with application to the present state of things is not to hold decorum but hath an appearance more oratour then preacher-like We are never simply to desire crosses because they are naturall evils nor to abhor from them because we know they work together with our election calling justification and sanctification for our good Not as causes thereof as the forenamed are for the effects of sin cannot be the causes of righteousnes or happines nor yet as means properly as are the word sacraments prayer and examples of good men but onely as occasions capable of sanctification to our use which sins properly are not as having no good in them as such whereas afflictions have a morall good in them as they are of God and by him inflicted Though to speak of crosses most properly God sanctifies us to them in giving us grace to make a right use of them And considering how it is both good for us to be afflicted and that God hath promised that no good thing shall be lacking to them that fear him we are thus to make account that God afflicts us as he doth not onely in justice for sin but in faythfulnes also that is both in mercy and in truth of promise and must accordingly confesse with the man of God I know O Lord that thy judgments are righteous and that thou in faithfulnes hast afflicted me and so must learn to take our severall crosses at Gods hands not onely patiently but thankfully We have cause to thank our selvs and our sins that wholesom things both for body and soul are for the most part bitter and greivous to our nature and to thank God that makes afflictions bitter-sweets by turning deserved curses into fatherly corrections to us It is commonly receaved for truth that in all adversitie the greatest miserie is sometimes to have been happy But we must here use a distinction If we onely respect the time in which we are in miserie apart from the former time we are both more sensible of our present miserie by remembring our former happines and also more tender and delicate and so lesse able to bear it But if we consider our whole life together then the lesse time we are afflicted the lesse our afflictions are in that respect and so must be mynded of us It is not nothing that God hath given us to passe over some part of our dayes in peace and with comfort neyther must we be so unthankfull as to account it no benefit because it is past but we must contrarywise something quiet ourselvs in our present affliction with the remembrance of Gods goodnes in our former peace as did our example of patience who in the extreamitie of his present distresse sayd shall we receav good at the hand of God and shall we not receav evill Reason teacheth this except in a case when God lifts up a man on high that he may the more violently through him down how much more fayth which perswades the godly mans heart that the Lord loves him as well as much in his after afflicted estate as he did before in his prosperous as the gold-smith esteems his gold as much though melting in the furnace as glittering in the shop and that the same God will both give patience and strength of fayth according to the tryall and encrease of strength if he encrease the affliction as also full deliverance in due time He will redeem Israel from all his trouble As even good men perform their whole duetie to God with some corruption mingled among so God promiseth and performeth accordingly the good things of this life with exception of the crosse and tribulation If we could amend the one God would leav out the other The Lord who tryed Abraham in his son Isaak whom he loved and the rich young man in his riches which he loved knows well in what veyn to strike a man that the blood may follow The more we love any earthly thing we are the more in danger to be crossed in or about it Not that God envyes our delights as one man often envyes anothers but eyther because we do or lest we should surfet in affections towards it Most men are moved too much with their own miseryes in this world melting in them as wax in the sun so as they are unapt to hold any impression eyther of fayth or reason but are too litle moved with other mens calamities not affoarding them so much as a compassionate affection Yet may and doth the contrary extream of over pittying others also prevayl with some Against both which it is good to consider that eyther we and they reap spirituall benefit by our afflictions or no. If the former that may and ought to moderate the greif If not there is cause of greater greif for after greater afflictions to come upon us and them A man may much encrease or lessen a crosse by the course which he suffers his mynde to run in it seeing all crosses have some conveniencies joyned with them as all commodities have some discommodities If a man set his thoughts a work upon the inconveniencies and discommodityes alone which are in it he shall heap sorrow upon sorrow But if on the contrary he draw into consideration such conveniencyes as usually fall in with their contraryes he shall alwaies finde some matter of ease and sometimes that meat comes out of the eater and that which at first seemed a crosse is rayther a benefit It is a most dangerous thing for any to deem his afflictions extraordinarie least by so doing he prejudice himself against ordinary comforts which we should with readynes and thankfulnes embrace and not look for angels from heaven to comfort us or for manna from heaven to feed us CHAP. XXXIIII Of Injuries AN Injurie say the Lawyers is whatsoever is not done justly In one and the same act may be found both sin against God and injurie against man And therefore in cases of wrong done either by violence or deceit the offender under the law was bound both to make restitution to the wronged and also to bring his trespas offering to the priest to make an atonement for him before the Lord. Sometimes the sin is taken away and the iniurie remayns as when the person which hath wronged another truly repents but is not able to make satisfaction Sometimes on the other side the injurie is taken away and the sin remayns viz. when the offender makes satisfaction by compulsion or for shame but repents not before God Sometimes both are taken away and sometimes neyther as both or neyther satisfaction to men and repentance towards God is performed Between the injurying and offending of a man there is this difference that we may injurie him that is altogether ignorant of it but can offend onely him that takes knowledg of some evil in truth or appearance done by us whether with injury or not The more power any hath to
good his satisfaction to whom we swear and for the ending and not the beginning of strife els we prostitute Gods name eyther to our own or other mens lusts Common and light swearing argues such a degree of irreverence of Gods Majestie as we may truly boldly say that the heart of a common and customary swearer is voyd of all grace and true fear of God And in weighing with my self with admiration and horrour the customarie swearing amongst so many considering that there is nothing in it as in other sins eyther profitable or pleasant or of credit in the world or that brings eyther reasonable or sensuall good I have made account that besides imitation of one another and custom which makes it half naturall to some and a conscience guiltie of want of credit in others which moves many to swear that they may be beleeved and want of wit in not a few who strive by accessory oaths to supply their defect of matter or other inabilitie of speach there is in this swearing veyn a deeper mysterie of mischeif then ordinary and that indeed men take it up specially in the divels intention who sets them a work and not a litle in their own in direct opposition of God and because he in his law hath so severely prohibited it If God had not in his word so expresly and severely forbidden it as he hath done certeynly there would not be the least part of it used that is Gracelesse men seem therein to affect a professed contempt of God and withall an opinion from men that they fear nothing neyther God nor divell as they say But God will make them feel that fear not the guilt of taking his glorious name in vayn which all creatures ought to honour and reverence This sin being directly against Gods majestie he reservs by his providence the punishment of it ordinarily to himself spiritually by hardnes of heart and impenitencie in this life usually to the end thereof and both bodily and ghostly by hell-fire for ever Where it is also like that the divels and damned men do and will swear and curse in their utter rejection from God and intollerable torment and so make their sin and course of blaspheaming as endlesse as their punishment for it CHAP. L. Of Zeal ZEal is by some well defyned the heat and intention of all affections and not eyther any one simple affection or composition of divers I add of the understanding also So men meditate zealously and love zealously and hate zealously and rejoyce zealously and mourn zealously and with great intention of heart The like is to be sayd of all the rest of the affections As nothing lives without naturall heat so neyther lives he the life of Christ indeed who is destitute of christian zeal to warm him in his affections and actions specially in matter of Gods worship and service in which whether wrong or right luke-warmnes is odious and loathsom The Lord will spue out of his mouth the luke-warm whether wyne or water Worldly wise-men despise zeal as prejudiciall to wisdom discretion So Festus judged Paul mad Michall accounted David as one of the fools for the singular zeal of God which they manifested But even this foolishnes of God is wiser then men Yet is it certeyn that men of great knowledg and judgment do seldom make that manifestation of Zeal which weaker persons do The former have their spirits most in their brayns and are exercised specially in the disquisition and discerning of truth from falshood and of good from evill The latter have them most in their hearts and accordingly give themselvs to the affectionate pursuit of that which they conceav to be true and good and alike to the avoyding and impugning of the contrarie Some deceav others by the pretence of zeal which they put on for their advantage as stage-players do vizours till their part be played And thus Ismaell deceaved the fortie men of Samaria with his crocodiles tears Also there are not a few who deceav both others and themselvs by seeming to both eyther to have the Zeal of God which they wholly want or much more then they have And of this number was Iehu how loud soever he cryed to Ionadab Behold the zeal which I have for the house of the Lord whereas in truth that which most set him awork was zeal for his own house though it may be he thought not so Besides craftines in this Iehues zeal there are two other properties the one suspitious where it is found and the other odious The former is a furious march against evill without an answerable pursuit of and affection unto the contrarie good Many are vehemently carryed against Antichristian devises in truth or so appearing unto them in whom yet appears litle love and affection to that which is of Christ in their own judgment Such are rayther carried by their own flesh then led by the spirit of God The other is crueltie To be aright and truely zealous cannot but be good seeing so many and those wise men desire at times to seem so though they be not True zeal must be for God and from God and according to God and having God both for beginning and end and rule of direction it cannot but it self be good and godly It must be for the Lord and for the furtherance of his glorie in the obedience of his will and in mans salvation and not for our own or other mens by-purposes And if it so fall out that by one and the same thing Gods cause and our own profit credit or other worldly advantage be promoted we had need keep a jealous eye over our selvs that we serv not our turn on God by making his ends as it were a bridg to our own as Iehu did Secondly as the fire of the altar came from heaven so must our coal of zeal be fetched thence as being the work of Gods spirit in our hearts in the use of prayer meditation upon the word of God read and heard the examples of others godly as it were ryding in the fierie chariot of Elyas and the like holy means by which this divine fire is kindled and nourished in mens breasts Thirdly it must be according to God both for the qualitie of the matter and quantity of the intention of affection For the former It is good alwayes even then and then onely to be zealous in a good matter and that neyther lightly presumed nor partially conceipted so to be but certeynly known els we burn not sweet incense with holy fire but dirt and doung in stead thereof Our zeal also must be apportioned to the object and that not onely considered in it self but also in the circumstances attending upon it in regard whereof things not alwayes the most good or evill in themselvs may justly deserv at our hands a great bent eyther of love to them or hatred against them And amongst other circumstances we must be carefull
cursing swearing in his Books though in daily speech he scarse utter ten words without oath or execration Yea are there not many who by the glosse of pietie cunningly set upon their writings published to the World steal the opinion of pietie vertue from strangers and those that know them not whose ordinarie conversation in word and deed to them that are acquainted therwith proclaims them no better then verie Atheists and Epicures I ad even touching conferences and disputations of purpose appointed and used for light of truth that though they may be and are singularly profitable for that purpose to a modest and tractable disposition which will as well hear as speak and be as readie to learn truth of others as to teach it them yet to men of more unquiet and stiffe spirits the reading of Books is a course far more convenient for information For that therein will not be the provocation to inordinate anger and passion which in speech oftens falls in Besides he who comes to dispute comes specially to shew the truth to others but he that comes to read an Authour comes specially to learn something from him for the most part Great care is to be taken and circumspection used in writing of Books not onely though specially for conscience of God but also because the Author therin exposeth himself to the censure of all men and those not onely then living but also to be born when he is dead and rotten And under their censure he comes whether he be wise or foolish learned or ignorant of sound or of corrupt judgment and in part therewith whether of vertuous or vitious disposition He that commits any thing to writing gives men a Bill of his manners which everie one that reads may put in suit against him if there be cause in the Court of his own heart and neighbours ear Some through extream diligence are devourers of Books of infinite reading in whom if there be found any answerablenesse in memorie to retain judgment to dispose and wit accordingly to improve things read such persons prove singular But this is rare by reason of the different temper of the brain requisite for such furniture Some are of great reading but of so slipperie memorie as they are like Water-conduits which what they continually receav in at one end they let out as fast at the other Some again are meer Indâ—xes serving for nothing but to shew where and in what Authours things are to be found by benefit of their strong memorie There are also of those great Book-men that know better the most other mens judgments then their own in matters of controversie through injudiciousnesse or irresolution and if they come to settle upon any rather opinion then perswasion it is commonly according to the last Bool which they read It is best for ordinarie capacities to travell in some few Books though by occasion they may step into many and the same picked by good advice of unpartiall and experienced men and those throughly to digest and discourse upon as it is best for weak stomacks to eat of few and wholesom dishes Which may also be done for further use extention and applycation then the Authour himself conceaved or at least expressed And though Lucilius wished that his Books might be read neither of men verie learned nor altogether unlearned lest the one should understand nothing and the other more then he intended Yet indeed he reads a Book ill that understands not something more either in or at least by it then the Authour himself did in penning it As the maladies of the minds of many have been cured by reading of Books so have the diseases of the bodyes of some and those such as wanted no other Medicines if we may beleev Histories As of Alphonsus King of Spain by reading of Livy and of Ferdinand King of Sicily by reading of Quintus Curtius The cure is both more common and more excellent which the reading of the Holy Scriptures affoard CAP. XXIIII Of good intentions A Good meaning no more sufficeth to make a good action then a fair mark doth to make a good shot by an unskilfull Archer This hath been fully verified in the Iews who out of no lesse good end then the zeal of God and desire such as it was to do him pleasing service persequuted Christ and his disciples to the death What intention could be better or action worse We must not therefore take the sanctuarie of fools by good meanings without knowledg but first setting our faces towards heauen by meaning well must further so far honor God and humble our selvs unto him as to resigne our whole man also into his hands to be guided by him in the way thither joyning our prayers with his who had lesse need to fear stepping aside that way then wee and yet said With myne whole heart have I sought thee o let me not wander from thy commaundements And yet albeit a good end alone suffice not yet there is nothing eyther good or tolerable without it no not though it have never so good successe Although the good meaning excuse not wholy yet the evill wholy condems This good intention and end is the first and last in everie lawfull action It is the first and that which sets the agent awork to do what he doth whether working reasonably or naturally It is the last and so the best and that at which he ayms as the perfection of his work And this where it is found God so much regardeth as he sometimes prevents an evill action in him in whom he sees a good intention as is to be seen in Abimeleâ—k king of Gerar whom God kept from sinning against him and suffered not to touch Sarah Abrahams wife because he had taken her into his house in the integrity of his heart Sometimes also God rewards the good purpose yea though he refuse the work intended as incompetent for some speciall cause as in David when he would haue built the Lord an house Alwayes he that means well yea though the work be evill which he doth makes the divell after a sort serv God in it He that doth that which is good in it self for an evill end makes God serv Sathan He that doth that which is evill for a good end makes Sathan therein though not warrantably serv God as the means serv the end And considering how litle truly-good-doing there is amongst men in comparison it were well there were more good meaning yea though it were without knowledg By which both fewer mischeifs would be done they that are done would therein be lesse heynous We measure things sayth one and it is true in a respect by the ends of goodnes and so better misse and we shall misse lesse in the means then in the end He who hath the mark in his ey and aymes at it will hardly misse so much as he that takes a wrong mark to shoot at And for
true goodnes He who gets this generall grace to have his heart indeed and seriously bent upon the course of piety towards God and innocency towards men the Lord wil not so far suffer to erre in his way as to misse of heauen in the end notwithstanding his particular aberrations of humayn frailty which God will cover under the veyl of his rich mercy by the persons sincere fayth and generall repentance CHAP. XXV Of Means MEans are so called of the middle place which they hold betweene the efficient and finall causes serving the one for the furthering and atcheiving of the other And so all creatures whether persons or things come under this account in respect of him from whom and for whom all things are God is able without meanes to doe whatsoever work of power he doth or can doe by them and the reason is playne for that he both creates and provides the meanes and also giues the blessing upon them by which they are avayleable Neyther if we minde it hath the Lord ever done greater workes then those which the hand of his power hath wrought eyther immediately or by meanes very weake and feeble which being improved by Gods omnipotency haue produced wonderfull effects Thus God and froggs could plague Pharaoh and all Egipt So can the H. Ghost and simple preaching make men wise unto salvation God often useth meanes verie weake and base not because he wants better but partly for his owne glory as first for the glorie of his goodnes that being so mightie and excellent in majestie he will vouchsafe to imploy them and secondly of his greatnes in bringing to passe what he will by them as he tould Gedeon the people were too many for him to saue Israel by when men make wars they geâ—t the powerfullest helps they can therein bewraying their owne weaknes whereas God on the contrary wanting no mans help oft times makes choyse of weake meanes as needing none Partly the Lord doth this for the means themselvs that they which God so farr honours specially for good to men should not be despised and partly for others that none should be overmuch affected with or to them To trust to means is Idolatry to abuse them want of wisdom or of conscience or both to neglect them eyther desperatenes when a man is without hope of good by them or presumptuous tempting of God when he expects good without them or sloath when he will not trouble himself with them With all which unthankfulnes to the Lord is joyned who provides them as helps against our infirmities and therewith profane sawcines also if with the contempt of the means which we have we long after such as we have not as did the Israelites in the wildernes in loathing manna and lusting after flesh and the Iewes in despiseing Christs miracles upon earth and desiring to see a signe from heaven of him We must then as one sayth mingle our owne sweate with faith to make a sweete odour withall to God For though his power be not bound to means yet his will bindes us to such as he in mercie affoardeth partly as helps of our fayth which need such glasses wherein to see Gods helping hand and partly to exercise our obedience and partly to stir up our diligence And this we must do the rayther for that when God purposeth good to or by a man eyther he commonly provides him means accordingly which when opportunity servs he expecteth he should use in good conscience for atteyning to the good unto which they as it were lead him which to neglect is to disobey a kynde of reall calling from God In the carefull use of naturall means we shew most wisdom and that we are not like beasts without understanding and of supernaturall means prayer and the like the most grace and that we are not as men which know not God A man must be sure in his most carefull use of means alwayes to bear in mynde the end for which he useth them that he be not like the messenger who so myndes his way as he forgets his errand To sever the means and end to which they lead ordinately is vanity in all courses in divine matters mere madnes He that sinning without repentance looks to escape hell separates the end from the means He that without fayth and obedience lookes for heauen separates the means from the end which he aymes at Both would pervert Gods word and work of providence CHAP. XXVI Of Labour and Idlenes GOD who would have our first father even in innocency and being Lord of the whole world to labour though without payne or wearisomnes in dressing the Garden and when he had sinned to eat his bread with the sweat of his brows would haue none of his sinfull posteritie lead their life in Idlenes no nor without exerciseing themselvs diligently in some lawfull calling or other I say diligently For as poore men play for recreation now and then so do rich men work But that sufficeth not For God who hath in the naturall body appointed unto every member its office and function which it is constantly to exercise would have no member in any societie or body of men ordinarily unimployed Neyther doth that man how great or rich soever keep a good conscience before God who makes labour but an accessorie and not a principall and that which takes up his ordinarie tyme. Man is borne to sore labour in body or minde as the spark to fly upward In heauen is onely rest without labour in hell restles payn and torment and as sin makes the earth which is between both liker to hell then heauen so God for sin hath given to the sons of man soar travail to afflict them upon earth And that in most wise and gratious providence considering the mischiefs that come by idlenes as The weakning of the endowments of nature whereas labour brings strength to the body and vigour to the mynde yea the consumption of grace as rust consumes the iron for want of using yea whereas idlenes brings bodily poverty like an armed man it brings not onely spirituall povertie in graces with it but withall a legion of vices like so many armed divels puffing up the flesh with pride and makeing the heart Sathans anvile who is commonly least idle when men are most whereon to forge a thowsand vanities and sinfull lusts as having a fit opportunity to perswade men to doe evill when he findes them doing nothing that so they who will not sweat in earth eyther with the labour of the hand or heart though king Alphonsus sayd that God and nature had given kings hands as well as other men might sweat in hell and that if they will not bear their part in the payns of men they might partake in the payns of the Divils Whereas on the contrary if we doe that which is good and well done though with labour and