I dare not acquit Jehu herein. In "holy fraud" I like the Christian- but not the sur-name thereof; and wonder how any can marry these two together in the same action, seeing, surely, the parties were never agreed. This I dare say, be it unjust in Jehu, it was just with God, that the worshippers of a false god should be deceived with a feigned worship.

Hitherto I like Jehu as well as Josiah; his zeal blazed as much. But, having now got the crown, he discovers himself as a dissembling hypocrite. It was an ill sign when he said to Jonadab the son of Rechab: "Come with me, and see my zeal for the Lord." Bad inviting guests to feed their eyes on our goodness! But hypocrites, rather than they will lose a drop of praise, will lick it up with their own tongue.

Before he had dissembled with Baal; now he counterfeits with God. "He took no heed to walk in the way of the Lord God of Israel with all his heart." Formerly his sword had two edges, one cut for God's glory, the other for his own preferment. He that before drove so furiously, whilst his private ends whipped-on his horses, now will not go a foot-pace in God's commandments. "He departed not from the golden calves in Dan and Bethel."

I know what flesh will object, that "this state-sin Jehu must commit to maintain his kingdom; for the lions of gold did support the throne of Solomon, but the calves of gold the throne of Jeroboam and his successors. Should he suffer his subjects to go up to Jerusalem thrice a year, (as the law of Moses commanded, Exodus xxxiv. 23,) this would un-king him in effect, as leaving him no able subjects to command. And as one in the Heathen poet complains :

Tres sumus imbelles numero,sine viribus uxor,
Laertesque senex, Telemachusque puer.

'Three weaklings we,-a wife for war too mild,
Laertes old, Telemachus a child!'

so thrice a-year should Jehu only be king over such an impotent company of old men, women, and children. Besides, it was to be feared that the ten tribes going to Jerusalem to worship, where they fetched their God, would also have their king."

But faith will answer, that "God that built Jehu's throne without hands, could support it without buttresses, or being beholding to idolatry; and therefore herein Jehu, who would

needs piece out God's providence with his own carnal policy, was like a foolish, greedy gamester, who, having all the game in his own hand, steals a needless card to assure himself of winning the stake, and thereby loses all." For this deep diver was drowned in his own policy; and Hazael, king of Syria, was raised up by God to trouble and molest him. Yet God rewarded him with a lease of the kingdom of four successive lives; who, had he been sincere, would have assured him of a crown here and hereafter.

CHAPTER X.

THE HERETIC.

Ir is very difficult accurately to define him. Amongst the Heathen ATHEIST was, and amongst Christians HERETIC is, the disgraceful word-of-course, always cast upon those who dissent from the predominant current of the time. Thus those who in matters of opinion varied from the Pope's copy the least hairstroke, are condemned for heretics.* Yea, Virgilius, bishop of Saltzburgh, was branded with that censure, for maintaining that there were antipodes opposite to the then known world.† It may be, as Alexander, hearing the philosophers dispute of more worlds, wept, that he had conquered no part of them; so it grieved the Pope that these antipodes were not subject to his jurisdiction, which much incensed his Holiness against the strange opinion. We will branch the description of an heretic into these three parts:

1. He is one that formerly hath been of the true church.They went out from us, but they were not of us." (1 John ii. 19.) These afterwards prove more offensive to the church than very Pagans; as the English-Irish, descended anciently of English parentage, (be it spoken with the more shame to them, and sorrow to us!) turning wild, become worse enemies to our nation than the native Irish themselves.

• Hic videtur quòd omnis qui non obedit statutis Romana sedis sit hæreticus.— GLOSSA, in C. nulli dist. 19, in verbo Prostratus. JOH. AVENT.,

lib. iii., Annal. Boior.

2. Maintaining a fundamental error.-Every scratch in the hand is not a stab to the heart; nor doth every false opinion make a heretic.

3. With obstinacy.-Which is the dead flesh, making the green wound of an error fester into the old sore of a heresy.

MAXIM I.

It matters not much what manner of person he hath.—If beautiful, perchance the more attractive of feminine followers: if deformed, so that his body is as odd as his opinions, he is the more properly entitled to the reputation of " crooked saint."

II.

His natural parts are quick and able.-Yet he that shall ride on a winged horse to tell him thereof, shall but come too late, to bring him stale news of what he knew too well before.

III.

Learning is necessary in him, if he trades in a critical error.But if he only broaches dregs, and deals in some dull, sottish opinion, a trowel will serve as well as a pencil to daub-on such thick coarse colours. Yea, in some heresies, deep studying is so useless, that the first thing they learn is, to inveigh against all learning.

IV.

However, some smattering in the original tongues will do well. -On occasion, he will let fly whole vollies of Greek and Hebrew words; whereby he not only amazeth his ignorant auditors, but also in conference daunteth many of his opposers, who, though in all other learning far his superiors, may perchance be conscious of want of skill in those languages, whilst the heretic hereby gains credit to his cause and person.

V.

His behaviour is seemingly very pious and devout.-How foul soever the postern and back-door be, the gate opening to the street is swept and garnished, and his outside adorned with pretended austerity.

VI.

He is extremely proud, and discontented with the times.Quarrelling, that many beneath him in piety are above him in

place. This pride hath caused many men, who otherwise might have been "shining lights," prove smoking firebrands in the church.

VII.

Having first hammered the heresy in himself, he then falls to seducing of others.-So hard is it for one to have the itch, and not to scratch. Yea, Babylon herself will allege, that "for Sion's sake she will not hold her peace." The necessity of propagating the truth is error's plea to divulge her falsehoods. Men, as naturally they desire to know, so they desire what they know should be known.

VIII.

If challenged to a private dispute, his impudence bears him out. -He counts it the only error, to confess he hath erred. His face is of brass, which may be said either ever or never to blush. In disputing, his modus is sine modo;* and, as if all figures (even in logic) were magical, he neglects all forms of reasoning, counting that the only syllogism which is his conclusion.

IX.

He slights any synod, if condemning his opinions.-Esteeming the decisions thereof no more than the forfeits in a barber's shop, where a gentleman's pleasure is all the obligation to pay, and none are bound except they will bind themselves.

X.

Sometimes he comes to be put to death for his obstinacy.— Indeed, some charitable divines have counted it inconsistent with the lenity of the Gospel, which is to expect and endeavour the amendment of all, to put any to death for their false opinions; and we read of St. Paul, (though the Papists paint him always with a sword,) that he only came "with a rod." However, the mildest authors allow, that the magistrate may inflict capital punishments on heretics,† in cases of

1. Sedition against the state wherein he lives. And, indeed, such is the sympathy betwixt church and commonwealth, that there are few heresies, except they be purely speculative, (and

"His method is immethodical."--EDIT. places," De Magistratu Polit. p. 1047.

B B

GERARD'S "Common

so, I may say, have heads without hands, or any practical influence,) but in time the violent maintainers of them may make a dangerous impression in the State.

2. Blasphemy against God, and those points of religion which are awfully to be believed.

For either of these, our heretic sometimes willingly undergoes death; and then, in the calendar of his own conceit, he canonizeth himself for a saint, yea, a martyr.

CHAPTER XI.

THE RIGID DONATISTS.

THE Donatists were so called from a double Donatus, whereof the one planted the sect, (anno Domini 331,) the other watered it, and the devil, by God's permission, gave the increase. The elder Donatus, being one of tolerable parts and intolerable pride, raised a schism in Carthage against good Cecilian, the bishop there, whom he loaded unjustly with many crimes, which he was not able to prove; and, vexed with this disgrace, he thought to right his credit by wronging religion, and so began the heresy of Donatists.*

His most dominative tenet was, that the church was perished from the face of the earth, the relics thereof only remaining in his party. I instance the rather on this heresy, because the reviving thereof is the new disease of our times. One Vibius in Rome was so like unto Pompey, †ut permutato statu Pompeius in illo, et ille in Pompeio, salutari possit : ‡ thus the Anabaptists of our days, and such as are Anabaptistically inclined, in all particulars resemble the old Donatists, abating only that difference which is necessarily required to make them alike.

The epithet of "rigid" I therefore do add, to separate the Donatists from themselves, who separated themselves from all other Christians. For there were two principal sides of them:

AUGUSTINUS, ad Quod vult Deum.

lib. ix. cap. 15.

+ VALERIUS MAXIMUS, "That if either of them at any time had assumed the attitude and position of the other, Vibius might have been easily mistaken for Pompey, and Pompey accosted as Vibius."-EDIT.