Punissioun of the brekaris of the fourt command. Deut. xxi, 2 Reg. xvi. and xvii. [Fol. xlvii. a.] thai do thame injuris and be cummersum. Secund, quha honouris nocht and obeyis nocht thair spiritual heddis, prelatis and pastoris, and will nocht pay thair teyndis and dewteis as thai ar oblissit be the law. Thridly, thai that honouris nocht the temporal powar, or thair awin masteris, quha fulfillis nocht thair commandis faithfully or obeyis thame nocht, suppose thai be evil and thrawart, quhene thai command na thing aganis Gods command and haly kirk. Thai that makis seditioun agane thair prince, or reular, or that risis or causis uthir rise aganis thair heidmen, quhasa is fals or negligent to do thair bidding and will nocht obey thame with trew service, all thai and siclik personis brekkis this command. Now we will declare to yow, how the transgressouris of this fourt command ar punissit, and how the keparis ar rewardit of God. We reid in the auld law, that the sone quhilk was inobedient, stifhartit and thrawart to his father and mother, was led to the port or place of jugement, and be the peple was stanit to the deid. We reid in the buke of the kingis, that Absalon maid seditioun aganis his awin father king David, quharfor he fled in battel, and in his fleing his hair fessinit about a stark brance of ane Aik tre, his Mule yeid away fra under him, and swa he was hangit be his awin hair, and afore he deit he was strikin throw the hart with thre pickes or speiris, be the handis of Joab ane of the principal captanis of king Davidis weirris, and sa deit a miserable deid. Secund, quhasa contemnis to be obedient to thair trew and lauchful spiritual fatheris, prelatis and pastoris of the kirk, can nocht eschew the punissioun of God, because that the contemptioun of thame is the contemptioun of our salviour Christ that ordanit thame. Heir quhat he sais to thame: Qui vos spernit, me spernit. Quha that dispysis yow, thai dispise me. Chorie, Dathan and Abiron rebellit aganis Moyses and Aaron, dispysand to obey thair auctoritie, quhairNum. xvi. for the erd oppinnit and swellit thame, and sa leivand yeid to hel. That terribil vengeance quhilk God tuk on thame, and sua was writtin for our instructioun, suld move and warne all men and wemen to honour and obey thair superiouris and reularis, and to abstein fra scorning, dispysing and rebellioun aganis thame. Luc. x. Thridly, quhat punissioun is ordanit for thame quhilk will maid to of this fourt nocht be obedient to thair temporal fatheris, that is to say, to the king and his jugis and officearis, it is plainly declarit be sanct Paule to the Romanis, sayand: That quhasaevir Rom. xiii. resistis the auctoritie of the king, he resistis the ordinatioun of God. And thai that resistis sall resaif to thame self damnatioun. For reularis ar nocht to be feirit for gud warkis, bot for evil, gyf thow wald be without feir of the auctoritie, do well thane, and thow sall haif commendatioun of the same, for he is the minister of God for thi weil. Bot and gif thow [Fol. do evil, than feir, for he beiris nocht the sweirde for nocht, xlvii. b.] for he is the minister of God, and takar of vengeance to punis thame that dois evil, quhairfor ye mone neidis obey, nocht only for punischment, bot also because of conscience, mening that it is deidly syn to rebel or disobey the lauchfull auctorite and leful command of the king and his officiaris. And as for Promis of the reward of thame quhilk kepis this command, it is plainly reward promissit in the end of the same command, in thir wordis: the kepars Et eris longævus super terram. Thow sall haif lang lyfe upon command. the erd. It is ane convenient reward, that thai may haif lang lyfe quhilk dois thair dewtie to thair father and mother, quhilk under God giffis to thame thair lyfe. And be the promis of lang lyfe, understand nocht only to leive mony dais, bot also understand peace, tranquilite, prosperitie, abundance, or at the lest sufficient leiving and sustentatioun in all thai thingis quhilk ar necessary to the mantening of this lyfe, without the quhilk, lang lyfe is nocht plesand, bot erar painfull and displesand. And this lang lyfe is commonly giffin to all thame that dewlie honouris thair father and thair mother. Nochtheles, sum tyme God almychty for sum causis sein to him expedient, giffis to gud barnis bot schort dais, and that for thair weil, suppose it is unknawin till us. According as it is writtin in the buke of wisedome: Raptus est ne malicia Sap. iv. mutaret intellectum ejus. The just man was takin away fra [Fol. xlviii. a.] this life, that malicious or evil men suld nocht alter or change his mynd fra God be violent tormentationis. Bot trewlie we that ar christin peple suld maist of all considder, lufe and desire the lang lyfe promissit till us, in the kingdome of hevin, quhilk the haly Prophet callis the land of lyfe, sayand: Credo videre bona domini, in terra viventium. I trow (sais he) Psal. xxvi, to se the gudnes of the Lord, in the land of leving men. For doutles this present warld may weil be callit the land of deade, bot the warld to cum, quhilk salbe in the kingdome of hevin, suld only be callit the land of lyfe, quhair thair is lyfe, and nevir deade. Thus gud peple, ye may be sickir that God will punis the transgressouris of this command, and largelie reward all the keparis of the same. To him thairfore be honour and thankis, louing and gloir for evir and evir. Amen. The ordour of the fift command. THE FIFT COMMAND. The xvii. Cheptour. ON occides. Thou sal nocht commit slauchter. Quhat NON is the ordour of the fift command? The man that is content to do his dewtie to God and thame that ar his reularis under God, may esely be counsellit to do his dewtie to al his nychbouris. And be the contrary he is redie to do skayth to xlviii. b.] his nychbour quhilk nother feiris God nor man in Gods stede. [Fol. Thairfor be just ordour efter the thre first commandis, quhilk biddis us do our dewtie to God, and efter the fourt command quhilk biddis us do our dewtie til our fatheris in Goddis stede, followis the laif of the commandis, quhilk ar six in nowmer, and giffis till us instruction how we suld ordour our self till our nychbour, in deid, word, and desire of hart. And be cause that till our nychbour na temporal or erdly thing is darrar and mair precious thane is his awin bodylie lyfe, in this fift command God almychty forbiddis us to do any skayth till our nychbour in his persone, quharby we may hurt his bodylie lyfe. Quhat is the trew expositioun of this command? Our of Christ hevinly master and salviour Christ Jesus exponis this commaid to mand in the evangil of sanct Mathew on this maner: Audistis command. quia dictum est antiquis: non occides: qui autem occiderit reus Math. v. erit judicio. Ego autem dico vobis quia omnis qui irascitur fratri suo reus erit judicio. Qui autem dixerit fratri suo racha, reus erit concilio. Qui autem dixerit fatue, reus erit gehennæ ignis. Ye haif hard how it was said to thame of auld tyme: Thow sall nocht commit slauchter: for he that slais sal be giltie of the jugement. Bot I say to yow, qubasaevir hais hettrent at his The expositioun the fift lauchful brother salbe giltie and in dangeir of the jugement. And quhasaevir sais to his brother racha (that is ane lythleful crabit word) he is giltie and in dangeir of the counsell. And quhasaevir sais to his brother fuile, he salbe giltie and in dangeir of the fire of hell. In thir wordis our salviour techis [Fol. xlix. a.] that the law of God is spiritual. For to fulfil this command: That the thow sall nocht slay or commit slauchter, it is nocht yneuch law of God to keip thi handis or outwart membres fra slaying of ony peris spiritual. sone, bot in this command alsua, God requiris that thow keip thi mynd or thi hart fra al unlauchfull wraith and crabitnes, Of unmairatour fra malice and hettred quhilk is the first beginning crabitnes. and occasioun of all unlauchful slauchter and uthir hurtis done to our nychbour. Thairfor he sais, quhasaevir is angrie at his brother, is giltie in the jugement of God, according as sanct Jhone sais: Omnis qui odit fratrem suum homicida est. 1 Joh. iii. He that hettis his brother is ane manslaar. Understand in the jugement of God, quhilk seis the hart and the wil of man, and jugis efter the samyn. Quhy sais he, quhasa is angry at his brother? It is weil sperit, for it is nocht all ane thing to be crabit at thi brother, and to be crabit at thi brotheris fault. The first is evirmair unlauchful, for be the command of cherite we suld lufe our nychbour (quhilk is our brother in Christ) as our self. That is to say, to will and desyre als weil gud to him in bodie and saule as we will and desyre to our self. Sa we suld nocht be crabit at the nature or persone of our brother. Bot it is nocht aganis the command of God to be of lauchful crabit agane the falt of our brother. For we suld quhen neid is, angirly repreve the falt of our nychbour, quhilk gif we do for his instructioun, just correctioun and amendment, it is na syn, bot a commendit vertew, specially to all thame that hes cure and charge of ony other, according as it is said in [Fol. the Psalme: Irascimini et nolite peccare. Be crabit and syn Psal. iv. xlix. b.] nocht. And the same Prophet sais: Iniquos odio habui. I haif Psal.cxviii. hettit the wickit men. Without this halie crabitnes nother can jugement stand, nor vertew incres, nor synnis be refrenit, as sais the doctour Chrisostome. Tell us thane the The rycht rycht keping of this command. Almychty God in all com- keping of mandis negative includis ane affirmative, that is, quhene mand. God forbiddis syn, in the same command he biddis us haif the vertewis quhilk ar contrary to the same forbiddin crabitnes. this com Quha brekes this syn. Sa in this command quhen he forbiddis slauchter and all occasionis of the same, as hettrent of the hart, indignatioun of the voce signifyit be Racha, manifest injurious wordis signifyit be this word fuile, he biddis us be pacient, meik and sweit, kind and merciful, nocht to hald in our mynd hettred, invye, nor yit to foster it ony way agane our enemeis, nother to hurt thame in body or saule be word or deid, art, part or counsell, but to help and deliver our nychbour be word and deid, fra perel of saule and body to the utermaist of our powar. Quha brekis this command? Thai brek this command that command? flytis and fechtis with thair nychbour, quha sais ony worde that cummis of unlauchful ire and crabitnes, quha callis ane uther fuile of malice, or says ony injurious wordis to him, nyknamis, banning, backbyting, or scorning, quha lattis his nychbour dee of hungir, thirst, cald, seiknes, presone, and [Fol.xlx.a.] helpis him nocht to his powar, quha wil nocht forgif to al thair nychbouris thair offencis and will nocht pray for thair enemeis, luffis thame nocht or helpis thame nocht at the lest in tyme of thair extreme neid, quha of crabitnes committis slauchter or murthour, mutilation, or lais on his nychbour ony violent handis, quha invyis thair nychbouris gud fortune, quha sawis discorde and fosteris it, quha rasis pley amang nychbouris, alswa thai that may mak concord amang nychbouris or betuix fayis and dois it nocht, and puttis nocht away al evil occasionis thairof. Quhidder gif kingis and temporal jugis synnis aganis this command, quhen be ordour of the law thai condemne to deade theiffis, menslaaris and murtheraris, revareis, tratouris, and siclyk misdoaris, perturbatouris, and destroiaris of the common weil? Na. For this command is giffin to privat personis and takis nocht the temporall powar away, that thai may nocht punis misdoaris, for thai haif auctoritie of God and ar Gods servandis ordanit to do that. Nochttheles, thai syn grevously in twa pointtis. Temporal First, gif thai lauchfully ken ony siclike misdoars within thair Jugis syns boundis quhairof thai haif auctoritie and tholis thame, lukis grevously in twa at thame throw thair fingaris, and will nocht punis thame, pointtis. other for lufe of geir or carnal affection or sum uther daft opinion, be resone quharof misdoars takis mair baldnes to persevere in evil, and the common weil is hurt. Siclik cowat |