The Autumn Part from the Twelfth Sunday after Trinity, Gospel 10
The Gospell.
MATTH. 18. 21.
Peter said vntounto Iesus, Lord, how oft shall I forgiue my brother if he sinne against mee, &c.
THis Gospell is a large uZepper. con. 2. in loc.Comment vponupon the fifth petition of the Pater Noster, and it may be parted
Into
Peters question: How oft shall I for giuegive my brother if he sinne against mee, till seuen times?
Christs answer: deliuered
First simply by way of proposition: I say not vntounto thee vntill seuen times: but seuentie times seuen times.
Then amply by way of xHieron. Ludolphus. Caietan.exposition in the parable following, therefore is the kingdome of Heauen likened, &c.
Peter said vntounto Iesus] In this question of Peter obserue first his reuerence, then his diligence. Reuerence toward Christ his Teacher, in calling him Lord, or Master, or Sir. An y1. Tim. 5. 17.Elder that rules well and laboureth in the word is worthy of double honour: z1. Thess. 5. 20despise not prophecying, but aHeb. 13. 17.obey such as hauehave the ouersight of you. GiueGive thy learned and discreet Pastor the …ir. and not the sirra. Secondly, we may note Peters, bEuthym.diligence questioning and arguing with his Master cCaietan.about that hee taught a little before, vers. 15. And it is a dAretius.commendable practise, for as reading maketh a full man, so conference a ready man. A duty much omitted in our time, because some men hauehave too bad a conceit of themselues and dare not, other too good an opinion of themselues and will not aske their Teachers any question. See Gosp. on Sexages Sunday.
Iesus said vntounto him] In this answer two points are remarkable: what he said, and to whom. I say not vntill seuen times, but seuenty times seuen times: that is, 490 times, and then (as eApud Erasmum annot. in loc.Origens interpretor is of opinion) a man is not bound to forgiue his brother any more. But most expositors affirme that Christ heere names a certaine number for an vncertaine, a definite for an fEuthym. Pontan. Iansen.infinite. An vsuall trope euen in our common speech, I hauehave heard it a thousand times. I would not doe this, or suffer that for an hundred pounds. Almighty God the father of mercy forgiueth vsus more then seuenty times seuen times, for gPro. 24. 16.the iust man falleth seuentimes a day; so that if wee liue but seuenty daies, our sinne will stand in need of pardon seuenty times seuen times. But if we continue long, and become the sons of many yeeres, assuredly we shall be the fathers of many sinnes, and neede forgiuenesse seuenty thousand times seuen times. O Lord hPsal. 19. 12.who can tell how oft he offendeth? O cleanse thou me from my secret faults. Now we must be mercifull iLuk. 6. 36.as our father in heauen is mercifull, extending our compassion toward our brother offending vsus not only seuen times, as Peter said, or seuenty times seuen times, as Christ in the bare letter of the text: but according to the true meaning of the same, kMaldonat in loc.vicibus innumer abiliter innumerabilibus, lToties quoties August. serm. 15. de verbis Domini.euen so many seuen times as he trespasseth against vsus.
The next point to be considered is the partie to whom our blessed Sauiour spake this, and that is Peter. Iesus said vntounto him, I say to thee, &c. mPetrus hic gerit personam ecclesiae. Anselm. in loc.To Peter as to a publike Preacher, and to Peter as to a priuate person. In the words a little before Christ spake of ecclesiasticall censures, If thy brother heare thee not, tell it to the Church, vers. 17. and in the 18. I say vntounto you, whatsoeuer yee binde on earth, shall bee bound in heauen: and nMelanct. postil. & Com. in loc.so this text (as the coherence sheweth) ought to bee construed of the Ministers absolution as well as of other mens forgiuenesse. Here then all Pastours are taught not to discomfort and despise the poore penitent soule: but rather to pronounce Gods pardon and absolution as often as hee truly repents and vnfainedly beleeues his holy Gospell. It was an heresie defended by oHieron. lib. 2. adversus Iouin.Montanus, pAlphonsus de Castro Tit. paeniten. haeres. 3.Nouatus, and qAugust. haeres. 48. & Epiphan haeres. 6….Meletius, that such as after baptisme and solemne repentance fell into relapse, and committed any grieuous crime, as adulterie, sacrilege, murther and the like, ought not to be receiued againe into the bosome of the Church. But rApud Melanct. Com. in loc.Peter Bishop of Alexandria, and Anselme Bishop of Canterbury confute them out of this text, Thou shalt forgiue thy brother seuentie times seuen times. If thy brother will not heare thee, tell the Church: if he will not heare the Church, hold him as an heathen or a publican:s Enarrat. in loc. but if he repent and heare thee, thou hast wonne thy brother vntounto God, and thou tConfess. Anglican. art. 16.must againe receiue him into the Church.
And this may be construed of the Churches absolution, so most expound it of mutuall forgiuenesse in priuate between brother & brother. A lesson oft vrged by Christ as exceeding necessarie, whether we consider God, our neighbours, or our selues. In not forgiuing we wrong God, to whom uHeb. 10. 30.vengeance belongeth: our neighbours, in that our priuate xPhilip. 2. 3.quarrels often hinder the publike peace of the Church: our selues, hereby neglecting other businesse of importance, yea the greatest of all our owne soules eternall estate, for yMatth. 6. 14.except we forgiue other, God will not forgiue vsus, as Christ sheweth in the conclusion of his ensuing parable.
Yea but is it vnlawfull to defend our selues against the violent hands and virulent tongues of such as iniurie vsus in our goods and good name? No. When a brother offendeth in this kind, Corripiamus verbis & si opus est verberibus, quoth zSerm. 15. de verbis Domini.Augustine. As eueryevery Christian must bee tender of his conscience in regard of himselfe, so aMelanct. postil. in loc.iealous of his credit in regard of other. We may therefore sue the slanderer euen for the Gospels glorie, lest good men be scandalized, and God himselfe blasphemed vponupon any false report spread abroad of vsus. Indeed the seditious Anabaptists, and Iulian that scoffing Apostata say, that this and other like places of holy scripture disanull the Magistrates authoritie. For if wee must all alway forgiue, none may punish the faults of his brother. Here we must aptly distinguish between priuate reuenge, and publike iustice. A priuate person ought onelyonly to admonish his brother, a publike magistrate being Gods Lieutenant, to whom vengeance belongs, may punish him also. For b1. Pet. 2. 14.Gouernours are sent of God for the punishment of euill doers, and for the praise of them that doe well. If then a Minister of estate forgiue the bad, hee doth iniurie the good. It is a true saying of cSerm. 22. de verbis apost.Augustine: Sic vigilet tolerantia vt non dormiat disciplina. Christ in this present chapter intimates dLudolphus d… vita Christi, part. 2. cap. 8.three sorts of correction. The first is of louelove, If thy brother trespasse against thee, goe and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if hee heare thee not, take yet with thee one or two, &c. The second is of feare, If hee will not vouchsafe to heare them and thee, tell it to the Church. The third is of shame, If hee refuse to heare the Church also, let him be vntounto thee as an heathen man and a publicane. So likewise the temporall Magistrate eRom. 13. 4.beareth a sword not in vaine, for hee is the minister of God to take vengeance on him that doth euill. And if hee strike with the sword of Iustice, it is not fAugust. cont. literas Pe…ilian. lib. 3. cap. 4.ferrum inimici vulner antis, sed medici secantis. According to the tenor of this doctrine, gGen. 14.Abraham deliuered his nephew Lot from the hand of his enemies. And so h1. King. 22.Michaiah the Prophet defended himselfe against the wrongs of Zidkiiah. And so iActs 25. 11.Paul appealed vntounto Caesar: and Christ accurately confuted all the forged imputations of his aduersaries, Iohn 8. 49. See Epist. 3. Sund. after Epiphan. August. de verbis Dom. serm. 15. postil. Melanct. & Zepper. in loc.
In the parable following note the
Matter or narration, The kingdome of heauen is likened vntounto a certaine man, &c. and in it these fiue Circumstances:
1. Who is the Creditor.
2. Who is the debtor.
3. What is the debt.
4. The time when our Creditor, cals for a reckoning.
5. What is to be done when our account is called vponupon.
Morall o… application, so likewise shall my heauenly father, &c.
The Creditor is God, as Christ expoundeth himselfe, verse 35. who lendeth vsus eueryevery good and perfect gift, kSee Pontan. in loc.as well naturall as supernaturall. He created vsus according to his owne image, redeemed vsus with his owne blood, and sanctifieth vsus with his owne spirit: making vsus lPsal. 8. 6.Lords of the World, mPro…er. 1. 8.sons of the Church, nHeb. 1. 14. Matt. 25. 34.heires of Heauen. The riches of his mercy toward vsus are so pretious for their nature, so great for their number, as that they far exceede ten thousand talents. See Epist. 4. Sunday after Easter.
As for the second circumstance, oApud Hieron. in loc.some thinke the diuell is this debtor. pApud Vegā in loc.Origen and Thomas vnderstand this of Clergie-men. qRabanus apud Thom. & Anselm. in loc.Other expound it of the Iewes onelyonly. But Augustine, Ardens and other ordinarily construe this of all men, as being seruants and debtors vntounto the heauenly King. rGranat. in loc.Seruants, not as other creatures in respect of their creation onelyonly, but in respect of our redemption also. Debtors, sIames 3. 2.for in many things we …inne all. And sins are debts, as Christ teacheth in his prayer, forgiue vsus our debts. And our manifold sinnes arise to the summe of ten thousand talents, euen tMelanct.three tunne of gold, an uCulman.infinite masse of money.
Our debt is great in magnitude and multitude. Wee sin against God in xDan. 5. 2….whose hand our breath is, yActs 17. 28.in whom we liue, and moue, and hauehave our being; against such a God as zWisdome 11. 17. 19.ordereth all things in measure, number and weight, before whom all the world is as a drop of the morning dew, that falleth downe vponupon the earth; against such a God at whose looke the aPsa. 104. 32earth trembles, and the pillars of bIob 26. 11.heauen quake; against such a God as hath the cAp…al. 1. 18.keyes of death and hell, dLuke 12. 5.able to kill the body and to destroy the soule. And as our sinnes are infinite in respect of their infinite obiect: euen so infinit in respect of their infinite number, as being ePsal. 40. 15.moe then the haires of our head. Almighty God created Adam according to his owne likenesse, and bestowed many notable gifts vponupon him belonging to his posterity, the which being lost in his fall, God f exacteth them of vsus in our account. This debt isHeming. old which of our selues wee can no way discharge, and beside this originall debt, wee runne in arrerages eueryevery day. The particulars of thy debt will amount quickly to the summe of ten thousand talents, if thou shalt examine thy seuerall transgressions of the seuerall Commandements in the Decalogue. Tell me, beloued, or for that it is impossible to tell, I pray thinke, how often hast thou blasphemed the name of God, how often prophaned his Sabbath, how often dishonoured thy father and mother, how often committed adultery, how often abused thy neighbour in false witnesse, how often coueted his house, wife, seruant, &c. and thou shalt in conclusion finde that thou doest owe to God for the breach of eueryevery one of the Commandements, aboue ten thousand talents. Or if thou wilt a little consider onelyonly but how much time thou spendest vnprofitablely, gSeneca.vel nihil agendo, vel aliud agendo, vel male agendo: thou wilt easily feele thy debt to bee so great, as that thou canst not make satisfaction for it, although thou sell euen thy selfe, thy wife, thy children, and all that thou hast. hApo…a. 22. 11.He that is vniust, let him be vniust still: and he that is filthy, let him be filthy still. O iEcclesiastes 11. 9▪yong man, reioyce in thy youth and walke in the waies of thine heart, and in the sight of thine eyes: but know, that God for all these things will bring thee to iudgement. As it is in the Text heere, the King taketh account of his seruants.
He takes account of kLudolphus de vita Christi, part. 2. cap. 9. Idem Pontanin loc.foure things especially: De bonis commissis, as he sheweth in the parable of the Steward, Luke 16. De bonis omissis, as in the parable of the Talents, Matthew 25. De malis admissis, as in the parable of the two debtors, Luke 7. De malis seu peccatis dimissis, as in this present. This one mentioned in the text is eueryevery one, for Gods all-seeing eye beholds all our thoughts and words and deedes, as if all men in the world were but one. He sends forth his summons in this life by the preaching of the lZepper.law, by the clamour of the mAnselm.conscience, by nHeming.crosses and losses, or other signes of Gods wrath in heauen and in earth, as it were citing vsus to his vniuersall audite. oGranaten. Vega.But in the particular death of eueryevery man, and in the generall iudgement of all men he finisheth his account. pHeb. 9. 29.For it is appointed vntounto men that they shall once die, and after that commeth the iudgement: in which eueryevery man shall hauehave his doome, q2. Cor. 5. 10.according to that he hath done, whether it be good or euill. In that day there shall be iudgement rIames 2. 13.mercilesse to him that sheweth no mercy, the cruell and vngratious seruant who tooke no compassion on his fellow, shall be deliuered to the Iaylors, and kept in prison vntill he pay the sMatth 5. 26.vtmost farthing. For, as tI… loc.Ardens acutely, Quorum vita mortua est in culpa, eorum mors viuet in poena: Their death is euer liuing in sorrow, whose life was euer dead in sinne.
What then is to be done that our debt may be forgiuen? according to the tenor of this scripture, uCulman. Heming.we must humbly fall downe before God our Creditor, ingeniouslie confessing our inability to make payment, and hartily crauing releasement for the merits and satisfaction of his …onne Christ Iesu, who xRom. 4. 25.dyed for our sinnes, and is risen againe for our iustification, and now sitteth at the right hand of God as our mediator and aduocate, promising in his yMatt. 11. 28holy word to refresh all such as groane vnderunder the burthen of their debt. And because faith is working by zGalat. 5. 6.louelove, we must in our conuersation bring forth the fruite of righteousnesse, aEphes. 4. 32.forgiuing one another euen as God for Christs sake forgiueth vsus. Here the Gospell and Epistle meete, Paul saith, I pray that your louelove may increase yet more and more, &c. And Christ saith in his application (which is the very bBullinger apud Marlorat.key that openeth all the secrets of the whole Parable) so likewise shall my heauenly Father doe also vntounto you, if yee from your heart forgiue not euerie one his brother their trespasses. This one point is pressed here by sundry reasons: as first from Christs owne commandement, I say forgiue thy brother offending thee seuenty times seuen times: Secondly, from Gods example: Thirdly, from the proportion of our debt, our heauenly king forgiueth vsus ten thousand talents, and therefore let vsus not striue with our fellow for an hundred pence: Fourthly, from the dangerous euent, because the pitilesse man is cast into prison of hell. As then wee desire to doe the will of Christ, and to be followers of God as deare Children, and to flie from the vengeance to come: let vsus be courteous one to another, and tender hearted, forgiuing our brethren seuenty times seuen times: and that cHieron. Culman. Iansen.not onelyonly from the teeth outward; but as Christ in the text expresly from our hearts, in truth and in deede. dAugustin. 15 de verbis Domini.Si dicis dimitto, dimitte: melius est cum clamas ore, & dimittis in corde, quam blandus ore, crudelis in corde. Whosoeuer takes this course with his creditor shall be loosed of his bonds, and released of his debt: the which one word eHeming.release doth ouerthrow the Monkish doctrine of satisfaction, and quench also the fire of purgatorie: for releasement and payment, forgiuenesse and punishment are quite contrarie. The debt is forgiuen: ergo, not satisfied: the debtor is forgiuen, ergo, not imprisoned in Purgatorie. Shall not the gates of fMatth. 16. 18.hell preuaile against vsus? and shall the muddie walles of Purgatorie hedge vsus in? Hath our Sauiours soule gone downe to the gEphes. 4. 9.nethermost hell, and yet made no passage thorow the suburbs of hell, as they reckon it? Hath he bound the hMatth. 12. 29strong man that he should not hurt vsus, and will he now torment vsus himselfe, or set other wee know not whom to doe it? iColoss. 2. 8.Beware lest any spoyle you by vaine reason and Philosophie, whereas the Bible doth admit of no Purgatorie but Christ and the crosse, kIohn Frith epistle to the Reader before his answere to Raftels Dialog.the word of faith, Acts. 15. 9. Iohn 15. 2. and the rod of affliction, Hebr. 12. 6. See Gospell 5. Sunday after Epiphanie.