best rhetoricians, and the famouseft examples of the greek and roman orations. But fince the religion of it is difputed, and not the art, I fhall make ufe only of fuch reafons and authorities, as religion cannot except against. It will be harder to gainsay, than for me to evince, that in the teaching of men diverfely tempered, different ways are to be tried. The Baptift, we know, was a ftrict man, remarkable for aufterity and set order of life. Our Saviour, who had all gifts in him, was Lord to exprefs his indoctrinating power in what fort him beft feemed; fometimes by a mild and familiar converfe; sometimes with plain and impartial homefpeaking, regardless of those whom the auditors might think he should have had in more refpect; otherwhile, with bitter and ireful rebukes, if not teaching, yet leaving excuseless those his wilful impugners. What was all in him, was divided among many others the teachers of his church; fome to be severe and ever of a fad gravity, that they may win fuch, and check fometimes those who be of nature overconfident and jocund; others were fent more cheerful, free, and ftill as it were at large, in the midft of an untrefpaffing honesty; that they who are fo tempered, may have by whom they might be drawn to falvation, and they who are too fcrupulous, and dejected of fpirit, might be often strengthened with wife confolations and revivings: no man being forced wholly to diffolve that groundwork of nature which God created in him, the fanguine to empty out all his fociable livelinefs, the choleric to expel quite the unfinning predominance of his but that each radical humourand paffion, wrought upon and corrected as it ought, might be made the proper mould and foundation of every man's peculiar gifts and virtues. Some alfo were indued with a ftaid moderation and foundnefs of argument, to teach and convince the rational and foberminded; yet not therefore that to be thought the only expedient course of teaching, for in times of oppofition, when either against new herefies arifing, or old corruptions to be reformed, this cool unpaffionate mildness of pofitive wifdom is not enough to damp and aftonifh the proud refiftance of carnal and false doctors, then (that I may have leave to Q 4 anger; foar foar awhile as the poets ufe) Zeal, whofe fubftance is ethereal, arming in complete diamond, afcends his fiery chariot drawn with two blazing meteors, figured like beafts, but of a higher breed than any the zodiac yields, resembling two of those four which Ezekiel and St. John faw, the one vifaged like a lion, to exprefs power, high authority, and indignation; the other of countenance like a man, to caft derifion and fcorn upon perverse and fraudulent feducers: with these the invincible warrior, Zeal, shaking loosely the flack reins, drives over the heads of fcarlet prelates, and fuch as are infolent to maintain traditions, bruifing their ftiff necks under his flaming wheels. Thus did the true prophets of old combat with the false; thus Chrift himself, the fountain of meekness, found acrimony enough to be ftill galling and vexing the prelatical pharifees. But ye will fay, thefe had immediate warrant from God to be thus bitter; and I fay, so much the plainer is it proved, that there may be a fanctified bitterness against the enemies of truth. Yet that ye may not think inspiration only the warrant thereof, but that it is as any other virtue, of moral and general obfervation, the example of Luther may ftand for all, whom God made choice of before others to be of higheft eminence and power in reforming the church; who, not of revelation, but of judgment, writ fo vehemently against the chief defenders of old untruths in the romifh church, that his own friends and favourers were many times offended with the fierceness of his fpirit; yet he being cited before Charles the Fifth to anfwer for his books, and having divided them into three forts, whereof one was of those which he had sharply written, refused, though upon deliberation given him, to retract or unfay any word therein, as we may read in Sleidan. Yea, he defends his eagerness, as being "of an ardent spirit, and one who could not write a dull ftyle:" and affirmed," he thought it God's will, to have the inventions of men thus laid open, seeing that matters quietly handled were quickly forgot." And herewithal how useful and available God hath made this tart rhetoric in the church's caufe, he often found by his own experience. For when he betook himself to lenity and moderation, as they call it, he he reaped nothing but contempt both from Cajetan and Erafmus, from Cocleus, from Ecchius, and others; infomuch that blaming his friends, who had fo counfelled him, he refolved never to run into the like errour: if at other times he seem to excufe his vehemence, as more than what was meet, I have not examined through his works, to know how far he gave way to his own fervent mind; it fhall fuffice me to look to mine own. And this I fhall eafily aver, though it may feem a hard faying, that the spirit of God, who is purity itself, when he would reprove any fault feverely, or but relate things done or faid with indignation by others, abftains not from fome words not civil at other times to be fpoken. Omitting that place in Numbers at the killing of Zimri and Cofbi; done by Phineas in the height of zeal, related, as the rabbins expound, not without an obfcene word; we may find in Deuteronomy and three of the prophets, where God, denouncing bitterly the punishments of idolaters, tells them in a term immodeft to be uttered in cool blood, that their wives fhall be defiled openly. But thefe, they will fay, were honeft words in that age when they were spoken. Which is more than any rabbin can prove; and certainly had God been fo minded, he could have picked fuch words as fhould never have come into abuse. What will they fay to this? David going against Nabal, in the very fame breath when he had just before named the name of God, he vows not "to leave any alive of Nabal's house that piffeth against the wall. But this was unadvisedly fpoken, you will anfwer, and fet down to aggravate his infirmity. Turn then to the first of Kings, where God himself uses the phrase, "I will cut off from Jeroboam him that piffeth against the wall." Which had it been an unfeemly speech in the heat of an earneft expreffion, then we muft conclude that Jonathan or Onkelos the targumifts were of cleaner language than he that made the tongue; for they render it as briefly, "I will cut off all who are at years of difcretion," that is to fay, fo much difcretion as to hide nakednefs. Whereas God, who is the author both of purity and eloquence, chofe this phrase as fitteft in that vehement character wherein he fpake. Otherwife that plain word might have easily been forborn: which which the maforeths and rabbinical fcholiafts, not well attending, have often ufed to blur the margent with Keri instead of Ketiv, and gave us this infulfe rule out of their Talmud, "That all words which in the law are written obfcenely, must be changed to more civil words:" fools, who would teach men to read more decently than God thought good to write. And thus I take it to be manifeft, that indignation against men and their actions notorioufly bad hath leave and authority ofttimes to utter fuch words and phrafes, as in common talk were not fo mannerly to use. That ye may know, not only as the hiftorian speaks, "that all thofe things for which men plough, build, or fail, obey virtue," but that all words, and whatsoever may be fpoken, fhall at fome time in an unwonted manner wait upon her purposes. Now that the confutant may also know as he defires, what force of teaching there is fometimes in laughter; I shall return him in fhort, that laughter being one way of answering " a fool according to his folly," teaches two forts of perfons, first, the fool himself" not to be wife in his own conceit," as Solomon affirms; which is certainly a great document to make an unwife man know himself. Next, it teacheth the hearers, in as much as fcorn is one of those punishments, which belong to men carnally wife, which is oft in fcripture declared; for when fuch are punished, "the fimple are thereby made wife," if Solomon's rule be true. And I would ask, to what end Eliah mocked the falfe prophets? was it to fhow his wit, or to fulfil his humour? Doubtlefs we cannot imagine that great fervant of God had any other end, in all which he there did, but to teach and inftruct the poor mifled people. And we may frequently read, that many of the martyrs in the midst of their troubles were not fparing, to deride and fcoff their fuperftitious perfecutors. Now may the confutant advise again with fir Francis Bacon, whether Eliah and the martyrs did well to turn religion into a comedy or fatire; "to rip up the wounds of idolatry and fuperftition with a laughing countenance :” fo that for pious gravity the author here is matched and overmatched, and for wit and morality in one that follows: -laughing "laughing to teach the truth What hinders? as fome teachers give to boys Thus Flaccus in his firft fatire, and his tenth : I could urge the fame out of Cicero and Seneca, but he may content him with this. And henceforward, if he can learn, may know as well what are the bounds and objects of laughter and vehement reproof, as he hath known hitherto how to deferve them both. But left fome may haply think, or thus expoftulate with me after this debatement, who made you the bufy almoner to deal about this dole of laughter and reprehenfion, which no man thanks your bounty for? To the urbanity of that man I fhould anfwer much after this fort that I, friend objecter, having read of heathen philofophers, fome to have taught, that whosoever would but use his ear to liften, might hear the voice of his guiding genius ever before him, calling, and as it were pointing to that way which is his part to follow; others, as the ftoics, to account reason, which they call the Hegemonicon, to be the common Mercury conducting without errour those that give themselves obediently to be led accordingly: having read this, I could not esteem fo poorly of the faith which I profefs, that God had left nothing to thofe who had forfaken all other doctrines for his, to be an inward witness and warrant of what they have to do, as that they should need to measure themselves by other men's measures, how to give scope or limit to their proper actions; for that were to make us the most at a ftand, the most uncertain and accidental wanderers in our doings, of all religions in the world. So that the queftion ere while moved, who is he that spends thus the benevolence of laughter and reproof fo liberally upon fuch men as the prelates, may return with a more juft demand, who he is not of place and knowledge never fo mean, under whose con 7 tempt |
