Observations Natural and Moral, Chapter 9
CHAP. IX. Of bodies perfectly compoſed, and firſt of the mettalls.
Iere. 6.29. The bellowes are burnt, the Lead is conſumed of the fire, the founder melteth in vaine; for the micked are not pluckt away, reprobate Silver ſhall men call them.
THe lewes divide their Phyſickes into three ſorts, firſt [Domes] ſilens. Secondly [tzemah] germen; thirdly, [chaja] vivum; they call all the minerals, ſilens, they call vegetative things, germen, and the living things they call vivum.foreign ſilence foreign germen foreign vivum
The Lord to ſhew the nature of the wicked and hypocriticall Iewes, borroweth a compariſon from the mettals, ſilver and lead: for as the ſilver-ſmith before he melts the ſilver, Why the Lord borroweth this compariſon from the ſilverſmith.hee putteth lead to it, to make it melt the better; ſo the Lord threatned firſt the notorious wicked Iewes, to ſee if by them hee might draw hypocirtes (who held themſelves to be good ſilver) to repentance and to melt.
The mettals are bred by the heat of the Sunne, and then by cold they grow together, and are conſolidated: although they be conſolidated by cold, yet they are not bred by cold, How the mettals are bred.but by the heate of the Sunne. If the conſolidating or gathering of them together were the cauſe of their being, then the melting of them ſhould cauſe them to periſh: the heat of the Sunne, drawing up the vapors and exhalations, is the firſt cauſe of engendering the mettalls, and then commeth the cold and conſolidateth them; for as the Meteors are bred in the ayre, of vapors and exhalations drawne up into the ayre out of the earth, ſo are mettals bred in the earth of theſe exhalations drawne up by the Sunne, but hindered and kept within the earth, that they cannot aſcend any higher; then they congeale and conſolidate about the ſtones or ſome other parts of the earth, therefore they are called metalla, id eſt, foreign , that is, which is en gendered or bred about or with ſome other thing, as gold about ſilver, and ſilver about braſſe, and ſometime about yron or braſſe.The mettals are of a wat…ie ſubſtance.
The mettals generally are of a watrie ſubſtance, and all of them have leſſe or more water in them; all the mettals can melt in the fire, and the fire being removed they conſolidate againe, which ſheweth us that they are of a watrie ſubſtance and participateth both of water and earth. The mettals when they are melted by the fire, they are not like Iee, for when the Ice is frozen it is ſtill but water, and is capable of no other forme; but the mettals beſides that they can be melted, they receive other formes, which the Ice cannot receive, being ſtill water and not mettall. Stones may be broken, and bruſed & ſometimes they may be hewed, but they cannot be melted as the mettalls. Yron, braſſe, and Lead, have more earth in them, than the gold or ſilver, as we may perceive by the ruſt which they contract: gold and ſilver have more free of earth than other mettals are, and they are more decocted water than the reſt.A compariſon betwixt gold and ſilver…
Now let us make a compariſon betwixt gold and lead, Gold hath leſſe earth, and more water in it than lead, yet it is heavier than lead, becauſe it hath no pores in it, to let in the ayre as lead hath; yet it melteth not ſo ſoone as the Lead doth, Why the gold melteth not ſo ſoone as the Lead doth.becauſe the water is more perfectly mixed in the gold, than in the Lead, and the gold being more ſolide keepeth the watrie element better than the lead doth.
Then let us compare lead and ſilver together, lead hath more earth in it than ſilver hath, and the water floweth ſooner out of it than out of the ſilver, becauſe it is not ſo ſolide; it hath more earth in it then ſilver hath, and therefore it is hotter when it is melted than ſilver, and it melteth ſooner than ſilver, becauſe the water is not ſo perfectly mixed in it as in ſilver; Why Lead is put to ſilver in melting.therefore the ſilver Smith when he would melt ſilver putteth lead to it, to cauſe it to melt the ſooner, and this the Latines call replumbare argentum to leaden the ſilver.
The application of the compariſon is this, The applieation of the compariſon.that the hypocriticall Iewes are like yron and ſteele, and not like ſilver as they would appeare; for they are ſo farre from ſeparating themſelves from the wicked, that they are altogether like Iron and ſteele that can hardly melt: the bellowes are burnt, that is, the Prophet hath ſpent his travell in vaine amongſt them, and the moſt notorious wicked men a mongſt them are like the lead which is burnt up; yet hypocrites by their example will not melt, but remain indurate and as hard hearted as before, therefore they are but reprobate ſilver, and the Lord ſhall reject them.
When the Lord commeth to his Church to ſeparate droſſe from the ſilver, God findeth few that are good ſilver.he ſcarcely getteth the third part as good ſilver. Zach. 13.8.9. And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as ſilver is refined: happy are theſe who are of this little handfull and of this third part, but as for the wicked he will put them away out of the earth like droſſe, Concluſion. Pſal. 119.119.
The concluſion of this is, when the Lord threatneth his judgements againſt notorious wicked ſinners, then it is time for hypocrites to repent, leſt the ſame judgement overtake them.