To the right honorable my verie good Lord Robert Deuoreux Earle of Essex and Ewe Vicount of Hereford Lord Ferrers of Chartley c. Master of the Queenes Maiesties horse knight of the most noble order of the Garter and one of her Maiesties most honourable priuie Counsel the continuall encrease of Gods euerlasting fauour peace and comfort in this and in the world to come MAnie men right Honourable when they intend some euil I meane when they haue resolued freely and boldly to trade in some sinne without check and controlment doe seeke to shroude themselues vnder the cloth and countenaunce of some great persons of Worship and Honour If my purpose or practise were such I might iustly feare to bee crossed and cursed in this my enterprise The searcher of all hearts knoweth that my purpose prayers and endeuours through his gracious assistance are and shall bee to keepe a good conscience in my ministerie to walke in the vprightnesse of my heart and to bee kept blamelesse to the comming of Iesus Christ In this resolution may it seeme good vnto your Honour as you haue alreadie at the earnest and humble sute of manie my verie good and worshipfull friends receiued me to fauour so still to continue your most honourable protection for my further encouragement in well doing May it also please your honourable and religious disposition to comfort and countenaunce this Mite and small measure of comfort which according to grace receiued I haue once addressed and now the second time published and enlarged for the reliefe of such as grieue and groane vnder the heauie but then of their sinnes Behold I presume to present it vnto your Honour as the best present I haue to testifie my humble dutie seruice and thankfulnesse And if by Gods good fauour and blessing there shall be ame one sentence worde syllable or letter which may bring or adde comfort to you or yours I shall be occasioned the rather heartily to blesse God for so great mercie and to pray more instantly that your Honour may be blessed for euer Your honours most humble and bounden seruant in the Lord Robert Linaker A COMFORTABLE TREATISE FOR THE reliefe of such as are afflicted in conscience IT is not long since I promised you some small remembrance of my hearty desire to affoorde you some comfort oncerning the inwarde affliction of your minde if the Lord should any way enable me thereunto I haue now therefore according to the measure of grace receiued performed that my promise as you shall vnderstaÌ„d by reading these leaues following Whereby if you shall reape so much comfort as from the depth of my heart I entreat the Lord you may I shal account my selfe for euer most nearely bound by all maner of dutie and thankfulnesse vnto his blessed maiesty Howsoeuer it fall out you shall receiue and keep this poore treatise by you as an vndoubted record of my good meaning towards you and some others of whose particular estate I haue some certaine knowledge and for whome I pray most heartily Inward afflictions are neither common nor easie as I do for you I confesse your afflictioÌ„ is neither common nor easie to be born And that bicause it is not outward but inward not of the body but of the minde For as Salomon saieth A sorrowfull minde drieth the bones Prouerbs 17.22 Againe A man will sustaine his infirmitie but a wounded spirâ—t who can beare it Prou. 18.14 His meaning is that no outward griefe or discommoditie whatsoeuer but may be indured and borne with great patience and constancie but if the conscience be wounded and striken with the feeling of Gods wrath for sin or any other great cause there is neither man nor woman which is able to endure and beare it out long without great gracious assistance from God That this is so you can speak of your own experience yet for your comfort remember that you are not alone the due consideration whereof may not a little cheere vp your heart For you reade of some in the scriptures some you heare of and some you know your selfe who grone vnder the same burden whose consciences are set very hard vpon the racke whose poore soules are in little ease as well as yours This is one principall point A principal comfort for the troubled minde which I would haue you thinke vpon continually but then especially when Sathan woulde beare you down that you are alone in this kinde of affliction and that no body is so troubled as you are For this purpose you may remember that sweete sentence of the holy apostle 1. Pet. 5.9 wherein he doeth you to vnderstand that the same afflictions which you endure are also accomplished and suffered of your other bretheren which are abroad in the world as if he should say let not such a thought as this is ouersway you The best affected are your partners that you should think you haue no fellowes For there bee a number of Gods deere childreÌ„ who are as much and as often troubled with the same griefe of minde aswell as you For as there is no man so wise so strong or so rich but there be many as wise as strong and as wealthie so there is none so greatly grieued in body or minde but there be many who are as deepe in the same griefe as they be Againe Another chiefe comfort against Sathans temptation if your wily enimy shal by this kind of temptation assay to wound your weake conscience that you belong not to God because the correction is so sharpe and the rod wherwith you are beaten so smarting you may boldly step to him wring his weapon out of his hand therwith thrust him thorow for the maner of your chastiâ—ement doeth proue verie strongly to your conscience that you are highly in Gods fauor and that because you are not only partaker of that correction wherof all the sonnes and daughters of God are partakers for so many as are without correction are bastards not children but of that kind of chasticement â—abr 12.8 which only is proper to those who aboue many others haue bin in greater fauor with God For example Dauid was a man as you haue learned from the scriptures according to Gods own hart Dauid was greatly loued of God and grieuously afflicted that is such a one as the Lord set great store by he notwithstanding was throughly whipt with this three stringed whip as you may read at large not in one but in many Psalmes by name the sirt Psalme throughout a great part of the two and twentieth the eight and thirtie the whole Psalme the one and fiftie and manie moe which you maie find by diligent reading in the booke of the Psalmes where you shall vndestand that his estate is all one with yours Againe you may remember that Paul the Apostle was a chosen vessell Acts 9.15 Galat. 1.15 Paul a chosen vessell sharply handled whom God had
worldly things but dung in comparison thereof did that word I say neuer speake peaceablie to your conscience by the holy ministerie did 〈◊〉 neuer giue you assurance and ioy in the holy Ghost did it neuer worke such sweete comfort as no worldly ioy could be like vnto it did you neuer heare such a sermon from your owne godly and carefull pasâ—or or from any other that you haue said at your comming home you would not for all the worlds good but you had heard it because it was so sweete and comfortable did you neuer speake that worde from the true feeling of the heart which might warrant your soule that you are in Christ Iesus If this worde hath had this gracious and powerfull worke in your soule as I am fully perswaded it hath Ephes 4.30 and your selfe cannot denie it for if you doe beside the great wrong you offer your own soule you trespasse against that spirit whereby you haue bene sealed vnto the day of redemption then know assuredly you are so graâ—â—ed into that body of Christ Iesus Gods loue is euerlasting and â—â—changeable as nothing shall be able to seperate you from that loue which the Lord your God beareth you in his deare Sonne in whome hee hath so loued you once Iohn 13.1 as hee must needes loue you for euer And that bicause the Euangelist saith whome hee loues he loues to the end For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance Againe Rom. 11.29 God is not as man that hee should lie Num. 23.19 neither as the sonne of man that hee should repent Hath he saide and shall he not do it and hath he spoken it and shall hee not accomplish it No be you well assured and write vpon it 1. Sam. 15.29 that the strength of Israel wil not lie nor repent For as the apostle Iames saith Iam. 1.17 with him there is no variablenesse nor shadowing by turning Let these and such like places be alwais in your remembrance and giue your selfe vnto the continuall meditation thereof For they shall stand you in great stead if you can call them to minde when your temptations shal assaile you with greatest streÌ„gth And forget not Therefore reade them often and continually that you may alwayes haue them at your fingers end often to thinke of such excellent places as that is which you find written in the eight chapter of the Epistle written to the Romanes and the sixe and thirtieth verse after this manner What shal separat vs from the loue of Christ shall tribulation or anguish or persecution or famine or nakednesse or peril or sword c. No I am persuaded that neither death nor life angels nor principalities nor powers nor things present nor things to come nor height nor depth nor any creature shall be able to separate vs from the loue of God which is in Iesus Christ our Lord. And full sweet to this purpose are those words of the holie prophet Dauid Psal 34.18 19. The Lorde is neere vnto them that are of a contrite heart and will saue such as be afflicted in spirit Great are the troubles of the righteous but the Lorde deliuereth him out of them all Psal 30.5 Againe weeping may abide at euening but ioy commeth in the morning But you finde no such matter you saie for this trouble of minde hath holden you not onelie nights and daies but weekes and moneths yea and yeeres and yet you can finde no ease nor comfort Be it so yet bee not therefore out of heart for the longer it bee before you haue ease the more welcome it shal be when it commeth And to this purpose are the wordes of the Wise-man where hee saieth The hope that is deferred is the fainting of the heart but when the desire commeth it is a tree of life Lastly let the words of Eliphas the Temanite be fast bound vnto your soule which you shall find thus reported in the booke of Iob the fist chapter 17 18 19. verses Beholde blessed is the man whome God correcteth therefore refuse not thou the correction of the Almightie For hee maketh the wound and bindeth it vp hee smiteth and his handes make whole Hee shall deliuer thee in sixe troubles and in the seauenth the euill shall not touch thee The summe drift of all that which hath bin set downe from the beginning to this present place is to encourage you concerning the maner of your affliction which though it be very sharp bitter to the flesh because no chastisement for the present seemeth to be ioyous but greeuous Hebr. 12.11 A principal coâ—fort for the afflicted soule yet there is a time when it shall bring the quiet fruit of righteousnesse vnto them that are exercised thereby In regard hereof Moses the man of God saith Deut. 8.16 that the Lord humbled his owne chosen people and prooued them that hee might doe them good at their latter ende And truely in my poore iudgement you may gather more vndoubted assurance of Gods euerlasting fauour towards your soule by these inward afflictions Afflictions better tokens of Gods loue then riches and prosperitie then by any outward prosperitie of anie worldly blessing whatsoeuer whether it be of health of riches or such like And that because in these your afflictions you are most like vnto your head Christ Iesus Hebr. 1.2 who though hee were the right sonne and heire of the whole world yet had hee not a house to hide his head in Matth. 8.10 as himselfe confesseth Hebr. 2.10 But it pleased the Father seeing hee would bring manie children vnto glorie to consecrate the prince of their saluation through afflictions Now as the holy Apostle reasoneth â— Tim. 2.11 12. This is a true saying if we be dead with him we shal also liue with him If we suffer with him we shal also reigne with him To be short the Holy ghost saith Act. 14.22 That we must by many afflictions enter into the kingdome of God And once againe Rom. 8.28 Those whom he knew before hee also predestinated to be made like to the Image of his Sonne that he might be the first-borne among many brethren So that you may wel perceiue you are not thus farre forth any whit out of your way but you keepe the rode Afflictions the highway to heauen euen the good way which leaveth you as streight as a line vnto the kingdome of heauen And therefore as no traueller who keepes his right way and knowes it wil be sory but very glad because he trusteth to come to that place where his desire is to abide so no more cause haue you to be grieued but rather to reioyce because you know you walke in the streight path which shal bring you to that place of your abode where you would so faine be and where you shal abide most blessed and happie for euer Thus much haue I thought good to offer
vnto your godlie meditations to encorage you concerning the maner of your afflictions The Lord grant you a rich portion of his spirite that your soule may reape a gratious blessing Now you shall further vnderstand in few wordes what shall be the substance of all the matter which foloweth in the remainder of this poore treatise The substance of the whole Treatise folloâ—ing I purpose so neere as I can to gather together those obiections which you and others doe obiect against your selues and so farre as the Lord shall affoord me his grace I entend in order to answer them The first and principall obicetion so far as I can conceiue learne by conference with you The first obiection and answere and with so many as I haue any acquaintance is this The troubled minde doubts of Gods fauour That you doubt much of Gods fauour towards you that you feare it greatly you are not the child of God and if you be yet can not you be thereof certainely perswaded This obiection hath aireadie beene answered in part not withstanding because it is as the foundation of al the other obiections I will in hope of Gods gracious assistance indeuor my selfe to answere it more fully for your better contentmeÌ„t First therfore I would gladly learne this one thing of you or of anie other who is your partner in these temptations who it is that beareth you so greatly in hand A needefull point therefore marke it well you are not the child of God If you answer your conscience through the greatnesse of your sinne doth tel you so then do I againe demaund of you who it is that sets your conscience a worke to vrge this point to what end Harken to Gods 〈◊〉 for he seckes 〈◊〉 God If it be Gods spirit you may be right glad because then it is for your good namely the you may go out of your selfe secke the forgiuenesse of your sinnes and euerlasting saluation in Christ his death and obedience to the full assurance of Gods fauor and the euerlasting peace of your conscience Hearken not to sathan for he hath vowed your destruction But speake the truth is it not rather a strong temptation of Sathan your deadly enemie to trouble the peace of your conscience and if it be possible to driue you to desperation If it be so as I feare it greatly then say I vnto you there is no cause why you should beleeue him First because he is a lyer Ioh. 8.44 Secondly because he is your enemie who meanes you no good at al. That he is a lyar it is manifest because he hath beene so from the beginning And he cannot nowe chaunge his nature It is as much against his nature to speake the truth as it is possible that God should lie Heb. 6.18 Rom. 3.4 who is onely euer true Therefore there is no cause why you shoulde beleeue such a common liar as the Deuill who will lie as fast as a dogge can trot as wee vse to say in our common speach You haue iust cause therefore to except against him in this respect Againe you neede not doubt that hee is your enemy Reuel 12.10 1. Pet. 5.8 and that to the death because hee is the common accuser of the bretheren and like a roaring Lion goeth about continually seeking whom he may deuoure In regard whereof you are not to hearken to him No credit to bee giuen to the deuil though he speak the truth bicause his meaning is badde or beleeue anie thing he shall saie vnto you no although he speake the trueth And my reason is because he will not tell you the trueth to helpe but to hinder you not to cheere but to choake you not to saue but to spill your bloud And whereas you will replie you cannot denie but hee saieth the trueth concerning the greatnesse of your sinnes and that iust condemnation which you haue deserued for them I answere thereto after this manner That you are not to take the knowledge of your sinnes from Sathan because he will not tell you the trueth and the whole trueth as it is in deede Marke thed euils cunning For either he will pare your sins and make them lesse theÌ„ they be to make you altogether carelesse or else hee will make them greater then they be to throw you headlong into despaire But you are to take the persit knowledge of your sins The holy vse of the Ministerie from the true vnderstanding of the Lawe of God Rom. 7.7 fast girded to your conscience by the holie ministerie which GOD hath ordained for this purpose Regard and reâ—erence the ministerie if you loue your soule that you maie thereby come to true and vnfained repentaunce of all your sinnes and bee saued through faith in Christ his blood For the blood of Christ doth clense you from all sinne 1. Iohn 1.7 And if you will yet reason against your selfe that your sinnes are so great that you can gather no assurance of Gods fauour towards you Examples of notorious sinners who repented and were pardoâ—ed then let mee offer to your coÌ„sideration some one or two examples of such notorious knowne sinners as the world cried shame of and yet repenting had their sinnes forgiuen them I meane of set purpose to make choise of those persons and people who in the scriptures are noted to be most infamous Because you and such as are so exercised as you are doe indeed charge your selues further than you ought No easie matter to comfort a troubled mind For you make your selues so bad as though none were to be compared vnto you or as though God had no mercie in store for you And hereupon it comes to passe that almost there is not any word of God which can bring peace vnto your troubled consciences I intend therefore to match you so and with such as you shall be forced to confesse you are outmatched The end shal be this to bring glad tidings to your heauie and sorrowful soule that God both is and will be more fauourable to you then you can as yet be persuaded For if God haue shewed mercie to those Reasons to persuade the afflicted who by reason of their knowne sins were in all mens iudgement further from mercie how can he denie you mercie The Lord persuade your heart who neuer brake into that outrage of sin and yet doe most humblie sue vnto him for mercie That good master who forgaue his bad seruant at his owne intreatte ten thousand talents would not haue beene hard vnto him who ought but a hundred pence if he had sued vnto him as he did to his cruell and vnmercifull fellowe seruant who by no meanes would bee entreated to shewe that fauour in a little debt which was shewed him in a verie great summe Remember I pray you that you haue to deale with a God who is farre more mercifull and therefore you
the victorie for you and who will not shrinke one foote from you vntil such time as you also haue gotten the victorie For in all these things wee are more then conquerours through him that loued vs. Rom. 8.37 And that you may haue the more courage to fight this field without fainting vnderstand thus much All the faithfull doe fight one and the same battell that all the faithfull doe ioyne hands with you to fight out this battell The holie Apostle Paule had receyued a great measure of sanctification aboue manie thousandes of Gods children yet could not hee get the full mastrie ouer sinne but that full sore against his will to his hearts griefe hee fell into it Therefore with sorrow of soule hee complaines in the seuenth Chapter to the Râ—mames Rom. 7.19 That the good which he would he did not Paule fought a bloâ—die field with sinne but the euill which hee would not that did hee And that it may be well vnderstoode that this was not onelie a sharpe hote skirmish for a short fit but a set battle to continue to the ende of his life you may reade howe after sundrie and diuerse greeuous complaints of his owne weakenesse and of the strength of sinne as a man that is wearie of his life for no cause but this onely that he could not leaue sinne hee breakes out into these wordes of great passion Vâ—â—se 24. O wretched man that I am who shall deliuer mee from the bodie of this death Poul could not â—eaue sinne as he desired In which speech he doth bewray two things First that hee could not leaue sinning although it was his whole studie and the onelie thing among manie which he most earnestlie desired Therefore he calles himselfe a wretched man because he carries about a bodie of sinne and death Secondly that hee had as longing a desire to cease from sin as any man could haue And therefore hee asketh this question Who shall deliuer me Nowe tell me I beseech you is it not thus with you The godly would saine leaue sinne and so would you with all your heart Would you not faine leaue sinne if you could and that with all your heart are you not wearie of it and sore grieued for it Must it not needes bee thus because you complaine so greatly you can not leaue sinne You sinne in deede but not willingly nor of set purpose â—say 5.18 you drawe not sinne vnto you with cart ropes as the wicked doe but you are violentlie drawne by the furie and violence of sinne The godly sinne 〈◊〉 willingly as the wicked You hunt not after iniquitie to pursue and followe after it with the intisements thereof But sinne hunts and pursues you till you haue lost both winde and strength and so it may bee you are manie times taken prisoner In which case you are no more to bee blamed then a Souldiour who in battell is full sore agaynst his will taken prisoner of his enemie which thing is most manifest to your owne conscience because when you are taken and you perceiue it you behaue your selfe as a man which is fallen into his enemies hande For your heart is greeued â—â—d your soule wonderfully troubled your sâ—eepe departeth from you you can eate no meate that doeth you good you take no pleasure in anie worldlie thing there is no mirth in you but you are all heauie and sad If you bee in companie where you are prouoked to bee merrie you laugh but for companie for it is but from the teeth forwarde To bee short so long as you are holden captiue of anie sinne you are wearie of your life Therefore all your studie is howe you maie breake off the fetters of sinne The godly study how to breake off the fetters of sinne and bee deliuered whereto you applie all your wit power cunning and skill And if through the great goodnesse of God you get anie aduauntage to escape there was neuer anie fowle more glad of a faire day or bird that hath broken out of the fowlers net more ioyfuil then you are of so happie deliuerance And when you are deliuered you are euer afterwards more carefull a great deale that you fall not againe into your enimies hand Againe you make not a trade of sinne The wicked do trade in sinne to follow it dayly and houreâ—â—e as the workers of imquitie Mat. 7.23 who follow it as carefully and continually as any man followes his occupation whereby hee must liue Ps 1.2.3 But the trade which you follow and the way wherein you walke with delight is the continuall meditation of the lawe of God with an earnest desire to practise it in your whose conuersation Coloss 3.2 Your minde and affections are not set vpon the earth but vppon heauen and vpon those things which may bring you to heauen It is better with you then you thinke for and therefore be thankfull and â—heere vp your heart in the Lord. Therefore in the true acknowledgement of Gods great mercy towards you you may with peace to your soule saie with the Apostle Paul in the seuenth chapter to the Romans and the fiue and twentieth verse I thanke God through our Lord Iesus Christ because in my mind I serue the lawe of God although in the flesh that is in that part which is vnregenerate I serue the lawe of sinne Touching that other point namely that you fall often and againe into that sin which you haue vowed neuer to coÌ„mit againe It is no wonder in this corruption to sinne often in the same sinne for as much as the same is against your wil through great infirmitie and not of anie set purpose although I wish you in anie wise to be as carefull as may be therein and to vse all good and holie meanes of watching ouer your affections and auoiding all those occasions All good meanes must be vsed against euerie sinne whereby you may bee drawen forward into aâ—e the least sinne by praying fasting and such like holie exercises whereby you may be better strengthened against all assaultes of sinne yet would I not haue you to discourage your selfe too much with the consideration thereof Consider wisellâ— and apply with reuerence For this you knowe that one which walketh in a supperie way or vpon ice may against his will yea though hee looke neuer so well to his feete not onelie take the first but the second and the third fall yea manie falles notwithstanding that he thinketh to set his foote maruelous sure Abraham although hee was the father of the faithfull Abraham fell more than once into one sinne and for his godlinesse highlie commended in the Scripture yet through great weakenesse lyed first in Egypt to Pharao in denying Sarah to be his wife These examples are to comfort such as woulde leaue sinne and not to encourage any to liue in sinne Genesis the twelfth chapter and thirteenth verse Againe hee
fell into the selfe same sinne vnto Abimelech the king of Gerar Genesis the twentie chapter and second verse Sarah also gaue her consent both times and was partaker of the sinne Isaac their sonne vpon the â—ke occasion so readilie coyned a lie as if his father and mother had not only by practise but by precept taught him to lie I knowe both what I say and to whom I speake for as these examples and such like may not nor ought not to make vs bolde to runne headlong or to continue with delight in anie 〈◊〉 great or small for then wâ— vnto vs so they serue to comfort vs that wee stand not ouermuch amazed at our daylie slippes in sinne Nowe followeth a sixt obiection concerning hardnesse of heart The â—ixt obiection concerning hardnes of heart That you can not profite by the worde preached and therefore thinke it were as good or better not to heare at all as to heere to no purpose and profit For hardnesse of heart which is the first branch of this obiection I answere that it is a principal part of the corruption of the old man which cleaueth fast vnto our nature and is one of our mortall enemies which will haunt vs vnto the death Hardnesse of harâ— wâ—ll hang vpon vs and haunt vsâ—o the death For our faith shall be exercised therewithal as long as we shall liue in this world Therefore our best remedie is to arme our selues with the armour of proofe before rehearsed and to buckle with this aduersarie Looke well to your atmour whose edge and courage by little and lâ—ttle shall be abated And for your encoragement this I say that flesh and bloud hath not opened your eies to see this to be a sinne neither touched your heart with a misâ—iking thereof Blesse gods narre that now you see and greeue for that sinne which in former times you neither sawâ— nor greened for for then you might long ago haue found out this and manie other sinnes when they raigned in you more strongly and caried you headsong without any resistance or misliking into much euil to commit sin with great greedines But then you could find no fault at all with your selfe nay you thought your self in as good case as was possible Your case all one with the Apostle Paul Ro. 7.9 c. Acts 26.9 And no maâ—uell because you were blinded through the dâ—rknesse of your owne vnderstanding and reason so as you could iudge no colours Now through Gods goodnesse for the welfare of your soule your eies which were blind are opened to see those things which you neuer saw before and your heart is touched with a wonderfull misliking of that which before you leued Yea indeede you must needes confes Giue God leaue and he will helpe that which you can not you see and feele your hardnesse of heart but you cannot helpe nor amend it No but the Lord both can and wil helpe to amend whatsoeuer is amisse in his time In the meane time Psal 27.14 do what you can be patient tarie the Lords leasure wait vpon him and he shall comfort thine heart Where you say A generall complaint of the best you cannot profit by the word of God preached that is also a generall complaint of all such as are most carefull to profit But your owne words do prooue against your selfe that you doe profit For if you profited not how comes it to passe that you haue found out this fault that you cannot profit It is not the manner of such as doe not receiue profit by the word preached to find fault but to please and flatter themselues most when they profite least Therefore this is a great argument and sound proofe of your profiting The complaint of not profiting is verie profitable because it mâ—kes you carefull to profite in that you can thus blame your selfe that you doe not profit And it pleaseth the Lord thus to exercise you and the rest of his beloued ones with the feeling hereof not to discourage you but that this may be as a whetstone to sharpen your stomake to heare with greater conscience and as a spurre to make you more egar vpon the word when it is preached that the oftener you heare you may desire more and more to proâ—ite by hearing But where as in the end As you loue your soule take heede of this temptatiâ— you throwe downe this logge in your owne way that it were good not to heare at all I am to giue you speciall warning as you tender the saluation of your owne soule to take heede howe you giue consent to that temptation in the least thought of your heart for it is a strong enchantment of Sathan to bewitch you withall and a choise baite to catch your soule in euerlasting destruction The deuill himselfe hateâ— pâ—eâ—ching more than holy water because it ouerthrâ— weth his â—ingdome He knowes this as well as anie man can tell him that the word preached is the onelie most principall meanes which God hath ordained to strengthen you against the whole batterie and force of al his temptations Hee knowes also that from thence you daylie gather courage against him Whether it be thus or not I appeale to your conscience And if you haue found this powerfull worke in your owne soule then so often as hee shall thrust in this temptation say vnto him auoyde Sathan Matth. 4.10 for thou labourest to murther my precious soule by withdrawing me from the meanes of my saluation But howe doth he vrge this point against you The deuils crust in reasoning and with what reasons First because you doe not feele profit presentlie Secondlie because you doe not profite so much as you should Nowe marke I beseech you the deuils craft in reasoning First you feele no profit by the word presentlie so soone as you heare it preached therefore you doe not profit at all You feele not profite presentlie therefore you shall neuer feele profite You shall see this cunning laied open to your vnderstanding in a familiar example after this manner The deuils cunning laide wide open by sensible reasons A sicke man hath Phisicke giuen him to helpe his sicknesse He is not helped presentlie so soone as hee hath taken it Therefore he shall neuer haue helpe The husbandman doth sowe his seede and casts it into the ground that it may growe and bring forth fruit But it growes not so soone as it is sowen Therefore it will not growe at anie time neither shall â—ee euer reape anie croppe of his seede Againe hee reasoneth thus against you you profit not so much as you should or not alwayes alike Therefore you profit not at all This is as if one should reason after this fashion One aâ—re of corne some yeare brings forth fiue tenne twentie or a hundred fold But it doth not so euerie yeare Therefore it brings forth nothing at all Some yeares an occupier gaynes a hundred
pound by his trade Hee gaynes not so much euery yeare Therfore he gains nothing Thus the deuil reasoneth with you therefore be your selfe iudge of his maner of reasoning and the Lord in mercie giue you wisedome in all things to take heed of his wilinesse that you be not by him anie way abused The seuenth and last obiection is The last obiection concerning euill thoughts concerning euill thoughts which arise in the minde wherewith I know some are not a little troubled for comfort of whose weake consciences which are many times ouer much greeued by the consideration thereof I answere thus from the Prophet Ieremie the seuenteenth Chapter and ninth verse Ierem. 17.9 that the heart is deceitfull and wicked aboue all things who can know it By which place if my iudgement doe not much abuse mee this one lesson may be rightlie and kindly gathered that when the best men and women haue done their best to their best power they shall neuer attaine or come to the perfect The heart is like a bottomlesse pit which can neuer be drawen drie and full knowledge of ' all the corruption and filthinesse which is there hatched and harboured because it is like vnto a bottomles pit which can neuer be drawne drie Hereupon I reason thus If we shall neuer in the whole course of our life come to the through and full knowledge of all that venemous poison which is deepe rooted in the dungeon of our vnderstanding how then shall it euer be possible for vs to attaine to the perfect reformation of so manie disorders as are there to be found Genes 6.5 Againe the Lord himselfe saith That all the imaginations of the thoughts of mans heart be euill onelie euill and that continuallie If all be euill by nature before we be regenerate and borne a new by a second birth of the spirit and word and that continuallie then no maruell if some be euill and that continually after our regeneration Because wee be renewed but in part Ephes 4.24 and we haue so put on the new man which after god is created in true holinesse and righteousnesse as that we shal neuer cleane and altogether put off the old man with all his deceiueable lustes vntil we put off this flesh and that by death In this one point standeth a great part of our Christian warfare wherein we are at all seeles and seasons to stand vpon our garde This is our taske to our dying day to fight against our affections which are our deadly foes and to watch with all diligence in withstanding the euill affections and thoughts of our hearts which as Peter saith fight against our soules For these be such spitefull enemies as lodge themselues close euen in the closet of our heart 1. Pet. 2 11. they eate and drinke with vs Our vnruly and lordly lufts do yawe vs continually they sleepe and wake with vs they ride and goe with vs they goe out and in with vs to bee short when our othâ—â— enemies the worlde and the diuell doe graunt vs some time of truce their will affoord vs no peace because they sit so neare vs as that euermore they are at hand readie to assault vs Faith and praier are our best armour both before and behinde and on euerie side Therefore we are to the vttermost of our power to arme our selues strongly against them by faith by prayer and all other good and holie meanes That wee maie daylie get ground of them and through Gods grace ouermaister them in some good measure to our euerlasting comfort The rather because the wise man saieth He that is slowe to anger Prouerb 16 32. is better then a mightie man and hee that ruleth his owne minde is better than hee that winneth a citie But euen now while we are speaking of euill thoughts there comes in one A wofull complaint against euill thoughts with a most lamentable complaint saying O sir I am so troubled this way as I thinke there was neuer anie childe of God so grieuouslie troubled For I haue such wicked and blasphemous thoughts as make my flesh to tremble and all my bones to shake yea they are such as they almost driue me to dispaire when I thinke vppon them For they strike not at men but at God himselfe They exalt themselues against the persons of the Trinitie and some of them against the blessed and holie Scriptures What they bee in partieular I am ashamed to speake If you bee ashamed so much as to name them then I perceiue you take no great liking of them neither doe you meane to entertaine them And therefore I answere in fewe wordes they shall not be able to hurt you Psalme 66.28 If I regard wickednes in my heart saith the Prophet God wil not heare me He doth not say if there be any wickednesse at all in my heart or anie thought of wickednesse For who can say It is one thing to haue euil thoghts and another to like of them and delight in them my heart is cleane but if I regard wickednes that is if I delight in it or meane to nourish it within me then I am sure the Lord will not heare my prayer nor shew me any fauour But as if the Prophet should say and as I am sure you doe say that is farre from me to take delight in any such vngodlie and blasphemous thoughts yea so farre as I am not more greeued for any thing then for this that any such thought should come into my minde And therefore hee and you and you as well as he may bee vndoubtedly perswaded the Lord will neither reiect you nor your prayers which in Christ his name you shall offer vp vnto him And whereas you thinke it so strange to haue so euill thoughts to arise in your minde and that you are perswaded there are no moe so tempted beside your selfe I answere vpon mine owne knowledge you are therein greatlie deceiued There bée manie who are euen as much troubled with the same or with as euill And this I dare auouch The most godly are not free from euill thoughts that the most godlie are not free but are subiect vnto most vngodly thoughts Rom. 3.10 and psal 51.5 although they yeeld not vnto them First because they as well as others doe carrie with them a cursed corrupt nature which is the roote from whence all euill springeth Secondly because they haue such an enemie as will not spare to tempt them to the greatest euill yea to this Iob tempted to curse God not in his heart but with his mouth Iob 1.7 then the which there can be nonegreater namelie to curse God as the iust and holy man Iob was tempted But as that good man withstoode the temptation so doe they fight against euerie euill motion and are preserued Yet there is one thing more concerning euil thoughts which is that you can not be rid of them but that euer and anone they come into your minde To this I answere 1. Pet. 2 1â— that the sooner you checke them and the more strongly you resist them the sooner a great deale shall you bee rid of them First you must resist for Iam. 4.7 resist the deuil and he will flie from you And heere marke that this resistance must be by the word and by praier The ready way to be rid of euill thoughts is to resist them Secondlie you must resist egerlie and speedilie And therefore as Dauid hasted to fight against Goliah 1. Sam. 7.48 and with courage slang a stone so hard that it stacke fast in the foreheade of the vncircumcised Philistim so must you speedilie strike at euerie such thought so soone as you shall perceiue the same to put out his head and once to arise in your minde And as Iesus Christ being tempted of the diuell to fall downe and worship him Matth. 4.10 at the same instant gaue him his answere saying auoid Sathan so must you giue them a present answere and send them packing to the diuell of hell from whence they come and whither you are in all haste to returne them If when you haue vone what you can you finde your selfe too weake for them that they be too hard a great deale for you then turne your captaine Christ Iesus to them who hath so fullie conquered for you as that howsoeuer they shall assault you continuallie and manie times foile you yet shall they neuer get the full victorie ouer you but you in your captaine shal be more then a conquerour ouer them and all the rest of your deadlie enemies Rom. 8.37 for Christ was deliuered to death for our sinnes Rom. 4.25 and rose againe for our iustification To him therefore be glorie for euer and euer Amen Thus you haue the pledge of my good will towards you manie others which I haue not done to exclude ame grace or blessing of comfort which you may receiue in greater measure from your owne godly pastor most careful of your estate but that you may more highly account of so excellent graces of God in him And that what soeuer is wanting in this my poore treatise may by him bee more fullie supplied FINIS