Seuen goulden candlestickes houlding the seauen greatest lights of Christian religion shewing vnto all men what they should beleeue, & how they ought to walke in this life, that they may attayne vnto eternall life. By Gr: Williams Doctor of Divinity

CHAP. II. How God is the iustest Iudge to punish Sinne.

SEcondly, that God is the iustest Iudge that can be found to punish sin, it appereth by these 3. reasons.

* 1.1First, because he loueth righteousnesse; For it is the propertie of a iust Iudge, not onely to iudge righte∣ously, to iustifie the innocent, and to punish the offenders, but also to loue righteousnesse, and to hate iniquitie; but of God, the Prophet saith:* 1.2 Thy throne O God, is for euer and euer, thou hast loued righteousnesse and hated iniquitie: wherfore God, euen thy God, hath annoynted thee with the oyle of gladnesse aboue thy fellowes: And againe, thou hatest all those that worke vanitie.

Secondly, because he iudgeth without any respect of persons:* 1.3 for this is one of the chiefest properties of a righteous Iudge; to iudge according to the equitie of the cause, and according to the quality of the person: and therefore Iethro, Iehosophat,* 1.4 and others, doe make this not respecting of persons,* 1.5 to be one of the essentiall properties of a righteous Iudge:* 1.6 but with God there is no respect of persons: for he will not be corrupted with the reward of the rich; for all the beasts of the Forrest are his, and so are all the cattell vpon a thousand hills; he will not be terrified for feare of the mighty; for he will binde Kings in fetters, and Nobles in linkes of iron; neither is he angred or molested with the incessant com∣playnings of the poore; but he will heare their cry,* 1.7 and will helpe them, Psal. 145.19.

Indeed with men, it is a common practise,* 1.8 to haue our lawes like a spiders webbe; wherein the little flies are catcht, and the great buzzing bumble bees, doe easily passe through: and therefore it is truely said of mans Law, That

Dat veniam coruis vexat censura columbas. It spares the rich, but spoiles the poore.

But Gods law is rete Vulcanium, like Vulcans iron net,* 1.9 which apprehends and condemnes all alike: for if the greatest men hurt the poorest, and those poore men cry vnto me, saith the Lord, I will heare them; that is, to helpe the oppressed, and to punish the wrong doer: and therefore Moses saith of him,* 1.10 that he is a great God, mighty and terrible, which accepteth no person, nor taketh reward; but doth iustice and right, vnto the Orphanes, and the Widdow: and Dauid saith, Deus iudex iustus est,* 1.11 God is a righte∣ous Iudge, and that the Heauens shall declare his righteousnesse, i. e. approue and iustifie him in his iudgements. And Saint Paul saith, that he shall haue the crowne of righteousnesse,* 1.12 which the Lord, the righteous Iudge, shall giue him in that day: and the ve∣ry Heathens say as much: for not onely Euripides saith. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, that Iustice is not in the eyes of mortall men; but Hesiod goeth further, saying; 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, Ipsa autem Iustitia est virgo, ex Ioue nata; That Iustice is a pure Virgin, and an immaculate daughter of the chie∣fest God; that is indeed, a true and essentiall propertie of the true and euerliuing God: and therefore it must needes follow, that

of all Iudges, God is the iustest Iudge, that can be found, to punish sinne.

* 1.13Thirdly, because he rendereth to euery man, according to his workes, and punisheth great sins, with the greater punishment: and the longer he stayes to expect our amendment, the sorer will be our punishment, if we doe not repent.

* 1.14I haue read of an Asse, that hauing an huge burthen vpon his backe, by chance stumbled at a stone and fell; her master presently began to chide, and to beate her; whereat the poore Asse repined and bemoaned her selfe, saying, in what a miserable state doe I liue, and what a cruell master doe I serue? for I haue done him many good and faithfull seruices, and yet see, how for one fault by chance committed, I am thus most grieuously handled. The fable shewes vs,* 1.15 that men many times doe neither reward, nor punish according vnto iust deserts; but doe oftentimes suffer good deeds, to goe vnrewarded, and punish small offences, with se∣uerer punishments then in the rigor of Iustice they haue de∣serued; and it may be, often suffer the greater sinners, to escape all punishment.

But it is not so with God: for if we doe well, and haue our hearts vpright, to doe him seruice, he will not alwayes be chiding, though we should commit many faults: but if we doe ill, Sinne lyeth at the doore,* 1.16 ready to accuse vs, and God the righteous Iudge will deale with vs according to our sinnes, whether they be great or small.* 1.17 Nam iniustus quisquis eo attrocius in tormentis ob∣ruitur, quo altius inpeccatis eleuatur; For euery sinfull wretch, the more haynous hath beene his sinnes, the more grieuous shall be his punishments,* 1.18 saith Saint Gregory, So Saint Hierome saith, Cui dubium, quin inter tres peccatores; Gentilem, Haereticum, & Ecclesi∣asticum, multo maioribus paenis dignus sit, qui maioris fuerit dignita∣tis?* 1.19 Who maketh any doubt of this, but of three sinners, that is, the Gentile, which is without the Church; and the Hereticke which is against the Church; & the Hypocrite that is within the bosome of the Church, he (that is, the Hypocrite) shall be the most seuerely punished, which had the chiefest place, and was most dignified with that honourable title of a Christian? And so Saint Augustine saith,* 1.20 Mitissima omnium paenarum erit eorum, qui preter peccatum quod originale contraxerunt, nullum insuper

addiderunt: Of all punishments theirs shall be the least, which besides their original sinne, haue committed none other sinne. And the diuine Scripture is as plain in this point as need to be: for the Lord, speaking of Iezabell, saith, Quantum in dilicijs fuit, tantum date illi tormenti; That as much as she hath beene in pleasure, i. e. of sinne and iniquitie, so much torments shall bee laide vpon her: and our Sauiour saith,* 1.21 It shall be easier for So∣dome and Gomorra, and more tollerable for Tyre and Sydon in the day of iudgement: then for Corazin and Bethsaida, and o∣ther like sinfull Cities which heard our Sauiour Preach, and did see his mighty workes, and yet would not repent.

But against this it may bee obiected:* 1.22 How can it bee that they should be all in the same place, tyed in the same lake, and burning in the same fire, and yet that they should not feele the same punishment?

To this we answere,* 1.23 that they shall feele the same punish∣ment, but not in the same measure; the same for length of time, but not the same for quantitie of paine. Nam sicut vno sole om∣nes tanguntur, &c. For, as men (saith S. Gregory) sitting in the heat of the same Sun,* 1.24 are not heated & warmed in the same man∣ner; because the weight of the heat is felt according to the quality and disposition of the body; Sic damnatis vna est gehenna, quae affligit, & tamen non omnes vno calore comburit; quia quod hic agit dispar valetudo corporum, hoc illic exhibet dispar causa meritorum: Euen so, though there be but one hell which tormenteth all; yet doth it not torment all alike: for as here the different dis∣position of their bodies, doth cause men differently to perceiue the heate: So there, the inaequality of their merits, will be the cause of disparity in their torments. And therefore seeing God loueth righteousnesse, iudgeth all without respect of persons, and in his iudgements, rendreth vnto euery man according to his deeds; it is most apparant that God is the iustest Iudge that can be found to punish sinne.

Notes

• * 1.1

  God loueth righteousnesse. Psal. 45.7.8. Heb. ••.9.
• * 1.2

  Psal. 5.5.
• * 1.3

  God is no re∣specter of per∣sons.
• * 1.4

  Exod. 18.21.
• * 1.5

  2 Chron 19 7.
• * 1.6

  Prou 24.23. 1 Sam. 6.7. Act. 10 33. Gal. 1.6. Psal. 50.10. Psal. 149 8. Deut. 26.7.
• * 1.7

  Psal. 145.19.
• * 1.8

  With men we finde Iustice often peruer∣ted.
• * 1.9

  That God is most iust
• * 1.10

  Deut. 10.17.
• * 1.11

  Psa••. 7.12.
• * 1.12

  2 Tim. 4.8.
• * 1.13

  That God iud∣geth euery man according to his desert. Valer. l. 1.
• * 1.14

  Lucius Apuleius do asino aureo.
• * 1.15

  Men reward not men ac∣cording to iust deserts.
• * 1.16

  Gen. 4.7.
• * 1.17

  Gregor. in mor.
• * 1.18

  Hieron. super Ezech.
• * 1.19

  That God pu∣nisheth the greater sinners with the grea∣ter punish∣ment.
• * 1.20

  Aug. l. 3. de lib. arb.
• * 1.21

  Matth. 11.12.24.
• * 1.22

  Ob.
• * 1.23

  Sol.
• * 1.24

  That the tor∣ments of Hell are not equall vnto all Greg. in Moral.