A Christian Library, Chapter 7 – Chapter 9
CHAP. VII.
FOurthly, It would be considered, that what you suffer is far short of what others have suffered before you; for whereas you suffer a little tongue-persecution your betters and such as the world was not worthy of, have suffered … and scourgings, bonds, and imprisonments; were stoned, sawn … the sword: endured the violence of fire; were rackt, … desarts and mountains, in dens and caves of the earth, in she…p… …, destitute, afflicted, and tormented: Not …epting delive… might obtain a better … stoned, some crucified, some beheaded, some thrust thorow with spears, some burnt with fire, some broiled, some brained; with many the like, and worse kinds of death: for we read of no lesse then twenty nine several deaths they were put unto. But to clear your sight, Ile give you some particular instances of the several wayes that the best of Gods people have suffered before you.
First, You shall finde, that it hath been the manner of wicked men, out of this enmity, to envy the vertuous and good estate of the godly: as Cain envied Ab…l, Gen. 4.5. Secondly, To contemn their supposed mean estate, as Sanballat, Tobiah, and Gershom, with the rest of that crue contemned Nehemiah and the Iewes, Nehem. 4.1, 2, 3. Thirdly, To rejoyce at their supposed evill estate, as the Princes of the Philistins did at Sampsons blindness and bondage, Judg. 16.25. Fourthly, To hate them, as all carnal men hate the members of Christ, Matth. 10.22. Fiftly, To murmure against them, as the Israelites murmured against Moses and Aaron, Numb. 11.1 and 14▪ 2, 3. Sixthly, To censure their actions, and misconster their intentions, as Eliab did Davids zeal for Gods glory, in fighting with Goliah, 1 Sam. 17.28. and those wicked ones, his fasting and mourning, Psal. 35.13, to 17. Seventhly, By carrying tales of them unto others, as Doeg did to Saul of David and Ahimeleck, 1 Sam. 22.9, 10. and the Ziphims, 1 Sam. 23.19, 20. and 26▪ 1. Eightly, To perswade and give divelish counsel to others like themselves to persecute them; as the Princes and Rulers did to Zedekiah the King against Ieremiah, Jer. 38.4. Ninthly, To scoff at them, as Ishmael scoft at Isaac, Gen. 21.9. Tenthly, To nick-name them, as the Iews did Paul, Acts 24.14. and all the Disciples, 1 Cor. 4.9, 10. Eleventhly, To revile and rail on them, as the Iews did upon Paul and Barnabas, Acts 13.45. Twelfthly, To raise slanders of them, as those wicked men slandered Naboth, confirming the same with an Oath, 1 Kings 21. Thirteenthly, To curse them, as Goliah cursed David, 1 Sam. 17.43. and also Shemei, 2 Sam. 16.7, to 15. Fourteenthly, To threaten them, as all the men of Sodom did Lot, Gen. 19.9. Fifteenthly, By subtilty to undermine them in talk, that they might betray them; as the false Prophets and other enemies of the truth undermined Ieremiah, seeking every way to destroy him, Ier. 18. 18 &c. Sixteenthly, By using scornful and disdainful gestures to despight them; as Goliah against David, 1 Sam. 17.42. and also those wicked ones, Psal. 22.7.13. and 35.16. and 109.25. Seventeenthly, To withstand and contrary the doctrine which they are commanded by God to deliver. As Elymas the Socerer withstood Paul and Barnabas in their preaching, Acts 13. 8. Eighteenthly, To combine themselves together and lay divellish plot; to destroy them; as Demetrius with the rest of the Craftsmen conspired the death of Pauls companions, Acts 19. and likewise more then forty of the Iews which bound themselves by a curse, not to eat nor drink till they had killed … in which conspiracy the chief Priests were likewise assistants, Acts 23.12, 14. Nineteenthly, To imprison them, as the malicious Priests did … Jer. 36.5. Twentieth, To strike them as Zedekiah the false Prophe… … Micaiah 1 Kings 22 24. Twenty one, To hurt and maim them … of Antiochia and Iconium did Paul, Acts 14.19. Twenty two and … slay them, as Iezabel did all the Prophets of the Lord … 1 Kings 18.4.
CHAP. VIII.
Now to speak nothing in this place of the diversity of deaths and tortures, that millions of Martyrs have suffered for professing of Christs Name and keeping of a good Conscience, though their sufferings were nothing, either to what their sins h…d deserved, or to what their Saviour had done and suffered for them; for he endu…ed many a little death all his life for our sakes, and at length that painful, shameful and cursed death of the Crosse; yea he suffered every one of these two and twenty ways before-mentioned, and that from his own countrymen and kinsfolks, yea of the Chief Priests, Scribes and Pharisees, who were teachers and expounders of the Law, and which sate in Moses chair. For he was Envied, Matth. 26.15. Contemned, Mat. 12.24. and 13.55. Rejoyced at in his misery and distresse, Matth. 27.29. Hated, Joh. 77. Murmured against, Luke 15.2. Had his actions and intentions mis-construed, Matth. 11.19. Had tales carried of him, Matth. 12.14. and divelish counsel given against him, Matth. 27.20. was scoffed at, Matth. 27.42. Nicknamed, Matth. 13.55. Railed on, Luke 23.39. Slandered, Matth. 28.13. Cursed, Gal. 3.13. Threatned, John 11.53. Undermined in talk that they might accuse him, Matth. 22.15. They used disdainful gestures before him, Matth. 27.29, 39. Withstood him in his preaching, and contraried his doctrine, Luke 5.21. Matth. 9.34. Combined together and laid divelish plots to destroy him. Mat. 12.14. Took him prisoner, Matth. 26.57. Smote him, Luke 22.64. Hurt and wounded him, Matth. 27.29. John 19.34. And lastly, they put him to death, Mat. 27. 35. And why all this? not for any evil they found in him, for their own words are, He hath done all things well, Mark 7 37. He hath done, such was his power: all things, such was his wisdom: well, such was his goodness: and yet crucified, and every way abused he must be. But it was for his zeal, purity and holiness, and because his life and practice was clean contrary to theirs; his doctrine too powerfull and pure for such carnal hearts to imbrace or endure. Now cast up thy Receits, and compare them with thy deservings; look upon thy deliverance from the fire of hell: Yea, look but upon thy sufferings single, and thou shalt finde them nothing, to what thy fellow Saints, and Christ thy Elder brother hath suffered before thee. At a Lions Den, or a fiery furnace, not to turn tail, were something worthy a Christian. Yea compare thine own estate with thine enemies, and thou shalt see yet greater cause to be not only patient, but thankful. For if these scoffs and flouts of men like thy self are so grievous to thee, how will thine and Gods enemies indure those mocks and flouts of the divels in hell? how will they indure that devouring fire, that everlasting …urning, Isa. 33.14. Psal. 68.21. And the way not to repine at those above us, is to look at those below us. But leaving the application until the conclusion;
CHAP. IX.
FIfthly, Consider but seriously, who they are, that hate, sc…ff and jeer you, and that have persecuted the Saints before you, and mockt at holiness; and … exceedingly to support you against whatever you shall hear or …. As first, What is their Character in Scripture? are they not … A company of hypocrites, Psal. 35. Hypocritical mockers, v. 16. … Drunkards, Psal. 69. I am a song of the Drunkards, vers. 12. a sort of vicious persons, following their lusts, 2 Pet. 3.3. There shall come mockers, walking after their own lusts. A company of abject persons, Psal. 35 15. like those enemies, Acts 17. Lewd fellows of the baser sort, ver. 5. A …ou of prophane, godless, irreligious Atheists and ignorant fools, that do no more know the power, then Turks and Heathens know the truth of godliness, Psal. 14 1. to 6. And it is a shrewd suspition, that he who is a mocker is an Atheist. It well becomes him to mock at Religion, that denies a God: And it is evident enough that he denies a God, that mocks at godlinesse. But secondly, Experience sufficiently acquaints us what they are, and the examples before rehearsed; for such as Cain, and the Sodomites, and Ishmael, and Esa…. and Haman, and Eliab, and Goliah, and Michal, and Doeg, and Shemei, an… Rabshekeh, and Ahab, and Iezabel, and Tobiah, and Sanballat, and Pashur, and Zedekiah, and Herod, and Iudas, and S. Paul before his conversion, and Ananias the High Priest, and Demetrius the silver-smith, and Alexander th… Copper-smith, and Elimas the Sorcerer: such as these I say are the men, wh… amongst us do the like things that they did. And will any wise man stumb at Religion for such mens scoffs and reproaches? what better can be expected from them? What said the Orator to Salust? It cannot be, but he tha… lives thy life should speak thy language; yea, a man would choose his Religion by such mens enmity, and it is a great honour to Religion that it hath such adversaries. For as the Primitive Christians used to say when No… persecuted them; they that know him must needs think it some great go… which Nero so hated and condemned; so every wise man will love Religi… the better, and take it for a great honour to the Saints, that hypocrites, drunkards, vitious followers of their lusts, base and l…wd fellows, godlesse Atheists and blind Sensualists are her scoffing adversaries: And scarce do I know a better argument to perswade to love and imbrace it, then that such men hate … deride it; neither can it be the true Religion, which is not every where … spoken against, Act. 28.22. But