A Century of Sermons, Sermon 11
THE ELEVENTH SERMON UPON Our Saviours Tentation.
MAT. iv. 6.
And ſaith unto him, If thou be the Son of God caſt thy ſelf down: For it is written, He ſhall give his Angels charge concerning thee, and in their hands they ſhall bear thee up, leſt at any time thou daſh thy foot againſt a ſtone.
IT is altogether unknown to man when a ſin comes merely from the ſuggeſtion of his own heart, and when it comes from the tentation of the Devil. But in one caſe, eminently above many others, it is moſt likely that there is ſome helliſh provocation when out of good principles and religious grounds our heart is quite turned out of the way to rebell againſt the Lord. Ely the High Prieſt had a tender fatherly affection; Who could turn this wholſom water into poyſon to make him wink at the vices and diſſoluteneſs of his Sons but Satan? David was a thankful Prince, and loved to remember how God had multiplied his favours upon him, yet upon this ſtock grew that evil fruit to number the people. Why the Text ſays, Satan ſtood up againſt Iſrael, 1 Chro. xxi. 1.and provoked David to number Iſrael. King Joſias was an enemy to the Heathen that knew not God; and he, that deludes good motions, made him ſo irreconcilable,2 Chron. xxxv. 22. that he would fight againſt Pharaoh Necho to his own deſtruction, and harkened not to the word which came from the mouth of God. Certainly the hand of Joab was in this, and in all ſuch fallacies, where a good fountain is made to ſend forth ſweet waters and bitter; as to ſin becauſe grace abounds, to neglect publick Prayer becauſe faith comes by hearing, to cark and care too much for the world, becauſe a man would provide for his Poſterity.
And this maſter-wit of Hell laid this bait to make our Saviour ſwallow it in this preſent tentation. For Chriſt being demanded to make bread of ſtones; he replies, that he was confident in his Fathers Promiſes, Man ſhall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. Are you ſo confident? Thinks the Tempter; and upon this confidence I will thruſt you on. Have you appeal'd to Ceſar? And to Ceſaer you ſhall go. It is true that you ſay, God is very gracious, and will not deſtitute you in any want or danger, you have anſwered very well, therefore caſt your ſelf down from this Pinacle, and be confident ſtill God will look to it that you ſhall be ſupported. This is the very train diſcovered, and made as clear unto you as the light of the Sun. In the former tentation he would drive Chriſt to unlawful means; if that take not, becauſe he truſts in God, then truſt in him ſtill, and refrain from the uſe of things lawful; ſo St. Auſtin diſtinguiſheth, that his firſt fallacy was, Deum defuturum ubi promiſit; that God would not help, where he had promiſed to aſſiſt; and the ſecond fallacy, which now I am to handle is, Deum adfuturum ubi non promiſit; that God would help where he had not promiſed to aſſiſt. Where many things are to be found out in one verſe, they muſt be divided ſeverally, and in this order I take it to be expedient. 1. Here is Satans demand, Caſt thy ſelf down. 2. Upon what ſuppoſition he demands it, Why, if thou be the Son of God. 3. Upon what authority, authority enough, for it is written. 4. Upon what aſſiſtance, why, the beſt in the world, whether it is the ſupreme, or the inſtrumental. The ſupremeis God, He ſhall give his Angels charge concerning thee; and the inſtrumental are the moſt glorious, powerful, and excellent creatures in all the world, the whole Hoſt of Angels, in their hands they ſhall bear thee, leſt at any time thou daſh thy foot againſt a ſtone. Theſe are ſuch particulars as the wiſdom of the Spirit hath left us to conſider upon theſe words; and as I begin at Satans demand, ſo I make two branches of it, the Motion, and the Mover. The Motion is tumbling headlong, to be caſt down: and the Mover muſt be himſelf, Caſt thy ſelf down. To the handling and uſe of theſe are required your ear, my utterance, and Gods grace to both.
I begin with the Motion and if the meaning of him that counſelled it had been well carried, it were a motion eaſily perſwaded to him that is of an humble ſpirit; a good man is ever ready to be directed to go and ſit down in the loweſt room, and to be abaſed to the very center of humility. When the heart is in good awe of God the joynts will bend unto the earth, O come let us worſhip and fall down, and kneel before the Lord our Maker. This we are ſure is far from Satans purpoſe, and can be no conſtruction of his words. Optat omnes cadere qui ſe ſentit prae omnibus cecidiſſe, ſays St. Auſtin; He would have all men fall in that ſort as himſelf hath done, with aſpiring and preſumption, that they might never riſe again. The Beaſt in the Fable which had loſt his tail made an Oration before all the Beaſts of the Wood what a comly thing it was to want a tail, and very uſeful, and ſo concluded that they would all cut off theirs; but the Fox made anſwer, You intend not to make us decent like your ſelf, but to have us all as deformed: After the ſame manner the Devil Preacheth unto Chriſt to deſcend from the top of the Pinacle to the bottom, not to ſet him in the poſture of an humble man, but to make him arrogant like Lucifer; for ſuch a violent precipitation, ſays he, can do no hurt at all to ſuch a one as you are, a moſt holy one, that are called the Son of God. I will uſe Bonaventure's ſaying upon it, Satan did interlace lofty pride with this lowly ſeeming motion. Ʋt deſcendendo corporaeliter faceret cum ſuperbire ſpiritualiter, ut ſimul eſſet aſcenſus vanus, & deſcenſus verus; That he might fall down bodily, and be proud ſpiritually, and ſo he thruſt together a frivolous preſumption, and a dangerous deſcenſion. How much is humility abuſed when Pride will wear the colours of that good vertue to deceive the world? There was groſe ambition in Abſalons ſtooping to ſteal the hearts of the people. The Scribes and Phariſees would dop to the ground when they greeted their friends in the Market place; The ſame Biſhop that hath more Princely Auguſtious titles aſcribed unto him, then would fill up a Sermon by themſelves, ſubſcribes himſelf very often Servus ſervorum Chriſt; the ſervant of the ſervants of Chriſt. As a Kite will ſweep the earth with his wings, that he may truſs the Prey in his Talons, and fly aloft to devour it: So all the crouches and ſubmiſſions which an ambitious man makes are to get ſomewhat which he ſeeks for, and to clamber to promotion. This is obſerved, becauſe Satan impels Chriſt to caſt himſelf down, not for true humility ſake, but upon vain glory to flutter in the Air, that all Jeruſalem might take notice how precious he was to the care and cuſtody of all the Angels.
In the next place convert your thoughts to this, ſee what kind of Miracles they are which the Devil delights in: the working of Miracles is reduced to Gods Omnipotent Prerogative beyond the ordinary Law of Nature. And Chriſt did often put it in act to ſave, to revive, to comfort the body, to convert the ſoul. Nay, but theſe are no part of the Devils asking, neither cure the ſick, nor give eyes to the blind, nor raiſe the dead, nor help up Eutiches again, as Paul did, when he fell from the upper window of the houſe to the ground, none of theſe good offices of mercy doth he require, but mitte te deorſum, if you be the Son of God tumble down, and confound your ſelf. Non ſigna humano generi ſalutaria, ſed pernicioſa requirit, ſays Bernard; Do ſome pernicious Miracle and then you pleaſe him. Beware of thoſe men whoſe wit, whoſe counſels, whoſe directions tend to nothing but to ſome mens ruine and deſtruction. Hic niger eſt, hunc tu Romane caveto; you ſee who is their Leader, and whoſe ſteps they follow. The Heathen could ſay, how that Orator muſt needs have much malice in his complexion, who was a better Accuſer than a Defender, that could ſooner find a hole in his Adverſaries cauſe than help his own Client; ſo it is Sataniſſimum, let me uſe a new word in this caſe, he is a very Sataniſt, upon whom that deſcription of David lights, Deſtruction and unhappineſs is in their counſels, and the way of peace they have not known. Exod. viii. 7.The Magicians of Pharaoh could bring forth Frogs upon all the Land of Egypt as well as Aaron when he ſtretcht forth his rod, but the Magicians with all their Inchantments could not rid the Land of thoſe Frogs as Aaron did when he cried unto the Lord. Inchanters are permitted to work ſtrange miſchiefs, but the Lord hath reſerved it to himſelf to work ſtrange mercies. Ahitophel was exceeding wiſe no doubt, accounted the Oracle of his age, yet we know no inſtance of his wit in all the Scripture wherein he had his hand but in moſt turbulent and ſeditious propoſitions. The Devil made uſe of his craft to ſerve his own turn: but a wit that is ſanctified with Gods grace, know it by this character, it had rather make than mar, advance than pull down, preſerve than deſtroy, reconcile than put at enmity. When the voice from heaven ſpake to Peter as he was in a trance, Ariſe Peter kill and eat; the meaning was he ſhould eat of ſuch things as the Gentiles did, which were prohibited before, communicate with the Gentiles, convert the Gentiles: Now do you think that Cardinals mouth was not full of gall that made this Expoſition of the Miracle, Ariſe Biſhop of Rome, wage war with the Venetians and kill them becauſe they will not obey yout Interdict. Certainly this mans breath was like the ſtrong Eaſt Wind that brought moſt of the grievous Plagues of the Land of Egypt. I do not like ſuch Prophets, though Micaiah was wrongfully reputed ſuch a one, by Ahab, that never propheſie good but evil; nor ſuch Diſciples, as would ſhew their authority by calling down fire from heaven; nor ſuch unlucky ſpirits that are like the malignant Planets, which produce nothing but maleficous effects. When Songs were ſung in every Street of Greece that Philip had eraced the fair City of Olynthus, O but when will he build up ſuch a City? Says a ſilly woman, and then I would ſing too. An ill turn is quickly watcht; for beſide the venomous inclination of our own nature to do hurt. You ſhall have the Devil to boot to help it on, he counſels like an enemy, no miracle which brings good with it to mankind, but deſtruction, Mitte te deorſum; Caſt thy ſelf down.
Let me diſcover another property of the Tempters out of theſe words, that it is his art to bring a man up by little and little to ſome high place, that ſo he may ſend him at once with his head downward; as the Eagle carried the ſhell-fiſh aloft into the air to let it fall upon a Rock, and crack in pieces. Firſt, He made Herods Flatterers canonize him like ſome Deity, It is the voice of God and not of man, immediately he ſee him abaſed ſo low as to be eaten up of worms. Firſt he lifts up Adam with a conceit to be made like unto a God, knowing good and evil, to the very top of perfection, to the intent he may be made like unto the beaſts that periſh. Firſt, Nebuchadonoſor admires his own greatneſs and excellency; Is not this great Babylon that I have built by the might of my Power, and for the honour of my Majeſty? Preſently he was driven from men into the Wilderneſs to eat graſs like an Oxe. All Tyrants and Uſurpers that have held their dignity by ill means, and loſt it with great ſhame, are the amplification of this matter; many of them ſet up for ſo ſhort a time, and ſo haſtily pulled out, that it may appear to all men Satan meant that nothing but their ruin ſhould be remembred. Dionyſius the Tyrant fell very far from the height of the Pinacle upon which he ſtood, his Princely condition being altered into the life of a poor School-Maſter; but for Heathen Examples Valerian the Emperour is ſufficient to ſtand for all; a Monarch at the height of the Roman Empire, his name venerable at home,Trebel. Pollio. and terrible abroad, ſo accounted of for ſome good parts, Ʋt puderet virum altius extollere, ſays the Hiſtorian, that modeſty would not permit to extol any man more. Well, the great Enemy of the Church had raiſed him thus high to perſecute the poor Chriſtians very furiouſly for all his good qualities, and then he gave him up into the hands of Sopores the Perſian to be his Vaſſal, his footſtool, and at laſt the ſubject of the extremeſt cruelty. If the meditation hereof will not prick the Conſcience of them that get advancement by Bribery, by flattery, by offering themſelves to be inſtruments of baſe deſigns I know not what will terrifie them. It is an eaſie matter to get the Devil lend you his hand to help you up, but take heed, he will pluck you back with a miſchief. The Edomites pretended good will to the Iſraelites, but in the day of their calamity, they cried, Down with them, down with them unto the ground.
This is the Lords manner, when he means to exalt a man, he will firſt humble him, and caſt him down; the Devils method is quite contrary, firſt exalt the man whom he means to caſt down; firſt mount them up to the clouds that he may ſwing them off to the bottom of the nethermoſt Pit. As it is happy to have been miſerable, ſince the Lord will recompence the low eſtate of them that feared him, ſo it is miſerable to have been happy by wicked means, for Satan will bring thoſe to ſhame that have been promoted by him. It was but a ſmall deſcent for Chriſt to come down from a Pinacle of the Temple into the outward Court, in reſpect of that great abaſement which he did undergo for out Redemption; he ſtept from the higheſt Heaven, from the glory of the Godhead to be incloſed in a Virgins womb; he humbled himſelf to the death, even to the death of the Croſs; but did his Father leave him there? No, therefore he was highly exalted, therefore he had a name given him above all names. And all thoſe that are conformable to his Ignominy and Paſſion ſhall be conformable to his Glorification. If you find Joſeph in the Priſon, read on, and you ſhall find him the chief Ruler over all the Officers of Pharaoh. Job was not left upon the dunghil, but raiſed up again to be the mightieſt of all the Inhabitants of the Eaſt. The latter end of David was not to follow the Ewes great with young, but to be advanced above all the houſe of Iſrael. Or if this World do not make the righteous amends for their humiliation, truſt unto him that cannot lie, how for a momentary affliction they ſhall have a far abundant exceeding weight of glory. This is Gods liberality, many that are laſt ſhall be firſt: But this is the inconſtancy of the Devils favours, many that are firſt ſhall be laſt. The root of a tree the longer it grows it ſhoots deeper and deeper to the Center of the earth; ſo misfortune puts a period quickly to the proſperity of all thoſe that are the Sons of Belial, the longer they ſtand the more they are in declenſion, the faſter they fall down: But the righteous are like the young Plants, the longer they grow the more they ſhoot up their branches toward Heaven. Behold, my Beloved, here is a double fortune to be run, and the election is yours; Will you begin from the loweſt foundation of humility, and ſo riſe up by the hand of God; Or will you hoiſt up to the Battlements of the Temple, to a Pinacle of Preſumption?. Quando quis eſtimaverit ſe conſiſtere in ſanctimoniae ſummitate, poſitus eſt ſuper pinnam templi, ſays Aquinas; He that thinks he is as holy as holineſs can make him, he is on the top of all the Temple; I beſeech you make a wiſe choice. No man can fall from humility to do himſelf hurt, Non habet unde cadat; A man may fall from a Pinacle of vain opinion, and be daſh'd in pieces.
This Point cannot be left before one Obſervation more cloſe it up; beware of leaping from the top of the Temple to the bottom, go down by ſteps and fair degrees; remember, I pray, that it is Satans motion Deſilire non deſcendere, to skip down from the Pinacle to the ground, and not to come down by even paces in order. God hath ordained means to bring every good end to paſs; he that thinks to jump into the end without uſing the leaſure and uſe of the means flies upon the Devils wings, he goes not in that line which the Word of God directs him. The Apoſtle ſpeaks of ſome that make haſt to be rich, they will not expect to thrive by honeſt labour, and by competent gains, but it muſt be had preſently by any Art or Device. This is quite to skip that courſe which Juſtice and a good Conſcience preſcribes. The holy Sacrament of the Lords Supper is many times made ready for us, but there are many preparations required, that you ſhould make your ſelves ready for it. There muſt go before a due examination both of your Sins, and your Repentance, a remembrance of Chriſts Paſſion, and a good ſpirit to apply his bloudſhedding to your own benefit, a charitable reconciliation of your ſelf to God and man. Now if you will take one of the Devils ſtrides, he will bid you paſs over theſe things, and come to that heavenly Banquet without theſe preparatory ſteps, and ſo you ſhall eat and drink your own damnation. It is fit likewiſe that all our life ſhould be a meditation of our death, to number our days one by one as we go down to the grave: No, ſays the Tempter, jump down from the Pinacle to the bottom; it is a melancholy cogitation, never think of it till it comes, do not go down fair and ſoftly with fear and trembling, but defer all your repentance to the laſt hour, and then commend yourſelf to God. And none are more in fault in this kind than they who begin at the top of the golden Chain at Election, and Predeſtination, and ſtraight leap into the aſſurance of their Glorification; they are Predeſtinated to his Kingdom, therefore theirs is the Adoption of Sons, theirs is the inheritance without more ado. Soft and fair, this is a jump from one end to another without ſteps, there muſt be a ladder of practice to come to theſe things or your boaſting may be in vain, and you may fail of that Salvation wherein you falſly glory. Examine your Love if it be ſincere, examine your Repentance if it be very mournful, and make you moſt reſolute to be a new Creature; Examine your Faith if it be ſtedfaſt and immovable, prove it by ſuch fruits as will grow upon a living tree, and then God hath given you leave to riſe up upon theſe degrees, to aſcend in theſe effects from one to another till you lay hold of the higheſt Link, and ſay with the Prophet, I am thine, O ſave me; I am thy Child by Adoption and Grace, and thou art my Father who haſt elected me before the foundations of the World. But beware of theſe deſultory motions to fall down from aloft, and not paſs by ſuch ſteps and ſtairs as God hath ordained. And ſo much for this motion to which the Tempter perſwaded Chriſt, Jace teipſum deorſum; Caſt thy ſelf down.
Next let us ſee how the Tempter would have Chriſt take his fall from the Pinacle of the Temple, why he would have it to be his own voluntary act, Caſt thy ſelf down. And ſubtilly continued to palliate this horrid Vice, as if it had been humility. Humility muſt be home-born, flow from our own willingneſs, without the leaſt compulſion or conſtraint, Caſt thy ſelf down: For they that are preſſed down, and would get higher if they could, they are not humiles, but humiliati; it is their croſs fortune, not their mortified affections that they are not upon the top of a Pinacle. But as I have ſaid already, you can taſte no ſuch thing as pious humility in the Devils counſel. But firſt, as St. Hierom ſhews, he doth much betray his own weakneſs in this, to commend the execution of this tentation to Chriſt himſelf, and not to take it into his own hands. He can perſwade, he cannot precipitate a man whether he will or no. Nemini poteſt nocere niſi ipſe ſe deorſum miſerit; It is not in his power to throw you down if you will ſave your ſelf. No Sorcerer, no worker with familiar ſpirits had ever the power to hurt the meaneſt Magiſtrate in the Commonwealth that examined them, or any Officer of correction that did chaſtiſe them. His Dominion is inhibited that he can take away no mans life by hoſtile violence: It is one of the flowers of Gods own Royalty that life and death are before him only; he giveth breath, and he calls it away when he pleaſeth. And as Satan cannot hurt the body of man but by our own conſent, and by our own permiſſion; ſo he muſt ask us leave, and work it by our own perverſe will if he enſnare our ſoul in any iniquity. He cannot break open the door, no, nor ſo much as draw the latch, but if he find the door open, and the room ſwept and garniſhed, then he enters in, Luk. xv. Some ungodly ones think they have made a fine excuſe when they caſt their faults upon the Devil. If you have blaſphemed or reviled, it was he, I wiſs, that was the cauſe of it; if you have ſpilt bloud, it was he that did direct your hand to this hainous fact; if you lived in malice, it was he, no doubt, that croſſed you from many purpoſes to be reconciled; what cares he to let you run on in theſe excuſes? You deceive your ſelves, your Debts increaſe, and I am ſure he will never pay the ſcore for you. I allow it unto you, that he is as ſubtil to caſt ſcandalous objects in your way as malice can make him; as forward to excite you to all evil as diligence will ſuffer him; as vigilant as a reſtleſs ſpirit can be to divert you from all good. But what of all this? If you will not lend him your own freewill to practiſe with he is quite excluded. All thoſe Antecedents are but invitations to evil, not compulſions: Malorum immiſſor non impulſor. If you will not caſt your ſelf down head-long he cannot thruſt you into wickedneſs. In this Text he confeſſeth that the laſt and complete power is in our ſelves to hurt our ſelves, and not in him, all precipitations are his counſels, but our own motions, Caſt thy ſelf down.
Then the Tempter could not caſt our Saviour down, it is his reſtraint and weakneſs, moreover he would not though he could. For Nullum praecipitium niſi voluntarium eſt praeſumptio; No tumbling caſt had born the guilt of preſumption with it, unleſs it had been voluntary, and of his own doing. And now I am come to the moſt horrid part of this ſecond Tentation, wherein Chriſt was provoked to deſtroy himſelf with his own will, to be guilty of his own murder, the moſt irremediable ſin, as much as I can perceive, that can be committed. Though he would not come down from the Croſs and ſave himſelf, but was led with all patience as a Lamb unto the ſlaughter, yet his death was inflicted upon him by Pilates Souldiers, he was not his own Executioner. The Jews never ſpake more deſpightfully againſt him than when they asked, Will he kill himſelf, becauſe he ſays, whither I go ye cannot come, Job. viii. 22. No, let Satan put ſuch deſperate reſolutions into the heart of Judas the Traytor to make himſelf away. And ſome Hiſtoriographers would perſwade us that the Devil obtained this very requeſt of him, which he moved to Chriſt to caſt himſelf down from ſome lofty Pinacle. Mat. xxvii. 5.St Matthews words muſt be true that he hanged himſelf; and St. Lukes words muſt be true, that falling down headlong he burſt aſunder in the midſt, Acts i. 18. Theophylact ſays, the bough of the tree bended to the ground upon which he hung, and ſince he could not diſpatch his life that way, he brake his neck down a ſteepy Mountain and burſt in twain. And now all Ages call him Reprobate, as well for this deſperate concluſion of his life as for betraying Chriſt. There were ſome Hereticks, of whom I think one Petileus was the Author, theſe did foully err,Alf. Caſtr. verb. Martyr. and hold, that a man being conſcious to himſelf of ſome ſin that was worthy death might put himſelf to death, that it was an act of juſtice, yea, and a Martyrdom, and upon this ground, whether ſhouId I ſay, more fooliſh, or more impious, they Canonized Judas for a Martyr. But St. Auſtin ſhews that their Argument jars againſt two common principles: Nemo poteſt eſſe judex & reus; It is incompetible that the ſame man ſhould be both the guilty perſon and the Judge. Civ. Dei. lib. 1. c. 16.2. Nocentem hominem privata poteſtate occidere non licet; It is murder for any private man, not authorized by a lawful Magiſtrate, to execute death upon a Malefactor. Judam execramur quamvis ſceleratum hominem occidit. Judas was a Malefactor, and could not kill a worſe man than himſelf, yet that ſin alone without the reſt was damnation, foreign, the ſlaying of himſelf.
Remember the Commandment, Thou ſhalt not kill; Whom not? Neither your ſelf, nor your neighbour, for you have no more power to hurt your ſelf than another, the body is Gods, and the Temple of the Holy Ghoſt. And who gave you leave to pluck down a Temple? Nature inclines a man to the conſervation of himſelf, and what a deteſtable thing it is to violate the chief Maxime of Nature? Which is this in St. Pauls words, No man hates his own fleſh, but loves and cheriſheth it. No man indeed, but he that makes haſt to be no man, that he might the ſooner be a Devil. The Heathen went thus far, that a man is put into this world as a Souldier is put into ſome File, or ſome place of the Watch, from that ſtation he muſt not ſtir till his General calls him, Et majori ſupplicio afficiendus eſt deſertor vitae quàm deſertor militia; And is not he more worthy of puniſhment, that leaves the place where God did put him, before he was ſummoned, than he that comes off from the Watch, before the General calls him? If the love of your ſoul, the dreadful expectation of Hell-fire will make you decline a ſin; take heed of this, for Gods ſake, above all others. All other ſins when they are committed have yet ſome leaſure to beg mercy, and at what time ſoever a ſinner, &c. but how can the Lord put ſuch a ſin out of his remembrance, where it is impoſſible there ſhould be time to repent? Ʋt laqueo reſpiratio, it a prohibetur deſperatione ſpiritus ſanctus, as Bedae ſaid of Judas; they ſtop their own breath, and with that deſperate act exclude the Holy Ghoſt from inſpiring any ſanctified cogitation into them.
What can befal a man in this world to defie Heaven and Earth at once? And to die the death of the damned without redemption? Bethink your ſelves judiciouſly; it cannot be want, torture, or calamity, for though theſe be very ſharp, eſpecially to thoſe that are impatient, yet they are not ſo ſmartful as the ſtinging of a Bee, nor the biting of a Flea, compared with the Lake of Brimſtone, into which they irrecoverably ſend their own ſoul, that let out of the body with their own violent hand. Nor ſhould it irke a man to ſtay Gods leaſure till he be diſſolved, for any reproach or ignominy that he hath incurred, for ſo your former diſhonour is not forgotten, but ten times more divulged and increaſed. See how publick ſhame, which followed ſuch deſperate perſons after their death, did work with ſome of Miletum, as Plutarch reports it. Many of the Mileſian Virgins, through the perſwaſions of ſome Diabolical Philoſophers, hanged themſelves. To ſtop this unnatural fury, when no reaſon would revoke them, the Magiſtrates made a Law, that the bodies of all ſuch ſhould be left naked in the open Market-place for ten days, and the fear of that worldly ſhame did for ever after rectifie thoſe who were living that they held their hands from violence. But what other impulſive cauſe can be named? Can the remorſe of ſins paſt breed ſuch a deſtructive melancholy in any mans diſpoſition? God forbid. This is to caſt Mountains upon Mountains, and to make all worſe. Sins are not covered by heaping one upon another, but bleſſed is the man whoſe unrighteouſneſs is forgiven, and whoſe ſin is covered. There is another life given to expiate your iniquities, and not your own, even the bloud of Chriſt. Repent you ſeriouſly, and be merciful unto your ſelf, and then God will be merciful unto you. Yet Achitophel with all his politick reach could not make uſe of theſe plain notions, but confounded himſelf, partly with the guiltineſs of his rebellion, partly with the fear of his reputation. For it is very likely he ſhuffled his Game thus: If Abſalon overcome King David, Huſhai hath given the better counſel, and ſo I ſhall live in diſgrace: If David prevail, which is very likely, he will take away my life becauſe of the pernicious Plots which I have laid againſt him. See how this witty Wretch could forget that David was a merciful Prince, and did not execute one of his enemies in cold bloud. But God lets the wits of the wiſeſt turn addle, who meditate to be Authors of their own ruine, and to caſt themſelves down from a Pinacle upon the Devils ſuggeſtion.
But God keeps all thoſe from this ſin whom he means to have converted and be ſaved. The Jaylor took out his Sword, and was ready to have faln upon it, but Paul cried out at the inſtant,Acts xvi. 30 Do thy ſelf no hurt; and ſoon after he was baptized, and believed, he and his houſe. Paul may loath this world, and deſire to be diſſolved, but he muſt wait the Lords leiſure, and not haſten his diſſolution. It was the bleſſing of the Lord upon mankind, Increaſe and multiply. To repleniſh the world is a Benediction; to take one of Gods Servants away, unleſs by the hand of juſtice, and that the Magiſtrate doth in the perſon of God, is a Malediction. What ſpirit was in the Tridentine Fathers to make the ſecond book of Machabees Canonical? Wherein Razias is commended in moſt fluent phraſes that killed himſelf.Epiſt. 61. I know St. Auſtin ſays, Razii mors narratur non laudatur; it is but a narration of the fact, not an Encomium. Let any child read, Chap. xiv. toward the end of it, and judge if he be not extolled for it with moſt artificial commendation.Civ. Dei. lib. 1. c. 23. The ſame Father is more Orthodox in another place, that pious reaſon is to be preferred before examples, Quae tantò dig niora ſunt imitatione, quantò excellentiora pietate; which are no further worthy of imitation than they excel in Piety. And again I may ſay, Why did the Roman Martyrology Canonize the Virgins of Aquileia, Who drowned themſelves to avoid certain barbarous Raviſhers. For as Aquinas treats upon the fact: 1. Fornication were a leſs ſin than violent murder. 2. If they had not refuſed that carnal ſin as much as they could, yet Repentance might have waſh'd away the ſpot of that crime; in the other act of unnatural violence there is no inſequent time to call for grace and mercy. But 3. ſince violence overcame them, the ſin was none of theirs, but the Raviſhers.Ibid. As St. Auſtin ſaid of Sextus Brutus, and Lucretia, Duo fuerunt & unus commiſit adulterium; the ſin was wrought between two, and yet one only committed adultery, becauſe Lucretia was forced. But you will ſay, and why doth St. Paul put Samſon in the bedroul of the Patriarchs, that had obtained the Promiſe, if every one that is guilty of his own violent death be a Reprobate? St. Auſtins anſwer is, Latenter à ſpiritu ſancto juſſus eſt. Samſon had departed out of this world a Caſt-away if he had not been prompted to pull down the Theater of the Philiſtins by ſome inward motions ſent from God. But ſome litigious one will ſay, Was any ſin ever committed but ſuch an anſwer will make it a vertue? Beloved, Samſons caſe was not every mans, for firſt he had extraordinary Revelations of the Spirit, God did work many Miracles by his hands. Secondly, Samſon prayed that his ſtrength might be reſtored, that he might be avenged of the Philiſtines, and the Lord did give him ſtrength for that purpoſe beyond the capacity of a natural man. Put theſe together and they make a particular caſe, that he above any other of the like ſort was directed by the Spirit to pull down the houſe upon his enemies. But in my own private judgment I have ever thought that Samſons care was not to bring certain death upon himſelf, but only to hazard his life in a great venture, which is lawful in Military Stratagems againſt enemies; as to enter a breach upon the mouth of a Canon, a Souldier may come off with ſafety, but it is odds he dies for it. A Seaman being boarded blows up the Deck, he may eſcape himſelf, but his chance is very hazardous; and for ought any man is able to ſay to the ſtructure of this houſe which Samſon pluck'd down, he ſaw no poſſibility but he might eſcape, although he profeſt he would adventure to die with his enemies, a mixt caſe it was, not very hopeful, nor quite deſperate. Howſoever St. Auſtins anſwer, as I have illuſtrated it unto you, is very ſatisfactory, that he was moved unto it by ſome ſpecial inſtinct from God. And ſo far upon this Point, wherein I have laboured to let you ſee that the Devil hath not a more poyſonous Arrow in his Quiver than to excite one to kill himſelf. Bear with me if I have been copious in it; Who can ſay enough againſt a ſin ſo horrid, ſo unnatural, ſo unpardonable? It did not content the Devil that Chriſt ſhould fall from the Pinacle, unleſs it were his own voluntary act, If thou he the Son of God caſt thy ſelf down.
After this demand of Satans, I propounded to intreat upon what ſuppoſition it was demanded, If thou be the Son of God. This thorn is yet in his foot and pricks him, he would fain put it out of doubt whether this were the eternal and only begotten Son of God. And he follows the ſearch in theſe words, as if he were no Infidel, but by way of Conceſſion yielded this, thou art the Son of God, therefore it can be no harm to thee to caſt thy ſelf down from a Pinacle of the Temple. Which is as St. Paul writes, If by any means I might attain to the reſurrection of the dead, he was certain to atttain unto it, and therefore that IF is a Particle of Modeſty, not of Heſitation. As Ribadenira ſays of Father Ignatius, Lib. 4. c. 18.that he halted of the wound which he received at Pampelune, but ſo little that the moſt curious could ſcarce diſcern that he halted: So Satan diſtruſts whether Chriſt were the promiſed Meſſias, but ſo artificially, that he would not ſeem to be diſtruſtful. But diſtruſt he did, and did rather preſume Chriſt was no more than ſome excellent Prophet than otherwiſe. For he knew that God could not be tempted, the crafty Angel had that underſtanding, therefore he hoped mainly he did but bicker with a man. And a certain Expoſitor plaies wittily upon this notion, that St. Matthew, St. Mark, and St. Luke deliver the manner of this tentation, but St. John ſpeaks not a word of it. For as he collects, the other three begin their Goſpels with Chriſts temporary Generation, how he was made man; St. John begins thus, In the beginning was the Word, from the generation of God; but becauſe God cannot be tempted at all he found no place in his Goſpel for this ſtory. Well, becauſe Chriſt eſchewed the Tempters craftineſs in the former bout, and held him yet in ſuſpence; he lifts at him now with all his ſtrength, and thinks to be upon the rack no longer; this ſecond, If thou be the Son of God ſhall diſcover all, he doth not doubt it. Et verbo & facto eſt exploratio; It is an exploration driven home both by word and fact. 1. He took him up to the Pinacle. Would he be taken along by him if he were the mighty Son of God? Why not? As an invincible Champion, that dare fight upon any ground with his Adverſary. 2. The Meſſias was expected both at the holy City, and at the Temple, and he brings him unto both to ſee if he would acknowledge his Kingdom. The Lord ſhall ſend the rod of thy ſtrength out of Sion, Pſal. cx. 1. And again, The Lord ſhall ſuddenly come to his Temple, even the Meſſenger of the Covenant whom ye delight in, Mal. iii. 1. Yet Satan could gather nothing from this, for he made himſelf inviſible in this tranſportation, and was not ſeen. Hereafter, at his own ſeaſon, the whole City and Temple ſhall ring of him, Behold thy King cometh unto thee meekly upon an Aſs. 3. He popp'd in a place of the Pſalm (but hereafter more of that) very perverſly, hoping Chriſt would declare himſelf, and ſay, the application of this Pſalm belongs to all the holy Saints, but not to me that am greater than Saints and Angels. But Chriſt ſpared that labour, and gave him Scripture for his Scripture. 4. Upon the tentation it ſelf he preſumed it would perfectly come to light who he was. For if he caſt himſelf down, thinking he ſhould be ſafe as when he paſs'd through the air, and yet catch hurt, it is as he could wiſh: Or if he catch no hurt, and caſt himſelf down, that Miracle muſt allow him to be the Son of God. All this the wiſdom of our Redeemer declined, proving that mans life muſt not be caſt into danger where there is no neceſſity; thus you ſee the Devil laboured hard and yet could not reſolve the Riddle that troubled him, If thou be, &c.
And now let me ſhew you, that this vile Connexion which he hath made is againſt all reaſon and conſequency, If thou be the Son of God caſt thy ſelf down. There is as little Logick in this Hypothetical Propoſition as there is Divinity in that verſe of Davids Pſalm, as he hath quoted in the words following. And as ſome obſerve, he was out as much in the choice of place to which he carried our Saviour: For Battlements uſe to encompaſs the Roof in an high building, that they who walk upon the open Leads may be preſerved from falling: Now the Devil would make uſe of Architecture the clean contrary way, that he ſhould caſt himſelf down from the Battlements; like Cacus the Thief, he draws all things backward to a wrong uſe. So he wrings reaſon in theſe words quite of one ſide, If thou be the Son of God caſt thy ſelf down; Cum convenientius diceret, ſi filius Dei es aſcende ad coelum, ſays Chryſologus. It had been a better Inference to ſay, Becauſe you are the Son of God aſcend up to heaven. If your Fathers Kingdom be above look after your inheritance, and ſeek thoſe things which are above. And as Chriſt anſwered the Jews, ſo he might put off Satan, Vos deorſum eſtis, ego de ſupernis; You are from beneath, I am from above, Joh. viii. Elijah removed himſelf from the preſence of Ahaziah to the top of an hill; and Ahaziah ſent one of his Captains and fifty men with him, ſaying, O man of God, thus the King hath ſaid, come down quickly; and Elijah anſwered,2 Kings i. If I be a man of God let fire come down from heaven and conſume thee and thy fifty; and ye know two Captains and their Companies were ſerved ſo. For if he were a man of God why would they be Inſtruments to a Tyrant to fetch Elijah to be ſlain? So fire and brimſtone remain unto the Devil and his Angels for this tentation. For if Chriſt be the Son of God, why ſhould he fly down upon the wings of preſumption to diſhonour God and his own body?
I ſee now who is the author of that fallacy which, I fear, hath coſt many a ſoul the loſs of eternal life, that ſuch as aſſure themſelves they are elect ones, they are the Sons of God, may make bold with their Fathers merciemercy, may rely upon it, and now and then tranſgreſs his Commandments for their pleaſure, or profit, or ſome other fleſhly conſideration, there is no condemnation to them that are in Chriſt Jeſus; God ſees no ſin in the righteous, though they fall they ſhall riſe again, and many more ſuch deluding Axioms as they apply them, which I beſeech you return back again to Hell with him that invented them. Lay the redemption which you have in Chriſts bloud, and the hope which you have through him to be partaker of everlaſting glory, and all other benefits which you have received, and that when we were enemies we were reconciled to God; put your own unworthineſs and diſdeſervings to theſe, and lay them all ſtraight together, and then conſider if you are not tied in all ſtrict obedience to do all which the Lord hath commanded you. No ſuch motive in the world to an ingenuous conſcience to live a moſt ſtrict and auſtere life as becauſe the mercies of Jeſus Chriſt are infinite. St. Paul knew that he bad fought a good fight, and therefore a Crown of life was laid up for him, yet how chary he was to walk in a ſtraight rule, turning neither to the right hand nor to the left? He would wrong no man, defraud no man; nay, he would depart from his own right for the Kingdom of heavens ſake. All things are lawful to me, but all things are not expedient; which Tertullian put into theſe words, Timeo ab omnibus indulgentiis Domini mei; I refuſe ſome things which God hath allowed me; he would eat no fleſh while he lived rather than offend his brother. The Devil could not entice him to this or that liberty upon ſuch a ſuppoſition as this, If thou be the Son of God; but rather thus, I am the Child of God, therefore I will not hearken to an enticer; I am the Son of God, therefore I will not diſhonour him that hath begotten me again by his grace; I am his Liege-man, and have taken his Sacrament, I muſt not rebel againſt him; I have waſht my garments white in the bloud of Chriſt, how ſhould I defile them again?
But this is the Devils uſe to urge mighty things at their hands that take themſelves to be the beſt Sons ef God rather by preſumption than by true vivification. He will buz into their ears, if you were a notable Chriſtian above your fellows you would caſt out Devils, raiſe the dead, cure diſeaſes, you would do ſome famous miracle: and ſo he ſets on others, if you have good gifts of the Spirit, though you be an illiterate man, and have no ordinary calling to diſpenſe Gods Word, yet you may Interpret Scripture, Preach, Expound, Rehearſe, Propheſie. Ambitio ſanctitatis ad inſaniam uſque nonnullos perduxit; The ambition to appear more holy than others enforceth ſome men to Phrantiqueneſs and Lunacy. It is Salmeron the Jeſuites rule upon my Text, and a true one; but becauſe he hath not illuſtrated it by examples I will do it for him. The Sectaries of Montanus, that claimed to have his Spirit, thought it belonged to their Church to have four times as many publick Faſts as all other Chriſtians. The Circumcelliones among the Donatiſts would break their necks down from an high Wall rather than reſort to any Congregation but their own, as if they were purer than all others, and this they boaſted to be Martyrdom. Praecipitia facit, Chryſol.ſic martyres facit in Affricâ, ſays a Father upon my Text. A mere Heathen man Empedocles threw himſelf into the raging fire of Aetna to be called a God. Deus immortalis haberi dum cupit Empedocles ardentem frigidus Aetnam inſiliit. But what were thoſe that Caſſianus ſpeaks of but mad men through affected zeal? As this, Certain Novices were ſent by their Abbot with ſome food to an Hermit, and loſt their way in the Deſart,Lib. 4. and rather than eat of that which they were bidden to deliver to the Hermit, Collat. c. 27.they would ſtarve for want of ſuſtenance. And one Mucius a Monk was bidden caſt his crying Child into a River and drown it, which he did, and his Governour told him it was like the faith of Abraham. O phrantique Hypocriſie! Into what incredible attempts it will drive a man? Gonzaga the Jeſuite, ſo much extolled by the Fatherhood, Dum Pſeudem. c. 6.was exceeding penſive if any man was friendly and loving to him, forſooth he would have the World to hate him; and this is pretty, that they ſay he did affect to preach ridiculouſly that he might be ſcorn'd and laught at. In a word, all their blind obedience, which is an indefinite undiſcourſed ſurrendring of themſelves to the will of a Superiour, a ſwallowing down any thing that is commanded, and never chewing the cud why or wherefore, it is but a mad affectation of holineſs, of men ſtupid in foolery, that would ſeem to be dead unto the world. This is that obedience by which they ſay, if a man were dignified ſo much as to talk with an Angel, if his Superiour called him, he muſt come inſtantly away. Theſe are whimſies in the head, when the Devil prompts them to do ſome ſtrange tricks, more than ordinary Chriſtians are able; even as he would have put our Saviour upon a ſupernatural ſhall I ſay? Nay, upon a contra-natural exploit, becauſe he was the Son of God. Whereas the true marks of Filiation, and Adoption are theſe, Humility, awful Fear, Faith that works by Love, hate of Vain-glory, Denying of our ſelves, giving all honour to God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghoſt. AMEN.