England Faithfully Watched, Title page – Author to the reader
ENGLAND Faithfully watcht with, In her Wounds: OR, Chriſt as a Father ſitting up with his Children in their ſwooning ſtate: Which is the ſumme of ſeverall Lectures, painfully preached upon COLOSSIANS 1.
By Nicho. Lockyer, M. A.
foreign LXX
I will ſtand upon my watch, and abide upon the tower, and intenſely fix my meditation, to perceive what he will ſpeak in me, and what I ſhall anſwer, when upon my argumentation,
Hab. 2.1.
But watch thou in all things, bear evils, fulfill thy Miniſtery, 2 Tim. 4.5.
Publiſhed according to Order.
LONDON, Printed by M. S. for John Rothwell, at the Sun and Fountain in Pauls Church-yard, and Ben. Allen, at the Crown in Popes-head Alley, 1646.
To the diſtreſſed DOMINIONS OF ENGLAND.
EVery Creature ſince the fall, is very unruly,*Paerae Adam: all the earth is wilde: 'tis the Scriptures Motto upon the creation. and of the more magnitude any way, the more unruly; the bigger in bulk or brain, the bigger bent upon it to deſtroy all, neither God nor ſelf excepted. The miſery of the creatures, is diſtinguiſhed in this point by Solomon oft, into folly and madneſſe. there is a kinde of madneſſe in all inferiour creatures, and as ſuch are caſt into priſon: Job, out of the grate of his own priſon, ſaw ſuch a truth, and inſtanceth ſome of the creatures below him, inſtead of all the reſt, though not ſo meekly (I think) as ſhould have been, conſidering whom he ſpake to.Job. 7.12. Am I a Sea, or a Whale, that thou putt'ſt, gnalai miſhmar, a priſon upon me? Job grants madneſſe in creatures below him, and their impriſonment, upon this ground to be juſt, but ſaw not his own ſtrong diſtemper, by which he did ſo criminate Chriſt, which neither the Whale, nor the Sea, nor any creature elſe below man, doth; which was not only madneſs, but folly and madneſs, (i.) reaſon forced into more then unreaſonableneſſe. Kingdomes and Nations may for their magnitude be fitly compared to Whales and Seas, and the one as eaſily as the other, doth the great God caſt into priſon when mad; and truly, thus have the Dominions of England for the generality, been a great while, and 'tis well if all our bleeding hath any whit aſſwag'd it; and therefore though wee have ſuffered much, and yet may much more, we cannot look out at the grate of our priſon, and criminate him that caſt us in. A contented perſon cannot be miſerable, no more can a contented Kingdome. Contentedneſſe hath much, when ſhe hath but a houſe over her head. A priſon-houſe is a houſe,*Yea, a pit is a houſe, beth habbor, Jer. 37.16.although not all-out ſo well furniſhed and accommodated as other houſes; there is ſomething harder fare, lodging, and uſage, but yet ſome ſhelter, and ſome nouriſhment to keep life, beſide opportunities to cry out at priſon-windows, to enlarge ſhort allowance, and many a refreſhment comes in at windows, when dores are ſhut, and the man ſtill a priſoner. The priſon-houſe of the Whale is its own element, which leſſens much his bondage: ſo I may ſay to theſe Nations, our priſon-houſe hath been our own Land, which conſidering how ſmall 'tis, how waſting and deſolating our triall, and how neer many big mouths which gape after us, is the unexpreſſible love of Chriſt: this mercy is more then all our miſery. Beſides, we have not been cloſe priſoners, we have had the liberty to cry out at our priſon windows, and have got many refreſhments from Heaven this way, in our greateſt ſtraits and hardſhips, which indeed alſo addes much to the magnitude of our mercies. Some ſtars which ſeem but ſmall, and ſcarce to twinkle with any viſible rayes at firſt looking upon, yet biggen much both in magnitude and luſtre by a fixed eye upon them: So truly will all the mercies of Chriſt to England, in thoſe Chriſtians eyes, who can ſeriouſly fix upon them. Miſery look't upon as mixed with mercy, is as courſe earth inlaid with precious Ore, very delightfull and gainfull; but otherwiſe lookt on, it imbitters and worſens thoſe on whom it is; of which great evill, England, take heed. Many now complain much of bad times, which ſhould amongſt Chriſtians, have a Chriſtian conſtruction: but to ſpeak properly in this point, times are bad only to bad hearts, and unto them indeed they are very bad. Sinners have worſen'd very much (I grant) in theſe few yeers of Gods heavie hand upon us, more, I think, then in many yeers before; thouſands look now very black in the face, as neer death, wrath, and cutting off, which lookt but a little while ago, as Cedars in Lebanon, and as if they would have liv'd a long life, even life for evermore. From marad, which ſignifies to rebell, comes marud, which ſignifies poor, afflicted, caſt out. They which rebell under the hand of God, againſt the will and wayes of God, may talk and vaunt of impoveriſhing, afflicting, and caſting out others, but Chriſt will bring all theſe upon them. The trialls which were upon England in the Biſhops time, occaſioned many apoſtates, ſo have thoſe which have been lately upon us, between the King and Parliament, which generation of men, are the ſharpeſt ſwords to kill a Land:*When changes in a kingdome, make changelings (i.) from Chriſt, ſo the Hebrews call an Apoſtate. Deut. 21.18. Moreh ſignifies, ſaith Mr. Ainſworth, one that turns inwardly to the worſe; and ſuch a one I may call Morah, novacula, a Razor: If there be any Razors in a Kingdome to cut the throat on't, theſe are they. The Eaſtern parts of the world had a priſon, which they called Maphecheth, from Haphach vertit, to turn, becauſe evertuntur ſontium corpora, the limbs and bodies of men were wreſted and turned out of joynt. But though theſe priſons were bad, yet thoſe are far worſe which wreſt and turn the ſoules of men out of joynt, (i.) further off from Chriſt and his will, then they were before; and yet ſo hath thy priſon, poor England, done to many. Such ſad events of Gods hand, call every heart in his place, to be a faithfull watch-man; to be more then vigilantes, to be foreign, as the Shepherds which gave tidings of Chriſt, were called,Sub dio degere. Livers in the field. One may be vigilans in his bed, as the Critick ſpeaks, though he ſtir not out of his houſe: but our condition calls every one in his place, foreign, to watch at home and abroad, in the city, and in the field; to lay out, and lie out, to know no canopy ſo glorious as the open heavens; my meaning is, we ſhould ſo intend the good of Church and State, publike and private, ſo watch over all, as to give out all in the work. At this height for thy welfare, England, and the glory of Chriſt, I have ſincerely aimed and endevoured, and ſhall do in the few daies and little ſtrength I have left. An acceptable teſtimony of what I have done, let this labour of love be to thee: what I ſhall further do, beſide ſetting mine own weak houſe and heart in order, to go home, I know not, more then breath out my dying breath in the boſome of Chriſt for thee, that thou and all thy Worthies in thee, may do well and worthily, from generation to generation, till Chriſt come.
Nicho. Lockyer.
To the READER.
TWas a very Chriſtian expreſsion, that once a very Learned and worthy friend (of another Nation, and of another judgement to mine own) wrote unto me: Sir, though there be two opinions between us, yet I deſire there may be but one heart; to which my deſire doth ſo concur, that my requeſts to Chriſt are, that this Spirit may be powred out amongst all his people, in all the world. There are many, and (I think) too many opinions amongst the godly already, but if there were as many more, I hope I ſhould be one in heart with them all, which are in Chriſt, and walk in him. Variety of faces is not an affliction, but matter of much admiration to behold, to ſuch as are but humanely ingenious: So truly, variety of judgements, ſimply conſidered, is not a grief, but a glory to me to behold, when one Spirit of grace and heavenlineſſe is in them all; for I account it a glaſſe of Gods own making, wherein to behold his manifold Wiſdome; and I further think, that he is ſetting many nobler ſpirits then mine own at work, to dig up ſome pearle and precious truth for me, which yet I have not. I differ, Reader, with none, but them that differ with Chriſt. As for them that vary in judgement from me, whoſe lives are holy, I am jealous that they are better acquainted with Chriſt then I, and ſo I lay my hand on my mouth, and leave them alone to their Maſter and mine, believing that we are as Laban ſaid to Jacob, *Chiniſſather iſh meregnehu. Becauſe we are hid, a man from his friend. Gen. 31.49.but hid from one another, neither hid from Chriſt. Our light is ſo dark, that a man, a Chriſtian man is hid from his Chriſtian friend, in matter of judgement, but there is a Mitſpah, one God watching between us both, which will bring us to ſee one another, and himſelf plainly in heaven. Let this be my Apologie for my ſpirit and opinion, to thee, Chriſtian Reader, and to all the people of God, that ſo Satan by no ſpirit of prejudice hinder the profitable participation of this work, which ſpeaks of no controverſie between Chriſtian and Chriſtian, betweeen King and Parliament, or between man and man, but of that controverſie which is between God and (I fear) all men in theſe Dominions under which we are; and how this controverſie will end, give him that loves Chriſt and thee, leave longer yet to ſtudy and pray ere he give thee in an anſwer under his hand. As for errata's, the Author, Scribe, and Preſſe, are too full, there need the leſſe in the Reader, or elſe things will be too bad. A childe wrote from Chriſts mouth, and another from mine, which truly I had hardly eaſe or life to overlook; and then, when to be printed, as haſty in this (by other hands, I cannot ſay by other ends then mine own, for the undertaker I take to be truly godly) as ſlow in the finiſhing of it: three Preſſes were employed at once, two in the City, one in the Countrey, and he hardly one, that ſhould review them; ſo that doubtleſſe, many things will diſpleaſe others more then my ſelfe, who expect to ſuffer much in preaching and printing, by them that have little in them; and as for others, they will be candid, noble, and do like themſelves, take in good part, parts and fragments of him whom they honour more then I
NICHO. LOCKYER.