unlawfull by the rules of religion is because it is against nature it selfe and against that naturall affection and propensnesse whereby it endeavours to preserve and cherish it selfe and to withstand and repell all that is destructive of it and inimicall to it Religion requites the observation of the law of nature that religion requires the observation of the law of nature is manifest because religion and natures law are not repugnant but differ in extent and degrees of perfection the law of nature being more universall and lesse divinely perfit The Scripture it selfe commends the keeping and condemnes the transgressing of the law of nature In which respect the Apostle blames the Gentiles that knowing God by nature they did not glorifie him as God a Rom. 1.21 And againe he commends them for doing by nature the things contained in the Law b Rom. 2.14 15. and which naturally was written in their hearts Hee blames the Incestuous Corinthian for doing a sin so hainous as is not so much as named amongst the Gentiles c 1 Cor. 5.1 And further he condemnes mens wearing of long haire contrary to the law of nature when he sayes Doth not even nature it selfe teach you that if a man have long haire it is a shame unto him d 1 Cor. 11.14 Thomas Aquinas sayes e Quod aliquis scipsum occidat est contra inelinationem naturalem contra charitatem that for any man to kill himselfe is against naturall inclination and charity The devill knew that man naturally will give all he hath for his life Iob 2.4 the soule and body of a man doe naturally affect to be united together because of the unity of the person that consists of them both personally joyned together by whose dissolution it is destroyed The soule and body are neither of them perfit without the other and therefore affect to be united together And the soule and body are so made one for another that they are not nor can be perfit the one without the other neither with naturall nor beatificall perfection for beside a partiall perfection there is that full perfection that is of the whole and in the whole The soule doth not willingly leave the body but with respect of advancement of the person whereof it is the soule by entring upon possession of that partiall perfection whereof it is capable and the whole for measure and degree is due to the person constituted of soule and body and for which union and adeption of perfit glory of the person there shall be a resurrection of the body at the last day 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and therefore is the body in the meane time called Nephesh a Psal 16.10 by the Hebrewes And God is said by our Saviour himselfe speaking of the dead to be the God of the living b Mat. 22.32 whose bodies although they were dead yet themselves are said to be alive in regard of their living soules who cannot be personally considered but in their union together that by death cannot be dissolved in Gods consideration of us and in respect of the naturall inclination of each mans proper soule and body the one to the other for their full perfection and in regard of the resurrection when they shall be united everlastingly to live together betweene which time and the day of our death there is no sensible distance of time to us nor length of time with God §. 4. How self-murder is injurious to mankinde 4. Self-murder wrongs mankinde The fourth particular that makes it evident that self-murder is condemned by religion is because it is injurious to mankinde and to the common-wealth whereof the self-murderer is a member who by that fact of killing himselfe hurts humane society by such hainous disorders and pernicious examples for others to follow to their destruction and by the unrecoverable damage and losse of its members and of the good that the same might have by their lives For as Thomas sayes Every man is a part of a Commonalty and he that kills himselfe doth an injury to that Commonalty a Quilibet homo est pars comunitaetis qui scipsum intersicit injuriam sacit Communitati Examples The commendable examples and practise of the godly hath ever beene opposite to self-murder as well as their opinion and have had a care to preserve their lives not only for their own good but also for the good of others who had an interest in them as is manifest by the Apostle Paul Phil. 1.24 25. and 2.17 Who seeing his life to be needfull for the Philippians was willing to abide and continue with them For the furtherance and joy of their faith and did joy and rejoyce to be offered upon the sacrifice and service of the same It is hurtfull to the common-wealth If self-murder were not unlawfull even in respect of the wrong thereby done to the common-wealth why should David have commanded to take away the life of the yong man the Amalekite that did help Saul to kill himselfe whom David asked How he was not affraid to stretch forth his hand to destroy the Lords annointed and so caused to put him to death not simply for unjustly killing an innocent man but specially in consideration of killing of the King the head of the land which by his death was wronged and was a dangerous president to passe unpunished § 5. How self-murder wrongs mans selfe doing it 5. It wrongs a mans selfe and how The fifth particular demonstrating how unlawfull self-murder is by religion is the sin and wrong which the self-murderer doth thereby to himselfe in three speciall respects 1. It overthrowes faith and love in a man First in regard of the principall saving graces of God in man which are faith and love self-murder is against faith and trust in God and overthrowes the same by desperation that neither in adversity can a person that is resolved to kill himselfe have any true comfort nor any hope of life eternall by a course that he knowes is the way to damnation Touching love we have heard before how it cannot consist with self-murder they being contrary For as one sayes Quisque debet plus amare seipsum quam proximum Filliue Every one ought to love himselfe more than his neighbour For the neerenesse of our selves to our selves and for the perfection that should be in the rule or measure whereby we are to love others 2 It marres our duty Secondly in regard of our duty which is not to dispose of or doe that which is not in our power nor within our authority such as to kill ones selfe is For when a man kills himselfe he either kills an innocent and so in that respect grievously sinnes or else hee kills a malefactor and then he sinnes that doth it without lawfull authority to warrant his action which no man hath to kill himselfe but expresse command to the contrary 3.
fulfill the lusts thereof nor yet is it to live according to the flesh directing our waies by our owne carnall wisdome and will but thereby is intimated living in a fraile and sinfull body subject to manifold troubles and infirmities in which regard it is a fading and temporary life as Saint Iames tels us Iam. 4.14 comparing it to a vapour that vanisheth away With the which life all men that come into this world are indowed as Saint Iohn affirmes Ioh. 1.9 and this naturall life is onely for this sublunary world and not for the world to come for our lives do differ according to our estates and places wherein we are to live §. 2. The sweetnesse of naturall life In what respect naturall life is sweet Even this naturall life is sweet in regard of the union of the soule and body together and in respect of the preservation of our persons by it and for the workes that we may doe in it for Gods glory and our owne salvation 1. So that the lesse certainty that a man hath of a better life the more deare this should be unto him that therein he may enjoy the present and may provide for a better 2. and also the more zeale and desire that a man hath to doe good in glorifying of God and in benefiting of others and the more care he hath of advancement of his owne eternall happinesse the more is hee to respect his life wherein the same is to be done §. 3. The losse of naturall life is horrible and painefull How death is naturally horrible God hath so ordained that the departure of the soule from the body should ordinarily be horrible to mans apprehension and with paine and griese not onely in respect of parting two such sweet Companions which separated are imperfect the one without the other but also in respect of the utter destruction of their common naturall personall life and the cutting off of all these comfortable actions and affections that depend upon and do tend to the perfection of the same Which is to the end that man may naturally endeavour the preservation of his life against all dangers and may abhorre self-murder that deprives him of so much good §. 4. How life is deare and precious Life deare There is nothing in the world more deare to a man than his life in which regard it was that Satan said to the Lord touching Iob all that a man hath will he give for his life Iob. 2.4 and for the excellency and use of it Salomon calls it the precious life Prov. 6.26 and therefore he should not part from it or cast it away for a trifle or in a humour specially seeing he can never redeeme or recover it againe from death a Psal 49.7 Reasons 1 It preserves the person in being For three reasons especially is the life of man precious First because by it the person of man is preserved in its esse or being by personall union of soule and body which otherwise would be dissolved and undone Now betweene being and not being there is so vast a distance and opposition that a creature doth naturally desire rather to live miseraebly than not to live as is apparent by that naturall instinct whereby the creature to save its life or vitall parts objects and offers its lesse principall members to undergoe the danger choosing rather to live mutilate and wretched than for prevention thereof to die For the losse of life is not onely irrevocable and unmatchable in worth compared with that worldly thing for which it is exchanged but also it includes all other worldly losses in it and therefore it is farre the greatest losse that man can suffer 2 It makes capable of comfort Secondly it is by life that the creature is capable of any comfort or of the use and benefit of the blessings of good things that God gives us to rejoyce in in this world for to a dead man all this world and pleasure of it is gone and to him that wants sense the use and delight of all sensible things is lost in which respect Solomon saith to him that is joyned to all the living there is hope for a living Dog is better than a dead Lyon Eccles 9.4 so it is under God by the blessing of life that other good things are blessings to us and that the miseries and calamities that betide us here are lesse evills than death for that partiall and initiall evills are ever lesse than those that are compleate and full those that afflict than those that extinguish 3. For the use of it Thirdly life is precious for the use and improvement of it 1 To Gods glory First to Gods glory in spending of it in manner according to his holy word with respect to God for the end that we aime at in which regard godly Hezekiah said that not the dead but the living praise God a Esay 38.18 19. 2 To others Secondly the preciousnesse of mans life is seene in the use of it for the good that thereby is done to others both in civill and divine good offices in Church and Common-wealth as the Apostle Paul confesseth of himselfe that he did live for the spirituall benefit of the Philippians Phil. 1.24 25. As for the dead they are unprofitable to the living as appeares by Esay 63.16 saying that Abraham is ignorant of us and the Psalmist tels us that we should not put our trust in Princes nor in the sonne of man in whom there is no help and then gives the reason of it His breath goeth forth he returneth to his earth in that very day his thoughts perish b Psal 46.304 3 To a mans selfe Thirdly the excellencie and necessity of life is seene in the use and benefit of it to a mans selfe in fitting him for heaven by working up of his salvation here in this life and in advancing himselfe in glory both by adorning his person with divine and saving graces of Gods spirit and also by holy actuall obedience and dutifull performances to God in tract of living For if a man doe not at all live this naturall life he cannot be capable of eternall life and although he do live this naturall life yet if he do not endeavour to extend and employ it to the attainment of salvation but that it be cut off before salvation be wrought he cannot but of necessity perish for ever For as the tree falls so it shall lye there is no amendment of our estate and errors after death as appeares by the parable of the rich man Luke 16.25 26. if God doe give a man life and time he puts a price into his hand and gives him a great blessing for his advancement to a better life And therefore in all the aforesaid respects it is apparent that life is the most precious thing that God bestowes upon man whereby all other blessings to us are expressed as appeares by Abrahams
speech to the Lord saying Oh that Ishmael might live before thee a Gen. 17.18 Vse To preserve life The chiefe use of the former doctrine is to provoke and move us to use all lawfull meanes to preserve and prolong our lives for hee that wills the end should also will the meanes whereby he may attaine to that end §. 5. Of the meanes of lifes preservation The meanes 1. Prayer Those meanes are first prayer to God for to sustaine and preserve our lives especially in apparent dangers as David did Psal 102.24 saying Oh my God take me not away in the midst of my dayes For as our lives depend upon him that is the fountaine of life b Ioh. 1.4 so our eyes must be to him for a continuall influxe of continuing the same in regard of outward dangers and inward mortality dayly putting our lives in jeopardy which of our selves we are not able to resist 2. Foode cheerefulnesse c. The second meanes of the preservation of mans life is the moderate and cheerefull use of necessary foode and raiment with other convenient comforts and delights needfull to cherish and preserve our lives according to Solomons direction that there is nothing better for a man than that he should eate and drinke and that he should make his soule enjoy good in his labour Eccles 2.24 according to Iacobs desire Gen. 28.20 intreating God that he might have bread to eate and cloathes to put on not to hoard and lay up but for his use For a man to have plenty and yet to be in want is a miserable condition for so he defrauds and wrongs himselfe he is injurious to the creatures in not imploying them to the use for which God made and gave them and is ingratefull to God in not rightly using his blessings so as he may thereby doe God the greatest honor and service Of cheerefulnesse Cheerefulnesse is an excellent meanes of life for as Solomon saies by sorrow of heart the spirit is broken and all the dayes of the afflicted are evill but a merry heart maketh a cheerefull countenance and he that is of a merry heart hath a continuall feast a Prov. 15.13 15. and therefore Eccles 8.15 he commendeth mirth because a man hath no better thing under the sun than to eate and to drinke and to be merry for that shall abide with him of his labour the daies of his life which God giveth him under the sunne and for this purpose God gives us some things that are onely for delight and of other things he often bestowes such plenty upon us as shewes it to be his pleasure that we should use them not onely for necessity but also for cheering of us that we may both taste thereby how good he is to us and also that we may the more joyfully serve him with gladnesse of heart in health and in plenty of all things Grounds of cheerefulnesse 1 A good conscience grace and hope The grounds of this Cheerefulnesse are two First inward peace of conscience in the apprehension of Gods favour and love to us in Christ Iesus in the comfortable evidence of the pardon of our sins in the undeceivable enjoying of the saving graces of Gods spirit in the truth of our conformity and obedience to God and in assured hope of everlasting life and happinesse all which will make us to rejoyce yea even in tribulation Rom. 5.3 with joy unspeakeable and glorious 2. Outward blessings The second ground of our cheerefulnesse is the outward favours and benefits that God in mercy bestowes upon us whereof wee are to take the present use and sweetnesse not depriving our selves thereof nor deading our spirits with feares of uncertaine or remote future evils according to the direction of our Saviour Mat. 6.34 Take no thought for the morrow forbidding anxious tormenting care for feare of ensuing crosses and according to the practise of Hezekiah to whom the Lord had denounced fearefull judgements upon his posterity who said Good is the word of the Lord for there shall be peace and truth in my dayes Isai 39.8 3. Physick Thirdly to preserve our lives it is requisite that we use the seasonable fit and moderate help of Physick to prevent or remove diseases which are not onely the enemies of life but are also an inchoate or begun death as Hezekiah did take a lump of figgs and laid it on his boile for his recovery 2 King 20.7 according to Gods direction by Esay the Prophet in this respect did Saint Paul direct Timothie to drinke no longer water but to use a little wine for his stomacks sake and his often infirmities 1 Tim. 5.23 that so a man may not be a deficient cause of the preservation of his owne life when God gives meanes to save or prolong it §. 6. How to use Physick Cautions about Physick 1. That wee trust not to it In taking of Physick wee are alwaies to observe these subsequent cautions First that wee dote not upon nor trust or ascribe too much to physicall meanes but that we carefully looke and pray to God for a blessing by the warrantable use of them For it is God that both directs the Physitians judgement and conscionable practise about a patient and also puts vertue into and gives healthfull operation to the medicines 2. Use it moderately Secondly that we use Physick moderately not out of wantonnesse but for necessity nor as our daily diet bringing our selves under a necessity of ever using it and so by repairing of the house of our body wee may waste and overthrow it neither are we then to use Physick when there is no needfull cause nor yet in such desperate cases where there is no hope of life but apparent signes of approching death lest under an intent of prolonging life wee doe shorten it or of curing wee doe kill where there is not strength of nature to help physick to work its due effect 3. Use it not rashly Thirdly our care about Physick must be that wee doe not unadvisedly and rashly use it either by practising upon our selves or others beyond our skill or calling or else by taking Physick from others that be either presumptuous-ignorant Empericks or prophane and desperate dispensers and undertakers neither conscionable in their owne lives nor tender of the lives of others but are more desirous of their patients monies than of their healths and therefore our endeavour should be to take physick both seasonably for time and also by the counsell and direction of such as be both skilfull persons in that facultie and also conscionable for religion and piety that God may blesse their labours the better who will be tender and carefull of mens lives working by safe courses and in manner fit for their patients good and herein what ever the effect be men may have comfort when they shall have insisted in a warrantable way 4. Not to be perplexed about the event
man but the Spirit of God a 1 Cor. 2.11.15 and therefore it is said that the spirituall man discerneth all things by this Spirit a mans judgement is conformable to the truth contained in the Scriptures and sound doctrine of the Church Touching the mistake and abuse of Scripture for the vile fact of self-murder Augustine gives this admonition Take heed to thy selfe that it may not slily creep upon thee to have a mind to kill thy selfe by so understanding these words of Scripture That thou oughtest to hate thy life in this world For from thence some malignant and perverse men and most cruell and wretched murderers against themselves do throw themselves into the fire do choake themselves in the waters and by headlong downfalls do crush themselves and perish b Videne tibi subrepat ut teipsum velis interimere sic intelligendo quod debes odisse in hoc mundo animam tuam hine enim quidam maligni perversi homines in seipsos crudeliores c. August Tract in Ioan. 51. Our Saviour Christ told Peter that others should gird and carry him whither he would not c John 21.18 whereby hee intimates that Peter should not will to gird and destroy himselfe Also the same Augustine calls such self-murderers the devils martyrs when he answers to Petilian the Donatist Confessores illi vestri quando seipsos praecipitaÌ„t cui dicant Martyrium uto um Chrisio qui talia suggerentem diabolum repulit an potius ipsi diabolo qui talia Christo suggessit Non veneramur nomine Martyrum eos qui sibi collum ligaverunt August contra lit Peâ—il l. 2. c. 49. saying These your confessors when they throw themselves headlong from steepe places to whom doe they conserate martyrdome whether do they it to Christ who rejected the devill when hee suggested the doing of such things or do they it not rather to the devill himselfe who did suggest to Christ such things for him to do Wee doe not honor those by the name of Martyrs who have hanged themselves The Scripture rightly understood is the best promptuary and antidote against self murder both by meanes of the light of it shewing us the unlawfulnesse and vilenesse of that fact and also by the power thereof or of the Spirit therein disswading and vehemently withdrawing of us there-from to whose advice and motions so long as we obediently listen we are safe from self-murder §. 5. Of misconstrued decree and destiny to the perverting of judgement The third ground of a deceived judgement Conceit of decree and destiny The third ground of a deceived judgement which occasions self-murder is the self murderers strong apprehension that it is the unalterable deeree of God and his owne unevitable fortune for him so to die by his owne hands as Tertullian speakes of some which conceit arises from two originals Dinumerant in semetipsos mentis malae impetus vel fato vel astris imputant Tertul. Apolog. c. 1. Originall of it 1. Impostures First from the oracles or impostures of Magitians and fortune tellers that declare to those who unwarrantably seeke to them for knowledge and resolution of future contingent things specially touching their death that so they shall die and perish Which is the just reward of such unlawfull curiosity that so they may thereby be punished either by doing of the deed or by continuall torment of feare that they shall doe it Note God never conceales any thing from us but that whereof the ignorance is better for us than the knowledge It was curiosity after this kind of knowledge that made Eve willing to learne of the devill being her schoolemaster a Gen. 3.5 6. that whereby she was a meanes to undoe her selfe and all mankinde We see by the practise of Saul in killing himselfe how dangerous a thing it is to advise with witches b 1 Sam. 28.7 soothsayers magitians Astrologers or any of that black rabble upon affectation of curious and secret knowledge from those persons a man shall but play the Gnat about the candle delighting in the light thereof untill it be at last burnt up with the heat thereof Observ as many a man may grieve that he hath so little knowledge of profitable things so many may grieve that they have so much unprofitable and needlesse knowledge People are ignorant of necessary things Necessaria nâ—scimus quia non necesseria discimus because they bend their minds so much to know unnecessary things but was it ever knowne that the devill did give advice that was good both for matter and end 2. Conceit that it is Gods decree The second originall of the strong conceit of self-murder in the minde is deep impressions in the thoughts of man that it is the unalterable and unresistable decree of God that he must kill himselfe which proceeds from satans cunning suggestions slily darting in and fomenting the same perswasion and withall where the self-murderers thoughts and mind are ever taken up with and running upon the same and are under such continuall powerfull temptations to kill himselfe that hee thinks he cannot resist then falls he to resolve and to endeavour to do it as being perswaded that it is his fatall destiny so to die And therefore what such think must be done at last they deeme it best to doe it as soone as they can both that they may be out of the torment of the thoughts of it and also may finish out of the way what is Gods will that they must doe as Iudas did who went quickly to betray his Master c Ioh. 13.27.30 They thinke that they sinne not Men of this perswasion and practise do thinke that if they do that onely which is agreeable to Gods decree and secret wil they are blamelesse but they are in a greater errour Their error Reasons 1. Absurdity of it For first by that argument no man in the world should be culpable of any sin for any thing that hee doth how flagitious soever it were and so both God and man should be blameable for unjust dealing in punishing any man for any thing that he doth be it murder treason theft or any like thing and in vaine were all lawes divine and humane requiring the doing of that good or forbidding that evill if justly a man may not be rewarded for the former nor condemned for the latter Observe For there is nothing that possibly can fall out or come to passe contrary to Gods eternall decree in regard both of Gods prescience fore-knowledge of all things and also in respect of his power and wise providence from and by which is the whole motion of all creatures and their abilitie in all manner of actions Which is further apparent by the testimony of the Apostles in their confession to God saying Of a truth against thy holy childe Iesus whom thou hast annointed both Herod and Pontius Pilate with the Gentiles
and the people of Israel were gathered together for to doe whatsoever thy hand and thy Counsell determined before to be done a Acts 4.27 28. Will any man therefore say that neither Iudas nor any of those were blameable for betraying and putting our blessed Saviour so cruelly and spitefully to death If Gods decrees were sufficient to warrant men to doe evill then either there could bee no sinne in the world whatsoever men doe or else God must be the author of sinne and the onely sinner which is a thing most blasphemous to thinke 2. Ignorance The second reason that manifests the error of those who thinke themselves warranted to doe whatsoever God hath decreed is both their ignorance of what God hath decreed which for the most part he keepes so seeret that it is not certainly known but by the event and effect what it is and in this case the Scripture sayes that the secret things belong unto the Lord our God Deut. 29.29 but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever that we may do all the words of this Law Gods secret will is the rule of his owne actions And also it is their ignorance of the use of Gods decree which is properly his owne will whereby and according to which he in wise and in soveraigne manner orders all things according to his owne good pleasure But it is not that which he would have alwayes to bee our will and according to which we should order our wills and practise for which he hath given us his revealed word and law which is to be in all practicall things the measure of our wills and wayes Gods revealed will is the rule of our actions And therefore so long as Gods word forbids self-murder we are not to dare upon pretence of destiny or Gods decree to entertaine thoughts to attempt it Gods secret decrees containe no formall commandements to us what we should doe nor put any reall influxe to incline us to sin nor subject us to compulsory necessity of sinning contrary to our owne wills or to the meanes and Commandements that we have against the same Observe So then it is certaine that our fulfilling of the secret will and decree of God by our wretched courses and the accidentall good that may come to others thereby cannot excuse us from damnation for running a course contrary to the revealed wil of Gods Commandements and to the meanes whereby we are to order our practise in obedience to God No man is saved for fulfilling the will of Gods decree which no man can overthrow It is not in the power of the most wretched and malicious men in the world to crosse but must fulfill the secret decree of God neither is any man commended or saved for fulfilling that decree which no man can disappoint But all men are commended or condemned for those courses and meanes which they use according as the same is commanded or forbidden in the Word whereby the severall decrees of God for mans salvation or destruction are voluntarily accomplished by men themselves Note Mans care should be to live well Mans only care in all estates should be to live well in conformity to Gods revealed will and word not being solicitous so much for our deaths which after a good life can never be ill We serve not such a master as will not be carefull of our good in which regard worthy is that speech of dying S. Ambrose recorded by Paulinus in his life Non ita inter vos vixi ut pudcat me vivere nec timco mori quoniam Dominum benum habenus I have not so lived in the world that I am ashamed to live neither am I affraid to die because wee have a good Lord. Where wee have no commandement we should be passive about our deaths Although that God is active and workes in all things about us and that we are to cooperate with him in all things where hee gives us a commandement to worke yet in those workes of God where wee have no commandement of his to worke with him as in and about our deaths there we are only to be passive Observe Three things we are to observe from this point of deceit of the judgement 1. Men are strong to beleeve errors First we may here see that people that are weakest in faith and most diffident to beleeve Gods word and saving truth upon the credit and authority of God himselfe are often strongest and most consident in beliefe of errors upon any seeming ground as Solomon saith The simple beleeveth every word a Prov. 14.15 The reason hereof is plaine because such persons are overswayed by prejudices and strength of passion so farre that they rather suspect and reject Gods sacred and infallible truth than their owne fancies and Satans suggestions Note When men leave the truth they become both superstitious and vainely credulous They therefore that beleeve God and in God are freed from many errours and much needlesse feare 2. Disobedients to God are forward to obey the devill Secondly we may from hence observe that many persons that are most disobedient to Gods lawes by keeping whereof they might live are most forward to obey Satan and their owne lusts to their owne destruction For a man cannot serve both these contrary masters at once b Mat. 6.24 Such people like well to have God to be their friend but they care not for having him to be their master but would live as they list but when they forsake him they are unhappy in their choise when they can serve none other but to their owne ruine 3. Men to excuse themselves blame God Thirdly from hence we may see that many men are willing to doe evill but are loth to beare the burden of the blame thereof and therefore they turne it upon God and would make him a party with them against himself in breaking of his owne lawes Men that would not have their courses framed by the right rule of Gods truth labour to frame all reason and divinity by their owne crooked fancies and courses whereby they doe as farre as they can deturb and cast downe God from his throne and advance themselves unto the same by their perverting the order established by him and by making themselves gods to live by their owne wills as the supreme rule of all their actions Which shewes to us how needfull it is for us to labour for self-deniall and that wee may resignē our selves wholly to God to bee ordered and disposed wholly by him in all things as he pleases which is the onely meanes of our preservation from sin and damnation §. 6. Of conceited good by self-murder perverting the judgement The fourth ground of error in judgement is conceit of benefit The fourth and last ground of a mistaken understanding which causes or occasions self-murder is both the conceit of good that