King Solomons Solace, Book · Chapter 14
CHAP. XIV.
The cauſe of king Solomon his griefe was not of his match with the daughter of Pharao. 2 Nor of his amitie with Hyram the King of Tyre. 3 Nor of that he royally entertained the Queene of Sheba. 4 Nor of his owne infirmitie of age. 5 Nor of the feare of death.
IT cannot be denied (ſaid Iehoſophat) but that our ſoueraigne Lord Solomō, hath done equity and righteouſnes in his procéedings and actions, tending therin to the end of his gouerment, for his own diſcharge the good of his people, and (aboue all) the honour of Iehovah his God who for the ſame be prayſed for euermore. But now the queſtion is, and the matter argued, augmented and caried from mouth to mouth among the kings Subiects, (for of this the kinges alteration, many men talke diuerſly, and imagin many thinges) whether the king hath iuſtlie offended in his match with the daughter of king Pharao the Egyptian whom he brought into the cittie of David. And here they call to minde, not onelyonly what the law hath prouided in this caſe: but that which the Patriarch Iſaack hath charged to Iacob touching the daughters of Canaan which he would not that he ſhould touch:Iud. 14.3. as alſo what Manoah and his godlie wife ſpake to their ſonne Sampſon the Nazarite, when he would hauehave taken a wife from among the vncircumciſed Philiſtines. Howbeit I doubt not but that the king being paſſing wiſe and prudent, knoweth well how to diſgeſt that morſell, and to reſolue that doubt. Moreouer, it is not vnknowne vntounto vsus, that albeit this Princeſſe was a ſtranger vntounto vsus and our Religion, whiles ſhee remained at her fathers houſe in Egypt: yet as ſhe was not of the brood of thoſe cankered hearted Chananites & nations which the Lord willed our Fathers to expell and roote out: ſo would not the king aduenture either to touch her, or to bring her into his owne houſe, (although ſhe was both a noble and beautifull Ladie) till time that was done and performed on her,Deu. 21.13. which the Law in that caſe preſcribeth: but cheifely, as ſhe had forſaken her owne people and her fathers houſe thē polluted with many abominations: ſo turned ſhe to the Lord God of Iſrael with al her heart, for the louelove ſhe had both to him and his holie Religion. And truelie this is alſo well obſerued, that as Rahab of Ierico, a belieuing woman and conuert, was both admitted and eſteemed of the nomber of the true Iſraelites in the dayes & by the wiſdom of valiant Ioſuah: and as Ruth the Moabitiſh woman was married to Booz king Davids Grandfather: and as king David himſelfe refuſed not faire Thamar whome he had gotten in the warres: and as other our forefathers hauehave not abāndoned ſuch womē vpō their true conuerſiō to ye Lord: ſo neither we abhor ſuch as admit circumcition, & faithfully ſerue the true God, notwithſtanding they be of the Gentiles: knowing or at the leaſt preſuming that the Lord God, hath euen among them, ſome that are his people alſo: that the ſtarre which Balaam ſomtime ſaw, might lighten them in their due time, as we are lightned: and that ſhall be then whē the praier of Noah ſhall be both heard and effected, wherein he deſired the Lord to enlarge the tentes of Iaphet, & to ſeiſe him in the tentes of Shem, to whom he would that Shanan ſhould be a ſeruant. Now the king in this regard would often ſay of this Ladie.pſal. 45. The daughter of the king is beautifull within, her garments are of beaten gold. And herſelfe, although time was ſhe could ſay of herſelfe: I am but blacke O ye daughters of Hieruſalem, for whie, Cant. 4.1.the Sun hath ſhined vponupon mine head: yet now hauing no meane pleaſure in her beautie,Cant, 4.1. he could iuſtlie commend her to her face ſaying thus: How faire art thou my louelove? how faire art thou? thou haſt Doues eyes, beſides that which within thee lieth hidden. Wherein doubtleſſe as he hath made her a liuelie figure, of the church of God to be gathered of and among the Gentiles in time to come: ſo ſheweth he, what is and ſhall bee the glorie of the ſame, and wherein the praiſe thereof conſiſteth: therefore to declare the Lordes good pleaſure therein, we hauehave both heard and conſidered what the ſwéet Pſalmiſt of Iſrael (euen the kinges father) both propheſied, and diuinely modulated thereof in theſe wordes.
O daughter now take heed, incline, and giuegive good eare:
Thou must forſake thy kindred all and fathers houſe moſt deere,
So ſhall the king affect thy beautie faire and trim:
For why he is the Lord thy God, & thou muſt worſhip him.
The Daughters then of Tyre, with gifts full rich to ſee,
And all the wealthy of the land, ſhal make their ſuits to thee.
Secondly, after this (as it is left in Record) King Solomon loued Iehova his God, walking in the ordināces of David, his father, & offered vntounto the Lord a 1000. whole burnt offerings: & the Lord being louing & moſt mercifull vntounto him, did not only accept the ſame at his hands, but had him aſke of him whatſoeuer he would, that it might be giuē him. He aſked wiſedome, & the Lord his God heard him, granted him his requeſt, & declared his louelove & good pleaſure towards him, his actiōs, & procéedings, by many notable arguments, the which (as we may perſuade with the wife of Manoah) he would neuer hauehave done, had he not loued him, or had he bin willing to hauehave reprobated him. Thirdly, albeit the Egyptians which had forgotten Ioſeph, and the manifolde benefites they enioyed by him in his time, had grieuouſly afflicted our fathers (as Moſes hath recorded it) yet, as before that time, our Fathers Abraham, Iſaack, and Iacob, and their children hauehave found refreſhing and comfort from thence, and therefore hauehave been contented to ſoiourne there, and to ioyne in amitie with them: ſo without any abuſe of our Religion, or danger of our conſciences or iuſt offence to any (being ſtedfaſtly purpoſed to reteine the right honour of Iehova our God) we could not ſee,How farre we may win amitie with ſtrangers. why we ſhould denie this amitie, or to conuerſe with them that are well pleaſed, not only to help vsus at al needs with the things that appertaine to the vſe and comfort of bodyes and life: but alſo to bee reclaymed, and willingly conſent to ſerue the Lorde of Iſrael, together with vsus, circumciſing the foreſkins of their hearts, as Moſes exhorteth. And to ſuch a purpoſe aymed our fathers the ſonnes of Iacob, Gen. 34.14.when ſpeaking of the cauſe in queſtion betweene Sechem and Dina their ſiſter, whom he deſired, they anſwered Sechem and Hamor his father ſaying: We cannot doe this thing to giuegive our ſiſter to an vncircumciſed man, for that were a reproofe vntounto vsus: but in this will we conſent vntounto you, if ye will be as we are, that eueryevery man childe among you be circumciſed: then will we giuegive our daughters to you, & we will take your daughters to vsus, & will dwel with you and be one people. Neuertheles, to auoyd al occaſiō of iuſt offence, which might be taken of the kings wiues, being brought into the houſe of David, becauſe the place was ſanctified, and the Arke of God was repoſed therein: therefore the king built a houſe for this Quéene remote from Bethlem, & placed her therin, where ſhe continued. Neither hauehave we heard any exception made (as yet) to the king for ſuch his matching or conuerſing with her. Therefore I perſwade, that this is not the thing which ſo much offends him now, except perchaunce he perceiueth that ſhe hath a deſire to returne againe into Egypt, and to looke backe behinde him, as the vnhappy wife of Lot did, the which the Lord forbid: or that there is mooued twirt them ſome ſecret emulatiō, ielouſie, or diſlike, wherof I may not preſume to talke, nor might I, were I able to expreſſe it, the wringing of the ſhoo being knowne to him only which weareth it.
Helioreph.Ye hauehave very well ſaid my Lord (quod noble Helioreph) and the like may bee well reſolued of the kings amitie with Hyram the Prince of Tyrus and Sidon: although there bee of our nation, that thereat bee much offended, diſliking that the Iſraelites ſhould meddle with, or hauehave to doe with any of them which are without: no leſſe then in times paſt, it was an abomination to the Egyptians to eat and drinke with the Hebrewes. And ſurely this affinitie and amitie was not made vponupon meane occaſions, nor (indeede) without an eſpeciall inſtinct of Gods ſpirite, which had mooued and perſwaded Hyram (though an heathen Prince) without the motion of king Solomon, as of his owne accord, to deſire and ſeeke for this league and ſocietie, the which truely was firſt begun betweene king David and him, from whom David gratefully acknowledged the receiuing of many good things, yea, and ſuch, as were appointed and laid vp to and for the building of the Lords houſe in Ieruſalem. In regard of that amitie with his father, being now renewed, and yet continued with him hee vouchſafed to honor him with the name of his father, calling him his father Hyram. Wherein, as he verily manifeſted his right thankefull minde, to ſo bountifull a benefactor, and godly wel-willer: ſo learneth he all children (as by a true Copie) in what honor, reuerence, & eſtimatiō they ſhould hold thoſe perſons who had beene not onelyonly familiar, but moſt louing and beneficiall vntounto their Parents in their liues. Likewiſe in king Hyrams combination with Solomon, as there is a perfect intimation of the coniunction of both the Iewes and Gentiles within one Temple, as whereof the myſtycall Church ſhould be compleate in the time appoynted: ſo are they which yet be without to yeeld obedient heartes to this perſwaſion of the diuine ſpirit, as whereby with all alacritie and ready willes they might run after him, which both mooueth and draweth them: according to that louely word, and deſire of the holy Spowſeſſe, whom the King in his moſt excellent ſong bringeth in with this ſaying:Cant. 3: O draw me foorth after thee, and then ſhall we run. Next it was reſpected, that king Hyrā was a man very wiſe, he feared & ſerued Iehovah the God of Iſrael, and was wonderfully qualified in all kinde of princely graces: Elſe truly would not king David hauehave obliged himſelfe in ſuch a mutuall louelove with him, who (as himſelfe proteſted) could neuer abide either prophane perſons, or froward hearts: or any of them which had an euill wil at Zion. Neither would the king himſelfe (as we well know) being as the Angell of God, perfit in knowledge, of exquiſite wiſedome, repleate with the ſpirit of God, and chiefly then, when both the Lord loued him, fauoured him and bleſſed him with an admirable peace, and namely in the time wherein he was buſied in the building of the Lords houſe, wherein he euer depended on the helpe and hand of God to aſiſt him: hauehave had any commerce or dealing at all with Hyram, had he not well knowen, that as it was Gods will and working therein: ſo Hyram was a perſon that was to be regarded. Thirdly, Hyram was right beautifull and ſet (as it were) in the pleaſant Paradiſe,Ezec. 28. deckt with all manner of pretious ſtones, with Rubies, Tophas, Diamond, Thurkoie, Onyx, Iaſper, Saphyr, Emeralde, Carbuncle and gold: with Tymbrels and Muſicall pipes: he was as an annointed Cherub and holy, placed in the ſacred mount of God, and made perfect in his wayes. A king of Maieſtie, and of excellent regard for his admirable vertues,Hyram his name interpreted. worthily alluding to his noble name, being (as one would ſay) loving exceedingly the promotion of life the beautie of them that appertaine to him: freedome or libertie, an high mountaine, a faithfull watch, a bearing or powring forth, that is to ſay, of treaſures and good thinges for the helpe and comfort of others: the citie or refuge of them that maintaine peace, and a diſcovering or vnderſtanding of thinges, divine and profitable.
Fourthly, as this right noble Prince, had an eſpeciall louelove to the Lord the God of Iſrael, and his moſt holy Religion, and therefore affected wondrous well both king David, 1. King. 5.1.7.8.and our Lord K. Solomon: ſo was hee euer moſt glad, willing and ready to ſend vntounto either of them, whatſoeuer they requeſted of him, for and towardes the building of both the Lords houſe, and alſo the kinges houſe, in the greateſt aboundance: for as his land was plentifull and abounding with all thoſe thinges before mentioned, that by the eſpecial bleſſing of God, ſo thought he they could not be better employed, then on the king, and chiefly to, and for ſo excellent a monument as he had purpoſed to erect to the name of Iehovah his God, & the ſame God (I ſay) which Hyram alſo ſo deuoutely honored, to the prayſe of his Maieſty, the true ſolace of his ſoule, and the good example of others. Furthermore, Hyram reioycing greatly to heare tel of our Soueraigne Lord, now lately aduā ced on the glorious ſeate of his father, hee glorified God with this ſaying: Bleſſed be the Lord this day, who hath given vntounto David a wiſe ſonne to raigne ouer this mightie people! Moreouer hee ſent a meſſage to the king, ſaying: I have conſidered all the things of the which thou haſt ſent vntounto me: and I wil ſurely accompliſh all thy deſire therein, &c. So that both the faith and pietie of king Hyram was plainely manifeſted in this kinde of congratulation of Solomons graces, eſpecially for that religious inſtitution, concerning the ſetting forth of the holy Religion, as whereby not onelyonly we Iewes might glorie of this, that wee hauehave beene earneſt profeſſors of Gods law, and builders of his houſe: But that alſo the Gentiles, whom wee ſometimes abhorred, are by the diuine fauour inſtigated and perſwaded to conioine with vsus in the performance of the ſame, the which alſo, as wee hauehave ſeene happilie to commence, hath been continued and yet is enioyed to the comfort of vsus all. Therefore as for this benefit wee are bound to be thankfull to God and gratefull to that good King: ſo hauehave wee not found, or may perceiue any iuſt cauſe of offence to ſpring therence, or that the King ſhould thereof be greeued and perplexed in mind, as at this time we obſerue him to bee. There is ſome other matter doubtles that cauſeth the ſadneſſe, the which would to God wee could both find and remedy with ſpeede: for long delayes bring dangers, eſpecially in the cure of a wounded & languiſhing head.
Then Lord Ahiah opening his mouth ſpake to this effect; Ye hauehave well ſaide of the two former, namely, touching king Pharaohs daughter, and the Tyrian king, with whome the kinges Maieſtie hath vnited himſelfe with the former in mariage, with the ſecond in mutual amitie.Ahiah ſpeaketh of the Queene of Saba. And this alſo may bee ſpoken of the moſt vertuous Queene of Arabia, that vponupon the report of the kinges ſeruantes, which were ſent at Ophir for gold, prepared herſelfe in great roialtie, and came hether to this end to heare the kinges wiſedome, and to learne the religion of Iehovah our God, and thereon ſhe was happilie taught & inſtructed, being (no doubt) moued and perſwaded thereunto by the diuine power, who as we perceiue is willing that the Gentiles ſhould partake with vsus of thoſe thinges which appertaine to the higheſt honour of our God, and eternall happineſſe (as ye hauehave before intimated) Now therefore, the king knowing the purpoſe of God in this point, and vnderſtanding by his wiſedome, that her repaire vntounto him was for this very end, hee gladly welcomed her with her traine,1. King. 10. and moſt willingly ſatiſfied her mind eueryevery way: for he declared vntounto her al her hard queſtions, touching thoſe diuine things (for ſhe had propounded many vntounto him) ſo that there was not one thing hiddē frō the king, which he expounded not vntounto her: But when ſhe ſaw his royall Maieſtie with her eyes, heard his words with her eares, and well conſidered the admirable building of his houſe, the excellēt orders of his noble Princes & ſeruants, and many ſemblable things farre paſſing all others, and beyond the report ſhe had heard (which yet was merueilous) ſhe was throughlie rauiſhed and aſtonied, and thereon brake forth, bleſſing the Lord, bleſſing the kings royall maieſtie, and thoſe his ſeruants with many emphaticall wordes and wonderfull geſtures of bodie: declaring her ſelfe at this time, rather a true Iewiſh deuoted with the zeale of the glorie of our God, then a Gentile; as one educated and nurtured not in Arabia, but in the Cittie of Ieruſalem, yea, in Sion the Lords holie hill and ſanctified Tabernacle all the daies of her life.What kind of perſons king Solomon accepted into league. And here note (I beſeech you) that as our moſt ſacred Soueraigne hath entred league or affinitie with none of this kind (I meane the out-landiſh) before that they had acknowledged the Lord, conuerted vntounto him, and made faithfull voues and promiſſes to be the Lordes and to feare him, (as ſomtimes Ruth and Rahab had done) as the law in that caſe did require: ſo refuſed he not any, whoſoeuer in this mind and ſinceritie of heart, came or offered themſelues vntounto him with a deſire either to learne of him wiſdome, or to gratifie his wiſdome, glorie, and proſperitie, according to the true ſenſe of the ſame law: In or by the which, we hauehave not found that the State of our holie Religion, hath beene at any time altered, or the ſame any way empaired or neglected: but we hauehave ſeene that by this our ſhining candle many other candles hauehave beene kindled, and our owne nothing blemiſhed or conſumed thereby. All this (doubtleſſe) was in our king very prayſe-worthy, as that which fitteth the high honor of a Soueraigne Prince.
Ahiſhar ſpeaketh of the kings age, and of his declining and death* In very truth as ye hauehave well ſpoken (quod Ahiſhar) But heare mee (my Lordes) might not this griefe be occaſioned of this: that the king now ſtriken in yeares and well knowing himſelfe a mortall man, (though a maieſticall King in his place) doth either by his rare wiſdome or ſome late inſpiration perceiue that he muſt of neceſſitie ſhortlie giuegive ouer, and yeeld to him (alas) which is prepared both to arreſt him, and to carry him captiue to his long home, in the which being repoſed and laid among the deade,Iob. 7.7.8. the eye that ſaw him before ſhall ſee him no more (as ſaid Iob) neither ſhall his eye returne to ſee pleaſure in this life nor ſhall he thenceforth féele the delights of the ſonnes of men,A deſcription of old age. he ſhall no returne to his houſe, neither ſhall his place know him any more. Againſt the which time therefore, we perceaue in man (as the king himſelfe hath ſaid) that the Sun is darke, the light, the Moon the ſtars: and the cloudes returne after the raine: the kéepers of his houſe tremble, the ſtrong men bow thēſelues,Eccleſ. 12. the grinders ceaſe, becauſe they be few, and they which looke out by the windowes waxe darke, the gates without be ſhut, by ye baſe ſound of the grinding, and he riſeth vp at the birdes voyce, and all the daughters of Muſicke are abaſed. Alſo he dreadeth the high things and feareth in the way, the Almond tree floriſheth and the Graſhoppers are a burthen, and concupiſcence is extinguiſhed: for he goeth to the houſe of his age, the receptacle of all fleſh and the mourners go about in the ſtreat. The ſiluer lace is not lengthned, the golden yewer is broken, the pitcher is cracked at the well, the wheele is torne at the ciſterne, and duſt returneth to the earth as it was. The conſideration of this dolefull alteration in man, (which yet is not effected but by a ſtrong and forcible meane) cannot but terrifie eueryevery man liuing. And ſure it is,A deſcription of death. that when a man ſhall ſée griſely death inuading and aſſaulting him, he ſhall be forthwith agonized, quite quailed in conceit and vexed in his ſoule, yea, albeit he be not as yet compelled to yeeld vp his ſpirit: for as death is in nature a tyraunt, & ſo cruell to all things which hauehave life, ſo approacheth he as a mighty giant or man of arms with his bent bow and pearcing dart, looking moſt ſternelie, dealing moſt rigorouſly, tearing and renting his pray right Lion-like without reſcue. Moreouer as this is the ſame, which all liuing and ſenſible creatures both feare and abhorre:The anguiſh of him whom death ſummoneth. ſo a man once touched with his deadlie dart knowing that now by the force thereof he is compelled to forſake and leaue his father and his mother, his wiſe and his children, his friends and his acquaintance, his wealth & his ſubſtance, with all the glory, pleaſures and delights, of this world: he is grieued, he ſoroweth, he weepeth and lamenteth, perplexed aſwell in minde, as in body with this moſt wofull complaint. Time was, that I was much pleaſed and delighted in all theſe thinges, enioying and vſing them with great gladnes & ioy: but now (alas) I ſee him approching, & invading me, which constraineth me to flie, & to relinquiſh all thoſe my delightes with weeping eyes & ſorrowe of heart! But yet, ſuch as ſtand in the toppe of this worldes happines (as the King beyond all others hath ſtoode and proſpered theſe many yeeres with heartes deſier and ſoules ſolace) they moſt of all tremble and be aboue meaſure troubled, euen then when they ſhall but heare of deaths comming, much more when they feele the dint of his dart: of the which I hauehave heard the king himſelfe in his wiſe Parables to ſpeake, the which ſaying, for the grauity thereof is coppied out and tranſlated by the learned into many languages.Syrac. had taken this from Solomons words in Egypt. O death! how bitter is the remembrāce of thee to that man, who ſeeketh reſt and conſolation in his ſubſtance and riches: VntoUnto that man which hath nothing to vexe or trouble him: but that hath proſperitie in all thinges? And this griefe is much augmented and aggraued in this; that though a man bee neuer ſo rich, honourable and pleaſured in this life: yet ſhall he not carry away any of thoſe riches, honours or pleaſures with him at his death: but as he came into the world naked from the womb of his Mother: ſo goeth hee thether againe out of this worlde all naked. Moreouer, in the graue whereto he tendeth, hee ſhall enioy neither ſenſe, feeling, vnderſtanding nor facultie of working (as the King himſelfe hath ſaide) no, nor yet that poſſibilitie to praiſe God, nor to giuegive him thankes in the Hell (as David alſo modulated) the ſame beeing a place both of darkeneſſe and ſilence, wherein man being defrauded of his hope and expectation the moſt glorious King is made equall with the pooreſt beggar, the ſtrongeſt Captaine with the baſeſt captiue: the wiſe with the foole, the rich with the poore, the happy with the wretched, the beautifull with the deformed, and the liuing with the deade: For there is the ſame condition vntounto them all, without difference. Therefore hath the king preferred a liuing dogge in hope,Eccles. 9.4. before a dead lyon, in diſpaire. * Then anſwered Abiather, Indéede, that thing which ſeparateth the ſoule from the body, ſo altereth mans nature and reduceth eueryevery man, of what degree ſoeuer hee bee, into one and the ſame condition, yea, into the ſame confuſed Chaos or lumpe from whence hee was taken and formed, is worthily dreaded of all men. But death is the ſame indéede. Therefore may I wel compare him to that fearfull Hiena, Death is like the beaſt Hiena.which being an enemy to mankind hath a vipers necke, an Elephants back, a mans voice, the quantitie and qualitye of a Wolfe, the haire of an horſe, and in ſexe changeable as ſomtimes male, ſometimes female. For Death which is an extream aduerſary to mans life, and ſeeketh how to deſtroy him, ſtaieth not his expectted time and tide, nor waiteth mans leaſure, whether he be prepared or not prepared, but haſteneth and preuenteth it, as doth the viper the naturall time of birth, comming forth by piercing the wombe of his mother, the cauſe of her preſēt death. 2. the Elephant is a beaſt fit for the wars, and Death as a man of warre is oppoſed to al things that hath life in this world and ouercommeth them. 3. Death is a deceiuer of mortall men: for albeit it is certaine, that all men ſhal dye yet is his hower vncertaine, taking them away when they thinke not of him, and yer they be ready, as the Hiena deceiueth by faining a mans voice. 4. Death is a conſumer of the liues of all things that liue, as the Wolfe is a deuourer of the ſheepe, without ſacietie. 5. Death is neither reſtrained nor hindered in his courſe, as the wild horſe being ſtiffe necked wil not be bowed. 6. Death killeth now men, then women ſparing no ſexe, no age, no degrée of perſons, as the Hiena which altereth kind. Therefore is death worthily dreaded of all men. Howbeit, we cannot yet learne or perceiue that the king hath either ſuch warning: or if he had, would hee be much aſtoniſhed or wofull. For being a man of an excellent ſpirit he feareth not Death, whoſe day (as I hauehave heard him to ſay) is better in reſpect, then the birth day of a man, and that the dead are more happy then the liuing; and therefore hath thus counſailed the liuing. Be not feareful of death. Remēber them yt hauehave gone before thee, & them yt come after thee. This is the iudgement of the Lord vponupon al fleſh: & why wouldſt thou be againſt the pleaſure of the moſt high? whether it be tenne, and hundred, or a thouſand yeeres, death neuer asketh how long a man hath liued? Againe he hath ſaid that death (though a tyrant in nature) is yet acceptable and welcome to ſome ſorts of liuing creatures and namely to the man whoſe ſtrength faileth him, to him that is come to his laſt age, and to him that is ful of care and fearefulnes, and in miſerie in this life. Which ſentences for th'excellencie thereof, are alſo copied out, and notified vntounto many other nations, which gladly accept and embrace them. Moreouer the King hath ſaid, that howſoeuer a man be dead and laid ſenſeles in the graue among the dead, and duſt be returned into duſt: that yet his Soule, (which is the beſt part of man) returneth vntounto God that gave it, that is not to die with the body, but to liue and continue for euer with him whoſe Image it beareth, that fréely exonerated off and from all the miſerable torments and vexations which aſſaile men in this tranſitory life. By the which (as among ſome other his words) we find: as a wiſe man ſhould not be daunted with the terror of death, but rather expect and embrace him: ſo himſelfe is nothing moued therewith,Feare not death. being of all men the wiſest. His reaſons therefare many from the which wee take and gather theſe which follow. Firſt that Death is better then life: or the day of the death happier then the birth day. We may ſimply beleeue him therein.Mors ita. qualis vita. For death is the renewing of a mans nature, I meane to him that leadeth a godly life: for if the life of a man be good, his death cannot be euil. And as men do alwaies deſire that which is good: ſo neither do they feare that which therein they deſire. Secondly, this is that which belongeth to the cōdition of mans nature: for he is borne into the worlde, not to ſtay here, but to dye and to depart againe, therefore, as no man can dye which hath not firſt liued, ſo neither ſhall any liue which ſhall not alſo dye in this world. Thirdly this is the decree of the almighty vponupon all fleſh once to dye, to whoſe will and pleaſure therein al men muſt yeeld & obey,Gen. 3 as good ſubiects to their prince in his place and authority. And therefore we ſhould neither murmur at, nor feare that, which he hath ordained, knowing withall, that he decreeth nothing but that which is good and profitatable for his children. Fourthly, this is not onelyonly Gods decrée but alſo his good pleaſure by this to glorifie himſelfe, and to benefite his children. To whome euen death which came in through ſinne, might notwithſtanding bee a meane to deliuer men from the ſame, when his iuſtice therin ſhalbe ioyned with mercy and louing kindnes. Fifthly, by this meſſenger men are ridde and diſcharged of many troubles, vexations, ſorrowes, & miſeries, which oppres and grieue them in this, yea, & through faith in the Meſſias, from all ſinne and dangers of Soule, that follow after, and awaite them in this worlde. Sixthly, a man may be comforted by th'examples of them that hauehave paſſed before him and the conſideration of ſuch as follow him. This hath ſeiſed on father, mother, brother, ſiſter, and friend. This hath fallen on Adam, on Abel, on Noah, on Abraham, on Moſes, Ioſuah, Samuel and David, and it ſhall not paſſe ouer them that come after thée. Seuenthly, this yeeldeth a man reſt from his labours; yea, it yeeldeth the due both to heauen and earth: for hereby the ſoule returneth to God, that gaue it, and the body to the duſt from whence it was taken. This the king conſidereth and feareth not death: but as a man that hath trauailed and now wel neare finiſhed a long and perilous voyage is rather glad and ioyfull, then ſory or wofull, when hee ſeeth himſelfe ſo neare the end thereof, and would be vnwilling to begin his voyage againe, eſpecially being weary: ſo ye king being thus farre proceeded, paſſing through the dangerous ſurges of the vanities of this life, he is rather ioyfull, glad, and ready to reſigne ouer his ſoule to his maker, his body to the earth, and his royall dignitie to an other, then any way wofull or fearefull of death, the end of this voyage. Neither is he ignorant of this (for he hath the higheſt knowledge of all men liuing) that ſo long onelyonly a man ſhoulde deſire to liue in this worlde, as he may bee well able, to glorifie God, and to performe his duty in the ſame (which ſhalbe ſo long,How long a man ſhould deſire to liue here. as the time of his miniſtry in this life is by the diuine prouidēce appointed to endure, & no lōger) and that when the time of this his ſeruice is determined, he ſhould then deſire rather to depart hēce thē to liue any longer, aſſuring himſelfe yt hee ſhall neither effect nor performe any thing out of the due time (for eueryevery thing and eueryevery worke hath his opportunity and time, as the King hath ſaid) This time therefore abſerued Noah, Abraham, Iſaack Iacob, Ioſeph, Moſes, Ioſuah, Samuel, David and other our godly forefathers in their liues. And this time (I am aſſured) the King ſhall accompliſh, and therein ſhall doe and performe that onelyonly, which the Lord hath appointed him in his place, for his glory and the benefit of his people. Thus farre the Princes were contented to heare one another of them, and withall to iuſtifie that which had beene ſaide for the King. Howbeit, howſoeuer ſome of them diſſembled the matter, there was not yet any one of thē that either declared or reuealed the cauſe of the Kinges affliction. Neither (indeede) was hee which knew the matter, willing to open it, becauſe it touched the Kings Maieſtie. Whereby it was like to bee as daungerous to his perſon and ſtate, as the malady is to that patient the cauſe of whoſe griefe is neither reuealed nor wel known to the phiſician. This the lords cōſidered: therfore they yet deſiſted not to ſearch & enquire further vntil they found out the cauſes of the kings preſent ſickneſſe.