These are good Factors and Agents, doing God as good service, as Boutesewes doe the Divell, and Jesuites the Pope, sparing no cost, nor labour; and what they cannot doe themselves, they doe by their friends, Who is on my side, who? &c.
As for lets and impediments, they over-looke and over-leape them, as fire passeth from one house to another; neither is there any standing for any Gods enemies before them: they make havock of their owne and others corruptions. If you will rightly conceive of Peters zeale in converting & confounding, you must imagine (saith Chrysostome) a man made all of fire walking in stubble. All difficulties are but whetstones of their fortitude. The sluggard saith, There is a Lyon in the way; tell Samson & David so, they will the rather goe out to meet them. Tell Nehemiah of Samballat, hee answereth, Shall such a man as I feare? Tell Caleb there are Anakims, and hee will say, Let us goe upp at once, &c. Let Agabus put off his girdle and binde Paul, let him be told in every City, that bonds await him, hee is not onely ready for bonds, but for death; tell Jubentius, hee must lay downe his life, he is as willing as to lay off his clothes: tell Luther of enemies in Wormes, hee will goe if all the tiles of the houses were Divells. The horse neighs at the trumpet; the Leviathan laughs at the speare. They that meane to take the Kingdome of God by violence, provide themselves to goe through fire and water, carry their lives in their hands, embrace faggots; they say to father and mother, I know you not: to carnall Counsellers and friendly enemies, Get you behinde mee Sathan. Zeale is as strong as death, hot as the coales of Juniper; flouds of many waters cannot quench it. Agar, Pro. 30. speakes of foure things, stately in their kinde; I will make bold to add a fift, comprehending and excelling them all namely the zealous Christian, strong and bold as the Lyon; not turning his head for any; as swift as the grey-hound in the waies of Gods commandements; in the race to heaven, as nimble as the Goat climbing the steepe and craggy mountaines of pietie and vertue; A victorious King, overcoming the world and his lusts: Salomon in all his royalty, is not cloathed like one of these in his fiery Charriot.
To cut off the infinite praises of zeale, let us heare what honourable testimonies and glorious rewards, it pleaseth God to conferre upon it; Davids ruddy complexion and his skill in musique, made him amiable in the eyes of men: but the zeale of his heart, stiled him a man after Gods owne heart; and the sweet Singer of Israel. Abraham, that could finde in his heart to sacrifice his Isaack, was called the friend of God. The same vertue denominated Jacob a Prince with God. Elisha, The Charriots and horse-men. Paul, A chosen vessell, &c.
Revel. 12.
Revel. 7. 3. Ezek. 9. Exod. 12.
Neither doth God put them off, with names and empty favours, but upon these he bestowes his graces: David dedicateth his Psalmes to him that excelled: God in dispensing of favours, observeth the same rule, to him that overcommeth will I give, &c, To him that hath, shall bee given. Husbandmen cast their seede uppon the fertilest ground, which returnes it with the greatest interest: God gives most talents to those that improove them in the best banke. Joseph shall have a party coloured coat, of all kindes of graces and blessings: And because he knowes this will purchase them hatred and envy, hee takes them into speciall tuition; if any will hurt his zealous witnesses, there goeth out a fire out of their mouthes, to devoure their enemies. A man were better anger all the witches in the world then one of these. If God bring any common judgements, he sets his seale and Thau on their fore-heads, & sprinkles their posts; snatcheth Lot out of the fire (who burneth in zeale, as Sodome in lust) as men doe their plate whiles they let the baser stuffe burne. In fine, hee taketh Enoch and Eliah in triumphant Charriots up to heaven, and after their labours and toyles, setteth them in speciall Thrones, to rest in glory; The Apostles in their twelve, the rest in their order, according to their zeale. And though hee may well reckon the best of these, unprofitable servants; yet such congruity (not of merits, but of favour) it pleaseth him to observe in crowning his graces, that the most zealous heere, are the most glorious there.
Who would not now wonder, how ever this royall vertue should have lost it grace with the world; how ever any should admit a low thought of it? But what? Shall all the indignity which hell can cast upon it, make it vile in our eyes? or rather, shall wee not reason from the opposition, as Tertullian did of Nero: That religion which Nero so persecutes, must needs be excellent.
1 Object. Zeale is madd, and makes men mad.
Acts 26. 24 1 Cor.
If zeale were not some admirable good, the Divell and World would not so hate it; Yet lest silence should bee thought to baulke some unanswerable reasons, let us see how they labour to be madd with reason: Let Festus bee the Speaker for the rest, for hee speakes what all the rest thinke; you know his madd objection, and Pauls sober answer in that place, and the like, 2 Cor. 5.13. whether hee bee madd or sober, it is for God and you.