A Hundred Sermons on Revelation, Sermons · Sermon 70
The .iiii. and .v. Angelles ſhed theyr vialles. The .lxx. Sermon.
ANd the fourth Angell powred out his vialle on the Sunne, & power was geuen to him to vexe menne with heate of fire. And the men raged in great heate, and ſpake euill of the name of God, whiche had power ouer thoſe plagues, and they repented not to geue him glory. And the fifte Angell powred out his viall vponupon the ſeate of the beaſt, & his kingedome waxed darke, & they gnewe their tungues for ſorrowe, and blaſphemed the God of heauen for ſorrowe & payne of their ſores, and repented not of their dedes.
The godly eſteme not their afflictiōs ſent by the iuſte iudgement of God, as the punniſhmētes of ſinners,The afflictions of ye godly and vngodly. but as exerciſes of the fayth, how ſo euer they acknowledge themſelues to be iuſtely afflicted for their ſinnes committed: yet here they commende neuertheleſſe the grace of God, conuertyng the punniſhementes of ſinners into the exerciſes of fayth. To the vngodly punniſſhementes are plagues, whiche nother they can ſuffer patiently, nor glorify God, but rather blaſpheme him, & ſuppoſe that they ſuffer vnworthely. Therfore are the plages of god to thē moſt greuouſe, where neuertheleſſe much more cruel things are for thē prepared, to wit, that they ſhould ſuffer in an other worlde euerlaſtyng damnation. Therefore the plagues of this worlde infli…ed to the vngodly, are as it were certen preparatiues and preambles of more greuouſe tourmentes.
Drought ye iiii. plage.The fourth Angel poureth out his viall on the ſunne, and to the ſame was geuen power to plague men with heate or fire. This plage do many expounde allegorically, vnderſtandyng by the ſunne Chriſt exhilaratyng the conſciences of the faithfull: and the fame to be darkened in the mindes of men choſing rather the darkenes of Antichriſte, than the light of Chriſt: and therefore do the conſciences erryng, and ſeduced with errour, burne with ſondry luſtes & deſperations, wherby they be driuē at the length to ſondry blaſphemies. Which expoſition as I do not vtterly reiecte, ſo (after my iudgemēt) the ſenſe ſhal be more playne, yf we vnderſtande the fourth plague to be an heate and great drought, a barrennes of the Earth, and ſcarſetie of Corne, finally an intollerable thurſte afflictyng both men and beaſtes, and laſte bredyng and ingē dring hoate diſeaſes. For ſo we hauehave red in the threatenings of the lawe: I will geue an heauen of braſſe and an earth of yron. In the time of Helias for contemnyng and reiectyng the worde of ye lord, God plaged Iſrael with a ſore drought, as you maye ſee in the .3. boke of Kinges, the .17. and .18. chap. Ieremie alſo deſcribeth the like drought and heate in the .14. chapt. Agayne the lorde defended Iſraell with a pillar of a cloude by the daye, and a pillar of fire by night. Moreouer we hauehave hearde heretofore in the Apocalipſe: the ſunne ſhall not fal vpō them, nother any heate. And iuſtely is this world plaged with burnyng heate, as the which offendeth greuouſly, burneth with ſondry luſtes, and alſo by wicked proclamations prohibiteth the coulyng & refreſſyng of Gods worde.
Theffecte of this plague is greate.For the effecte of this plage followeth. And mē ſayeth he, burned with great heate. At ye firſt, ſayeth he, beyng inflamed with a exceding great heate, they were euen ragyng madde. For we reade in ſtories yt mē beyng afflicted with ouer much heate, hauehave felte greuouſe diſpleaſures and tormentes bothe of body and minde. Than he addeth, that followeth of the fourmer membre: the impatiēcie of the heate prouoked them to blaſpheme God, and euen him that had power ouer theſe plagues: to witte, for that hauyng full power ſo to do, he will not deliuer them ſo vexed with burning heate. Cōtrarywiſe the children of Iſrael in their tentes beyng ſtongen with ſerpentes, inflamyng the whole body with the ſtinge,Nume. 22. did repente nother did they blaſpheme God. But comyng vntounto Moſes, they ſayed we hauehave ſinned, for we hauehave ſpokē againſt the Lord, and agaynſt thee. Praye the lord, that he will take awaie from vsus theſe ſerpentes. They blaſpheme therfore the name of the lord, ſo many as through vnpatientnes do murmure againſt the iudgementes of God, nother wil acknowledge themſelues to be rightly and iuſtely pūniſhed crauing perdon, finally is added, nother did they repente that they might geue glory to God, &c. For the lord plageth vsus, to the ende that beyng afflicted we ſhould repente, and geue God the glory, confeſſing, as I ſayed before, that we be punniſhed iuſtely,Howe the godly & vngodly behaue them ſelues in afflictiōs. and ought with wepyng and waylyng to tourne to the lord ſtrikyng vsus. But theſe like Pharao nother acknoweledge theyr ſinne, nother praye vntounto God, nor yet are amended, but many times ouercome thēſelues in malliciouſenes. Hereof we learne the diuerſitie betwixte the godly and vngodly, and howe both vſe themſelues in afflictiōs. For they geue glory vntounto God, and amende their life: theſe geue not God the glory, but become worſe than themſelues. To geue God the glory, is to geue place vntounto God, not to reſiſte, but to acknoweledge their ſinne, and Gods rightuouſenes: and not this only, but alſo the mercy of God and clemencie towardes the penitent, and the ſame to require humbly.The darknes of the romiſh ſee the .v. plague.
The fifte Aungell powreth his cuppe vponupon the ſeate of the beaſte. That a ſeate or trone is vſed for a kingdome, is more manifeſte than that it nede to be proued by teſtimonies, ſins that S. Iohn himſelf doeth by & by for a ſeate place a kingdome. And alſo in times paſte the maiſters, or rather miniſters of churches taught ſitting, & had their ſtoles & chaires in holy aſſemblees. That ſaiyng in the goſpel is knowen: In the chayre of Moſes ſitte the ſcribes and Phariſeis, &c. It is knowē that in aūcient time ther were ſeates of Patriarches, Hieruſalem, Antioche, Rome, Alexandria, Conſtantinople and others: and that the ſame are called Apoſtolicall ſeates, foraſmuch as the Apoſtles hauehave taught there. And ſo is the Apoſtolicall ſeate vſed for the Apoſtolicall doctrine it ſelfe. That ſeate erected and eſtabliſhed at Rome by the Apoſtles and Apoſtolicke men, the beaſt that is the Pope hath ſubuerted, and in the place therof erected the ſeate of peſtilēce, which he dare neuertheleſſe cal the ſeate of Chriſte,Thapoſtolicall ſeate of Chriſt & S. Peter. and the ſeate of S. Peter. Chriſte hath no more any ſeate in Earth, ſaue that he dwelleth in the hartes of the faithfull church. Otherwyſe the trewe ſeate of Chriſt, is the right hād of the father. The trewe ſeate of Peter, is heauen it ſelfe. Rome is no longer his ſeate: for the Apoſtolicall doctrine and Patriarchall chayre is deſtroyed and troden vnderunder fote: & in ſteade therof is an earthly Empire or kingedome ſet vp by the Pope. Yea more he pourſeweth the Apoſtolical ſeates by force of armes. Nowe therefore God hauyng cōpaſſion vponupon his, poureth out his wrath and plague on the ſee of Rome, illuminyng men with the light of the Goſpel, to the ende they might know and ſee the wickednes and abomination of the Romiſſhe See. The which is a wonderfull benefite to them that be lighted, and a greate griefe and tormente to the Romiſh ſorte. For theffecte of the plage followeth: and his kyngdome was made darke. This plague aunſwereth to the .9. of Aegipte. For like as thicke darkenes plaged the Aegyptians, bright light reioyced the Iſraelites, ſo were the Papiſtes tourmēted with ſhameful errours than ſhall it grieue them alſo to hauehave their errours detected, and their glory obſcured: the faithful ſhall reioyce in the light of Chriſt. For now beginneth, and already hath begonne the maieſtie of the ſeate, and of him that ſitteth therein, to be obſcured. That which was ones called an holy ſeate: is now of the godly & learned called, wicked Rome, the whore of Babylon, the mother of al fornications, the denne of theues, Sodome, Aegipte, the red harlot by reaſon of the pourple ſenate of Cardinalles, which weare red and purple. It is comonly ſayed and truely, the nerer Rome, the further from Chriſte. They call and that moſte rightly, the Cardinalles, biſhoppes, and ſpiritual fathers, the familie & limmes of Antichriſt, men diſceaued and diſceauers, with Symony and filthie luſt moſte corrupte. Therfore the kingdome of the beaſt (ſo he expoundeth the ſeate) was made darke. There is added furthermore, howe the worſhippers of the ſeate of the beaſte hauehave and do behaue themſelues. Firſte for payne and ſorrowe, indignation, wrath and enuie, they gnawe or bite their tunges: which is the geſture of angry mē, and that impotently angry, I meane that burne infuriouſe rage.The furie of the papiſtes againſte the goſpellers. It is a phraſe of ſpeach, ſignifiyng howe they will rage with greate furie agaynſt the trewth opened, which they would hauehave vtterly hidde and oppreſſed. Agayne they blaſpheme the Lorde of heauen, & maker of al, both for that he afflicteth them with botches, and ſondry plagues, & alſo for that he caſteth a darknes vponupon their kingdome. For euen therfore the Romiſh, cal the preachers of the goſpel diſceauers & heretikes: and the very doctrine of the goſpel, hereſie. But this reproche redoundeth to him which is authour of the ſame doctrine. Finally thei do not repent them of their doynges, of theyr Simony, of their craftie iuggelyng, ſacrileges, idolatrie, and al vngodlines. And the apoſtle ſayeth, howe euill men, and diſceauers will waxe worſe and worſe, diſceauing and beyng diſceaued. Therfore is it no maruel, though you ſee the papiſtes at this daye, with a ſtiffenecke to procede obſtinately in their errours. But the greateſt plague is to be forſaken of God, and ſtubbernely to mayneteyne their errours & vngodlines, and therin to perſeuer. The Lord deliuer vsus from euill. Amen.