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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A61390	A discourse concerning old-age tending to the instruction, caution and comfort of aged persons / by Richard Steele ...	Steele, Richard, 1629-1692.	1688 (1688)	Wing S5386; ESTC R34600	148,176	338

which shews that all our words should be govern'd by Reason And yet how unruly is this little member insomuch as the Apostle Iames c. 3. 6. calls the Tongue a World of iniquity the hand is not call'd a world of iniquity for that cannot reach very far but with the tongue we can walk over the whole world and by the venome of it hurt even all mankind And Old people whose eyes and ears whose hands and feet are much decay'd and disabled are apt to make the greater use of their tongues And whereas the noblest and best subject of Discourse is the ever blessed God his Properties Word and Works too few of them deal in this argument but the ordinary Theme of their speech is concerning Other folks and concerning Themselves and here you may find in their tongues the Perpetual Motion About Others their tongue travelleth round about and few of their neighbours escape the scourge of it It is their delight to be judging censuring and condemning all mankind How much good might the same breath produce if it were imployed in good instruction in faithful counsel or in wise reproof But their talent lies not that way but rather like Zoilus of old who being asked why he carped so much at others answer'd that he spoke ill of them because he could do no other ill to them so the impotence of old people must be a plea for their ill language but God will reprove thee and set this and all thine other sins before thee because thou sittest and speakest against thy brother and standerest thine own mothers son Psal. 50. 20 21. But their most pleasing Harangues are concerning Themselves What they have bin what they have done what they have had what Strength what Beauty what Estates what Affairs they have managed what adventures they have made what victories they have gotten in summe wherever the Story begins it shall be sure to end at their dear selves the feats they have done or the respect they have received Now all this must be nauseous to every ingenuous hearer and is most loathsome in the sight of God. For He and his Glory is the only center towards which all our words and actions should tend All other discourse is no other or better than wherein Turks and Pagans may vye with you and our Blessed Book assures us Mat. 12. 36. That every idle word that men shall speak they shall give account thereof in the day of judgement If all your extravagant words in one day should be written down and presented at night to you it would amaze you how then will ye answer whole volumes of them at the day of Judgment say not that words are but wind since they are such a wind as if irregular will blow the soul into Hell for by thy words thou shalt be justified and by thy words thou shalt be condemned Bridle therefore this unruly member Nature hath placed two barrs unto it the teeth and the lips but except watchfulness and prayer be added to them they 'l be too weak If any man offend not in word the same is a perfect man Jam. 3. 2. and you will confess that every man should labour to be perfect in his Profession especially you that are Old disciples and should exceed others in strict holiness as much as you do in years Consider that he who often said let him that hath ears to hear hear said not let him that hath a tongue to speak be ready to speak No he hath given to men two ears and but one tongue to shew that we should be swift to hear but slow to speak It is true as Elihu grants Iob 32. 7. Dayes should speak and multitude of years should teach wisdom Their knowledge and experience qualifies them for it and if young people would but see their own weakness and were modest and humble they might with much ease learn those things of the Elder which they have dearly bought So that the Talkativeness which is culpable in Old persons is utterly intolerable in Young ones But yet even by those that are Old both the Matter and the Measure of their talk is to be observed and you should consider What good shall I now procure by speaking Whither is my Tongue walking What hurt by holding my peace What words are these that are bursting out It is Plutarchs Counsel And the same Author a Heathen resolves that we should never speak but when it is some way necessary or useful to our selves or others And that was a nipping answer which Zeno the Philosopher gave to some Embassadors that were come to Athens and had feasted some Learned men there who had talked liberally to them And what said they to him have you to tell us Why saith he tell those that sent you that you met with one Old man who knew how to hold his peace And a wise man resolves that he that hath knowledge who of all men may best speak spareth his words Prov. 17. 27. And you whose humour prompts you to be sparing should not be so prodigal herein He was a wise man that said he had often repented that he spake but never that he held his peace Let the Glory of God and the Profit of the hearer be still the measure of your talk Hunt not after the applause of men which is but empty Air and remember that you may never justly commend your self but when you are unjustly accused by another And then consider withal that the more a Man speaks commonly the less he is heeded and therefore if you would have people to mind what you say check your loquacity and take notice how the Wise man placeth Silence before Speech saying Eccles. 3. 7. A time to keep silence and a time to speak SECT III. THE Third Sin more peculiar to Old-age is Envy which is an inward Grudging at those who do in any thing excell us Now because they which are Old do see many that surpass them in strength beauty riches or esteem they are too apt to look at them with an envious Eye and to grudge them those blessings which God hath vouchsafed them Hence it is but too usual with them to lessen their deserts to carp at their enjoyments to abound in all such reports and stories as may degrade or blacken them thinking by a great mistake that what is detracted from others is added to themselves Thus when an House is decaying all the props men can get they will buttress it up withall but these are but rotten Pillars and will but expose you to more contempt For this is an odious sin in it self from hence proceeded the Fall of the first Adam and the Death of the Second for which mischiefs we should hate it the more And indeed it is a very unreasonable thing to envy those mercies to others whereof we have had our share as well as they Are they strong comely or respected You have in your time partaken of them and

days of her Youth wherein she had plaid the Harlot in the Land of Egypt Yea perhaps this guilt will be found in some respects greater than the first because it 's likely that then there was less knowledge and more temptation than now there is This contemplative wickedness nails on the former guilt and contracts more this demonstrates that the man would be always sinning if he could and that he is a meer stranger to true Repentance I deny not but that the first sudden glance of the memory upon former Vanities may be pleased but 't is only a surprize every pious Soul hath them still in remembrance and is humbled in it Thus Holy Augustine in his Confessions reflects upon his Robbing an Orchard in his younger days with all the heart-breaking Aggravations imaginable Thus Holy David cryes out Psal. 25. 7. Remember not the Sins of my Youth nor my Transgressions Labour you to write after their Copies let the remembrance of your former follies be always bitter never dwell upon the thoughts of them but with a Sigh O what a Fool what a Beast have I been O what have I done I am asham'd yea even confounded because I bear the reproach of my Youth Jerem. 31. 19. Make not the Wound to bleed again by rubbing it afresh lest it fester and grow incurable at length Let it appear some way that it is not want of power but want of will that makes you Sober A diligent care to avoid the Sins of your present Age and State will be a good proof that you would not commit the faults that are past if you were to live over your life again A better Life is the best Repentance And so much shall suffice upon this unpleasant but necessary Subject concerning the Sins of Old-age which as they should be matter of our hearty Grief so they should be the subject of our holy Iealousy and continual Caution For tho perhaps we may not be guilty in them all yet it is as unlikely that we are clear in all So that whereinsoever the Spirit of God hath in these Papers or otherwise found us out it is our indispensable duty to watch and pray with all seriousness and constancy against the same and tho they be rooted never so deep we must mortify and pluck them up tho we should they are grave Seneca's words pluck our very Hearts up with them For as one Disease is sufficient to kill the Body so any one Sin unmortified is able to send Body and Soul into Hell. On the other hand it will be one special token that we are upright before God when we keep our selves from our own Iniquity Psal. 18. 23. And yet this is but the one half of our bounden Duty For if you pluck up all the Weeds out of your Garden it will be but a desart place unless you procure some Herbs and Flowers therein so tho we should clear our Hearts of these Vices we shall have but naked and empty Souls unless we be furnished with such Graces as are proper for us which is the next point now to be treated of CHAP. IV. The Graces of Old-age SECT I. FOrasmuch as Old-age is liable to so many vicious Habits it greatly concerns all that are in Years to excell in some eminent Qualifications which may praeponderate the other or else Old-age would be a Miserable Age indeed Now tho we may well hope that they having been so long in Christs School have throughly learned Christ that they are indued with every Grace and instructed to every good work yet there be some Peculiar Graces wherein the Aged do or should excell Not that any of them is confined to Gray Hairs alone for as all the Sins above-mentioned may be found in those that are young so also the following Graces do apparently shine in many of them whereby they promise a plentiful Harvest in after-time if they hold on or mend For alas to speak the plain truth too few possess them all and too many are strangers to them all And therefore where I describe them with the following Excellencies understand it rather by way of Instruction in what they should be than by way of Assertion of what they are and you must remember also that the Denomination is à parte potiori the better sort have them and all should endeavour after them for since they are actually possessed by some they may be certainly obtained by all The First Grace most proper for Old-age is Knowledge They have or might have a great measure of all kind of Knowledge having read so much in the Book of Nature and in the Book of Providence But there is a nobler Object of their Knowledge which is God himself his Word and his Ways Herein the Aged person hath been versed for a long time 1 Ioh. 2. 13. I write unto you Fathers because you have known him that is from the beginning There is no Truth Duty Case Sin or Temptation but they have either heard or read something concerning it and that often and therefore must be supposed to have a more clear and distinct knowledge in all these things than younger people Young people think that they know much but Old people cannot chuse but sigh and smile at their ignorance They find that the more Knowledge they have the more Ignorance they discover in themselves and wherein they have been confident in their younger years they see cause to alter their sentiments afterwards For Knowledge is either Infused or Acquired by Study Reading and Converse In these the Aged must needs out-strip the Young as having been much longer conversant in the use of them and for the former the Holy Ghost doth commonly impart these Habits in the use of means and so every way the Old man hath the advantage in this accomplishment Now Knowledge is that wherein the Image of God partly consists it is the glory of Angels and it is the honour of Man. Those therefore were a strange sort of Friars in Italy that Luther writes of call'd Fratres Ignorantiae that took a solemn Oath that they would know nothing at all but answer to all questions with Nescio unless men were resolved to renounce both Divinity and Humanity at once No doubtless saving Knowledge is to the Soul as the Eye to the Body of great excellency and of great use 'T is this that Crowns the hoary head and conveys Beauty unto wrinkles Prov. 14. 18. The prudent are crowned with knowledge It s true many there are who have tasted of the Tree of Knowledge that have never tasted of the Tree of Life and knowledge of it self puffeth up so that a man may have all knowledge and yet no Charity 1 Cor. 13. 2. Yet as it is true there may be much knowledge without a grain of Grace so it is certain there cannot be one spark of Grace without Knowledge For how shall a Man know Sin unless he understand the Law of