poore miserable men more unreasonable and without understanding then the beasts are wounded every day and that many times deadly and yet notwithstanding we seek for no medicine to cure our spirituall diseases We use the same diet we were wont to do we talk as freely and merrily as ever we did we go to bed at our accustomed houre and sleep according to our old compasse But Repentance is the Physick that goes against our stomacks Contrition cuts us to the heart Confession seems bitter in our mouthes we choose rather to continue sick then so be cured This is our miserable condition so foolish are we and void of understanding either not knowing or at least not embracing that which would make for our Eternall good If we would give eare unto the counsell of the heavenly Angels which seem in the Picture according to their description to give direction unto us and are indeed appointed by God as ministring spirits for our good if we would I say give eare unto their counsell then certainly we would neither suffer our eyes to sleep nor our eye-lids to slumber neither the temples of our heads to take any rest untill our peace and reconciliation were made with God They put us still in minde that our day is almost spent that the night draws on that our glasse is neare running out that death is at hand and after death cometh judgement But we securely walk on in our old way Let the day spend let the night draw on let the glasse runne out Come death follow judgement We are not troubled at it we care not we regard not no warning of the Angels will serve our turn We sweetly sleep and never dream of this Unhappy man whosoever thou art Potes hoc sub casâ— ducere somnos And canst thou sleep in such a case as this Canst thou go to bed with a Conscience thus laden with sinne Canst thou take any rest when thou liest in danger of Eternall death Canst thou lodge in the same bed with the brother of Death and entertain sleep into thy bosome I can I tell thee that I can and finde no harm at all by it Be not too confident That may happen in the space of one houre which hath not happened in a thousand Thou art not past danger For consider with thy self how long thou hast to live There is no great distance betwixt thy soul and death hell and Eternitie It is gone in a breath Thou mayst most truely say every houre I am within one degree of death within one foot yea within one inch Death need not spend all his quiver upon thee One Arrow the head of one Arrow shall wound thee to the heart and make such a large orifice that bloud and spirits and life and all shall suddenly run out together Either thou livest in a malignant and corrupt aire or else thou art troubled with distillations falling down from thy head upon the lungs or else there is some obstruction in the veins or in the liver or else the vitall spirits are suffocated or else the pulsation of the Arteries is intercepted or else the Animall spirits runne back to their head and there are either frozen to death or else drowned One way or other thou postest to the end of thy short race and presently thou art but a dead man carried away to Eternitie in the turning of an hand before thou couldst imagine or think upon it There are a thousand wayes to bring a man to his end I do not speak of lingring deaths before which there goes some warning but of sudden deaths that summon us arrest us and carry us away all in a moment He dies suddenly that dies unpreparedly Death is not sudden if it be foreseen and alwayes expected That 's sudden death which was unpremeditate and unpremeditate death is the worst of all deaths And from such sudden death good Lord deliver us It is good counsell for every one let him be of what age he will for no age is priviledged more then another death hath a generall commission which extends to all places persons ages there is none exempt It is good counsell then I say for every one at all times and in all places and in all companies to expect death and to think every day yea every houre to be his last Then let him die when please God he shall not die suddenly How many men have we heard of whose light hath suddenly been put out and life taken away either by a fall or the halter or poyson or sword or fire or water or Lions pawes or Bores tusks or Horse heels and a thousand more wayes then these As many senses as we have That number is nothing As many parts and members as we have And yet that is nothing As many pores as there be in all the parts of our body put together So many windows are there for death to creep in at to steal upon us and suddenly cut our throats Thou wast born saith Saint Augustine That is sure For thou shalt surely die And in this that thy death is certain the day also of thy death is uncertain None of us knows how neare he draws unto his end I know not saith Job how long I shall live and how soon my Maker may take me away or as our translation hath it I know not to give slattering titles in so doing my Maker would soon take me away In the midst of our life we are neare unto death For we alwayes carry it in our bosome And who can tell whether he shall live till the Evening or no This murderer and man-stealer for so I call Death hath a thousand wayes to hurt us as by thunder and lightning storms and tempest fire and water c. Instruments of mischief he hath of all sorts as Gunnes Bowes Arrows Slings Spears Darts Swords and what not We need not be beholding to former ages for examples of sudden deaths Alack we have too many in our own dayes Have not we our selves known many that laying themselves down to sleep have fallen into such a dead sleep that they are not to be awaked again till they shall heare the sound of the trumpet at the last day Death doth not alwayes send his Heralds and Summoners before to tell us of his coming but often steals upon us unexpected and as he findes us so he takes us whether prepared or unprepared Watch therefore For ye know neither the day nor the houre There is a kinde of Repentance indeed in Hell but neither is it true neither will it profit any thing at all For it is joyned with everlasting and tormenting horrour and despaire Now now is the acceptable time of Repentance Now whilest it is called to day Bring forth therefore fruits meet for Repentance The Night cometh when no man can work Work therefore while it is day The Day saith Origen is the time of this life which may seem long unto us
ALWAYES which shall follow But they which open their eares to heare and their hearts to understand when the Church soundeth both Trumpets as it often doth and thereupon seriously consider with themselves and compare together this short NOW with that infinite and everlasting ALWAYES they will use no delay but presently remove the camp they live here as Pilgrims and strangers they have their loyns girt they remember that they are in a journey they send their riches and pleasures before them into their Countrey which is above they choose rather to enjoy them ALWAYES in heaven then NOW for a short time upon earth Certain it is whosoever heareth attentively and mindeth seriously the Alarm of these Trumpets and thereupon compareth together things present with things future and things transitorie with things Eternall He will presently make himself ready to depart he will prepare himself a place of buriall he will lay out his winding sheet he will send for his bear and furnish himself with all things necessarie for his journey remembring still in every place that he is passing on the way to Eternitie and conferring with himself every day after this manner How shall I be able to give account unto God for all my thoughts words and deeds and When shall I give up my account and What sentence will he passe upon me NOW therefore will I die unto my self that I may ALWAYES livâ— unto my self and unto God Welâ— is it with that man which timelâ— and dayly thus thinketh upon Eternitie Whatsoever we do we arâ— passing on our way and we do noâ— know how short it is unto thâ— gate which leadeth to Eternitie At the last houre of our life death shall bring us unto this gate and compell us to enter Let us therefore so live as if we were alwayeâ— expecting death that if it shalâ— please God at any time to visit uâ— with sicknesse the forerunner oâ— death we may entertain it cheer fully and beare it patiently liftinâ— up our eyes unto Christ hanginâ— upon the Crosse the true and perfecâ— pattern of Patience and when the time of our dissolution draweth neare praying thus Lord Jesu stand by me and comfort me Lord Jesu be present with thy servant that putteth his trust in thee Lord Jesu make me partaker of thy victorie Lord Jesu receive my spirit and leade me through the darksome valley and shadow of death leade me and forsake me not untill thou hast brought my soul into the land of the living O thou most potent conquerour of death O thou which art my light life and salvation Good Master what good thing shall I doe that I may have ETERNALL life Math 19. 16. It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle then for a rich man to enter into the kingdome of God The love of riches of ETERNITIE are scarce resident in one heart THE FIFTH CONSIDERATION upon ETERNITIE How others even wicked men themselves have meditated upon Eternitie THe old historie of the Fathers tells us of a religious man that reading upon the nineteenth Psalme came at length having not thought of it to these words For a thousand yeares in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past and here stuck For he could not conceive a reason why a thousand yeares and one day should be compared together Whereupon they say there was a little bird sent by God which so ravisht the man with her sweet singing that though he heard her sing a very great while together yet he thought the time very short scarce a short houre long The winde bloweth where it listeth Not good men onely have with holy David meditated upon Eternitie but even wicked men also and those oftentimes against their will Benedictus Renanus reports of a vain and ungodly fellow a very Epicure and meer worldling which never used to fast or watch one that could not endure the want of any thing but especially sleep Upon a certain night it seems this fellow could not sleep as he was wont being much troubled with unusuall dreams so he turned himself upon his bed from one side to another and could not by any means get any rest then he wished it were day But here the winde of the Lord began to blow though it were in a strange land for good thoughts were very rare in this man Being weary with watching and finding no ease or rest aâ— all thus he began to think with himself Would any be hired upon any condition to lie thus two or three yeares together in darknesse without the companie of friends though his sicknesse were not very grievous Would he be content to want his sports and playes so long Would he be content to be bound to his bed though it were a feather-bed or a bed of down and never stirre abroad to see any sights or shews or make merry with his friends I think no man would And shall I alone amongst all men enjoy rest and pleasure by an especiall priviledge and have no sense of grief and sorrow Surely no. Will I nill I needs I must sometime or other lie down upon the bed of sicknesse unlesse I be suddenly taken away by death which God forbid This was a good winde these were good cogitations But what bed shall I have next when death shall thrust me out of this My body must rot under earth For this is the condition of all men after death But what shall become of my soul in another world Surely all men do not go to the same place after death Do not some go one way and some another Is there not an Hell as well as an Heaven Wo and alas What kinde of bed shall the damned finde in Hell How many yeares shall they lie there In what yeare after their first entrance shall the flames cease and be put out Assuredly Christ doth not onely in word threaten to cast the wicked into everlasting fire but will also cast them in indeed This thing is certain and very manifest Therefore the damned shall burn in Hell for ever Therefore a thousand and a thousand and again I say a thousand yeares will not suffice to purge away the â—innes of this short life Therefore they shall never see the Sunne any more nor Heaven nor God being most miserable Eternally and without end With such thoughts as these this man became so vigilant and watchfull and proceeded so farre that night and day he could not be at rest but Eternitie did still runne in his minde Fain indeed he would have shaken off the thoughts thereof as gnawing worms but he could not Therefore he followed sports and pastimes went to merry meetings sought out companions like himself and sate oftentimes so long at his cups that he laid his conscience asleep and so seemed to take some rest But when he came again unto himself his conscience being awakened did presently accuse him and suggest unto him afresh sorrowfull thoughts of Eternitie Thus finding no rest
bore unto Rachel that it made him scarce sensible of any labour Hearest thou this thou which goest for a Souldier of Christ conceivest thou this understandest thou this How then canst thou still murmure against God Thou art bid to serve God for Gods sake that so thou mayest at length enter into Gods Eternall rest Thou art exhorted to tolerance and patience here that so thou mayest be made partaker of immortalitie with the blessed hereafter And yet sleepest thou O sluggard Hast thou not an eare to heare Art thou still complaining Do but reckon up the yeares which thou hast spent in the service of God and see whether thou hast served God faithfully and painfully twenty yeares as Jacob did Laban I am afraid thou wilt come short in thy reckoning Hast thou served God so many moneths I tell thee I make a question of it Number the nights that thou hast spent in watching and praying recount the dayes which thou hast spent in holy exercises and see if thou canst truely say unto God as Jacob did to Laban In the day the drought consumed me and the frost by night and my sleep departed from mine eyes Thus have I been twenty yeares in thy house I served thee fourteen yeares for thy two daughters and six yeares for thy cattell Tell me Christian man hast thou served God thus twenty yeares Thou knowest thy wages if thou servest God Not Labans daughters nor flocks of sheep God himself shall be the reward of thy service Thou shalt be blessed both in soul and body It shall be well with thee on every side Thou shalt enjoy all manner of delights great delights without either lacking or loathing and without end Thou shalt swimme in the bottomlesse Ocean of pleasures And yet behold thy hands are slack to every good work Thy feet are slow to go to Church Thy heart consumes away with envy flames with anger and revenge abounds with the vermine of filthy thoughts and is quite dead through slothfulnesse and impatience Is this thy serving of God Is this the way thinkest thou to heaven to immortall life to Eternall blessednesse Surely it is not Why dost thou not rather as Jacob did when thou art weary with any labour which thou undergoest in the service of God when the world goes ill with thee when adversitie presseth thee prosperitie seduceth thee and labours burden thee lift up thine eyes to heaven behold Rachel who is promised unto thee and thus comfort up thy self Be not troubled O my soul Behold thy Rachel thy Rachel which is in heaven fair Rachel comely Rachel Rachel that is all beautifull not having any one blemish about her Behold heaven and the house of thy Eternall rest and pleasure Be content to suffer for a while a little sorrow and some pains For thou shalt shortly be where thy Rachel is and there thou shalt be the more joyfull and blessed by how much the more thou art here sorrowfull and afflicted There shall thy rest be the more pleasant and joyfull by how much the more thy life here is heavy and painfull Well then be of good courage shew Christian fortitude and patience Eternitie blessed Eternitie is more worth infinitely more worth then all that we can do or suffer If thus O Christian brother thou wouldest animate and encourage thy self if with such eyes thou wouldest oftner look up to heaven if with such affection thou wouldest dayly think upon Eternitie Beleeve it All thy dayes of service here on earth would seem but few for the great love which thou wouldest have unto Eternitie Thou wouldest count all labour easie all troubles welcome all losses gain This I will say and therewith I will conclude The more a man thinks upon the Eternitie of the world to come the more care he will take here to leade a godly life in this present world Thus saith the high and loftie one that inhabiteth ETERNITIE Adam lost ETERNITIE Christ regained it to this the Angels invite us from this the devils with draw us have a care whether thou followest THE SEVENTH CONSIDERATION upon ETERNITIE How Christians use to paint Eternitie HE that is to go through an house in the dark must go warily and leisurely step after step and he must grope for the wall If mans understanding will be prying into Eternitie if he thinks here in this life to enter into it he is much deceived The way is dark and full of difficulties He may hurt himself by the way but he shall never here attain unto it The way thither is but short indeed but when a man is once in there is no coming out again And yet though no mortall man can so conceive of Eternitie that he can certainly say what it is notwithstanding the infinitenesse thereof is shadowed out by certain pictures resemblances in such manner that every man may have a glimpse of it Whatsoever we speak or write concerning Eternitie howsoever we set it out in colours All is but a shadow yea a shadow of shadows No Oratour in the world can with all his Rhetorick sufficiently expresse it No Limner with all his curious art and skill can set it forth to the life If all times that ever were and ever shall be should be put together they would infinitely come short of Eternitie the Latitude thereof is not to be measured neither by houres nor dayes nor weeks nor moneths nor yeares nor Lustra's nor Olympiads nor Indictions nor Jubilees nor ages nor Plato's yeares nor by the most slow motions of the Eighth sphere though these were multiplied by a thousand or a million or the greatest multiplier or Number numbering that can be imagined Neither can it be measured by any Number numbered as by the starres of heaven the sands of the sea the grasse of the field the drops of the rivers and such like The number of Eternitie is past finding out The Saylers use to sound the depth of the sea by a plummet and a line Let us also let down the plummet and line of our humble and reverent cogitations to sound the depth of Eternitie which yet is past finding out But if we will go by this Map if we will sayl by this chard if we will view well this Picture we shall come much nearer finding it then otherwise we should Chrisâ—i as a childe taken as it were from the manger and the cradle almost quite naked and without clothes stands in the clouds on â—is shoulders he beares a crosse In the clouds there is this inscription â—TERNITIE Beneath Christs feet down upon the earth there is the Sceleton of a man or nothing but the bones of a man without hair or skinne onely he hath a beard to be known by in his left hand he holds a piece of parchment in which these words are written Momentaneum quod delect at That which delighteth is momentanie In his right hand he holds up an Apple Neare unto him there stands a Raven pecking a shelfish with