Sermons upon the Fifth Chapter of the Song of Solomon, Title page – Dedication
CERTAINE VErie worthie, godly and profitable Sermons, vponupon the fifth Chapiter of the Songs of SOLOMON:
Preached by BARTIMEVS ANDREAS, Miniſter of the word of God; Publiſhed at the earneſt and long requeſt of ſundrie well minded Chriſtians.
ESAY. 62.6.7 I hauehave ſet watchmen on thy walles, (O Ieruſalem) which all the day and all the night continually shall not ceaſe: yee that are mindfull of the Lord, keepe not ſilence: And giuegive him no reſt till he repayre, and vntill he ſet vp Ieruſalem the praiſe of the worlde.
2. TIM. 2.19. But the foundation of God remayneth ſure, and hath this zeale. The Lord knoweth who are his: and let eueryevery one that calleth on the name of Chriſt depart from iniquitie.
AT LONDON; Printed by Robert Waldegraue, for Thomas man. 1583.
TO THE RIGHT honorable and my very good Lorde, Henrie, Earle of Huntington, Lorde Hastings, Hungerforde, Botreaux, Mullens & Moyles, of the moſt honorable order of the garter Knight, & Lord preſident of the Queenes Maieſties councel eſtablished in the North parts, Bartimeus, Andrewes, wisheth increaſe of all true honour, and the fruition of all thoſe bleſſed promiſes, which concerne this life and the life to come. Amen.
BEING at the laſt ouercome (right honorable) by the long and earneſt requeſt of diuers Godly and wel diſpoſed chriſtians, to yeeld my conſent to the publiſhing of this to homly and ſimple a worke: I forthwith was reſolued in my ſelfe to dedicate the firſt fruits of my labour in this kinde of wryting vntounto your honour, as to a moſt worthy MECOENAS and conuenient Patron both of all learning and good cauſes And albeit at the firſt bluſh it may ſeeme ſome what ſtraunge vntounto your honour, that I ſhould preſume to preſent you with ſo ſimple a gift being vnworthy the view of ſo honorable a perſonage, and wiſe. Yet becauſe I do it, not as one expecting anye temporall benefite or preferment at your hand (as the maner of the worlde for the moſt part in ſuch matters is): But as a token rather of my ſpeciall good will, and duety towards you, and an argument of thankfulneſſe vntounto God for his graces in you, as alſo to miniſter ſome occaſion of increaſe and going forwarde, with conſtancy and Heroicall ſpirite in ſo good, gracious and Godly wayes as you hauehave turned your feete to ſteppe in already: I perſwade my ſelfe therefore of your facile and curteous nature and good will in accepting of the ſame. And euen this ſmall duety of wryting is one point of the honouring and gratifying of our betters, and thoſe to whom we ſtand charged from the Lorde to perfourme duties of reuerence and honour. Eſpecially when we ſee the Image of God by the ſeconde creation, to ſhine in them, as it doth breake forth in your honourable and vertuous breſt, by many worthy and commendable graces and vertues, with the plauſible approbation fame and report, both of the wiſe and Godly. I ſpeake not this as one that would fill the trompe of flattery, with the winde of vaineglorious praiſe, to ſeeme to ſpeake for your honour to the worlde (for that is not my maner) ſith your vertuous religious and Godlye wayes, ſpeake for them ſelues, to your great commendation, and your euerlaſting praiſe in Chriſte Ieſus. But I ſpeake of the worke of God in you (right honorable) that God might hauehave his iuſt glory in his owne worke, and your ſelfe might alſo be incouraged with comfort to proceede and increaſe in that good courſe, ſo as the worke of God which is begun might be perfited in you. For ſure it is (my very good Lord) that the enemy of mankind ſeeketh to beſet, as all men, ſo ſpecially thoſe, whome the Lorde beginneth to frame to him ſelfe; but chieflyeſt thoſe, that are as it were ouer frayghted with the aboundaunce of the troubleſome affayres of this preſent life, by reaſon of their great calling. For they whom God calleth to ſo great honour, riches and dignity are (as one wiſely wryteth) ſet vponupon the mayne ſea of occaſions, in daunger to bee drenched and ſwallowed vp of the tempeſtuous rages, and ſurging waues of diuers temptations, if the Lorde doe not mightely by his grace ſupport and vnderſtay them. But when God ſtandeth by them, and frameth their heartes to the louelove of his truth, then doth he reape great honour and glory at their handes. VVhichWhich he highly priſeth and reckoneth off, inſomuch, that he hath honorably ſpoken of ſuch by his Prophetes that they ſhoulde bring much glory to his Church,Eſay. 49.23. & 60.16. and be nurſing fathers and nurſing mothers therevnto, yea the glory of LEBANON (euen of great perſonages) ſhal come togeather to beautify the place of my ſunctuary (ſaith the Lorde), for I will glorify the place of my feete.Eſay. 60.13. For the ſeruice which ſuch ſhoulde doe to his Church was not a ſeruile condition, but a beautifying of his Church, as it is there called, and a glory euen vntounto him ſelfe. And vndoubtedly bleſſed are thoſe Princes, Nobles, honourable and worſhipfull, who them ſelues imbracing and obeying the truth ſincerely, become preſidentes and examples in their owne perſons, to allure others to the fellowſhip of the church, to the louelove of the worde and true religion. For the fall or vpriſing of many after a ſort dependeth vponupon the publique perſons whom God hath lift vp in high places ouer others. Inſomuch as the eyes of the multitude are bene vponupon the examples of publique perſons: Furthermore wee ſee from time to time, howe the Church of God (not without great cauſe) accounted highly of ſuch perſonages as thoſe by whom they receiued ſpeciall bleſſings from the Lorde. So the church of Iſrael,Pſal. 21.6. made precious account of DAVID that worthy Prince, as one that was ſet of God as bleſſings for euer, Meaning as a benefite and teſtimony of Gods fauour vponupon his people. EZEKIAH, NEHEMIAH,Neh. 1. & 2. Hag. 1.14. Ier. 40. 2. Chr. 35.25 ZERVBBABEL, GEDALIAH. &c. were great bleſſings to the Church, who greatly lamented the loſſe of thē. Alſo IOSIAH, his death was lamented with a doleful lamentation of al the church of IVDA. And ſure it is that our Church hath great cauſe to magnifie the mercies of God towards vsus, in truſting vsus with ſo gracious a IOSIAH as our Soueraigne Princeſſe ELIZABETH; as by whoſe gouerment the church hath receiued many bleſſings. The loſſe of whome if our ſinns ſhould procure (which the Lord keep far from vsus) would yeeld no leſſe occaſion for vsus to complayne and ſay then the Churche of IVDA had,Lamen. 5.20 at the death of IOSIAH when they ſayd, Our life & the breath of our noſtrels, the annoynted of the Lorde, vvas taken in their nets, of vvhome we ſayd vnderunder his ſhadow vve ſhall be preſerued aliue, among the heathen. Herevnto god hath added further matter of ioy and thankfulnes vntounto his Churche, in that many nobles & worthy perſonages of this land both learned, Godly and wiſe, (among whom your honour hath not the leaſt roome) are faythfull Patrons of the cauſe of Religion. And therefore if the church reuerenced, & highly accounted of ſuch, if the godly teachers of the church commended ſuch, and gratifyed them by wryting of ſome ſuch duety, as the Apoſtle IOHN did the elect Lady, and HIEROM,2. Ioh. 1. that vertuous Lady LETA, & GAVDENTIA, to incourage them in the truth, & to ſhew their thankfulnes for them vntounto God: why may not we in our times likewiſe gratify our noble & worthy perſonages with ſome ſuch duty? to ſhew forth our thankfulnes and reuerence towardes them: as alſo to miniſter occaſion by ſuch means as we can, of further proceeding in all religious and godly wayes with zeal to aduance gods glory in his church? For we ſhould all ſtep out for the defence and aduancement of Gods goſpell & glory. For the true honor of al men ſtandeth in this chiefly, that they imbrace the word which is the wiſdome of God, ſith without religion there is no true honour. Therfore Prou. 8, VViſdome layeth claime to all the honor & kingdom of princes,Pro. 8.15.16.18. as without whom they wanted al true honor. Yea ſhe challengeth to her ſelfe al true wiſdome, councel, vnderſtanding, ſtrength and honour, &c. Alſo els where SOLOMON a prince of greateſt hono… & wiſdome, ſetteth down plainly,Pro 4.8. ver. 14. that they which imbrace wiſdome ſhal hauehave great honor, & they which exalt her ſhal be exalted thē ſelues. For God crowneth them with honour which honour his word. But ſtrippeth al ſuch naked of honor & renoum before him, which do not honor his word. Therefore the gouernours of Iſrael, were charged to be alwayes conuerſant in the booke of the law day & night, that they might learne to feare the lord their God:Deu. 17.19. adding a great reaſon, that by ſuch meanes they ſhould prouide for their own ſafety, and for the good eſtate of their poſteritie.Verſe 20. Yea it was promiſed to DAVID as a ſpeciall prerogatiue that ſo long as hee helde the Lord to be his Father and made him his God, by truſting in him and imbracing the teſtimonies of his word,Pſa. 89.26. ver. 28.29. that the Lorde would not fayle him, but eſtabliſhe his couenaunt with him, yea and with his ſeede for euermore. So that ſuch as ſet their delight in the word of God, carry with them ſtore of bleſſinges from the Lord, both for them ſelues and for their poſterity. And we ſee that the Lorde doth not otherwiſe promiſe to proſper the affayres of men, then as they are carefull to know his will in his word. Hereof it was that the Lorde promiſed the lyke ſucceſſe vntounto IOSHVA. For after he had incouraged him to obey his worde,Ioſh. 1.7. & ver. 8. ſhewing that therein ſtoode all true proſperity, he addeth this exhortation. Let not this booke of the Lawe depart out of thy mouth, but meditate therein day and night, that thou mayeſt obſerue and doe, according to all that is wrytten therin, then ſhalt thou make thy way proſperous, and then ſhalt thou hauehave good ſucceſſe. For the Lorde knew, that ſith IOSHVA ſtood in great perill of temptation eueryevery way, by the reaſon of the waightyneſſe of his calling and dignity, therefore alſo he ſheweth that hee had greateſt neede of the meanes to vnderſtay himſelfe, and to be acquainted with the Lordes priuy Councell, reuealed in his worde, to direct him in all his actions. So DAVID made the worde of God his Councellers,Pſa. 119.24. without whom he woulde doe nothing. For he knew that it behoueth ſuch to imploy their honour, glory, eſtimation, riches, and credite as handmaydes to further Gods glory. And then no doubt they are to expect greate bleſſinges from the Lorde, with immortall prayſe and euerlaſting honour with Chriſt Ieſus. I doubt not therefore (right honourable) but all theſe bleſſinges ſhall be accompliſhed vponupon you as alſo vponupon your poſterity, ſith you louelove and imbrace the religion of the true God and the truth of his worde, who will not ſee you want that honour that he hath promiſed to his moſt excellent Saintes.
And now here I preſent vntounto your Honour this poore Tallent of myne: which may it pleaſe you to accept at my hand, as of one that wiſheth all happyneſſe vntounto you and yours in the Lorde, humbly crauing that your fauourable wiſedome would ſupply the wants of this thing, and that this ſo ſimple a gift as it is, may be accepted of you, rather for my good meaning in the thing and the ende wherefore I doe it, then for the vallue of the thing it ſelfe. Doing your honour to vnderſtande, that you are not to expect any flouriſhing ſpeeches garniſhed with Rhetoricall flowers and figures, or any cunning ſleightes of mans wiſedome, or paynted eloquence with affected wordes, but hauing an eye to the matter and not to the maner, to expect a ſimple and plaine handling of that which is intreated off. For my deſire is not to be ſeen in the heighth, and intricate queſtions of mans wiſedome, but in the baſeneſſe and ſimplycity of the Goſpell that it may appeare in the power thereof. Thus (right honourable) ſurceaſing from adding any further wordes of diſcourſe, and remayning ready to vndergoe all lawfull duetyes towardes your honour (which God any maner of wayes ſhall inable me to doe) I humbly commit your honourable Lordſhip (with the right honourable that vertuous Lady the Counteſſe your wyfe), euen to our good and mercifull God, who euermore preſerue you and yours in al bleſſed ſafety both of body and ſoule, be preſent with you, gouerne and guyde you by his gratious ſpirite, and heape vponupon you all heauenly bleſſings, and ſhew forth the riches of his grace vppon you, that you may holde out with all conſtancy in his truth vntounto the ende, ſo as you glorifying him in this lyfe, may be receiued vntounto eternal glory, and felicity with him in the lyfe to come, through Ieſus Chriſt our Lord. Amen.
Your honors humble to command in the Lord, Bartimaeus Andrewes.