The Anatomy of Abuses, Part 18

The Anatomy of Abuses · Part 18

A fearfull Iudgement of GOD, shewed at the Theaters.

THE like Iudgement (almost) did the Lord shew vntounto them a litle befor, being assembled at their Theaters, to sée their bawdie enterluds, and other trumperies practised. For, he caused y^e earth mightely to shak and quauer, as though all would hauehave fallen down,A wofull spectacle. wherat the People sore amazed, some leapt down (frō the top of y^e turrets, pinacles, and towres, wher they stood) to the ground, wherof some had their legs broke, some their arms, some their backs, some hurt one where, some another, & many sore crusht and brused: but not any, but they wēt away store affraid, & wounded in cōscience. And yet cā neither y^e one, nor y^• other, fray them frō these diuelish exercyses, vntill the Lorde consume them all in his wrath: which God forbid. The Lord of his merciemercy, opē the eyes of the maiestrats, to pluck down these places of abuse, that god may be honored, and their consciēces disburthe…ed.Cockfeighting vponupon the Sabaoth.

Besids these exercises, thei flock thick & thrée fold to y^• cockf…ights an exercyse nothing inferiour to y^• rest, wher nothing is vsed, but swering, forswering, deceit fraude, collusion, co…enage, scoulding, railing, conuitious talking, feighting, brawling, quarreling, drinking, whooring, & which is worst of all, robbing of one an other of their goods, & y^• not by direct, but indirect means & attēpts: & yet to blaūch & set out these mischiefs w^tall (as though they were vertues) thei hauehave their appointed daies & set howrs,Appointed times for exercise of dyuelries. when these d…uelries must be exercised. They hauehave houses erected to y^• purpose, flags & ensignes hanged out… to giuegive notice of it to others, and proclamation goes out to proclaim y^e same, to th…end y^• many may come to the dedication of this solemne feast of mischief: the Lord supplant them. And as for hawking & hunting vpō the sabaoth day,Hawking & hunting vppō the sabaoth. it is an exercyse vponupon y^• day, no lesse vnlawful thā the other. For, no mā ought to spend any day of his life, much lesse eueryevery day in his life, as many do, in such vaine & ydle pastimes: wherfore, let Gentlemen take …eed, for be sure accounts must be giuen at the day of iudgemēt for eueryevery minut of time, …oth how they hauehave spent it & in what exercyses. And let them be sure no more libertie is giuen thē,No more libertie giuen to one than another for mispēding of their goods. to mispend an howre, or one iote of the Lord his goods, than is giuen to the poorest, and meanest person y^• liueth vpō the face of the earth. I neuer read of any in y^• volume of y^• sacred scripture that was a good man, and a Hunter.

Esau, was a great hun…er, but a reprobat: Ismaell a great hunter, but a miscreant: Nemrode a great hunter,No good hunters, scriptur…. but yet a reprobat, and a vessell of wrath. Thus I speake not to condemne hawking and hunting altogether, being vsed for recreation, now and than, but against the continuall vse therof daylie, hourly, wéekly, yéerly, yea all the time of their life, without intermissiō. And such a felicitie hauehave some in it, as they make it all their ioye, bestowing more vpō hawkes and hounds, and a sort of idle lubbers to followe them in one yéer, than they will impart to the poore members of Christ Iesus in vij. yéers,Cost bestowed in hauks and dogges. peraduenture in all the dayes of their life. So long as mā in Paradice persisted in innocency, all beasts what so euer, we are obediēt to him, and came and prostrated themselues before him. But euer since his …all,When all beasts weare obedient to man & wherfore they …ebell. they hauehave fled from him, & disobeyed him, because of his sin: that séeing he disobeyed the Lord, they again disobeied him. For, so long as man obeied God, so long they obeied him: but so soone as mā disobeyed God, they disobeyed him, & becam enemies to him, as it were seeking to reuēge y^e iniurie which mā had don vntounto GOD, in disobeying his lawes. Wherfore, the cause why all beasts do fly from vsus, and are become Enemies to vsus, is our disobedience to the LORD, which we are rather to sorow for, than to hunt after their deaths by the sheading of their blood.

…If necessitie or want of other meats inforceth vsus to séek after their liues, it is lawfull to vse them in the feare of God, w^t thanks to his name: but for our pastimes and vain pleasures sake, wée are not in any wise to spoyle or hurt them.For pleasure sake only no man ought to abuse any of the cretures of God. Is he a christian man or rather a pseudo-christian, that delighteth in blood? Is he a Christian that spendeth all his life in wanton pleasures and plesaunt delights? Is hée a Christian that buieth vp the corne of y^• poor, turning it into bread (as many doo) to féed dogs for his pleasure? Is hée a christian that liueth to the hurt of his Neighbour in treading and breaking down his hedges, in casting open his gates in trampling of his corne & otherwise,H…rt by hunting to poore Men. in preiudicing him as hunters doo? wherfore God giuegive them grace to see to it, and to mend it betimes ere it be to late, for they know mora trahit periculum, delay bringeth danger. Let vsus not deferre to leaue the euil and to doo good, least the wrath of the Lord be kindled against vsus, and consume vsus from of the vpper face of the Earth?

Spud,

What say you to kéeping of Markets, of Fayres, Courtes and Léetes vponupon y^• Sabaoth day?Not lawfull to keep cou…es, Leets Markets and Fayres vppon the Sabaoth day, Think you it is not lawful to vse the same vponupon any day?

Philo.

No truely, for can you serue God & the deuil togither, can wée carrie to God and ferrie to the deuil, can we serue two Maisters and neither offend the one nor the other? can wée serue God and Mammon? can wée please God and the world bothe at one time? The Lord wil not be serued by péecemeale, for either he wil hauehave the wholeman, or els none. For saith he, Thou shalt looue the Lord thy God with all thy soule, withall thy minde, witha…l thy power, withall thy strength, and so foorth, orels with none at all. Then séeing that we are to giuegive ouer our selues so wholely and totally to the seruice of God, al y^e daies of our life, but especially vppon the Sabaoth day,Abuse of the Sabaoth by Fayres, maske…s. being consecrate to that end, we may not intermedle with these prophane exercised vponupon that day. For it is more then manifest y^• these faires, markets, courtes and léetes vponupon the Sabaoth day, are not only a hinderāce vntounto vsus in the true seruice of God, and an abuse of y^• Sabaoth, but also lead vsus the path way to hel.The euil in Fayres and Markets. For what cosonage is not there practised? what falshod, deceit & fraude is not there exercised? what dissimulation in bargaining? what setting foorth of fucate & deceiuable wares, is not there frequēted? what lying swering,The euils in Courtes and Leets practised. forswering, drunkennes, whordom, theft, & sōetimes murther, either there or by y^e way thither, is not eueryevery where vsed? In courtes & … what enuie malice & hatred is noo…rshed? what expostulation, railing, scoulding, periuring & reperiuring is maintained? what opression of y^• poore, what fauouring the rich, what iniustice & indirect dealing? what bribing, deceiuing, what poling & pilling is there practised? it would make a christiā hart to bléed in beholding it. And yet notwithstanding we must hauehave these goodly pageāts played vponupon y^• sabaoth day (in a wanion) because there are no mo daies in y^• wéek. And heerby y^• sabaoth is cōtaminat, Gods woord contemned, his cōmandemēts disanulled, his sacramēts cōculcate, his ordināces neglected, & in sūma, his blood trod vnderunder féet and all mischéef maintained. The Lord cut of these with all other sin, both from their soules and thy Sabaoth, that thy name may be glorified, & thy Church truely edified.

Spud.

Is y^• playing at football, reding of mery bookes & such like delectations, a violation or prophanation of the Sabaoth day?

Ph.

Any exercise which w^tdraweth vsus from godlines, either vponupon y^e sabaoth,Playing at Foot-ball. or any other day els, is wicked & to be forbiden. Now who is so grosly blinde, y^t seeth not, y^t these aforesaid exercises not only w^tdraw vsus from godlines & vertue, but also haile & allure vsus to wickednes and sin: for as cōcerning football playing: I protest vntounto you, it may rather be called a fréendly kinde of fight,Foot-ball a freendly kind of fight. then a play or recreation. A bloody and murthering practise, then a felowly sporte or pastime.

For: dooth not eueryevery one lye in waight for his Aduersarie, séeking to ouerthrowe him & to picke him on his nose, though it be vppon hard stones, in ditch or dale, in valley or hil, or what place soeuer it be, hée careth not so he hauehave him down. And he that can serue y^e most of this fashion, he is counted the only felow, and who but he? so that by this meanes, somtimes their necks are broken, sōetimes their backs, sometime their legs,Hurt by football playing. sometime their armes, sometime one part thurst out of ioynt, sometime an other, sometime the noses gush out with blood, sometime their eyes start out: and sometimes hurt in one place, sometimes in another. But whosoeuer scapeth away the best goeth not scotfrée, but is either sore woū ded, craised and bruseed, so as he dyeth of it, or els scapeth very hardly: and no meruaile, for they hauehave the sleights to méet one betwixt two, to dashe him against the hart with their elbowes, to hit him vnderunder the short ribber with their griped fists, and with their k…ées to catch him vponupon the hip, and to pick him on his neck, with a hundered such murdering deuices: and hereof,Foot-Ball playing a murthering Play. groweth enuie, malice, rā cour, cholor, hatred, displeasure, enmitie and what not els? and sometimes fighting, brawling, contention, quarrel picking, murther, homicide and great effusion of blood, as experience dayly teacheth.

Is this murthering play now an exercise for the Sabaoth day? is this a christian dealing for one brother to mayme and hurt another, and that vponupon prepensed malice, or set purpose? is this to do to another, as we would wish another to doo to vsus, God make vsus more careful ouer the bodyes of our Bretheren.

And as for the reading of wicked Bookes, they are vtterly vnlawfull, not onelyonly to bee read, but once to be named, & that not (onelyonly) vponupon the Sabaoth day,Reading of wicked bookes but also uppon any other day: as which tende to the dishonour of God, deprauation of good manners and corruption of christian soules. For as corrupt meates doo annoy the stomack, and infect the body, so the reading of wicked and vngodly Bookes (which are to the minde, as meat is to the body) infect the soule,The euil comming by reading euil Bookes▪ & corrupt y^e minde, hailing it to distruction: if the great mercy of God be not present.

And yet notwithstanding, whosoeuer wil set pen to paper now a dayes, how vnhonest soeuer, or vnséemly of christian eares his argument be, is permitted to goe …orward, and his woork plausibly admitted and fréendly licensed, and gladly imprinted without any prohibition or contradiction at all: wherby it is growen to this issue, that bookes & pamphlets of scurrilitie and baudrie, are better esteemed and more vendible then the godlyest and sagest bookes that be: for if it be a godly treatise, reproouing vice, and teaching vertue, away with it, for no man (almost) though they make a floorish of vertue, and godlynes, will buy it, nor (which is lesse) so much as once touch it. This maketh the Bible, the blessed Book of God, to be so little estéemed. That woorthie Booke of Martyrs made by that famous Father & excellent Instrument in God his Church, Maister Iohn Fox, so little to be accepted and all other good books little or nothing to be reuerenced: whilst other toyes, fantasies and bableries wherof the world is ful, are suffered to be printed. These prophāe schedules, sacraligious libels, and hethnical pamphlets of toyes & bableries (the Authors wherof may vendicate to them selues no smal commendations, at the hands of the deuil for inuenting the same) corrupt mens mindes, peruert good wits, allure to baudrie, induce to whordome, suppresse vertue & erect vice: which thing how should it be otherwise? for are they not inuēted & excogitat by Belzebub writtē by Lucifer, licēsed by Pluto, printed by Cerberus & set a broche to sale by the infernal furies themselues to y^e poysning of the whole world: But let the Inuētors, the licēsors, the printers & the sellers of these vaine toyes and more then Hethnicall impieties take heed for the blood of all those which perish or take hurt thorow these wicked bookes, shalbe powred vponupon their heads at the day of iudgement, and be required at their hands.

Spud.

I pray you how might al these inormities, and Abuses be reformed? For, it is to small purpose to shew y^e abuses, except you shewe withall how they might be reformed.

Philo.

By putting in practise and executing those good lawes, wholsome sanctions, and Goldy statutes, which hauehave béene heretofore, and daily are set foorth and established, as GOD be thanked, they are manie.

The want of the due execution wherof, is y^e cause of all these mischiefs, which both rage and raigne amongst vsus.

Spud.

What is the cause why these lawes are not executed, as they ought to be?

Philo.

Truely I cannot tell, excepte it be thorow the nigligence, and contempt of the inferiour Magistrates. Or els, perhaps (which thing happeneth now and than) for money they are bought out, diffranchised and dispensed withall, for as the saying is, quid non pecunia potest? what is it, but money will bring to passe? And yet notwithstanding shall it be don inuisibly in a clowde (vnderunder benedicite I speake it) the Prince being borne in hand, that the same are dali… executed. This fault is the corruption of those that are put in trust to sée thē executed, as I ha…e tould you, and (notwithstanding) do not.

Spud.

This is a great corruption & Abuse, doubtles, and worthie of great punishment.

Ph.

It is so truely, for if they be good lawes tending to the glorie of GOD, the publique weale of the Cuntrey, and correctiō of vices, it is great pytie that money should buy them out. For what is that els, but to sell vertue, for lucre: Godlynes, for drosse, yea mens souls for corruptible money? Therfore those that sell them, are not onelyonly Traitors to GOD, to their Prince and Countrey: but are also the Deuils Marchants, and ferrie the bodies, and soules of Christians, as it were in Charons boate to the Stigian flood of Hell, burning with fire and brimstone for euer.

And those that buy them are Traitors to GOD, their Prince and Countrey also.

For if the lawes were at the first good (as GOD he praised al the lawes in Ailgna be) why shuld they be suppressed for money, and if they were euill, why were they diuulged, but had rather béene buried in the wombe of their Mother before thy had euer séene y^e light.

And why were lawes instituted, but to be executed? Els it were as good to hauehave no lawes at all (the People lyuing orderly) as to hauehave good lawes, and thē not executed.

The Prince ordeining a law, may lawfully repeale & adnull the same againe, v…ō speciall causes & considerations, but no inferiour maiestrat or subiecte what so euer, may stop the course of any lawe made by the Prince with out daunger of damnation to his owne soule, as the Word of GOD beareth witnesse.

And therfore, w… …e to those men, that will not execut the sentence of the lawe (being so Godly, and so Christian as thei be in Ailgna) vppon Malefactors and Offenders.

Uerely they are as guiltie of their blood before GOD, as euer was Iudas of the death of Christe Iesus.

Spud.

Séeing it is so, that al flesh hath corrupted his way before the face of God, and that there is such abhomination amongest them, I am perswaded the daye of Iudgement is not farre of. For when iniquity shall hauehave filled vp his measure, than shall the end of all appeare, as Christ witnesseth in his Euangelie.

Philo.

The day of the Lord cannot be farre of, that is most certen▪ For what wonderfull portents, strang miracles, fearful signes, and dreadfull Iudgements hath he sente of late daies, as Preachers & fortellers of his wrath due vntounto vsus, for our impenitēce & wickednes of life. Hath he not caused the earth to trēble and quake? the same Earth to remooue from place to place? the seas and waters to roare, swell & brust out, and euerflow their bankes to the destruction of many thousands? hath he not caused the Elements and Skyes, to send foorth flashing fire? to raine downe wheat, a wonderfull thing as euer was heard, and the like? hath he not caused wonderfull Eclypses in the Sunne and Moon, with most dreadfull coniunctions of Starres and Planets, as the like this thousand yeeres, hauehave not béen heard of? hauehave not the clowdes distilled downe aboundance of rayne and showres, with all kinde of vnseasonable wether, to the destroying (almost) of al thinges vppon the Earth? hauehave we not séene Commets, blasing starres, firie Drakes, men, feighting in the ayre, most fearfully to behold? Hath not dame Nature her selfe denied vntounto vsus her operation, in sending foorth abortiues, vntimely births, vgglesome monsters and fearfull mishapen Creatures both in man & beast. So, that it séemeth all the Creatures of God are angrie with vsus and threaten vsus with destruction, and yet we are nothing at all amēded (alas) that shal become of vsus? Remēber we not there is a God that shal iudge vsus righteously? that there is a Deuill, who shall torment vsus after this lyfe vnspeakably, if we repent not? At that day, the wicked shall find that there is a Material Hell, a place of all kinds of tortures, wherein they shal be punished in fire and brimstone amongest the terrible Company of vgglesome Deuils world without end, how light so euer they make account of it in this World.

For some such there be, that when thei heare mention of Hell, or of the paines therof in the other World, they make a mocke at it, thinking they be but metaphoricall speaches, onelyonly spoke to terrifie vsus withall, not otherwyse. But certen it is, as there is a God, that will reward his Children, so there is a Deuill that will remunerat his Seruaunts: And as there is a Heauen, a Materiall place of perfect ioye prepared for the Godly, so there is a Hell, a Materiall place of punishmēt for the wicked and reprobat, prepared for the Deuil & his Angels, or els the word of God is in no wyse to be credited, which blasphemie, once to think, God kéep all his Children from.

Spud.

But they will easily auoid this, for they say▪ it is writ, at what time so euer a sinner doth repent him of his sinne, I wil put all his sin out of my remembrance saith y^e Lord.

So that, if they maye hauehave thrée words at the last, they will wish no more. What think you of these felowes?

Philo.

I think them no men, but Deuills, no Christians, but worse thā Tartarians, and more to be auoided than y^e poison of a serpent: for the one slayeth but the body, but the other, both body & soul for euer. Wherfore, let eueryevery good Christen Man take heed of them, and auoid them. For, it is truely said, cum bonis bonus eris, & cum peruersis, peruerseris: with the good, thou shall learne good, but with the wicked, thou shall be peruerted.

Spud.

Do you think than, that that cannot be a true repentance, which is deferred to the last gaspe.

Ph.

No truely: For true repentance must spring out of a lyuelie faith▪ with an inward lothing, hating and detesting of sinn…. But this deferred repentāce springeth not of faith, but rather of the feare of death which he …éeth imminent before his eyes▪ of the grief and tediousnes of paine, of the Horror of Hell, and feare of God his ineuitable iudgement, which he knoweth now he must néeds abyde: And therfore, this can be no true repentance. For there is two maner of repētāces, y^e one a true repentāce to life, the other a false repentance to death: As we maye sée by Iudas, who is said, to hauehave repented, and which is more, to hauehave confessed his faulte, and which is most of all, to hauehave made restitution, and yet was it a false repentance. And why? because it sprang not out of true faith, but as before.

Peter repented, and wéept bitterly, and was saued therby, though he neither made cō fession, nor satisfaction: and why? Because it sprang of a true and lyuely faith. So these felowes may say they repent, but except it be a true repētance springing of faith, it can serue thē no more to life than the pretensed repentance of Iudas did serue him to saluation. Let them beware, for Cain repented, yet is he condemned.

Esau, did repent, yet is he condemned.

Antiochus, did repent, yet is he condemned: Iudas did repent, yet is he condemned, with infinite moe: And why so? Because their prolonged repentaunce sprange not of faith, &c.

Thus they may sée, that euerye light affection, is no true repentance: And that it is not ynough to say at the last, I repent, I repent. For, vnles it be a true repentāce indeed, it is worth nothing. But indeed, if it weare so, that man had, liberū arbitrium, free wil of himself, to repent truely when he wold, and that God promised in his word to accept of that repentance, it weare another matter. But repentance is, donum Dei, the gifte of God, de sursum veniens a patre luminum, comming from aboue frō the Father of light, & therfore it is not in our powers to repent when we will. It is the Lord y^t giueth the gift, when, where & to whom it pleaseth him: & of him are we to craue it incessantly by faithfull prayer, & not otherwise to presume of our owne repentāce, when indeed we hauehave nothing lesse, than a true repentance.

Spud.

Than thus much I gather by your words, that as true repentance (which is a certen inward grief, and sorrow of the heart, cōceiued for our sinnes, with a hatred and lothing of thesame) erueth to saluation thorow the merciemercy of GOD in Christ, so fained repentance saueth not from perdition.

And therfore, we must repent dayly and howrely, and not to deferre our repentaunce to the last gaspe as many doo, than which, nothing is more perilous.

Philo.

True it is, for maye not he be called a great Foole, that by deferring and prolonging of repentance to the last cast (as they say) will hazard his body and soule to eternall damnation for euer? Wheras by daily repentaunce he maye assure him selfe both of the fauour of GOD, and of life euerlasting (by faith) in the mercy of GOD, thorow the most precious blood of his deare Sonne, Iesus Christ, our alone Sauiour and Redemer, to whome be praise for euer.

Spud.

Now must I néeds say as the Wyse King Salomon said, all things are vaine and transitorie,All things are vaine and vanitie it selfe. and nothing is permanent vnderunder the Sonne, the workes of men are vnperfect and lead to destruction, their exercyses are vaine, and wicked altogether.

Wherfore, I setting apart all the vanities of this lyfe, will from hencefoorth consecrate my selfe to the seruice of my GOD, and to follow him in his Woord, which onelyonly is permanent and leadeth vntounto life.

And I most hartelie thanke the Lord God for your good Company this day, and for your graue instructions, promising by the assistance of God his grace, to followe and obey them to my possible power all the daies of my life.

Philo.

God giuegive you grace so to do, and eueryevery Christen man els,The ioyes of this life tread the path to death. and to auoid all the vanities, and deceiuable pleasures of this life: for certenly they tread the path to eternal destruction, both of body and soule for euer, to as many as obey them.

For, it is vnpossible to wallowe in the delights and pleasures of this World, and to lyue in ioy for euer in y^e Kingdom of Heauen. And thus we hauing spent the daye, and also cōsummate our iorney, we must now depart, beseaching GOD that we may both meete againe in the Kingdome of Heauen, there to raigne and lyue with him for euer, through Iesus Christe our Lorde, to whome with the Father, and the holy Spirit be all honour & glorie for euer more Amen.

FINIS.

End of the text · Philip Stubbes, The Anatomy of Abuses (1583)