Exposition of the Dominical Epistles and Gospels, Section 14
The Epistle. ROM. 12.16.
Be not wise in your owne opinion, &c.
SAint Paul exhorts vsus in this Epistle, not to hurt, but rather helpe our enemies.
Not to hurt by
Concealing that which is good; as,
Wisdome: Be not wise in your owne opinion.
Sanctimony: Prouide things hon…st in the sight of all men.
Rendring that which is euill: vers. 17. Recompence to no man euill for euill: and vers. 19. Auenge not your selues, &c.
But to help by preseruing
Peace: vers. 18. If it be possible, liue peaceably with all men. Vers. 20. If thine enemy hunger, feed him.
Patience: vers. 21. Bee not ouercome of euil, but ouercome euill with goodnesse.
Be not wise] Not in your selues, nor onelyonly wise to your selues: not in your selues and▪ mProu. 3.7. Esay. 5.21.owne conceit: n1. Cor. 3.18.If any man among you seeme to be wise, let him be a foole, that hee may be wise. oPro…. 29.20.Seest thou a man hastie in his matters an… haughty; there is more hope of a foole, then of him. It is pSee the life of Cominaeus before his works in English.recorded as a great fault in Charles, Duke of Burgondie, that he seldom asked, neuer followed the coūsel of other. On the contrary, Moses, a man qActs 7.22.learned in all wisdome of the Egyptians, and mighty both in words and deeds, obeied the voice of his father in law Iethro, doing according to his aduice: Exod. 18.24. Saul hearkened vntounto the counsell of his seruant: 1. Sam. 9. Agamemnon in Homer, wished for ten Nestors. rReusner. in symbo…is.Alexander Seuerus neuer determined any thing of moment, without twelue or twenty iudicious Lawyers. It is a great part of wisdome, yea the first entry to knowledge, sFulge…tius lib. 1. mytholog.scire quod nescias; not to be too wise; or in our opinion so wise, that wee neglect others helpe. The Pope in this respect (as tIn s…ecul. vitae human. lib. 2. cap. 3. & Vignier answere to Baron. pag. 39.Roderigo, Bishop of Zamora well obserues) is most vnfortunate. For though he hath all things at command, yet euermore stands in need of one thing, to wit, a faithfull counseller.
The Romans at this time being Lords of the world, were puffed vp exceedingly with the greatnesse of their gifts, and largenesse of their Empire: Paul therefore did often (as Chrysostome notes) inculcate this exhortation; in this Chapter twice, that it might be remembred once.
The men of England, yea the women of England abusing the great light of the Gospell, and long peace, are growne so wise, that many will take vponupon them to teach euen their most learned teachers: and therefore we must againe and againe preach and presse this one lesson: Be not wise in your owne opinion. Let no man presume to know more then is meete for him to know; but so iudge of himself that he be gentle and sober, according as God hath dealth to eueryevery man the measure of faith.
Or as uAmbr…s. & Go…ran. in l…c.other expound it; Be not wise to your selues: but as xProuerbs 5.16.Salomon speakes, Let thy fountaines …l…w foorth, and the riuers of water in the streets: according to the measure of grace, proceeding from the fountaine of goodnesse, communicate thy wisedome to other, hide not thy talent.
To one is giuen by the Spirit y• word of wisedom, yAugustin▪ conf…ss. lib. 13. c. 18.t…nquā luminare maius; vntounto another ye word of knowledge, t…nquam luminare minus; vntounto another prophecie, vntounto another faith, vntounto another diuersity of language, tanq…ā stell…e, as starres in the firmament of the Church. Our light then must shine before men, and we must waste our s…lues for the good of such as are in Gods house. The zMatth. 5.15.candle must not be put vnderunder a b…shell, but on a candlestick. Scire tuum nihil est, nisite scire hoc sciat alter. If thou wilt onelyonly be wise to thy selfe, thou shalt at last turne foole. For as water standing still is soone puddle: aPlutarch. de n…m lat…ndo.so the gifts of the minde not employed are empaired. bA …. G…l. lib. 13. cap. 8.Af…aniu… said truly that vse begate wisedome:
Vsus me genuit, m…ter peperit memori….
Let not vsus then inclose truth and the knowledge therof, it is common. If we make it priuate, wee shall be depriued of it. As cConfess. lib. 12. cap 25.Au…ustine sweetly: Non licet h…ere priuatam, ne pri…emure…. dEph…s. 4.8.When Ch…ist as…ended vp on high, he gaue gifts to men, among oth…r the gift of e1. Cor. 12.8.wisdome, for the gathering together of the Saints, for the worke of the ministerie, for the building vp of his mysticall bodie. Wisedome then is not giuen only for thy self, but for other, among the rest fPsal. 68.18.euen for th…ne enemies, that the Lord God might dwell among them.
Secondly, we may not conceale our sanctimonie. Prouide things honest in the sight of all m…n] as Pa…l expounds Paul. g1. Cor. 10.32.GiueGive none offence neither to the Iewes, nor to the Grecians, nor to the Church of God. hMar…orat.ex Caluin. …n loc.For as a man must hauehave care of his conscience before God; so likewise of his credit before men.
Some prouide thinges honest
Before men, but not before God, as the vaine-glorious hypocrites, Herod within, Iohn without, painted tombes, as Christ aptly: Sepulchra quasi semipulchra, exteriùs nitida, interius foetida.
Before God, but not before men; as the male-content and vndiscreet professor, by whose euill example the name of God is often iRom. 2.24.blasphemed.
Neither before God nor men: as the shamelesse ruffins and Atheists of the world, whose kPhilip. 3▪19.glory is their shame, lProuerbs 2.14.delighting in doing euill, and boasting of iniquitie; reputing dishonestie no dishonour; but the top of their gallantrie. So Saint mConfess. lib. 2. cap. 3.Augustine writes of himself before he was a saint: Vbi non suberat quô admisso aequarer, perditis, fingebam me fecisse, quod non feceram, ne viderer abiector, quô eram innocentior.
Both before God and men; as nLuke 1.6.Elizabeth and Za…harie, who were iust before God, and vnreproueable before men: so must eueryevery Christian abstaine, so farre as hee can, o1. Thess. 5.22.from all appearance of euill: pTheophylact. in loc.yet this honest care of our cariage must not be to please men, but only to praise God. As S. q1. Epist 2.12.Peter interprets S. Paul: HaueHave your conuersation honest, that they which spea…e euill of you, as of euill doers, may by your good workes, which they shall see, glorifie God in the day of the visitation. Let your light (saith Christ) shine before men; not onelyonly that they may see your good workes, but also that seeing, they may glorifie your father which is in heauen. rAugustin. lib. 1 de ser. Dom. i… mont.Vt hoc ipsum, quod homo per bona opera placet hominibus, non ibi finem constituat, vt hominibus placeat, sed referat hoc ad …audem Dei, & propterea placeat hominibus, vt in illô glorificetur Deus.
As wee may not conceale from our enemie wisedome and knowledge which are good: so much lesse render euill. Recompence to no man euill for euill] A Magistrate may punish a malefactor, and so pro malo c…lpae, render malum poen…e. fAquin. in loc.But this is not to recompence euill for euill, but good for euill: because corrections are directions as well to the seer as sufferer: t1. Cor. 5.5.the flesh is destroyed, that the spirit may be saued. A Magistrate then may render euill for euill: but a priuate man out of a priuate grudge, may not auenge himselfe, but rather giuegive place to wrath.
The which may be construed of our owne wrath.
The which may be construed of aduersaries anger.
The which may be construed of Gods iudgement.
Of our owne wrath, as uOs…ic. lib. 1. c. 21Ambrose: Resiste irae, …i potes, cede si non potes. An hastie xBonauent. diêtá salutis, cap. 5.cholerick man is like one that dwels in a thatched house, who being rich in the morne, through sudden fire is a begger ere night. It is extreme folly to doe any thing in furie; but wisedome to giuegive place and space to wrath. It was an excellent decree of yReus…er▪ in symbolis, & Til…man. in loc.Theodosius, enacted by the counsell of S. Ambrose, that execution after a seuere sentence should be deferred thirtie daies: vt ira decocta, durior emendari possit sententia, that all heate of contention allaied, if need require, the seueritie of the censure might bee qualified and moderated.
Secondly, this may bee construed of our zAut fugiendo aut permittendo: Hicron. in loc.aduersaries anger: for as aMartyr. in loc.thunder and gunnes hurt not any thing which yeelds vntounto their fury, but only that which is hard and stiffe; so the raging and roring of our foes are best quelled by patience. Turne to the brauling curre, and he will be more fierce; but ride on neglecting him, and he will soone be quiet. You may turne the prouerbe:
Veterem iniuriam feres do vitas nouam.
Thirdly, this may bee construed of Gods iudgement, and that bTheophylact. Aquin. Luther. in loc.most fitly: for to God onelyonly vengeance belongs, and he will auenge our cause. The malitious man in reuiling thee, doth cRom. 2.5.treasure vp wrath against the day of wra…h, and therefore giuegive place to Gods wrath: d1. Pet. 5.7.Cast all your care on him, …or he …reth for you.
Y…a but may we not co…plaine to the Magistrate for redresse of iniurie? yes sur…ly: for he i… Gods lieutenant on earth, and therefore the vulg…r Latine v…sm…tips…s d… fende…tes, is in…u…ficient, eWhit…ker againts R…yno…ds the Papist.as our Diuines hauehave well obserued: and the Rhemist… hauehave well m…nded it▪ r…ading as we doe, reuenge; or, … not …our s…lue…. For we may be so wise as serpents in defending our s…lues; howsoeuer so innocent as doue… in …ffending other. fA…uin. & Tileman. in loc.Hee that commits his cause to the Magistrate, giues place to diuine iudgement: for all superiour powers are gRom. 13.1.Gods ordinance: but whosoeuer auengeth his owne quarell, steps into the Princes chaire of estate, yea Gods owne seate dethroning both, and so disturbes heauen and earth.
Here then is no place for duell; a fault (as it is vsed in England, the Low Countries, especi…ll… hWhere within ten yeeres sixe thou…and gentle…ē hauehave been slaine, as it appeares by the Kings pardons: vide lis …mbres… des de…uncts sieuts de Vill…mor & de Fontaines, pa…. 46.France, for eu…ry punctilio of honor falsely so called) against not only the rules of reason and religion (as iExhortat ad milites Templ…, c…p. 2. …. 401.Bernard notably: Quis hic tàm stupendus error? quis furor hic tàm non ferendus, nullis stipen…ijs militare ni…i aut mortis aut criminis? Nam occisor leth…ter peccat: & occisus aetern…li…er perit) but euen …gainst the first principles of that art.
As a Christian may warre in kA…g…stin. …pist 5.louelove, so a Christian must iarre in louelove; so contend with his aduersarie before the lawfull Iudge, that the partie cast in the s…ite may bee bettered, if not in his money, yet in his manners, and Satan onelyonly conquer…d: lBaro…. … Tom. 9 …ol. 5.Vt qui vincitur … incat▪ & v…nus ta…tummo…o vincatur di…bolus. mMa…lorat ex caluin. in …oc.Otherwise when wee sue for our rig…t out of rancor and malice, we commit not our case to God and his deputie the P…ince, but make them both our de…uties, our instruments of reuenge; the which is such an horrible crime, that Paul calles it a m…sterie of iniquitie, 2. Thess. 2.7. I say, this secret exalting of our selues aboue all that is called God, vsing Soueraignes as seruants in our priuate quarels, is to play the diuell and the Pope.
We may not then dissemblingly, but simply giuegive place to wrath. An hard saying, and therefore Paul doth nErasmus & Martyr in loc.sweeten it with a louing tearme, foreign, dearely beloued: as if hee should speake thus, It is my louelove, that I write so much against malice: not for your hurt, but for your eternall good. If you will not beleeue me, beleeue God himselfe, who sai…h in his holy oDeut. 3….35. Heb. 10.30.word, Vengeance is mine, I will repay▪ s…ith the Lord.
God doth reu…nge the quarell of his children vponupon the wicked in this, and in the world to come. In this life, so the children who mocked his Prophet E…, were rent in peeces with beares, 2. King. 2. So when Hierusalem had killed the Prophets, and stoned such as preached vntounto her, Almightie God was w…oth, and sent foorth his warriers, and destroyed those murtherers, and burnt vp their citie: Matth. 22.7.
pEuseb. histor. lib. 6. cap. 8.Three shamelesse ruffins accused Narciss…s, a reuerend and holie Bishop, of a most hainous crime, confirming their accusation with imprecation: the first wished if it were not so, that he were burnt: the second, that he might dye of the iandise: the third, that he might lose his eyes. And afterward in processe of time, the first had his house set on fire in the night, and he with all his familie was burnt: the second had the iandise from the crowne of his head, to the sole of his foote, whereof he died vncomfortably: the third, seeing what was befallen these twaine, repented, and confessed the conspiracie; yet for all that he lost his eyes.
qLanquet …on. f…l. 196.Earle Godwin swearing at table before the King, that hee did not murther A…fr…, after many words in excusing himselfe, said; So mought I safely swallow this morsell of bread, as I am guiltlesse of the deede. But so soone as he had receiued the bread, foorthwith he was choked.
What need we looke so farre: the confounding of the Spanish Armado; the defeating of so many cruell treasons against our late Queene of blessed memory; the frustrating of that hellish Gunpowder Treason, are plaine demonstrations that vengeance is Gods, and that hee will repay; that hee doth rPsal. 35.1.plead the cause of his seruants, against such as striue with them, and fight against such as fight against them.
Againe, God rewards the wicked in the world to come; Depart from me ye cursed into euerlasting fire, prepared for the diuell and his angels. For I was an hungred, and ye gaue me no meat; I thirsted, and ye gaue me no drinke, &c. sAugustin. de fide & operibus. cap. 15.If they shall be punished who did no good, how shall they be tormented who render euill to the members of Christ? If negligent Diues be tortured in hell, for omitting onelyonly the works of mercy, what shall become of violent Diues, for committing the works of cruelty?
tTheophylact. in Matth. 12.Some sins are punished only in this life; as poore Lazarus, and that incestuous Corinthian. Other only in the life to come, as the rich Glutton, who while he liued, had the world at will. Other are both tortured in this life, and tormented in the next; as the filthy Sodomites, who for their burning lust, had here sulphureum ignem, and shall hauehave there, gehennalem ignem. Or as Saluianus, lib. 1. de gubernat. Dei, God sent vponupon them in this life, Gehennam è coelo.
Wherefore seeing Almighty God doth reuenge our quarell, either immediatly by himselfe, or mediatly by his ministers, and wariers, euen all his creatures in heauen and earth; it is both faithlesse and fruitlesse for our selues to right our selues. It is faithlesse not to belieue that the Lord wil deale with vsus uLuke 2.29.according to his word, who promised by the mouth of his holy xPsal. 91.8.Prophet: With thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the vngodly. Fruitlesse, for as much as it is a yHeb. 10.31.fearefull thing to fall into the hands of the liuing God, whose little finger is heauier then our whole hand.
If it be possible, so much as in you is, liue peaceably with all men] We must seeke peace, yet vnderunder these conditions; If it be possible, and as much as in vsus is. For we cannot hauehave peace with some men; and wee may not hauehave peace in some matters. See Gospell on all Saints, and ser. on the first Lesson for the next Sunday, ioined to the Gospel and Epistle.
If thine enemie hunger, feed him] There are degrees of louelove; zGalat. 6.10.Doe good to all men, especially to them which are of the houshold of faith. Among the faithfull, the neerest ought to be dearest vntounto vsus; a wife, father, child, ally, neighbour, friend, is to be respected more (caeteris paribus) then a stranger or an enemy: yet in case of necessitie, thou must feed thy foe, blessing him that did curse thee. By the ciuill lawes, he that bequeathes a man nourishment, intends he should hauehave bed and boord, apparell and dwelling. aLege, quos nos hostes. 234. de verb. signific.Alimentis legatis, cibaria & vestitus & habitatio debentur. bMartyr in loc.In like sort, God inioining vsus in his Testament and last will, to feed our enemies, includes also, that we must harbour them, and cloath them, and according to their seuerall necessities, eueryevery way relieue them.
In so doing, thou shalt heape coales of fire vponupon his head] I finde cTheophylact. Aquin. & Tileman. in loc.two constructions of these words; one bad, another good. It is a senslesse sense to say by well doing, thine enemie not deseruing it, thou shalt he…pe coales of fire vponupon his head; increase Gods heauy iudgements against him. Our Apostles intent is to moue men vntounto charitable works euen toward their enemies: hereby to doe them good, and to purpose the same. But if that were the meaning, Paul should teach vsus how to be reuenged; and in shew of doing kindnes, to worke mischiefe, pretending good, intending euill.
The better construction is; In so doing thou shalt either confound, or conuert thine aduersary. dCaluin. in loc.Confound him in his conscience, making him acknowledge, that thou art more religious, and more nobly minded then himselfe. So when Saul vnderstood of Dauids honest and honourable cariage toward him, instantly brake forth into this ingenuous confession; e1. Sam. 24.18.Thou art more righteous then I, for thou hast rendred mee good, and I hauehave rendred thee euill. Or else thou shalt fHieron. in loc.conuert him to thy selfe. For gCant. 8.6.louelove is strong as death, the coales thereof are …iery coales, and a vehement flame. There is no greater prouocation to louelove, then preuention in louelove. hAquin. ex Augustin. in loc.Nimis enim durus animus, qui dilectionem, ersinolebat impendere, nolit rependere. Kind respect to thy foe, shall blow the coales of his affection, and inflame his louelove toward thee.
Be not ouercome of euill] We must hauehave patience, when we cannot hauehave peace; so we shall be iRom. 8.37.more then conquerours, ouercomming without resistance, which is the kMartyr in loc.most noble kind of victory: or ouercome euill with goodnesse; that is, make the wicked good by thy good example. lTheophylact. in loc.Probum ex improbo redde. For as mEpist. 54.Augustine from Seneca, diligendi sunt mali, vt non sint mali. We must manifest our louelove to the wicked, in winning them to God, not in fostering or flattering them in their folly.