from working; but he saith, Sanctificabis, “Thou shalt hallow:”  so that holy day keeping is nothing else but to abstain from good works, and to do better works; that is, to come together, and celebrate the Communion together, and visit the sick bodies.  These are holy-day works; and for that end God commanded us to abstain from bodily works, that we might be more meet and apt to do those works which he hath appointed unto us, namely, to feed our souls with his word, to remember his benefits, and to give him thanks, and to call upon him.  So that the holy-day may be called a marriage-day, wherein we are married unto God; which day is very needful to be kept.  The foolish common people think it to be a belly-cheer day, and so they make it a surfeiting day:  there is no wickedness, no rebellion, no lechery, but she hath most commonly her beginning upon the holy-day.

We read a story in the fifteenth chapter of the book of Numbers, that there was a fellow which gathered sticks upon the sabbath-day; he was a despiser of God’s ordinances and laws, like as they that now-a-days go about other business, when they should hear the word of God, and come to the Common Prayer:  which fellows truly have need of sauce, to be made more lustier to come and feed upon Christ than they be.  Now Moses and the people consulted with the Lord, what they should do, how they should punish that fellow which had so transgressed the sabbath-day.  “He shall die,” saith God:  which thing is an ensample for us to take heed, that we transgress not the law of the sabbath-day.  For though God punish us not by and by, as this man was punished; yet he is the very self-same God that he was before, and will punish one day, either here, or else in the other world, where the punishment shall be everlasting.

Likewise in the seventeenth chapter of the prophet Jeremy God threateneth his fearful wrath and anger unto those which do profane his sabbath-day.  Again, he promiseth his favour and all prosperity to them that will keep the holy-days; saying, “Princes and kings shall go through thy gates,” that is to say, Thou shalt be in prosperity, in wealth, and great estimation amongst thy neighbours.  Again:  “If ye will not keep my sabbath-day, I will kindle a fire in your gates;” that is to say, I will destroy you, I will bring you to nought, and burn your cities with fire.  These words pertain as well unto us at this time, as they pertained to them at their time:  for God hateth the disallowing of the sabbath as well now as then; for he is and remaineth still the old God:  he will have us to keep his sabbath, as well now as then:  for upon the sabbath-day God’s seed-plough goeth; that is to say, the ministry of his word is executed; for the ministering of God’s word is God’s plough.  Now upon the Sundays God sendeth his husbandmen to come and till; he sendeth his callers to come and call to the wedding, to bid the guests; that is, all the world to come to that supper.