A Hundred Sermons on Revelation, Sermons · Sermon 26
¶ Of him that ſitteth in throne, & holdeth ye boke in his right hand ſealed with .vii. ſeales: What that ſealed boke is. The .xxvj. Sermon.
AND I ſawe in the right hand of him that ſate on ye throne a boke written within and on the backe ſide, ſealed with ſeuē ſeales. And I ſawe a ſtrong angel preaching with a loud voice: who is worthy to open the boke & loſe the ſeales therof? And no man in heauen nor in earth, nother vnderunder the earth, was able to open the boke, & to ioke theron. And I wept much becauſe no man was foūd worthy to open and reade the boke, nother to loke theron.
He now procedeth to deſcribe more fully hym that ſitteth on the Throne: Of whome he had touched certen and a fewe thinges before. In this pece is no ſmal force of this our matter. For now wyll he ſhewe that, whiche in this treatiſe is principall, that all thinges whiche are done in the worlde through God his prouidence are moſte iuſtly and holily gouerned by Chriſt. Whiche thing all the ſainctes of God, and creatures acknowledging, for an exāple to vsus, that we ſhuld do the lyke, do prayſe and celebrate him that liueth for euer.
And it ſhall behoue vsus to way eueryevery worde, ſynce that in eueryevery one are greate miſteries, & nothing is ſpoken in vaine. And verely that God almighty ſitteth in a Throne.God ſitteth in a throne And by ſitting is ſignified not only the power of iudging, rulyng & gouerning: But alſo a quiet mynde (not troubled with any euill affections, after the maner of iudges of this world) and great equitie in all thinges. Secondly a booke is ſene in the right hande of hym that ſitteth, of the whiche boke we muſt ſpeake more at large.
Here appereth an alluſion made, as ther is in many other places of the ſcripture, to the princes of this worlde, whiche hauehave bokes of the lawes, of priuileges, of inſtitutes what thing is done, and is to be done, finally of ſecretes, of actes, of condemned, and of citezens, of lyfe and of death. For ſo is both the boke and bokes aſſigned to God. Moiſes ſaith in in the .33. of Exodus. Put me out of the boke of lyfe, &c. In the Pſalmes is muche mention of theſe bokes of God: In the Pſalm. 56.69.139. In the ſeuenth of Daniel, bokes are opened wherof mentiō is made alſo in the .20. of the Apocalipſe. We reade in the .3. of Malach. of a boke of remembraunce before God. Therfore this boke of God conteineth all the counſels of God, al his workes and iudgementes. For we ſhall heare by and by,The booke in ye right hād of him that ſitteth that all thinges that are done in the worlde come out of this boke, as it were out of a fountaine or wel ſpring.
And thre thinges are chiefly ſpoken of this boke. Firſte, that it lieth not in the Throne, or in the boſome of hym that ſitteth, or vnderunder the Throne, or that it hangeth before or behinde the Throne: But it is in the right hand of God. Herby is ſignified the operation or power of God, & the ſame moſte iuſt and moſte mightie.The booke writtē wtin and without. For the boke is not ſene in the lefte hande. God therfore worketh, and conteineth or miniſtreth all his workes and iudgementes moſte holily. Secondly that boke is written within and without or on the back ſide. For in the prouidence and iudgementes of God, all thinges are conteined both good and euil, lucky and vnlucky, ſharpe, and ſofte, ſwete and ſewer, viſible and inuiſible, priuie and aparte, and all thinges in generall.
Finally the boke is ſealed with ſeuē ſeales. For it is moſt ſtrongly cloſed and faſtened.The booke ſealed with ſeuē ſeales For the iudgementes & works of God are firme, true, iuſt and ſuch as can not be withſtād. The vſe of ſeales amonges men is diuerſe, notwithſtanding it may be contriued in two poinctes.The vſe of ſeales. Firſt Seales are ſet to becauſe of fidelitie, truth and rightuouſnes. And a great deliberation is had in ſetting to of ſeales. For they are not put to vniuſt matters vayn or falſe. Therfore ſeales be tokens of a certentie and teſtimonies of a right. It ſemeth an vnworthi thing to ſpeake againſt ſealed wrytinges. By the ſeales therfore that are ſet to the boke of God is ſignified, that the iudgementes and workes of God are moſte firme, true, and iuſt what ſo euer are done by his prouidence, and ar ordeined by Chriſt. It ſhal therfore be a ſhame to finde fault with the iudgementes of God, or to ſpeake euill of his workes. Againe by ſeales are ſecretes kept, that they be not ſene of eueryevery mā, but of them only to whome they are appointed. The iudgementes therfore and workes of God are for the moſte parte hidde, and not open to all men, ſauing to ſuche as the Lorde hath appointed, namely to the faithfull and obedient.Seuē ſ… les. But there be ſeuē ſeales only, for that in them the fulnes of times, and of thinges to be done in theſe times throughout ye world and churche, and of the iudgementes and miſteries of God are comprehended.
Now therfore the opening of the boke,The opening of the boke and ſeales. and the vnſealyng therof, is nothing els, but the reuealing of God his iudgementes and the declaring or vttering of his moſt ſecret counſelles: Finally the moſte holy and iuſt operation, diſpenſation, and execution of his will. Nothing in that opening is done againſt the veritie, fayth, louelove, and iuſtice of God.
Who is worthy to opē ye boke and ſeales therof.And with many wordes, and alſo moſte dilligently and goodly is treated here of the openyng of the ſeales, who verely might be thought worthie to open to the churche, the ſecret iudgementes of God, and to execute and miniſter his holy workes: that is to ſaye, to whome the kingdome is geuen and gouernement of the diuine prouidēce. For an Aungell, and that not of the cōmon ſorte, but a ſtronge, and worthie one, with a loude voice crieth, to make vsus all attentiue, and that we ſhoulde note diligently, who he is that ſhoulde both open the boke, and vnlooſe, or vndoe the ſeales. And he holdeth longe in ſuſpence the hearer, beholder or reader, before he will ſhewe him, to the intent verely to cōmende him to vsus exceadingly. No man, ſayeth he, in the whole vniuerſal world, neither emonges the Aungelles & ſainctes in heauen, nor emongs earthly men, and vnderunder the earth, was founde, whiche coulde eyther open or vnſeale the boke.
To Chriſt alone belō geth the kingdome and the power of gouernemēt is taken from others.Let vsus obſerue, that there is none that can open the boke, and open the ſeales, beſides Chriſt alone. Whie than is the adminiſtration of thinges attributed or communicated to ſainctes, none can open to vsus the counſelles and iudgements of God, no man can gouerne thoſe iudgements & workes of God, that he worketh in the world, ſaue only Chriſt the lord: whie than are ſo great benefites ſought for of Sainctes, and be imputed to them, if eyther the ſicke be reſtored to helthe, or that a mortall man do receiue any other gifte or benefite▪ many will ſaye, I receyued this in dede of gods benefite, but through the meditatiō, and power and merite of this or that ſaincte, vntounto whome God graunted this, that he ſhould rule ouer ſuche a diſeaſe, and might heale ſuche as calle vponupon the name of the Saincte, or the name of God by the Saincte. Theſe are here confuted now by the wordes of the Lord and S. Iohn, ſaying, that no man in heauen or in earth is founde, whiche coulde open the boke. Yet neuertheleſſe aboute the Throne ſate the xxiiii. Elders, repreſentinge the Type of all Sainctes in glory, not one of al thē was found, which could open the boke. Therfore be thei a great deale madder, which do attribute the gouernement of things in the church to the Pope a moſt corrupte and filthie man. Only Chriſt receiued al power in Heauen and in Earth: as we ſhall incontinently more fully vnderſtande.
S. Iohn wepeth,The weping of S. Iohn. for that he vnderſtode a weightie matter to conſiſte in the openinge of this godly boke: and yet ſawe he no man at al, which coulde eyther open or vnſeale it. Neyther did he as yet fully vnderſtande the matter. And he bare the figure of them, which vnderſtande not the iudgementes of God, nor know not that al thinges are through God his prouidēce holyly gouerned by Chriſt. For in them nothing els remaineth, but mourning and heauines. Certenly withoute Chriſt and his opening, wherby he reuealeth to vsus the diuine miſteries and iudgements, no man can rightly iudge of the ſame. For vnleſſe we vnderſtand, the ſeales to be opened by Chriſt, and that al thinges are done by his order whiche loued vsus, and gaue him ſelfe for vsus: what thinge ſhall be lefte in vsus, but ſighinge?
But he reherſed three thinges, to open, rede and loke vpō. No man liuing openeth, for that no man is mete for ſo great a charge, ſaue only the ſonne of God. No manne readeth or vnderſtandeth fully the iudgements of God, but the ſonne, and to whom he hath reuealed, ſo muche as any man hathe. No man loketh on it, that is to ſaye, can beholde the workes and iudgementes of God, but he ſhal be offended, excepte he be indewed with the ſpirite, & purified with the ſame. Therefore we muſt axe grace of him, that we maye vnderſtande ſo muche of Gods iudgementes as ſhal ſuffice, and may iudge wel of the ſame.
Aretas Biſhop of Ceſaria, an expoſitour of this boke: neither any, ſayeth he, of thoſe that lacke fleſhe, nor any of them that are in the fleſhe, nor yet of ſuche as are deperted leauing their fleſhe behinde them, hath receiued a perfit knoweledge of godly matters. And by and by after: nother only is there any which could open it, but alſo not ſo much as loke vpō it: that is to ſaye, coulde not loke attentiuely on the iudgments of God. and ſo forth. And the cōtexte of the whole place proueth ſufficiently, that S. Iohn ſpeaketh here of the iudgmēts verely: but chiefly of the gouernement of thinges. The Lord Ieſus be glorified for euer. Amen.