A SERMON PREACHED AT WHITEHAL UPON The 29th day of May. 1670. Being the day of HIS MAJESTY'S BIRTH AND HAPPY RESTORATION. By JOHN LAKE. D. D. Late Rector of S. botolph's without Bishopsgate, London. Published by His Majesty's Command. SAVOY: Printed by Tho. Newcomb for William Grantham at the sign of the Bear in S. Paul's Churchyard. 1670. PSAL. II. 6. Yet have I set my King upon my holy Hill of Zion. UPon an Exaltation Time, here is an Exaltation Text. The Text relateth to one person, the Time to another: But Kings both, Gods own Kings both, both resisted and rejected of Men, yet both set by God upon his holy Hill of Zion. This King taken literally, no doubt was King David, both the Author, and subject matter of this Psalm. Taken mystically, it is Christ, the King of Saints; whose Father, as David was according to the Flesh, so he was a Figure of him in his Kingdom. Analogically, and in just proportion of Reason, it extendeth to all other Kings duly constituted; at least, such as serve and worship the true God, and submit their Sceptre to that of Christ. All Christian Kings this King compriseth then, but some more especially; such as have a more direct correspondence with David, in the like occurrences and events. Upon this peculiar account cometh in our King, above most Kings that have been in the World, since David's time. Set up, and set up in the same manner, by the same means, or rather by the same immediate Hand of Providence that David was. Never might God have said with greater emphasis, or more apt signification, Yet have I set my King upon my holy Hill of Zion. And as the Text suiteth the Person of our King, so at this time, more particularly, Upon this very day he was born to the hopes and expectations of Three Kingdoms; and upon this same day (by a strange concurrence of Providences) he was brought back, after a long and tedious banishment, to the possession and enjoyment of them. Well therefore may this Time challenge an interest, a double interest in the Text. This is the day which the Lord hath made, which he hath twice made, twice made memorable. Together with the Regem Constitui of the Text, Yet have I set my King, etc. Herein meets the Hodie genui of the next Verse, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee. There is a somewhat strange expression. Psal. CX. 3. The dew of thy birth, is of the Womb of the Morning; yet it findeth fit allusion here. The birth of our King, this day, had a fruitful dew in it, which hath made it teem with Mercies and Blessings to himself, and in him to us. His Kingdom was calculated in his Nativity, and both his Person and Office have one date. To set all this the better off, and to set forth the honour of God, and his King more in it, and by it, we have in the words these considerables. I. The Person exalting, in the Pronouns I and My. It is Ego, & Rex meus, I and my King, whereby as Kings acquire a just power, so God, a just propriety in them, and by a peculiar title and interest they become his. II. The Exaltation itself, Have set, i. e. Have ordained, consecrated, constituted, not only appointed and anointed him to the Kingdom, but set and settled him in it: Which maketh the Exaltation full and complete. III. The State of Exaltation, and this (like the Author of it) most high and honourable, even that of a King: Then which, God could find nothing greater or better to grace David his servant, or yet Christ his own Son with. iv The Seat of his Kingdm, and that suitable and answerable to the State of Exaltation, Even God's holy Hill of Zion. This, as it relateth to David, is to be taken literally, for an Hill of that name, on the North-side of Jerusalem, which David having won out of the hands of the Jebusites (who till his time held a strong Garrison upon it) made the Seat of his Kingdom, and erected his Royal Palace there. As relating to Christ, it is to be taken Figuratively, for the Gospel Church; and so it is set in opposition to Mount Sinai, which typed out the Church under the administration of the Law. As it may, and doth relate to all Christian Kings, and our King more especially, it is to be taken Morally. And so it denoteth (1) Their Sovereignty, being an Hill. (2) The Sacredness of their Person and Office, being an holy Hill. (3) Their Supremacy in all Causes, and over all Persons, as well Ecclesiastical, as Civil, being Gods own holy Hill of Zion. V Here is the irresistible power of God in all this, who, notwithstanding all the Consultations and Combinations of Men to the contrary, still carrieth on his counsel to perfection, and yet sets his King upon his holy Hill of Zion. Of these in their order, and that under a threefold aspect. First, As they relate immediately to David, and his advancement to the Kingdom. Secondly, As they are applicable to other Kings by parity of Reason. Thirdly, As in respect of peculiar resemblance they concern our King, and were this day accomplished in him. For their mystical reference to Christ, I wave, as the work of another day (viz. the day of Christ his Resurrection) not this. But before I descend to these particulars, Let us Pray. That God will be merciful unto us, and bless us, and lift up the Light of his countenance upon us, and be merciful unto us; That he will take away all iniquity, and receive us graciously, heal our back-slidings, love us freely, and crown the miraculous mercy of this day, with that of a joyful and blissful eternity. And that his way may be known upon earth, and his saving health amongst all Nations: Pray we for Christ's holy Catholic Church; for these Churches of Great Britain and Ireland, that no weapon which is form against the Church may prosper, that every Tongue which shall rise up in judgement against her, God would condemn. Pray we herein more especially for our Dread Sovereign Lord Charles the Second, by the especial Grace of God, of England, Scotland, France, and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith, and in all Causes, and over all Persons, as well Ecclesiastical, as Civil, within these His Majesty's Realms, and other His Dominions, Supreme Governor. That God who hath set his King upon his holy Hill of Zion, would settle Him there, where the sons of wickedness and violence may repine at, but never reach Him. That he would keep Him safe under the shadow of his wings, from the pride and malice of Men, and from the strife of Tongues. That His glory may be great in God's Salvation, and that He may reflect that glory back upon God again, by doing Him honour and service; till He shall change His corruptible for an incorruptible Crown, and His transitory Kingdoms for one that cannot be shaken. Pray we for His Royal Consort our Gracious Queen Catherine, for the most illustrious Prince James Duke of York, and the rest of that Royal Family: And may there never want a Man of that Race, to sway the Sceptre of these Kingdoms, so long as the Sun and the Moon endureth. Pray we for the Ministers of God's holy Word and Sacraments; for the most Reverend the Archbishops, the Right Reverend the Bishops, and other inferior Priests and Deacons: For the Lords of His Majesty's most Honourable Privy Council; for the whole Nobility; for the Judges and Magistracy; that All, and every of these, in their several places and callings, may serve truly, and painfully to the honour and glory of God; the edifying, and well governing of his people committed to their charge; the settling, and securing the interest of his Church; and the establishing of Peace, with Truth and Righteousness in these Kingdoms, remembering the severe account which they must all one day make. Pray we for all Schools of Religion, and good Learning; for the two famous Universities of this Land, Cambridge and Oxford: For all the Commons of these Realms, that they may live in the true Faith and Fear of God, in humble and loyal Obedience to His Majesty, and in Brotherly Love and Charity one towards another. Finally, Bless and Praise we God for all his Mercies and Blessings, National and Personal, Temporal and Spiritual; for the happy Restoration of our Dread Sovereign to His Kingdoms, and therein of the Kingdoms to themselves, to their Religion, Laws, Liberties, Proprieties again. For all those that have departed this life in Gods holy Faith and Fear, beseeching God to give us grace, so to direct our life after their good example, that we, together with them, may be made partakers of his everlasting Kingdom. For these, and all needful Mercies and Blessings, pray, and praise we God, in the Name and Words of his dear Son, our alone Saviour, and Intercessor, saying, Our Father which art in Heaven, etc. The first Prospect of the Words is, as they relate immediately to David, and his advancement to the Kingdom; wherein, not one jota, or title of them failed. And (1) For the Person exalting David to the Kingdom, it was God, and God with his right hand. Psa. lxxviii 71. He took him from following the Ewes great with young, he brought him to feed Jacob his people, and Israel his inheritance. Not the diffusive, not the collective Body of the people, could pretend an interest; to whom God left nothing, but to admit and accept him. ● Sam. i 10. Lest any Man of Israel should put in for a share, he brought saul's Crown and Bracelet, the Ensigns of his Majesty, to him, by the hand of an Amalekite. And as he was God's King, not theirs; so of Gods making, not his own. He might once and again have made way for himself, by dispatching Saul out of it; and necessity and providence (the late great pleas and pretences amongst us) might seem to lead him to it, as it were, by the hand: Yet David would neither do it himself, nor suffer those, whose fingers itched to be doing. The Kingdom of Heaven may suffer violence from him, but this earthly one never shall. May Saul live long, and enjoy it to himself, he will be content with the reversion. Then (2) For the Exaltation itself, God by these steps carried him up to the height of of it. First, he ordained and appointed him to it, when there was no intention, no imagination of him otherwise, Psa. lxxxix. 19 till God spoke of it in vision to his Prophet. Having thus appointed, Psa. lxxxix. 20. God anointed him in token of it; anointed him with his own holy Oil, and that far above his fellows. When he had thus prevented him with the Blessings of Goodness, Psal. xxi. 3. he at length put a Crown of pure Gold upon his head: And he that had been hunted as a Partridge upon the Mountains, is in the end set and settled upon God's holy Hill of Zion. Set (I say) and settled also, as fast as Gods own hand and arm could settle him; Psa. lxxxix. 21. and this not in his person only, but in his posterity too. God (as if he would exalt exaltation itself) speaketh of his House for a great while to come. His seed shall endure for ever, and his throne as the Sun before me. Psal. lxxxix. 36. Thus also (3) For the state of Exaltation, it was that of a King. A King of a rich and populous Kingdom; in which, above Thirty Kings were accounted at the first conquest of it; Josh. xii. and yet this (as if too little) eeked out with other Nations, 2 Sam. lviii. 11. whom the Lord made tributary to him. A King with all his Royal Compliments. A Throne set up over Israel and Judah, 2 Sam. three 10. from Dan to Beersheba. Psal. cxxxii. 18. A Crown, a flourishing Crown; yea, 2 Sam. xii. 30. Crown upon Crown, that of Ammon, which weighed a Talon of Gold, being added to that of Israel. A Sword for suppressing Rebels at home, Psal. xviii. 39 and subduing enemies abroad; even all those that risen up against him. Gen. xlix. 10. A Sceptre, which should not departed from Judah till Shiloh came. In short, whatever might contribute to glory, or safety, make him venerable at home, and terrible abroad, met together in him, as one whom God had made his First born, Psal. lxxxix. 27. high above the Kings of the Earth. That nothing might be wanting, now followeth (4) The Seat of his Kingdom. Zion the Mountain of God's Holiness, or Gods holy Hill of Zion. And here we have two Suns shining in one Firmament. The same sphere for God, and the King. In that very place, Psal. cxxxii. 13, & 17. which God had chosen as an habitation for himself, even there he maketh the Horn of David to bud. Beds and Thrones (we say) admit no rivals; yet in Mount Zion, Psal. cxxii. 5. where God had pitched his own Throne upon Earth, there are set Thrones of Judgement, the Thrones of the House of David; Psal. cxxxv. 2. and where God keeps his Courts, Psal. cxxxii. 14. the King keeps his also. This is my rest for ever; here will I dwell (saith God) for I have desired it: Howbeit, he will not dwell alone, but will have his King dwell there too, as if he could not rest without him. And though God of old had devoted this Hill for himself, to set his Name there; yet he reserveth the conquest of it for David, that he and his King might take possession together, and become (as it were) joint-tenants to it. And now they are in peaceable possession of the Seat, we will leave them there, and go on to the last considerable. (5) The irresistible Power of God in all this, who, notwithstanding all the resistances that were made, and rubs that were laid in the way, yet setteth his King upon his holy Hill of Zion. To behold David one while cooped up in such a Cave, another while lurking in such a Wood, anon wandering on such a Mountain, or in such a Wilderness: To behold him persecuted, not only from one place to another, but from one Nation to another People; you would not expect a Crown to be set upon his head, but his head, sooner, or later, to be taken from his shoulders. His own expectations ebbed so low, that he said in his heart, 1 Sam. xxvii. 1. I shall one day perish by the hand of Saul. In the like hasty fit he giveth all men the lie, Psal. cxvi. 11. Samuel and all, that ever had said word of his advancement to the Kingdom. After saul's death, David knowing that he had Sons enough to succeed him, Soldiers enough to defend him in it, durst not set a foot within the Kingdom, 2 Sam. two. 1. till he had first enquired of the Lord: So improbable it was, that ever he should be set as head over it. But God who perfecteth strength in weakness, and whose counsels must stand, yet setteth his King up; and setteth him up by those hands, which had been most active to pull him down. Abner, who had been Captain-General to Saul the Father, and Ishbosheth the Son, and was the very Man to make Ishbosheth King in saul's stead; 2 Sam. two. 8, 9 is now also the Man to bring about all Israel unto David, 2 Sam. three 12, etc. I have led you thorough the words, as they relate immediately to David, and his advancement to the Kingdom, and spent some time upon this, as being the clew to all the rest. But as S. Austin in another case said of Doeg; Vnus homo est Doeg, Enar. in Psa. LI. sed & genus hominum est Doeg: So may I say of David in this, David in himself is one Man, but in figure and representation a great many. Not merely Persona Regis, the Person of a King; but Persona Regum, the Pourtraicture of Kings; one that beareth the Person of them all, and in this Text more especially. You must therefore give me leave 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, to transfer it in a figure to all Christian Kings, and they will appear to be so many correct copies of it. And First, For the Person exalting, the I of the Text looks directly upon them all. Sovereignty is a ray of Divinity, and Kings Humani Joves, so many Earthly Gods; represent God's Person, hold his place, have the impress of his Power. Psal. lxxxii. 6. Dixi Dii estis, I have said ye are gods, saith God himself of such Men; and none but God could give them the character. If they are Gods, they cannot be of man's making; Tertul. Apol. No; inde Potestas, unde Spiritus. Thence cometh their Power, whence their Life and Breath cometh. They are Kings Dei gratiâ, by the Grace of God. The Pagan Attribute of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, or Jove-born, God hath adopted into the Family of Religion, and made Canonical; ye are all the children of the most High. Psal. lxxxii. 6. His own stile written upon his thigh is, King of Kings. Now as S. Austin asks the question, Aug. Tom. 4. qu. in Gen. 6●. & alibi. Quid Deus coeli ad femur Abrahae? What Relation hath the God of Heaven to Abraham's thigh? So here, Quid Reges terrae ad femur Dei? What Relation have the Kings of the Earth to the thigh of the God of Heaven? But that, E femore descendunt, they have their descent thence, and derive their pedigree from it. The emblem of old was an hand out of a Cloud, setting the Crown on. And though sometime it is the right hand, when God giveth good and gracious Kings: Sometime the left, when he giveth evil and oppressive ones; yet both are dispensed by his hand. Thus is the I of the Text upon them all; and all they have, or are his. His to set up, his to pull down; and his only. Then Secondly, For the Exaltation itself. He setteth Kings, seateth them in their Kingdoms, and settleth them there. Their tenure is not only Per me Reges, By me Kings are; Prov. viij. 15. but Per me regnant, By me they Reign, i. e. Enjoy their place, exercise their power, are upheld in both. In all this, his hand is established with them, Psal. lxxx. 17. and his arm also strengthens them. His hand of providence is over all, for their good; but they are viri dexterae, the men of his right hand. Great deliverance giveth he unto his King; Psal. xviii. 50. and sheweth mercy, i. e. Special mercy to his Anointed, and to his seed for evermore. Solomon's Throne was built with stays (the word is hands) on either side: 1 Kings x. 19 And if God had not established the throne, and him in it, with his own hands, his Twelve Lion supporters, on the one side, and on the other, could not have done it. Was it not for this Divine Manutenency, Kings would never be set up, or so soon as up, they would be thrown down again; and he is careless, or wilful, who seethe not 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, somewhat divine in this. The Heathens did, and shall Christians be blind to it? They wondered to behold whole Nations, and in them such varieties of humours and interests, at the beck of one man, perhaps a woman, perhaps a child; to have Estates, Lives, Liberties, all at his disposal, and yet to hug their chains with a cheerful freedom. The depraved nature of Man inclineth him otherwise. Singuli regnum in pectore gerimus. Each man carrieth a Kingdom in his bosom, and would admit no Sovereign but himself. They had rather be miserable in place and power, then live in an humble, though happy subjection. The vilest bramble would not willingly stoop to the Royal Oak; but is more ready to say, Judg. ix. 15. Let fire come out of the Bramble, and devour the glory of Lebanon. Only God, by a miracle of Power and Providence, uniteth all these petty Kings (for such they affect to be) under one; and delivereth him from the strive of his people. That for the Exaltation itself. Then Thirdly, For the State of Exaltation, that of a King. God setteth not up a Democracy, wherein the popular equality of the many; nor yet an Aristocracy, wherein the factious ambition of a few, beareth all the sway: Much less, an Anarchy, or lawless confusion, where 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, No body heareth nothing of no body: but he setteth his King; one, and that one invested with the Regal Office and Authority up. This Government God dedicated in himself, Psal. xlvii. 7. and in his own administration of the World; For God is the King of all the Earth; and he consigned many myriads of Angels to everlasting flames, for but a thought of competition with him in this his Monarchical Honor. He hath settled the Church (as well as the World) in the very same way, under Jesus Christ the King of Saints; Revel. xv. 3. and other Kings, the Christian more especially, are his Viceroys. This he set, and settled amongst men, in, and from the beginning. What was Adam (in the designs of his Creation) but an Universal Monarch? Polarchy came in with sin, and the curse. And yet it got not footing immediately neither. Cic. lib. 3. de Logibu. Cicero reckoneth it Inter certiora, & notiora, amongst the most certain, and known truths, that Omnes antiquae gentes regibus quondam paruerunt. All the Nations of old were subject to Kings, and the rest were but encroachments; and such as most Nations cast in again, finding one Tyrant (take Kings at the worst) better than a great many. Moses, the first that God set over his own people, was King in Jesurun. Deut. xxxiii. 5 And when they had a long time experienced the miseries and mischiefs of having no King in Israel, God, for the remedy and redress of them, setteth his King up, and settleth a successive Royalty amongst them: And having settled this (which was of prime intendment) changeth no more; but reckoneth it as the highest pitch of honour and happiness which they could attain, that they had prospered into a Kingdom. Ezek. xuj. 13. I do not absolutely condemn other Forms of Government; but I prefer the first Model: That is the Head of Gold; these the dwindling of it into Feet, part Iron, part Day. These represent God as so many small Eidylia, taken but to the shoulders only; that in full proportion. One of the greatest Beauties and Glories of the Creation is, Prov. xxx. 31. A King against whom there is no rising up. Prov. xxviii. 2. For the transgression of a Land, many are the Princes thereof; not for the honour and safety of it. Prov. xxx. 27. The Locusts have no King (saith Solomon) but the Bees have. The very Trees in Jothams' parable, Judg. 9 will anoint them a King, and choose the Bramble, rather than have none. Briefly, of whose setting up soever other Governors and Governments are, God setteth his Kings up; and those that of late have whet their Tongues and Pens against them, have through their sides struck at God himself, and impeached the Wisdom of his Institution. Such is the State of Exaltation. And now Fourthly, The Seat fitteth all Christian Kings as well: God, upon a Moral account, setteth each of them upon his holy Hill of Zion. (1) They are set upon an Hill, not upon the common level, which speaketh their Sovereignty. Rom. xiii. 1. In S. Paul's Dialect, they are the higher powers; 1 Pet. two. 13. in S. Peter's, the highest, King as Supreme. There was somewhat of signification in it, that Saul was higher by the head, than any of the people: And in his politic capacity he was higher than them all together. The people themselves say, Erit super nos, A King shall be over us, 1 Sam. viij. 19 And God setteth him accordingly, Super populum suum, over his people Israel. 1 Sam. ix. 16. This is the place which all good Christians have evermore set Kings in, not subter, but super, not under, or on even ground with them, (as in the Modern Heraldry of some amongst us) but over and above them. The first and best Christians recognized them as such: Tanquam a Deo secundos, Tertul. ad Scapulam. & solo Deo minores, as Second to God, and only less than God himself, Optat. lib. 3. and owned none above the Emperor; but God alone that made, and made him Emperor. Vniversis Minor, was not heard of in those days, that the King, though greater than every single person, should be less than the collective body of the people: But, Tertul. Ubi supra. Omnibus Major, dum solo Deo Minor, was the account then, that he is greater than all, whilst only lesser than God. Hereupon he is liable to no Tribunal, but Gods; because none else is above him. The Hill, God setteth his Kings upon, is above Mars his Hill. Serviunt utilitari, non potestati. They are servants (in a sort) for the good and benefit of their people, not subject to their power. The order which God hath set and settled in the World (and the process would be infinite otherwise) is this, That if private men offend, there is the Magistrate to punish them; if Magistrates, the Sovereign Prince; if the Sovereign Prince, there is a Tribunal in Heaven, on Earth he is not accountable to any, who may say unto him, What dost thou? Eccles. viij. 4. A piece of Divinity so generally received and approved amongst the Jews, that it passed into a Proverb, Nulla creatura judicat Regem, sed Benedictus. No Creature judgeth, or can judge the King, but he that is over all, God blessed for ever. And that is the first step; the Hill 〈◊〉 their Sovereignty. But that is 〈…〉. (2) Kings are set up 〈…〉 which speaks the Sacred 〈…〉 and Office. This Hill is, or at least ought to be, 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, free from all violences, or insolences whatsoever. It is bounded with, not only Ne perdas, Destroy them not; but Ne tangas, Touch them not. You may no more touch one of them, than you might have touched God's Ark, or may touch the Apple of his Eye. David stretched but forth his hand, and that no further than the skirt of saul's Garment, 1 Sam. xxiv. ●. yet it went to his own heart. This holy ground they stand upon, renders vestigia sacra (so was the stile of the ancient Councils, and Fathers) their very footsteps, sacred and inviolable; and it is one of David's impeachments of his enemies, That they slandered the footsteps ●o Gods Anointed. Psal. lxxxix. 51. Nor is this inviolableness annexed to their sanctity, but to their Sovereignty; not to their Christianity, but to their Crown. Saul was set upon this holy Hill, as well as David; and the Heathen Cyrus, as well as either of them. Hereby the Person of Kings becometh sacred, Ratione Imperii, si non Religionis, by virtue of their Empire, though not of their Religion; in respect of the dignity of their Place and Office, though not the integrity of their Faith and Life. Thus Saul (as S. Austin saith) Non habebat innocentiam & tamen habebat sanctitatem; Aug. Cant. Lit. Petil. lib. 2. c. 48. had not innocence, yet he had holiness; not of life, but of unction. This made David revere him when alive, and revenge him when dead. Optat. lib. 2. Timuit oleum, & servavit inimicum. He feared the anointing of God upon him, and therefore spared his bloodthirsty enemy. And spared all such, must be upon this very account. To Solomon's Cor Regis, The King's heart is in the hand of the Lord, I may add, Caput Regis, The King's head (I mean his Life, his Crown, and all the Royalties annexed to it) is in the hand of the Lord too; and none else can lay an hand upon him, and be guiltless. And that is the second step. The holy Hill speaketh the Sacredness of their Person and Office once more. (3) God setteth his Kings upon his holy Hill of Zion, the place of his public service and worship, Psal. cxx. 4. whither the Tribes went up, the Tribes of the Lord, to the Testimony of Israel, which speaks their Supremacy in all Causes, and over all Persons, as well Ecclesiastical, as Civil. As nothing so high, but the Hill sets them above it: So nothing so holy, but this Hill of Zion sets them over it. Nor would God ever have set his King upon Zion, if he must have had nothing to do in sacred matters. David well knowing for what end God had set him there, straight way fetcheth the Ark, and setteth it by him; and withal setteth order for the whole service of the Tabernacle, and appoints the Priests, and Levites, and all the rest that attended upon Sacred Ministrations, their several dignities, courses, and offices. And all the pious Kings, whom God set there after him, followed his pattern. The Jews had a saying, and there was sense and signification in it, That the Keys of the Temple were laid every night under Solomon's Pillow: A prime part of the King's office and charge being 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, the care of Religion, and matters Divine; to see that God, and his service suffer no detriment. Then they serve God as Kings, when they do that service, which no other can do, for him, to establish Religion as a Law; and none oppose the Laws provided in that behalf, but who are enemies to the Religion too. To speak them Keepers of both Tables, the Commandment concerning them is set 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, in the confines of both; as that wherein they concentre, and that Kings, thus conveniently situated, may look to Religion with the one eye, as well as to Civil Justice with the other: Up to the Temple on the top of Mount Zion, as well as to Jerusalem, at the bottom of it. Optatus accounts it a piece of Donatus his wont fury (and it was no better, Optat. lib. 3. no other) to cry out, Quid Imperatori cum Ecclesiâ? What hath the King to do with the Church? For he hath much to do, in ordering, though not in administering, in disposing, though not dispensing the affairs of it. To do what Hezekiah did (namely, to cause the Priests and Levites to sanctify God's House, and to fulfil their Office) not what Vzziah did, to invade and usurp it. To see God have his Incense, not to burn it himself. And that is the third and last step (which setteth Kings at their just elevation) Gods holy Hill of Zion speaketh their Supremacy in all Causes, and over all Persons, as well Ecclesiastical, as Civil. There is one, and but one thing, now behind, viz. Fifthly, The irresistible power of God in all this, who whatever stands in his, or their way; Yet setteth his Kings upon his holy Hill of Zion. Neither their place and power as Kings, nor their virtue and merit as good Kings, can secure them from the strive of the people. Some unquiet spirits are still ready to cry out, Nolumus hunc, We will not have this man to reign over us; and the most just and moderate Prince is (in account) a Tyrant to one part or other. Moses hath his Korah and Miriam; David his Absolom and Sheba; Solomon his Adonijah: The meekest, the religiousest, the wisest of Kings, some or other consulting to cast him dwon from his Excellency; or (as another Translation hath it) to put him by, whom God would exalt. Psal. lxii. 4. The Hill whereon Gods sets his Kings, is ofttimes so steep and craggy, that they are forced (like Jonathan and his Armor-bearer) to climb up their hands and their feet; 1 Sam xiv. 13. and when they are up, there are Venti Typhonici, those violent and turbulent spirits, which will not suffer them to rest. High as this Hill is, it is not above such Winds and Storms. Only the Kingdom of Heaven is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, such as cannot be shaken: Not one upon Earth, but hath been shaken all to pieces; and yet for all this, God setteth up his Kings. Mountains of Opposition shall be leveled, and laid flat before this Hill. What art thou, O great Mountain? before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a Plain. Zech. iv. 7. If at any time they are cast down, God most-what sets them up again, if not in their Person, yet in their Posterity; and if one line fail, eeketh it with another. Their glory is great in God's Salvation, Psal. xxi. 5, 7. and through the Mercy of the most High they do not miscarry. As opposition riseth against them, he enableth them to rise against opposition, yea, to rise by it, till they rise above it: And first or last setteth up his Kings upon his holy Hill of Zion. Thus I have also run through the words, as by parity of Reason they are applicable to other Kings, and like a well-set picture, they look indifferently upon all of them. But though all Kings are interessed, yet some have a double portion in them, and our Royal Sovereign above the rest in his this days happy Restoration to his Kingdoms. A Transaction which was the very Transcript of the Text; and the Text may seem a Prophecy of it, rather than an History. Herein therefore we may, and must read it over again, else we should be injurious to both; and it is as legible in the face of this day, as if written with a Sunbeam upon a Wall of Crystal. And First, For the Person exalting. It was 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, God, and God (as it were) out of an Engine. Psal. lxxxix. 20. He that found David his servant, found our Dread Sovereign also; and found him when all hopes were lost. Only he whose help beginneth, where humane help endeth, turneth back his captivity as the Rivers in the South; and our Occidental Sun, when darkness was upon the face of our whole Earth, becometh oriental again. This is the Lord who hath showed us light. Haec mutatio dexterae excelsi. The right hand of the most High hath done this. For us in all this, we were Sicut somniantes, like them that dream, if we did so much as dream of it. And it is well, if Posterity (rather admiring, then believing a work of such power and wonder) think us not to have been in a dream all the while. For those erterprises and attempts which were at any time designed to this end, they vanished into air, and nothing. Either the worst counsels were followed, or the best succeeded not, God reserving the honour of all to himself. And by all means let him have it, and the King entirely for his own, together with it. So his, as (I will be bold to say) no other King in Christendom is, none by so immediate right, nor by so manifold Names and Titles. His in his marvellous preservation, his in his gracious sustentation, his in his powerful restoration, and his still in his merciful protection from the pride and malice of men, and from the strife of Tongues. Thus fit the words are, for the Person exalting. And they are no less so Secondly, For the Exaltation itself. God hath set him, set him upon the throne of his Fathers; or rather made him, to surmount them all. Some of their Thrones might seem but a Footstool to his. Set him above the heads of his enemies, and raised him upon their ruins. The lower he was cast down before, the higher hath God set him up at the rebound: And like a broken Bone that is well set, he is become stronger for breaking. He that was so broken, as if never to be set again, is so set, as I hope never to be broken again. Set where the sons of wickedness and violence may, and no doubt do, fretfully repine at him, but cannot reach him. Set as far above their envy, as our hope. Whom they set at naught, and would allow him no place in any part of the Building, God hath set in the highest part, of the chiefest place, upon the very head of the corner. And this passeth me from the Exaltation itself, to Thirdly, The state of Exaltation. God hath set him as King. After the head of Gold was broken off, much to do there was to set up another in place of it. First, Two Houses were set up, which devoured all the rest, and one the other. Then Keepers of Liberties, after we had lost them. A Grand Visier with his Janissaries, next setteth up himself, not to shelter, but to over-drop us, and protect us to our ruin. To rule Loyal obstinacy with an Iron rod, and to measure Justice by Power. After all this, the fragments of a shattered Senate are set up again, but these (like the Ruins of an old House) stand not long. Out of their rubbish riseth up a Committee of Safety, but which cannot contrive their own. Thus one Chimerical Form of Government was set up after another (Anarchies, Polarchies, Oligarchies, Tyrannies) and none would stand. At length God taketh the matter upon himself, and setteth his King up; and in him toeth a knot upon our changes, and settleth the floating Island upon its Basis again. The Lord our God is with us, and the shout of a King is amongst us. A King, I say, with all his Royal Compliments. Whilst other Kings have their Crowns crossed, he hath his Cross crowned; and the fire of affliction did but embellish, and burnish it for him. Never any of his Royal Progenitors wore a more rich and radiant. It was much to have been feared, that if ever he was set up at all, it would be but in the Form of a Sovereign. A King not bearing the Sword, or bearing it in vain. Such a King, as the Jews in their cruel sport made Christ, when they gave him a Reed for a Sceptre. Indeed a King, and no King. Some such gay-nothing, the shadow of a great name, many, that pretended much zeal for the King, no doubt had designed. But the happiness and comfort was, that God would have him his King, not theirs: And so a King to purpose. A King invested with Regal both Honour, and Power. A King as a King should be, even a King that is Supreme. And that fully answereth the state of Exaltation. Then Fourthly, For the Seat. God hath set him upon an Hill, made his Sovereignty to be recognized. Here is no , coequal, corrival power of Parliaments, or Presbyteries with him: No Sovereign Authority of the People above him. None to watch, much less to Mate him, as of late we have seen. No reducing him into Order by force and Arms; no distinguishing him out of himself, nor setting up his Politic against his Personal capacity. Singulis Major, Vniversis Minor, Greater than each, less than all; with the like unhallowed Divinity, belcheth not from the Pulpit and Press, as it was wont. Now Royal Majesty looks like itself, and these umbrages vanish before it. This Mountain of the Lord is established in the top of the Mountains, and the little Hills do their obeisance. You are taught to submit to the King, as supreme; to pay the lowest homage to Him, as to the Highest Power upon Earth. But then again, he is set upon an Holy Hill. The Sacredness of His Person and Office is recognized: and, both secured, as far as the Religion of Oaths, the Severity of Laws, and the sincerity of our own Declarations can do it. No Blaspheming of our Earthly God is allowed; no War levied by His Power, against His Person; no Tribunal erected without Him, against Him, above Him; but, we are made to profess an hearty abhorrence of all such Traitorous Positions and Practices. I doubt not, but, in Tertullia's phrase, Tert. Apo●. ca 35. Post parricidarum vindemiam racematio superstes. After a vintage, a bloody vintage, of such Parricides, large glean are left; Men of the like sanguinary minds, who, by the Father's Blood, would trace the Son, our now Dread Sovereign, to death. But, if the Holiness of the Hill whereon God hath set his King, and the bounds which Authority hath set to that again, cannot restrain them, yet the horror of it may. If one of these Beasts but touch the Mountain he shall die. Once more he is set upon God's Holy Hill of Zion. His Supremacy in all Causes, and over all Persons is recognized: and (like a truly Nursing Father) he improveth it for the benefit of the Church. God, who preserved him constant in his Religion, against Scandals at home, and Temptations abroad, has made him as resolute to preserve it. His very first care was to bring back the Ark, and set it upon Zion by him, and by wholesome Laws to settle it there: and what was his first, I doubt not will be his last care, to see the Church Free and Flourishing again, and to behold Zion yet once more a Praise in the Earth. Like that Religious Emperor of old, he hath set his Crown upon the Bible, and engaged his Power for the defence of it. Fixed upon his Zion, he would neither change it for Babel's seven Hills, and the Garish Lady that sitteth upon them (though time was when they louted low to him, and with the most sly insinuations solicited a Change) nor would he since descend from it to her that fitteth Undressed in the valleys: but, where God hath set him, he holds his Seat still, and thence dispenseth His Dews and Influences to the Church. Thus the Seat also fitteth him, as exactly as if made for him; only we might well wonder to see him there, was it not for (5) The Irresistible Power of God in all this, which carried on our Dread Sovereign through those insuperable difficulties, and sad discouragements which lay in his way, and yet set his King upon his Holy Hill of Zion. A matter, which passeth all conceit and belief. That a Persecuted Prince (and here let me have your pardon, if I present Royal Majesty in its Eclipse again) after twelve years' Banishment, when his Name and Memory (with long Tract of Time) was almost worn out, only some Loyal Spirits wore Him Graven on their hearts; when His proud Rebellious Enemies had fortified themselves with the Wealth and Strength of three Kingdoms, and had now begun to Sing soft Requiems, as if the bitterness of death had been past; when that Old Usurper with such mischievous Policy, backed with Tyrannical Power, had endeavoured to confirm the Kingdom to his posterity, and such an Army of Criminal valours was engaged in their defence; when all the People, by a Cursed Engagement, had been made to cry out, 2 Sam. xx. 2. We have no part in David, neither have we inheritance in the son of Jess; when many Attempts, some hopeful and probable enough, had miscarried already, and the whole Nation in one great Gasp not long before seemed to have given up the Ghost; when there were Men, Moneys, and all Means on the one hand, and the want of all on the other: that a Banished Prince, I say, under these Circumstances, should be brought back to His Kingdoms again, and with such Peace, Honour, and Safety set, and settled there, this might well puzzle the Faith of a Solifidian. It was beyond expectation, beyond imagination, strange to a miracle. Strange for the matter, that ever such a thing should be brought about at all. He that had seen our Dread Sovereign look through the Royal Oak; that had seen him again in his strange disguise, when (like his Saviour) he put on the form of a servant; that had seen the eager pursuits after him; that had seen Sea and Land laid for him; that had heard the price which was set upon his head, and therewithal the Privy Contracts, which that lump of Clay mingled with Blood made with his Assassinates; that had thenceforth followed him through his Royal Pilgrimage, and seen the necessities and dangers which he conflicted with there: His panting Zeal would have susspected some other event, then to have seen him set up as King. Yet thus God hath set him, and our eyes have seen it, and our hearts rejoice in it this day, crying to the praise of the glory of his Grace, The right hand of the Lord hath done marvellously, the right hand of the Lord bringeth mighty things to pass. Strange again for the manner, that it should be brought about in such a way. It might have been expected, that if ever he came to his Kingdoms at all, he must swim to them in Blood, and be set upon Mount Sinai, rather than Mount Zion. That we must have bought so rich a Mercy, with the Miseries of a new War; and it had been a good purchase after all. Yet lo, God taketh his King, and with the turning of an hand, sets him where he would have him, and none to say unto him, what dost thou? In all this, there was no breaking out, no breaking in, no complaining in our streets. No spoils of War, no Trophies of Victory, to adorn, or rather to sully his Triumphs. The Hill whereon God set his King, was a Mount of Olives; nothing but Peace, and all possible expressions of joy upon it. Strange once more for the Means, and this above all, that it should be brought about by those men, and their means, who had engaged Bodies and Souls to oppose it. One part of them he maketh to cast young Ishbosheth down; another part to set his King up, and carrieth him into his Throne upon their shoulders. That renowned Person, never to be mentioned without glory to God, and honour to himself, who through the conducts of a secret, but wise Providence, had long served as Captain General to Saul the Father, and Ishbosheth the Son, is Abner-like (though upon a better principle, that of his former loyalty, which he still kept alive in him) the very man to make our David King over his English Israel. Thus strange for the Matter, strange for the Manner, strange (above all) for the Means this transaction was: Yet for all this, God hath set his King upon his holy Hill of Zion. And now what remaineth, but that the King's loyal Friends rejoice in the mercy of this day, and his disloyal Enemies, tremble to oppose it? Somewhat must be said to either of them, and I have done. First, To the King's loyal Friends. Do you with joy and praise to God, admire and adore that unconceivable Power and Providence, which hath set his, and your King upon his holy Hill of Zion. Let not such a miracle of Mercy be lost upon you. Think what you would have done; what you would have suffered, to have seen such a day as this. How unlikely it was that ever you should have seen it. How many sad days you had seen before. Seen the Father barbarously murdered; the Son defeated, in danger to be destroyed; your lawful Sovereign wandering (as an exile) in Foreign Countries, and Bloody Tyrant's domineering in his own. Seen the Church become a Babel of Confusion; the Land an Accldama, or Field of Blood; the Lusts of lawless men set up for Laws; your Lives, Liberties, Proprieties, merely precarious, and at the pleasure of Usurpers; one puff of loyal breath, as much as they were all worth: And in all this, no hopes, or means of better to be seen. Your present evils seemed impossible to expire, but by dying into greater: And there was nothing now left, but Prayers, and Tears, and sad expectations of worse. This was your Case and State, when the sons of Belial had cast God's King down. Now therefore, that God hath set him up again, and set him upon his holy Hill of Zion, and by this means we see both Crown and Mitre shining with their wont beauty and glory; see Religion settled, Liberty secured, Propriety restored, and the Laws by which we hold them all maintained; O come let us sing unto the Lord, let us hearty rejoice in the strength of our salvation. Rejoice after an hearty, but withal an holy manner: For such the holy Hill, whereupon God hath set his King, calleth for at your hands. See that you celebrate not, Tert. Apol. cap. 35. Publicum gaudium per publicum dedecus, public joy by public disgrace. Let not disloyal spite say to your reproach, Majestas violatur, Divinitas constupratur laudantibus vobis, That whilst you pretend to honour God, and the King, you dishonour both. When you should contend in loyal service and duty to God and the King, play not prizes in wickedness, and seek who shall outvie, and vaunt of most supererogatory merits for Hell, as if you were delivered to do all these abominations. Let not this celestial Mannah breed Worms, nor because God hath been more gracious, be you less. Affect not such a perverse emulation of your Maker, as to bring Darkness out of Light, and to curse your Blessings. To make your Returns, as unparallelled as God's Mercies; and this your only use of them to pervert their nature, and defeat their design. Let not this holy Hill bring forth such wild Grapes, and so rich a Soil minister only to corruption. Let not that of the ungrateful Israelites, Exod. xv. 24. What shall we drink? be the product of your Mercies and Deliverances also; nor think you have escaped Pharaoh and the Red Sea, to be drowned in drunken excess upon the shore. But, O give unto the Lord the honour due unto his name; worship the Lord with holy worship. I know you value yourselves high upon your Loyalty; and, if gratitude to God did not, even this calleth for more answerable Returns. Sin (say the Schoolmen) is quasi deicidium, a kind of Deicide; doing all that can be done against Gods both Honour and Life: And it is regicidium, a kind of Regicide too, and the worst disloyalty is wickedness. The sins of the Royal Party may ruin the King, as well as the Arms and Counsels of his Enemies. This is to countermine God, who hath set up the King, and by unseen and unsuspected trains to blow up him and his Throne. The holy Hill of Zion, upon which God hath set him, is not proof against this Artillery, which at once desecrateth, and prepareth it for destruction. Let me therefore conjure you by the Mercies of God, and your dear loyalty to your King, to serve the Lord with fear, and to rejoice with trembling. Let the Mercy of this day engage you to the duty of it; and as you would approve yourselves the Kings Loyal Friends, be careful that you make not God his, and your enemy. Fear God who hath set up his King; Honour the King, whom God hath set up; and Love him the more for that God hath set your King upon it. That to the King's Loyal Friends. Secondly, A word now to the King's disloyal enemies, and but a word: For as it is not impossible, but some such may be here, since there was a Serpent even in Paradise; so I am willing to believe there are not many. If any of your Consciences smite you in this, then tremble to oppose the Mercy of this Day, lest you be found fighters against God. That of the Prophet Zechariah is a wholesome caveat for you, if you have wit and grace to take it. Zech. two. 13. Be silent, O all flesh, before the Lord; for he is raised up out of his holy Habitation. It is dangerous opposing God at any time, how much more, when he is working such wonders of Power and Mercy as this? Put all the imaginary Providences together, with which you amused the World of late, and match this if you can. What you had been Twenty years in doing, and perhaps Twenty before that in designing, Sustulit una dies, one day dashed and undid. Some of your Friends and Fellows (the Murderers of the Father) have with their dying breath (and it could not better be laid out) acknowledged Gods immediate hand in bringing back the Son: And are you still blind to it? or are you stronger than he? Shall the prey be taken from the mighty? or will you commit an onslate upon God? He hath set his King upon his holy Hill of Zion, and will crawling dust pull him down again? If you will yet shoot your Arrows against Heaven, they shall fall back upon your own head. The Psalmist himself, in the Verses immediately before my Text, reads all such their destiny. He that sitteth in Heaven shall laugh, the Lord shall have them in derision. Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure. I shall leave you therefore to slow, but sure vengeance, if Loyal Duty prevent not; and leave that Prophetic Imprecation of King James of Blessed Memory with you. Maledictus qui maledicit uncto Domini; pereatque interitu Core, qui peccabit in contradictione Core. Cursed is he, that curseth the Anointed of the Lord; and let him perish in the confusion of Core, that shall henceforth dare to sin in the contradiction of Core: And let Heaven and Earth, with all that hear me this day, say Amen. FINIS.