The Song of the Beloved Concerning His Vineyard, Part 2 · Chapter 11
CHAP. XI.
The ingratitude of the people, noted in this:
That the Vineyard brought forth wilde grapes, verſe 2.
NOW let vsus conſider how the Iewes anſwered the Lords expectation. This people, notwithſtanding all tho… What kind of fruites the Vineyard yeelded.benefits which the Lord in his louelove a… merciemercy had beſtowed on them, declar… themſelues a people moſt vnthankfu… neither was there euer any nation vnd… the heauens that ſo much deceiued t… hope and expectation of the Lord (as may ſpeake it after the manner of me touching the vnnaturall dealing, and … poſtaſie of that people, whoſe future degeneration and ingratitude, we cannot ſay but that God foreſaw from the begi… ning, and cauſed his ſeruant Moſes to ſ… Deut. 29. & 30. & 32.and write thereof, ere euer he brough… them into the land of Chanaan.
2. As ſoone as the Prophet h… ſhewed what the Lord expected, … namely, that he might receiue Grape… which his Vineyard ſhould (in all righ… and reaſon) hauehave yeelded him, he adde… by and by, how his hope and expectation therein was fruſtrated: for the Vineyard brought forth *Baaſhim. Wildgrapes ſtincking and bitter.Baaſchim, that is (a… the word noteth) a kind of fruite, whic… in ſmell is moſt odious and ſtincking; an… in taſte, moſt loathſome and vnſaueri… The ſmell of this fruite is as the ſtincke o… … dead Carion, eſpecially of the dead …ody of a man. The Prophet vſeth this …ord, when he ſpeaketh of the odious …hell of their dead bodies whome the …ord ſhould ſlay, Chapt. 34. 3. ſaying, …heir ſlaine ſhall be caſt out, and their ſtinke …all come vp out of their dead bodyes. And …e Prophet Ioel hath the ſame word, …hapt. 2. 20. His ſtincke ſhall come vp, and … corruption ſhall aſcend. And in this it …trarieth the Hebrew word, and the …eeke 'ároma, which is a moſt ſweeteA'roma. …l odoriferous ſcent, as of Myrre, Ci…mum, Calamus, Caſia, or pretious oint…ts, and ſweete hearbes and flowers.
3. The taſte of this fruite alſo, is as taſte of the ſap of wilde and ſowre …pes, or as the ſweete ieuſe or dropping …he willowes, and ſuch like, moſt bit…owre, harriſh, and loathſome, as that …on yecketh the ſtomacke, and prouo…h vomit. Neither is this fruite much …ike in taſte vntounto that roote of bitter…ſe,A roote of bitterneſſe. which (as the Apoſtle ſayth) ſprin…h vp and troubleth the Lords people, …r. 12. 14. Moreouer, Iob hath the …e word, the which is tranſlated (as it may well enough) Tares, or Cockle, a… Let thistles grow in ſteede of wheate, an… for Barley *Baaſcha.Baaſcha, the Tare or Cockle Chap. 31. 40. And in this place the Prophet vſeth the plurall number, to note that there were many of this kind, *Ex acerbis vuis ſuccus: arborum lachrymae, melligo. Dioſc. li. 3. ca. 9.th… Greekes call them Omphacas, ampélo… agrias agriamphélous, which the Lati… tranſlate, Labrustas, Labruſcas, vuas agr… ſtes, ſyluestres, & erraticas, and we cal the… wild grapes, as ſuch which grow in the edges, banks, and hedges of the Vine yard… and beſides the fields of corne, as weeds and things vnprofitable and noyſome.
4. It is certaine, that the Proph… meaneth by this word Baaſhim, not o… fruite, but many fruites, and that of ſu… a kind, as is not onelyonly contrary and noy… ſome to the right grapes; but alſo mo… loathſome, hatefull, and naught. By th… which, he would depaint and ſet forth not onelyonly the vnkindneſſe of the people of Iſrael and Iudah to the Lord: b… alſo the kinde of the fruites that th… brought forth and yeelded to the Lor… He ſayth not, that the Vineyard broug… forth nothing: for that had bene mo… tollerable; but that it brought forth …ruits, howbeit, moſt ſtincking, and vnſa…erie fruites. Benefites beſtowed, ſhould …e kindly accepted, acknowledged, re…embredIngratitude towards them that beſtow benefites. & wel requited: but here, they …e neither accepted with kindneſſe, nor …cknowledged, nor remembred, nor well …quited: nay beyond all this, which is …oſt monſtrous, they are rewarded with …il by them of whom the Prophet corn…ained in the perſon of Chriſt, They hauehave …warded me euill for my good, to the great …iefe of mine heart. Such fruits indeede …lded this vineyard, which were neither …ſwerable to the nature and kind of the …od plant, nor to the wiſdome, care, coſt …d diligence of the good husbandman: …t all contrary and naught, that farre …yond all hope and expectation.
5. But it is demaunded from whenceF… whence came thoſe naughtie fruites▪ …ſe naughtie fruites came? for it could …t be, that the good and choice Vine …uld bring thē forth, no more then the …od wheate could produce tares. Here … muſt note, that he ſaith not, that all …e Vineyard was of this Vine: but that … plāted therein this Vine. Now indeed the wilde grapes came not of this, as it appeareth, but of ſuch bitter rootes, as th… enuious man had planted, when the righ… vines were either oppreſſed or remoue… (as Iſa. 57. 1.) that is, the Diuell did ſow… tares, whiles men ſlept, and he went his wa… And this naughtineſſe could not be co… rected nor amended, nor changed (ſe… ing the Lord hath appointed eueryevery nat… rall thing to keepe his kinde) neither by the goodneſſe of the choice vine, no… by the commoditie of the place, not b… the diligence of the husbandman, b… muſt of force bring forth fruites aft… kind, as ſtincking and vnſauery fruites … the ſemblable rootes.
6. And here we may behold as in glaſſe, ye notable degeneration & naug… tineſſeThe degeneration of the Iewes. of the people of Iſrael and Iuda… who moſt ingratefull to the Lord the… God, did not only not bring forth frui… to him acceptable and pleaſant, but a… moſt iniuriouſly gaue place to the Diu… (as Adam did) and brought forth grap… of gall, and bitter cluſters, the wi… whereof, is the poyſon of Dragons, a… the cruell gall of Aſpes, as Moſes ſa… … Deut. 32. 32. 33. And the reaſon …ereof is alſo alleaged in the ſame Chap…, where he ſayth: Their Vine is (not …t choyce Vine which the Lord hath …nted, but) the vine of Sodom, and of the …es of Gomorah. Againe, they hauehave be…ed thēſelues frowardly towards him, … being his children, but a froward and …oked generation. And this Prophet in … firſt Chapter in the behalfe of the …rd, diſclaimeth them thus: Ah ſinfull …ion: a people laden with iniquitie, a …e of the wicked, corrupt children: they …e forſaken the Lord, they hauehave prouo… the holy one of Iſrael to anger, they …gone backward.
7. But did not the Lord foreſee this?God did foreſee all this, and ſpake of it before it came to paſſe. … doubtleſſe, for all things are open …ore his eyes, and he foreknoweth …m ere euer they come to paſſe, ney… can his hope be fruſtrated, nor his …ectation deceiued (as the hope and …ectation of a man is deceiued) and …refore was not this alſo hidden from …n, what fruites this Vineyard would …ld him. Moſes foretold of this in Deut. … 29. ſaying: I am ſure, that after my death ye will vtterly be corrupt, and tur… from the way which I hauehave commanded yo… And the Lord ſayth by this Prophet Iſa. 48. 8. I knew that thou wouldeſt grieuouſly tranſgreſſe, therefore hauehave I calle… thee a tranſgreſſour from the wombe: tha… is, from the time that I brought thee o… of Egypt. It is ſure that the Lord foreſa… their rebellion; and what he was to expec… from them, he knew wel enough: as like… wiſe he knew, before he made Ada… what would follow. Therefore this is no… ſpoken as if there were in God a doubtf… hope what would follow: nor doth th… Prophet ſubtilie diſpute what the Lor… expected in his own ſecret counſels: b… he telleth, how meete it was, that ye peop… ſhould hauehave ſhewed themſelues thank… full to him, whoſe great bleſſings and gr… ces on them beſtowed, they ſhould neyther forget, nor deny, nor reward with … uill, nor depriue themſelues of his day… bleſſings and benefits, through their ow… abhominations and ſinnes.
8. Thus the Lord hath commanded t… Goſpell to be preached & publiſhed to… for their obediēce to the faith: howbe… not ſo, as therefore in his ſecret counſe… be expecteth that obedience in all; for heGod doth not looke that all men ſhould be conuerted: for there will be ſome obſtinate and vngodly perſons to the end of the world …noweth wel, that all wil not beleeue, nor …ey. The godly are by the word of …od mollified, as waxe with the heate of …e Sunne, and drawen to repentance: the …her are hardned as clay, and made inex…iſable. Neither may we thinke, but that …e Lord hath made them enſamples vn… his owne children, who are wont to …emble, and take inſtruction at the con…deration of his iudgements on the wic…d, as the Lion is wont to do, when he …eth a dog beaten before him. And thus …e Lord doth not only foreknow what …ſueth, but alſo prouideth ſo, that euen …e ſame things which are moſt noyſome …d grieuous to the vngodly, are moſt ofitable & comfortable to his children. …nd in this, appeareth both the iudge…ent and merciemercy of the Lord: his iudge…ent on thoſe vnthankful Iewes: his mer…e on them which beleeue and continue … his grace, Rom. 11. 22.
…. To conclude, as the holy Ghoſt hath …kened thoſe works and duties which we we and are bound to yeeld to our God, … thoſe fruites which are of the beſt …ſte and liking, as to the fruite of the choyce vine, and the moſt pleaſant grape… then the which nothing is more acceptable and delightſome to the Husbandman: ſo hath he compared mans diſobedience, ingratitude and ſinnes, the whic… he ſhould warily eſchue and abandon, t… thoſe fruits that are of the worſt taſte an… moſt loathſome, as to the wild and ſow… Grape: then the which, nothing is mo… hatefull and vnpleaſant: He ſayth, tha… the Vineyard of the Lord, namely, th… houſe of Iſrael and the Iewes, yeelde… him wild grapes; that is to ſay, fruites mo… odious & noyſome: whereas they ſhoul… hauehave yeelded him good fruites and profitable. And in this, they hauehave not followedGen. 4. 4. 5. that righteous Habel, who offred v… to the Lord that which was good: b… they followed that wicked Cayn, who offred vp that which was naught and noyſome, to the great diſpleaſure of God… they brought forth vntounto him, not th… thankfull fruits of a good faith, but th… vnpleaſant fruites of faithleſſe ingratitude: as in the Chapter following, it ſha… be plainely declared, by the grace o… God.