despight of his enemies if they take away their meat saith the Martyr God can take away their hunger why not as well as he doth the life of other creatures and he will do it rather then his promise shall fail Elijah goes in the strength of one meal forty days and had God pleased it might have been forty years for he could have preserved the Israelites forty years in the wilderness without food as well as with food from heaven and as well as he preserved their garments from waxing old Deut. 29.5 I have led you forty years in the wilderness your cloaths are not waxen old upon you and thy shoe is not waxen old upon thy foot they needed not to care what they should eat or what they should drink or wherewithall they should be cloathed for God made provision of all this they were maintained at Gods proper cost and charges methoughts also this cessation of action in these creatures in winter did much resemble sleep which if God pleased might be as long in other animals and were it not common would be thought wonderful and little differing from death it self and yet experience shews us that which seems to destroy nature doth restore and refresh it or it is like to a swoon when the symptomes of death are upon a man yea in some distempers the symptomes of life for many hours together are scarcely discerned but above all it resembles our lying in the grave and our rising again at the resurrection for the body sleeps in the dust till the last day as these creatures do in their holes till the winter is past and the spring approacheth and the silkworm never receives life till the Mulbery-trees leaves which is their food and then they shall be revived by the sun of righteousness and life put into them then these dry bones shall live This I know some question and some deny possibly because they cannot fathome the depth of this providence and were they not convinc't by yearly experience of the other they would deny that also and would think it could not be that creatures should have their life preserved the one half of the year at least without food because they know not how it should be But I think few articles of our faith are more clearly proved in Scripture then this of the resurrection but many men I fear are wilfully blinde their lives and conversations being so debaucht they would believe at least wish they could believe there were no resurrection of the body yea that the soul were mortal as well as the body and that the death of the one were the destruction of the other also but the time is coming they shall finde the contrary to their sorrow both scripture and reason speak plainly that the soul is immortal and that the body partaking with it in holiness or sin shall also partake with it in weal or wo and that there will be a day of retribution when those that now suffer for Christ shall then reign with him and those that sin shall suffer for their sin the contrary to this cannot stand with scripture-revelations the threatnings of the law the promises of the Gospel nor with divine justice it self and why should any think it impossible for God to gather our dust together and raise up our dead bodies at the last who do believe that there is a God and that he hath made not only man but the whole creation of nothing and that this God is just and will make good both his promises and threatnings and nothing is too hard for an omnipotent arm oh my soul distrust not Gods word question not his power he that can make all things of nothing can of thy scattered ashes raise up thy dead body to life and re-unite it to thy hould and he that saith he will do it will certainly perform it heaven and earth shall pass but not one tittle of his word shall pass till all be fulfilled call not in question the power and providence of God but labour to have a part in the first resurrection that the second death may have no power get fitted for death and judgement get sin pardoned and subdued which is the sting of death get grace implanted and thy soul married unto Christ then needst thou not fear death nor the resurrection oh my God strengthen my faith confirm my hope and encrease my love to thee and let me long for the time that I may enjoy thee in glory and lie for ever in the arms of my beloved Vpon beggers at the door 60. Med. WHen I saw some lusty able persons fit for service and other employment begging at the door I began to consider how disagreeing this course of life was to the word of God who had commanded men in the sweat of their brows they should eat their bread this is a law laid upon all sorts of men to sweat out a poor living brow or brain must sweat for it or our bread is eaten ere it be earned God would not have a begger in Israel and the Apostles will was those that would not labour should not eat 2 Thes 3.6 10 14. those that have enough to live on must not be idle much less those that have nothing yet many live like rats and mice only to devour what others labour for paradice that was mans store-house was also his work-house God set him to dress the garden and there should be none that like body-lice feed upon other mens sweat such idle persons often times are set on work by the devil for idleness is the hour of temptation and standing-waters are usually full of vermine Nay how disagreeing is this course of life with the laws of the land which making other provision for the poor stigmatize these wanderers by the name of rogues and appoint them to be stockt and whipt and sent back to the place of their birth or last abode and inflicts a penalty upon those that relieve them The great Turk that grand Seignior is not excepted for he hath a trade and is dayly to labour with his hands yea Divines in all ages ancient and modern and of all perswasions have exclaimed against this course of life and esteemed such persons to be the plague-sore of the Nation and not to be tolerated in a well-ordered Common-wealth they are a dishonour to the Church they live in and to the Countrey they inhabit and the heathens as well as the Christians have made laws to punish them These and the like considerations made me think correction to be the fittest alms and their restraint might hinder a great deal of sin acted by them and be a means to reduce them under government civil and Ecclesiastical which now live like lawless persons under none and neither fear God nor obey men but are the unprofitable burthens of the earth But on the other side when I considered how little provision notwithstanding in the law was made for the poor in most places and
prayer and tear yet he cannot beget a godly childe but chaff and corruption adheres to them also nay inheres in them and they have as much need of refining as ever the father had for though a sinful man beget a sinful childe yet cannot a gracious man beget a gracious childe for he begets him as he is a man and of the sinful off-spring of fallen Adam and not as he is gracious and though God do more usually make choise of his people out of such families the covenant being with them and their seed and he hath respect to their prayers and gives a blessing to their education and exhortations yet this is not always so neither are they born thus for they are the children of wrath as well as others and though sin be hereditary grace is not Ah sin what woful work hast thou made in the world the most of men perish eternally by thee and those that escape are saved as by fire with a very great deal of pains and difficulty holy David begat a lascivious Amnon and a rebellious Absolom good Ely begat bad sons and holy Isaac a prophane Esau yea faithfull Abraham a scoffing Ishmael for as a learned man cannot beget a learned childe for learning is not a birth-priviledge but an acquired qualification so grace is not born with but freely given to them that God thinks fit to bestow it upon A rich mans childe comes into the world as naked destitute and miserably impotent and helpless as any other This as it may minde us of our miserable condition by the fall so also of our duty to our children that as we are carefull of their bodies so should we be much more carefull of their souls and as we are carefull that they get learning so should we be much more that they get grace an estate is not so needfull as an interest in Christ we should endeavour by instruction correction and good education to train them up in the fear of God and when we can do no more to go to him that is able to give it to beg grace for them for as we were instrumental in their ruine so we should endeavour their recovery But too many train them up no otherwise then they do their horses teach them to drudge and think they have done well especially if they can leave them an estate behinde them which oftentimes is so badly gotten that they entail also a curse upon them and their posterity and God doth in a visible manner punish their children to the third and fourth generation Oh my soul how stands the case with thee thou art a childe of wrath by nature as well as others is thy relation to thy God changed of an enemy art thou an adopted son t is well thou hadst dross is that consumed and the soul refined thou hadst chaff is that blown away hast thou the marks of adoption now upon thee that formerly hadst the marks of an enemy dost thou resemble thy father dost bear his image God hath no children but what have some resemblance to him he never adopts any but he changeth their nature and disposition as well as their relation he hath no unnatural children hath he made good that promise to thee 2 Cor. 6.18 I will be a father to them and they shall be my sons and daughters saith the Lord almighty hath he performed the duty of a father in thy new birth in maintaining thee and giving the heavenly allowance in instructing and correcting thee and hast thou the nature disposition and priviledge of children hast thou communion with him doth he feed thee with bread from heaven cloath thee with the robes of righteousness and adorn thee with the jewels of his grace is there a through change wrought in thee and a new nature put into thee hast thou given up thy heart as well as thy name to Christ if it be so it is well if thou hast this priviledge for thy self seek it for thy children also as thou hast dedicated them to God do thy endeavour to make them Gods and that the work of grace may be timely wrought in their souls curb corruption while they are young a green twig will easily be bended but when old and dry the work is difficult many like the ape kill their young ones with embracing and they come to break their parents heart who thought a rod too heavy for them withhold not correction nor instruction and go to God for a blessing upon both Oh my God am I wilde by nature and hast thou planted me into the true olive hast thou taken me off my own stock and planted me into the true vine Lord what shall I render to thee for this Lord help me to give up my heart as well as my name to thee and live thanks as well as speak thanks hast thou made me a son Lord give me a son-like disposition and let me honour my God by a holy life and conversation And O that my children might live before thee Lord purge out the dross blow away their chaff make them thy sons and thy daughters Upon the pleasures of a garden 43. Med. BEing in a well contrived well-furnished well-ordered garden where there was what nature or art could bestow upon it various well-coloured well-sented flowers which chequered the knots and delighted both the sight and smell with various sorts of herbs and vegetables as well physicall as otherwise together with curious walks and shady bowers and other curious contrivances delightful delicacies and various curiosities that it seemed to me an earthly paradice a place of pelights and pleasures which when I had viewed and for a while solaced my self in it I took much pleasure in it and could contentedly have spent my time there my affections were much tickled with it and grew warm upon it and for a while I delighted my self in it but at last I began to call my self to an accompt and to check my self for it with such considerations as these oh my soul what art thou doing or whether art thou going art thou in heaven or upon the earth that thou art taking up thy station art thou like Shimei in seeking a servant dost thou lose thy self wilt thou by admiring the gift neglect the giver or court the maid before the mistress and take up with a handful of muck for a handful of angels is this a suitable portion for thee or rather a suitable match for the soul that thou art espousing thy self to it and letting out thy affections upon it will this serve thy turn or make thee happy or will it endure to eternity alas it will not when winter comes where are then thy delights nay when night comes it deprives thee of thy pleasure yea every shower of rain puts thee on to seek another happiness and a better shelter and security what then will become of thee at death or judgment if thou hast no better a refuge what good can these do thee in heaven or in
for meat we see how the chief Landlord the great husbandman the Lord of the vineyard the chief proprietor how he lets out his farms and what conditions he puts into his leases and how he takes care of the poor that they should be fed for they also are a part of his family and at his finding and he hath appointed where they shall have their meat and hath commanded his stewards to give it them in due season he would have the full cups of the rich to overflow into their empty dishes and those that dine the poor entertain Christ himself at their table as a guest I observed also how little this command of God was observed by hard-hearted man in our days how little they respect his will and how few make good this condition in the grant they have of all they enjoy and how just it is therefore for God to recal his estate into his own hands and to take the forfeiture for though we receive all from God and that with this proviso and upon this condition that the poor shall have their part and their share out of it yet he that gives all and requires but a little cannot have it yea though he would borrow a little of his own he is ofttimes denyed it though he promises to repay it yea to repay it an hundred-fold yet cannot be heard where a man upon his bare word can borrow ten pounds God cannot borrow ten pence yea of that which is his own though never man made larger promises and never man more faithfully fulfilled them he hath told them he that giveth to the poor shall not lack Pro. 28.27 but he that hides his eyes shall have many a curse curses both from God and man yet few believe this is the way to get wealth they will hardly take Gods word for a groat they will use their wit to save their money but will not use their eyes to affect their hearts God shews them many an altar but they have no sacrifice ready but he that shuts his ears at the poor mans cry shall cry himself and not be heard Pro. 21.13 this was fulfil'd in Pharaoh Haman and the rich glutton 'T is not getting but giving is the true way to wealth Eleemosyna ars omnium quaestuosissima est saith Chrysostome alms is the most gainful art he shall have judgment without mercy that will shew no mercy Jam. 2.13 he that hath pitty on the poor lendeth to the Lord and he will repay him Pro. 19.17 God accepts it both as a gift and a love nay foenerator Domino God takes it upon usury and gives security for it under his hand but those that now will not take Gods word it is not long but God will not take theirs but require up his talents and also an account of their stewardship and give away their talents to those that will better improve them and give them a reward with the unprofitable servant Mat. 25.28 30. yea sentence them to everlasting fire together with the devil and his angels for not feeding cloathing visiting his hungry naked poor members Mat. 25.41 c. and such worthless useless sapless men are not more missed as one saith when they are gone then the paring of the nails as they live undesired so they die unlamented but at judgement their sentence breaths out nothing but fire and brimstone stings and horrors woes and torments without end or past imagination here the worm of grief gnaws as painfully as the fire burns now they are sand-blinde and cannot see Christ in his members but then when too late their eyes will be opened to see their folly The consideration also of this little quantity of fruit left upon the trees after the shaking made me think this resembled the godly that stand fast and remain firm after all the shakings that they meet with when others frost bitten by affliction or tossed by persecution fall as leaves before the winde in autumn many are the professors in a sun-shine day but few can abide in a storm though Israel be as the sand of the sea for multitude yet but a remnant shall be saved Rom. 9.27 all are not Israel that are of Israel these are compared to the gleaning of the grapes after the vintage Isay 17.6 here and there one few in comparison or to the shaking of the olive tree where two or three berries are left in the top of the utmost boughs and four or five in the utmost branch one of a tribe and two of a family Jer. 13.14 many shakings we have already had and much unripe fruit is fallen and when stronger windes arise we may imagine much more will down but in the last shaking when Christ shall come like refiners fire and fullers soap Mal. 3.3 all that is rotten at heart will be discovered then the sinners in Zion shall be afraid fearfulness shall surprize the hearts of the hypocrites oh my soul take heed of being blown down nay take heed of being rotten for then down thou wilt it is better be alone then in such a company and better go to heaven alone then to hell with company to stand against the storm then to be blown down with the winde improve thy talents to Gods glory and he will never let thee fall oh my God let no sun of persecution wither me nor no boisterous storm bear me down Upon the many enemies fruit-trees have 93. Med. WHen I considered how many enemies fruit-bearing trees met withall and the incumbrances that ofttimes hindred and spoiled their fruit I wondred that any brought forth fruit to maturity for sometimes they are planted in a bad soil and then no wonder if they prosper not sometimes in too dry a place and how then should they prosper sometimes in too wet and then are poisoned and rendred barren sometimes too high and sometimes too low and both extremes are offensive sometimes in too fat a place and then they grow too luxuriant often too lean and barren when the earth cannot help them to bring forth their burthen or yeild them sap sometimes for want of good husbandry they are troubled and pestered with suckers that draw the sap to themselves and rob the tree and run up into aspiring branches which overtop and overshade their fellows and the whole tree by this means is rendred unfruitful sometimes for want of fence the bark is pil'd off by the beasts of the field hares rabbets and other vermine which rends the bark from the the body and endanger yea sometimes procure the death not only of the fruit but the tree also and sometimes they are bark-bound which hinders their growth and thriving sometimes they are pestered with moss canker and other obstructions to their no little dammages and sometimes molested by worms moles mice ants and such like whereby they are injured sometimes the winter proves unseasonable and the spring unfavourable that they never bloom and sometimes when they are blossomed and give good ground of
better provided the soul here wears the body as a garment which when it is worn out the saints shall have a better suit they shall be choathed with the Lord Jesus Christ death will not spare the best there is no coming to paradice but under the flaming sword of this guardian that stands at the porch no wiping all tears from our eyes but with our winding-sheet assurance of Gods love makes a man even willing to die but the cook on the dunghill knows not the worth of this jewel oh the blindness madness and stupidity of man whose care is to lade himself with thick clay and to take care what he shall eat or what he shall drink or wherewithall he shall be cloathed and makes no provision for the soul but depends upon that for comfort that can do no good when most need is they can provide in the day for the night in the summer for the winter on the market-day for the whole week and at a Fair for the whole year and yet make no provision in life for death or in time for eternity if a coelestial habitation be not provided against those houses of clay our bodies wherein the soul lodgeth as a tenant at will be dissolved our lodging will be worse then with toads and serpents even with the devil and his angels in endless easeless and remediless torments oh my soul how fares it with thee or what preparation hast thou made long it cannot be before night comes where then will be thy lodging the earth then will be to thee as the waters to Noahs dove thou wilt finde no rest here for the sole of thy foot it is in heaven that the weary be at rest Job 3.17 oh my God enable me to clear up my interest in Christ who is the only sanctuary for a troubled soul Upon sickness spoiling all earthly delights 98. Med. WHen I had fitted things to my minde and began to take delight in the works of my hands when I began to sing a requiem to my self and my heart with Solomons rejoyced in all my labour Eccl. 2.10 yea when I had promised my self content in what I had done I was suddenly forced to say with wise Solomon Eccles 14. behold all is vanity and vexation of spirit nothing in themselves yet sufficient to vex and perplex us sin hath produced a confusion in the world and stampt vanity upon the creature every man saith David in his best estate is altogether vanity this is the impartiall verdict brought in by one that could best tell and to this I was forc't to subscribe for God immediatly humbled me for setting my affection upon creature-comforts and let me see the vanity of them by visiting me with a fit of sickness that I was taken off from setting my delight or taking satisfaction in or upon them or taking any pleasure in any thing that I had done nay I was troubled that I had not spent my time better and that I had not planted set or sown in a more fertile soil where I might have expected a more plentiful encrease and had a better crop this providence seemed to speak to me as Christ did to the rich man Luk. 12.16 c. that set his heart on his riches and was not rich to God thou fool this night shall thy soul be required of thee and then whose are these this shewed me more of the vanity of humane felicity then I had before observed I plainly saw there was a double uncertainty in all earthly felicity and in sublunary enjoyments for they themselves are very uncertain and many times short-lived and may leave us or we may by death be arrested and then we shall leave them God sometimes takes them from us they take themselves wings and fly away and shall we set our eyes upon things that are not Pro. 23.5 there is no solid substance in them though the foolish world call it by that name they are as transitory as a hasty headlong torrent but if they remain we shall remove for our life passeth away as a shadow or post or weavers shuttle and continueth not and then those winged fouls that now sit upon our trees shall sit upon other mens sometimes God blows upon them and blasts them that though we do enjoy them they prove but a vexation to us sometimes he disables us to use them and sometimes imbitters them to us mixing them with gall and wormwood that we can finde no pleasure in them and assuredly they will do us little good when we have most need suppose a man to have what the world can afford yea all the delights of the sons of men yea all that his heart can wish as Solomon had Eccl. 2.27 yet one hours sickness spoils all his mirth and robs him of all the comfort he promised to himself one fit of the collick gout strangury or other raging pain yea the extream pain of an aking tooth puts a man besides all these his enjoyments yet how greedily do men grasp after the world as if it included the highest degree of happiness and hug it in their bosome and lodge it nearest to the heart which will prove no better nay much worse then a bush of thorns if graspt too hard so this the harder it is handled the worse it hurts oh folish man cannot these earthly enjoyments give ease to an aking head or heart can they not mitigate the pains of the gout collick stone or strangury and can it be imagined they can ease the conscience or cure a sinsick soul if not what good can they do it could Judas Achitophel Spira and others fetch any comfort here in their extremity no no they are like Jobs friends miserable comforters at such a time what good will gold do at death and judgment this coin is not currant in the other world nay in this world it brings little content if God frown if one spark of hell-fire flash in the conscience all these things cannot extinguish it one drop of it will mar a whole cup of earthly delights that in the midst of laughter the heart will be sorrowful and the end of that mirth will be heaviness Pro. 14.13 nulla est sincera voluptas wicked men may dance to the timbrel and harp but suddenly they turn into hell Job 21.12 13. and their merry dance ends in a miserable downfall the candle of the wicked shall out in a snuff and what will all these outward enjoyments signify then Jobs flower Jonahs gourd and Davids green bay-tree will soon wither and their beauty will fade all these things will leave us at death many times before how much need then have we to make preparation before-hand of something that will stand us instead This sickness of mine also taught me how unfit a time this was for repentance and yet how many post it off till then oh how unfit was I to examine my heart and call my sins to minde to repent of them when racking pains brought