to the rule of equitie that thou hauing dedicated the whole tearme of thy life to deuotion of the diuell wilt in the ende require to be rewarded of God Doest thou not behold herein euen that which the fiue foolish Virgins did prepare whereof the Euangelist sheweth that they were making them readie when they shoulde haue giuen vppe their accounts Therefore how canst thou expect any better successe then thou art admonished by this example continuing in the selfesame carefulnesse God is mightie and can inspire vpon vs true repentance when he list but howe often it happeneth at this houre and howe fewe they bee which then repent hartily aske S. Augustine S. Ambrose S. Gregory and all other Saints and thou shalt sée howe precisely and scrupulously they speake in this matter and thou shalt well perceiue what a madnesse it is so confidently to commit thy selfe to the mercie of a gulfe wherevnto so many skilfull Pilots did passe with such great horrour and feare To dye well is a knowledge which ought to be learned all the life before for in the houre of death the diseased is cumbred with so many cares and gréefes that hée hath no leysure to learne to dye well It is a generall rule that as the life is of euery man such is his daath The death of the wicked is conformable to their life Whereby it followeth that if the life bee mischéenous the death is miserable except God for some speciall purpose doth dispose it otherwise These be not my words but the Apostles sayings The ende of the vngodly shall be like vnto their deserts For speaking generally neither doo we looke for a good euent of wicked beginnings nor of good attemptes cuill happes Reade ouer the whole Byble and thou shalt not heare any thing repeated so oft as this What séede a man soweth such croppe shall he gather and that in the extremitie of death the vniust shall reape the fruite of their trauels and that God will impart to euery man according to his merits and that the death of euery man shall be conformable to the life he hath lead and that the iustice of the righteous man shall be vppon his head and the curse of the â—â—godly vpon his head likewise with a thousand such like sentences If all the diuine scriptures might be powred out to sée what would issue thereof scarce any thing would appeare more often to our view then this Wherefore if thy workes be wicked and thy life likewise what other thing can we prognosticate thereof but that the ende will succéede as the beginning and middle hath béene What thing else shall we thinke him to gather in the other life but corruption who in this life hath sowen nothing else but corruption Peraduenture as our Sauiour saith We may gather roses of thornes figges of furse-bushes c. If the house of the wicked as Salomon sayth declineth towards death and his foote path leadeth directly to hell what other port can bee expected after this nauigation but euen such an ende as where the wall or trée shall fall which bendeth to one side but in that part whither it howeth most For he whose life whose dooings whose thoughts hath bene their onely regard to hell for that they haue all deserued it where shall he settle himselfe after all this but euen there right where shall he haue his habitation if not in outward darkenesse which alway walked in inward darknesse how wouldest thou bring to passe that in the ende of his iourney he should arriue in heauen which hath alwayes pursued the beaten pathe that lyeth straight to hell The Argument Wee ought not to abuse the mercie of God perseuering in sinne vpon confidence thereof For if Gods mercy can suffer so many Infidelles in the worlde and in the Church so many wicked Christians and that all those should be cast away quite he will also suffer that euery one which stil remaineth in sinne shall perish eternally CHAP. X. ANd if on the other side thou say that great is the mercie of God which dooth embolden thée in such that continuing in thy naughtie life are yet assured of thy saluation But tell mee how canst thou offer greater iniâ—rie to the mercy of God then of his beneuolence to take occasion to displease him Who taught thee to argue in this sort that because God is good and gracious shou shouldest haue leaue to be vngracious and to merit heauen thereby The holy Ghost neuer taught thée this kinde of reasoning but rather in this fashion That God being so good ought to be honoured obeyed imbraced aboue all other thinges wherefore sith God is pittifull it is good reason that in him I shoulde repose my whole trust and considence that he will pardon my treipasses bee they neuer so hainous so that I detest them vtterly turning my selfe vnto him with a sincere heart But procéeding alwayes in sinne beléeue it well hée will not abeare it yea hee will condemne thée and hate thée the more whome hée suffereth so long Thou canst not gainsay me that of an hundreth partes of the worlde there is scarce one repleated with Christians and that of ninetie and nine which abide in the worlde none are saned For as in the time of that great flood none was saued out of the Arke of Noe nor out of the house of Rubbe none escaped of those which dwelt in Hierusalem so none can be saued out of the house of God which it his church euen that which wee call Christianitie Beholde in what pickle and perplexitie it standeth in these dayes and thou shalte finde for certaine that in this whole mysticall bodie from toppe to toe is scarce any thing entire and sounde Sette aparte some principall Cittie where discipline taketh place and range abroad through all Townes and other places where as I saide is no talke of discipline and thou shalte finde much people of whome may be verified that which GOD saide touching Hierusalem Search all the stréetes and houses of Hierusalem and if thou shalte finde one iust man for his sake I will haue compassion vpon the Cittie Raunge abroad I say not now through Innes and Markets for that these anâ— places dedicated to deceit but through the best Cittizens houses As Ieremie saith Listen thy eares to that they speake and thou shalt hardly heare ouâ— good word but bitter backbytings and murmure shall fill thy eares Their disorder their oathes their blasphemie laughter discorde threates and of all sides both heart and tongues debate of earthly drosse and gaine but verie sâ—dome of God and good things but altogither in swearing and forswearing his holy name which is the memory he hath left vnto vs. The same Prophet saying Let them be mindfull of me but not in swearing falsly by my name iâ— such sort that by the externall shewe a man can scarce coniecture whether that nation be Christian or Heathen except it be by the sounde of belles and ruthful rage of
thée that this burthen should be pleasaunt séeing God dooth helpe to sustaine it But wilt thou sée both these contrarieties to concurre in one person Heart what Saint Paule saieth Rom. 5. We suffer aduersitie in sundrie sortes yet are we not impatient wée liue in extreme penurie nor for this are we ouercommed wée abide persecutions yet are we not destitute we are humbled yet not confounded oppressed euen to the earth yet not reiected vtterly Now regarde on the one side the loathsome loade of labours and on the other side the delight that is therin by the benefite of grace Esay 40. which yet the Prophet Esay sheweth more manifestly saying They which trust in the Lorde shall chaunge their strength shall ruime swiftly without sweating shall goe still and neuer be weary Sée héere the yoke made easie by the vertue of grace Beholde the fury of the fleshe abated and conuerted to the force of the spirite or to tearme it more rightly the might of men turned into strength of God Heare how the Prophet did not restraine himselfe neither from labour nor from rest nor from the commoditie he gat of the one and other where he saide They ranne and it gréeueth them not they went forth still and were neuer weary Wherefore welbeloued brother thou oughtest not to diuert from this way though it séeme somewhat harde and sowre sith God and his grace are thy guides therein For it is no reason that nature should more preuaile then grace nor Adam to bee of more power then Christ nor the diuell to be greater then God nor yet the custome and long vse of euill then the habit of vertue and well dooings The Argument A man should not prognosticate his conuersion to God nor his repentance and auersion from those offences whereby hee hath displeased the diuine maiestie of God and his neighbour for the more he is spotted and infected with the filth of vice and the slower hee is in cleansing and curing thereof so much the more hee doth aggrauate the burthen of his penance CHAP. XIII WHerefore if the causes bee so many and so great which of the one part dooth moue thée to change the course of thy life to a better race and on the other side haue no sufficient excuse to withhold thée from so dooing Tell me I pray thée when wilt thou be ready to reuolt from sin Turne back thy eye brother a litle towards the life that is passed and consider of what yéeres thou art now for now is the time for the houre of enterance is passed and the beginning to vnloade thy selfe from thy former faultes Beholde that thou being a Christian regenerate with the water of holy baptisme hauing God for thy father and the Church for thy mother which God formed and framed with the lawe of his Gospell and with the doctrine of the Apostles and Euangelists and that more importeth with the foode of Angels and yet thou liuest so loosely as thou were an Infidell altogither and neuer knewest God But tell me what sort of sinne what follie can bee founde wherein thou art not culpable what forbidden trée is there wherein thou hast not fixed thy eyes what gréene medowe where at least in thought thou hast not glutted thy lasciuious lust what pleasaunt accident hath béene obiected to thy sight wherevnto thy desire hath not bene extended What appetite of thine haste thou not assayed to accomplish Calling God to thy minde and how thou art a Christian what more couldest thou doo then to haue a fayth without expectation of the other life and feare of future iudgement What hath thy life bene else then a webbe of wickednesse a sinke of sinne a pathe of pleasure a perpetuall disobedience to God How hast thou ledde thy life hitherto but as thy appetites hath guided thée as best fancied thy fleshe in exalting thy selfe and in the glorie of the worlde These haue béene thy Goddes these the Idols wherevnto thou haste kneeled and crowched whose hestes thou haste fully performed But in thē meane time what account haste thou kept with the diuine lawe of God and thy allegeaunce due vnto him Perchaunce thou hast estéemed him no more then if hée had bene a God made of wood for many Christians there bee which will as easily beléeue that there is no God as they thinke to offende him scotfrée For they doo no lesse beléeuing the one then they woulde if they beléeued the other What greater wrong what greater despite may there bee to so greate a Prince then thou beléeuing all that the Christian religion instructeth thée liuest no otherwise then if it were a fable But art thou not appalled at the multitude of thy former offences done without gruge of conscience Dooth not his omnipotencie cause thee to quake against whome thou haste committed such enormous crimes Lift vp thy eyes and regard the immeasurable greatnesse of that supernall Lorde adored of all the Potentates of Heauen before whome the whole circuite of the world lyeth prostrate in whose presence all that is created is as light chaffe tossed with euery puffe of winde And consider what a thing it is that such a silly worme as thou art hast so oft pronoked the wrath of that eternall God Looke vppon the excéeding greatnesse of his iustice and the sharpe punishments which hitherto he hath vsed in the world against sinne not onely in particular persons but in Citties Nations Kingdomes Prouinces and in the vniuersall world and not only in the earth but in heauen and there not in sinners only but in his owne innocent sonne Then if this were executed vpon gréene wood and for the faultes of others what shall be done in withered wood ouercharged with the weight of proper offences Wherfore what can be more vndecent and intollerable then that suche a vile vermine should delude a Lorde so puissaunt that with a becke or a word can detrude thée into the deapth of hell and damnation Looke in like sort vpon the patience of this Lorde who nowe so long hath looked for thy returne as thou hast béene an offendour If after so long sufferance thou wilt still abuse this merde in incensing him to anger hee will vnloade his bowe will emptie his quiuer and powre vppon thée the dartes of damnation View the profoundnesse of his déepe iudgements whereof wee reade and sée daylie things worthie to be wondred at We may see a Salomon after all his wisedome his parables and profounde mysteries of the Cantickles to forget God and to fall downe in renerence of Idols We may sée one of the first seuen Deacons of the Church which were enspired with the holy ghost not onely became an heretick but also a teacher and a father of heresie Wee may sée day by day many starres to fall from Heauen into the earth with a miserable fall to tumble in durt and to bee fedde with the draffe of swine which earst at the table of our Lorde were susteined with the bread
THE CONVERsion of a Sinner Faithfully translated out of Italian by M. K. Psalm 36. vers 27. Declina a malo fac Bonum Leaue sinne ere sinne leaue thee do good And both without delay Lesse fit he will to morrow be Who is not fit to day LONDON Printed by Thomas Creede for I. P. To the Reader I Doo heere present vnto thy fauourable view most curteous and gentle Reader this Pamphlet which wanting a particular Patron commeth as it were a begging vnto thee for no lesse then thy whole selfe and that chiefly for thine owne good The way to protect it is to direct thy life by it to suffer it to possesse thee assoone as thou hast possest it which if thou be so happie to accomplish it will teach thee to win Loue by feare Life by death yea euerlasting happinesse by the transitorie troubles of this wretched world And to giue it iust praise in a word it is a worke of the learned and spirituall Granado aptly translated by a vertuous Gentleman into our English Lamentationes Let Dread of paine for sinne in after time Let Shame to see thy selfe ensnared soe Let Greefe conceiued for foule accursed crime Let Hate of sinne the worker of thy woe With Dread with Shame with Greefe with Hate enforce To deawe the cheeks with teares of deep remorce Carmen So Hate of sinne shall make Gods Loue to grow So Greefe shall harbour Hope within thy hart So Dread shall cause the flood of Ioy to flow So Shame shall send sweete Solace to thy smart So Loue so Hope so Ioy so Solace sweete Shall make thy soule in heauenly blisse to fleete Vae Woe where no Hate doth no such Loue allure Woe where such Greefe makes no such Hope proceed Woe where such Dread doth no such Ioy procure Woe where such Shame doth no such Solace breed Wo where no Hate no Greefe no Dread no Shame No Loue no Hope no Ioy no Solace frame Non tardes conuerti ad Deum A brief Treatise exhorting sinners to repentance commonly called The Conuersion of a sinner The Argument Sinners are commonly coÌ„uerted to God through feare and dread Who if they read and well weigh holy writ would tremble and quake considering the iminent perils wherein they dwell and would diuert from their wicked wayes to the path of perfection thereby the better to ridde themselues from the gnawing gripes of a giltie conscience and dreadfull torments due vnto sin which otherwise God threateneth vppon them The first Chapter WE reade in the diuine Scriptures that God before he defaced vtterly rased the Citie of HierusaleÌ„ by Nabuchodonozor king of Babylon sayd to the Prophet Ieremie in this wise Iere 32. Take a booke not written in before and write therein that which I haue said vnto thée against Iuda and against Israel from the first day I began to talke with thée euen vntill this present day and publish it in the presence of all the people thereby to prooue whether this Nation vnderstanding the manifold miseries I minde to bring vpon theÌ„ will reuolt from their iniquities that in so dooing I may haue compassion vppon them pardon their offences and cease to exercise the whippe of my wrath which I haue alreadie prepared The Scripture addeth further that Baruch Scribe to this Prophet pronouncing that which hee had written in the open audience assembly of the people and Princes such horrour and feare fell amongst them that as meÌ„ amazed each beheld others considering the heapes of woes and wretchednesse which then was vttered before them This is the way gentle Reader that God then practised and hath don many times since to daunt mens hearts and violently to wrest them from their wickednesse as the most effectuall and forcible meanes that may bee founde to that purpose For such and so great are the things which the Scriptures and our fayth daylie telleth vs in the fauour of vertue and hatred of vice that if men would reade them attentiuely and ponder them aduisedly there is no doubt but their hearts would relent and their flesh tremble thereat considering the dreadfull daungers wherein they dwell Wherefore the chéefest thing that the Prophet desired aboue all others Deut. â—2 for the redresse of this vncurable maladie was this when hée said I would GOD this senselesse generation which are vtterlye deuoyde of counsell did know and throughly foresée what will happen vpon them which if they did as in dutie they are bound to doo they could not possibly procéede or coÌ„tinue longer in their so crooked course of life But they are all sunke in the vile sinke of sensuall delights some hunt after honours some for high promotions and dignities others beating theyr braynes day and night how to cloath curiously theyr carraine corps and to accomplish their carnall concupiscence haue no time eyes nor heart to looke to their owne estate and with the eyes of their minde to meditate vppon these things whereof the Prophet speaketh very properly Osea 7 saying Behold Ephraim is like vnto a Doue deceiued that hath no heart For the wicked haue heart wit and will inough to loue to couet and to count againe and againe vppon the pelfe of this world but they haue neither witte nor will once to thinke vppon the glory of the worlde to come which is so infinite and so inestimable that if the least part thereof bee exactly tried and examined in the minde it would suffice to euacuate the filthy smoake which hath shut vp the eyes of their vnderstanding and to make them to acknowledge and confesse their owne errour For this cause therefore beeing moued principally I haue thought it very requisite to set downe certaine perswasions tending to this purpose to the view of al that list to read or write them Following héerein the example of the Prophet Ieremie to shew not onely the gréeuous calamities that God hath prepared for the vniust but also the perfect blisse that he hath prouided for his seruants the godly that the euill disposed returning from their wicked race may be receiued into the fauour and mercy of God released of their trespasses and deliuered froÌ„ all those punishments which God menazeth vpon them in holy scriptures The Argument A Christian ought to consider his profession that he is subiect to death and must render a straight account in the other life of all his doings here Where he shall discerne sensibly the cryes and griefes intollerable wherwith death sinne rewardeth the vngodly both here and in the world to come there neither the beautie and fine feature of the body neither the flattery of false fortune nor yet the pompe of stately dignitie shall ought preuaile to withstand the wrath of the iust Iudge against the wretched sinner Chap. II. TAking my first entry in that which is most obiected to our sences Remember that thou art a Christian and a man Concerning thou art a man hold it for a ground infallible that
thee yet no man can liue without this desire O sonnes of Adam O wretched generation of men how sensuall and abiect are your thoughts for if this bee the viands or foode ye ought to feed vppon what other thing doo you labour for whereabout do you goe what will ye loose a benefit so inestimable rather then ye will trauaile a little If this may bee obteyned with labour and paine for mine owne part I desire them I call and cry to all the trauailes and toyles that may bee suffered in the world to come vpon me that tribulations turmoile and tosse mee at their pleasure that my body bee vexed with infirmities of all sorts and my minde afflicted with sorrowe and anxieties let both the one and the other consume me in griefe let all the creatures of the worlde rise vp and impugne mee let me be the reproach of meÌ„ the outcast of the world let my life bee spent in dolâ— and distresse and my yeares finished in wofull wéepings For all this I make no reckoning so that after I may communicate and haue my part with the Saints in Heauen and may haue eternall rest in the day of tribulation and may ascende to the people which are cloathed and adorned with that shining glory Goe to now O foolish worldling drudge and toile for high titles and dignities erect lodgings and pallaces enlarge the limits of thy possession let Kingdomes and if thou wilt lette the whole world be at thy commandement yet for all this thou shalt not be so great as the least of Gods seruants who receiueth that which the worlde cannot ginohim and yet possesseth eternitie Thou with thy riches and ryot shalt accompany the rich glutton in the dampe of eternall damnation hee with poore Lazarus shall be caried vp with Angels and conueyed into Abrahams bosome The Argument In the paines of hell the sinner can haue no coÌ„fort for as the lot of the blessed is an vniuersall prosperitie which in it conteyneth all good things so the estate of the reprobate is a general and vniuersal misery which comprehendeth all euils in it selfe For there the senses of the conuicted sinner shal be tormented particularly one after another proportionally to the crymes they haue committed without all hope of end or release of their grief which shall be eternall eager infinit sharpe without intermission Chap. V. THe least part of these rewardes were inough to stir vp our earthly and lumpish hearts to doo much more then that which wee are eniâ—ynâ—â— vnâ—o by the commaundements of God But what if with this glory exceeding all measure we adioyne in like manner the vnmeasurable punishments prouided for the wicked For that those cannot there be reuealed with this saying What if I be a castaway no other incouenience ensueth thereof then neuer to see the glory of God and to be hereafter as though I neuer were not knowing good nor euill But they misse in their reckoning béeing allotted perforce to take one of these vnequall conditions that is eyther to be glorified with Angels or accursed with Diuels to rule with God eternally or to burne in hell perpetually The one of these twaine they must néedes elect for the place of theyr perpetuall abode These bee the two baskets which God foreshewed in a figure to the Prophet before the Gate of the temple the one of them filled with dilicate and holesome figges the other full of such filthy and vnsauery figges that euery man abhorred to taste or touch them Which signifieth nothing else then the oddes and difference of two fortes of people the one is of the chosen to whom God hath bestewed his mercies bountifully the other of the abiects to whom God extendeth the heauie hand of his iustice And the lot of the first sort is so excellent florishing and that of the others so wofull wretched that the greatnesse of these two extreames so much differing betwéene themselues cannot be specified by any words But omitting all other considerations the state of the happie is an vniuersall felicitie wherein all good things are conteined and contrariwise the condition of the wicked is the hauen where arriueth all vnhappinesse the nourse of sorrow and harbour of distresse All the miseries which are inâ—â—dent to this life be miseries in speciall and therefore doo not torment all our members generally but one or some of them alone For example hereof we see some men greeued in their eyes some in their eares many in their stomacks others in their bellies and not a fewe at the very heart Yet none of these infirmities doo vexe all the sences vniuersally at one instant but some of them particularly Notwithstanding the smart is oft full sharpe and vehement and the night ouer tedious to him that abideth either of these gréefes be it but the aking of a toothe or gumme Admit now that a certaine man shoulde suffer such an vniuersall punishment that no member sence or ioynt should bee frée from peculiar tormentes and that at one very instant hée must abide most bitter paines in the head in his eyes in his téeth eares stomacke liuer heart and to be short in all the other members and ioyntes of his bodie and that hée laie in this perplexitie vppon a bedde féeling the seuerall gréefes assigned to euery member What excessive forrow should he suffer thinkest thou which were tormented in this sorteâ— or what thing coulde be more miserable and pittifull to beholde If thou sawest a dogge in that distresse it would perforce moue thee to compassion This deare brother if any comparison may be vsed herein is that which not for the space of one night but for euer is suffered in the pitte that perpetually burneth with fire and brimstone For as the vngodly do gréeuously offend God with all their sences members making them the instruments to further their franticke follies excesses so by the ordinance of God there they are all tormeÌ„ted euery of them abideth his proper punishment For there the incontinent eyes shall be afflicted affrighted with the vgly sight of diuels the eares with confused cryes and complaints the nose with the intollerable stenche of that filthy denne the taste with raging thirst and famine the féeling and all the body besides with pearcing colde heate the imagination shall be tormented with the apprehension of present paine the memorie by hauing still in mind the pleasures passed the vnderstanding with coÌ„sideration of the glorious kingdom lost cursed coÌ„dition that is hapned The diuine Scriptures tures signifieth vnto vs this pluralitie of paines where it saith that in hell shall be famine Mar. 15. Psal 10. thirst wéeping and gnashing of téeth the two edged sword the spirites and creatures of reuenge serpents wormes scorpions bytles sowre sasages water distilled of gall stormy tempestes and other such like annoyances By which it frameth and preferreth to our presence an euident patterne of the diuers and dreadful plagues practised in hell Exod.
wealth whose power whose wisedome can be neither augmented nor diminished who neither before the cōstitution of the world nor after he had made all things is one iot more or lesse then hee was before nor if all the angels and all mankinde should be saued and should praise him perpetually is any whit the woorthier nor if they all were damned and did blaspheme him is lesse glorious at all This so great a lord not drawne nor driuen by any straights at all but of méere grace and bountie whilst our acts of hostilitie were yet in fresh memorie was content to encline the heauens of his royall maiestie and to descend into this Caue of calamities to cloath him with the vesture of our mortalitie to charge himselfe with the déepe debt of al our sins and for satisfaction thereof to endure such torments as were neuer suffered in this world For my sake O Lorde thou wast borne in a stall for mée thou wast laid in a manger for mée thou wast circumcised the eight day for me thou wast conueyed into Egypt for me to conclude thou wast persecuted and turmoyled with a number of infamies for me thou watchedst for me thou trauailedst for me thou swettest for mée thou didst wéepe for me thou hast prooued all those euils which my enormous crimes haue deserued thou béeing innocent and guiltlesse Finally for mée thou wast apprehended as a malefactour abandoned of thy fréends solde denied presented before the tribunall seate of those iudges where thou were accused bufferted defamed whipped spitted at scratched condemned crucified blasphemed pierced with a speare dead and buried Therefore with what desert of mine can I acquite my selfe I will not say of all these courtesies but of the least drop of blood shed out of thy holy side for me vnworthy wretch How is it possible that I should loue him sufficiently who so hath loued me so hath created me so hath redéemed me and hath bought mée so dearely If I be lifted vp from the earth sayth our Sauiour all things shall be drawne after me But with what chaines with what violence With the force of loue and with the bondes of his benefits With the rope of Adam sayth our Lorde I will draw thē vnto me and with the knot of loue Therefore who will not bee lifted vppe with this draught who will not suffer himselfe to bee catcht and caried with such chaines If one little drop of water falling continually vppon a stone will pearce and breake it at the last how shall not the bonds of so many benefits be inough to rent my stony heart a sunder And if the very earth wrought in the feruent heat is sometimes conuerted into fire how shall my heart be frée from burning béeing so beset with the glowing coles of such vnmeasurable loue if it bee so haynous an offence not to loue this Lorde what shall it be to offend him to despise him and to transgresse his commaundementes How canst thou haue any heart or hand to offende those handes which haue bene so bountifull vnto thée which for thée were spread vpon the crosse When that lasciuious woman besought the Patriarke Ioseph that he would betray his maister the holy man repelled her with this saying Behold O wretched woman what trust my Lord hath reposed in me to put all that he hath into my handes except thée his wife therefore with what face can I commit this vilanie against my Soueraigne Which is as if hée had sayd If my Lord hath béen so friendly affectioned towards me if he hath committed all that he hath to my custodie if in such wise he hath fancied and honoured me that in me only it resteth to dispose of his affaires how may I béeing tyed with the bonds of so many benefites haue any handes at all to offende a Lorde so liberall And it doeth not content him to say It is no reason to offende him but How can I offend him for the greatnesse of good turnes doo not onely restraine the will but in a manner all power and possibilitie to annoy the benefactor And it bindeth fast both the handes and the féete of a man that he cannot striue against it Wherefore if these kind of ceremonies as to bee gratefull for good turnes bée of so great force what shall we thinke of the benefites of God That man committed to Iosephs fidelitie all his businesse and God hath put into thy hands all that he hath Consider then howe much Gods treasures are more woorthy then any that Pharao did possesse for that so much more is this which thou enioyest then was that which Ioseph did receiue But tell me what thing hath God which he hath not giuen into thy hands heauen earth the sunne the moone the starres the sea birdes fishes trées beasts and finally all that is conteined vnder the golden globe he hath bestowed vppon thée and yet not that onely which is héere belowe in earth but likewise all that is in the Heauens aboue which is the glory the riches and the delights of Angels and Saintes which are there praying busily for thy commoditie All things saith the Apostle are yours whether it be Paul Paul or Apollo or Peter bee it the worlde bee it life bee it death bee it the time present or that to come all is yours for that all serueth for your behoofe and yet not that alone which is aboue the heauens but the Lord of heauen himselfe hath giuen vs his onely sonne after sundry sorts sometimes as a patron sometimes as a defendor sometimes as a sauiour sometimes for a teacher sometime for a Phisitian sometime for a rewarde sometime for a conseruation sometime for a remedie and for each other our néed The Father hath giuen vs his sonne the sonne hath merited for vs the holy Ghost the holy Ghost hath made vs meritorious of GOD the Father himselfe from whome floweth the streames of all felicitie Therefore if this father as the Apostle sayth hath giuen vs his onely sonne which was the greatest gift he could bestow on vs howe will hee not deliuer vnto vs with him all other things whatsoeuer Therfore if it bee true that God hath giuen vnto thée al that he hath if he hath wrapt thée fast with obligation of so many benefites howe is it possible that thou shouldest molest or gréeue so liberall and bountifull a benefactour If it be a gréeuous crime not to be thankfull for so good turnes what shall it be to adioyne to ingratitude the contempt and offence of the benefactor If that young man founde himselfe in such bondage and so impotent to annoy him who had committed to his fidelitie the charge of his house what heart or courage canst thou haue to offend him which for thy behoofe hath created both heauen earth O more vngrateful then the very beast O more cruell then the Tigres O more insensible then the senslesse creatures not to consider so great a fall for what beast what Lion what Tiger
did euer hurt the man that did them good Saint Ambrose writeth that a dogge all one night howled and bewayled his maister which was slaine by his enemie whither repairing many the next morning to view the dead corpes amongst whom the murtherer also made his appearance whome so soone as the dog beheld furiously ranne vpon him in such wise that the malefactour was detected thereby Wherefore if a dogge for a péece of bread did shewe such loyall loue to his maister howe canst thou become so vngratefull to suffer thy selfe in the lawe of reason and humanitie to be inferiour to a dogge If that beast was wroth against him that had slaine his maister what wilte not thou bee wroth against them that haue killed thy Lorde and Soueraigne and who are those that haue killed him but only thy offences these are euen they that tooke him that bounde him that whipped him that nayled him to the Crosse For all the torments had not bene sufficient for this exployt had they not bene assisted by thine offences Wherfore then doest thou not waxe wood against these so cruell murderers which haue bereaued thy Lord of his life Wherefore séeing him dead in thy sight doth not thy affection increase towards him and thy wrath towards sin which hath killed him knowing that whatsoeuer in this world hee hath said done or suffered was to imprint such an hatred in our hearts against sin that we should detest it vtterly To slay sinne he dyed himselfe and to binde it hand and foote hath suffered himselfe to be bound vpon the crosse Why then wilt thou make frustrate all the labours and paines of Christ Wilt thou run headlong into the thraldome and bondage frō whence Christ hath deliuered thée with the ransome of his precious blood why doest thou not tremble and shiuer at the onely name and sounde of sin now that thou hast séene the extremities that Christ vsed in the remoouing thereof what could GOD doo more to restraine vs from sinne then to set himself before vs bowed pitifully vpon a crosse who durst displease God if hee saw heauen and earth open before him yet much more it is to sée God stretcht vppon a crosse then all this Wherfore whosoeuer is not stirred with this motiue there is nothing in the wide world whereby he may be reduced from the fonde and perillous iourney wherein he is entred The Argument God doth not suffer those to want any thing necessarie to this world which bee righteous and do keepe his cōmandements but doth comfort them with his graces and gifts infinitly as well temporall as spiritual present as those to come Whereof the vngodly haue exceeding great scarcitie for that noble vertue is euermore associated with all good things and contrariwise vice with mischiefes and miseries CHAP. VII BUt peraduenture thou wilt say that all these things before treated of are right iust as well the good things as the evil yet desirest to sée some present motine which should serue to eleuate thy heart fithe the thinges obiected to our daily viewe doo moue vs more forcibly Of these things also we will giue thée thy glut and thou shalt haue thy sacietie of that thou desirest For admit our Lord had kept the best wine and meate fill the ende of the banket yet for all this he will not that his seruants should faints with famine by the way for he knoweth very well if they should be so scanted they cannot continue in their iourney Wherefore he said vnto Abraham Feare not O Abraham for I am thy defendour and thy rewarde shall be great By these words two things are promised one in this present life as he was his defendour in all things perteyning therevnto the other in the life to come which is the guerdon reserued for him But howe great the first promise is and howe many swéete solaces it conteyneth no man knoweth but he that hath read the Scriptures diligently which inculketh and repeateth nothing more then the singular prerogatiues which our Lorde hath promised to his seruaunts in this life Reade the holy Psalme of the Prophet Psal 25. Psal 91. Psal 18. Dominus regit me Reade Qui habitat in adintorio Regarde with thy vnderstanding Diligam te domine fortitudo mea reade the benedictions and the curses of Deuteronomium finally reade the new and old Testament and thou shalt sée apparantly what fauour and friendship is promised to the iust and righteous in this life Heare the verdit of Salomon in his Prouerbes vpon this matter Blessed is the man that hath found wisedome for it auayleth more to-possesse that then all the heapes of golde and siluer be it neuer so fine and precious it is of greater price then all the riches of the world and all that can be wished for and desired in the heart of man is nothing comparable therevnto The length of his daies are in his right hand and in his left are riches and glorie his wayes are faire and his pathes peaceable and to all them that obtaine it and to euery one that with perseueraunce shall enioy it shall be happie Marke then my sonne the constitutions and counsailes of God for this shall be likings and life to thy soule Then shalt thou take thy iourney voyde of care and thy feete shall not fayle thée if thou sléepe thou shalt not be affrighted and if thou betake thée to rest thou shalt haue a quiet repose This deare brother is the solace and quietnesse that the righteous haue in their wayes but consider howe much the wayes of the wicked differeth from this by the sentence of the Scriptures vnhappinesse and lucklesse chaunce is euer in their way neyther know they what it is to tread the steps of peace and tranquilitie And againe Ecclesiastick sayth The path of the vniust is ful of lets and obstacles and at the ende of their iourney for an harbour is addressed for them hell darkenesse and paine Doth it séeme now good vnto thée to diuert from the way of God to follow the way of the world béeing so contrary each to other not onely in the and but also in the midway and at euery step Which then is the greater inconuenience to endeuour through one torment to get another torment or else with one repose to atchieue an other repose But that thou mayest discerne more clearely the manifolde benefites which presently doo accompanie this good thing bee attentiue to the promise that GOD himselfe made to the Prophet Esay to the obseruers of his commaundements in these woordes according to the intent of diuers Interpreters When thou shalt be sayth hée such and such as I haue willed thée to be vnwares shall come vpon thée the dawne of bright day that is the light of iustice which shall cast out and bannish quite the dryerie darknesse of thy errours and defaultes and shalt quickely knowe true health and the equitie of thy well dooings shall stande before thée as a burning lampe and the glory
of Angels Therefore if the righteous for their secret pride or negligence and ingratitude became so vnmiâ—d full of God after they had béene his dutifull Seruaunts so many yeares What doest thou looke for hauing framed thy life to no other trade then to accumulate one sinne vppon an other Therefore whosocuer we sée to liue in this sort as wee haue tolde of before shall it not bee expedient that hee shoulde nowe at the length cease to fill vppe the measure of his iniquities and to assay to please God and to deliuer his soule from bondage should it not suffise him that he hath liued so leaudlie till this houre addicting himselfe wholy to the worlde the flesh and the diuell and hereafter to imploy himselfe and to runne out the remnant of his race 〈◊〉 the homage and honour of God is it not néedefull after so long time and so many iniuries committed against his Diuine Masestie to feare his seuere instice which the more patiently it beareth with the wicked so much the more rigorously is reuenged vppon them in the ende shall it not be reason that hee should bee afraid to lye so long swallowed vppe in the gulfe of sinne depriued of the grace of God and to haue so strong an enemie as is hee who of a deare father through his deserts is become his adnersarie and his iudge Shall it not bée reason to dread least the force of long vse bee turned into nature and habitte making of vice necessitie How should hee not feare by little and little to fall into a reprobate sence whereunto when a man is come hee doth not any thing that is acceptable in the sight of almightie God The Patriarke Iacob said to his father in lawe Labin Fourtéene yeares are passed since I haue scrued thée and haue had charge of thy businesse and now it is time that I attend vppon mine owne affaires and that I begin to prouide for mine owne house Wherefore I pray thée sith thou hast bin so long not a retayner but a daylie waiter to the worlde not letting slip any oportunitie of this life which was eyther appendaunt to thy pleasures or agréeing to thy appetites shall it not to be reasonable for thée nowe at the length to get some commoditie for the soule and for the bertering of thy estate in the other life certainly there is nothing more short and vnsure then the life of man Why then thou prouiding so carefully all necessaries for that which is so momentall and transitory dost not likewise make some prouision for that which endureth for euer The Argument A man ought to remember himselfe and that he is a Christian and that he beleeue firmely all that he is taught by his faith which should mooue him eyther through loue or feare All things inuite him to the loue and seruice of God among which hee should acquire wisedome and harken to the words of Christ who fixed himselfe to the crosse for our redemption CHAP. XIIII NOw therfore if it be true as I haue said I beséech thée deare brother and charge thée by the precious blood of Christ that thou remember thy selfe that thou art a Christian and that thou take all that which our faith teacheth for vnfeined veritie which plainly prooueth vnto thée that besides other things thou hast a iudge to whose eye lyeth open all the actions and moments of thy life who will come at a day vnwares wherin he will exact an account of thée euen of euery idle worde This faith telleth shée farther that a man at his death is not quite extinguished because after this mortall life succéedeth an other which lasteth eternally and shat mens foules doo not perish with their bodies but that the bodies resting and raked vp in their graues the soules yet enter into a newe Kingdome and into an other new world where such condition and company shal be assigned vnto them as their manner and behauiour hath bin in this life Héere vnto this faith adioyneth yet more that as the rewarde of vertue so the scourge of vice is so infinit that although the whole worlde were full of bookes and euery creature were a Scriuener the writers woulde sooner dye and the world be at an ende before it could bee knowne and treated of particularly that which each of these doth containe in it selfe This faith also informeth thée that our debt and dutie is so great through our benefites receiued of God that though the number of a mans yeares did surpasse the sandes of the seas yet they should be too fewe to acquite himselfe in his seruice towards him The same faith affirmeth that vertue is of such passing valour that all the treasures of the worlde and all that a mans heart can desire may in no respect be coÌ„pared the reunto Wherfore if such and so great things doo exhort vs to vertue why be there so fewe which imbrace it and endeuour themselues to attaine it If men may bee mooued with any aduauntage or interest what greater gaine is there what life more perdurable If with feare what sharper punishments what paint more permanent If with the bonds of bountious liberalitie what greater debt haue wee then that which we owe vnto God of whom wee haue receiued all things If the dread of dangers may stirre vs what greater perill can there bee then that of death whose comming is so vncertaine whose account so straight If peace if libertie if the gifts of the holy Ghost and the solace of a sugred life be desired of all men it appeareth euidently that all these things are founde more readilie in that life which is lead by vertue and reason then in that which is ruled by rage and passions for that a man is a reasonable creature and not a beast But if all this bee not regarded shall it not bee sufficient that for the maintenaunce of veriue GOD descended from Heauen to the earth and was made man who hauing created the world in six dais imployed thirtie and thrée yeares in this worke wherein hee also spent his bloud and life God dyed to slay sinne yet for all this wee endeuour to reuiue in our hearts those whom God would destroy with his owne death What should I say more for all reasons are sufficient to promote this matter or to shewe it as it is Fo I say not respecting the crosse onely but which way soeuer we turne our eyes we shall finde that all things doo cry and cal vs to this commoditie sith there is no creature in the world if hee bee well noted but doth inuite vs to the loue and seruice of our supernall Lord in such sort that looke howe many creatures there be in the world so many preachers there are so many bookes so many voyces which doo stirre vs therevnto Wherefore howe is it possible that so many shriking sounds as héere thou hearest so many promises thundring threats can beare no parte to perswade thée thereunto What should God or could
whom is the foundation of wisedome and beginning of true blisse Endeuour therefore so to arme and addresse thy selfe at all poynts that thou be not vanquished by sinne Farther shalt viewe thine owne wretchednesse and infirmities whiche will serue as a corzie to quallifie the swelling rancor of pride and to establish humilitie the very quéene and guide of all other vertues And shalt easily reiect hatefull auarice and gréedie gaping for earthly vanities For the memorie of death causeth thée to knowe that none of these thinges can be called thine which thou canst not carry with thee out of this world And thou coÌ„tinuing in this exercise vnwares thy dread shall be turned into desire and death shall not séem so terrible vnto thée for that it depriueth thée of thy temporall life as delightful and acceptable because it giueth ende to so many gréefes and miseries and giueth enterance to life and light eternall And thou shalt perceiue howe little cause thou haddest to complaine or to be sorie weighing that whilest thy bodie doth perishe and consume in the graue thy soule liueth blisfully in heauen with a firme beléefe to rise againe at the last day to life euerlasting The Argument In the seuenth consideration ought to be premeditated how seuere and rigorous Christ will be at the day of iudgement for that his countenance will then declare to the wickid beholders nothing else but furious wrath and reuenge which none can escape for there must be giuen vp an exact account of all thinges done and thought of in this world CHAP. IX EAch man proueth and perceiueth in himselfe by often experience that his vnderstanding by the apprehension of some fearfull obiect or weightie consideration retireth and coucheth closely within it selfe and for that instant repelleth easily all other idle imaginations For which cause it is most prositable counsayle that a sinner at his first conuersion exercise himselfe seriously in such cogitations for that by this meanes péeuish fansies sometime through dread sometime through wonder will be either brideled or banished quite If the memorie of death as is aforesaide hath such force to cut off and to restraine our vaine and bagraum thoughts howe much more may this be done by the remembraunce of that which insueth after death immediately whiche is Gods iudgement and the paines of hell By which meditations if thou often thinke vpon them shall be brought to passe that which Ecclesiastick affirmeth Remember thy daies whereby hee meaneth that which then shall happen vnto thee and thou shalt neuer doo amisse S. Hierome not without iust cause said Whether I eate or drinke mee thinkes still I heare the sounde of the Trumpet buzzing in my eares Arise from death and come to your iudgement Which howe terrible it shall be cannot be imagined sith all other terrours or tragedies whatsoeuer in comparison of this is nothing at all Many times God hath manifested his iudgements in this worlde as when hee drowned the worlde with the great floud when hee burned Sodome and the Cities adioyning when he strooke Egypt with diuers dreadfull plagues when he made the earth to open in the desert to swallow vp sinners all which iudgements beeing compared to that generall iudgement which shall be exercised in the last day are but shadowes but shewes and figures of the veritie If then thou desire to come to thy selfe and to gather thy wits togither with the remembraunce of this represent to thy imagination the terriblenesse of Christ thy iudge whose countenance shall declare nothing else but rigour and reuenge as at the first comming he shewed mildenesse altogither From whom thou canst not appeale to any other because he is supreme Iudge neither canst thou auoide his furie because he is most puissant and for that hee is the very fountaine and God of knowledge nothing can be concealed from him And because he hateth iniquitie out of measure hee will not suffer any sinne to be vnreuenged There thou must bee accountable of all thy transgressions debts and trespasses whereof if the least be inough to put thée in extreame danger and perplexitie who can make satisfaction for so many debtes and arrerages as shall bee exacted at thy handes Then thou shalt bee examined how thou hast vestowed thy time howe thou haste ordered thy body howe thou hast gonerned thy sences and how thou hast guided thy heart howe thou hast answered to the diuine inspirations how thou haste acknowledged so many curtesies In the which accusation thou shalt bee conuinced with so many witnesses as are the creatures which thou hast abused by sinne which then will be so stirred to reuenge the wrong done vnto their creator that if it were possible those which are immortall would dye with feare For it shall be a horror inestimable to sée the worlde all on fire the buildings and princely Pallaces ouerthrowne and torne in péeces the earth to tremble to viewe the elements to chaunge theyr course the Sunne to bee darkened the Moone and Starres to léese theyr light to beholde the death and destruction of all creatures the open gaping of graues to heare the voyce of the terrible trumpe and wofull waylings of nations to marke the discouering of consciences to regarde the monstrous deformed diuels and she inâ—â—â—nall furnace sparkling with furious flakes But of all other things shall be most terrible to looke vppon the victorious flagge of the Crosse clittering in the ayre with all the ensignes of the glorious passion of our Sauiour To sée the Iudge to charge his enemies for the making frustrate yea the reitteration of so many torments as hee hath suffered for their redemption Who might more easily endure the smart of hell paines then to sée themselues so accused and accursed of the Lord of bountie and courtesie and to be expelled from his presence to perpetuall punishment The Argument In the eight consideration we ought to premeditate vpon the intollerable terrour of hell paines which shall be perpetuall But of al those torments the most greeuous is the losse and lacke of Gods chearefull countenance without any hope for euer to gaine it againe CHAP. X. BUt it may so chance that mauger thy might for all these considerations ydle thoughts will not forsake thee though it must néedes bee a sounde fléepe and a very drowzie dreame that will not bee awaked with such incitations Yet thou must not be discomforted but howe much more difficults doo arise so much the more stoutly thou shouldest striue to atchieue thy enterprise Assay then whither the search of hell paines will bee more behouefull vnto thée concerning which two things are chiefly to be noted that is the vehemencie of their smart and the time of their continuance The least of these is able to mollifie the most stubborne and stony heart of the worlde but the which is not mooued neither with the one nor with the other is eyther dead in his soule or else beléeueth not that which the Christian faith sheweth For though the greatnesse of hell torments cannot bee imagined nor expressed filled with most iust feare If thou accustome thy selfe to such exercises aâ—â— doest perseuer therin in short space thou thalt become a newe man for by these meditations thy minde shall be brought to despise the world to shun sinne to fear these paines and to loue vertue And though at the beginning thou bee appaled and affrighted vehemently yet hand patience a while for thy colde feare shall be qualified and tempered with the heat of loue as the black night is turned by little and little into the bright shining day EINIS