so to meet with many enemies, before he went out, God, and Moses, and the people bestowed their several exhortations on him; and if you consult the place, you shall find that all of them, God, Moses, and the people wish him to "be of good courage, and not to fear." Why so? Abulensis answereth, Rationabiliter enim timere portuit Joshua.* Joshua might rationally fear, for he saw how that his master Moses was occasioned by the Israelites to sin against God, and to be angry, insomuch as he was kept out of Canaan; whereupon Joshua might well think thus with himself, O Lord, if Moses who was the meekest man on earth was moved to anger, the holiest man, a man that saw God face to face, yet could not do this work, but through his failing was denied entrance into Canaan; how shall I be able to lead this people up against all these enemies; well therefore might he fear (saith Abulensis) lest God should give both him and his people into the hands of his enemies. Well, but how then doth God remove these fears, and relieve his heart; only thus, he strengtheneth him with a promise," Fear not, (says God) neither be dismayed, for I am with thee, and I will never leave thee nor forsake thee." So now, are there any of you oppressed with divers fears because of these horns that are risen up in several parts of the world, of this kingdom? The Lord hath said that according to the number of the horns, the carpenters shall be. Are there enemies in every part; there shall be carpenters in every part. Will you say, Oh but our enemies are exceeding many, and very cruel; so were these mentioned in the text, who (as Sanctius observeth, the words signify) were to do mischief in quantum potuerunt et in quantum voluerunt, and as your English hath it, " so that no man did lift up his head." Will you say, Oh but I do not yet see these carpenters at work; but is it not because you do not stir up yourselves; "I lift up mine eyes and saw," saith Zechariah. Will you say, Oh but when I do stir up myself to behold things as they are, I cannot see four for four, a proportionable strength on the church's side raised up against the enemies; well, but yet you may see some strength in every place, wherever there is any opposition made by ene

*Rationabiliter ergo timere poterat Josua, quod cum ipse fragilior esset facillime peccare poterat, ita ut deus ipsum et populum in hostilem tradert potestatem.-Tostat. in Josu. cap. i.

mies, some there are in the same place that God hath raised up to resist them. And the text is not, that God will raise up strong gigantic carpenters, but carpenters, four carpenters, some or other that shall do the work of God, though they be never so weak. In that Micah v. where the promise is to raise up" seven shepherds and eight principal men," he saith, ver. 7., "The remnant of Jacob shall be as the dew that waiteth not for the sons of men." Mark that word, "that waiteth not for the sons of men." When Sisera and all his host were discomfited, what were the carpenters; were not Deborah and Jael with her hammer amongst them? and saith the text," so let all thine enemies perish;" it is not only a prayer, but a prophecy.

It is recorded in the life and death of Melancthon, that when Charles the fifth, and the Pope of Rome threatened the protestants with fire and sword, Luther, Melancthon, and others got together to seek a way for themselves, their little ones, and their substance; and on a certain day after long deliberation, Philip tired out with labour, rose up exceedingly sad and very sorrowful, to go and speak with some that knocked and inquired after him at the gate; in his return to his company he heard in a room as he passed by, the noise of children, as it were pronouncing their catechism; whereupon he put aside the door where they were, and he saw the ministers' wives of the place, praying and praising God with their children; upon this Melancthon returned to his company exceeding cheerful and very joyful. Luther espying his gladsome countenance, said thus to him, Philip, how cometh it to pass that you return so joyful that went out even now so sorrowful? He answered, Let us be of good comfort, for I have seen them that will fight for us and defend us. Luther asked what those stout and brave captains were? Oh, says Melancthon, they are the chaste wives and virtuous children of holy men. It seems that holy man Melancthon thought such carpenters were a great matter in his time. Beloved, you have many such carpenters as these at work for you. But besides these, look into any part of the kingdom, and you shall find that wherever any horn is raised up, there is a carpenter at work also, some or other that God hath unexpectedly raised up to make resistance. Wherefore, then, lift up your heads, oh, all ye people of the Lord, and be not dis

couraged; what Zechariah saw, you shall find, God's promise is your security, he will raise up four carpenters to the four horns.

Again, This doctrine speaks direction to the carpenters, it tells them what they ought to do, and what is their work. The work of the four carpenters, you see, is not only to fray these horns away, but to cast out the gentiles. Whoever, therefore, you are, whom God hath raised up for this employment, behold your service, up and be doing, and do it fully; "Cursed is he that doth the work of the Lord negligently; and withholdeth his hand from shedding of blood:" they are knit together in one verse, Jer. xlviii. 10.

But we are now upon the work of reformation, building the temple; and if a man be a man of blood he is not fit for that service.

Mistake me not, it is not in my intention to call for blood. Oh that in this day of our humiliation and addresses to God, we could so touch the hem of Christ's garment, that England's bloody issue might be staunched! Be as mild as you can, so you be like unto Christ, who was both a lamb and a lion; a lamb in his own cause, a lion in God's. Meekness and justice may well stand together. Moses was the meekest man upon earth, you know, yet when Israel had defiled themselves with idols in the matter of the golden calf, he stood in the gate of the camp, and said, Exod. xxxii. 27," Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Put every man his sword by his side, and go in and out from gate to gate through the camp, and slay every man his brother, and every man his companion, and every man his neighbour." He doth not say, Slay every man his enemy, or every man his countryman, but every man his brother, and his companion, and his neighbour.* And, verse 28, it is said, "The children of Levi did according to the word of Moses; and there fell of the people that day about three thousand men :" yet the Levites had their hand in temple-work more than any other tribe, and Moses had

* Moses totus ex misericordia et justitia compositus, totus ex benignitate et severitate conflatus: nam in monte miseracordiam a Deo postulabat, ver. 32, in campo justitiam exercebat, ver. 27. Quis non miretur tantam pietatem cum tanta severitate conjunctam ?-Mendoza in 1 Sam. ii.

Sic amavit eos quibus præfuit, ut pro eis nec sibi parceret et tamen delinquentes sic persecutus est, quos amavit, ut eos etiam Domino parcente prosterneret.— Gregory.

the honour to build the tabernacle. You read also, in Zech. xiii. of a great and glorious reformation, so high, so great and so convincing, that the very priests who were wont to go in rough garments to deceive the people, should throw away their priest's coats, and say, verse 5, "I am no prophet, I am an husbandman, for man taught me to keep cattle from my youth." As if they should say severally, Though I am able to read a chapter, yet I am not fit to be a minister, I have no learning, but in truth am more fit to go to the plough. Well but now mark, I pray, how this great change and reformation is ushered in and brought about, not without some kind of holy violence, for it is said, verse 2, "It shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord of hosts, that I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, and they shall be no more remembered; and also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirits to pass out of the land: and (verse 3) it shall come to pass that when any shall yet prophesy, then his father and his mother that begat him shall thrust him through when he prophesieth." And, verse 6, when any should ask him, "What are those wounds in thy hands? then he shall answer, Those wherewith I was wounded in the house of my friends." Another notable scripture you have for this purpose in Psalm xxiv., when the question is made at verse 3, "Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord, and who shall stand in his holy place?" that is, Who is fit to be a member of a true church? answer is made to this at verses 4, 5, 6: "He that hath clean hands and a pure heart," &c. Wherefore then saith the psalmist, "Lift up your heads, oh, ye gates;" that is, magistrates that sit in the gates: “and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors;" that is, of the churches, for the doors of the churches are everlasting doors, against which "the gates of hell shall not prevail:" and then, "the King of glory shall come in ;" that is, God will come in and dwell amongst you in his great glory, and your very congregations shall be filled with glory. But, "Who is the King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty (saith the psalmist), the Lord mighty in battle, the Lord of hosts, he is the King of glory:" that is, thus will he bring his glory into the churches, by shewing himself to be "the Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle." Wherefore, then, "lift up your heads, oh, ye gates," and execute you justice and judgment,

"and be you lift up, ye everlasting doors" of the churches, and be you reformed, and "the King of glory shall come in " with his glory into your congregations. But if you ask me who this King of glory is? I must tell you he is the Lord of hosts, and so he will be known unto you when he bringeth his glory amongst you, "even the Lord strong and mighty in battle." Wherefore I say, lift up your heads, oh, you carpenters and servants of the Lord, drawn forth to that employment; you see your work, the text hath cut it out, I beseech you in the Lord Christ, do it, and do it thoroughly, only let me lay in one caution, which is this:

When you have frayed away the horns, and cast out the gentiles, take heed that the spirit of the horns do not live in the carpenters. When the children of Israel drove the Canaanites out of their land, they did as well inherit their sins as their lands; the sins they came to punish they did commit, the spirit of the Canaanites did dwell in the Israelites. So it was with Jehu when he had beat down the house of Ahab. So with Amaziah, who when he had destroyed the Edomites, he brought the gods of the children of Seir and set them up to be his gods, 2 Chron. xxv. 14, 15. This is too common in times of reformation. You all know what a blessed instrument of reformation Master Calvin was in his time, yet when he came to that matter of denying the Lord's supper to Bartlerius and other Servetians, who were most unworthy, those that otherwise were called protestants rose up in opposition to him, insomuch that he was ready if not altogether forced to leave Geneva for a time.* And was it not thus in that unhappy difference at Frankfort? † In Queen Mary's time you know that many left this their own country and did fly to Germany; when they came there, did not many of them that fled for religion prove pushing, goring horns unto their brethren? Yea, some of them were so bitter to others, that they

* At ego, inquit Calvinus, Chrysostomum sequuntus, occidi me potius patiar, quam hæc manus Dei contemptoribus judicatis sancta Domini porrigat.

A prandio vero Calvinus locum illum insignem Actorum Apost. forte tractans in quo Paulus ecclesiæ Ephesine, testatus se eum non esse qui adversus magistratum pugnare sciret aut doceret, cœtumque; multis verbis cohortatus ut in ea quam audivisset doctrina perseveraret, tandem veluti postremam concionem Genevæ habiturus, et quemadmodum, inquit, se res habent. liceat mihi quoque fratres apud vos hæc apostoli verba usurpare, commendo vos Deo et sermoni gratiæ ejus.-Mel. Adam. de vita Calvini.

Histoire de Frankfort.