Gods three arrows plague, famine, sword, in three treatises. I. A plaster for the…Gods three arrovves plague, famine, svvord, in three treatises. I. A plaister for the…

§. 57. Of the success of war well waged.

§. 57. Of the successe of warre well waged.

II. ^*Lawful war well waged proves prosperous. Many many instances out of holy writ may be produced for proof of the truth hereof: but not one I dare boldly say, to the contrary. We do indeed oft read of many wars, wherein the better have had the worse, and the wicked have devoured men more righteous them themselves. But it hath been either because those better have undertaken wars not warrantable, or else not well waged the same. The war which Jehoshaphat undertook with Ahab, was not warrantable: For, beside that ^bHe should not have helped the ungodly, ^ca Prophet foretold him that God liked not that war. ^dThe war also that Josiah undertook against Pharaoh Nechoh was unlawful. For, Nechoh intended no evil against him. No marvel therefore that the war of the one and other, though otherwise they were good men, was unprosperous. The like may be said of the battle betwixt Amaziah and Joash, wherein Amaziah, who in mere pride without just cause provoked Joash to fight, was overthrown. But ^ethe war which Joshua waged against the men of Ai, though lawful in the kind of it, was not well ordered, because he did not before he entered the field, search his army to see whether any accursed thing were therein, or no. Nor was ^fthe lawful war of the Israelites against the Benjamites well ordered, because they went about to punish sin in ⟨p. 290⟩