leads to it this is a necessary consequence of that grief hatred of sin for if thou be'st heartily sorry for the evil committed and dost truly detest it thou wilt also have a will to avoid it if not 't is most evident that thou hast neither sorrow nor aversion This contrition to be perfect and effectual must have four conditions it must be interiour Supernatural universal and Sovereign It must be interiour I mean from the heart for the outward expression of grief is at best but a complement and a meer illusion whereby many poor Souls are basely deceiv'd and utterly ruin'd Deut. 4. The heart must be sensibly touch'd with compunction it must be an act of the will thou must convert thy self to God with all thy heart and seek for him with the sorrow and tribulation of thy Soul See how I reprehended the Pennance of the Jews Scindite cordis vestra non vestimenta vestra ait Dominus Joel 2. they made great exteriour signs even to rent their cloths but they were not at all mov'd in their hearts and therefore I told them by my Prophet that they should convert themselves to me with all their hearts in tears and lamentations and that they should tear their hearts and not their garments Both Scripture and Reason does manifest this truth that this sorrow for thy Sins must be lodg'd in thy heart and as thy will was the principal cause of thy Sin so it must be the chief actor in thy sorrow Thy heart must renounce the evil which it has willfully committed and detest the sin which it had formerly affected Thy Grief must issue from a supernatural motive and the reason of it is that an action purely natural cannot be a condign satisfaction to me for thy mortal transgression of my positive commandment thou mayst see by the sorrow of Saul who did not grieve for his sin but for the loss of his Kingdom which God had resolv'd to take from him to give it to a more faithful and obedient servant Antiochus's sorrow was grounded upon the like motive for he did not weep for his sins but by reason of his great misfortunes Afflictions may indeed stir up a Sinner to return to God but they shall never be able to reclaim him from his wickedness without my Grace To obtain which he must detest his sins because they are infinitely offensive to God and a great obstacle to his own Salvation these are supernatural motives without which thy contrition will signify nothing in order to receive the grace of God Thy grief must be also sovereign that is most powerful And the reason for it is that it 's not enough to detest Sin upon a supernatural motive but that this motive must overrule all other that come into thy minde and rather detest sin by reason of the damage it brings to thy Salvation or the injury done to God thereby then for any natural evils which it may produce and be ready to suffer them all rather then commit one mortal Sin This is what Divines call detesting Sin Supra omne detestabile that is to detest it more then all which in the world is capable to stir up thy hatred and detestation In fine Ezech. 18. thy grief must be universal as to all mortal sins without excepting any 't is therefore I order'd my Prophet to tell my People that they must do Pennance for all the Sins which they had committed and if the Sinner shall do Pennance for all his Sins he shall live The reason of it is that mortal Sins cannot be remitted but totally not one without the rest for if thou shouldst reserve an affection for one mortal Sin tho' thou shouldst have an abhorrence against all the rest thou art still an enemy to God and a worthy object of his highest displeasure By this thou mayst perceive how grossly they are mistaken who pretend to be perfectly contrite and yet refuse to pardon injuries to be reconcil'd to their Enemies to restore unlawful goods to avoid the immediate occasions of Sin In a word all those that have any wilful tye to any particular sin shall have the same measure from my hands as Antiochus had for their Pennance as well as his is but imaginary MAN O My most mercifull Lord have pitty upon me and let my poor Soul partake of the wonderful effects of thy great clemency I acknowledge now the great evil which I have done now I see the grievousness of my Sins now I see how few have that true and perfect contrition which is so necessary to Salvation seeing they relapse into their habitual offences so soon and so easily for had they that great sorrow for their Sins they would be certainly more vigilant to avoid them then to prevent the greatest of all misfortunes They would be also more eager to set a stop to the dangerous currant of venial Sins since they are the preludes of a vicious habit and that by degrees they bring us to make nothing of mortals for they do notably diminish the lights of our understanding the sincerity of our minde is overclouded by them our heart over-rul'd the strength of grace and the vigour of virtue made weaker our Soul disorder'd and laid open to all evil impressions 'T is true they don't destroy sanctifying grace but they dispose us very much to lose it All together they don't make a mortal sin but they dispose the Soul to fall into it They don't directly cause death but they create those spiritual weaknesses maladies which bring death with them In a word tho' venial Sins don't break the league and unity betwixt God and the Soul which is grounded upon that happy foundation of grace yet inperceptably they diminish it and by this diminution Charity is weaken'd in us and God by degrees withdraws from us the chief favours of his assistance in all our spiritual necessities consequently having less strength we fall more easily into mortal Sin when we are assaulted by any temptation By this I may easily conclude that whoever is careless to avoid venial sins has not a sufficient abhorrence of mortals for there is nothing so venial but may be through an immoderate complacency dissolution or recreation become of the number of mortals and perhaps of the most capital Sins How then is it possible for those that continue whole hours nay from morning till night in Taverns and Tipling-houses Ranting Drinking Vae qui cogitatis inutile Mich. 2. Vae vobis qui ridetis quia flebitis Dancing and other such like dissolutions to be excus'd from mortal Sins since that God threatens with a woe even those who think of unprofitable things He does the same to those that place all their consolation and felicity in Riches As also to those that in any thing belonging to nature take pleasure to excess Ah! Vae vobis divitibus qui habetis consolationem vestram Et vae vobis qui saturati estis Luk. 6
necessary things and that he is firmly resolv'd to break off with Vice C. P. 52. How a Sinner by his frequent relapse into Sin may reasonably fear he never was really contrite for his Sins C. p. 56. That a Sinner must fix his hope in God of whose mercy he can't despair without a mortal offence C. p. 57. The nature and necessary conditions of a true and perfect contrition p. 60. The fatal consequences of Venial Sins and how by degrees they bring a Man to commit Mortals C p. 65. The greatness of Gods Love for Man is a most pressing motive to a sorrowful contrition M. p 67. The means which God was pleas'd to take in order to redeem Mankind is another pressing motive to a sorrowful contrition M. p. 71. What Christ has suffer'd from his Cradle to the Cross was only for the love of Man M. p. 74. His Death and Passion should breed in our hearts a mortal hatred and abhorrence of Sin M. p. 78. Several other Considerations upon the same subject able to move even a Heart of Steel to love God above all Creatures M. p. 82. The benefits of our Justification lays a weighty obligation on us to love God with all our hearts p. 88. Several other deep considerations of the same benefit Mp. 91. The manifold disasters and miseries occasion'd by Sin and how we are happily deliver'd from 'em all by the benefit of our Justification M. p. 95. The manifold and wonderful advantages of a Justifi'd Soul M. p. 99. The benefit of our Justification exceeds that of our Creation and Redemption M. p. 103. The certainty of Death and th'uncertainty of the hour of Death with the several and dreadful circumstances thereof is a most pressing motive to detest Sin M. p. 106. The particular Judgment which is given of the Soul at her departing the Body M. p. 114. How dreadful will the sight of her Judge be to her and what anguishes she shall suffer at her Trial M. p. 120. Of the most strict account which will be taken of the Soul in this particular Judgment M. p. 126. How remote is the Judgment of God from that of Man and of the severity of his Chastisements even in this Life by which we may easily conceive th'unspeakable rigour of his punishments in th' other M. p. 133. Of the Torments which the Damn'd suffer in Hell M. p. 140. Of the Glory of Heaven in what it consists of its great estimate and what we ought to suffer for the everlasting purchase thereof M. p. 148. Of th'everlasting happiness of the Saints in Heaven and of their glorious Prerogatives M. p. 162. The little value that Christians set upon Vertue and how their dissolutions surpass the debauchery even of the worst of Heathens M. p. 173. The Godly feelings and Heroick exploits of Heathen Philosophers will certainly confound the Christians in the Day of Judgment M. p. 188. Of Hell and of th'unspeakable and various Torments which the Damn'd shall suffer there for an Eternity M. p. 201 Of the severity of Gods Justice the rage and malice of the Devils and the horrid confusion of the Damn'd occasion'd by the full Knowledge of their Vanities main Folly and wilful neglect of their Salvation M. p. 217. The wonderful Austerities of Gods Servants as well in the Old as in the New Testament in order to avoid the Torments of Hell will be a main confusion to such Christians as live deliciously in this World M. p. 226. If men be so outragiously cruel one to th' other how excessive cruel must the Devil be to the Damn'd in Hell being a professed enemy to all mankind even from the Creation M. p. 234. An habitual Sinner that puts off his Conversion to the hour of Death in expectation of a good Peccavi lies under a moral impossibility to be sav'd M. p. 248. The Love of God should replenish our hearts to that degree to leave no place for any terrene or carnal affection M. p. 266. An ample description of th'ingratitude inconstancy treachery cruelty and vanity of the World with several presidents relating thereunto M. p. 278. The Lust of the Flesh with its fatal attendance and branches are most abominable in themselves most odious to God and the most destructive enemies of our Souls M. p. 293. Th' only thing that the Nobility should value themselves upon is Vertue how vain is the Wisdom of the World Of Corporal Beauty and Rich Apparel and how th' one as well as th' other has been the ruine of many Millions of Souls M. p. 310. That the State of Poverty is far more advantageous to the Soul than that of Riches though it may not be so pleasant to the mind which is never content M. p. 327. The Charming expressions of Christ and the several employments he takes upon himself in order to save our Souls are able to withdraw all our scatter'd affections from the World and settle them upon him alone M. p. 346. That the World is both a Cheat and a Lyar for his Promises ars false his Honours are vain his Pleasures are Poyson and his Treasures are Soul-Killing Thorns M. p. 368. That they who after all Gods sweet Inspirations loving Invitations and gracious Admonitions do not love him reciprocally shall be in danger of eternal Destruction M. p. 384. A Check to Man p. 391. A Check to the Christian Man p. 395. A Check to the Religious Man p. 402. A Wholesom Advice to Mankind in general p 410. Errata P. 10. L. ult R. remit P. 26. M N. R. hac P. 249. L. 4. R. double P. 254. M. N. R. transiit messis P. 255. M. N. R. quo P. 259. L. 12. R. axiom P. 265. L. 27. R. Prophet P. 271. L. 13. R. no more P. 315. M. N. R. putredini p. 329. L. 26. R. not P. 336. L. 8. R. the. P. 344. L. 27. R. be P. 352. L. 18. R. so P. 368. L. 22. R. doorkeeper P. 371. L. 6. R. martial P. 374. L. 17. R. Micheas P. 376. L. 21. R. were P. 384. L. 6. R. as A Dialogical Discourse betwixt the Saviour and Man wherein all Souls desirous of the Love of God are copiously suppli'd with means powerfull to attain it and to gain the happy accomplishment of their Salvation MAN SPeak O Lord for thy Servant hears thee 1. Reg. 3. grant me a right Understanding to know thy ways and lead my will to walk therein let the sacred Dew of thy divine Inspirations flow down from thy heavenly Throne into my obdurate Heart Psal 118. that I may more easily observe thy Commands and steer my course directly without any Remora towards the Region of everlasting Bliss Loquere tâ— nobis audiemus non loquatur nobis Dominus ne â—orte moriamur Exod. 20. for which thou didst Create my Soul Heretofore the Children of Israel would have Moises only speak to them not thou O Lord fearing thy words might strike such a terrour to their Hearts
These are my familiars O Lord wherewith I have so often displeas'd thee rebellious ungrateful and perfidious creature as I am I have been created to thy Image and likeness but alas by my Sins I have made my Soul most like unto the Devils those monsters of ingratitude By my Sins I have often renew'd the bitter Death and Passion of Jesus thy beloved Son Quis dabit Capitimeo aquam oculis meis fontem lachrimarum plorabo die ac nocte Jer. 9.1 O how can I worthily deplore so great an evil who will give water to my head a fountain of tears to my eyes to lament both night and day my misery and malice To have contributed to thy death O Lord is of all other motives the most powerful to replenish my minde with grief and sorrow and therefore do desire to hear from thy self the particulars of it SAVIOVR KNow then that after I had taken man out of the bowells of the Earth with a Faciamnus and created him to my own Image and likeness in order to make him sole Lord and absolute Monarch of the whole Universe with full power to take and tast of all things that a most pleasant paradise could afford the fruit of Life only excepted He the ungratefull and rebellious creature considering the great advantage of his condition and the greatness of his dignity which should be to him a sufficient motive to love obey respect and praise me for ever took thence occasion to mutiny rebell and desert me and enter into a league against me with Lucifer whom I had a little before expell'd Heaven for his thoughts of Pride Ambition and who from that very moment made a vow to deface and destroy my Picture being that he could not annoy my Person This so heinous an offence deserv'd he should be immediately commanded out of that Terrestrial Paradise where he was created and liv'd like a petty Prince and where he had all other creatures even the most furious among them at his beck to do with them as he thought fit Accepisti argentum vestes a Naaman sed Lepra Naaman adhaerebit tibi semini tuo usque in sempiternum 4 Reg. 5. He was therefore turn'd off as a vagabond cast into exile and made liable to suffer the punishment even of the damn'd for as he became an associate to the Devil in Sin 't was fit he should be his companion in torment Thou hast heard of my Judgement inflicted on Gehazi my Prophets servant and how for taking Naaman's mony and cloths for the cure of his Leprosy I order'd that for his covetous transgression both he and all his generation to the worlds end should share in his Leprosy as he did in his garments Even so have I decreed against man who had so much affected Lucifers Pride and Ambition that he should be likewise infected with his Leprosy and as he was obedient to his suggestions he should partake of his punishments also Behold the fatal Metamorphosis of man and how for imitating the Devil in his rebellion he forfieted my resemblance to put on that of this most horrid and hideous Monster of Hell Man being made so abominable by sin and so great an eyesore to my divine Essence I in mercy was mov'd not to reflect so much upon the injury done to my Supream Majesty as not to condole the greatness of his deplorable misery was more inclin'd to compassionate his weakness then to be reveng'd of his crime Whereupon to repair his loss I undertook to mediate his peace with my heavenly Father and in order to so great a work I contracted with humane nature so strict an alliance that I became both God and man which was so grateful to my Father that he not only forgave man all his past transgressions but also receiv'd him into favour with all the demonstrations of joy that could be express'd Who would ever expect that so large and so dangerous a breach should ever be repair'd who would ever imagine that two things so opposit one to the other as is the divine to humane nature should come to subsist and remain together not in one house not at one table nor in one bed but in one and the self-same person This is a miracle beyond the expectation of man and indeed beyond th' expression of an Angel for there cann't be any two more contrary then is God and the Sinner yet now what two can be more firmly united or have greater influence then God and man There is nothing more sublime then God Pulvis es in pulverem reverteris Gen. 1. and nothing more vile and despicable then man Notwithstanding God with all humility descends from Heaven to man and man ascends to Heaven with God so that the action of man is the same with that of God and whatever God is said to have done may be justly imputed to man because that I am both God and man Who would ever believe that man to see him naked after his dismal fall and absconding in one corner or other in Paradise for to keep himself from Gods indignation and wrath who would believe I say that such a fordid and contemptable substance should be in time united to God in one and the same Person This was a strange union indeed and a true lovers knot for when it was upon the dissolution at the time of my Passion it did not in the least fail but was rather violently separated to shew what an amorous inclination I had to be still united to humane nature Death indeed might have taken my Soul from my body and break off that union of nature which kept them together Quod semel assumpsit nunquam dimisit Aug. but had not the power to withdraw my Godhead from either of them for that was an union of the divine person which I shall never relinquish having once fix'd upon it with all the tenderness of a most ardent love MAN O Lord I am so much oblig'd to thee for this extraordinary great favour that I am not able to return thee sufficient thanks for the way and means which thou hast taken to redeem me and my very redemption is so great a benefit that no Angelical tongue is able to express it All that I can say is that I am bound by all the ties both of nature and conscience to love thee and stand submissive to thy laws for ever Thou hast deliver'd my Soul out of the infernal Dragon's jaws and without any merit of mine but meerly through the multitude of thy mercies thou hast reconcil'd me to thy self This is eternally worthy of praise But if I consider how and after what manner thou hast done me that unspeakable favour I shall finde that it does exceed even that great work of my redemption Thy works are wonderfull in all their circumstances Mirabilis Deus in Sanctis suis and tho' man when he considers one does really believe that
be thus wounded mangled and bruised to cure them Certainly if those Sores had not been mortal and even the fatal causes of the eternal death of thy Soul I had never suffer'd so cruel a death for her recovery Can there be a more considerable or a pressing motive to lament and abhor thy Sins then to remember that they were the only cause of all my sufferances and even of my most bitter death upon the Cross The Jews went once through Jerusalem and bewail'd the destruction of that Royall City and the loss of their King how much more reason hast thou to lament thy great misfortune to have occasion'd my death who am thy King thy Redeemer and he only that can either pardon thee thy sins or condemn thee for them to an eternity of pains O man let this consideration be the constant subject of thy serious meditations it will pierce thy heart unless it be harder and more obdurate then the very Stones This very consideration made one of my faithful servants to say that it is a shameful thing for Christians not to acknowledge the evils which sin has brought upon them when they consider what so supream a Majesty as that of the Son of God has been oblig'd to suffer for them The Son of God says he takes compassion on the miseries of man and weeps for sorrow whilst insensible man who is overwhelm'd with his own sins is not concern'd at all MAN O My dear Lord and Master thou hast said enough to conquer my heart and to bring also the whole universe to admire the greatness of thy love for man For what can be more worthy of our admiration then to behold a God of so infinite a Majesty finish his life under the notion of a notorious malefactor upon a shameful Cross and betwixt two Thieves Had I seen a man tho' he were the basest and most vile amongst the People brought to that misfortune as to be condemn'd for his crime to dy so cruel a death certainly I could not choose but compassionate his condition and condole that his misdemeanours should have brought him to so great a distress If it be then a subject worthy our compassion to see a man of that inferiour rank and condition for his own crimes in so deplorable a state what will it be I pray to see not a man but the Lord of all created things for the Sins of his servants reduc'd to that extremity Can there be any thing more wonderfull then to see even God himself plung'd into so great an abyss of anguishes and pains for the sins and wickedness of wretched Men If the calamity and misfortune suffer'd must be retaliated with a trembling and astonishment proportionable to the worth and dignity of the person that suffers O ye Angels of Heaven who have a perfect knowledge of the greatness and excellency of my benign Jesus our gracious Redeemer and your Creator tell me how great was your grief how stupendious your astonishment how excessive was your lamentation and trouble when you have seen him hang on that hard and uneasy cross The Cherubins whose figures God had order'd in the old Law to be plac'd on each side of the Arck of Alliance look'd then at each other with admiration to behold this bloudy Sacrifice of that innocent and immaculate Lamb for the redemption of mankinde Nature it self stood amaz'd and all creatures were interdicted their inbred inclinations and functions The Principalities and Powers of Heaven trembl'd at the very consideration of the unspeakable goodness of God tho' so intimately acquainted therewith What then shall become of those that do not swim in the waves of so great an ocean of admiration Dominator Domine Deus misericors clemens patiens multae miserationis Exod. 34. or what of those that are not drown'd in the Seas of so great a bounty are not they depriv'd of their senses even as Moises was on Mount Sinai where the figure of this bloudy sacrifice was so lively represented to him that he cry'd out with a loud voice the Lord the Lord God merciful and gracious long suffering and abundant in goodness and truth So much Surpriz'd was he at the view of thine excessive goodness O Lord that he could not forbear praising thy mercy in the hearing of all the multitude of Israel The Prophet Helias cover'd his face as God pass'd by him in the splendor of his glory much more then should all mortals cover theirs to behold Gods profound humility and annihilation Now not overthrowing mountains and spliting Rocks with his infinite power but expos'd to the view of a malignant and most wicked Nation and in so terrible and dismal a posture that even the Rocks and Temple were rent asunder with an excess of compassion What man of Steel what heart of brass will not relent and open his breast to lodge therein the love of so charming so gracious and so bountiful a God O height of charity O profoundness of humility never to be paralel'd O unspeakable mercy O Abiss of incomprehensible bounty O my most gracious Lord If I be so much oblig'd to thee for redeeming me how much more am I bound to thee for the means which thou hast taken to redeem me Thou hast redeemed me with pains with sorrow with scorns with reproaches with nails and thorns and hast been made the derision of men and even the most vile of the whole world However O Lord by thy contumelies thou hast honour'd me by thy false accusations thou hast defended me with thy bloud thou hast wash'd me by thy death thou hast reviv'd me and by thy tears thou hast deliver'd me from a perpetual weeping and gnashing of teeth O heavenly Father how tenderly thou lovest thy Children thou art indeed that good and faithful Pastor thou givest thy self as food to thy flock O faithful keeper who hast laid down even thy precious life for to protect and defend thy Sheep which thou hadst in thy keeping what thanks or what service can I return thee for so great a favour with what tears can I recompence thy weeping or what life shall I bestow upon thee for that pure and holy one which thou hast given for me Alas there is no proportion betwixt the life of man and that of God betwixt the tears of a silly creature and that of an omnipotent Creator 'T is true thou hast not suffer'd for me alone but for all the world shall I therefore think my obligation the less to thee no no for tho' thou sned'st thy most precious bloud for all mankinde yet it was after such a manner that every particular man receiv'd the benefit from thy sufferings In fine thou didst suffer thy bitter and bloudy passion as well for me in particular as thou hast for all in general O my God thy charity was so immense that if but one alone of all mankinde were criminal even for that one man thou wouldst have suffer'd what thou didst for all
be to the damn'd to be depriv'd of this unspeakable comfort for an Eternity 't is so deplorable that Scripture does place it in the first rank of all other losses damages torments miseries that can befall a damn'd Soul let the wicked man be taken away Tollatur Impius ne videat gloriam Dei Esai 16. to the end he may not see the glory of God says the Prophet From this loss proceeds that great and general torment so often repeated in Scripture by the name of the worm of Conscience so call'd because as a worm lies eating gnawing the wood wherein she abides so shall the remorse of their Consciences ly within the damn'd griping and tormenting them for ever it shall be to them a remembrancer to put them in minde of the means and causes of their everlasting damnation which will make them to fret and rage and admire their own folly to have hanker'd so much after the vanities of the World and neglected the grand work of their Salvation Hear how they exclaim in Hell what has our Pride Sap. 5. or what has the glory of our Riches profited us they are all now vanish'd like a shaddow We have wearied our selves in the way of iniquity and perdition and the way of our Lord we have not known This shall be their everlasting ditty thus shall their tormented Conscience rave in Hell O most gracious Saviour when I see to my great sorrow in this sad Age we live in poor Mortals so far blinded with their worldly interest so deeply engag'd in the mire of iniquity so much taken with their sinful recreations and pastimes so deaf to thy Inspirations and callings so avers'd to the practise of piety and devotion such great enemies to mortification and pennance I despair in a manner of their Salvation and the rather that these so powerful motives can't prevail with them or make them desist lusting after those poysonous baits which the Devll presents unto them dayly and at every moment and which they with as much ease swallow as he takes pleasure to destroy their Souls Their common discourse is 't is time enough to think of Pennance when we come to old Age for then we shall be fit for no other thing O most Sacred Saviour thou sayst thou wilt not the death of a Sinner wherefore be pleas'd to let them know the danger of delaying their conversion and of deferring their repentance untill their latter days SAVIOVR THere is a kinde of People in the World Rom. 16. Tit. 1. says my Apostle that do exteriourly and by words confess God and profess themselves to be as good Christians as the rest yet interiourly and by the products of their doble dissembling hearts they don't believe there is a God at least with those Attributes that are as essential to him as his divine Nature and which I call infinite knowledge Providence Care and disposition of humane affairs Justice Judgment Punishment and the like These they do not indeed believe because their life and actions are quite contrary to a well-grounded belief Scripture avers it with a wo unto the dissolute and careless in heart who do not believe God Vae dissolutis corde qui non credunt Deo Eccl. 2. Deut. 22. These are the men whom I do hate and detest with all my heart because they plow with an Ox and an Ass together because they sow their ground with mingl'd Seed and their Apparel is made of flax and wool together These are them I spoke of in the Revelations Apoc. 3. I would thou wert either cold or hot but for that thou art lukewarm and neither cold nor hot therefore will I begin to vomit thee out of my mouth These are they who can accord all Religions together and take up all Controversys by only saying that either they are differences of small importance or else that they are out of their Province and belong only to learned men to dispute of but not unto them moreover they are of opinion that both parts do erre in somewhat or may be agreed and go both to Heaven These are the men who can apply themselves to any company to any time to any Government to any Princes pleasure to any Religion but will not admit of any discourse of Devotion in their presence only they will have men eat drink and be merry with them tell news of the Court and affairs abroad Sing Dance Laugh and play at Cards and dice and so they spend their lives in their Sinful recreations without any thoughts of God without any care of Salvation without any apprehension of Death depending only upon a good Peccavi in their extremity and when God shall Summon them to another World but alas they shall finde themselves sadly mistaken Vae Impio in malum Esai 3. Ipsi videntes sic admirati sunt conturbati sunt commoti sunt tremor apprehendet eos Psal 47.6 for I shall turn them off with a wo to the wicked and then shall set before their eyes all their abominations and crimes their Usury their Drunkenness their whoredome their treacheries their false Oaths their Extortions and Oppressions of the poor their blasphemies and the rest of their wicked actions shall come in a crowd to confound their Souls their Gold and Silver their Estates and Fortunes which they had so unjustly acquir'd their pleasures treasures now the only object of their adoration shall then become the fatal Subject of their confusion and my Justice shall take delight to batter and break their understanding Conteret Dominus scelestos simul Peccatores Esa 1.28 and memory with the full knowledge of all their Sins and how often they had slieghted my Inspirations my Callings my amorous invitations other innumerable effects of my mercy O silly Souls says St. Paul be not deceiv'd be not so far overseen as to leade a licentious life in hopes to dye a good Death Nolite orrare quae enim seminaverit homo haec metet Qui seminat in carne de carne metet corruptionem Gala. 6.7 Mat. 7.16 for in that dreadful hour you shall reap no better grain then what you have sown if you have been such bad Husbands of your Salvation as to sow and plant nothing else in the Soil ground of your Souls but carnal works you can't pretend to no better Harvest then corruption and everlasting Damnation Do Men gather grapes of thorns or figs of thistles even so every good Tree brings forth good fruit but a corrupt Tree brings forth evil fruit A good Tree can't bring forth evil fruit neither can a corrupt Tree bring forth good fruit Every Tree that brings not forth good fruit is hewn down cast into the fire These are my words 't is I the Eternal verity that speaks them Dicite justo quoniam bene fructum adinventionum suarum commedent Esai 3.10 and therefore they can't be contradicted or falsify'd let all men
who had kill'd his Master this animal runs at him and holds him fast looking on the by-standers with such a mournful countenance as if he had desir'd Justice whereupon the murderer was apprehended and forc'd to confess his crime for which he was immediately sentenc'd to dy O man If a Dog for a piece of bread had so great a love for his master and was so faithful to him as to lament and vindicate his death wilt thou not be displeas'd at thine ingratitude and principally when a dumb beast reprehends it and teacheth thee to be grateful If that irrational creature was so much incens'd against the murderer of his Master why art thou not displeas'd with those that have slain thy gracious Lord and Master and what are they but thy Sins 'T is true O man thy Sins have taken me have tyed me have scourg'd me have crown'd me have nail'd me to the Cross and were the sole occasion of my bitter death for the Jews could never have the power to crucify me but that thy Sins did both arm and incourage 'em to it Wherefore then art thou not highly displeas'd with them why dost thou not bend all thy wrath and fury against them seeing thy divine Master crucify'd by them before thine eyes and especially since my Death and Passion was design'd to breed in thy heart an eternal hatred of Sin It was in order to destroy Sin that I suffer'd death It was to set a stop to thy feet and hands which are so prone to evil even from thy very cradle that mine as an oblation for their evils were nail'd to the Cross How art thou so impious as to live after such a manner that all my pains taken for thy Salvation will signify nothing Why dost thou not tremble at the very mention of Sin seeing me suffer such cruel torments to destroy and root it clean out of the world How canst thou be so rash and so great an enemy to thy poor Soul as to dare to offend me seeing Heaven open to cast forth its thunder bolts upon thy criminal head and Hell with a dilated mouth ready to swallow thee both body and Soul MAN O My God my King my Saviour my Judge and my only comfort Thou art I confess the Eternal Wisdom and thy words to me are Spirit and Life for they have made me resolve to bid adieu for ever to Sin and to plant virtue where vice was before in great request but give me leave to ask thee what would the benefit of my redemption avail me if that of my Justification had not ensu'd for by this it is that the virtue of the former is appli'd to the diseases of my Soul and even as a plaister tho' never so soveraign will signify nothing except it be laid unto the wound so that heavenly medicine would be of no use or advantage to me if it had not been appli'd by the mediation of this unspeakable benefit to the bruises which I receiv'd in that fatal field of Eden where all mankinde were shamefully foil'd and quite overthrown in the Person of Adam The Sanctification of man does chiefly appertain to the Holy Ghost 'T is his prerogative to prevent the Sinner with the sweetness of his mercy then to call him being call'd to justify him and being justifi'd to direct him and leade him on to the end of his course and then to gratify him with a crown of glory wherefore I may justly say that this very benefit is the happy complement of all others for by this man is register'd in the number of Gods children discharg'd of the main weight of his iniquities deliver'd from the dominion and Tyranny of the Devil reviv'd from Death to Life brought from the state of Sin to that of Justice and of a child of malediction and woe he becomes the Son of God and Co-heir with thee in thy Glory Nemo potest venire ad me nisi Pater meus traxerit illum Joa 44. But this cannot be perform'd without the peculiar help and assistance of the holy Ghost as thou hast declar'd to thy beloved Disciple in these words No man can come to me except the Father who has sent me draw him whereby I conceive that neither free will nor the power of humane nature can withdraw a man from Sin and bring him to Grace unless he be help'd on by the vertue of thy divine power The Angelical Doctor St. Thomas commenting upon these words says even as a Stone by its nature still falls downwards and can never ascend without some exteriour assistance so man overpress'd by the corruption of Sin tends always downwards and is powerfully hurri'd on by his inbred inclinations to the love and desire of terene and transitory things but if he be minded to aim higher that is at the love and supernatural desire of heavenly things he must implore the assistance of thy Divine Spirit without which he shall never be able to make any progress in virtue SAVIOVR O Man thou sayst well but I would have thee practise well what thou sayst for 't is the practise and not the discourse of good things that can make thee grateful to me the serious consdieration of this unspeakable benefit should indeed press thee to it make thee most diligent to atchieve it which is a matter of greatest moment to thee for by this thou art reconcil'd to me and cleans'd from Sin which is the worst of all evils and the only evil I most hate and abhor it alone is able to bring my indignation and wrath upon thee Odisti omnes qui operantur iniquitatem perdes omnes qui loquntur mendacium Psal 5. as thou mayst unerstand by my Prophet who says of me Thou art not a God which taketh pleasure in wickedness neither shall evil dwell with thee The foorish shall not stand in thy sight Thou hatest all workers of iniquity Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing the Lord will abhor the bloody and deceitful man Thou seest by this that Sin is the greatest of all evils nay 't is the very root and origine of them all On the contrary to be in my favour the object of my most tender affection is a real happiness the fountain of all goodness and the solid foundation of all other favours and virtues Why dost thou then delay thy endeavours refuse to concur with my holy inspirations If thou wouldst once firmly resolve an amendment imploy all thy faculties to destroy Sin in thee thou shouldst then receive the benefit of Justification by which thou art deliver'd from that pernicious evil and of a mortal enemy thou art made my friend not in a common degree of friendship but in the most supream that can be thought of which is that of a Father to his Son Videte qualem charitatem nobis dedit pater ut filii Dei nominemur fimus 1. Jo. 3. My Evangelist extols this extraordinary favour very highly where he says behold
what a manner of Love the Father has bestowed upon us that we should be call'd the Sons of God and be so too Take notice of this O man and consider seriously how I am not content to give thee the bare denomination of my Son for a man may bely his name and act contrary to his qualification and therefore I say thou art not only my Son by name or by any other groundless title but really and in truth thou art so when justifi'd This is a prime favour indeed for if it is so great an evil to be a reprobate and consequently odious to God what an unspeakable happiness it is to be lov'd by him and confirm'd in his grace 'T is a maxime of Philosophy that the more a thing pertakes of goodness the more its contrary will have of evil the Love of God above all things is the Summum bonum of man therefore the greatest evil must be Sin which makes him odious to God and the fatal object of his just indignation and wrath It were a great happiness if thou wert a favourite to thy Superiours to thy King or to some other crown'd head thou wouldst think thy self made for ever but 't is a far greater happyness to be in my favour who am the Ruler of all earthly Potentates the best of Fathers and the chiefest of Lords for all the Powers Principalitys and Dignitys of the world in reference to me are no more then just nothing O Man Cum Inimici effemus Rom. 5.10 thou shouldst therefore value thy self upon this account and the more because thou hast receiv'd it gratis and when thou wert my mortal enemy For as it is most certain that before thy Creation thou couldst do nothing that might induce me to create thee Rudis indigesteque moles 〈◊〉 for then thou wert but a rude lump of clay without any form or fashion even so 't is most evident that after thy relapse into sin thou couldst do nothing which might move me to grant thee the benefit of thy Justification not because thou wert nothing but by reason thou wert an ill man and therefore most odious and abominable to me O Man consider seriously these evil consequences of Sin by it thou art clear out of my favour thou art villified in my sight and banish'd from my presence thou art cast from the converse and company of my Saints and Angells thou art forbidden my heavenly Pallace and because thou hast a far greater love for the Creatures then for me who am thy Creator 't is just thou shouldst be dealt with accordingly thou hast forsaken me to serve them and the Devil too who is the worst of Masters therefore he is licensed to torment thee for an Eternity and 't is but what thou hast deserv'd for offending so good and so gracious a Lord as I have been to thee To this great disaster may be added another altogether as dreadful if not more which is the immortal worm which shall perpetually gnaw the consciences of those miserable and unfortunate wretches in Hell Terra miserae tenebrarum ubi nulius ordo sed sempiternus horor in habiter Job 10.22 A place full of woe and misery the Region of everlasting darkness and confusion where there is no order no rule no union no friendship no joy no comfort no peace no rest no satisfaction no hopes but perpetual horrour lamentation gnashing of teeth rage blasphemy cursing and also all other cruelties imaginable these are the fatal products and punishments of Sin but of all these I discharge those whom I do Justify for when they are reconcil'd to me and whilst they remain in my favour they are no more the Children of wrath and perdition no more Servants and Slaves to the Devil no more inclin'd to obey the dictates of the world and the flesh In fine they are under the wings of my protection shelter'd from the rage of Satan and from the most dreadful rigour of his everlasting torments MAN O Most gracious Saviour I am throughly convinc'd of the truth of thy words I confess that Sin is the greatest of all evils and that the greatest misfortune that can befall a poor man in this world is to lie under the tyranny of so hellish a monster for it does not only deprive his Soul of thy grace but also robs her of all the supernatural treasures and gifts of the Holy Ghost which she had receiv'd in her Baptism and which brought her to that height of honour as to become thy beautiful and dearly beloved Spouse No sooner is she degraded thus and forc'd out of that super-eminent glorious Station but Sin sets on her again to finish what it had left undone he wounds her even to death and after he has taken the most precious of her goods he plunders her of the least considerable as are her natural gifts For man being a rational creature and Sin being an act contrary to reason 't is consonant to nature that one contrary should strive to destroy to ' ther consequently the oftner Sin is multiply'd the more it disturbs and destroys the powers and faculties of the Soul not in themselves but in their operations 'T is by this means that Sin gets dominion of the Soul and makes her run what course he pleases if she has any remaining inclination to virtue Alas she is become so weak so sloathful and so inconstant that she cann't attain to the practise of it Rursum crucifigentes Christum in cordibvs vestris Heb. 6.6 Faciamus hominem ad imaginem similitudinem nostram Gen. 2.6 Cecidit Babilon Civitas illa Sancta facta est habitatio Daemonum Isa 21.9 but if she be solicited to evil she flies at it with as much eagerness as we may see a Cat run at a mouse If any temptation knocks at her door for her consent to a rebellion against thee O Lord she likes of the proposal and gives her assent to the evil tho' she be convinc'd that it is the renewing of thy Passion But Sin stops not here it strips the Soul of her liberty to pay unto thee O Lord the daily tribute of her submission and holds her fast in a chain to follow the beck of her mortal enemies the world the flesh and the Devil and also to please the gust of her unruly Appetites Thus that noble Princess which has her extraction from Heaven and which was heretofore thy charming Spouse the beautiful Daughter of thy eternal Father and the faithful resemblance of the most Blessed Trinity is now by Sin brought to a Babylonish Captivity worse by a thousand degrees and more unsufferable then that of Egypt was to the Children of Israel But alas I finde her condition to be yet worse for all her spiritual senses are wholly Stupifi'd and to that degree that they cann't hear thy voice nor see the radiant light of thy divine Inspirations They cann't smell the sulpherous scent of thy dreadful thunderbolts which are
and condition where wilt thou go what wilt thou do to whom wilt thou call for help To return to life 't is impossible and to ease thy self thou wilt not be able In illa die occidet Sol in meridie tenebrescere faciam terram in die luminis c. Amos. 8. what shall become of thee when I will cause the Sun to go down at noon and when I will darken the Earth at mid-day what wilt thou say when I shall turn thy feasts into mourning and all thy Songs into lamentation when I will bring up Sackcloth upon all mens loins and baldness upon every head and when I shall make it as the morning for an only Son and the end thereof as a bitter day hast thou not therefore a far greater subject then Job to curse the day wherein thou wert born for he was so just a man that my eternal Father glori'd in having so good so gracious and faithful a Servant nay In omnibus his non peccavit Job labiis suis c. Job 1.22 the Holy Ghost avers that he sinned not in all what he had spoken in his troubles and calamities which I had permitted to come upon him not as a punishment for his Sins but as a trial of his patience to make him a worthy president to all mortals of virtue of constancy and of perfect resignation to my holy will in all their afflictions He himself does protest that his conscience did not accuse him yet he was so apprehensive of the strict judgment which a Soul is to undergo at her departing the body that amaz'd at the severity of my Justice he crys out protect me O Lord Dionys. Rikel Art 16. de novis and hide me in hell whilst thy fury passes Whereupon one of my devout Servants affirms that the instant wherein I give judgment of a Soul is not only more terrible then Death but more terrible then to suffer even the pains of hell for a certain time not only to those who are to be damn'd but even unto my very Elect. O man reflect seriously upon this and Judge what will become of a Sinner at the hour of his Death and at the lively representation of all his offences and crimes what a consternation he will be in how he will tremble and shake every limb of him at the very sight of me his Creator and Redeemer whom he had so often offended and injur'd in the course of his sinful life that very presence will be more dreadful to him then the suffering of the pains of hell it self MAN O Most gracious Redeemer I cann't deny what thou sayst of a dying man and of the Anguishes which he shall suffer at the departing of the Soul from his body she shall enter into Judgment alone naked poor and without any to patronize her cause except her good works if she has any to shew her Conscience will be the Deponent the Triall will be either for life or death not temporal but eternal and thou an injur'd Judge shall appear to her in a dreadful Throne to give sentence for her or against her either of Salvation or of her everlasting damnation If she be grievously indebted and not able to ballance her accounts O what a horrible confusion she will be in grief and sorrow sighs and tears dreadful lamentations and crys will be her woful entertainment and the only motives she can produce to mollify thee O Lord but all will be to no purpose her repentance comes too late 't is totally fruitless at that hour all her protestations of amendment will be in vain no bills or bonds of performance will be accepted of no bail shall be taken her lease is out she must remove her nobility her riches her honours cann't obtain for her a further respite of time the sentence is pronounc'd the decree is unavoidable she must submit O the unfortunate Sinner what will he do what will he say how can he express the greatness of his misfortune otherwise then by these words of thy Prophet Psa 18.4.5 The sorrows of Death have compassed me and the flouds of iniquity have made me afraid The sorrows of hell have compassed me about and the snares of Death have prevented me O what a woful circle is that into which his Sins have brought him and unexpected too when he had not the least thought of death what will his friends avail him now his dignities his riches his lands and all that he took most delight in they will remain after him to other Masters that will soon wast and consume 'em in a worse way perhaps then ever he gather'd them tho' that perchance was bad enough The Sins which he had committed in heaping them up are the only companions he is like to have along with him to another world where he is to be tormented for them according to their enormity If I should make my addresses to worldlings in hopes to be farther instructed in this so necessary a matter to Salvation Alas they know nothing of it and which is worse they will not believe it for they live as if they had no account at all to give after death and why should I think it strange being they live in Egypt that is in a land of darkness in a willful blindness overwhelm'd with all sorts of errors where scarcely two are found of one opinion in matters of Faith and manners I am then resolv'd to go farther off and streight into the land of Geshen where the light of verity is allways in its full splendour Non intres in Judicium cum servo tuo Domine quia non justiflcabitur in conspectu tuo omnis vivens Psa 143. and to consult with the Inhabitants thereof in this case they will certainly teach me not only by their words but also by their examples how much this dreadful day of so strict an account is to be fear'd The first I meet with is the holy'st man of his age a man according to thine own heart O Lord yet he is so terrifi'd even at the very remembrance of this accompting day that he begs thee with all the tenderness of a contrite heart not to enter into Judgment with thy Servant and the reason he gives for his request is that in thy sight shall no man living be justifi'd The second that appears to me In vitis Patrum Sect. 2.153 is that most renown'd and holy Arsenius a man of wonderful austerity a man always in prayer always in contemplation yet tho' he was so virtuous and so great a Saint tears were seen to trickle down his cheeks when he was a dying and all his body to tremble in his deep consideration of this reckoning day His Disciples that stood round his poor and hard bed setting him the question why he cry'd and whether he was afraid of death he made answer yes my dearly beloved Children I fear Death and I tremble at the approach of my dreadful Judge
less admiration hadst thou dealt so rigorously with Angels that are spiritual creatures and of a far more eminent perfection then men can ever attain to To be so severe with poor man who lies groaning under the weight of so many predominant passions and such a number of evil inclinations which do wholly estrange him from the desire and practise of virtue To bring him I say to so strict an account of all his actions that thou wilt not pass by even the least idle word that ever he spoke nor the least moment of time that he has mispent O most gracious Saviour give me leave to tell thee that the rigour of thy Justice herein does transcend my admiration Amen amen dico vobis de omni verbo otioso quod locuti fuerint homines reddent rationem in die Judicij Mat. 12.36 and the more abundantly because I hear thy self say every Idle word that men shall speak they shall give an account thereof in the day of Judgement If that be so as without doubt it is what a rigourous account must be taken of all dishonest impertinent and scurrulous words what of lies and perjuries what of horrid and abominable oaths what of all hellish imprecations and blasphemys what of all wanton and lacivious thoughts and looks what of Adulterers murtherers and highway robbers In fine what a rigourous account must be given of the whole time of life spent in the works of iniquity All that the best of Orators is able to say of the severity and rigour of thy Judgment will be far short of what it will really be in that dreadful day of thy wrath nay it will not be so much as an empty shaddow to the substance of the matter O what a confusion poor man will be in when he must appear before thy dreadful Throne in the presence of that great assembly of all mankinde and give an exact account of the least idle word he had spoken at this or that time who would not be astonish'd and totally stupify'd at such a reckoning who would dare speak of it but that thou sayst it thy self or who would presume to affirm it but that thou dost thy self confirm it with an Amen Amen What King was ever heard of that call'd his Servants to question for so slite an offence as is an idle word O Christian Religion how sublime is thy perfection how great is the purity of minde which thou dost require of thy Professors how strict is the reckoning which thou dost exact from them and with what severity dost thou chastise even the very least of their evil actions how great will the shame and confusion of Sinners be when all the abominations and sins which they had committed even from their Cradle to the hour of their death were they never so privately acted so carefully conceal'd or so secretly kept shall be discover'd and laid open to the eyes of the whole world If we be so much asham'd to discover our imperfections to a Ghostly Father who is oblig'd to secresy under a penalty full as bad if not worse then that of death that sometimes we have not a word to say Osee 10. how excessive great will our shame be in thy presence O Lord and in the sight of all ages past present and to come O' it will be so intollerable that the wicked shall intreat even the Mountains to cover them and the hills to fall upon them Psal 89. They shall say with thy prophet We are dismay'd O Lord with thy wrath and troubled with thy fury but for what reason because thou hast set our wickedness before thee and hast plac'd them in thy sight 'T is true that in this life Sin does not appear so pernicious to our eyes which makes us be the less concern'd for it but at the instant of death when it shall shew it self with all its deformity Pereat dies inquo natus sum Job ibid. the very sight of it will confound us to such an exremity that we shall curse the day that ever we were born They seem in this life but light and trivial and that makes us not scruple them much but in the day of thy wrath O Lord we shall finde them heavy grevious and insupportable We know by experience that a piece of Timber tho' never so great when it floats in a deep water may be mov'd and drawn from place to place even by a Child we know likewise that the most part of it lies under the water and clear out of our sight but when it is brought upon dry land no less then half a dozen horses will suffice to bring it off then we may perceive perfectly the whole bulk of it 'T is even so with our Sins in the tempestuous Seas of this unstable and transitory life they are conceal'd from our eyes but in the hour of death in the day of Judgment we shall clearly discover their bulk number and weight and shall groan under so heavy and so unsupportable a burthen Then we shall finde a number of our actions which we thought very good to be most grievous Sins 't is therefore thou sayst by thy Prophet when I shall take a proper time then I will Judge Righteousness Who would imagine that the action of Oza 2 Reg. 6.6 when he upheld the Ark in danger of falling was an offence yet O Lord thou hast chastiz'd it as a great Sin with no less a punishment then that of a most disastrous death who would ever believe that Davids numbring of his People was an offence 2 Reg. 24.13 but rather an act of discretion and Policy yet thou hast punish'd him for it with a Pestilence never to be paralel'd 1 Reg. 15.18 Saul was urg'd by his approaching Enemies and by Samuel's long delay to offer Sacrifice this was an act of Religion which is the most heroick and greatest of virtues consequently he thought it should be most acceptable to thee and of force to obtain him a victory against his Foes yet it was a most grievous Sin in thy presence since for that alone thou hast reprov'd him degraded him from his Royal Dignity and cast him off as a lost Soul for an Eternity Achabs action might be look'd upon as the worthy product of a masculine spirit for what is more generous then to pardon an enemy and what can be more divine then to spare his life the chief ground of Davids promotion to the Crown and Scepter of Israel Diligite Inimicos vestros Mat. 5.44 Pater ignosce illis Luc. 23.34 was his Clemency to Saul moreover thou dost expresly command it thy self and thou hast also earnestly pray'd thy Eternal Father to pardon thine enemies Achab having conquer'd Benhadad King of Syria pardon'd him gave him his life and took him up to sit by him in his Royal Chariot yet this action which was so much prais'd and so extoll'd by men was so hainous so displeasing to thee that thou
such a thing may be expected in this World But all those calamities I now have mention'd are common as well to the good as to the bad Lassati sumus in via iniquitatis perditionis ambulavimus vias difficiles viam autem domini ignoravimus Sap. 5. because they both sail in the same Sea and are both likewise expos'd to the self-same fortune yet I can demonstrate many other miseries which are peculiar to the wicked alone and these are not improperly term'd the Daughters of iniquity whose description will be much to our present purpose because they render the life of the wicked most abominable and their body and minde both subject to a multitude of miseries Hear what they themselves do confess of them Alas say they we have wearied our selves in the way of iniquity and perdition We have walk'd in most difficult and sinister paths during our whole lives for We know nothing of the way of the Lord by this their own discourse we may very well conclude that even as the Just enjoy a kind of Paradise here upon Earth and do expect a far more happy one in the other life so the wicked have in this World their Hell to which a far more intollerable shall succeed in th' other for evil Consciences proceed from Hell without doubt and they steer their course directly to the same Haven where they shall be tormented eternally And their products have proportionable evils deriv'd from several causes some of them are the effects of thy Justice O Lord for thou art a most just Judge in all thy proceedings sometimes thou dost order the sin to be punish'd as soon as committed and tho' thou dost usually reserve the punishment thereof to the other life yet the wicked are very often afflicted even in this life for the same 'T is most certain that as thou dost govern the whole World with a general providence thou dost also moderate every particular therein with a peculiar Providence so that as the number of our Sins does increase our Punishments shall be multipli'd to the same degree This we know by our many and fatal experiences for what were all our disasters hitherto as so many Revolutions of Government such vast alterations and changes in matters of State and Religion the various fortune of so many Kings and Princes Such horrid disloialty in Subjects to their lawful Sovereigns so many stupendious and destructive Famines and Conflagrations such inhumane and bloudy Wars so many pestilential Distempers such cruel Murthers so many private and publick dissentions and jars They were certainly the just punishments of our manifold and most grevious offences to make good what I say that the punishment immediately follows the sin I produce what thou O Lord saidst to Cain for a confirmation Nonne si bene egeris recipies si autem male statim in foribus peccatum aderit Gen. 7. Deut. 7. If thou dost well shalt thou not be accepted but If thou dost ill Sin lieth at thy door that is to say the pain and punishment of the Sin is at hand and Moises in thy name says as much to the People of Israel know then that the Lord thy God he is God the faithful God which keeps Covenant and Mercy with them that love him and keep his Commandments to a thousand Generations and repays them that hate him to their face to destroy them He will not be slack to him that hates him he will repay him to his face This word Statim so often repeated in Scripture and which signifies a quick return assures me that besides the punishments thon hast reserv'd for the wicked in th' other World thou hast also some in store whereby to chastise them even in this life immediately after the transgression of thy Law So that as often as they fall into Sin so often they feel the heavy weight of thy just indignation they are tost from one misery into another from one tribulation they fall into another this day brought to the bar for their misdemeanours to morrow condemn'd to dye and the next day shamefully put to death without making any reflection upon what might be the fatal cause of their great misfortune For they do not believe the goods of nature to be thy benefits and consequently not deserving their thanksgiving for them neither do they impute their punishment to thy Wrath nor as laid upon them by thy appointment and this blindness it is which prevents the amendment of their lives If there were no other evil in the World then the afflictions and miseries which attend our bodys it were not so much to be hated neither should our fear be so great to trade and converse therein but seeing our correspondence and freedom with it is so pernicions to our Souls also which ought to be the subject of our greatest care as being the principal part of our essence Pluet super peccatores laqueos Psal 10.6 and a precious depositum whereof We must give a strict account to thee O Lord We are necessarily in all reason oblig'd to estrange our selves from it and more especially for fear to be intangl'd in its Snares which are so numerous that the Prophet says of thee upon the wicked thon shalt rain Snares O what an unspeakable number of snares must be in the world then since they are compared to the drops of Rain that fall from Heaven and they must fall upon Sinners too because they of all men have the least care of their hearts of their senses and consciences they are the least solicitons to avoid the occasions of Sin and the least concern'd for Spiritual Remedys so that being intimately acquainted with the World they can't avoid falling into these Snares which come like Rain upon Sinners O Lord thou dost pour down Snares upon Youth Snares upon old Age there are Snares in every state and condition Snares in Riches Snares in Poverty Snares in Honours Snares in opprobrys Snares in Frindship Snares in the Society of Men as well as in the company of Women Snares in the Solitary Wilderness Snares in Prosperity Snares in Adversity Snares in all our senses In fine the Prophet crys out Snares upon all the Inhabitants of the Earth O Lord hadst thou vouchsaf'd to open our eyes as thou didst those of blessed St. Anthony Athanas. in vita St. Antony We should see how the whole World is spread over with Snares and so close that they touch one another and we would also admire as he did that any one should escape what wonder is it then that so many Souls should perish dayly and that St. Bernard should fay of ten Souls that flote upon the tempestious Sea of this World scarce one shall be fav'd and who shall not hate so dangerous a World who should not fear to live in so dreadful a place who will not strive with all his might and skill to avoid those Snares who will dare go bare-foot among so many Serpents
the only keeper of our integrity nay says St. Ambrose St. Ambr. de Virg. thou art all things unto us if we be wounded thou art a Physitian to cure us if We be in a Feverish heat thou art a fountain to quench our drought if We be laden with iniquity thou art the Lamb that came from heaven to take away the Sins of the World if We be in need of help thou art of an omnipotent power and thou hast the Will to assist us in all our necessities if We fear Death thou art life everlasting if We desire Heaven thou art the way to it if We be willing to avoid darkness thou art the Light if We want Food thou art the life-giving bread Tell me O Man can'st thou imagine any thing in this World more glorious more precious more lovely more honourable or more advantageous to thy Soul then to enjoy me who am thy Creator thy Redeemer thy preserver thy Lord thy Father thy Shepherd thy Physitian thy Master thy Keeper thy Bearer thy Strong wall thy Defender thy Castle thy Spouse and thy All in All What treasure can any man have in this World to confer upon his Frind that is to be compar'd to the least of all these benefits Laetamini in Domino exultate justi gloriamini omnes recti corde Ps 32.11 The consideration hereof makes the Prophet Royal invite all the Righteous to rejoyce and to be glad in the Lord and all those that are upright in heart to shout for joy as if He would say let others rejoyce in the Riches and Honours of the World others in the Nobility of their blood and high extraction others in the Friendship and favour of Kings and Princes others in the excellency and preheminency of their Stations and Dignitys but ye that have God for your Lord for your possession for your everlasting Inheritance rejoyce in good earnest glory in the peaceable fruition of so great a treasure for your happiness is greater then theirs by how much God is more excellent then his Creatures Psal 143.11 12 13 14 15. as my Prophet declares in these words Quit me O Lord and deliver me from the hand of strange Children whose mouth speaks vanity and their right hand is a right hand of falshood That our Sons may be as Plants grown up in their youth that our Daughters may be as corner Stones polish'd after the similitude of a Pallace that our Gardens may be full affording all manner of store that our Sheep may bring forth thousands ten-thousand in our Fields that our Oxen may be strong to labour that there be no breaking in nor going out that there be no complaining in our Streets Happy is the People that be in such a case Beatus Populus cui Dominus Deus ejus Psal 143.15 But He said from the very intrinsick part of his Soul that happy and ten thousand times happier is that People whose God is the Lord and he gives this reason for it He that enjoys him is in possession of that one good which comprehends all goodness that can be desir'd or thought of Let who will glory in those terene and transitory blessings as for my part says he I will whilst I breath glory in the Lord my God alone and so says the Prophet Habacuk too Hav 17 18 19. Tho' the fig-tree should not blossom tho' there should be no fruit in the Vines tho' the labour of the Olive should fail and the fields should yield no meat tho' the flock should be cut off from the Fold and there should be no herd in the Stalls yet I will rejoyce in the Lord I will joy in the God of my Salvation The Lord God is my strength and he will make my feet like Hinds feet and he will make me to walk upon mine high Places To the chief singer on my stringed Instruments These are the treasures this is the glory which I have prepar'd even in this life for those that serve me and I think them sufficient motives for all mortals to love adore reverence me who am so good and so gracious a Lord to them But on the other side 't is a subject of great displeasure to me to see them after all my goodness so prone to neglect my Service and run after the false and fatal pleasures of the World as tho' I were not worthy their constant affections But alas It was ever so with mortals their Ingratitude is as ancient in a manner as the very Creation of the World for the same abomination I found among the Israelites and have tax'd them with it too by my Prophet Jeremy Hear ye the word of the Lord O house of Jacob and all the families of the house of Israel Jer. 25.31 Thus says the Lord what iniquity have your Fathers found in me that they are gone far from me and have walk'd after vanity and are become vain Be astonish'd O ye Heavens at this horrid ingratitude and what is it 'T is that my People have committed two great evils they have forsaken me in the first place who am the plentiful fountain of living waters and in the next place they have hew'd out for themselves broken Cisterns that can hold no water O ungrateful Generation hear the word of the Lord Have I been a Wilderness unto Israel or a land of darkness Have they already forgotten the several victories I gave them of their enemies and the manifold blessings I have confer'd upon themselves for so many Ages Is this the return they make me of all my kindeness to tell me confidently they will come no more unto me Can a Maid forget her ornaments or a Bride her Attire yet my People have forgotten me days without number notwithstanding I am all their ornament their glory their beauty and all that can be thought of to make a People happy O man If I did so much lament and grieve to see the People of Israel prove so ungrateful to me as to disown me after all the favours I heap'd upon them which I must confess were but temporal Blessings how much more reason have I to be displeas'd with Christians who have receiv'd from me so many and such great blessings as well temporal as spiritual and for whom I have suffer'd the most cruel death that ever was heard of and after all these extraordinary great favours to be slighted by them every day more then other nay they every moment crucify me anew with their wilful wickedness Non hunc sed Barrabam Joan. 18.40 Nollumus hunc regnare super nos Luc. 18.14 Jugum enim meum suave est onus meum leve Matth. 11.30 they willingly postpone me to a Barrabas and tell me plainly they are better pleas'd to have the world for their Lord and Master tho' never so deceitful and cruel then to be rul'd by me whose yoke is sweet and whose burthen is both light and pleasant MAN O Most gracious