A Century of Sermons, Sermon 2
THE SECOND SERMON UPON NOAH.
GEN. viii. 20, 21.
And Noah builded an Altar unto the Lord, and took of every clean Beaſt, and of every clean Fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the Altar.
And the Lord ſmelled a ſweet ſavour.
THis is our Sacrifice which we offer unto God at this time to preach of Sacrifice, and Preaching hath a great ſimilitude with the Law of the Peace-offering, Deut. xxvii. 7. Thou ſhalt offer Peace-offerings, and ſhalt eat thereof, and rejoyce before the Lord thy God: So we are come together to ſpeak unto the honour of God, and to make our ſelves perfect in his ways and Teſtimonies to do them. We offer unto the honour of our Saviour, and eat of our own Offering, which is the very condition of a Pacificatory Sacrifice. Now that I may bring nothing unto the Altar but that which is pure and clean, the Lord grant that he will circumciſe my lips, and put a right Spirit into my Meditations. Among the Beaſts ſuch a one was clean that parted the Hoof, and chewed the Cud: upon which St. Chryſoſtome deviſeth this interpretation; to divide the Hoof is foreign ▪ to divide the Word of God aright, in St. Pauls Phraſe: To chew the Cud is to ruminate upon ſacred things, to roul them in our underſtanding, and to examine them maturely, not to admit, or ſwallow down Divine Myſteries raſhly with ſlight and undiſcourſed credulity. That we may chew the Cud in this Fathers ſenſe I take theſe words, upon which I have lately ſpoken, again into my mouth, to make further proof what is contained in them.
And leſt confuſion ſhould make all that is to be ſaid unprofitable I will divide the Hoof after the condition required in a clean Sacrifice. I have declared before that there are two principal branches to be noted in the Text, the material part, and the formal, the body and the ſoul of that Divine Worſhip which Noah offered unto the Lord. In the material part again are two contents, the Gift, and the place which ſanctified the Gift. The Gift was an whole burnt-offering of every clean Beaſt, and of every clean Fowl; the place was the Altar which he made, and Noah built an Altar to the Lord. Theſe are the viſible body of the work; The inviſible part, or the ſoul conſiſts herein, that the Lord ſmelt a ſweet ſavour; and that hath two members in it ſenſum, and ſenſibile, firſt, the ſweet Odour which did exhale from the Sacrifice what it was; ſecondly, a quick ſenſe that took it, the Lord ſmelled a ſweet ſavour. I did not diſpatch all the material part when I firſt handled theſe words, for accounting it a leſs fault to be abrupt than tedious, I proceeded upon no more than the conſideration of the bare Gift, a Burnt-offering of every clean Beaſt, and of every clean Fowl. At this time I have meaſured to go a little further without prolixity. I ſhall ſpeak, God willing upon the place that ſanctified the Gift, and Noah builded an Altar unto the Lord; and upon the quick ſenſe, which did apprehend the ſweet Odour, it was even he who is preſent at every part of clean devotion, and delighteth in it, the Lord ſmelled a ſweet ſavour. From whence I will meditate, 1. That the time was but new over that God deſtroyed almoſt the whole World, ſee how ſoon he is pleaſed after his great wrath, and with what ſmall ſeeking. 2. When we do any thing well there is joy in heaven. 3. Many pious offices which ſtink in the Worlds opinion are ſweet before God. 4. There is no greater encouragement to do well, than that we are ſure it finds grace in the eyes of our heavenly Maſter, it is ſweet in his noſtrils, and he will reward it. Of theſe as I have divided them. And Noah builded an Altar, &c.
The whole Earth had been overwhelmed for a long ſpace with the waters of the Deluge, in plain terms it was all under malediction, but Noah builded an Altar of the tu…f and mold of the earth, and ſo brought it again into good uſe and ſervice, and ſanctified the whole Element to the Lord. Truly, God that revealed unto Noah that he ſhould make an Ark, and be ſaved in the common Calamity, deſerved to have an Altar erected at his hands, that thereon he might adore his Saviour. The Jewiſh Rabbines are ſo punctual in their curioſities, that they go about to tell us the very Plot of ground on which this Altar was raiſed, and many things more of great fame to happen in the ſame place, I am ſure you will ſay the report is very ſtrange, if it be credible. But this Ben-Maimon adventures to ſay, that it is a Tradition by the hand of all, where David built an Altar on the Threſhing Flore of Araunah, Solomon built a Temple, and Abraham made ready there to offer up Iſaac, and Noah built this Altar in the ſame ſtanding when he came out of the Ark, that there was the Altar where Cain and Abel did firſt offer before Noah; nay, that the firſt man did offer an Offering there ſoon after he was created; and yet he goes further, our Wiſemen ſay, Adam was created out of the very earth of the ſame place. There is no mediocrity in theſe mens conjectures, and therefore I give them over without commending them.
Whereſoever this Altar did fortune to ſtand (why not moſt likely upon the Mountains of Ararat, or Armenia, upon which the Ark reſted?) But certain it is, this is the firſt time that we read of an Altar. And though the ſubſtance were like other earth, yet being once erected for that uſe it became a very holy place, the Altar ſanctifieth the Gift ſays our Saviour, Mat. xxiii. 19. And therein it was a Figure of Chriſt, by whom we offer up to God praiſe and thankſgiving, and all the deſires of our heart; he is underſtood by all Expoſitors, whom I have ſeen, to be the Golden Altar before the Throne, upon which the Prayers of all the Saints were offered up, Rev. viii. 3. And there is not an Altar of any faſhion or ſtuff in Moſes, but the Fathers have found out ſomewhat in it to agree with Chriſt in their pious Meditations. Firſt, Propter unicam aram, in the Tabernacle, in the Temple there was but one Altar, ſo there is but one Chriſt that reconciles us to his Father, but one Mediater between God and Man. Secondly, Becauſe ſome ſpecial occaſions were now and then diſpenſed with to ſet up another Altar, the materials of thoſe Altars were either to be rude earth,Exod. 20. or elſe rough and unpoliſhed ſtones. 1. Undigeſted earth with much ſimplicity, and devoid of all ornament, Ʋt nihil in eis admiraremur praeter ſalutis pretium; Maſius in Joſh. 8.31.Nothing was made beautiful, or to be admired in the outward form of things, that the mind of the devotionary might be tranſported with no outward thing, but inwardly conceive the excellency of that ranſom which was paid for the ſins of the world. And then Gregory will carry you with him to this fancy;Lib. 3. Mor. c 20. Why were religious Altars to be made of earth? Queſtionleſs, to betoken the Incarnation of our Lord. Quicquid offerimus Deo in altari terreo, i… in fide dominicae incarnationis ſolidamus; Whatſoever we bring unto the Lord to pleaſe him, deliver upon the Earthen Altar, upon this ground and foundation, that the Word was made fleſh, the Son of God was made the Son of Man, that whoſoever believeth in him ſhould not periſh, but have life everlaſting. Litterally theſe earthen Altars made of ſods of graſs, Temeraria de ceſpite altaria, as Tertullian calls them, did beſt like the Lord before the Temple was eſtabliſhed, that they might crumble away, and not ſtand long, leſt their permanency ſhould breed diverſity of Worſhip, and confuſion in Religion: And it is very likely conſidering how readily a few clods of earth may be piled up, and Noah as yet wanted ſtuff and means for any other Architecture, his Altar was but a bank of earth; not foreign which is a ſtructure in a Temple, but foreign;De vitâ Moſ. lib. 3. a place to receive Sacrifices ſet up in the open-fields; ſo Philo gives me the diſtinction, foreign, the word which is accurately kept in this place by the Septuagint.
If the Altar were a little more coſtly and elaborate, that is made of ſtone, the order was, it ſhould be rough and unpoliſhed, no iron tool muſt be lifted up upon it, and in theſe materials likewiſe we ſhall meet with Chriſt. Firſt, Chriſt is Lapis vivus & inſectus, called in the Goſpel a living ſtone, called by Daniel the ſtone which is cut out of the Mountain without hands. He was not poliſhed by Art, by Education, or by any thing that man could put into him, as he came from the very Quarry, from the Womb of his Mother, he was full of grace and truth. Secondly, Thoſe rough ragged ſtones did beſt become the work of the Altar, partly to imply in what poor and deſpicable manner Chriſt came into the world, without form or comlineſs in him, ſays Iſaiah; partly it did figure thoſe rough and dolorous ſufferings which he ſuſtained upon the Croſs, which was an Altar truly taken, and his body the Sacrifice which was ſlain upon it. Thirdly: No Iron Inſtrument muſt grate it ſelf upon the ſtones of the Altar; for he who is the Altar on which we eat was the Prince of Peace; he came not to redeem us by Sword, or by Conqueſt, or taking earthly Kingdoms into his hand by force and victory (which was the weak imagination of ſome that were his beſt Diſciples) but by Patience, and Sufferance, and putting up the Sword into the Sheath. Cicero teſtifies for the Heathen, Lib. de ….that they uſed no Braſs or Iron about their Altars, nor knit the ſtones together with ſuch Metals, Aes & ferrum arcenda ſunt à delubris, & duelli inſtrumenta non fani; ſays he, thoſe warlike Metals are for the Martial Field, not for Divine Sanctuaries. And thus you ſee what ſemblance thoſe Altars of Earth and of ſtone had with our bleſſed Saviour.
But by this the good Patriarch Noah hath ſhewed, that an Altar was a neceſſary part of Religion, that he began with that work before any other, it was the firſt fruits of his piety. But now the Church hath outgrown that name properly taken; we have no real and external Sacrifice of Chriſts body and bloud; by himſelf he did once offer a full, perfect, and ſufficient Sacrifice for the ſins of the whole world; therefore to erect a real Altar without a figurative conſtruction is to overthrow the Croſs of Chriſt. But many both have been delighted, and are delighted to keep the name figuratively without offence. And Bellarmine doth but fight with words,Lib. 1. de miſ. cap. 2. that there can be no Altar without Sacrifice, that Antiquity uſeth the name of an Altar when Chriſts body and bloud are propoſed to the Receivers, therefore the Prieſt doth properly ſacrifice our Saviour. Thus many words which paſſed to and fro in antiquity with great eloquence have been diſtorted to make diſſention. In Origens and Arnobius time the caſe ſtood thus,Orig. lib. 4. cont. Celſum. cap. 8. Arnob. con. gen. lib. 4. Lib. 7. foreign. Objiciunt nobis quod non habemus imagines aut aras; The Heathen quipt them that they had no Images nor Altars. And Clemens of Alexandria ſays, we have no other Altars but theſe earthly bodies of ours, which we bring to the Congregation of Prayer. Afterward the holy Communion began to be celebrated with many elegant and ſumptuous Ceremonies, and that upon which the Elements of Bread and Wine were ſet, properly by St. Paul called a Table, improperly and figuratively was called an Altar. The Writers of Sacred things delighted in many names of Moſaical uſe for the ſimilitude of the Law and Goſpel. hence it is frequent to call Prayer by the name of Incenſe, to call the Chriſtian Prieſthood Levites, the Thankſgiving of women after their ſafe deliverance from Childbirth their Purification; Finally to call the holy Communion a Sacrifice, and the Table of the Lord an Altar. But how far they were from allowing the new Philoſophy of Tranſubſtantiation from hence the diligent Reader may mark it. Even our own Church, ſince it renounced the opinion of an External propitiatory Sacrifice in the Maſs, yet in the firſt Liturgies, ſet forth by Publick Authority in the Reign of Edward the Sixth, the name of Altar is throughout retained, to comply with the Figurative phraſe of good Antiquity; and the next Edition of Liturgies, to keep an wholſom form of words as St. Paul ſays, and to give no place to miſconſtruction, doth every where throughout call it the Lords Table. And in the Injunctions of another bleſſed Prince, (whereas by order of Law Altars were to be removed, and Tables placed for the miniſtration of the holy Communion) it is ſaid, ſaving for Uniformity ſake there was no matter of great moment, ſo the Sacrament was duly and reverently celebrated, and that the holy Table in every Church ſhould be ſet in the place where the Altar ſtood. We dare therefore, and will ſpeak according to Antiquity, in the Figurative meaning of Antiquity, calling it an Altar; but leſt the Supper of the Lord ſhould be called the external and real crucifying of our Lord again, we neither dare nor will ſpeak after the ſenſe of the Roman novelty, to call it an Altar, but we come to that holy Supper to be partakers of the Table of the Lord. Theſe are not times to offer Sacrifice as Noah did, and therefore not to build an Altar, but only to commemorate that Sacrifice, after which all true Sacrifices ceaſed, and all properly called Altars fell to the ground. And ſo much for the place which Noah ſanctified, he builded an Altar to the Lord.
I am paſt the viſible part of this good work, I come now to the inviſible part, the life, the ſoul of it: And the Lord ſmelled a ſweet ſavour. What this delicate Odour and fragrancy was which the Sacrifice did exhale up to heaven I will not defraud you of it hereafter, but I will defer it now, and make my ſelf room enough to ſpeak of that quick ſenſe which did apprehend this ſweet Odour, the Lord ſmelled a ſweet ſavour. A remnant or portion of living things had entred into the Ark to eſcape, thoſe were given unto the new World to multiply, but Noah would be more ſevere againſt the ſins of the World than the Lord was, he would not ſpare ſo much as the merciful God had ſpared. Nay, the Lord thought it enough to overwhelm the iniquities of men with water, but Noah preſented Burnt-offerings on the Altar to confeſs, that the wicked works of the World deſerved likewiſe to be conſumed with Fire. A moſt depreſſing humility in the good Patriarch, a moſt mortified Confeſſion. This won far upon the Lords compaſſion, and changed the rugged brow of Juſtice into the ſmiles of mercy and benevolence. It grieved him before that he had made man, now he rejoyceth for the Remnant alive, that he had preſerved them. As a Kingly Expoſitor ſaid upon the Lords Prayer, the moſt generous are the moſt gentle, and a magnanimous courage is never vindicative of a wrong, never retentive. The time was but even now over that God had deſtroyed the whole World, and ſee how placable he is, from what a little pittance of true devotion he ſmelled a ſweet ſavour. Before the King of Ninivey had worn out his Sackcloth, nay, almoſt before he had put it on; God ſaw their works, and repented of the evil which he ſaid he would do unto them, and did it not. Zachaeus did but profeſs to make reſtitution of all things ill-gotten, and before he had made reſtitution of one peny, ſays Chriſt, this day, (yea Lord, what if thou hadſt ſaid this minute?) is ſalvation come into thy houſe. Nathan charged David with moſt bitter offences, (Lord keep us from the like) David begins to reply, I have ſinned againſt the Lord; it was but a beginning, ſurely he would have ſaid more, but Nathan takes him off at a few words, the Lord alſo hath taken away thy ſin, thou ſhalt not die. It is accounted ſo great a matter to follow, and ſollicit Chriſt thrice together, like ſhe of Canaan, that ſhe had her Garland for it. O woman great is thy faith! Our loving Father will wait long for our Repentance, but we ſhall not wait long for his Forgiveneſs. As the Hiſtorian noted in Romulus, that inveagled the Sabines with ſuch courteous uſage, Quod eodem die hoſtes & cives habuit; in the Morning they came againſt him with hoſtility, before Evening he had incorporated them all into his City. So the Lord, (upon good tokens of their humiliation) looked upon ſome in the Morning as excluſes from the upper Jeruſalem; and preſently he enroles their names in the Book of life. Upon that mournful cry of David, Have mercy upon me, O Lord, according to thy great goodneſs; Thus Caſſiodor, Vox eſt quae nunquam diſcutitur, ſed tranquille ſemper auditur; It is a voice which is never examined, never ſuſpended or delaid, never deliberated upon, it penetrates far, it will be heard, and it ſhall be anſwered. It meets with Gods mercy as quick as a ſtrong Perfume comes to the Noſtril, and therefore his complacency ſo ready to forgive, is called ſmelling a ſweet ſavour; nay, let me not forget that the Hebrew read it Odorem quietis, the Lord ſmelled a ſavour of reſt. All ſenſible ſmells, be it the Roſe among the Flowers, or Caſſia among the Spices, muſt be often put to the ſenſe, and often taken away to pleaſe it; hold them long to the Noſtril, and they will prove faint and tedious, Nullus odor ſenſibilis eſt odor quietis; bodily ſents are not ſents of reſt and quietneſs; but to ſhew that our gracious Father is ſuddenly reconciled, and long pleaſed, very tenacious of his mercy, our Sacrifice, our Prayers, our Alms, all our Chriſtian Offices are odores quietis, their ſmell ſtays long with God, they are an odour of reſt, he never loaths or diſdains them. O Lord, thy placable compaſſions are exceeding ſweet, ten thouſand times ſweeter than the Sacrifice of Noah.
It ſhould be thus with all that will follow Chriſt, like Lord, like Servants, but it ſeems it is not. David had no heart to ſtand to any bodies courteſie but the good God's, O let me not fall into the hands of men. We ſmother rancour in our breaſt like fire in touchwood, or like fire in iron, touch and you ſhall feel it burn, though you cannot ſee it. We are the Children of Eve, and our great Mother, you know, was made of a ſtiff and a crooked rib, we take after it too much. We muſt be courted rather like Miſtreſſes than Chriſtians, be wooed, be preſented, be ſupplicated, and after all this may be ſcarce obtain ſo much kindneſs as a merciful man would ſhew to his Beaſt. Like the Emperor Frederick Barbaroſſa his humiliation, he ſtood at doors three days barefoot for an apparition of his Holineſs, and the favour which all this patience and expectation procured was to ſtoop to the earth, and to have his neck trode upon by Pope Alexander the Third, a diſdain which the Royal ſpirit of Alexander the Great did never put upon Darius. Some do keep ſuch long diſtance from this Doctrin, that I may juſtly ſay as Abraham did to the rich Glutton, there is a great gulf between you and I. I mean thoſe that turn away their face from pitty and reconciliation never to look upon it. I ſay lay down your enmities upon the firſt motion of peace, they ſay no, not upon the laſt ſummons of death. I conclude from my Text, that all diſpleaſure muſt quickly be ſcattered, they conſult with the black book of their own Satanical malice, and ſay it ſhall never be mitigated. How many wedges muſt be driven in before this knotty heart will cleave. Cleave and yield without delay, or the uſe of that logg ſhall be to be caſt into eternal fire.
You are all in haſte, will ſome object, and ſtubborn hearts are as ſlow to lay down their enmities; would not a moderation do well? What's that? Why, this is called diſcretion and moderation, not to embrace too ſoon after a falling out, to preſs our adverſary down, and drive him to affliction, that he may be the more beholding to reconciliation. Is this the wiſdom of the world? I am ſure it is enmity with God, and this is ſuch a Paradox to foſter malice for a while, I know not for what pretenſed ends, to wind up all with chariry at the laſt, as if a wound would be the better for rankling. All that time which the Devil gains of you to ſtand out and exclude charity, is to harden your heart, that you may never relent: and he that is not mollified to diſgorge all mallice at the preaching of one Sermon, if I miſtake not the manifold threatnings in Holy Scripture (as I am ſure I do not) he will be worſe and worſe after the preaching of an hundred. Eſau indeed had ſpent all his ſpight at laſt, and fell upon Jacobs neck and kiſſed him, but did not that curſe remain both upon him, and upon his Houſe? Jacob have I loved, and Eſau have I hated. In Eccleſiaſtical Stories, that which befel Sapriſius is a Sermon alone to put you on ſpeedily to be at perfect peace with all men, unleſs you have reſolv'd not to break your Covenant with Hell. Sapricius was a Church-man of great note and name, but an errand Boanerges; a Son of thunder, he had a quarrel againſt one Nicephorus a Lay perſon;Lorin. in Act. 7.60. Nicephorus deſired his friendſhip, Sapricius would not: It fortuned that Sapricius preaching the Doctrine of Chriſt with much diligence, was attacht by Pagan Officers to ſuffer Martyrdom. As he was led to Execution, Nicephorus then took his time to pacify him. This venemous Prieſt even at that hour refuſed him, and turned away his face. God above was angry, took away his good ſpirit from him, and even at the point of death Sapricius revolted, denied his Saviour for hope of life, and Nicephorus that ſtood by weeping, and had beſought reconciliation with tears, took his Girlond from him and ſuffered Martyrdom in his place. I know Sapricius could have ſaid as much for himſelf as any witty rankerous perſon whatſoever, he loathed not Nicephorus upon revenge, but he had juſtice on his ſide, to deteſt him for divers injuries he had received. Avoid Satan, and all ſuch Apologies. Juſtice is the Garland of all Virtues, Revenge is the moſt ſtinking weed of all Vices. What a wide miſtake is here? He that ſhould call black white muſt needs have a great fault in his eyes, and he that will call revenge juſtice muſt needs have a foul blot in his conſcience. I will not rob the other points of the Text of that time that is due unto them, otherwiſe much more might be ſaid, and very profitably; for look for this doom and ſentence from God, no charity no Chriſtianity, no mercy no ſalvation. So much malice ſo much devil. Therefore depart from me ye malicious into everlaſting fire, &c.
The Lord ſmelled a ſweet ſavour; mark then in the next place what welcom entertainment this is for all the fruits of a godly life, when we do any thing well there is joy in Heaven, the delight of the Lord is in his Saints, and in them that fear him. Becauſe the old world was full of wickedneſs, and in every part but like a corrupt Dunghil, therefore it was every whit drowned, and made a loathſome Kennel of waters. All theſe wicked Generations had left a ſtink behind them fulſom as mortified carrion; therefore the perfume of Noahs piety was very expedient to air the new world, that the Lord might be delighted with a better ſavour. But in this phraſe there are many figures to be unfolded, many ſhells to be broken before I come to the kernel. 1. Here is one Figure to tranſlate bodily ſenſes to the Divine Eſſence, which is incorporeal. 2. Though it were ſpoken of a man, yet there muſt needs be another Figure to ſay He ſmelt ſweetneſs from that wherein you mean he took delight and complacency, wherein he rejoyced. 3. Here is another Figure, to ſpeak of Gods immutable Eſſence as of things created, to which ſomewhat happens in time that was not in them before. Angels and Men may be partakers of ſome good news to day, which were not in being before, from whence they feel a new branch of comfort and exhilaration: but do you ween that any ſavour was ſweet unto God at this time, and kindled a new act, or a new affection in him, which he had not before? O no, he knows our infirmity, that we are Children, and cannot ſpeak of him as we ought, therefore He lets us talk of him as a man, that we may learn to honour him as God. Cornel. a lap. in 62. cap. Iſa.But the true notion how God is pleaſed with the ſweet odour of that which Noah did then, or that we do now is in this Maxim of the School: Ab aeterno laetatus eſt Deus ſimul & ſemel unico actu de toto ordine punitionis & praemiorum. There is one immutable joy and delight in God, which never changed, never did fall or riſe by addition, or diminution of parts and degrees, with this one eternal act he delights himſelf in his own juſtice, and in his own mercy, and in the ſhadow of his glory, which is his Church; and this muſt laſt and perſevere in the ſame conſtancy for ever.
But becauſe the ſpeculation of this truth is far more abſtruſe than the forms of ordinary ſpeech with which we are familiar, the Lord leaves it unto us, to make uſe of that joy which he takes in our faith and zeal, as if at that inſtant, when Noah offered a good Sacrifice, He ſmelt a ſweet ſavour. So Luke xv. foreign, Rejoyce with me, for I have found the piece of ſilver which I loſt; and in the ſame chapter, when the loſt Child came home again, the Father tells his elder Son, It was meet that we ſhould make merry and be glad, for this thy Brother was dead, and is alive again. Now I bring my motive to you, and lay it down at the door of your conſcience. Contend and ſtrive for that perfection of virtue, that the Lord may ſay this my Son is like Joſeph, the comfort of old Iſrael, a Plant which I ſet in a lucky hour, it brings forth fragrant flowers of obedience, of alms, of charity to delight me, and as old Iſaac ſaid, I ſmell the ſavour of my Son like the ſavour of a Field which is newly mown, from which all diſpreading weeds and luxury are quite cut down. You flow with vain delights, but that is Gods contriſtation. You pleaſe your ſelves with filthy communication, but St. Paul ſays you grieve the Holy ſpirit, Epheſ. iv. You are ſportful and merry even till calamity comes upon you, but the ſecurity of Jeruſalem cauſeth Chriſt to weep. Properly grief and vexation are not incident to God, or to the Eternal Spirit, you ſhall know to your coſt, that when our voluptuous life is chang'd to howling and gnaſhing of teeth, Angels ſhall ſing about his Throne without ceaſing; but wicked men do what lies in them to put Chriſt to ſorrow and ſadneſs, as earthly Parents eat their own heart, and macerate themſelves, when their Children will not be ruled by their authority. Comment thus I beſeech you upon all your unlawful pleaſures. Can there be any relliſh in that joy wherewith you grieve your Redeemer? any ſweetneſs in that ſacriledg wherein God is impoveriſhed? Will you ſing placebo to any man to grate the ear of the Moſt High? Will you perfume your ſelf for the Chamber of a Curtezan, and ſtink in the noſtrils of the Lord? no I will abandon all my delights, that He may be pleaſed in my mortification: I will mourn continually in repentance, that He may ſmile at it; the zeal of his Houſe ſhall eat me up, I will burn with devotion, that He may ſmell a ſweet ſavour. The dolor and ſmart of any preſent calamity doth not trouble a righteous man ſo much, as that he feels the wrath of God upon him, ſo proſperity, peace, health, nay Heaven it ſelf make him not ſo happy, as to collect from the ſenſe of his benefits, that the Lord is delighted with him. This is the Nuptial Song which we look for, when we are married to the Lamb; as the Bridegroom rejoyceth over the Bride, ſo ſhall the Lord rejoyce over thee, Iſa. 62.5.
Here it is to be admoniſhed, that nothing is ſo ſavoury and delightful which we do, as what the Lord doth himſelf, non tam delectatur ut aliquid accipiat, quàm ut aliquid det; his love is very bountiful, and better pleaſed to give than to take. Therefore in no place of Scripture did his joy break forth ſo gaudily as in the Parable, where he bad his Servants kill the fatted Calf, to bid his penitent Child welcom home: whereupon ſays Chryſologus, immolabat vitulum, i. filium & gaudebat! he rejoyced in the death of his own Son for our ſakes, becauſe his mercy was free to have mercy on whom He pleaſed in that propitiatory Sacrifice. The Jews would bring thouſands of Rams to the Altar at this day; the Lord will have none of them, becauſe they will not bring them in the faith of that Sacrifice, wherein alone He is well pleaſed. If abundance of Oblations would have made a grateful ſteam to mount up to Heaven, they had done it long agoe. Joſephus ſays againſt Appio, that 5000 of their Levites took their turn every week to attend at the Altar; I am ſure much Sacrifice muſt be brought to employ ſo many hands, but non eſt mihi voluntas in vobis, ſays Malachi, I have no pleaſure in you, nor in your gifts; ſurely becauſe they offered not up unto him the ſavour of his Son. All manners of Religions do not pleaſe God, that were in effect to ſay, that all kind of ſmels had an odoriferous fragrancy. You muſt plow with Gods Heifer, preſent him with faith in the death of his own dearly beloved Son, and your imperfect righteouſneſs being perfum'd with that incenſe, the Lord will take it for a ſweet ſavour, and call it perfect obedience.
Let me now make you partakers of the third Proviſo, that a rank ſtink ſteams from Beaſts and Fowl burnt in the fire, yet the piety of Noah did aſcend up in a ſweet ſmell to Heaven: therefore let not ſuch good things ſtink in the noſtrils of men, that did delight the Lord. It is Gods direction to gather tares in bundels, ſo I will muſter together the corrupt examples of thoſe that were as ſenſeleſs as Davids Idols, They had noſes and ſmelt not, or at leaſt they were ſo full of the putrefaction of their own ſins, that they complained there was an ill ſent, where indeed there was the fragrancy of moſt excellent virtue. Pharaoh called Religion an idle mans Exerciſe; ſays he, ye are idle, ye are idle, and therefore ye would go into the Wilderneſs to ſacrifice to the Lord. Michol ſcoff'd at David for being in an extaſie of joy that the Ark was brought into Jeruſalem. The Phariſees diſliked every good thing that Chriſt did; and obſerve it I beſeech you, from thence they provoked the moſt dreadful words that ever came from Chriſts mouth, He that ſinneth againſt the Holy Ghoſt, it ſhall neither be remitted to him in this world, nor in the world to come. Judas ſmelt no ſweet ſavour in the ointment which a moſt pious woman poured upon our Saviour's head, but complained, quorſum perditio haec? to what purpoſe is this waſte? The ſcoffers of Jeruſalem ſaid the Diſciples were full of new wine, when they preached the Name of Chriſt in all tongues and languages. New wine at Whitſuntide was never heard of, for there are ſcarce new leaves upon the Vine at that ſeaſon. I wept and chuſtned my ſelf with faſting, and it was turned to my reproof, ſays the holy Penitent. It is altogether a fault that we will not commend, nay that we will gibe and deride at that which is very good and devout in them that are of a contrary faction. Sectaries, whoſe courſes I abhor, yet ſomethings ſhould not be ſcoffed at, that they are diligent to come to Church, that they read the Scriptures, that they are not accuſtomed to raſh and odious ſwearing; let not theſe things be reckoned with their juſtly condemned hypocriſie. Pontificians, whoſe errors I decry, yet their obſerving Canonical hours of Prayer, their obedience to obey Eccleſiaſtical Laws, their deſire to kindle zeal by viſiting thoſe places where our Lord and Saviour frequented, let theſe things be ſeparated from their Superſtitions. As Seneca ſaid of Learning, quicquid bene ſcriptum eſt meum eſt, whatſoever was well written by any man, he took for his own, as freely as if he had invented it; ſo I ſay of Religion, quicquid bene geſtum eſt meum eſt, whatſoever is praiſe-worthy in any Sect, I will not ſcoff at it, but imitate it.
When the Phariſees boaſted of ſome of their good deeds, haec oportuit fieri, ſays our Saviour, this is well, this ought to have been done, and not other things left undone. Holofernes could not diſlike that Judith and her Maid ſhould pray together every night; make a conſcience therefore what you condemn, and reprove it out of judgment; flout not at tolerable things out of levity. There ſhall come in the laſt days ſcoffers walking after their own luſts, 2 Pet. iii. 3. Theſe ſay the ancient Expoſiters were the Gnoſticks, that traduced the faithful for living chaſtly and auſterely, to avoid the judgment to come, and to inherit a Crown of life. But what are theſe ſcoffers in the very word of the Apoſtle, foreign ſuch as play the child, and no better. Such were the Maſſalians, that condemned Faſting, I, and Baptiſm, Theodoret. lib. 4. c. 10.becauſe they ſaid all good things might be brought to paſs by Prayer. And the Arrians, that were ill affected to ſinging of Pſalms, becauſe the Orthodox uſed it much: and they that can find no juſt fault with the decent Habit that our Churchmen wear, and yet beſpatter it with ill words, becauſe ſome of our Oppoſites do wear the like Livery. Veſtitum non nuditatem patris rident, Cham laughed at the nakedneſs of Noah, but theſe not at the nakedneſs, but at the Garments of their ſpiritual Fathers; judg between them and Cham then, who was the greater ſcoffer. Whatſoever things are true, whatſoever things are honeſt, whatſoever things are lovely or of good report, the Lord applauds them, and ſays they have a ſweet ſavour: if the deteſtation and ſcorn of evil men ſhall light upon ſuch things, their ſmell will be more aromatical to the Lord like thoſe Allies of herbs that give a better ſent when the foot doth trample upon them.
Anciently the wages of virtue was praiſe at leaſt, but the ſaying was, it might be praiſed, and in the mean time ſtarve for cold; now it may ſtarve and be quite obſcur'd it is ſo coldly praiſed; but in the laſt annotation of my Text I will raiſe up the righteouſneſs of the juſt to ſome comfort and expectation; for we are ſure our good works find grace in the eyes of our heavenly Father, and He is preſent at them all, as the ſenſe is near at hand to that it ſmells; both his preſence, and his liking, and his remuneration are all in this Allegory, that when Noah offered a clean Sacrifice, the Lord ſmelled a ſweet ſavour. Nehemiah's eye was almoſt never off from the building of the Temple, and the work was therefore rid out of the way with incredible expedition. So the Lord having a preſent ſenſe of every thing that man doth well, it will make man (if he have ſenſe of Gods preſence) inſtant, devout, patient, ſow plentifully that he may reap abundantly. It is a great motive to be watchful to ſay, Dominus venit, the Lord is coming: what will you ſay then to Dominus videt, Dominus audit, Dominus odoratur? the Lord ſees you, the Lord hears you, the Lord ſmells your ſavour? nihil illuſtre niſi coram, & in oculis Caeſaris, ſays Tacitus, the mirth of the Roman Theaters was flat, and their pomp nothing illuſtrious, unleſs Ceſar were a ſpectator; ſo the ſpirit of a Chriſtian would be obtuſe, and nothing ſo well excited to be dutiful, but that we know all the thoughts, words, and works of piety are within the look of God: and that He is ſuch a looker on as St. Auſtin ſpeaks of, qui ſpectat certantes, & adjuvat invocantes, whoſe aſpect doth fortify and animate our ſtrength, like Plants that open themſelves to the Sun, and revive when his light is caſt upon them. Nay if you be in perfect charity, ye dwell in God, and God in you; there can be no cloſer conjunction, thats nearer than the object to the eye, or the ſent unto the noſe. Yet this is more meaſure ſuperadded, that the great King of Heaven both knows our works and tribulation, which is to ſmell our ſavour; and He loves and likes it alſo, He calls it a ſweet ſavour. If we had ſuch a Maſter as Nabal was, ſo crooked and unpropitious, that none could ſpeak to him, or pleaſe him; if we ſerved under the Lord, as Jacob did under Laban, who had nothing but murmuring and perſecution for all his fidelity, then we might croſs our arms and ſay, we had loſt our oil and our labour; but our ſervice is full of benevolence and encouragement, Euge bone ſerve, well done good and faithful ſervant, every title chimes alacrity. Duo cum faeciunt idem non eſt idem: the ſame work being done by two ſeveral hands, ſo much only ſhall take as comes from Gods choſen Miniſters, and ſo much as came from an unacceptable perſon ſhall be clean diſcountenanced.Orat. 1. foreign. Nazianzen tells a ſtory that Gallus and Julianus, the two Nephews of Conſtantius, built a Temple, where Mamantis the good Martyr had ſuffered; ſo much as Gallus was the Founder of ſtood, all that Julian was at charge for fell to the ground: the wiſeſt of men of that age concluded, God accepted the dedication of Gallus, but not of Julian. Saul ſacrificed at Gilgal, and came under the ban of Samuel for doing it; Samuel ſacrificed at Bethlem, and the ſavour was ſo ſweet that it run down from Samuel unto the skirt of Jeſſe: the Lord accepted of the offering, and David was then anointed King in token of a ſweet ſavour.
Finally, the love and complacency of God is not a bare affection like mans, amor Dei non in affectu, ſed in effectu ſitus eſt. Where God is ſaid to love, or to ſmell ſome ſweetneſs in a thing, this is not to affect it theorically, but to effect ſome good for it. As Aeneas ſaid of his followers, Nemo ex hoc numero mihi non donatus abibit, all that pleaſed him in his Games ſhould have a reward for their labour: ſo every one whoſe works exhale a ſweet odour to God, the dew of his liberality ſhall drop down upon them. God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which you have ſhewed toward his name, Heb. vi, 10. The beſt ſent that is (though it have that in it which is truly ſweet) hath ſome vapor that is faint and fulſom in it; ſo the beſt actions of men, which are good verily and properly called, have yet ſome ill adjunction in them, or ſomewhat that is imperfect: but that which St. Paul ſpeaks of the works of charity, may be referred to all the works of the light, if there be a willing mind, it is accepted according to that which a man hath, and not according to that he hath not, 2 Cor. viii. 12. More preſſely to the cauſe. In ſome ſenſe all the creatures and their natural operations do pleaſe God, but in a ſupernatural order nothing doth pleaſe him, but that into which he hath put ſupernatural bonity: and thoſe effects He doth not only love and like, but will remunerate them, with this ſober reſtriction, bona opera non habent condignitatem ad proemium coeleſte, ſed quandam ordinabilitatem. Davn. de juſt. hab. cap. 34.That is, good works have no intrinſecal worth or value to claim eternal life, but through the gracious promiſe of God they are ordained unto it.
From hence Valentia, and ſome others of that part do paralogize, that they may truly ſay, that a condignity doth amount to the works of pious men, upon the obligation of Gods promiſe. I anſwer, that the promiſe of God doth make our good endeavours remunerable with the Kingdom of Heaven; not that the Promiſe changeth the work into a better quality than it hath of it ſelf, as to make charity of two degrees become charity of two hundred: no, for the Promiſe is but an extrinſecal acceptation, but it muſt be ſome intrinſecal perfection infuſed into a good work, that ſhall make it commenſurable and worth the reward. How then doth the Promiſe knit our works and the reward together? why thus. God caſts his eyes upon his beloved Son, in whom, and for whoſe ſake all thoſe Promiſes are ratified. Now this muſt altogether imply a great indignity, and not any condignity in our righteouſneſs. All the favour which we obtein at Gods hands above the inherent bonity which is in our works, it is meerly for Chriſts ſake, and for his obedience imputed to us. Examin in the weight of a reaſon, what I give to a man above the value of his labour for a friends ſake, doth it make the reward meritoriouſly due. The terms cannot conſiſt together. If God ſhould promiſe the ſame reward of glory to him that died for Chriſt, and to him that gave a cup of cold water for his ſake, the reward upon this ſuppoſition is equally due to both, and then theſe two agreeing in uno tertio, that is in the ſame promiſe, ſhould be equal in goodneſs between themſelves, which none will admit, whoſe judgment is not quite periſht. To conclude then, that Noah brought ſo ſweet a gift to the Lord, it came from a ſupernatural infuſion that ſo directed him. That which is inſpired from a ſupernatural virtue doth pleaſe the Lord, though it be much attainted with humane infirmity: that which He is pleaſed ſo to accept in mercy, He hath promiſed to remunerate it with eternal glory for Chriſt Jeſus ſake, who is a Sacrifice of the ſweeteſt favour, and to whom be all honour, &c.