but feare Feare least that God which bestowed them on thee for thy Humiliation will take them off againe for thy Pride and so when Riches come put not thy trust in them and if they increase set not thy heart vpon them that 's the second part the resolution or aduice giuen on the Case put If Riches increase set not thy heart vpon them Set not thy heart vpon them Pars secunda THe Rabbines and Hebrewes of old attributed the whole Regiment of man to the Heart and made that the Throne and chaire of the Reasonable Soule seating in it not onely the powers of vnderstanding Choice but of Will and Action too So did the anncient Grecians specially their Poets The Philosophers on the other side place them in the Braine and leaue onely the Affections to the Heart But Diuinity is more bountifull the Scripture giuing it the whole rationall power vnderstanding will iudgement consultation thought endeauour hence 't is that God so often scourge's the Hearts of men commanding vs to confesse honour loue and feare him with all our heart And therefore that part is sometimes taken for the reasonable Soule somtimes for the whole man Herevpon the Prophet's Lacerate corda vestra Rent your Hearts and not your garments and This people honour me with their lips but their Heart is farre from mee the Heart the Shrine and Temple where I am truely worship'd that Holocanst and Oblation only which smoke's from this Altar beare's the acceptable Odour all other Sacrifices are abominable the Heart is God's Iewell hee doth appropriate it to himselfe onely and wholly the hand or foote or eye are not forbidden to doe their office both in gathering lawfully and preseruing riches any member but the Heart may be thus employed that must not intermeddle for this were to whore after a false Numen and Burne Incense to a strange God 'T is not the meere possession or vse of riches that offend's but the Affectation And to this purpose Lumbard puts in his Obseruation with a non dicit Propheta the Prophet saye's not nolite habere but nolite cor opponere In locum wee are not forbidden riches but when wee haue them to set our Hearts vpon them so that the errour hang's not vpon those but vs not on Riches but that which Idoll's them our Heart And therefore Moses gaue a stong Caueat to the Israelites that when their Folcks and heards encreased and their Siluer and their Gold was multiplied they should beware leâ—st their hearts were lifted vp and so they should forget the Lord their God Deut. 8.13.14 Those sublunarie creatures raise not Distraction in vs so wee make them not our Centre if wee rest not in them if we can locke through them to the Giuer And doubtles wee may entertaine the vnrightous Mammon not onely as a Seruant but a Friend by no meanes as a Lord. There is Vertue in the true vse of it if there be a Qualification in our desires And therefore S. Augustine disputing of that impossible Analogie betweene Heauen and a Rich-man a Camell and the Eye of a Needle would haue a Rich man vnderstood there Cupidum rerum temporalium de talibus superbientem such a one as ioynes Auarice to Riches and Pride to Auarice in his 2. Booke of Euang. quaest Cap. 47. And this is the Burden of his Interpretation in three seuerall Tracts more non opes damno sed desideria in his 10. Sermon de tempore non Diuitiae sed Cupiditas accusatur in his 5. Sermon de verbis Apostoli in Diuitijs reprehendo cupiditatem non facultatem in his first Booke de Ciuit Dei Cap. 10. A moderate and timely care of necessary temporalls is not prohibited but the inordinate Appetite is cryed downe by the generall voyce and consent both of Fathers and Schoolemen if you require a Catalogue view more punctually Gregory de Valentia vpon Aquinas 2.2.3 Tome 4. disputation 5. question Hereupon Sen. de Beat. vit the Moralists and those of rigid and seuerer Brow would haue a wise man passe by RÃches in contempt Nonnè habeat sed nèsolicitus habeat not in regard of their propriety and possession but the difficulty and eagernesse of the pursuit which as hee can manage without Indulgence in their fruition so without disturbance in their losse In what store house may Fortune better looke vp her Tresure then there from whence shee may fetch it without the complaint of him that keepes it M. Cato when he praised Curius and Caruncanius and the voluntary and affected pouertie of that Age wherein it was a Capitall offence to haue some few plates of Siluer Sen. Epist 119. Possidebat ipse quadragies sestertiùm saith Seneca had his owne store cram'd with many a Sesterce A wise man as hee will not make Riches the Obiect of his pursuite so not of his refusall non amat Diuitias sed mauult non in animam illam gazam sed in domum recipit nec respuit possessas Diuitias sed contemnit 't is Seneca's againe to his Iunius Gallio hee weigh's them so euenly betweene Desire and Scorne that hee doth neither vnder-valew nor indulge them hee make's not his minde their Magazine but his House in which he doth not locke but lodge them he loue 's them not properly but by way of comparison not as they are riches but as they are aloofe from Pouerty Yes Stoicke Sen. de Beat vit cap. 7. as they are riches they may not onely be temperately lou'd and desir'd but also prayed for prayed for as our dayly bread not absolutely as for our spirituall improuement but by way of restriction first humbly with submission to the will of God then conditionally so they proue aduantagious either to our ciuill or morall good But here wee must warily steeâ—re betweene a vigilant prouidence and a fretting solicitude a discreete and honest care and that which is anxious and intemperate for if they are pursued either with vnlawfull or vnbrideled desire they leade our Reason captiue Blindfold our Intellectuals startle and disturbe our sublimated and better thoughts weane our Cogitations from Sacred proiect to matters of Secular employment steale from vs the exercise of spirituall duties and so damp and dead all the faculties of the Inward man that in way of Conscience or Religion we are benum'd meerely Naball himselfe not so stony and churlish not halfe so supine and stupified as we And therefore your earthly Sensualists haue this wofull brand set vpon them by the Spirit of God They are men of this world they haue their portion in this life onely Psal 17.14 Riches haue nothing substantiall in them that may allure vs but our custome of admiring them Non quia concupiscenda sunt Sen Ep. 119. laudentur sed quià concupiscuntur laudata sunt They are not praised because they are to be desired but they are desired because they are praysed To cut out our desires by weake presidents
Diamonds nay all the Treasure the wombe of the Earth or bowels of the great Deepe haue swallowed yet euen in these flouds hee thirsteth in this surset he is hungry in these Riches poore O the Inexhaustednesse of Humane Appetite Quod naturae satìs est Homini nò est Sen Epist 119. Nature hath not in her vast store-house wherewith to supply our bottomlesse Desires those Desires I meane which attend our Choice For as they depend on the Imaginations of men which are fertile and euer blooming as this Power represent's the formes and Images of infinite Obiects so our desires multiply strangely to pursue all those things the Imagination hath propounded insomuch that we prosecute them oftentimes without Rule or Measure and there is sooner an end of vs then of our Couetousnes I know there are Desires Innocent enough if they had their Bounds But their Excesse and Restlesnesse doth blemish their pursuite the Chrysolite the Berill and the Saphire and all the sparkling and shelly Maiestie of Pearle and Stone are the Obiects of a harmelesse delight if we could vse them moderately But we suffer our selues to be transported with such violent Affections and we seeke them with such enraged heate that 't is rather Madnesse then Desire Nay of all humane Aspirations there are none so lawlesse and Exorbitant as those which wander after Riches For whereas the Rest aime only at the Ioy and Content which may arriue them by the possession of their Obiects and so lull and slumber like two loude and steepe Currents which meeting in a Flat kisse are silent Those of Riches grow more violent by Abundance like the flame of a great fire which increaseth by casting wood into it There can be no true Riches without Content and there can be no true content where there is still a Desire of riches will you haue the Reason the Moralist giue 's it Sen. Epist 112. but not home Plùs incipit habere posse qui plùs habet Hee that hath much begin's to haue a possibilitie to haue more and thus as our Heapes are inlarged so are our Affections and They once Inordinate the Heart is instantly rent asunder with the whitle-winds and distempers of various lusts sometimes it hunt 's for Treasure sometimes for Honours and Preferment and hauing gotten the possession of these still fight 's against her owne Satisfaction by desiring more Insomuch that if we could empty the Westerne Parts of Gold and the East of all her Spices the Land of her vndig'd and the Sea of her shipwrack't store if we could lay on our Masse to the very Starres yet Desire is as woman and the Graue as Death and Hell which will not bee satisfied Such are the restlesse wandrings of our Affections set once on Temporalls that They finde neither Banke nor Bottome there is no rest to man's Soule but in God's Eternall Rest for there being no proportion betweene Spirits and Bodies 't is impossible that the infinite desires of the Soule should be confin'd to Creatures heere below as Things too Languishing and Transitorie for such Diuine Substances to reside in with full satisfaction or finall Rest The heart of man not fixt in the contemplation of Eternitie is alwayes erraticke and vnstable Et omni volubilitate volubilius saith Augustine more voluble then volubilitie it selfe It trauel's from one Obiect to another seeking rest where there is none but in those fraile and fleeting Temporals in which our Affections are as 't were shackled and let bound It shall neuer find any Lasting and true Content For our Soule is of that vast comprehensiuenesse and our Desire of that wilde Latitude and Extent that no Finite Excellencie or Created Comfort can euer fill it but it is still tortur'd on the Racke of restlesse Discontent and Selfe-vexation vntill it fasten vpon an Obiect infinite both in Endlesnesse and Perfection only admit it to the Face of God by Beatificall Vision and so consequently to those Riuers of pleasure and fulnes of Ioy flowing thence and then presently and neuer till then It 's infinite desire expire's in the Bosome of God and lie's downe softly Bolt walke with God pag. 125. with sweetest peace and full contentment in the embracements of euerlasting Blisse And now O Earth Earth Earth heare the Word of the Lord. Thou whose Bodie and Soule and Desires are lumpish Earth meerely thrice Earth Raise thine Affections from this Dull Element where they now grouell and looke vp to the Hils from whence thy saluation commeth why do they flutter heere about corruptible Glories Why doe they stoope to false and vaine Comforts such as are not only open to Casualtie but to Danger Riches are to Both to Both in a triple way First in their Acquisition Secondly Possession Thirdly Depriuation In their Acquisition first As the Partridge sitteth on egges and hatcheth them not so He that getteth Riches and not by right shall leaue them in the midst of his Age and at his End bee a foole Ier. 17.11 Next in their Possession where Moth and rust doth corrupt them and where Theeues breake through and steale Math. 6.9 Lastly in respect of their Depriuation or Losse He hath swallowed downe Riches and Hee shall vomit them vp againe God shall cast them out of his Belly the Increase of his house shall depart and his goods shall flow away in the day of his wrath Iob 20.15 28. Loe how the Hand of Iustice houers heere and with a Double Blow strike's through the very Ioynts and marrow of the Worldling euen to the sundring and dissipation both of his Posteritie and Fortunes His goods shall flow away and the Increase of his house shall depart shall depart whither to the Graue with whom two lamentable Companions The Foole and the Beast that perisheth So saith the Singer of Israel in his 49. Psalme thrice in that one Psalme at the sixth verse He trust's in his wealth and glorie 's in the multitude of his Riches and at the tenth Verse He is a foole and brutish and leaueth his goods to others O vaine Insolence O transitorie height what After all those ouerflowings and swarmes of Treasure must he leaue his Substance to Others Yea to others perchance neither of his Tribe nor Countrey Please you to looke vpon him at the eleuenth Verse his very heart is transparent and you may discouer his inward thoughts Hee conceiue's his house shall continue for euer and his Dwelling-place to all generations and therefore cals his Lands after his owne Name yet view him againe at the fourteenth Verse He is a Beast a silly one a sheepe laid in the graue Death shall feed vpon him and the vpright shall haue Dominion ouer him in the morning and his strength shall consume in the pit from his Dwelling-place Once more He is twice in that Psalme stil'd A Man of Honour but 't is sauc'd with a Neuer thelesse He abideth not at the twelfth Verse and He vnderstandeth not at the
that publisheth saluation that saith vnto Sion Thy God raigneth Esay 52.7 Those were said to haue beautiful feete amongst the Hebrewes whose Messages were shod with loy Estius in Rom. cap. 10. vers 15. who spake comfort to the people and not Terror Now what such Ioy and Comfort to the Children of Sion as the glad tydings of good things those excellent good things Preaching of Peace Publishing of Saluation How beautifull vpon the Mountains are the feete of him that doth it Aug. lib. 32. contra Faust c. 10. Quà m speciosipedes as Augustine reades it how Precious or Quà m tempestiui Maturi as Tertullian how Mature and timely Tertul. lib. 5. contra Marcionem cap. 2. 5. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 saies the Septuagint Quà m pulchri quà m decori how Faire and Comely which some of the Ancients and with them Leo Castrensis in Esay 52.7 S. Ierome haue read 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 cutting off the three latter vowels which they expound sicut Hora that is as they say sicut tempus opportunum or tempus vernum as the Spring time when all things florish so that making the Text mutilated and imperfect they would haue the words runne thus Schol. Roman sequens septuagint Sicut hora super montes fic Pedes Euangelizantis Pacem As the Spring vpon the mountaines so are the feete of him that preacheth peace where all things are greene and fragrant when we are led into fresh and sweet and pleasing pastures the pastures of the Spirit the Staffe and Rod of the Lord to comfort vs his Peace and his Saluation whereby we may walke cheerefully in the paths of Righteousnes and so following the great Shepheard of our Soules who will feede vs as his chosen flocke wee shall graze at length vpon the Mountaines the euer-springing mountaines the Mountaines of Israel And are the feete of him that preacheth peace that publisheth saluation so beautifull beautifull on the mountaines too what shall we thinke then of the feete of those the Blacke feete of those who like the possess'd man in the Gospell still keepe among the Tombes tread nothing but destruction Marke 5.2 and the graue and as if they still walk'd in the vale of darkenesse and the shadow of death beate nothing but Hell vnto their Auditors which by continuall thundring of Iudgements so shake the foundations of a weake-built faith that they sometimes destroy the Temple they should build vp and in this harsh and austere manner of proceeding they oftentimes exceed their Commission when pressing too farre the rigour of the Law they trench on the liberty of the Gospell as the Disciples did Luke 9.55 who requiring fire from heauen to consume the Samaritans 2. King 1.10 they text it with the seuerity of Eliah As Eliah did vnto the Moabites But the Lord of mercy is so farre from approuing this fiery zeale that Hee not onely rebukes it but the spirit that suggested it You know not of what spirit yee are for the Sanne of Man is not come to destroy mens liues but to saue them Luk. 9.56 And doubtlesse the destroying spirit is not the right Spirit The Holy Ghost you know appeared in the forme of a Doue and as the Doue is without gall so should the Organ of the Spirit be the Preacher Detrahendum est aliquid seueritati Aug. ad Bonifac. de Cor. Donat. saith Augustine to Boniface vt maioribus malis sanandis charitas sincera subueniat Who would not taxe it in a Iudge as a crime and custome too vniust to be mou'd to choller against a Delinquent or Malefactor when charity should guide him and not passion He doubles the offence that doth both exaggerate and punish it That Diuine labours too preposterously the reformation of his hearer that chides bitterly when he should but admonish and admonish Isid lib 3. de summo bono cap. 2. when he should Beseech Qui veracitèr fraternam vult corripere infirmitatem talemse praestare fraternae studeat vtilitati vt quem corripere cupit humïli corde admoneat saith Isidore Sweet and mild perswasions and the admonitions of an humble heart worke deeper in the affections of men then all the batteries of virulence and Inuection Oyle you know will sinke into a solid and stiffe matter when a dry and harder substance lyes without and can neither pierce nor soften it That which cannot be compa'st by the smoother insinuations of Aduice and Reason shall neuer be done by force or if it bee 't is not without a tang of basenesse There is Some-thing that is seruile in Rigour and Constraint Char. lib. 3. and takes off from the Prerogatiue and freedome of humane will The Stoick tells vs Facilius ducitur quà m trahitur Seneca there is a kinde of generousnesse in the minde of man and is more easily led then drawne Impulsion is the childe of Tyranny and holds neither with the lawes of Nature nor of Grace Deus non necessïtat sed facilïtat God doth not necessitate or if necessitate not compell man to particular actions but supples and faciles him to his Commands And doubtlesse hee that would captiuate the affections of his hearers and smooth and make passable what he labours to persawde in the hearts of others must so modifie and temper his discourse that it proue not bitter or distastfull like a skilfull Apothecary who to make his Confections more palatesome and yet more operatiue qualifies the malignity of Symples by preparing them makes poyson not only medicinable but delightfull and so both cures and pleases I write not these things saith Saint Paul to his Corinthians to shame you 1. Cor. 4.14 but as my beloned sonnes I warne you He will not shame them and at roughest He will but warne them that as Sonnes too as beloued Sonnes And if this will not suffice he will beseech them also 1. Cor. 4.16 I beseech you bee followers of me as I am of Christ in the 16. verse of the same chapter Calmer admonitions are for the most part seasonable when reproofes ouer-rough and blustring not onely not conforme the hearer but exasperate him and therefore what our Apostle aduis'd the natural parents I may without preiudice the spirituall Parentes nè prouocetis ad iracundiam filios vestros nè despondeant animum Parents prouoke not your children to anger lest they be discouraged Coloss 3. For certainely words are the image of the soule and if they flow from a gentle and meeke minde they produce the like effects Gentlenes and Meekenes But from a swelling and tempestuous spirit they recoyle as a peece that 's ouer-charg'd and start backe as a broken Bowe They prouoke nay they discourage and find no better entertaīnement then the stroakes of a hammer vpon an anuile which the more violently they are laid on the more violently it rebounds and therefore Saint Paul is so farre from obiurgation Philem. 7.8 or menacing that