A Marriage Sermon.  
A SERMON CALLED A Wife mistaken, or a Wife and no Wife: or Leah in stead of Rachel.  
A Sermon accused for Railing against Women; for maintaining Polygamy, many Wives, for calling Jacob a Hocuspocus.  
A Sermon laughed at more than a Play (by the Ignorant) for many such mistakes: justified by the Wife.  Wisdom is Justified of her Children. 
By Tho. Grantham, M. Art, sometimes Curate of High Barnet near London; now Professor of a speedy way of teaching the Greek and Latin tongue in Mugwell street, near the sign of the Sun.  Jnvenies aliquem— 
LONDON, Printed for T. P. in Queens-head Alley, near Pater noster-row. 1643.   

To the Reader.  
REader, this Sermon was more disfigured than David's Servants were by Hanun when he shaved off the one half of their beards, and cut off their Garments in the middle even to their Buttocks. 2. Sam. 10.4. So shaved, so cut, so ridiculously mangled was this Sermon, that when I saw it I could not tell whether I should laugh or cry. Thou knowest the Learning, Zeal, Patience, Apologies of the Saints have been brought forth by the Heresies, Vices, Tyrannies, Slanders of the Times; so comes out this Little Work ambitious only to be a Saviour, which if thy discretion in judge will strive to make, I shall be thine, or else hold thee like one of those who condemned it: But Id quod dicere nolo.   
Gen. 29. verse. 25. 
And it came to pass that in the morning behold it was Leah. And he said unto Laban, What is this thou hast done unto me? did not I serve with thee for Rachel? wherefore then hast thou beguiled me?  
IN the text you may observe a Conjunction and a division: a Conjunction, here are two together that should be asunder, jacob and Leah, And in the morning behold it was Leah. A division, here are two asunder that should be together, jacob and Rachel: and first of the Conjunction as fittest for this season, and opportunity; you have seen the quality of this conjunction, it was an ill Conjunction, a great deal of deceit in it, and where is there a Conjunction, a Marriage, but there is deceit in it, and lest this deceit should cause a separation, the Church bindeth them together before God and man, for better for worse, for richer for poorer. And unless this course were taken, how soon would there be a partition, their qualities being almost as different as heaven and hell, as the good Angels and the bad. Nabal and Abigail, Nabal a fool and churl, and of so base a disposition, such a man of Belial, that his own servants said a man could not tell how to speak to him: and she a kind complemental woman she fell at David's feet, and offered to wash the feet of his servants. David and Michal, Michal a scoffing woman, deriding David for dancing before the Ark, and he a man after Gods own heart; Socrates with Xantippe, she is like a Quotidian Ague, or at the best she is like saul's evil spirit that comes too often upon him. Moses and Zipporah, she a terrible fiery woman, Thou art a bloody husband to me, saith she, and Moses the meekest man above all the men of the earth. The learned distinguish a fourfold deceit in Marriage, the first is error persona, when Leah is given in stead of Rachel, one party for another, as to jacob, and this mistake doth hinder and nullify Marriage: for in Marriage there is a mutual love and consent One to another, but this is not where Leah is given in stead of Rachel, and therefore no Marriage. But will some say, is it possible that jacob (who was so subtle a man) should be so deceived, he was noted for a supplanter by his Brother Esau; Is he not rightly called jacob, for he hath supplanted me these two times of my birthright and blessing. He was so grave, so arch a supplanter, that he could deceive his father although his voice betrayed him, and although his father told him it was the voice of jacob, yet he pressed him to bless him in stead of his brother Esau. We say that man is an excellent Hocuspocus, excellent in legerdemain, and slight of hand that can deceive one that looks upon him. But he that can deceive the hearing, and the feeling, he is far more excellent: my sight may be deceived for I may take that which is Pictured to be lively and zeal, but my hearing, my feeling cannot be so easily deceived. Thomas would not believe his seeing, his hearing, but when he came to feeling to lay his hand in our Saviour's side, than he cried out, My Lord and my God. And now I suppose you are ready to ask, how this Subtle man was deceived? The deceit was thus, solene olim sponsae obvelata facie traduci ad torum mortalem pudoris causa: In those days the Brides came veiled and Masked to their Marriage Beds, for modesty sake, and it was a sign of Modesty to be silent. And thus much for the first deceit, which is error personae, a mistake of the person, as this text represents to you. There is another deceit, which is error qualitatis, when a man takes as he thinks he hath, one thrifty, honest, fair, and she proves a painted whorish, liquorish slut. And this deceit is general, for many women show like the Egyptian Temples, very beautiful without and built, and adorned with precious stones, saith, Lucian, but if you seek what god they worship within, you shall find him to be a Cat, or a Goat, or an Ape, or some such ridiculous ill favoured creature: so, many women, although they be fair and beautiful without, are full of many vanities, fickle, unconstant, lascivious affections: many a man thinks he hath a saint, when he hath a Devil, a fair woman, when she is a painted plastered faced jesabel; I will not speak of these painted tombs and sepulchers, beautiful without, but loathsome within, these Apples of Sodom, that seem fair to the sight but at the least touch they fall to dust: so the least approaching discovers the corruption of these creatures, so great is their corruption it corrupts the sweetest perfumes, and makes them loathsome as themselves: but I will not rake any longer in this unsavoury dunghill, There are two other errors, or deceits in Marriage, as error Conditionis, and error fortunae: but I let them pass, for fear I should run into the error of being tedious to this assembly. I come now to the division, or separation, there is discovery of an ill Conjunction, therefore I will cast my meditations a little upon this appearance, or discovery of this Conjunction, In the morning behold it was Leah. There is many a man sleeps with Leah and thinks it is Rachel, there is many a man so blinded in his love & affection that he is as much or more mistaken in the qualities of his wife then jacob was in the person of Leah: many a man thinks he hath a wife that loves him, when she cares not for him, and he may think that she is sighing and sorrowing in his absence, when she is Revelling and Dancing. You may read Pro. 7.18. there's a woman speaks to a man in her husband's absence to take his fill of love with her: he (may be) thinks, she is weeping in his absence, when she is tumbling in her perfumed bed, as you may read there, verse 17. I have perfumed my bed with Myrrh, Aloës, and Cinnamon; I have decked it with cover of tapestry, and fine linen of Egypt: no question this woman embraces her husband when he comes home, and he discovers nothing: for the way of an whorish woman, (as Solomon saith) is like the flight of a Bird in the air, like the passage of a ship upon the sea, like a serpent creeping into a rock: no sign of the birds flying, of the serpents creeping, of the ships passage.  
Look upon Ioseph's Mistress, she hath his coat to show for honesty, Ecce signum, Behold the coat of this Hebrew: did Samson think those hands would have clipped his locks, that had so often embraced his body? Some rash men do maintain, that the reason why men think there are so many good women, is, because they are so blind and ignorant themselves; if they had but the eyes of the Wise, to see with Solomon's eyes, may be they would say, There was not one good of a thousand, and he had told them one by one. And how does Solomon define a good woman? just as the Philosopher does, Vacuum ex supposito quod detur; if there be a Vacuum, it is Locus non repletus corpore; if there be, or shall ever be such a thing in the world as a good woman, than she is this and that, she is like a merchant's Ship that bringeth her food from far: and what of greater value! she is like to precious jewels, she is like to them, but there is none like to her, none of equal value with her. Solomon saith, She is a crown to her husband, she is the glory of her husband, saith Saint Paul, the very scarlet she  her servants in does show her honourable, God himself calls her an helper, and such a helper she is, that man could not have been capable of that blessing, Increase and multiply, without her, than it was The Seed of the woman that broke the Serpent's head: she was Deipora, she brought forth a God, and here I will bebold to say out of the due honour to that Sex, that there have been women have deserved these praises of Solomon: What was that Ester? that Cherubin of the Church under whose wings it was safe: the Papists call the Virgin Mary, Regina Coeli, Queen of Heaven, and they pray to her to command our Saviour, Mater impera Filio, Mother command thy Son; She hath more Churches dedicated to her than our Saviour, than all the Trinity, although she paid her Fine in milk, but He in blood, (as a great Divine saith.) How happy hath this Kingdom been under a Queen, there are many eyes now living that have seen it, and not a man but knows it; I need not instance in particulars the elect Lady and her sister, to whom Saint john writ, Priscilla able to inform a learned man Apollo's in the Scripture: these women were highly honoured by that Apostle called from Heaven, Greece Priscilla and Aquila, Rom. 16.3. Aquila and Priscilla salute you. 1. Cor. 16.19. salute Priscilla and Aquila, 3. Tim. 4.19. Priscilla went with him into Syria, Act. 18.18. and thus much for the discovery, how long may a man sleep before he knows with whom, or what she is he sleeps withal, before he knows whether it be Leah or Rachel. I am come now to the division or separation, and you see it is a high and great division, jacob gins to word it, to fall to terms with Laban (who was his Master) What is this thou hast done unto me did not I serve with thee for Rachel? wherefore then hast thou beguiled me? And indeed the inconveniences were very many that befell jacob by this wicked act of Laban: first of all he made his daughter a whore, and a whore is odious to the children of God, she was either to be burnt, or to be stoned. Then the wrong done to Rachel, being deceived of her expectation, was enough to make her weep herself blear eyed like Leah, than he brought an inconvenience upon jacob, having more wives than one, some say it was a sin, some hold it a great Inconvenience to have one, therefore much more to have two.  
The married man is entangled like a fish in a net; he comes merrily in, but he is mightily perplexed when he cannot get out: then this action of Laban was enough to set the sisters at variance, and what joy could jacob have when his wives were divided, it was enough to divide his heart: then the desire of rule, and jealousies, and distrusts that one hath of the other, than the charges to maintain two, whereas jacob if he had had but one, he would never have sought further: God made but one for Adam, and Lamech was the first that had two Wives, and he had no more than two, and he was of the posterity of Cain, and condemned by the fathers: and from Adam to Abraham none of the posterity of Seth had more than one wife (that we read of) they two shall be one flesh, and how can that be if a man have many wives. God made only male and female, and he took but one rib, and made of one rib, One Woman, not many. I will not say, it was a sin to have many wives, for I find it in the Law, Deut. 21.15. If a man have two wives, one that he loveth, and another that he hateth, and there the Law speaks of both their sons as legitimate, Deut. 17.17. the Law does forbid the King to have many wives which may draw away his mind, and Saint Augustine (upon that place) saith, permissum & Regi habere plures uxores non plurimas, he may have more than one or two, but not many, and jehoiada that was a most holy Priest, took two wives, for King joash, 2. Chron. 24.3. but me thinks I hear some say, Laban is unjustly condemned for dealing so strictly with jacob: was it not a great kindness in Laban to take jacob, jacob that had cozened his Father, his Brother, and to trust him with his flock, and then it was a kindness that he gave him his daughter, and for aught I know the better of the two, the fairest is not always the best, Beautiful Rachel sold jacob for Mandrakes, whereas blear eyed Leah bought him and went out to meet him, Gen. 30.16. Tender eyed Leah will be weeping at my misfortunes, when beautiful Rachel will be laughing with another: Abraham went in danger with beautiful Sarah, but jacob liveth secure with tender eyed Leah, Rachel stole her father's gods, and could see her Father and husband quarrel the while, when Leah was continually weeping, Rachel will be impatient if she have not what she desires, give me Children or else I die: and what is beauty with such disquietness, but like a fair house haunted with spirits, or a bed of violets with a serpent, but look upon Leah she is more moderate, tender eyed, she will be weeping in stead of scolding, Rachel will be subject to be wandering like Dina, Leah is tender eyed, and the wind will hurt her, veniunt spectantur ut Ipse, they delight to be looked upon, what are these many fancies in their dress but so many signs to invite a man to Inn there if he please, whereas the Passenger else had gone on his way, what does the fouler whistle for but to catch the Bird and such is the end of their enchantments. Thus you see the danger of beauty, there is more danger in it then in the most unruly Elements, the fire hath no power of a man if he do not touch it, nor the water, but if a man look but upon beauty, it will endanger him, and it is kept with a great deal of danger and care, as the Apples of the Hesperides with a watchful Dragon. But will some say, why do you maintain blear eyed Leah against beautiful Rachel, Leahs fault was great in lying with jacob. To this I answer, fornication was held no sin amongst the Gentiles, and the Church of Rome holds, fornicationem non vagam, that if a man keep constantly to one woman it is no sin: and here let no man be harsh against Leah, for she is tender eyed, and can weep tears enough to wash away her sin, tears enough to wash our Saviour's feet, alas be not harsh against her, she is blear eyed already & too much weeping will make her blind; what if Leah have a blemish in the eye of her body, yet her understanding, the eye of her soul may be clear, and beautiful, and if men consider rightly, the greatest deformity and blemish in a woman is, to be blear eyed in her understanding, to mistake a man's actions, not to see them clearly, if her husband be sociable, than he is given to drunkenness, if silent, than he hath no discourse in him, if merry, not that gravity that becomes him, if he put not himself upon hard adventures to raise his fortunes, she is disquieted, and if he do, and be foiled, than she contemns him; give me the eye of the understanding, let the other eye be as clear as Crystal, if this be blemished there is no joy. For aught I know, this Laban, this Idolater, shall rise up against many Christians: how usual is it, for many a man to make fair promises, to promise a man Rachel, he shall have this and that, and any thing his heart can desire if he will serve them, but when a man hath done all he can, they will put Leah upon him, some blear eyed unhandsome thing, upon which so soon as a man can but look, he shall find it to be Leah, it's plain enough to be seen, behold it was Leah, it is a hard thing for a man to get a Rachel of his Master, to get any thing that hath any delight or pleasure in it, great men will not part with their Rachel's. And still I say, this Laban had more honesty and goodness than many a Christian, for although he had done jacob a little wrong, yet he had so much mildness, and Gentleness, and Gentility, as he did suffer jacob to speak to him and to tell him of it, why hast thou beguiled me thus. Now there are rich men, if they have done a man a displeasure, will not be told of it. Nay if a poor man trust a rich man with money, if he be not disposed to give it, or is unwilling, will be angry if the poor man ask it, and do him all the mischief that may be, and what is this but like thiefs that do not only rob a man, but bind a man too, and gag him that he shall not speak, or like Rogues that murder a man because they shall not betray them; God send me to deal with Laban, with an Idolater, I shall find a man that I dare speak to, I shall find a mate that will give me Leah, that will give me something and cousin me of all.  
God complained of his vineyard, that when he had taken a great deal of pains with it, it brought forth wild grapes, ecce Labruscus, behold wild grapes plain enough to be seen. And here if I should show to the world with an Ecce, the wild grapes, the Basest actions of men, I make no question but men would pass the same judgement that David did upon the rich man that took the poor man's Lamb. And here let every man be exhorted not to deceive his servant or his kinsman or his friend, jacob for deceiving his brother & his Father, was paid in his own Coin, & enjoyed not the blessing twenty years after: Laban deceived him in his wife, Laban for deceiving jacob, was deceived by jacob, with the rods he laid. Rachel stole Laban's gods for deceiving her of her husband at first. jacob deceived his Father with Goat's skins, and he himself was deceived with the blood of a Goat. David cut off the lap of saul's coat, and his clothes would not keep him warm in his old age. Sampsons' eye lusted after a Philistine, and Sampsons' eye was put out, jeroboam hand reached to the Prophet, and that hand withered. Thus you see how God punisheth sin in the same act, in the same part, in the same kind. Time will not give me leave here to show you how many a man sleeps with Leah, with some ugly deformed sin, and being blinded in sin and darkness, thinks it is Rachel, (very beautiful) and loves it entirely, till the morning light of God's grace arise, and then he sees the deformity of his sin, how blear eyed it is, how ill-favoured, and now let every man consider how we are all servants to God, and we serve him for Rachel, for some pleasant thing we delight in, as the Apostles dreamt of a Kingdom, if it please God to give us Leah, in stead of Rachel, to give us that which pleaseth us not so well, let us be content with it and serve him on still, he will at the last give us Rachel, we shall be married to him in whom are all joys, such as eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of man to conceive. To which God of his mercy bring us: to God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost be all honour, etc.  
Exceptions taken at these words in a Sermon.  
Malum non est nisi in bono, every evil is grounded upon some good, as in adultery, there is congressus viri & foeminae naturalis, there is that good of generation, increase of the world: In drunkenness society, but in pride there is no good, by this men and Angels fell.  
They accuse me for saying good is joined with evil.  
This same you may read in M. Perkins his Treatise of Predestination, p. 6. 15. There is not any absolute evil saith he, because their is nothing so evil but it hath some good joined therewith: and p. 616. If so be that evil were absolutely evil, as good is Absolutely good, he would in no wise will the event of evil, neither should there be any evil existent at all: his adversary agrees with him: read King Bishop of London upon jonah, lecture 18. p. 238. In sin two things, the act, the defect, good & bad, he hath if from the schools, as you may read there: read the same Lecture, p. 240. In Adultery the commination of the Adulterers wicked, the creature good. Anselme, de casu Diaboli, Every creature of God is good, ens & bonum convertuntur, Adultery nought: thou shalt not commit adultery. In drunkenness, society, that is good, it is not good for man to be alone, drunkenness nought, woe be to them that rise up early to follow drunkenness, Isa. 5.11. he that will be further satisfied let him read Anselme, Perkins, Arminius, Twiss. Bishop King in the places cited,  
If they had objected thus, they had showed less ignorance.  
If every evil have his good, why is pride excepted.  
To this I answer, In other sins man turns from God either ignorantly, or out of infirmity, or his delight and pleasure draws him: but pride turns from God, merely out of a self will, because it will not be subject to God. And therefore say Divines, that when other vices fly from God, pride stands to it, and opposeth God; know therefore it is expressly said, jam. 4.6. That God resists the proud, sets himself in battle array against him, as the Original signifieth, and that which is a consequent in other sins, is the beginning and chief in pride: for in other sins a man does not hate God first, but he loves the creature first inordinately, and then he hates God, his love being contrary to his desire: but pride hateth God at first, that is the chief, the first onset. And the hating the Aversion, the Turning from God, is formalis & completiva ratio peccati, say the schools, The conversion hath itself only materialiter in peccato. And whereas the Act of other sins is good, The very act of this sin is nought cujus actus est contemptus Dei, say the schools: upon these reasons I was bold to say there was no good in pride, that is, no such good as there is in other sins, or no good in comparison of the good other sins have. And if I should say absolutely there was no good in pride, these words would defend me, cujus actus est contemptus Dei. Gregory in his Morals does not number pride amongst the seven chief and capital sins, but makes it the Queen and Mother of all, Ipsa vitiorum Regina superbia, than he saith, it hath a general influence into all things; some are proud of their riches, some of Eloquence, some of earthly, some of heavenly gifts. If it be in David's Arithmetic, in his numbering of the people it is dangerous: If in Paul's Revelations, but God gives sufficient grace, It is a Pestiferous deadly disease, saith he, corrupting all the body: others call it the ruin of all virtues. Prosper saith there is no sin without it lib. de vita Contemplate. And in some kind the schools agree to it: other sins corrupt, but the contrary virtue, this corrupts all, It is that dead fly in the precious ointment of all the virtues, and makes them send forth a stinking savour, from whence comes blasphemy, the evil actions of Satan, opposition to God, but from pride that will not be subject to God, nor limited within his Laws; Apostasy comes from pride, Eccles. 10. Initium superbiae Apostatate a Deo est prima superbiae pars, say the schools: and the blasphemy of the Devils ascends from Pride, Ps. 73. superbia eorum qui te oderunt ascendit semper: there blasphemy is called pride: Pride is the beginning of all sin, Eccles. 10.14. And although it be said of covetousness. Tim. 6.10. that it is the root of all evil, yet it differs much from pride, because covetousness is a turning to a Mutable good, by which this sin is nourished, and fed, but pride is an Aversion from God, an Absolute denial of Obedience to God, and therefore it is called the beginning of sin, quia e● parte aversionis Incipit ratio mali.  
As for that passage of a goodfellow, If there be any good in drunkenness let us take the other Cup: I answer, you must not sin because there is pleasure or profit in a sin, both which are good: There is Esca and Laqueus, the honey, and the sting, take one, avoid the other. And thus you have seen the fall of this reeling Argument.  
FINIS.