The Height of Israels Heathenish Idolatry, Section 2 · Chapter 1
CHAP. I. Wherein is proued that the gods of the Heathen were Deuils.
NOw let vsus conſider this ſinne in particular: and becauſe it is a ſinne of this nature, belonging to Idolatrie and falſe worſhip,Of the Idoll gods of the Iewes and Heathen. let vsus firſt take a view of theſe Idoll gods: Secondly, of the ſacrifices and ſeruice done vntounto them.
Its here ſaid, They ſacrificed foreign to deuils, or to deſtroyers and ſpoilers, ſo called from the effect: not to any Platonicall or good Daemon, but to the deuill himſelfe our malicious aduerſarie. If wee compare this place with Deut. 12.31. we ſhall ſee that theſe deuils were the gods of the Heathen. There the Lord forbids his people to doe vntounto him as the Heathen did to their gods, for they, ſaith the text, hauehave euen burnt in the fire their Sonnes and Daughters to their gods: and Deut. 32.17. Moſes in his Song complaines of the Iſraelites, that they ſacrificed vntounto deuils, not to God, to gods whom they knew not; to new gods that came newly vp. Theſe gods were the Idols of Canaan, verſe 38. of this Pſalme: and the Idoll Moloch, whereof in particular God gaue his people caueat, Leuit. 18 21. which Idoll was the Image of a Calfe, vaſt and hollow, hauing ſeuen chambers or roomes in it, according to the variety of ſeuerall gifts and ſacrifices which were to be conſumed in it: whereof one was appointed for a ſheepe, another for a lambe, a third for a calfe, but the laſt was for children, who by their parents were caſt in and burnt quicke.
…hat they were Deuils. …oued. … From Scrip…Here wee will ſhew, firſt, that the gods of the Heathen were indeed Deuils. Secondly, How Deuils came to bee acknowledged and worſhipped for gods. That they were Deuils, will plainly appeare, if firſt we conſult with the Oracles of God: Saint Paul tels vsus, 1. Cor. 10.20. that the things which the Gentiles ſacrifice, they ſacrifice to Deuils, and not to God. foreign. Where foreign ſignifies euill ſpirits and the very Deuils, according to the vſe of Scripture, which by foreign vnderſtands diabolos, Deuils, as 1. Tim. 4.1. where mention is made of doctrines of Deuils, foreign, Thus Leuit. 17.17. God chargeth his people that they ſhall no more offer their offerings vntounto Deuils, after whom they (that is the Gentiles) hauehave gone a whoring. And ſo is Rehoboam ſaid, 2 Chron, 11.15. to hauehave ordained him Prieſts for the high places, and for the Deuils, and for the Calues, which he made: and my text is plaine, which ſaith, They ſacrificed their Sonnes and Daughters vntounto Deuils.
… From their accepting of ſacrifice. See Baruch. chap. 6.A further proofe hereof is, that they were neither the true God, for Saint Paul tels the Galathians, ch. 4.8. that when they knew not God, they did ſeruice to them which by nature are no gods: neither good Angels; for they both require and accept ſacrifices, which good Angels, know to be due to the true God onelyonly: and ſo indeed they are, for, ſaith Saint Auguſtine, aAuguſt de Civit. Dei. lib. 10. cap. 19.As when we pray to or praiſe God, we direct our words to him onelyonly to whom we offer in our hearts the thing ſignified by our words: ſo, in our ſacrifices, we offer not any viſible ſacrifice, but to him bNon altere quam illi, cuius in cordibus noſtris, inviſibile ſacrificium noſipſi…ſſe debemus.onelyonly to whom we owe the inuiſible ſacrifice of our owne hearts and ſelues. Therefore, the good Angels being perfect in charity both towards God and man, will neither, by accepting any ſacrifice, diſhonour God; which euen good men, Paul and Barnabas, Acts 14.14.15.refuſed to doe; nor, ſeeing they louelove vsus as themſelues, will they hauehave vsus to attaine happineſſe by other meanes then they themſelues doe: ſo that, ſeeing, as the ſame Father ſaith,Auguſt. ut ſupr. lib. 10. cap. b. 4.7.19.25.26. The ſumme of both Tables is fulfilled in this, that we ſhould cEt a quibus diligimur duci, & quos diligimus ducere.both be gained to God our ſelues by ſuch as louelove vsus, and gaine and draw others, whom we truely louelove, to God: therefore, good Angels truely louing vsus, will accept dNolunt nos ſibi ſacrificare, ſed ei, cuius & ipſi nobiſcum ſacrificium eſſe noverunt.no ſacrifice from vsus to themſelues, as knowing it is to be offered to him onelyonly, to whom both they and we ioyntly, doe owe our ſelues in ſacrifice. Therefore I conclude, Daemonum eſt haec arrogantia ſuperborū, &c. It is onelyonly the Deuils pride againſt God, and malice againſt man, which dares preſume to require or accept any ſacrifice to it ſelfe from man.
If this be not proofe enough,3. From their inioyning and accepting ſacrifices of men. we need no better argument to diſcouer the nature of theſe gods, then this very ſeruice in my text, accepted of them: for both by the record of ſacred writ, and relation of heathen Authors and other writers, wee know, that nothing was ſo vſually commanded nor gratefully accepted by theſe heatheniſh gods, as was the ſhedding of mans blood,Oroſius lib. 4. cap. 6. Trogus, Lactantius lib. 1. &c. and the ſacrificing of men, maids, and children vntounto them, as appeares by the vſuall practiſe of men in former times.
To the teſtimonies of Scripture mentioned formerly, I adde onelyonly the example of the King of Moab,Sacrifices of men. mentioned 2. Kings 3.27. where it is ſaid, that being in ſome ſtraits, he tooke his eldeſt ſonne that ſhould hauehave raigned in his ſtead, Among the Heathen.and offered him for a burnt offering vponupon the wall.
The ſtories likewiſe of the Heathen are full of like examples: when the Oracle of Apollo was asked by the Athenians how they might make amends for their killing of Androgeus, it willed them to ſend yearely to King Minos, ſeuen bodies of each ſexe to appeaſe the wrath of god. Now this kind of yearely ſacrifice continued ſtill in Athens in the time of Socrates. Thus the Carthagineans, being vanquiſhed by Agathocles King of Sicilie, and ſuppoſing their god to be diſpleaſed, to appeaſe him, did ſacrifice two hundred noble mens children. This cuſtome was ancient euen before the Troyan war, for then was Iphigenia ſacrificed. Thus we reade that the Latines ſacrificed the tenth of their owne children to Iupiter: that men and children were vſually ſacrificed to Saturne in many places, in Candy, Rhodomene, Phenice, Africke; and thoſe commonly the choice and deareſt of their children, and moſt nobly deſcended. The manner of ſacrificing their children to Saturne, Diodorus Bibliothec. lib. 20. Ludouicus Vi…es ad Auguſt. de ciuit Dei. lib. 7. cap. 19.Diodorus relates to bee this: Bringing their children to the ſtatue or image of Saturne, which was of huge greatneſſe, they gaue them into his hands, which were made ſo hollow and winding, that the children offered, ſlipped and fell downe through, into a caue and fornace of fire. Theſe ſacrifices continued in vſe, till the birth and death of our Sauiour Chriſt, who came to deſtroy the workes of the Deuill: for ſuch ſacrifices were firſt forbidden by Auguſtus Caeſar; after, more generally by Tiberius, (in whoſe raigne our Sauiour ſuffered) who, as Tertullian writes, ſo ſtraitely forbade them, that hee crucified the Prieſts who offered them: howbeit, euen in Tertullians time, and after in Euſebius and Lactantius times, ſuch ſacrifices were offered, (but cloſely) to Iupiter Latialis.
Who can now doubt, ſeeing ſuch exceeding ſuperſtitious crueltie, but that the gods commanding ſuch ſacrifices, were very Deuils and enemies to mankind? God commands no ſuch thing, but forbids it, and threatens plagues to his people,Ier. 19.5. becauſe they had forſaken him, and built the high places of Baal, to burnt their ſonnes with fire, for burnt offerings vntounto Baal, which, ſaith God, I commanded. not, neither ſpake it, neither came it into my mind. Moſt infallibly then wee may conclude, that none but Satan that Arch-deuill with his Angels, were the commanders of ſuch ſeruice, for this agrees right well with his nature, who hath beene a murderer from the beginning.Iohn 8.…4. Nothing delights him more then the ſhedding and ſpilling ofaQuia omnium ſem…m optimum eſt genus h…manum, Aug. de Ciuit. …ei, lib. 7 c…. 19. mans blood, in ſo much, that if but a bond be to be ſealed to him by his deuoted ſlaue (his bondſlaue) it muſt be written with his blood. If it pleaſe ſome FrenchbR…ſort I. bauiu…ſi…g. lartum p…rte …ecunda c…ſſer at. 5. Lord to write a booke of Magicke, it muſt be done with the blood of ſome twenty children It is ordinary with our late Iewes, for and in their ex…tions, to vſe thecVide Cruſium lib. 7. partis 3. annalium & Langium lib. 7. ep. 71. blood of chriſtian Infanes which hath coſt many of them their lines. Thus we read thatdNicephorus & Socrates. Iulian the Apoſta…e Emperour did celebrate with manſlaughter his magicke-ſacrifices; who alſo, in imitation of as good a maſter, Heli gabalus, ſacrificed many men, onelyonly for the inſpection of their intralls, thereby to make coniecture of future euents.
From which premiſes, wee may further conclude, that the gods,Sacrifices of men among the Americans. whom the poore Americans of the Weſt Indies hauehave, and in part doe yet ſerue with ſuch bloody ſacrifices of men, are no other, then the ſame deuils, who there eſpecially beare ſway, where Chriſt and the Goſpell is not heard of.Ioſeph. Acoſta his naturall and morall hiſtory of the Indies, lib. 5. cap. 19.20. We read in their hiſtories of infinite ſacrifices of this kind: of a certaine number ſacrificed in their feaſts, which were monthly, yearely, and eueryevery 52. yeare: where, in ſome 5. in ſome 10. in ſome 100. and in ſome 1000. were ſacrificed. Other ſet times for ſuch ſacrifices were at the ſprouting and increaſe of their corne, in the beginning and in their vndertaking of warre; at the Coronation of their Kings, at the death of their Kings and great men, when ſometimes 200. ſometimes 1000. of all ſorts died in ſacrifice with them, according to the cuſtome of the ancient Romanes, whoſe ſeruants vſed to bee ſlaine at their maſters funerall; in ſtead whereof,Of which Infrâ Sword players were appointed from among ſuch as were guilty and condemned perſons, who were alſo ſet to fight with wild beaſts, eſpecially with buls: which cuſtome is ſtil in vſe in Spain, as witneſſeth their owne Mariana The number of men thus ſacrificed by theſe barbarous nations muſt needs be exceeding great,Mariana lib. de ſpectaculis, fine. as appeares by what we read of the practiſe of Moteçuma, laſt Emperour of Mexico, who ſending one of his Nobles to entertaine Ferdinando Cortez, the firſt conquerour of theſe parts, and to relate vntounto him his greatneſſe; his greateſt argument thereof was, that he ſacrificed yearely to his gods 20000. men, yea ſome yeares 50000. For which cauſe he reſerued the Prouince of Tlaſcalla vnſubdued, that from thence as occaſion ſerued, he might hauehave captiues for the ſacrifices of his gods, for ſuch eſpecially they vſed to ſacrifice, as were taken in warre: herein following the cuſtome of the ancient Romans, who hereupon, as is thought, called their ſacrifice Victima, as of a thing conquered; and Hoſtia, quaſi ab hoſte, it being an offering made of their enemies.
The manner vſed by them in their ſacrificing was this: Their Prieſts did open their breaſts, take out their hearts, and caſt them at the Idols face.Ludouicus Viues on S. Auguſt De Ciuit. Dei, lib. 7. c. 19 It ſeemes elſewhere it was by burning alſo: for Ludouicus Viues tels vsus of an Iland found out in his time by French Mariners, who called it from their Kings name Carolina, wherein they ſaw many images of their gods made of braſſe, and hollow, wherein children were moſt cruelly burnt and ſacrificed; ſacrificed I ſay, euen to the ſame gods, to whom the heathen, and theſe Iewes in imitation of the heathen, ſacrificed, to wit, to deuils, for they ſacrificed their ſonnes and their daughters vntounto deuils.