Babington - Houston-Packer Collection BV4655 .B23 1615

4 20 Quef}ions and Anfwers, 2.Command. O deare Father, rent my heart and giue mee feeling, deaue it a funder, by thy piercing Spirit, that from it may ffowe the teares of truc repentance. Strike good Lorde this hard rocke of mine,that it ruay gull out forrowfull water, for 1 foule offence,and What wanteth in me any wayes,fupply in mercy with my Sautour,in whom thou art perfeéllypleafed. Graunt ô God vnto mee thy gratious fpirit, to kill in mec continually more and more the firength and power offinne,and to raifc mec vp in bodie and foule, to more obedience towardes thee. Let not my wants (land euer,fwecte Lorde,betwixt thy merest' and mee,but giue mee will to wiflt it,giue nie power to doe it,giue me loue to like it, and euer llrength to con- tinue in it, that thou ha appointed for me to walke in before thee in this world. Hoare tree ô i orde ô God, ô fweete and endleffe comfort of my Gn£oll Soule, for Icfus Chrifl his fake,that lining here I may euer ferne thee: and doing. ro ,I may neuer loofe thee. eAmen, Amen. Tee f Bond Commandement. Theu !halt net make te thy /elfe any grauen Image,ner the li(eneffeof any thing that is in heaven about', or in theearth beneath, &c. Irft, for the order of this Commandement, either we may anfwer that this fira I able , containing the honour and dutie of men to the Lord,as the fecond cloth their dutie to Man : and the worship ofGod, beingpartly inward,partly outward, hatting in the for- mer Commandement laid downe the former kinde,(to wit)of ward worfhip,fitly now in this,and the two next follow the out- ward duties,which to the fame our gracious God wee iuflly owe, Or elfe thus: that the Lord in the firfi Commandement hauing feparated himfelfe from all other Gods,deuifed and made by men, and commanded all mortali men and women his creatures cubic& to his lawe,to wet-Chip him onely,and none but him ; here now in this fecondprecept(as order required)he fetreth downe madam & rattonem iu sta tludmcoli velit : the may 6 manner how he will beferued ; For afinuch as invaineheefhould haue done the fìrVc ,except he had done the fecond an. The way and manner isthis,euen according to his will & nature. Which albeit it may feeme to flefh & blood not fo fitly done by a negatiue law,as by an of irmatiue, it might, yet befides that,we are not to teach the Lord,euê in fpeciall wifdome bath her thus done it. For, firfl our natures are veryprone to the breach hereof,which by aneoatiue is flronglyer beate downe then by an afñrmatiue: And then againe, the Gentiles,next neighbours to the Lewes, were very much given to 'doles, and I. mages, and therefore by name forbidden to the Lewes, leali by the Gentiles in that point they fhould be defiled. And yet doth not the Lord here fo fez downe a ne- gatiue,but that he includeth an affirmatiue in it. For as he faith,yh0u J7nslr not make to al. /elfe any grauen lmage,and meaneth thereby,Thoufhalt not worship me with any deuife of thine owne,contraryto mywill and nature :fo implieth he herein the affirmatiue : Namely,thou (halt in euery-refpea worfhippe mee according to my will and nature. Moreouer,remember here againe,which bath bene touched be- fore,that both in this Commandement as in all other,the Lord fetreth downe by name that thing,the doing whereof,or not doing,is moll-decent or horrible. And therefore in this place,forbiddingall falfe and fonde worship of his Maieflie,hee fetteth downe in name that which is molt vnfeemely and vile, to wit,Idolatrie. For of all wrong worfhip,to make him like a man otwoman,or other worfe crea- ture, to profit-ate our felues thereinto, and to tkinke we worship him in fa doing, is moll horrible. What

RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=