Commentary on the Epistles and Revelation of John, Commentary 2 · Chapter 7
CHAP. VII. Verſe 1. Whereof ye wrote unto me]
CErtain caſes of conſcience they had propounded, which here he anſwers.Act. and Mon. fol. 789. This he could do excellently, and ſo could Luther, as having had experience, and been much beaten and exerciſed with ſpirituall conflicts. Conſcience is a diamond, and will be wrought on by nothing but duſt of diamond, ſuch as contrition hath ground it to.
It is good for a man] Now ſince the fall, it is good, i. e. convenient for the many troubles of the married eſtate. It is not evil to marry, but good to be wary, elſe conjugium may prove conjurgium, marriage a mar-age.
Verſe 2.foreign. To avoid fornication] Gr. Fornications, comprehending all luſtifull burnings, ſelf-pollutions, and all other impurities of a ſingle life. How many are there that enter into Gods ordinance (marriage) thorow the devils portall (fornication) that take ſuch liberty before, that after marriage they rue it all the daies of their lives.
Let every man have his one wife] Not many wives. Turks may have as many as they can keep. And ſome ſenſualiſts plead now for Polygamy. See Mal. 2.15. Scotorum Natio uxores proprias non habet, ſaith Hierom of the old Scots.
Verſe 3. Let the husband, &c.] Let them be chaſte between themſelves, and beware both of exceſſe and defect. Chaſtity is a mans honour, 1 Theſſ. 4.5. And modeſty is the beſt preſerver of nuptiall chaſtity. Marriage as well as meats muſt be ſanctified by the Word and prayer. God muſt be ſent for, to bleſſe thy phyſick to the ſoul. Raging luſt is a great enemy to conjugall love.
Verſe 4. The wife hath no power, &c.] The husbands body is ſervant to the wife, and the wives to the husband: they have paſſed themſelves one to another by mutuall covenant, and God keeps the bonds, prov. 2.17. Mal. 2 14.
Verſe 5. To faſting and praier] Preces nobis je…uniis a lendum & quaſi ſaginandum. Faſting-daies are ſoul-fatting daies: praier is edged and winged thereby.
That Satan tempt you not] The temptation is ſtrong to fornication, ſtronger to adultery. Watch therefore. Our nature is catching this way: and once in, 'tis not ſo eaſie to come off. This is a ſearing ſin, Hoſ. 4.11. Eph. 4 19.
Verſe 6. And not of commandment] Among the Jews marriage was not held a thing indifferent, or at their own liberty to chuſe or refuſe, but a binding command. Hereto Paul ſeems in this verſe to allude.Tar. on Gen. 1.28.
Verſe 7. For I would that all, &c.] He had a peculiar gift, that he was ſo eminently chaſte: ſuch as might be in reprobates. So Moſes his meekneſſe was partly from his naturall temper: And Luthers not being tempted to covetouſneſſe was much helped by the freenes and generouſnes of his ſpirit.
Verſe 8. I ſay therefore to the unmarried] Yet doth not the Apoſtle ſimply prefer virginity or viduity before marriage as better. The Saturnilian heretikes ſaid, that marriage was of the devil. And the blemiſh will never be wiped off ſome of the ancient Fathers, who to eſtabliſh their own I dol of I know not what virginity, which they themſelves had not, have written moſt wickedly and baſely of marriage. If the ſame God had not been the authour of virginity and marriage, he had never countenanced virginity by marriage, as he did in the bleſſed Virgin.
Verſe 9. Let them marry] There is no luſt ſo hot and violent, but Gods medicines rightly applied, will cool and heal. Only remember that it is not the having, but the loving of a wife that keep … man chaſt and clean: And that God doth uſe to correct exceſſe and dalliance betwixt married couples, with ſtrong temptations after ſtrange fleſh.
Better to marry then to burn] As an Oven heated by the Baker, Hoſ. 7.4. As thoſe Pagans were ſcalded, Rom. 1.27. and theſe Pa…agans ſtill are, that are forbidden to marry, and yet cannot contain.
Verſe 10 Yet not I] By prudentiall advice only.
But the Lord] Not in ſo many words, but by juſt conſequence drawn from Mat. 19 6.
Verſe 11.Ovid. Or let her be reconciled] Ʋt qua modò puguarant jungant ſuaroſtra columbae. Why ſhould marriage couples be as glaſſe, that being once broke can never be pieced again? The Lord hates putting away, Mal. 2.1….
Verſe 12. Let him not put her away] For to the pure all things are pure. Ʋxoris vitium aut tollendum, aut tolerandum est, ſaith Varro in Ge…ius. Mend a bad wife, if thou canſt: bear with her, if thou canſt not.
Verſe 13. If he be pleaſed, &c.] If he blaſpheme not Chriſt, force her not to deny the faith, &c. as that King of Denmark that would have compelled his wiſe to go to Maſſe, who was therefore forced to flie for her life to her brother the Electour of Brandenburg (as Luther relateth) where ſhe died Chriſtianly.
Verſe 14. But now they are holy] With a federall holineſſe, and are therefore to be baptized, as being partakers of the Covenant of Grace. The Hab…ſſines (a kinde of mongrell Chriſtians in Africa) have an odde conceit, That the ſouls of Infants departing afore baptiſine, are ſaved by ve…tue of the Euchariſt received by the mother after conception, which ſanctifies the childe in the womb.Breerwoods Enquit. 257.
Verſe 15. But God hath called us to peace] To domeſticall peace, Ariſtot. in Khetor.which they that want, Plus quam dimidia beatitudinis ſuae parte privat… ſunt, ſaith Ariſtotle. They have loſt the greater half of the happineſſe of their lives. This was verified in Phoroneus the Law-giver, and Sylla the Roman Generall.Bruſon. l. 7. c. 32.
Verſe 16. Whether thou ſhalt ſave] And to have any hand in ſaving a ſoul, is the higheſt honour.
Verſe 17. But God hath distributed] In caſe you ſhould not ſave your yoke-fellow, yet keep your ſtation, be content with your condition, and adorn it 1 Pet. 3.1, 2. It is the duty of a Chriſtian (ſaid Luther) to believe things inviſible, to hope for things deferred, and to love God when he ſhews himſelf contrary to us.
Verſe 18. Let him not become uncircumciſed] Some Jews for fear of Autiochus, made themſelves uncircum…iſed, 1 Maccab. 1.16. Others for ſhame after they were gained to the knowledge of Chriſt, as here. This was done by drawing up the fore-skin with a Chirurgions inſtrument: And of this wicked invention Eſau is ſaid to be the firſt authour and practiſer.Godw. Antiq. Hebr.
Verſe 19. But the keeping of the Commandment] This is that Bonum hominis, Mic. 6.8. that totum hominis, Eccleſ. 12.23. that one thing neceſſary, that is better then ſacrifice, 1 Sam. 15.22. Mallem obedire, quam miracula facere, ſaith Luther, I had rather obey, then be able to do miracles.
Verſe 20. Abide in the ſame calling] And therein learn to maintain good works, or to be their crafts-maſters,Tit 3 8, 14. foreign. to excell in their profeſſion, Honestis functionibus praeeſſe, as ſome render the Apoſtle there. Theſe things are good and profitable unto men.
Verſe 21. Ʋſe it rather] Liberty is that we loſt by ſin, and affect by nature. Servus eſt nomen officy. A ſervant is not foreign, one that moveth abſolutely of himſelf, he is the maſters inſtrument, and foreign, wholly his, ſaith Aristotle. O that we could be Gods ſervants in that ſort!
Verſe 22. For he that is called] See a parallel place to this Jam. 1.9, 10. Our preferment in Chriſt ſhould make us hold up our heads, but not too high, and be chearfull,Laeti ſimus in Domino. ſed caveamus à recidivo. Bern. but not withall ſcornfull.
Verſe 23. Ye are bought with a price] The redeemed among the Romans were to addict themſelves to the ſervice of their Redeemers, and to obſerve them as their parents all daies of their lives.
Be not ye the ſervants of men] When they command you things forbidden by Chriſt, or when they would tyrannize over your conſciences, as the Jeſuites that require blinde obedience. Cardinall Tolet ſaith,Caſ. Co…ſ…. l. 4. cap. 13. The people may merit at Gods hand in believing an hereſie, if their teacher propound it: for their obedience is meritorious. If a prieſt teach it (ſaith Stapleton) be it true, be it falſe, take it as Gods oracle. If the Church ſhould approve and authorize Arrianiſme or Pelagianiſme, ſaith Eraſmus, I would do ſo too.Epiſt. ad …irketmer. But ſo would no wiſe man.
Verſe 24. Let every man wherein, &c.] This is the ſame with verſ. 20. The Apoſtle inculcateth it, as we not only anoint our benummed limbs with ointments, but alſo rub and chafe them in.
Verſe 25.foreign. I give my judgement] The Rhemiſts (after Eraſmus) render it counſell, and thereupon ground a diſtinction between divine commands and counſels. But the word betokens, Viriboni rectum & verum judicium, In Ariſt, Ethic, l. 6. c. 10.ſaith Magirus, the right and ſound judgement of ſome good man, And furely if the Apoſtle had no expreſſe command from Chriſt, neither had he any counſell from him concerning this buſines.
Verſe 26. I ſuppoſe therefore] This is his judgement, his vote or verdict, the firſt part thereof we have here: the ſecond v. 28. the third, v. 35.
Verſe 27. Art thou bound to a wiſe?] A manifeſt metaphor from Oxen.Ovid Eipſt. Hence we call them yoke-fellows, Quam male inaequales veniunt ad aratra juvenci, tam premitur magno &c. Dare not to yoke thy ſelf with any untamed heifer that bears not Chriſts yoke.
Verſe 28. Thou hast not ſinned] If any man call lawfull marriage a ſinfull defilement, he hath the apoſtate Dragon dwelling in him,Epiſt. ad Philadelph. Act. and Mon. fol 790. ſaith Ignatius. And yet the Papiſts teach that it is a farre greater ſinne, for a Prieſt to have a wife, then to keep many harlots.
Such ſhall have trouble in the fleſh] Mark that he ſaith, In the fleſh, the delights of wedlock will be allaied with troubles, to avoid ſurfet. Before marriage people promiſe themſelves much happineſſe in that eſtate, and think they could live together with all delight: but after, they ſee they are deceived, and therefore need to go to ſchool to learn how to behave themſelves one toward another.
But I spare you] q. d. No more of that: and yet I'll ſhew you a way how you may ſcape, or at leaſt mitigate thoſe troubles in the fleſh.
Verſe 29. This then I ſay brethren] The beſt counſell I can give you, is that you hang looſe to all theſe outward comforts, as having your ſelves but a while to be here: You have a long task, and but a little time. God hath hanged the heavieſt weights upon the weakeſt wiers; for upon this moment depends eternity. Castigemus igitur mores & moras noſtras: Up therefore and be doing.
The time is ſhort] Gr. Contracted and roled up, foreign.as ſails uſe to be by the mariners, when the ſhip draws night to the harbour. Others ſay, it is a metaphor from a piece of cloth rolled up, only a little left at the end: So hath God rolled up all his works: only he hath left a little at the end, and then all his glory ſhall appear. The time is ſhort, ſaith the Apoſtle, and you have buſineſſe enough another way, therefore let other things (as wiving and buying, &c.) paſſe, and minde the main. There is water little enough to run in the right channel, therefore let none run beſide. Some that have lain a dying would have given a world for time: As I have heard (ſaith a reverend man) one crying day and night, Call time again. And I alſo have known the like of a great Lady of this Land.
They that have wives, &c.] Not be uxorious, ſith they know not how ſoon God may take from them, as he did from Ezekiel, the delight of their eyes, their deareſt Spouſes. The Jews at this day have a cuſtome, when a couple are married to break the glaſſe, wherein the bridegroom and bride drank: thereby to admoniſh them of their dying condition, and that there muſt be a parting again ere long.Sphinx. Philoſ. p 4 22.
Verſe 30. And they that weep] viz. In the loſſe of wife or children: Let them moderate their grief, as Abraham did in the loſſe of Sarah, Gen. 23.2. He came to weep for her: where the Hebrew hath one little letter extraordinary: To note that Abraham wept but a little for her; and this, not becauſe ſhe was old and over-worne (as the Rabbins give the reaſon) but becauſe he had hope of a happy reſurrection, 1 Theſſ. 4.14. and becauſe ſhe was his ſtill, though dead: therefore he ſo oft in that Chapter calleth her my dead, v. 4, 11, 13, 15.
And they that rejoyce] In the marrying of wives, or birth of children. The marriage-day is called the day of the rejoycing of a mans heart: And when ſhould men be merry rather then at the recovering of the loſt rib?Cant. 3.11. But he was too blame that ſaid, He had married a wife, and therefore he could not come. And he was a wiſer man that ſaid,Martial. Ʋxori nubere nolo meae.
As if they poſſeſſed not] minde earthly things we muſt, as if we minded them not: As a man may hear a tale, and have his minde elſewhere: or as a man that baits at an Inne, his minde is ſomewhere elſe. A right believer (ſaith one) goes thorow the world,Mr Ward. as a man whoſe minde is in a deep ſtudy: or as one that hath ſpeciall haſte of ſome weighty buſineſſe. Rebus non me trado, ſed commodo, ſaith Seneca. Be not wholly dulled or drowned in the world: look at it out of the eyes end only, leſt as the Serpent Scytale, it be witch us with it's beautifull colours, and ſting us to death.
Verſe 31. As not abuſing it] Not ſhooting our affections over-far into it. David was as a weaned childe, Paul as a crucified man. If Jobs heart had not been weaned from the world, when as yet he wallowed in worldly wealth, he could not have borne ſo bravely the ruine of ſo rich a ſtate without repining. The devil hath no way to entangle us, but to ſay, as he did to Chriſt, Mitte te deorſum, Caſt thy ſelf down, pitch upon the bait, eat and devour hook and all.
For the faſhion this world] The word ſignifies a mathematicall figure,foreign. which is a meer notion, and nothing in ſubſtance. So Pſal. 39.6. Surely every man walketh in a vain ſhadow, he leadeth an imaginary life, rather then a life it ſelf. The pomp of this world is but a fantaſie, Act. 25.23. (See the Note there.) The glory of it, an opinion. The word here uſed intimateth, that there is nothing of any firmneſſe of ſolid conſiſtency in the creature. It is but a ſurface, out-ſide, empty promiſe: all the beauty of it is but skin-deep.
Paſſeth away] Temporals are as tranſitory, as a haſty head-long torrent. The poſting Sun of all worldly pleaſure, after a ſhort gleam of vain gliſtering, ſets in the ocean of endleſſe ſorrow. In the Popes inthromzation, before he is ſet in his chair, and puts on his triple-crown, a piece of tow, or wad of ſtraw is ſet on fire before him, and one appointed to ſay, Sic tranſit gloria mundi, The glory of this world is but a blaze.foreign. Falla, tranſverſum agit Bud. It is indeed an Ignis fatuus, a walking fire that leadeth men into brakes and ditches. And ſo ſome render this text. The Faſhion or hue of this world deceiveth, miſleadeth, carrieth men another way, out of their way. For of the world we may ſay as Plutarch ſaith of Herodotus. foreign.Both the words and ſhews of it are full of fraud. Nec tantùm fallacia ſunt quia dubia (ſaith Lactantius) ſed & inſidioſa, quia dulciae.
Verſe 32. Without carefulneſſe] That unavoidably attendeth the marriage-eſtate, Gen. 30.30.1 Tim. 5.8.
Verſe 33.foreign. Careth how he may pleaſe] He taketh extraordinary care to pleaſe, and ſo doth ſhe, v. 34. The word implies a dividing of the minde into divers thoughts, caſting this way and that way, and every way how to give beſt content. Thus an happy ſtudy.
Verſe 34. Careth for the things] Expeditiùs vacat.
Holy both in body and spirit] For contemplative wickednes, and mentall uncleanneſſe alſo greatly diſpleaſeth God.In declam. Inceſta eſt, & ſine ſtupro, quae ſtuprum cupit, ſaith Seneca, And, Quae quia non licuit non facit, illa facit, ſaith Ovid. The very deſire to do evil, is to do evil. The Romans puniſhed one of their veſtall virgins for uttering this verſe only,
Foelices nuptae! moriar ni nubere dulce eſt.
Oh! 'tis a brave thing to be married.
How ſhe may pleaſe her busband] As Sarah did Abraham, calling him Lord, as Rebecca did Iſaac, by providing him the meat that he loved, as Livia did Auguſtus, by obſerving his diſpoſition, and drawing evenly with him, being a piece ſo juſt cut for him, as anſwered him rightly in every joynt.
Verſe 35. That you may attend, &c.] Gr.foreign. That you may ſit cloſe to him, as Mary did, Luk. 10.40. whileſt Martha was diſtracted about much ſervice. Let every man bend himſelf to baniſh and beat away diſtractions,
Nam ne que chorda ſonum reddit, quem vult manus & mens Poſcenti que gravem perſaepè remittit acutum.Hor. de art. poet.
Verſe 36. If ſhe paſſe the flower] Childehood is counted the flower of age: ſo long the Apoſtle would have marriage forborne. While the flower of the plant ſprouteth, the ſeed is green, unfit to be ſowen.
Verſe 37. And hath ſo decreed] Reſerving ſtill a liberty of doing otherwiſe, if need require: which Popiſh votaries do not.
Verſe 38. Doth better] 1. For the better waiting upon Gods work without diſtraction. 2. For the better bearing of perſecution.
Verſe 39.Secundas nupti…s pro fornicationibus babent. Aug. She is at liberty] The Montuniſts therefore (and with them Tertullian in his old-age) were in an errour, that condemned ſecond marriage, and ſaid it was no better then fornication. Howbeit that of Hierome is not to be diſliked. Think daily of death; and that will be enough to forbid the banes of ſecond marriage.
Verſe 40. But ſhe is happier] i. e. She ſhall live more at eaſe, and have leſſe to care for. And we ſhould contract our cares into as narrow a compaſſe as we can, in hard times, eſpecially.