Wormes, he can subdue the proudest Rebells.
In hell he hath an armie of fiends, though bound in chaines that they shall not hurt the faithfull; yet let loose to terrifie the wicked. There was an euill Spirit to vexe Saul; fowle Spirits in the Gospel, made some deafe, others dumbe, and cast many into fire and into waters.
Thus stands the wicked man enuironed with enemies: God and man, Angels and Deuils, heauen and earth, birds and beastes, others and himselfe, maintaine this warre against himselfe. God may be patient a long time; but Laes a patientia fit furor, patience too much wronged becomes rage: and Furor arma ministrat, wrath will quickly affoord weapons.
Serior esse solet vindicta seuerior.
The sorest vengeance is that which is long in comming; and the fire of indignation burnes the hoter, because God hath been coole and tardie in the execution. Impietie and Impunitie are not sworne sisters but if Wickednesse beat the Drumme, Destruction will begin to march. The ruined Monuments and Monasteries in those Prouinces, seeme to tell the passengers; Hic fuit hostilitas, warre hath been here. Wee may also reade in those rude heapes, Hic fuit iniquitas, Sinne hath beene here. It was Idolatrie rather then warre that pulled downe those walls. If there had beene no enemie to rase them, they should hauehave falne alone, rather then hide so much superstition and impietie vnderunder their guiltie roofes. In the tenth of this booke, when the Israelites serued Baalim and Ashtaroth, Ver. 6.the gods of Syria, and the gods of Sidon, then was the anger of the Lord hote against them, and he sold them into the hands of the Philistins, and into the hands of the children of Ammon. Then those enemies destroyed their Cities, and depopulated their Countries: making them spectacles of Crueltie and Iustice; Crueltie of man, Iustice of God. This is the Time, When.
The Place, or Vbi.
In the gates. This is an extreame progresse of warre, to come so neere as the Gates. If it had beene in terra inimicorum, in the land of their enemies: a preparation of warre a great way off: Sonus hostilitatis, the noyse of warre. As Ierem. 6. Behold a people commeth from the North, a Nation shall be raised from the sides of the earth. Their voice roareth like the Sea: and, wee hauehave heard the fame thereof. Here is warre, but comming, raising, roaring: audiuimus tantum; wee hauehave onelyonly heard the noyse of it.
Yea, if it had come but to the coasts, and inuaded the borders: as the Philistins did often forrage the skirts of Israel; yet it had beene somewhat tollerable: for then vidimus tantum; we hauehave but seene it onelyonly. Ostendisti populo grauia. Psal. 60. Thou hast shewne thy people grieuous things: shewed, but not inflicted: shaken the rodde, but not scourged vsus. But here venit ad limina bellum; warre is come to their thresholds, to the Zenith and heart of the land; to defie them in the very gates. And now they more then heare, or see it; sentiunt, they feele it.
The Gates in Israel, were those places where they sate in Iustice: as we may frequently read, they gaue iudgement in the Gates. 2. King. 7.They distributed the Corne in the Gates. They distributed the Corne in the Gates, where that vnbeleeuing Prince was troden to death. And Absalon sate in the Gates, and said to eueryevery man that had a Controuersie:2. Sam. 15.3. See thy matters are good and right; but here is no man deputed of the King to heare thee. So that Pacis loca bellum occupat; Warre possesseth the places of Peace, and thrusts her out of her wonted residence and presidence, the Gates. In the Gates? Warre is not then in the right Vbi: as they said of Pope Sixtus; because he delighted in bloudie warres, that he ill became the Seat of Peace: according to that Epitaph on him.
Non potuit soeuum vis vlla extinguere Sixtum,
Audito tandem nomine Pacis obit
No warre could kill Sixtus: but so soone as euer he heard of peace, he presently died. Warre is got very farre, when it possesseth the Gates.
You now see the punishment. Happie are wee, that cannot iudge the terrors of warre, but by report and heare-say: That neuer saw our Townes and Cities burning; our houses rifled, our Temples spoyled, our wiues rauished, our children bleeding dead on the pauements, or sprawling on the mercilesse pikes. We neuer heard the grones of our owne dying, and the clamours of our enemies insulting, confusedly sounding in our distracted eares: the wife breathing out her life in the armes of her husband; the children snatched from the breasts of thier mothers; as by the terror of their slaughters to aggrauate their owne ensuing torments. Wee hauehave been strangers to this miserie in passion, let vsus not be so in compassion. Let vsus thinke wee hauehave seene these calamities with our neighbours eyes, and felt them through their sides.
When Aeneas Syluius reports the fall of Constantinople; the murdering of children before the parents eyes, the Nobles slaughtered like beasts, the Priests to… in pieces, the holy Virgins incestuously abuse… hee cryes out, O miseram vrbis faciem; Oh wre…hed face of a Citie. Many of our neighbours hauehave beene whirled about in these bloudie tumults: they hauehave heard the dismall cryes of cruell aduersaries, Kill, Kill; the shrikes of women and infants; the thunders of those murdering peeces in their eares; their Cities and Temples flaming before their eyes;Aeneid. II. their streets swimming with bloud: when
Permisti caede virorum
Semianimes voluuntur equi.
Men and horses confusedly wallowing in their mingled blouds.
OnelyOnly to vsus the yron gates of warre hauehave been shut vp: wee sit and sing vnderunder our owne Figge-trees; wee drinke the wine of our owne Vineyards;Psal. 144.14. There is no breaking in, nor going out, no complayning in our strectes: We hauehave the Peace of God, let vsus be thankfull to the God of Peace. But it is good to be merrie and wise: Let not our peace make vsus secure. The Iewes, in their great Feast, had some malefactor brought forth to them:Matth. 27.15. so let it be one good part of our solemnitie, to bring forth that malefactor, Securitie; a rust growne ouer our soules in this time of peace, and send him packing. Wee hauehave not the blessings of God by entaile, or by lease; but hold all at the good will of our Landlord: and that is but during our good behauiour. Wee hauehave not so manie blessings, but wee may easily forfeit them by disobedience. When wee most feared warre, God sent peace: now wee most brag of peace, God preuent warre.
Doe not our sinnes giuegive an alarme to Heauen, and shall not Heauen denounce warre against vsus? Nulla pax impijs, Esa. 57.21.There is no peace to the wicked, saith my God. 2. King. 9.22.Ioram said, is it peace, Iehu? But hee answered, What peace so long as the whoredomes of thy mother Iezebel and her witchcrafts are so many? They are our sinnes, that threaten to loose vsus our best friend, God: and if God be not our friend, wee must looke for store of enemies. Our great iniquities hearten our aduersaries: they professe to build all their wickednesse against vsus, vponupon our wickednesse against God. If they did not see vsus chuse new gods, they would neuer hauehave hope to bring warre to our gates. If wee could preuaile against our owne euills▪ wee should preuaile against all our enemies. The powers of Rome, the powers of Hell should not hurt vsus, if wee did not hurt our selues. Let vsus cast downe our Iesabels, that bewitch vsus; those lusts, whereby wee runne a whoring after other gods: and then Peace shall stand Centinell in our Turrets;Psal. 147. God shall then strengthen the barres of our gates, and establish peace in our borders. Let vsus, according to that sweet Singers doctrine, Psal. 34.14. Depart from euill, and doe good; then seeke peace, and pursue it. Yea, doe well, and thou shalt not need to pursue it; Peace will finde thee without seeking. Augustine, Fiat iustitia, & habebis pacem; Liue righteously, and liue peaceably. Quietnesse shall finde out Righteousnesse, wheresoeuer she lodgeth. But she abhorreth the house of euill: Peace will not dine, where Grace hath not first broken her fast. Let vsus embrace Godlinesse;Phil. 4.7. and the Peace of God that passeth all vnderstanding, shall preserue our hearts and mindes in Iesus Christ. The Lord fixe all our hearts vponupon himselfe; that neyther our selues, nor our children after vsus, nor their generations, so long as the Sunne and Moone endureth, may euer see Warre in the Gates of England. Thus wee hauehave runne thorough the Battell, and considered the terrours of a bloudie Warre; and now come to