Of the love of our only Lord and Saviour, Iesus Christ: Both that which he beareth to vs; and that also which we are obliged to beare to him. Declared by the principall mysteries of the life, and death of our Lord; as they are deluiered [sic] to vs in Holy Scripture. With a preface, or introduction to the discourse.

The great laboriousnesse of Loue, which our Lord Iesus, expressed in the working of his Miracles, is more declared.

CHAP. 43.

NOVV withall, this loue which our Lord, expressed in the working of his miracles, was no nice, or wary kind of loue. For it cost him excessiue paines, & labour; and imployed him in iourneying through all that hilly cō∣try on foote; as may be seene throughout the whole Euangelicall history, to find matter,* 1.1 for his mercy of that kind, to worke vpon. And sometymes, all Iewry not being able to con∣taine, and compasse in those bowells of his charity; he would be breaking out, into the skirts of the Gentiles,* 1.2 which he began to en∣noble & sanctifie by his presence. And wher∣soeuer he were, he was importuned by poore people to take pitty on them; and he had so much towards them, that he had none of him∣selfe. But he prayed for them by night, & he laboured for them by day, & that so hard; that as sometymes(1) 1.3 he had no bread to eate, so, at othertymes, he had not so(2) 1.4 much as leaue, or tyme to eate it in; yea or so much, as(3) 1.5 euen scarce meanes to stirre through the presse of people which came about him. At all howers was he ready to giue them health, if they had beene ready alwaies to receaue it. But (the Country, in sommer, begin extremly hoat) for

them to haue repaired to him, in the heate of the day, would haue bene perhaps, but to haue exchanged one sicknes for another. Or els, though the Patients would haue bene glad to be carryed or conducted, the men vvho vvere to help them, had not charity inough to en∣dure the trouble.

But hovvsoeuer the Patients, or their friends did stand affected, the Phisitian was still at hand; and he desired no better Fee, then to be doing them fauour. And(a) 1.6 so therfore in the euenings, about Sunne-set, the holy Scripture shevves, vvhat troopes of people of all those villages, tovvnes, and citties vvould come in about him. Drawing out dying men into the sight of that truer, & brighter sunne, vvhich vvas euer shining tovvards them, as at noone day. Not only did he cure them all; but besides the benefit it self of their health, he im∣parted it vvith so much tendernes of loue, as not to permit that there should be so much as any one of them all, vvhome he vvould not touch vvith his ovvne pure povverfull hands; though he vvas infinitely able to haue cured them all at once,* 1.7 and vvith the least vvord of his mouth, or euen vvith the wil of his hart. At other tymes agayne, he vvould accomplish their desires in another forme. And as before he cured them, by touching them vvith his owne sacred flesh to shew his loue; so novv, he vvould doe it by letting thē touch his gar∣ments,* 1.8 or his person, to shevv his povver.

There might you haue seeme, as if it

had bene, a very Market or Faire, of sicke Fol∣kes of all diseases, both of body and mind; which went Progresse with him, whersoe∣uer he had a mind to goe. Some leaning v∣pon staues; some carried in mens armes; and some in their beds vpon wheele barrowes. A running(*) 1.9 camp it was, of souldiers, who had all beene wounded in the warre by their ene∣mies; and they hoped for help by flying to∣wards the Cullours of this Captaine. And we may make account, that though he were the King both of heauen, and earth, yet he tooke not so much gust in being courted by the An∣gells of heauen, as he did in being haunted, by this hospitall, which went euer creeping after him, on earth.

This(b) 1.10 hospitall had all kindes of hospi∣tals made vp in one. One hospital for al sor∣tes, of ordinary diseases; as Feauers, Dropsies, Fluxes of bloud, and the like. Another for the Blind; Another for the Lame; Another for the Deafe; Another for the Dumbe; Another for the Leaprous; Another for the Paraliticques; Ano∣ther for the Lunatiques; and another for persons who were possessed by deuils; & who would euer haue contynued so, vnlesse that right hand of God, had cast them out. But(c) 1.11 what a spe∣ctacle then, would it haue bene to see a num∣ber of diseased, distressed, and defeated persons; at an instant, all become new men. All the Dumbe, being able to speake; the Deafe, to heare; the Lame, to goe; the blind, to see; the mad men, to discourse with reason; and the dying men,

to shew health and strength. How, I say, would they looke, with a face of wonder and amazement, vpon one another; as scarcely beleuing what they felt, and heard, and saw when they found the scene of all the world to be so changed at once. For then Christ our Lord (of whome S. Peter said,* 1.12 Quod pertransijt benefaciendo) curing all such as were oppressed by the diuell euen as fast as he could goe, was rayning(d) 1.13 downe from those liberall hands of his, the seuerall blessings, wherof euery one had greatest need. And this he did, with a hart so tenderly behoulding, in euery parti∣cular creature, the image of his eternal Father, that it made him loue the meanest of them, a million of tymes, more then his owne pre∣tious life. And so obseruing how in euery one of thē, that Image was growne to be defaced, which himselfe had made, he tooke care to re∣forme it, which no power but his could ar∣riue vnto.

There haue bene in the world, certaine ambitious sculptours, who conceauing thē∣selues withall, to be of matchlesse Skil, would take pleasure and pride, (when they were in making any curious Image, or statue) to leaue some eare, or fingar, or some part of the foot vnfinished. Therby sending out, a secret kind of defiance, to any other of their profession, who would presum to make that, like the rest. But(e) 1.14 this heauenly Sculptour of ours, who made not only the formes, but the matter also, of the creatures; was both more cunning, &

more charitable then the former. For at the first, he made al the Images of his Father most complete; nor was there any want of that perfection, vvhich they could desire. And aftervvard, vvhen they grevv to be defaced, & broken, through the falls vvhich they tooke by actual sinne (besides Adams fall which infe∣cted thē vvith original sinne) one of thē wan∣ting an arme, another an eye, (for all these and the like vvere the effects and fruits of sinne) he vvas pleased to bring, vvith a kind of greedy hart, the same hand of strength, vvhich be∣fore, had made those armes and eyes, to restore them, as by a kind of second creation.

But O thou infinite God! and vvho shal euer be able to tell vs, hovv the tendernes of this loue did make that very hart of thine, a kind of most true interiour(f) 1.15 hospitall, wher∣by all those other hospitalls vvere fed; and vvhereinto their miseries vvere receiued; and from vvhence they vvere supplyed vvith all that mercy, vvherof they had need. For if Iob had such a hart, as made him be an eye to the blinde, a foote to the lame, and a Father to the Or∣phane, (for as much as he grieued at the mi∣series vvhich lay vpon poore people, and pro∣cured to remoue them, by vvorkes of mercy) hovv much more are vve to beleeue it of Christ our Lord. In(g) 1.16 comparison of vvhose least mercy, the greatest mercy of Iob, vvas meere cruelty. Tell vs therfore deere Lord, hovv full that hart of thine vvas of eyes; and hovv many vvayes they vvere looking, all at

once, for our both tēporall and eternall good? For whilst thou wert curing the bodies of some, thou hadst an ayme at the miraculous recouery of the soules of others. He cured S. Peter and S. Andrew of the intricate netts, and perplexed cares of worldly busines. And S. Iames and S. Iohn,* 1.17 not only of wordly affaires, but of wordly affections to their friends. S. Matthew he brought from vnlawfull gaynes; and S. Mary Magdalene from impure pleasures. And euery one of these, & many, many more, at an instant, by the only cast of a counte∣nance, or some one single word of his sacred mouth, hauing first receaued a tincture from his enamoured hart.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Matt. 9. Marc. 6.
• * 1.2

  Matt. 25.
• (1) 1.3

  Matt. 4. & 12. & 15.
• (2) 1.4

  Marc. 3.
• (3) 1.5

  Marc. 2. & 3.
• (a) 1.6

  What troopes of sicke persons were brought to our B. Lord for eure. Luc. 4.
• * 1.7

  Luc. 4.
• * 1.8

  Marc. 6.
• (*) 1.9

  A run∣ning cāpe of souldi∣ers, who had been wounded by sinne.
• (b) 1.10

  Many Hospitalls in one.
• (c) 1.11

  A strā∣ge specta∣cle.
• * 1.12

  Act. 10.
• (d) 1.13

  The great la∣bour, and the great loue of our Lord.
• (e) 1.14

  The omnipo∣tent power & lone, of the diuine Artificer.
• (f) 1.15

  How the hart of our Lord was the true hospitall of mercy. Iob. 29.
• (g) 1.16

  No mercy must cō∣pare, with that of Christ our Lord.
• * 1.17

  Matt. 4. Marc. 1. Matt. 9. Marc. •••• Luc. 5. Luc. 7.