observed, God would, by other means, have brought his purposes to pass; and Jeroboam should not have become a ́prodigy, and a proverb of impiety. For a man is circumscribed in all his ways by the providence of God, just as he is in a ship for although the man may walk freely upon the decks, or pass up and down in the little continent, yet he must be carried, whither the ship bears him. A man hath nothing free but his will, and that indeed is guided by laws and reasons; but although by this he walks freely, yet the divine providence is the ship, and God is the pilot, and the contingencies of the world are sometimes like the fierce winds, which carry the whole event of things whither God pleases. So that this event is no part of the measure of the will; that hath a motion of its own, which depends not upon events and rare contingencies, or the order of secret providence; and therefore this which could not commend his action, cannot warrant our imitation.

29. (4.) Actions done in the Old Testament, though by a command of God, do not warrant us, or become justifiable precedents, without such an express command as they had; if the command was special and personal, the obedience was just so limited, and could not pass beyond the person. Thus Jehu took up arms against the house of Ahab, by the command of God, who intended to punish him severely. But we may not lift up our hand against our prince, though he be wicked, unless God give us such an express commandment: for nothing is imitable, but what is good. But in this there was nothing good but the obedience; and, therefore, nothing can legitimate it but a commandment.

30. (5.) Actions of good men, if done upon a violent cause, or a great necessity, are not imitable, unless it be in an equal case, and a like necessity. David, when he was hungry, went into the priests' house, and took the bread, which was only lawful for the priests to eat,' and to this example Christ appeals; but it was in a like case, in a case of necessity and charity. He that does the same thing, must have the same reason, or he will not have the same inno

cence.

31. (6.) Examples, in matters of war, are ever the most dangerous precedents, not only because men are then most violent and unreasonable, but because the rules of war are

least described; and the necessities are contingent and many, and the reason of the action depending upon heaps of circumstances (of which, peradventure, no notice is recorded) can less be understood; and after all this, because, most commonly, they are unreasonable and unmerciful. That David made the people of the Ammonites to pass under saws and harrows of iron, is not safely imitable by Christian soldiers; because it had so much cruelty, which either must be criminal, or have an extraordinary legitimation, which, it is certain, Christian princes cannot have, unless it be by a rare contingency, and a new revelation, to which they can never reasonably pretend. But that they may drive out an invading army, that they may kill them that resist, that they may by war defend the public rights, in which all the private are involved,they may safely take for their warrant the example of Abraham fighting in behalf of the king of Sodom; the act of Melchisedeck, in blessing God for the success of that battle; the wars of the judges, and of David: because these were just and necessary by special command, or necessary defence; faith was the great instrument, and God's blessing gave them prosperity; they were against no law, and the like cases God hath not since restrained, and therefore we, of ourselves, being left to the rights of our nature, and unconfined by the laws of God, proceed prudently, when we have the confidence of such great examples; against which the interest of no law is publicly, the interest of no virtue is secretly engaged.

32. (7.) When a law is changed, the examples which acted in proportion to that law, lose all manner of influence and causality, and cannot produce a just imitation. Among the Jews, it was lawful for a private person to transfix his brother or his father, if either of them tempted him to idolatry; and in a cause of God they might do public justice by a private hand. All the actions of their zealots, done in such instances, are no examples to Christians; because when that priesthood was changed, the law was changed, and then the nature of the action passed from lawful to unlawful; and, therefore, could not be imitated. He that is to write Greek, must not transcribe it by the Hebrew alphabet; and when the copy is altered, the transcript must also receive variety and specific difference. Thus the disciples of our

Lord would fain have done, as Elias did; but Christ told them that he was not imitable in that, by telling them that the Spirit, which is the principal or great instrument of action, was wholly changed. It was not safe for them to do as Elias did, because they were to do as Christ commanded. Thus we find, in the Old Testament, king Solomon dedicating and consecrating of a temple; it was a new case, and he was an extraordinary person; and the Christian church hath transcribed that copy so far as to dedicate and consecrate churches or temples to the service of God; but she does it by the ministry of bishops, who are amongst us the presidents of prayer, and have those special assistances and emanations of the Holy Spirit upon their order, which Solomon had in his own person, and much more; and, therefore, though the act is exemplar, yet it is not imitable as to the person officiating : because to do so is not properly the effect either of power or of office; but being to be done in the way of prayer, is by the reason of the thing itself; and the constitution of the church appropriate to the presidents of religion.

Of the Example of Christ.

33. (8.) In the New Testament, we have so many, so clear, so perfect rules, that we have no need of examples to instruct us, or to warrant our practices; but examples to encourage and to lead us on in the obedience of those rules. We have but one great example,—Jesus Christ;—who, living in perfect obedience to his Father, did also give us perfect instruction, how we should do so too in our proportion. But then how far Christ is imitable, and ought to be imitated by us, is best declared in this short rule.

34. In whatsoever he gave us a commandment, in that only we are bound to imitate him: but in whatsoever he propounded to us as excellent, and in whatsoever he did symbolically to it, in all that also we may imitate him.

35. This rule establishes the whole case of conscience in this affair. Because our blessed Saviour, being an extraordinary person, was to do some extraordinary things, in which either we cannot, or we ought not, to imitate him. He fasted forty days; we cannot: he whipped the buyers and sellers out of the temple; we may not, without the authority of a public person:-he overthrew the tables of

the merchants; but the young man in Portugal, who, being transported with zeal and ignorance, beat the chalice and the sacrament out of the priest's hand, out of passion against his idolatrous service (as he understood it), had a sad event of his folly amongst men; and what reward of his zeal he found with God, is very uncertain. But whatsoever he taught to mankind, of that also he became a glorious example: but "by the sermons only we are instructed, by the example encouraged h" for "admonetur omnis ætas fieri posse, quod aliquando factum est:" we see it possible to be done what Christ commanded us to do, and then did, that "we might follow his steps."-But his example, in these things, makes up no part of our rule, because it is perfect without them: here our rule is perfect, and so is our example; but because Christ did some things beyond our rule, and past our measures, and things of personal virtue and obligation, therefore we are to look upon Christ as imitable, just as his life was measured by the laws he gave us; where they are, even there we also must endeavour to be so. There is this only to be added: that in the prosecution of his obedience to his heavenly Father, he sometimes did actions in gradu heroico,' of great excellency; which although they are highly imitable, yet they pass no obligation upon us, but that we endeavour to tread in his steps, and to climb up to his degrees, and to desire his perfections. That these pass upon us no other obligation, appears, because they are sometimes impossible to be attained to; and they are the highest and the best, and, therefore, are not a direct matter of duty, which belongs to all, to the highest and to the lowest. But that these do pass upon us an obligation to endeavour to attain them, and of labour towards them in our circumstances, appears in the greatest instance of all, the highest obedience, even that which was unto death; for "therefore Christ hath suffered for us, leaving an example to us, that we might follow his stepsi:" that is, when he had given his church precepts, and propounded to them rewards of suffering, he also was pleased to give us the greatest example as a commentary upon his own text; declaring that the commandment did extend to the greatest instance; and that we should do as he did, "obe

g Fox, Martyrol.

h St. Cyprian.

i 1 Pet. ii. 21.

diens factus usque ad mortem,' "“he was obedient even unto death" and so must we, when God requires it in particular. And that this is our duty, and that the obligation reaches thus far, is certain upon the interest of love; for we must love him, who is our Lord and our God; we must love him with all our heart and with all our powers; and therefore endeavour to be like him: ἡ δὲ σύμφωνος τῷ νόμῳ τιμὴ, ἡ τῆς οὐσίας τῶν τιμωμένων γνῶσις, καὶ ἡ πρὸς αὐτὰ κατὰ δύναμιν ἐξομοίωσις. Ο γὰρ ἄγαταί τις, καὶ μιμεῖται, ὅσον αὐτῷ οἷόν τε· ὡς γάρ φασιν οἱ Πυθαγόρειοι, τιμήσεις τὸν Θεὸν ἄριστα, ἐὰν τῷ θεῷ τὴν διάνοιαν ὁμοιώσης Κ. The greatest honour we can do to God and God's law, is to understand God, and to become like to him. For every one imitates that which he loves. "Religiosissimus cultus est imitari," said Lactantius; "that is an excellent instance of the divine worship, to endeavour to become like to the holy Jesus."

36. (9.) But this is to be reduced to practice, so as that, 1. The duty be certainly imitated; and, 2. The degree of duty aimed at; 3. And the instance be chosen with prudence and liberty. Thus when we find, that Christ did spend whole nights in prayer, the duty here recommended, is earnestness and diligence in prayer. In this we must imitate our blessed Lord; because his rule and his example make TŴv naλýv ovvwgida, an excellent confederation' and society. But then to do it with that vehemence and earnestness, that degree of diligence, is a rare perfection, which we can only tend to in this life, but we must do what moral diligence we can: and, as for the instance and particularities of duty and devotion, we are yet at greater liberty; for we are not obliged to pernoctation in prayer, so we pray earnestly and assiduously, which is the duty, and endeavour to do it like Christ, which is the passion of the duty, and the degree of love, and the way of perfection; but that it be in the night, or in the day, is but the circumstance of the duty; nothing of the nature, nothing directly of the advantage of it; and is to be wholly conducted by prudence and consideration of accidents.

37. (10.) After all this, as Christ must be imitated in all matter of duty, and is imitable in degrees of duty, and that

k Hierocl. in Carm. Aur. Needham, p. 22.