Gods Sovereignty Displayed from Job 9:12, Title page 1 – Treatise 1
GOD'S SOVERAIGNTY DISPLAYED.
From
Job 9.12.
Behold he taketh away, who can hinder him? &c.
OR, A diſcourſe ſhewing, that God doth, and may take away from his creatures what hee pleaſeth, as to the matter what, the place where, the time when, the means and manner how; and the reaſons thereof: With an Application of the whole, to the diſtreſſed Citizens of London, whoſe houſes and goods were lately conſumed by the FIRE: An excitation of them to look to the procuring cauſes of this fiery tryal; the ends that God aims at in it, with directions how to behave themſelves under their loſſes.
By William Gearing Miniſter of the Word.
LONDON, printed by R. I. for Thomas Parkhurſt at the Golden Bible on London Bridge. 1667.
TO THE Right VVorſhipfull Sr. John Pelham of Laughton, Sr. John Fagge of Wiſton, in the County of Suſſex, Baronets:
TO Herbert Morley of Glyne, in the ſame County: to John Gell of Hopton, in the County of Darby, and to Gervaiſe Pigot of Thrumpton in the County of Nottingham, Eſquires.
FRom that dreadful fire that conſumed a great part of the City of London, about the beginning of September laſt, I may take occaſion to ſhew, that the greateſt chances, alterations, and moſt notable changes have commonly hapned in the month of September; Bodinus hath collected many remarkable inſtances to this purpoſe.Bodin. de Rep… lib. 4 Great earth-quakes wherewith oftentimes great Cities and whole Countries have been deſtroyed, have happened in the month of September: Such was that Earth-quake at Conſtantinople, wherein thirteen thouſand men were loſt in the year 1509 in the month of September: In the ſame month of September, wherein the battel was fought at Actium, ten thouſand men periſhed in the Land of Paleſtine, with an Earthquake. The Victory of Auguſtus alſo, againſt Antonius in the battel of Actium, was by him obtained on the ſecond of September, by which victory the Empire both of the Eaſt and Weſt, fell into the power of Auguſtus, himſelf alone. The third day of the ſame month the Macedonian Empire which had ſo long flouriſhed, was by Paulus Aemilius changed from a great Kingdom into divers popular Eſtates: the King Perſius being by him overcome and taken priſoner: Sultan Soliman on the like day took Buda the chief City of Hungaria, with the greateſt part of that Kingdome. The ſame day and month Rhoderick King of Spain, was by the Moors overcome, and driven out of his Kingdom, which wrought a ſtrange alteration in the ſtate of that Monarchy. On the ſame day of the month revolving, Lewis the twelfth the French King took the City of Milan, with Lewis Sphortia Duke thereof, whom he deprived of his Eſtate. On the like day the Emperour Charles the fifth paſſed over into Affrica, and invaded the Kingdome of Algiers. On the ſame third day of September, in the year 1658. dyed O. Cromwel: on that very day of the month, wherein hee had gotten two notable Victories, the one at Dunbar in Scotland, 1650. the other at Worceſter, Anno 1651. On the fourth day of September dyed Sultan Solyman before Sigeth, which being one of the ſtrongeſt holds of Chriſtendome, was by the Turks taken the ſeventh day after, the City of Jeruſalem was taken about this time of the month of September by the Romans, as Xiphilinus declareth. On the ninth day of September, Alexander the Great at Arbela overthrew Darius King of Perſia, with his Army of four hundred thouſand men, and ſo joyned the Kingdome of Perſia unto his own. On the ſame day in the year 1544. James King of Scots, was by the Englishmen ſlain, and his Army overthrown. On the tenth of September, John Duke of Burgundy was ſlain by the commandment of Charles the ſeventh, whence aroſe great Wars throughout all France. On the like day and month was Peter Louys the Tyrant of Placenzza ſlain by the Conſpiratours. On the eleventh of September the Paleology the Greek Emperors tooke the Imperial City of Conſtantinople, and drave out thence the Earls of Flanders, who had there poſſeſſed the Empire 560 years. On the fourteenth day of September, the Switzers were with a great ſlaughter overthrown by the French in the Expedition of Merignan; which ſelf-ſame day alſo the Turk's great Army beſieged Vienna the Metropolitical City of Auſtria. On the ſeventeenth day, the French Army was overthrown at Poictiers, and King John himſelf taken Priſoner by the Engliſh. On the ſame day of the month A. D. 1575 the Chriſtian Fleet with a great ſlaughter overthrew the Turk's great Fleet in the battel of Lepanto. On the ſame day of the ſame month Charles the ninth, King of France, was by his Subjects aſſailed near unto Meaux, where by ſpeedy flight, and the help of the Switzers, hee hardly with life eſcaped the hands of the Conſpiratours. A. D. 1567. On the which ſelf-ſame day, month and year, Henry King of Sweden was by his rebellious Subjects diſpoiled of his Eſtate, and caſt into Priſon. On the eighteenth day of September Bulloign was ſurrendred to the Engliſh. Ʋpon the like day of the month, Bajazet at Nicopolis overthrew a great Army of the Chriſtians, of three hundred thouſand men. And on the ſame day Saladine took the City of Jeruſalem, on which Pompey had before taken it. On the twentieth day of September, was that ſharpe ſight at Newbury, in that late unhappy War in England. A. D. 1643. On the four and twentieth day of September, Conſtantine the great in a bloody battel, overcame Maxentius the Emperour. A. D. 333. and ſo became a great Monarch, which wrought a notable change, almoſt throughout the whole World; from thenceforth he commanded the year to bee begun in September, and to the Greek Feaſts unto that day is added, foreign. In this month Pope Boniface 8th. A. D. 1303. was taken Priſoner, and deprived of his Papal dignity. On the third day of the ſame month, A. D. 1556. ſuch a Tempeſt of rain and Thunder hapned at Lucern, as that a greater (as was reported) was never ſeen; On which ſelf-ſame month & day, the Town-Hall of Maidenburg in Germany, with the Citizens dancing therein, were altogether with lightning conſumed. About the beginning of this month A. D. 465. ſuch an horrible fire brake forth in Conſtantinople by the water-ſide, which raged with that fury for four daies together, that it conſumed the greateſt part of the City, and ſuch was the force thereof,Evangr. lib. 2. ca. 13. that as Evagrius ſaith, the ſtrongeſt Houſes were but like ſo much dried ſtubble before it. And how hath the Lord ſent a dreadful Fire upon London, and it hath conſumed the lofty buildings and Palaces thereof in September laſt?
We read alſo, that many of the greateſt Princes and Monarchs of the world, to have dyed in this very month of September; Viz. Auguſtus, Tiberius▪ Veſpaſian, Titus, Domitian, Aurelianus, Theodoſius the great, Valentinian, Gratian, Baſilius, Conſtantine the fifth, Leo the 4th. Rodolph, Frederick the 4th. Charles the 5th. all Roman or Greek Emperors. And of the French Kings, Pepin, Lewis the younger, Philip the 3d. Charles the 5th. ſirnamed the Wife, and Lewis his Kinſman, King of Hungary, and Polland, with many other moſt noble and famous Monarchs. And it is remarkable, that Lothair and Charles the Bald, the one the K. of France, and the other the German Emperor, (and both of them the Sons of Lewis the devout Emperor) both died the 29th. of September, the firſt of them in the year, 855. and the other A. D. 877. So Charles 5. and Sultan Solyman, two of the greateſt Emperours that were theſe many Ages, were both born in one year, and ſo both alſo dyed in one month, viz. in September. Now though ſome have thought all theſe great and marvellous effects, to have been wrought by the Conjunction of the ſuperiour Planets, or look below God to ſecondary cauſes; yet let us look above all theſe, to God himſelf, who worketh all things after the Counſel of his own will, Eph. 1.11.
Right Worſhipful, to you I Dedicate theſe enſuing Meditations, as a publick teſtimonial of thoſe reſpects you have manifeſted to me, let me beſeech you to look diligently to your ſelves, becauſe the Lord hath ſet you on higher ground than many others; it is more for perſons in your places and stations to win the City of God, being ſhips of greater burden, and in the main Ocean, than for ſmall Veſſels that are not ſo much at the mercy of the ſtormes, becauſe by ſailing along the Coaſt, they may come quietly to the Haven. In the midſt of your worldly affairs; labour ye to be like the freſh Rivers, that preſerve their own ſweetneſs in the ſalt-Sea. Thus recommending you to the rich Grace of God, I humbly take my leave, and remain,
Yours in all Goſpel-Services to bee commanded, W. GEARING. Cranſden in Suſſex. March. 27. 1667.
God's Soveraignty DISPLAYED.
Job 9.12.
Behold, he taketh away, who can hinder him? Who will ſay unto him, what doſt thou?