Against Symbolizing with Antichrist in Ceremonies, Part · Chapter 2 · Section 39 [i.e. 38]

Against Symbolizing with Antichrist in Ceremonies · Part · Chapter 2 · Section 39 [i.e. 38]

p. 118#Sect. 39. Though Tau were in the text, yet cannot a Croſſe be colleleth from it, vnles we ground doctrine vponupon the myſteries of Letters, which the Gnoſtickes, Valentinians, and the Cabaliſtes vſe.

SEcondly, what if the letter T. be in the texte, yet cannot a Croſſe bee collected hence without wringing and churning, yea without parte of that vanitie alſo of grounding doctrines vponupon the myſteries of letters which the Gnoſtick heretiques, & the Valētinians, & the Cabaliſtes vſe, & theaaSixt. ſenenſ: Bibliothec. li. 3. pag. 146. Genebrad. in ann. ante Chriſtum▪ nat. 87. papiſts themſelues condemne. All the letters of the Hebrewe Alphabet are myſticall (ſaithbbHieron. de nominibus Hebra. Hierome) who holdeth not this poſition vaine? yet is it the ground wherevpon the Croſſe is foundded in this place, and that by this myſticall Hierome, who yet reſolueth not on the matter but rather rehearſeth what the opinions of others ar, as theſe words ſhew,ccHieron. in hunc loc. et vsus ad moſtra veniamus: and his whole drift, not in this place only, but in all his commentaries: in which as he telleth his reader elſewhere, he writeth rather out of the opinions of other men, then out of his owne iudgement. And when hee explicateth the ſigne here meant by the wordes of Salomon, pone me ſicut ſignum, Cant. 8. of Dauid: ſignatum eſt ſuper nos Iumen vultus tui. Pſal. 4. and of Paule: Nolite contriſtari ſpiritum à quo ſignati eſtis, it is plaine that ſome of the authors, whom he followed, vnderſtood this ſigne to be ſpirituall & not an outward marke, which is the …enent of all ourddCalfhil. again. Mart. art. 1.2. D. Fulk relo…d. ibid. writers. If our Oppoſites hauehave found out ſince the ſigne p. 119of an outward Croſſe in this place, I would they would tell vsus which way they came by it. The Machabees in their banner vſed the firſt-letter of the wordes in Exod. 15.11. M. C. B. I. to expreſſe the whole ſentence. Is this courſ… heere vſed? Then by the letter T. what more likely to bee meant then the word Torah which ſignifieth the Law; to ſhewe the men here preſerued, were ſuch as kept the Law; and bewayled the tranſgreſſions which were committed againſt it which was the opinion of the Iewes aseeHieron, in hunc loc. gloſ. ordi. Hierome mentioneth, and which conlecturefff…t-ſ…en▪ bibli… he…. li. 2. fo. 121 ſome p… piſtes withggLyran. in hunc loc. others cannot reiect. In the Apoc. the ſituation of α and ω in the Alphabet is vſed to deſcribe the Lord Chriſt Ieſus to be the beginning and the end. Is this courſe here taken? then what more likely by the letter T. the laſt conſonant to be meant then either Chriſt the end of all (ashhHector Pintus in hunc loc. ſome) or the perfection of knowledge taught by Chriſt (asllPetrus Serranus in hunc loc. others) or perfection of ſcience in the men here ſigned (asmmHieron. Strab. in gloſ. ordi. others) or annSixt. S… nenſ. vt ſupr. perfection of obedience in them as humane frailtie did permit. Laſt of all, the figures of letters were reſpected by Pythagoras when he deſcribed the life of man by the letter Y. and by theooIdem Bibliot. li. 3… pa. 145. officers of warre, when T. noted the liuing ☉. the dead and ſlaine, becauſe this letter hath the forme of a men thruſt thorough, as it were with a dart. It were hard to ſay the holy Ghoſt taketh this courſe here. But what if he doe? For a papiſt him ſelfe confeſſeth, longe ppHector Bint. in hunc. loc.falluntur opinione qui aſſerunt hanc literam apud Hebraeos crucem eſſe, nullam enim habet crucis figuram. Ita. n. ſcribitur ∩. which maketh a faire paire ofqqCalfhil. art. 2. fo. 44 gallowes in deed, but commeth nothing neare a Croſſe Hence it is, that the cheefe defenders of this opinion wauer much; as is to be ſeene in one of them for all the reſt.rrSixt. ſenenſ. Bibliothec. li. 2. pag. 120. Fuit ſignum T. nifallor, (marke ni fallor) figura Crucis. But it is obiected out ofssHieron. ad Paulln. Hierome, that the old Hebrue T. had the forme of att… Croſſe like to the Greek, that this ∩ which now hath not the forme of a Croſſe, was chaunged by Ezrah, witnes this, that the Tau of the Samaritanes, who kept the olde Hebrew letters, was of the Croſſes forme. Firſt, it is vnlikely that Ezrah would leaue to the Samaritanes, the enemies of God the ancient characters of Gods owne finger wherin the Oracles of God were written, & put the Church to new. Secondly, though he chaunged in other places, yet not here, becauſe the faſhion of this T. being marred, the myſterie was marred which depended vponupon it. which he (no queſtion) vnderſtood, if there were any ſuch. Thirdly, It is vntrue that the old Samaritane T. was a croſſe.uuGuilibelm Poſtell. de liter. Faenitum. Poſtellus telleth vsus it was of an other faſhion. a man in this matter to be rather beleeued then they, who cannot tell how to referre it, whether to this figure ✚. aswwSixt. Senenſ. vt ſupra. ſome, or to this T. out ofxxTertul. cont. Marcion. ca. 30 Tertullian, as others which byyyIſidor. Hiſpalenſ. ſome is called the Greeke T. byzzMart. in reply. art. … others the Roman T. Others ſay Ezechiell had reference to the Hebrew, Greeke, and Romane, and all. asaaAct. & mo nument. pa. 1940. Fryar Billing, Parſon of Wilton at the burning of Spicer and Maundrell at Sarum. Fourthly, there is no agreement about Ezrahes exchaunge of the Hebrew letters. OnebbGenebrar. Chronic. li. 2. in anmun. 36… affirmeth, there was a chaunge a while, but after, a returne to the old letters againe. Rabbi Simon denieth that euer there was any chaunge at all. Rabbi Moyſes Gerundenſis ſaith, The chaunge of them was at the firſtccIbid. in anmun. 3203 Diuiſion of the Kingdome in the dayes of Rhehoboam, to differ frō the tenne Tribes that were growne Idolatrous. TheddIbid, in an. 3710. moſt common opinion is, that Ezra chaunged them immediatly vponupon the returne from Babilon, to differ from the Samaritans. But all this is ſtrooken dead in the neaſt byeeCaeſar Baron. anal. in an. Chriſt. 180. Caeſar Baronius, who lahoureth to proue that Ezra neuer chaunged the letters: that the olde auncient Copies of the Hebrew Bibles were many of them remayning in Ezralies time. that they all are in one character (to witt the olde and auncient character of the Hebewes. Howbeit Baronius him ſelf ſayleth in part, the whole matter is here of late brought cleerlie to light by Ioſeph Scaliger, who writeth thus: The olde Hebrewe and the Samaritane letters be all one, and the letter Tau in neither of them is like a Croſſe or the Greeke or Romane T. Hierome what he reciteth of Ezraes p. 118duplicate page p. 119duplicate page p. 120chaunge & of the old Samaritane Tau, he taketh word by word out of Origene in Romanes Origine was deceiued by a Iewe, on whoſe bare relatiō he grounded him ſelfe: which relation was alſo falſe. Whereas Hierome ſaith elſwhere, he ſawe a Samaritane copie, that was after he had written this: if before he had ſeene it, hee would hauehave ſeene Origens errour, and hauehave preuented it in him ſelfe. But if there be any thing worth the learning in this error, it is this, Hierome and others thinke it a worthy thing for Ezra to chaunge the letters of the ſcripture, to the ende that the Church may differ from Samaritanes and from aliens, euen in their writing. An enſample of like zeale we ſee inffPaul. D…t. …. …. Vlid the Arabian, who when hee meant to enlarge the religion of Mahomet, not onelyonly raſed the churches of the Chriſtians that were in Damaſcus, but alſo aboliſhed their verie letters. making a law that nothing ſhould be written in Greeke but in Arabique only. And when the Chriſtians were after afflicted becauſe they would not menſcrizare (that is) conforme, who can ſay but that they ſtoode out againſt theſe characters amongſt the reſt which they refuſed. What then? We may not conforme to the Croſſe eſpecially in religious vſe, it being a Character of the beaſt, but our Church muſt chaunge it, and make a lawe againſt it, if it meane to be zealous after the patterne and proportiō of theſe examples. Thirdly, let it be the word Tau, or the letter T. let the letter be changed or not changed: all is one, and this one thing is nothing for the Croſſe. Then are the Fathers nothing, neither (ſay our Oppoſites) for they are all of them for the Croſſe euen in this text. But may wee not a little chaung the wordes of Chriſt, and ſay to the Fathers in this matter, Men what hauehave we to doe with you? euen as we are prompted by Doctor Fulke. Maiſter Calfhill (ſaithhhD. Fulke reioyn. art 1. pa. 137. he) doth iuſtly reproue the Fathers for ſo high extolling the ſigne of the croſſe which hath no ground in the worde of God, but was brought in either by contention againſt the heathens who deſpiſed it, or in emulation of heretiques who firſt vſed it. We muſt giuegive the Fathers leaue to play, and according to their owne pleaſure not only to fetch the figure of the Croffe out of this Tau, but alſo out of thellAug…. cont. Fauſt. lib. 12. cap. 34. two ſtickes which the Widdow of Sarepta gathered, yea to fetche a Croſſe and a T. too out of the 300.mmAuguſti. queſti. ſuplib. Iudle, lib. 7. ca. 17 ſoldiers of Gedion, who (me thinkes) reſemble the 300. miniſters, who now ſtand out againſt the Croſſe: for that, diſdayning to ley downe vnderunder the burthen of an euill conſcience to drinke at eaſe the pleaſaunt waters of conformitie, they are contented to lapp like dogs the waters of marah, or rather to be vſed like doggs: ſurely, no more to be called Naomi (although their giftes and their labours in the Church had made them beautifull) but Marah rather, becauſe the Lord beginning iudgement at his owne houſe, hath ſhewed them bitternes. Secondly, what though the Croſſe bee here inſinuated, that is nothing to the ſigne of the Croſſe in the foreheade, but tonnPet. ſerran. in hunc loc. Calfhill. ag. Mart. art. 2 D. Fulke. reioyn. ibid pag. 146. Chriſtes Croſſe only, on which he died, which is not here inſinuated neither for any honour to it ſelfe, but for the forſhewing of Chriſts death, wherof it was the curſed inſtrument. As for the ſigne of the forehead mentioned in the Reuelation,ooHector Pintus in hunc loc. it is as fondly (after Aquinas, Martiall, the Rhemiſtes, and the reſt of that …ble) drawne to the aereall figne of the Croſſe, as this ſigne of Ezechiell is. For, thisppMr. Calfh ag. Mart. art. 1. D. Fulke. reio. ar. 1. p. 137 ſigne in the reuelation giueth the Spirit of life and faith, ſo doth not the Croſſe. this ſigne maketh a difference between good and bad, ſo doth not the Croſſe; this ſigne in the forehead noteth thoſe who with openqqIoh…n. de …a…o. in Apo…. ca. 7 forheads ſhould profeſſe the Goſpel, euen as they, who are not ſigned in the forehead. verſ. 9. note thoſe who ſhould lye hid, and not ſo openly profeſſe as the former; who yet made the ſigne of the Croſſe in the forehead, as well as the former, called to martyrdom and confeſſion, if antiquitie be true. Thirdly, what if the ſigne of the Croſſe in the forehead, be alluded to in Ezechiell and in the Apocalips? yet this maketh nothing for the ſigne of the Croſſe in Baptiſme, becauſe it was tollerable in old time,rrLambet Dane. cont. Bellarm. de Imag. c. 29 quatenus erat teſtimonium confeſſionis in p. 129trepida contra ethnicos, notrrLambert. Dane. dont, Bellarm. de Imag. c. 29 quatenus it was a ſigne in baptiſme. Fourthly, Our Oppoſites that entitle the ſigne of the Croſſe to the place of Ezech. and that of the Apoca. the ſame muſt needes entitle it to an effectiue and operatiue power, for ſuch a power doth the text giuegive to the ſignes of theſe ſcriptures. witnes the very Fathers themſelues, who thinking theſe textes to ſpeake of the Croſſe, cōclude out of them that the ſigne of the Croſſe doth arme, defende, preſerue vsus. of which error we are aſhamed to our ſhame vntill we diſclaime their interpretation of this ſcripture, and the obligation of their authoritie in this queſtion of the Croſſe.