The Christian Synagogue, Book 1 · Chapter 6 · Section 7
SECTION VII.
Of Civill Persons.
PARAGR. I.
Of the honour due to their Kings.
THey had their Kings in great reverence, and did Canon.sundry things in token of homage and obedience vntounto them.
First, they annointed their Kings.Iudges 9. 18. I honour God, and men, said the Oliue Tree: how honoured it God? in anoynting his Kings, who were his anoynted. That they might anoynt Abimelech King. Abimelech was Iudg. 9. 6.made their King, yet he was not anoynted; but Kings are described by this adiunct, because it was vsually in Iudea to anoynt their Kings. So Esay 45. 1. The Lord said to hsi anoynted Cyrus. Yet we reade not that the Persians anoynted their Kings, but he is said to be anoynted, because it was vsuall in Iudea.
The same oyntment which anoynted the high Priest, Canon.Confir.anoynted the King (being both types of Iesus Christ) Zach. 4. These are the two Oliue trees standing before the Lord of the whole earth. Targum kBecan.expounds it of Iosua & Zorobabel, who were anoynted the one for the Priest-hood, and the other for the Princely government with the selfe same oyle: contrary to the position of l1 Targ. …kel.Bekanus, that will hauehave the King anoynted with an inferiour sort of oyle, and set vp the high Priest aboue him.
The difference in their anoynting was this, the King when he was anoynted, the horne of oyle was first powred vponupon his head: then hee was anoynted after the forme of a crowne betwixt his eye-browes: thirdly, the rest of the oyle was powred vponupon his head againe: but they onelyonly powred it on the Priests head. The Prophets anoynted him. 1. King. 19. 17. And Salomon was anoynted by Sadock in the presence of Nathan.
The King was anoynted for himselfe and his posteritie, and the first of the familie onelyonly, as Saul, David: except when there fell a great strife; as Salomon for Adoniah, Ions for Athalia, Ioachas for his eldest brother Ioakim.
The Kings of Iuda were anoynted plentifully with an horne of oyle, to signifie the perpetuitie of their kingdome: but Saul and Iehu were anoynted onelyonly lenticula, with a cruse of oyle, to signifie the short indurance of their kingdome.
There was oleum vnctionis, & oleum opobalsami, the oyle of anoynting, and the oyle of sweete balme, the posteritie of Dauid were anoynted oleo vnctionis, but others opobalsomo.
He who anoynted the King, gaue him a kisse of homage. Canon1. Sam. 10. 1. Then Samuel tooke a viall of oyle, and Confir.powred it vponupon his head and kissed him. So, Kisse the sonne. In * Dcosculationem pro veneratione ponunt Hebrias. The Hebrevves put kissing for worshiping.Illust.token of homage that he was anoynted King by God his Father, the Church was to giuegive him the kisse of homage: Psal. 2.The Idolators. Hosea 13. 2. gaue this kisse of homage to their idols which was due to Christ, and Iob Iob 31.31. purges himselfe of this, that when he saw the Sunne he kissed not his hand, the idolaters because they could not reach to the Sunne to kisse it, they kissed their hand and so worshipped the Sunne. So the Arabians when they see the new Moone they leape for ioy, and kisse their hand to her.
When the King was created they sent gifts to him. Canon.1 Sam. 10. 27. The children of Belial brought him no presents.
So the Wise men of the East brought to Christ as a King, gold, myrrhe, and franckincense.
All sorts of persons did homage to him. mPetrue Cunaue de repub. Iudaorum.It was ordained that the high Priest himselfe should bow before him, as Nathan did before Dauid, and stand before him; except onelyonly when he sought counsell of the Lord for him; then the King was to stand before the high Priest; and none might sit in the court of the Temple but the King. 2 Sam. 7. 18. Dauid sat before the Lord. Then the King Iere. 28. 7.sat in the gate of Beniamin, but the high Priest stood. And the Hebrewes say, nTalmud masecah.that the Priest both iudged and was iudged. 2. that he boore witnesse and witnesse was borne against him. 3. that the Priest in the Temple stood bare-footed, A discalceabant cum pro vxore, that is, if he had married contrary to the Law, they pul'd off hs shooes from his feete, and he was called discalceatus in Israel, according to the Law. But they say of the King, Ruth 3.that he neither bore witnesse, nor witnesse was borne against him. 2. he neither iudged in Synedrio, nor was iudged. 3. when he was in the Temple he pulled not off his shooes, neither whom soever he marryed, might they pull of his shoe for that.
In all things the King was aboue the Priest, therefore Dauid calles himselfe. 1 King. 1. 33. The Lord of Saddock the high Priest.
Dauid the King wore some ornaments belonging to the Priests. 1 Sam. 37. Applicavit amiculum, el Dauid, to Dauid, that is, he put it vponupon Dauid (not that the Priest put it vponupon himselfe, Dauidis causa, for Dauids cause, as Iunius translates it) for his kingdome was regnum Sacerdotale, a Priestly kingdome, and he wore it because he was a perpetuall type of Christ: he might be called a Priest as Moses. Psal. 90. 6. Moyses inter Sacerdotes. Moses amongst the Priests.
They were subiect and obedient vntounto him. Pro. 24. 21. Canon.Feare God and honour the King, and hauehave nothing to doe Confir.with Shonim, rebels, those who varyed from the cōmands Illust.of God and the King, were called shonim, hence came hashonim, who taught that no King should be acknowledged vponupon the earth but onelyonly God: such were the degenerate Essaeans, who thought it impietie to be subiect to any man, Iudas Galilaus, who perished in the conspiracie, o Ecclesiastica historia. Lib. 8. cap. 11.was the chiefe of these; they were called, Virga rebellantium: the rodde of rebellion.
They acknowledged their subiection to their Kings, Canon.by admitting his image or name vponupon their coynes.
When the Church was in a familie, they had the print of a lambe vponupon their coyne, he bought it with so Gen. 33. 19.many lambes: but Stephe. Acts 7. sayes, with so many peeces of silver: that is, with so many peeces of silver which had the print of a lambe vponupon them.
In the first ages they gaue themselues to pastorage. Scal. in VarroTherefore 1. they called the signes of the heaven by their names, as Taurus, and Aries. 2. when they would signifie any excellent thing, they put the name foreign before it, as foreign a great figge, Bucephalus, foreign. 3. they put the figure of the beast vponupon their money, therefore it was called pecunia a pecude.
But when Kings raign'd over them, they carrie their name of image in their coyne: pBeza.the sickle had vponupon the one side Aarons rod, and vponupon the other side the pot with Manna: and about it the inscription vponupon the one side (holy Ierusalem) and vponupon the other (the sickle of of Israel) and aboue mem shim, rex Salomon, King Salomon in token of their subiection to him.
When they were vnderunder the Persian Kings, they had the image of the Princes vponupon their coyne; this money was called foreign. Esdra. 8. 27. and 1 Chron. 29. from Darius Hystaspis who raign'd then: taking away aleph (which the Chaldaeans prepose to names) it sounds almost Darius.
In the dayes of the Romanes, they had the image of Caesar vponupon their coyne: whose image hath it? Cesars.Math. 22. 21.
In the time of Hadrian the Emperour, Bar-Cosbe gathered an armie and laboured to restore the Commonwealth to the Iewes againe, for that cause they called him Bencokiba, filium stellae, and he applyed to himselfe the words of Ballams prophecie, processit stella ex Iacob, Numb 24. 17.there shall arise a Starre out of Iacob. The rebels in token of their subiection to him called their coyne by his name megnoth Cotsebijoth, oboli Cosbiti, Cosbies farthen, but when they saw themselues deceived, they called him Ben cotzba, filium mendacij, the sonne of a lye.
The Christians afterward put not vponupon their money, the image of their Kings, but sometimes the Crosse, coloured over with redde leade, to signifie the blood of Christ; and a crowne vponupon the toppe ot it, to signifie his triumph.
Afterward *Scaliger opusc.they added the mystery of the Trinitie. 1. a Cloud and a voyce comming out of it. This is my Mat. 3. 17.welbeloued, &c. 2. a Lambe, and a Doue. 3. the mystery of Baptisme was expressed vponupon it.
Sometimes the Iewes in token of subiection to their Canon.Kings, begun their accounts and reckonings of their yeares from his reigne.
When Alexander the Great entred into Ierusalem, Illust.and saw the glory of the Temple, he blessed the God of Israel: and desIred one thing of Simcon, or Iaddus then high Priest, that he would set vp his image in the Temple; which he refused, telling him that it was contrary to the Law of God: but he offered two things to the King. 1. that they should begin their accounts and reckonings from that time, that he entered into Ierusalem: this was called mim jan setarat, numeratio contractuum, the number of contracts. When Alexander was dead, Seleucus succeeding to him, they called it ara Seleucidarum Alexandri. qRabbi Iuda Barcelonius.The second thing which he offered to him was this, that all the Priests sonnes that yeare should be called Alexanders, which accordingly came to passe. rMaymonie.The Priests then besought Alexander, that he would remit the tribute of the 7. yeare to them, which he willingly granted to them.
In token of their subiection to their Kings, they payed custome and tribute to him. Esdras 4. 14. it is called tributum transeuntium, the tribute of passing by, because it was given to the Kings, first when they passed by the townes which they conquered: and in the new Testament it was called, argentum capitationis, because they payed it, veritim, head by head. Hence amongst vsus come these duties called kanes, kane in the Irish tongue is called the head.