Sermons on Deuteronomy, Sermons · Sermon 63
On Wednesday the xxviii of August. 1555. The Lxiij. Sermon which is the seconde vponupon the ninth Chapter.
6 Knowe ye therefore &c.
7 Remember and forget not that thou diddest anger the Lord thy God in the wildernesse. Euen from the day yee came out of the land of Egypt, vntounto the time that you came vntounto this place, you hauehave rebelled against the Lord.
WE hauehave seene already yesterday, howe Moses warned the people that they shoulde not boast of themselues when they were come into the Lande of promise: and howe hee tolde them that they had not obtained that benefite for their owne desertes, but through Gods meere grace and goodnesse. Wee hauehave seene the three reasons that he alleaged for the same. Howebeit for as much as it is harde to bring men to humilitie, so as they may knowe themselues as they be in deede, and bee vtterly ashamed of themselues, not attributing any thing to their owne power, but depending altogether vponupon Gods free merciemercy: Moses addeth a plaine demonstration and sayeth: If ye alleadge your owne worthinesse and desertes: Ye be a stiffenecked people, euen such a one as can not bowe vnderunder the yoke and obedience of your GOD. Whereby it appeareth that you bee not worthie to bee chosen of your GOD, or to hauehave such an heritage allotted you, or to bee preferred before other nations, forasmuch as ye hauehave not beene any better than they. And he rehearsed the thinges that were yet fresh in remembrance and the rebellions which they had committed in the wildernesse, concluding thereupon that they were the lesse to bee excused, because they had forgotten the miracles which GOD had wrought in deliuering them from the bondage of Egypt: for that made their sinne the haynouser. Remember therefore (sayeth hee) howe yee prouoked God to wrath, whyle yee were in the wildernesse. And he addeth that the people did it not for once onelyonly: but that they went on still from euill to worse, and neuer ceased their hardening of themselues in their wilfulnesse: and therefore they deserued full well to be vtterly cutte off. And so wee must needes conclude, that GOD vsed exceeding greate merciemercy, in that he reserued that people to himselfe, and brought them into their promised heritage, and that he gaue them the inioying and possession thereof of his owne meere goodnesse. That is the effect of the thing that is conteined here.
Nowe wee hauehave to note first of all, that men will neuer come to confesse their faultes and to humble themselues, vntill they bee conuicted, to their faces: I say till they be conuicted, as an offender that is arrained at the barre. For as wee see that offenders doe shamelessely denie the faultes that they hauehave committed, as farre as they can: euen so doe all m…n deale when they be cited before GOD: they doe alwayes shrinke backe, and vse fonde excuses, rather than openly stande to the deniall of it. The knitting vp of the matter is, that they neuer serue him but by constraynte. That is the cause why GOD discouereth our leaudenesse to make vsus ashamed of it. For if hee shoulde not vse vsus after that sorte, he shoulde neuer compasse vsus to make vsus to stoope. For first wee be combered with pride, and secondely wee be blinded with hypocrisie. And therefore forasmuch as men are so high minded, that they can not finde in their heartes to bee acknowen of their owne wretchednesse: and therewithall so besotted, that they flatter themselues in their owne sinnes: it is requisite that GOD shoulde bring them to it after such manner as wee see heere, so as he shoulde arraigne them and lay their faultes afore them. For men doe not onelyonly endeuour to iustifie themselues, but also proceede so farre, as euen to accuse God. And that is the cause why he sayeth by his prophete Esaie, Well then, let vsus goe to lawe together, and let there be some vmper betwixt vsus,Esa. 43.26. to see who shall hauehave the better hande. True it is that God can not be subiect to any iudge or vmper, for his maiestie can not beare it. But hee laugheth mens cursed statelinesse to scorne, in yt they repyne so against him, and would bring him downe (as it were to the barre) againste them, to weete who had the better case. God therefore in respect of such presumptuousnesse, sayeth, I am contented to hauehave the matter debated and discussed, I will alleage my reasons and you shall alleadge yours, and men shall discerne who hath the right and who hath the wrong. Nowe, hee speaketh not after the same fashion heere: but he telleth the people in one worde, that if they pretende any righteousnesse of their owne, he can well disproue them. And for certainetie thereof, knowe yee (sayeth Moses) that yee bee a stiffenecked people.
We see that this doctrine is more than needefull nowe adayes. For if euer men were puffed vppe with pride: if euer they were setled in hypocrisie: wee see it is nowe in these dayes. GOD is mocked with open mouth, and yet the wickeddest sorte will needes be highliest exalted, and that no man shoulde bee so bolde as to open his lippes against them. So muche the more therefore hath this doctrine neede to bee set foorth, that all loftinesse may bee beaten downe, and no man presume anie more to exalt him selfe: to that poynt must wee come.
Wee see that euen among the Papists, they that holde this opinion most, namely that men are iustified by their workes, are leaudest loselles in all their conuersation. Looke me vponupon these hypocrites, and vppon all the doctors of poperie: when they intende to maintaine their owne merites, and that men are not iustified by fayth: they crie out with full throte and open mouth, What? Ought not Christians to be a holy people sanctified vntounto God? And ought not the holie Ghoste to gouerne vsus? Ought we not to leade an Angelicall life? And yet for all this, yee shall see them to be whooremongers, drunkardes, periurers, traytours, full of vnfaithfulnesse, guyle, and extortion, so as there shall not be one sparke of feare towardes GOD, or of honestie towardes man in them. And yet notwithstanding, they pretende to bee the earnestest defenders of merites, and the deuoutest persons that can be: insomuch that to heare them, yee would thinke there were nothing but holinesse in them, when as in the meane whyle their life is most detestable, and shamefull, as all the worlde may playnely see. But yet doe men deceiue themselues after that fashion. And for that cause hath Moses sette downe this text, not onelyonly for his owne time, but also as a rule for vsus to practise to the worldes ende.
Therefore when wee bee tempted with ouer weening, so as our fleshe prouoketh vsus to presume I wotte not howe to magnifie ourselues▪ lette vsus remember what is sayde heere, [and let vsus thinke thus with our selues:] Howe nowe? Consider what thou arte, and howe thou hast liued. If thou shouldest come to account before GOD, couldest thou go through with it? Considerest thou not that thou arte one of the miserablest kaytifes in the worlde? And when thou goest about to aduaunce thyselfe: is it not a robbing of GOD of his righteousnesse, that he might not be knowen to bee as he is in deede? Yes: For Gods righteousnesse can not otherwise shine foorth, vnlesse we be vtterly confounded, so as we be condemned and hee onelyonly iustified, and that wee acknowledge the same willingly. Hee then that will hauehave anie righteousnesse of his owne, doeth certainely defie GOD, and make warre against him. And therefore must wee hauehave an eye to this warning: How nowe? What is thy life? Art thou able to make aunswere when thou shalt be cited to the iudgement seate of thy maker? And therewithall lette vsus consider howe it is sayde, that for euerie poynte which wee bee able to alleadge for our selues, GOD is able to alleadge a thousande against vsus, so as we must needes be confounded. Thus yee see howe men shoulde be ledde to the considering of their liues, when they bee puffed vppe with any pryde, and bee desirous to iustifie themselues, that is to say, to chalendge anie deserte or worthinesse before GOD. And to make the Iewes vtterly condemned, Moses telleth them expresly that they were a stiffenecked people. This similitude is taken of beastes that shoulde beare the yoke. For if they bee sturdie and will not bowe their neckes to beare the yooke: they can doe a manne no seruice, they be vnprofitable: nay rather they do much harme in striking with their hornes, they breake all thinges asunder, and in steede of going forewarde, they drawe backe. In this respecte Moses declareth in one worde, that stiffenecked folke can by no meanes bee taken for righteous.
And for the better vnderstanding hereof, lette vsus marke howe it is sayde, that obedience is better than all the sacrifices in the worlde.1. Sa. 15.11. Then lette vsus beare in minde, that if men will needes chalendge righteousnesse to themselues, they must examine well whether they bowe downe their neckes to submit themselues wholely vntounto God. For if they hauehave not that: all the rest is nothing. They may well vaunt themselues before men: but yet all their vertues are no better than dunge, vntill they bee come so farre as to beare Gods yoke, that is to say, to behaue themselues according to his will, and t offer their life vntounto him that hee may hauehave the ouer ruling of them, as hee lysteth, so as they bee contented to obey him simplye and without exception. Thus yee see that our trewe righteousnesse is obedience: yea and such an obedience, as seeketh not to please mortall men, but the liuing God. And it is a point which we ought to marke well▪ for hereby the doctrine that I declared afore, is the better confirmed. Men doe alwayes surmise some meriting or deseruing in themselues at their owne pleasure. When they will bee taken for holy and righteous, they hauehave their priuate deuotions, but in the meane while they make none account of beeing disobedient to GOD. Contrariwise it is tolde vsus heere, that God requireth nothing more than obedience. For all that euer we can bring him of our owne, is nothing: but he tryeth whether we louelove him and honour him or no, by telling vsus his will, and by laying as it were a bridle or a yooke vponupon our neckes, as if he shoulde say: Bee plyable vnderunder mee, come not perking vp with your heades against mee, sette not vppe your crestes, ne playe not the wylde coltes: but dispose your selues to order your liues according to my Lawes & commandements. That is the thing whereto GOD hath an eye.Iob. 35.6.7. & Psal. 16.2 Not that he reapeth anie commoditie by vsus, neither that wee can doe him anie harme: but because it is a true proofe that wee bee willing to honour him, when wee suffer him to gouerne vsus, and runne not euerie man vponupon his owne heade, but leaue to him his dewe souerainetie and dominion, saying: Lorde we be thy poore cattell, directe thou vsus according to thine owne will. For we hauehave neither witte nor reason in vsus, our lustes are vtterly frowarde. Nowe therefore reigne thou ouer vsus O Lorde, and let thy lawe bee as a yooke and a bridle to vsus. And it is the same thing also which hee meaneth by the sentence that I alleadged out of the first of Samuel, namely that obedience is better than al the Sacrifices in the worlde. Also the same thing is confirmed by Ieremie,Ier. 7.21. saying: When thy fathers cam out of Egypt, did I require sacrifices or such other thinges at their handes? In deede God commaunded sacrifices: but yet the chiefe thing that hee required, was that they shoulde obey his voyce. The thing that God aimed at, the thing wherein all our righteousnesse consisteth, is to herken to his speeche, that his authoritie may weye with vsus, so as wee fall not to replying to bee wise of our selues, nor to doe what wee thinke good: but that hee onelyonly may hauehave the maistrie, and wee no more but open our eares and be heedeful to receiue his doctrin, yea and to receiue it in such wise as it may be as a yoke or bridle as I sayde afore, and ouer rule vsus without any gainesaying. And heereby it appeareth, that if men bee not milde in submitting themselues wholely to Gods will: farewell all their honestie, their life is but leaude. For why? Whereas is nothing but disobedience, there is not any righteousnes, because the foundation of all righteousnesse and of all good behauiour, is to bee reformed according to the good will of GOD. We must not bring our owne meeteyeard nor our owne measure in this behalfe: but onelyonly GOD himselfe must speake and be the iudge to discerne betwene good and bad: for it is hee to whome it belongeth to acquit or condemne. And hee alloweth or disalloweth what he himselfe thinkes good: and there remayneth nothing for vsus but to say Amen, by allowing whatsoeuer hee thinketh good, and by condemning whatsoeuer he misliketh.
And Moses thinkes it not enough to hauehave sayde in one worde, Thou art a stiffenecked people: but he addeth therewithall, Remember and forgette not that thou diddest anger the Lorde thy God in the wildernesse, and howe many times ye hauehave disobeyed him, from the day that hee brought yee out of the lande of Egypt, euen vntounto this present time of his bringing of you vntounto this place. Nowe whereas he sayeth, Remember and forgette not: it serueth to quicken them vppe the better, because men doe still couer their missedeedes, and as soone as they finde neuer so little a shadowe, or peece of colour to ouerlay their offences withall: they doe but wring their mouthes awrye, and by and by they thinke themselues verie righteous. Wee see howe it happened to our father Adam:Gen. 3.7. it was no long time ere hee went to seeke figge leaues to couer himselfe withal. But as soone as he hadde offended, and GOD rebuked him, and that hee felt his owne rebellion and disobedience: what did hee? Whereas he shoulde hauehave come vntounto GOD, and confessed his fault, that hee might hauehave obteined merciemercy and forgiuenesse: he runnes among the leaues and beares himselfe in hande that hee was wel couered, and that GOD shoulde see him no more, so he had some litle shadowe to hide himselfe withall. We put the same still in vre dayly: wee hauehave no sooner committed anie faulte, but by and by we fall to shifting, and wee beate our braynes and wittes to finde out some lurkinghoole that GOD might not espye vsus. To bee shorte, there is none of vsus but hee makes a denne of theeues of his owne heart, vntill our Lorde doe touch him to the quicke, to bring vsus to the simplicitie of acknowledgeing our faults. Nowe if we be so much inclined to disguise ourselues [out of hande,] by seeking shiftes and couertes to withstande Gods vengeance: what will we doe in length of time? Will wee not vtterly forgoe the remembraunce of our sinnes altogether? Yes: and that is the cause why Moses sayde, Remember thy selfe and forgette not. It hadde beene ynough for him to hauehave sayde, Remember thy selfe. But forasmuch as men doe what they can to rocke themselues asleepe, and seeke meanes to sooth themselues: Moses doeth as it were twitch them by the eare heere, saying: Goe to sirs, it is not for you to fall a sleepe in this matter: although your nature be inclined thereto, yet must you not burie your sinnes, but yee must beare them still in minde, and sette them before your eyes, and then shall yee hauehave cause ynough to humble yourselues. Thus are we warned here, to bethinke vsus oftentimes of the faultes that wee hauehave committed, and to beware that wee seeke not vaine colours, ne thinke not that wee hauehave spedde well, when wee hauehave founde some trifling shifte to iustifie our selues with all: but to learne to cast our selues vtterly downe, and to mislike of ourselues, and to bee as men condemned, so as there remayne none other shift for vsus, than to flee for refuge to the infinite merciemercy of our GOD. That is the greatest benefite that wee can deuise to worke to our selues, all our life long. But howe shall wee be brought to it? By the knowing of our faultes. Now then, in steede of shunning it as a matter of greefe, and whereas weebe loth to thinke vponupon the offences that hauehave prouoked Gods wrath: let euerie of vsus bethinke himselfe of them early and late, and let vsus enter into the examination of our selues, to say, Alas, howe hauehave I liued in this worlde? Againe, lette vsus not thinke vppon other folkes faultes, to make a buckler of them as wee bee wont to doe: but let vsus call all our owne life to minde, nowe one sinne, and nowe an other, and let vsus cast foorth our sighes and sobbes before GOD as witnesses that wee be not willing to besot our selues, nor to burie our selues in our owne dunge by weltring in it: but rather that wee woulde faine attaine to his righteousnesse, as whose indeuour is to hate and abhorre our sinnes, and to magnifie Gods grace towardes vsus. Which thing can not bee doone, vnlesse our sinnes mislike vsus, and wee thinke thus with our selues: Well then, needes must GOD hauehave vsed greate goodnesse towardes mee, seeing he hath called me at such time as I was forlorne. Againe, since his calling of mee, howe oft hauehave I deserued to bee shaken off, and to be quite cutte off from his Church? And yet for all that, hee beareth with mee vntounto this houre, and continueth his goodnesse towardes mee still. Thus ye see howe wee must bethinke vsus of our sinnes, to the ende that Gods goodnesse may be knowen, and that wee may not onelie taste of it, but also be fully satisfied with it.
And furthermore, according to Saint Paules exhortation, which is, that eueryevery man shoulde quicken and spurre vppe himselfe, when he seeeth his fleshe willing to drawe him to forgetfulnesse: Let vsus not thinke it straunge, though it be some greefe to vsus at the first to thinke vppon our sinnes. For why? wee be inclined to the sayde hypocrisie: but yet must we fight against it, and beware that wee feede it not. And so lette vsus practise the thing that Moses telleth vsus here: which is, not to forget. As howe? not that we can alwayes minde it, as reason woulde wee shoulde: but that the deceiuer foade vsus not in our owne vaine flatteries, so that although hee stoppe our eyes for a time, yet God doe take away the towell, and make vsus to see our owne dishonestie in open light, so as wee be ashamed of it. And therefore, when wee bethinke vsus of our sinnes and offences, let vsus looke into our selues,1. Cor. 11.31 and quickē our selues vp: for we must play the iudges towards our selues, if we will obtaine merciemercy before GOD. Yea and if we will yeelde him the dewe prayse of his grace:Iosua 7.19. wee must come to the acknowledgement of our sinnes. And that must not be done for once onelyonly, but euerie of vsus must giuegive himselfe to examination both euening and morning, and vponupon the knowledge of one faulte, wee must goe to the sifting out of an other. Trewe it is that in this case there is no measure, neither can we be too circumspect. But yet must men mislike of themselues so farre, as to learne to glorifie GOD accordingly: that is to say, to reserue no prayse, at all to themselues, no not one graines waight, but to yeelde all goodnesse vntounto him alone, and to acknowledge that there is nothing but euill in themselues. Thus yee see whereunto the knowledge of our sinnes ought to leade vsus. And we must neuer cease, vntil we be come thither: and when we be come thither, we must continue in it still. For at euerie turne we shall stumble into this blindenesse againe, so as wee shall be prouder than we were afore, according as wee see that such as hauehave liued in humilitie, doe in the ende become greatest trusters to their owne witte, when they hauehave once forgotten themselues. So then lette vsus alwayes beare this lesson in minde vntounto our liues ende, for humilitie is so perfecte a vertue, as wee shall neuer finde it so substantially in vsus as we woulde wishe. And therefore must we continue in the sayde endeuour, vntill wee be quite ridde of all the presumptuousnesse of our fleshe. For pryde is the sinne that will bee last corrected, and it is the roote of all other offences. Thus yee see what wee hauehave to remember vponupon this text where Moses sayth, Rremember thy selfe, and forgette not the faultes which thou hast committed.
Nowe he addeth, Howe thou diddest anger thy God in the wildernesse. I hauehave tolde yee breefly alreadie, that the people were so muche the lesse to be excused, for that they hauing knowen the wonders which GOD had wrought at their comming out of Aegypt, ceassed not to bee so malitious and frowarde, as to spitte out their poyson against GOD. If they hadde done it afore, truely yet they hadde beene worthie of blame: but yet had their sinne beene more tollerable. But nowe hadde God vttered his mightie arme in deliuering those wretches out of the cruell bondage wherein they were: and yet notwithstanding, euen after Gods working in that wise, and after they had seene the apparaunt signes of his maiestie, they cease not to striue against him still: and must it not needes be that the deuill possesseth them, and that they bee as good as bewitched with their owne malice? So then it is not without cause that Moses noteth here the place of the wildernesse, to the ende that the people might bee the more humbled, and feele the greatenesse and hougenesse of the offences which they had committed, forasmuch as they were al at one poynt as if GOD had not vttered himselfe vntounto them at all. For it may fall out that sillie soules which neuer tasted of Gods trueth nor of his workes, shall ouershoote themselues and be caried away. But seeing that GOD came so neere vntounto the Iewes and tolde them, I am your Sauiour, I take you into my protection, I will make you to feele my power as though I came downe from heauen in mine owne person, and dwelt visibly among you: I say when God speaketh after that fashion, and bindeth himselfe by his deedes, and yet for all that there is nothing in them but rebellion▪ must it not needes bee a desperate frowardenesse? Yes verily. And it is as a warning to make vsus look to our selues. For seeing that GOD sheweth himselfe familiarly to vsus for our welfare: hee bindeth vsus so much the more vntounto him, as hath beene declared heretofore. Therefore lette vsus looke that we prouoke him not when hee hath made vsus to feele his goodnesse: but let vsus bee the more obedient vntounto him, knowing that his intent in vouchsafing to succour vsus, is that wee shoulde be moued thereby to honour him and serue him the better. And on the other side we shall be the more blameworthie, when GOD shall hauehave visited vsus by his grace. As for example when he giueth vsus his worde, he sheweth thereby that he hath a care of our saluation: so that if we benefite not our selues thereby in seruing him, surely wee deserue the greeuouser vengeance
And Moses alleageth not heere the sinnes of one day: but hee telleth the people that they wente on still from euill to worse, euen since their comming out of Egypt, knowe ye (sayeth he) that ye hauehave euer beene disobedient to your God, euen vntounto this day. There had passed at that time the space of fourtie yeares, and that was a triall long ynough,Psal. 9 5.20. as is sayde in the fourescorce and fifteenth Psalme. For there GOD sheweth his inestimable patientnesse, which he vsed in bearing with the wilfull and intollerable malitiousnesse of that people, by the space of fourtie yeares together. But Moses reckeneth not the yeares heere: for that was a thing well ynough knowen to those whome he spake vntounto. It was ynough for him to say, recken you howe long it is agoe since your GOD brought you out of the bondage of Egypt: hee hath ledde you through the wildernesse, hee hath shewed himselfe alwayes present with you: & yet hauehave you not knowen him of al the while. Had yee missed but once onelyonly, yet hadde ye well deserued to be chastised. But what? Seeing yee hauehave had so many warninges, so manie threatninges, so manie rebukes, and so many punishmentes, yea and so manie benefites also at Gods hande: and yet notwithstanding yee holde on still, and growe worse and worse in steede of amending: must it not needes bee sayde that ye be vtterly past recouerie? Yes: for our Lorde hath not lefte anie thing vndoone, that might bring yee backe into the right way: and yet for all that, yee hauehave continued stubbourne still, and withstoode him to the vttermost. Nowe therefore lette vsus marke well this text where our Lorde vpbrayeth men, not with some one faulte, but with a continuall stubbornnesse against him, in holding on still in their wilfulnesse, insomuch that though hee correct them both by deedes and wordes, yet are they still imbrewed with their sinnes, and delight and welter themselues in them. For wee see what is in vsus. Trueth it is that wee woulde at the first sight condemne the thinges that are reported here of the Iewes: but we must also apply all those thinges to our instruction, according as it is sayde that that people must serue vsus as a lookingglasse to beholde our selues in. Therefore lette vsus beare in minde the thinges that Moses noteth heere. For whereas hee sayeth, euer since the day: hee comprehendeth all their rebellions that are rehearsed as well in the booke of Exodus,Exod. 14.11 as in the booke of Numbers. There it is shewed, that as soone as the people were passed the wildernesse, by and by they fell to murmuring. Howe nowe, sayde they? was there not roome ynough to burie vsus in Egypt? So that whereas they shoulde hauehave sayde, Alas Lorde, in deede thou haste beene singularly gratious vntounto vsus in deliuering vsus f…om so painefull and miserable a life as wee were in: for we were taken but as wretched beastes, we were vtterly oppressed vnderunder the crueltie of the wicked and of thine enemies: and soothly Lorde this goodnesse of thine deserueth well to bee magnified: but yet thou bestowest thy selfe vppon vsus after an other fashion: for in the wildernesse, we were destitute of all foode, so as wee shoulde hauehave beene fayne to dye for hunger, if thou haddest not pitied vsus: and not onelyonly so, but thou hast helde on still in succouring vsus as we resorted to thee: therefore lette it please thee to beare with our weakenesse, and to feede vsus as if wee were sillie birdes: for it is thou that feedest the Rauens and other foules,Psal. 104.27 & 147.9. and wee be creatures formed after thine owne image: nay moreouer we be the people whome thou hast chosen: nowe therefore seeing thou haste vouchsafed to adopt vsus for thy children, shewe vsus at leastwise as much fauour as thou doest to other nations that are not so neere thee as wee are: whereas the people shoulde hauehave come with all lowelinesse to acknowledge the former good turnes that GOD had doone them, and thereby hauehave assured themselues with certainetie of fayth, that he woulde holde on still for the time to come: in steede of doing so, they sayde: Was there not roome enough in Egypt to burie vsus in?Exod. 14.12 & 16.3. They did quite and cleane forgette the fauour which they had receiued at Gods hande. And againe, when they were in necessitie, they came not to him with intreataunce, but with murmuring, rayling and accusing. Likewise when Manna had beene giuen them from heauen,Exod. 17.2. Numb. 20.…. and they had eaten of it: yet they demaunded drinke after an other fashion. They aske their almes with the sworde in their fist. Like as the theefe that woulde cutte the throte of a traueiler: so these leaude loselles fel to spyting of GOD the seconde time, saying: Yea in deede wee hauehave Manna to feed on, but we must hauehave drinke too. Yea and when GOD had giuen them drinke, and made a streame to gushe out of the rocke: yt would not suffice them neither. For the Manna was too vnsauorie a food for them, they would needs hauehave varietie. They had stil Māna & Manna, & they were glutted with it: & yet notwithstanding it was a good & sauorly nourishment.Numb. 11.… 31. Besides this, they were not driuen to till the grounde, they were not faine to trouble themselues much with the earning of their liuing: for God gaue them both meate and drinke: and yet notwithstanding they cryed out vponupon him still, GiueGive, giuegive: Their lusts were so inordinate, that they prouoked Gods vengeance against themselues, by murmuring against him for wante of fleshe. Loe heare a marueilous thankelesnesse. Well then, they had flesh: but that was to choke them euen with their delicate morselles, insomuch that while the meate was yet in their throtes, Gods wrath was so kindled vponupon them, that they payed very deere for their shotte, because they were not contented with the inestimable good that God had done them. For the Manna was a heauenly foode, yea and a foode of Angelles as it is sayde in the Psalme.Psal. 78.25. But although they felt Gods punishmentes, and both sawe and felt the vengeance that ouerwhelmed them: yet notwithstāding they ceased not to prouoke him to angernewe againe, after other fashions, somtimes by committing whordome, sometimes by banding against Moses and Aaron, sometime by murmuring, and sometime by rayling. To be short, there was neither ende nor measure of their doinges. And therefore not without cause doeth Moses say vntounto them heere, Bethinke yee of the great number of faultes which yee hauehave committed euer since the day that yee came out of the lande of Egypt, euen vntounto this present time that God hath brought you into this Lande.
Whereas he sayeth, God hath brought you: it serueth to quicken them vppe the better. As if hee shoulde say, Who hath beene your leader? Leaude folke as ye be, your GOD hath well mainteyned, guided, and ledde you: hee hath vphelde you and helped you in all your necessities: and yet will you needes come and sette vp your bristles thus against him? Nowe sith wee heare this of the Iewes: lette it not make vsus to blame them: but lette it make vsus behoulde our selues in their persons, and consider howe neere this example toucheth vsus, that euerie of vsus may looke into himselfe, and all of vsus acknowledge generally that wee bee no better than they. And for proofe thereof, we be not in a wildernesse, neither is there a time of fortie yeares sette a forehande vntounto vsus: but lette euerie of vsus take his whole life, euen from the time that GOD did put vsus into this wo…lde, vntounto our buryingday. Howe liue wee? God for his part powreth out so many benefites vponupon vsus, as wee hauehave good cause to serue and honour him, yea though there were no more than that which he hath done alreadie. But seeing hee continueth in doing vsus good still: is it not ynough to soften our heartes, though they were of yron or steele? Yes verily: and yet wee cease not to spite him by going on still from euil to worse. Nowe then like as Moses vpbrayded the Iewes with their continuaunce in euill dooing: so lette euerie of vsus consider, that our prouoking of our GOD hath not beene for once onelie: but that whereas wee should hauehave beene drawen vntounto him, wee hauehave shrunke away from him and rebelled against him. And whereas wee shoulde hauehave offered our selues readily to beare his yooke: wee hauehave beene so stubborne as hee coulde not wealde vsus: and one naughtinesse hath so drawen on an other, that our sinnes are come to a horrible confused heape. Thus then must we compare our selues with those to whome Moses speaketh here.
Here it might be demaunded, howe Moses can say that they which liued at that time, had rebelled against GOD euer since the time that they came out of Aegypt. For at that time the most parte of them were babes, or at leastwise not of full yeares of discretion. For we hauehave seene expressely in the first Chapter,Deut. 1.… that GOD was minded to hauehave destroyed all that companie, euen young children and all. For they that were come to mans estate, had made themselues vnworthie to enioye the inheritaunce that was promised them, and they were banished and shutte out from it. Howe then doeth Moses vpbrayde them that they had not ceased to prouoke Gods wrath continually? For they might hauehave replyed: Howe so… Though our fathers misse behaued themselues, so as they were vnthankefull, disobedient, rebellious, and full of murmuring and wicked lustes: shoulde those thinges bee layde vppon vsus? No: for wee coulde not doe withall. But let vsus marke that heere the whole bodie of the people is so blamed, that the children are rightly condemned in the persons of their fathers. For it was still one bodie: and whereas the fathers behaued themselues naughtily and wickedly: the children amended not, but continued in the same euill, as is to bee seene. And therefore forasmuch as the children linked in with their fathers: it is meete that they should be knit vp as it were all in one bundle, and that GOD should condemne them all in generall. And after the same manner are they spoken of in the fourescore & ninth, and also in the threescore and eighteenth Psalmes.Psal. … 32.33 … 9.10.… For there our Lorde sayth, Remember your selues howe yee were disobedient to me in the wildernesse. And afterwarde the prophete rehearseth their fauke againe, howe oftentimes they had misbehaued themselues: and thereupon concludeth, yt they had alwaies persisted in euill, euen frō their first entering into the lande of Chanaan. Insomuch that if the fathers liued naughtily in the wildernesse, their children followed the same trade, yea and became much worse. For when they were once in possession of the heritage which was Gods resting place: they should hauehave giuen themselues to the seruing and honoring of him to the vttermost of their power. But all their indeuour was to defile the lande which God had hallowed to himselfe, by filling it full of superstition and ydolatrie. God gaue them the inheritaunce freely, as if he should hauehave sayde, I aske no more of you but that ye serue me, acknoweledging that I hauehave beene a good louing father to you, and that I hauehave alwayes mainteyned and kept you. But in steede of doing homage to God for these things, the people fel to setting vp of idols, borowing all the corruptions of the heathen, and bringing in false and counterfet Religions. Ye see then that they deserued well to be estraunged and quite cut of from God. Also wee see that the prophetes did continually vpbraide the children of Israell with their vnthankfulnes, yea euen generally, according also as eueryevery man was giltie thereof. And S. Steuen hath declared my sayd reason yet better.Act. 7.51. For he sayth, ye hauehave euer resisted the holy Ghost, like as your fathers did afore you. If the Iewes of that time had quietly submitted themselues to the Gospell, and receaued Iesus Christ as their sauiour, so as they had honored and imbraced him with fayth and repentance: S. Steuen would not hauehave gone about to rip vp the shame of their forefathers. For that was hidden. But for as much as they turned all thinges vpside downe, and beleeued not the Gospell, but forsooke the grace of God, and trampled it vnderunder their feete, aduauncing themselues with diuelish pride and furie, to abolish the name of our Lorde Iesus Christ, and to deface the goodnesse that GOD had shewed them: it was requisite that the sinnes of their fathers should be put into their account, and that God should set himselfe against them, to condemne the malicious wilfulnesse of that people, and the faultes that had beene committed by the space of two or three thousand yeeres afore. And therefore let vsus learne, that although God pardon the offences of our fathers that hauehave doone amisse: yet shall they not fayle to remayne still of record in his registers, if we hold on and continue like vntounto them. Will we then hauehave the sinnes of our forefathers buried, and yt God should forget thē and not call vsus to account for them? Let vsus looke that we be the carefuller to keepe our selues from being like to them. And so ye see how it is expedient for vsus to thinke vponupon the sinnes that hauehave bin cōmitted before we were borne. Let vsus consider thus: Alas I was yet vnborne at that time: but howe shall I do, if my forefathers hauehave done amisse, and that I for my part bee put in among them? For it is saide that God gathereth together the sins of the fathers vntounto the third & fourth generation, to let them fall vponupon their children. Then doe we deserue to be destroyed and to perish, if God listed to vse rigour towardes vsus. For the saide threat of the law is rightful, and might iustly be executed vponupon our heads: and if he spare vsus, it is of his owne mere goodnesse. For to what purpose should we put ouer the fault to our fathers, of prouoking Gods wrath both against themselues and vsus: when we our selues continue in their wickednes? Ought not the vengeance to be dubble, when we on our part hauehave cleaued to their sinnes as well as they? Thus ye see what we hauehave to remember vppon this place, where Moses doeth not onelyonly blame them that liued in his time for the things then presently committed: but also moreouer charge them with all the transgressions that their fathers had committed, from their comming out of Egypt, vntounto that day. Nowe then the thing that we hauehave to marke heere in effect, is that men doe not onelyonly marre themselues, by bearing themselues on hande that they bee righteous, for want of considering their sinnes throughly: but also that they puffe vp themselues with pride, so as they will needes make God beleeue that blacke is white. And therfore let it prouoke vsus to condemn our selues willingly according to this doctrine of Moses. So then, let vsus acknowledge our sinnes truly and vnfeynedly, yt we may so mislike of thē, as there may not one drop of fond presumptuousnesse remain in vsus, but that we may be vtterly cast downe, and acknoweledge that there is nothing but vtter wretchednesse in vsus, and that we be beholden to God for all goodnesse, so as we hauehave it of his free gift, and not as in recompence of any reward for any merit or desert of ours, but onelyonly of his own free mercy which he hath vsed towardes vsus. So farre then must we come of necessitie. And for performance hereof, let vsus euening & morning inforce and indeuour our selues to call to minde the faults that we hauehave committed. And that we may enter into this triall and examination of our selues: let vsus bethinke vsus both of our owne sinnes and of the sinnes of our forefathers, and let vsus assure our selues that if God woulde play the Iudge with vsus, wee shoulde not onelyonly bee vtterly rooted out, for our owne faultes which are yet freshe in our rememberance, but also all the euill that hath beene committed before we were borne, might iustly be called backe againe vponupon our heades, seeing wee be wrapped in the same offences that our auncetors were. Therefore let vsus thinke well vponupon these things: that wee may magnifie the goodnesse of our God in bearing with vsus. And to the intent wee play not the hypocrites: let vsus marke well how it is sayde, that it is ynough to hauehave prouoked GOD alreadie. For when they hauehave fought against God and his worde, and hauehave behaued themselues lewdly all the time of their lyfe: yet at their death they make no conscience to say, I thought I did as wel in fighting against God, as if I had fought against the Pope and the Masse. [What a thing is it] to vse such speech? Is it not apparant that such folke are vtterly past recouerie, as hauehave their consciences so dulled, and that the diuell carieth them away, so as they can no more be sorie for their sinnes, (which, as sayeth S. Paule,1. Tim. 4.2. is the full measure of all confusion:) when such gracelesse creatures will needes iustifie themselues after that sort with so vaine couertures? Let vsus marke well then, that wee must not alleage, I thought so: but it is ynough that we hauehave prouoked our God. And if moreouer our owne conscience accuse vsus thereof: what will become of vsus? Will God in the meane while become as a dead idoll which seeth not our offences at all? A man thinketh his owne wayes to bee good,Prou. 16.9. sayeth Salomon: but our Lorde holdeth the balance in his hand and weyeth our woorkes. And Saint Iohn telleth vsus, that if wee feele any heartbyting in our conscience:1. Iohn 3.20 the same iudgeth vsus alreadie: and what will become of vsus then, when wee come before God? Doeth not he see clearer than our owne consciences? Yes: and therefore let vsus marke wel that we shal win nothing by flattering of our selues: but God must be faine to woorke so in vsus, as we may bee ouermaistred and vtterly cast downe to say, Alas if GOD should not spare vsus wee were vndoone. And moreouer let vsus knowe, that our true righteousnesse, (I meane not to glory of it, but to seeke it to our benefite): is to beare Gods yoke, so as wee liue not after our owne lustes and lykinges, but that if it please GOD to exercise vsus with afflictions, wee shewe by all maner of patience, that wee hauehave a necke plyable vnderunder him. Finally for as much as his lawe ought to serue vsus for a brydle: let vsus suffer our selues to bee ruled and gouerned by his hand, so as we be not giuen to our owne foolishe deuotions, ne come replying to him with this and that, but be contented to let our GOD try our obedience, seeing hee hath giuen vsus his lawe. Then let vsus see that our life bee framed according to his will, which is the onelyonly rule of well dooing: and let vsus submit our selues wholy thereunto, as we see we be warned heere by Moses.
Nowe let vsus kneele downe before the maiestie of our good GOD with acknowledgement of our faultes, praying him to vouchsafe to touche vsus with them to the quicke, and to take from vsus all blynde foldinges of hypocrisie, that nothing may keepe vsus from being ashamed and cast downe in our selues, vntill wee bee raysed agayne by fayth and hope of his goodnesse and merciemercy: praying him also that when hee hath once made vsus to feele our diseases, it may please him to fill vsus with the grace of his holy spirite, so as wee may liue according to his good will. And so let vsus all say, Almighty God heauenly father, &c.