Deuout contemplations expressed in two and fortie sermons vpon all ye quadragesimall Gospells written in Spanish by Fr. Ch. de Fonseca Englished by. I. M. of Magdalen Colledge in Oxford

Aiunt illi, Malos male perdet.

They say vnto him, He shall destroy those wicked ones. Him, in Scripture, we call ill, who does ill. Si ergo vos, cum sitis mali, nostis bona dare filijs vestris, &c. Wee dayly pray vnto God to deliuer vs from euill, yet sticke not dayly to commit e∣uill; Hazarding thereby both body and soule. Mala est, vita mala; sed m••r•• peccatorum, pessima, An ill life, is bad; but a bad death, worse. God, does Bene perde•••• iustum; When his il, workes for his good. As in Iobs case, His goods were lost, but his soule was saued. But the perdition of this people was generall, both in their goods, their honours, their wiues, their children, their Temple, their liues, and their soules. In a word, God would, that this people (like Lots wife) should serue for a generall warning to the whole World, by notifying their punishment to all nations. Deus ostendit mihi super inimicos meos. Now, Ostendere, in holy Scrip∣ture, imports a Publication, Quantas ostendisti mihi tribulationes multas, & mala••, What great tribulations hast thou shewed me, many & euill.

He will destroy those wicked ones. Dauid craues of God, That hee will not cor∣rect him in his furie, neither chasten him in his displeasure. Ne in furore Domine. God punishes all, but not in his furie. Ieremy craues a Corripe, but it is in judicio, non in furore, Correct vs (ô Lord) and yet in thy judgement, not in thy fury. This Pro∣phet sets downe two sorts of punishments.

The one, of an Almond tree budding. Quid tu vides Ieremiah? What 〈◊〉〈◊〉 thou Ieremy? Virgam vigilantem ego video, (sayth hee) I see a rod of an Al∣mond tree.

The other, of a pot seething, Quid tu vides, &c. What seest thou? Ollam succ••••••sam ego video, saith he, I see a seething pot.

In the rod, he represented vnto vs a light kind of punishment; with a rod, we vse to beat out the dust, & if you strike therwith but two or three strong blow•• well layd on, you will presently breake it. And this kind of punishment, is eue•• more directed to amendment of life, and to serue as a warning vnto vs. Ionath•••• eyes, were opened with that honie which he had on the top of his wand.

But in that of the pot seething, he represents vnto vs a most sharpe and seuere punishment.

He shall destroy those wicked ones. Man is so wedded to selfe-loue, that when it shall incounter with the counsell of God, it will goe about to condemne it. Of fiue hundred offenders that lye in prison, you shall scarce finde one that will not complaine, that he suffers vniustly; & that the Iudges sentence proceeded either out of malice or iniustice: And for these, there is no better course to be taken with them, than to halter them, as they doe Mules, when they begin to play ia∣dish trickes. As well conditioned as Dauid was, Nathan the Prophet was faine to hamper him in this manner, that he might thereby be taught to know his own error. The like order doth our Sauiour Christ take with this froward people; And albeit, they were so crafty and so wary, that when he propounded any que∣stions vnto them, they were wonderfull carefull what answere to make him, sus∣pecting this was but a trap set for them; insomuch, that when our Sauiour ask't them, Whether the Baptisme of Iohn Baptist, were from Heauen, or from Earth? They answered, We know not. But notwithstanding all this, forasmuch as there is no wisedome, no prudence, nor no counsaile against the Lord; and that the wisedome of the Earth, is but foolishnesse to that of Heauen: they fell into the snare, pronouncing this sentence against themselues, Malos, male perdet, He will cruelly destroy those wicked men.

It was not much, that the children should waxe blind, beeing neere the splen∣dour of his diuine Wisedome; when as their father the Deuill, who was the fountaine of Malice, was strucken blinde therewith. Iob, that patterne of Pati∣ence, saith, Hee that made him, will make his owne sword to approach vnto him. Some Bookes haue it, Applica••it gladium eius ei. He caused the Deuill to cut his throat, with his owne knife. Hee tooke vp sinne, as a sword, against God, and against Man: but the Wisedome of God so guided the blow, that he sheathed his sword in his owne bowels. He brought in Death, and Death was his death. Hee bit Eue by the heele; but this biting, was the brusing of his head. Of Golias sword, Dauid said, Non est similis in terra, There was not the like againe to bee had. Not that there was not such another to be found in the Philistimes armories, but because it found out the tricke to cut off his Masters head. So the Pharisees own sentence was the sword, that cut their throates. Nebuchadnezar, asking of his South∣sayers the signification of his dreame, They told him, None can doe that, but God. Now when Daniell shall interpret it, he must (by your owne confession) be either a God, or one of Gods inward friends. Malos, male perd••t, Hee will destroy those wicked ones, your owne mouth condemns you. Saint Chrysostome, and Euti∣mius say, That they were all of this opinion. But anon after finding themselues bitten, they foyst in an Absit. But our Sauiour citing for his purpose that saying of the Psalmist, Lapidem quem reprobauerunt, &c. The stone which they refused, &c. Their mouthes were bungd vp, and their Absit would not now serue their turne. And therefore he sayes vnto them, Auferetur à vobis Regnum Dei, The Kingdome of God shall be taken from you, &c.

Notes

• Gods punish∣ments of two sorts. Psal. 6.1. Ierem. 10.24.
• Selfe loue the ouerthrow of man.
• Prou. 21.30.
• Iob. 40.
• Psal. 118.21.