D. Aug. serm 5. de verb. Apostoli Apostle by an ingenuous and humble confession of his owne frailties doth bemoane his present condition and though in the state of grace findes himselfe not onely not conformable but in part averse to the spiritualitie of this Law acknowledging with deepe groane that he was Peccati mancipium sold under sinne as he phraseth it that inward sinne he meane Concupiscence not onely a servant to it but a very captive 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 leading mee captive to the Law of sinne v. 23. A Metaphor taken from the practice of Generalls in their Warres whereas some are destin'd to the Sword so others to thraldome and imprisonment In which though there be not alwayes a noyse of slaughter there is of bonds and shackles and sometimes of death too when the Ammonite must to the Saw and the Axe and the Harrow of iron 1 Chron. 20.3 But in this Apostolicall Warre there is no danger of the Axe nor the Saw though there be of the shackle no stroake of Fate but of captivity no marking out to the Sword but to Ransome to that Empti estis pretio magno 1 Cor. 6.20 In expectation whereof though he complaine for a time of wretchednesse and death with a Quis me liberabit who shall deliver me from the body of this death yet a death indeed he rather bewailes than suffers this being the voyce not of one despairing Vox non desperautis sed deplorant is carnis infirmitatoÌ„ Aret. in c. 7. ad Rom. v. 24. Trahi captivum in legem peccati solum est renati cum â—mpii a gratia alieni ultro ad mala currunt imoruant Par. ad cap. 7. Rom. v. 25. but deploring his carnall infirmities So that in this service of the law of sinne Saint Paul is not a voluntiere you see but goes upon command hath his presse-money from the Flesh serve he must whether he will or no he hath a Marshall within him that dragges him as a slave and hee must fight or suffer This makes him groan indeed groan to an AeruÌ„nosus ego homo wretched wretched man that I am And yet though he so groane and under the heate it seemes of his restlesse assaults and is thereby inforc'd sometimes to retrait yet hee leaves not the field totally a Captaine he had rather be than a coward and a Captive hee is made but 't is much against the haire serve hee doth and must but assent hee will not Nemo sponte captivatur paer Rom. 7. his minde is ingag'd another way that 's for the Law of God but the Flesh the traiterous Flesh lyes in ambush all the while and this betrayes him to the Law of sinne this makes him so deeply complaine I know that in mee that is in my Flesh V. 18. dwelleth no good thing that is true none not in my Flesh no good there and why because it serveth the Law of sinne But I know againe that in me that is in my minde dwelleth some good that 's true too good there and why because it serveth the Law of God Et in isto bello est tota vita sanctorum Ser. 5. de verb. Apostoli saith Saint Augustine Every sanctified life is but a Duell such a Duell as this between the Minde and the Flesh No true childe of God but hath beene a Captive in this Combat whosoever is regenerate is spirituall I confesse but he is in part carnall too for as much as he hath not depos'd his carnall infirmities not yet totally uncloth'd himselfe of Nature and the Flesh Si quiâ— dubitet excutiat cor suum if any scruple it let him search his heart a little sift his owne bosome and there hee shall finde either his lust lurking or his hypocrisie we are not all Minde nor all Flesh but compos'd of both lest we should either despaire for our infirmities or grow proud through our spirituall endowments The Mind perhaps may be mounting and rowzing as it were her feathers take her flight upwards to God and his pure Law but the Flesh will be still bottoming Caro semper manet infirma semper nos in cursu moratur Aret. ad cap. 8. Rom. v. 21. fluttering here below and stooping servilely to the Law of sinne Now this Law hath not barely an habitation in our Members but a very Throne it not onely possesseth the Regenerate but raignes in him raignes in him as a Tyrant not as a King makes him a slave not a subject bids him acknowledge a sword for a Scepter and a Scorpion for a sword And therefore Lombard tells us Lib. 2. d. 32. that it is Ipse Tyrannus in membris a very Nero in our members or else Manubrium Daemonis as Pimenius hath it the Hilt of the Divels sword De vit pat l. 7. cap. 25. by which he brandisheth and plaieth so cunningly his prizes with the Flesh And of these and the like Fancies Greg. de val depec orig cap. 60. Bonavent sent 2. d st 32. the Schooles doe generally ring Vulnus animae and Languor naturae and Habitus corruptus and Vitium ingenitum A wound a disease a languishment nay a Vice they will heare of Thom. 1.2 q. 82. Art 10. ad 1. Estius sent 2. dist nct 32. lit g. b. Lom lib. 2. dist 32. lit 8. but not a Sinne a Sinne by no meanes the Master himselfe allowing the word Vitium but not Peccatum the Mother * Causa Fomes poena peccati Psal 51.5 De fide ad Pet. Diacon cap. 26. and Nurse and rod of Transgression the Tinder and Touch-wood of sin nay the match and the sparkle too and yet not sinne it selfe When our Apostle here Be-sinnes it over and over the man after Gods owne heart confessing that He was shapen in wickednesse and that in sinne this very sin his mother conceiv'd him And therefore S. Augustine or as some would have it Fulgentius puts it on Peter the Deacon as a point of Faith That every man was borne Impietati subditum so that not onely concupiscence it selfe but as they rarifie it with their Primi Motus the Ebullitions First-risings and Assayes of lust nay their Primo-primi or if they have an Art to mince them smaller their Primi-primo-primi are all Sin forasmuch as Concupiscence being evill of it selfe is of it selfe without the consent of the will * Pol. Synt. lib. 6. cap. 3. Omnes primi motus quia apti sunt insequirationem peream regulari si eam pervenerint dici possunt peccata etiam in parvulis fatuis quia sunt praeter ordinem naturae primitus institutae Gerson de reg mor. pag. 128. lit B. a sinne Otherwise in infants which by reason of their suckling and tender yeares cannot yet assent to wicked desires there should be no sinne at all whereas these inordinate motions are not barely the Symptomes but the very Impressions of a sickly soule Strom. lib. 2. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉
to the Right Honourable IOHN Lord POVLETT Baron of Henton St. George SIR IF there be a Succession of Vertues with the Fortunes of Great men doubtlesse there should be of the Services of those that honour them This makes me speak boldly through the sides of your Noble Father whose continued respects towards me and incouragements I cannot better acknowledge than by my thankefull expressions to such a Son who in the hopes and expectations of his Countrey shall no lesse inherit Him than his Revenewes Ana then Honour Riches Wisedome you cannot but prescribe for what else may either intitle you to Greatnesse here or to Glory hereafter Such a Patronage as This I could not but listen after where is as well Vertue to countenance me as Power and so perhaps Censure and Prejudice may be a little hush't or at least not so loud but that the labours of poore men may travell the world if not without their snarlings for who can so muzzle a blacke mouth'd Curre yet without their publique Barkings and traducements Beleeve it Sir what I present you here is mine owne though but a mite and a mite thus offered cannot prove lesse acceptable to a noble Treasury than an Oblation of a richer value since your Free-will offerings were ever of best esteeme both with God and Good men which doth hopefully incourage me of your faire entertainment of This from the hands of Your most devoted HVM SYDENHAM THE CHRISTIAN DUELL The first Sermon ROM 7.25 So then with the minde I my selfe serve the Law of God but with the flesh the Law of sinne THis life is a warfare and this Text a lively description of it where the parts lye as the two Armies of Israel and the Philistines did in Elah Ephes Dammim there is a Mountaine on the one side and a Mountaine on the other and a Valley betweene them 1 Sam. 17. Here is first Lex Dei V. 3. the Law of God on that Mountain the Israelite pitcheth then Lex peccati the Law of sinne on this the Philistine betweene both there is a spacious Valley where David encountreth the mightie Goliah the spirituall Combatant his fleshly adversary and this in the Ego ipse I my selfe where the conflict is both hot and doubtfull sometimes the flesh hath the defeate and then the Law of God hath the glory sometimes the minde is overlaid by the strokes of the Flesh and then the Law of sinne In this Duell our Apostle is a maine Champion or to use his own word a Servant Ego ipse servio I my selfe serve and I serve two wayes mentally with the minde that is for the Law of God carnally with the flesh this for the Law of sinne Serm. 44. de temp Audi saith the Father vitam justi in isto adhuc corpore bellum esse nondum triumphum the righteous man hath but a skirmish here no triumph no triumph yet but a daily tempest and strugling betweene the minde and the flesh the Law of God and the Law of sinne and this Law is the occasion of that warre and that warre of captivitie and yet this captivitie at last of triumph I finde a Law in my members fighting against the Law of my minde Quando audis repugnantem quandò captivantem bellum non agnoscis D. Aug. ibid. and bringing me into captivitie to the Law of sinne V. 23. Here is fighting and bringing into Captivity that 's the Warre on the other side Wretched man that I am who shall deliver me from the body of this death I thanke God through Iesus Christ our Lord v. 24. Here is deliverance from death and Grace by Iesus Christ our Lord this the Triumph Now the ground both of that warre and this Triumph the Apostle locks up here in a Nempe igitur a so then So then with the minde I my selfe serve the Law of God but with the flesh the Law of sinne Thus you see how the Field is pitch'd and every word in its severall squadron but before wee enter lists or can well shew you the heate of the encounter it will not be amisse to open first what the word Minde imports what her office and properties then what the Law of God and the service requir'd there and so the Analogie between both In the next ranke what the word Flesh specifies what the Law of sinne the service due there also and the relation between them This done I shall in the reare bring up the ego ipse the Apostle himselfe harness'd and ready arm'd for the spirituall conflict and setting him betweene the Minde and the Flesh the Law of God and the Law of sinne typifie and represent unto you the state of a true Christian Souldier here on earth how his loynes should be girt his feet shod his Armour buckled on what his breast-plate and Shield and Sword and Helmet and how farre able or not to withstand all the firy Darts of the wicked one This whilst I endevour to performe I shall desire this honorable and learned Throng to make use of Saint Augustines Apologie on the same subject Potentiam mihi praebeat charitas vestra D. Aug. Serm. 5. de verb. Ap. ut si habeam propter obscuritatem rerum difficilem disputationem saltem habeam facilem vocem ut autem prosit labor noster sit patiens auditus vester Discourses which savour of depth and industry are most proper for noble and ingenuous Auditories and looke for patient attention and candid interpretation I begin where I should with the minde of man tell you what it meaneth here and how it holds conformitie with the Law of GOD. PARS I. With the minde I serve the Law of God AND for the better opening of this Cloud both Fathers and Interpreters make a criticisme between Soule and Minde and Spirit which some endevouring to expresse have not unfitly compar'd to a house of three roomes or stories in the lower roome is Anima in the middle Mens above both Spiritus as the Cock-loft or upper Region of the Soule In these three is the substance of the soule lodged Quasi quadam sua Trinitate this being it seemes an Embleme of the Deity a Trinitie in Unitie and a Unitie in Trinitie the Essence the same in all but the proprietie diverse like severall strings in an Instrument set in tune to make up one Harmony and therefore it is call'd Anima De spirit Anima c. 12. dum animat Spiritus dum spirat mens dum metit meminit Or else Anima dum vegetat mens dum intelligit Spiritus dum contemplatur So that here is no Essentiall but onely a Vertuall difference the substance of the soule lying in the powers and properties thereof and yet not divided into parts but simple and individuall these powers neither impairing nor adding to the unitie of the soule no more than the diversities of streames to the unitie of one source or fountaine And yet there are divers steps
man consider'd the one Interior Ingraffed into Christ assisted and agitated by the holy spirit which searcheth every chinke cranny of the heart watering her barren furrowes and sending showies into the little vallies thereof making it fruitfull with the drops of raine Psal 65.11 suppling and mollifying that stone like flesh According to this man which is Inward he wills that which is Good approues the law of God serves it delights in it magnifies it The other Exterior which is not yet totally renewed but remaines in part carnall still retaining the corruptions of mans nature and as a prisoner to the flesh hath not yet knock'd off his Gives and Fetters This man being still outward to the world followeth the law in his members And hence is that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that contrary warre in the same man in the one part or wing of him we see the law of the members fighting and strugling for the law of sinne leading man captive through the infirmities of the flesh On the other side is the law of God to which in a holy correspondency the minde or will being renewed assent Betweene these is the whole man placed Aret. in cap. 7. ad Rom. v. 23. quasi communis praeda as a common booty or prey expos'd unto the assaults of both And in this encoūter it speeds with him as with the two opposite armies in the valley of Rephidim Exod 17. sometimes Israell prevaileth sometimes Amaleck the minde sometimes sometimes the flesh As long as the hands be held up whiles the thoughts be elevated the minde soring there is a great shout heard in the Hebrew Campe the Israelite hath the day the inward man prevaileth and then the Hosannah goes for the Law of God but when the hands be let downe when his devotions are a drooping when he begins to flag and grovell towards the Flesh straight there is a noyse of victory in the Heathen troops the Amalekite gives the chase the outward man prevaileth and so the cry runnes for the Law of sinne In this case the regenerate man must doe as Moses there did rest upon the stone the Corner-stone Christ Iesus and his hands being wearie with lifting up his mentall parts overburdened with the waight of the flesh Faith and Prayer like another Hur and Aaron must pillar and support them then he shall be steady till the going downe of the Sun till hee set in death when Amalek shall be discomfited all his spirituall enemies put to the sword and he in peace goe in and possesse the land promised to his Fore-fathers the caelestiall Land the Canaan above where he shall raigne with Abraham Isaac and Iacob for ever and ever Thus in a double ranke I have shewed you the double man inward and outward the one under the colours of the flesh marching for the Law of sinne the other under the Ensigne of the spirit fighting for the Law of God It remaines now that in the Reare we bring up the Ego ipse the Apostle himselfe ready arm'd for the conflict and viewing him dividing these Ranks observe how with the Minde he serves the Law of God but with the Flesh the Law of sinne PARS III. Ego ipse servio I my selfe serve SOme ancient Hereticks taking occasion by the errour of Origen S. Chrys Theo. Basil whom many of the Greeke interpreters followed and some of the Latine make here a Prosopopeia or fictio pèrsonae as if by this Ego ipse I my selfe Saint Paul himselfe had not beene understood S. Amb. Icrome but some other by him personated some unregenerate or carnall man or if himselfe himselfe as he was formerly under the Law and not yet under Grace D. Aug. ad Simplicium lib. 1. q. 1. D. Aug. lib. 6. cont Iulian. c. 11. In which opinion the great Saint Augustine confesseth that he sometimes wandred but afterwards tooke up with his Prius aliter intellexeram vel potius non intellexeram in the first of his Retractations 23. chapter And upon this tide many scruples of the Church then were after wasted to posteritie The Pelagians of old and their way-ward Proselites have scattered two pestilent Epistles to this purpose the one written by Iulian to Boniface at Rome the other by eighteene Bishops Ring-leaders of that Faction to the See of Thessalonica both which quoted and confuted by the learned Father in his Anti-pelagian controversies principally against Iulian the Muster-master if I may so stile him of that dangerous Sect who contended that under this Ego ipse Saint Paul either described Vid. fusius Par. in cap. 7. ad Rom. v. 25. hominem aliquem libidinosum some one that was luxurious or incontinent not yet wash'd from the grosser corruptions of the Flesh or else discover'd the nature of man after the Fall when and how farre he might prevaile without grace and upon this misconjecture they strooke at the heart of originall sinne strangled that in the wombe of our first Parents gave sucke to new fancies of the times cocker'd an upstart of their owne begetting shoulder'd up nature with grace engag'd freewill in matters of the Spirit contrary to the Apostles Peccatum in me habitans and his quod non vellem hoc ago in the 15. and 17. verses of this chapter But it is more than probable that this Ego ipse reacheth Saint Paul himselfe he continuing his complaint in the first person through the whole body of this chapter Ego sum carnalis ego agnosco ego consentio ego delector ego servio it is I that am carnall at the 14. verse and I allow not at the 15. and I will not at the 16 and I delight at the 22. and I serve here at the 25. I I my selfe I Saint Paul I the Apostle I the great Doctour I the chosen vessoll hee gives not the least hint or touch of any other Ego nescio quid sit Scr. pturas penitus pervertere si hoc non sit Beza Annot. in cap. 7. Rom. v. 25. And therefore it is a bold Fiction and a manifest depravation of the Text to wire-draw Scripture to mens private purposes interpreting here Ego by Alter as if I Saint Paul were not carnall not sold under sinne not captivated by the Law of it but some other some Iew or Gentile not yet converted when the maine bent of the great Doctour driveth another way he speaking of himselfe in the state of his Apostleship the conflicts and sikrmishes hee then had betweene the Minde and the Flesh not of his old Pharisaicall condition as some dreame for the words are of the present Ego servio not Ego servivi not I did but I doe serve and not barely 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 neither I but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I my selfe I and no other which excludeth all figurative interpretation whatsoever And therefore doubtlesse the Apostle here even as * Sed hoc forte aliquis non Apostolus certe Apostolus
tells the Gods his Judges in the fenced Cities of Iudah Take heed what you doe for you judge not for man but for God who is with you in the judgement Wherefore now let the feare of the Lord be upon you take heed and doe it for there is no iniquity with God no respect of persons nor taking of gifts 2 Chron. 19.6 7. Doubtlesse the matter is of great weight and consequence that is thus prefac'd with a double caution Take heed Take heed The formér Cavete is for a Quid facitis the latter for an ut faciatis first take heed what you doe and then take heed that you doe it too so that in matters of Judicature a deepe consideration should alwayes precede Action Deliberation Judgement And the reason of the quid sacitis if you observe it is very ponderous For you judge not for man but for God and God as the Psalmist speaketh Iudgeth amongst the gods Psal 82.1 You gods that judge men here that God shall judge hereafter and as you judge these so shall he judge you The reason of the ut faciatis is no lesse weighty neither for there is no iniquity with God he loves it not and what he loves not you are to condemne and judge and that this judgement may carry an even faile there must be no respecting of persons nor taking of gifts The eares must be both open and the hands shut the complaint of the Widdow and the Orphan and the oppressed must be as well listen'd to as the trials of the rich and mightie aswell and assoone too nay sooner for the one gives onely the other prayes and mens devotions goe with us to heaven when their benevolences with the giver moulder upon earth Let the Sword then strike where it should in the great busines of life and death let the ballance hang even in matters of nisi prius that there bee no selling of the righteous for a peece of silver Amos 8.6 or of the needy for a paire of shooes no cruell mercy in the one in remitting incorrigible of fenders no partiality in the other in siding with particular men or causes but fiat justitia et ruat coelum And when justice is thus done in your part it is not done in all manifold experience tells us that when causes have been prosecuted by all the fidelity and care of the sollicitor pleaded by all dexterity of counsel attended by al the vigilancy of the Iudge yet the mystery the wicked mystery of a decem tales shall carry them against wind and tide and a heard of mercenary ignorants for mnay of them are no better shall buy and sell a poore man his estate for eight pence This is neither christian nor morall nor scarce humane therfore for reformation of this capitall abuse it is both just necessary that such substantial men as are returnd in Iuryes should attend in their own person and not shuffle of the waight of publike affaires upon the shoulders of those who either understand not a cause when it is debated or else use not a conscience as they should in giving up their verdict but make their foreman their primus motor whom they follow like those beasts ' in Seneca non qua eundum est sed qua itur No man is to good to doe his God or King or Countrey service nay every good man thinkes it rather his honour then his burthen and therefore where there are delinquents this way let the mulct the fine bee laid on according to statute that where admonition cannot prevaile imperet Lex compulsion may And now I have performd my office done the part of a spirituall watchman blowne the cornet in Gibeah and the trumpet in Ramoth told Israell aloud her sinnes and Iudah her transgressions The next act is from the Pulpit to the Tribunall where it will bee expected that Moses should doe all things according to the patterne shewed him by GOD in the mount beere that lawes be not only written or prescribed or remembred but put in execution also and for your better encouragement herein observe what the same Moses saies to Ioshua Deut. 31.8 Bee strong and of a good courage for the Lord thy God hee it is that goeth with thee hee will not saile thee nor forsake thee To that God and to his sonne Christ Iesus with the blessed spirit bee ascribed all honour glory power and dominion both now and forever Amen Gloria in excelsis Deo FINIS The Christian Duell THE SECOND SERMON Ad Magistratum Preached at the ASSIZES held at TAUNTON in Sommerset 1635. By Humphrey Sydenham ROM 8.6 Quod sapit Caro Mors est Quod autem sapit Spiritus Vita Pax. LONDON Printed by IOHN BEALE for Humphrey Robinson at the Signe of the Three Pigeons in PAULS Church-yard 1637. TO THE NOBLE AND MVCH DESERVING Sr. WILLIAM PORTMAN BARONET SIR STartle not my Noble Sir This is no Challenge I present you with but a Flag of truce for though it have an Alarum in the Front and the subject speakes warre altogether and discord yet it prepares to peace such a peace as presupposeth victory and victory life and life Eternity To tell you here the nature of this warre it's feares stratagems dangers sufferings were but to preach by Letter and degrade a Sermon to an Epistle The following discourse shall give you a hint of all where shall find that he that is a true Christian souldier must be at peace with others though he have no concord with himselfe This is the modell of the whole fabrick and this I offer to your Noble hands which when it shall kisse be confident you cannot hold faster than please you try the heart of him that offers it Sicknesse and Age both my companion now are but ill Courtiers and as little acquainted with the nature of Ceremony as the practise A Complement then you cannot stile this but an expression of my zeale to the merits of your dead Brother to whom as I was of old a faithfull Servant so still a true honorer of his Name though not O my unhappinesse an Attendant which I cannot so much ascribe to negligence or error as to Fate But suppose either or all or others I murmure not but blesse rather and blesse thus God preserve you and yours and send you length of dayes and accumulation of honours and fruitfulnesse of Loynes that as your Fortunes looke greene and flourishing so may your Name also to the glory of your God the service of your Countrey the hope of your friends the Ioy of your Allies and the Prayers of Your wel-wishing Honorer HVM SYDENHAM THE CHRISTIAN DUELL The second Sermon GAL. 5.17 The Flesh lusteth against the Spirit and the Spirit lusteth against the Flesh T Is not my intent to perplex either my selfe or Auditorie with any curiositie of Preface or division the words are already at variance betweene themselves and so instead of farther dividing them the Text at this
sed Caro Not us but the Flesh the Flesh that must be are the blame whatsoever the Sinne be Their minde they pretend is prone enough to matters of Religion but the flesh as a violent Tide or Torrent drives them another way and no sinne so capitall but findes S. Paul's evasion Non nos sed peccatum in nobis 'T is no more we that doe it but Sinne that dwelleth in us Lyes and Oathes and Blasphemies and Prophanations are at length but a businesse of the Flesh to wallow in Surfets and Vomitings and Excesse of Riots till the wine inflame and the eyes looke red and startle a toy of the flesh too Raylings and Envies and Scandalls and Back bitings the Cut-throates of neighbourhood and amity but a frailty of the flesh neither Chambering and watonnesse and a lustfull neighing after thy neighbours wife nay the ranke sweat of an Incestuous Bed a tricke of the flesh also and that 's a tricke of the flesh indeed to grinde a poore man or steece a Tenant or pillage a Church cheate God himselfe of his dues imbeazle his tithes and offerings Imbrue our hands in the bloud of his Sacrifices but a trifle of the Flesh neither In a word be their Sinnes dyed in Graine never of so sanguine and deepe a Tincture so mighty so hainous so inexpiable the Flesh shall be their excuse still and the words of the Apostle are ever ready to plead for them Rom. 7.25 With the mind I serve the Law of God but with the Flesh the Law of Sinne. But let such corrupt Glossers on the Text consider who S. Paul was that us'd those words and of what sins for let the Pelagian bray what he list the words are S. Paul's S. Pauls of himselfe and of himselfe as an Apostle Vide D. Aug. Ser. 5. de verbis Apost not as a Pharisee not of publike and scandalous and notorious sinnes from which even his Pharisaisme was exempt but of bosome and inward infirmities whereby he felt his sanctified intentions strangled by the counter-plots of the Flesh Moreover the Text properly belongs to those that struggle not to them that lye soaking and weltring in their sinnes the Spirit must be still lusting against the Flesh and the Flesh still lusting against the Spirit This Sea of Ours never lying calme unruffled without some storme So that those which tugge not and beare up stiffe Saile against this Tide but plunging themselves headlong in all manner of Vices yet still pretending a rectitude of their mind and will have nothing to doe with this prerogative of the Saints For as a grave Neoterick of ours strictly observes None can say The mystery of selfe deceiving by D. D. cap. 14. that sins are not Theirs but the Fleshes but such have the Spirit besides the Flesh contending with the Flesh Now those saith he which are so ready with their Non nos sed caro Not us but the flesh are oftentimes themselves nothing else but flesh no Spirit at all to make the least resistance but give up themselves in a voluntary subjection to the lusts and corruptions of the Old man So that this non Nos sed Caro is but a vaine Pretence of Theirs sounding nothing else but us and our selves For in understanding will memory affections soule and body too they are altogether flesh Nature speaking of These as sometimes Adam did of Eve Adest Os ex ossibus meis et Caro de carne mea Here is Bone of my Bone and Flesh of my Flesh Gen. 2.23 Notwithstanding in the committing of some grievous sinne they have no doubt a kinde of inward murmuring and reluctation Pilate will not condemne Christ but hee will first wash his hands pretending that hee is innocent of his bloud Mat. 27.24 Felix will give S. Paul liberty of speaking for himselfe before hee will deliver him mercilesly to the Iewes bound Acts 24.27 There is a grudging and recoyling in the consciences of most men even In and Before the act of their mistreadings but this resistance is not from a minde renewed but enlightned only not from a religious feare of offending God for this or that sin but the fearfull apprehension of punishments which shall follow upon those sins so that they doe it only saith S. Austine timore poenoe non amore justitiae rather to avoide a hovering vengeance Serm. 59. de diversis then for any filiall obedience or respect to God and his commaunds And herein as in a mapp or glasse wee may see the difference of the combat betweene the regenerate and the meere carnall man that of the regenerate is in the same faculties of the soule betweene the will and the will the affections and the affections these faculties even in the renovated soule being partly spiritual and partly carnall whence it followes that when the renewed part of the will which is the spirit invites us to good the unregenerate part which is the flesh swayes us to evill But the combate in the meere carnall man is betweene diverse faculties of the soule betweene the understanding and the will betweene the conscience and the affections hee neither resisting temptations to sin nor the swindge of them when hee is tempted neither hating the sinne forbidden nor loving the law forbidding it but still drawes on cords with cart-roaps vanities with iniquities and these in a full measure drinking them like water untill hee come even to the overflowing of ungodlines Iob. 15.16 so far from holding backe from mischiefe that hee doth it with greedinesse and swiftnesse committing all uncleanes with greedines Ephes 4.19 Et pedes festinanter currentes ad malum his feete are swift in running to mischiefe Pro. 6.18 the regenerate man checkes evill motions when they are offered the carnall man gives them line and liberty of accesse without controule Sinne to the one is like the booke Saint Iohn mentions causing bitternes in the belly Revel 10.9 To the other like Ezekiels scroule 't is to him as honey and sweetnes Ezek 3.3 That doth utterly distast this doth affect and rellish it hee in the temptation of sin strives to avoyde the action to this the action is as ready as the temptation so that insteed of the rayne or the snaffle hee is altogether for the switch and the spurre veloces sunt pedes ejus ad effundendum sanguinem his feete are swift to shed bloud Rom. 3.15 Once more The one keepeth his tongue from evill and his lips that they speake no guile 1. Pet. 3. The others tongue frameth deceit and deviseth mischiefe and the poison of Aspes is under his lips proudly vaunting with those in the Psalmist Quis est Dominus nobis with our tongues we will prevaile wee are they that ought to speake who is Lord over us Psal 12.4 I deny not but the same sin according to the act may bee both in the regenerate and the meere carnall man but not without this qualification in the one for
too subtle or too toylesome for the Pulpit because they somewhat over ballace their muddy intellectualls but abundantly also from sacred Scriptures Where wee shall finde that sinnes have oftentimes the style of Ignorance and Error as if without them there were no sinne at all So the Psalmist Erraverunt ab utero Psal 58. that is Peccaverunt and so the Prophet Omnes nos quasi O ves erravimus Isai 59. that is peccavimus And so the Apostle too Si quis ex vobis erraverit Iames 5. that is peccaverit So that both with the Psalmist and Prophet and Apostle Erring all this while is but Sinning and this sinning an ignorance of the right way And therefore David joynes both his sinnes and his ignorances together and prayes against both in one Delicta juventutis meae ignorantias meas ne memineris So the old translation runnes Remember not the sins and ignorances which we render the transgressions of my youth Psal 25.7 Hereupon some of the Auncient Platonists who doubtlesse had a taste of divine truth drawing most of their Philosophy from the bookes of Moses brought all vertues within the lists of knoweldge and all sinnes of ignorance Insomuch that it is not only a Stale or Bawde to their sinnes but also whorish in it selfe Sinne too And if a sinne what colour can there be for the excuse they talke of Except we make one sinne to excuse another and this Ignorance cannot doe Since he that can please divine justice saith Leo must of necessity know I am sure that under the law a sinne of ignorance went hand in hand with a sinne of violence and had a like Guilt and Sacrifice If a soule sinne though he wist not sayes the Text yet he is guilty and he shall beare his iniquity Levit. 5.17 On the other side If a soule sinne in a thing taken by violence he is guilty too Levit. 6 4. Here is the guilt plaine in both Now what s the Sacrifice They shall both bring a Ramme without blemish out of the flocke for a trespas offering to the Priest In the 5. and 6. chapters of Levitcus the 6. and 18. verses Well then if this sinne under the law were of that magnitude and the guilt of it of such a tincture that it even touch'd with bloud and violence How comes it so spotlesse and innocent under the Gospell How growes it disputable whether it be a sinne or no Or if a sinne whether not excusing because of ignorance the old Moralist will tell us Plut. lib. 1. moral Vulgaris quidem sed frigida excusatio est Insciens feci 'T is indeed a popular but frozen excuse I did it unknowingly And Iners malorum Remedium Ignorantia saies the brave Tragaedian Sen. in Oedip. Ignorance is but a sluggish Remedy of evills and rather pretends to excuse then makes it I deny not that there is some thing this way which may Rarifie or Extenuate an offence Nullify it cannot Takes it of a tanto eo quod minuit Voluntarium Because it lessens that which is voluntary in sinne but it doth not totally expunge it not so wholly wash it out but that there is some staine and blemish remaining still which without divine dispensation wil prove at length both evidence condemnation T is true that those doe lesse offend Christ that offend him exignorantia And yet even those except God out of his singular grace and goodnesse enlighten with repentant faith Damnandos esse liquet their doome is no lesse then Damnation Vide Bezae annot in 2. Thes 1.8 if the Authority of Beza will passe for Authentique who doth thus sentence them from that of the Apostle threatning a flaming fire to take vengeance on those that know not God and obey not the Gospell of Iesus Christ 2. Thess 1.8 Here then is fire and vengeance due and the flame of both And to whom Nescientibus Deum To those that know not God know not God How Out of a wilfull blindnesse only No but also of a simple Nescience which excuseth no man so absolutely Vt aeterno igne non ardeat sed fortasse ut minus ar deat So Lombard him selfe in his 2 booke 22 Distinction lit k. And now we are fallen upon the very Pikes of the Schoolemen who here presse home upon us for the justification not only of their invincible ignorance Thom. 1.2 q. 76. Art 1. in corp which they say is not conquerable by Diligence nor Endeavour and therefore excuseable but of that ignorance also which is vincible and may bee master'd concluding it to bee no sinne if it bee of those things which a man by nature is not apted and by duty not bounde to know proportioning withall certaine limits for the necessity of that knowledge which every man is ingag'd under the paines of eternall death to knowe Franciscus a sancta Clara problem 15. whether in respect of the means or precept Now where they charge too hotly or too maliciously upon us wee will endeavour in what we can to returne their points upon their owne breasts But where they flourish only as if they would but dazle and not wound us let us be contented to wheele faire about take what we may for our own advantage and not as some of our angry declaimers doe come on in lightning and goe off in smoake Raile and vilifie when they should consute Calling doubt by the name of Heresie and opinion if not theirs Antichristian And so Dum vix mactarint excoriant As Honorantius hath it before they scarce wounde their Adversary lib. 1. cap. 18. they flay him I would have such to know that Reason here is better then violence and solid Allegation then a sweatish and feaverish Invective And here Lomb. lib. 2. dist 22. the Master himselfe will acquaint us with a threefold Ignorance the first of those Qui scire nolunt cum possint who wil not know when they may And this is so farre from excusing sin that it is a sinne itselfe A Sinne to condemnation The second of those Qui scire vellent sed non possunt which would but cannot knowe And this saith he doth excuse and is only a punishment of sinne no sinne itselfe The third of those Qui simpliciter nesciunt which simply know not Neither refusing nor yet proposing to know which doth not fully excuse any Sed fortasse ut minus punietur but for their milder punishment And upon this Anvile the Scholemen have hammer'd that common Trident of theirs Estius in 2. sent d st 22. sect 7. Ignoranttam purae negationis privationis and pravae dispositionis which the Syntagmatist hath Analized and contracted into two a Negative and a Privative Ignorance pol. Syntag. lib. 6. cap. 15. pag. 1919. D. A Negative Ignorance is when a man knowes not those things which by nature he cannot know and by duty he is not tyed to know And this is not so properly Ignorance as
swadling band Iob 26.11 breakes up for it his decreed place and sets barrs and gates and saies Hither to shalt thou come no farther and here shall thy proud waves bee stayed Iob 38.9 10. Shall we yet step a staire lower and opening the Jawes of the bottom lesse pit see how powerfully hee displayes his Eanners in the dreadfull dungeon below Behold Hell is naked before him Iob 26.6 and destruction hath no covering This made our Prophet sing more generally The Lord is above all Gods whatsoever pleased him that did He in Heaven and Earth and in the Sea and in all deepe places Psal 135.6 Psal 135.6 Thus you heare God is in the world as the Soule is in the body life and government And as the soule is in every part of the body so is God in every part of the world No Quarter-master nor Vice-gerent He but universall Monarch and Commander Totus in toto Totus in qualibet parte A God every where wholly a God and yet one God every where onely One whom the vaine conjectures of the Heathen dreaming to be moe gave in the Skie the name of Iupiter in the Ayre Iuno in the Water Neptune in the earth Vesta and sometimes Ceres the name of Apollo in the Sunne in the Moone Diana of Aeolus in the windes Ex D. August Hot kerus Eccles pol. l. b. 1. Sect. 3. of Pluto and Proserpine in Hell And in fine so many guides of Nature they imagin'd as they saw there were kinds of things naturall in the world whom they honour'd as having power to worke or cease according to the desires of those that homaged and obey them But unto us there is one onely Guide of all Agents naturall and he both the Creator and Worker of all in all alone to be bless'd honour'd and ador'd by all for evermore And is God the Lord indeed Is he chiefe Soveraigne of the whole world Hath his Power so large a Jurisdiction Doth it circuit and list in Water Earth Aire Fire nay the vaster Territories of Heaven and Hell too How then doth this fraile arme of Flesh dare list it selfe against Omnipotence Why doth it oppose or at least incite the dreadfull Armies of him who is the great Lord of Hosts Why doe we muster up our troupes of Sinnes as if we would set them in battel-aray against the Almighty Scarce a place where he displaies the Ensignes of his Power but man seemes to hang out his flag of Defiance or at least of Provocation and though he hath no strength to conquer yet he hath a will to affront If he cannot batter his Fort he will be playing on his Trenches anger his God though not wound him In the earth he meetes him by his groveling Sinnes of Avarice oppression violence rapine Sacriledge and others of that stye and dunghill In the Water by his flowing sinnes of Drunkennesse Riots Surfets Vomitings and what else of that frothy Tide and Inundation In the Aire by his windy sinnes of Ambition Arrogance Pride Vain-glory and what vapour and exhalation else his fancie relisheth In the Fire by his flaming sins of Lust Choller Revenge Bloud and what else sparkles from that raging furnace In Heaven by his lofty Sinnes of Prophanation Oathes Blasphemies Disputes against the Godhead and the like And lastly as if Hell were with man on earth or man which is but Earth were in Hell already by his damned sins of Imprecations Curses Bannings Execrations and others of that infernall stampe which seeme to breath no lesse than Fire and Sulphure and the very horrors of the burning Lake Thus like those Monsters of old wee lift our Pelion upon Ossa Tumble one mountaine of transgressions upon another no lesse high than fearefull as if they not onely cryed for thunder from above but also dar'd it But wretched man that thou art who shall deliver thee from the horrour of this death 2 Thes 1.8 When the Lord shall reveale himselfe from Heaven with his mighty Angels in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that feare him not what Cave shall hide 2 Sam. 22.9.16 or what Rocke cover them At his rebuke the foundations of the world are discovered even at the blast of the breath of his displeasure Out of his mouth commeth a devouring flame and if he do but touch these mountaines they shall smoake Psal 104.32 if he but once lift up his iron Rod he rends and shivers and breaketh in pieces like a Potters vessell he heweth asunder the snares of the ungodly and his enemies he shall consume like the fat of Lambes Psal 37.20 O then let all the earth feare the Lord let all the Inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him let Kings throw downe their Scepters at his feet and the people their knees and hearts at those Scepters from the Cedar of Libanus and the Oke of Basan to the shrub of the Valley and the humble Hysope on the wall let all bow and tremble Princes and all Iudges of the Earth both young men and Maidens old men and children let them all seare and in searing praise and in praising sing of the Name and Power of the Lord God for his Name onely is excellent Psal 148.13 and his power and Glory above Heaven and Earth On the other side is the Lord Omnipotent indeed Hath his Power so wide a Province and extent Is the glory of his mighty Acts thus made knowne to the sounes of men Is his Kingdome not onely a great but an everlasting Kingdome His Dominion through and beyond all Generations Psal 145.13 Doth hee plant and root up prune and graft at his owne pleasure Psal 147.6 Doth hee raise the humble and meeke and bring the ungodly down to the ground Is he with his Ioseph in the prison with Eliah in the Cave with Shadrach in the Furnace with Daniel in the Den Doth hee deliver his anoynted from the persecution of Saul His Prophet from the fury of Iezcbel his Apostle from the bonds of Herod His Saint from the Sword and Fagot of the Insidell Psal 104.21 Doth hee cloath the Lillies of the field Have Lyons roaring after their prey their food from him Doth he give fodder unto the Cattell quench the wild Asses thirst feed the young Ravens that call upon him Doth he stop the mouthes of wilde beasts Quench the violence of fire Abate the edge of the Sword Shake the very powers of the Grave and all for the rescue and preservation of his servants his faithfull his beloved servants Why art thou then so sad O my soule why so sad and why so disquieted within thee Trust in God Psal 147.3 he healeth those that are broken in heart and giveth medicine to heale their sick enesse Though thy afflictions be many thy adversaries mighty thy temptations unresistable thy grievances unwieldie thy sinnes numberlesse their weight intollerable yet there is a God above in his provident watch-Tower a God
at the very heeles by the Hue and cry of two foule sinnes Murder and Adultery is at length brought unto the barre and after arraignment and conviction done calls for his Psalme of mercy and insteed of an Exaudi me Domine hee comes with a miserere mei Deus 'T was before Heare me O Lord for thy righteousnesse sake as if hee stood upon termes of justification but now both the Tune and the Plea is alter'd And therefore have mercy upon me O God after thy great goodnesse according to the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my offences Psal 51.1 Here we finde Saint Bernard againe with his Magna misericordia and his Multitudo miserationum great sinnes require great goodnesse offences that are not common the multitude of Gods mercies the multitude of his tender mercies and according unto those Have mercy upon mee the Psalmist cryeth upon mee thy servant thy Prophet the man after thine owne heart My sinnes are such that they require thy goodnesse thy great goodnesse my offences so capitall that they looke for thy mercies thy tender mercies the multitude of thy tender mercies for their sake and onely for their sake blot out these my foule corruptions which if they should still continue in that uglinesse which they now are whither O whither should I flye No flesh is righteous in thy sight nay no righteousnesse in me as man meerely but is as flesh in thy sight fraile imperfect rotten not able to indure the touch of thy judgements If thou shouldest marke what is done amisse who should be able to abide it Psal 130.3 Surely not flesh blood not I I that am the miserablest of flesh and bloud I cannot answer thee one for a thousand Job 9.3 not one for a thousand thousand so desperate are my sins without thy goodnes thy great goodnes so hainous my transgressiōs without thy mercies thy tender mercies the multitude of thy tender mercies And this ever was will be the plea of Gods Children in their great extremities all their thoughts words endeavours then tread no farther the way to heaven than a miserere mei Deus If any brain-sick or upstart speculation have found out a newer cut or a neerer for mine owne part I give it the Pasport and good speed that Constantine did the Novatian Hereticke Tollescalas Acesi Socrat. lib. 1. cap. 7. in coelum solus ascendas let Rome suggest me it is in him that willeth or Geneva in him that runneth Saint Pauls miserentis Domini carryes the Palme at last It is not in him that willeth nor in him that runneth but in God that sheweth mercy Rom. 9.16 Those vaine-glorious opinions of merit and perfection here are but the dreames or delusions rather of two opposite and wayward Sisters Popery and Puritanisme Non sum dignus Nonsum dignus was the true and ancient ensigne both of sanctity and martyrdome And therefore the great Patriarch of the Romish Church was inforced at last to come in with his Tutissimum est It is most safe most safe Cardinall Bellar. de justif lib. 5. cap. 7. most just In sola Dei misericordia only in the mercy of God to repose our hope our confidence our eternall exectation And to this purpose one of the candles or rather stars of the same Church speaking of the mystery of our redemption Stella in 1. Lucae calls it mercy Quia tale tam divinum opus sub nullo merito comprehenditur sed sola divena misericordia factum est He that hath heard of Bellarmine or Stella knowes where the Quotations lie Heere then mercy and mercy only is embrac'd and those old presumptions of merit casheird by some of their greatest Rabbies Now if I could but reade or heare of so much modesty or so much mercy from some Perfectists of ours men so pretendingly immaculate and pure as if their hands and hearts were wash'd in innocence and they could goe boldly to Gods Altar as if they rather dar'd his justice then implor'd his mercy I might at length beleeve as I doe not yet that it were possible for a sincere or a learned or a not discontented man to turne Chatharist and so finde out a new way to Heaven by the spirit of opposition and singularity If any such Pharisees there be here standing about the Temple which yet dare vaunt in their plumed righteousnesse and tell God sawcily to his face that they are not as other men Extortioners vnjust Adulterers no not as this Publican let them enjoy the fruite of their insolent and uncharitable devotions whilst others and my selfe addresse our Orizons to God in his pensive and humble posture where wee may find a heart more stooping then a knee and a looke then either an eye so dejected and intent that it dares nor so much as glaunce where it offended as if one cast of it towards heaven were enough not only to dazzle but confound him Besides a hand so trembling or rather so feeble that it moves only to the striking of a sinfull breast no higher thoughts so mortified and gesture so lowly and language so modest that wee can discover nothing but penitence and submission and these rather express'd by groanes then words or if words broken ones Luke 18.13 God be mercifull to mee a sinner And here by the way we must remember that as mercy and truth meete so peace and righteousnes must kisse too nay righteousnes and mercy God is as well a righteous as a compassionate God a God of justice as of mercy nay his mercy sometimes shines the cleerer for his justice as the Sunne doth neere a storme or thunder-clapp His mercyes saith the Prophet are above all his workes All his workes Psal 145.9 That as you have heard is without Quaere not all his attributes too No though the Apostle seemeth to intimate so much Misericordia Dei super-exaltat judicium mercy doth super exalt or gloryes above or as some reade it Against judgement James 2.13 There is nothing in God majus or minus His attributes as I tolde you are himselfe and therefore to make one lesse or greater then another were to make God lesse or greater then himselfe God is summe simplicissimus not only one but very onenesse and therefore whatsoever is in himselfe must be himselfe and if himselfe therefore infinite infiinite then his justice as well as mercy and all his attributes as either and yet though mercy and justice as they are referr'd to God may bee styled infinite and are yet in relation to his workes they have such a reason of their magnitude as the worke it selfe is either proceeding from mercy or justice And therefore when God suffers sinnes to passe by unpunished as sometimes hee does hee is sayd to bee exceeding mercifull But when hee doth scourge a little his justice was not home to the desert of the offender so that his mercy is said to be greater than his justice though both be infinite
chapter Well then is Ignorance a Darkenesse and that Darkenesse tending unto Death Doe sinnes of affected weaknesse and simplicity leade man blinded to the ditch and there grovell him not only dangerously but without an infinite compassion Irrecoverably too What shal we thinke then of those that dwell in the light that have the golden candlesticke before them the knowledge of Christ and his Gospell shining cleerely and yet both they and all their practises driving amayne to the Land of Darkenesse and the shadow of Death Surely there is a Vaetibi Corazim recorded against such and the Tyrian and Sydonian in respect of divine justice have a more colourable Plea than those Woe unto thee Chorazin wee unto thee Bethsaida It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of Iudgement than for you Luke 10.14 Againe are Iustice Temperance Sobriety Patience Chastity and the rest of those morall Rarities in the Heathen because not divinely illuminated as they should now swimming in the burning Lake And doe we thinke which daily heare the voice of the Turtle in our Land that Corruption and Dissolutenesse and Riot and Lust and Bloud shall without de epe Repentance passe by that Floud of Brimstone those Coales of Iuniper the flaming of that Tophet which was prepared of Old Doe our ignorant mistreadings drag us to a strict Arraignment And shall those of Premeditation and Will and Malice and Presumption escape the Tribunall of the Great Iudge Hearke the dreadfull Thunderelap of the Apostle Voluntariè peccantibus non relinquitur Hostia If any sinne willingly after they have received the knowledge of the Truth What then What Horrenda quaedam expectatio Iudicij There is no more Sacrifice for sinne remaining but a fearefull expectation of judgement and fiery indignation Heb. 10.27 A place I confesse loaded with Terror and as with terror so with Obscurity and Doubt enough to strike the presuming Sinner into a Sound or a cold sweat 'T is a Hammer for the breaking of the Stone an Iron rod for the bruizing of the mountaine able to batter and beate into shivers a rockie and Adamantine Heart Againe Is there such vengeance due to those that know not God and his Son Christ Iesus What is there then to those that know him and yet crucifie him Nay what to Vs that crucifie him afresh daily That kisse him by our treacherous sinnes of Disloyalty and Revolt That Sell him by our greedy sinnes of Rapine and Avarice That spet upon him by our scornefull sinnes of Pride and Contumelie That Mocke him with our cogging sinnes of Hypocrisie and impure Purity that buffet him with our churlish sinnes of Rigour and Incompassion That Scourge him by our bloud-fetching sinnes of rigid malicious uncharitable censures That crowne him by our thorny sinnes of Oppression Depopulation Sacriledge That Revile him by our foule-mouth'd sinnes of Oathes Prophanations Blasphemies That Naile him to his Crosse by our implacable sinnes of Choler Revenge Fury And lastly that pierce him to the very heart by our javeline sinnes of Cruelty Rebellion Patricide and the like which cry louder now against the Christian than that Christi-cidium of old against the Iewes because the heinousnesse of their fact was somewhat abated by the Ignorance of the Agents And so insteed of the rushing of that mighty winde Confunde Domine confunde Let them be confounded and brought to nought They meete with the whisperings of the soft and the gentle Voyce Pater ignosce ignosce Father forgive forgive for they know not what they doe And indeed if they had knowne him truely as many amongst us Glory that they doe what could be the Reward of their matchlesse Butchery but the Hailestone and the Coale of fire the Lightning and the hot Thunderbolt Once more if ignorance of it selfe had such a priviledge that it could totally excuse yet as the times goe there is no plea for ignorance I confesse there was a time here to fore both of ignorance and bloud when superstition hang dilike a darke Cloud over us and Martyrdome at the heeles of it as a fatall Comet I meane those Mariana tempora when there was no other Dilemma for a distracted Church but either Rome or the sury of her fagot but those times are gone into Ashes and some of those Ashes I presume into Glory and no ground lest us now either for ignorance or feare Our Church is full cramm'd with Pastors and our Pastors with the Word and our Congregations with both and our Parlours sometimes with all three more Preachers now a dayes than we have either Churches or Pulpits our Shops and Cloysters and Barnes ring aloud of them Insomuch that for some of these there is still a full maintenance in the Church and that as they pretend Iure Divino only the poore Pastour instead of cramming others hath scarce a competence to feed himselfe and that's no doubt Iure humano where Sacrilege hath got the authority to flay that revenue which the other in all equity should fleece But notwithstanding the rapine of such Corâ—â—orants our Lampe is still burning in the Tabernacle and magnified bee the great GOD of Israel still like to burne burne like a vestall Flame that will never out and cursed be they that labour to extinguish it or not labouring cursed be those which mutter that they would 'T is a kinde of rifling of the Arke or at least a busie prying into it to meddle with those Arcana Religionis imperii Mysteries of Religion or State are not a businesse for the multitude to champe on who because they cannot have a Church and Common-wealth at their owne fancie will be a Church and Common-wealth to themselves and so lift the heele against an Old England for a New But ô height of folly and presumption Nay of madnesse What hath Vzzah to doe with the touching of the Arke What a Lay-Schismaticke with the Hierarchy of a Church Obedience of old was better than Sacrifice and now then saucinesse And therefore let such looke home to their Axe and their Hammer to their false Ballance and the unjust measure to the factious Loome and Shuttle let not the Cobler out-goe his Last nor the Tinker his Budget But Tractent fabrilia fabri To shut up all you must know that every corrupt Conversation is a darknesse the continuing in any customary sinne a great darknesse Seeing then that the night is past and the day is at hand Let us therefore cast off the workes of darknesse and put on the Armour of light even that Arniour which Saint Paul in the close of this Epistle prescribeth his Ephesians that Girdle and Breast plate and Shield and Sword and Helmet Truth and Righteousnesse and Faith and Salvation and the Spirit and then no doubt wee shall be able to withstand all the fiery darts of the wicked And to this purpose let the incontinent make a covenant with his eyes the proud man with the loftinesse of his looke the over-credulous with his