against them to straine out gnats and to swallow cammels to tythe mint and cummin and to neglect the weightier duties of the law judgement mercie and faith Consider to this purpose two examples of the Pharisies and Priests When Iudas brought them backe the money which they gaue him to betray Christ they would not put in into the treasurie because it was the price of bloud but the precious bloud of Christ himselfe they were not afraid to spill and to draw the guilt thereof vpon their consciences They were not afraid to be defiled by giuing Christ the immaculat lambe of God through enuie vnto death but they were at the same time afraid to goe into the common hall least they should be defiled 8. Another note of an vpright man is Humilitie For when a man is indued therewith it is a plaine signe that he hath humbled himselfe to walke with his God As contrariwise pride is the companion of hypocrisie as the Prophet Habacuc saith Behold he that lifteth vp himselfe his soule is not vpright in him For he that walketh with God as the vpright man doth cannot lightly be lifted vp with pride Indeed whiles we looke vpon the earth and behold other men whom we conceiue to be any way our inferiours we may perhaps take some occasion to be lifted vp in a conceit of our owne excellencie but hee that hath God before his eyes and setteth himselfe alwayes in his presence he will be readie with Abraham although an excellent Patriarch standing before the Lord to confesse his owne vilenesse with Esay that eloquent and zealous Prophet to crie out That he is a man of polluted lips with Iob the patterne of patience when he seeth God to abhorre himselfe and to repent in dust and ashes with Peter being in the presence of Christ whom he perceiued to be God to acknowledge himselfe a sinfull man 9. Againe the vpright man being indued with a good conscience is confident in good causes and couragious in time of perill as Salomon saith He that walketh vprightly walketh boldly And againe The righteous are bold as a Lyon but the hypocrite contrariwise by reason of his bad conscience is ouertaken with feare as the Prophet Esay speaketh and such doe flie when none pursueth 10. It is the priuiledge of an vpright man to bee constant in good things and to perseuere to the end keeping also a continued course of pietie for the vpright man is he which hath built vpon the rocke and therefore cannot vtterly be ouerthrown by any blasts or tempests of temptations it is he which receiueth the seed into good groūd and therefore taketh root downward and bringeth forth fruit vpward with patience he being not only in the church but also of it shall surely remaine in the Communion of the Church and as the Psalmist here saith shall neuer be remooued But contrariwise the double minded man is vnconstant in all his wayes his religion and goodnesse is as a morning cloud and as the morning dew it goeth away his profession is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for a time for hauing receiued the seed among stones and wanting root when the Sunne of temptation ariseth he fadeth away hauing built vpon the sand whē the blasts of temptations arise his building falleth to the ground Hereunto we are to referre patience in affliction as a note of the vpright wherupon affliction is called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the trial of our faith or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 whereby 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 those that are found and approued are knowne from those which be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 vnsound 11. And to conclude it is the propertie of the sound and vpright to joyne together pietie towards God and charietie towards our neighbour the loue of God and the loue of our brother for it cannot be that a man should loue the Lord truly whom he hath not seene and loueth not his brother whom he hath seene neither do we loue our neighbour aright vnlesse we loue him in and for the Lord. And therefore no man can loue his neighbour as he ought vnlesse he loue the Lord much more The loue of God therefore or pietie if it be sound will shew it selfe in the loue of our brother or in the duties of righteousnesse and the loue of our brother or righteousnesse if it be sincere must be deriued from the fountaine of pietie Contrariwise it is the hypocrits guise to seuer these two which the holy ghost hath joyned together holinesse and righteousnesse the obedience of the first and second Table of the law For there are many as glorious professors among vs as the Pharisies were among the Iewes who making profession of religion and pietie towards God doe altogether neglect the duties of charitie and righteousnesse towards men And againe many there are among vs as famous for ciuile vertues as Aristides or Socrates among the heathen who resting in a ciuile conuersation and outward honestie among men are void of all religion and of the feare of God Both sorts are hypocrits the righteousnesse of the former not exceeding the righteousnesse of the Phariseyes who notwithstanding their glorious profession were notorious hypocrits the righteousnesse of the latter professing themselues to be Christians not exceeding the righteousnesse of the heathen who knew not God Now I come to the fourth point namely to consider by what arguments we may be stirred vp to embrace this vertue if we want it or to continue and increase therein if we haue it The arguments may be reduced to three heads the excellency the profit the necessitie of vprightnesse The excellency of it is so great that the Lord accepteth of the vpright indeuour of his children as perfect performance insomuch that vprightnesse as I haue said goeth in the Scripture vnder the name of perfection Neither are we otherwise to vnderstand the duties which in the word of God are said to bee done with the whole heart but that they are performed with an entire or vpright heart Therfore those that are vpright though they be subject to many infirmities yet they are esteemed as just and that before the Lord the Lord accepting in his vpright seruants the will for the deed Againe wheras Christ the bridegrome is said to be delighted with the beautie of his spouse this may not be vnderstood of the outward apperance for so she is something blacke and browne by reason of affliction and the cause thereof which is sinne but of the inward beauty in respect wherof she is sayd to be all glorious and beautifull within which is that vprightnesse or truth in the inward parts wherewith the Lord is delighted For this we are also to adde that vprightnesse is that wherewith the Lord is especially delighted insomuch that to be vpright and to please God in the Scriptures do signifie the same
To peruert judgement bribes are taken first by judges and those that belong to them after the example of the sonnes of Samuell who when they were appointed judges did not walke in the wayes of their father for he was free from taking rewards 1. Sam. 12. 3. but turned aside after lucre and taking rewards peruerted judgement Secondly by counsellors and aduocats after the example of Tertullus who so he might haue his fee cared not what false calumniations he vttered against the Apostle Paul Thirdly by witnesses who are hired to giue false witnesse against the innocent according to the example of those who were suborned against Naâ—oth and against our Sauiour Christ both before his death and after his resurrection Of trecherie also we haue examples in the Scriptures as of Dalila who for reward betrayed Sampson into the hands of the Philistines and of Iudas the traytor who for thirtie peeces of money betrayed our Sauiour Christ. But that I may speake to the intendment of the holie Ghost in this place I am to shew that this is a note of Gods children to be free from rewards For the Lord in other places also of the Scripture propoundeth abstinence from rewards as a note of the godly and contrariwise the taking of rewards as a certaine badge of the wicked For as touching the former when question was made who should dwell with a consuming fire that is God the Prophet Esay maketh answer Chapter 33 He that refuseth gaine of oppression and shaketh his hands from taking of gifts c. he shall dwell on high The same is testified Prou. 15. 27. He that is greedie of gaine troubleth his owne house but he that hateth gifts shall liue On the other side taking of bribes is acknowledged in the Scripture to be an vndoubted token of the wicked Prou. 17. 23. The wicked man taketh a gift out of the bosome to wit of the giuer to wrest the wayes of iudgement Of accursed persons Deut. 27. 25. Cursed be he that taketh a reward to put to death innocent bloud And all the people shall say Amen Of reprobates and castawayes Iob. 15. 34. Fire shall deuoure the houses of bribes that is of them that take bribes And Psal. 26. 9 10 where the Prophet praying that he might not be destroyed in the destruction of the wicked and reprobat he describeth them by this note Gather not my soule saith he with the sinners nor my life with the bloudie men in whose hands is wickednesse and their right hand is full of bribes The vse which we are to make of this doctrine is thus much That seeing abstinence from rewards is made by the holy Ghost a note of the righteous which shall be saued and contrariwise taking of rewards an vndoubted marke of the wicked who if they continue in this sinne shall be condemned therefore it behooueth vs to shake our hands from taking of rewards if we would haue any hope or assurance that we shall dwell in the mountaine of Gods holinesse For they that shall dwell in the mountaine of God are such saith the holy Ghost as doe not take rewards against the innocent Wherefore if thou doest take rewards and that against the innocent for the innocent partie doth not vse to giue bribes therefore bribes are commonly taken against the innocent how canst thou hope that thou shalt euer inherit the kingdome of God But these 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 these takers of rewards doe not only depriue themselues of all true hope of saluation but also incurre most certainely the just vengeance of God which they pull not onely vpon themselues and their houses as I shewed before out of Deut. 27. 25 Prou. 15. 27 Iob. 15 34 but also vpon their countrey which should be more deare vnto them than themselues 〈◊〉 therefore said to destroy it Prou. 29 4 For among the 〈…〉 abhominations for which the Lord doth threatâ—â—â—struction against Ierusalem this is none of the least â—zech 22. 12 In thee haue they taken gifts to shed bloud thou hast taken vsurie and increase c. But that which is spoken to all seemeth to be spoken to none I will therefore conuert my speech to all the sorts of them that take gifts seuerally as to corrupt judges aduocats and witnesses For as touching traitours whom euery one knoweth to be worse than common cut-throats and murtherers because to the murther of the innocent whereof they are guiltie they adde persidious trecherie I shall not need to speake First therefore and principally I am to speake to judges officers and magistrats for now adayes briberie hath so corrupted publicke places and functions that euery petite office whereof the stipends and lawfull fees are but small is notwithstanding by such corrupt wayes and indirect meanes as are found out sufficient to gather great wealth But let such men besides the generall arguments before vsed consider with me how dangerous this kind of filthie gaine is how wicked and how pernicious The danger is shewed Deut. 16. 19 Wrest not thou the law sayth the Lord to judges and officers nor respect any person neither take reward for the reward blindeth the eyes not of the vnwise onely but of the wise and peruerteth the words not of the wicked onely but also of the iust But the grieuousnesse of this offence will more clearely appeare if besides the danger to themselues we shall consider how greatly they offend both against God and their neighbour against God for judges and magistrats are by the holy ghost in the Scriptures called Gods because they are the Lords substitutes sustaining his person and the judgement which they execute is not the judgement of man but of God And that is the argument which Iâ—hosophat vsed when he exhorted the judges whom he had ordained to the vpright performance of their dutie Take heed what you doe sayth he for you execute not the iudgements of man but of the Lord and he will be with you in the cause and iudgement Wherefore now let the feare of the Lord be vpon you take heed and doe it for there is none iniquitie with the Lord our God neither respect of persons nor receiuing of reward Whosoeuer therefore peruerteth judgement as much as in him lieth he maketh God whose judgement it is vntrue and vnjust Secondly they offend against that justice which ought to be exercised towards our neighbour first because they doe most grossely abuse the commonwealth of whom they receiue both authoritie and maintenance that they may doe much mischiefe thereunto Secondly because they are as the Prophet Esay speaketh companions of theeues Thy princes sayth he are companions of theeues euery one loueth gifts and followeth after rewards Neither doe they onely helpe the wicked to spoyle his neighbour but themselues also doe rob and spoyle them and that also vnder the colour and shew of judgement and justice So that whereas
vpon the world halting betwixt God and Mammon and esteeming gaine to be godlinesse we may be theeues yea diuels as he was And not to insist any longer in the seuerall parts of Gods worship this may be said of all externall worship in generall that so oft as it is seuered from the inward spirituall worship of God it is hypocritical and detestable in the sight of God To which purpose the Lord professeth by his Prophet That he which killeth a bullocke is as if he slew a man he that sacrificeth a sheep as if he cut off a dogs necke he that offereth an oblation as if he offered swines bloud he that remembreth incense as if he blessed an idole Wee must therefore beware least we rest in the performance of outward seruice or coÌ„tent our selues with opere operato the deed done which is the rotten pillar of popish superstition For it is not sufficient to doe that which is right vnlesse we do it with an vpright heart If with Amaziah wee doe that which is right but not with an vpright heart we may fall away as he did Wherefore that exhortation which the Apostle maketh to mens seruants much more belongeth to vs who are the seruants of God namely That we shold performe our duties towards him from our heart not in eye-seruices as men-pleasers but with simplicitie of heart fearing God and from our hearts obeying the holy will and commaundements of God Out of all which it appeareth euidently that without vprightnesse of heart neither the graces of the spirit which wee may seeme to haue are of any worth or our worship of any account with God But howsoeuer the most excellent graces without it be glorious sinnes and the most glorious worship counterfeit yet on the other side where vprightnesse is the graces which we haue though as small as a graine of mustard seed and our worship though performed in much weakenesse is acceptable vnto God The second argument is taken from the authoritie of God himselfe auowing the necessitie of vprightnesse And hereunto appertaineth first the testimonie both of the holy ghost in this place affirming That those who are to dwell in Gods holy mountaine are such as walke vprightly as also of our Sauiour Christ Matth. 5. denying that we shall euer enter into the kingdome of heauen vnlesse our righteousnesse exceed the righteousnesse of the Scribes and Pharisies The righteousnesse which the Pharisies obserued themselues and taught others to obserue was altogether outward whereby they abstained from outward and more grosse offences neglecting inward and sâ—cret corruptions Secondly the commaundement of God enjoyning vprightnesse For this is the especiall dutie which we are to performe towards God viz. that wee bumble our selues to walke with our God For when the Lord was to establish his couenant with Abraham and his seed this condition he requireth to be performed on their part to walke before him and to be vpright This is that which Dauid commendeth to Salomon as his last will and testament Know thou the God of thy father and serue him with an vpright heart and a willing mind which Iosua in his last speech commendeth to the people of Israel that they should worship the Lord in spirit and truth As Moses also before had charged them Deut. 18. Thou shalt be vpright therefore before the Lord thy God For seeing the Lord is a spirit he will therefore be worshipped in spirit and in truth And as himselfe is a spirit so is his law spirituall restraining not onely the hand and tongue but also the heart Now the commaundement of God imposeth a necessitie not absolute indeed but with this condition If we will auoid his curse Thirdly the same is prooued by the oath of God which he sware vnto our father Abraham that he would giue vs who are the sonnes of Abraham and heires of promise that being deliuered out of the hands of our enemies we should worship him without feare in holinesse and righteousnesse before him For as the commaundement of God imposeth the necessitie of dutie so the oath of the Lord imposeth a necessitie of certainetie or as the schoolemen speake of infallibilitie And therefore if we doe not walke vprightly worshipping the Lord as before him it is as certaine as the oath of the Lord is true that we can haue no assurance that wee are redeemed by Christ out of the world to raigne with him in his holy mountaine The third and last argument enforcing the necessitie of vprightnesse may be this For either wee must be vpright or hypocrits There is no third for not to bee vpright is to be an hypocrite and not to be an hypocrite is to be vpright But we may in no case be hypocrites For hypocrisie is a sinne most odious vnto God most foolish in it selfe most pernicious to them that are infected therewith It is most odious vnto God for as the vpright are the Lords delight so the hypocrit is an abhomination vnto him For that which is highly esteemed among men is abhomination in the sight of God And not without cause For all hypocrisie and doubling is a double if not a triple sinne for counterfeit pietie is double impietie both because it is impietie and because it is counterfeit And as hypocrisie is a counterfeiting it containeth also two sinnes opposed to simplicitie and truth both which are comprised in integritie viz. falshood opposed vnto truth as it is mendacium facti and deceit or guile opposed vnto simplicitie as duplicitie or doubling The hypocrite in respect of his falsehood and disguising in the Greeke tongue is called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is a stage-player who although perhaps he be little better than a rogue representeth sometimes the person of a prince or monarch Those therefore are hypocrits who lead their life as it were vpon a stage cloaking sinne vnder the shew of vertue hauing some â—orme or vizard of pietie but denying the power of it Qui in superficie boni sunt sed in alto mali as Augustine speaketh who seeme to honour God with their lips but remooue their heart farre from him who desiring to seeme good but not to be so and not to seeme euill but to be so make cleane the outside of the cup and of the platter but within they are full of briberie and excesse and are therefore compared by our Sauiour Christ to painted sepulchres which appeare beautifull outward but are within full of dead mens bones and all filthinesse And as the fruit which groweth neere to Mare mortuum when it is ripe maketh a faire shew but within is full of cinders or ashes as some write so these men outwardly appeare righteous vnto men but within they are full of hypocrisie and iniquitie But as in the disguising of hypocrits there is falshood so in their doubling there is guile wherby they indeuouring to deceiue
hath turned it into an act of inhumanitie and crueltie For as Basil well sayth In very deed it is an excesse of inhumanitie when the borrower wanting necessaries and seeking to borrow for the comfort of his life the lender should not content himselfe with the principall but should out of the want and necessitie of his needie brother seeke gaine and aduantage vnto himselfe And therefore as it is said of the good man that he is mercifull and lendeth so may it be said of the vsurer that he is cruell and lendeth For that which is said of wicked men in generall may principally be applied to the vsurer That his very mercies are cruell For when he would seeme to support a man he doth supplant him when he seemeth to cure he inflicteth a deeper wound and when he seemeth to haue relieued a man he casteth him into greater want And therefore Luther doubted not to call the vsurer a blood sucker of the people And in the judgement of the wise Cato it is no more lawfull to be an vsurer than to be a murtherer Thus you see how vsury hath peruerted lending conuerting it from a work of charitie liberalitie and mercie into an act of selfeloue couetousnesse and crueltie And for this cause the vsurer is not vnfitly compared by some to the Magicians of Egypt for whereas the Lord hath ordained the contract of lending to be as a staffe which the wealthier man is to put into the hands of his neighbour to stay and support him when his hands doe shake and himselfe doth shrinke vnder the burthen of his want the vsurer hath turned this staffe into a serpent But vsurie doth not only corrupt and depraue the dutie of lending but also extinguish all free loane where it taketh place drying vp the fountaine of loue whose streames were wont to run foorth to the refreshing of others And it doth not onely harden the heart and shut vp the hands and close the bowels of compassion in the vsurers themselues as wofull experience sheweth but in others also it hath made the dutie of free lending to seeme so great a benefit and of so high a price that as Bucer truly sayth A man may seeme now adayes to be very impudent that shall desire to borrow freely For he that lendeth freely doth for the most part make this estimation of his benefit that besides the forbearance of his money wherewith he doth pleasure the borrower he doth as much for him besides as if he gaue him the tenth part of the principall out of his purse And thus by meanes of vsurie charitie is frozen among men and the bowels of compassion shut vp needie men are driuen vnto extremities and the wealthier sort depriued of that great reward which is promised to those that lend freely But I will shew more particularly how vsurie offendeth both against priuat and publicke charitie as being euer hurtfull and pernicious either to the particular men that doe borrow or else to the body of the common-wealth whose common profit is in all contracts especially to be regarded The partie that taketh vp mony vpon vsurie doth either borrow for the supply of his necessitie and want or else to raise a gaine by the employment of the money to his best aduantage Hee that imposeth vsurie vpon him that borroweth for meere necessitie in stead of helping him increaseth his need vnder a shew of relieuing him he seeketh his vndoing for such a one commonly the more and the longer he borroweth the more vnable he is to pay and so at length is brought vnto extreame penurie vsurie hauing turned all his substance into debt and eaten him out of house and home And therefore though the vsurers sometimes doe vaunt how kindly they deale with their debtours in forbearing them from yeare to yeare yet the truth is the longer they forbeare the greater is their gaine and though they deferre the borrowers misery yet in deferring it they do increase it and therefore by some are not vnfitly compared to the greedy cat which though for a while she plaieth with the silly mouse yet in the end she will be sure to deuour it And here I cannot omit that notable speech of the authour of the worke vnfinished vpon Matthew though it be commonly cited by those which write of this argument Christ therefore sayth he commaundeth vs to lend but not vpon vsurie For he that lendeth vpon vsurie at the first sight seemeth to giue his owne but indeed he is so farre from giuing his owne that he taketh that which is another mans for he seemeth to relieue a mans necessitie but indeed casteth him into a greater necessitie He looseth him of one bond and binds him with more neither doth he lend for the righteousnesse of God but for his owne gaine For the vsurers money is like the biting of the Aspe for euen as he which is bitten of the Aspe goeth to sleepe as if he were delighted and through the pleasantnesse of his sleepe dieth so he which borroweth vpon vsurie is delighted for a time as one that had receiued a good turne and so through the pleasure of the imagined benefit be doth not perceiue how he is taken captiue For euen as the poyson of the Aspe secretly conveying it selfe into all the members corrupteth the whole bodie so vsurie dispersing it selfe through all the borrowers goods conuerteth them into debt And euen as leauen which is put into meale infecteth the whole lumpe drawing it to it selfe turneth it into the nature of leauen so when vsurie entreth into any mans house it draweth all his substance vnto it and turneth it into debt But the patrones of vsurie themselues confesse that vsurie imposed vpon a man that borroweth for need is euer a biting and damnifying of him and that men ought by the commaundement of God to lend to such freely and therefore I shall not need to prooue such vsurie to be vncharitable If therefore the borrower taketh vp mony to imploy it to his gaine it may be that hauing vsed all his skill and employed all his industrie in the occupying of it he shall not be able to gaine so much clearely as will pay the vsurer but allowing more than all his gaine to the vsurer and getting nothing but his labour for his pains and gaining nothing towards his liuing but losse at length becommeth a bankrupt And that this also is vncharitable I shall not need to prooue seeing the patrones of vsurie themselues allow no vsurie but that which is part of the borrowers gaine But suppose the borrower doe gaine yet notwithstanding the contract of vsurie is neuerthelesse vnequall and vncharitable because the vsurer couenanteth for certaine gaine out of the borrowers vncertaine traffique and whether he gaine or loose whether he sinke or swim or whatsoeuer become of the principall whether it be lost by fire or be taken away by theeues or miscarrie by any other
occasion of contention which he prooueth by these two particulars of lending and borrowing whether freely or vpon vsurie which are the most vsuall occasions of suits and contentions among men therefore the Prophets meaning was not to professe that he had done no vnlawfull thing but that he had giuen the contentious people no occasion of contention But what if the Prophet speake not of vsurie at all in this place as indeed he doth not but onely of ciuile lending vpon securitie that is when a man lendeth with purpose to exact againe that which he lendeth The verbe Nashah which here is vsed as heretofore I haue shewed signifieth in this argument exacting that which a man hath lent or lending with purpose to exact that which is lent Neither is there any necessitie that we should vnderstand the word in any place where it is vsed in the Scripture of lending vpon vsurie Howbeit the word Nosheh which signifieth an exactour sometimes is vnderstood of the vsurer because he of all creditours is the greatest exactour And because the vsurers aboue all others will be sure to lend vpon securitie purposing to exact not only their owne but also an ouerplus therefore some translatours vnderstand the word which signifieth no more but to exact or to lend with purpose to exact of vsurious lending Thus R. Dauid Kimhi vnderstandeth this place of lending in generall Thus Tremellius and Iunius translate Non dedi mutuum neque mutuo dederunt mihi or as some vnderstand the place I am not in debt to them nor they to me Neither ought that to trouble any that the Latine translation hath the word foenerare or other Latin authours that follow it for both in it and them the word foenerare is often vsed in the sence of free lending as appeareth by these places Deut. 15. 6. 28. 12. 44. Prou. 19. 17. 22. 7. where the Hebrew text and other translations haue those words which signifie free lending as also Luke 6. 34 likewise Ecclesiast 29. 1. 2. Out of which places it is euident that as the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in Greeke authours so foenerare and foenerari in Latine translations which also may be said of diuines who haue written in Latine are more often vsed in the signification of free lending than of lending vpon vsurie And euen in this place where the Prophet sayth Non foeneraui according to the Latine Lyâ—anus expoundeth it thus i. Non commodaui I haue not lent But you will say Where Nashah is construed with the preposition 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as in this place it signifieth lending vpon vsurie No such matter Indeed some Hebrew writers haue imagined that Nashah simply signifieth to borrow but with the preposition to lend and so expound and read this place I haue not borrowed neither haue they lent to me that is I neither sought to borrow of them neither did they lend to me of their owne accord But the truth is that Nashah signifieth to lend and where 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is added it is a note as the English to of the Datiue case hauing reference to the partie which borroweth as Nehem. 5. 10. I and my brethren sayth Nehemiah lend to them mony and corne vnlesse we will with my aforesaid English author absurdly affirme that Nehemiah and his followers did lend to their needie brethren vpon vsurie Or if I would in like sort vrge the signification of the word Noshâ—h which is more often vsed to signifie an vsurer than the verbe Nashah to lend vpon vsurie I might bring a manifest example out of the Scriptures of a man which feared God to prooue the lawfulnesse of borrowing vpon vsurie which the Prophet Elisha was so farre from condemning that he helped the widdow of that partie by miracle to pay her debt and as the Greeke translation hath 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the vsurie 2. King 4. 1. 7. The place therefore in Ieremie is thus to be read I haâ—e not lent meaning the ciuile kind of lending vpon securitie for so much the word signifieth neither haue they lent to me And therefore as I haue no cause to contend with them besides the duty of my calling in striuing against their sinnes so neither haue I giuen them any occasion to contend with me and yet I am a man of contention and strife to the whole land which may be vnderstood both actiuely in respect of their opinion of him and passiuely in respect of their behauiour towards him and euerie one doth curse me And as this translation doth best expresse the force of the Hebrew text so doth it best fit the scope and purpose of the Prophet which is to shew the vntoward disposition and contentious behauiour of the people towards him who when as he neither coÌ„tended with them about any worldly affaires nor yet gaue them any occasion to contend with him he had neither lent nor borrowed he did neither meddle nor make in any worldly dealing or traffique with them from which contentions vsually arise among men yet they contended with him and judged him a contentious man and for that cause cursed him But the signification of vsurie is not so fit for the Prophet meaning as I sayd to set forth their vntoward and contentious behauiour towards him would signifie that he had giuen them not onely no cause but not so much as any occasion of contention and hatred for although he had not dealt by vsurie with them nor any way wronged them but yet had otherwise intermedled with them by ciuile lending and borrowing or other worldly affaires they might haue had though no just cause yet diuerse occasions of contending with him neither was vsurie so vsuall among the Iewes as that he should mention it as the vsuall and ordinarie cause of contention among them And thus much I hope may suffice for answer to that allegation out of Ier. 15. 10. The other testimonie is out of Esay 24. 2 where the Prophet hath these words as some translations read Like lender like borrower like giuer like taker to vsurie But this allegation though it did speake of lending and borrowing vpon vsurie as I haue shewed there is no necessitie to graunt so much seeing the words may thus be read the exactour as he of whom he doth exact yet it would prooue nothing concerning this controuersie for there the Lord threatneth such a confusion of all estates and ouerturning of the commonweale that all men of dignitie and abilitie being bereaued of that which they had and so made equall with them of low degree and poore estate the people should be as the priest the seruant as the master the handmaid as the mistresse the buyer as the seller the lender as the borrower the exactour or vsurer as he of whom he exacteth And thus much concerning the testimonies of Scripture Now let vs consider what other reasons may be alledged against borrowing vpon vsurie 1. As first that lending and
borrowing vpon vsurie are relatiues and therefore if to lend vpon vsurie be vnlawfull it cannot be lawfull to borrow vpon vsurie I answere as before that relatiues are not alwayes of the like nature and qualitie for to offer wrong and to suffer wrong to oppresse and to be oppressed are relatiues and such relatiues are to lend vpon vsurie and to borrow vpon vsurie through necessitie for to lend vpon vsurie to him that borroweth for vrgent necessitie it is to offer wrong and to oppresse therefore he which vpon necessitie yeeldeth to pay vsurie doth suffer wrong and is oppressed Thus therefore I may reason from the light of nature as before I did from the Scripture To suffer wrong is not sinne The borrower which vpon necessitie yeeldeth to pay vsurie doth suffer wrong Therefore he doth not sinne therein The proposition is an axiome of Aristotles in his Ethicks where proouing that it is a lesse euill to suffer injurie than to offer injurie he setteth downe this principle 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 To be wronged or to suffer injurie is without sinne and vnjustice And in another place he sayth That just dealing is a meane betwixt offering injurie and suffering wrong the one is to haue too much the other too little But yet sayth he justice is a mean not as each other morall vertue is a meane betwixt two contrarie vices but as a meane betwixt too much and two little that is to say as an equalitie from which whosoeuer swarueth runneth into both the extreames for where too much is giuen to the one too little is giuen to the other As for example the vsurer in taking from the borrower more than his own leaueth to the borrower lesse than his owne 2. You will say to be meerely oppressed or onely to suffer wrong we graunt to be no sinne but the borrower vpon vsurie willingly consenteth to that vsurie which is imposed vpon him yea he intreateth the vsurer that hee will so lend vnto him and therefore he is guiltie of his owne harme accessarie to the oppression of the vsurer I answer he that borroweth vpon necessitie with such cautions as before I mentioned is guiltie neither of the one nor the other For first in respect of himselfe wheras there are two euils propounded vnto him the one the inconuenience or mischiefe for auoiding whereof he desireth to borrow as perhaps the forfeiture of an hundred pounds the other the losse which he shall sustaine by vsurie which perhaps is fiue in fiftie the one whereof he must needs incurre therefore this latter being the lesser euill and hauing the respect of a good or eligible thing in comparison of the greater euill he maketh choise therof not minding or desiring his owne losse but hoping to redeeme a greater losse with a lesse And yet he doth not willingly consent to the payment of vsurie but his necessitie for auoiding a greater euill maketh him seeme willing to that wherunto he is simply vnwilling as I haue said before And as touching the vsurer whereas the borrower perceiueth him resolute to run into one of these two sinnes either not to lend at all or else vpon vsurie from both which it is not in his power to keepe him therefore the former which is not to lend at all to him that vpon vrgent necessitie is desirous to borrow being the greater sinne than the latter which is to lend vpon vsurie his desire is to keep both the lender from the greater sinne and himselfe from the greater euill Why but you will say if the borrower would not entreat the other to lend he should not need to fall into eito either of both those sinnes I answere when a man is in a case of vrgent necessity it is not onely lawfull for him but also he is bound in conscience to vse lawfull meanes to come out of the same When as therefore he wanteth presentmeans of his own it is lawfull for him to borrow hauing an honest purpose to repay yea and to desire those whom God hath enabled to lend vnto him In desiring the able man to lend thou onely moouest him to a worke of charitie and liberalitie but if vpon this motion of thine his couetousnesse cause him to sinne either by refusing to lend at all or by requiring vsurie well may that motion as many other good and lawfull things are be an occasion of his sinne but there is no cause thereof but his owne couetousnesse and the hardnesse of his heart and thou art not accessarie to his sinne But if at the first motion thou intreatest him to lend with promise of vsurie then thou inducest him to sinne and art accessarie to his offence as I haue shewed before either by making him an vsurer who was none before and so art deeper in the sinne than hee or at least by inducing him to the actuall committing of vsurie Which being the vsuall custome of borrowers vpon vsurie whose manner is to goe to the vsurer or to his broker to take vp on interest as they call it so much money as they desire perhaps an hundred pounds where no mention being made but of the principall for the other is presupposed bonds are drawn of two hundred pounds for the payment of a hundred and ten pounds it cannot be denied but that in this respect alone not to mention the rest the most borrowers vpon vsurie are accessarie to the sinne of vsurie At the first motion therefore thou mayest not offer vsurie but only desire to borrow which if thy need require thou mayest lawfully doe But what if the couetousnesse of the partie who is able and therefore ought to lend and the hardnesse of his heart be such that vpon thy motion of borrowing he wil either require vsurie or refuse to lend altogether in the former case if thy necessitie be such that thou must needs borrow and knowest not where to borrow freely elsewhere thou mayest lawfully yeeld to the vsurie imposed for in yeelding thou keepest both him from the greater sinne which is not to lend at all and thy selfe from a greater mischiefe Why but you will say ought I not to admonish him at the least and to dissuade him from the practise of vsurie seeing my yeelding to pay and my silence in not reproouing vsurie may argue that I approoue it and therefore am guiltie thereof as accessarie thereto I answere that difference is to be made of the partie with whom you deale for if the partie be tractable and of any hope that Christian course of charitable admonition and brotherly reproofe is to be taken with him but if he be a desperat sinner such as common vsurers commonly are whom if you admonish or reprooue you shall not profit him but hurt your selfe before such an hog the precious pearle of Christian admonition and brotherly reproofe is not to be cast But me thinkes a man of a tender conscience you will say should hardly seeke to such a man So I say also for
the Lord hath ordained the judgement seat to be a rocke of defence and refuge for the innocent and guiltlesse they haue made it an hill of robbers Thirdly because they haue not onely set judgement and justice to sale which is an abhominable practise but also as the Prophet Amos speaketh They sell the righteous for siluer and the poore for a paire of shoes Such judges Demosthenes compared to a paire of scoles which alwaies incline on that side whence they haue receiued any thing And surely a small weight many times will make them to incline to the wicked who seeketh to corrupt them and to decline from right Prou. 28. 21 To haue respect of persons it is not good for that man will transgresse for a piece of bread It were therefore to be wished that justice and judges now adaies were such as they were wont to be painted for justice was blindfolded and judges were pictured without hands whereby was signified that judges should not receiue rewards nor respect persons which is commonly a consequent of rewards Vpon the greatnesse of this offence followeth the third thing namely that is is pernicious to them that vse it for therefore doth the holy ghost denounce a feareful woe against such persons Esay 5. 23. Woe be to them which iustiâ—ie the wicked for a reward and take away the righteousnesse of the righteous from him therefore as the flame of fire deuoureth the stubble and as the chaffe is consumed of the flame so their root shall be as rottenness c. But it is onely pernicious to themselues but also to the countrey wherein they liue as I haue in generall shewed Ezek. 22. 12. and thereunto wee may adde the testimonie of the Prophet Micah chap. 3. 11 12. for when as hee had said that the heads or princes of Ierusalem did judge for rewards and the priests did teach for hire he inferreth Therefore shall Sion for your sake be ploughed as a field and Ierusalem shall be an â—eape and the mountaine of the house as the high places of the forrest I come to corrupt lawyers and aduocats who so often take reward against the innocent as they doe take vpon them the defence of such causes as they in their owne conscience are persuaded to be euill and vnjust Which being so common a fault among lawyers as that very few which plead causes either in ciuile or ecclesiasticall courts doe seeme to make any conscience thereof to whom all is fish that commeth to their nets therefore all lawyers are to be exhorted to apply this note vnto themselues For if those which shall be saued are such as doe not take a reward against the innocent as the holy ghost here witnesseth how then can they be saued whose vsuall practise is to take rewards against the innocent And that they may the more effectually be dissuaded from this sinne let them a little consider with me how fearefully they sinne against God their neighbour and themselues Against God whiles they seeke to ouerthrow the truth and to peruert the Judgement which is the Lords Secondly against their neighbour And in this regard euery corrupt lawyer is as Salomon sayth of euery false witnesse an hammer a sword and a sharpe â—rrow an hammer or mallet to the judge a sword to his client and an arrow to his adursarie For whiles our lawyers doe their indeuours as the Greeke sophisters were wont 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is to make the worse cause the better they doe as it were knocke the judge on the head amasing him so and dazeling his eyes that he may not see and pronounce the truth To their client they are as two edged swords wounding him two wayes to wit in body and soule As touching his bodie and outward estate they notably impouerish him to enrich themselues and plucke off his feathers to feather their owne nest for as the fowlers â—age is full of birds so the houses of these faulconers are full of riches gotten by deceit as Ieremie speaketh The soule also of their client they wouâ—d when they animate him to goe on in offering wrong to his neighbour and cause him to sinne against his owne soule To the aduersarie being indeed the innocent partie euery Tertullus is a sharpe arrow wounding him either in bodie goods or good name against all or any whereof they care not what vntruths and slaunderous calumniations they vtter so their cause may therby be aduantaged Lastly they sinne against themselues and their owne soules first because they aid the wicked vnto euill which is forbidden Exod. 23. 1. and is reprooued 2. Chron. 19. 2 as also Psal. 50. 18. When thou sawest a theefe thou consentedst vnto him and is condemned Rom. 1. 31. Secondly because they haue sold their tongues to speake likes for an euill cause cannot be maintained but by manifold vntruths Now riches or treasures gotten by a deceitfull or lying tongue is vanitie tossed too and fro of them that seeke death Prou. 21. 6. And therefore it is greatly to be feared least these men as they haue set their tongues so also their â—oules to sale for that is truly affirmed of all couetous persons Eccles. 10. 9. The like is to be said of euery false witnesse who for reward is suborned to testifie vntruths That hee sinneth against God whose judgement he seeketh to peruert against the judge whom he endeuoureth to auert from justice and truth against the parties who suborneth him to whom he consenteth vnto euill against the innocent partie whom by his false testimonie he hurteth and sometimes killeth him with a word against his owne soule for seeing a false witnesse is an abbomination vnto the Lord Prou. 6. 18 therefore he shall not escape but surely perish Prou. 19. 5. 9. And yet this is not all that may be said in detestation of false witnesse bearing For seeing witnesses in places of judgement doe not deliuer their testimonies but vpon an oath therefore euery false witnesse is guiltie not onely of false witnesse bearing but also of perjurie whereby he polluteth the holy name of God wrongeth the innocent abuseth the judge and all that are present and that vnder the religion of an oath hee citeth the Lord himselfe and that in the place of judgement to testifie an vntruth and which is most fearfull he tempteth the Lord and as it were dareth him in the audience of allthat are present to execute his fierce wrath and indignation vpon him For in othes wee call vpon God not onely to be our witnesse that we sweare truly but also to be a reuenger of vs if we sweare falsely therefore he which sweareth that which he knoweth to be vntrue he prouoketh the Lord and as it were dareth him to take vengeance vpon him Thus then we see by these two last notes what the sound Christian and citizen of heauen doth not to wit that neither priuatly in contracts nor publickely in place of