This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. Searching, reading, printing, or downloading EEBO-TCP texts is reserved for the authorized users of these project partner institutions. Permission must be granted for subsequent distribution, in print or electronically, of this text, in whole or in part. Please contact project staff at eebotcp-info@umich.edu for further information or permissions.
IT is the mankyng where wyth God created spirites, and al bo∣delye natures of nothynge by hys worde, for the kepeynge and preseruynge of them. Gene. i. In the beginninge God created hea∣uen and earth, that is to saye, all creatures. In the begynnyng,
that is, when their were as yet no creatures.
☞ It is all thys worckemāship as well of spirites created, as of o¦ther thinges and bodely natures for thys purpose made of God, that they shoulde declare a God to be, not alone to be playnly god but euerlastyng almyghty which can create, gouerne and kepe al∣thynges. Whyche knowen God the creatour and keper myght be glorified, and haue thanckes therfore.
¶ In the article of creation we muste vnderstande the perpetual gouernynge, vpholdynge and kepyng of thynges. So that god hath not forsaken or departed from hys worckemanshippe, like as the kerpender departeth from the howse whyche he hath made But God doeth alwaye gouerne
vpholde, kepe, and defend the na∣tures of thinges, he doeth yerely make the earth plentiful, he brin¦geth furth corne out of the earth he doth perpetually minister vn∣to thynges haueynge lyfe, lyfe and motion. Act. xviii. In him do we lyue, moue and haue oure be∣ynge. Colos. i. All thynges con∣siste in hym. All thynges loke for¦the, that thou may giue thē meat in due seasō Psal. xxxv. O Lorde thou shalt saue man and beast.
☞ The vniuersall generalnes of thynge, is a certayne sacramente and wytnesse, that there is a god that he is good, iuste, wyse. Also the mouynges of the elementes and heauenly bodies, sunne mone and sterres by certayne courses from tyme to tyme, preseruacy∣on of the kyndes of all thynges, doth sufficiētly declare, the world
and natures of thynges not to haue their being by chaunce, but to be created, wt the assured coun¦sell of God, to be ruled and pre∣serued. Moreouer the soules of menne be the Images and as it were glasses wherin the godhead doeth appeare, wherin we ought to marke and behold the godhead Also the polityke felowshyppe of mankynde declareth manyfestely the presence of God. We se also quellers and tirantes to be vio∣lently drawen vnto punishment by the certayne counsell of God.
❧ It is greate godlynes so to vse thinges created that by them we maye glorifye God, and de∣clare and set furthe hys goodnes and presence, & giue thankes and prayse vnto hym therefore. And they which do not this be very E¦picures, but rather godles persō∣nes