A20559:242
The bright star which leadeth wise men to our Lord Jesus Christ, or, A…
The bright star which leadeth wise men to our Lord Jesus Christ, or, A familiar and learned exposition on the ten commandments gathered from the mouth of a faithful pastor by a gracious young man, sometime scholar in Cambridge.The bright star which leadeth wise men to our Lord Jesus Christ, or, A familiar and learned exposition on the ten commandements gathered from the mouth of a faithfull pastor by a gracious young man, sometime scholler in Cambridge.
London: printed by John Harison for Thomas Man, 1603London: printed by Iohn Harison for Thomas Man, 1603
Title page typeset from the transcription.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
Lastly it is a day blessed to them that keep it, and to this end consecrated, that it may bring a blessing; hath time worn out the force of this argument, is God less able to bless us, or should we less desire, or do we less stand in need of his blessing, then they? We see then that all the reasons are firm and strong, the length of time cannot abrogate the truth and strength of the reasons; therefore neither can it disannul the commandment. For where God gives a ceremonial commandment, which he would have the Jews only to observe, there he frames his reason thereafter, from some thing that specially toucheth the Jews, & hath ⟨p. 63⟩no such affinity and agreement to other nations, as for the passover, he commands the Jews to keep that, why, because the Angel passed over their houses, when he destroyed the Egyptians, and they must give the first borne to God; why? because God did not smite their first borne, in the slaughter of the Egyptians, and so many other ceremonies, have reasons annexed unto them, which being peculiar to the Jews, showed that they did only bind the Jews under the law; but of all the reasons here alleged, we see that none is ceremonial, peculiar or proper to the Jews, but every one common to all, and as large as all the world; therefore those that cannot exempt themselves from the arguments confirming the commandment, may not pull their necks out of the commandment. Secondly, from the time when this commandment was first given, and the keeping holy of a sabbath day instituted, we may easily perceive, that the commandment is no more ceremonial then all the rest. For it was given in mans innocency, when Adam was perfect and needed no ceremony to lead him to Christ, because he did not need to believe in Christ, being himself perfect, and holding his happy estate, not by faith in Christ, but by faith in Gods word, and his own obedience unto Gods word. For this commandment was not first made at Mount Sinai, no more then any of the other 10. but equally with them bound the conscience of Adam, the first man, and is of like antiquity. The first seventh day that ever was, was as much to be sanctified as any that followed, as may appear in the second of Gen.
Lastly it is a day blessed to them that keepe it, and to this ende consecrated, that it may bring a blessing; hath time worne out the force of this argument, is God lesse able to blesse vs, or should we lesse desire, or doe we lesse stand in need of his blessing, then they? We see then that all the reasons are firme and strong, the length of time cannot abrogate the truth and strength of the reasons; therefore neither can it disanul the commandement. For where God giues a ceremoniall cōmandement, which he would haue the Iewes onely to obserue, there he frames his reason thereafter, from some thing that specially toucheth the Iewes, & hath