Religions and sects among the Jews. tain to speak with Almighty God, he had tarried there but a few days, when the people began to invent new gods: and, as it came inb their heads, they made a calf of gold, and kneeled down and worshipped it. And after that they followed the Moabites, and worshipped Beelphegor, the Moabites' god. Read the book of Judges, the books of the Kings, and the Prophets; and there you shall find how unsteadfastd the people were, how full of inventions, and more ready to run after their own phantasies, than God's most holy commandments. There shall you read of Baal, Moloch, Chamos, Melchome, Baalpeor, Astaroth, Bel, the dragon, Priapus, the brazen serpent, the twelve signs, and many other, unto whose images the people, with great devotion, invented pilgrimages, precious decking and censing them, kneeling down and offering to them, thinking that an high merit before God, and to be esteemed above the precepts and commandments of God. And where, at that time, God commanded no sacrifice to be made but in Jerusalem only, they didɛ clean contrary, making altars and sacrifices every where, in hills, in woods, and in houses, not regarding God's commandments, but esteeming their own phantasies and devotions h to be better than theyi. And the error hereof was so spread abroad, that not only the unlearned people, but also the priests and teachers of the people, partly by glory and covetousnessk were corrupted, and partly by ignorance blindly deceived with the same abominations: so much, that king Achab having but only Elias a true teacher and minister of God, there were fourm hundred and fifty priests that persuaded him to honour Baal, and to do sacrifice in the woods or groves. And so continued that horrible error, until the three noble kings, as Josaphat, Ezechias, and Josias, God's chosen ministers, destroyed the same clearly, and brought again the people from such their feigned inventions, unto the very commandments of God: for the which thing their immortal reward and glory doth and shall remain with God for ever. And beside the foresaid inventions, the inclination of man to have his own holy devotions devised new sects and religions, called Pharisees, bin] into A. c books] book B. D. d unsteadfast] inconstant A. B. f precious] preciously A. B. h devotions] devotion A. B. C. i they] them A. B. k covetousness] avarice A. B. o brought again] reduced A. B. Sadducees, and scribes, with many holy and godly traditions and ordinances, (as it seemed by the outward appearance and goodly glistering of the works,) but in very deed all tending to idolatry, superstition, and hypocrisy; their hearts within being full of malice, pride, covetousness, and all wickednessP. Against which sects and their pretended q holiness Christ cried out more vehemently than he did against any other persons, saying, and often rehearsing these words, Woe be to you, scribes and Pharisees, ye hy-Matt. 23. pocrites! for you make clean the vessel without, but within yes be full of ravine and filthiness; Thou blind Pharisee and hypocrite! first make the inward part clean. For notwithstanding all the goodly traditions and outward shewst of good works devised of their own imagination, whereby they appeared to the world most religious and holy of all men; yet Christ, who saw their hearts, knew that they were inwardly, in the sight of God, most unholy, most abominable, and farthest from God of all men. Therefore said he unto them, Hypocrites, the prophet Esay spake full Matt. 15. truly of you, when he said, This people honour me with Isai. 19. their lips, but their heart is far from me. They worship me in vain that teach doctrines and commandments of men: for you leave the commandments of God to keep your own traditions. served and And though Christ said, They worship" God in vain that teach doctrines and commandments of men; yet he meant Man's laws not thereby to overthrow all men's commandments; for he must be obhimself was ever obedient to the princes and their laws, made for good order and governance of the people: but he not as God's reproved the laws and traditions made by the scribes and laws. Pharisees, which were not made only for good order of the people, (as the civil laws were,) but they were set up so high, that they were made to be right and purey worshipping of God, as they had been equal with God's laws, or above them for many of God's laws could not be kept, but were fain to give place unto them. This arrogancy God detested, that man should so advance his laws to make them equal with God's laws, wherein the true honouring and right worshipping of God standeth, and to make his laws for them to be left off. God hath appointed his laws, whereby his pleasure is to be honoured. His pleasure is p wickedness] iniquity A. B. a pretended] pretensed A. B. C. I rehearsing] repeating A. B. s ye] you A. B. C. t shews] shew A. u worship] worshipped A. B. X set up so high] so highly extolled y right and pure] a right and sincere C. z left off] omitted A. B. God's laws. also, that all men's laws, not being contrary unto his laws, shall be obeyed and kept, as good and necessary for every commonweal, but not as things wherein principally his honour resteth: and all civil and man's laws either be, or should be made, to bringd men the better to keep God's laws, that consequently, or followinglyf, God should be the better honoured by them. Howbeit, the scribes and Pharisees were not content that their laws should be no higher esteemed than other positive and civil laws; nor would not have them called by the name of others temporal laws; Holy tradi- but called them holy and godly traditions, and would have tions were them esteemed, not only for a right and true worshipping esteemed as of God, as God's laws be indeed, but also for the most high honouring of God, to the which the commandments of God should give place. And for this cause did Christ so vehemently speak against them, saying, Your traditions, which men esteem so high, be abomination before God: Holiness of for commonly of such traditions, followeth the transgresman's de- sion or breaking of God's commandments, and a more devotion in keeping k of such things, and a greater conscience in breaking of them, than of the commandments of God. is As the scribes and Pharisees so superstitiously and scrupulously kept the sabbath, that they were offended with Christ because he healed sick men; and with his apostles, because they, being sore hungry, gathered the ears of corn to eat upon that day; and because his disciples washed not their hands so often as the traditions required, the scribes and Pharisees quarrelled with Christ, saying, Why do thy disciples break the traditions of the seniors? But Christ laid to their charge', that they, for to keepm their own traditions, did teach men to break the very commandments of God: for they taught the people such a devotion, that they offered their goods into the treasure-house of the temple, under the pretence of God's honour, leaving their fathers and mothers, to whom they were chiefly bound, unholpen; and so they brake the commandments of God, to keep their own traditions. They esteemed more an oath made by the gold or oblation in the temple, than an oath made in the name of God himself, or of the temple. They vice is commonly occasion that God offended. Matt. 12. Matt. 15. a men's] man's A. B. b not being] being not A. B. C. d bring] induce A. B. bring in C. e keep] observe A. B. for followingly] omitted A. B. h for] to be A. B. C. i or breaking] omitted A. B. k in keeping] in the observing A. B. in the keeping C. 1 laid to their charge] objected against them A. B. m keep] observe A. B. were more studious to pay their tithes of small things, than to do the greater things commanded of God, as works of mercy, or to do justice, or to deal sincerely, uprightly, and faithfully with God and man: These, saith Christ, ought Matt. 23. to be done, and the other not left undone. And, to be short, they were of so blind judgment, that they stumbled at a straw, and leaped over a block; they would, as it were, nicely take a fly out of their cup, and drink down a whole camel; and therefore Christ called them blind guides, warning his disciples from time to time to eschew their doctrine. For although they seemed to the world to be most perfect men, both in living and teaching, yet was their life but hypocrisy, and their doctrine but sour leaven, mingled with superstition, idolatry, and overthwart judgment, setting up the traditions and ordinances of man, instead 9 of God's commandments. : The Third Part of the Sermon of Good Works. THAT all mens might rightly judge of good works, it hath been declared in the second part of this sermon, what kind of good works they be that God would have his people to walk in, namely, such as he hath commanded in his holy scripture, and not such works as men have studied out of their own brain, of a blind zeal and devotion, without the word of God and by mistaking the nature of good works, man hath most highly displeased God, and hath gone from his will and commandments". So that thus you have heard how much the world, from the beginning until Christ's time, was ever ready to fall from the commandments of God, and to seek other means to honour and serve him, after a devotion found outy of their own heads; and how they did set up their own traditions as high or above God's commandments; which hath happened also in our times (the more it is to be lamented) no less than it did among the Jews, and that by the corruption, or at least a by the negligence of them that chiefly ought to have preferred n left undone] omitted A. B. o mingled] mixt A. B. p overthwart] preposterous A. B. q instead] in the stead A. B. C. The third part] The homily is not divided in A. s That all men-and commandments] omitted A. t studied out] imagined A. x So that thus you have heard] y found out] imagined A. B. a at least] at the least A. B. C.. Sects and religions amongst Christian men. God's commandments, and to haveb preserved the purec and heavenly doctrine left by Christ. What man, having any judgment or learning, joined with a true zeal unto God, doth not see and lament to have entered into Christ's religion, such false doctrine, superstition, idolatry, hypocrisy, and other enormities and abuses, so as by little and little, through the sour leaven thereof, the sweet bread of God's holy word hath been much hindered and laid apart? Never had the Jews in their most blindness so many pilgrimages unto images, nor usedd so much kneeling, kissing, and censing of them, as hath been used in our time. Sects and feigned religions were neither the fortiethe part so many among the Jews, nor more superstitiously and ungodly abused, than of late days they have been among us: which sects and religions had so many hypocritical and feigned works in their state of religion, as they arrogantly named it, that their lamps, as they said, ran always over, able to satisfy not only for their own sins, but also for all other their benefactors, brothers, and sisters of religions, as most ungodly and craftily they had persuaded the multitude of ignorant people; keeping in divers places, as it were, marts or markets of merits, being full of their holy relics, images, shrines, and works of overflowing abundanceh ready to be sold; and all things which they had were called holy, holy cowls, holy girdles, holy pardons, holy beadsi, holy shoes, holy rules, and all full of holiness. And what thing can be more foolish, more superstitious, or ungodly, than that men, women, and children, should wear a friar's coat to deliver them from agues or pestilence? or when they die, or when they be buried, cause it to be cast upon them, in hope thereby to be saved? Which superstition, although (thanks be to God) it hath been little used in this realm, yet in divers other realms it hath been and yet it is used among many, both learned and unlearned. But, to pass over the innumerable superstitiousness that hath been in strange apparel, in silence, in dormitory, in cloister, in chapter, in choice of meats and drinks1, and in such like things, let us consider what enormities and abuses have been in the three chief principal points, which they called the three essentials, b preferred God's commandments, and to have] omitted D. c pure] sincere A. B. d used] using B. e fortieth] forty A. B. C. f and feigned] omitted A. B. erogation A. B. i holy pardons, holy beads,] holy pardoned beads A. holy pardons, beads C. D. k it is used] is used A. B. C. 1 and drinks] and in drinks A. g of religion] of their religion A. B. B. C. h overflowing abundance] super |