yet it cannot see it self or some parts of the bodie which are neerest vnto it So the mind of man compassing the whole world sometimes the heauens and things aboue it and in it sometime the earth the bottome of it and things vnder it yet is it ignorant of it owne estate like many Gentlemen trauellers who know diuers strange and forraine countries and yet are ignorant of their owne euery one being better conceited of himselfe then there is cause neither finding his defects nor discerning his corruptions which procee deth from self-loue which maketh a man too well affected to himselfe and so iudgement following affection hee neuer discerneth rightly of his estate but thinking hee hath no need of any change neuer goeth about it But by the particulars this will more appeare For many cannot be perswaded that they are so corrupt dynature but their nature seemes to them to be pure beautiful and glorious thinking it no more corrupt then it was created by God and then it was in Adam during the time of his innocencie Hence are those opinions of perfect inherent righteousnes iustification by works and merit of works of the power of pure naturals free will and such like which Papists and other heretiks haue inuented and maintained out of the naturall or affected ignorance of mans estate Againe for outward actions they thinke that those works which haue any shew of goodnes although they bee neuer so imperfect corrupt and hypocriticall yet they are good and may be meritorious to deserue earthly and heauenlie blessings Further for meane and ordinarie sinnes they thinke them veniall and light offences not to bee accounted of or auoided they thinke their good meaning to be as good as perfect holines their owne righteousnes perfect and absolute so that they say in effect Reuel 3.17 I am rich and increased with goods and haue need of nothing The Church hath many of these as also as many who are without the sense of sin â—…o perswade themselues there is no such punishment for sinners such curses as are spoken of neither is God so prouoked to anger to inflict punishment vpon offenders as the ministers tell them hee is which they falselie ground vpon the patience of God which he generally vseth towardsall who although they go on in all mancâ— of disobedience and wilfull breaking of his commandements adding one hainous sinne to another and shewing open contempt of him and of his word yet they estape vnpunished and liue as merilie in the world as the holiest man doth and at death die as peaceablie as he that liued best so the patience of God that should leade them to repentance they make as a meanes to keepe them backe from repentance But say they haue the sight and sense of sinne yet are they perswaded that they can and are able at their owne pleasure to purge themselues both from their naturall corruption and outward act of sinne and so the sicknesse which a man can cure himselfe of is nothing so grieuous vnto him And for the punishment they thinke they are able to escape it either by their cunning conueying and couering of their sinne or by the great mercie of God who delighteth not in the miserie of man and his confusion but in their saluation and so will be eafilie intreated by their pitifull moaning to pardon their sinnes and if not to bestow on them the crowne of glorie yet to remit them the punishment deserued or at the worst that may fall they can free themselues by their works of mercie and other satiffactions and so say there is no feare but blesse themselues in their hearts saying Deut. 29.19 Wee shall haue peace although wee walke according to the stubbâ—enâ—sse of our owne hearts Many thousands there are who are thus ignorant of their estates either in some of these or in all neither are willing to come our of this ignorance but in time of health and prosperitie spurne against the plaine ministerie of the Word as â—hâ— which would giue them a view of themselues crying against the Ministers as the woman against the Prophet 1. King 17.18 What haue I to do with thee Art thou come vnto me to call my sinne to remembrance and to stay way sonne So what haue we to doe with you are you come to call our sinnes to remembrance and to slay our souâ—… And against the word as a salse glasse that as she â—…loohed her selfe in â—…glasse and appeared to her selfe no more deformed their 〈◊〉 was yet more then she was â—…nceited of her selfe broke it and 〈◊〉 vnder foote so spurne they against the glasse of the word as if it made them more deformed then they are indeed All these vnder 〈◊〉 are in the state of impenitechcie and so in the state of perishing because they cannot or they will not see themselues and know their estate that they might bee brought to repentance Vse 2. 2 This may perswade men who would repent that they may flie from and escape the vengeance to come to labour for this knowledge of their estate The Philosophers knowing that men are all together ignorant of themselues vsed to set this precept Kâ—…s thy selfe in the beginning of their morall â—…utions They are worth the inâ—s 〈◊〉 that euery Minister should 〈◊〉 and euery Christian should learne to know himselfe and his estate in the things before spoken of And this must he do by looking into the law of God whereby he may see himselfe to be a most vile and filthie leper defiled in nature in soule and bodie in minde will and affections in thought word and all his actions with all manner of sin so that he may crie out with the leper I am vncleane I am vncleane But if he will doe it as hee should hee must not only looke to the letter of the law which expresseth only capitall sinnes from which he happily will cleere himselfe and wash his hands but he must seeke into the spirituall meaning of it set downe by Christ Mat. 5. and other the Prophets and Apostles whereby hee shall see 〈◊〉 his originall sinne and his 〈◊〉 transgressions his inward corrupâ—… 〈◊〉 the filthie vncleane and disley aâ— motions of his mind wil and affection and his outward his vaine foolish and filthie talke his leaud behauiour dishonorable to God and iniurious â—… men his sinnes of ignorance and wilfull rebellions hi◠〈◊〉 of youth 〈◊〉 riper yeeres h◠〈◊〉 â—ns and 〈◊〉 commissions yeaâ—… best 〈◊〉 culpable either quoâ—…tem or 〈◊〉 finem in respect of the fountaine that they proceeded not from faith or in respect of the ende that they were done more for his owne glorie and gaine then for the glorie of God and good of his brother which when he shal once discerne the same law will shew him the blacke tayle of sinne all the curses that are due vnto it and no lesse make him perceiue that he is not able to free himselfe from the guilt or the punishment
repentance ariseth from the knowledge of a mans spirituall estate But to cōceiue this point more fully we must vnderstand that there are three parts of this knowledge or three things are required to make a man know himselfe and his estate throughly 1. That he know his sinne 2. That he haue the sense of his sin that is of the punishment and curse due to his sinne 3 The knowledge of his owne inability to free himselfe either from the sinne or from the punishment due to sinne The first of these is the knowledge of a mans sinfulnes his naturall sinfulnesse that by nature without temptation he is inclinable to all euill and vtterly vnable to doe good Then his inward sinfulnes that is his secret motions which should bee towards God and agreeable to his law are altogether auerse from him toward sinne and disobedience these are his thoughts lust and concupiscence of the soule Lastly his outward actions both his sinnes of omission and commission his apparent euill and his imperfect good things The knowledge of all which are to be had by the law for Rom. 3.20 by the law commeth the knowledge of sin The 2. part of this knowledge is the sense of sin that is the knowledge of the curse and punishment due vnto sin for that is it which makes sinne sensible to a man Thus God dealt with the wicked when he had laid before them their sins as it is in the 50. Psalm vers 18. Psalm 50.18 When thou seest a theese thou runnest with him c. Then he threatneth his iudgements against them vers 22. Verse 22. I will teare you in peeces c. To make them the more sensible Now these are either spirituall plagues or ourses vpon their bodies goods wiues children friends or vpon their name memorie and posteritie All which may bee found in the Word as Deut. 28. and such like The 3. part is the knowledge of a mans owne inabilitie either to free himselfe from the sinne or the punishment due vnto it that howsoeuer he may by his naturall strength represse the rage of his corruption prune and lop it cutting off the superfluous bowes and branches of it yet the roote and the whole bodie will remaine still in his heart and soule and will as occasion is offered breake forth into all his members And this is it which made Dauid to repent and pray so earnestly to the Lord to purge him Psalm 51.2.7 Wash me throughly from mine iniquities and purge me from my sinne And againe Purge me with hyssope and I shall be cleane And that hee is as little able to auoid the punishment either by hiding himselfe or by any wit or powet or any meanes whatsoeuer which was in them whom Peter preached to and made them come with this note to Peter and the other Apostles Act. 2.37 Men and brethren what shall we doe to be saued The like was in the gaoler who came trembling to Paul and Silas and said Act. 16.30 Sirs what may I doe to be saued So that it is manifest that the knowledge and sense of sinne and the conscience of a mans owne inabilitie to free himselfe from either will make a man turne to God and repent Now the reasons of this truth are these Reason 1. 1. Because the ignorance of a mans estate is seldome or neuer separated from a false opinion of a mans good estate of his inward holinesse and integritie of nature of the goodnes of his actions hauing a shew and semblance of some good Now a man in his error will neuer seeke for the change of his estate As hee that thinks himselfe whole though he be heart-sicke will neuer seeke to a Physitian or vse any meanes to mend and better himselfe But when he knowes his estate seeth how falsely he was conceited of himselfe then will he hasten to seeke change and amendment For as a state cannot be continued if it were good vnlesse it were thoroughly and fully knowne so being vnknowne can it not bee amended being now amisse Reason 2. 2 Because though the fight of sinne would not driue them to this men not disliking sinne by nature yet the sense of punishment would because euery thing naturally feareth the destruction of it selfe and would by all meanes preserue it selfe much more man who discerning in this case that his escaping must be by turning will addresse himselfe to it for the safetie of himselfe Reason 3. 3 Because though the punishment would not moue him to this dutie or remoue him from his sinne so long as he felt it not because hee might hope by some meanes to escape it as by hiding and couering his sinne or by fleeing I know not whither or by Gods mercie and indulgence for some bountie to religion or charitie to the poore or such like yet if hee once come to know that as he can free himselfe no more from his sinnes then a Leopard from his spots and a blacke More from his skinne so can he as little free himselfe from the punishment of sinne by any other meanes whatsoeuer it being impossible that God shuld let him goe vnpunished because hee cannot bee vniust and so bee brought into a strait as Baalam was then will he endeuour to performe repentance by which onely he may escape and flee the vengeance to come Now the vse wee haue to make of this point is this Vse 1. First to informe vs that the world and the Church hath many thousand impenitent sinners such as neuer haue repented neither yet in the case wherein they are are they capable of repentance because they are ignorant of their spirituall estate and that which is worst they cannot be perswaded to looke into it though they often cast vp their estate to know what it is I meane their worldly estate yet they neuer ballance their spirituall estate being either slothfull and negligent or else being possessed with a false opinion of the vnnecessarines of it or with feare of the desperatenesse of it like as bankerupts who are not able to pay a penie in the pound dare not looke into their estate lest they procure griefe and discontentment to themselues Whatsoeuer the cause is the thing is not done and so they are without the knowledge of it and whatsoeuer they thinke of themselues if impenitent sinners must perish they cannot bee safe feeing they cannot repent which they cannot doe as long as they are ignorant of themselues and of their spirituall estate If any man think it strange that man who knoweth so many things should be ignorant of himselfe when this is proper and peculiar to him to know himselfe 1. Cor. 2.11 For what man knoweth the things of a man saue the spirit of a man which is in him he considereth not that when the obiect is nie to or laid vpon the sense it nothing so well discerneth it and the eie of the bodie though it behold all other things
they are at a iarre among themselues about the meaning of it It is true that Bellarmine doth presse it to this purpose but the words are so pregnant for a brotherlike and mutuall confession of one man to another for the forgiuing of priuate iniuries that both Cardinall Caietane and Scotus confessed the same Bellarm. de poenit lib. 3. cap. 3. Caiestan in Iam. 5.16 Scotus in 4. sentent dist 17. quaest 1. And for the thing it selfe it was a custome in the Church sometimes but it happened that there was a noble Matron dishonoured by a Deacon in the Church of Constantinople Zozomenus which thing highly displeased the people Whereupon Nectarius Bishop then and there by the consent of the Bishops of that time and the rest did abolish it out of the Church and if it were abolished for that one fact how much more should it be abolished for so many of the like committed in poperie which is the very nurcerie of all vncleannesse And therefore to conclude as Augustine said Quid mibi ergo est cum hominibus vt audiant confessiones meas quasi ipsi sana◠uri sunt omnes languores meos Curiesum genus ad cognoscendā vitam alienam desidiosum ad corrigendam suam Confess lib. 10. cap. 3. What haue I to do with men that I shuld make confession to them as if they could heale all my sores It is a curious kind of people to search into other mens liues but most slothfull to reforme and correct their owne Could euer any man haue prophesied more truely of the Priest of poperie being such a curious kind of people whose labour is to know other mens states and sinnes but are carelesse to know their own and most sluggish and negligent to reforme their owne These things thus explained wee must now come to the vse Vse 1. First it may well be thought that many men are sarre from repentance seeing they are far from this dutie and part of humiliation I meane confession It may be generallie that they are sinners as other men they will not stand with you to confesse but not in particulars which commeth partly out of the loue of themselues and partly out of the loue of their sinnes Therfore Iob saith Iob 31.33 I haue not hid my sinnes as Adam concealing mine iniquitie in my bosome The latter part Tremelius readeth Abdendo ex dilectione mei iniquitatem meam hiding my iniquitie out of my selfe loue As if he should say selfe loue is the principall thing why men smother their sinnes and do not confesse them But in most men there is a more impossibility vnto this dutie because they know good and euill sinne and righteousnes no further then they haue by that light and knowledge which remaineth in them since the creation nay in many of them that is darkened by custome and other corruption but as for the law of God where they should indeed see themselues they are altogether ignorant and will not looke into it neither of themselues take the paines so they will not indure the reproofes of their Ministers nor be shewed their sinnes but are like many prodigall wasters who run so farre in bookes that they cannot abide to haue a bill of accounts brought them and like a timorous and foolish patient which finding his wound to bee very deepe would not endure the Chirurgion whereon what ensueth but a festering of the part and a dangering of the whole bodie So to these damnation ensueth because they cannot repent seeing they cannot confesse If any thinke this is hard and false that a man should be condemned for this seeing Dauid saith Psalm 19.12 Who can vnderstand his faults I answere that for him that doth his best ondeuour to know his sinnes and keepes a day booke for his spirituall estate as for his worldly if he know not many sinnes and neuer confesse them yet hath a particular repentance confession of his knowne sinnes and would no lesse repent and confesse the other if he might come to the knowledge of them from him God will accept a generall confession and repentance for such as bee not knowne As Dauid in the same place Clense me from fecret faults But for others who are wilfully and more then negligently ignorant of their estate and sinnes they shall not be accepted by a generall repentance because they neuer repent truely of knowne sinnes for if they did then would they repent them of that ignorance and seeke to reforme it Vse 2. The second vse doth teach men to practise this dutie to goe to God and to confesse to him and against themselues their owne sinnes this is the way to pardon so that howsoeuer the prouerbe is Confesse and be hauged yet without this there is no repentance and here it is true Confesse and be saued Therefore should they not let shame or any thing else keep them from this dutie but shame themselues seeing they may say of themselues as Augustine of himselfe August Conses lib. 4. cap. 16. Non erubui prositeri hominibus blaspbemias me as latrare aduersus̄te I was not ashamed to professe my blasphemies before men and my barking against thee And so now they should not be ashamed to shame themselues before God by consossing and accusing themselues And in this duty this repentant must know that there is required of him that hee bee an examiner an informer and a Iudge First an examiner he must examine himselfe and search his waies without which there can be no knowledge of himself and his owne wretched estate Thus they holy Ghost by Ieremie saith Lamen 3.40 Let vs search and trie our waies and turne againe to the Lord No returning but after a search which euery one knowes that euer did repent Likewise this is that the Prophet Zephanie hath Zeph. 2.1 Gather your selues euen gather you O nation not worthie to be beloued where a word is vsed which signifies to search narrowly as a man would doe that searcheth for gold in a mine of earth where much earth is and but a very little gold oare noting that it is not enough to find out grosse and palpable sinnes but euen those which are accounted lesse and to espie secret faults and priuie corruptions And in this search he that would doe it as he ought must first find out two things which the world dreames not of The first that the guiltines of Adams sinne is his sin in eating the forbidden fruit and that he stands to answere for it before God because hee was in his loines As Saint Paul saith Rom. 5.12 That as by one man sinne entred into the world and death went ouer all ment forasmuch as all men haue sinned 2 That in euery man by nature are the seeds of all sinne euen in the best natured man for what is else original sinne but a want not of sinne but of all good inclination and want of all goodnes