The Vanity of Glorying in the Flesh, Title page – Dedication 3
Ἀσαρκοκάυκημα, OR THE VANITY, of Glorying in the FLESH, Open'd in a SERMON Preached at the FƲNERAL OF KINGSMEL LUCY, Eſq Eldeſt SONNE to FRANCIS LUCY, Eſq
By THO. CASE, M. A. ſometimes Student of Ch. Ch. Oxon. and now Paſtor of Giles in the Fields, London.
London, Printed by T.R and E.M. for Robert Gibbs in Chancerylane near Serjeants Inne. 1655.
To the Honourable, Sir THO WITHRINGTON Knight, and SERJEANT at the LAW, And one of the Commiſſioners of the Treaſury.
Noble Sir,
THe Dedication of this piece to your Name, may ſeem ſtrange to one that is a ſtranger to you. But the truth is, your intereſt in this young Gentleman deceaſed, gives you too great a title, to this poor, imperfect memorial of him, while your great love to the worth and goodneſſe that was in him, invited your Noble Spirit, to adopt him into the Relation of a Son-in-law, a choice, which truly rendereth you as honourable, as it would have rendered him happy, had he lived to enjoy it. But oh the inſtability of all ſublunary felicities. You expected a Marriage, and behold a Funeral. Vanity of vanities! how fitly hath that great Apoſtle phraſed all terrene fruitions,1 Tim. 6.17 uncertain riches! Ixion-like, they vaniſh while we hug them in our armes; yea, we loſe them before we are poſſeſſed of them. This is the Doctrine, the living God teach us the Uſe; To do good, Ver. 18, 19to be rich in good works, &c. to lay hold on eternal life.
To your intereſt in theſe papers, your condeſcenſion in preſſing me to print them, as it hath laid upon me another engagement to publiſh, ſo it hath given me a new encouragement to put them under the protection of your Name, which though it cannot (I know) ſecure them from the juſt cenſure of many defects; yet it may free me from the unjuſt cenſure of preſumption, in this Dedication.
Accept them, Honoured Sir, as an evidence of that great reſpect, which your integrity hath merited, as with others; ſo with my ſelf. And if in the enſuing lines there be any thing that may either alleviate your loſſe, or divert the ſenſe of it. It ſhall be a great ſatisfaction, to
SIR, Your Humble Servant in the Goſpel of Chriſt, THO. CASE.
To my moſt Honoured Friends, FRANCIS LƲCY, Eſq and his moſt Chriſtian and Vertuous YOKE-FELLOW, Grace and Peace.
THe ſorrow of the New Convert, lookeing upon Chriſt crucified, the Holy Ghoſt hath pleaſed to ſhadow forth unto us inZech. 12.10. Scripture, by the ſorrows for the loſſe of a firſt-borne, as one that is in bitterneſſe for his firſt-born; foreign Ut amareſce…e ſuper primogenitum. rachamim from rechem, which ſignifieth the wombe, becauſe of all compaſſions the mothers compaſſions are the moſt tenderthe Hebrew reads it infinitively, not perſonally. to take in both Sexes; certainly, becauſe thoſe ſorrowes, eſpecially on the mothers ſide, are the ſtrongeſt and the moſt impreſſive of all natural affections.
What your ſorrows then are, for the loſſe of this Gentleman, whoſe praemature death, (if it be lawful to call it ſo, now Gods work is finiſhed) hath occaſioned firſt the preaching, and then at your too prevailing ſolicitation, the printing of this Sermon, cannot be eaſily imagined. A firſt born, and ſuch a firſt-born, as few Parents have either boaſted of, or mourned over. A Son, who was what you could wiſh for a Son, or from a Son. A Son you have loſt, for the loſſe of whom I can be content to let you mourn, and with all my heart ſit down and mourn with you, for Your, the Nations, and mine own loſſe.
Yet to keep your ſorrows from over-flowing the banks, Remember, I beſeech you, that your trial is not parallel with the trial of ſome of Gods Worthies.
It is not the trial of Job, who had all his Sons and Daughters ſlaine and buried in one tempeſt.
Not the trial of David, whoſe darling ſon was executed, in the very act of treaſon and parricide.
No, nor the trial of Abraham your father, who must reſign up his Son, his firſt-borne, his only Son, whom he loved; the Heire, not of Abrahams poſſeſſions only, but of the Promiſes too; and (that which is above all aggravations tremendous,) Iſaac muſt be the Sacrifice, and Abraham the Prieſt, to offer him up with his own hand.
His Piety to God, muſt be cruelty to his Son, yea, (had not the Command of the Law giver intervened) moſt unnatural murder.
Deare friends, your loſſe though invaluable, is not imbittered with ſuch temptations.
A Son, a firſt-born, but dying in the arms of your Loves and Prayers. Not more ſent for home to his fathers houſe, (as it were in anotherThe Small Pox accended into a burning fever. fiery chariot) then willing to go.
Neither hath his death made you or your ſamily Orphane. A brother he hath left behinde him, to inherit your eſtate and his Brothers vertues: A Brother, in whom his Brother lives; though Kingſmell be dead, yet Lucy is alive. A Brother ſo like his Brother,Minut. Foelix. that (as he ſaid of the two friends) Crederes unam animum in duobus eſſe diviſam: You would think one ſoul animated two bodies,
Sic oculos, ſic ille manus, ſic ora gerebat.
Both one in Nature, as in Name,
They look, and ſpeak, and act the ſame.
Three Siſters, alſo hath he left, ſharers of the ſame ſpirit of ſweetneſſe and Piety with himſelf; Recruits of your comfort, and veſſels to propagate, though not the name, yet that which is better, the goodneſſe of your family.
Certainly, my worthy friends, God hath mixt your Cup with many ſweet ingredients, ſo that you may well beſpeak your own ſoules with your elder brother, the Lord Jeſus Chriſt; The Cup that my Father hath given me, ſhall I not drink it? Behold, it is but a Cup, not a Sea of bitterneſſe, and of a fathers tempering, not an enemies, and it is a gift, not a cutſe; Oh if Jeſus Chriſt could thus alleviate his Cup, which was ful of his Fathers wrath, how much more may you drink and forget your ſorrows, whoſe cup is mixt with ſo much love? The very things which ſeem to aggravate your loſſe, do lighten it. The better your Son was, the eaſier your trial
It is our great infelicity that we invert our arguments, and when God hath put ſweetneſse into the Premiſſes, we put bitterneſſe into the Concluſion. We are wittie to aggravate our own afflictions, and for the moſt part miſtake the accent; that which ſhould help us bear our burden, makes it intolerable; we can tell how it might have been better, and think we could bear any trial but this, and ſo we diſpute our Croſſe when we ſhould take it up, and give God counſel when God looks for obedience.
But God hath taught you better things, and things which accompany ſalvation, though I thus ſpeak. And I do greatly rejoyce, to behold that Chriſtian meekneſſe and patience, that ſweet ſubmiſſion to, Lev. 10.3.that gracious acquieſcence in the Will of God: Your ſilence before the Lord where by you evidence to your ſelves and others, your trial to be the rod of a Father, the fruit of love. You do not only bear your Croſſe, but adorn it.
The Lord cauſe all grace to abound in your ſouls, perfect the good pleaſure of his grace, and the work of faith with power. And the Lord continue you both comforts one to another, and bleſſings to all your Relations,1 Sam, 2.20. give you a rich recompence for the loan which is lent to the Lord; and now one channel is dried up, cauſe the remaining to over-flow with mercy. Make your ſurviving off-ſpring double comforts to you, and bleſſings to the world. Yea, the leſſe you have of the creature, fit you for, and fill you with, MORE OF HIMSELF.
So prayeth, Your moſt obliged, and moſt faithful Friend and Servant in the Goſpel THO. CASE.
To the Choiſe and every way Hopeful Young Gentleman, Mr. RICHARD LUCY, the Now, only Son and Heire to FRANCIS LƲCY, Eſq Student of Ch. Ch. Oxon.
Learned Friend,
YOu have not the leaſt intereſt in theſe papers, whom your deſired Brother hath left Inheritor not to his Expectations only, but his Vertues; which here are preſented to you. Not as you have ſeen them in their own native beauty and ſplendor, as they beamed out themſelves to the eye of thoſe that did converſe with him, while alive, but as you have ſeen the picture of a man taken in his winding ſheet, in more dark and lifeleſſe colours: and yet as to the viſage and aire, ſuch as, that, without an Inſcription, you might at firſt ſight be able to tell whoſe picture and image it is. The view whereof, I know not whether it may affect you more with grief or joy; grief, becaufe it ls not himſelf; joy, becauſe you have ſo much of his ſhadow to converſe with, as long as you ſhall ſurvive. I ſend it to you, Sir, to perfect the Copy, for the truth is, there is none that can draw it to life, but your ſelf; it being not only imago tua, but imago tui; that therefore you would every day adde one line to the finiſhing of this excellent piece, Nulla dies fine linea.is the deſigne of this third dedication.
It concernes you highly; for though the death of your honoured Brother hath left you the Birth-right, it is his Life only that muſt give you the Bleſſing: Your Advantages are rare, a pious fathers counſels, a gracious mothers tears and prayers, the inſpection of a learned and induſtrious Tutor your daily converſe with ſilent and vocal Libraries, dead and living monuments of learning. Above all, that which the great Rabbi among the Jewes, and Apoſtle amongſt Chriſtians, puts as a Crown upon young Timothies head, that from a childe thou haſt known the Scriptures, 2 Tim 3.15which are able to make thee wiſe to ſalvation; Theſe are your advantages, and Prayer your emprovement: the exerciſe whereof you have learn't both by Precept and by Pattorn; may the Gift of Prayer be accompliſhed with the Grace of Prayer, the ſweet and ſecret teachings of the Spirit of Grace and Supplication. Zech. 12.20.The Lord make you to abound in that holy duty, our heavenly foreign; the traffick and trade whereby we fetch in the merchandize of the Heavenly Jeruſalem. Great obligations preſſe you to a vigorous emprovement of your advantages, the recruit of your tender Parents comforts, the honour of your Noble Family, the expectation of your worthy friends, the name of your excellent brother; whom dying, me thinks, I hear beſpeaking of you thus, Vive tuo, frater, tempore, vive meo.
That you may do worthily, and anſwer all theſe engagements with an overplus of ſatisfaction, may a double portion of your Brothers ſpirit reſt upon you. It is, Sir, and ſhall be the prayer of
Your real friend and Servant, unfeignedly covetous of your perfection. THO, CASE.