To The Right Worshipfull Sir Iohn Cleypoole Knight sauing health WOrthy Sir I haue ventrously traffiqued with my poore talent in publike whiles I behold richer graces buried in silence iudging it better to husband a little to the common good then to hurd much wealth in a sullen niggardize I censure none if al were Writers who should be Readers if none idle Pamphlets would present themselues to the generall eye and bee entertained for defect of more sober matter If the graine bee good it doth better in the market then in the garner All I can say for my selfe is I desire to 〈…〉 whereof if I faile yet my endeou◠〈…〉 not my conscience without some ioifull content To your Patronage this flies to whom the Author is greatlie bounden and shall yet bee indebted further for your acceptance Your loue to generall learning singular encouragement to Students opposed to the common dishartnings which pouerty contempt ignorance assaults vs with your actual beneficence to many especially to Katherine Hall in Cambridge worthie of death-lesse memorie lastlie your reall kindnesse to my selfe haue prompted mee to seale this Booke with the signet of your name and send it to the world Which in humble submission I commend to your kind acceptation and your selfe with it to the blessing of our gracious God Your Worships in all duty deuoted Tho. Adams ENGLANDES SICKENES THE First Lecture Ierem. Chap. 8. Ver. 22. Is there no balme at Gilead is there no Physitian there why then is not the health of the daughter of my people recouered SIcke is the daughter of Sion and the complexion of England giues her not to be sound If shee feele her own pulse and examin the Symptomes of her ilnes her works of disobedience shee must confesse that her health is empaired or if shee feele it not shee is obstupeâ—ied The Coast I am bound for is Israel but like faithfull Merchants if I can traffique or transport thence any good commodity into our own country I will venter the welcom of it Israel England though they lie in a diuers climat may be said right Paralels not so vnfit in Cosmographicall as fit in Theologicall comparison And sauing Israels Apostacie and punishment for it wee neede not thinke it harsh to be sampled They could plead much of Gods mercy if wee can speake of more let vs thankefully embrace our transcendent happinesse Two maine passages are directed my discourse to saile through which shall limit my speech and your attentions for this time 1. The Patient 2. The Passion The Sicke and the disease The Person labouring of griefe is the daughter of Israel her Passion or griefe is sicknes Why is not the health of the daughter of my people recouered These two coastes will affoorde vs many subordinate obseruations worthy both our trauels The Patient whom we must visite is described 1. Quâ— sit 2. Cuiui sit God speaketh of her 1. Positiuely 2. Possessiuely Positiuely what shee is of her selfe The daughter of the people Possessiuely what shee is by relation in regard of her owner populi mei Gods people Daughter This title is vsuall according to Hebraisme Daughter of Israel for Israel Daughter of Sion for Slon Say yee to the daughter of Sion Behold thy saluation commeth c. Daughter of Iudah for Iudah The Lord hath troden the daughter of Iudah as a Wine-presse Daughter of Ierusalem for Ierusalem Lament 2. Of Babilon for Babylon Oh daughter of Babylon who art to be destroyed c. So Christ cals himselfe the Sonne of man because he tooke on him mans nature Esay 2 1. Oh my threshing and the sonne of my floore for the floore it selfe or the corne of it And Augustine obserues on the 72. Psalme that by the children of the poore is meant the poore themselues This is an abstractiue Phrase and vox indulgentis implying propense fauour in the speaker and tendernes in the person spoken of filia populi It is a word of relation simply taken for daughter depends on the respect of Parent Here it is Phrasicall and therefore not to be forced Yet because cunctae apices euery letter and accent in holy West is diuinely significant let vs not neglectfully passe it ouer without some vsefull obseruation There is somewhat in it that Filia non Filius dicitur the name of Daughter not of Sonne is here giuen to Israel Iaraels offspring must be a Daughter that she may be married to the God of Israels Sonne Christ is the beloued the Church is his Spouse My beloued is mine and I am his hee feedeth among the Lillies Betroathed to him in this life I will betroth thee vnto me for euer yea I will betroth thee vnto me in righteousnesse c. Solemnly maried in the next at what time the Saints shall sing Let vs be glad and reioyce and giue honour to him for the marriage of the Lambe is come and his wife hath made her selfe ready and verse 9. Blessed are they that are called to the marriage Supper of the Lambe Thus God the Father that had a Sonne by eternall generation hath now a Daughter also by adoption Hence the Church is called the Kings daughter Ps. 45. The kings daughter is all glorious within her clothing is of wrought gold â— because shee is wedded to the Kings sonne God is a Father in many respects 1 In Creation Deut. 32. Is not he thy father that hath bought thee Hath hee not made thee and established thee Hee gaue vs all essentiam formam subsistence and forme 2 In Education Esa 1. I haue nourished and brought vp children and they haue rebelled against me We are brought vp in this House of this world and fed from the table of his blessings 3 In compassion Psal. 103 Like as a Father pittieth his children so the Lord pittieth them that feare him Yeeld that a mother which is rare and vnnaturall can forget the Sonne of her wombe yet God cannot forget the children of his Election 3 In Correction Heb. 12 Whom the Lord loueth hee chasteneth and scourgeth euery sonne whom he receiueth Qui excipitur à numero flagellatorum excipitur à numero siliorum He that scapes affliction may suspect his adoption Wee are not exempted from misery that wee may not be excepted from mercy The rod walkes ouer vs left wee should grow wanton with his blessings 5 In Adoption and that most principally Rom. 8. Wee haue receiued the spirite of Adoption whereby wee cry Abba Father God sent his sonne made of a woman that wee redeemed by him might receiue the adoption of sonnes All these may be reduced to three God is a Father singularly generally specially 1. singularly the Father of Christ by nature 2 generally the Father of all men and al things by creation 3. specially the Father of the Elect by adoption The first priuiledge belongs onely to Christ. The second to many who haue
â—oâ—le and full of corruption that there could no temptation be shot from vs to wound the breast of Christ with loue Sported wee were and nothing but nakednesse was left to couer vs sicke but without care of our own cure deformed and luxate with the persecution of vanities quadrupedated with an earthly stooping groping groucling couetousnes not onely spotted and speckled in concretâ— but spots and blemishes in abstracto pollution it selfe As Micah cals Ierusalem and Samaria not pecâ—antes but peccata What is the transgression of Iacob Is it not Samaria and what are the high places of Iudah are they not Ierusalem Or as Lucan speakes of the wounded body Totum est pro vulnere corpus The whole body is as one wound Bloud touched bloud and sore broke out into sore all vleers were coagulated into one by a generall rupture that euen our righteousnes was as filthy ragges Oh then how vgly were our sinnes If olde iniquities could prouoke or new ones reuoke his fauour we had store to tempt him If the raw and bleeding wounds of voluntary sinnes if the halting foote of neuterality the bleare eye of ignorance the eare deafe to his word the tongue dumbe in his praise if the sullen brow of auersenesse or the stinking breath of hypocrisie if these could inflame his loue â—oe our beautie What moued thee then Oh Sauiour to loue vs besides the incomprehensible delight and infinite content which God hath in himselfe thousands of Angels stand about him and ten thousands of those glorious spirits minister vnto him What then is man Lord that thou takest knowledge of him or the sonne of man that thou makest account of him the meditation of Saint Augustine is pertinent to this consideration and what sonne of man may not confesse it with him Neque enim equistime aut egotale bonumsum quo tu adiâ—veris nec minor sit potestas tun carens obsequio men Neither didst thou lacke me Oh Lord nor was there that good in me whereby thou mightest bee helped neyther is thy power lessened through the want of my seruice If wee had been good yet God needed vs not being bad whence ariseth his loue what a roughnesse of soule findest thou Oh Christ when thoâ— embracest vs what deformity when thou beholdest vs what stinch of sinne when thou kuâ—est when thou discoursest what rotten speeches drop from vs when thou takest vs into thy garden what contrariety of affection to thy expectation our embraces haue been rougher then thy crosses our persecutions like vineger hidden in the spunge of our sacrifices our words swordes our oathes as bitter as crucifige our kisses haue been treasonable to thee as Iudas his our contempts thy thornes our oppressions a speare to gore thy side and wound thy bowels Such was our kindenesse to thee Oh blessed Redeemer when thou offeredst thy selfe to vs and to the Father for vs The best thing in vs yea in the best man of vs had nothing of merite nothing neere it Our wages is death thy gift is life bona naturae melior gratiae optima gloriae Thou gauest vs a good life of nature thou gauest vs a better of grace thou wilt giue vs the best of glory Whether it bee pro via or pro vita for the way or the end it is thy gratuitall goodnesse who hast promised of thy mercy both donaere bonatua condonare mala nostra both to giue vs thy good things and to forgiue vs our euill things Wee had miserie from our parents and haue beene parents of our owne greater misery Miseri miserum in hanc lucis miseriam 〈◊〉 Miserable parents haue brought sorth a miserable offspring into the misery of this world And for our selues euen when we were young in yeares wee had an 〈◊〉 about vs Tantillus pâ—er tantus pecâ—â—tor A little child a great sinner Sic generant pater 〈…〉 regeneraâ—â—nt pâ—ter caâ—sstis So wretched our generation left vs so blessed our regeneration hath mad vs. So beggerly were wee till Christ enriched vs. If you aske still what moued Christ I answere his owne free mercy working on our great miserie A fit obiect for so infinite a goodnes to worke on He was not now to part a sea or bring water out of a Rocke or raine Bread from heauen but to conquer Death by death to breake the head of the Leuiathan to ransom captiues from the power of hel to satisfie his owne iustice for sinne and all this by giuing his owne Sonne to die for vs by making him man who was the maker of man This was dignus vindice nodus a worke worth the greatnesse and goodnesse of God Decet enâ—m magnum magna facere For it becommeth him that is Allmighty to doe mighty works Thus to make the Daughter of Ierusalem faire cost the Sonne of God the effusion of his bloud This giues vs strong consolation Qui dilexit pollutos non deseret politos He that loued vs when we were not when we were nought will not now loose vs whom he hath bought with his death interessed to his life Hauing loued his own which were in the world hee loued them vnto the end vsque ad finem nay absque fine vnto the end in the end without end Hee will not neglect Dauid in the Throne that did protect him in the folde He that visited Zacheus a sinner will not forsake him a Saint If he bore affection to vs in our ragges his loue will not leaue vs when highted with his righteousnesse and shining with his rewels If Ruth were louely in the eyes of Boâ—z gleaning after the Reapers what is shee made Mistresse of the Haruest Hee neuer meant to loose vs that laide out his bloud to purchase vs. Sathan hath no tricke to deceiue him of vs vs of him As hee had no power to preuent the first so none against the second Redemption Christ was Agnus in passione but Leo in Râ—surrectione a lambe suffering death but a Lion rising from death If he could saue vs being a Lambe hee will not suffer vs to bee lost being a Lion Feare not thou daughter of Sion he that chose thee sicke sinneful rebellious will preserue thee sound holy his friend his Spouse There is neyther death nor life nor principalâ—itie nor power nor hâ—â—ght nor depth that shall bee able to separate vs from his loue or plucke vs out of the armes of his mercy But tremble yee wicked if yee haue not fought in his Campe you shal neuer shine in his Court. To presse this point too farre 1. were but to write Iliades after the Homers of our Church 2. Besides there are many that offer to sit downe in this chayre before they come at it and presume of God that they shall not bee forsaken when they are not yet taken into his fauour Enow would bee saued by this priuiledge if there were no more matter in it then the
still an outward faire shew and tincture of golde They demand where was the golde demonstrate the place I answere in that Masse But for the extracting therof and purifying it from drosse God hath giuen vs the true touchstone his sacred Word which can onely manifest the true Church and withall reuerend Bishops and worthy Ministers that haue beene instruments to refine purge it from the drosse of superstitions foule ceremonies and iugling inuentions The Papists brag themselues the true ancient Church and taxe ours of nouelty of heresie But wee iustly tell them that Ecclesâ—â—enomen tenent contra Ecclesiam dimicant that they vsurpe the name of the Church yet persecute it For the truth of our Church wee appeale to the Scriptures Nolo humanis documentis sed diuinis oraculis sanctam Ecclesiam demonstrari It is fit the holy Church should be proued rather by diuine oracles then humane precepts or traditions We stand not vpon numbers which yet wee blesse God are not small but vpon truth You see as the Church of the Iewes so any particular Church may be sicke inwardly To describe these internall diseases I will limite them into 4. 1 Error indeed Heresie cannot possesse a Church but it giues a subuersion to it Errare possum Hereticus esse non Possum sayth that Father I may erre an heretike I cannot be Now Quic quid contra veritatem sapit heresis est etiam vetus consuctudo What is diametrally opposed against the Truth is heresie yea though it be an ancient and long receiued custome But Logicke which is a reasonable discourse of things shewes a great difference betweene diuersae and contraria A Church may bee sicke of errour and yet liue but heresie a wilfull errour against the fundamentall truth violently prosecuted and persisted in kils it Therefore Haeresis potius mors quam morbus Heresie is rather death then sickenesse When the truth of doctrine or rather doctrine of truth hath beene turned to the falshood of Heresie God hath remoued their Candlesticke turned their light into darkenes Error may make it sicke but so that it may be cured The Churches of Corinth Galatia Pergamus had these sicknesses the holy Ghost by Paul and Iohn prescribeth their cures If they had been dead what needed any direction of Physicke If they had not beene sicke to what tended the prescription of their remedy To God alone and to his maiesticall word bee the impossibility of erring That Church that man shall in this erre palpably that will challenge an immunity whosoeuer thinkes he cannot erre doth in this very perswasion erre extreamely I know there is a man on earth a man of earth to say no more that challengeth this priuiledge Let him proue it Giue him a term ad exhibendum and then for want of witnesse ho may write Teste meipso as Kinges doe Witnesse our selfe c. Nay aske his Cardinals Fryers Iesuites This is somewhat to the Prouerbe Aske the sonâ— if the Father be a thiefe But hee cannot erre in his definitiue sentence of Religion Then belike hee hath one spirite in his consistory and another at home and it may in some sort be said of him as Salust of Cicero Alâ—â—d stanâ— aliud sedens de Republica loquitur He is of one opinion sitting of another standing Let God bee true but euerie man a lier One of their owne said Omnis homo errare potest in side etiamsi Papa sit Any man may erre in faith yea though hee were the Pope If they will haue Rome a sanctuary let them take along with them Petrarcha's catachresicall speech calling it a Sanctuary of Errors What particular Church then may not erre now can it erre and be sound Bee the errour small yet the ache of a finger keepes the body from perfect health The greater it is the more dangerous Especially 1. either when it possesseth a vitall part and affecteth infecteth the Rulers of the Church It is ill for the feet when the Head is giddy 2. or when it is infectious and spreading violently communicated from one to another 3. or when it carries a colour of truth The most dangerous vice is that which beares the countenance and weares the cloake of vertue 4. or when it is fitted to the humor and seasoned to the rellish of the people Sedition affectation popularity couetousnesse are enough to driue an errour to an heresie So the disease may proue a Gangrene and then enserecidendum ne pars sinceratrabatur no meanes can saue the whole but cutting off the incurable part Pereat vnus potius quam vnitas 2 Ignorance is a sore sicknesse in a Church whether it bee in the superiour or subordinate members Especially when the Priests lippes preserue not knowledge Ill goes is with the body when the 〈◊〉 are blind Deuotion without instruction often windes it selfe into superstition When learnings head is kept vnder Auarices girdle the land growes sicke Experience hath made this conclusion too manifest Our fore-fathers felt the terrour and tyranny of this affliction who had golden Challices and wodden Priests that had either no Art or no hart to teach the people Sing not thou Romane Syrâ—n that Ignorance is the damme of deuotion to breed it it is rather a damme to stifle restraine and choke it vp Blindnesse is plausible to please men not possible to please God Grant that our faults in the light are more hainous then theirs who wanted true knowledge Ex furibus enim leges eos grauius puniunt qui interdiù furantur For the lawes doe punish those theeues most seuerely that feare not euen by day to commit outrages Yet in all reason their sinnes did exceede in number who knew not when they went awry or what was amisle Rome hath by a strange and incredible kinde of doctrine gone about to proue that the health which is indeede the sicknesse of a Church Ignorance Their Cardinal Cusaen faith that Obedientia irrationalis est consummata obedientia perfectissima c. Ignorant obedience wanting reason is the most absolute and perfect obedience Chrysostome giues the reason why they so oppose themselues against reason Haeretici sacerdotes Claudunt ianuas veritatis c. Hereticall Priestes shut vp the gates of Truth For they know that vpon the manifestation of the Truth their Church would be soone forsaken If the light which maketh all things plaine should shine out Tunc hi qui prius decipiebant nequaquaâ— ad populum accodere valebunt post quam se senserint intellectos then they who before cosoned the people could preserue their credits no longer being now smelt out and espied Hence the people aime at Christ but either short or gone and not with a iust Ieuell But Nemo de Christo credat nisi quod Chrâ—stus de se credi voluit Let no man beleeue other thing of Christ then what Christ would haue beleeued of himselfe Non minus est
this Easter Feast of the Resurrection of our Sauiour Iesus ouertake take the Resurrection of all his Saintes Grant this O Father for thy mercies Oh Christ for thy merites Oh blessed Spirite for thy holy names sake To whom three persons in glorious Trinity one onely true and immortall God in vnity be all power prayse maiesty and mercy acknowledged for euer Amen ENGLANDES SICKENES THE Second Lecture IEREM CHAP. 8. VER 22. Why is not the health of the daughter of my people recouered WE haue described the Person the Church of Israel as she is her own as shee is her owners what in regarde of her selfe what in respect of her God It remaines now only to enquire how shee is affected Shee is Sicke which is necessarily implied from Gods complaint Why is not the health of my daughter recouered She was sicke and so sicke that the Prophet complaines Her wound is incurable for it is come euen to the heart vnto Iudah Incurable in regard of her owne misery not of her Sauiours mercy She was low brought in the Babilonish Captiuity Except the Lord of hostes had left vnto vs a very small remnant wee should haue beene as Sodome and like vnto Gomorrah It is of the Lords mercies that wee are not consumed because his compassions though our obedience faile not But her honour lay in the dust when her Apostacie had forfeited her happinesse Superstition taking the vpper hand of Deuotion and the traditions of man getting the start and ascendency of Gods precepts When her disease grew too frenzy and her sicknesse so excluding from it selfe all recouerable hope that shee had slaine her Physitian and killed him that should haue carried her Whence it appeares that a particular visible Church might and may fall away from grace and haue the Candlesticke remooued The Papists bragge of their numerous multitude and promontorious celsitude Rome boasts that their Church stands vpon an hill So it doth on six hilles too many Shee is mounted high enough if this could iustifâ—e her She had better bate of her height and â—ise in her goodnesse There may be a locall succession but if not in faith and doctrine mole ruit sua her toppe-heauy weight ouerthrowes her May it not be said of her as Ieremie of Egipt Goe vp into Gilead and take balms Oh virgin the daughter of Egipt in vaine shalt thou vse many medicines for thou shalt not be cured It is no wonder then no wrong if we depart from her that hath departed from the truth of the Gospell and faith of Christ. I will not descend into the view of her apostacie though iust occasion may seeme heere offred but turne my selfe and speech to our selues who are sound in doctrine sicke in conversation but I trust not without good hope of recouerie But so soone as the Romish malignancie heares me say wee are sicke they instantly insult reproching our doctrine But doe men try the faith by the persons or the persons by the faith It is a silly argument à moribus ad doctrinam from the life to the doctrine Yet though we desire and striue to haue our owne liues better we feare not to match them with theirs Our sicknesse would be esteemed lesse if we would goe to Rome for a medicine For the Papist may better steale the horse than the Protestant looke on But so long as we haue approoued Phisitions at home what need we walke so farre to a Mountebanke It is a false rumour there is no sound ayre but the Romish Is it not rather true that thence comes all infection And that they who haue forsaken vs to seeke health there haue gone out of Gods blessing into the warme Sunne Our liues trouble them this they obiect this they exprobrate ad nauseam vsque But do they not stumble at our strawes and leape ouer their owne blockes cauill at our motes and forget or iustifie their owne beames The swelling on the Foxes head shall be a horne if the Pope will so iudge it a Catiline Lopus Garnet Faulx an honest man a Catholike a Saint if hee will so interpret so canonize him If I should but pricke this ranke vein how would Rome bleed Would not haec prodidisse be vicisse as Erasmus said of Augustines dealing against the Maniches the very demonstration of these things be a sufficient conuiction Vnnaturall and hideous treasons conspiracies against whole kingdomes deposing dethroning touching with a murderous hand Christos Dei the Annointed of God oathes vncleannesses periuries from whom are they produced by whom practised if not mostly if not onely by Papists They prie search deride censure the forepart of their Wallet wherein they put our iniquities whiles their owne sinnes are ready to breake their neckes behinde them The greatest euils wee haue are theirs father'd by those that will not be mother'd of our Church Haec non ad frument a Christi sed ad eorum paleam pertinent These belong not to Christs wheate but to the châ—ffe of Antichrist These are â—onsters bred of that viperous dam that haue shooke hands with humaâ—ity with ciuility though they reserue the forme of Religion Si quid in his possem facerem sterilescere matrem as one of their owne said It were well if either the children would forsake their kind or the mother become barren Yet must these men be Saints and stand named with red letters in the Popes Calendar red indeed so dyed with the Martyr'd bloud of Gods seruants But I am not delighted to stand vpon comparisons if their exclamations had not put me to them that like blown Pharisies they cry out with ostentation of sanctity God I thanke thee that I am not as other men are or as this Publican What age people Church were euer yet so holy that the Preachers found no cause of reproofe of complaint against it Chrysostome speaketh of his times Christians now are become like Pagans or worse Yet who will say that the Religion of Pagans was better then the Christians The Priest and Leuite had no mercy the Samaritane had yet their Religion was the true and not the Samaritans If some Papists amongst vs and those very few liue in more formall and morall honesty et this commendeth not their whole Church They are now in the time of their persecution as they take it though their prosperity and numbers euince the contrary wee are in our peace and who knowes not that an easie occasion of wantonnesse I deny not that wee haue grieuous offenders wee mourne and pray for them Doe the Papists reioyce at this Woe to him that is glad of Gods dishonour Let them brag their peruersion of some which were ours but such and so affected to viciousnesse If wee had lost more of Atheists sacrilegâ—ous Adulterers lâ—centious hypocrites we had as little reason to complaine as they to be proud We are the fewer they not the better We desire endeauour reproue exhort
the world In what wee should affect we are abstinent in what auoide very indulgent 1 The first cause is by forbearing that sacred meat liuing and life giuing bread which came downe from heauen to translate thither those that eate it This is the Sonne of the most high God not disdaining to become the foode of the affamished sonnes of men Out of the strong came sweetnesse the mighty is become meat the Lyon of Iudah yeeldes honey such as neuer came out of any earthly Hiue He is our inuincible Captaine to him we supplicate as distressed Nerua to Traian Telis Phoebe tuis lachrimas vlciscere nostras Oh Sauiour defend and keepe vs yet hee that is Victor a conquerour for vs is also victus foode to vs. But this is Cibus non dentis sedmentis meate for our faith not for our teeth manducaemus intus non foris Wee eate it inwardly not outwardly Christ is verily panis verus non panismerus true not meere naturall bread Thus our Feeder is become our Food our Physitian our Medicine He doth all things for vs guide feede mediate medieate let vs meditate on him and noi disappoint the intention of his mercies by our auersenesse No hope but in him no helpe but by him The Law could not satisfie our hunger not through it own but our insufficiency the Gospel giues not onely present satisfaction but euen impossibility of future famine There is no abiding the law except the Gospell be by not of that thunder without his raine of mercy to quench it Who giues this foode to vs but He that gaue himselfe for vs that shepheard that feedes his Lambes not on his grounds but with his wounds his broken flesh and sluced bloud Hence from this great Parliament of Peace made in that once acted and for euer-virtuall sacrifice deriue we pardon for our sinnes without impeachment to the iustice of so high a Iudge as wee had offended Thus the King of eternall glory to the worlds eye destating himselfe though indeed not by putting off what he had but by putting on what he had not was cast downe for vs that we might rise vp by him Learne of me to be humble wherein he giues vs a precept and a patterne the one requiring our obedience the other our conformity The Pelican rather then her young ones shall famish feedes them with her owne bloud Christ for the better incorporating of his to himselfe feedes them with his owne flesh but spiritually So that we eate not onely panem Domini as the wicked but panem Dominum not only the bread of the Lord but the bread the Lord in a Sacramentall truth They that haue ransacked the riches of nature searched earth sea ayre for beastes fishes birds and bought the rarest at an inestimable price neuer tasted such a iunket The fluid transient passing perishing meates of earth neither preserue vs nor wee them from corruption This banket of His flesh richer then that Belshazzer made to his thousand Princes this cup of his bloud more precious then Cleopatra's draught shal giue vitam sine morte life without death to them that are receiued to receiue it Wee perceiue a little the vertue of this meat Now then as the withdrawing of competent meat and drinke from the body lessoneth that radicall moisture which is the oyle whereon the Lampe of life feedes and makes way for drines whence the kindly heate which like other fire might be a good seruant must needes bee an ill master getting more then due and wonted strength for want of resistance tyrannizeth and not finding whereupon to worke turnes vpon that substantiall viuiditie exciccating consuming it This ouersparing abstinence wastes weakenes sickens the body dangers it to an Ecticke or some worse disease of no lesse hurt then too great repletion So when the Soule eyther through a mad frenzy of wickednesse or dull melancholy darkenes of ignorance or sensuall peruersenesse of affections forbeares forbids herselfe to feed on that sacred and vitall substance Iesus Christ the viuid sappe of grace and vertue which keepes true life and soule together stilled into the heart by the holy Ghost beginnes to drie vp as a morning dewe shrinking at the thirsty beames of the rising Sunne and the fire of sinne gets the predominance Now where that vnruly Element raignes in a mortall body it hazardes the immortall soule to death There is then no maruell if the soule descends into the fall of sicknesse into the valley of death when she shall refuse the sustentation health and very life thereof her Sauiour who is not onely cibus but ipsa salus meate but health it selfe as Paul cals him ipsam vitam qua viuimus quam viuimus the very life whereby we liue which we liue We liue in Christ we liue by Christ nay we liue Christ for our very life is Christ. Now liue not I but Christ liueth in me This is He that once suffred for our sinnes the iust for the uniust that hee might bring vs to God Hee suffered our sinnes the cause most odious the iust for the vniust the persons most vnequall that hee might bring vs to God the end most absolute How well then may wee yeelde and if there might bâ— any pride or glory in vs it shoulde bee in our sufferings to suffer for him The Apostles did so reioycing O Iesu Sâ— adeo dulce est stâ—re proâ—e quam dulce erit gaudere de te Oh Christ if it be so happy to suffer for thee what will it be to reioyce in thee It cost him much oh how much trouble sorrow beating grinding before he became bread for vs. There may bee a scarsity of other bread there is none of this to those that rightly seeke it It is deare in regard of the preciousnesse they that haue it will not part with it not deare in regard of the price we pay nothing for it but faith and loue Though thousands pray at once with the Disciples Lord euermore giue vs this bread Iosephes may Iesus his store-house can neuer be emptied Least the world perish through famine He onely nec accipiendo proficit nec dando deficit growes not râ—ch with receiuing neither growes poore with giuing Reioyce then Beloued in done in Domino The Lord is the giuer the Lord is the gift Let not your soules bee starued wâ—th those inferiour things which are pauca parua praua few in number small in measure bad in nature Whiles there is bread inough in your Fathers house Why should wee sicken â—ur spirits in a voluntary want and fast from that which is able to feast a world of faithfull guestes This is the first degree of our spirituall sicknesse 2 The excessiue occasion to procure ill health to our soules is by feeding too heartily too hastily on the world This is that too much oyle which quencheth our Lampe For as in a body ouercharged with