The Great Earthquake, Encomium
On Mr. William Erbery deceaſed.
THe Choyceſt ſtill! There's wiſdom in the Mower,
To skip the Graſs, and Sithe down onelyonly Flower:
Hadſt thou been low and creeping, thou hadſt ſtood;
'Tis Fatal to be Eminently Good.
But why do we complain? Art guides the hand,
Who would not chooſe the Beſt, when All do ſtand,
'Mongſt Kiſh's ſons, the Prophet cals out Saul,
Death ſhakes the Tree, none but the Ripeſt fall.
How are our hopes poſt pon'd? we ſpy'd the Ray
Of Goſpel Sunſhine breaking in thy day,
Shrunk in thy fall; of which thy Life may be,
Not (what we thought) the dawne, but Prophecy,
When Future age in thy diſcoveries skill'd,
Shall Live Thee over again, Thou'lt be fulfill'd:
And yet we hardly can conceive the Fate,
That ſingle Saints ſhould live up to thy Rate,
Pattern for Ages and Adminiſtrations,
Hee'll that Example Thee, had need be Nations:
Thou'lt bankrupt ſingle ears by thy rich growth,
When the whole Harveſt comes, 'twill ſpeak thee forth.
Mean time live Pattern great, write Type and Rule,
Thy Spirit, next to Chriſts, is Chriſtians School,
Such ſweetneſs, meekneſs, ſuch humility
Tranſcending mortals, ſpeaks thy race on high.
If Supream good define it ſelf by Love,
How near to that High Orbe did rhy ſoul move;
Who didſt embrace the Chriſtian, One in all,
Both Presbyterian, Congregational:
And at ſame time thou didſt the Saintſhip ſever
From the Opinion, This fails, That ſhall never.
Chymiſt of Truth and Goſpel! Thus the Sun
Extracts from Roſe and Thiſtle both his own;
And that refines, concocts, and then lets down
In dewy bleſſings on the parched ground;
Such was thy Spirit, exhaling Influence
Return'd farr richer then it went from hence,
Full ought thou borrowedſt Oare and Embryon wild,
Thou paidſt it Gold, and a well faſhioned child:
For why? Thy larger ſoul took the dimenſion
Of every ſeveral ſect and apprehenſion,
Hammering, refining, purging out the droſs
Till Saint was ſav'd in the Opinions loſs
This work was Thine: he'l that the errors mend
Of every Form, muſt all Forms comprehend:
His equal judgement is moſt like t' abide,
Whoſe intereſt Proſelytes to neither ſide.
Great was their guilt, who to embaſe thy worth,
'Mongſt rank of high offenders ſet thee forth:
Thy pardon they no ſooner ſought then found
Truth through thy ſides, receiv'd the greateſt wound.
Dear Truth requires ſuch ſcandals of each kind
Should anſwered be (no foe like zeal that's blind.)
Take them in order: Firſt ſome did not ſhame,
Looſe, irreligous to vote thy name,
Arraigning thee Champion t' impiety:
But thy ſtrict life gave ſuch reports the lye:
'Tis true, uncaſing formal righteouſneſs
Which decks it ſelf in ſtricteſt letter-dreſs,
Thou didſt ſome waies prefer the open ſinner,
Appoſing courſe offenders to the finer.
Yet thou herein didſt countenance the prophane,
No otherwiſe then Chriſt the Publican.
He that for this ſhall judge or cenſure thee,
Is of his brother-ſect, a Phariſee.
Item: Thou didſt not Prayer methodize,
As Jews to morning and evening ſacrifice:
Devotions …m'd from hours and minutes date,
Speak an embondag'd and a legal ſtate
Free was thy ſpir…t pray'd alwaies, alwaies praiſed,
Proyer is deſire not uttered but raiſed.
Peſides thy ſacred skill held it not fit
To make the ſou…s outgoings Things
Or Languag'd eloquence; 'Tis prayers wrong
To proſtitute it to a common Throng
Thy ſighs not voyc'd or worded were, yet praid
Moſes moſt fervent was, when nothing ſaid.
Thirdly, thy knowing ſoul could not eſpie
True Goſpel-order, Faith, or Miniſtry
brought forth in power; how can the Sun be ſeen,
When Cuſtoms and Traditions cloud between?
'Twas thy lifes toyle, thy choiceſt intereſt
To bring ſuch falſe profeſſions to the teſt,
Launcing, corroding deep the formal man,
Yet meant'ſt not Satyre, but Phyſitian:
Some froward patients wracking thine intent,
Fear'd Perſecution whence 'twas never meant;
'Twas an ill comment, wrath and ire t' expound
when Text was Love, and healing of the wound.
Caetera deſunt.