The doctrine of the Sabbath handled in foure seuerall bookes of treatises. The first of which intreateth of the day of rest. The second, of the duties of the day. The third, of the persons whom these duties concerne. And the fourth, the reasons vsed to perswade all persons to the practise of these duties vpon that day. Written by G.W. Master of Arts, and minister of the word of God in Portsmouth.

CHAP. IIII.

That the whole Sabbath day is to be kept, Sect. 1. And the night also, in a sort, Sect. 2. When the Sabbath beginneth and endeth, Sect. 3.

[§. Sect. 1] BVt now there is another sleight of Sathan, and that is when he cannot * 1.1 leade vs beyond the marke, then he labours to haue vs come short of it. And to that end he beareth thou∣sands in hand, that they are not bound to rest the whole day and keepe the whole day holie; but onely the time of the publike exercises. But for this they are to know, that God requireth in the commandement that we rest the whole day, and that we keepe the whole day holy: for if he had meant but a part of the day, he could haue said so much; but in that he requireth a day in the com∣mandement he putteth it out of question. If thou thy selfe shouldest hire a man to worke with thee a day, wouldest thou not looke that hee should worke with thee a whole day? Or a seruant to dwell a yeere with thee, wouldest thou not looke that hee should dwell a whole yeere with thee? How is it then that thou vnderstandest God to halfes, when his word is as plaine as thine? Doest thou not think that Ananias was iustly punished, because he brought but a part, when hee should haue brought the whole? And shall not God as iustly punish thee, if thou keepest but a part,

when thou shouldest keepe the whole? Indeede this word whole is not expressed, but yet it is im∣plied and necessarily vnderstood, in that hee re∣quireth a day. And that his meaning is so, appea∣reth euidently also by the reasons hee bringeth afterwards, to perswade thee thereunto. For first thou knowest the whole weeke consisteth of se∣uen daies. Of these he giues thee sixe, and keepes one for himselfe; now such daies as he giues thee to doe thy businesse in, such and so long a day he reserues for himselfe; but euery one of thy daies hath foure and twentie houres: and therefore he must haue so many to his day, or els thou hast more than sixe daies giuen thee; or if not giuen, then thou takest it as Hophnie did the flesh: and then thou robbest God of part of his day, and so thou committest theft; which, were the case thine owne, thou wouldest not endure. For if thou hauing seuen pounds in thy purse, shoul∣dest giue sixe of them to some debaushed soul∣dier; if hee should wastfully spend that thou ga∣uest him on harlots, and then afterwards should come and take from thee all the remainder sa∣uing two or three shillings; wouldest thou not thinke that he did incroch two much vpon thee? wouldest thou not say he hath robbed me? And bee not these as great theeues that rob God, as those that rob men? Doubtlesse they be greater; and therefore take no part of this day from God to spend vpon thy lusts; for it is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God; and take heede how thou wrong him, and curtoll his day, as Hanun did

Dauids seruants garments, 2. Sam. 10. 4: for hee will not take this wrong at thine hands. Againe, in the third reason where God proposeth him∣selfe vnto thee for an example to follow; looke how long a time God rested, so long a time must thou rest. But hee rested the seuenth day wholy, for he made nothing the seuenth day, but finish∣ed all in sixe daies: and therefore must thou rest a whole day as hee did. Lastly, in the last reason, looke what time God blessed and sanctified to be kept holie, that time ought in right to be kept holie, (for this is the nature and propertie of things sanctified, they being set apart from the common vse, may not otherwise be imployed than vnto his honour, as appeareth Leuit. 27. 28. Yea Nebuchadnezzar as very a beast as he was, yet would not put the vessels of the house of God to a common vse; but put them in the house of his God, Dan. 1. 2.) but now (I say) God blessed and sanctified the whole day which he rested on, and therefore the whole day must be kept holie. And in very truth is not a whole day needfull for the performance of a whole seruice and worship of God? to heare the word, and minister the Sacra∣ments, pray, reade, meditate, conferre, instruct? And why then doe men thinke that they haue sufficiently kept the Sabbath if they heare diuine seruice, as they call it, in the forenoone, and in the afternoone? thinking that they may doe all the rest of the day what they list; as though God forsooth would take that at mans hands, which a man will not at his seruants; to worke an houre

or two, and to play all the rest of the day. But the Apostle, you will say, willeth that we should con∣demne no man in part of an holie day, Col. 2. 16. True; neither in respect of an whole holie day, such as hee there meaneth; that is, a Iewish holie day; which, as I haue shewed before, you are not bound vnto. But this is the Lords day, and it is the Lords Sabbath which you must keepe holie, and wholie holie vnto him; as you haue seene alrea∣die prooued: for 1. the day, 2. preparation there∣unto, 3. rest, and 4. holinesse; these foure things being in the commandement expressed, we must obserue for euer, as being morall and not cere∣moniall.

[§. Sect. 2] Though neither, yet is this sufficie to keepe the Sabbath day from morning to night (for they are deceiued that thinke that the Sabbath is ended when the Sunne is fet) but wee must keepe the night also, for it is a part of the day na∣turall, of which here is mention: for so Moses Gen. 1. accounteth the euening and the morning but one day: so that the artificiall day and the night make but one day naturall, which is the se∣uenth part of the weeke, and is Gods: and there∣fore the night must bee kept holie aswell as the day, for that is a part of the Sabbath. Therefore Psalm. 92, which is called a Psalme of the Sabbath, Dauid saith, not onely that he will declare Gods lo∣uing kindnes in the morning, but his truth also in the night. And Paul being at Troas, taught vntill mid∣night, and then celebrated the Lords Supper, which was a Sabbath daies exercise, thereby shewing

that the night was a part of the Sabbath also. Though neither yet doe I speake it to this end, that wee should keepe it in the same manner as Paul did, I know it well it was extraordinarie, but yet neuerthelesse in the nature of a night we are more holily to repose our selues that night, than at other times. A fault in those that other nights pray with their families, but this night ouerpasse it, esteeming it sufficient that they haue prayed at the Church.

[§. Sect. 3] But here I know it will be demaunded when the Sabbath beginneth, and whether wee must keepe the night before the Sabbath, or the night following. Answ. True it is that the Iewes kept their Sabbath the night before the day; for Le∣uit. 23. 32. from euen to euen shall you celebrate your Sabbath; but wee begin our Sabbath at the daw∣ning of the day, for these reasons: first, because [unspec 1] Christ rose in the dawning it was necessarie (our Sabbath being to be kept in remembrance there∣of) that our day should then begin. Secondly, to [unspec 2] put a difference betwixt the Iewish Sabbath, and the true Christian Sabbath, it was needfull that ours should begin at morning, when by the re∣surrection of Christ the world began to bee re∣newed: whereas the other began at night, when the world in the creation was finished. Thirdly, [unspec 3] that the night following is accounted a part of the day precedent, we see Act. 20. vers. 7. where it is said that Paul preached at Troas vntill mid∣night, being the next morning to depart, hauing staied there, as the text sheweth, vers. 6. seuen

daies: but if the last night had not been a part of the seuenth day, then he had staied at least a night longer than seuen daies, and so more than seuen daies, for hee should haue staied part of another day. But that this night was a part of the Sab∣bath which they then kept, doth yet further ap∣peare, in that the Apostle keepeth this night in the manner of a Sabbath, with performing the exercise of holinesse therein; as also in that be∣ing to depart, hee would not depart till the rest were ended. Which I obserue in that it is said, ver. 11, that he communed with them till the dawning of the day, and so departed; both which circumstan∣ces concurre well with this, to prooue that hee held the night following to be a part of the Sab∣bath. Now if any man will say, that by this rea∣son we may iustifie the deliuerie of the word and Sacrament in the night; I graunt it, the time be∣ing as this was, a time of persecution: otherwise not. But this, to keepe the night of the Sabbath in the nature of the night, I take to be no extraor∣dinarie, but an ordinarie thing, such as is now al∣so required of vs; and I presse it no further than to shew the practise of the Church, from which wee ought not rashly or vnaduisedly to dissent. And this hath been obserued euer sithence the Apostles times to be iust, who keep the day first, and call the night following by the name of the day precedent. And so much for the day of rest.

Notes

• * 1.1

  The whole day must be kept holie.