Page 370
Of the Miracles whereby God hath confirmed his promises in the mindes of the faithfull by the ministery of his holy Angells. CHAP. 8.
I Should seeme tedious in reuoluing the Miracles of too abstruse antiquity: with what miraculous tokens God assured his promises to Abraham that in his seed * 1.1 should all the earth be blessed, made many thousand years ago? Is it not miraculous for Abrahams barren wife to beare a son, she being of age both past child-birth & conception? that (a) in the same Abrahams sacrifices, the fire came down from * 1.2 heauen betweene them as they lay diuided? that the Angells fore-told him their destruction of Sodome, whom he entertained in mens shapes, & from them had Gods promise for a sonne? and by the same Angells was certefied of the mira∣culous * 1.3 deliuery of his brother Lot., hard before the burning of Sodome? whose * 1.4 wife being turned into a statue of salt for looking backe, is a great mistery, that none beeing in his way of freedome should cast his eyes behinde him? And what stupendious miracles did Moyses effect in Egipt by Gods power for the free∣dome of Gods people? Where Pharaos Magicians (the Kings of Egipt that held Gods people in thrall) were suffered to worke some wonder, to haue the more admired foile: for they wrought by charmes and enchantments (the delights of the deuills:) but Moyses had the power of the God of heauen & earth, (to whom the good Angells doe serue,) and therefore must needes bee victour: And the Magicians fayling in the third plague, strangely & mistically did Moyses effect the other 7. following: and then the hard▪ hearted Egiptians, & Pharao yeel∣ded * 1.5 Gods people their passage. And by and by repenting, and persuing them, the people of God passed through the waters (standing for them, as rampires) and the Egiptians left al their liues in their depth, being then re-ioyned. Why should I reherse the ordinary miracles that God shewed them in the desert: the sweet∣ning of the bitter waters by casting wood therein, the Manna from heauen, that * 1.6 rotted when one gathered more then a set measure: yet gathering two measures the day before the Saboath (on which they might gather none) it neuer putrified at all: how their desire to eate flesh was satisfied with fowles that fell in the tents sufficiēt (O miracle) for al the people, euen til they loath thē! how the hold∣ing vp of Moyses hands in forme of a crosse, and his praier, caused that not an He∣brew fell in the fight: & how the seditious, seperating them-selues from the socie∣ty ordained by God, were by the earth swallowed vp quicke, to inuisible paines, * 1.7 for a visible example. How the rocke burst forth into streames being strucke with Moyses rodde, and the serpents deadly bytings being sent amongst them f•…•…r a iust plague, were cured by beholding a brazen serpent set vp vpon a pole, here∣in beeing both a present helpe for the hurt, and a type of the future destruction of death by death in the passion of Christ crucified! The brazen serpent, beeing for this memory reserued, and afterward by the seduced people adored as an I∣dol, Ezechias a religious King, to his great praise, brake in peeces.
L. VIVES.
IN (a) the same] This Augustine (Retract. lib. 2.) recanteth. In the tenth booke (saith he speak∣ing of this worke) the falling of the fire from heauen betweene Abrahams diuided sacrifices, is to bee held no miracle. For it was reuealed him in a vision. Thus farre he. Indeed it was 〈◊〉〈◊〉 miracle because Abraham woudered not at it, because he knew it would come so to passe, and so it was no nouelty to him.