Now in this kind of sacrifice also Christ was preached, with the effect and power of his death and passion; and in it was shewed the whole manner and order of giving thanks to God for his good benefits. There are sundry sorts of benefits. If a man received a good turn, if an ill turn had not befallen him, if he had recovered his health or had escaped some misfortune, he offered a sacrifice to the Lord. There are also other ancient benefits common to all men; as, that God [1 in cardines mundi, Lat.]
[2 FR, α heave-offering. m0”, waving, shaking of sacrifices before Jehovah, a particular rite in offering. Gesenius, Heb. and Eng. Lex. in voe.]
[3 Tim, Heb. confession, praise.]
[4 common to all men, not in Lat.]
hath made the world and all that is therein; and that through Christ he hath redeemed all the faithful: there are daily benefits; yea finally, all things are full of God’s good benefits. For all which benefits we must offer our sacrifice to God alone, and not to any creatures which he hath made: yea, we must offer to him with all our hearts; all our affections must be hallowed to the Lord. For out of the beasts which were sacrificed to the Lord for thanksgiving, those parts were chosen and given to the Lord in which the especial power of life consisteth. For in the kidneys is the power of generation; in the blood the vital spirit; in the liver the spring of all the blood, &c. Now we must give thanks by a sacrifice, that is, by Christ, for we are saved for Christ his sake; and all good things are bestowed on us by God, not for our own sakes, nor for any creatures’ sakes, but for Christ his sake, our only Saviour and Redeemer. To them which offered was allowed a sober and merry banquet, because the felicity of those that are not unthankful is for the most part augmented two-fold double. And the knowledge of Christ is a delicate banquet and a continual feast.
With the sacrifices of thanksgiving those offerings do much agree which are called vows and free-will-offerings. The free-will-offering was that which proceeded of mere good will and devotion of the mind, without necessity or compulsion of any law or ordinance; as when a servant giveth to his master the thing that he oweth him not, for a declaration only of the good will that he beareth unto him. But herein the free-will-offerings do differ from the sacrifice of thanksgiving; because in the sacrifice of thanksgiving charge was given, that whatsoever was left, which was not spent the first day, should not be eaten on the morrow, but be burnt with fire: on the other side, in the free-will-offerings it was lawful for them to eat the remnant upon the second day, and” to burn their leavings upon the third day. Now the vowed sacrifices were those which were offered by covenant to the Lord; as for example, a man, being in peril, doth vow to make a sacrifice to God, if he be delivered out of that imminent danger: it falleth out that he is delivered, and he
[ἵν [6 porro, Lat.; further.] [6 72, ἃ vow, mam, a voluntary offering. ] [7 jubebantur, Lat.; they were commanded. ]]
for his delivery doth offer up the sacrifice: the thing that is so offered is called a vowed sacrifice. The ceremonies of the twain! did wholly agree with the sacrifice of thanksgiving. More of them is to be seen in the seventh chapter of Leviticus.
The meaning of these sacrifices was, that all good benefits are bestowed upon us for Christ his sake; and? with those benefits we receive the very good will which we have to serve the Lord.
Thus much have I hitherto said touching the sacrifices of the people of God: not that I have touched every point, but so many only as are of most importance. In these sacrifices, as in a lively action, were set forth Christ our Lord, his passion, and the effectual merit of his death: so that we may call the holy actions of the sacrifices sermons upon the passion of Christ, and instructions of our redemption by our Lord and Saviour.
Now, for because we have already spoken hitherto of vowed sacrifices, we must here consequently borrow leave, for a digression, to say somewhat of their usual vows. For vows belong to the Jewish ceremonies. Of the making, performing, and redeeming of vows there is a large discourse in the law of God, but especially in the twenty-seventh of Leviticus, To vow is to promise any thing with an oath solemnly, either for our own or another’s welfare. And therefore a vow was an action referred to God alone, and that too in an holy and lawful thing. But in vows there was a difference; because vowed things were divided into four kinds: for sometimes they vowed men, sometimes they vowed other living things, sometimes houses, and sometimes lands or other immoveable substance. Again, there was a difference in men according to their ages, and after their ages they might be redeemed. For clean living creatures there was no redemption permitted at all. It was free either to leave their houses to the use of the ministery, or else to redeem them with such a sum as the priest should
[1 of the twain, not in Lat.) [2 atque adeo, Lat.; and so too.] [8 catecheses, Lat.] [ Deo, Lat.; unto God.] [δ res inanimes, Lat.; lifeless things. ] [6 juxta, Lat.; according to.]]
v. 1. THE CEREMONIAL LAWS OF GOD. 207 value them at”. In lands, redemption was sometimes admitted, and sometimes not admitted. And in the thirtieth chapter of the book of Numbers there is a precise commandment given touching the votaries, when their vows are of force, and when of small effect; where it is diligently beaten into their heads, that vows lawfully made to God are not to be called back again, but straitly kept and throughly performed. - Rash or unlawful vows the Lord did never like of nor receive.
Of the lawful vows, and such as are made to the true and only God, the prophet speaketh, where he saith, “Make vows, and pay them.” We read not that any of the godly sort did make any vows to any saints or any other creatures; neither that they vowed any thing that was not in their power to vow, nor that which was contrary to the will of God to whom they vowed it, nor that which was to their neighbour’s hinderance, nor the thing that had not in it some evident commodity. And verily, these kinds of vows were for none other cause permitted to the Israelites till the time of amendment, but that they should remain in the worship of one true God, and not make their vows to any other strange God.
To the treatise of vows belongeth the discipline and order of the Nazarites; of which there is a large discourse in the sixth chapter of the book of Numbers. The Nazarites were those who, because they would the more freely, without let, attend upon God’s service, or else because they had heretofore lived too licentiously, did of their own accord and will take upon them a more strict and severe trade of life than the common people used, and kept it for a discipline, to make other men to follow their example of virtue and honest living. Whereupon it cometh to pass, that some do take the Nazarites to have their name of separation, because Nazir among the Hebrews signifieth a separation; and that the Nazarites, separating themselves from the common trade of life that other men did lead, did give themselves to a peculiar form of living for God and godliness’ sake, That severe and strict discipline did continue in some by the length of all their lifetime, as in Samson and Samuel.
Moreover, such as did wholly give themselves to the