Wherefore I praised the dead which are already dead more than the living which are yet alive.
~ Ecclesiastes 4:2
There the wicked cease from troubling; and there the weary be at rest.
~ Job 3:17
The righteous perisheth, and no man layeth it to heart: and merciful men are taken away, none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come. He shall enter into peace: they shall rest in their beds, each one walking in his uprightness. For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.
~ Isaiah 57:1-2, 2 Corinthians 5:1, 2 Corinthians 5:8
For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot not. For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better:
~ Philippians 1:21-23
And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.
~ Revelation 14:13
A Salve for a Sicke Man, Or, A Treatise Containing the Nature, Differences, and Kindes of Death as Also the Right Maner of Dying Well. And it may serve for spirituall instruction to —
1. Mariners when they goe to sea.
2. Souldiers when they goe to battell.
3. Women when they travell of child.
By, William Perkins, (1558-1602).
A good name is better than precious ointment; and the day of death than the day of one’s birth.
~ Ecclesiastes 7:1
(The recording contains an excerpt from the text. The full version is located below.)
Hitherto I have intreated of the two-fold preparation which is to goe before death: now follows the second part of Dying-well, namely, the disposition in death. This disposition is nothing els but a religious and holy behaviour specially towards God, when we are in, or neare the agonie and pang of death. This behaviour containes three speciall duties. The first is, to die in or by faith. To die by faith is, when a man in the time of death doth with all his heart rely himselfe wholly on God’s speciall love and fauoure and mercie in Christ, as it is revealed in the word. And though there be no part of mans life void of just occasions whereby we may put faith in practise, yet the speciall time of all is the pang of death, when friends, and riches, and pleasures, and the outward senses, & temporall life, & all earthly helpes forsake us. For then true faith maketh us to go wholly out of our selves, and to despaire of comfort and salvation in respect of an earthly thing; & with all the power & strength of the heart, to rest on the pure mercie of God. This made Luther both thinke and say, that men were best Christians in death. An example of this faith we have in David, who when he sawe nothing before his eies but present death, the people intending to stone him, comforted him at that very instant (as the text saith) in the Lord his God. And this comfort he reaped, in that by faith he applied unto his own soule the mercifull promises of God; as he testifieth of himselfe: Remember (saith he) the promise made to thy servant,wherein thou hast caused me to trust. It is my comfort in trouble: for thy promise hath quickned me. Againe, my flesh failed and my heart also, but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever. Now looke what David here did, the same must every one of us do in the like case. When the Israelites in the wildernes were stung with fierie serpents, and lay at the point of death, they looked up to the brasen serpent which was erected by the appointment of God, and were presently healed: even so when any man feeles death to drawe neere, & his fierie sting to pierce the heart, he must fixe the eye of a true and lively faith upon Christ, exalted and crucified on the crosse, which beeing done, he shal by death enter into eternall life.
Now because true faith is no dead thing, it must be expressed by especiall actions; the principall whereof is invocation, wherby either praier or thanksgiving is directed unto God. When death had seazed upon the body of Jacob, he raised up himselfe, and turning his face towards the beddes head, leaned on the toppe of his staffe by reason of his feeblenes, and praied unto God: which praier of his was an excellent fruite of his faith.Job’s wife in the middest of his affliction said unto him to very good purpose. Blesse God and die. I knowe and graunt that the words are commonly translated otherwise, Curse God and die: but (as I take it) the former is the best. For it is not like that in so excellent a familie, any one person, much lesse a matrone and principall governour thereof, would give such lewde and wretched councell; which the most wicked man upon earth, having no more but the light of nature, would not once give, but rather much abhorre and condemne. And though Job call her a foolish woman, yet he doth it not because shee went about to perswade him to blaspheme God; but because shee was of the minde of Job’s friends, and a thought that he stood to much in a conceit of his owne righteousnes. Now the effect & meaning of her councell is this: blesse God, that is, husband, no doubt thou art by the extremitie of thine affliction at deaths doore; therefore begin now at length to lay aside the great overweening which thou hast of thine owne righteousnesse, acknowledge the hand of God upon thee for thy sins, confesse them unto him giving him the glorie, pray for the pardon of them, & ende thy daies. This counsell is very good and to bee followed of all: though it may be the applying of it (as Job well perceived) is mixt with follie.
Here it may be alleadged, that in the pangs of death men want their senses and convenient utterance, and therefore that they are unable to pray. Ans. The very sighes, sobs, and grones of a repentant and beleeuing heart, are praiers before God, even as effectuall, as if they were uttered by the best voice in the world. Praier stands in the affection of the heart, the voice is but an outward messenger therof. God lookes not upon the speech, but upon the heart. David saith, God heares the desire of the poore: againe, That he will fulfil the desires of them that heare him: yea, their very teares are loud and sounding praiers in his eares.
Againe, faith may otherwise be expressed by the Last wordes, which for the most part of them that have truly served God, are very excellent and comfortable and full of grace: some choise examples whereof I will rehearse for instructions sake and for imitation. The last words of Jacob were those, whereby as a Prophet he foretolde blessing and curses upon his children: and the principall among the rest were these,The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, and the lawgiver from betweene his feete, till Shilo come: and, O Lord,I have waited for thy salvation. The last wordes of Moses are his most excellent song set downe, Deut. chap. 32. and the last words of David were these, The spirit of the Lord spake by me, and his word was in my tongue: the God of Israel spake to me, the strength of Israel said, Beare rule over men, &c. The words of Zacharias the son of Jehoida, when he was stoned were, The Lord looke upon it and require it. The last words of our Saviour Christ when he was dying upon the crosse, are most admirable, and stored with aboundance of spiritual grace. 1. To his father he saith, Father, forgive them,they know not what they doe. 2. to the thiefe, Verily I say unto thee, this night shalt thou be with mee in paradise. 3. to his mother, Mother, behold thy son: and to John, behold my mother. 4. and in his agonie, My God, thy God, why hast thou forsaken mee? 5. and earnestly desiring our salvation, I thirst. 6. and when he had made perfect satisfaction, It is finished. 7. and when bodie and soule were parting, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit, The last words of Steven were, 1. Behold, I see the heavens open,and the sone of man standing at the right hand of God 2. Lord Jesus receive my spirit. 3. Lord lay not this sine to their charge. Of Polycarpe, Thou art a true God without lying, therefore in all things I praise thee, and blesse thee, and glorifie thee by the eternall God & high Priest Jesus Christ thine onely beloved Sone, by whome and with whome, to thee, and the holy spirit, be all glorie now and for ever. Of Ignatius, I care not what kinde of death I die:I am the bread of the Lord and must be grounde with the teeth of lyons, that I may be cleane bread for Christ, who is the bread of life for mee. Of Ambrose, I have not so led my life among you as if I were ashamed to live: neither doe I feare death, because we have a good Lord. Of Augustine, 1. He is no great man that thinkes it a great matter that trees and stones fall and mortall men die. 2. just art thou, O Lord, & righteous is thy judgement. Of Bernard, 1. An admonition to his brethren that they would grounde the anchor of their faith and hope in the safe and sure port of God’s mercie. 2. Because (saith he) as I suppose I canot leave unto you any choise examples of religion, I commend three to be imitated of you, which I remember that I have observed in the race which I have run as much as possibly I could. 1. I gave lesse heed to mine own sense & reason then to the sense and reason of other men. 2. When I was hurt, I sought not revenge on him that did the hurt. 3. I had care to give offence to no man, and if it fell out otherwise, I tooke it away as I could. Of Zwinglius, when in the field he was wounded under the chin with a speare; O what hap is this?go to, they may kill my bodie, but my soule they canot. Of Oecolampadius. 1. An exhortation to the ministers of the Church to maintaine the puritie of doctrine, to shewe forth an example of honest and godly conversation, to be constant & patiēt under the crosse. 2. Of himselfe. Whereas I am charged to be a corrupter of the truth. I weigh it not: now I am going to the tribunall of Christ and that with good conscience by the grace of God, and there it shall bee manifest that I have not seduced the Church. Of this my saying & contestation, I leave you as witnesses, and I confirme it with this my last breath. 3. To his children, Love God the father: & turning himself to his kinsfolks: I have boūd you (saith he) with this contestation: you (which they heare and have desired) shall doe your indeauour, that these my children may be godly, and peaceable, and true, 4. to his friend comming unto him, What shall I say unto you? Newes, I shall be shortly with Christ my Lord. 5. beeing asked whether the light did not trouble him, touching his breast, there is light enough, saith he. 6. he rehearsed the whole one & fiftie psalme with deepe sighes from the bottome of his breast. 7. a litle after, Save me Lord Jesus. Of Luther, My heavenly Father, God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ, & God of all comfort, I give thee thanks that thou hast revealed unto me thy son Jesus Christ, whom I have believed, whom I have professed, whome I have loved, whome I have praised, whome the Bishop of Rome and the whole companie of the wicked persecuteth and revileth. I pray thee my Lord Jesus Christ receive my poore soule: my heavenly father, though I be taken from this life, and this bodie of mine is to be laid downe, yet I know certēly, that I shall remaine with thee for ever, neither shall any be able to pull me out of thy hand. Of Hooper, O Lord Jesus son of David have mercie on me and receive my soule. Of Anas Burgivs, Forsake me not O Lord, least I forsake thee. Of Melancthon, If it be the will of God I am willing to die, and I beseech him that he will graunt me a joyfull departure. Of Calvine. 1. I held my tongue because thou lord hast done it. 2. I mourned as a dove. 3. Lord thou grindest me to powder but it sufficeth me because it is thy hand, Of Peter Martyr, that his body was weake, but his minde was well: that hee acknowledged no life or salvation but only in Christ, who was given of the father to bee a redeemer of mankinde: and when hee had confirmed this by testimonie of Scripture, he added, This is my faith in which I will die: and God will destroy them that teach otherwise. This done, he shooke hāds with all and said, Farewell my brethren and deare friends. It were easie to quote more examples, but these fewe may bee in stead of many: & the summe of al that godlymē speake in death is this: Some enlightned with a prophetical spirit foretell things to come, as the Patriarkes Jacob and Ioseph did; and there have bin some which by name have testified who should very shortly came after them, and who should remaine alive, and what should be their condition: some have shewed a wonderfull memorie of things past, as of their former life, and of the benefits of God; & no doubt it was given them to stirre up holy affections and thanksgiving to God: some againe rightly judging of the change of their present estate for a better, doe rejoyce exceedingly, that they must be translated from earth to paradise: as Babylas Martyr of Antioch, when his head was to be chopped off, Returne (saith he) O My soule unto thy rest: because the lord hath blessed thee: because thou hast delivered my soule from death, mine eies from teares, and my feete from falling, I shall walke before Iehoua in the land of the living. And some others spake of the vanity of this life, of the imagination of the sorrowes of death, of the beginings of eternall life, of the comfort of the holy Ghost which they feele, of their departure unto Christ.
Quest. What must we thinke if in the time of death such excellent speeches bewanting: and in stead thereof idle talke be used? Answ. We must consider the kinde of sicknesse whereof mē die, whether it be more easie or violent: for violent sicknesse is usually accompanied with frensies, and with unseemely motions and gestures, which we are to take in good part even in this regard, because we our selves may be in the like case.
Thus much of the first duty which is to die in faith: the second is to die in obedience: otherwise our death canot be acceptable to God, because wee seeme to come unto God of feare and constraint, as slaves to a master, and not of love as children to a father. Now to die in obedience is, when a man is willing & readie and desirous to goe out of this world whensoever God shall call him, and that without murmuring or repining, at what time, where, and when it shall please God. Whether we live or die, saith Paul we doe it not to our selves but unto God; and therefore mans dutie is to be obedient to God in death as in life. Christ is our example in this case, who in his agonie praied Father, let this cup passe from me, yet with a submission, not my will, but thy will be done: teaching us in the very pangs of death to resigne our selves to the good pleasure of God.
When the prophet tolde king Ezechias of death, presently without all maner of grudging or repining hee addressed himselfe to praier. We are commanded to present our selves unto God as freewill offerings, without any limitation of time, and therefore as well in death as in life. I conclude then that we are to make as much conscience in performing obedience to god in suffering death, as wee doe of any conscience in the course of our lives.
The third dutie is to render up our soules into the handes of God, as the most faithfull keeper of all. This is the last duty of a Christian, and it is prescribed unto us in the example of Christ upon the crosse, who in the very pangs of death when the dissolution of bodie & soule drewe on said,Father into thy hands I commend my spirit, and so gave up the ghost. The like was done by Steven, who when he was stoned to death, said, Lord Jesus receive my spirit. And David in his life time beeing in daunger of death used the very same words that Christ uttered.
Thus we see what be the duties which we are to perform in the very pangs of death, that we may come to eternall life. Some men will happily say, If this be all, to die in faith and obedience and to surrender our soules into God’s hands, we will not greatly care for any preparation beforehand, nor trouble our selves much about the right maner of dying well: for we doubt not, but that when death shall come, we shall be able to performe all the former duties with ease. Answer. Let no man deceive himselfe by any false perswasion, thinking with himselfe that the practise of the foresaid duties is a matter of ease: for ordinarily they are not, neither can bee performed in death, unles there be much preparation in the life before. Hee that will die in faith must first of all live by faith: and there is but one example in all the whole Bible of a man dying in faith that lived without faith; namely, the thiefe upon the crosse. The servants of God that are indued with great measure of grace do very hardly believe in the time of affliction. Indeed when Job was afflicted hee said, Though the Lord kill me, yet will I trust in him: yet afterward, his faith beeing overcast as with a cloude, he saith, that God was become his enemy, & that he had set him as a marke to shoote at: & sundrie times his faith was oppressed with doubting and distrust. How then shall they that never lived by faith nor inured themselves to believe; bee able in the pang of death to rest upon the mercie of God. Againe, he that would die in obedience, must first of all leade his life in obedience: hee that hath lived in disobedience can not willingly and in obedience appeare before the judge when hee is cited by death the sergeant of the Lord: he dies indeed, but that is upon necessitie, because he must yeeld to the order and course of nature as other creatures doe. Thirdly, hee that would surrender his soule into the hands of God must bee resolved of two things: the one is that god can; the other is, that God will receive his soule into heaven and there preserve it till the last judgement. And none can be resolved of this except he have the spirit of God to certifie his conscience that he is redeemed, justified, sanctified by Christ, and shall bee glorified. Hee that is not thus perswaded, dare not render up and present his soule unto God. When David said, Lord into thy handes I commend my spirit: what was the reason of this boldnesse in him? surely nothing else but the perswasion of faith, as the next wordes import: for thou hast redeemed me. O Lord God of truth. And thus it is manifest, that no man ordinarily can performe these duties dying, that hath not performed them living.
This beeing so, I doe againe renew my former exhortation, beseeching you that ye would practise the duties of preparation in the course of your lives, leading them daily in faith and obedience, and from time to time commending your selves into the hand of God, and casting all your workes upon his providence. They, which have done this have made most happie and blessed endes. Enoch by faith walked with God, as one that was alwaies in his presence, leading an upright and godly life, and the Lord tooke him away that he should not see death. And this which befell Enoch, shall after a sort befall them also that live in faith and obedience: because death shal be no death, but a sleepe unto them, and no enemie but a friend to bodie and soule. On the contrary let us consider the wretched & miserable endes of them that have spent their daies in their sines without keeping faith & a good conscience. The people of the old world were drowned in the flood; the filthy Sodomites and Gomorrheans were destroyed with fire from heaven; Dathan and Abiram with the company of Core were swallowed up of the earth, Core himselfe (as it seemes by the text) being burnt with fire: wicked Saul and Achitophel and Judahs destroy themselves. Herod is eaten up of wormes and gave up the ghost: Julian the Apostata smitten with a dart in the field, died casting up his blood into the ayre & blaspheming the name of Christ. Arius the hereticke died upon the stoole scouring forth his very entralls. And this very age affoards store of like examples. Hoffemeister a great Papist, as he was going to the councill of Ralisbone to dispute against the defēders of the Gospel, was suddenly in his journey prevented by the hand of God, and miserably died with horrible roaring and crying out. In the universitie of Lorraine, Guarlacus a learned Papist falling sicke, when he perceived no way with him but death, he fell into miserable agonie and perturbation of spirit, crying out of his sines how miserably he had lived, and that hee was not able to abide the judgement of God, & so casting out words of miserable desperation saide, his sins were greater then they could be pardoned, and in that desperation ended his daies. Jacobus Latromus of the same universitie of Lorraine, after that he had beene at Bruxels, and there thinking to doe a great acte against Luther and his fellowes, made an oration before the Emperour so foolishly and ridiculously that he was laughed to scorne almost of the whole court: then returning from thence to Lorraine againe, in his publike lecture he fell into open madnesse, uttering such wordes of desperation and blasphemous impietie, that other Divines which were present, were faine to carie him away as he was rauing, and to shut him into a close chamber. From that time to his very last breath, he had never any thing else in his mouth, but that he was damned and rejected of God, and that there was no hope of salvation for him, because that wittingly and against his knowledge, he withstood the manifest truth of God’s word. Crescentius the Pope’s Legat and Vicegerent in the councell of Trent; was sitting all the day long untill darke night in writing of letters to the Pope: after his labour when night was come, thinking to refresh himselfe, he began to rise; and at his rising, behold there appeared to him a mightie blacke dogge of an huge bignesse, his eyes flaming with fire, & his eares hanging low downe well neare to the grounde, which begane to enter in and straight to come towardes him, and so to couch under the boord. The Cardinall not a little amazed at the sight thereof, somewhat recovering himselfe called immediately to his servants which were in the outward chamber next by, to bring in a candle and to seeke for the dogge. But when the dogge could not be found there nor in any other chamber about, the Cardinall thereupon stricken with a sudden conceit of minde, immediately fel into such a sicknesse, whereof his Physitians which he had about him could not with all their industrie and cuning cure him: and thereupon he died. Steven Gardiner, when a certaine Bishop came unto him and put him in minde of Peter denying his master, answered againe that he had denied with Peter, but never repented with Peter, and so (to use M. Foxes words) stinkingly and unrepentantly died. More examples might be added, but these shall suffice.
Againe, that we may be further induced to the practise of these duties, let us call to minde the uncertentie of our daies: though we now live, yet who can say that he shall be alive the next day or the next houre? No man hath a lease of his life. Now marke, as death leaves a man, so shall the last judgement finde him: and therefore if death take him away unprepared, eternall damnation followes without recoverie. If a thiefe be brought from prison either to the barre to bee arraigned before the judge, or to the place of execution, he will bewaile his misdemeanour past, and promise all reformation of life; so be it, he might be delivered, though he be the most arrant thiefe that ever was. In this case we are as fellons or thieves: for we are every day going to the barre of God’s judgement, there is no stay or standing in the way, even as the ship in the sea continues on his course day & night whether the marriners be sleeping or waking: therefore let us all prepare our selves and amende our lives betime, that in death wee may make a blessed ende. Ministers of the Gospel doe daily call for the performance of this dutie: but where almost shal we finde the practise & obedience of it in mens lives & conversations? Alas, alas, to lend our eares for the space of an houre to heare the will of God is common; but to give heart & hand to doe the same, is rare. And the reason hereof is athād: we are al most grievous siners, & every siner in the tearmes of Scripture is a foole: and a principall part of his folly is to care for the things of this world and to neglect the kingdome of heaven, to provide for the body & not for the soule, to cast and fore-cast howe we may live in wealth and honour, and ease, and not to use the least fore-cast to die well. This folly our Saviour Christ noted in the rich man that was carefull to inlarge his barnes, but had no care at all for his ende or for the salvation of his soule. Such a one was Achitophel, who (as the Scripture tearmes him) was as the very oracle of God for councell, being a mā of great wisedome & forecast in the matters of the common wealth and in his owne private worldly affaires: and yet for all this he had not so much as common sense and reason, to consider howe he might die the death of the righteous, & come to life everlasting. And this folly the holy ghost hath noted in him. For the text saith, when he saw that his counsell was despised, he sadled his asse, and arose, & went home into his cittie, and put his houshold in order, and went and hanged himselfe. And the five foolish virgins contented themselves with the blasing lamps of a bare profession, never seeking for the horne of lasting oyle of true and lively faith, that might furnish and trimme the lampe both in life and death. But let us in the feare of God, cast off this damnable folly, first of all seeking the kingdome of God and his righteousnesse, and leading our lives in faith and obedience that we may die accordingly.
And thus much of the first point of doctrine, namely, that there is a certen way whereby a man may die well: now I come to the second. Whereas therefore Salomon saith, that the day of death is better then the day of birth, we are furder taught that such as truly believe themselves to be the children of God, are not to feare death overmuch. I say overmuch; because they must partly feare it, and partly not. Feare it they must for two causes: the first, because death is the destruction of humane nature in a mans owne selfe & others: and in this respect Christ feared it without sine; and we must not feare it otherwise then we feare sicknes, and povertie, and famine, with other sorrows of body and minde, which God will not have us to despise or lightly to regard, but to feele with some paine, because they are corrections & punishments for sine. And he doth therfore lay upon us paines & torments, that they may be feared and eschewed: and that by eschewing them we might further learne to eschewe the cause of them, which is sin: and by experience in feeling of paine; acknowledge that God is a judge and enemie of sine, and is exceeding angrie with it. The second cause of the feare of death, is the losse of the Church or Commonwealth, when we or others are deprived of them which were indeede or might have beene an helpe, stay, & comfort to either of them, and whose death hath procured some publike or private losse.
Againe, we are not to feare death, but to be glad of it, and that for many causes. First of al, in it we have occasion to shewe our subjection and obedience which we owe unto God, when he cals us out of this world, as Christ said, Father not my will, but thy will be done. Secondly, all sine is abolished by death, and we then cease to offend God any more as we have done. Thirdly, the dead body is brought into a better condition then ever it was in this life, for by death it is made insensible, and by that meanes it is freed from all the miseries and calamities of this life; & it ceaseth to be either an active or passive instrument of sine, whereas in the life time it is both. Fourthly, it gives the soule passage to rest, life, and celestiall glorie, in which wee shall see God as he is, perfectly know him, and praise his name for ever, keeping without intermission an eternall sabboth, therefore Paul saith, I desire to bee dissolved and bee with Christ, for that is best of all. Fifthly, God exequutes his judgements upon the wicked, and purgeth his Church by death. Nowe in all these respects, godly men have cause not to feare and sorrowe, but to rejoyce in their owne death and the death of others.
Thirdly, if the day of death be so excellēt, yea a day of happinesse, then it is lawfull to desire death, and men doe not alwaies sine in wishing for death. Paul saith, I desire to be dissolveds and againe, O miserable man, who shall deliver me from this bodie of death? Yet this desire must not bee simple, but restrained with certen respects; which are these: First, death must bee desired so farre forth as it is a meanes to free us from the corruption of our nature; secondly, as it is a meanes to bring us to the immediate fellowship of Christ & God himselfe in heaven. Thirdly, death may bee lawfully desired in respect of the troubles & miseries of this life, two caveats beeing observed: the first, that this desire must not be immoderate: the second, it must bee joyned with submission and subjection to the good pleasure of God. If either of these bee wanting, the desire is faulty; & therefore Job, and Jeremie, and Jonas failed herein, because they desired death beeing carried away with impatience.
On the contrarie also a man may desire a continuāce of life. Ezechias praied and desired to live, when he heard the message of present death, that hee might doe service to God. And Paul desired to live, in regard of the Philippians, that hee might further their faith, though in regard of himselfe to die was aduantage to him.
Lastly, if death joyned with reformation of life be so blessed, then the death of the unbeleeving and unrepentant siner is every way cursed & most horrible. Reasons are these: First, it is the destruction of nature, and the wages of their sins. Secondly, in it there is no comfort of the spirit to be found, no mitigation of paine, & no good thing that may counteruaile the miseries thereof. Thirdly, that which is the most fearefull thing of al, bodily death is the begining of eternall death, desperation, and infernall torment, without hope of deliverance. Therefore as I began so I ende, have care to live well, and die well.
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Here is the full text from William Perkins.
A Salve for a Sicke Man, Or, A Treatise Containing the Nature, Differences, and Kindes of Death as Also the Right Maner of Dying Well. And it may serve for spirituall instruction to —
1. Mariners when they goe to sea.
2. Souldiers when they goe to battell.
3. Women when they travell of child.
By, Perkins, William, 1558-1602.
A good name is better than precious ointment; and the day of death than the day of one’s birth.
~ Ecclesiastes 7:1
These words are a rule or precept, laid down by Solomon for weightie causes. For in the Chapters going before, he sets forth the vanity of all creatures under heaven; & that at large in the very particulars. Now men hereupon might take occasion of discontentment in respect of their estate in this life: therefore Solomon in great wisdome here takes a new course, & in this chapter begins to lay downe certaine rules of direction and comfort, that men might have somwhat wherewith to arme themselves against the troubles and the miseries of this life. The first rule is in this third verse, that a good name is better then a pretious ointment: that is, a name gotten and maintained by godly conversation, is a speciall blessing of God, which in the middest of the vanities of this life, ministreth greater matter of rejoicing and comfort to the heart of man, then the most pretious ointment can doe to the outward senses. Now some man having heard this first rule concerning good name, might object & say, that renowne & good report in this life affoardes slender comfort: considering that after it, followes death, which is the miserable end of all men. But this objection the Wise man remooveth by a second rule in the wordes which I have in hand, saying, that the day of death is better then the day that one is borne.
That wee may come to the true & proper sense of this precept or rule, three points are to be considered. First, what is death here mentioned: secondly, how it can be truly said, that the day of death is better then the day of birth: thirdly, in what respect it is better.
For the first, death is a deprivation of life as a punishment ordained of God, and imposed on man for his sine. First, I say, it is a deprivation of life, because the very nature of death, is the absence or defect of that life which God vouchsafed man by his creation. I adde further, that death is a punishment, more especially to intimate the nature and qualitie of death; and to shewe that it was ordained, as a meanes of the execution of God’s justice & judgment. And that death is a punishment, Paul plainely avoucheth, when he saith, that by one man sine entred into the world, and death by sine. And againe, that death is the stipend, wages, or allowance of sine. Furthermore, in every punishment there bee three workers: the ordainer of it, the procurer, and the executioner. The ordainer of this punishment is God in the estate of mans inocency, by a solemne law then made in these very words. In the day that thou eatest thereof, thou shalt die the death, Gen. 2.17. But it may be alleadged to the contrary, that the Lord saith by the Prophet Ezechiel, that hee will not the death of a siner; & therefore that hee is no ordainer of death. The answer may easily be made, & that sundry waies.
First, the Lord speakes not this to all men, or of all men, but to his owne people, the Church of the Iewes, as appeares by the clause prefixed,Sone of man say unto the house of Israel, &c. Againe, the words are not spoken absolutely, but onely in way of comparisoy, in that of the twaine, he rather wills the conversion and repentance of a siner, then his death and destruction. Thirdly, the very proper meaning of the words import thus much, that God doth take no delight or pleasure in the death of a siner, as it is the ruine and destruction of the creature. And yet al this hinders not but that God in a newe regard and consideration, may both will & ordaine death, namely, as it is a due and deserved punishment, tending to the execution of justice; in which justice God is as good as in his mercie. Againe, it may be objected, that if death indeede had beene ordained of God, then Adam should have bin destroied, & that presently upon his fal. For the very words are thus, whensoever thou shalt eat of the forbidden fruite, thou shalt certenly die. Ans. Sentences of scripture are either Legall or Evangelical: the law & the gospell beeing two severall and distinct parts of God’s word. Now this former sentence is legall & must be understood with an exception borrowed from the Gospel or the covenāt of grace made with Adam, and revealed to him after his fall. The exception is this: Thou shalt certenly die whensoever thou eatest the forbidden fruite, except I doe further give thee a means of deliverance from death, namely the seede of the woman to bruise the serpents head. Secondly it may be answered, that Adam and all his posteritie died, and that presently after his fall, in that his bodie was made mortall, and his soule became subject to the curse of the law. And whereas God would not utterly destroy Adam at the very first, but onely impose on him the beginings of the first and second death; he did the same in great wisedome, that in his justice he might make a way to mercie: which thing could not have beene if Adam had perished.
The executioner of this punishmēt is he that doth impose and inflict the same on man, & that also is God himselfe, as he testifieth of himselfe in the prophet Esai, I make peace and create evil. Nowe evil is of three sorts: naturall, morall, material. Natural evil, is the destruction of that order, which God set in every creature by the creation. Moral evil, is the want of that righteousnesse and vertue which the law requires at mans hands; & that is called sin. Material evil, is any matter or thing which in it selfe is a good creature of God, yet so, as by reason of mans fall, it is hurtful to the health & life of man, as henbane, wolfebane, hemlock, & all other poisons are. Now this saying of Esai must not bee understood of morall evils, but of such as are either materiall or naturall: to the latter of which, death is to be referred, which is the destruction or abolishment of mans nature created.
The procurer of death is man not God; in that man by his sin and disobedience did pull upon himselfe this punishment. Therefore the Lord in Oseah, O Israel, one hath destroyed thee,but in me is thine helpe. Against this it may be objected, that mā was mortall in the estate of inocencie before the fall. Answ. The frame and composition of mans body considered in it selfe was mortall, because it was made of water & earth & other elements which are of themselves alterable and changeable: yet if we respect that grace and blessing which God did vouchsafe mans bodie in his creation, it was unchangeable and immortall, and so by the same blessing should have continued, if man had not fallen: and man by his fall depriving himselfe of this gift and blessing, became every way mortall.
Thus it appeares in part what death is: yet for the better clearing of this point, we are to consider the difference of the death of a man and of a beast. The death of a beast is the total and finall abolishment of the whole creature: for the body is resolved to his first matter, and the soule arising of the temperature of the bodie vanisheth to nothing. But in the death of a man it is otherwise. For though the bodie for a time bee resolved to dust, yet must it rise againe in the last judgement and become immortall: and as for the soule, it subsisteth by it selfe out of the body and is immortall. And this being so, it may be demaūded how the soule can die the second death? Ans. The soule dies, not because it is utterly abolished, but because it is as though it were not, & it ceaseth to be in respect of righteousnes and fellowship with God. And indeede this is the death of all deaths, when the creature hath subsisting and beeing, and yet for all that, is deprived of al comfortable fellowship with God.
The reason of this difference is, because the soule of man is a spirit or spirituall substance, wheras the soule of a beast is no substance, but a naturall vigour or qualitie, and hath no being in itselfe, without the bodie on which it wholy dependeth. The soule of a man contrariwise being created of nothing & breathed into the bodie, and as well subsisting forth of it as in it.
The kindes of death are two, as the kindes of life are; bodily and spirituall. Bodily death is nothing else but the separation of the soule from the body, as bodily life is the conujnction of bodie and soule: and this death is called the first, because in respect of time it goes before the second. Spiritual death is the separation of the whole man both in body and soule from the gratious fellowshippe of God. Of these twaine the first is but an entrance to death, and the second is the accomplishment of it. For as the soule is the life of the body, so God is the life of the soule, and his spirit is the soule of our soules, and the want of fellowship with him, brings nothing but the endles and unspeakable horrours and pangs of death.
Againe, spirituall death hath three distinct and severall degrees.
The first is, when a man that is alive in respect of temporall life, lies dead in sin. Of this degree Paul speakes, when hee saith,But shee that liveth in pleasure is dead while shee liveth. And this is the case of all men by nature, who are children of wrath, and dead in sines and trespasses. The second degree is in the very end of this life, when the body is laide in the earth, & the soule descendes to the place of torments. The third degree is in the day of judgement, when the body and soule meete againe, and goe both to the place of the damned, there to bee tormented for ever and ever.
having thus found the nature and differences and kindes of death, it is more then manifest, that the text in hand is to be understood, not of the spiritual, but of the bodily death: because it is opposed to the birth or natiuitie of man. The words then must cary this sense: the time of bodily death in which the body and soule of man are severed asunder, is better then the time in which one is borne and brought into the world.
Thus much of the first point, now followeth the second: & that is, how this can be true which Solomon saith: that the day of death is better then the day of birth. I make not this Question to call the scriptures into controversie, which are the truth it selfe, but I doe it for this ende, that we might without wavering be resolved of the truth of this which Solomon avoucheth. For there may be sundrie reasons brought to the contrarie. Therfore let us now hādle the Question: the reasons, or objections which may be alleadged to the contrarie, may all bee reduced to sixe heads. The first is taken from the opinion of wise men, who think it the best thing of all, never to bee borne, & the next best to die quickly. Now if it be the best thing in the world not to bee borne at all, then it is the worst thing that can bee to die after a man is borne. Answ. There be two sorts of men; one that live and die in their sines without repentance; the other, which unfainedly repent & believe in Christ. Now this sentence maybe truly avouched of the first: of whome wee may say as Christ said of Judah’s, It had bin good for him that he had never bin borne. But the saying applied to the second sort of men is false. For to them that in this life turne to God by repentance, the best thing of all is to bee borne: because their birth is a degree of preparation to happinesse: and the next best is to die quickly: because by death they enter into possession of the same their happinesse. For this cause Balaam desired to die the death of the righteous: and Solomon in this place prefers the day of death before the day of birth, understāding that death which is joyned with godly life, or the death of the righteous.
The second objection is taken from the testimonies of Scripture. Death is ths wages of sine, Rom. 6.23. it is an enemy of Christ, 1. Cor. 15. and the curse of the lawe. Hence it seemes to followe that in and by death, men receive their wages & paiment for their sines: that the day of death is the dolefull day in which the enemie prevailes against us: that he which dieth is cursed. Answ. We must distinguish of death: it must be considered two waies; first, as it is by it selfe in his own nature: secondly, as it is altered & changed by Christ. Now death by it selfe considered, is indeed the wages of sine, an enemie of Christ, & of all his members, & the curse of the law, yea the very suburbs and the gates of hell: yet in the second respect, it is not so. For by the vertue of the death of Christ, it ceaseth to be a plague or punishment, and of a curse it is made a blessing, and is become unto us a passage or middle-way betweene this life and eternall life, and as it were a litle wicket or doore whereby wee passe out of this world and enter into heaven. And in this respect the saying of Solomon is most true. For in the day of birth, men are borne & brought forth into the vale of misery, but afterward when they goe hence having death altered unto thee by the death of Christ, they enter into eternall joy and happinesse with al the Saints of God for ever.
The third objection is taken from the exāples of most worthie men, who have made their prayers against death. As our Saviour Christ, who praied on this maner, Father, if it bee thy will let this cup passe from mee, yet not my will, but thy will bee done. And David praied, Returne, O Lord, dliver my soule, save me for thy mercies sake: for in death there is no remembrance of thee: in the grave who shall praise thee? And Ezechiah, when the Prophet Esay bade him set his house in order, and told him that he must die, wept sore, & that in respect of death. Now by the examples of these most worthy men, yea by the example of the sone of God himself, it may seeme that the day of death is the most terrible & doleful day of all. Ans. when our Saviour Christ praied thus to his father, he was in his agonie, and he then as our Redeemer stood in our roome and stead, to suffer all things that we should have suffered in our own persons for our sines: and therefore hee praied not simply agaīst death, but against the cursed death of the crosse, and he feared not death it selfe, which is the separation of body and soule, but the curse of the lawe which went with death, namely, the unspeakable wrath and indignation of God. The first death troubled him not, but the first and second joyned togither. Touching David, when he made the sixt Psalme, he was not onely sicke in body, but also perplexed with the greatest temptation of all, in that hee wrestled in conscience with the wrath of God, as appeares by the words of the text, where hee saith, Lord, rebuke me not in thy wrath. And by this we see that hee praied not simply against death, but against death at that instant when he was in that grievous temptation; for at other times hee had no such feare of death, as hee himselfe testifieth, saying, Though I should walke thorough the valley of the shadowe of death, I will feare no evil. Therefore he praied against death only as it was joyned with the apprehēsion of God’s wrath. Lastly, Ezechiah prayed against death, not onely because he desired to live and doe service to God in his kingdome, but upon a further and more speciall regard; because when the Prophet brought the message of death, hee was without issve, and had none of his owne bodie to succeede him in his kingdome. It will be said, what warrant had Ezechiah to pray against death for this cause? Ans. His warrant was good; for God had made a particular promise to David & his posteritie after him, that so long as they feared God, & walked in his commandemēts, they should not want issve to sit upon the throne of the kingdome after them. Now Ezechiah at the time of the Prophets message, remembring what promise God had made, and how he for his part had kept the comdition thereof, in that hee had walked before God with an upright heart, and had done that which was acceptable in his sight; hee praied against death, not so much because hee feared the danger of it, but because he wanted issve. This praier God accepted and heard, and he added fifteene yeares unto his daies, & two yeares after gave him Manasses.
The fourth objection is, that those which have been reputed to be of the better sort of men, oftētimes have miserable ends: for some end their daies despairing, some rauing and blaspheming, some straungely tormented: it may seeme therefore that the day of death is the day of greatest woe & miserie. To this I answer first of all generally, that we must not judge of the estate of any man before God by outward things, whether they be blessings or judgements, whether they fal in life or death. For (as Solomon saith) all things come like to all: and the same condition is to the just and the wicked, to the good and to the pure and to the polluted, and to him that sacrificeth and to him that sacrificeth not: as is the good so is the siner, he that sweareth, as he that feareth an oath Secondly, I answer the particulars which be alleadged on this maner: And first of all touching dispaire, it is true that not only wicked and loose persons despaire in death, but also repentant siners, who oftentimes in their sickenesse, testifie of themselves that beeing alive and lying in their beddes, they feele themselves as it were to be in hell, and to apprehend the very pangs and torments thereof. And I doubt not for all this, but that the child of God most deare unto him, may through the gulfe of desperation attaine to everlasting happinesse. This appeares by the maner of God’s dealing in the matter of our salvation. All the workes of God are done in & by their contraries. In the creation all things were made, not of some thing, but of nothing, cleane contrary to the course of nature. In the worke of redemption, God gives life not by life, but by death: and if we consider aright of Christ upon the crosse, we shall see our paradise out of paradise in the middest of hel. Eor out of his owne cursed death doeth he bring us life and eternall happinesse. Likewise in effectuall vocation, when it pleaseth God to convert and turne men unto him, he doeth it by the meanes of the Gospel preached, which in reason should drive all men from God. For it is as contrarie to the nature of man as fire to water, and light to darknesse: and yet for al this, though it bee thus against the disposition and heart of man, it prevailes with him and turnes him to God. Furthermore, when God will send his owne servants to heaven, he sends them a contrarie waie, even by the gates of hell: and when it is his pleasure to make men depend on his favour and providence, hee makes them feele his anger and to bee nothing in themselves, that they may wholly depend upon, him and bee whatsoever they are in him. This point beeing well considered, it is manifest that the childe of God may passe to heaven by the very gulfes of hel. The love of God is like a sea, into which when a man is cast, hee neither feeles bottome nor sees bank. I conclude therfore that dispaire whether it arise of weakenesse of nature, or of conscience of sine; though it fall out about the time of death, canot prejudice the salvation of them that are effectually called. As for other straunge events which fall out in death, they are the effects of diseases. Rauings and blasphemings arise of the disease of melancholy and of frensies, which often happen at the end of burning fevers, the choller shooting up to the braine. The writhing of the lippes, the turning of the necke, the buckling of the joints and the whole bodie, proceede of crampes and convulsions, which followe after much euacuation. And wheras some in sicknesse are of that strength, that three or foure mē canot hold thee without bonds, it comes not of witchcraft, and possessions, as people commonly thinke, but of choller in the veines. And wheras some when they are dead, become as black as pitch (as Boner was) it may arise by a bruise, or an impostume, or by the blacke jaundise, or by the putrefaction of the liver: & it doth not alwaies argve some extraordinarie judgement of God. Nowe these and the like diseases with their simptomes & strange effects, though they shall deprive man of his health, & of the right use of the parts of his bodie, and of the use of reason too: yet they can not deprive his soule of eternal life. And all sines, procured by violent diseases, and proceeding from repentant siners, are sins of infirmity: for which, if they know them, and come againe to the use of reason, they will further repent; if not, they are pardoned and buried in the death of Christ. And we ought not so much to stand upon the strāgenesse of any mans end, when we know the goodnesse of his life: for wee must judge a man not by his death, but by his life. And if this be true, that strange diseases, and thereupon strange behaviours in death, may befal the best man that is: wee must learne to reforme our judgements of such as lie at the point of death. The common opinion is, that if a man lie quietly and goe away like a lambe (which in some diseases, as consumptions and such like, any man may do) then he goes straight to heaven: but if the violēce of the disease stirre up impatience, and cause in the partie franticke behaviours, then men use to say, there is a judgement of God serving either to discover an hypocrite, or to plague a wicked man. But the truth is otherwise; for indeed a mā may die like a lamb, and yet goe to hell: and one dying in exceeding torments and strange behaviours of the body may go to heaven: & by the outward condition of any mā either in life or death, we are not to judge of his estate before God.
The fourth objection is this: when a man is most nere death, then the divell is most busie in temptation: & the more men are assaulted by Satan, the more dāgerous and troublesome is their case. And therfore it may seeme that the day of death is the worst day of all. Answ. The condition of God’s childrē in earth is twofold. Some are not tempted, & some are. Some I say are not tempted, as Simeon, who when he had seen Christ, brake forth and saide,Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, &c. fore-signifying no doubt, that hee should end his daies in all maner of peace. As for them which are tēpted, though their case bee very troublesome and perplexed, yet their salvation is not further off, by reason of the violence & extremity of temptation. For God is then present by the unspeakable comfort of his spirit, & when wee are most weake, he is most strong in us; because his maner is to shewe his power in weakenes. And for this cause, even in the time of death the divell receives the greatest foyle, when he lookes for the greatest victorie.
The sixt objection is this. Violent & sudden death is a grievous curse, & of all evils which befal man in this life, none is so terrible: therefore it may seeme that the day of sudden death is most miserable. Ans. It is true indeede that sudden death is a curse & grievous judgement of God, and therefore not without cause feared of mē in the world: yet all things considered, wee ought more to be afraid of an impenitent and evil life, then of sudden death. For though it be evil, as death it selfe in his own nature is; yet we must not think it to be simply evil: because it is not evil to al men, nor in all respects evil. I say it is not evil to all men, considering that no kinde of death is evil or a curse unto them that are in Christ, who are freed from the whole curse of the law. And therefore the holy Ghost saith, Blessed are they that die in the Lord: for they rest from their labours: whereby is signified that they which depart this life, being members of Christ, enter into everlasting happines; of what death so ever they die, yea though it be sudden death. Againe I say, that sudden death is not evil in all respects; for it is not evil, because it is sudden, but because it commonly takes men unprepared, and by that means makes the day of death a blacke day, and as it were a very speedie downe-fall to the gulfe of hell. Otherwise if a man be readie & prepared to die, sudden death is in effect no death, but a quicke and speedie entrance to eternal life.
These objections being thus answered, it appeares to bee a manifest truth which Solomon saith, that the day of death is better indeede then the day of birth. Now I come to the third point, in which the reasons & respects are to be considered that make the day of death to surpasse the day of mans birth: & they may al be reduced to this one, namely, that the birth day is an entrance into al woe and miserie; whereas the day of death joyned with godly and reformed life, is an entrance or degree to eternal life. Which I make manifest thus: Eternall life hath three degrees: one in this life, when a man can truely say that hee lives not, but that Christ lives in him: and this al men can say that repent and believe, and are justified & sanctified, & have peace of conscience, with other gifts of God’s spirit, which are the earnest of their salvation. The second degree is the ende of this life, when the bodie goes to the earth, & the soule is carried by the angels into heaven: the third is in the end of the world at the last judgement, when body & soule reunited, do joyntly enter into eternal happines in heaven. Now of these three degrees, death it selfe being joyned with the feare of God, is the second: which also containeth in it two worthie steps to life. The first, is a freedome from all miseries which have their ende in death. For though men in this life are subject to manifold dangers by sea and land, as also to sundry aches, paines, and diseases, as feavers, and consumptions, &c. yet when death comes there is an end of al. Again, so long as men live in this world, whatsoever they be, they doe in some part lie in bondage under originall corruption and the remnants thereof, which are doubtings of God’s providence, unbeliefe, pride of heart, ignorance, covetousnes, ambition, envy, hatred, lust, and such like sines, which bring forth fruits unto death. And to bee in subjection to sin on this maner, is a misery of al miseries. Therfore Paul when he was tempted unto sine by his corruption, cals the very tēptation the buffets of Satan, and as it were a pricke or thorne wounding his flesh, and paining him at the very heart. Againe, in an other place wearied with his owne corruptions, he complaines that he is sold under sine, and he cries out, ô miserable man that I am, who shall deliver me from this body of death?David saith, that his eies gushed out with rivers of teares when other men sined against God: how much more then was he grieved for the sines wherewith he himselfe was overtaken in this life? And indeede it is a very hell for a man that hath but a sparke of grace, to be exercised, turmoyled, and tempted with the inborne corruptions and rebellions of his owne heart: and if a man would devise a torment for such as feare God and desire to walke in newnes of life, he can not devise a greater then this. For this cause blessed is the day of death which brings with it a freedome from all sine whatsoever. For when we die, the corruption of nature is quite abolished, & sanctification is accomplished. Lastly, it is a great miserie that the people of God are constrained in this world to live & converse in the companie of the wicked; as sheepe are mingled with goats which strike them, anoy their pasture; and muddie their water. Hereupon David cried out. Woe is me that I remaine in Meshech, and dwell in the tents of Kedar. When Elias saw that Ahab and Jesabel had planted idolatrie in Israel, and that they sought his life also, he went apart into the wildernesse and desired to die. But this misery also is ended in the day of death, in as much as death is as it were the hand of God to sort and single out those that be the servants of God from all ungodly men in this most wretched world.
Furthermore, this exceeding benefite comes by death, that it doth not only abolish the miseries which presently are upon us, but also prevent those which are to come. The righteous (saith the Prophet Esay) perisheth, and no man considereth it in his heart, and mercifull men are taken away, and no man understandeth that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come. Example of this we have in Josias. Because (saith the Lord) thine heart did melt, and thou hast humbled thy selfe before the Lord, when thou heardest what I spake against this place, &c. beholde therefore I will gather thee to thy fathers, and thou shalt be put in thy grave in peace, and thine eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place. And Paul saith, that among the Corinthians some were a sleepe, that is, dead that they might not bee condemned with the world.
Thus much of freedome from miserie, which is the first benefit that comes by death, & the first steppe to life: now followes the second, which is, that death gives an entrance to the soule, that it may come into the presence of the everliving God, of Christ, and of all the Angels and Saints in heaven. The worthinesse of this benefite makes the death of the righteous to bee no death, but rather a blessing to bee wished of all men. The consideration of this made Paul to say,I desire to be dissolved: but what is the cause of this desire? that followes in the next words, namely that by his dissolution he might come to be with Christ. when the Queene of Sheba saw all Solomon’s wisdome, & the house that he had built, and the meat of his table, and the sitting of his servants, & the order of his ministers, and their apparel, &c. she said, Happie are thy men, happy are these thy servants which stand ever before thee and heare thy wisdome: much more then may wee say, that they are ten thousand fold happie which stand not in the presence of an earthly king, but before the King of kings, the Lord of heaven and earth; and at his right hand injoy pleasures for evermore. Moses hath bin renowned in all ages for this, that God vouchsafed him but so much favour as to see his hinder parts at his request; O then, what happines is this to see the glory and majestie of God face to face, and to have eternall fellowship with God our Father, Christ our Redeemer, and the holy Ghost our comforter, and to live with the blessed Saints & Angels in heaven for ever.
Thus now the third point is manifest, namely, in what respects death is more excellent thee life. It may be, here the mind of mā unsatisfied wil yet further reply & say, that howsoever in death the soules of men enter into heaven, yet their bodies, though they have bin tenderly kept for meat, drink, & apparel; and have slept many a night in beds of doune, must lie in dark & loathsome graves, & there be wasted & consumed with worms.
Ans. All this is true indeede, but all is nothing: if so be it we will but consider aright of our graves as we ought. We must not judge of our graves, as they appeare to the bodily eye, but we must looke upon them by the eye of faith, and consider them as they are altered and changed by the death and burial of Christ, who having vanquished death upon the crosse, pursued him afterward to his owne wen, and foyled him there, & deprived him of his power: and by this means Christ in his owne death hath buried our death, and by the vertue of his buriall, as with sweete incense, hath sweetened and perfumed our graves, and made thee of stinking & loathsome cabbines, to become princely pallaces, and beddes of most sweete & happie rest, farre more excellent then beddes of doune.
And though the body rot in the grave, or be eatē of worms, or of fishes in the sea, or burnt to ashes, yet that will not be unto us a matter of discomfort, if we do well consider the ground of all grace, namely our conjunction with Christ. It is indeede a spirituall, and yet a most reall conjunction. And we must not imagine that our soules alone are joyned to the body or soule of Christ, but the whole person of man both in body and soule is joyned and united to whole Christ. And when we are once joyned to Christ in this mortall life by the bond of the spirit, we shall remaine & continue eternally joyned with him: and this union once truly made, shal never be dissolved. Hence it followes, that although the body bee severed from the soule in death, yet neither body nor soule are severed from Christ, but the very bodie rotting in the grave, drowned in the sea, burned to ashes, abides still united to him, and is as truely a member of Christ thee, as before. This point we must remember as the foundation of all our comfort, and hold it for ever as a truth. For looke what was the condition of Christ in death, the same or the like is the condition of all his members. Now the condition of Christ was this, though his bodie and soule were severed each from other, as far as heaven & the grave, yet neither of them were severed from the godhead of the sone, but both did in death subsist in his person. And therefore though our bodies and soules bee pulled asunder by natural or violent death, yet neither of them, no not the body it selfe shall be severed & disjoyned from Christ. It wil be alleadged, that if the body were then united to Christ, it should live and bee quickened in the grave. Ans. Not so: when a mans arme or legge is taken with the dead palsy, it receives litle or no heat, life, sense, or motion from the body: and yet notwithstanding it remaines still a member of the bodie, because the flesh & the bone of it remaine joyned to the flesh and the bone of the body: even so may the body remaine a member of Christ, though for some space of time it receive neither sense nor motion nor life from the soule or from the spirit of Christ.
Furthermore we must remēber that by the vertue of this conjunction, shal the dead body, be it rotten, burned, devoured, or howsoever consumed, at the day of judgment rise to eternall glory. In the winter season trees remaine without fruite or leaves, and being beaten with winde & weather appeare to the eie as if they were rotten trees; yet when the spring-time comes againe, they bring forth as before, buds and blossomes, leaves and fruit: the reason is because the bodie, graines, & armes of the tree are al joyned to the root, where lies the sap in the winter season, and whence by means of this conjunction it is derived to al the parts of the tree in the spring-time: even so the bodies of men have their winter also, in which they are turned to dust, & so remaine for the space of many thousand yeares, yet in the day of judgement by means of that mistical conjunction with Christ, shall Divine and quickening vertue streame thence to al the bodies of the elect to cause thee to live againe, and that to life eternall. But some will say, that the wicked also rise again. Ans. They do so indeede, but not by the same cause, for they rise by the power of Christ as he is a judge to condemn thee: wheras the godly rise againe by the vertue of Christs resurrection, whereof they are partakers by meanes of that blessed and indissoluble conjunction which they have with Christ. And the bodies of the elect though they consume never so much in the grave, yet are they still in God’s favour and in the covenat of grace: to which, because they have right beeing dead they shall not remaine so for ever, but shal rise to glory at the last judgement. Therefore the rotting of the bodie is nothing in respect, and the death of the body no death. And therfore also death in the old & new testament is made but a sleep, & the grave a bed, wherof the like was never seene; wherein a man may rest, nothing at al troubled with dreames or fantasies, and whence hee shall rise no more subject to weakenes or sickenes, but presently be translated to eternal glory. By this thee which hath beene said, it appeares that the death of the righteous is a second degree to everlasting happinesse.
Now then considering our conjunction with Christ is the foundation of all our joy & comfort in life and death, wee are in the feare of God to learne this one lesson, namely, that while we have time in this world, we must labour to be united unto Christ that we maybe bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh. This very point is as it were a flaggon of wine to reuive our soules when they be in a swowne at any instant. And that we may be assured that we are certainly joyned to Christ, we must shew our selves to be members of his misticall body by the daily fruites of righteousnes and true repentance. And being once certainly assured in conscience of our beeing in Christ, let death come when it wil, & let it cruelly part asunder both body & soule, yet shall they both remaine in the covenant; and by meanes thereof be reunited and taken up to life eternall. Whereas on the contrary, if men be out of the covenant and die out of Christ, their soules goe to hell, and their bodies rot for a time in the grave, but afterward they rise to endlesse perdition. Wherefore I say againe and againe, labour that your consciences by the holy ghost may testifie that ye are living stones in the temple of God, & branches bearing fruite in the true vine: & then ye shall feele by experience, that the pangs of death shall be a further degree of happinesse then ever ye found in your lives, even then when ye are gasping and panting for breath.
Thus much of the meaning of the text, now followes the uses, & they are manifold. The first & principall is this: In that Solomon preferres the day of death before the day of birth; he doth therein give us to understand, that there is a direct & certain way wherby a man may die well; and if it had beene otherwise, he could not have said that the day of death is better. And wheras he avoucheth this, he shewes withal that there is an infallible way whereby a man may make a blessed end. Therefore let us now come to search out this way; the knowledge and true understanding wherof must not be fetched from the writings of men, but from the word of God, who hath the power of life and death in his owne hand.
Now that a man may die well, God’s word requires 2. things: a preparation before death, and a right behaviour and disposition in death.
The preparation unto death, is an action of a repentant siner, whereby he makes himself fit and ready to die, and it is a dutie very necessary, to which we are bound by God’s commādement. For there bee sundrie places of Scripture which doe straightly injoyn us to watch & pray, & to make our selves readie every way against the second comming of Christ to judgement. Now the same places doe withall bind us to make preparation against death, at which time God comes to judgement unto us particularly, Againe, look as death leaveth a man, so shall the last judgement finde him, and so shall hee abide eternally: there may bee changes & conversions from evil to good in this life, but after death there is no change at all. Therefore a preparation to death can in no wise be omitted of him that desires to make an happie & blessed end.
This preparation is twofold: generall, & particular. Generall preparation is that whereby a man prepares himselfe to die through the whole course of his life. A duty most needefull that must in no wise be omitted. The reasons are these: First of all death which is certaine is most uncertaine. I say it is certain, because no man can eschew death. And it is uncerten 3. waies: first, in regard of time: for no man knoweth when hee shall die: secondly, in regard of place: for no man knowes where he shall die, whether in his bedde or in the field, whether by sea or by land: thirdly, in respect of the kind of death; for no mā knows whether he shal dy of a lingring or sudden, of a violent or naturall death. Hence it follows, that men should every day prepare themselves to death. Indeede if wee could know when, where, and how we should die, the case were otherwise, but seeing wee know none of these: it stands us in hand to looke about us. A second reason serving further to perswade us, is this: The most daungerous thing of all in this world is, to neglect all preparation. To make this point more manifest, I will use this comparison: A certaine man pursued by an unicorne, in his flight fals into a dungeon, & in his fall takes hold and hangs by the arme of a tree: now as hee thus hangs looking downeward, he sees two wormes gnawing at the root of the tree, and as he looks upward he sees an hive of most sweet honie, wherupon he climes up unto it, and sitting by it he feeds theron. In the meane season while he is thus sitting, the two wormes gnaw in pieces the root of the tree: which don, tree and man & all fal into the bottome of the dungeon. Now this unicorn is death: the man that flieth is every one of us, and every living man: the pit over which he hangeth, is hell: the arme of the tree is life it self: the two wormes are day and night, the continuance whereof is the whole life of man: the hive of honie is the pleasures, and profits, and honours of this world, to which when men wholly give themselves not considering their ends, til the tree root, that is, this temporall life be cut off: which beeing once done, they plunge themselves quite into the gulfe of hell.
By this we see, that there is good cause that men should not deferre their preparation till the time of sicknes, but rather every day make themselves readie against the day of death. But some will say, it shall suffice if I prepare my selfe to pray when I begin to be sicke. Answ. These men greatly deceive themselves; for the time thee is most unfit to begin a preparation, because all the senses & powers of the body are occupied about the pains and troubles of the disease: and the sicke party is exercised partly in conference with the Physitian, partly with the minister about his soules health and matters of conscience, and partly with friends that come to visit. Therfore there must some preparation goe before in the time of health, when the whole man with all the powers of body and soule are at liberty. Again, there be some others which imagine and say, that a man may repent when he wil, even in the time of death: and that such repentance is sufficiēt. Ans. It is false which they say; for it is not in the power of man to repēt when he himselfe will; when God will, he may. It is not in him that willeth or runeth, but in God that hath mercy. And Christ saith that many shal seek to enter into heaven, and shal not be able. But why so? because they seeke when it is too late, namly, when the time of grace is past. Therefore it is exceeding follie for men so much as once to dream that they may have repentance at command: nay it is a just judgement that they should be condemned of God in death, that did condemne God in their life: and that they should quite be forgotten of God in sicknesse, and did forget God in their health. Again I answer, that this late repētance is seldome or never true repentance. It is sicke like the party himselfe, commonly languishing and dying together with him. Repentance should be voluntary (as all obedience to God ought) but repētance taken up in sicknes, is usually constrained & extorted by the feare of hell, & other judgements of God: for crosses, afflictions, and sicknes wil cause the grosses hypocrite that ever was to stoope and buckle under the hand of God, and to dissemble faith and repentance and every grace of God, as though he had them as fully as any of the true servants of God: wheras indeed he wants thee altogether. Wherfore such repentance commonly is but counterfeit. For in true & sound repentance men must forsake their sines; but in this the sine forsakes the man; who leaves all his evil waies onely upon this that he is constrained to leave the world. Wherefore it is a thing greatly to be wished, that men would repent & prepare themselves to die in the time of health before the day of death or sicknesse come. Lastly, it is alleadged that one of the thieves repented upon the crosse. Ans. The thiefe was called after the eleventh houre at the point of the twelfth, when he was now dying and drawing on: Therefore his conversion was altogether miraculous and extraordinarie: and there was a speciall reason why Christ would have him to be called then, that while he was in suffering he might shew forth the vertue of his passion; that all which saw the one, might also acknowledge the other. Now it is not good for men to make an ordinarie rule of an extraordinarie example.
Thus then this point beeing manifest, that a generall preparation must be made, let us now see in what maner it must be done. And for the right doing of it, five duties must be practised in the course of our lives, The first is the meditation of death in the life time, for the life of a Christian is nothing els but a meditation of death. A notable practise hereof we have in the example of Joseph of Arimathea, who made his tombe in his life time in the middest of his garden: no doubt for this ende, to put himself in mind of death and that in the midst of his delight and pleasures. Heathen Philosophers that never knew Christ, had many excellent meditations of death, though not comfortable in regard of life everlasting. Now wee that have knowne and believed in Christ, must goe beyond them in this point, considering with our selves such things as they never thought of, namely, the cause of death, our sine: the remedie thereof, the cursed death of Christ, cursed I say in regard of the kinde of death and punishment laid upon him, but blessed in regard of us. Thirdly, we must often meditate of the presence of death, which wee doe, when by God’s grace we make an account of every present day as if it were the day of our death, & reckon with our selves when we goe to bed as though we should never rise againe, and when we rise, as though wee should never lie downe againe.
This meditation of death is of speciall use, and brings forth many fruits in the life of man. And first of al, it serves to humble us under the hand of God. Example we have of Abraham, who said,Behold, I have begune now to speake to my Lord, and I am but dust and ashes. Marke here, how the consideration of his mortality made him to abase & cast downe himselfe in the sight of God: and thus if we could reckon of every day as of the last day, it would pull down our peacocks feathers, and make us with Job to abhorre our selves in dust and ashes.
Page 63Secondly, this meditation is a meanes to further repentance. When Ionas came to Niniuie & cried, Yet fourty daies and Ninive shall bee destroyed, the whole citie repented in sackecloath and ashes. When Elias came to Ahab and tolde him that the dogges should eate Jesabel by the wall of Iesreel, & him also of Ahabs stocke that died in the citie, &c. it made him to humble himself so, as the lord saith to Elias, Seest thou how Ahab is humbled before me. Now if the remēbrance of death was of such force in him that was but an hypocrite, how excellent a meanes of grace will it be in them that truely repent?
Thirdly, this meditation seems to stirre up contentation in every estate and condition of life that shall befall us. Righteous Job in the midst of his afflictions, comforts himself with this consideration. Naked (saith he) cam I forth of my mothers wombe, and naked shall I returne againe, &c, blessed bee the name of the Lord. And surely the often meditation of this, that a man of al his aboundance can carrie nothing with him but either a coffin or a winding sheete or both, should bee a forcible meanes to represse the unsatiable desire of riches & the love of this world.
Thus we see what an effectuall meanes this meditation is to encrease and further the grace of God in the hearts of men. Now I commend this first duty to your Christian considerations, desiring the practice of it in your lives; which practise that it may take place, two things must be performed. 1. labour to plucke out of your hearts a wicked & erroneous imagination, whereby every man naturally blesseth himselfe and thinkes highly of himselfe: and though he had one foote in the grave yet he perswades himselfe that he shall not die yet. There is no man almost so olde but by the corruption of his hart he thinks that he shall live one yeare longer. cruell & unmerciful death makes leagve with no man: and yet the Prophet Esai saith, that the wicked man makes a leagve with death: How can this bee? there is no leagve made indeed, but onely in the wicked imagination of man, who falsly thinkes that death will not come neere him, though al the world should be destroied. See an example in the parable of the rich mā, that having stored up abundance of wealth for many years, said unto his own soule, Soule, thou hast much goods laid up for many yeres, live at ease, eate, drinke, and take thy pastime: wheras his soule was fetched away presētly. And seeing this natural corruption is in every mans hart, we must daily fight against it, and labour by al might & maine that it take no place in us: for so long as it shall prevaile, we shall be utterly unfit to make any preparation to death. We ought rather to indeavour to attaine to the mind and meditation of S. Hierome, who testifieth of himself on this maner, Whether I wake, or sleepe, or whatsoever I doe, me thinkes I heare the sound of the trumpet, rise ye dead and come to judgement.
The second thing which we are to practise, that wee may come to a serious meditation of our owne ends, is, to make praier unto God that we might bee inabled to resolve our selves of death continually. Thus David praied, Lord make me to knowe mine ende, and the measure of my daies, let mee knowe how long I have to live, And Moses,Lord teach me to number my daies, that I may apply mine heart unto wisedom. It may be said, What need mē pray to God that they may be able to number their daies? can not they of themselves reckon a fewe yeares and daies, that are able by arte to measure the globe of the earth, and the spheres of heaven, & the quantities of the starres, with their longitudes, latitudes, altitudes, motions, & distances from the earth? No verily: For howesoever by a generall speculation we thinke something of our ends, yet unlesse the spirit of God be our schoole-master to teach us our dutie, wee shall never bee able soundly to resolve our selves of the presence and speedinesse of death. And therfore let us pray with David and Moses that God would inlighten our minds with knowledge, and fil our hearts with his grace that we might rightly consider of death, and esteeme of every day an houre as it were the day and houre of death.
The second dutie in this generall preparation is, that every man must daily indeavour to take away from his owne death the power and strength thereof. And I pray you marke this point. The Philistims sawe by experience that Samson was of great strength, & therfore they used meanes to knowe in what part of his bodie it lay: & when they found it to be in the haire of his head, they ceased not until it was cut off. In like maner the time wil come when we must encoūter hand to hand with tyranous and cruel death: the best therefore is, before-hand now while wee have time to search where the strēgth of death lies, which beeing once knowne, we must with speed cut off his Samson’s lockes, and bereave him of his power, disarme him, & make him altogether unable to prevaile against us. Now to find out this matter, we neede not to use the councel of any Dalilah; for wee have the word of God which teacheth us plaīly where the strength of death consists, namly in our sins, as Paul saith, The sting of death is sine. Well then, we knowing certenly that the power and force of every mans partirular death lies in his owne sines, must spend our time and studie in using good meanes that our sines may be remooved and pardoned. And therefore we must daily inure our selves in the practise of two duties. One is to humble our selves for al our sins past, partly confessing thee against our selves, partly in praier crying to heaven for the pardon of them. The other is for time to come to turn unto God, and to carrie a purpose, resolution, & indeavour in all things to reforme both hart & life according to God’s word. These are the very principall & proper duties, wherby the power of death is much rebated, & he is made of a mighty & bloody enemie so far forth friendly and tractable, that we may with comfort incounter with him & prevaile too. Therefore I commend these duties to your christian considerations, & carefull practise, desiring that ye would spend your daies ever hereafter in doing of them. If a man were to deale with a mighty dragon or serpent hand to hand, in such wise as he must either kill or be killed, the best thing were to bereave him of his sting, or of that part of the body where his poison lies: now death it selfe is a serpent, dragon, or scorpion, & sine is the sting and poison whereby he wounds & kils us. Wherefore without any more delay, see that ye pull out his sting: the practise of the foresaid duties is as it were a fit & worthy instrument to do the deed. Hast thou beene a person ignorant of God’s will, a contemner of his word and worship, a blasphemer of his name, a breaker of his Sabbaths, disobedient to parents and magistrates, a murderer, a fornicatour, a rayler, a slanderer, a covetous person, &c. reforme these thy sines and all other like to them, pull thee out by the rootes from thy heart, & cast them off. So many sines as be in thee, so many stings of death be also in thee to wound thy soule to eternal death: therfore let no one sin remaine for which thou hast not humbled thy selfe and repented seriously. When death hurts any man, it takes the weapons whereby he is hurt, from his owne hand. It canot do us the least hurt but by the force of our owne sins. Wherefore I say againe, and againe, lay this point to your hearts, & spend your strength, life, and health, that ye may before ye die, abolish the strength of death. A man may put a serpent in his bosome when the sting is out: & we may let death creepe into our bosomes, and gripe us with his legs, and stab us at the heart, so long as he brings not his venime and poison with him.
And because the former duties are so necessary, as none can be more, I wil use some reasons yet furder to inforce thee. Whatsoever a man would doe when he is dying, the same he ought to doe every day while he is living: now the most notorious and wicked person that ever was, when he is dying will pray and desire others to pray for him, & promise amendment of life, protesting that if he might live, he would become a practitioner in all the good duties of faith, repentance, & reformation of life. Oh therfore be careful to do this every day. Again, the saying is true, he that would live when he is dead, must die while he is alive, namely, to his sins. Wouldest thou then live eternally? sve to heaven for thy pardon, and see that now in thy life-time thou die to thine own sines. Lastly, wicked Balaam would faine die the death of the righteous: but alas, it was to small purpose: for he would by no means live the life of the righteous. For his comtinual purpose and meaning was to follow his olde waies in sorceries & covetousnesse. Now the life of a righteous man standes in the humbling of himself for his sines past, and in a carefull reformation of life to come. Wouldest thou then die the death of the righteous? then looke unto it, that thy life be the life of the righteous: if ye will needes live the life of the unrighteous, yee must looke to die the death of the unrighteous. Remēber this, and content not your selves to heare the word, but be doers of it: for ye learn no more indeed, what measure of knowledge soever ye have, then ye practice.
The third dutie in our generall preparation, is in this life to enter into the first degree of life eternal. For as I have said, there be three degrees of life everlasting, and the first of them is in this present life: for hee that would live in eternall happines for ever, must begine in this world to rise out of the grave of his owne sines, in which by nature he lies buried, and live in newnesse of life, as it is said in the Revelation, He that will escape the second death, must be made partaker of the first resurrection. And Paul saith to the Colossians, that they were in this life delivered from the power of darkenesse,and translated into the kingdom of Christ. And Christ saith to the church of the Jews, the kingdome of heaven is amongst you. Now this first degree of life is, when a man can say with Paul I live not, but Christ lives in me: that is, I finde partly by the testimonie of my sanctified conscience, and partly by experience, that Christ my redeemer by his spirit guideth and governeth my thoughts, will, affections, and all the powers of bodie & soule, according to the blessed direction of his holy will. Now that we may bee able truely to say this, we must have three gifts and graces of God, wherein especially this first degree of life consists. The first is sauing knowledge, whereby wee do truly resolve our selves that God the father of Christ is our father, Christ his sone our redeemer, & the holy Ghost our comforter. That this knowledge is one part of life eternall, it appeares by the saying of Christ in John. This is life eternall, that is, the begining and entrance to life eternall, to knowe thee the onely God and whome thou hast sent Jesus Christ. The second grace, is peace of conscience which passeth al understanding: and therefore Paul saith; that the kingdome of heaven is righteousnesse, peace of conscience, and joy in the holy Ghost. The horrour of a guiltie conscience is the begining of death & destruction: therefore peace of consicence derived from the death of Christ, is life and happinesse. The third is the regimēt of the spirit, whereby the heart and life of mā is ordered according to the word of God. For Paul saith, that they that are the children of God are led by the spirit of Christ. Now seeing this is so, that if we would live eternally, we must begin to live that blessed and eternall life before wee die; here we must be carefull to reforme two common errours. The first is, that a mā enters into eternall life when he dies and not before; which is a flatte untrueth. Our Saviour Christ said to Zacheus, This day is salvation come to thy house: giving us to understand, that a man thee begins to be saved, when God doth effectually call him by the ministery of his Gospel. Whosoever then will be saved when he is dying & dead, must begin to be saved while he is now living. His salvation must begine in this life, that would come to salvation after this life: Verily,verily, saith Christ, he that heareth my word, and believeth in him that sent me, hath eternall life, namely, in this present life. The second error is, that howsoever a man live, if when he is dying he can lift up his his eies, & say, Lord have mercie upon me, he is certainely saved. Behold a very fond & foolish conceit, that deceives many a mā. It is al one as if an arrand thiefe should thus reason with himselfe, and say, I will spend my daies in robbing and stealing, I feare neither arraignment nor execution. For at the very time when I am to be turned off from the ladder, if I doe but call upon the judge I know I shall have my pardon. Behold a most daungerous and desperate course: and the very ame is the practise of carelesse men in the matter of their saluation. For a man may die with Lord have mercy in his mouth, & perish eternally; except in this world he enter into the first degree of eternall life. For not every one that saith Lord,Lord, shall enter into heaven but he that doth the will of the father which is in heaven.
The fourth dutie is to exercise and inure our selves in dying by little and little so long as we live here upon earth, before we come to die indeede. And as mē that are appointed to run a race, exercise themselves before in runing, that they may get the victory; so should we begin to die now while wee are living, that we might dywel in the end. But some may say, how should this be done? Paul gives us direction in his own example, when he saith,By the rejoycing which I have in Christ, I die daily. And he died daily not onely because he was often in danger of death by reason of his calling; but also because in all his dangers & troubles, hee inured himselfe to die. For when men doe make the right use of their afflictions, whether they be in bodie or minde or both, and doe with all their might indeavour to beare them patiently; humbling themselves as under the correction of god, then they begin to die wel. And to doe this indeede is ro take an excellent course. He that would mortifie his greatest sins, must begin to do it with small sines; which, when they are once reformed, a mā shalbe able more easily to overcome his master-sins. So likewise he that would be able to beare the crosse of all crosses, namely, death it selfe; must first of all learne to beare smal crosses, as sicknesses in bodie. and troubles in minde, with losses of goods and of friends, and of good name: which I may fitly tearme little deaths, & the beginings of death it selfe: and we must first of all acquaint our selves with these litle deaths, before we can be able to beare the great death of all. Again, the afflictions and calamities of this life are as it were the harbingers and puruiers of death: and we are first to learne how to entertaine these messengers, that when death the Lord himselfe shall come, wee may in better maner entertaine him. This point Bilney the martyr well considered, who oftentimes before he was burned, put his finger into the flame of the candle, not onely to make trial of his abilitie in suffering, but also to arme and strengthen himself against greater tormēts in death. Thus ye see the fourth duty, which ye must in any wise learne and remember, because we canot be able to beare the pangs of death well, unles we be first well schooled and nurtured by sundrie trialls in this life.
The fifth and last dutie is set downe by Solomon, All that thine hand shall finde to doe,doe it with all thy power. And marke the reason. For there is neither worke, nor invention, nor knowledge, nor wisedome in the grave whither thou goest. To the same purpose Paul saith, Doe good to all men while ye have time. Therfore if any man be able to doe any good service either to God’s Church, or to the Commonwealth, or to any private man, let him doe it with all speede & with all his might, lest death it selfe prevent him. He that hath care thus to spend his daies, shal with much comfort and peace of conscience end his life.
Thus much of generall preparation. Now followeth the particular, which is in the time of sicknes. And here first of all I will shew what is the doctrine of the Papists, and then afterward the truth. By the popish order and practise, when a man is about to die, he is enjoyned three things. First, to make sacramentall confession, specially if it be in any mortall sine; secondly to receive the eucharist; thirdly to require his anoyling that is, the sacrament (as they call it) of extreame unction.
Sacramentall confession, they tearme a rehearsal or enumeration of all mans sines to a priest, that he may receive absolution. But against this kind of confession, sundry reasons may be alleadged. First of all, it hath no warrant either by commandemēt or example in the whole word of God. They say yes: and they indeavour to proove it thus: He which lies in any mortall sine, is by God’s law bound to doe penance and to seeke reconciliation with God: now the necessary means after baptisme to obtaine reconciliation, is confession of all our sins to a priest.
Because Christ hath appointed Priests to be judges upon earth, with such measure of authority, that no man falling after baptisme can without their sentēce and determination be reconciled; and they can not rightly judge, unlesse they know all a mans sines: therefore all that fal after baptisme are bound by God’s word to open all their sins to the priest. Ans. It is false which they say that priests are judges, having power to examine and take knowledge of mens sines, and iurisdiction whereby they can properly absolve & pardon or retaine thee. For God’s word hath given no more to man, but a ministerie of reconciliation, whereby in the name of God, and according to his word, he doth preach, declare, and pronounce, that God doth pardon or not pardon his sins. Againe, pardon may truly be pronounced, & right judgement of the estate of any man, without a particular rehearsall of all his sines. For he which soundly & truly repents of one or some fewe sines, repents of all. Secondly, this confession is overturned by the practise of the Prophets & Apostles, who not onely absolved particular persons, but also whole Churches without exaction of an auricular confession. When Nathan the Prophet had rebuked David for his two great & horrible crimes, David touched with remors said, I have sined, & Nathā presētly without further examination declared unto him in the name of God that his sins were forgiven him. Thirdly, it can not be prooved by any good & sufficient proofes, that this confession was used in the Church of God til after five or sixe hundred yeares were expired. For the confession which was then in use, was either publike before the Church, or the opening of a publike fault to some private person in secret. Therfore to vrge sicke men unto it lying at the point of death, is to lay more burdens on thee, then ever God appointed.
And whereas they make it a necessarie thing to receive the Eucharist in the time of sicknes toward death, and that priuatly of the sicke partie alone, they have no warrant for their practise and opinion. For in the want of the sacrament there is no danger, but in the contempt: and the very contempt it self is a sin which may be pardoned, if wee repent. And there is no reason why wee should thinke that sicke men should be deprived of the comfort of the Lords supper, if they receive it not in death, because the fruit and efficacie of the Sacrament once received, is not to be restrained to the time of receiving, but it extends it self to the whole time of mans life afterward. Againe, the supper of the Lord is no private action, but meerely Ecclesiasticall: and therfore to be celebrated in the meeting & assembly of God’s people; as our Saviour Christ prescribeth, when hee saith,, Do ye this: and Paul in saying, When ye come together. But it is alleadged that the Israelites did eat the Pascal lamb in their houses when they were in Egypt. Ans. The Israelites had then no libertie to make any publicke meeting for that end: and God commanded that the Paschall Lamb should be eaten in al the houses of the Israelites at one & the same instant: & that in effect was as much as if it had bin publike. Againe, they alleadge a Canon of the Councell of Nice; which decreeth, that men being about to die, must receive the Eucharist, & not a be deprived of the prouision of food necessarie for their journey. Ans. The Councell made no decree touching the administration of the Sacrament to all men that die, but to such only as fal away from the faith in persequution, or fell into any other notorious crime, and were thereupon excommunicate, & so remained till death: & either then or somewhat before testified their repentance for their offences. And the Canon was made for this end, that such persons might be assured that they were againe received into the church, & by this means depart with more comfort. Thirdly it is objected, that in the primitive Church, part of the Eucharist was carried by a lad to Serapion an aged man, lying sicke in his bedde. Ans. It was indeed the custome of the auncient Church from the very begining, that the elements of bread and wine should be sent by some of the Deacons to the sicke, which were absent from the assēbly. And yet neverthelesse here is no footing for private communions. For the Eucharist was only then sent, when the rest of the church did openly communicate; & such as were thee absēt only by reason of sicknes, & desired to be partakers of that blessed communion, were to be reputed as present. Lastly, it is objected, that it was the māner of men & women in former times a to cary part of the sacramēt home to their houses, and to reserve it till the time of necessitie, as the time of sicknes, and such like. Ans. The reservation of the sacrament was but a superstitious practise, though it be ancient. For out of the administration, that is, before it begin, & after it is ended, the sacramēt ceaseth to be a sacrament, & the elements to be elements. As for the practise of thee that used to cramme the Eucharist into the mouth of them that were diseased, it is not onely superstitious but also very absurd.
As for the Anoying of the sicke, that is, the anointing of the bodie, specially the organes or instrumēts of the senses, that the party may obtain the remission of his sines, and comfort against all the temptations of the divell in the houre of death, and strēgth more easily to beare the paines of sicknes and the pangs of death, and be againe restored to his corporall health, if it bee expedient for the saluation of his soule, it is but a dotage of mans braine, and hath not so much as a shew of reason to justifie it. The fift of James is commonly alledged to this purpose, but the anointing there mentioned is not of the same kinde with this greasie sacramēt of the Papists. For that anointing of the body was a ceremony used by the Apostles and others, when they put in practise the miraculous gift of healing, which gift is now ceased. secondly, that anointing had a promise that the party anointed should recover his health: but this popish anointing hath no such promise; because for the most part the persons thus anointed die afterward without recoverie: wheras those which were anointed in the primitive Church alwaies recovered. Thirdly, the ancient anointing served onely for the procuring of health, but this tēds further to the procuring of remission of sins, and strength in tēptation. Thus having seene the doctrine of the Papists, I come now to speake of the true and right maner of making particular preparation before death, which containes three sorts of duties: one concerning god, the other comcerning a mās own selfe, the third concerning our neighbour. The first comcerning God, is to seeke to be reconciled unto him in Christ, though we have bin long assured of his favour. All other duties must come after in the second place, & they are of no effect without this. Now this reconciliation must be sought for & is obtained by a renuing of our former faith & repentance: and they must be renued on this māner. So soone as a man shal feele any maner of sicknes to seaze upon his bodie, he must consider with himselfe whence it ariseth: & after serious consideration, he shall finde that it comes not by chance or fortune, but by the providence of God. This done, he must go yet furder & consider for what cause the Lord should afflict his body with any sicknes or disease. And he shal find by God’s word, that sicknes comes ordinarily and usually of sine.Wherefore is the living man sorrowfull? man suffereth for his sine. It is true indeed, ther be other causes of the wāts of the body, & of sicknes, beside sine; and though they be not known to us, yet they ar known to the Lord. Hereupon Christ when he saw a certaine blinde man, and was demaunded what was the cause of the blindnesse, answered, neither hath this man sined nor his parents, but that the workes of God should be shewed on him, Yet we for our parts, who are to goe not by the secret, but by the revealed will of God, must make this use of our sicknes, that it is sent unto us for our sines. When Christ healed the man sicke of the palsy, he saith, Be of good comfort, thy sines are forgiven thee: and when he had healed the man by the poole of Bethesda, that had bin sicke…he bids him sin no more least a worse thing happen unto him: giving them both to understand that their sicknes came by reason of their sines. And thus should every sick man resolve himself. Now when we have proceeded thus farre, & have as it were laid our finger upon the right and proper cause of our sicknesse, three things comcerning our sins must bee performed of us in sicknes. First, we must make a new examination of our hearts and lives, & say as the Israelites said in affliction,Let us search & try our waies, and turne againe to the Lord. Secondly, we must make a new confession to God of our new & particular sines, as God sends new corrections and chastisment. When David had the hād of God very heauy upon him for his sins, so as his very bones & moisture consumed within him, he made confession of them unto God, and therupon obtained his pardon & was healed. The third thing is to make new praier & more earnest then ever before, with sighes & grones of the spirit, & that for pardon of the same sins, & for reconciliation with God in christ. In the exercise of these 3. duties standes the renouation of our faith & repentance wherby they are increased, quickned, & reuived. And the more sicknes prevailes and takes place in the bodie, the more should wee be careful to put thee in vre: that spirituall life might increase as temporal life is decaied. When king Ezechias lay sicke, as he thought upon his death-bedde; he wept as for some other causes so also for his sines, and withal he praied God to cast them behind his back. David made certain Psalmes when he was sick, or at the least upon the occasion of his sicknes, as namely, the 6. the 32. the 38. the 39. &c. and they are al psalmes of repētāce: in which we may see how in distresse of the body and mind he renewed his faith & repentāce, heartily bewailing his sines & intreating the Lord for the pardon of them. Manasses, one that fell from God, and gave himselfe to many horrible sins, when he was taken captive and imprisoned in Babylon, Hee prayed to the Lord his God, and humbled himselfe greatly before the God of his fathers, and prayed unto him: and God was intreated of him, and heard his prayer, and brought him againe to Jerusalem into his kingdome, and then Manasses knew that the Lord was God. Now looke what Manasses did in this tribulation, the same thing must we doe in the time of our bodily sicknesse.
Here I have occasion to mention a notorious fault that is very common in this age, even among such as have long lived in the bosome of the Church; and that is this: Men now adaies are so far from renuing their faith and repentance, that when they lie sick and are drawing toward death, they must bee catechised in the doctrine of faith and repentance, as if they had beene but of late received into the Church. Whosoever wil, but as occasion is offered, visit the sick, shall finde this to be true which I say. What a shame is this, that when a man hath spent his life & daies in the church for the space of 20. or 30. or 40. yeares, hee should at the very ende of all & not before, begin to enquire, what faith & what repentance is, and how his soule might bee saved? This one sin argves the great securitie of this age, & the great contempt of God and his word. Wel, let al men hereafter in time to come, bee warned to take heede of this exceeding negligence in matters of salvation, and to use all good means before-hand, that they may be able in sicknesse and in the time of death to put in practise the spirituall exercises of invocation and repentance.
Now if so be it fall out that the sicke partie canot of himselfe renue his owne faith and repentance, he must seeke the help of others. When the man that was sicke of the dead palsie could not go to Christ himself, he got others to bear him in his bedde; & when they could not come neere for the multitude, they uncovered the roofe of the house, and let the bed down before Christ: even so, when sicke men canot alone by themselves doe the good duties to which they are bound, they must borrow helpe from their fellowe members; who are partly by their counsell to put to their helping hand, & partly by their prayers to present them unto God, and to bring them into the presence of Christ.
And touching helpe in this case, sundry duties are to be performed. Saint James sets downe foure, two whereof concerne the sicke patient, and other two such as be helpers. The first duty of the sicke man is to send for helpe: where two circumstances must be considered; who must be sent for, and when. For the first S. James saith, Is any sicke among you?let him call for the elders of the Church. Whereby are meant not onely Apostles and all ministers of the Gospel, but others also (as I take it) which were men ancient for yeares indued with the spirit of understanding and praier, and had withall the gift of working miracles and of healing the sicke. For in the primitive Church this gift was for a time so plentifully bestowed on thee that beleved in Christ, that souldiers cast out divels, and parents wrought miracles on their childrē. Hēce we may learne, that howsoever it be the dutie of the Ministers of the word principally to visit and comfort the sicke, yet is it not their duty alone: for it belongs to them also which have knowledge of God’s word, and the gift of prayer.Exhort one an other (saith the holy Ghost) while it is called to day. And againe,Admonish them that are disordered, and comfort those that are weake. And indeede in equitie it should be the dutie of every Christian man to comfort his brother in sicknesse. Here wee must needes take knowledge of the common fault of men and women when they come to visit their neighbours and friends they can not speake a word of instruction and comfort, but spend the time either in silence, gazing, and looking on; or in uttering wordes to little or no purpose saying to the sicke partie, that they are sorie to see him in that case, that they wold have him to be of good comfort, but wherein, and by what meanes they canot tel: that they doubt not but that he shall recover his health and live with them still, & be merry as in former time: that they will pray for him: whereas al their prayers are nothing else but the Apostles Creede, or the ten Commandemēts, & the Lords praier uttered without understanding. And this is the common comfort thar sicke men gette at the hands of their neighbours, when they come unto them: and all this comes either because men live in ignorāce of God’s word, or because they falsely thinke that the whole burthen of this dutie lies upon the shoulders of the minister.
The second circumstance is, when the sicke partie must send for the Elders to instruct him and pray for him. And that is in the very first place of al before any other helpe be sought for. Where the Divine endes, there the Physitian must begin: and it is a very preposterous course that the Divine should ther begin where the Physitian makes an ende. For till help be had for the soule, and sine which is the root of sicknes be cured, physicke for the body is nothing. Therefore it is a thing much to be disliked, that in all places almost the Physitian is first sent for, and comes in the begining of the sicknes, and the Minister comes when a man is half dead, and is then sent for oftentimes, when the sicke partie lies drawing on and gasping for breath, as though Ministers of the gospel in these daies were able to worke miracles.
The second dutie of the sick partie is to confesse his sins, as S. James saith, Confesse your sines one to another, and pray one for another. It will be said, that this is to bring in againe Popish shrift. Ans. Confession of our sines, and that unto men was never denied of any: the Question only is of the maner and order of making confession. And for this cause wee must put a great difference betweene popish shrift, and the confession of which S. James speaketh. For he requires onely a confession of that or those sines which lie upon a mans conscience when he is sicke: but the popish doctrine requireth a particular enumeration of al mans sins. Again, S. James injoynes confession onely as a thing meete & conveniēt, but the Papists as a thing necessarie to the remission of sins. Thirdly, S. James permits that confession be made to any man, & by one man to another mutually; whereas popish shrift is made onely to the priest. The second duty then is, that the sick party troubled in minde with the memory and consideration of any of his sines past, or any maner of way tempted by the divell, shall freely of his owne accord open his case to such as are both able & willing to help him, that he may receive comfort and die in peace of conscience.
Thus much of the sick mans duty: now follow the duties of helpers. The first is to pray over him, that is, in his presence to pray with him and for him, and by prayer to present his very person and his whole estate unto God. The Prophet Elizeus, the Apostle Paul, & our Saviour Christ used this maner of praying, when they would miraculously restore temporall life: and therfore it is very meet that the same should be used also of us, that we might the better stirre up our affection in prayer, and our compassion to the sicke when we are about to intreat the Lord for the remission of their sines, and for the salvation of their soules.
The second duty of him that comes as an helper is to anoint the sicke party with oyle. Now this anointing was an outward ceremony which was used with the gift of healing, which is now ceased: and therefore I omit to speake further of it.
Thus much of the duty which the sick man owes to God; now follow the duties which he is to performe unto himselfe, and they are twofold: one concernes his soule, the other his bodie. The dutie concerning his soule is, that he must arme & furnish himself against the immoderate feare of present death. And the reason hereof is plaine: because howsoever naturally men feare death through the whole course of their lives more or lesse, yet in the time of sicknesse when death approcheth, this naturall feare bred in the bone will most of all shew it selfe, even in such sort, as it will astonish the senses of the sicke partie; and sometime cause desperation. Therefore it is necessarie that we shold use meanes to strengthen our selves against the feare of death.
The meanes are of two sorts: practises, and meditations: Practises are two especially. The first is, that the sicke man must not so much regard death it self as the benefits of God which are obtained after death. He must not fixe his minde upon the consideration of the pangs and torments of death; but all his thoughts and affections must be set upon that blessed estate that is enjoyed after death. He that is to passe over some great and deepe river, must not looke downward to the streame of the water; but if he would prevent feare, he must set his foote sure & cast his eye to the banke on the further side: & so must he that drawes neere death as it, were, look over the waves of death, and directly fixe the eye of his faith upon eternall life. The second practise is to looke upon death in the glasse of the Gospel, and not in the glasse of the Law: that is, we must consider death not as it is propounded in the Lawe, and looke upon that terrible face which the law giveth unto it; but as it is set forth in the Gospel. Death in the law is a curse and the downe-fall to the pit of destruction: in the Gospel it is the entrance into heaven: the lawsets forth death as death, the Gospel sets forth death as no death, but as a sleepe onely: because it speakes of death as it is altered & changed by the death of Christ; by the vertue whereof death is properly no death to the servants of God. when men shall have care on this maner to consider of death, it will be a notable meanes to strengthen and stablish them against al immoderate feares & terrours that usually rise in sicknesse.
The meditations which serve for this purpose are inumerable but I wil touch onely those which are the most principall and the grounds of the rest: and they are foure in number. The first is borrowed from the speciall providence of God; namely that the death of every man, much more of every childe of God, is not onely foreseene, but also foreappointed of God; yea the death of every man deserved and procured by his sins, is laid upon him by God, who in that respect may be said to be the cause of every mans death, So saith Ana,The Lord killeth and maketh alive. The Church of HJerusalem confessed that nothing came to passe in the death of Christ, but that which the foreknowledge and eternal counsel of God had appointed. And therfore the death also of every member of Christ is foreseene and ordained by the speciall decree and providence of God. I adde further, that the very circūstances of death, as the time when, the place where, the maner how, the begining of sickenes, the continuance & the end, every fitte in the sicknes, & the pangs of death are particularly set downe in the counsell of God. The very haires of our heads are numbred (saith our Saviour Christ:) and a sparrowe lights not on the groūd without the will of our heavenly father. David faith excellētly. My bones are not hid from thee, though I was made in a secret place, and fashioned beneath in the earth: thine eyes did see me when I was without forme, for in thy booke were al things written, which in continuance were fashioned, when there was nine of them before. And he praies to God to put his teares into his bottle. Now if this be true, that God hath bottles for the very teares of his servants, much more hath hee bottles for their blood, & much more doth he respect and regard their paines and miseries with all the circumstances of sicknesse and death. The carefull meditation of this one point is a notable meanes to arme us against feare and distrust, & impatience in the time of death; as some examples in this case will easily manifest, I held my tongue & said nothing, saith David: but what was it that caused this patience in him? the cause followes in these words: because thou Lord diddest it. And Joseph saith to his brethren: Feare not for it was the Lord that sent me before you. Marke here how Joseph is armed against impatience and griefe & discontentment by the very consideration of God’s providence: and so in the same māner shall we be comfirmed against all feares and sorrowes, and say with David, Pretious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his Saints: if this perswasion be once setled in our hearts, that all things in sicknes & death come to passe unto us by the providence of god, who turnes all things to the good of them that love him.
The second meditation is to be borrowed from the excellent promise that God hath made to the death of the righteous: which is, Blessed are they that die in the Lord, for they rest from their labours, and their workes follow them. The author of truth that canot lie hath spoken it. Now then let a man but throughly consider this, that death joyned with a reformed life hath a promise of blessednes adjoined unto it, and it alone will be a sufficient meanes to stay the rage of our affections, and al inordinate feare of death: and the rather if we marke wherein this blessednesse consists. In death we are indeede thrust out of our olde dwelling places, namely these houses of clay & earthly tabernacles of our bodies, wherein we have made long abode: but what is the ende? surely that living & dying in Christ, we might have a building given of God, that is, an house not made with hands, but eternall in heaven, which is unspeakeable & immortall glory.
If a poore man should bee commanded by a Prince to put off his torne and beggery garments, and in stead thereof to put on royal and costly robes, it would bee a great rejoycing to his heart: oh then what joyfull newes must this bee unto all repentant and sorrowfull siners, when the king of heaven and earth comes unto thee by death and bids them lay downe their bodies as ragged and patched garments, and prepare themselves to put on the princely robe of immortalitie? No tongue can be able to expresse the excellency of this most blessed and happy estate.
The third meditation is borrowed from the estate of all thee that are in Christ, whether living or dying. He that dieth beleeuing in Christ dieth not forth of Christ but in him, having both his body and soule really coupled to Christ according to the tenour of the covenant of grace: and though after death body & soule be severed one from another, yet neither of thee are severed or disjoyned from Christ. The conjunction which is once begun in this life remaines eternally. And therefore though the soule goe from the body, & the body it selfe rot in the grave, yet both are still in Christ, both in the covenant, both in the favour of god as before death, & both shal again be joined togither; the body by the vertu of the former comjunction beng raised to eternall life. Indeed if this union with Christ were dissolved as the comjunction of body & soule is, it might be some matter of discomfort and feare, but the foundation and substance of our mysticall conjunction with Christ both in respect of our bodies and soules enduring for ever, must needes be a matter of exceeding joy and comfort.
The 4. meditation is that god hath promised his speciall, blessed, and comfortable presence unto his servants when they are sicke or dying, or any way distressed. When thou passest thorough the waters, I will bee with thee (saith the Lord) and through the flouds that they doe not overflowe thee: when thou walkest thorough the very fire, thou shalt not be burnt, neither shall the flame kindle upon thee. Now the Lord doth manifest his presēce three waies: the first is by moderating and lessening the paines and torments of sicknes & death, as the very words of the former promise doe plainly import. Hence it comes to passe that to many men the sorrowes and pangs of death, are nothing so grievous and troublesome, as the afflictions & crosses which are laid on them in the course of their lives. The second way of God’s presence is by an inward & unspeakable comfort of the spirit, as Paul saith, We rejoyce in tribulations, knowing that tribulation bringeth forth patience, &c. but why is this rejoycing? because (saith he in the next words) the love of God is shedde abroad in our hearts by the holy Ghost. Again Paul having in some grievous sicknes received the sentence of death, saith of himself, that as the sufferings of Christ did abound in him, so his consolation did abound through Christ. Here then we see that when earthly comforts faile the Lord himselfe drawes neere the bed of the sicke, as it were visiting them in his own person, & ministring unto them refreshing for their soules: with his right hād he holds up their heads,and with his left hand he embraceth them. The third meanes of God’s presēce is the ministery of his good Angels, whome the Lord hath appointed as keepers and nources unto his servants to hold thee up and to beare them in their armes as nources doe young children, and to be as a guard unto them against the divel and his angels. And al this is verified specially in sicknesse, at which time the holy angels are not only presēt with such as feare god, but ready also to receive and to carry their soules into heaven, as appeares by the example of Lazarus.
And thus much of the first dutie which a sicke man is to perform unto himself, namely that he must by all meanes possible arme and strengthen himselfe against the feare of death: now followeth the second duty which is concerning the body: and that is that all sicke persons must be careful to preserve health & life till God doe wholly take it away. For Paul saith, None of us liveth to himselfe,neither doth any die to himselfe: for whether we live, we live unto the Lord: or whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore or die we are the Lords. For this cause we may not doe with our lives as we will, but we must reserve the whole disposition therof unto God, for whose glory we are to live and die. And this temporall life is a most pretious jewell, and as the common saying is, life is very sweet, because it is given to man for this end, that he might have some space of time wherein he might use all good meanes to attaine to life everlasting. Life is not bestowed on us, that wee should spend our daies in our lusts & vaine pleasures, but that we might have libertie to come out of the kingdome of darkenes into the kingdome of grace, and from the bondage of sine into the glorious libertie of the sones of God: & in this respect speciall care must be had of preservation of life, till God do call us hence.
In the preservation of life 2. things must bee considered: the meanes, and the right use of the meanes. The meanes is good & wholesome physicke: which though it be despised of many as a thing unprofitable & needles, yet must it be esteemed as an ordinance and blessing of God. This appeares because the spirit of God hath given approbation unto it in the Scriptures. When it was the good pleasure of god to restore life unto king Ezekias, a lumpe of drie figges by the prophets appointment was laid to his boyle and he was healed. Indeede this cure was in some sort miraculous, because he was made whole in the space of 2. or 3. daies, and the third day he went up to the temple: yet the bunch of figs was a naturall or ordinarie medicine or plaister serving to soften and ripen tumours or swellings in the flesh. And the Samaritane is commended for the binding up and for the powring in of wine and oile into the woundes of the man that lay wounded betweene Jerusalem and Jericho. Now this dealing of his was a right practise of physicke: for the wine served to cleanse the wound and to ease the paine within: and oile served to supple the flesh and to asswage the paine without. And the Prophet Esay seemes to commend this physicke, when he saith, From the sole of the foote there is nothing whole therein,but unds, and swellings, and sores full of corruption: they have not beene wrapped nor bound up, nor mollified with oyle. And whereas God did not command circumcision of childrē before the eight day, he followed a rule of physicke observed in all ages, that the life of the child is very uncerten till the first seaven daies be expired, as we may see by the example of the childe which David had by Bathsheba which died the seauēth day. And upon the very same ground heathen men used not to name their children before the eight day. Thus then it is manifest that the use of physick is lawfull and commendable.
Furthermore, that physick may be well applied to the mainetenance of health, speciall care must be had to make choice of such physitions as are knowne to be well learned, and men of experience, as also of good conscience and good religion. For as in other callings, so in this also, there be sundry abuses which may endanger the lives and the health of men. Some venter upon the bare inspection of the urine, without further direction or knowledge of the estate of the sicke, to prescribe and minister as shall seeme best unto thee. But the learned in this faculty plainly a vouch, that this kind of dealing tendes rather to kill then to cure; and that sundry men are indeed killed thereby. For judgment by the urine is most deceitfull: the water of him that is sicke of a pestilent feaver even unto death, looks for substance and colour as the water of a whole man: and so doth the water of them that are sicke of a quartane or of any other intermitting feaver; specially if they have used a good dyet from the begining: as also of them that have the pleuresie, or the inflammation of the lungs, or the Squinancie, oftentimes when they are neare death. Now then considering the waters of such as are at the point of death, appeare as the urines of haile and sound men; one and the same urine may foresignifie both life and death, and be a signe of divers, nay of contrarie diseases. A thine, crude, and pale urine in them that be in health, is a tokē of want of digestion: but in them that are sicke of a sharpe or burning agve, it betokens the frensie, & is a certen signe of death. Againe, others there bee that thinke it a small matter to make experiments of their devised medicines upon the bodies of their patients, wherby the health which they hoped for is either hindered or much decayed. Thirdly, there be others which minister no physick at any time, or use phlebotomie without the direction of judiciall Astrologie: but if they shall follow this course alwaies, they must needs kill many a man. Put the case that a man full bodied is taken with a pleurisie, the moone being in Lone, what must be done? The learned in this art say, he must presently be let blood: but by Astrologie a stay must be made, till the moone be remooved from Leo to the house of the sune: but by that time the impostume wil be so much encreased by the gathering togither of the humors, that it can neither be dissolved nor ripened: and by this meanes the sicke partie wanting helpe in time, shall die either by inflammation, or by the consumption of the lungs. Againe, when a man is sicke of the Squinancie, or of the feaver called Synaichus, the moone then being in malignant aspects with any of the infortunate planets (as Astrologers use to speake) if letting of blood be deferred till the moone be freed from the foresaid aspects, the partie dies in the meane season. Therefore they are farre wide that minister purgations and let blood no otherwise then they are counselled by the constitution of the starres, whereas it is a farre better course to consider the matter of the disease, with the disposition & ripening of it; as also the courses and simptomes and crisis thereof. This beeing so, there is good cause that sicke men should as well be carefull to make choise of meete Phisitians to whom they might commend the care of their health, as they are carefull to make choise of Lawyers for their worldly suites, and Divines for cases of conscience.
Furthermore, all men must here be warned to take heede, that they use not such meanes as have no warrant. Of this kinde are all charmes or spels, of what words soever they consist: characters and figures either in paper, wood, or waxe: all amulets, and ligatures, which serve to hang about the necke or other parts of the bodie, except they be grounded upon some good naturall reason; as white peonie hung about the necke, is good against the falling sicknes: and woolfe dung tied to the bodie is good against the cholicke, not by any inchantment, but by inward vertue. Otherwise they are all vaine and superstitious: because neither by creation, nor by any ordināce in God’s word, have they any power to cure a bodily disease. For words can doe no more but signifie, and figures can doe no more but represent. And yet neverthelesse these unlawfull and absurde meanes are more used & sought for of common people, then good physicke. But it stands all men greatly in hand in no wise to seeke forth to inchanters, and sorcerers, which indeede are but witches and wizzards, though they are commonly called cuning or wise men and women. It were better for a man to die of his sicknes, then to seeke recovery by such wicked persons. For if any turne after such as worke with spirits, and after soothsayers, to goe an whoring after them, the Lord will set his face against them, and cut them off from among his people. When Ahazia was sicke, he sent to Baalzebub to the god of Ekron to know whether he should recover or no: as the messengers were going, the Prophet Elias met them, and saide, Goe and returne to the King which sent you, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Is it not because there is no God in Israel,that thou sendest to inquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron? therefore thou shalt not come downe from thy bed on which thog art gone up, but shalt die the death. Therefore such kinde of helpe is so farre from curing any paine or sicknes, that it rather doubleth them and fasteneth them upon us.
Thus much of the meanes of health: now followes the maner of using the meanes; concerning which, three rules must be followed. First of all, he that is to take physicke, must not onely prepare his body, as physitians doe prescribe; but he must also prepare his soule by humbling himselfe under the hand of god in his sicknesse for his sines, and make earnest praier to God for the pardon of them before any medicine come in his body. Nowe that this order ought to be used appeares plainely in this, that sicknes springs from our sines as from a root, which should first of all be stocked up, that the braunches might more easily die. And therefore Afa commended for many other things, is blamed for this by the holy Ghost, that he sought not to the Lord, but to the Physitians, & put his trust in them. Oftentimes it comes to passe, that diseases curable in themselves, are made incurable by the sins and the impenitēcie of the partie: and therefore the best way is for them that would have ease, when god begins to correct them by sicknes, then also to begin to humble themselves for all their sines, and turne unto God.
The second rule is, that when we have prepared our selves, and are about to use physicke, we must sanctifie it by the word of God and praier, as we do our meate and drinke. For by the word we must have our warrant, that the medicines prescribed are lawfull and good; and by praier wee must intreate the Lord for a blessing upon them, in restoring of health, if it be the good will of God.
The third rule is, that wee must carrie in mind the right & proper ende of physicke, least we deceive our selves. We must not therefore thinke that physicke serves to prevent olde age or death it selfe. For that is not possible, because God hath set downe that all men shal die and be changed. And life consists in a temperature and proportion of natural heat and radical moisture, which moisture beeing once consumed by the former heat, is by arte unrepairable; and therefore death must needs follow. But the true ende of physicke is to continue and lengthen the life of man to his naturall period; which is when nature, that hath bin long preserved by all possible meanes, is now wholly spent. Now this period, though it can not be lengthened by any skill of man, yet may it easily be shortned, by intemperance in diet, by a drunkenes, and by violent diseases. But care must be had to auoide al such evils, that the little lamp of corporall life may burne till it goe out of it selfe. For this very space of time is the very day of grace and salvation: & whereas god in justice might have cut us off and have utterly destroyed us, yet in great mercie he gives us thus much time, that we might prepare our selves to his kingdome: which time when it is once spent, if a man would redeeme it with the price of ten thousand worlds he canot have it.
And to conclude this point touching physicke, I will here set downe two especiall duties of the physitian himselfe. The first is, that in the want and defect of such as are to put sicke men in minde of their sines, it is a duty specially concerning him, he being a member of Christ, to aduertise his parties that they must truely humble themselves, and pray fervently to God for the pardon of all their sines: and surely this dutie would be more commonly practised then it is, if all physitians did consider that oftentimes they want good successe in their dealings, not because there is any want in arte, or good will, but because the partie with whome they deale is impenitent. The second duty is, when he sees manifest signes of death in his patient, not to depart concealing them, but first of all to certifie the patient therof. There may bee and is too much nicenes in such concealements, and the plaine truth in this case knowne, is very profitable. For when the partie is certen of his end, it bereaves him of all confidence in earthly things, & makes him put all his affiance in the meere mercie of God. When Ezechias was sicke, the Prophet speakes plainely to him, and saith, Set thine house in order: for thou must die, And what good wee may reape by knowing certainly that we have received the sentence of death, Paul sheweth when he saith. we received the sentence of death in our selves,because we should not trust in our selves, but in God that raiseth the dead,
having thus seene what bee the duties of the sicke man to himselfe, let us now see what bee the duties which hee oweth to his neighbour; and they are two. The first is the dutie of reconciliation, whereby hee is freely to forgive all men, and to desire to be forgiven of all. In the olde testament, when a man was to offer a bullocke or lambe in sacrifice to God, he must leave his offering at the altar, and first go and bee reconciled to his brethren, if they had ought against him: much more then must this be done, when we are in death to offer up our selves, our bodies and soules, as an acceptable sacrifice unto God. Question. What if a man canot come to the speech of them with whome he would be reconciled? or if he doe, what if they will not be reconciled? Answ. When any shall in their sicknesse seeke and desire reconciliation, and canot obtaine it, either because the parties are absent, or because they will not relent; they have discharged their conscience, and God will accept their will for the deede. As put case, a man lying sicke on his death bedde, is at enmitie with one that is beyond the sea; so as he canot possibly have any speech with him, if he would never so faine, how shall he stay his minde? why, he must remember that in this case, a will and desire to be reconciled, is reconciliation it selfe.
The second duty is, that those which are rulers & governours of others, must have care & take order that their charges committed to them by God, be left in good estate after their death: & here come three duties to be handled; the first of the Magistrate, the second of the Minister, the third of the Master of the family. The Magistrates duty is, before he die to provide, as much as he can, for the godly & peaceable estate of the towne, citie, or common-wealth: and that is done partly by procuring the maintenance of sound religion and vertue, and partly by establishing of the execution of civil justice and outward peace. Examples of the practise in God’s word are these. when Moses was an hundred and twentie yeare old, and was no more able to go in and out before the people of Israel, he called them before him, and signified that the time of his departure was at hand, and thereupon tooke order for their welfare after his death. And first of all, he placed Joshua over thee in his stead, to be their guid to the promised land: secondly, he gives special charge to all the people, to be valiant & couragious against their enemies, and to obey the commandements of God. And Joshua followes the same course. For he calls the people togither, & tells thee that the time of his death is at hand, & gives them a charge to be couragious, and to worship the true God: which done, hee endes his daies as a worthy captaine. When king David was to goe the way of all flesh, and lay sicke on his death-bed; he placed his owne son Solomon upon his throne, and gave him charge, both for maintenance of religion, and exequution of justice.
The duty of Ministers when they are dying is, as much as they can, to cast and provide for the continuance of the good estate of the Church over which they are placed. Consider the example of Peter: I will (saith he) indeavour alwaies,that yee also may be able to have remembrance of these things after my departure. If this had bin wel observed, there could not have bin such aboundance of schismes, errours, and heresies as hath beene, and the Church of God could not have suffered so great havocke. But because mē have had more care to maintaine personal succession, then the right succession, which standes in the doctrine of the Prophets and Apostles: therefore wolves have come into the roomes of faithfull teachers, & the Apostasie, of which Paul speaks, hath overspread the face of the Church.
Thirdly, housholders must set their families in order before they die, as the Prophet Esay saieth to Ezechiah.Set thine house in order: for thou must die. For the procuring of good order in the family after death, two things are to bee done. The first concernes this life, and that is to dispose of landes and goods. And that this may be well and wisely done; if the Will be unmade, it is with godly advise and counsell to be made in the time of sicknesse; according to the practise of auncient & worthy mē. Abraham before his death makes his will, & gives legacies: so did Isaac; and Jacob, in whose last will and testament are contained many worthy blessings and prophesies of the estate of his childrē. And Christ our Saviour when he was upon the crosse provided for his mother, specially commending her to his disciple John whom hee loved. And indeede this dutie of making a will, is a matter of great weight and importance: for it cuts off much hatred and contention in families, and it staies many suites in lawe. It is not therefore alwaies a matter of indifferencie, which may be done or not done, as many falsely thinke, who upon blinde and sinister respects abstaine from making wils, either because their wealth should not bee knowne, or because they would have their decaied estate to be concealed; or because they feare they shall die the sooner if the will be once made.
Now though the making of wils belong to another place and profession, yet so much may be spoken here as the holy Ghost hath uttered in the word: and that I wil reduce to certaine rules. The first is, that the will must be made according to the law of nature, and the written word of God, and the good and wholesome positive lawes of that kingdom or country wherof a man is a member. The will of God must be the rule of mans will. And therefore the will that is made against any of these, is faultie. The second is, that if goods evil gotten be not restored before, they must even then be restored by will, or by some other way. It is the practise of covetous mē to beqveath their soules when they die to God, & withall to beqveath their goods evil gotten to their children & friends; which in all equitie should bee restored to them to whom they belong. Quest. Howe if a mans conscience tell him that his goods be evil gotten, and he knowes not where, or to whome to make restitution? Ans. The case is common, & the answer is this: When he is known whom thou hast wronged, restore to him particularly: if the partie be unknown, or dead, restore to his executors or assignes, or to his next kin: if there be none, yet keepe not goods evil gotten to thy selfe, but restore to God, that is, in way of recompence and civil satisfaction, bestow them on the Church or common-wealth. The third rule is, that heads of families must principally bestowe their goods on their owne children and them that be of their kindred. This man (saith God to Abraham of Eleazar a straunger) shall not be thine heire, but the son which shal come of thy loynes. And this was God’s commaundemēt to the Israelites, that when any man dies, his sone should be his heire, & if he have no sone, then his daughter: & if he have no daughter, then his brethren: and if he have no brethren, then his fathers brethren: and if that there be none, then the next of the kine whosoever. And Paul saith,If ye be sones, then also heires: and againe, He that provides not for his owne, and namely, for them of his houshold, is worse then an infidell. Therefore it is a fault of any man to alienate his goods or lands, wholly & finally from his blood and posteritie. It is a thing which the very law of nature it selfe hath condemned. Againe, it is a fault to give all to the eldest, and nothing in respect to the rest; as though the eldest were borne to be gentlemen, & yonger brethren borne to beare the wallet. Yet in equitie the eldest must have more then any; even because he is the eldest, & because stocks and families in their persons are to be maintained; and because there must alwaies be some that must be fitte to doe speciall service in the peace of the common weale, or in the time of warre: which could not be, if goods should be equally parted to al. The fourth and last rule is, that no Will is of force till the testatour be dead, for so long as he is alive, he may alter and change it. These rules must be remembred, because they are recorded in Scripture: the opening of other points & circumstances belongeth to the profession of the law.
The second dutie of the master of the familie, concerneth the soules of such as be under his government: and that is to give charge to them, that they learne, believe, and obey the true religion, that is, the doctrine of salvation set downe in the writings of the Prophets & Apostles. The Lord himselfe commends Abraham for this: I knowe Abraham, saith he, that he will command his sones, and his houshold after him, that they keepe the way of the Lord to doe righteousnes and judgement. And David gives Solomon on his death-bed a most notable & solemne charge, the summe and substance whereof is, to know the God of his fathers, and to serve him: which beeing done, he further commends him to God by prayer: for which purpose the 72. psal. was made. This practise of his is to be followed of all. Thus governours, when they shall carefully dispose of their goods, and give charge to their posteritie touching the worship of God, shall greatly honour God dying as well as living.
Hitherto I have intreated of the two-fold preparation which is to goe before death: now follows the second part of Dying-well, namely, the disposition in death. This disposition is nothing els but a religious and holy behaviour specially towards God, when we are in, or neare the agonie and pang of death. This behaviour containes three speciall duties. The first is, to die in or by faith. To die by faith is, when a man in the time of death doth with all his heart rely himselfe wholly on God’s speciall love and favoure and mercie in Christ, as it is revealed in the word. And though there be no part of mans life void of just occasions whereby we may put faith in practise, yet the speciall time of all is the pang of death, when friends, and riches, and pleasures, and the outward senses, & temporall life, & all earthly helpes forsake us. For then true faith maketh us to go wholly out of our selves, and to despaire of comfort and salvation in respect of an earthly thing; & with all the power & strength of the heart, to rest on the pure mercie of God. This made Luther both thinke and say, that men were best Christians in death. An example of this faith we have in David, who when he sawe nothing before his eies but present death, the people intending to stone him, comforted him at that very instant (as the text saith) in the Lord his God. And this comfort he reaped, in that by faith he applied unto his own soule the mercifull promises of God; as he testifieth of himselfe: Remember (saith he) the promise made to thy servant,wherein thou hast caused me to trust. It is my comfort in trouble: for thy promise hath quickned me. Againe, my flesh failed and my heart also, but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever. Now looke what David here did, the same must every one of us do in the like case. When the Israelites in the wildernes were stung with fierie serpents, and lay at the point of death, they looked up to the brasen serpent which was erected by the appointment of God, and were presently healed: even so when any man feeles death to drawe neere, & his fierie sting to pierce the heart, he must fixe the eye of a true and lively faith upon Christ, exalted and crucified on the crosse, which beeing done, he shal by death enter into eternall life.
Now because true faith is no dead thing, it must be expressed by especiall actions; the principall whereof is invocation, wherby either praier or thanksgiving is directed unto God. When death had seazed upon the body of Jacob, he raised up himselfe, and turning his face towards the beddes head, leaned on the toppe of his staffe by reason of his feeblenes, and praied unto God: which praier of his was an excellent fruite of his faith.Job’s wife in the middest of his affliction said unto him to very good purpose. Blesse God and die. I knowe and graunt that the words are commonly translated otherwise, Curse God and die: but (as I take it) the former is the best. For it is not like that in so excellent a familie, any one person, much lesse a matrone and principall governour thereof, would give such lewde and wretched councell; which the most wicked man upon earth, having no more but the light of nature, would not once give, but rather much abhorre and condemne. And though Job call her a foolish woman, yet he doth it not because shee went about to perswade him to blaspheme God; but because shee was of the minde of Job’s friends, and a thought that he stood to much in a conceit of his owne righteousnes. Now the effect & meaning of her councell is this: blesse God, that is, husband, no doubt thou art by the extremitie of thine affliction at deaths doore; therefore begin now at length to lay aside the great overweening which thou hast of thine owne righteousnesse, acknowledge the hand of God upon thee for thy sins, confesse them unto him giving him the glorie, pray for the pardon of them, & ende thy daies. This counsell is very good and to bee followed of all: though it may be the applying of it (as Job well perceived) is mixt with follie.
Here it may be alleadged, that in the pangs of death men want their senses and convenient utterance, and therefore that they are unable to pray. Ans. The very sighes, sobs, and grones of a repentant and beleeuing heart, are praiers before God, even as effectuall, as if they were uttered by the best voice in the world. Praier stands in the affection of the heart, the voice is but an outward messenger therof. God lookes not upon the speech, but upon the heart. David saith, God heares the desire of the poore: againe, That he will fulfil the desires of them that heare him: yea, their very teares are loud and sounding praiers in his eares.
Againe, faith may otherwise be expressed by the Last wordes, which for the most part of them that have truly served God, are very excellent and comfortable and full of grace: some choise examples whereof I will rehearse for instructions sake and for imitation. The last words of Jacob were those, whereby as a Prophet he foretolde blessing and curses upon his children: and the principall among the rest were these,The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, and the lawgiver from betweene his feete, till Shilo come: and, O Lord,I have waited for thy salvation. The last wordes of Moses are his most excellent song set downe, Deut. chap. 32. and the last words of David were these, The spirit of the Lord spake by me, and his word was in my tongue: the God of Israel spake to me, the strength of Israel said, Beare rule over men, &c. The words of Zacharias the son of Jehoida, when he was stoned were, The Lord looke upon it and require it. The last words of our Saviour Christ when he was dying upon the crosse, are most admirable, and stored with aboundance of spiritual grace. 1. To his father he saith, Father, forgive them,they know not what they doe. 2. to the thiefe, Verily I say unto thee, this night shalt thou be with mee in paradise. 3. to his mother, Mother, behold thy son: and to John, behold my mother. 4. and in his agonie, My God, thy God, why hast thou forsaken mee? 5. and earnestly desiring our salvation, I thirst. 6. and when he had made perfect satisfaction, It is finished. 7. and when bodie and soule were parting, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit, The last words of Steven were, 1. Behold, I see the heavens open,and the sone of man standing at the right hand of God 2. Lord Jesus receive my spirit. 3. Lord lay not this sine to their charge. Of Polycarpe, Thou art a true God without lying, therefore in all things I praise thee, and blesse thee, and glorifie thee by the eternall God & high Priest Jesus Christ thine onely beloved Sone, by whome and with whome, to thee, and the holy spirit, be all glorie now and for ever. Of Ignatius, I care not what kinde of death I die:I am the bread of the Lord and must be grounde with the teeth of lyons, that I may be cleane bread for Christ, who is the bread of life for mee. Of Ambrose, I have not so led my life among you as if I were ashamed to live: neither doe I feare death, because we have a good Lord. Of Augustine, 1. He is no great man that thinkes it a great matter that trees and stones fall and mortall men die. 2. just art thou, O Lord, & righteous is thy judgement. Of Bernard, 1. An admonition to his brethren that they would grounde the anchor of their faith and hope in the safe and sure port of God’s mercie. 2. Because (saith he) as I suppose I canot leave unto you any choise examples of religion, I commend three to be imitated of you, which I remember that I have observed in the race which I have run as much as possibly I could. 1. I gave lesse heed to mine own sense & reason then to the sense and reason of other men. 2. When I was hurt, I sought not revenge on him that did the hurt. 3. I had care to give offence to no man, and if it fell out otherwise, I tooke it away as I could. Of Zwinglius, when in the field he was wounded under the chin with a speare; O what hap is this?go to, they may kill my bodie, but my soule they canot. Of Oecolampadius. 1. An exhortation to the ministers of the Church to maintaine the puritie of doctrine, to shewe forth an example of honest and godly conversation, to be constant & patiēt under the crosse. 2. Of himselfe. Whereas I am charged to be a corrupter of the truth. I weigh it not: now I am going to the tribunall of Christ and that with good conscience by the grace of God, and there it shall bee manifest that I have not seduced the Church. Of this my saying & contestation, I leave you as witnesses, and I confirme it with this my last breath. 3. To his children, Love God the father: & turning himself to his kinsfolks: I have boūd you (saith he) with this contestation: you (which they heare and have desired) shall doe your indeavour, that these my children may be godly, and peaceable, and true, 4. to his friend comming unto him, What shall I say unto you? Newes, I shall be shortly with Christ my Lord. 5. beeing asked whether the light did not trouble him, touching his breast, there is light enough, saith he. 6. he rehearsed the whole one & fiftie psalme with deepe sighes from the bottome of his breast. 7. a litle after, Save me Lord Jesus. Of Luther, My heavenly Father, God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ, & God of all comfort, I give thee thanks that thou hast revealed unto me thy son Jesus Christ, whom I have believed, whom I have professed, whome I have loved, whome I have praised, whome the Bishop of Rome and the whole companie of the wicked persecuteth and revileth. I pray thee my Lord Jesus Christ receive my poore soule: my heavenly father, though I be taken from this life, and this bodie of mine is to be laid downe, yet I know certēly, that I shall remaine with thee for ever, neither shall any be able to pull me out of thy hand. Of Hooper, O Lord Jesus son of David have mercie on me and receive my soule. Of Anas Burgivs, Forsake me not O Lord, least I forsake thee. Of Melancthon, If it be the will of God I am willing to die, and I beseech him that he will graunt me a joyfull departure. Of Calvine. 1. I held my tongue because thou lord hast done it. 2. I mourned as a dove. 3. Lord thou grindest me to powder but it sufficeth me because it is thy hand, Of Peter Martyr, that his body was weake, but his minde was well: that hee acknowledged no life or salvation but only in Christ, who was given of the father to bee a redeemer of mankinde: and when hee had confirmed this by testimonie of Scripture, he added, This is my faith in which I will die: and God will destroy them that teach otherwise. This done, he shooke hāds with all and said, Farewell my brethren and deare friends. It were easie to quote more examples, but these fewe may bee in stead of many: & the summe of al that godlymē speake in death is this: Some enlightned with a prophetical spirit foretell things to come, as the Patriarkes Jacob and Joseph did; and there have bin some which by name have testified who should very shortly came after them, and who should remaine alive, and what should be their condition: some have shewed a wonderfull memorie of things past, as of their former life, and of the benefits of God; & no doubt it was given them to stirre up holy affections and thanksgiving to God: some againe rightly judging of the change of their present estate for a better, doe rejoyce exceedingly, that they must be translated from earth to paradise: as Babylas Martyr of Antioch, when his head was to be chopped off, Returne (saith he) O My soule unto thy rest: because the lord hath blessed thee: because thou hast delivered my soule from death, mine eies from teares, and my feete from falling, I shall walke before Iehoua in the land of the living. And some others spake of the vanity of this life, of the imagination of the sorrowes of death, of the beginings of eternall life, of the comfort of the holy Ghost which they feele, of their departure unto Christ.
Quest. What must we thinke if in the time of death such excellent speeches bewanting: and in stead thereof idle talke be used? Answ. We must consider the kinde of sicknesse whereof mē die, whether it be more easie or violent: for violent sicknesse is usually accompanied with frensies, and with unseemely motions and gestures, which we are to take in good part even in this regard, because we our selves may be in the like case.
Thus much of the first duty which is to die in faith: the second is to die in obedience: otherwise our death canot be acceptable to God, because wee seeme to come unto God of feare and constraint, as slaves to a master, and not of love as children to a father. Now to die in obedience is, when a man is willing & readie and desirous to goe out of this world whensoever God shall call him, and that without murmuring or repining, at what time, where, and when it shall please God. Whether we live or die, saith Paul we doe it not to our selves but unto God; and therefore mans dutie is to be obedient to God in death as in life. Christ is our example in this case, who in his agonie praied Father, let this cup passe from me, yet with a submission, not my will, but thy will be done: teaching us in the very pangs of death to resigne our selves to the good pleasure of God.
When the prophet tolde king Ezechias of death, presently without all maner of grudging or repining hee addressed himselfe to praier. We are commanded to present our selves unto God as freewill offerings, without any limitation of time, and therefore as well in death as in life. I conclude then that we are to make as much conscience in performing obedience to god in suffering death, as wee doe of any conscience in the course of our lives.
The third dutie is to render up our soules into the handes of God, as the most faithfull keeper of all. This is the last duty of a Christian, and it is prescribed unto us in the example of Christ upon the crosse, who in the very pangs of death when the dissolution of bodie & soule drewe on said,Father into thy hands I commend my spirit, and so gave up the ghost. The like was done by Steven, who when he was stoned to death, said, Lord Jesus receive my spirit. And David in his life time beeing in daunger of death used the very same words that Christ uttered.
Thus we see what be the duties which we are to perform in the very pangs of death, that we may come to eternall life. Some men will happily say, If this be all, to die in faith and obedience and to surrender our soules into God’s hands, we will not greatly care for any preparation beforehand, nor trouble our selves much about the right maner of dying well: for we doubt not, but that when death shall come, we shall be able to performe all the former duties with ease. Answer. Let no man deceive himselfe by any false perswasion, thinking with himselfe that the practise of the foresaid duties is a matter of ease: for ordinarily they are not, neither can bee performed in death, unles there be much preparation in the life before. Hee that will die in faith must first of all live by faith: and there is but one example in all the whole Bible of a man dying in faith that lived without faith; namely, the thiefe upon the crosse. The servants of God that are indued with great measure of grace do very hardly believe in the time of affliction. Indeed when Job was afflicted hee said, Though the Lord kill me, yet will I trust in him: yet afterward, his faith beeing overcast as with a cloude, he saith, that God was become his enemy, & that he had set him as a marke to shoote at: & sundrie times his faith was oppressed with doubting and distrust. How then shall they that never lived by faith nor inured themselves to believe; bee able in the pang of death to rest upon the mercie of God. Againe, he that would die in obedience, must first of all leade his life in obedience: hee that hath lived in disobedience can not willingly and in obedience appeare before the judge when hee is cited by death the sergeant of the Lord: he dies indeed, but that is upon necessitie, because he must yeeld to the order and course of nature as other creatures doe. Thirdly, hee that would surrender his soule into the hands of God must bee resolved of two things: the one is that god can; the other is, that God will receive his soule into heaven and there preserve it till the last judgement. And none can be resolved of this except he have the spirit of God to certifie his conscience that he is redeemed, justified, sanctified by Christ, and shall bee glorified. Hee that is not thus perswaded, dare not render up and present his soule unto God. When David said, Lord into thy handes I commend my spirit: what was the reason of this boldnesse in him? surely nothing else but the perswasion of faith, as the next wordes import: for thou hast redeemed me. O Lord God of truth. And thus it is manifest, that no man ordinarily can performe these duties dying, that hath not performed them living.
This beeing so, I doe againe renew my former exhortation, beseeching you that ye would practise the duties of preparation in the course of your lives, leading them daily in faith and obedience, and from time to time commending your selves into the hand of God, and casting all your workes upon his providence. They, which have done this have made most happie and blessed endes. Enoch by faith walked with God, as one that was alwaies in his presence, leading an upright and godly life, and the Lord tooke him away that he should not see death. And this which befell Enoch, shall after a sort befall them also that live in faith and obedience: because death shal be no death, but a sleepe unto them, and no enemie but a friend to bodie and soule. On the contrary let us consider the wretched & miserable endes of them that have spent their daies in their sines without keeping faith & a good conscience. The people of the old world were drowned in the flood; the filthy Sodomites and Gomorrheans were destroyed with fire from heaven; Dathan and Abiram with the company of Core were swallowed up of the earth, Core himselfe (as it seemes by the text) being burnt with fire: wicked Saul and Achitophel and Judahs destroy themselves. Herod is eaten up of wormes and gave up the ghost: Julian the Apostata smitten with a dart in the field, died casting up his blood into the ayre & blaspheming the name of Christ. Arius the hereticke died upon the stoole scouring forth his very entralls. And this very age affoards store of like examples. Hoffemeister a great Papist, as he was going to the councill of Ralisbone to dispute against the defēders of the Gospel, was suddenly in his journey prevented by the hand of God, and miserably died with horrible roaring and crying out. In the universitie of Lorraine, Guarlacus a learned Papist falling sicke, when he perceived no way with him but death, he fell into miserable agonie and perturbation of spirit, crying out of his sines how miserably he had lived, and that hee was not able to abide the judgement of God, & so casting out words of miserable desperation saide, his sins were greater then they could be pardoned, and in that desperation ended his daies. Jacobus Latromus of the same universitie of Lorraine, after that he had beene at Bruxels, and there thinking to doe a great acte against Luther and his fellowes, made an oration before the Emperour so foolishly and ridiculously that he was laughed to scorne almost of the whole court: then returning from thence to Lorraine againe, in his publike lecture he fell into open madnesse, uttering such wordes of desperation and blasphemous impietie, that other Divines which were present, were faine to carie him away as he was rauing, and to shut him into a close chamber. From that time to his very last breath, he had never any thing else in his mouth, but that he was damned and rejected of God, and that there was no hope of salvation for him, because that wittingly and against his knowledge, he withstood the manifest truth of God’s word. Crescentius the Pope’s Legat and Vicegerent in the councell of Trent; was sitting all the day long untill darke night in writing of letters to the Pope: after his labour when night was come, thinking to refresh himselfe, he began to rise; and at his rising, behold there appeared to him a mightie blacke dogge of an huge bignesse, his eyes flaming with fire, & his eares hanging low downe well neare to the grounde, which begane to enter in and straight to come towardes him, and so to couch under the boord. The Cardinall not a little amazed at the sight thereof, somewhat recovering himselfe called immediately to his servants which were in the outward chamber next by, to bring in a candle and to seeke for the dogge. But when the dogge could not be found there nor in any other chamber about, the Cardinall thereupon stricken with a sudden conceit of minde, immediately fel into such a sicknesse, whereof his Physitians which he had about him could not with all their industrie and cuning cure him: and thereupon he died. Steven Gardiner, when a certaine Bishop came unto him and put him in minde of Peter denying his master, answered againe that he had denied with Peter, but never repented with Peter, and so (to use M. Foxes words) stinkingly and unrepentantly died. More examples might be added, but these shall suffice.
Againe, that we may be further induced to the practise of these duties, let us call to minde the uncertentie of our daies: though we now live, yet who can say that he shall be alive the next day or the next houre? No man hath a lease of his life. Now marke, as death leaves a man, so shall the last judgement finde him: and therefore if death take him away unprepared, eternall damnation followes without recoverie. If a thiefe be brought from prison either to the barre to bee arraigned before the judge, or to the place of execution, he will bewaile his misdemeanour past, and promise all reformation of life; so be it, he might be delivered, though he be the most arrant thiefe that ever was. In this case we are as fellons or thieves: for we are every day going to the barre of God’s judgement, there is no stay or standing in the way, even as the ship in the sea continues on his course day & night whether the marriners be sleeping or waking: therefore let us all prepare our selves and amende our lives betime, that in death wee may make a blessed ende. Ministers of the Gospel doe daily call for the performance of this dutie: but where almost shal we finde the practise & obedience of it in mens lives & conversations? Alas, alas, to lend our eares for the space of an houre to heare the will of God is common; but to give heart & hand to doe the same, is rare. And the reason hereof is athād: we are al most grievous siners, & every siner in the tearmes of Scripture is a foole: and a principall part of his folly is to care for the things of this world and to neglect the kingdome of heaven, to provide for the body & not for the soule, to cast and fore-cast howe we may live in wealth and honour, and ease, and not to use the least fore-cast to die well. This folly our Saviour Christ noted in the rich man that was carefull to inlarge his barnes, but had no care at all for his ende or for the salvation of his soule. Such a one was Achitophel, who (as the Scripture tearmes him) was as the very oracle of God for councell, being a mā of great wisedome & forecast in the matters of the common wealth and in his owne private worldly affaires: and yet for all this he had not so much as common sense and reason, to consider howe he might die the death of the righteous, & come to life everlasting. And this folly the holy ghost hath noted in him. For the text saith, when he saw that his counsell was despised, he sadled his asse, and arose, & went home into his cittie, and put his houshold in order, and went and hanged himselfe. And the five foolish virgins contented themselves with the blasing lamps of a bare profession, never seeking for the horne of lasting oyle of true and lively faith, that might furnish and trimme the lampe both in life and death. But let us in the feare of God, cast off this damnable folly, first of all seeking the kingdome of God and his righteousnesse, and leading our lives in faith and obedience that we may die accordingly.
And thus much of the first point of doctrine, namely, that there is a certen way whereby a man may die well: now I come to the second. Whereas therefore Solomon saith, that the day of death is better then the day of birth, we are furder taught that such as truly believe themselves to be the children of God, are not to feare death overmuch. I say overmuch; because they must partly feare it, and partly not. Feare it they must for two causes: the first, because death is the destruction of humane nature in a mans owne selfe & others: and in this respect Christ feared it without sine; and we must not feare it otherwise then we feare sicknes, and povertie, and famine, with other sorrows of body and minde, which God will not have us to despise or lightly to regard, but to feele with some paine, because they are corrections & punishments for sine. And he doth therfore lay upon us paines & torments, that they may be feared and eschewed: and that by eschewing them we might further learne to eschewe the cause of them, which is sin: and by experience in feeling of paine; acknowledge that God is a judge and enemie of sine, and is exceeding angrie with it. The second cause of the feare of death, is the losse of the Church or Commonwealth, when we or others are deprived of them which were indeede or might have beene an helpe, stay, & comfort to either of them, and whose death hath procured some publike or private losse.
Againe, we are not to feare death, but to be glad of it, and that for many causes. First of al, in it we have occasion to shewe our subjection and obedience which we owe unto God, when he cals us out of this world, as Christ said, Father not my will, but thy will be done. Secondly, all sine is abolished by death, and we then cease to offend God any more as we have done. Thirdly, the dead body is brought into a better condition then ever it was in this life, for by death it is made insensible, and by that meanes it is freed from all the miseries and calamities of this life; & it ceaseth to be either an active or passive instrument of sine, whereas in the life time it is both. Fourthly, it gives the soule passage to rest, life, and celestiall glorie, in which wee shall see God as he is, perfectly know him, and praise his name for ever, keeping without intermission an eternall sabboth, therefore Paul saith, I desire to bee dissolved and bee with Christ, for that is best of all. Fifthly, God exequutes his judgements upon the wicked, and purgeth his Church by death. Nowe in all these respects, godly men have cause not to feare and sorrowe, but to rejoyce in their owne death and the death of others.
Thirdly, if the day of death be so excellēt, yea a day of happinesse, then it is lawfull to desire death, and men doe not alwaies sine in wishing for death. Paul saith, I desire to be dissolveds and againe, O miserable man, who shall deliver me from this bodie of death? Yet this desire must not bee simple, but restrained with certen respects; which are these: First, death must bee desired so farre forth as it is a meanes to free us from the corruption of our nature; secondly, as it is a meanes to bring us to the immediate fellowship of Christ & God himselfe in heaven. Thirdly, death may bee lawfully desired in respect of the troubles & miseries of this life, two caveats beeing observed: the first, that this desire must not be immoderate: the second, it must bee joyned with submission and subjection to the good pleasure of God. If either of these bee wanting, the desire is faulty; & therefore Job, and Jeremie, and Jonas failed herein, because they desired death beeing carried away with impatience.
On the contrarie also a man may desire a continuāce of life. Ezechias praied and desired to live, when he heard the message of present death, that hee might doe service to God. And Paul desired to live, in regard of the Philippians, that hee might further their faith, though in regard of himselfe to die was aduantage to him.
Lastly, if death joyned with reformation of life be so blessed, then the death of the unbeleeving and unrepentant siner is every way cursed & most horrible. Reasons are these: First, it is the destruction of nature, and the wages of their sins. Secondly, in it there is no comfort of the spirit to be found, no mitigation of paine, & no good thing that may counteruaile the miseries thereof. Thirdly, that which is the most fearefull thing of al, bodily death is the begining of eternall death, desfuperation, and infernall torment, without hope of deliverance. Therefore as I began so I ende, have care to live well, and die well.
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