A Treatise of the Cohabitation Of the Faithful with the Unfaithful Part 3

For our purpose also makith that sayinge of S. Paul. Set your selues at large / for what felowshipp hath righteousnes with vnrighteousnes? Or what companie hathe light with darcknes? Or what concorde hath christe withe Beliall? Either what parte hath he that beleauith / with an Infidell? Or how agreith the t?ple of G.o.dd / with Images? These wordes ar so playn that they neede not to be expownded: In which / this conuersacion of which we now do entreate / is most simplye / and playnly forbidden. The figures and ceremonies of Moses lawe ar taken awaye / but yet the thinge figured / which is as I might saye / the strenghth / the pythe / and foundacion of them / doth remayn.

[[Numer. 15.]]

Which thinge being true / I maye th? aske this question. The lorde commaunded that the Iues shuld make gardes in the quartiers of their garm?ts / d to put vppon the garde / a ribande of yelow silcke / &c. My question now is. Whi the lorde did commaunde / that the Iues shuld differ from the gentils / not in circucision only / but euen in their garments also? Euen for this cause verily / that they shuld be taught euen by their gardes also / that they wer G.o.ds peculiar people / and that they shulde separate themselues from the gentils / that they shuld not be conuersaunt with them / neither shuld they ioyne themselues in familiaritie withe them / farther then the necessitie of either of the lyues did require. The Iuishe gardes we do reiect / but this which is ment by the gardes we both do and must retayne. In many places the lorde commaunded the Iues also that they shuld not return into Egypte / and that they shuld not aske healpe of the Egiptians / nor of the a.s.sirians: Which he did partly to this end / that through such familiaritie as then must haue beene betwene them and their healpers / the Israelites shuld not be infected withe their vices. The booke of the Iudges / doth playnly inough teache vs this will and pleasure of G.o.dd.

[[Iudic. 2.]]

For the Israelites did synne greuusly in this / that they did put to tribute thos Idolatrus nacions / ouer whom the lorde hadd gyuen them uictorie / and did couenant with th? / that they shuld dwell amonge them in peace / which thinge G.o.dd hadd diuers tymes expressly forbidden them to do / commaunding that they shuld vtterly destroye the inhabittes of that lande: This he did partli bicause / that through this they shuld not be brought by the Cananites / into the dauger of Idolatrie. Now the cause being such with these weake / and vnlearned men / of whom I now do speake / they must likewise take goode heade to obserue that rule / which the lorde appointed vnto the Israelites. It appearith playnly / that this commdement of G.o.d was kept longe tyme amonge the Iues: for they did not vse ony familiaritie / nor keape companie withe the Samaritans which did not truly worshipe the lyuynge G.o.dd / no not in christes tyme /

[[Ioan. 4.]]

as it appearith by the talke that he hadd with the woman at the well. Morouer as the goode fathers in olde tyme / did esteme it as their singular ioye / when they might be familiarly conuersant with the G.o.dly / so how mutch they sorowed Wh? they could not be so conuersant with the people of G.o.dd / and in G.o.dds house / Dauid is witnes: Who when he fledd from the face of Saul his persequtour / did mourn / and in the psalmes with most heauie complaintes / doth lam?t / that he was compelled to be conuersant amonge straungers / such as did not knowe the lyuyng G.o.dd / and to be as it wer an exile from G.o.dd / and his people. So shuld the companie hadd with the vnfaithfull / be heauy and bitter to the faithfull.

[[Daniel 1.]]

Daniell and his thre felows / might haue lyued / vppon the Kinges table / and haue eaten most fyne and delicate meates / but they did rather chose to lyue together with potage / and water / and vtterly to forsake thos pleasures / and delicacies / then they wold defile them selues with the meates of the vnbeleauers. Moses also / as it is writon in the epistle to the hebrues /

[[Hebr. 11.]]

might if he wold haue beene taken for the Sonne of Pharaos daughter / and so to haue beene in greate hoope of obtaynynge the kingdome of Egipte: but all this sett a parte / he did chose rather / forsaking all theise thinges / to go vnto his brethern / which wer in miserable bondage / seruinge and laboring in claye / and bricke: Which thing to do / as it was a greate triall of his faithe / so the doinge of it doth commend / and sett furth his faithe / and shew what loue he hadd to be conuersant with the people of G.o.dd. They which do not folowe these examples / do shew how litell they do regarde the glorie of G.o.dd / and the communi and felowship of sayntes / which they will not gayne nor redeame with losse / no thoughe it be of neuer so litill: And in this preferring of their own gayne welthe and commoditie / aboue the glorie of G.o.dd / and the felowlie communion of the G.o.dlye / they do most wickedly.

[[1. Cor. 10.]]

Do we (saithe Paule to the corinthians) prouoke the lorde? Ar we strger then he? Theise weake brethern / which do not trie their own strenghth to fele their weaknes so / that they might seeke the encreace of strenghth in them selues / but being weake indeede / both dare and do thus desperatlie committ themselues vnto this familiar conuersacion with the vnfaithfull / they do tempt G.o.dd / and do after a sort prouoke hym / as thoughe they wolde becme stronger than he.

Many more reasons might I bringe to proue this proposicion true.

That a priuate man / being in a place wher he is not compelled to communicate with the supersticis of the vnfaithfull / and is vnlearned vnable / and to weake to confesse the truithe / must not ioyne in familiaritie / nor be familiarly dwelling and conuersant together with the vnfaithfull. But bicause I do suppose that it is sufficiently proued by the reasons which I haue alledged / I will now prepare myself to an other proposicion.

The thred proposicion shalbe / of Priuate men and subiectes / which ar lerned and stronge / and of them also which ar weake and vnlearned / of that dwelling which is not fre / wher as men ar compelled by lawes / and Tyrannye to communicate and to be partakers with the wicked in their supersticions and Idolatries: And of theise I make this proposicion / and sentence.

[[The thred proposicion.]]

Priuate men and subiectes be they learned or vnlearned / stronge or weake / which ar dwelling and abyding in that place wher men ar compelled to communicate / and be partakers withe Idolatrors / and to be present at vnlawfull supersticions and Idolatries / defiling th?selues with vncleane Religi / maye not dwell together nor be familiarly conuersaunt / they may not ioyne in societie with suche Idolatrors: I saye / that this cohabitacion / and familiar dwelling together is vnlawfull / vnG.o.dlye / and not to be kept in ony wise: But in this case a faithfull man must either flye / or dye for the truithe / that he be not compelled to defile himself with Idolatrie. Ther is truly but one truithe / and that same must be holden with a pure cscience / neither must it be forsak? for the pleasure of ony man.

[[1. Cor. 10.]]

S. Paul saith to the Corinthians: flye ye Idolatrie. Then do men flye Idolatrie / when either they do depart fr the place wher Idolatrie is cmitted / or when abiding still in the same place / they do gyue their lyues and suffer deathe bicause they will not cmitt Idolatrie nor allowe it with ther presence. Paul therfor teachith by this sayinge / that in no wise the faithfull shuld come at the Idolatries of the vnfaithfull / but flye fr them: which sentence is so playn to the vnderstondinge of the most symple / that it neadith no exposicion at all. The lawe and the prophetes / the olde Testament and the newe / ar full of such sentences / d cmaundementes / which do forbidd strauge worshippinge of G.o.dd and Idolatrie.

[[2. Mach. 7.]]

Call to your mynde the historie of the Machabees / which I do not recite as thoughe I wold gyue to that booke ony lyke autoritie with the Canonicall scriptures, but bicause the historie is rehersed not only ther / but also in Iosephus / and the examples of them ar profitable for vs / therfor I do alledge them. That G.o.dly Mother hadd rather haue the whole fruite of her bodie to be miserablie destroyed / th? ons to taste of swynes fleshe.

[[Gen. 2.]]

Swynes fleshe / and Adams apple / of their very nature ar not so to be abhorred / for eiche of them is a goode creature of G.o.dd.

But forsomutche as vnto them G.o.dd hathe ioyned his worde to forbid the tasting of them / therfor euen as Adam could not eate the forbidden apple / so could not they eate swynes fleashe without committing of greate synne: which rather then they wolde do / the poore babes offer themselues to the deathe / and the G.o.dly mother doth most stronglye therto encorage th? and most constauntly abide the same herself.

In the church of christe ther haue beene innumerable martirs / as Eusebius / and others do write / which haue most constantly abidden deathe / bicause they wold not depart from the Religion of christe / nor file th?selues with Idolatrie: They wold not put one grayne of franckinsence vppon the altars of the Idols / nor throwe one floure / nor ons bowe the knee before them / but suffered rather deathe.

[[Matth. 10.]]

[[Luc. 12.]]

They hadd this alwais before ther eyes: Feare not hym that killethe the bodie / &c. And that he speakith of killing the bodie / is likewise to be vnderstonded of taking awaye of goodes d ritches: But he is to be feared / which after that he hath taken awaye bothe lyfe and goodes / can throwe the soule into euerlastinge fire / feare hym.

S. Paule to persuade the Corinthians that they shuld abstayn from meates offered vnto Idols / vsith theise reasons:

[[1. Cor. 3.]]

Bicause they wer the Temple of G.o.dd. They wer the membres of christe / and therfor they might not become the m?bres of an Idoll. Bicause they wer partakers of the lords table of which they could not be partakers and of the table of Deuels also. And the same thing that Paule said vnto the Corinthians / do I also saye vnto these our brethern of whom I do entreate.

[[Daniel. 3.]]

Daniel his thre felows did gyue themselues / to be thrown in to the burnynge fornace / rather then they wold worshipp the kinges golden Image. But theise thinges must now be applied vnto theise most vnhappie Daies / in whiche / wher poperie rulith / the G.o.dly which do dwel togither with the vnG.o.dlie / the professours of christes gospell / I meane / With the papistes / ar compelled to be at ther Ma.s.ses / and most vile and filthie Idolatries and supersticions: vnto them doth this proposicion reatche / and of them therfor I do playnly affirme / and saye this /

[[It is not lawfull to be present at the popyshe Ma.s.se and supersticions]]

That it is not lawfull for th? to be present at the popishe Ma.s.ses / at popishe superst.i.tions and jdolatries. It is to well knowne / that many fondlye do flatter / and indeede deceyue them selues / imagining that it is lawfull for them to be present at this popish pelf. Againste whom with all ther clokes I vse this sayinge of Paule / flye ye Idolatrie. But here they resiste and saye / that this sayinge and suche other as before I haue alledged / are to be vnderstanded of the sacryfices done vnto Idoles / and false G.o.ddes / and not of such supersticions as are nowe growen and vsed in papistrie / As of ma.s.ses / and such like / for in the sacrifices of the gentils what so euer is done / yt is done vnto Idolles / But here in the ma.s.se that whiche ys done is done as a worshippe vnto G.o.d / for the name of G.o.dd is caled on: It hathe the begynynge of Christes ordinaunce and inst.i.tution, although that some nowghtie men abuse it: wherfore / seinge theis do thus differ from the other / theis can not by these sentences / and like reason be forbidd? to them / as Idolatrie was to the Corinthis: This they saye. But theis m? shuld considre and wel vnderstande / that theris no owtwarde worcke wiche is to be estemed as a worshippe and seruice of G.o.dd / but only that which is apoynted and ordeyned by G.o.dds worde so to be / which ordinaunce in the worde if it wante / it is vtterlie nothinge ells but mans inuention what so euer it be: for worshippings of G.o.d and G.o.ddes seruice are they not / but only when they haue G.o.dds worde to beare and warraunte them. G.o.d can not be truly worshipped with out faithe, for if faithe be not in the worshippe that is done vnto G.o.d / that worshippe the lorde dothe abhorre / as the Prophet Esaie dothe witnes. Inc?se is an abhominable thinge vnto me / I maye not awaie with your newe moones. &c. I hate your holie dayes / &c.

Thus dothe G.o.d reiect the seruice apointed in his worde / because it was done without faithe. If the seruice and worshippe of G.o.d taughte in his worde maie be done with out faithe / and therfore displease G.o.d / mutch moore these worshippinges which haue not their ordinaunce in G.o.dds worde ar done withe out faithe / therfor do displease G.o.dd: for faithe hathe no place at all where G.o.ddes worde is not: now these inuentions of men be they neuer so glorious to the eye / they be not ordeyned in G.o.dds worde / they can not therfor be doone in faythe / they can not please G.o.d /

[[uuhat so euer is not of faith is synne. Ro. 14.]]

yea G.o.d dothe abhorre them / and accompte them as an abhomination / because they be not so done / in faithe I meane In faithe they be not done / because they are not taughte in G.o.dds worde / for where ther is no worde of G.o.d there is no faithe / and where no faithe is / there is no worshippe of G.o.dd / but a filthie hypocrisie / and stinking abhomination.

Nowe let the papistes shewe that ther ma.s.se is a worshippe of G.o.d / taughte in his worde / whiche we saie plainlie that they can not do / let them do it therfore if they can / and when they haue do yt / then will we saye with th?: But vntill they haue done it / their ma.s.se shall remaine a filthie and stinkinge abhomination before the lorde / and suche a thinge as the lorde dothe deteste and abhorre. If so be that we will do honour and worshippe vnto men / we are accustomed princ.i.p.allie to obserue with what thing they are moste delighted / which thinge after that we haue perceiued / we do it / and then do we thinke to haue bestowed our labour wel when we haue done it: G.o.d is delighted onlie with that seruice which he hathe set forthe in his worde / wherfore he that will do G.o.dd acceptable seruice / muste do that which his worde teachethe / and in suche wise as it techethe / els as the lorde by the Prophet Esaie sayeth / he dothe detest and abhorre their sacrifices.

[[Isay. 1.]]

And to proue that the ma.s.se with all such popishe baggadge is verye Idolatrie / I neade not to bring mani reasons / for this one thing dothe easelie teache it. There is no true G.o.d that wilbe worshipped with this popishe seruice: for the true liuinge G.o.d hathe in his worde plainlie apointed the maner howe he wilbe worshipped / in wich word this ma.s.se / and their popishe pelf is not taughte / but they ar cleane contrarie and repugnaunte vnto it: wherfore wh? the wicked papistes do their popish seruice vnto a G.o.d (they saye) it is plaine that they do not worshippe that true lyuinge G.o.dd / wh the holy scripture teachith vs to knowe and worship / but sum such other G.o.dd as they haue fayned in their fantesie to be their G.o.d / such a one as is delighted with these their seruices: But seinge that in verye dede there is no suche true G.o.d at all / as they do Imagine / the G.o.d then whom they serue is but a newe G.o.d / fantasied and inuented in their owne myndes: wherfore by righte their G.o.d maye and must be called / an horribe Idoll / their ma.s.se likewise with all popishe seruice done vnto him / abhominable Idolatrie / And they which do such popishe seruice vile Idolatrors. But wher as they saye that those thinges wich be done and spoken in the ma.s.se hadde their begynnynge of the ordinaunce of Christe, and that by the wikednes of men they are corrupted: This sainge helpethe not at all / for in these thinges / it is not the begynynge that is to be consydered only / or that can make them good onlie / seinge they are swarued from the truithe / but nowe their nature / and vse vs to be tried / whether they do agree with the verie worde of G.o.d or no.

[[numer. 21.]]

what thinge hade a more pure begynynge euen by G.o.ddes commaundement then the brasen serpent? It was erected G.o.d both willinge and commdinge it. It was sett forthe with miracles / for whosoeuer dyd beholde it he was deliuered from the bytinge of deathlie serpentes /

[[4 Reg. 18.]]

But this not withstondinge when m? dyd worshippe the same serpent and offered inc?se vnto it / the G.o.dlie dyd so abhorre it / that Ezechias that most holy kynge not regardinge at all the begynnynge of yt / dyd breake it in peces / and vtterlie destroyed the worshippinge of yt / Therfore it is not suffici?t to csider the begynnynge of a thinge / but howe the ordre and vse of yt dothe agree wyth the firste inst.i.tution and ordinaunce. This acte of Ezechias is praised in the scripture.

And wolde to G.o.d that we hade now an Ezechias wich wold so handle the ma.s.se. ffurthermoore our men wolde haue this thinge to be consydered in them / that thoughe they go to the ma.s.se / yet they haue no mynde to decline d departe frome G.o.d / but that they worshipp hym ther: vnto this I answer / that the Israelites when they dyd compell Aaron to make them a calfe to worshippe / they hade not indede that mynde that they wolde fall fr the true lyuynge G.o.d / so that they wolde no more confesse that he deliuered them out of Egypte / but this only was their mynde they wolde not reteyne that worship of the inuisible G.o.d which was deliuered them in worde / but they wolde worshippe the true G.o.d vnder some signe / and visible form and shape / whiche sholde represent vnto them the liuinge G.o.d their deliuerer: And that shape or forme they moste desyred to haue / wich they hade seene the Egyptians vse to represente vnto them their G.o.d: They vsed the form or shape of an oxe / the very same forme wolde the Israelytes nowe haue: And as the very heathen men mighte haue sayde that they worshipped the one only true liuinge G.o.d the Author and maker of all thinges / whose maiestie was shewed / figured / and set forthe vnto them by those diuers signes / and formes / which they dyd worshippe: As that the signe of Minerua dyd set forthe his wisdom: the signe of Mars his mighte and power: the signe of Iupiter his Iustice and goodnes: So wolde the Israelites haue their G.o.d and deliuerer set forthe vnto them in the shape of a Calfe / not that they mynded to turne awaye from him / or to denye him (as they thoughte) but because they wolde worshippe him as it pleased their fantesie. But we muste not apoynte the manier and ordre of G.o.dds seruice after our mynde and iudgment / or as they cmonlye saye / after the goode intent of men: for this doinge in the Israelites G.o.d did not like / but for yt he punyshed them grevouslye: Nether dyd Moses alowe it / for he knewe that G.o.d wolde not so be worshipped.

This cloke therfore must haue no place in this matier. but we muste see whether G.o.d will haue suche worshippe and seruice / whether G.o.ddes worde teachethe yt / whether it be clothed with the worde of truithe / which if it haue not / then dost thou not worship the true G.o.d with that worshippe which pleaseth him.

Ierobo thought mutch after this sorte /

[[3. Reg. 12.]]