thē nimble for performance of anie action euen so deuotion viuifieth quickneth the powers of the soule enduing them with that quicknes and agillitie as that they may easilie tread downe and run ouer the difficulties drowzinesse of the flesh to follow vertue and the works of the spirit Thirdly it may be compared to an oderiferous perfume For like as a perfume killeth the stenches or il sauours in a house or lodging so as they cannot be perceiued euen so deuotion so long as it abides in the heart spreadeth abroad such sweet and oderiferous fumigations as that the noysome and stinking appetite of our euill desires can not be so much as perceiued or felt What Comtemplation is AFter that by continual custome deuotion becomes a habit it bringes foorth another excellent vertue called contēplatiō which is a rest of the soule and spirit in the consideration and beholding of all Gods fauours and mercies so that night and daye it meditateth thereon as a thing wherein consisteth all delight true happines and from this proceedeth also thankesgiuing zeal and indignation What Zeale is AS vpon the consideration of gods fauours and our owne vnworthines we are moued to giue him thanks so from the same head springeth anoother duty which is a care ioined with a kinde of disdaine or iust displeasure if at anie time we shall chaunce to see him dishonoured or vnreuerently vsed by his creatures because we intirelye loue him and hold him deare vnto vs and this affection or good motion of the soule is called zeale prouided alwaies that it proceed not of ignorance This made the good seruants of God that were otherwise verie meek gentle and patient in any indignities offered to themselues to become impatient and full of anger shewing inuincible courage and implacable minds till they had reuēged the iniuries done vnto their God As appeareth by the example of Moyses who descending from the mount and finding the people of Israell worshipping a Caulfe threwe the two tables of stone wherein the Lawe was written and brake them all into peeces and yet beeing not so satisfied ground the image into pouder made them drinke it and then commanded the Leuites to gird them with their swordes and to go thorough the hoast and slay euery man his brother and euerie man his companion and euerie man his neighbour insomuch as there fell that daie of the people aboue three thousand Exod. 32. What Indignation is INdignation is a greefe wrought in our mindes when we see some good befall an vnworthie person and hee that is worthie to be depriued thereof As when we see the honour that is due vnto God attributed vnto men Idols or anie other thing or in humane affaires when we see men of no desert aduaunced to worshippe and dignitie and the vertuous kept back left destitute and despised This vertue of indignation hath some resemblaunce with the former of zeale but that zeal takes his beginning from some euill that befals a worthie person and indignation ariseth from some good which befals an vnworthy person Beside indignation is not altogether so forceable as zeale nor doth so soone breake forth into redresse or ease of it own wrongs but rather smothereth discontent and flieth to praier rather than to violent pursute What praier is PRaier is a talke or conference with God either in mind submissiuelie or in word more openlie wherby we lift vp our hartes our eies hands vnto him for his helpe and mercy either for our selues or others in the time of calamitie want or affliction Why our praiers manie times are not heard THere are sixe reasons why we praie many times and are not heard first because we are not in Charitie when we pray Secondlie because we praie not with a full hope and assured faith to obtaine that which we praie for but are wauering or doubtfull of Gods mercie and louing kindnesse toward vs. Ia. 1. Thirdlie because we doe not pray in the name of Iesus Christe without whose intercession nothing is acceptable in Gods sight and through whom the father will giue vs whatsoeuer wee aske Io. 16. Fourthly because we pray more to satisfie our own lustes than to glorifie God more for temporal thinges than spirituall thinges Fiftlie because we vse much babling as though God did not know what we stand in need of except we set foorth our defects with an elaborat and rhetoricall kinde of oration and because we pray not continually but vse our inuocations by starts Sixtly because we are not so feruent as we should be nor so attentiue to the matter we haue in hand but suffer our thoughts to wander hither and thether whilst our tongues speake vnto God The efficacie of Praier FIrst it is as swift as thoght because it is no sooner conceiud in minde but it is as soone receiud of God Secondlie it is as pearcing as the sharpest steel for that it is no sooner vtterred in the servency of spirit but it straight way makes passage through the cloudes and firmament euen to the presence of god Thirdly it is the greatest and chiefest point of Charity that may be vsed for that at one instant by prayer we may shew our selues helpfull to manie thousandes yea to the whole worlde whereas by our bountie we can be beneficiall but vnto few Fourthly it is more victorious then the mightiest hoast of men or the gretest conqueror of the worlde in that with reuerence be it spoken it doeth as it were ouercome God himself who ouercommeth all things and at whose becke heauen and earth shake as appeareth by the example of Moyses Ex. 32.10 14 Likewise in Eliah we may read the great force and efficacie of praier who praied that it mighte not raine and it rained not for three years and sixe moneths And againe when he praied the heauens poured foorth their shewers 1. King 17 1 and chap. 18 45. At the praier of Ioshua the Sun and Moone stood still and at the praier of Hezechias the shadowe of the Dyall went back ten degrees 2. king 20 10 What Repentance is AS by faith we are stirred vp to beleeue Gods word to depend vpon his promises acknowledge his graces and to bee zealous in his seruice euen so when by sinne or the frailetie of our nature we fall from any of these duties to worke our reconciliation we must laie hold vpon true repentaunce which is a conuersion or turning again vnto God In which conuersion we depart from eulll beleeue the promise of forgiuenes of sinnes and studie to lead a new life according to the Lawes of God whereupon there follows these three good effects The first is a cleansing or deliuerance from sinne by the bloud of Iesus Christ 1. Iohn 17 The second is the imputation of the righteousnesse of Christ when as his obedience truth and innocencie by faith is made ours Rom. 5. The third is the acceptance into euer lasting life for whom the Lord iustifieth them also he glorifieth Romans
decent cariage of the body wherby such as are so disposd are said to be men of a good presence or men of a faire behauior Secondly it wil appeare outwardly in things belonging to ourselues as sobriety of diet or in thinges belonging to others as in comely entertainment well gouerninge of our house and family and such like The difference betweene wit and Wisedome AS a tuneable Instrumente in the hand of a an vnskilfull musition so is witte to manie men in it selfe verie ripe and pregnant but because they know not how to vse it therfore it stāds them in little steade so that wee may define wit to be a faculty of the minde whereby men vnderstand and knowe much good but oftentimes they neglect to follow it but wisedome wee may tearme to be that correspondencie of the powers of the soule when will and vnderstanding knowledge practise goe together Why wisedome is said to be the light of the minde WIsedome is said to be the light of the minde because as the bodie hath two instruments to direct it which are the two eies euen so Prudence to giue both minde and bodie better direction is likewise said to haue three eies The first is the eye of memory with which she beholdeth time past The second is the eie of vnderstanding with which she beholdeth time present And the third the eye of prouidence by which she takes a vew of thinges to come Two sortes of Prudence THe first kinde of Prudence may be said to be that ripnesse of knowledge and experience which men haue in worldlie matters and so Machevile may be said to be a wiseman but such wisdome is accounted foolishnesse before God 1 Cor. 3 19. And in the end intangles the owners in their owne craftinesse as appeares by the desperate end of Achitophell 2. Sam. 17.23 The second kinde of Prudence is that knowledge which is had in deuine matters touching the vnderstanding of Gods word and the mysterie of our saluation which is called true wisedome and though the drift hereof especiallie tend vnto that end yet is it not without a sharp insight also and an able discretion in such thinges as appertaines vnto this world but it vseth this but as a seruāt or handmaid to the other And this is that wisedom which Solomon so greatly cōmendeth and so largely beautifies and sets forth in his booke of prouerbes accounting all other knowledg but as vanity in respect of this When petition was made to the oracle of Apollo to know what people or nation in the wolrd was the wisest best learned the answer was that the Hebrews were the wisest mē for that they had the knowledg of the true God and so had not the rest The daughters of prudence or Vertues third issue THough we may well say that all other vertues take their beginning from Prudence as the head and fountaine of the rest without which they are altogether vnprofitable yet for the better vnderstanding of her gracious effectes which shee bringeth foorth in the hearts of men it shal not be amisse to consider that from her doe springe proceed these fiue peculier vertues namely consultation vigilancy dillygence prouidence and constancy all which are made manifest vnto vs in that one example of the fiue wise Virgins recorded in the 25 Chapter of the Gospell after S. Mathew Firste they had consultation in preparing and prouiding themselues to meet the bridegroome Secondly they had prouydence in regarding the length of time and so furnishing thēselues accordingly with oile Thirdly they had vigilācie in watching for the houre of the bridgromes cōming Fourthly they were dilligent in triming their lamps lastly they were cōstant in that though they wayted long yet they were not weary of their labour So that by these necessary and helpful effects which follow wisedōe we may gather other vnnecessary hurtfull accedents which it may run into if not ruled and tempered as it should be The maimes to Prudence THere are three speciall euills which wisedome may indanger it selfe with all if it be not carefullie looked vnto The first is temerity or rashnes when it either giues councell or puts in execution anie thinge before mature and serious consultation be had or when vpon a sudden determination it concludeth vpon thinges vnknowne for knowne vncertaine for certaine The second is credulitie when it ouerlightly beleeueth or giueth credit to any thinge it heareth and doeth not first examine the circūstances of euery matter nor confer and lay them together that so the truth may by sifted out The third is curositie which appears two manner of waies First when we pry into thinges forbidden or couet to know more than God hath thought good to reueale vnto vs. As Aristotle that died for griefe because he could not finde the natural cause why the sea did ebbe and flow or of those men that now a daies by their curious questions striue to knowe what god did before he made the world or why he gaue not man such a soule as mighte not sin with a number such like impious and vnlawfull demaundes And secondlie when we seek to be renowmed in shewing and expressing what power of wisedome we haue in triflles and thinges of no moment as he that spent much time and labor in making a locke and a chaine of three and fortie linckes that was in waight no more but one graine or wheat corne so that it being tied about the necke of a flye she was able to drawe it after her Anno Regno Elisa 21. The opposites to Prudence EVerie vertue holdes the myddle betweene two extreames so that on the one side prudence is beset with ignorance and on the other with craft or subtletie And as the one is vicious in respect of the defect so the other is odious in respect of the excesse the one is so farre from knowledge as it knowes nothing or verie little and the other is so fraught with skil and experience as it turnes the vse thereof to many most vile and vngracious purposes What ignorance is WE may call Ignorance an vnskilfulnes both in human and deuine matters what we haue to doe or what wee haue to leaue vndoone what wee haue to choose and make much of or what wee ought to reiect and auoid The effects of Ignorance IT takes awaie the sight of the minde as blindnesse dooeth the sight of the bodie it makes a man prodigal whē he should be liberall couetous when he thinkes to auoid superfluitie if a man be meane it makes him fearefull superstitious vnprofitable needie slothfull and vnfit for any thing If hee be mightie it makes him arrogant rash cruell talkatiue inconstant and giuen to voluptuousnesse and luste It is the spring of all errours bad opinions and absurd behauiors and as by wisdome men are renowmed and had in reputation so by ignorance they become base contemptible and of no reckoning Yet it is better than subtletie because that which is misdoone through
8 But as true repentance is neuer without faith so is it likewise at all times accompanied with good works What good workes we ought to doe INsomuch as the lord pronounceth he is worshipped in vaine with the commandements of men therfore wee must practise and doe such good workes as are prescribed vnto vs in the worde of God Ezec. 20. because many things may seem good in our eies that are abhominable in the sighte of God How good workes are to be done AFter that a godlye and religious man hath found out what workes are to be don forthwith he addresseth himselfe to vnderstande in what sorte they are to be done for resolution of which question that one place in the Epistle to the Heb. 11 6. may be sufficient wher it is said That without faith it is impossible to please god so that the distribution of our good workes must alwaies bee accompanied with faith in Christ Iesus For neither loue nor obedience can be acceptable except mercy and reconciliation for the mediators sake bee first apprehended By this are excluded the good workes of the wicked and vnbeleeuers in that howsoeuer they seeme beautifull and beneficiall to the world yet god hath no reguard of their deedes insomuch as they are not presented vnto him in the obedience and perfection of christes merits As in the example of Scipio and Dauid they both fought for their countrey Scipio fought and Dauid also fought and yet their warfare was not to bee accounted of alyke For the warfare of Scipio did not plese God because he was not regenerate but the wars and labour of Dauid did please God because he was accepted by faith The causes of good Workers THe causes that stir vp mens mindes and pricke them forward to worke wel may be said to be three The first is the necessitye of Gods commaundement keepe my statutes saith he and walke therein Le. 18.4 Which necessitie of good workes or walking in Gods commaundement stretcheth it selfe into foure other braunches that is to say necessitie of debt we must doe good deedes because they are a debt which God requireth at our handes Ro. 8. The second is necessitie of faith hee that prouideth not for his owne and namelie for them of his houshold denieth the faith and is worse than an infidell 1. Ty. 5.8 The third is the necessitie of auoiding punnishment for vnlesse wee decline from inequity and performe the dutie of good Christians the Lord will plague and punnish vs he that knowes his maisters will and prepares not himselfe to doe thereafter shal be beaten with manie stripes Mat. 12.47 The fourth is the necessitie of conuersion because the Lord hath said I desire not the death of the wicked but that he turne from his way and liue Ezech. 33.11 Therefore by necessity we are bound to fly from sinne and doe good or else we shal neuer be conuerted to the Lord nor the Lord to vs. The second cause of good works THe second cause that may stirre vs vp to good workes is the dignitie which we receiue thereby being regenerate by faith and faith working in vs to Godlinesse and all manner of Christian-like exercises we are made holie as our heauenly father is holie I Pet. 1 16. Our bodies become the temples of the holie Ghost and of god himselfe to dwell in vs and what honnour ioy and comfort that is may be imagined by the honour and ioy that a priuate subiect receiueth when his prince and Soueraign doth vouchsafe to come and lodge with him in his house Therfore they that pollute this temple with the filthinesse of Sathan so that the holy ghost is either not admitted or being admitted is churlish lie cast out of his dwelling againe let them imagine what an act of crueltie they commit The third cause of good workes THe third cause that may moue vs to obedience towards god in the performance of our duties both toward him and the world is the reward and recompence which he hath promissed shall succeed and redound vnto vs by our good workes not for their owne worthynesse but for the promisse of his grace which promise doeth assure vs not only of all good in this life present but also in the life to come I Tymo 4. So that if neither the necessitie nor dignitie of good workes may induce vs to imbrace them yet for the profit and cōmoditie that comes by them let vs not neglect them The Souldior reguardes not woundes so he may be conqueror nor the Marchant the perils of the Sea so he may growe wealthie let it not be saide that they haue greater Zeale and Fortitude in seeking after shadowes than the Children of God in purchasing the substance The Second braunch of Vertues first issue THe second braunch of Vertues first issue are these foure moste beautifull gracious ofsprings Prudence Temperance Fortitude and Iustice Which are called Cardinall vertues for that al other Morall vertues as vpon hindges doe hange and depend vpon these These are the guides of the soule whereby all ciuill duties either of man towarde man or of man towardes himselfe and consequentlie of both to the glorie of God are directed in the way of truth and equitie The subiect of Cardinall Vertues THe subiectes wherein these Cardinall Vertues doe remaine are the reformed and docible mindes not onlie of Christians but also of Pagans nay oftētimes the efficacy and strength of these vertues doe more clearelie shine and appeare in Pagans than in Christians What Christian is so absolute that may not learne preceptes of wisedome out of the bookes of Aristotle Plato and diuerse other heathen Philosophers And so consequentlie of all the rest of the Vertues What Prudence is PRudence is the light of vnderstanding whereby we know God and affect his workes to which knowledge is ioyned a discretion to be able to discerne good from bad profitable from that which is hurtfull to the end we may shun the one and practise the other it is to the minde as sight of all other corporall sense is to the body for as the sight is most peircing cleare and apprehensiue so is prudence by whose determinate and deepe iudgement all other vertues are gouernd in their good and commendable operations Why God gaue Prudence vnto man COnsidering that mens thoughts are wauering and their inuentions vnstable and considering that the wilde affections of mans nature do rather opresse then cōfort seduce then conduct the soule to that end for which shee is created namely to the knowledge of God and his creatures therefore hath the almighty of his free grace and mercie to lighten this darknesse and remoue this danger let fall a sparke of his eternall light which is wisedome wherby men see to gouern their actions to the glorie of god their owne good the profit of humane societiy How this wisedome appeares TO be known to haue wisedome wil appeare two manner of waies first inwardly by the dexterity of the mind and