The Good Man a Public Good, Title page – Dedication
THE GOOD MAN A PVBLICK GOOD,
1. PASSIVELY,
2. ACTIVELY.
As it was Manifeſted in a Sermon preached to the Honourable Houſe of COMMONS, at the late Solemne Faſt: January 31. 1643.
By DANIEL CAVVDREY. Miniſter of the Goſpell at Great Billing in Northamptonſhire, and one of the Aſſembly of DIVINES.
2. Cor. 12.15. I will very gladly ſpend and be ſpent for you, though the more abundantly I love you, the leſſe I am loved.
John 10.11.12. The Good Shepheard giveth his life for the Sheepe: But he that is an hireling and not the Shepheard, whoſe owne the Sheepe are not, ſeeth the wolfe comming, and leaves the Sheep, and fleeth becauſe he is an hireling, and careth not for the Sheep.
LONDON, Printed by Tho. Harper, for Charles Greene, and P. W. 1643.
To the Honourable Houſe of Commons, Aſſembled in PARLIAMENT.
Honourable, and ever-Honoured Patriots:
THis poor and plain Sermon, as it was firſt preached in obedience to your Command, and heard with a great deale of Religious Attention; ſo it is now moſt humbly preſented to your hands and eyes. Wherein the Preachers aime and intention was not,Q…i monet ut f…s, q…od j m ſ…ci, &c. either to informe your Judgements in what you knew not, or to perſwade your Obedience to what you did not, but to encourage and comfort you, in what you already did, even ſpend your ſelves in the Publicke Good. The which he conceived the rather to be moſt neceſſary for him to doe: Firſt, becauſe of the great difficulty of the worke you are ingaged in, by reaſon of thoſe Scornfull men, who have brought the City into a ſnare, or rather ſet the Kingdome on fire. Secondly, becauſe of thoſe great diſcouragements which you have long wraſtled with, through the frowardneſſe and unthankfulneſſe of the people of this land, who have withdrawne (many of them) their aſſiſtance, and ſtopped up thoſe wels that ſhould afford you water to quench that fire. And had not the Lord himſelf ſtood by you, and endued you with Wiſdome, Goodneſſe, Meekneſſe, the wickedneſſe of the one ſort, and the perverſeneſſe of the other ſort, might have cauſed your hands to faint, and your hearts to faile in the proſecution of the Worke. But bleſſed be God▪ who both raiſed you up unto us, and raiſed and kept up your ſpirits, to be conſtant and active, for ſuch a time as this: But it is uſuall with God ſo to doe. As it is obſervable in Nature (Phyſitians ſay) that as there are Nationall diſeaſes, ſo there are peculiar Nationall remedies: So commonly in the greateſt diſtreſſes of his Church, and greateſt oppoſition of Malignants, God is pleaſed to raiſe up defendants proportionable to theſe neceſſities. This is evident in many paſſages of the ſacred Story; eſpecially in the booke of Judges, in Nehemiahs and Eſthers time. The two parties in the Text, are not ſo much oppoſed one againſt another, viz. Scornfull men, and Wiſe men, as they are in the preſent experience of theſe times. Never did any Kingdome know and finde ſo great a generation of Scornfull men, not onelyonly the lower ranke of meane Malignants, who have ſcorned and ſcoffed at Religion and Goodneſſe ſo long till they have ſcoffed themſelves out of all, even ſhewes of Religion, and into unbeleefe of all relations of ſucceſſes, as falſe and fabulous: but even thoſe of the ſecond and third magnitudes, who like Tobiah and Sanballat, have jeered and derided all your undertakings, as weake and worthleſſe: ſaying as they, What do theſe feeble men? will they fortifie themſelves? will they make an end in a day? Will they pull downe the Old, and ſet up a new Church in a day? Nay, have they not flouted your faſtings and prayings, upon the leaſt ſucceſſes of their party? and ſome of them ſaid where is now your God? But againe I ſay, Bleſſed be God (who reſiſts the proud, and gives grace to the Humble) that hath as it were, created a generation of Wiſe men, in a way of oppoſition to thoſe Scornfull men, to breake thoſe ſnares, and quench thoſe fires which they have kindled. Wherein God hath not only magnified his owne Wiſdome and Goodneſſe, in providing and fitting the Remedy to the Diſeaſe; but alſo manifeſted to all the world, your Wiſdome in diſcovering their ſnares, and your Goodneſſe in quenching their fires. Truly (worthy Patriots) next under God, we cannot but acknowledge, that the Kingdome, the whole Iſland, is beholding to you for its preſent preſervation. And though you have met with an unthankefull generation for the preſent, yet we doubt not, but the children yet unborne, ſhall have cauſe to call you Bleſſed; as the repairers of our breaches, as the reſtorers of paths to dwell in, and above all, as the bleſſed Reformers of Church and State. Which that you may be, ſhall be the dayly prayer, of
Your moſt humbly devoted Servant in the Lord, DANIEL CAVVDREY.