of all and unto our selves most pernicious both in respect of our soules and bodies in this life and the life to come For the reason why men are so apt to commit this sin is because they so much slight it as though it were no sinne at all or if it bee any yet so small and veniall that it may well passe among humane frailties and infirmities by which also wee have little dammage seeing it is so common amongst men that the multitude of offenders taketh away the shame and maketh it seeme to bee no sinne and on the other side bringeth with it so much seeming profit and benefit that it doth much overballance all the evils which doe accompany it All which false conceits will easily vanish if we throughly weigh and consider the manifold and great evils of this sinne which I have formerly discovered and contrariwise the excellency of Trueth and the innumerable blessings that it bringeth to those who love and embrace it both in this world and the world to come Secondly let us consider that wee are alwayes §. 2. That wee consider that we are alwaies in Gods sight in Gods sight and presence who is omniscient and searcheth and knoweth the very secrets of our hearts and taketh notice when wee lye what distance and disagreement there is betweene our mindes and tongues and omnipotent also to punish those sinnes which is all-seeing eye discovereth and most true as well in his threatnings as promises so that hee will not let Lyars goe unpunished seeing hee hath threatned to destroy them Psal 5. 6. Apoc. 21. 8. and cast them into hell And therefore what will it advantage the Lyar though hee can so cunningly coine his lyes that they will for a time goe currant amongst men if his Lord and Soveraigne discovereth his falsity and treason What if hee can tell his tale so smoothly that the standers by will acquit him as innocent when as the Judge himselfe seeth his guilt and sinne So Augustine Thou Mentiri Deo potes fallere non potes c. In Euang. Johannis Tract 26 maist lye unto God but thou canst not deceive him For he knoweth what thou dost hee seeth thee inwardly inwardly hee beholdeth examineth and judgeth thee inwardly hee either damneth or crowneth thee Thirdly let us consider that Trueth rather than §. 3. The third meanes is to consider that Truth is the best and readiest way to attain our ends lyes is a better and more likely meanes to attaine unto our ends either of obtaining some benefit desired or of escaping some punishment feared For the events and issues of all things are in Gods hand hee it is that by his blessing conferreth benefits and in his just judgement inflicteth punishments and the hearts of all men are at his disposing either to like or dislike us to favour and further us for our good or to bee the instruments of his justice to doe us hurt For they are all but tooles in the hand of the great Worke-man by whom he effecteth what hee will according to his good pleasure Now then which is the likelier way for the compassing of our desires either in the obtaining of good or the avoiding of evill to please God by speaking Trueth or to offend him by telling lyes seeing all things are at his disposing Lastly let us meditate and consider that there will come a Day of Judgement when the secrets §. 4. The fourth meanes is to meditate on the Day of Judgement of all shall bee disclosed and whatsoever is done in the darke shall bee brought to light At which Day we shall all appeare before Christs Tribunall to give a reckoning of all that wee have done in 1 Cor. 6. 9. the flesh yea to give an account of every idle word Matth. 12. 36. as our Saviour speaketh and how much more of lyes whereby wee have dishonoured God and hurt both our neighbours and our selves Now if it were a great shame to have all our lyes written in our foreheads or if they bee not large enough to have them published in the market place and set up upon every poste and pillar in the street then what shame and confusion shall cover their faces when as they shall bee discovered at this dreadfull Day in the presence of Men and Angels and when as Sathan finding his marke and image upon Lyars shall owne them for his children and carry them with him to inherit their patrimony in that Lake which burneth with fire and brimstone And these are the meanes which respect meditation §. 5. Of the meanes which respect affection and action first that wee worke our hearts to a love of Truth the meanes which respect affection and action are divers the first is that we worke our hearts to the love of the Truth by considering the beauty excellency profit and necessity of it whereof it will come to passe that wee shall so esteeme it that wee will purchase it at the dearest prices but not sell it at any rate according to that of the wise man Buy the Trueth but sell it not And if we love Prov. 23. 23. and highly esteeme the Trueth then will wee hate lyes as opposite unto it and then will wee delight and rejoyce in it as in a precious jewell But if we will not receive it with love and delight God will leave us to the vanity of our mindes the corruption of vile affections and unto strong delusions 2 Thes 2. 11. both to make beleeve and delight in lyes The second meanes is that wee set a carefull watch over our lippes and tongue that wee doe §. 6. The second meanes is that we set a watch ouer our tongues not speake vainely nor rashly and unadvisedly For commonly in many words there are some untrueths and they that are rash in their words speake oftentimes they know not what and for want of consideration at unawares speake lyes in stead of Trueth and having once spoken them they will stand to what they have said for their credits sake and to tell a second lye to make the former seeme trueth And therefore if we would avoid Lying wee must with David looke carefully to our wayes and keepe our mouthes as with a bridle Psal 39. 1. that we sinne not with our tongues The third meanes is That we mortifie our carnall §. 7. The third meanes is that we mortifie our carnall lusts which are the causes of Lying and worldly Lusts which are the common Causes of Lying as first and principally carnall and inordinate feare whereby we feare men more than God and so become more carefull to please them that they may favour and reward us and to avoid their anger and displeasure that they may not hurt or punish us than to please God or avoid his wrath who hath all power in his hand to reward or punish us both in this life or the life to come And this moveth men to tell
Lyes because they looke onely to the present and not to eternity and chuse rather thereby to hazard their soules and bodies to everlasting destruction than to suffer temporary evils or to endanger themselves to present punishments And therefore if we would avoid Lying let us mortifie this carnall feare and consider for this end how much more fearefull it is to fall into the hands of the everliving God who is a consuming Fire than into the hands of mortall men who when they have done their worst can but punish or kill the body whereas he Matth. 10. 28. is able to cast body and soule into hell as our Saviour speaketh Secondly wee must if wee would avoid Lying mortifie our carnall love of the world and earthly things whereby wee are ordinarily tempted to the committing of this sin For who doth not see that they who set their hearts immoderately on riches are ready upon all occasions to lye and deceive that they may get and encrease their wealth and that they who dotingly affect honours make no scruple to supplant others by their Lyes and machievellian policies and deceits that they may raise themselves by their ruine The fourth meanes is that we bee more carefull §. 8. The fourth meanes is that we be more carefull to flie sinne than the punishment due unto it to flie sinne than the punishment due unto it and to avoid Lying than the evils of smart and shame that doe accompany it For what is the reason which moveth men so often to fall into this sin of Lying but because they make no conscience of sinne and when they have committed it and expect disgrace or punishment if it should come to light they use all their lying Arts to hide it facing and out-facing the Trueth that their faults may not be discovered nor they punished according to their demerits Whereas if men should labour in all things to keepe a good conscience they would not feare to have what they doe knowne unto any and if they walked in the wayes of innocency they would not feare to goe in the wayes of Trueth And therefore if we would not lye wee must carefully avoid the doing of any thing which being done if we be examined we are not willing to confesse or if through frailty and infirmity we have failed in our duty let us rather acknowledge our fault than hide and excuse it by a lye and chuse rather to undergoe the penalty and punishment than to free our selves from it by committing sinne To which end let us consider that sinne is the greatest evill as being an offence against an infinite Justice and Majestie provoking an infinite wrath and so deserving as the due merit of it an infinite and everlasting punishment And therefore what is all the shame and punishment of this world unto which wee shall indanger our selves by acknowledging our faults and confessing the Truth in comparison of Gods wrath which is a consuming fire and which by lying wee kindle against us and those everlasting Torments in the flames of Hell The fifth meanes is to use all our lawfull indeavour §. 9. The fifth meanes that we with all lawfull indeavour shun poverty for the preventing of poverty and to get such a sufficiency and competency of estate as that we may have wherewith to provide necessaries for our selves and those that belong unto us and to supply craving and pressing wants when they importune us For as the immoderate love and desire of riches and aboundance is a strong tentation to draw men to this sinne of lying as I have shewed so the feare of want and the sense and smart of penury is no lesse potent and powerfull to make them leave truth and to tell lyes when they seeme helpefull for the bettering of their estate And this wee finde by dayly experience for who seeth not that lyes above all sorts of men are most frequently used among them that are of poorest condition being necessitated hereunto by their pinching wants and penury And this the wise Agur well knew who having intreated God to remove Prov. 30. 8. farre from him vanity and lyes prayeth in the next place that he would give unto him neither poverty nor riches but feede him with foode convenient for him because as they who desire abundance commonly use lying that they may get and increase their wealth so they that live in want and misery doe as usually fall into this sinne of lying that they may supply their necessities and free themselves from the smart of penury In which respect those that will avoide this sinne of lying must doe their best to preserve themselves from extreame poverty and to this end use all good providence in getting and keeping a sufficient competency of estate and all industry diligence and painefulnesse in the duties of their particular callings craving Gods blessing upon their labours who onely giveth power to get riches and except he build the house they labour in Prov. 10. 22. Deut. 8. 18. Psal 127. 1. vaine that build it For as the Apostle speaketh of stealing so I may say the same of lying let him that lyed lye no more but rather let him labour working Eph. 4. 28. with his hands the thing that is good that hee may have to give to him that needeth seeing it is no lesse possible to avoide lying than stealing if through negligence in our callings wee fall into want and penury The last and chiefe meanes is fervent and effectuall §. 10. The sixth meanes is effectuall Prayer prayer unto God that he will fill our hearts with Grace and Trueth and with his Holy Spirit leade and guide us in it that hee will worke an high esteeme and love of Truth in us and an utter detestation of lying which is so dishonourable unto him and pernicious unto us and that hee will set a watch before our mouthes and keepe the doore of our Psal 141. 3. lippes that no lyes may issue out of them wherein we have David for our example who prayeth earnestly that God would remove from him the way of lying in which hee was apt to walke if he should Psal 119. 29. be left unto his naturall corruption as hee had divers times found by woefull experience and also the wise Agur who prayeth fervently that God would remove farre from him vanity and lyes the which it seemeth hee so much detested that hee could not indure the very neighbor-hood of them Neither is it inough that we use the former means unlesse God by his blessing give such vertue and power unto them that they may preserve us from this sinne nor with David that we resolve to looke to our wayes and keepe our mouthes with a bridle that wee offend not with our tongues for as the Apostle Iames telleth us The tongue is a fire and a world of iniquity Jam. 3. 6 8. and an unruly evill which no man can tame unlesse the Lord joyne with
tongue disagreeth from the minde and falsely speaketh contrary to that which the minde thinketh and therefore lyeth though that bee true which is spoken because it is conceived and thought to be otherwise but when a Man speaketh that which is a lye or untruth being perswaded that it is true hee lyeth not because his minde and tongue agree together and he thinketh what he speaketh but hee onely erreth and would not willingly deceive but that himselfe is first deceived so that such an one cannot be said to be a lyer seeing he mindeth affecteth and loveth Truth but is onely mistaken in what hee saith through ignorance rashnesse or incogitancie And of this judgement are the ancients So Bernard there is Est qui dubiè profert mendacium nec mentitur est qui veritatem quam nescit affirmat mentitur c. Bern. in Cant. Serm. 17 saith hee that telleth a lye doubtingly and lyeth not and there is that affirmeth the Truth which he knoweth not and lyeth for he indeed saith not that to be which is not but yet affirmeth that hee beleeveth that which in Truth he beleeveth and he saith Truth although that be not true which he beleeveth But the other when he saith that he is Non est judicandus mendax qui dicit falsum quod putat verum quiaquantum in se est non fallit sed fallitur c. Anselm in 2 Cor. 1. certaine of that whereof he is not certaine speakeeth not the Truth although that be true which he affirmeth So Saint Anselme Hee is not to bee judged a lyer who speaketh false thinking it true because as much as in him lieth hee deceiveth not but is deceived and contrariwise hee lyeth who speaketh Truth thinking it to be false For hee is not free from a lye who speaketh true things with his mouth not knowing them to be so but knowingly he lyeth in his will Saint Augustine also speaketh Quisquis autem hoc enunciat quod vel creditum animo vel opinatum tenet etiamsi falsum fit non mentitur c. August contra mendac ad Consentium cap. 3. much to the same purpose whosoever saith hee speaketh that which either hee beleeveth or thinketh in his minde doth not lye although it be false For this hee oweth to the declaring of this faith that hee uttereth by it that which is in his minde and so conceiveth it as he uttereth it But hee cannot bee said to be in no fault although hee doth not lye if hee either beleeveth things not to be beleeved or thinketh that he knoweth what he knoweth not although it be true for hee taketh things unknowne as knowne wherefore he lyeth who conceiveth one thing in his minde and uttereth another thing by his words or any other significations From whence hee that lyeth is said to have a double heart a double cogitation one is of the thing which hee knoweth or thinketh true and doth not speake it another is of the thing which hee speaketh in stead of this knowing or thinking it to bee false Whence it commeth to passe that a man may speake that which is false and yet not lye if he thinketh it to be so as he speaketh although it be not so and that he may speake that which is true and yet lye if thinking it to be false he speaketh it for a Truth although indeed it bee so as hee speaketh For a man is to bee esteemed a lyer or no lyer according to the meaning of his minde and not according to the Truth or falsenesse of the things themselves And therefore he that speaketh that which is false for true thinking it to be so may be said to erre or to be rash but he cannot bee truely said to bee a lyer because when he thus speaketh hee hath not a double heart nor desireth to deceive but is himselfe deceived And in another place speaking to the same purpose hee saith neither by any meanes is he free from a lye Enchirid. ad Laurentium cap. 17. who with his mouth speaketh the Truth not knowing it to be so because knowingly hee lyeth with his will c. and he is better who not knowing it speaketh false because he thinketh it true than he that willingly hath a minde to lye though hee speake Truth not knowing it to be true which hee speaketh c. The like also may be said of promises as P. Martyr affirmeth when as a man making 1 Sam. 21. 12. them purposeth to performe them but afterwards doth not either because hee cannot through impotency which hee foresaw not when he promised or will not upon some pressing necessity and much altering of the case from what it was As when an able man promiseth to pay a debt at such a day and in the meane time is disabled by some unexpected losse So when one promiseth to lend a summe of money to one whom he taketh to be an honest man and able to repay it at such a time and in the meane while it appeareth that hee is an unthrift who will consume it in drinking or gaming or a dishonest banke-rupt who will make no conscience to cheate him of it Or if a man promiseth to lend his sword to one that is sober and in his right minde and soone after he prove distracted and frantique who is likely therewith to kill himselfe or some other In these and such like cases a man lyeth not though hee doth not performe what he promised because his minde and tongue agreed when hee made it and the change is not from himselfe but from him unto whom hee promised because there is error personae an errour in the person he not being the same man which hee was or seemed to bee when the promise was made And thus the Apostle Paul is excused from a lye when as hee said that hee would goe into Spaine Rom. 15. 24 28. 2 Cor. 1. 15 17. whither he went not and promised the Corinthians that at such a time hee would come unto them but did not performe it In neither of which he lyed because when he made these promises he did not dissemble speaking one thing and thinking another but speaking then what he afterwards purposed to performe God did in the mean while otherwise dispose of him whose disposition overruleth all and is above all humane resolution The second thing considerable in the nature of §. 5. That a lye is alwayes voluntary a lye is that it is alwayes voluntary the will resisting the minde in a knowne Truth and injoyning the tongue to speake that which is contrary to it the heart also and affections desiring and delighting in it either absolutely or conditionally in respect of circumstances So that if the will imbraceth not an untruth as it is untrue but onely as through errour of the minde and judgement it is presented and commended unto it and if the heart affecteth it not nor delighteth in it as a lye but onely