Tricoenivm Christi in nocte proditionis suæ The threefold svpper of Christ in the night that he vvas betrayed / explained by Edvvard Kellett.

PAR. 8.

IN the passages where he commēth to shew, how farre wee arē bound to fa∣sting, or how farre God requireth fasting of us; hee hath wild positions.

1 Since fasting is a certaine outward sorrow, or an outward effect, or signe of an inward contrite, and repentant heart: and God would have us rend our hearts and not our garments: if we truly mourne inwardly, and be contrite for our former sinnes, out of doubt (saith hee) God doth not greatly require fasting of us▪ no nor of the Jewes neither. This Epicure would have his 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉. His bare word, to rule the world. Doth not the Scripture say, that by fasting the soule is afflicted, and humbled? and so it is not alwaies a signe and effect of a contrite heart; but a meanes, and a way to make the soule contrite, and to prepare repentance.

When God commanded, to rend their hearts and not their garments: spea∣keth to the wicked; as to the drowsie drunkards. Joel 1.5. Awake yee drun∣kards and weepe; and howle yee drinkers of wine. These indeed did not rend their hearts; but forsooth would rend their garments. Gods command is not abso∣lutely exclusive, making it a sinne to rend their garments: but rather compara∣tive, shewing, that God would rather have whole garments and rent hearts, then rent garments and uncontrite soules; And this appeareth, because God ap∣proveth, if, not commandeth rending of garments. Holy David 2. Sam. 3.31. said, not onely to bloudy Ioab who most traiterouly murthered Abner, but to all the people that were with him; Rent your clothes, gird you with sackcloth and mourne. And did not God accept Ahabs rending of his clothes, and fasting, and call it Ahabs humbling of himselfe? 1. King. 21.29. Hezekiah rent his clothes. Esay 37.1. Yet he was a good man, and God was with him. Iosiah rent his clothes. 2. Chron. 34.19. and God by Huldah the Prophetesse, and she by Hilkiah his Embassadour sent Iosiah answer in these words, Because thine heart was tender—and thou didst humble thy selfe before God, and didst rend thy clothes, and weepe before me; I have heard thee. vers. 27. As on the contrary, some are reprehended for not rending their garments. Ieremy 36.24. For by this omission they testified their unrepentant hearts.