Selected quad for the lemma: death_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
death_n	bring_v	lust_n	sin_n	9,234	5	6.5125	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A17330	Ten sermons vpon the first, second, third and fourth verses of the sixt of Matthew containing diuerse necessary and profitable treatises , viz. a preseruative against the poyson of vaine-glory in the 1 & 2, the reward of sincerity in the 3, the vncasing of the hypocrite in the 4, 5 and 6, the reward of hypocrisie in the 7 and 8, an admonition to left-handed Christians in the 9 and 10 : whereunto is annexed another treatise called The anatomie of Belial, set foorth in ten sermons vpon the 12, 13, 14, 15 verses of the 6 chapter of the Prouerbs of Salomon.	Burton, William, d. 1616.	1602 (1602)	STC 4178.5; ESTC S261	267,037	263

God but to his owne destruction Now thē when we haue by the grace of God found out the cause of our euill to be an euill heart in our selues we may truly say of our harts as Dauid did of Doeg and prophetically of Iudas Psalm 55.12 Surely mine enemy did not defame me but it was thou my familiar friend which was bred and borne with me euen thou my heart with whom I haue bene so familiar that hast wrought me the greatest part of my woe Of the same iudgement is the Apostle Iames Let no man say when he is tempted I am tempted of God for God cannot be tempted with euill neither tempteth he any man But euery man is tempted when he is drawne away by his owne concupiscence and is enticed Then when lust hath conceiued it bringeth forth sinne and sinne when it is finished bringeth forth death Erre not my deare brethren Where the Apostle plainely sheweth vs two things first that such is our impudencie shamelesse ignorance and presumptuous blind boldnesse by nature that rather then we will acknowledge our selues to be in fault and to be the cause of our owne euill we will not sticke to lay the fault vpon God and make him the cause of euill As our first parents did the woman blamed the serpent and the man blamed not simply the woman nor himselfe at all but the woman forsooth which God had giuen him Secondly that whosoeuer thinketh that God is the cause of his euill and not that his owne corrupt hart is wholly the cause thereof the force whereof is so great both to entice and draw vnto euill to conceiue and to bring foorth euill doth erre and is deceiued Hereof it commeth also that the word of God cannot enter into many it cannot fasten vpon their hearts because their hearts are full of leud things Like the Inne where Christ was borne there was no roome for him in the Inne and therefore he was faine to lye in the stable And in many though it enter yet it tarieth not but departeth away presently saying as Christ said when the Iewes sought after his life Arise let vs go hence as being vnwilling to lodge in so filthie a place and amongst his enemies And hence it is likewise that the Preachers words come out from many when they repeat a Sermon as Thamar did from Amnon when he had defiled her with her garments all rent and torne If pure wine be put into a filthy and vncleane vessell in powring it foorth againe it will appeare what stuffe was in the vessell for they come out together so if wholesome doctrine be deliuered to a leud heart in the rehearsing thereof it will appeare with what manner of vnderstanding and affection he heard it Such caskes do many bring with them to put our Sermons in that either runne out like Siues or else are defiled with ignorance or malice or preiudicate conceipts that it wold loth a man to heare it come from them For though it came to them in a princely robe yet it commeth from them like a beggers cloke yea though it came to them with a louely countenance yet it commeth from them like a filthie carrion dragged and haled in the miry streetes amongst dogges that a man would thinke the Preacher had bene out of his wits to deliuer such matter or in such manner as they vtter it or else which is the right that they wanted both wit and vnderstanding or grace or conscience or honestie or all that heard the Sermon to report it in such a leud manner But the best is the shame turneth to themselues and no bodie is so much defiled with such hearts as the owners thereof So saith our Sauiour Christ Those things which proceede out of the mouth come from the heart and they defile the man for out of the heart come euill thoughts murders adulteries fornications false testimonies slanders these are the things which defile the man meaning him that is troubled with them as if he did but vomite vpon his owne clothes that speaketh from a filthie heart And verily they are but fooles that do so for what wise man will carrie one with him still that shameth him wheresoeuer he goeth A leud vnreformed hart is such an vnmanerly companion that doth nothing else but discredite our persons deface our religion grieue our friends harden our foes aduance the Diuell prouoke the Lord marre all the good things that come neare it and alwaies annoy shame and vexe the owner Lot had much ado with the Sodomites but none did more dishonour him then his owne daughters Noah was vexed with the old world but none did him so much shame as his owne sonne Dauid had many enemies but none put him in such feare and danger as his owne Absalom Sampson had much ado with the Philistines but his owne heifter his wife ploughed vp his riddle to the aduantage of his enemies Our Sauiour Christ had many enemies yet none like Iudas who was alwaies in his companie So euery man yea euery true Christian shall haue many enemies crosses troubles and dangers but his owne heart is his greatest enemie which doth flatter him most and deceiue him soonest which for want of godlinesse cannot be content with that it hath which for want of contentation cannot be in quiet for want of quietnesse cannot haue any ioy of any thing that it enioyeth which for want of heauenly wisedome cannot deuide his times aright nor tell how to deale with all sorts of people which for want of patience cannot beare an iniurie or put vp a wrong for want of mercifull affections cannot tell how to forgiue offences for want of charitie cannot tel how to construe things well for want of the feare of God cannot haue a good vnderstanding for want of a good vnderstanding peruerteth the straight waies of the Lord which for want of humilitie cannot see the meaning of Gods wayes which for want of a lowly affection cannot tell how to seeke peace for want of Gods grace cannot acknowledge his fault and for want of remorse of conscience cannot repent him of his leudnesse Such a heart is the heart of the wicked Belial which being fraught with leud things disordereth distempereth and shameth all the life of that man that hath it and is ruled by it And so much for the third point in handling whereof we haue seene that all the cause of outward disorder and trouble is within a mans owne hart of the other three points in the next Sermon Now let vs pray THE VI. SERMON PRO. 6.14 Leud things are in his heart OVt of these words ioyned with the rest of Belials description we haue hitherto learned three excellent and worthy points of doctrine First that Belial is no better within then without Secondly that the heart and whatsoeuer is in the heart of man is knowne to God who will also iudge a man according to that which is

some to Noblemen some to Gentlemen some to Lawyers some to Bishops and some to their officers and all retaining to great men in the world that they should be spared for their maisters sake which partiall dealing may well befound in the world but in the word it cannot be for the word of God is of that largenesse that it compasseth all of that brightnesse that it discouereth all of that maiesty that it astonisheth all of that power that it apprehendeth all and of that authority that it commandeth all Neither can any sinne or sinnes withall the shiftes and deuises in the world escape the power and censure of that word which hath once spoken the word and proclaimed it to all the world that whatsoeuer is done in secret shall be preached on the house top that is shall be made knowne to all the world Therefore thinke it not strange good brethren if you find your selues touched and rifled too when you heare a Sermon for the word of the Lord being deuided aright will do both Say not as Achab sayd to Eliah Hast thou found me ô my enemy when your secret and deare sinnes are by the power of the word rightly handled and applied by your Pastour or whosoeuer else for God hath found you out as he did find out Adam hidden amongst the trees of the garden or else we should haue lost our selues for euer and therefore let vs be thankfull to his Maiesty for so great a mercy for it is great indeed and not be angry with his ministers who do but hold vs the glasse while we see therein our spots Neither say you as the proud Iewes did to Ieremy This is not the word of the Lord which Ieremy speaketh but he speaketh as Baruch the sonne of Neriah prouoketh him For it is the nature of the word to tell you all that you haue done as Christ told the woman of Samaria Againe here we may further obserue how great sins and small sins are knit together as great theeues and little theeues lye all in one prison go all in one line stand all at one barre and haue all one maner of triall where we are to note that Gods Spirit is not so carefull to sift out the lesser offences of men but the greater also For as he is the Iudge of all men so he dealeth vprightly in equity with all men and not as the Scribes and Pharisees nor as their Apes the Papistes who straine gnattes and swallow camels while they vrge the tithing of mint and cummin and rew and let the weightier matters of the law go by who make the breaking of a Popish ceremony or dirty traditions of men a mortall sinne but neuer vrge matters of substaunce either in matters of faith or manners Neither are Gods lawes like the Spiders webbe that catcheth onely little flies but like the net that taketh the Lion as well as the Hare which straightnesse and vprightnesse bewraieth the crookednes of men For first how contrarie to Gods course is the practise of Antichrist and Papists For how precise are they in the searching out of toyes and trifles ceremoniall and circumstantiall things and punishing men for the omission of them But for the profaning of the Sabboth for the insufficiency of vnpreaching Ministers for the contempt of Gods word and such like things they are not so precise nay scarse do they account of them as of sinnes This also reproueth many professours of the Gospell which will seeme to make a conscience of many matters of lesse moment in others and dispence with very foule abuses as of swearing gaming c. both in themselues and in their families Whereby all of vs are to be admonished to take that course that Gods Spirite taketh here and that is to be as zealous agaynst one sinne as against another and to bend our force against the greatest as well as against the least and to pull out as well the beames as the motes out of our owne eyes as well as out of other mens And so much for the doctrine that ariseth of the coherence or ioyning of this text with the rest of the Chapter Now let vs pray THE II. SERMON PROV 6.12 The vnthrifty man or the man of Belijal and the wicked man or the man of vanity IN the former Sermon we haue heard to what end this description of a wicked man is made and how far we may go in iudging him Now let vs cōsider of his marks by which he is known as the Leopard by his spots and the blacke Moore by his skin And first of his names and they be two The first is Adam Belijahall the second is Ish-auen which in our English Bibles are translated the vnthrifty man and the wicked man the wordes in the originall text are more significant Adam Belijahall is a phrase whereby the Hebrewes do vse to note out a dissolute and loose man a lawlesse person without a yoake that giueth himselfe to do what he list and is not vnfitly translated an vnthrifty man ab effectis from the effects of lawlesnesse because such commonly neuer thriue nor come to any good end So is this word Belial taken in diuerse other places of the Scripture as in Deut. 13.13 Wicked men are gone out from among you meaning children of Belial as they are called in the originall These like lawlesse persons haue drawne away saith the text the inhabitants of their city vnto other Gods So likewise is it taken in the 19. of Iudges verse 22. where it is sayd That as the Leuite and his wife were making merry at an old mans house who gaue them entertainment in their iourney the men of the city euen men of Belial sayth the text meaning dissolute and lewd persons giuen to all wickednesse beset the house round about and smote at the doore and enforced the old man the maister of the house to bring foorth his guest vnto them where most villanously they abused the Leuites concubine all night vnto death In like sort it is taken in the first of Samuel 2. Chapter 12. vers where it is sayd that the sonnes of Ely were men of Belial that is giuen to all wickednesse In this sence it is vsed also or abused rather in the 2. of Samuel chap. 16. ver 7. where that cursed Shimei being a man of Belial himselfe doth most vndutifully raile vpon King Dauid his Lord and Soueraigne saying Come foorth thou man of bloud and man of Belial And in the new Testament it is also so taken in the 2. to the Corin. the 6. Chap. and 15. vers where the Apostle saith What fellowship is there betwixt Christ and Belial That is there is no fellowship betwixt Christ and lawlesse persons that are giuen to wickednesse And thus were dissolute persons called among the Iewes The Lord calleth such a kind of persons A stiffe necked people in Exod. 32.9 Alluding to vntamed oxen which will not vnlesse

lawlesse behauiour This shall be a great comfort to the godly to remember how they haue striuen against their headstrong affections and being foiled and cast downe somtime haue risen againe by Gods renewing grace and walked afterward more circumspectly when the wicked shall find nothing but horrour and horrible desperation because they haue made a continual practise art as it were of swimming giuing themselues ouer wholy like slaues vnto sinne as vnto a cruell tyrant whose crueltie neuer appeareth vntill the day of reckning cometh to pay men their wages The fruit of this tree is faire in shew but in tast most bitter for what else is it but feare shame and death eternall Rom. 6. And indeede the custome of any sinne is very dangerous the continuall driuing at the wedges at length driue them home to the head and so the great oke is spoiled and broken in peeces by continuall dropping of raine the hard flint is worne hollow by continuall blowing the fire is made to flame out by continuall going great iournies are gone and a great way is to be gone backe againe by continuall leaking the shippe is sunke at the length by continuall wooing the suter speedeth at length by continuall walking in the Sunne the face is Sun-burnt at the length by continuall digging Castles are vndermined great pits are made and high mountaines are cast vp Yea what should I say more nothing but vse and custome doth make men perfect and expert in any thing they go about Custome and vse hath made euen those fashions which at the first seemed very vgly and abhominable to become in account very good and commendable And if a man doth accustome himselfe to any thing which is hard and against the mind at the first at last by long vse and custome he shall find a certaine easinesse yea a felicity and dexterity in it how much more shall we find the like in any sinne which we do accustome our selues vnto the pleasures and allurements whereof be so fitting vnto our natures and dispositions yea doubtlesse he that hath accustomed himselfe vnto any sinne whether it be of swearing or whoredome or drunkennesse or hastinesse or whatsoeuer else he shall in time find it as easie a matter to be perswaded to cut his throate or to cut off his right hand or to pull out his eyes or to be nailed vnto a post or to haue his bowels pulled out of his belly as to be perswaded to leaue that sinne whereunto he hath accustomed himselfe as soone shall he cease to desire drinke when he is in extremity of thirst as to cease from that sinne and sinfull path wherein he hath vsed to walke Can a blacke Moore change his skin or a Leapord his spots saith Ieremy No more can this people do well which haue accustomed themselues all dayes of their life to do euill The former is a thing impossible in nature and so is the latter too and therefore let no man accustome himselfe to do euill nor to walke in any lewd path but returne betimes or else at last the way will seeme so long and the iourney so tedious that must be gone backe againe that he will rather sit downe or go on still desperatly then go backe againe yea custome is another nature and taketh away the very sence and feeling of sinne But if any man hath walked in any dangerous custome and would be rid of such a haunting spirite and dangerous customer let him resolue with himself to endure much striuing and fighting and much paine and many blowes and buffetings of Sathan and therefore must be very earnest with God by continuall prayer for the creating of a new heart and renewing of a right spirite within him But most wretched are those fooles and monstrous is the folly of them who instead of fearing the custome of sinne and praying vnto God for grace against it do take it as a sufficient plea and defence for themselues being admonished to leaue their sin to say Sir it is my custome you must beare with me yea accompt it a grace vnto them to do as the custome hath beene of their forefathers though it be neuer so wicked Againe further we are to note that euen in outward shew there is great difference between the wicked and the godly least we condemne the iust and the innocent causelesse The godly seem sometime to speak frowardly when it is indeede earnestly and zealously for Gods glorie The wicked for the most part are crosse when they speak most faire and vtter words most smooth which formally they can do at their pleasure per artem adulandi by the art of flattering then are they most dangerous like Ioab who in saluting and embracing slue his brother Abner and like Iudas the traitour who with a kind kisse in shew betraied his Maister Christ. The godly are most moued for the glorie of God the wicked are most moued for their owne glorie like Naman who was in a chafe because the Prophet came not out vnto him And as touching the Minister of the word who many times hath iust occasion to thunder out the iudgements of God against obstinate sinners he seemeth vnto men of peruerse and froward conditions who list not to see others otherwise then they are themselues nor to muse but as they vse to such I say the Minister of Gods word seemeth to speake of malice and bitternesse and by way of reuenge for some old grudge as they say and to deale frowardly with his people when in zeale and earnestnesse he crieth aloud to awake men out of their dead sleepe and cutteth and launceth them to cut out their festered corruption but surely they are deceiued Reprehension indeed hath a sting as the saying is which is not very toothsome but it is very wholesome and it is not doctrine but wholesome doctrine saith Paule to Timothy which men cannot endure The father seemeth to be out of patience with his child when he seuerely rebuketh and correcteth him but then is he most tender ouer him and carefull for his good So the fathers of our soules seeme to be our enemies when they sharply rebuke vs for our sinnes but then they loue vs most and are most desirous or at least should be that we might be saued Am I Paule become your enemie because I tell you the truth saith the Apostle to the Galathians to shew that if we tell men the truth without flattery we shall be counted their enemies The more I loue saith the same Apostle to the same people the lesse am I loued to shew that true spirituall loue will procure vs hatred And what other account will the world make of vs if we deale plainly with them for their soules health but as of babling fooles and mad men Ieremy was counted a contentious person Ezechi●ls Sermons we reckned of but as of a fidlers song What will this babler say sayd some of

same condition is to the iust and to the wicked 12. Neither doth man know his time but as the fishes which are taken in an euill net and as the birdes so are the children of men snared in the euill time when it falleth vpon them suddenly Yet this difference remaineth between the wicked and the godly whensoeuer wheresoeuer or howsoeuer they be suddenly taken to the godly death is a vantage to the wicked it is a losse for then the one changeth his hellish earth for heauen and the other then changeth his earthly heauen for hel and therefore of the godly sort it is said commonly that they sleepe when they die as Christ sayd of Lazarus he is not dead but sleepeth but of the other it is said that they perish and are destroyed The one shall recouer the other shall neuer recouer Without recouerie desperate is that disease that will neuer be recouered fearefull indeed is that estate which is alwaies feareful The wicked man dreameth of long life and repentance at the last gaspe but what promise hath he of repentance at that time if he despise the long suffering of God al his life long and neglect or abuse the meanes of repentance or what charter hath he of his life one houre longer then he doth now liue God may and will no doubt haue mercy vpon whom he will but yet that he will haue mercie vpon thee that goest on stil in thy wickednesse without any feare of wandring or any desire of returning is more then thou knowest He that doth so is threatned with the contrarie for custome of sin saith S. Paul breedeth impenitencie and impenitencie maintaineth custome in sin and both do heape vp wrath against the day of wrath and the reuelation of the iust iudgement of God Why did not Cain and Iudas and Elymas and Ananias and Saul and Esau diuers others repent that they might haue bene saued If it had bene in their power when they had listed as miserable Papistes dreame doubtlesse they would haue repented for they were as vnwilling no doubt to be damned in hell as any other but wicked Balaam knew and confessed that the end and death of the righteous is so blessed that it is to be wished of all men No no for the most part it falleth out otherwise then men looke for in stead of repenting and confessing their sinnes they lie rauing and cursing and blaspheming and talking leudly of their wickednes lying like blockes and dying like beasts that so Gods prouerbe here may be verified vpon them he is destroyed suddenly without recouerie And howsoeuer it be that God is good to Israel and mercifull to those that call vpon his name in truth of heart and faith in Christ which feare his name and keepe his couenant which are displeased with themselues and breake off their wickednes by righteousnesse as it is in Daniel yet is he most wise and seuere against the obstinate and lawles against their faces he hath set his bow and prepared his instruments of warre vpon their heads will he raine fire and brimstone and stormes and tempests and snares this shall be their portion to drinke yea and as Iob saith When wickednesse is sweete in his mouth and lie hidden vnder his tongue when he sauoured it and will not forsake it but keepe it close in his mouth then his meate in his bowels shall be turned the gall of Aspes shall be in the middest of him he hath deuoured substance and he shall vomit it out for God shall draw it out of his belly He shall sucke the gall of aspes the vipers tongue shall slay him he shall not see the riuers nor the flouds and streames of hony and butter he shall restore the labour and shall deuoure no more for he hath vndone many he hath forsaken the poore and destroyed houses that he builded not Surely he shall feele no quietnesse in his bodie there shall be none of his meate left therefore shall none hope for his goods In abundance he shall be filled with paine and the hands of all the wicked shall be against him when he is about to fill his belly God shall raine vpon him his meat in his fierce wrath He shal flie from the iron weapons and the bow ef steele shall strike him through The arrow shall be drawne out of his body it shall shine of his gall and so shall feare come vpon him All darknenesse shall be in all his secret places the fire that is not kindled shal deuoure him that which remaineth in his tabernacle shal be destroyed The heauen shall declare his wickednes and the earth shal rise vp against him the increase also of his house shal go away it shal flee away in the day of the Lords wrath Lo this is the portion of the wicked man from God and the heritage of God for his words If then this be the portion of the wicked man from God what reason haue the wicked to hope for saluation and not to feare destruction how can he imagine that he should recouer when the hand of the Lords wrath shall thus cast him downe if not in this life then not at all For from hell there is no redemption meaning for those that are there And as the tree falleth saith the Preacher so shall it lie therefore both falsly and wickedly do the Papists talke of helping and releeuing mens soules by their Dirges and Masses and Mattens and I wot not what else after their departure out of this life Falsly I say because they crosse the course of the Scripture in broching such an errour and wickedly because by such kind of vaine and false hope they do strengthen the hands of the wicked that they care not for repenting in this life neither do they regard the iudgements of the Lord when they are threatned because they hope to be releeued and released for their money when they are dead Therfore is that fire which shal deuoure the wicked called vnquenchable which it were not if dirges and other popish dirt or any thing else in the world could quench it Some kind of fire is quenched with water some with vineger and some with milk but nothing wil quench Topheth which is prepared of old saith the Prophet euen for the King the Lord hath made it large and wide the burning thereof is fire and much wood the breath of the Lord like a riuer of brimstone doth kindle it And if his wrath be once kindled yea but a little happy are they that kissed the Sonne of God before he was angrie and blessed are all they that put their trust in him for as by faith in his bloud they quench the firie darts of Sathan here so by the same faith shall they and do they quench those firie flames of hell which shall burne torment the wicked and vnbeleeuers for euermore Therefore if any here are or haue bene such as haue bene described by

the Anatomie of Belial that is loose lawlesse prophane vaine froward leud surmising suspitious and contentious let them seeke vnto the Lord by timely and vnfained repentance let them embrace righteousnesse and true holinesse and so mercie shall embrace them let them forsake their loosenesse their prophaneness their leudnes and their vanities and by a liuely faith working by loue take hold of Christ as of the hornes of Gods altar and and so assuring themselues of Gods loue in the merites of Christ they may escape this irrecouerable destruction or else not for otherwise my text saith that they shall be destroyed speedily suddenly and without recouerie Many vses may profitably be made of this doctrine but before we come to them I thinke it not amisse to meet with certaine obiections that may be made by Atheists and scoffers against this that hath bene said yea and which do many times arise in the minds of Gods deare children through the weaknesse of their faith in extremity of grieuous temptations sore afflictions Which obiections forasmuch as I find them moued and sufficiently answered by many learned and godly but especially by that excellent learned noble man of France Mornay du Plessy in his booke of the trunesse of religion I wil put them downe euen as he hath done and for answere vnto them will briefly shew you the substance and effect of his answeres supposing them to be so full and sufficient to the purpose that nothing can well be added vnto them to more purpose or of more sufficiency surely whatsoeuer others can I freely confesse my ignorance I see not what I can The first obiection is this if God be iust in his threatnings and that the wicked shall be destroyed and haue such a portion of plagues as hath bene shewed out of Iob. 20 and other places of Scripture then why haue they so much good and the godly so much euill here To this his answere is that if by good we meane riches honour health c. the question is absurd for godlinesse and vertue is the true good The pouerty of Lazarus being a vertuous man is better then the wealth of the rich man the sicknes of a wise man with his wisedom is better then the health of a foole What goods soeuer a man hath he cannot be a good man so long as he him selfe is euil and these outward things are common to good and bad If a man must be termed a good man for hauing these goods then a foole may be termed a wise man in a rich gowne All these false goods are meanes to the wicked to make them worse and worse and riches to corrupt them and others authoritie to do violence health doth make them lustie to do mischiefe so the euils which men terme euils are meanes to the good to make them better as pouertie serueth to bridle lust basenesse to humble them incumbrances to driue them to God and to teach them to succor others But why are these goods common Surely because God cannot be but good insomuch as he maketh his raine to fall and his Sunne to shine vp all A father that keepeth his heritage for his sonne will not apparell him like a slaue in his seruants liueries Princes make their pay common to al souldiers but the garland is giuen to the valiantest Kings cast their largesse at all aduenture among the people but their honors and dignities they bestow on them whom they do specially fauour So God for his honor will not reward the trauels of his seruants with trifles God being liberall and iust will reward thee according to his honour and not according to the basenes of thy heart and that for two causes First because he regardeth not thy workes but his owne in thee Secondly because the reward is not giuen according to thy desert but according to the worthinesse of him that bestoweth it Alexander the great told a seruitour in his warres that a hundreth crownes were inough for him to receiue but not for the Emperour to giue Corne and foode and rayment and money c. are things common to all not peculiar to his children therefore beg not these as the best giftes But what are the goods then that good men haue in this life Many and excellent first they haue grace to make their life allowable to God that knoweth them Secondly in him they repose themselues Thirdly they haue peace in their consciences for if God increase not their present estate they abate their desires Their foes commend their vertues all the world bemoneth their wants those which haue the distributing of goods and honours are blamed for not considering them Lastly the very asking of that question be thou a Christian or a Heathen is vnto them an inestimable treasure If God would not giue me more why haue I forgone those which I had Surely because he saw that if he had not taken them from thee they wold haue taken thee frō him We pluck kniues frō children when they cry to haue them we suffer the Phisition to take from vs our meats which we loue and to abridge vs of our pleasures yea and our of bloud too because he hath seen our water or felt our pulse And shal not God that made vs and gouerneth vs and knoweth best our state what is good for vs haue that honor liberty ouer vs which Phisitions haue Another obiection is this if it be true that the wicked shall be destroyed speedily sodainly and without recouery how is it true that Salomon saith in his booke of the Preacher Chap. 7.17 I haue seene a iust man perish in his righteousnesse and a wicked man continue long in his malice And to this agreeth in shew the complaint of the Prophet The righteous perisheth and noman regardeth it in heart and mercifull men are taken away It should seeme that this plague threatned against the wicked taketh place vpon the godly for they perish and are taken away in their righteousnesse The answere to this is not hard for death is but the common passage and what skils it whether we passe it by sea or by land by our own corruption or by the corruptnes of common weales And if God bring his children to that point for one fault and the iudge for another what iniustice is in God Oh what a thing were it if we could see what fruite the Lord draweth out of their death The child that seeth his father tread grapes blameth him for it thinking they should be kept not conceiuing to what end the treading serueth but the father who knoweth the goodnesse of them better then the child considereth that within two moneths they would wither and drie away and therefore to preserue the vertue of them treadeth them when the child commeth to discretion he museth at his owne folly and yet as then he thought himself wiser then his father After the same maner doth the child when