the false Heart itself will not be convinc'd of them And as for Idolatry though the foreign Reformed Churches do all put it off from themselves to the Heathen and Antichristian Nations yet I fear concerning some of them one may take up Samuel's words to Saul If ye have indeed destroyed Idolatry utterly what means this bleating of the sheep and lowing of the oxen which I hear If any one should answer as Saul did we have reserved these innocent safe and significant Ceremonies to sacrifice to the Lord to adorn and grace the Worship of God it will perhaps be replied as Samuel replies Obedience is better than Sacrifice or as another Prophet expresses it Quis ne quisivit hoec I answer further What man is there upon Earth in whom these Sins are not found in some degree or other And so far as they are found they do pollute the Worship and subject it to the denomination of Vanity But I answer thirdly That the word Tselem in the Text does not signifie a vain shew properly but a shew a resemblance a representation or image in opposition to substantial as the Picture which we see in a Looking glass is the representation or resemblance of the Face that looks into it And so every man without exception may be said to walk betselem in imagine in a shew as to his religious acts which I shall further explain under the next Head viz. his inward religious acts The internal actings of Grace are but a shew a resemblance of some such thing in comparison of what they were in Man innocent or shall be in Man glorified The inward pious acts of our Minds do make us approach the nearest to Substance of any thing that we have or do For as a man thinketh in his heart saith Solomon so is he If any thing will denominate a man a substantial Christian it is these inward Acts of the Mind the Acts of Faith Hope and Love the Acts of Self-denial and Contempt of the World and of the whole Creation in comparison of the Creator And yet even these are but a shew a resemblance of something rather than any thing substantial The Love that the most affectionate devout and refined Soul exercises towards GOD in this mixt state is but a shadow a resemblance of Love in comparison of the Ardours of another World I love thee said Peter I love thee yea Lord thou knowest that I love thee John 21. 15 16 17. Poor Peter I believe in a degree he did love him yet I believe he was grieved that he could love him no better Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart with all thy soul with all thy mind with all thy strength Mark 12. 30. This is the first and great Commandment a great one in deed 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And who is able to perform it How many All 's are here All and All and All and All. Lord what mortal man can with any Modesty pretend to such a generous Love as this is Every man that has his Senses exercised to discern between Good and Evil will confess that this Command is just equal and reasonable yea and very pleasant too for what is what can be sweeter than a Life of Love But yet the most devout the most amorous and ardent Soul that this day inhabits a mortal Body must needs confess his Straitness and bewail his Unaffectionateness and though he may seem to be drench'd in this holy Passion yet has cause to pray Lord shed abroad the Love of God in me Perfect love says the loving and beloved Apostle casts out fear 1 John 4. 18. Alas Where is this perfect Love then for Fear yea some degree of slavish Fear is found in every Heart of Man yea though he love GOD sincerely and ardently too yet he is apt to fear he does not love him enough The hottest of our Love is cold the strongest is weak and faint in comparison of what Adam's once was and Abraham's now is We call it Love indeed but it is rather Liking than Love rather hankering than either It is but a going Fire a Glow-worm at best but a Blaze or a Blazing-Star in comparison of the Fervors the Delights the Complacencies of the Spirits of Just men made perfect The greatest zeal of mortal Man for GOD which yet is the Flower of Love is in comparison of the angelical Ferver but as a Fire painted upon the Wall in comparison of that which burneth upon the Hearth The Apostle Paul was as zealous for his Lord and did and suffer'd as much for him as any of his Disciples whatsoever so that in nothing was he behind the chiefest Apostles yet he esteemed himself as nothing which is not so much as a shew 2 Cor. 12. 11. How weak and tottering is the Trust and Confidence in GOD which the most steddy Soul can pretend to in this World in comparison of the unmixt and unshaken Affiance in him which constitutes the Joy and Security of the other World The three unmartyr'd Martyrs in Dan. 3. are renowned for their Faith and firm Dependance upon their GOD ver 17. He will deliver us out of thy hands O King This was their Confidence in GOD but it had its If for all that ver 18. But if not be it known to thee O King c. But the Affiances and Assurances of the other World are above all Buts and Ifs The stoutest of our Confidence here is but a shadow of that Confidence which shall have no shadow of turning What fear of miscarrying can there possibly be to him who perpetually walks in the light of God's Countenance what Danger what Suspicion can there be of being pluckt from thence to a Soul folded in the Arms and wrapt up in the Bosom of the Almighty And what is our Hope in this mortal state A poor languid thing a faint Velerity a dull yawning rather than a greedy gasping a lifeless stretching forth the Hands towards rather than an eager laying hold upon Eternal Life It ought to be an earnest and vehement Longing and alas it scarce amounts to a sincere Desire or Expectation And what are our Acts of Self-denial in comparison of the exinanition of the glorified Saints who cast down their Crowns before the Throne Rev. 4. 10. What is our Contempt of the World in comparison of that Disdain with which refined and glorified Souls behold all earthly Possessions eying and enjoying all things in GOD alone Alas what mortal man can oculo irritorto spectare acervos with an Eye altogether undazzled or with a Heart altogether unaffected and disengaged contemplate the Bravery and Grandeur the precious and glistering Possessions of this World whether his own or other mens perfectly free from Enchantment I mean who can do it and neither dote nor envy But they that are got above the Sun and look down with the Eyes of Angels do see all things under the Sun to be a contemptible Vanity a sore
wrestling and fighting whereas the ablest stoutest strongest of the Children of men is a meer Child in comparison of one of the Angels of God yea or of one Devil either yea I may add in comparison of any Child of the Resurrection for these Bodies of ours are buried in Weakness but shall be raised in Power 1 Cor. 15. 43. Besides this Strength of his which he pretends to has no duration with it it vanishes away in a moment and Man as a rotten thing consumeth as a garment that is moth-eaten Job 13. 28. Who could chuse but pitty Peter stretching out his Hands to be bound and carried away whither he would not who had formerly seen him girding himself and walking whithersoever he would or Sampson grinding in the Prison who had formerly seen him carrying away the Gates of Gaza upon his Shoulders Doors Posts and Bar and all Who I say can chuse but bewail the vain shew that the strong man makes who sees his Iron Sinews become like Straw and his Brass Bones turn'd into rotten Wood as the Almighty loftily expresses it in the 41st of Job And as his Beauty is but a Paint or Varnish his Strength but Infirmity and Rottenness so His Valonr is but a Flourish and a meer Vapour The bombast words and prophane brags of the Philistine-Champion Goliah who defied the Armies of the living God and disdain'd the little Champion of Israel Come unto me and I will give thy flesh to the fowls of the air and to the beasts of the field prov'd to be nothing but the blasphemous Bravado of an uncircumcised Tongue which was presently silenc'd and carried away with the wicked Head that contain'd it and his mighty brandish'd Blade was wrapp'd up in a Clout and laid behind the Ephod in obscurity Besides this Valour and Prowess will in a short time be turn'd into such Cowardise and Dastordliness that it will not dare to encounter no not so much as the Worms that will crawl and feed upon the valiant Hero and then he that sees it will wonder and say Loe here 's all that remains of great Saladine or Loe here that Limb of a man who is now a Worm and no Man His Valour is but a Flourish and a meer Vapour His Constancy and Faithfulness is but a shew of Stedfastness Ten thousand Instances do tell us how frail fickle and deceitful the Affections Words Promises Oaths and Vows of the Children of Men are they love to day and hate to morrow and the Hatred with which they hate perhaps is greater than the Love wherewith they loved Ammon is sick for his Sister Tamar to day to morrow having spoil'd her of her Glory he is as sick of her Arise be gone 2 Sam. 13. 15. And again Put now this woman out from me and bolt the door after her v. 19. Though all the world should deny thee cries Peter to his Master yet will not I deny thee I will dye with thee rather Mat. 26. 33 35. But before morning his note is changed ver 72. I know not the man And ver 74. He began to curse and swear saying I know not the man Peter I warrant ye thought he had a substantial stedfastness but see what a vain shew it proved to be It seems by the Apostle Paul that the Purposes and Promises that are made according to the Flesh i. e. according to men in the Flesh are doubtful and unstable on and off they are yea yea and nay nay 2 Cor. 1. 17. And indeed there is so much lightness and unsteddiness in humane Minds and Resolutions and so much variableness in their Affections that their Constancy is no more to be compared to substantial Steddiness than the levity of a Feather to the stability of a Mountain Besides let men be never so firm faithful and constant in their Affections alas their time comes presently when all their Thoughts perish Let them be never so just punctual and true to their Word their Breath and with that all their Words will vanish into Air in a short time so vain a thing is Man Surely every man walketh in a vain shew His Patience is but a shew of Patience mingled with a great deal of Impatience and soon worn out too Ye have heard of the patience of Job says the Apostle James yes so we have and we have heard of his Impatience too witness the third Chapter of his History when he opened his mouth and cursed his day read the Chapter We have heard of the Meekness of Moses too who was the meekest man upon Earth Numb 12. 3. but we have heard of his Passion too and rash Anger Psal 106. 32 33. It went ill with Moses for their sakes because they provoked his spirit so that he spake unadvisedly with his lips And be Man's Patience never so pure it is rare to find it have its perfect Work one Evil after another one Battery upon the back of another will shake it if not demolish it Elijah long endured the Perverseness of Israel the Affronts and Gainsayings of Ahab and Jezabel but when word was brought him that notwithstanding all his good Offices Jezabel would have his Head to morrow he arose and went for his Life and prayed in the anger and anguish of his Spirit that he might dye saying It is enough now O Lord take away my life 1 Kin. 19. 4. His Successor Elisha patiently endured many Provocations and Persecutions from that idolatrous Generation in which he lived but when the wicked and ungrateful King of Israel for whom he had done so many good Offices sent a Messenger to take away his Head he falls into a sit of Impatience 2 Kin. 6. 32. See ye how this son of a murderer is sent to take away my head And still worse in ver 33. he said Behold this evil is of the Lord what should I wait for the Lord any longer Loesa patientia fit furor And as the Patience so the Charity of Man upon Earth is imperfect it is but a shew of Charity in comparison of the pure Kindness and Benevolence of the Angels of God or of the Spirits of just men made perfect Alas how great an Allay a mixture of Bitterness is to be found in the sweetest Temper upon Earth The Children of Men indeed so far forth as they are Children of God i. e. followers of him are Children of Love for God is Love But alas the most God like and the best-natur'd of them do love but in part they have Gall mingled with their Honey the root that beareth gall as Moses calls it Deut. 29. 18. is not perfectly eradicated no not out of the Trees that are of the Lord 's own planting Paul and Barnabas were men beloved of God and his Church Lovers of God and of his Gospel great Lovers one of another constant and dear Companions in Travel in Preaching in Persecution yet for a small matter one would think this loving pair sell out and the Controversie grew
when we see their restless and painful state and hear their lamentable Shrieks and deadly Groans we pitty the Poor and the Forlorn the Fatherless Motherless Friendless Harbourless Helpless when we see them with naked Feet and half-naked Bodies in the pinching Severity of Frost and Snow seeking their Bread in desolate places we pitty poor Prisoners that lye in Dungeons are bruised with Irons sink in the deep Mire or else are made fast in the Stocks sed with black Bread and cold Water lodg'd on a little Litter amongst Toads and Newts and noisom Vermin we pitty poor banish'd men driven out of their own sweet Country and from amongst their dear Relations wandring amongst wild Beasts or barbarous men more savage than Beasts enjoying no Liberty except it be that of wandring from one Cave or Den or Desart to another we pitty unhappy Princes whose Crowns are fallen from their Heads and the Children of prodigal Gentlemen Lords of Towns who come to be reliev'd by the Towns whereof their Fathers were sometimes Lords Oh! but how much more reason have we to pitty and bewail vain Mankind the miserable Posterity of Adam wounded in Soul with a most deadly wound all their Bones broken sick of the most painful Disease and loathsom Leprosie poor and desolate naked and forlorn Slaves and Prisoners in the Dungeon of the Body and under Sathan their Jayler bunisht from Paradise estranged from God and his holy Angels and wandring in the Wilderness of this World in a thousand Wants Necessities Dangers Uncertainties and Perplexities degraded from their excellent Honour and Dignity and now feeding upon Husks ordained to be Ment for Swine When Peter and John saw the lame man that could not walk at all they pittied him and healed him When we consider poor Mankind walking in a vain shew though we cannot heal them let us pitty and pray for them and bewail our own and their Degeneracy Nay Fourthly Let us not only bewail the Vanity of Mankind but be in a godly sence weary of our vain Life The highest pitch which most men aim at is but this to be desirous to live and content to dye But the Apostle Paul was of a higher form he was only content to live but desirous to dye desirous to depart and to be with Christ because it was far better Phil. 1. 23. Possibly you will not allow me to argue from the Prophet Elijah 1 Kin. 19. 4. Lord take away my life nor from holy Job chap. 7. 15 16. My soul chooseth death rather than life I loath it I would not live always for my days are vanity Perhaps you will say these holy men were either in a Passion not to be justified or in a Rapture not to be imitated but yet sure in good earnest and in sober Temper without either Passion or Extasie the consideration of our poor imperfect state and vain life ought to beget in every Pilgrim Soul a holy and comely weariness of this state of alienation and elongation from its GOD I dare not venture to call it the Grace of Discontentment because the Grace and Art of Contentment has obtained so great a Name in the World but methinks a degree of Weariness or Discontentment may well enough stand with a predominant submission to and satisfaction in the Will of God One thing cannot be desired especially not with such a desire as 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 imports but the contrary to it must be in some degree rejected or undervalued So that I suppose the Apostle Paul's desire to depart comprehends in it a kind of weariness of Commoration in the Body And indeed who can reasonably blame a man that is weary of a state of Bondage Banishment Imprisonment Poverty and Vanity and desires a state of Liberty Enlargement and Perfection Which brings me to the last thing Fifthly Study covet love and long after things durable and substantial As we ought with a holy kind of Weariness to lead 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a life void of Pleasure in things here below so ought our life to be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a flight of our Souls to God alone The whole Creation is subjected to Vanity but the Creature shall be delivered from the Bondage of Corruption therefore the whole Creation groaneth and travaileth in pain Rom. 8. 20 21 22. And shall not we much rather long to be delivered from our state of Vanity Can we seriously think of our Vanity Misery and Indigency and not cry out Oh that we were as in times past when we came out of the Hands of God at first or Oh that we were as we shall be in time to come when we shall be put into the Hands of God again It is lawful it is reasonable it is safe it is seemly to look for and long after a state of Purity and Perfection a state of compleat Health and Liberty a Re-union with our God and Center to be absent from the Body and present with the Lord. It is most natural and comely for every thing to tend to its own Perfection and the most healthful Constitution of a Soul is to be sick of Love The description of regenerate and sanctified Souls is that they love the appearing of Christ 2 Tim. 4. 8. that they look for his appearing Tit. 2. 13. that they look for or long for the Mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto Eternal life Jude ver 21. that they look for and hasten to the coming of the day of God 2 Pet. 3. 12. And so we find they have done Paul desiring to depart and to be with Christ and David longing for the Salvation of God Psal 119. 174. his Soul breaking for very longing Psal 119. 20. waiting for the Lord more than they that watch for the Morning I say more than they Psal 130. 6. To conclude Lament not intemperately the removal of any out of this state of Vanity and Vexation of Spirit into a state of satisfaction and perfection of Spirit Rejoice not immoderately in the fairest and sweetest Circumstances of this present life but live under a painful sense of your own Indigency breathing after a state substantial and durable blissful and eternal And God of his infinite Mercy grant that we always endeavouring to perfect Holiness in the fear of God at our removal hence may have an abundant Entrance administred unto us into the Kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ To whom with the Father and the Holy Ghost be all Praise Honour and Glory for evermore Amen ERRATA PAge 1. line 8. read 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 p. 2. l. 4. r. male p. 29. l. 19. r. in 3 p. 100. l. 7. r. requisivit p. 106. l. 8. 8. velleity A Catalogue of Books printed for Tho. Parkhurst at the Bible and Three Crowns in Cheapside Books in Folio RIchard Baxter's Catholick Theology plain pure peaceable for pacification of the Dogmatical Word-Warriours In three Book Methodus Theologiae Christianae By Mr. Richard Baxter Sixty one Sermons preached mostly on publick Occasions By Adam Littleton D. D. Rector of Chelsey in Middlesex c. One Hundred select Sermons upon several Texts Fifty upon the Old Testament and Fifty on the New Choice and Practical Expositions on Four select Psalms These two by the Reverend and Learned Tho. Horton D. D. late Minister of Great St. Hellens London A third Volume of Sermons preached by the late Reverend and Learned Tho. Manton D. D. In two parts the first containing Sixty Six Sermons on the Eleventh Chapter of the Hebrews With a Treatise of the Life of Faith Part the second A Treatise of Self-denial with several Sermons on the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper and other occasions with an alphabetical Table to the whole