Conscientia Bona vis habere bonus non vis esse tum quid est quod vis habere malū Nihil omnino non uxorem nō filium non ancillā villam tunicā postremo nō caligam tamē vis habere malam vitam Rogo te praepone vitam tuam calige tuae sic Conscientiam Aug. Ibid. good Conscience What is that men would have but they desire to have it Good And yet amongst all other things they desire to have Good what little care to have the Conscience such Wife children servants houses lands ayre food raiment who would not have these good And yet that without which none of all these are good nor will yield us any true good that alone is neglected and whilst men would have all other things good yet their cōsciences themselves are naught Now alas what good wil all other goods do us whilst this one and this maine Good thing is wanting How excellent is this Good above all other good things A good wife good children good land c. these Vbi supra Ipsae ergo divitiae bonae sunt sed ista omnia bona a bonis malis haberi possunt Et cum bona sint bonos tamen facere non possuut Aug. de verb. Do. Serm. 5. may a man have and yet he himselfe not Good these find men sometimes Good but make none so these goods may a man have and yet himselfe be naught Not so with good Conscience which no evill man can have which whosoever hath it makes him and all he hath Good So great and so good a Good why is it so much neglected Try we therefore and let us assay if by any meanes Gods good blessing giving assistance we may be able to stir up men and to worke them to regard so great and excellent a good It may be at least some few may be perswaded and may set upon this work of getting a good Conscience If but some few if but one be wrought upon the labour is not in vaine If none yet our worke is with our God to whom we are a sweet sauor in Christ in them that are saved in them that perish 2 Cor. 2. 15 This portion of Scripture then which I have chosen for the ground of the following Discourse consists of three parts 1. Pauls sober and ingenious Profession and Protestation ver 1. 2. Ananias his insolent and impetuous Injunction ver 2. 3. Pauls zealous Answer and Contestation ver 3. 1. The first is Pauls Protestation in these words Men and brethren I have lived in all good Conscience untill this day With this Protestation of a good Conscience Paul begins his Plea And however to distinguish our selves frō Papists we beare the name of Protestants yet we shal never be sound and good Protestants indeed till we can take up Pauls Protestation that our care indeavor and course is to live in All good Conscience A Protestant with a loose and a naughty Conscience hath no great cause to glory in his desertion of the Romish Religion As good a blind Papist as a halting Protestant The blind and the halt were equally abominable unto the Lord. Paul was here brought forth to answer for himselfe before the chiefe Priests and the Councell And his Preface as I said to his intended Apology if hee had not been injuriously interrupted is a Protestation of the goodnes of his conscience and this his good Conscience or the goodnes of his Conscience he sets forth 1. From his Conversation 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I have lived or conversed A good conversation is a good evidence of a good Conscience indeed there can be no good conscience where there is not a Conversing in good It is not some moods and fits in some good actions duties from whence conscience gaines the reputation of goodnesse but a good conversation godly and religious in the generall tenour thereof proves the cōscience worthy such an honor as to be holden good He may be said to have a good cōscience that can be said to live in a good conscience Many a man is frequent in the City yet cānot be said to live there There a man lives where he hath his Converse Residence A mans life is not to be measured by some few actions in which at sometime he may be found but by his general course and conversation God will judge every man not according to his steps but according to his wayes It were over-rigid censoriousnesse to condemn a righteous man and to question whether his Conscience were good because some steps of his have bin beside the way We know for the generall his way is good wherein he walkes and therefore according to his good way we judge his Conscience good Contrarily when we see a mans way for the generall to be evill though sometime hee may tread a right step or two and chance to chop into the faire road for a rod or two for this to judge a mans Conscience good were a bottomlesse and a boundlesse Charitie Every mans Conscience is as his life is 2. From the Generalitie of his care and obedience In all good Conscience It must be All good or it is no good Conscience at all There be that live in some good Conscience yea Herod seemes to have much good Conscience hee did many things gladly but yet Paul goes further and lives not in some not in much but in All good Conscience 3. From the Sincerity and Integrity of it before God Before men how many have their consciences exceeding good yet their consciences are farre short of goodnes because they are not good before God the judge of Conscience Whilst Conscience is made onely of the Capitals of the second Table or of the externals and ceremonials of the first which duty is not done out of obedience to God and his Commandements but a mans self either in his gaine or in his praise is sought and base ends are the first movers to good duties here the Conscience what ever applause it hath from or before men for it goodnesse yet of God shall not be so esteemed For that is not a good cōscience which is one outwardly but which is one inwardly whose praise is not of men but of God And that hath its praise of God which is before God 4. From his continuance and constancie untill this day To begin a good life and course and to live in all good conscience that before God are excellent things but yet one thing is wanting to make up this goodnesse compleat To be so for a day or some dayes will not serve but when a man can say at his last day I have lived in all good Conscience untill this day that man may be safely judged to have a good Conscience indeed Thus in these foure particulars doth the goodnes of Pauls Conscience appeare It is not my purpose to confine my selfe and to keep mee within those bounds alone but to take a larger
are not so troublesome to the sea as guilt is to the Conscience Therefore as the way to calme the Sea is to calme the winds so the way to quiet and calme the Conscience is to purge and take away the guilt Guilt is in the Conscience as Ionas in the Ship out with him and Sea and Ship are both quiet But how then shall the guilt be purged out of the Conscience That we find Heb. 9. 14. How much more shall the bloud of Christ purge our Consciences from dead works We cannot have a good conscience till we be freed from an evill one The way to be freed from an evill Conscience is to have our hearts sprinkled from an evill Conscience Heb. 10. 22. But what is that wherewith the conscience must be sprinkled to be made good with peace and quietnes the same which we find 1 Pet. 1. 2. The sprinkling of the blood of Iesus Christ Heb. 12. 24. The blood of sprinkling which speaks better things than that of Abel So then the Conscience sprinkled with Christs bloud ceases to be evill becomes good and peaceable The same Christ that calmed the rage of the Sea by stilling the winds Mar. 4. 39. He arose and rebuked the wind and said unto the Sea peace and be still and the wind ceased and there was a great calm the same Christ it is that stils the rage of the conscience by taking and purging away the guilt thereof with the sprinkling on of his bloud His bloud speakes Heb. 12. 24. And speakes not only to God but speakes to the conscience The voyce which it speakes is Peace and be still the same voyce which to his Disciples after his resurrection Peace be with you and then followes a great calme and peace makes the Conscience good But heare the Conscience will inquire how it may come to get this bloud sprinkled upon it to make it thus peaceably good and what is it that applies this calming bloud of Christ I answer therfore That it is the grace of faith therfore it was said before that faith in Christs blood makes peace in the Conscience Faith is the hand of the soule and as the hyssope sprinkle by which Christs bloud is sprinkled upon our Consciences Heb. 10. 22. Let us draw neere with a true heart in full assurance of faith having our hearts sprinkled from an evill Conscience And being justified by faith we have peace towards God Rom. 5. 1. Hence that conjunction of faith and a good Conscience 1 Tim. 1. 5. of a good Conscience and of faith unfayned and ver 19. Holding faith and a good Conscience For faith it is that makes a good conscience by making a quiet consciēce Faith is not only a purifying grace Act. 15. 9. but it is also a pacifying grace Rom. 5. 1. It not onely purges our corruption by applying the efficacie of Christs bloud but specially purges our guilt by applying the merit of his bloud So that no faith no peace and no peace no good Conscience A defiled Conscience can be no good Conscience and what defiles the Conscience See Tit. 1. 15. Vnto them that are defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure but even their mind and Conscience is defiled They that be defiled have their consciences defiled but how come they and their Consciences so To them that are defiled and unbelieving Therefore an unbelieving Conscience is a defiled conscience and a defiled conscience is no good conscience because it can have no peace so long as it is clogged with defiling guilt But contrarily faith purifying not onely from corruption but from guilt by the application of Christs bloud makes the conscience pure and peaceable both There can be no peace of conscience but where there is the righteousnesse of the person There is no peace to the wicked Isa 57. 21. as if he should say an evill unrighteous person cannot have a good conscience where the person is evill there the conscience cannot be good Now faith in Christs bloud makes a mans person good so the conscience becomes good It makes the person righteous and the person being righteous the conscience is at peace for the worke of righteousnesse is peace and the effect of righteousnesse quietnesse and assurance for ever Isa 32. 17. with which that of the Apostle sweetly sutes Revel 7. 2. First King of righteousnesse and after that King of peace Our persons must first find Christ a King of righteousnesse by justifying them from their guilt before our consciences can find him King of Salem pacifying them from their unquietnesse Our persons once justified by Christs blood from their guilt and unrighteousnesse our consciences are pacified and freed from their unquietnesse Wouldst thou then have a good conscience Get the peace of conscience Wouldst thou have Peace in thy conscience Get faith in thy soule Believe in the Lord Iesus and get thy soule sprinkled with his bloud and then Heb. 10. 2. Thou shalt have no more conscience of Sin thy Conscience shall be at quiet no more accusing thee nor threatning thee condemnation for thy Sin 2. Repentance from dead workes Though Christs bloud be that which purges the conscience from dead works and so workes peace yet that peace is not wrought in our apprehension neither do we get the feeling of this faith without some further thing Therefore to our faith must be joyned our repentance though not in the making of our peace yet for the feeling of it Many are ready to catch at Christs bloud and if that will make a good conscience they are then safe enough But as thou must have Christs bloud so Christ will have thine heart also bleed by repentance ere he wil vouchsafe the sense of peace A cōscience therefore that would be a conscience having peace must not onely be a believing but a repenting conscience Mat. 3. 2. Repent ye for the Kingdome of heaven is at hand the Kingdome of heaven shall be yours if you will repent ye shall have it immediately upon your repentance But wherein stands this kingdome offered to repentant consciences The Kingdome of God stands in peace and joy in the holy Ghost Rom. 14. 17. Repent and ye shall receive the gift of the holy Gbost Act. 3. 38. And what may that gift be The fruits of the Spirit are love joy peace Gal. 5. 22. Which though it be to be understood of peace betweene man and man yet also that peace which is betweene God and man is the fruit of the spirit and the love of God shed abroad into our hearts by the holy Ghost Rom. 5. 5. is the gift of the holy Ghost which he gives to all that by repentance seeke to get a good conscience Blessed are they that mourne that is which repent for they shal be comforted Mat. 5. 4. they shall have the peace of a good conscience which is the greatest and sweetest comfort in the world Many doe trust all to their supposed faith as a short cut and compendious
naked and miserable and the sight of this would have made her to have sought after that counsell which Christ there gives her Revel 3. Men would have far better consciences if they knew in what ill case their Consciences stand and examination would help them to the knowledge of this If men would but over-looke the booke of their Conscience and see how many omissions of good how many sinfull cōmissions stand registred there it would both make them marvellous sollicitous how to get them wiped out and wondrous wary how any more such Items came there Often reckonings Omni die cum vadis cubitū examina diligenter quid cogitasti quid dixisti indie quomodo utile tempus spatium quod datum est ad acquirendū vitam aeternam dispensasti Et si bene transavisti lauda Deum si malè vel negligēter lugeas sequenti die non differas confiteri Si aliquid cogitasti dixisti velfecisti quod tuam conscientiam multum remordeat non comedas antequam confitearis Bern. form vit honest Suavius dormiunt qui relinquunt curas in calceis would blot out and keep off the score Here is then wisedome for such as desire to keepe good consciences Doe with the workes of thy conversation as God did with the works of his Creation He not onely surveyed at the sixt dayes end the whole worke of the weeke but at each dayes end made a particular survey thereof Doe thou so not onely at the weekes end at thy lives end search thine heart and examine thy course but at every dayes end looke backe into the day past and examine what thy carriage and behaviour hath beene This being done a man shall find his workes either good or evill If good how shall his conscience cheere him with its peace If evil then if conscience have any life or breath in it it will make a man fall to humiliation and to a godly resolution of watching over his waies for the future so shall conscience bee much holpen for integrity Davids counsell is good Ps 4. 5. Examine your hearts upon your beds and his resolution is also good vers 8. of the same Psalm I wil lay me down and sleep in peace Who would not be glad so to sleepe and to take his rest so would we sleep upon Davids pillow sleep in peace then hearken we to Davids counsel to examine our selves upon our beds There is nothing makes a mans bed so soft nor his sleep so sweete as a good conscience It is with Sins as with Cares both trouble a mans sleep both are troublesome bed-fellows as they therefore sleep sweetly that leave their cares in their shooes so they sleepe with most peace that let not sin ly downe to sleepe with them who are so farre from lying downe in their sinnes that by their good will will not let the Sun go downe upon their sin but by examination ferret out the same This being done it may be said as Prov. 3. 24. Thou shalt ly downe and thy sleep shall be sweet Nay further examine thy conscience upon thy bed and thou shalt not onely sleepe in peace but thou shalt awake and arise the next morning with an upright frame of heart disposed to the more caution against Sinne the day following So much David seemes to intimate in that forenamed place Tremble and sinne not That is be afraid to sin take heed ye sin no more But what course may one take to come to that integrity of conscience as to feare to sinne Take this course Examine your hearts upon your beds But alas how rare a practice is this and therefore are good consciences so rare Many thinke this an heavy burden and a sore taske and count the remedy a great deale worse than the disease there is nothing they tremble at more than a domesticall Audit and this reckning with their consciences They say of conscience as Ahab of Micaiah and care as little to meddle with conscience as Ahab with Micaiah I hate him for he never speakes good to me 1 King 22. So they thinke the conscience will deale with them They know their conscience will speake as Iob sayes God wrote Thou writest bitter things against me Conscience hath such a stinging waspish tongue that by no meanes they dare indure a parly with it It is with many and their consciences as with men that have shrewish wives Many a man when hee is abroad hath no joy at all to come home nay he is very loath to come within his owne doores he feares he shall have such a peale rung him that hee had rather be on the house top as Solomon speakes or in some out house and lodge as our Savior at Bethlem in a cratch or a Manger than come within the noise of her clamorous and chattering tongue So many thinke conscience hath such a terrible shrewish tongue that if they shall but come within the sound thereof they shall be cast into such melancholly dumpes as they shall not be able in haste to claw off againe How much and how seriously are they to be pitied that to prevent a few houres or dayes supposed sorrow and sadnesse by which they might come to procure both peace and integrity of Conscience will adventure the rack and eternal torture of conscience in Hell Remember that there is no melancholly to the melancholly of Hell CHAP. VI. Two further meanes to procure integrity of Conscience IN the fourth place deale with thy conscience as God would have Abraham doe by Sarah Gen. 21. 12. In all that Sarah shall say unto thee hearken unto her voice So here if we would get and keep a good conscience in all that it shall say unto us being enlightned and directed by the word hearken unto it Conscience being enlightned hath a voyce and no man but sometime or other shall heare this voyce of conscience Conscience is Gods Monitor to speake to men when others cannot or dare not speak Sometimes men cannot speak as not being privie to other mens necessities and failings Sometimes they may not be suffered to speak as Ahab will not indure Micaiah to speake to him Sometime if a man speake hee may have rough and angry answers as the Prophet had from Amaziah 2. Chron. 26. 16. Art thou made of the Kings Counsell forbeare why shouldst thou be smitten God hath therefore provided every man even great men which may not be spoken to he hath provided them a bosome Chaplein that will round them in the eare and will talk roundly to them one that will be of their counsell in despight of them one that feares no fists dreads no smiting yea one that fears not to smite the greatest 2 Sam. 24. 10. And Davids heart smote him after that he had numbred the people It may be many there were about David that had not the hearts to smite Dauid with a grave reproofe though hee gives leave to the righteous to doe so Ps 141. Let the
will yet if they slight the word or swel at it or be disobedient to it when it is laid to their Conscience Paul makes it a manifest signe of a defiled conscience Tit. 1. 15 16. Their mind and their conscience is defiled How appeares that They professe they know God but they are disobedient When therfore the Ministry of the Word shall charge thee with dutie or reproove thee for sinne and then thou shalt charge the Minister with railing and girding and that this Sermon was made for the nonce for thee thou likest not that Ministers should be so particular c. In Gods feare bee advised to looke to thy Conscience and know it that thou hast a naughtie conscience when the Ministry of the Word smites thy conscience then for thee to smite the Minister with reproachfull and disgracefull tearmes to smite him with thy mouth How is thy conscience better then Ananias his that commands to smite Paul on the mouth he that cannot brooke that Gods Ministers should not discharge a good conscience in preaching to the conscience be bold to challenge that man for a man of an evill conscience 4. That is a fourth note of a good conscience 4 Note of a good conscience To doe duty for conscience sake Rom. 13. 5. ye must be subject for conscience sake To doe good or abstaine from evill meerly for conscience sake is a note of a right good conscience indeed Conscience as we saw before doth excite and stirre up and bind to the doing of good and bind from the doing of evill Now when the conscience upon just information from the Word shall presse and forbid and then a man shall because conscience forbids forbeare or because it presses performe obedience thus to doe good or not to doe evill for conscience sake is a note of a good conscience It evidences a good conscience when the maine weight that sets the wheeles on worke is conscience of Gods coÌ„mandement When it is that Ps 119. 4. that sets a man on work Thou hast coÌ„manded us to keep thy precepts diligently The end of the commandement is love 1 Tim. 1. 5. and love is the fulfilling of the commandement Rom. 12. But what love From a pure heart and a good conscience 1 Tim. 1. 5. When conscience of the commandement carries a man to the fulfilling of the end of it then doth such love come froÌ„ a good conscience Salomons description of a good man Eccl. 9. 2. is that he fears an oath He saies not that swears not but that feares an oath For a man not to sweare may be the fruit of good education and of the awe a man hath stood in of his Governours but to feare an oath argues that a man feares the commandement Prov. 13. 13. and to feare the commandement is the note of a good conscience Here let mens consciences be tried Thou prayest in thy family hearest the Word keepest the Sabbath c. Now search thine heart and make inquirie what it is that carrieth thee to these duties Doest thou do them for conscience sake Doest thou find conscience to urge and presse thee and to give satisfaction of the conscience and obedience to the injunctions thereof Are these things done If so it is a signe of a good conscience But this discovers the naughtinesse of mens consciences who though they be sound in some good duties or in the avoyding of some evils yet is it not conscience that workes them thereto Yee must be subject not onely for wrath that is for feare of the Magistrates wrath and revenge but for conscience sake Rom. 13. 5. It is no good conscience when a man will be subject for his skins sake and lest hee smart by the Magistrates sword but then a mans conscience is good when in obedience to Gods Word and in conscience of his commandement he subjects The like may be said of all by-by-ends Ye must doe good duties not for profit not for credit not for vaine-glory not for â—aw but for conscience sake or else evill consciences ye have in that ye doe The Shechemites receive circumcision Gen. â—4 And is not circumcision Gods Ordinance And is it not joy of them that they will joyne to the Church and professe the true Religion Yes surely if it were done for conscience I but it is not done for conscience sake Alas no such matter but for Hamors sake the Lord of the Towne and for Shechems sake their young Master and for the hope of gaines sake Shall not their cattell and their substance and every beasts of theirs be ours Gen. 34. 23. For the oxen sake and not for conscience sake are the Shechemites circumcised Shechem for Dinahs sake receives the Sacrament Oh the zeale and forwardnesse that some will professe on a sudden What frequenters of holy exercises But what is it for conscience sake No such matter but Shechem is in hope of a match with Dinah and all these showes of Religion are neither for Gods sake nor conscience sake but all for Dinahs sake all under hope of preferment by a rich marriage They were goodly shewes of zeale Ioh. 6. 22. 24. in seeking and following after Christ but it was neither for Christ nor conscience sake but ver 26. for the loaves and the bread and their bellies sake Many of the heathens Esth 8. 17. turned Iewes Was there not joy of such Proselytes not a whit for not the fear of God but the feare of the Iewes fell upon them as many frequent the publicke assemblies more for feare of the statute then for fear of the commandement The officers of the King helped the Iewes Esther 9. 3. Was it for conscience sake Nothing lesse but for wrath sake and for feare because the feare of Mordecai fell upon them If the Pharises had done all that Mat. 6. for conscience sake which they did for vaine-glory sake they had had the glory of good consciences Many preached the Gospel in Pauls daies Phil. 1. Does not so good a worke argue a good conscience Yes if it had beene done for conscience sake but that was done for contention sake not to adde soules to the Church but to adde sorrowes to Pauls afflictions It is a note of a good conscience when that which we doe is done with a respect unto the commandement of God Psal 119. 6. and not with a squint respect unto our owne private for praise or profit It Vtrine majores heretici illine qui pictas ligneas an qui aureas argenteas imagines è templis exigerent ad conflandam monetam igne adurerent Dubro hist Bohe. l. 24. was a good argument of those Bohemians good consciences in plucking downe Images that they beate downe onely painted and wooden Images whilst Sigismund the Emperour pulled downe silver and golden ones to melt into money for pay of his Souldiers as they plead for themselves when they were held Heretikes for their fact If they had pulled downe such Images as
yet all could not make them shake hands with a good coÌ„science The raine floods and winds could not bring downe the house founded upon the rocke Mat. 7. Notwithstanding all trials a good conscience stands to it and holds it owne and speakes as once Father Rawlins did the Bishop Rawlins you left mee Acts and Mon. Rawlins you find me and Rawlins by Gods grace I will continue Try yet a good conscience farther with the tentations on the right hand which commonly have as much more strength in them above the other as the right hand hath above the left and yet we shall find the right hand too weake to plucke a good conscience out of its station It was a sore tentation wherwith Moses was assaulted The treasures and pleasures the honors favors of the Aegyptian Court Princesse All these wooe him not to goe the people of God Had that people been setled and at rest in Canaan yet had it beene a great tentation to prefer Aegypt before Canaan But the people are in Aegypt in affliction in bondage therfore so much the more strength in the tentation What will you be so mad to leave all for nothing certaine honours for certaine afflictions who can tell but you may be raised to this greatnesse to be an instrument of good to your people You by your favour in the Court may bee meanes to ease them of their bondage and so you may doe the Church service with your greatnesse c. Here was a tentation on the right hand and with the right hands strength Well and how speeds it Is Moses able to withstand it See Heb. 11. 24 25 26. He refused to be called the Son of Pharaohs Daughter c. All would not doe nor stir him a whit Those faithfull Worthies before mentioned could not be stirred with all the cruelties their adversaries could invent I but it may be a tentation on the right hand might have made them draw away the right hand of fellowship from a good conscience Well their enemies therefore will try what good they can do that wayes Heb. 12. 37. They were tempted that is on the right hand they were sollicited and inticed and allured with faire promises of honours favours preferments as Bonner used to deale with the Martyrs hee had sometimes butter and oyle as well as fire and faggot in his mouth Thus were they tempted but yet what availed these tentations Iust as much as their stones sawes swords prisons all a like They for all these tentations keepe a good conscience to their dying day and hold fast the faith and truth unto the end A good conscience is of the mind of those trees in Iothams parable Iudg. 9. It will not with the Olive lose its fatnesse nor with the Fig-tree lose its sweetnesse nor with the vine its wine of cheerfulnes to have the fattest and sweetest preferments and pleasures of the world no though it were to raigne over the trees It was an excellent resolution of Benevolus Benevolo Iustina praecepit ut adversus fidem patrum imperialia decreta dictaret Illo vero se impia verba prolaturum abnuente celsiorem honoris gradum spopondit si maÌ„data perficeret cui Benevolus Quid mihi pro impietatis mercede altiorem promittis gradum hunc ipsum quem habeo auferte dunt inâ—gram fidei conscientiam tuear Ac protonus cingulum ante pedes ejus abjecit Sâ—gon de occid Imp. l. 1. pag. 200. in his answer to Iustina the Arrian Empresse profering preferments to him to have beene instrumentall in a service which could not be done with a good conscience What doe ye promising mee an higher degree of preferment for a reward of impiety yea even take this from me which already I have so that I may keepe a good conscience And so forthwith hee threw at his feet his girdle the ensigne of his honour Thus doth a good conscience throw and trample honour and preferment under foot to maintaine its owne integritie Thus can nothing corrupt a good conscience I have beene young and now am old and yet never saw I the righteous forsaken to wit of God Psalm 37. David out of his experience could have said as much in this point I have beene young and now am old yet never saw I God and godlinesse forsaken by the righteous by the man that had a good conscience But the man that had a good conscience when hee was young will hold out and have it when he is old It is the great honour and grace of a good Conscience which Walden thinks he spake to the disgrace of Wickliffe Ita ut cano placeret quod inveni complacebat He was young and old one and the same man Old age decayes the body the strength the senses but conscience it touches not that holds out sound to death As of Christ in another sense Heb. 13. So may it be said of a good conscience in this Yesterday and to day and the same for ever A good conscience is no changeling but let a mans estate change from rich to poore from poore to rich or let the times change from good to evill or from evill to worse or a mans dayes change from young to old let his haires and head change yet among all these changes a good coÌ„science wil not change but hold it owne untill its last day Now put mens consciences upon this triall their inconstancie either in good causes or courses will discover their naughtines In a good cause how many are like Darius his coÌ„scieÌ„ce struggles a great while for Daniel he knew he was innoceÌ„t he knows the action to be unjust and therfore labours all day till the setting of the Sun for his deliverance Dan. 6. 14. but yet overcome with the Presidents Princes urgencie ver 16. he coÌ„mands him to the Lions den Here was a natural conscience standing for equity and justice but yet no good conscience it holds but till Sun set and his conscience went downe with the Sun His coÌ„science yields is overcome though it know the act to be unjust Pilats conscience makes him plead for Christ In his conscience he acquits him and thrice solemnly professes that hee finds no fault in him and therefore cannot in conscience condemne him yea withall seekes to release him Iohn 19. 12. Is not here now a good conscience Indeed it had beene so in this particular fact if his conscience had beene inflexible and had held out But when Pilate heares them say that if he be his friend he is no friend to Caesar Iohn 19 12. and whilest withall hee is willing to content the people Marke 15. 15. Now that there is feare on the one side and desire to curry favour on the other where now is his conscience Now hee presently delivers him to be crucified though he knowes in his conscience that there is no fault in him What a good conscience hath many a Iudge and Lawyer How stiffely will they stand
dry land or to make a sea when he had made his ship I but when the flood is come and the waters begin to bee chin deepe then aske Iabel whether building of tents or building of an Arke bee the wiser worke then whether is better Noahs Arke or Iubals Pipes Now that the flood is come these come perhaps wading middle deep to the Arke side and bellow and howle to Noah to open the arke to them Now would not Iabel give all his tents and all his cattell but to bee where Noahs dog lyes would not Iubal now give all his pipes and merriment to have but the place that an hogge had in the Arke Now Iubal let us heare one of your merry songs pipe now and make your selves merry with gybing at Noahs folly in making a ship to saile on dry land What ailest thou Iubal to howle wring thine hands thus where is thine Harpe Organs now cheere up thy soule now with these vanities Now the Flood is come now Noah is in the Arke now Sirs you that are such men of renowne Gen. 6. 4. you that were the brave gallants of the earth now tell me who is the foole and who is the wise man now How many in the dayes of peace make light of a good Conscience yea if they see others to be but carefull in rigging of their Ship and pitching and trimming up such an Arke how ready are they to spend their byting scoffes and their tart jests upon them but if ever times of trouble calamitie and a fire flood of Gods wrath Nah. 1. 6 8. should breake in then would a good Conscience hold up the head with much comfort and resolution whilest those that formerly made a jeast of a good conscience should have aking and quaking hearts by reason of those unmeasurable feares that shall seize upon them A good conscience will make a man musick when Iubal shal be glad not only to put up but with indignation and anguish of heart to throw away and curse his pipes Well fare a good conscience in evill dayes Pitch and trim up this Ark there is no such provision against evill dayes as is a good conscience It will do a man service and support him when all the brave spirits of the earth shal be blank and at their wits end In the third place the benefit and comfort 3. The comfort of a good conscience in time of Sicknesse of a good conscience is conspicuous in the time of sicknesse or a mans private and personall crosses in his estate c. A sicke man with an hayle conscience is a cheary and a comfortable man Prov. 13. 14. The spirit of a man will sustaine his infirmity that is the spirit it selfe being hayle and sound it wil enable him to bear any bodily sicknesse But a wounded spirit who can beare yea a wounded or a sicke body who can comfortably beare if the spirit or conscience be sicke But let the conscience bee good and sound and it helpes a man with great ease and comfort to beare the sicknesse of the body It is a shrewd burthen to beare two sicknesses at once to have a sicke body and a sicke conscience A man shall find enough of the easiest of them single and alone But yet an hayle conscience in an infirme body sweetly helpes our infirmitie Let a man have ever so hayle and heathfull a body yet if the conscience be naught and withall awakened fals to galling and griping he shall find but little joy in his bodily health so contrarily let a mans conscience be good and though his body be sicke and weake yet it is a great deale of sweet refreshment that it shall receive from the conscience Sicknesse in it selfe is exceeding uncomfortable and in the time of sicknesse commonly all bodily comforts the comforts of meates drinkes and sleepe faile yea but then here is the benefit of a good conscience that will not then fayle but as it is said Eccl. 10. 9. Money answers all things so a good conscience answers all things the comfort of it supplies the wants of all other comforts When in sicknesse the comfort of meat drink and sleepe is gone they are all found againe in the comfort of a good conscience that will be meat and drinke that will be rest and sleep that will make a mans sick-bed soft and easie that shall be as the Angels were to Christ in his hunger in the Wildernesse they ministred unto him and so will a good conscience minister comfort in the want of all other comforts so that a man may say of a good conscience as we use to say of some solid substantiall dish that there are Partridge Phesants and Quailes in it so though outward comforts cease their office and their worke be suspended yet a good conscience comes in its roome and in it are meat drinke sleepe ease refreshment and what not A good conscience is an Electuary or a Cordiall that hath all these ingredients in it There is no such Cordiall to a sicke man as the cordiall of a good conscience All Physicians to this Physician are but such Physians as Iobs friends Iob 13. 4. Yea are Physicians of no value A motive of great weight to make men in love with a good conscience Who can be free from sicknesse and how tedious and wearisome a time is the time of sicknesse Now who would not make much of a Cordiall that might cheare him then of a receipt that might feed him then As then we would bee glad of a chearfull and comfortable spirit upon our sicke beds so make much of a good conscience Whence is it that most men in their sicknesses have such drooping spirits lye groaning altogether under their bodily paines or lye sottishly and senslesly no sense of any thing but paine and sicknesse Meerely from the want of a good conscience they have laid up no Cordial no comfortable Electuary for themselves in their health time against the day of sicknesse Indeed you shall have the miserable comforters of the world on this manner cheering them why how now man where is your heart Plucke up a good heart man never feare for a little sicknes c. True indeed they should not need to feare if they could plucke up a good heart But they that will plucke it up when they are sicke must lay it up when they are well Hee that hath a good conscience to get when he lyes upon his sicke bed is like a man that hath his Aqua-vitae to buy when hee is fallen into a swoune A wise man that feares swouning would have his hot-water-bottle hanging alwayes ready at his beds-head But as in other crosses by sicknesse and the like so is the comfort of a good conscience never more sweet then when a man is under the crosse for conscience sake and suffers affliction and vexation to keepe a good conscience Then above all other times will conscience doe the office of a Comforter and will
stand to him that will stand for it When Nebuchadnezzar heares his Furnace seaven times hotter than at other times then a good conscience will speak comfort seven times sweeter than at other times Are Gods Saints for good conscience â—on Acts and Mon. Omnis nobis vilis est poena ubi pura comes est conscientia Tiburt apud Baren An. 168. sake in prison Good conscience will make their prisons delectable hort-yards So doth Algerius an Italian Martyr date a comfortable Epistle of his From the delectable hortyard of the Leonine prison a prison in Venice so called So that as he said that hee had rather be in prison with Cato than with Caesar in the Senate house so in this regard it was more comfortable to be with Philpot in the Cole-house than with Bonner in his Palace Bonners conscience made his Palace a Cole house and a Dungeon whilst Philpots made the Cole-house a Palace Are Gods Saints in the Stocks Better it is sayes Philpot to sit in the Stocks of the world then in the stocks of a damnable conscience Therefore though they be in the Stocks yet even then the righteous doth sing and rejoyce yea even in the Stocks and prison Paul and Silas sang in the Stocks Sing in the Stocks Nay Hinc est quod è contrario innocens etiam inter ipsa tormenta fruitur conscientiae securitate cum de poena metuat de innocentia gloriatur Hieron ad Demetti ad â—â— 1. more they can sing in the flames and in the middst of the fires Isay 24. 15. Glorifie God in the fires And worthy Hawks could clap his hands in the middst of the flames So great and so passing all understanding is the peace and comfort of a good conscience So that in some sense that may be said of it which is spoken of faith Heb. 11. 34. By it they quenched the violence of fire Gods servants were so rapt and ravisht with the sense of Gods love and their inward peace of conscience that they seem'd to have a kind of happy dedolencie and want of feeling of the smart of outward torments Who knowes what trialls God may bring him to Wee have no patent for our peace nor his free liberty in the profession of the Gospel Suppose we should be cald to the stake for Christs sake Would we be chearful would we sing in the flames Get a good conscience The cause of Christ is a good cause now with a good cause get a good conscience and wee shall be able with all chearfulnesse to lay downe our lives for Christ and his Gospel sake CHAP. XII The comfort and benefit of a good conscience in the dayes of Death and Iudgement IN the fourth place The time of death is a time wherein the benefit and comfort of a good conscience is exceeding great Death hath a ghastly looke and 4. The comfort of a good conscience at the day of Death terrible able to daunt the proudest and bravest spirit in the world but then hath it a ghastly looke indeed when it faces an evill conscience Indeed sometimes and most commonly conscience in many is secure at the time of death God in his justice so plaguing an affected security in life with an inflicted security at Death And the Lord seemes to say as once to the Prophet Go make their consciences asleepe at their death as they have made it asleepe all their life lest conscience should see and speake and they heare and be saved God deales with conscience as with the Prophet Ez. 3. 26. I will make thy tongue cleave to the roofe of thy mouth that thou shalt be dumbe therefore they die though not desparately as Saul and Achitophel yet sottishly without comfort and feeling of Gods love as Nabal But if conscience be awakened and have its eyes and mouth opened no heart can imagine the desparate and unsufferable distresses of such an heart Terrours take hold of him as waters Iob 27. 20. Terrours make him afrai on every side Iob 18. 11. Then is that true Iob 25. 23 24. Hee knowes that the day of darknesse is ready at hand Trouble and anguish shall make him afraid they shall prevaile against him as a King ready to the battell And no wonder for hee is now brought unto the King of Terrours as Death is called Iob 18. 14. A man that hath an ill conscience if his eyes be opened and his conscience awakened he sees death in all the terrible shapes that may bee Sometimes he sees death comming like a mercilesse Officer and a cruell Sergeant to arrest and to drag him by the throat to the prison and place of Torment Psal 55. 15. Let death seize upon them They see it comming like that cruell servant in the Parable to his fellow Math. 18. catching them by the very throat Sometimes he sees death in the shape of some greedy Lyon or some ravening Wolfe ready to devour him and to feed upon his carkasse Ps 49. 14. Death shall feed on them even as a ravenous beast shall feed upon his prey Imagine in what a terrible plight the Samaritans where in when the Lyons set upon them 2 Kin. 17. and by it imagine in what case an ill conscience is when it beholds the face of death It puts an ill conscience into that case in good earnest that David was in in the case of triall Ps 55. 4 5. My heart is sore pained within me and the terrors of death are fallen upon me fearfulnesse and trembling are come upon mee and horrour hath overwhelmed me Sometimes againe he sees death as the Israelites the fiery serpents with mortall stings Sometimes as a mercilesse landlord or the Sheriffe comming with a Writ of Firmae ejectione to throw him out of house and home and to turne him to the wide Common yea he sees death as Gods executioner and messenger of eternall death yea hee sees death with as much horrour as if hee saw the Devill In so many fearfull shapes appeares death to an evill conscience upon the death-bed So as it is indeed the King of terrors to such an one that hath the terrors of conscience within There is no one thought so terrible to such an one as the thought of death nothing that hee more wishes to avoid Oh how loath and unwilling is such an one to dye But come now to a man that hath lived as Paul did in all good conscience and how is it with him upon his death-bed His end is peace so full of joy and comfort so is hee ravished with the inward and unspeakable consolations of his conscience that it is no wonder at all that Balaam should wish to dye the death of the righteous the death of a man with a good conscience The day of a mens mariage is the day of the joy of a mans heart Can. 3. 11. and the day of mariage is not so joyfull a day as is the day of death to a good conscience There are but
few that can marry with that joy wherewith a good conscience dies It enables a man not onely to looke Ananias and the Councel in the face but even to look death it selfe in the face without those amazing terrours yea it makes the face of death seeme lovely and amiable Hee whose conscience is good and sees the face of God reconciled to him in Christ hee can say as Iacob did when he saw the face of Ioseph Gen. 46. 30. Now let me dye since I have seene thy face It is the priviledge of a good conscience alone to goe to the grave as Agag did to Samuel and to say that truly which he spake besides the booke 1 Sam. 15. 32. Hee came pleasantly and hee said Surely the bitternesse of death is past Hee was deceived and therefore had no such cause to be so pleasant but a good conscience can yea cannot chuse but be so pleasant even when going out of the world because the guilt of sinne being washed away in Christs blood it knowes that the bitternesse of death is past and the sweetnesse of life eternall is at hand A man whose debts are paid he dares goe out of doores dare meet and face the Sergeants and the conscience purged by the blood of Christ can look as undauntedly on the face of death He that hath forgotten the sting that is the guilt of conscience taken away by faith in Christ he lookes not upon death as the Israelites upon the fiery Serpents but lookes upon it as Paul doth 1 Cor. 15. O death where is thy sting Who feares a Bee an Hornet a Snake or a Serpent when they have lost their sting The guilt of sinne is the sting of conscience it s the sting of death that stings the conscience The sting of death is sinne 1 Cor. 15. Plucke then sin out of the conscience and at once the conscience is made good and death made weake and disarmed of his weapon And when the conscience sees death unstinged and disarmed it is freed of feare and even in the very act of death can joyfully triumph over death oh Death where is thy sting A good conscience lookes upon death as upon the Sheriffe that comes to give him possession of his Inheritance or as Lazarus upon the Angels that came to carry his soule into Abrahams bosome and therfore can welcome death and entertaine him joyfully And whereas an ill conscience makes a man see death as if he saw the Devill a good conscience makes a man see the face of death as Iacob saw Esau's face Gen. 33. I have seene thy face as the face of God they see the face of death with unspeakeable joy ravishment of heart and exultation of spirit Well now what a motive have wee here to make us labour for good conscience Even Balaam himselfe would faine make a good end and die in peace and who wishes not his death-bed may be a mount Nebo from whence he may see the heavenly Canaan Lo here Balaam the way to dye the death of the righteous I have lived in all good conscience untill this day They that have conscience in their life shal have comfort at their death they that live conscionably they shal dy comfortably they that live in all good conscience till their dying day shall depart in the abundance of comfort at their dying day There will come a day wherein wee must lay downe these Tabernacles the day of death will assuredly come How lamentable a thing will it then be to be so destitute and desolate of all comfort as to be driven to that extremity as to curse our birth day oh what would Comfort be worth at our last houre at our last gaspe whilst our dearest friends shall be weeping wringing their hands and lamenting then then what would inward comfort be worth Who would not hold the whole world an easie price for it then Well then would wee then have Comfort and Ioy oh then get a good conscience now which will yield comfort when all other comforts shall utterly faile and shall be life in the middst of death How happy is that man that when the sentence of death is passed upon him can say with Hezekiah Is 38. 3. Remember now O Lord I beseech thee how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart and have done that which is good in thy sight Indeed the text sayes that Hezekiah wept sore but yet not as fearing death for hee could not feare death who had thus feared God but because the promise was not yet made good to him in a Son and Heire of his kingdome hence came those teares It is otherwise an unspeakable joy that such a conscience as Hezekiahs was will speake to a man upon his death-bed Every one professes a desire to make a good end Here is the way to make good that desire to live in all good conscience Alas how pittifull and miserable a condition live most men in All the dayes of their life and health they have no regard of a good conscience Notwithstanding that men are pressed continually to this one care by the instancie and importutunitie of Gods Ministers yet how miserably is it neglected Well at last the day of death comes and then what would not they give for a comfortable end If the gold of Ophir would purchase comfort it should flie then Then poast for this Minister and run for the other as in the sweating sicknesse in King Edwards dayes then for Gods sake but one word of comfort then O blessed men of God one word of peace Now alas what would you have them to doe Are they or your own courses in fault that you want comfort at your death What would you have us doe Wee must referre you to your owne consciences we cannot make oyle of flint nor crush sweet wine out of sowre Grapes we dare not flatter you against your cōsciences If you would give us a world we cannot comfort you when your owne consciences witnesse against you that such comforts belong not to you Doe not idely in this case hope for comfort from Ministers be it knowne unto you you must have it from your owne consciences Many on their death-bed cry to the Minister as she did to the King 2 King 6. 26 27. Helpe my Lord O King But marke what hee answers If the Lord doe not helpe thee whence shall I helpe thee out of the barne floore or out of the Wine presse So must wee answer to such as cry Helpe helpe O man of God If God and your owne consciences helpe you not whence shall we help you If there had beene Corne within the barnes the King could easily have helped her but he could not make corne So if men have carryed any thing into their consciences if they themselves have inned any provision and comfort by being conscionable in their lives then we can helpe and comfort them but otherwise doe not thinke that we can make comforts and make
good consciences upon your death-beds If your consciences can say for you that you have beene carefull in your life time to know God to walke holily and religiously before him c. then wee dare be bold to comfort and cheere you then dare wee speake peace confidently to you But if your consciences accuse you of your ignorance your oathes Sabbath-breaches worldlinesse rebellion uncleannesse oppression drunkennesse c. and finally impenitencie What is it you would have us to doe What can wee say but as the Prophet to Zedekiah Ier. 37. 19. Where are now your Prophets that prophesied unto you saying the King of Babylon shall not come against you So where be those that in your life time told you ye need not to be so careful and precise to keep good consciences lesse ado will serve the turne now what think ye of them now what peace have you in those wayes what comfort can these give you now Or else what can we say when men in anguish of conscience lye tossing upon their beds but what Reuben said to his brethren when they were in distresse Gen. 42. 21 22. Did not I warne you saying Sin not c. So must wee what doe ye call to us for comfort did not wee warne you many a time and oft saying Sinne not nor live in those dangerous courses Did not wee warne you Oh to have our consciences and Gods Ministers thus to grate upon us what an uncomfortable condition will this be Would wee then prevent such sorrow and be cheerfull and cheered at our latter ends lay up a good conscience then lay in somewhat for conscience and Gods Ministers to worke upon and from which they both may be able to raise comfort to you Get a good conscience and live in it all thy dayes and then though thou shouldest want the benefit of a comforting Minister yet thy conscience shall doe the office of a comforting Minister and shall be the same unto thee that the Angel was unto Christ in his agony Luke 22. 43. and shall minister such comfort unto thee as shall make thee ready to leap into the grave for joy This shall be as another Iacobs staffe for thee to leane rest upon when thou shalt be upon thy death-bed If men knew but the worth of a good conscience at the houre of death wee should need no other motive to worke mens hearts to be in love therewith Fiftly and lastly the benefit and comfort 5. The comfort of a good conscience at the day of Iudgment of a good conscience is great at the day of judgement Oh the sweet comfort and confidence of heart that a good conscience will yield unto a man at that day What will become of all the Gigantean spirits and the brave fellowes of the earth then Alas for their yellings and cursing of themselves and their companions what howling and crying to the mountaines as they did Revel 6. Hide us Cover us yea dash and quash us in a thousand pieces When an ill conscience is awakened it is not to be imagined how small a thing will gastre it The sound of a shaken leafe shall chase them and they shall fly as flying from a sword and they shall fall when none pursues Levit. 26. 36. A dreadfull sound is in his eares Iob. 15. 21. Hee heares nothing but he thinkes he heares alwaies some terrible and dreadfull noise And then if a shaken leafe shall chase and shall put them into a shaking feare what case will such be in when as Iob speakes Iob 26. 11. The pillars of heaven shall tremble and when the powers of heaven shall be shaken Luke 21. 26. When the heavens shall shake and flame above them when the earth shall quake and tremble under them what case will they be in then If meere imaginations fill their eares with dreadfull sounds where there is no sound at all Oh what a dreadfull sound shall be in their eares when the Sea shall roare Luk 21. 25. when the last trumpe shall sound 1 Cor. 15. when they shall heare the shout and voyce of an Angel 1 Thes 4. 16. what dreadfull sounds will these be in the eares of ill consciences How will these dreadfull sounds confound their soules with horrour and amazement But now for a good conscience how is it with it then Even amiddst all these dreadfull sounds it lookes up and lifts up the head Luke 21. 28. and enables a man with a cheery confidence to stand before the Son of man Luke 21. 36. The Malefactor who looks for the halter how dreadful is the Iudges cōming to the Assises attended with the troopes of halberds in his eye but the prisoner that knowes his owne innocencie and that he shall be quit discharged his heart leaps at the Iudges approach how terrible soever he come attēded to the bench it glads his heart to see that day which shal be the day of his liberty release An hypocrite shall not come before him Ioh. 13. 16. much lesse shal look up lift up his head or stand before him Ps 1. 5. But the righteous and the man with a good conscience he shall hold up and cheerfully lift up his head when all the surly and proud Zamzummins of the earth that here lifted up their heads and nebs so high shall become howling and trembling suitors to the deafe mountaines to hide them from the presence of the Lambe on the throne Oh! they that feare the Lambe on the throne how dreadfull unto them will be the Lyon on the throne It will be with good and evill consciences in that day as it was with Pharoahs Butler and Baker on Pharaohs birth-day The Butler he knew hee should be restored to honour and go from the Prison to the Palace therefore he comes out of the prison ful of joy jollity he holds up his head and outfaces the proudest of his enemies But the Baker hee knowes his head shall be lift from off him and therefore when Pharaohs birth-day comes wherein all others are in jollity yet hee droopes and hangs downe the head hee knowes it would prove an heavie day of reckoning with him Such will the apparition of Christ unto judgement be unto good and evill consciences as was the apparition of the Angel Math. 28. 2 3 4 5. There was a great earthquake for the Angel of the Lord descended frō heaven his countenance was like lightening and his rayment white as snow Here was a terrible sight but yet not alike terrible to all the beholders For for feare of him the keepers did shake became like dead men But the Angel said unto the women feare not ye for I know that ye seek Iesus So at the last day when Christ shall come to judgment evill consciences shall be as the Keepers whilst all good consciences shall heare that comfortable voice Feare not yee for I know that you have sought for God all your daies ye have sought to keepe a good
is no sorrow heavinesse or sad melancholly but all joy and gladnesse 3. For the society and company A feast is a collection and a convention of many good friends together whose society and friendship is sweet each to other There is no feast can afford the like company that a good conscience hath Woe to him that is alone Ecc. 4. that is the wofull and solitary condition of evill consciences But a good conscience hath ever good company is not alone for the Father is with it Ioh. 16. 23. yea the Son is with it and Christ and the man with a good conscience they sup and feast together Revel 3. 20. yea and the spirit is with it 1 Cor. 13. 13. The Communion of the Holy Ghost be with you What feast in the world can shew such company And good company is the chiefe thing in a feast Thus a good conscience is a feast 2. It is better than a feast And that in three regards 1. In regard of the continuance and perpetuity of it A continuall feast Nabal made a feast a feast like a King 1 Sam. 25. but that feast lasted but one day Sampson at his marriage had a feast that lasted seven daies Iudg. 14. 17. but yet that feast had an end Ahashuerosh his feast was the longest feast that ever we read of Esth 1. 4. Hee made a feast many dayes an hundred and fourscore daies But yet v. 5. it is said And when those dayes were expired So this long feast had an end It was continued for many dayes but yet no continuall feast it had an end The feast of a good conscience is not like an Vniversity Commencement feast Great exceedings and extraordinary good cheere and company for one night but the next morrow to their bare Commons againe Not like the feast of the Nativity at which time there is great feasting and great cheere every where for twelve dayes but when those dayes are over many a man is glad of bread and cheese glad to skip at a crust But this is a continuall feast all the yeare long all a mans life long Therfore 1 Thes 5. 16. Rejoyce evermore keep open house and feasting all the yeare long The joy of a good conscience was figured by the joy at the feast of Tabernacles That feast lasted seven dayes The joy must bee as long Seven the number of perfection denoted the whole course of a mans life and so their seven dayes joy the continuall joy and jollity of this continuall feast of a good conscience Conscience and a wife as they agree in many things be they good be they ill so in this also If the conscience be evill it is like an evill wife and she a continuall evill Prov. 27. 15. A continuall dropping in a very rainy day and a contentious woman are alike The contentions of a wife are a continuall dropping Prov. 19. 13. A shrewish waspish wife is a continuall vexation and disquiet Such is an evill conscience a continuall sorrow Contrarily a good conscience is like a good wife a good wife is a continuall comfort a comfort in health in sicknesse in peace in distresse Pro. 31. 12. She doth him good and not evill all the dayes of her life Not some good and a great deale of evill withall but all good good not evill Not good at sometime and none at other times but all the daies of her life she is a continuall comfort So is the comfort of a good conscience It keepes holy-day and feasting every day It is all feast a feast for ever there is no Lent or fasting dayes that interrupt this feast This is the peculiar privilege of this feast to be continuall belly feasting cannot be so for 1. A man cannot alwayes feast though he would a mans revenues would bee exhaust his expences would soone sink his estate Continuall feasting would soone begger and undoe a man of good estate Pro. 21. 17. Hee that loves Wine and Oyle shall not be rich It is not so here the revenue of a good conscience is bottomlesse it cannot be spent and therfore is able to keepe a rich and a full furnisht Table all the yeare long Here is a mysterie in this feast the larger expences to day the more laid in to keepe the feast the better to morrow a man growes rich by feasting 2. Suppose a man might be able to feast alwayes or might feed at another mans Voluptas tune cum maxime delectat extinguitur Nec multum loci habet iatque cito implet taedio est post primum impetum marcet Seneo de vir beat c. 7. Table continually yet would it weary a man beyond measure It would but gug and cloy a man All earthly pleasures have a satietie and breed a loathing by frequent use But this is the admirable excellencie of this feast of a good conscience here a man may feed and eate with continuall delight At this continual feast heere is a continuall fresh appetite and fresh delights here is continuall feasting without loathing and satiety 3. Neither may belly feasting be continuall There be some times wherein it is inconvenient and unlawfull To speake with the fairest that day which God hath sanctified for his service is not so convenient for feasting It may be no lesse dangerous to devour sanctified time than sanctified things And in this case hath that saying a truth It is not meet that we should leave the Word of God and serue Tables Act. 6. 2. But now this feast without any doubt may bee on the Sabbath yea it is the speciall festivall and high day of the weeke wherein this feast is best kept Againe there be times wherein God calls to solemne fasting and humilation as when the Church is either in danger or distresse but this feast is not hindred by fasting it will stand well with it and many a speciall dainty dish is served in to this feasting from a fast 4. Suppose a man could and might feast alwayes yet were it a brutish thing and hog-like allwayes for a man to be cramming and crowding in belly cheere allwayes to bee pauncing and gutting It is that for which the rich Glutton is taxed Luk. 16. That he fared deliciously every day But here to feast at this Table every day is that which makes a man every whit as Angel like as belly-feasting every day makes a man swine-like Here it is a mans happinesse to be a holy Epicure 2. It is better then other feasts in regard Nunquam credideris faelicem qui adventitio loetus est exibit gau dium quod intravit Seâ—â—â— ep 9â— of the Independencie of this feast vpon any other out-ward thing This feast is able to maintaine it selfe of it selfe and within it selfe A man that hath a good conscience hath a feast though he have nothing else but it A good conscience though it have nothing but browne bread and water yet this hard fare marres not the feast For this feast stands
not in meates and drinks but in righteousnesse peace and joy in the holy Ghost Rom. 14. 17. Quietnesse and a dry morsell is better then an housefull of good cheare with strife Pro. 17. 1. Though it be but outward quietnesse when a man is free from vnjust vexations and the molestations of froward and contentious disposition even such quietnesse makes a dry morsell good cheere makes a feast of a crust But when there is inward quietnesse of a good conscience and a mans heart is at quiet from his peace with his God what excellent cheere is a dry morsel then Though a man have ever so good fare yet to have it sawced with the bitternesse of contention and to live in a continuall wrangling with pevish people what poore content would a well furnisht Table afford such a man And what poore cheere especially would all these feasts in the world make where there is brawling and contention from the conscience Here then is the excellencie of this feast above all other feasts This feast is able to subsist and to maintaine it selfe without other feasting other feasting is nothing without this of a good conscience Other feasting often hurts and hinders this feast whilest men by their vaine and licentious carriage therein Feasting without all feare Iude. 12. Doe make the conscience fast and starve and whilest their Quailes are betweene their teeth Leannesse enters into their soule Psalm 106. 5. So farre is bodily feasting from helping that it hinders this feasting rather Conscience can have mirth enough without a feast but little is the comfort and content that a feast can give where the Conscience is not good Men may Sed non est ista hilaritas longa Observa videbis cosdem in exiguum tempus atergime ridere acerrime rudere Senec ep 92. set a face vpon it and bragge laugh and be jolly in their feasting but yet in the middest of their laughter the heart is sorrowfull and the end of that mirth is heavinesse Prov. 14. 13. Conscience awakened even in the middest of the greatest jollitie gives men many a bitter twitch at the heart and in the middest of all their revellings gives them Vineger and Gall to drinke A good conscience is it that sweetens and seasons all the dishes of a feast that is the sawce that makes meat savoury the sugar that sweetens Wine that is the musicke that makes a mans heart dance But let a man goe to the most sumptuous and delicious feasts without a good conscience and how is it with him then Iust as with Belshazzar Dan. 5. Where the hand writing on the wall marred all his mirth or else it is in such a case as it was with Haman The foole brags that he alone is invited to Esters banquet with the King Esth 5. 12. Oh how happy a man was he under how fortunate a Planet was he borne to be the King and Queenes Favorite both But see what little reason hee had to brag Chap. 7. 2. Even at the banquet of Wine Esther gives him a cup of gall at the banquet of Wine doth she accuse Haman to the King Oh! how many glory in their banquetting and their feasting but how often doe their consciences put Esthers tricke vpon them even accuse them to God and gall and gird them in the midst of their wine conscience serves many as Absoloms villaines served Amnon when his heart was merry at Absoloms feast then they stabd him to the heart Cōscience deales with them as the Israelites were dealt withal in their quaile feast They had their Quailes and their dainties but a man would rather want their good cheere than have their sawce Their sweet meat had sharpe sawce Whilst the flesh was between their teeth Gods anger brake in upon them So whilst many are chewing their dainties conscience fils their mouth with gravell and so sawces and spices their dishes that they find but little content therein So miserable are all feasts and merriments of this world when a man wants the independent feast of a good conscience So happy also are they that have the feast of a good conscience although they never taste bit of other feast whilst they live although they be denied the crums that fall under the feasting Gluttons table 3. It is better in regard of the Vniversality of it As for belly feasts it stands not with every mans condition and purse to make them It belongs onely to the richer and abler sort to feast Feasting is a matter of charge and cost and so is out of the reach of the poorer sort But here is the excellencie of this feast The poorest that is may make it and the poore have as good priviledge to make it as the rich and the poore in this respect may keepe as good an house as the best Nobleman yea for the most part the poorer sort keep this feast best Nabal makes a feast like a king but wretched man in the mean time what feast keepes his conscience It may be many a poore Carmelite neighbour of his that went in a poore russet coat and lived in a poore thatcht cottage kept that feast abundantly richly whilst he poore sot had not the crums that fell from their tables Lazarus could not have the crums that fell from the gluttons table but how happy had it been with the glutton if in stead of this delicious fare he might have had but the reversions of Lazarus boord Lazarus may not come to his feast no nor yet to his fragments neither will Lazarus condition permit him to feast it as the glutton did but yet this feast of a good conscience Lazarus may make as well as hee and can and doth keepe it whilst the glutton feeles many an hunger-biting gripe What an excellent feast is this above all other feasts wherein the russet hath as much priviledge as the velvet the beggar as the King the poore tenant as the rich Landlord The rich Landlord often so feeds upon and eates up his poor tenant by oppression that the tenant is kept low enough for feasting It is well with him if hee have food hee had not need thinke of feasting But loe now the excellent feast of a good conscience here may the Tenant keep as good cheere as the Landlord yea and it may be may feast whilst the rich Landlord is ready to starve for want of this provision Now then all this considered what a Motive should it be to make us in love with a good cōscience How powerfully should this perswade us therto whē God would perswade men to come to the joyes of heaven hee uses no other argument than this to invite them to a feast as in the Parable Luk. 14. Behold here is the same argument to move you to be in love with a good conscience behold the Lord invites you to a feast and to a feast where ye shall have sufficiencie without want or loathing where ye shal have wine mirth musick and good
Company to the full The twelve dayes feast of the Nativitie how is it longed for before hand how welcommed when it is come And what may the reason be But only because it is a feasting time This is counted a blessed good time and why a blessed good time As Christ was a blessed good man the prophet that should come into the world and therefore should be made a King because hee had fed and filled their bellies Iohn 6. So the most make that a blessed time not for the memorial of Christs Incarnatiō but because of the loaves Christ shall be a King because of the feast the time is blessed Well then is the world so desirous and so glad of feasting Are feasting times such blessed times Lo then I invite you to a feast to a blessed good feast indeed that will make you blessed and truly happy Not to a feast of twelve daies but to a feast that lasts al the twelve moneths of the yeare to a continuing and a continuall feast How glad are many when they may goe to a feast Lo a way to make feasts for your selves What a credit is it counted in the world for a man to keep a good and great house to keep feasting and open-house for all commers during the Festivity of the twelve dayes Would we have this credit of good hous-keeping not for twelve dayes but for all the yeare long Get good consciences keepe good consciences There is no such good house-keeper as is the good conscience-keeper for a good conscience is a feast a continuall feast There is nothing that men desire more then to live merrily and how many stumble at Religion and keeping of a good conscience under an idle conceit that it is the way to marre all their mirth and to make a man lumpish and melancholly Do not believe the devill do not believe his lying agents It is a prophane Proverbe that Spiritus Calvinianus est spiritus melancholicus A good conscience is a feast a feast with all dainties musick and wine Can a man be melancholly at a feast at so joyfull and so sweet a feast doth feasting make men melancholly or make men merry make men weepe or laugh If a man should cry downe feasting with this argument That it makes men melancholly would not all men laugh him to scorn And why then should a man feare melancholly more from a good conscience than from a feast There is none lives so merry a life as hee that keepes a good conscience hee is every day at a feast hee is alwayes banquetting Yea the worst dishes of this feast even those at the lower end of the Table are better than the most choice rarities of other feasts The very teares that a good conscience sheds have more joy and pleasure in them than the worlds greatest joyes And if the teares of a good conscience be such what is the mirth and laughter of it If weeping be so sweet what is singing If the courser dishes be so dainty what are the best services Would wee then live merrily and passe our dayes jocundly indeed Get a good conscience and thou keepest a continuall feast and that continuall feast will keepe thee in continuall mirth and continuall joy Yea though thou be in affliction and under crosses so as thy dayes unto the world may seeme exceedingly evill shalt thou live merrily as at a feast Yea this is the scope of the Scripture All the dayes of the afflicted are evill namely in the eye and judgement of the world but a good conscience namely to the afflicted is a continuall feast A good conscience feasts then and turnes fasting dayes into feasting dayes A good conscience feasts a man in his poverty in his sicknesse in the prison and cheeres up a man with many a dainty bit The wine of this feast makes them forget all their sorrow Now then that we would be so wise as to hearken to Gods invitation to this feast Let us keep the feast with the bread of sincerity and truth 1 Cor. 5. 8. Take heed now that we put not off God as those did Luke 14. invited to the feast with the excuses of Farmes Oxen and the like So doe many urge them to the keeping of a good conscience and their answer is If they should be so precise how should they live they shall have but poore takings if they take such a course I pray have me excused I must live Thus they answer as many good husbands when invited to frequent feastings doe No believe mee it will not hold out if I goe every day a feasting I may goe one day a begging I must follow my businesse and let feasting goe And so say men here But take heed of putting off God thus The time will come that thou wouldst give all thine oxen to have but the scraps crums of this feast and thou shalt not have them God will serve thee as hee did them Luk. 14. 24. None of those men which were bidden shall taste of my supper Those that care not to keep the feast of a good conscience shall never come to Gods feast in heaven If you refuse to come to his feast now God will at the last day thrust you out of doores when you will be pressing and crowding in and shall say to you Get you hence ye despisers of a good conscience you scorned the feast of a good conscience and therefore now the feast and guests of heaven scorne you here is no roome for such to feast here who have made their consciences fast heretofore CHAP. XIV A third and a fourth motive to a good conscience Come wee now to a third motive that The third motive to a good conscience may yet helpe to stir up our minds to this necessary duty of getting and keeping of a good conscience Besides what hath beene said it is worthy of our consideration that without a good conscience all our actions yea our very best services to God are so farre from goodnesse and acceptance that they are abominable and distastefull unto the Lord. The formall goodnesse of every mans actions is to be judged and esteemed by the goodnesse of his conscience which being evill and defiled makes all a mans actions to be such 1 Tim. 1. 5. The end of the commandement is love But what kind of love doth the commandement require will any shewes or shadowes of obedience serve the turn will the bare dutydoing passe for currant No but such love to God and man and such performance of obedience as proceeds from a pure heart and a good conscience So that let a man doe all outward actions of obedience yet if a good conscience be wanting all is nothing For the end of the Commandement is love out of a good conscience As is a mans conscience so are all his workes and therefore nothing acceptable that a wicked man doth because hee doth it with an ill conscience To the pure all things are pure but
to the defiled their conscience is defiled and that being defiled it defiles all it meddles with as under the Law the Leaper defiled all he touched The best meat disht and dressed with defiled and dirty hands is loathsome to us The honest works of a mans calling are good workes in themselves but no good workes to him that doth them without a good conscience Pro. 21. 4. An high look and a proud heart and the plowing of the wicked is Sin The calling of Husbandry is counted the most honest calling of all others yet where a good cōsciēce is wanting a mans very plowing is Sin Come to holy duties of Religion and Gods service and how is it with a man wanting a good conscience in them That curse of Davids Psal 109. 8. Let his prayer be turned into Sin lies upon the services of all evill consciences See Pro. 15. 8. The sacrifice of the wicked that is of him that hath an evill conscience is an abomination but the prayer of the upright that is of a man that hath a good and upright conscience is his delight Observe the opposition Hee sayes not the prayer of the wicked and the prayer of the upright nor the sacrifice of the wicked and the sacrifice of the upright but the sacrifice of the wicked and the prayer of the upright A sacrifice had prayer with it but yet it was more sumptuous more solemn then single prayer Now who would not thinke but such cost should make a man welcom yet the single prayer of the upright is accepted whilst his sacrifice is an abomination yea and that a vile abomination Is 66. 3. A man of evill conscience delighting in his abominations makes his holiest services such Let such an one come to the Sacraments and how will it be with him there even as in the former To the impure even the pure Sacraments are impure Simon◠Magus rather defiles the waters of Baptisme then they clense him and it is not carnall baptisme that availes any thing without the answer and stipulation of a good conscience 1 Pet. 3. 21. And for the Sacrament of the Supper whether doth it profit an uncleane conscience or such a conscience pollute it It may be judged by a like case resolved Hag. 2. 11 14. The uncleane person by a dead body touching the Bread or Wine or Oyle makes these to be uncleane The ceremoniall uncleannesse by the touch of a dead body typified the morall uncleannes of an evill conscience unpurged from dead works God looks specially at the cōscience in all our services and if hee finds that foule and filthy he throws the dung of mens sacrifices in their faces that come with the dung of their filthy consciences before his face See therefore how Paul serves God 2 Tim. 1. 3. Whom I serve from my forefathers with pure conscience It is an impure service that is not performed with a pure conscience as sleight as the world make of puritie How much more shal the blood of Christ purge your consciences from dead workes Heb. 9. 14. But to what end are they purged To serve the living God Therfore marke that till the conscience be purged and made good there is no serving of God So Heb. 10. 22. Let us draw neere that is in prayer and the like duties But how Having our hearts sprinkled from an evill conscience Otherwise it is but a folly for us to draw neere for God will not be neere when a good conscience is far off And therfore we are bid to purifie our hearts when wee are bid draw nigh to God Iam. 4. 8. Behold here then a speciall motive to make a good conscience beautifull in our eye As we would be loath our services of God our prayers and holy performances should be abominable in Gods eye so labour for good consciences As we would have cōfort in alour duties of obedience so labor to make our conscience good It is a great deale of confidence that silly ignorant ones have in their good prayers their good serving of God as they call it yea it is all the ground of their hope of salvation when they are demanded an account of their hope now alas your good prayers and your good serving of God! why what do you talking of these things Hath Christ purged your consciences from dead workes Have you by faith got your consciences sprinkled and rinced in Christs blood and so have ye made them good If not never talke of good prayers and good serving of God your prayers cannot be good whilst your consciences are naught An evill conscience before God and a good service to God cannot stand together But would you have your prayers good indeed and your service acceptable indeed then let your first care be to make your conscience good Fourthly let this worke with us as a The fourth motive to a good conscience maine motive to a good conscience That it is the Ship and the Arke wherein the faith is perserved The faith is a rich commoditie a precious fraught and a good conscience is the bottome and the vessell wherein it is caried So long as the ship is safe and good so long the goods therin are safe but if the ship split upon the Rocks or have but a leake therein then are all the goods therein in danger of being lost and cast away So long as a man keeps a good conscience there is no feare of losing the faith the integrity and soundnes of the doctrin therof Constancie in the truth is a fruit of good conscience Psalm 119. 54 55. I have kept thy Law he had not declined from nor forsaken the truth of God but what held and kept him This I had because I kept thy precepts Keeping of a good conscience will keepe a man in the truth It is that which is the holy preservative to save from all errors heresies false doctrins The better conscience the sounder judgment the sounder heart the sounder head As the better digestion in the stomach the sreer the head is from ascēdent fumes that would distemper and trouble the same Iohn 7. 17. If any man will do his will he shall know of the doctrine whether it be of God How shall a man come to have a sound and a good judgement to be able to judge what is truth and what is not Let him get a good conscience and make conscience of doing the will of God Iohn 14. 21. Hee that hath my commandements and keepes them c. such a man hath and keepes a good conscience And what benefit shall such a one have by keeping of a good conscience I will love him and I will manifest my selfe unto him And Ps 50. 23. To him that orders his conversation aright will I shew the salvation of God God doth communicate himselfe and his truth to such as make conscience of their wayes The pure in heart shall see God and the secret of the Lord is with them that feare
my choice of your Patronage of this Treatise It would have bin an incongruity to have had the name of a person of an evill Conscience prefixed before a booke of good Conscience I desired a Patron sutable to my subject I presume the very subject shall make the Treatise welcome to you Be you pleased to afford your acceptance as I will afford you my poore prayers that the Lord who hath already set upon your head the crowne of the Elders Prov. 17. 6. Childrens Children and one Crowne of glory here one earth Age found in the Prov. 16. 1. wayes of righteousnes would also in his due time give you that incorruptible crowne of righteousnes and eternall glory in the heavens which that righteous Judge shall give to you and to all those that in the wayes of a good Conscience waite for the blessed appearance of the Lord Iesus Your Worships in all Christian observance IER DYKE The Contents of this TREATISE The Text containes thee Maine Heads The first maine head Pauls Protestation of a good Conscience where five things are considered 1. What Conscience is 2. What a good Conscience is It is good with a twofold goodnesse 1. With the goodnesse of Integritie and this integrity is threefold 1. When being rightly principled by the VVord it sincerely judges and determines of good evill 2. VVhen it doth excuse for good and accuse for evill 3. VVhen it urges to good restraines from evil 2. VVith the goodnesse of Tranquillitie and Peace Here are three sorts of Conscience discovered not to be good viz. 1. The Ignorant Conscience 2. The Secure 3. The Seared 3. The means of getting keeping a good Conscience 1. To get and keepe the Conscience good peaceably or with the goodnesse of peace three things required 1. Faith in Christs blood 2. Repentance from dead workes 3. The conscionable exercise of Prayer 2. To get and keepe the Conscience good with the goodnesse of integrity and to have it uprightly good five things required viz. 1. VValking before God 2. Framing ones Course by the Rule of the VVord 3. Frequent examination of the Conscience 4. Hearkning to the voice of Conscience 5. In cases of questionable nature to take the surest and the safest side 4 The markes and notes of a good Conscience and they be seven 1. To make Conscience of all sinnes and duties 2. To make Conscience of small sinnes duties 3. To effect a Ministery that speakes to the Conscience 4. To doe duties and avoid sin for Conscience sake 5. Holy boldnesse 6. To suffer for Conscience 7. Constancie and Perseverance in Good 5. The Motives to a good Conscience and they are five 1. The incomparable comfort and benefit of it in all such times and cases as all other comforts faile a man and wherein a man stands most in need of comfort The Cases or times are five 1. The Time and case of Disgrace and Reproach 2. The Time of common feare cōmon calamity 3. The Time of sicknesse or other Crosses 4. The Time of Death 5. The Time and day of Iudgement 2. That a good Conseience is 1. A feast for 1. Contentment and satisfaction 2. Ioy and Mirth 3. Societie 2. Better than a feast for 1. The Cotinuance 2. Independency 3. Vniversalitie 3. Without a good Conscience all our best duties are nought 4. It is the Ship and Arke of Faith 5. The misery of an evil one 1. In this world in respect of 1. Feare 2. Perplexitie 3. Torment 2. in the world to come The second Maine Head Ananias his insolent injunction Whereout is observed 1 What is the respect a good Consciēce finds in the world 2. The impetuous injustice of the enemies of good consciēce 3. Who cōmonly be the bitteest enemies of good conscience 4. That Vsurpers are Smiters 5. What is a sad fore-runner of a Nations Ruine The third maine head Pauls Answere and Contestation Whereout is observed 1. That Christian patience muzzels not a good Conscience from pleading its owne Innocencie 2. The severitie of Gods Iudgements upon the Enemies and Smiters of good Conscience 3. The equity of Gods administration in his execution of Iustice GOOD CONSCIENCE ACTS 23. 1. And Paul earnestly beholding the Councell said Men and brethren I have lived in all good Conscience untill this day 2. And the high Priest Ananias commanded them that stood by to smite him on the mouth 3. Then said Paul unto him God shall smite thee thou whited wall CHAP. I. The Introduction of the Discourse following THere is no complaint so generall as this that the world is naught His experience is short and slender which will not justifie the truth of this complaint And what think we may the Cause be of the generall wickednes of our Times Surely nothing makes Ill Times but Ill men and nothing makes Ill men but Ill consciences Ill Conscience is the source and fountaine Hominum sunt istae non Temporum Sonec ep 98. from whence comes all iniquities which makes times here so ill How well should hee deserve that could amend ill times There is a course if it would be taken that would do the deed and so cease the common complaint Elisha's course in healing the waters of Iericho must be taken They said of their waters as wee of our times The water is naught and the ground barren 2 King 2. 19. What course now takes Elisha for healing of the waters He went out unto the spring of the waters and cast the Salt in there ver 21. So the waters were healed ver 22. The spring and fountaine of all actions good or evill is the Conscience and all actions courses of men are as their Consciences Out of the heart are the issues of life Prov. 4. 23. the heart and Conscience is the fountaine every action of a mans life is an Issue a little rivelet and a water passage thence Are these waters then that issue thence Naught The way to heale them Nō erit fructus bonus nisi arboris bonae Mutacor mutabitur opus Aug. de ver Dom. Serm. 12. is to cast the Salt into the spring Mend the Conscience and all is mended Good Consciences would make Good men and Good men would make Good Times Lo here a project for the reformation of evil times Were this Project set on foot and a good Conscience set up how should we see prophanation of Gods holy Name and Day Injustice Bribery Oppression Deceit Adulteries and Whoredomes and all other Iniquities how should wee see all these as our Savior saw Satan falling downe like lightning from heaven How should we see them come tumbling downe like so many Dagons before Gods Arke yea tumbled downe and broken to the stumps The onely Arke that must dash and ding downe these Dagons is a good Conscience And if we would well weigh the matter what is there equally desirable with a Ecce quid prodest plena bonisarca cum sit inanis
latitude within the compasse whereof I will bring both those forenamed and all other materiall points which this Protestation doth afford CHAP. II. Conscience described THe maine subject of this Protestation and the ayme of this following discourse being concerning a good Conscience for the more orderly handling thereof consider these specialls 1. What Conscience is 2. What a good Conscience is 3. How a good conscience may be gotten and kept The meanes of it 4. How a good Conscience may be knowne The marks of it 5. The Motives to get and keepe a good Conscience 1. What Conscience is It may be thus described Conscience is a power and faculty of the soule taking knowledge and bearing witnesse of all a mans thoughts words and actions and accordingly excusing or accusing absolving or condemning comforting or tormenting the same I know there be other definitions given by others more succinct and neat but I rather chuse this though it may be not altogether so formall to the rules of Art The rules of love and profit many times may make bold to dispence with rules of Art So I may be profitable I care the lesse to be artificiall It may suffice that this description is answerable to that Auditory for whose sake it was first intended A plaine familiar description agrees well enough with such a people For the better conceiving of it let it be taken in pieces and every parcell viewed severally It is a faculty or power of the soule It is therefore called the Heart 1 Ioh. 3. 20. If our heart condemne us Eccl. 7. 22. Thine own heart knows that thou thy selfe likewise hast cursed others that is thine own Conscience knowes It is also called the spirit of man 1 Cor. 2. 11. For what man knowes the things of a man save the spirit of man which is in him And Rom. 8. 16. The spirit it selfe beares witnesse with our spirit that is with our Conscience Not that Conscience is a spirit distinct from the subject of the soule as Origen mistooke but because it is a faculty of the soule therefore the name that is oft given to the soule is given to it If it be asked in what part of the soule this facultie is placed we must know that Conscience is not confined to any one part of the soule It is not in the understanding alone not in the memory will or affections alone but it hath place in all the parts of the soule and according to the severall parts thereof hath severall Offices or acts Taking Knowledge Eccl. 7. 22. Thine owne heart knowes Conscience is placed in the soule as Gods spy and mans superiour and overseer and inseparable companion that is with a man at all times and in all places so that there is not a thought word or worke that it knowes not and takes not notice of So that that which David speakes of God himselfe Psa 139. 3 4. Thou compassest my heart and my lying downe and art acquainted with all my wayes for there is not a word in my tongue but loe thou knowest it altogether Whither shall I goe from thy spirit If I ascend up to heaven c. The same may be also said of conscience Gods deputy it is acquainted w th al our waies not a motion in the mind nor a syllable in the mouth to which it is not privy yea it is thus inseparably present with us not only to see but also to set downe to register and to put downe upon Record all our thoughts words and works Conscience is Gods Notary and there is nothing passes us in our whole life good or ill which Conscience notes not downe with an indeleble character which nothing can raze out but Christs Nam quocuÌ„que me verto vitia mea me sequuntur ubicunque vado conscienscia mea me non deserit se praesens adsistit quicquid facio scribit Idcirco quaÌ„quam humana subterfugiam judicia judiciuÌ„ propriae cons â—ugere non valeo Et si hominibus celo quod egi mihi tamen qui novi maluÌ„ quod gessi celare nequeo Bern. de inter Com. cap. 31. bloud Conscience doth in this kind as Iob wishes in another Iob 19. 23 24. Oh that my words were now written Oh that they were printed in a booke That they were graven with an iron pen laid in the rock for ever Conscience prints and writes so surely so indelebly yea it writes mens sins as Iudah his sin was with a pen of iron with the point of a Diamond and they are graven upon the Table of their hearts Ier. 17. 1. Conscience doth in our pilgrimage as travellers in their journey it keepes a Diary or a journall of every thing that passes in our whole course it keepes a booke in which it hath a mans whole life pend In regard of this office conscience is placed in the memory and is the Register and Recorder of the soule And bearing witnesse This we find Rom. 2. 15. Their conscience also bearing witnesse Rom. 9. 1. My conscience also bearing me witnes 2. Cor. 1. 12. This testimony of our conscience And this the end of the former office of the conscience For therefore it is exact and punctuall in setting downe the particulars of a mans whole life that it may bee a faithfull witnesse either for him or against him For a faithfull witnesse cannot lie Prou. 14. 5. This office it is ready to doe at all times Peccata mea celare non possum quoniam quocuÌ„que vado coÌ„sc mea mecum est secum portans quod in ea posui sive bonum sive malum servat vivo restituet defuncto depositum quod servanduÌ„ accepit Bern. Med. de vot cap. 14. of triall affliction and most of all at the last day the day of iudgement when it shall be more solemnly called in to give in evidence Rom. 2. 15. 16. Their conscience bearing witnes c. In the day when God shall iudge secrets of men At that day it shall especially witnes either for or against a man if our life and actions have beene good it will then doe like the true witnesse Pro. 14 25. A true witnes delivers soules If wicked ungodly it will deale with it as Iob complaines God did with him Iob 10. 17. Thou renewest thy witnesse against me It will testifie according to every mans deeds And this testimonie of conscience is without all exception for in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word shall stand and conscience as our common saying is is a thousand witnesses for it is an eye-witnesse of all our actions yea a pen-witnes bringing testimonie from the authentique Records and Register of the Court of Conscience Concerning this testifying office of Conscience that place is worth the noting Esa 59. 12. For our transgressions are multiplied before thee our sins testifie against vs for our transgressions are with vs and as for our iniquities we know them By which place wee may know the
and will dog and haunt men so much the more Yea it deals like the blind men Math. 20. 31. who when the multitude rebuked them they cryed the more Now then when conscience growes thus clamorous and will not be silenced then they will stop their owne eares that if it will needs be prating it shall but tell a tale to a deafe man To this end men put a double tricke upon their consciences 1 Sauls trick Saul is vexed with an evill spirit what must be the cure seeke him out a minstrell Thus many when the cry of conscience is up betake them to their merriments and jollities They try whether the noise of the Harps and Viols and the roarings of good fellowes will not drowne the voyce and noise of conscience They will try whether the dinne of an Ale-house or the ratling and clattering of the Dice and Tables cannot deafe their eares against the clamours of conscience Thus doe many in the accusations of conscience give themselves wholly up to all manner of pleasures and delights that so their minds being taken up with them there might bee no leasure to give conscience any the least audience 2 Cains trick Cain had a mark of God upon him Gen. 4. 15. And what might that marke be Chrysostome thinks it was a continuall shaking and trembling of his Chrys in â— ep Cor. Hom. 7. body If that were his marke why might not that trembling come from the horrour of his guilty conscience following him with a continuall hue and and cry for murther and reproching him for a bloody murtherer How-ever no question but his conscience continually haunted him and the cry of blood was ever in his eares Now then what course takes he ye shall see Gen. 4. 17. That hee falls a building of Cities betakes himselfe to a multitude of imployments that the noise of the sawes axes and mallets might be lowder then the noise of his Conscience If Conscience bee out of quiet with them will not cease to urge and pinch them then have among their sheepe and oxen that their bleating and bellowing may keepe under the voice of conscience they do so possesse their heads and their thoughts and so overload them with much dealings in the world that there is no spare time wherein their eare can be free to heare the voice of conscience The clutter of their many businesses make too great a noyse for Conscience to have audience They deale with their consciences as the Ephesians dealt with Alexander Act. 19. 33. 34. And Alexander beckned with the hand and would have made his defence unto the people But when they knew that he was a Iew all with one voice about the space of two houres cryed out Great is Diana of the Ephesians If Alexander had had never so good lungs and strong sides hee might have strained his voyce till hee had crazed the organs of language and might have spoken till he had been hoarse againe before he could have beene heard to have spoken one syllable though he had spoken all the reason in the world Such a noise of an outragious bellowing multitude had bin almost enough to have drownd the voice of a Canon Thus deale men with their conscience if she but prepare to speak and give but a becke with the hand presently thrust themselves into a crowd of busines that may out-cry and over-cry the bawling noise therof It was an hideous noise that the shricking infants of Israel made when they were offred up alive in fire unto Moloch Now lest their parents bowels should earne with compassion and be affected with the shrickes of their poore babes therfore they had their drums and trumpets strucke up and sounded in the time of sacrifice to make such a noise that in no case the lamentable cryes of the infants should be heard The same trick do too many put upon their consciences if they will be clamouring they will have some Drum or other whose greater noise may deafe their eares from hearing the cries of conscience But alas what poore projects are these The time will come when men shall have neither pleasures nor profits neither delights nor businesse to stop their eares Though now men beate upon these Drum-heads and with the noise of their pleasures and profits keepe conscience voice under from being heard yet the day will come when God will beat out these Drum-heads and then the cries and horrid and hideous shrickes of conscience shall bee heard God will one day strip thee of all thy pleasures and imployments and will turne thee single and loose to thy conscience and it shall have full liberty to bait thee and bite thee at pleasure Oh how much better is it to be willing to hearken to the voice of Conscience here than to be forced to heare it in hell when the time of hearkning will be past and gone Hearken to it now and thou shalt not heare it hereafter Hearken to the admonitions and reproofes of it now and thus shall thou get Integrity here and shalt be free from hearing the dolefull clamours of it in hell hereafter 5. To get and keepe a good Conscience ever in cases of a doubtfull and questionable nature be sure to take the surest side Many things are of a questionable nature and much may bee said on either side in such cases if thou wouldst have a good Conscience take the surest side that side on which thou mayst be sure thou shalt not sinne As for example There be divers games and recreations whose lawfulnesse are questioned yet much may be said for them and possibly they may have the judgement of divers reverend and learned men for their lawfullnesse Now what shall a man doe in this case Take the sure side If I use them it is possible I may sinne it may be they are not sinnefull yet I am not so sure of it that I shall not sinne if I use them as I am sure I shall not sin if I doe not use them I am sure that not to use such sports breakes none of Gods commandements a man may bee bold to build upon that Tutiores igitur vivimus si totum Deo daraus non autem nos illi ex parte nobis ex parte committimus Aug. de dono persev cap. 6. He that lives by this rule shall keepe his Conscience from many a flaw He that sailes amongst Rockes it is possible hee may escape splitting but hee is not so sure to keep his vessell safe and whole as he that sailes in a cleare sea where no rocks are at all It is good in matter of life and practice to doe as Augustine speakes in case of doctrine Wee live more safely saith he if wee attribute all wholly to God and doe not commit our selves partly to God and partly to our selves In doctrines it is good to hold the safest side wherein there can be no danger yea Bellarmine himselfe after his long dispute for justification by
TVVO TREATISES THE ONE Of Good CONSCICNCE Shewing the Nature Meanes Markes Benefits and Necessitie thereof THE OTHER The mischiefe and misery of Scandalls both taken and given Both Published BY IER DYKE Minister of Gods Word at Epping in Essex The Sixth Edition corrected LONDON Printed by A. M. for Robert Milbourne 1635. GOOD CONSCIENCE OR A TREATISE SHEVVING THE Nature Meanes Markes Benefit and Necessitie thereof BY IER DYKE Minister of Gods Word at Epping in Essex The Sixth Edition corrected LVKE 10. 42. One thing is necessarie LONDON Printed by A. M. for Robert Milbourne 1635. TO THE RIGHT Worshipfull Sir FRANCIS BARRINGTON Knight and Baronet a Patron and pattern of Pietie and good Conscience RIGHT WORSHIPFVL THat which the Apostle Paul speakes of a mans desire of the office of a Bishop may be truly spoken of every one who desires to gaine men to the love of a good Conscience that hee desires a worthy Worke Yea it is the worke which is and ought to bee made the scope and drift of the worthy worke of the Ministery And therefore it is that he that desires the calling of the Ministerie desires a worthy worke because of this worthy worke of bringing mento Vnicuique liber est propria conscientia ad hunc librum discutiendū emendandum omnes alij inventi sunt Bern. de Cons good Conscience A worke at which all workes and books should specially ayme Conscience is a book one of those books that shall be opened at the last day and to which men shall be put and by which they shall be judged Therefore to the directing informing and amending of this booke should all other bookes specially tend Yea Salomon seemes to call men off from all other bookes and studies to the study of this so necessary a point the keeping of a good Conscience Of making many bookes saith he there is Eccles 12. 12 13. no end and much study is a wearinesse of the flesh Let us heare the conclusion of the whole matter Feare God and keep his Commandements for this is the whole dutie of man As if his advice tended to this to neglect all studies in comparison of that study which aimes at the getting keeping of a good Conscience It would be exceeding happy with us if this study were more in request amongst us Wee seeme to live in those dayes fore-told by the Prophet wherein the earth should bee filled with the knowledge of the Lord. We Isa 11. 9. are blessed that live in so cleare a Sunne-shine of Gods truth but yet the griefe is that through our owne default our Sun-shine is but like the winter light all light little or no heate and we make no other use of our light but onely to see by not to walke and work by In the first re-entrance of the Gospell amongst us how devout holy zealous and men renowned Antiqua sapientia nihil aliud quam facienda vitāda praecepit tūc longe meliores erant viri Postquā docti prodierunt boni desunt Simplex enim illa aperta virtus in obscuram solertem scientiam versa est docerumque disputare non vivero Seneo epist 56. Rom. 15. 14 for Conscience were our Martyrs and our first Planters Preachers professors of Religion They had not generally the knowledge and learning the world now hath nor the world now the Conscience they then had There bee now better Scholers there were then better Men they were as excellent for Devotion as our Times are for Disputation It is an excellent sight to see such Christians as were the Romanes Full of goodnesse filled with all Knowledge It is pitty that ever so lovely a paire should be sundred Yet if they be parted it is best being without that which with most safetie may be spared A good Conscience is sure to doe well though it want the accomplishment of Learning and greater measures of Knowledge and Vnderstanding But take Learning from a good Conscience and it is but a Ring of gold in a Swines snout or that which is worse A thorne in a Drunkards hand Learning Prov. 26. 9. is to bee highly apprized Riches Honours and all other earthly blessings are vile to it But yet though it take place of all other things yet must it give good Conscience the wall and upper-hand as that which is farre before it in worth vse and necessitie As Salomon of wisdome so may it be said of good Conscience Shee Prov. 3. 15. is more pretious than Rubies and all the things thou canst desire are not to be compared to her Gold and Rubies cannot so enrich a man as good Conscience doth and yet alas the blindnesse of men how willing are they in this case with a wilfull povertie Not Rubies but handfulls of Barley morsels of Bread and Crusts are preferred before the invaluable treasure of a good Conscience After the many worthy endeavours therefore of so many as have bin before me in this worke of labouring men to a good conscience I have adventured also to lend my weake strength to the same worke If one or two witnesses prevaile not yet who knows what an whole cloud may doe Though Eliah and Elisha bee the Horsemen and Chariots of Israel yet the Footmen do their service in the battell and Apollo may without offence water where Paul hath planted Now these my poore endeavours such as they are I am bold to publish under your Worshipfull name and to put them foorth under your Patronage entreating you to countenance that in a Treatise which you have so long countenanced in the practise None so fit to bee a Patron of a Treatise of good Conscience as he that hath bin a religious both professor protector of the practise therof To haue a Naile fastned in a sure place the antiquity Isa 22. 25. of a long standing Name and Family to be hewen out of the Quarry of the best Stocks of Parentage to have faire Lines and a faire lot in outward possessions to be blessed with a fruitfull Vine and Olive plants fairely growne and planted round about a man all these are to bee held high honors and great favours from the God of heaven And with all these hath the Lord honoured your selfe But yet your greatest honour that hath given lustre to all the rest hath bin your love to the Truth Religion and a good Conscience Augustine repented him that he attributed more to Mallius Theodorus to Displicetautē illic quod Mallio Theodoro adquem librumipsum scripsi quāvis docto Christiano viro plus tribui quam deberem Aug. Retr lib. 1. cap. 2. whom he wrote a booke than he should have done though otherwise hee were a learned and Christian man A man may easily overshoot himselfe in the commēdation of a good man especially if a great man It shall suffice therfore to have said so little and that to this end that hereby the World may know the reason of