Sermon 1. -- Flant ftcu~ A6(.ifom;is.a prayer (and which.ri10r.e is) an imprecltiort. Before we ,, i . P ray it'it will not be amilfe,to en.quirewhether we may lawfully pray any.fuch Oftbe Tma• O'r no. ' I move ir, becaufeoffome fo tender-hearted men, that they can by no :t;:;fo,~7""fl meanesbrookeoreridure any ill)precat.ion; towHh a~y fo eyill;as topray they may · comeroanevillend. Itisnathmg.firtmg(as.well fauh Satnt Ia":es) that wtth,the tongue ,eejhould blejfe God, and with thefam_e, Ji!i}b ~vtU t# man• •It IS_Ba',aams o~ce, l•mes.r. 9: reni& 111 altdic; and who would fucceed h1m mh1soffice ~ It_IS Shtmet s practice; Nunp•.6. ·, and who would be likehim~ Andthis is Cujhi's prayer; like h1mfelfe: Some would Cbap.•~·•t, have him an£thiDpian;but, fome blackfwarr,fellow,as his name.givet~i. • . Againe,thefewerelewes all; we are Cbrijltans: we hayeacharge giVen us, by Saint paNl not to doe it: not to them,that doe us hurt; Bleffi them thatp~r(ecuteyou; Rom...., 4 ; 6/ejfe (I fay) antlc11r[e"'~· '?Ye have :1 ~a.tt~~~efet us,)?y ~a~nt Pe~er ;ofHill),quicu~ •~"· ~.,;j, 1 malediceretur,non,&c.that w10ied not tlie1revill,that bothWllhedi and d1d h1m all the cvilltheycould,both indeedandinword, . . , ' · , ·' · • And this !know : yet is not all this fo peremptory, but that, notwithllanding tven all this agalnll foirie, in fome cafes; fuch prayer hath beene, and may bee ufed. ~ Maybe~ nay;ought. t~ ~e oth~rwhile ~ ~or, fuch may.che pcrfons be, as Sai1_1t Pet a;. ;,!'~:::·•.~: ':: calleth fomc, maledtfltonujltt : and the1r faCts.fo execrable; as GoD Htmfelfe · · 1 · L commanded cJU#{es, to goe up into the Mount Eb4t, and there, againlltwdve fun. · dry forts offuch,pronouncemalediflm. Evenas we fee, theSerpents fin was fo exorbitant, as it drew a ma/edi{fri4;evenfrom G~ D's owne blelfed mouth. Iris not Gon.3·'t; good then, to benice orrenderin this point; nor I.would not yrilh men to be more render or pitifull, than G o·n :•whofe doing of it fheweth.us it ought t~ be dcne'. . For to begin with the JAjl (of,Chrijlians ;) .He.chatgave us the charge (Saint Paul) Ads •3-toJ' for all hi~ chargegiven; we know what he did to.Elym~t~. And he that fetus rh·e patrerne (S. Peter) fo~ a!l his patrernefet, we know he ufed it againft SimM Magm. Mls s. so; And for the other : It 1s not B~/aamondy.but evencJUo(es, asmildea man, as ever N..,....,; 1 the eanh bare, youmay reade, that he came toit though,,Numbers 1,6•. Neirher was ,~.u: it Shimei only,but Davidtoo(thougb,ag'ratious and gentlePrhm, may shimei well< fay : yet) what aP{almeofimprecations hathhe penned! l mearie t.he CIX. Pfalme:: It was rhought,by our Fathers,that there was not amorehe~vi~or bitter turfc could be wilbed tO any, than to fay DellS IAI$dumupon him, which is the beginning ofthat Ffalme. Neither was it Cufoi with his fwart colour onely, but: anAtigeUasbright a!i the Sunn.e,eventhe~ngeUoftheLord,that curfeth (himfelfe) and giveth a9 exprelre . , warrant to cut{e the mhabttA»tufMem:.. But what fpeakewe ofSaints, orAngels i' Judg. t.s;•. cij & I~'l' Himfelfedothitinthe G~fpell,a~ appearerh~yhis many.Y.e's. Yea, Lukeu••, : Go n.H1mfelfe (we fee) Gent~s 3, agamft theSerpent,and hts wholebrood. \Vhat GeneGs f•~ theSamrs, lAngels, GoD H1mfdfehav~do~e; maybe done,.I truff. , Iimaybee done rhen,·ltcet ; and ought to be done fomeumes, Bpmet i and in this very cafe, it ought and mull; a_neceffi~y lyeth~ponus, we cannot _choofe but doe it. For pray wemuO: for the Kmgsfa(ety_;· CH{ht,and all good fub)ecrs_: but, for his fafery w~ cannot pray, but we muft (wtthall) fortheoverthrow of hiS' under-miners. Pro in· cludethContra; iffor him, then ag'ainll his foes. Ifwilh him to:rife, and ffanJ H!• ~~~ht, then, themto'f~U~nd become Hiifoot·floole. So that (if all be \Vel! weighed} l'f•Lu•,•; ltiS not volu~tary; 1t1s even wrung from us. . . . h 1nd that mdeed i~ the only rav~at,that it ~e.not voluntary:th~t we be dra\yne to it car ly,and ufeit not,uponevery fi1ght, &tnfhng.occafion, agamft every thmgthat r?ffeth ou:humor;but whenthe foulnefs ofthe fact feems to exaCt it:and that ea'Vt· 4115 notam1ffe.I likewell oftheHebrewproverb: (GAriZ.;,,. i~ the mount wherethev blejfed
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