Eighty Sermons, Trinity Sunday · Sermon 45
SERM. XLV. PREACHED VPONUPON ALL-SAINTS DAY.
APOC. 7.2, 3.
And I ſaw another Angel aſcending from the Eaſt, which had the ſeale of the living God, and he cryed with a loud voyce to the foure Angels, to whom power was given to hurt the Earth, and the Sea, ſaying, Hurt yee not the Earth, neither the Sea, neither the Trees, till we have ſealed the ſervants of our God in their foreheads.
THe ſolemnity and feſtivall with which the ſonnes of the Catholique Church of God celebrate this day, is much miſtaken, even by them who thinke themſelves the onelyonly Catholiques, and celebrate this day, with a devotion, at leaſt near to ſuperſtition in the Church of Rome. For, they take it (for the moſt part) to be a feſtivall inſtituted by the Church, in contemplation of the Saints in heaven onelyonly; and ſo carry and employ all their devotions this day, upon conſideration of thoſe Saints, and invocation of them onelyonly. But the inſtitution of this day, had this occaſion. The heathen Romans, who could not poſſibly houſe all their gods in ſeverall Temples, they were ſo over-many, according to their Law, Deos frugi colunto, to ſerve God as cheape as they could, made one Temple for them all, which they called Pantheon, To all the Gods. This Temple Boniface the Pope begd of the Emperour Phocas; (And yet, (by the way) this was ſome hundreds of years after the Donation of the Emperour Conſtantine, by which the Biſhops of Rome pretend all that to be theirs; ſurely they could not finde this Patent, this Record, this Donation of Conſtantine, then when Boniface begd this Temple in Rome, this Pantheon of the Emperour) And this Temple, formerly the Temple of all their gods, that Biſhop conſecrated to the honour of all the Martyrs, of all the Saints of that kinde. But after him, another Biſhop of the ſame ſea, enlarged the conſecration, and accompanied it with this feſtivall, which we celebrate to day, in honour of the Trinity, and Angels, and Apoſtles, and Martyrs, and Confeſſors, and Saints, and all the elect children of God. So that it is truly a feſtivall, grounded upon that Article of the Creed, The Communion of Saints, and unites in our devout contemplation, The Head of the Church, God himſelfe, and thoſe two noble conſtitutive parts thereof, The Triumphant, and the Militant. And, accordingly, hath the Church applied this part of Scripture, to be read for the Epiſtle of this day, to ſhew, that All-Saints day hath relation to all Saints, both living and dead; for thoſe ſervants of God, which are here in this text, ſealed in their foreheads, are ſuch (without all queſtion) as receive that Seale here, here in the militant Church. And therefore, as theſe words, ſo this feſtivall, in their intendiment, that applied theſe words to this feſtivall, is alſo of Saints upon Earth.
This day being then the day of the Communion of Saints, and this Scripture being received for the Epiſtle of this univerſall day, that expoſition will beſt befit it, which makes it moſt univerſall. And therefore, with very good authority, ſuch as the expoſitions of this booke of the Revelation can receive, (of which booke, no man will undertake to the Church, that he hath found the certaine, and the literall ſenſe as yet, nor is ſure to do it,Irenaeus. till the prophecies of this booke be accompliſhed) (for prophetiae ingenium, ut in obſcuro deliteſcat, donec impleatur, It is the nature of prophecy to be ſecret, till it be fulfilled,Dan. 12.4. And therefore Daniel was bid to ſhut up the words, and to ſeale the booke even to the time of the end, that is, to the end of the prophecy) with good authority, I ſay, we take that number of the ſervants of God, which are ſaid to be ſealed in the fourth verſe of this Chapter, which is one hundred forty foure thouſand, and that multitude which none could number, of all Nations, which are mentioned in the ninth verſe, to be intended of one and the ſame company; both theſe expreſſions denote the ſame perſons. In the fourth verſe of the fourteenth Chapter, this number of one hundred forty foure thouſand is applied to Virgins, but is intended of all Gods Saints; for every holy ſoule is a virgin. And then this name of Iſrael, which is mentioned in the fourth verſe of this Chapter, (That there were ſo many ſealed of the houſe of Iſrael) is often in Scriptures applied to ſpirituall Iſraelites, to Beleevers, (for every faithfull ſoule is an Iſraelite) ſo that this number of one hundred forty foure thouſand Virgins, and one hundred forty foure thouſand Iſraelites, which is not a certaine number, but a number expreſſing a numberleſſe multitude, this number, and that numberleſſe multitude ſpoken of after, of all Nations, which none could number, is all one; and both making up the great and glorious body of all Saints, import and preſent thus much in generall, That howſoever God inflict great and heavy calamities in this world, to the ſhaking of the beſt morall and Chriſtianly conſtancies and conſciences, yet all his Saints being eternally knowne by him, ſhall be ſealed by him, that is, ſo aſſured of his aſſiſtance, by a good uſing of thoſe helps which he ſhall afford them, in the Chriſtian Church, intended in this ſealing on the forehead, that thoſe afflictions ſhall never ſeparate them from him, nor fruſtrate his determination, nor diſappoint his gracious purpoſe upon them, all them, this multitude, which no man could number.
To come then to the words themſelves,Diviſio. we ſee the ſafety, and protection of the Saints of God, and his children, in the perſon and proceeding of our Protector, in that it is in the hands of an Angel, (I ſaw another Angel) And an Angel of that place, that came from the Eaſt; The Eaſt, that is the fountaine of all light and glory, (I ſaw another Angel come from the Eaſt) And as the Word doth naturally ſignifie, (and is ſo rendred in this laſt Tranſlation) Aſcending from the Eaſt, that is, growing and encreaſing in ſtrength; After that we ſhall conſider our aſſurance in the commiſſion and power of this Angel, He had the ſeaele of the living God; And then in the execution of this Commiſſion; In which we ſhall ſee firſt, who our enemies were; They were alſo Angels, (This Angel cryed to other Angels) able to do much by nature, becauſe Angels; Then we ſhall ſee their number, they were foure Angels, made ſtronger by joyning (This Angel cryed to thoſe foure Angels.) And beſides their malignant nature, and united concord, (two ſhrewd diſadvantages, miſchievous and many) They had a power, a particular, an extraordinary power given them, at that time, to do hurt, (foure Angels, to whom power was given to hurt) And to do generall, univerſall hurt, (power to hurt the Earth, and the Sea.) After all this we ſhall ſee this Protector, againſt theſe enemies, and their Commiſſion, execute his, firſt by declaring and publiſhing it, (He cryed with a loud voyce) And then laſtly, what his Commiſſion was; It was, to ſtay thoſe foure Angels, for all their Commiſſion, from hurting the Earth, and the Sea, and the Trees. But yet, this is not for ever; It is but till the ſervants of God were ſealed in the forehead; that is, till God had afforded them ſuch helpes, as that by a good uſe of them they might ſubſiſt; which, if they did not, for all their ſealing in the forehead, this Angel will deliver them over to the other foure deſtroying Angels. Of which ſealing, that is, conferring of Grace and helps againſt thoſe ſpirituall enemies, there is a pregnant intimation, that it is done by the benefit of the Church, & in the power of the Church, which is no ſingular perſon, in that, upon the ſudden, the perſon and the number is varied in our text; and this Angel, which when he is ſaid to aſcend from the Eaſt, and to cry with a loud voyce, is ſtill a ſingular Angel, one Angel, yet when he comes to the act of ſealing in the forehead, to the diſpenſing of Sacraments, and ſacramentall aſſiſtances, he does that as a plurall perſon, he repreſents more, the whole Church, and therefore ſayes here, Stay, hurt nothing, Till we, we have ſealed the ſervants of our, our God in their foreheads. And by all theſe ſteps muſt we paſſe through this garden of flowers, this orchard of fruits, this abundant Text.
Firſt then, Man being compaſſed with a cloud of witneſſes of his own infirmities,Angelus. and the manifold afflictions of this life, (for, Dies diei eructat verbum, Pſal. 19.2.Day unto day uttereth the ſame, and night unto night teacheth knowledge, The bells tell him in the night, and fame tels him in the day, that he himſelfe melts and drops away piece-meal in the departing of parents, and wife, and children out of this world, yea he heares daily of a worſe departing, he hears of the defection, and back-ſliding of ſome of his particular acquaintance in matter of religion, or of their ſtifneſſe and obduration in ſome courſe of ſin (which is the worſe conſumption) Dies diei eructat, every day makes him learneder then other in this ſad knowledge, And he knowes withall, Quod cuiquam accidere poteſt, cuivis poteſt, that any of their caſes may be his caſe too) Man that is compaſſed with ſuch a cloud of ſuch witneſſes, had need of ſome light to ſhew him the right way, and ſome ſtrength to enable him to walk ſafely in it. And this light and ſtrength is here propoſed in the aſſiſtance of an Angel. Which being firſt underſtood of Angels in generall, affords a great meaſure of comfort to us, becauſe the Angels are ſeduli animae pediſſequae, Bern.faithfull and diligent attendants upon all our ſteps. They doe ſo, they doe attend the ſervice and good of man, becauſe it is illorum optimum, It is the beſt thing that Angels (as Angels) can doe, to doe ſo: For evermore it is beſt for every thing to doe that for which it was ordained and made; and they were made Angels for the ſervice and aſſiſtance of man.Bern. Vnum tui & Angeli optimum eſt; Man and Angels have one and the ſame thing in them, which is better then any thing elſe that they have; Nothing hath it but they, and both they have it. Deus nihil ſui optimum habet; unum optimum totus; It is not ſo with God;Id… God hath nothing in him that is Beſt; but he is altogether one intire Beſt. But Man and Angels have one thing common to them both, which is the beſt thing that naturally either of them hath, that is, Reaſon, underſtanding, knowledge, diſcourſe, conſideration. Angels and Men have grace too, that is infinitely better then their Reaſon; but though Grace be the principall in the nature and dignity thereof, yet it is but acceſſory to an Angel, or to man; Grace is not in their nature at firſt, but infuſed by God, not to make them Angels and Men, but to make them good Angels, and good men. This very reaſon then, which is Illorum optimum, The beſt thing that Angels, as Angels, naturally have, teaches them, that the beſt thing that they can doe, is the performance of that for which they were made. And then howſoever they were made ſpirits for a more glorious uſe, to ſtand in the preſence of God, and to enjoy the fulneſſe of that contemplation, yet he made his ſpirits Angels, for the love which he had to be with the ſons of men. Sufficit illis, Bern.et pro magno habeant, Let this content the Angels, and let them magnifie God for this, Quòd cum ſpiritus ſint conditione, ex gratia facti ſunt Angeli, That whereas by nature they are but ſpirits, (and the devill is ſo) by favour and by office they are made Angels, meſſengers from God to man.
Now as the Angels are not defective in their beſt part, their Reaſon, and therefore do their office in aſſiſting us, ſo alſo let us exalt our beſt part, our Reaſon too, to reverence them with a care of doing ſuch actions onelyonly as might not be unfit for their preſence. Both Angels and we have the Image of God imprinted in us; the Angels have it not in ſummo, though they have it in tuto; They have it not in the higheſt degree, (for ſo Chriſt onelyonly is the Image of the inviſible God) but they have it in a deep impreſſion,Coloſ. 1.15. ſo as they can neither loſe it, nor deface it. We have this Image of God ſo as that we cannot loſe it, but we may, and doe deface it; Vri poteſt, non exuri; The Devil hath this Image in him,Bern. and it cannot be burnt out in hell; for it is imprinted in the very naturall faculties of the ſoule. But if we conſider how many waters beat upon us in this world to waſh off this Image, how many ruſty and habituall ſins gnaw upon us, to eat out this Image, how many files paſſe over our ſouls in calamities, and afflictions, in which though God have a purpoſe, Reſculpere imaginem, to re-engrave, to refreſh, to poliſh this Image in us,Auguſt. by thoſe corrections, yet the devill hath a harſh file too, that works a murmuring, a comparing of our ſinnes with other mens ſinnes, and our puniſhments with other mens puniſhments, and at laſt, either a denying of Providence, (That things ſo unequally carried cannot be governed by God) or a wilfull renouncing of it in Deſperation, That his Providence cannot bee reſiſted, and therefore it is all one what wee doe, If wee conſider this, wee had need looke for Aſſiſtants.
Let us therefore looke firſt to that which is beſt in us naturally, that is, Reaſon; For if we loſe that, our Reaſon, our Diſcourſe, our Conſideration, and ſinke into an incapable and barren ſtupidity, there is no footing, no ſubſiſtence for grace. All the vertue of Corne is in the ſeed; but that will not grow in water, but onelyonly in the earth: All the good of man, conſidered ſupernaturally, is in grace; but that will not grow in a waſhy ſoule, in a liquid, in a watery, and diſſolute, and ſcattered man. Grace growes in reaſon; In that man, and in that minde, that conſiders the great treaſure, what it is to have the Image of God in him, naturally; for even that is our earneſt of ſupernaturall perfection. And this Image of God, even in the Angels, being Reaſon, and the beſt act of rectified Reaſon, The doing of that for which they were made, It is that which the Angels are naturally inclined to doe, to be alwayes preſent for the aſſiſtance of man; for therefore they are Angels. And ſince they have a joy at the Converſion of a ſinner, and every thing affects joy, and therefore they indeavour our Converſion, yea, ſince they have an increaſe of their knowledge by being about us, (for, S. Paul ſayes, That he was made a Preacher of the Goſpel, Eph. 3.10.to the intent that Angels might know, by the Church, the manifold wiſedome of God) And every thing affects knowledge, theſe Saints of God upon earth, intended in our Text, might juſtly promiſe themſelves a ſtrong and a bleſſed comfort, and a happy iſſue in all tribulations, by this Scripture, if there were no more intended in it, but onelyonly the aſſiſtance of Angels; I ſaw an Angel.
But our ſecurity of deliverance is in a ſafer,Angelus, Chriſtus. and a ſtronger hand then this; not in theſe Miniſteriall, and Miſſive Angels onelyonly; but in his that ſends them, yea in his that made them;Col. 1.16, 17. By whom, and for whom, they, and the Thrones, and Dominions, and Principalities, and Powers, and all things were created, and in whom they conſiſt. For, as the name of Angel is attributed to Chriſt,Mal. 3.1. Angelus Teſtamenti, The Angel of the Covenant; And many of thoſe miraculous paſſages in the deliverances of Iſrael out of Egypt, which were done by the ſecond Perſon of the Trinity, by Chriſt, in Exodus, are by Moſes there, and in the abridgement of that ſtory,Acts 7. by Stephen after, attributed to Angels, So in this Text, this Angel, which doth ſo much for Gods Saints, is, not inconveniently, by many Expoſitors, taken to be our Saviour Chriſt himſelfe. And will any man doubt of performance of conditions in him? Will any man looke for better ſecurity then him, who puts two, and two ſuch into the band, Chriſt, and Ieſus; An anointed King, able, an actuall Saviour, willing to diſcharge, not his, but our debt? He is a double Perſon, God and Man; He ingages a double pawn, the old, and the new Teſtament, the Law, and the Goſpel; and you may be bold to truſt him, that hath paid ſo well before; ſince you ſee a performance of the Propheſies of the old Teſtament, in the free and glorious preaching of the Goſpel, truſt alſo in a performance of the promiſes of the Goſpel, in timely deliverances in this life, and an infallible, and eternall repoſedneſſe, in the life to come. Hee tooke our nature, that he might know our infirmities experimentally; He brought down a better nature, that he might recover us, reſtore us powerfully, effectually; and that hee might be ſure to accompliſh his work, he brought more to our reparation, then to our firſt building, The God-head wrought as much in our Redemption, as in our Creation, and the Man-hood more; for it began but then. And to take from us all doubt of his power, or of his will in our deliverance, he hath taken the ſureſt way of giving ſatisfaction,Eſay 53.4. He hath payed beforehand; Verè tulit, He hath truly born all our infirmities, He hath, already; And with his ſtripes are we healed; we that are here now, are healed by his ſtripes received ſixteen hundred yeares ſince.Apoc. 13.8. Nay, he was Occiſus ab origine, The Lamb ſlaine from the beginning of the world; That day that the frame of the world was fully ſet up in the making of man, That day that the faireſt piece of that frame fell down again, in the fall of Adam, That day that God repaired this ruine again, in the promiſe of a Meſſias, (all which we take ordinarily to have fallen in one day, the ſixt day) that day, in that promiſe, was this Lamb ſlain, and all the debts not only of our fore-fathers, and ours, but of the laſt man, that ſhall be found alive at the laſt day, were then payed, ſo long beforehand.
This ſecurity then,Angelus Eccleſiae. for our deliverance and protection, we have in this Angel in our Text, (I ſaw an Angel) as this Angel is Chriſt; but yet we have alſo another ſecurity, more immediate, and more appliable to us. As men that lend money in the courſe of the world, have a deſire to have a ſervant in the band with the Maſter, not that they hope for the money from him, but that they know better how to call upon him, and how to take hold of him: ſo beſides this generall aſſiſtance of Angels, and beſides this all-ſufficiency of the Angel of the Covenant, Chriſt Jeſus, we have, for our ſecurity, in this Text, (I ſaw an Angel) the ſervants of Chriſt too; This Angel is the Miniſter of his Word, the Adminiſtrer of his Sacraments, the Mediator betweene Chriſt and Man, He is this Angel, as S. Iohn, ſo often in the Revelation, and the Holy Ghoſt in other places of Scripture, ſtyles them; This Angel is indeed, the whole frame, and Hierarchy of the Chriſtian Church. For though this Angel be called in this text The Angel, in the ſingular, yet, (to make uſe of one note by Anticipation now, though in our diſtribution of the Branches, we reſerved it to the end, becauſe it fits properly our preſent conſideration) though this Angel be named in the ſingular, and ſo may ſeeme to be reſtrained to Chriſt alone, yet, we ſee, the Office, when it comes to execution after, is diffuſed, and there are more in the Commiſſion; for thoſe phraſes, that Wee, Wee may ſeale, the ſervants of Our, Our God, have a plurality in them, a conſent, a harmony, and imply a Congregation, and doe better agree with the Miniſtery of the Church, then with the Perſon of Chriſt alone.
So then, to let go none of our aſſiſtants, our ſureties, our ſafety is in the Angel of the Covenant, Chriſt Jeſus, radically, fundamentally, meritoriouſly; It is in the miniſtery of the Angels of heaven inviſibly; but it is in the Church of God, and in the power of his Miniſters there, manifeſtly, ſenſibly, diſcernibly;Mal. 2.7. They ſhould ſeek the Law at the Prieſts mouth, (They ſhould, and therefore they are to blame that do not, but fly to private expoſitions.) But why ſhould they? Quia angelus domini exercituum, (as it follows there) Becauſe the Prieſt is the Angel of the Lord of Hoſts. Yea, the Goſpell which they preach, is above all meſſages, which an Angel can bring of himſelfe;Gal. 1.8. If an Angel from heaven preach otherwiſe unto you, then we have preached, let him be accurſed. The miniſtery of celeſtiall Angels is inferiour to the miniſtery of the Eccleſiaſticall; The Goſpel (which belongs to us) is truly Euangelium, the good Miniſtery of good Angels, the beſt miniſtery of the beſt Angels; for though we compare not with thoſe Angels in nature, we compare with them in office; though our offices tend to the ſame end (to draw you to God) yet they differ in the way; and though the ſervice of thoſe Angels, enlighten your underſtanding, and aſſiſt your belief too, yet in the miniſtery of theſe Angels in the Church, there is a bleſſed fulfilling, and verification of thoſe words, Now is ſalvation nearer, Rom. 13.11.then when we beleeved. You beleeve, becauſe thoſe celeſtiall Angels have wrought inviſibly upon you, and diſperſt your clouds, and removed impediments. You beleeve, becauſe the great Angel Chriſt Jeſus, hath left his hiſtory, his action, and paſſion written for you; and that is a hiſtoricall faith. But yet ſalvation is nearer to you, in having all this applied to you, by them, who are like you, men, and there, where you know how to fetch it, the Church; That as you beleeve by reading the Goſpels at home, that Chriſt died for the world, So you may beleeve, by hearing here, that he dyed for you. This is Gods plenteous Redemption, Quòd linguam meam aſſumſit in opus ſuum; Bernar.That having ſo great a work to doe, as the ſalvation of ſoules, he would make uſe of my tongue; And being to ſave the world by his word, that I ſhould ſpeak that word. Docendo vos, quod per ſe faciliùs & ſuaviùs poſſet, That he calls me up hither, to teach you that which he could teach you better, and ſooner, at home, by his Spirit; Indulgentia ejus eſt, non indigentia, It is the largeneſſe of his mercy towards you, not any narrowneſſe in his power that he needs me. And ſo have you this Angel in our text, in all the acceptations, in which our Expoſitors have delivered him; It is Chriſt, It is the Angels of heaven, It is the Miniſtery of the Goſpel; And this Angell, whoſoever, whatſoever, S. Iohn ſaw come from the Eaſt, (I ſaw an Angel come from the Eaſt) which was our ſecond Branch, and fals next into conſideration.
This addition is intended for a particular addition to our comfort;Ab oriente. it is a particular endowment, or inlargement of ſtrength and power in this Angel, that he comes from the Eaſt. If we take it, (to goe the ſame way that we went before) firſt of naturall Angels, even the Weſterne Angels, Qui habuere occaſum, Thoſe Angels which have had their Sun-ſet, their fall, they came from the Eaſt too; Quomodo cecidiſti decoelo, Lucifer, filius orientis? Eſay 14 12.How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, the Son of the morning? He had his begetting, his Creation in the Eaſt, in the light, and there might have ſtayed, for any neceſſity of falling, that God laid upon him. Take the Angel of the text to be the Angel of the Covenant Chriſt Jeſus, and his name is The Eaſt; he cannot be knowne, he cannot bee ſaid to have any Weſt.Zech. 6.12. Ecce vir, Oriens nomen ejus, (ſo the vulgat reads that place) Behold the Man, whoſe name is the Eaſt; you can call him nothing elſe; for ſo, the other Zachary, the Zachary of the New Teſtament cals him too,Luke 1.78. Per viſcera miſericordiae, Through the tender bowels of his mercy, Viſitavit nos Oriens, The Eaſt, the day ſpring from on high hath viſited us; And he was derived à Patre luminum, He came from the Eaſt, begotten from all eternity of the Father of lights,Iohn 16.28. I came out from the Father, and came into the world. Take this Angel to be the Preacher of the Goſpel, literally, really, the Goſpell came out of the Eaſt, where Chriſt lived and dyed; and Typically, figuratively, Paradiſe, which alſo figured the place, to which the Goſpel is to carry us, Heaven, that alſo was planted in the Eaſt; and therefore S. Baſil aſſignes that for the reaſon, why in the Church ſervice we turne to the Eaſt when we pray, Quia antiquam requirimus patriam, Wee looke towards our ancient country, where the Goſpel of our ſalvation was literally acted, and accompliſhed, and where Heaven, the end of the Goſpel, was repreſented in Paradiſe. Every way the Goſpel is an Angel of the Eaſt.
But this is that which we take to be principally intended in it, That as the Eaſt is the fountaine of light, ſo all our illumination is to be taken from the Goſpell. Spread we this a little thinner, and we ſhall better ſee through it. If the calamities of the world, or the heavy conſideration of thine own ſins, have benummed and benighted thy ſoule in the vale of darkneſſe, and in the ſhadow of death; If thou thinke to wraſtle and buſtle through theſe ſtrong ſtormes, and thick clouds, with a ſtrong hand; If thou thinke thy money, thy bribes ſhall conjure thee up ſtronger ſpirits then thoſe that oppoſe thee; If thou ſeek eaſe in thy calamities, that way to ſhake and ſhipwrack thine enemies; In theſe croſſe winds, in theſe countermines, (to oppreſſe as thou art oppreſſed) all this is but a turning to the North, to blow away and ſcatter theſe ſadneſſes, with a falſe, an illuſory, and a ſinfull comfort. If thou thinke to eaſe thy ſelfe in the contemplation of thine honour, thine offices; thy favour, thy riches, thy health, this is but a turning to the South, the Sun-ſhine of worldly proſperity. If thou ſinke under thy afflictions, and canſt not finde nouriſhment (but poyſon) in Gods corrections, nor juſtice (but cruelty) in his judgements, nor mercy (but ſlackneſſe) in his forbearance till now; If thou ſuffer thy ſoule to ſet in a cloud, a dark cloud of ignorance of Gods providence and proceedings, or in a darker, of diffidence of his performance towards thee, this is a turning to the Weſt, and all theſe are perverſe and awry. But turne to the Eaſt, and to the Angel that comes from thence, The Miniſtery of the Goſpel of Chriſt Jeſus in his Church; It is true, thou mayſt find ſome darke places in the Scriptures;Baſil. and, Eſt ſilentii ſpecies obſcuritas, To ſpeake darkly and obſcurely is a kinde of ſilence, I were as good not be ſpoken to, as not be made to underſtand that which is ſpoken, yet fixe thy ſelfe upon this Angel of the Eaſt, the preaching of the Word, the Ordinance of God, and thine underſtanding ſhall be enlightned, and thy beliefe eſtabliſhed, and thy conſcience thus far unburthened, that though the ſins which thou haſt done, cannot be undone, yet neither ſhalt thou bee undone by them; There, where thou art afraid of them, in judgement, they ſhall never meet thee; but as in the round frame of the World, the fartheſt Weſt is Eaſt, where the Weſt ends, the Eaſt begins, So in thee, (who art a World too) thy Weſt and thy Eaſt ſhall joyne, and when thy Sun, thy ſoule comes to ſet in thy death-bed, the Son of Grace ſhall ſuck it up into glory.
Our Angel comes from the Eaſt,Angelus Aſcendens. (a denotation of ſplendor, and illuſtration of underſtanding, and conſcience) and there is more, he comes Aſcending, (I ſaw an Angel aſcend from the Eaſt) that is, ſtill growing more cleare, and more powerfull upon us. Take the Angel here of naturall Angels;1 Sam. 28.13. and then, when the Witch of Endor (though an evill Spirit appeared to her) yet ſaw him appeare ſo, Aſcending, ſhe attributes that glory to it, I ſee gods Aſcending out of the earth. Take the Angel to be Chriſt, and then, his Aſcenſion was Foelix clauſula totius itinerarii, Bernar.The glorious ſhutting up of all his progreſſe; and though his deſcending from Heaven to earth, and his deſcending from earth to hell gave us our title, his Aſcending, by which he carried up our fleſh to the right hand of his Father, gave us our poſſeſſion; His Deſcent, his humiliation gave us Ius ad rem, but his Aſcenſion Ius in re. But as this Angel is the Miniſtery of the Goſpel, God gave it a glorious aſcent in the Primitive Church,Pſal. 19.6. when as this Sun Exultavit ut gigas ad currendam viam, aſcended quickly beyond the reach of Heretiques wits, and Perſecutors ſwords, and as glorious an aſcent in the Reformation, when in no long time, the number of them that had forſaken Rome was as great, as of them that ſtaid with her.
Now to give way to this aſcent of this Angel in thy ſelfe, make the way ſmooth, and make thy ſoule ſouple; finde thou a growth of the Goſpel in thy faith, and let us finde it in thy life. It is not in thy power to ſay to this Angel, as Ioſhua ſaid to the Sun, Siſte, Ioſh. 10.12.ſtand ſtill; It will not ſtand ſtill; If thou finde it not aſcending, it deſcends; If thy comforts in the Goſpel of Chriſt Jeſus grow not, they decay; If thou profit not by the Goſpel, thou loſeſt by it; If thou live not by it, (nothing can redeeme thee) thou dyeſt by it. Wee ſpeake of going up and downe a ſtaire; it is all one ſtaire; of going to, and from the City; it is all one way; of comming in, and going out of a houſe; it is all one doore: So is there a ſavour of life unto life, and a ſavour of death unto death in the Goſpel; but it is all one Goſpel. If this Angel of the Eaſt have appeared unto thee, (the light of the Goſpel have ſhined upon thee) and it have not aſcended in thee, if it have not made thee wiſer and wiſer, and better and better too, thou haſt ſtopped that light, vexed, grieved, quenched that Spirit; for the naturall progreſſe of this Angel of the Eaſt is to aſcend; the naturall motion and working of the Goſpel is, to make thee more and more confident in Gods deliverance, leſſe and leſſe ſubject to rely upon the weake helps, and miſerable comforts of this world. To this purpoſe this Angel aſcends, that is, proceeds in the manifeſtation of his Power, and of his readineſſe to ſuccour us. Of his Power in this, That he hath the ſeales of the living God; (I ſaw an Angel aſcending from the Eaſt, which had the ſeale of the living God) which is our next Conſideration.
Of the living God. The gods of the Nations are all dead gods;Sigillum Dei viventis. either ſuch Gods as never had life, (ſtones, and gold and ſilver) or ſuch gods at beſt, as were never gods till they were dead; for men that had benefited the world, in any publique and generall invention, or otherwiſe, were made gods after their deaths; which was a miſerable deification, a miſerable godhead that grew out of corruption, a miſerable eternity that begun at all, but eſpecially that begun in death; and they were not gods till they dyed. But our Angel had the Seale of the living God, that is, Power to give life to others. Now, if we ſeeke for this ſeale in the naturall Angels, they have it not; for this Seale is ſome viſible thing whereby we are aſſiſted to ſalvation, and the Angels have no ſuch. They are made keepers of this ſeale ſometimes, but permanently they have it not. This Seale of comfort was put into an Angels hand,Ezek. 9.4. when he was to ſet a marke upon the foreheads of all them that mourned; He had a viſible thing, Inke, to marke them withall. But it was not ſaid to him, Vade & ſigna omnes Creaturas, Go, and ſet this marke upon every Creature, as it was to the Miniſter of the Goſpel, Go, and preach to every Creature. Marke 16.15.If wee ſeeke this ſeale in the great Angel, the Angel of the Covenant, Chriſt Jeſus: It is true he hath it, for, Omnis poteſtas d…ta, All power is given unto me, in Heaven, and in earth; and, Omne judicium, Mat. 28.18. Iohn 5.22.The Father hath committed all judgement to the Son; Chriſt, as the Son of man executes a Judgement, and hath a Power, which he hath not but by gift, by Commiſſion, by vertue of this Seale, from his Father. But, becauſe it is not onelyonly ſo in him, That he hath the Seale of the living God, but, He is this Seale himſelfe,Coloſ. 1.15. Heb. 1.3. Iohn 6.27. (Hee is the Image of the inviſible God; He is the brightneſſe of his glory, and the expreſſe Image of his Perſon) It is not onelyonly his Commiſſion that is ſealed, but his Nature, He himſelfe is ſealed, (Him hath God the Father ſealed) ſince, I ſay, naturall Angels though they have ſometimes this ſeale, they have it not alwaies, they have not a Commiſſion from God, to apply his mercies to man, by any ordinary and viſible meanes, ſince the Angel of the Covenant, Chriſt Jeſus hath it, but hath it ſo, as that he is it too, the third ſort of Angels, the Church-Angels, the Miniſters of the Goſpell, are they, who moſt properly can be ſaid to have this Seale by a fixed and permanent poſſeſſion, and a power to apply it to particular men, in all emergent neceſſities, according to the inſtitution of that living God, whoſe ſeale it is.
Now the great power which is given by God, in giving this ſeale to theſe Angels, hath a lively repreſentation (ſuch as a ſhadow can give) in the hiſtory of Ioſeph. Pharaoh ſayes to him, Thou ſhalt be over my houſe, and over all the land of Egypt, Gen. 41.40.(ſteward of the Kings houſe, and ſteward of the Kingdome) And at thy word ſhall all my people be armed, (Conſtable and Marſhall too) and to inveſt him in all theſe, and more, Pharaoh gave him his ring, his ſeale; not his ſeale onelyonly to thoſe ſeverall patents to himſelfe, but the keeping of that ſeale for the good of others; This temporall ſeale of Pharoh was a repreſentation of the ſeale of the living God. But there is a more expreſſe type of it in Exodus: Thou ſhalt grave (ſayes God to Moſes) upon a plate of pure gold, Lxod. 28.36.as Signets are graved, Holineſſe to the Lord; and it ſhall be upon the forehead of Aaron; What to do? That the people may be accepted of him. There muſt be a holineſſe to the Lord, and that preſented by Aaron the Prieſt to God, that the people may be acceptable to the Lord; So that this ſeale of the living God, in theſe Angels of our text, is, The Sacraments of the New Teſtament, and the Abſolution of ſinnes, by which (when Gods people come to a Holineſſe to the Lord, in a true repentance, and that that holineſſe, that is, that repentance, is made knowne to Aaron, to the Prieſt, and he preſents it to the Lord) that Prieſt, his Miniſter ſeals to them, in thoſe his Ordinances, Gods acceptation of this degree of holineſſe, he ſeals this Reconciliation between God and his people. And a contract of future concurrence, with his ſubſequent grace. This is the power given by God to this aſcending Angel; and we extend that no farther, but haſten to his haſte, his readineſſe to ſuccour us; in which, we propoſed for the firſt conſideration, That this Angel of light manifeſted and diſcovered to us, who our enemies were: (He cryed out to them who were ready to do miſchiefe, with a loud voyce) ſo that we might heare him, and know them.
Though in all Court-caſes it be not good to take knowledge of enemies,Manifeſtat inimicos. (many times that is better forborne) yet in all caſes, it is good to know them. Eſpecially in our caſe in the Text,Eph. 6.12. becauſe our enemies intended here, are of themſelves, Princes of darkneſſe; They can multiply clouds, and diſguiſings, their kingdome is in the darkneſſe, Sagittant in obſcuro, Pſal. 11.2: Pſal. 143.3.They ſhoot in the darke, (I am wounded with a tentation, as with the plague, and I know not whence the arrow came) Collocavit me in obſcuris, The enemy hath made my dwelling darkneſſe, I have no window that lets in light, but then this Angel of light ſhews me who they are.
But then,Inimici, Angeli. if we were left to our ſelves, it were but a little advantage to know who our enemies were, when we knew thoſe enemies to be Angels, perſons ſo far above our reſiſtance.Eph. 6.12. For, but that S. Paul mollifies and eaſes it with a milder word, Eſt nobis colluctatio, That we wreſtle with enemies, (that thereby we might ſee our danger is but to take a fall, not a deadly wound, if we look ſeriouſly to our worke; we cannot avoyd falling into ſins of infirmity, but the death of habituall ſin we may: Quare moriemini domus Iſrael? He does not ſay, why would ye fall? but why will ye die, ye houſe of Iſrael?) it were a conſideration inough to make us deſperate of victory, to heare him ſay, that this (though it be but a wreſtling) is not againſt fleſh and blood, but againſt principalities, and powers, and ſpirituall wickedneſſes in high places. None of us hath got the victory over fleſh and blood, and yet we have greater enemies then fleſh and blood are. Some diſciplines, ſome mortifications we have againſt fleſh and blood; we have S. Pauls probatum eſt, his medicine, (if we will uſe it) Caſtigo corpus, 1 Cor. 9.27.I keep under my body, and bring it into ſubjection; for that we have ſome aſſiſtance; Even our enemies become our friends; poverty or ſickneſſe will fight for us againſt fleſh and blood, againſt our carnall luſts; but for theſe powers and principalities, I know not where to watch them, how to encounter them. I paſſe my time ſociably and merrily in cheerful converſation, in muſique, in feaſting, in Comedies, in wantonneſſe; and I never heare all this while of any power or principality, my Conſcience ſpies no ſuch enemy in all this. And then alone, between God and me at midnight, ſome beam of his grace ſhines out upon me, and by that light I ſee this Prince of darkneſſe, and then I finde that I have been the ſubject, the ſlave of theſe powers and principalities, when I thought not of them. Well, I ſee them, and I try then to diſpoſſeſſe my ſelfe of them, and I make my recourſe to the powerfulleſt exorciſme that is, I turne to hearty and earneſt prayer to God, and I fix my thoughts ſtrongly (as I thinke) upon him, and before I have perfected one petition, one period of my prayer, a power and principality is got into me againe.Eſay 29.10. Spiritus ſoporis, The ſpirit of ſlumber cloſes mine eyes, and I pray drouſily;Eſa. 19.14. Or ſpiritus vertiginis, the ſpirit of deviation, and vaine repetition, and I pray giddily, and circularly, and returne againe and againe to that I have ſaid before,Luk. 9.55. and perceive not that I do ſo; and neſcio cujus ſpiritus ſim, (as our Saviour ſaid, rebuking his Diſciples, who were ſo vehement for the burning of the Samaritans, you know not of what ſpirit you are) I pray, and know not of what ſpirit I am, I conſider not mine own purpoſe in prayer; And by this advantage, this doore of inconſideration, enters ſpiritus erroris, 1 Tim. 4.1.The ſeducing ſpirit, the ſpirit of error, and I pray not onelyonly negligently, but erroniouſly, dangerouſly, for ſuch things as diſconduce to the glory of God, and my true happineſſe,Hoſea 4.12.5.4. if they were granted. Nay, even the Prophet Hoſea's ſpiritus fornicationum, enters into me, The ſpirit of fornication, that is, ſome remembrance of the wantonneſſe of my youth, ſome miſ-interpretation of a word in my prayer, that may beare an ill ſenſe, ſome unclean ſpirit, ſome power or principality hath depraved my prayer, and ſlackned my zeale. And this is my greateſt miſery of all, that when that which fights for me, and fights againſt me too, ſickneſſe, hath laid me upon my laſt bed, then in my weakeſt eſtate, theſe powers and principalities ſhall be in their full practiſe againſt me. And therefore it is one great advancement of thy deliverance, to be brought by this Angel, that is, by the Miniſtery of the Goſpel of Chriſt, to know that thou haſt Angels to thine enemies; And then another is to know their number, and ſo the ſtrength of their confederacy; for, in the verſe before the Text, they are expreſſed to be foure, (I ſaw foure Angels &c.)
Foure legions of Angels, foure millions, nay,Quatuor Angeli. foure Creations of Angels could do no more harme, then is intended in theſe foure; for, (as it is ſaid in the former verſe) They ſtood upon the foure corners of the earth, they beſtrid, they cantoned the whole world. Thou haſt oppoſite Angels enow to batter thee every where, and to cut off and defeat all ſuccours, all ſupplies, that thou canſt procure, or propoſe to thy ſelfe; abſolute enemies to one another will meet and joyne to thy ruine, and even preſumption will induce deſperation. We need not be ſo literall in this, as S. Hierome, (who indeed in that followed Origen) to thinke that there is a particular evill Angel over every ſin; That becauſe we finde that mention of the ſpirit of error, and the ſpirit of ſlumber, and the ſpirit of fornication, we ſhould therefore thinke that Chriſt meant by Mammon, Mat. 6.24.a particular ſpirit of Covetouſneſſe, and that there be ſeverall princes over ſeverall ſins. This needs not; when thou art tempted, never aske that Spirits name; his name is legio, for he is many.Mar. 5.9. Take thy ſelfe at the largeſt, as thou art a world, there are foure Angels at thy foure corners; Let thy foure corners be thy worldly profeſſion, thy calling, and another thy bodily refection, thy eating, and drinking, and ſleeping, and a third thy honeſt and allowable recreations, and a fourth thy religious ſervice of God in this place, (which two laſt, that is, recreation, and religion, God hath been pleaſed to joyn together in the Sabbath, in which he intended his own glory in our ſervice of him, and then the reſt of the Creature too) let theſe foure, thy calling, thy ſleeping, thy recreation, thy religion be the foure corners of thy world, and thou ſhalt find an Angel of tentation at every corner; even in thy ſleep, even in this houſe of God thou haſt met them. The Devill is no Recuſant; he will come to Church, and he will lay his ſnares there; When that day comes, Job 1.6.that the Sonnes of God preſent themſelves before the Lord, Satan comes alſo among them. Not onelyonly ſo, as S. Auguſtin confeſſes he met him at Church, to carry wanton glances between men and women, but he is here, ſometimes to work a miſ-interpretation in the hearer, ſometimes to work an affectation in the ſpeaker, and many times doth more harme by a good Sermon then by a weake, by poſſeſſing the hearers with an admiration of the Preachers gifts, and neglecting Gods Ordinance. And then it is not onelyonly their naturall power, as they are Angels, nor their united power, as they are many, nor their politique power, that in the midſt of that confuſion which is amongſt them, yet they agree together to ruine us, but (as it follows in our text) it is poteſtas data, a particular power, which, beſides their naturall power, God, at this time, put into their hands; (He cryed to the foure Angels, to whom power was given to hurt) All other Angels had it not, nor had theſe foure that power at all times, which, in our diſtribution at firſt we made a particular Conſideration.
It was poteſtas data, a ſpeciall Commiſſion that laid Iob open to Satans malice;Poteſtas data. It was poteſtas data, a ſpeciall Commiſſion, that laid the herd of ſwine open to the Devils tranportation: Much more, no doubt,Mat. 8.32. have the particular Saints of God in the aſſiſtances of the Chriſtian Church, (for Iob had not that aſſiſtance, being not within the Covenant) and moſt of all hath the Church of God her ſelfe, an ability, in ſome meaſure, to defend it ſelfe againſt many machinations and practiſes of the Devill, if it were not for this Poteſtas data, That God, for his farther glory, in the tryall of his Saints, and his Church, doth enable the Devill to raiſe whole armies of perſecutors, whole ſwarmes of heretiques, to ſting and wound the Church, beyond that ordinary power, which, the Devill in nature hath. That place, Curſe not the King, no, not in thought, Eccleſ. 10.20.for that which hath wings ſhall tell the matter, is ordinarily underſtood of Angels; that Angels ſhall reveale diſloyall thoughts; now, naturally Angels do not underſtand thoughts; but, in ſuch caſes, there is Poteſtas data, a particular power given them to do it; and ſo to evill Angels, for the accompliſhment of Gods purpoſes, there is Poteſtas data, a new power given, a new Commiſſion, (that is beyond permiſſion; for, though by Gods permiſſion mine eye ſee, and mine eare heare, yet my hand could not ſee nor heare by Gods permiſſion; for permiſſion is but the leaving of a thing to the doing of that, which by nature, (if there be no hindrance interpoſed) it could, and would do.)
This comfort then, and this hope of deliverance haſt thou here, that this Angel in our text, that is, the Miniſtery of the Goſpel, tels thee, that that rage which the Devill uſes againſt thee now, is but Poteſtas data, a temporary power given him for the preſent; for, if thy afflictions were altogether from the naturall malice and power of the Devill, inherent in him, that malice would never end, nor thy affliction neither, if God ſhould leave all to him. And therefore though thoſe our afflictions be heavier, which proceed ex poteſtate data, when God exalts that power of the Devill, which naturally he hath, with new Commiſſions, beſides his Permiſſion to uſe his naturall ſtrength, and naturall malice, yet our deliverance is the nearer too, becauſe all theſe acceſſory and occaſionall Commiſſions are for particular ends, and are limited, how far they ſhall extend, how long they ſhall endure. Here, the poteſtas data, the power which was given to theſe Angels was large, it was generall, for, (as it is in the former verſe) it was a power to hold the foure winds of the earth, that the winde ſhould not blow on the earth, nor on the ſea, nor on any tree. What this withholding of the winde ſignifies, and the damnification of that, is our next Conſideration.
By the Land,Venti. is commonly underſtood all the Inhabitants of the Land; by the Sea Ilanders, and Sea-faring men, halfe inhabitants of the Sea; and by the Trees, all thoſe whom Perſecution had driven away, and planted in the wilderneſſe. The hinderance of the uſe of the wind, being taken by our Expoſitors to be a generall impediment of the increaſe of the earth, and of commerce at Sea. But this Book of the Revelation muſt not be ſo literally underſtood, as that the Winds here ſhould ſignifie meerly naturall winds; there is more in this then ſo; Thus much more, That this withholding of the winds, is a withholding of the preaching and paſſage of the Goſpel; which is the heavieſt miſery that can fall upon a Nation, or upon a man, becauſe thereby, by the miſery of not hearing, he loſes all light, and meanes of diſcerning his owne miſery. Now as all the parts, and the ſtyle and phraſe of this Book is figurative and Metaphoricall, ſo is it no unuſuall Metaphor, even in other Bookes of the Scripture too, to call the Miniſters, and Preachers of Gods Word,Cant. 4.16. by the name of winds. Ariſe O North, and come O South, and blow on my Garden, that the ſpices thereof may flow out, hath alwayes been underſtood to be an invitation, a compellation from Chriſt to his Miniſters, to diſpenſe and convey ſalvation,Pſal. 135.7. by his Goſpel, to all Nations. And upon thoſe words, Producit ventos, He bringeth winds out of his treaſuries, and Educit nubes, He bringeth clouds from the ends of the earth, Puto Praedicatores & nubes & ventos, Auguſt.ſayes S. Auguſtine, I think that the holy Ghoſt means both by his clouds, and by his winds, the Preachers of his Word, the Miniſters of the Goſpel; Nubes propter carnem, ventos propter ſpiritum, Clouds becauſe their bodies are ſeen, winds becauſe their working is felt; Nubes cernuntur, venti ſentiuntur; as clouds they embrace the whole viſible Church, and are viſible to it; as winds they pierce into the inviſible Church, the ſoules of the true Saints of God, and work, though inviſibly, upon them.Pſal 18.10. So alſo thoſe words, God rode upon a Cherub, and did fly, He did fly upon the wings of the wind, have been well interpreted of Gods being pleaſed to be carryed from Nation to Nation, by the ſervice of his Miniſters.
Now this is the nature of this wind, (of the Spirit of God breathing in his Miniſters) Spirat ubi vult, John 3.8.that it blowes where it liſts; and this is the malice of theſe evill Angels, that it ſhall not doe ſo. But this Angel, which hath the ſeale of the living God, that is, the Miniſtery of the Goſpel eſtabliſhed by him, ſhall keep the winds at their liberty; And howſoever waking dreamers think of alterations and tolerations, howſoever men that diſguiſe their expectations with an outward conformity to us, may think the time of declaring themſelves growes on apace; howſoever the ſlumbring of capitall laws, and reaſonof State may ſuffer ſuch miſtakers to flatter themſelves, yet God hath made this Angel of the Eaſt, this Goſpel of his to aſcend ſo far now, and to take ſo deep root, as that now this one Angel is ſtrong enough for the other foure, that is, The ſincere preaching of the Goſpel, in our ſetled and well diſciplined Church, ſhall prevaile againſt thoſe foure peſtilent oppoſites, Atheiſts, and Papiſts, and Sectaries, and Carnall indifferent men, who all would hinder the blowing of this wind, the effect of this Goſpel. And to this purpoſe our Angel in the Text is ſaid to have cryed with a loud voice, (He cryed with a loud voice to the foure Angels.)
For our ſecurity therefore that this wind ſhall blow ſtill,Clamavit. that this preaching of the Goſpel which we enjoy ſhall be transferred upon our poſterity in the ſame ſincerity, and the ſame integrity, there is required an aſſiduity, and an earneſtneſſe in us, who are in that ſervice now, in which this Angel was then, in our preaching. Clamavit, our Angel cryed, (it was his firſt act, nothing muſt retard our preaching) and voce magna, he cryed with a loud voice; (he gave not over with one calling) What is this crying aloud in our Angel? Vocis modum, audientium neceſsitas definit; The voice muſt be ſo loud, as they,Baſil. to whom we ſpeak, are quick or thick of hearing. Submiſſa, quae ad ſuſurrum propriè accedit, damnanda. A whiſpering voice was not the voice of this Angel, nor muſt it be of thoſe Angels that are figured in him; for that is the voice of a Conventicle, not a Church voice. That is a loud voice that is heard by them whom it concernes. So the catechizing of children, though in a familiar manner, is a loud voice, though it be not a Sermon: So writing in defence of our Religion, is a loud voice, though in the meane time a man intermit his preaching: So the ſpeaking by another, when ſickneſſe or other ſervices withhold him that ſhould, and would ſpeak, is a loud voice even from him.
And therefore though there be no evident, no imminent danger of withholding theſe winds, of inhibiting or ſcanting the liberty of the Goſpel, yet becauſe it is wiſhed by too many, and becauſe we can imagine no puniſhment too great for our neglecting the Goſpel, it becomes us, the Miniſters of God, by all theſe loud voices, of catechizing, of preaching, of writing, to cry, and to cry, (though not with vociferations, or ſeditious jealouſies and ſuſpitions of the preſent government) yet to cry ſo loud, ſo aſſiduouſly, ſo earneſtly, as all whom it concernes (and it concernes all) may heare it: Hurt not the earth, withhold not the winds, be you no occaſions, by your neglecting the Goſpel of Chriſt Jeſus, that he ſuffer it to be removed from you; and know withall, that you doe neglect this Goſpel, (how often ſoever you heare it preached) if you doe not practice it. Nor is that a ſufficient practice of hearing, to deſire to heare more, except thy hearing bring thee to leave thy ſinnes; without that, at the laſt day thou ſhalt meet thy Sermons amongſt thy ſinnes; And when Chriſt Jeſus ſhall charge thee with falſe weights and meaſures in thy ſhop all the week, with prevarication in judgement, with extortion in thy practice, and in thine office, he ſhall adde to that, And beſides this, thou waſt at Church twice that Sunday; when he ſhall have told thee, Thou didſt not feed me, thou didſt not clothe me, he ſhall aggravate all with that, Yet thou heardſt two Sermons that Sunday, beſides thine interlineary week Lectures. The means to keep this wind awake, (to continue the liberty of the Goſpel) is this loud voice, (aſſiduous and pertinent preaching) but Sermons unpractiſed are threepiled ſins, and God ſhall turne, as their prayers, ſo their preaching into ſin. For this injunction, this inhibition which this Angel ſerves upon the four Angels, That they ſhould not hurt the world by withholding the winds, that is, not hinder the propagation & paſſage of the Goſpel, was not perpetuall; it was limited with a Donec, Till ſomething were done in the behalfe and favour of the world, and that was, Till the ſervants of God were ſealed in their foreheads, which is our laſt Conſideration.
The ſervants of God being ſealed in their foreheads in the Sacrament of Baptiſme,Donec ſignentur. when they are received into the care of the Church, all thoſe meanes which God hath provided for his ſervants, in his Church, to refiſt afflictions and tentations, are intended to be conferred upon them in that ſeale; This ſealing of them is a communicating to them all thoſe aſſiſtances of the Chriſtian Church: Then they have a way of prevention of ſin, by hearing; a way to Abſolution, by Confeſſion; a way to Reconciliation, by a worthy receiving the body and bloud of Chriſt Jeſus: And theſe helps of the Chriſtian Church, thus conferred in Baptiſme, keep open ſtill, (if theſe be rightly uſed) that other ſeale, the ſeale of the Spirit; After ye heard the Goſpel, and beleeved, Epheſ. 1.13. 2 Cor. 1.22.ye were ſealed with the holy ſpirit of promiſe: and ſo alſo, God hath anointed us, and ſealed us, and given us the earneſt of his Spirit in our hearts. So that beſides the ſeal in the forehead, which is an intereſt and title to all the aſſiſtances and benefits of the Church, publique prayer, preaching, Sacraments and ſacramentall helps, there is a ſeale of the Spirit of God, that that Spirit beares witneſſe with my ſpirit, that I performe the conditions paſſed between God and me, under the firſt ſeale, my Baptiſme. But becauſe this ſecond ſeale, (the obſignation and teſtification of the inward Spirit) depends upon the good uſe of the firſt ſeale, (the participation of the helps of the Church, given me in Baptiſme) therefore the Donec in our Text, (Hurt them not till they be ſealed) reaches but to to the firſt ſeale, the ſeale of Baptiſme, and in that, of all Gods ordinary graces, ordinarily exhibited in his Ordinances.
So then, this Angel takes care of us, till he have delivered us over to the ſweet and powerfull helps of that Church, which God hath purchaſed with his blood; when hee hath placed us there, he looks that we ſhould doe ſomething for our ſelves, which, before we were there, and made partakers of Gods graces in his Church by Baptiſme, we could not doe; for in this, this Angels Commiſſion determines, That we be ſealed in the fore-heads, That we be taken from the Common, into Gods incloſures, impayled in his Park, received into his Church, where our ſalvation depends upon the good uſe of thoſe meanes. Uſe therefore thoſe meanes well; and put not God to ſave thee by a miracle, without meanes. Truſt not to an irreſiſtible grace, that at one time or other God will have thee,Bernar. whether thou wilt or no. Tolle voluntatem, & non eſt infernus; If thou couldſt quench thine owne will, thou hadſt quenched hell; If thou couldſt be content, willing to be in hell, hell were not hell. So, if God ſave a man againſt his will, heaven is not heaven; If he be loath to come thither, ſorry that he ſhall be there, he hath not the joy of heaven, and then heaven is not heaven. Put not God to ſave thee by miracle; God can ſave an Image by miracle; by miracle he can make an Image a man; If man can make God of bread, certainly God can make a man of an Image, and ſo ſave him; but God hath made thee his own Image, and afforded thee meanes of ſalvation: Uſe them. God compels no man.Luke 14.23. The Maſter of the feaſt invited many; ſolemnly, before hand; they came not: He ſent his ſervants to call in the poore, upon the ſudden; and they came; ſo he receives late commers. And there is a Compelle intrare, He ſends a ſervant to compell ſome to come in. But that was but a ſervants work, The Maſter onelyonly invited; he compelled none. We the ſervants of God, have certaine compulſories, to bring men hither; The denouncing of Gods Judgements, the cenſures of the Church, Excommunications, and the reſt, are compulſories. The State hath compulſories too, in the penall Laws. But all this is but to bring them into the houſe, to Church; Compelle intrare. We can compell them to come to the firſt ſeale, to Baptiſme; we can compell men, to bring their children to that Sacrament; But to ſalvation, onelyonly the Maſter brings; and (in that Parable) the Maſter does onelyonly invite; he compells none: Though his corrections may ſeeme to be compulſories, yet even his corrections are ſweet invitations; His corrections are ſo farre from compelling men to come to heaven, as that they put many men farther out of their way, and worke an obduration, rather then an obſequiouſneſſe.
With thoſe therefore that neglect the meanes, that he hath brought them to, in ſealing them in the fore-head, this Angel hath no more to doe, but gives them over to the power of the foure deſtroying Angels. With thoſe that attend thoſe meanns, he proceeds; and, in their behalfe, his Donec, (Spare them till I have ſealed them) becomes the bleſſed Virgins Donec, Mat. 1.25. Pſal. 110.1.ſhe was a Virgin till ſhe had her Child, and a Virgin after too; And it becomes our bleſſed Saviours Donec, He ſits at his Fathers right hand, till his enemies bee made his foot-ſtoole, and after too; So theſe deſtroying Angels, that had no power over them till they were ſealed, ſhall have no power over them after they are ſealed, but they ſhall paſſe from ſeale to ſeale; after that ſeale on the fore-head, Ne erubeſeant Euangelium, Rom. 1.16.(We ſigne him with the ſigne of the Croſſe, in token, that hereafter he ſhall not be aſhamed, to confeſſe the faith of Chriſt Crucified) He ſhall come alſo to thoſe ſeales, which our Saviour recommends to his Spouſe,Cant. 8.6. Set me as a ſeale on thy heart, and as a ſeale on thine arme; S. Ambroſe collects them, and connects them together, Signaculum Chriſti in corde, ut diligamus, in fronte, ut confiteamur, in brachio, ut operemur; God ſeales us in the heart, that we might love him, and in the fore-head, that we might profeſſe it, and in the hand, that we might declare and practiſe it; and then the whole purpoſe of this bleſſed Angel in our Text, is perfected in us, and we our ſelves are made partakers of the ſolemnity of this day, which we celebrate, for we our ſelves enter in the Communion of Saints, by theſe three ſeales, Of Beliefe, Of Profeſſion, Of Works and Practiſe.