Justice Triumphing, Part 2
Second Generall.
A speciall exposition and exemplification of that assertion annexed; the wicked is snared in the work of his own hands. The wicked, foreign so the 70 peccator so the vulgar; and true it is universally of every sinner, his own workes snare him; it is Lorinus his note the Text, that s…ns are called the works of our own hands, because nothing is prope…ly our own but sin; the Merchant in the Gospel sold all he had to buy the Pearle, that is his lusts; nothing else being ours; and in …hese sinnes is the actor snared; every sinner saith Saint Hierome, carrieth about him ropes, bands, torments to vexe himselfe, and Saint Austin in his Confessions ipse fibi inordinatus animus poena est An irregular mind is her own executioner; and he that is wiser then both, tels us,The Hebrew word used foreign signifieth both opus and operis merces, as a vertuous action is its own reward Psal. 19.11. So an impious work, a punishment to it selfe. foreign idem quod. foreign commoveri. His own iniquities shall take the wicked himselfe, and he shall be holden with the cords of his sins, Prov. 5.22.
Oh see the folly and deceitfulnesse of all sinne; du…ungit, pungit, with Joab while she kisseth she wounds us; prop…nit quod delectabile supponit quod exitiale, by pleasing proposals to flesh and bloud she allureth, and ruineth flesh and spirit; by the mantle of darkenesse, robe of honour, cloake of excuse, veile of modesty, yea sometimes cover of Scripture, and habit of vertue, she deceiveth and destroyeth the foolish sinners.
More particularly, the Hebrew word noteth an unquiet turbulent, seditious and mischeivous person, one that is ever working, and accounts not himselfe well but when he is doing ill, nay, though it be foreign a laborious and painfull employment, the impiety of his heart speeds the improbity of his labour, for the accomplishment whereof he useth not onelyonly industry but secrecy, the works of his palmes, for so the Hebrew word signifieth, and is accordingly rendred by some opere palmarum suarum; the Palme, saith Ainsworth, is a place where filthinesse may be hid, and wicked men are closely industrious to accomplish their hellish designes.foreign palma.
The locusts in the Revelation are said to have womens haire; the Hyaena a mans call; the Crododile mourning teares; the Syren Melodious notes; and the where of Babylon her golden and sugred cup of fornication wherewith she makes drunke the Kings of the Earth. What Carbo spake of Sylla, is true of the Churches Enemies they carry both the Lyon and the Fox in their breasts;Apoc. 9.8.17.4 and truly Major metus ex vulpe quam leone; …he more secret, the more pernitious; still waters are ever the deepest, and silent counsels thunder the loudest. But yet neither policy, nor industry, activity of hands, nor subtilty of wits, can speed the designe or prevent their ruine; for he is snared in his own work.
Corruit he fals, so the vulgar, captus est, so Remigius, ut mus in muscipula, he is taken as a mouse in a Trap: This work in the former verse is compared to digging a pit; what more laborious hiding a net, what more subtle? and yet he fals into the one, and is caught by the other; snared he is in the disappointment of his intentions to ruine the Saints, yea against his intentions to his own destruction, and which is more emphaticall, we may read the preposition foreign not only in but by, the wicked perishing by, and that not anothers, no not so much God, as his own hands; there need no trouble of devising a new stratagem; his own actions are sufficient to undoe himselfe.
The plotting of the wicked against the godly is like the throwing of a stone upwards, which falls down upon his head that threw it; and whereas the casting up is violent, the falling down is naturall; so true is that of St. Basil, it is not addit a poe…a, but insita natura, not so much the punishment as nature of wicked counsels to entrap the owners; that allusion of St. Hierom concerning the delusion of the Bow is very remarkable to this purpose; then a Bow is deceitfull,Vetus verbum habet, compedes quas ipse fecit ipfus ut geste… faber. cum sag…ttas putatur jacere & sauciat tenentem, when instead of sending the arrow forward, it wounds the Archer, yet such are all the Bowes the wicked bend, and Arrows they make ready to shoot at the upright in heart, St. Austin excellently represents the perniciousnesse of wicked workings by the kindling of a fire; that which burneth another must first be kindled it selfe, and as he excellently proceeds, Malitia ut alterinon noceat fier… potest, ut tibi ipsi non noceat, fieri non potest, that thy malice should not prejudice thy brother, it may be, that it should not prove injurious to thy selfe can never be, since what we brew we must drinke, the fetters which the smith makes he must weare, wickednesse ever retorts on the owner; and no juster Law then that the workman should perish in his own impious and injurious Artifices.
Search if you please with Ahasuerus, the Records of time, sacred, Ecclesiasticall and prophane stories,Mat. 13.19. In magistros scelera redierunt suos, Sen. Nec lex est iustior ulla quam necis artifices arte perire sua. Ovid. you shall finde this aphorism verified in all ages upon all sorts of persons.
Begin with him who is emphatically called foreign both the wicked and the witty one; how was that Sophister of worldly wisdom caught in his own fallacy? whil'st he crucified Christ, he crucified himselfe: and endeavouring by death to subdue the worlds Saviour, he was his own destroyer.
The disciples must not expect to fare better then the Master, the children then their Father; nor did they, the Jewes (I mean) who were of their father the devill in the sentence of truth it self.John 8.44. John 11.48. They murder Christ least the Romans should come by murdering him the Romans comming is hastened it is S. Austins observation on that parable of the husbandmen▪ under whom is meant the Iews,Mat. 21.38. they say, come; this is the heire let us kill him, ut possiderent occiderunt & quia occiderunt perdiderunt they slew him that they might gain; because they slew him, they lost the inheritance. Memorable is the example of Gideons spurious son Abimele…h who by slaying 70 of his brethren that he might enjoy,Judg. 9.53. lost both the rule and his life▪ and of Sauls putting David on the attempt of killing 100 Philistims with promise of his daughter, but desire of his life, upon which St. Gregory well observes, unde succresentis militis vitam se extinguere credidit, virtuti ejus gloriam inde cumulavit, the means which he used to bereave him of his life, advanced his honour. Time would fail to tell you of Achitophels halter, Hamans gallowes, Goliahs sword, Nebuchadnezars fiery fornace, of all which that of Saint Ambrose is verified as the peace of the Saints,Quemadmodum revertitur pax in Dei servos, ab eis qui non receperant benedictionem pacis, ita etiam malitia peccatorum qua iusto nocere conantur in eorum vertitur perniciem, Amb. Adeo ut ventorum praelia ferre non possent, & propriis spiculis flernerentur. Idem. so the plots of the wicked return into their own bosoms.
The same Father giveth a notable example in some of the Churches enemies, who waging a War▪ were so mastered by the violence of a mighty winde that their Bucklers fell out of their hands, and their own darts were driven upon themselves; what should I tell you of Alexander the sixt, who was poysoned with the same poyson he had prepared for some of his Cardinals? Cardinall Balue who was made to hansell one of those cruell prisons whereof he had been the inventor; Pope Hildebrands servant, who stumbling was killed by that stone hee should have thrown on Frederick the Emperour at his devotions; Eutropius the Eunuch who first stood in need of the benefit of the Church to save his life, after he had obteined a prohibition against it from the Emperour; and of Gryphus his mother, who upon just suspition was made to take that draught wherewith shee intended to poyson him. All or most of the conspirators against Julius Caesar dyed by the same daggers wherewith they stabbed him. Marius was wounded (being commander) with the sword himselfe made, when a Cutler. That Giant who tooke pleasure in throwing downe scrambling mariners from the Rock, was himselfe cast down by Theseus. What should I stay to mention Phal…ris his Bull, Maxentius his bridge, the Romish women… poysons, the Hetruscan South-sayers counsell concerning Hora…us his image, which was so apparently dangerous to themselves that the children sang in the streets according to the Greeke Poet, foreign the evill counsellour is most his own foe. That the wicked are thus snared,Hesiod. nothing more frequent; but by whom; the Text implyeth it and Eliphaz expresseth it, the Lord taketh the wise in their own craftinesse, Job. 5.13. The hand of malice maketh the pit, and the hand of justice puts in; the hand of cruelty weaveth the web and the hand of providence snareth the maker in it; God is known in all his judgements, but especially in those of this nature, which cannot be ascribed to chance or fortune, but onelyonly God;Calv. in locum. palam est & omnibus manifestum, sayth reverend Calvin, cum impius illaqueatur, Deum judicis partes implere, God as a Judge is most eminently declared when the wicked is unexpectedly snared; by this means above others the enemies are shamed, and God is honoured; cloathing with shame and their own confusion are joyned together, Ps. 109.29. indeed what greater shame then to be blasted in their hopes, out-witted in their policies, and ruined by their own devices? nor is the honour lesse to God then the shame to the wicked; it is the noblest way of conquest to foyle an enemy at his own weapon…; what greater glory to Benaiah then to slay the Aegyptian with his own spear, 2 Sam. 23.20. God never appears so glorious, as when he makes the viperous works of his enemies, to eat out the bowels of their own Mother…. By these passages of providence the depth of his wisdome is obvious to the most shallow capacity, both detecting and defeating, countermining; nay undermining their closely contrived plots; and not only so, but the height of his Justice in causing them to gather rods for the punishment of themselves, and making the wicked smiths to forge the instruments of their own ruin….
To winde up the bottome of this thred.
Let the wicked tremble,Use. Dan. 5.6. and their joynts like Belfhazzers smite together in the apprehension of this truth; let it cease their mischeivous workes, and cause both their hands to fall and their hearts to faint; for tell me is there not a cause? when according to the Italian proverbe they are in danger of being taken with the theft in their hands;Esser colto conil forto in mano. Psal. 78.30. While the meate was in the Israelites mouthes, Gods wrath overtooke them; and while the ungodlies designes are acting by their hands, the judgement of God findes them out. Why so much pains and secrecy to so little, nay to so bad purpose? know they not that their mischiefes like over-charged Peeces will recoyle upon their own breasts?Wicked rnd fools are synonimous. Psal. 5.5. Prov. 14.9. that they build the walls of their hopes upon a sandy foundation, which will fall upon their own heads: fond men to kick against the pricks, nay which is worse bestial, since like the Boare they run with violence against the Trees of righteousnesse, and thereby dash out their own brains. Surely what the Moth is to the Garment, the Worme to the Tree, Rust to the Iron, that is, a mischievous work to the Author, fretting, eating, consuming him that acts it. Improbo homine nihil imbecillius, none weaker then the wicked, whose weapons are so easily wrested from him, and employed against him. It is hard to say whither is greater the sin or the punishment, since the malicious man though against his will is a selfe murderer. He soweth curses like hempseed to make an halter for himselfe, and all such sooner or later shall have cause to say— propriis configimur armis, our armes are our harmes, and our own conceptions the death of their parents.
2 Let the Saints encourage themselves in the daily accomplishment of this doctrine, let them make a happy construction of the wickeds miserable destruction, even to banish immoderate feares far from their thoughts. Hee that toucheth you sayth God, toucheth the Apple of mine Eye, Zach. 2.8. of his Eye, so some read it, it being most true that the dust which the Churches adversarie raise against her, flyeth in their own eyes. Let not then the Saints looke at their present intents, but their works future event; their machination, but Gods Ordination; their raging fury, but Gods ruling Sovereignty; their subtile craft, but Gods sublime wisdom, which both over-powers and over-reacheth them, and let this be Higgaion, Selah, the last part.