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
as melancholick monks do So for others the lesser helps and provocations of grace they can have from them with whom they are occasioned to converse they are to be the more frequent with God in the personall exercises of pietie but so as they take heed that they wrong not father and mother by their Corban nor make a speciall calling of the common works of all christians Others are grown more out of kinde who take greater delight in the following and fellowship of horses and hauks and dogs then in mens companie Such have drunk deep of the cup of Circes by which she is said to have transformed men into beasts That which was Nabuchad-nezzars punishment they make their cheif pleasure As God hath established fellowships and communities of men to procure their mutuall good and to fence them the better on everie side against evill so sin and wickednes being the greatest and onely absolute evill christians are most bound by vertue of their association to help and assist within the bounds of the callings in which God hath set them their brethren and associates against it according to that of the Phylosopher He that bears with the vices of his freind makes them his own Hence all Israel was punished and is sayd to have sinned for not preventing or reforming one Achans transgression The sin of another how near soever unto me cannot defile me because he doth it for then that which neyther goes into a man nor comes out of him might defile him but when eyther I doe something for the furthering of it which I should not do or neglect something which I should perform in my place for the preventing or reforming of it by these means I become accessorie eyther before or after the fact and not otherwise Although it be to be desyred and that unto which we are bound as humanitie our speciall places and occasion will permit that we converse onely with such as eyther may make us better which is wisdom or which we are like to make better which is charity yet will a good and wise man make good use of all companies Amongst the good he will learn to love goodnes the more amongst the evill and most amongst the worst the more to hate evill But yet notwithstanding there is a difference In evill company we see what to avoid which is good but in good what to follow which is better Besides there is danger if of no worse thing lest the edg of our zeal against evill should be taken of if we be occasioned continually to be grateing against it The spirit of grace and goodnes had need to be strong in him that is not tyred with continuall struglings and stryvings with the mallice of others He that at the first with righteous Lot vexeth his righteous soul dayly with the wicked deeds of them with whom he liveth yet will in time be in danger to be vexed dayly lesse and lesse with them as things growing by custom more familiar to him Also there is a second danger lest living amongst fools or wicked persons we cōtent our selvs with the litle model of goodnes or wisdom which we have because we are some body in comparison of them as he that hath but half an eye is a king amongst them that are blinde whereas amongst the wise and good we have still matter of imitation and provocation to aspire unto greater perfection in goodnes I conclude with that of the father If men good and bad be joyned together in speciall bond of societie they eyther quickly part or usually become alike Friendship eyther takes or makes men alike Much acquayntance shews eyther great imployment in the world which puts men necessarily upon the acquayntance of many or great ability and endowments which draw the acquaintance of many to a man for their benefit or an ambitious heart which seeks to be known and acknowledged by many or an idle head that hath litle els to do but to occupy it self in seeking or getting freinds As many who if they walked alone would by reason of their richer apparrell be thought men of better estate then they are and others meaner then they are by reason of their russet coats who yet both are discerned of what condition and rank they be by their companions and consorts so the vertuous or vitious dispositions of men are much discovered by the company which they affect and with which they sort with most gladnes and content For like will to like whether good or evill There is a difference between love goodwill and freindship We may love other things besides men bear good-will to the persons that know us not but we have freindship onely with men and that with mutuall consent arising from mutuall love and goodwill for our mutual good Now though divers other contracts be more streyt in severall relations yet is there in this of freindship a kinde of inwardnes arising from conformitie of judgment and affections the conjunction of the minde being the nearest kindred by which persons are more streitly tyed together then any other way There is a freind sayth Salomon that sticketh closer then a brother And Moses passing from brother to child and from childe to wife placeth her as near as the mans bosom but a freind nearer as reckning him as his own soul. Such a freind Ionathan was whose love to David passed the love of women Him whom we are to take so near unto us so constantly to keep and so freely to communicate withall we must not lightly make choyse of nor as the manner of many is by meeting together at a feast or playing a game at bowls or tables or lodging in one Inn but eyther after long experience and having as the proverb is eaten a bushell of salt together or upon some singular and extraordinary motive or tryall And as Christ committed not himself to the Iews because he knew their hearts so neyther are we easily to commit our selvs to men because we know not their hearts We are wisely to judg before but freely to credit after the knot of freindship tyed yet so as we try the wisdō secrecy faithfulnes of our freinds in smaller matters before we trust them in greater as men use to try whether their vessels will hould water or no before they put wyne into them And albeit that christian love which is the bond of perfection and first fruits of the spirit be due to all christians from all yet are not all fit freinds for all of that fellowship David notwithstanding the many worthyes in his kingdom had specially Husha◠the kings freind and so had our Lord whilst he lived upon earth specially Iohn among all the twelv the disciple whom he loved This speciall affection to one above the rest in Christ was holy yet humayn Many complayn of the perfidiousnes of freinds how vilely they have been used by them
a man to professe a Religion by working it first in his heart If the order in Israel be objected it may be answered First that the Land was holy as no Land now is that one Nation seperated from all other Nations to be the Lords peculiar people as no Nation now is the Kings types and figures of Christ as no Kings now are and Secondly That none were in truth compelled to the Israelitish Church and Religion but being of it whether Israelites or Proselites were to be cut off from the Lords people and destroyed out of Land for presumptuous sins or working iniquitie or for not serving God with all their heart and might Kings by this course would come short of the number of Subjects in whose multitude their honour stands and unto Churches few or none could possibly be added If it be further objected that men may be by the Magistrate constrained to the outward acts of justice honestie and the like though destitute altogether of the inward vertues It may be answered that these serv properly and immediately to preserv civill societies of which Magistrates are properly Kings and Lords and so do obtain their proper ends if the verie outward things be done though never so unwillingly But of Religious actions the proper end is not civill societie nor is attainable but by Faith and devotion in the heart of the doers Lastly To that of the Father that many who at first serv God by compulsion come after to serv him freely and willingly I answer that neither good intents nor events which are casuall can justifie unreasonable violence and withall that by this course of compulsion many become Atheists Hypocrites and Familists and being at first constrained to practise against conscience loose all conscience afterwards Bags and vessels overstrained break and will never after hold any thing Yet do I not denie all compulsion to the hearing of Gods Word as the means to work Religion and common to all of all sorts good and bad much lesse excuse civill disobedience palliated with Religious shews and pretences or condemne convenient restraint of publike Idolatry so as this rule of reason holds its place viz. that the bond between Magistrate and Subject is essentially civill but Religious accidentally onely though eminently For conclusion of this matter Let the godly Magistrate consider that as there is no Church-state and profession so truly Christian and good in which too many may not be found carried in their persons with a Spirit plainly Antichristian so there is hardly any Sect so Antichristian or evill otherwise in Church profession in which there are not divers truly though weakly led with the Spirit of Christ in their persons and so true members of his mysticall body With whom to deal rigorously for some few aberrations of ignorance or infirmitie were more to please Christs enemie in the oppressing of the person then Christ in so repressing his failing in some particulars specially if they be not fundamentall As then the Christian Magistrate hath his power of Magistracie from God which his Christianitie servs to sanctifie and direct so undoubtedly he is to use it for God and his honour that in his true worship in which he is specially honoured and against the contrarie yet with these two cautions First That as the greater sins of other kinds do not so violate and dissolv the marriage-bond as adulterie doth by reason of its direct opposition thereagainst so neither do Idolatry or Heresie how great sins soever in themselvs so outlaw a Subject civily as do Seditions Murthers Adulteries and the like directly violating and disturbing civill societies The second is That no authoritie of man may bring into or uphold in the Church either Doctrine or Ordinance of Religion or person which last is not lightly to be regarded seeing the other two serv for it unto which the Lord in his Word hath not first given testimonie of approbation for that use seeing Magistrates are not Governers against nor besides but under God in their Dominions CAP. VIII Of the holy Scriptures THe Holy Scriptures are that Divine Instrument and means by which we are taught to beleev what we ought touching God and our selvs and all creatures and how to please God in all things unto eternall Life I speak of beleeving things seeing Faith comes by hearing for els we know things touching God by that which we see feel and discern in and by his works We are led to the knowledg of God in his Power Wisdom Goodnesse Iustice and Mercie by his Works both without and within us And whensoever God either doth or suffers a thing to be done though not so much as insinuated formerly in his Word we then know it to be his will that such a thing should be as certainly as if he had expresly revealed it before in the Scriptures I speak of pleasing God in all things First because entire obedience so far as humain frailtie will permit is the immediate end and use of the Word of God and the way and means to Salvation Secondly to meet with that dangerous presumption of doing that which is necessarie to Salvation as many use to speak though with affected ignorance of and apparent disobedience to many of Gods Commandments Who knoweth with how little God can and doth save many being faithfull in learning what they can and in observing what they know Though much more be necessarie to such as have means to know more And thirdly because it is no childe-like but a bastardly disposition to take care for serving God no further though alas all be little enough for that then to be sure of the Fathers inheritance The heart of a man is then assured before God and hath a warrant from Heaven against eternall confusion when he can say with good conscience that he hath respect to all Gods Commandments God would have his will written that is his Word to become Scripture partly for more certaintie of truth to men and to preserv it the better from being corrupted as all make account that things set down in black and white as they speak are most firm partly for accord and unitie of Churches and Christians in the same truth who if they differ so much notwithstanding they use the same rule what would they do if their rules were different or uncertain and partly for more communitie seeing Books and Writings may easily both be dispersed whither the voyce of Teachers cannot come and also be read in private by Christians when they are apart from their Teachers Neither all things which the Prophets of God wrote were written by Divine inspiration but some of them humainly as their humain affaires common to them with other men required Neither was all wherein they were divinely inspired brought into the publike treasurie of the Church or made part of the Canonicall Scriptures which we call the Bible no more then all which they spake was spoken by the Spirit