we think some good is done and that our busines succeeds well as if we were the men who had done the deed shall peradventure saith the Prophet Isay to God the Hatchet or the saw brag against him who uses it and works with it and say I am he who have cut and who have sawed that wood This were as if a cudgell should look big and admire it self because a man lifts it up whereas the thing in it self is but wood which cannot once stir if men stir it not Now we are just thus in respect of any spirituall and supernaturall end of the conversion of souls We are like so many wands who cannot once stir if God stirs not and therfore we must ascribe all to him as having nothing to brag of in our selves God doth so much esteem that we rely not upon our own strength or humane diligence and that we should take nothing to our selves but ascribe all to him and give him the glory of all that St Paul saith that for this reason Christ our Lord would not make choice of eloquent and learned men for the conversion of the world by the Preaching of the Gospel but of poor Fishermen who were ignorant and rude God made choice of ignorant and grosse People to confound the wise of the world he chose the poor and weak to confound the mighty and strong he chose the mean and base who seemed to be nothing in the eyes of flesh and blood to subdue Kings and Emperors and all the Grandes of the earth But know you why saith Saint Paul to the end that man may not go bragging in the sight of God nor take occasion of ascribing any thing to himself but give all the glory of all to God If the preachers of the Gospel were very rich and powerfull and went with great troops and strong hand to preach Gods word over the world they might perhaps impute mens conversion to the force of their arms If God had chosen the great learned men and the most excellent Orrators of the world who by their learning and eloquence might convince the Philosophers a man might have attributed the conversion of mankind to curiosity of speech and subtilty of arguments in diminution of the credit and reputation of the vertue and power of Christ our Lord. But it must not be after this manner saith St. Paul God was not pleased that this great busines should be carried by eloquence of speech or humane wisdom lest the estimation of the power and efficacy of the crosse and passion of Christ our Lord should suffer pre judice thereby St Augustine saith our Lord Jesus Christ resolving to humble the necks of the proud did not by means of Orators gain Fishermen but by means of Fishermen gained both Orators and Emperors Cyprian was a great Orator but Saint Peter the Fisherman was before him by means of whom was converted not only the Orator but even the Emperor The holy Scripture is full of examples to shew that God is wont to chuse weak means and instruments for the doing of mighty things to teach us this truth and to the end it might remain deeply fixed in our hearts that we have nothing whereof to glory or to ascribe to our selves but absolutely all to God This are we also taught by that illustrious victory of Judith which she being a weak woman obtained against an Army of above a hundred and forty thousand men This are we also taught by that poor little shepheard David who being but a boy and with no other weapon but his sling beat down that Giant Goliah and triumphed over the Philistines To the end that the whole world saith he may know that there is a God in Israel and that all men may understand that God hath no need either of sword or launce for the obtaining of Victory for battels in fine are his and victory is his and that men may be sure of this he gives it when he will without arms This was also the mistery of Gideon who had drawn two and thirty thousand men together against the Midianites who were more theâ— a hundred and thirty thousand men and God said thus to him Gideon thou hast great store of People with thee but Midian shall not be delivered up into thy hands Consider what a strange discourse of God this is thou shalt not overcome because thou hast much People with thee If he had said thou caust not overcome them because they are so many and thou hast so few it seems that the discourse had been rationall but you are deceived and understand not the busines this had been a good reason for men to alledg but that other was proper to God alone you cannot overcome saith God because you are many but why so To the end that Israel may not glorifie it self against me and so steal the victory from me and become vain and proud as conceiving that it was conquered by the strength thereof God carried the matter so as that there only remained three hundred men with Gideon and commanded that he should then present battel to the Enemy and with them he gave Gideon the victory yea and they had not so much as need to put themselves in arms or to take their swords into their hands but with the only sound of the Trumpets which they carried in one of their hands and with the noise of breaking certain pots and with the brightnes of the flaming torches which they carried in the other God struck the enemy with such a terror and amazement that they overwhelmed and killed one another and the rest put themselves to flight as thinking that the whole world was coming upon them then the others could not say that they had overcome by their own strength and this was that which God desired namely that they might be forced to acknowledg him the only giver of victory If then even in temporall and humane things wherein our own diligences and means carry some kind of proportion towards the end as our arms and forces do towards the obtaining of victory God will not yet permit that we attribute any thing to our selves but that we must ascribe the victory of a battell and indeed the good successe of all affairs to him if even in naturall things neither he who plants nor he who waters is any thing and it is not the gardner who can make any plant grow nor make any tree give fruit but only God what shall we say of spirituall and supernaturall things of the conversion of souls of a mans own profit and increase in vertue wherein our means indeavours and diligences remain so short and so far behind as that they carry no proportion at all with so high an end The Apostle Saint Paul saith God only is he who can give increase and spirituall fruit God only is he who can strike the hearts of men with amazement and mighty fear God only is he who can make men abhor sin and
opinion and affection whereof perhaps he hath need but that for which this serves indeed is to make you a veryer fool then you were before because he praises you for what you said or did ill and so you are the more animated and confirmed in committing the same errors another time Men dare not now a dayes speak what they think because they know that truth is grown troublesome Truth procures hatred And they know that he who is mad and frantick refuses to take Physick and spits in the Doctors face when he desires to cure him so doth the proud man resist admonition and reformation and therefore men will not tell such a one that which will discontent him but they think it the shorter way to make him think they like that which yet indeed they mislike and the other beleeves all and is well pleased with it Whereby also we may see the truth of that which we delivered in the last Chapter namely how great a vanity and madnes it is to make any account of the praises of men since we see that in this age all is complement deceit flattery and lies For even they are able to derive and interret the word after this manner Complimento cumploy miento that is to say I comply and I lye and the cause why I lye is that I may comply Bu prou men saith Saint Chrisostom are abhorred by all First by Almighty God as the Wiseman saith Every arrogant man is a very abomination in the sight of God Prov 16.5 And of seven things which God abhors he places pride for the first And not only are they abhorred by God but by men also As they who have ill lungs have so unsavery breath that there is no induring of it so also have proud men But novv even this very World gives them here the pay of their pride for it punisheth them in that very thing to vvhich they most pretend and all proves vvith them the contrary vvay They pretend to be valued esteemed by all and they are held by al to be sots and fools They pretend to be beloved by al indeed they are abhorred by all By their betters because these men make themselves their equals by their equals because these men make themselves their betters by their inferiors because these men depresse them more then they should Even the domesticks and servants speak il of their master and indure him not Where pride is there is reproach And on the other side the humble man is valued and esteemed affected and beloved by all As children who for their goodnes their innocency their simplicity of heart are beloved so saith Saint Gregory are the humble For that clearnes and plainnes of theispeech and that conversing without doublenes or deceit even robs men of their very hearts Humility is a loadstone which dravvs all mens affections to it and it seems that all men if they could vvould take this humble man into their very hearts To the end that vve may at length be fully persvvaded that it is a meer madnes to go desiring and procuring the estimation and opinion of men Saint Bernard makes a very good dilemma and concludes thus Either it is madnes in the Son of God to abase and empty himself so far as to choose contempt and dishonor for himself or else it is extream madnes in us to be in so great desire of the honor and estimation of the World It vvas not folly or madnes in the Son of God neither could it be though the World thought it vvas as Saint Paul saith To the blind and proud Gentiles and Jews Christ our Lord seems to be a folly or madnes but unto us who have the light of Faith he is infinite wisdom and love Novv if his vvere infinite vvisdom it wil follovv that ours is stupidity and folly and that vve are very sots in making such account as vve do of the opinions estimation and honor of the World CHAP. XX. That the certain way for a man to be valued and esteemed even by men is to give himself to vertue and humility IF vvithal that vvhich vve have said you vvil not yet forsake these sumes and abate that edg and desire of honor and estimation but will stil be saying that in fine it is a great point to hold a good opinion and estimation amongst men and that this imports very much even for the edification of your Neighbors and for many other things and that the Wiseman counsels us to have a care thereof Have a care of thy good name I say let it be so in the name of God I am content that you have care to keep the good name you have and that you be esteemed and held in good opinion by the World But yet I give you to understand withal that if you desire it as you say you do you err even in order to that for vvhich you desire it and that you shall never obtain that end by this means but the direct contrary The safe and certain vvay vvherby you shall infallibly come to be much valued and esteemed by men is vertue and humility as Saint Chrisostome saith Procure every one of you in particular to be a good religious man and to be the meanest and humblest of all the rest and that you may appear to be so by your manner of living and in the occasions vvhich shal present themselves so you shall be valued and esteemed by all men This is indeed the honor of a religious man vvho hath forsaken the World and professeth himself to be a Citizen of Heaven And on the contrary side for him to desire to be valued and esteemed by men is a dishonor and affront to him for vvhich men vvould justly despise him Because this man began to build and could not finish it And so it is vvith such as desire and pretend to be valued and esteemed by men which indeed is to return to the World vvith the heart For this estimation is the most truly and properly belonging to the World and that vvhich you forsook and from which you fled vvhen you made that holy vow at your Baptism Will you cleerly see how shamefull and reproachful a thing it is for such men to affect the estimation of the World who profes to aspire towards perfection Let such a desire come but once so to light as that others may discern that you desire it and you will quickly find how much your self will be confounded and out of countenance that any such thing should be conceived of you We have a very good example of this in the holy Gospel The Evangelists relate that the Apostles went once with Christ our Lord but yet at such distance from him that they might think he heard them not and so they went discoursing and arguing amongst themselves Which of them was to be the chief and best man amongst them But when they were al come home to Capernaum he asked them what that waâ— about
so many both naturall and supernaturall gifts they remained not in God nor gave him the glory of all but would needs subsist in themselves and yet not as conceiving that of themselves they had these things for they knew well that they all came from God and that they depended upon him since they knew they were his creatures but as the Prophet Ezekiel saith They grew proud in their beauty and glorified themselves in those gifts which they had received of God and took delight in them as if they had possessed them of themselves and did not ascribe or refer them all to God giving him the honour and glory thereof but they grew proud and they exalted and contented themselves vainly in themselves So that although with their understanding they knew that the glory thereof was due to God yet they robbed him of it and took it to themselves with their will By this time you see that this degree of Humility is not so easie as it seemed since the Angels found it so hard that they fell from that height wherein God had placed them because they knew not how to conserve themselves therein And now if the Angels had not heads wherwith to walk so high but that they grew giddy and fell down much more reason have we to fear lest we may fail when we are raised and exalted because we men are so miserable creatures that as the Prophet David saith We vanish even like smoak As smoak the higher it goes the more it scatters and dissolves it self So man who is so miserable and so proud the more he is honoured and raised up to high estate the more idle and intoxicated he grows O how aptly and how wel did Christ our Lord admonish us of this The holy Gospel relates that having sent his seventy two Disciples to preach they returned to him full of joy and being as it were proud of their mission they said thus to him Lord we have done wonderfull things yea and the very Devils themselves have obeyed us in thy Name But the Saviour of the World answered them thus with great severity Luk. 10.18 I beheld Satan as Lightning fall from Heaven Take heed of vain contentment in your selves know that Lucifer fell down from Heaven because in that high state wherein he was created he was vainly pleased vvith himself and vvith those gifts and graces vvhich he had received and did not ascribe all to the honour and glory of Almighty God as he ought but vvould needs take it to himself Take heed the like happen not to you grovv not vain by reason of the great and vvonderfull things vvhich you do in my Name and take no vain contentment in them And novv these vvords may also suit vvith us Take heed you vvax not proud in that great things are done by you for the good of others and many souls are gained by you means Take heed you have no contentment in the applause and opinion of men and in the much account they make of you Be sure you take nothing to your selves and suffer not the love of honour and estimation to stick at all to your hearts for this is that which cast Lucifer down to hell and that which of an Angel made him a Devil You may see saith Sr. Augustine how detestable a thing Pride is since it makes Angels Devils and on the other side how excellent a thing Humility is since it makes men become like Angels CHAP. XXVII It is declared wherein the third degree of Humility consists WE have not yet sufficiently declared wherein the third degree of Humility consists and therefore it will be fit to go on that so we may the better put it in practice this being the thing at which we aime The Saints affirm That this third degree of Humility consists in knowing how to distin guish between the gold of the Graces and benefits which comes to us from God and the drosse or misery wherewith we abound in our selves and then to give every one his due to God that which is his and to our selves that which is ours and that this be done by execution and practice wherein the life of this whole busines consists So that Humility doth not consist in knowing speculatively that of our selvs we are good for nothing and can effect nothing and that all good things come to us from God and that it is he who works the willing the beginning and the ending in us through his free and gracious will as St. Paul declares for onely to know this speculatively is a very easie thing and all true Christians know and beleeve it but to know and exercise it in the way of practice and to be so grounded and setled in it as if we saw it with our eyes and touch't and took it into our hands this as Saint Ambrose saith is a most particular grace and high favour of Almighty God to prove this he brings that passage of Saint Paul We have not received the spirit of this World but the Spirit of God to the end that we may know and feel the gifts which we have received from his hand For a man to acknowledge and even feel the graces which he hath received from God so purely as to esteem them as meerly anothers and to have been imparted and to be enjoyed by the meer liberality and mercy of Almighty God is a most particular favour and gift of his And the wise Solomon saith That this is supream Wisdom To understand and know practically that to be continent is not a thing which we are able to compasse by our own strength and that no industry or indeavour of our own is able to obtain it but that it is the gift of God and that we must have it from his hand is a point of su pream wisdom So that in this which S Paul saith is a particular grace and gift of God and vvhich Solomon cals supream Wisdom consists this third degree of Humility What have vve which we have not received it was none of ours for of our selves we have no good thing and if we have received it and that if it were anothers and none of ours Why do we glory as if we had not received it and as if it were properly our own This was the humility of the Saints who with being enriched by the gifts and graces of Almighty God and with his having raised them up to the very top of perfection and thereby to honour and estimation even in this world have notwithstanding held themselves for vile and base in their own eyes and their souls remained so deeply fixed in the knowledg of their own meanes and misery as if they had possessed no such graces at all There stuck not the least vanity to their hearts nor any ayre at al of that honour and estimation which the world gave them for they knew well how to distinguish between their own and that of others and so they lookt upon all