Genesis 14:2 [That these] made war with Bera king of Sodom, and with Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, and Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela, which is Zoar.
Ver. 2. That these made war.] War is the slaughter house of mankind, and the hell of this present world. It hews itself a way through a wood of men, and lays "heaps upon heaps" (as Samson did, Jdg 15:16), not with "a jaw-bone of an ass," and one after another, but in a minute of time, and by the mouth of a murdering piece. Alphonsus D. of Ferrara had two of these cannons a of a wonderful size; the one whereof he called Archidiabolo, the other, the Earthquake. The Turks battered the walls of Rhodes, with twelve basilisks, so aptly named of the serpent, basiliscus, who, as Pliny writes, killeth man or beast with his very sight. But before these bloody instruments of death were heard of in the world, men could find means to slaughter one another in war; witness these five kings, that came with Chedorlaomer, and smote the Rephaims or giants, the Zuzims or Zamzummims, Deu 2:20 and the Emims or terrible ones, as their name imports. These they slew by the way, besides what they did in the vale of Siddim, where they joined battle with the five kings, and cut off many. If we may judge one battle by another, hear what was done in a bloody fight between Amurath III, king of the Turks, and Lazarus, despot of Servia. Many thousands fell on both sides; the brightness of the armour and weapons was as like the lightning; the multitude of lances and other horsemen's staves shadowed the light of the sun. Arrows and darts fell so fast, that a man would have thought they had poured down from heaven. The noise of the instruments of war, with the neighing of horses, and outcries of men, was so terrible and great, that the wild beasts in the mountains stood astonished therewith; and the Turkish histories, b to express the terror of the day, vainly say, that the angels in heaven, amazed with that hideous noise, for that time, forgot the heavenly hymns wherewith they always glorify God. In conclusion, Lazarus was slain, and Amurath had the victory, but a very bloody one, and such as he had no great joy of. For he lost many of his Turks; as did likewise Adrian the Emperor of the Romans, when he fought against the Jews and had the better: but with such a loss of his own men, that when he wrote of his victory to the Senate, he forbore to use that common exordium, that the emperors in like ease were wont to use, Si vos liberique vestri valeatis, bene est: Ego quidem et exercitus valemus. c There was no such thing, believe it, nor but seldom is there. But as the dragon sucks out the blood of the elephant, and the weight of the falling elephant crushes the dragon, and both usually perish together; d so doth it many times fall out with those that undertake war. These four kings beat the five; but, when they got home, became a prey to Abram and his confederates. The Low-countrymen are said to grow rich - whereas e all other nations grow poor - with war. But they may thank a good queen, under God (Queen Elizabeth, I mean), who first undertook their protection against the Spaniard. For the which act of hers, all princes admired her fortitude: and the King of Sweden said, that she had now taken the diadem from her head, and set it upon the doubtful chance of war. f Dubia sane est Martis alea, nec raro utrique parti noxia, saith Bucholcerus. g And I cannot but - as the case stands with us, especially at this present, by reason of these unnatural uncivil wars stirred up amongst us - go on, and give my vote with him. Ideo pons aureus (ut vulgato proverbio dicitur) hosti fugienti extruendus est et magno precio, precibus, patientia ac prudentia alma pax redimenda, ne infoelicitatis portas, pacis tempore clausas, infaustum bellum aperiat. War is sweet, they say, to them that never made trial of it. h But I cannot sufficiently wonder at Pyrrhus, king of Epirus, of whom Justin witnesseth, that he took as much pleasure in war, as others do in supreme government. i He might have better learned of his own prophets; so St Paul calleth their poets. Tit 1:12 Homer, the prince of them, ever brings in Mars, as most hated of Jupiter above any other god, as born for a common mischief, and being right of his mother Juno's disposition, which was fierce, vast, contumacious, and malignant. We that are Christians, as we cannot but, with the prophet Isaiah, count and call war a singular evil; so we must acknowledge with him, that it is an evil of God's own creating. Isa 45:7 "I make peace, and create evil," j that is, war. I, is emphatic and exclusive, as who should say, I, and I alone. Whencesoever the sword comes, it is bathed in heaven. Isa 34:5 God is pleased for this to style himself, "A man of war". Exo 15:3 The Chaldee expresseth it thus, "the Lord and victor of wars". Gen 17:1 God elsewhere calleth himself, El Shaddai. Aben-Ezra interpreteth Shaddai a conqueror. And indeed the Hebrew word Shadad signifieth to dissipate and destroy: both which he must needs do that becomes a conqueror. k God seems to glory much in his workings about warlike affairs. Hence, - "Who Psa 24:8 is the King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty; the Lord mighty in battle." He is in Scripture said to "send the sword"; Eze 14:17 to "muster" the men; Isa 13:4 to order the ammunition; Jer 50:25 to bring up both van and rear; Isa 52:12 to give wisdom, valour, and victory. Psa 144:1 Ezekiel 30:24 Ecc 9:11 The whole battle is his. 1Sa 17:47 And he oft thereby "revengeth the quarrel of his covenant". Lev 26:25 So he hath done already upon the Jews and Germans: so he is now doing, alas, upon Ireland and England. And here I cannot but insert that which I find observed by a prime preacher of our kingdom. The late battle at Edgehill was fought in a place called "the Vale of the Red Horse," as if God had said, "I have now sent you the red horse, to avenge the quarrel of the white"; Revelation 6:2 ; Rev 6:4 the blood spilt at Edgehill the same day of the month in which the rebellion broke out in Ireland, the year before, October 23. Yea, and upon the self-same day, if our intelligence be true, in which that bloody battle was fought near Leipsic, in Germany. This conjuncture is a sad presage, that England is to drink deep in Germany's and Ireland's cup. "Father, if it be thy will, let this cup pass from us." "A cup of trembling" it is, surely, to myself, among many others; such as maketh my pen almost to fall out of my fingers, while I write these things; and affects me no otherwise - when I consider of the many fearful convulsions of our kingdom, tending doubtless to a deadly consumption-than the siege of Rome did St Jerome. For hearing that that city was besieged, at such time as he was writing a Commentary upon Ezekiel, l and that many of his godly acquaintance there were slain, he was so astonished at the news, that for many nights and days he could think of nothing. When I think m of what should move the Lord to make this breach upon us, and notwithstanding that he hath been so earnestly besought; yet for all this, his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still; that of Cajetan comes before me; who, then commenting upon Matthew when the French soldiers having broken into Rome, offered all manner of abuse and violence to the clergy, inserts this passage into his Notes on Matthew 5:13 - "Ye are the salt of the earth," - as my former author n allegeth, and rendereth him: - "We, the prelates of Rome, do now find the truth of this by woeful experience, being become a scorn and a prey, not to infidels but Christians, by the most righteous judgment of God, because we, who by our places should have been ‘the salt of the earth,' had ‘lost our savour,' and were good for little else but looking after the rites and revenues of the Church. o Hence it is, that together with us, this city comes to be trodden under foot, this sixth of May 1527." That city, till it became idolatrous, was ever victorious: but since it hath been the nest of Antichrist, it was never besieged but it was taken and sacked. The God of heaven purge out of our Church, daily more and more, that land desolating sin of idolatry, and make good his promise, "That there shall be no more the Canaanite in the house of the Lord of hosts," Zec 14:21 no evil spirit left in the land. Fiat, fiat. For of England we may now well say, as he once did of Rome: Nunquam magis iustis iudiciis approbatum est, non esse curae Deo securitatem nostrum, esse vindictam. p
a Peacham's Valley of Varieties. Rev 9:17 "Fire, smoke, and brimstone," seem to note out the Turks' guns and ordnance. For the drawing of that gun that Mohammed used in besieging Constantinople, seventy yokes of oxen and two thousand men were employed.
b Turk. Hist., fol. 200.
c Dio in Adriano.
d Plin.
e Heylin's Geog., p. 253.
f Anno 1585. Camden's Elisab.
g Bucholc. Chron., p. 583.
h Dulce bellum inexpertis.
i Nulli maiorem ex imperio quam Pyrrho ex bello voluptatem fuisse.
j Malum per αντονομασιαν ut bellum, quia minime bellum per antiphrasin .
k Eundem victorem et vastatorem esse oportet .
l Hieron. com. in Ezekiel. - Proem.
m Haec scripsi cordiciuts dolens. - August 21, 1643
n Mr Arrowsmith, ubi supra, Ep.
o Evanuimus, ac ad nihilum utiles, nisi ad externas caeremonias, externaque bona ,& c. - Heylin's Geog.
p Tacit. Hist., lib. i. cap. 1.