Here lyes Jo. Potterell, a maker of bellowes,
Maister of his trade, and king of good fellowes;
Yet for all this, att the houre of his death,
He that made bellowes could not make breath. (B. J.)[107]
24.Mr. Bodly, the author, promoter, [and] the perfecter, of a goodly library in Oxford, wan a riche widdowe by this meanes. Comming to the place where the widdowe was with one whoe is reported to haue bin sure of hir, as occasion happened the widdowe was absent; while he was in game, he, finding this opportunity, entreated the surmised assured gent. to hold his cardes till he returned. In which tyme he found the widdowe in a garden, courted, and obteined his desyre; soe he played his game, while an other held his cardes.[108] He was at first but the sonne of a merchant, vntill he gave some intelligence of moment to the counsell, whereupon he was thought worthie employment, whereby he rose. (Mr. Curle.)
fo. 46b.
24 October.Mr. Dr. King,[109] preacher at St. Andrews in Holborn, at Paules Crosse, this daye.
His text 2 Peter ii. v. 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. The length of his text might make some tedious semblance of a long discourse, but the matter shortly cutt itself into two parts, example and rule; one particular, the other generall; the one experiment, the other science; the one of more force to proue, the other to instruct. The argument is not a posse ad esse, but ab esse ad posse; it hath bin, and therefore may be; nay by this place it shalbe, for lege mortali quod vnquam fuit, et hodie fieri potest; but lege æterna, that which hath bin shalbe agayne. Here is an acted performaunce, a demonstracion, το ὁτι, which are most forceable to persuade, being of all thinges sauing the thinges themselves neerest our apprehension, leading from the sense to the vnderstanding, which is our certaynest meane of acquiring knowledge, since philosophie teacheth quod nihil est intellectu, quod non prius fuit in sensu; sicut audiuimus, et fecerunt patres nostri. Hystory and example the strongest motives to imitation. Rules are but sleeping and seeming admonitions. Thomas would not beleeue vnles he thrust his fingers into Christes sydes, and felt the print of his nayles; and we are so obstinat, wee will hardly beeleue except Godes judgments thrust fingers and nayles into our sydes.
fo. 47.
Oct. 1602.
The examples are bipartite: each containing contrary doctrines, like the language of them in the last chapter of Nehemias, half Jewishe, half Ashdoch; like the bands of the Levites, that parted themselves one companie to one mount to blesse, the other to an other to curse, the people; soe the one part denounceth judgment, the other declareth mercy: they may be compared to the cleane beastes, Deut. xiv., which had parted hoofes, and chewed the cudd; soe here on the one syde is the old world drowned, on the other Noach saved; on the one Sodom burned, on the other Lott preserved. They are three of the strangest and fearefullest examples in nature; the fall of the Angells, the drowning of the world, the burning of Sodome; they stretch from one end to an other, alpha and omega, heaven and earth, men and angels, the most excellent payre of God's creatures, and the deluge œcumenicall and universall. But God in his punishment, like a wise prince, will begin at his owne sanctuary, at his owne house, non habitabit mecum iniquus, I will not suffer a wicked person to dwell in my house, and therefore first turned the angels from his habitacion. Angels in their creacion, vere δεὑτερον, the second light, the eyes and eares of the great king, continuall attendantes in his court and assistauntes of his throne; they are farr above the greatest saint, for wee shalbe but like them, and they are next to the Sonne of God, otherwise he had said nothing when he said, to which of the angells sayd he at anie tyme, &c. Heb.: they were fo. 47b.
Oct. 1602.in summo non in tuto, or rather non in summo sed in tuto, untill they synned. But what their synne was, I may safely say I knowe not. One sayth non seruarunt principatum, and St. Jo. sayth, non steterunt in veritate, their synn was treason, [they] continued not in their allegeaunce and fidelity; an other, et in angelis vacuitatem, prauitatem, infamiam reperiit; an other, though an absurd opinion, that it was fleshly lust, and concupiscence, by carnall copulacion with women upon earth, and this they would lay upon these wordes, and the Sonnes of God tooke the daughters of men; but of this it was sayd, perquam noxium audire et credere. And yet it became as common as it was absurd, because men thereby thought they might sooth themselves in that synn, and thinke it tollerable when angells had done the like before them.
An other opinion more probable, that it was noe carnall, but spirituall luxury that overthrewe them, a kinde of selfe love, when they overvalued their owne excellency, and forgat their Creator; and this opinion that their synn was pride is the most receiued and most like, because after his fall the first temptation that he made was of pride to Adam in paradise, enim similis altissimo.
fo. 48.
October, 1602.
The Diuel neuer desyred to be like God in his essence, for that being impossible he could never conceiue it, and that is neuer in appeticion which was not first in apprehension. Yet he may be sayd to affect it desyderio complacentiæ, non efficaciæ, because he might please himself with such conceits, not conceaue howe he might attaine to those pleasures, and to this purpose some there be that write as though they had been taken up into the third heaven, and heard and seene the conflict betwixt Michael and the diuel: and will not stick to affirme that Michael had his name because when the diuel like a great giant bellowed out blasphemie against the most highest, denying that he had any creator or superior, Michael should resist and tell him, Quis ut Deus, which is the interpretacion of Michael; soe though it be incertaine what was the synn of angells, yet is it most certayne that they fell from the highest happines to the lowest wretchednes; the fall was like lightning suddein, and the place of it not possible to be found; it passeth the capacitie of man to expresse it by comparison soe perfectly that he may say hoc impetu; and for their payne it is transcendens, et transcendentia transcendit, it is invaluable, incomprehensible, passeth all hyperbole; there was a present amission of place, grace, glory, the fruition of Godes presence, &c. which is the greatest of fo. 48b.
October, 1602.miseries, felicem fuisse: but there remaines a fearefull expectation of future miseries, et Nihil magis adversarium quam expectatio; et Quo me vindicta reservas?