Ofthe pwnihment ofadultery. 187 ,'snake a fpeciall triall of his wines chaflity dm d h mcanes y gauevnto him an extaordrnarY, and for the conuincing her (if fire were guilty)ofher Gnne when no witnelres could bceproduced ; namely , that thee fhould drinke orthecurled water , which fhould not hurt her being innocent , but rathcrthouldmake her fruitful! ; but if Thee were guilty , then vpon the drinking thereof , her bellie fhould (well , and her thigh rot , and fo the woman fhould be accurfed among her people. Num. 5.I 4.t 5.2 7.28. So that Numbs.. rather then the Lord wouldhaue this ha¡nous fnneofadul- 14.27. tery goevnpunifhed , he would bitrafelfe after this wonder- full manner difcouer and punifh it. Now this punilhment ofadultery by death,fecmeth to be §. SeEt, 2. not a meere iudiciall law, whichwas proper and peculiar toT hat the 14 a the common -wealthofIfrael, but a law of common equity, der b f whichbindeth and holdeth in fubicaion all nationsvnto ir. death;s áda,r Firfl, becaute long before the iudiciall lawwas given , the o;a iS t famepunilhment was infliCted vpon adulterrers, asappea- equitie. reth by luda his fencence again!} his daughter in law Tha. Gen.3 834, :war, namely, that becautebeing cfpoufed to his fonne,fhee had plaïed the harlot,fhe mould beburnt to death . So when Abimilech being a king had no fuperiour to execute this law Gen,2o. vponhim,the Lord himfelfe thrcatneth death again[' him if 3.7 he abufed Sara Abrahams wife . The fame punifliment alto Abimilech threatneth again(' anyofhis peoplewithout ex. Gen,26,1 r. option that fhould touch lfaacs wife. Secondly,becaufc the Heathens themfelues who hadnot Mofes law,by the light ofnature inflicted the.punill1ment of deathvpon adulterers, whereby it appeareth,that it is not iudiciall , but morali and Icr.:9,2:.2 perpetuall , teeing it was common to the lewesand Gentiles. Ier.29,2 3 So Nebuchadnex.tiar curled thofe two adulterousProphets, 5trab. ea_ Zedechias and Achab, to beeburnt with fire,as the Prophet graph.liba6. foretelleth,ier.29.22 23.So SalemPrince of Crotone a cr- Eujeb. iepre tic of Grecce,enac`fed a law,that adulterers fhould bee burnt parat.Euas- to death . By Iiraco his law likewife the fame punilhment geLlrh 6. was infl!&ed vpon the likeoffenders. in like manner this tin A e. :abAlex. was capital among theArabians, as eafebitu recordeth. And lib.4.çap.1. fo altoamong theGothes, as Procopius writeth. Finallie,a- ti,r,Gl,Gatb, B b 2 mong
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