world and enamour of himselfe is to apply their mindes to disenamour themselves of the world not accepting of its Favours nor its Cherishments nor its flatteries but driving them away from himselfe flying them and abominating them Not pretending for all this that God being moved by this their exercise should enamour them more of himselfe but that the favours of God finding them dispoiled deprived of the favours of the world will become more effectuall in them will more penetrate and transforme them more into God and so they shall more speedily and intirely obtaine and get the Love of God That this is true every man will easily understand that shall consider how that he that hath expelled and altogether abandoned the familiarity and conversation of a base and vulgar Person comes much more easily to enamour himselfe of a Personage exceedingly qualified in worth Having passed through these considerations and understood these secrets and others that are annext unto them and that doe depend on them looking towards the Holy Scripture I have known that these things are very conformable to that which I have read therein for as much as Solomon in his Canticles doth celebrate this Enamourment between God and the soule and that the departing from God is called Adultery when the soule leaves God and applies it selfe to the World And it seemes to me that our Lord and Saviour Iesus Christ leaving one that would have followed him and calling another that alleaged excuse or delay it was nothing else then to refuse the love of one and to enamour the other This selfe same as I conceive he meant to let his Apostles understand when he said unto them you have not chosen me but I have chosen you as if he should have said you have not enamoured your selves of mee but I have enamoured you This very selfe same as I understand S. Iohn meant to say when he said that to become the sons of God must proceed not from the will of man nor from mans spirit but by the will of God and by the Holy Spirit in such sort that in this present life it appertaines to a man to apply himselfe to disenamour himselfe of the world and to occupy himselfe in praying God that he would enamour him of himselfe to this effect giving unto him his holy Spirit which is obtained by believing in Christ our Lord. CONSID. XXIV That those Persons who are governed by the holy Spirit in their serving of God pretend to increase in the love of God GOd generally loves all men and he loves with particular love all those for whom he hath executed the rigour of his Iustice on his only begotten Sonne Iesus Christ our Lord. Men generally hate God and they hate him with particular hatred who are guilty to have added other depravations to their naturall depravation The love which God beares men proceeds from the great things which he hath done for them in such sort that with reason he loves them more to whom justification by Christ doth appertaine And mans hatred towards God proceeds from the depravation wherewith he offends him for as it is said He that offends pardons not in such sort that with reason they most haâ—…e God that have most offended him According to reason it seemes that God being most perfect he ought to be most soveraignly beloved of man and that man being most highly imperfect ought to be most highly hated of God Likewise because man hath received many good things from the Liberality of God he oughtmuch to love God and God having received from man nothing but offences and injuries he ought to be hated of God But on the other side so great force hath the obligation which God hath to loue man for the great matters that he hath done and doth for him that however he know the height of imperfection to be in him that he is offended by him he doth not leaue to loue him it comming so to passe on Gods behalfe in this case with men as it comes to passe to a good father with a disobedient and vitious son who is more drawn by the force of that which he hath done for his son to loue him then by the disobedience and depravation of his son to hate him And likewise on the other side the hatred and enmity which a man hath to God through his naturall depravation and through the offences that he hath added to this depravation enforce so much that although man know the height of perfection in him and although he finde feel himselfe benefitted of God not only he cannot bring himselfe to loue God but also hee cannot leaue to hate him That betiding a man in this case with God that betides to a vitious and malignant son with a good father with whom his villany and malignity hath more force to hate his father then the knowledge of his fathers goodnesse and of the great obligation which he hath to his father to make him loue him Whereupon I understand that God willing to be loved of man as a good father would be loved of his sonne knowing that the impediment of this loue is that which is spoken of that he who offends pardons not executed the rigour of his justice on his own son as if a good father should say to a disobedient son See I haue chastised ' thy brother for thy disobedience and offences fince then I haue taken away the impediment loue thou me as I louethee Hence I understand that the intent which God had executing the rigour of his justice on Christ was not lesâ—…e to secure me then to satisfie himselfe Further I understand that a man who giues credit to this justice executed on Christ accepting it and making it his own doth altogether loose the hatred which he beares to God and begins to loue God even as the son who belieues that his father hath chastised his brother for that which hee had disobeyed in leaues to hate his father and begins to loue him And now I understand that as the son desiring not that his father should loue him for hee already knowes that he loues him nor much lesse that he should loue him more for he knowes that he loues him much but he himselfe desiring greatly to loue his Father applies himselfe with all his force to serue him in every thing which hee thinks to be pleasing unto him puts himselfe to great hazards for him and deprives himselfe of all his pleasures and all his satisfactions for him considering that being loved by his Father and likewise doing great things for his Father he shall come to loue his Father greatly Even so neither more nor lesse the man that is already justifi'd desiring not that God should loue him for hee knowes already that God loues him nor that he should loue him more for he knows that he loues him much but he himselfe desiring to loue God much applies himself with all his force to serve God knowing that
they should suffer when they suffer because they bee Saints just men he doth not consent that they should suffer for those things which indifferently be fall to men in this present life From all this which is spoken it may be gathered that a Christian person when he is evill entreated for his piety and justice rejoycing that in it and by it the name of God is illustrated he ought to remit himselfe wholly and altogether to God reducing his minde to content it selfe of that which God shall ordain and dispose of him and when he is evill entreated as a person of the world he ought to believe and hold for certain that God will draw him out of that affliction and out of that trouble with much satisfaction and his own content and hee ought to reduce his minde to content himselfe of that which God will doe And this truly is a Christian disposition of the soule which is only found in them that stand incorporated in Iesus Christ our Lord. CONSID. XVI That the promises of God belong to them who belieue them CHristian piety requires that a Christian man should hold certainly and firmly that God will maintaine him in this present life with his grace and in his grace that in the other life he will giue him immortality and glory Humane wisdome presuming or pretending piety perswades him that hee ought to hold for certain that God will deal thus with him but on condition that hee haue Faith Hope and Charity which are the gifts of God that giue life and being to a Christian. And in the mean while humane wisdome understands not that a man shall so far enjoy these three Graces as he shall abide certainly and firmly grounded in those other two things wherein Christian piety requires that a Christian man should abide firm and assure himselfe in For in these two things doth Faith and Hope consist from which Charity doth arise and proceed Whence it is well gathered that it belongs to a Christian to shut his eares to humane wisdome and to open them to the Promises of the holy spirit and so to attend to certifie himselfe and found himselfe in those two first things And as I understand the matter he shall then obtain and possesse these three Christian gifts of Faith Hope and Charity when he shall certainly and firmly belieue that God will maintain him in this present life with his grace and in his grace and that in the other life he will give him immortality and glory I know will the pious Christian say that God calls not unto him but those whom he hath first known and predestinate I know also that those whom he calls them hee iustifies and them he glorifies And I know certainly that he hath called me and thereby I assure my selfe that hee hath known and predestinated me and that he hath justified me and that he will glorifie me In this let him stand in this let him confirm himselfe without doubting in any manner For the promises of God are fulfilled with them That this is true may be proved by many authorities of holy Scripture But better it will be to say in this māner That the truth of this matter is not believed except it be experimented and the experience appertaines only to them that stand incorporated in Iesus Christ our Lord. CONSID. XVII In what manner a Man ought to resolue himself touching the world and touching himself that he may become a true Christian. ALL the Christian businesse consists in trusting believing and loving for all this is piety justice and holinesse for as much as a man having confidence gets piety believing gets justice and loving holinesse That a man may trust belieue and love it is necessary to apprehend to understand and know To apprehend in what thing he ought to haue confidence To understand in what it is cōvenient to believe And to know that which ought to be loved Of this wisdome cognition and intelligence a man is uncapable partly for the depravation that is naturall to him by reason of Originall sin and partly by reason of that which is acquired by evill custome worse exercises The Wise man meant this when he said That wisdome entreth not into a minde that is evill enclined nor abideth in a body subject unto sin Whereupon I understand that a man which desireth to trust belieue and loue that he may obtain piety justice and holinesse to such a one it appertaines to bee wise to know and to understand dispoilng his minde of all evill inclinations and estranging his body from all evill exercises and from every evill custome Together with this I understand that to the intent a man may dispoile his mind of every evill inclination it is meeter that a man should couragiously and generously resolve himselfe touching the world turning his back to all the honour thereof to all the glory thereof and to all the estimation thereof not pretending unto it not procuring it nor willing it in any thing nor in any manner putting an end to all kinds of ambition and self esteem Together with this I understand that to the intent a man may estrange his body from all evill exercise and from all evill custome it is meet that a man should valorously resolve touching things which concern himselfe renouncing in good earnest all those things from which there doth come or may come any satisfaction or any corporall content putting an end to all estranging himselfe from it and abhorring it For doing in this manner he shall purifie his soule and his body and he shall make himselfe able God giving unto him that wisdome understanding and knowledge which he is capable of And so doing he shall come to obtain Confidence Faith and Loue and shall be Pious Iust and Holy and consequently he shall become a true Christian. Vnto this resolution I understand that Iesus Christ our Lord inviteth every one of us saying Hee that will come after me c. And as I understand it then a man is to be said to take his crosse upon him when willingly he suffers the martyrdome with which the men of the world will martyrize him whether it be of the body or of the soule That of the body the true Christians of the Primitiue Church did suffer when those which were open enemies of God and of Christ took away their lives because they believed in Christ That of the minde hath been suffered and is daily to be suffered by true Christians that haue followed the steps of the Ancient when they who are secret enemies of God of Christ doe despise them esteem them for vile and for nobody deprive them of honour and fame And as I understand it this is the most cruell and most terrible and most unsupportable martyrdome of all And a man that stands constant in this kind of martyrdome may well hold himselfe for a true martyr of Christ. Together with this I understand that to the resolutions
that Christ counselling his to say Thy will be done does counâ—…ell them to haue this desire of which I haue spoken and that they should alwaies sigh â—…n this mâ—…nner as if he should haue said Craue of God that he would make you exempt from that ordinary Regiment and government and make you free from the government of his Mediate Will that he set you in that of his Immediate Will in such sort that like as the heavenly armies are immediatly governed of God so you also that are on earth may bee immediatly governed of God! Whence I gather that when a pious person shall feele himselfe troubled and molested in his body or in his minde it shall be well that attributing that trouble and molestation to the subjection of that will of God which is mediate he should feele in himselfe the evill of Adam and that desiring and sighing to feele the good of Christ he should say to God Thy will be done Free me Lord from this thy mediate and generall will set me in thy immediate and particular will deprive me of the feeling of evill of the disobedience of Adam and set me in the feeling of good of the obedience of Christ They who say these words Thy will be done and understand it not in this manner if they shall well examine their mindes I am assured they shall find they say because they cannot choose for if so be they could cause that God should doe that which they would they would not easily remit themselves to the Will of God but when they cannot put in execution their own wills they say unto God Thy will be done making a vertue of necessity They who say unto God Thy will be done pretending as is said to bee subject to the Will of God that is Immediate they say it with all their minde they say it with the holy Spirit and they say it in that sense which Iesus Christ our Saviour intended it should be said I doe not understand that in that Will of God which I call Mediate there is not a particular providence of God but I understand that that providence is generall to many persons such as is to raine the sun shine c. of which things many enjoy their parts And the Immediate Will I understand it is a more particular and more favourable providence with them who are elected such as it was in giving us Christ and such as are other favours which are done more to one then to another of which sometimes some wicked like wise haue their part although that bee not Gods principâ—…l intent so as when he staid the Sun through Ioshuah's prayers of that favour many wicked had their part as man may say by chance the people of God enjoying it much otherwise because they felt the favour of God In this selfesame manner a man may discourse through all outward favours which God doth unto his of which others likewise that are not his doe alwaies enjoy some part but they doe not know that more particular and more favourable providence and Will of God and so as much as concernes them they are things that come by chance I resolue therefore my selfe in this that saying the Mediate Will of God I understand that particular providence of God which is with naturall order in which alwaies God doth concurre and that saying the Immediate Will of God I understand the more particular and favourable providence of God by which the naturall order is altred And to this I attribute all that which God works in his and for his And I call them his who are incorporated with Iesus Christ our Lord CONSID. XLI That God will that Pious Persons should know that all things are to come from him and that they should pretend to haue them all of him COnsidering that Iesus Christ our Lord certifies every pious person that hee shall obtain from his eternall Father all that which with confidence he shall demand in Prayer and experimenting in my selfe and finding the selfesame experience in other persons addicted unto piety that sometimes I doe lesse fully obtain that which I demand when to my seeming I haue most confidence in prayer And that sometimes I doe obtain that which I demand when to my seeming I haue lesse confidence in prayer I suppose that God so demands of a man confidence in his prayers as he demands of him all his loue God well knows that a man cannot Loue him with all his heart and he well knows that he cannot haue confidence in prayer for both the one and the other is contrary to his naturall inclination and it is necessary that both the one and the other should come from him And hee requires it of man because man should know himselfe and knowing himselfe should humble himselfe and remit himselfe to the mercy of God and should not pretend to be able to doe any thing of himselfe And because hee knowes that a mans minde is most arrogant he is sometimes the more deafe to a mans petition when it seems to a man himselfe to haue greatest confidence in his praier This God doth to the intent that a man should not attribute that to his own confidence which hee obtaines by prayer and to the intent that hee should understand the difference between that confidence which is properly his own and that which comes from God And to the intenâ—…â—…e migâ—… 〈◊〉 â—…hat 〈◊〉 â—…akes â—…nd not of him and that hee loves him sometimes hee gives him that which he demands when to his owne seeming hee hath least confidence other times he gives it him without demanding only upon desiring and sometimes he gives him that which he would it may be desire without any desiring at all Whereupon I understand that God would have from a man that hee should apply his minde to give all his love unto him to have confidence only in him to hope from him all whatever appertaines to this present life or to the future With this application and with this propension I understand that a man obtaines two principall things the one that God winkes at his coldnesse in love his weakenesse in confidence and his impatience in hope and the other that God himselfe by litle and litle goes inflaming him in loue fortifying him in confidence animating him in hope and so he comes to fulfill that which Iesus Christ our Lord promised CONSID. XLII In what sort a pious person ought to governe himselfe in the state of prosperity and in inward adversity IT comes to passe that a pious person finding himselfe in a dry and discontented estate findes himselfe likewise without confidence and as it were an Infidell And it comes to passe that the selfe same finding himselfe in another estate with satisfaction and with joy and content findes himselfe together therewith full of confidence and full of faith whereupon the enemy of mankinde willing to disturbe his felicity comes to perswade him that he trusteth and believeth for
Loue be great the Union is great And if the Loue be litle the Vnion is litle Some men there are who loue God by relation but they remain not united with God because they first loved themselves before God loving God for themselves There are other men who loue God because God himselfe willing to be loved of them hath let himselfe be known and seen by them they stand united with God because they first loue God before themselves loving themselves for God In them as I understand so great is the union which they haue with God as is the loue which they haue to God And so much is the Loue which they haue to God as is the knowledge which they haue of God If the knowledge be perfect and entire the loue is perfect and entire and the union is perfect and entire and on the contrary in such manner that there is as much perfection or imperfection in the union as there is perfection or imperfection in the Loue and knowledge The selfe same is between loue and knowledge Whereby I understand that because the knowledge which men haue of God in this life is imperfect through the power of our flesh the loue also which they haue to God is imperfect and the union is imperfect which we haue with God And I understand also that because our flesh in life everlasting shall not be base but glorious our knowledge shall be perfect our loue shall be perfect and our union shall be perfect In the mean while I understand that a pious person who by the liberality of God begins to know God to loue God and to stand united with God ought to pretend to grow in the knowledge in the loue and in the union not iudging himselfe deprived of the knowledge nor of the loue nor of the union with God whilst hee findes in himselfe any part of true knowledge any part of loue any part of union The true and efficacious knowledge of God as I haue otherwhere said as I understand consists in certain sentiments and in certain knowledges of the proper being of God which pious persons doe obtain some more some lesse some with greater evidence some with lesse according to the will of God which causeth the sentiments and the knowledges of which they can only give testimony who have tasted them nay they only understand this Language it being to all others altogether unintelligible It being most true which Saint Paul saith that a man without the spirit of God doth not understand the things that are of the spirit of God The true and efficacious Love of God I understand consists in an affection from the very bowels which a man beares to God and to all those things that are Gods desiring that he should be known loued and prized in the world in such manner as is iust To the intent that hee should be known lou'd and priz'd with this bowelly affection I understand Christ pretended that his Christians should say that first part of Our Father which all appertaines to the glory of God From this bowelly affection I understand it proceeds that a man loues God aboue all things loving every thing for God the creatures in generall in as much as they are the creatures of God all all men in as much as they be the creatures of God and in as much as God will that our neighbour should be loved and our neighbour is every man of what bloud soever state or condition and men regenerated by the holy spirit as the creatures of God as neighbours and principally in as much as in them is seen and known the image likenesse of God in such sort as wee haue otherwise declared Amongst the creatures the man that loues God loues them most who doe most illustrate the glory of God And amongst men whom he louâ—… as neighbours hee loveth them most whom he sees least depraved and least impious And I say lesse understanding that in all men who are not regenerated by the holy spirit there is found depravation and impiety Amongst regenerated men hee who loues God for the loue of God loues them most whom he sees and knowes to bee most conformable to the image and similitude of God and in whom hee sees this image more proper and more naturall And a man who loues God loues himselfe as the creature of God as a neighbour and in as much as he sees the similitude and image of God reformed in himselfe not procuring nor willing in any other manner to be loved for himselfe but rather despising and abhorring the loue that men beare him when they doe not loue him for the loue of God In this manner I understand that a man who loues god loues himselfe for the loue of God and loues all things for the loue of God And farther I understand that a man who loues himselfe aboue all things loues god for respect of himselfe and this man pretends his own utility in the loue of god he loues in respect of himselfe the creatures loving them more from whom he expects more profit He loues all men in respect of himselfe loving them most which are most profitable and most necessary And hee loues in respect of himselfe the men whom he thinks to haue obtained the Christian regeneration loving them most by meanes of whom he pretends to bee able to get piety iustice and sanctity And resolutely he pretends procures to be loved for himselfe and to be loved about all things which as I haue at other times said is naturall to a man in as much as hee pretends to get the image which belongs not to him And here I understand that a man who reduceth himselfe to a desire of not being beloved but for the loue of god finding molestation in the loue which is borne towards him for himselfe may iudge to haue made great profit in the knowledge of god in the loue of god and in the union of god Of this sort quality as I understand is the loue which men haue who are united with god which as I understand is in part in a man in this present life and shall be entire in life everlasting And he who shall feel any thing of this part hath great reason to liue ioyfull and content holding that part as an earnest of his increase and of his perfection in life everlasting The true and efficacious Vnion between God and man consists in this that S. Iohn saith that hee who loues God dwells in God and God dwels in him Gods inhabitancy in a man may well be felt as it is in truth felt but to them who feel it not it cannot be made to be understood The selfe same may as it were be said of mans inhabitancy in God And I say as it were because it seems that it may be made to be understood saying that hee who loving God stands united with God abides in God alwaies remembring God even like as he who loving a Creature stand
united with it abides in it alwaies remembring himselfe of it It is very true that not thus neither is the dwelling of man in god understood For this union I understand Christ our Lord prayed unto his eternall and heavenly Father demanding of him that they who were to belieue in him should be one self thing with him and with the Father himselfe should be one selfe same thing between themselves From this divine union it proceeds that a man altogether and in all things remits himselfe to the will of God dispoyling himselfe of his own proper will and so brings himselfe to will that which God wills and in that manner which God wills to loue that which God loues and in that manner which God loues it and consequently not to will that which God wills not and not to loue that which God loues not And the man that is thus remitted and thus reduced may hold for certain that hee stands united with God and that he dwells in God and God in him And he shall understand that he so far stands united with God as far as he stands thus remitted thus reduced If he stand much the union is much if litle the union is litle It proceeds also from this divine Vnion that a man likes and dislikes all those things which those persons like and dislike who stand in the selfe same Vnion in such manner that there is between them a very great conformity in wills and so great is the conformity which is between them as the Vnion is great which they haue with God and between themselues This conformity is likewise a good countersigne with which a man may certifie himselfe whether he stand united with God and how much of this union he hath gotten Having understood how the Vnion between God and man is made by Loue and that Loue growes from that knowledge which a man hath of God And having likewise understood in what the Union and the Loue and the Knowledge doe consist I come to resolve my selfe in this that to that person which attends unto piety it belongs to attend to obtain the knowledge of God and with the knowledge the loue and with the Loue the Vnion Pretending to obtain all this by the liberality of God and exercising himselfe in knowing himselfe I would say the frayle and miserable being of man and to disenamour himselfe of himselfe not willing to be loved for himself and procuring to be loved for God and in disuniting him selfe from himselfe not willing to haue things according to his own fantasie and will but according as God shall offer them to him either by himself or by means of men or by meanes of the creatures And in this manner shall he obtain the perfect knowledge of God the perfect loue of God and the perfect Vnion with God But not now in this present life for the flesh except it be raised up is not a fitting subject for this but in life everlasting where the flesh being raised up shall be an able subject to bee as it shall be like unto the glorious flesh with which Christ Iesus our Lord arose CONSID. LXXIV That it beâ—…ides to pious persons in spirituall things as it befalls in outward things to him who having been blind begins to see TO the person that begins to understand spirituall and divine things and that begins to know them I understand that befals which befalls those persons who having by some accident lost the sight of their eyes begin to recover it I would say that as those persons goe knowing the being of things according as they goe recovering the sight of their eyes first confusedly as it befell to the blinde man in the Gospell who beginning to open his eyes saw men and it seemed to him that they were trees and afterwards lesse confusedly untill such time as by litle and litle they come to see and know things in their own proper being In the selfesame manner these persons goe on knowing spirituall and divine things accordingly as they goe purifying their mindes with Faith and with Loue and with union with God First they know them confusedly and afterwards lesse confusedly and so by litle and litle they goe advancing in the knowledge of them untill such time as they ariue I would say unto such passe as they come to know God and the things that are gods in that manner which may be in this present life And hence as I understand it proceeds that that thing which a person without the spirit holds for holy and just and good in the things of God another person who hath the spirit condemnes reputes defective and evill And hence it likewise proceeds that that which a person who hath litle of the spirit holds for most certain another who hath more spirit then he holds for an errour Going on thus from one step to another the clearenesse of that judgement increasing which spirituall persons haue of divine matters Whereby I understand that the errour of pious persons when in those divine and spirituall matters which they know they form their conceitâ—… according to that which they come to know by the first knowledge not expecting other knowleges more cleare and more evident is no lesse then that of the blinde man who begins to recover the sight of his eyes when in the things which hee begins to see hee formes his conceits according to that which they appeared unto him at the first not expecting to see them better and more clearely Furthermore I understand that it belongs to every Pious person to be very modest and very moderate in approving or condemning things for as much as pleaseth or displeaseth God considering that the judgement which God makes of things is very different from that which men make how spirituall soever they be In as much as oftimes a person that hath much spirit condemnes that which another who hath little spirit approves And I understand that only those things ought to be approved for holy and to be condemned for evill of which we have the certain testimony of Iesus Christ our Lord. CGNSID LXXV How it is understood that God communicates unto us his Divine treasures by Christ how God reignes by Christ and how Christ is the head of the Church WIlling to understand in what manner we who are the members of Christ doe obtaine all the things of God by Christ I consider that as all men who have the outward sight of the eyes cleare doe know the outward being of things through the benefit of the Sun in which God hath set his outward light so all men who have the sight of their inward eyes cleare doe know all inward things by the benefit of Christ in whom as Saint Paul saith God hath set all the Treasures of his Divinity I would say that as God having set all the outward light in the Sunne the Sunne it selfe sends forth his beams which worke his effect and are efficacious in those things which are
sonne would not for all that ac◅ompt themselves pardoned and so not return to the kingdome And I understand likewise that neither that Prince to whom this should thus happen should attaine his intention in as much as hee sent his sonne to no other purpose then to the end that being acknowledged for his Sonne hee might bee credited in that which hee manifested so neither doth it seem that God attaines his intention in those who knowing Christ for the sonne of God yet not giving confidence to that which hee gives them notice of on Gods behalfe doe not esteem themselves for reconciled to God He attaines his intention onely in those who knowing Christ to be the son of God and giving confidence to that which hee gives them notice of on Gods behalfe doe accompt themselves for reconciled to God and so for pious for just and for holy It is very true indeed that the knowledge which they haue of Christ as the son of God who feel not themselves reconciled to God cannot properly be tearmed knowledge being more properly opinion then knowledge for were it knowledge it would work in them the same effect that it doth in others certifying them of their reconciliation with God and giving them peace in their consciences And moreover know that by Letter S. Paul understands all that which a man doth saith thinketh without being inspired thereunto by God albeit they be such matters as other men have said done and thought being inspired thereunto Letter it was in S. Peter when in Antioch he severd himselfe from the conversation of the Gentiles because he would not scandalize the Iews and Spirit it was in S. Paul when he did reprehend him for it Know further that by Faith S. Paul understands the credit that a man gives to the pardon generall which Christ published which is now in Christs name on Christs behalfe published And that by Hope he understands the patience and sufferance wherewith a man that believes doth hope for the accomplishment of that which he believes without being wearied in his hope and without giving over the pursuit of that which he hopes for And that by Charity he understands that inward bowelly affection wherewith a man that believes and hopes doth loue that which he believes and that which hee hopes for loving God and Christ from whom and by whom he hopes to obtain that which he believes that which hee hopes and that which he loves and loving also all those things that are Gods and that are Christs Know moreover that by the Justice of God S. Paul understands the perfection of God As we when wee would signifie a man to be perfect say he is just our meaning being this that there is nothing in him that is not very good and in effect that there is nothing wanting to him By the Grace of God he understands the favour that God shews unto a man in drawing him to accept the pardon generall and in maintaining and increasing him with other inward favours which are called Grace inasmuch as God bestows them graciously without any respect of desert onely because it is his will That by the Guift of God he chiefly meanes his having given Christ unto us to the end that the rigor of his justice being executed on him we should hold for certain the pardon generall and hee understands particularly those outward guifts of the holy spirit which in S. Pauls time were in abundance cōmunicated to them that believed That by sinne he almost alwaies understands the affection and the appetite to sin which lives in a man through his naturall depravation and through his acquisite and I say almost in as much as some times he meanes by sinne the sacrifice for sinne That by the Old man he understands the man that is not regenerated nor renewed by the holy Spirit And by the New man he understands the man that is renewed and regenerated by the holy spirit And know likewise that by Flesh by the carnall man by the body of sinne and by the law of the members he understands the selfe same that he doth by the Old man that is nature without the spirit and know that by the law of God he understands that which God gave unto the Hebrew people by Mos◅s which sometimes he termes the Law of death because it was its part to condemne and other where he calls i◅ the Law of sinne because it stirred up in men the affections and appetites of sinning That by the Law of the spirit he understands faith by Circumcision he meanes Iudaisme and by Vncircumcision he understands the state of the Gentiles And finally know that by Christian liberty he understands the degree state and dignity unto which God advanceth a man that accepts the grace of the Gospell who being regenerated and renowed and made the son of God is free and exempt from those things whereunto other men are subject in as much as he maintaines himselfe in his regeneration and renovation and doth not deprive himselfe of that sonship for which he is governed and ruled by the spirit of God Of all this you may serve your selfe as it were of a guide by meanes whereof you may understand many of the things which you shall read in S. Paul And because it may perhaps cause admiration in you to see that S. Paul setting himselfe to reprehend vices in some of them to whom he writes and admonishing them of those vices from which they ought to beware names certain vices which are shamefull even in the men of the world So that it may seeme strange that there should be any necessity of admonishing Christian persons touching those vices and that withall he scarce toucheth those vices which are more inward and more pernitious You shall know that in as much as in S. Pauls time there were some who made carnall licentiousnesse of Christian liberty and gave themselves unto vices and villanies it was necessary that S. Paul should touch them in those particulars wherein they did most sinne In such sort as it was needfull even in that time to seek redresse for outward vices in christian persons in as much as they did not esteem them for evill nor were not ashamed of them through the false perwasion which they had run into of christian liberty and because they had put an end to the esteem of the world But it is now needfull to apply remedy to christian men for their inward vices in regard that they partly for God and partly for the world doe abstain from outward vices suffering themselves to be overcome by the inward partly because they doe not know them for vices and partly because the world holds the want of these vices for a vice You shall find some things in S. Paul which you shall not feel in your selfe and other things which you shall not understand and some other which will seem strange to you And all these it seemes fit to mee that you should passe over not ca◅ing much to weary your selfe for the understanding of them in as much as the intention with which you goe about to read S. Paul is not to understand all that S. Paul saith but to frame your mind as God shall give you grace to understand feel and tast in S. Paul I also advise you that when you begin to read an Epistle you leave not to read the argument which you shall find written before it for it gives much light to the whole Epistle But in truth all these advises are nothing and there is one of much more availe then all these that is that when ever you shall take S. Paul into your hands you should commend yo◅r'selfe to God beseeching him that he would send his Holy Spirit that may be your guide in the reading and you shall endeavour to obtain it by meanes of the only begotten son of God Christ Iesus our Lord to whom be glory for ever AMEN FINIS ERRATA PAge 17. line 6. for execution in this manner read in this manner I desire to c. p. 21. l. 1. f. all good the works r. all the good works p 23. l. 22. f. there r. them p. 24. l. 11. f. believe a lye r. unbelieve a lye p. 29. l. 18. f. perceiving r. persevering p. 29. l. 27. f. dispose r. dispoile p. 34. l. 23. f. once r. one p. 35. l. 22. f. by good r. be good p. 39. l. 25. f. meeter r. meet p. 45. l. penult f watchfulnesse r. watchfull p. 50. l. 28. f. peace and conscience r. peace of conscience p. 82. l. 24. f being a man r. being in a man p. 89. l. 20. f. doth reach unto r. doth not reach unto p. 98. l. 3. f. vocation of r. vocation to p. 103. marg f. omnes homo r. omnis p. 105. l. 1. f. that his piety r. that if his piety p. 109. l. 8. f. knowe r. knowing p. 116 l. 6. f. that then holy spirit r. then the holy spirit p. 172. l. 25◅ f. whilest his soul in his body r. his soul in his body p. 193. l. 24. f. Psal. 75. r. 95. p. 198. l. 12. f. felicity r. facility p. 208. l. 30. f. begins love r. begins to give love p. 220 l. 20. f. proceed r. precedes p. 222. l. 9 f. of man r. to man p. 227. l. 10. f. and it was r. it was p. 239. l. 24. f. the waies r. these waies p. 240. l. 35. f. would r. should p. 241. l. 29. f. justice r. justify p. 244. l. 12. f. purposes in such manner r. purposes and desu◅ in c. This note is the French Translators This note is the French Translators These 32 and 33 Consideratio◅s being read together may vindicate the Authors good meaning from his dubi ous and offen sive expressions in the present Consideration See the Preface This XXXVI Co◅sideration saith the translatour seemes expressed in difficult and ambiguous words which may justly breed exception if so it bee not taken altogether I confessed saith he it is one of them which I doe not fully understand See the Preface Hoc est omnes homo The Weeke before Easter Pretending ◅erit
being beloved of God for the great things which God hath done and doth for him that he also doing great things for God shall come to loue God greatly Furthermore I understand that the consideration of the great sinnes which God hath â—…doned us makes us to grow in the loue of God as the confideration of the great offences which we haue done when wee doe not feel the pardon makes us to grow in hatred Furthermore I understand that the services which those persons who are governed by the spirit of God doe to God are not done to satisfie the Obligation with which they were born neither are they done as humane wisdome instructs and as humane Philosophy teacheth pretending piety thereby to oblige God either to the intent that he should pardon their offences or that hee should loue them but properly to binde themselues to loue God more and every day more to encrease in the loue of God Furthermore I understand that the services unto which the holy Spirit applies these persons are to disenamour them of themselues and of the world and to enamour them of God and of those persons that loue God And I understand that then a man disenamours himselfe of himselfe when he depriues himselfe of all those things which may giue or cause unto him outward satisfaction in any kinde whatsoever And then as I understand he disenamours himselfe of the world when he takes away apparts from his minde all thought to satisfie please the world in things of the world and when any occasion offers it selfe he puts this deliberation in effect And then I understand it a man affectionates himselfe to God and to the persons that loue God when hee applies himselfe with his minde unto them when by service and benefits he doth oblige himselfe to loue them doing unto them that which he would doe unto God himselfe if he saw him to haue need of his service accordingly as David saith he himselfe did Ps. 16. And furthermore that to suffer for Christ and for the confession and manifestation of the Gospell of Iesus Christ doth aboue all things enamour them of God and Christ that so suffer â—…nd I understand that in their own suffering loue doth in great part deprive them of the sense of that which they suffer And withall this I understand that without comparison the love which God beares a pious and just man however sorry a one and imperfect hebe is much greater then that loue which a pious and just person however much perfect he be beares to God even as a good Father more loues a son however sorry a one he be then a son however good he be loue his Father and because this is so it is no marviel if they who be such live with much security that neither in this present life any thing shall be fall them that shall be evill for them nor that that felicity which is promised to them that are pious just shall be wanting unto them in the life everlasting knowing the particular Providence of God and they are just accepting the justice of God executed on Iesus Christ our Lord. CONSID. XXV In what sort pious persons are moved to put in execution the justice of God AVery great part of Christian piety as I understand consisteth in this that a man should never dispose of himselfe neither in effect putting his own will in execution nor saying in his thought This would bee well for me if so bâ—…he haue not some evident signe of the will of God in such sort that when the state wherein he findes himselfe the place or the manner of living shall become wearisome to him and there shall come thoughts into his minde saying This or that thing would fit me well he should presently say But what know I if this would bee good for me God is he who knows what is good and since he knows it to him I remit my selfe that he should set me in it and in the mean space I will belieue that that which is best for me is to continue in the state wherein I am With this resolution a man condemnes the judgement of humane wisdome and reason and renounceth his naturall light and enters into the kingdome of God remitting himself to the regiment and goverment of God Furthermore I understand that albeit to some Saints of the old Testament and to others of the new God hath manifested his will as it were by words the common language with which God speakes to the pious is to put it into their hearts that which they should doe and afterwards to necessitate them to doe it or to facilitate the execution thereof in such sort that when a pious person shall feel himselfe moved to change his state place or manner of living or whatsoever other thing in which he shall be doubtfull whether it be a motion of the spirit or of the flesh if on the other part he shall see himselfe necessitated to put it in execution or shall find much facility in executing it he shall take it that God declares his will unto him by this meanes and holding that demonstration for a sufficient token of Gods will he shall not doubt to put it in execution If he shall haue the will but neither the necessity nor the facility he shall keep himselfe quiet and if so be he shall haue the necessity or the facility and not the will he shall likewise abide quiet saying If this be the will of God he will put it into my will that I should put it in execution In this hee shall so much more assure himselfe in as much as I understand it and hold for certain and firm God is so jealous of them that attend to this piety that even then when they are so much sollicited by sensuall appetites and by humane affections that they come to desire the execution God himselfe hinders them to the intent they should not come to deprave themselves except when he meanes to punish them letting them fall into that which they desire because they hold it a good thing for them as he chastised David in the case of Bersabe this chastisement is very terrible which as I understand it doth not consist in the Execution of that thing which a man desires but in the knowledge of the inconvenience wherein he findes himselfe to bee fallen after the Execution In these like cases also pious persons know the will of God but it is that will of his which is with wrath and with fury and so they doe confirme themselves in the deliberation to think that nothing befits them but that in which they finde themselves to stand attentive to heare the language of God when he moves the will and facilitateth and necessitateth the Execution thereof With which language I understand that God also speaks unto the impious as hee spake to Nebuchadnezzar and as he spake to Darius and Cyrus and as he spake to Titus and Vespasian But there is
very great difference in that which they that are pious doe and in that which they doe that are impious forasmuch as they neither knew nor doe know the will of God and therefore albeit they did it yet for all this they did not serve nor doe serve God therein But the pious because they know the will of God and knowing it put it in execution they serve God therein And in as much as they who are such doe set themselves to all their works with this knowledge they doe as I understand in all things serve God Those are they who believe and doe Gods justice executed on Iesus Christ our Lord. CONSID. XXVI That the Flesh whilst it is unregenerated Flesh is the enemy of God and that Regeneration is properly the work of the holy Spirit SAint Paul the Apostle speaking by eyperience of the holy Spirit condemnes the Flesh for the enemy of God I understand by Flesh all men in as much as they are not regenerated by the holy Spirit Humane prudence that alwaies opposeth it selfe against the holy Spirit holding this condemnation for an hard and terrible thing and not willing to endure it will haue it that S. Paul meanes by Flesh that which Socrates or Plato would haue meant that is the Iudgement of the Flesh. In this opinion all they who follow humane wisdome doe concurre holding it for an absurd and evill thing to condemne as sinnes al the works of unregenerated Flesh. For according to their opinion there are some with which unregenerated men doe not only not offend God but in effect doe him service such as are those wherein they agree with beasts both the one and the other being moved by naturall instinct as for a Father to beget Children and for a Son to nourish his Father which things humane wisdome saith since they be not vices nay rather being vertues in brute beasts it is no waies just to say that the selfe same should be sinnes in unregenerated men for in such case the condition of man-kinde would come to be worse then that of brute beasts Here I understand humane wisdome deceives itselfe in as much as it doth not consider that the brute beast having neither wisdome nor reason doth not alter the order of God nor the institution of nature and a man not regenerated by the holy Spirit by his prudence and reason doth continually pervert and alter it nay he cannot leaue to pervert and alter it in as much as being proud he goes mending the workes of God by his own reason and by his own prudence and in as much as loving himselfe in every thing that he doth he pretends his own interest and his own proper glory and so hee doth not follow the naturall order nor pretends the glory of God In such sort as the Father bringing up the son and the son nourishing the Father every one of them pretends his own glory his own interest and his own satisfaction That being properly in men through the vice of their corrupted flesh which leaves to loue and to esteem God and esteems and loves it selfe ayming in every thing at its own proper glory and its own proper â—…nterest Whereupon I consider in this present life that which is in the house of a great Lord who hath thirty slaues for whom he doth sufficiently provide all necessary things and ordaining them the things in which he will be served of them Of these thirty slaves I imagine that ten of them are fooles without understanding and without any manner of discourse altogether as Beasts These as I understand it without perverting and without altering the order which their Lord hath given them doe that which is commanded them not pretending any thing else but only to obey their Lord The other ten I suppose are well experienced and haue judgement and discretion who pretending to know and understand as much as their Lord and sometimes more pervert the order that is given unto them supposing to finde the point better and having the eye to their own interresses haue alwaies an eye to gaine their liberty and to be better intreated and more cherished of their Lord not contenting themselves with their servitude nor contenting themselues with that ordinary entertainment which they receaue from their Lord The other Ten I imagine to my selfe are likewise experienced and understanding and such as haue judgement wit and understanding but perswading themselves that their Lord knowes more then they and no waies serving themselves of what they know to understand their Lords meaning in that which is commanded them without perverting or altering the order that is given unto them obey their Lord and contenting themselues of their servitude and of their entertainment obey their Lord pretending only to doe that which is ordained them for the profit for the satisfaction and for the glory of their Lord. The first Ten serue but like Beasts with their bodies and these in the world are the brute Beasts The second Ten in serving pretend to serue but offend and then offend most when they serue most and best for then they doe most alter and pervert the will and order of their Lord And these are all men in as much as they are not regenerated by the holy Spirit The third Ten serve as obedient Sons not perverting nor altering the order and will of their Lord and they serue both with their bodies and with their mindes and these are the men that are regenerated by the holy Spirit without which regeneration it is impossible that men should reduce themselues to this degree And therefore S. Paul well saith that the flesh is the enemy of God and is not subject to the Law and will of God neither though it would could it in as much as a man doting upon his own wisdome and his own reason pretends to mend the works of God and in as much as being enamoured of himselfe in every thing which he doth hee hath an eye unto himselfe To the intent this may be the better understood I say that by regeneration I understand that change and outward and inward Renovation which the holy Spirit doth in those persons who believing in Iesus Christ and accepting as their own Gods justice that hee executed upon Christ are changed and renewed in all their affections in such sort that no waies pretending in the execution of their own appetites nor in the sway of their own affections that which they did pretend before their regeneration having lost that understanding to goe about mending of Gods works and having lost their own loue whereby they loved themselues as if one of the Tenne slaues of the second order should passe to the number of the Ten of the third order Those men who by wit and humane artifice pretend to change themselues and to renew themselues as I understand it doe not obtain this Christian regeneration but that which is humane that which is of the flesh and of humane wisdome reason such
the just being made there shall be nothing more to hope but Charity shall never faile for there shall be alwaies what to Love and there shall be alwaies what to tast For in eternall life we shall love God and Christ and we shall finde rellish and savour in the contemplation of God and of Christ wee who in this present life have lived with Faith Hope and Charity being incorporated in Iesus Christ our Lord. CONSID. LXXI Vpon the most holy prayer of OUR FATHER IN the most holy prayer of Our Father I consider all this First that calling God Father it becomes me to reduce my selfe to hope from God all that which an obedient son may hope from a most good and loving Father And albeit I am a disobedient Son it matters not For God considers me not by that which I am of my selfe but by that which I am by Christ of whom I am a member and who was a most obedient Son through which Sonship I call God Father If I should call him Father for the common generations sake my being would be of importance but calling him so through particular regeneration my being imports not to make mee obedient or disobedient but as I have said the being of Christ who was most obedient And farthermore I understand that it is necessary that I should reduce my selfe to be with God such a one as a good and obedient Son is with his Father Secondly I consider that saying Our I presuppose that I hold for brethren all those who through regeneration hold God for their Father and that I ought to govern my selfe with them as with brethren Thirdly I consider that because God is where he is known holy Scripture useth to say that God is in Heaven for there God is known God is in all his creatures but it is not said that he is but only in them who know him and where he lets himselfe to be known Fourthly I consider that the proper desire of a pious Christian is that Gods Name should be sanctified I would say that God should be esteemed and judged of every one for Holy and for just in all his works as he is in truth Humane wisdome not finding holinesse nor justice in many of those things which be fall men in this life flying from the inconvenience of attributing injustice to God falls into another inconvenience depriving God of his particular Providence in all things And the holy spirit knowing in all things holinesse and justice on Gods part doth not doubt to attribute them all to God desiring that men captivating the judgement of their own humane wisdome should sanctify the name of God confessing and holding that God doth all things and that in all things is holinesse and justice There are some men who sanctify God in the things which they judge good drawing themselves back in those things which they judge to be evill And there are other men who sanctify God generally in all things but with the mouth and not with the heart And the desire of the Pious Christian is that God should be sanctified in all things and that the sanctification should come from the Heart for in this manner God will be sanctified Fiftly I consider that the proper and continuall sighing of a pious Christian consists in the desire that the Kingdome of God should suddenly come when the resurrection of the just being made Christ shall consigne the Kingdome to his eternall father For that shall be properly the Kingdome of God in as much as the just shall be governed immediatly by God seeing God himselfe face to face God reignes in this present life in the just but by Christ as he gives light but by the Sunne and God shall reigne in life eternall by himselfe as by himselfe he shall give light Sixtly I consider that the pious Christians flying from the will of God which is with wrath and that which is mediat by those things which we call second causes doe demand that that will of God should be executed here on earth which is executed in heaven understanding that which is with mercy and with love and that which is immediat by God himselfe Seventhly I consider that the Pious Christians feeling that through the curse for the first mans sinne it results that they eat their bread with sorrow and care they demand of God that freeing them from the sollicitude and the griefe he should provide them of ordinary sustentation in such manner that they may be provided and sustained according to their necessities without griefe or sollicitousnesse acknowledging their sustentation only from the liberality of God and even in this beginning to feele the remedy of the first mans sinne together there with feeling the benefit of Christ. Eightly I consider that the pious Christians not because they make any doubt of the generall pardon which they have had by the justice of God executed in Christ for of this they are most assured but because they rejoyce to remember themselves that they are debtors which remembrance breeds in them humility in the sight of God they aske alwaies of God that he would pardon them those things for which he might in justice chastize them And I understand that they alleage the pardon which they have given to them who were their debtors rather to oblige themselves to pardon then to oblige God that he should for such cause pardon them This I understand thus by that which Iesus Christ himself ads in the Gospell saying If you pardon you shall be pardoned Ninthly I consider that the pious Christians knowing their own weaknesse fear the Temptation in as much as it may sever them from Christian decorum and knowing here with the necessity which they have to be mortified with temptations they demand of God not that he should not tempt them but that the temptations may be of that quality that they should not make them to loose the Christian decorum Tenthly I consider that pious Christians having understood that many are the evills that combat the just they are afraid to be oppressed by them and knowing the frailty of their own forces to be able to make resistance they have recourse to God demanding of him that he should free them from all In these desires and in these demands I understand that pious persons stand and persevere not only through the outward doctrine of Iesus Christ our Lord which they finde written in his history but also through the inward doctrine of the holy spirit who puts these desires into their mindes and moves them to demand these things And they who with the outward Doctrine of Christ have not that inward of the holy spirit in praying â—…s taught and not inspired doe not pray as the true and lively members of Iesus Christ our Lord. CONSID. LXXII That man pretending that part of the image of God which did not appertaine unto him lost that part which did appertaine to him IN the creation of man I read that he was
the Christian faith and the Evangelicall truth stand firme and constant Here I will adde this that when a Christian person scandalizeth a Christian who knowes the Evangelicall truth because he would not scandalize another Christian who as yet doth not well understand it if his error proceed from covetousnesse or from ambition because the one is richer or more powerfull then the other his error is intolerable And if his error proceed from indiscretion or from weaknesse and infirmity it is tolerable In all the things that have been said I learne these thirteen things First what a Scandall is The Second that to the intent I be not scandalized at the works of God it is needfull to renounce my wisdome and my human reason and to pray to God that he give me spirituall light with which I may understand his works The third that I doe then scandalize God when I distrust my selfe of the promised works and of his omnipotency and providence The Fourth that I ought to keep my selfe as much as is possible not to use my Christian Liberty in presence of weak Christians and that are infirme in the faith The Fift that I ought lightly ro esteeme the scandall that the Saints of the world take at the truth of the Gospell The Sixt that the scandall that is pernitious to him who scandalizeth is that which the Saints of the world doe pretending to doe service unto God And here I learne that I ought to keepe my selfe as from the fire to persecute any man of what manner soever pretending to â—…oe God service therein The Seventh that I ought to hold it for a good countersigne of Piety when the works of the impiety and of the infidelity of the men of the world doe Scandalize mee The Eight that it is a good countersigne to know the Saints of the world by the felicity wherewith they are scandalized from every manner of person and their publishing and shewing of their Scandall The Ninth that it is a signe of impiety for a man not to be offended nor scandalized in any thing The Tenth that it becomes me to be like god and Christ in the inward to the end I be not Scandalized but of that wherewith god and Christ are scandalized The Eleventh that it becomes me to live like Christ that I may not scandalize but as Christ. The Twelfth that for no cause I ought to scandalize any in preiudice of the Christian faith although I doe know that I scandalize the weaknesse and infirmity of imperfect christians The Thirteenth thing that I here learne that when I shall have scandalized in preiudice of the Christian Faith through indiscretion or through weaknesse my error will be tollerable and when I shall scandalize in preiudice of the same christian faith through covetousnesse or ambition my error will be intolerable And from this error I am certaine my god shall preserve me and hee shall also preserve all those persons whom he hath called to the acceptation of the grace of the gospell to be heires with Iesus Christ our Lord. CONSID. LXXVII Two contrarieties between them that live according to the flesh and them that live according to the Spirit COnsidering that men who live according to the flesh while they think not of it doe believe litle have lesse confidence and love yet much lesse as they themselves well know and feele and accordingly as they shew it in their words albeit they would not shew it And considering that the selfe same persons when they take themselves into consideration doe perswade themselves that they believe much and have much confidence and doe yet love much more And considering on the other side that those persons who Live according to the spirit although they seeme regardlesse believe have confidence and love more or lesse according to that part of the spirit which they have according as they themselves know it and feele it in themselves and as they shew in their words speaking with more piety with more faith with more confidence and with more affection of the things of God when they speak coldly and when the force of the spirit moves them to speak of the things of piety and of faith and of confidence and of love then all the men of the world together when they set themselves with diligence and attention to speak thereof And considering also that it comes oft-times to passe that those selfesame persons grounding upon themselves cannot bring themselues to believe nor lesse to have confidence and much lesse to love I have set my selfe to be willing to understand whence these so contrary effects proceed And I find that one part proceeds from that which Christ saith that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh Whence it comes to passe that he who lives according to the flesh having not in his heart neither faith nor confidence nor love cannot give of that which he hath not and consequently cannot except he set himselfe purposely thereto make shew offaith confidence or love And because he who lives according to the spirit hath in his heart piety faith confidence and love and having to give of that which he hath it is necessary how carelesse soever he seeme to be that he should yeeld forth piety faith confidence and love And therefore the holy Scripture calls the just mans mouth a veine or mine of life And I finde likewise that the other part of these contrarieties proceeds from this that the man who lives after the flesh because he keepes no accompt with his heart then perswades himselfe that he believes that he hath confidence and that he loves when he hath the faith the confidence and the love in his understanding He knowes that it is necessary for a Christian that he should believe have confidence and love and then he perswades himselfe that he believes hath confidence and loves And the persons who live according to the spirit because they keep accompt with their hearts not contenting themselves to hold the faith the confidence and the love in their understandings cannot perswade themselves that they believe have confidence or love but when they feele in their hearts the effects of confidence and love And because this sentiment is through the favour of God who gives it not when men would but when it pleaseth his Divine Maiesty hence it comes that those persons who live after the spirit doe then find most difficulty in believing loving and having confidence when they doe most instantly procure it Whence it is well gathered that the signe of what a man hath within him is to be taken from that which he shewes outwardly when he stands regardlesse And farther that through the facility or difficulty with which a man perswades himselfe to believe have confidence and love it may be known whether his faith confidence and love stand in the Vnderstanding or in the Heart And so this conclusion is made that they who while they think not of it speak
because this is a thing most alienated from her own proper generation And besides this I understand that as in â—…ase a worme should come to understand in what manner a man is generated of another man and would make other wormes to understand it they would never be capable thereof it being a thing altogether alienated from their generation so supposing that some one man should come to understand the divine generation of the sonne of God and would make other men understand it they would never be able to understand because it is a thing most different from their generation And therefore extreme great is the rashnesse of men who with their naturall light only will understand this divine mystery and also great is that of them who will understand it being helped by the holy Scriptures in that language And hence it comes that albeit S. Iohn understood the divine generation of the sonne of God and would give it to understand to men they are not capable thereof not understanding that which according to S. Iohn the words signify with which he would declare it as it were to say what thing S. Iohn meant saying Logos oâ—… Verbum willing also to shew better the incapacity of humane intelligence in the divine generation of the sonne of God I thinke on this wise that if it be incapable of the spirituall regeneration of them who being incorporated by faith in the sonne of God come to be the sonnes of God by adoption how much more shall it be uncapable of the divine generation of the proper son of God Now the humane intelligence is uncapable of this spirituall regeneration all they who are regenerated know by experience knowing in themselves that they should never have understood this divine mystery if they had not experimented it and knowing also that although they labour to make them capable who are out of it they doe nothing at all as the worme also should doe nothing at all which having understood how the matter of humane generation goes would make other wormes capable thereof This selfe-same I understand by that discourse which S. Iohn tells that passed between Iesus Christ our Lord and the great Master of Israel called Nicodemus who came to speak with him by night And so it is that Christ speaking unto him of the spirituall regeneration whereby a man leaves to be the son of wrath and becomes the son of grace leaves to be the son of Adam and becomes the son of God Nicodemus with all his naturall light withall his humane Sciences and with all his intelligence of sacred Scriptures was so incapable of this spirituall regeneration that Christ marveiling at it said unto him Art thou a Master in Israell and knowest not these things And addes If I have told you earthly things and you believe not how will you believe if I tell you Heavenly things Willing to say If thou beest incapable of this spirituall regeneration which although it be spirituall is neverthelesse such as is wrought here on earth and in the men of earth how much more incapable wilt thou be of the divine generation to believe it of which I would speak unto thee for as much as it is not done on earth but in Heaven and is not done in an earthly thing but in an heavenly Let this then be the conclusion that it being true that whilest a man is without the spirit with all his naturall light with all his sciences and human learnings and writings he is not only uncapable to understand the divine generation of the only begotten son of God but he is also uncapable to understand the spirituall regeneration of the adopted sons of God Let none be so bold without having obtained the spirituall regeneration to presume to understand it nor to speak of it Nor let none be so rash that without having obtained the spirituall regeneration and having been admitted to those sacraries of God unto which S. Iohn was admitted when he said In the begining was the word he should dare to will to understand it penetrate nor compasse it with his wit and humane discourse holding for certain that of this divine mystery they only are capable unto whom by the will of God the proper son of God Iesus Christ our Lord will reveale it CONSID. XCVI That as then a man knowes himselfe a pilgrim in this world when because God loves him the world persecutes him COmmonly all men esteem themselves cittizens of those places where they were borne esteeming themselves pilgrims and strangers in all other places They who pretend that every place is a mans country esteem themselves strangers no where They who being regenerated and renewed by the holy spirit are more then Man esteeming themselves Cittizens of the Kingdome of God and of eternall life esteeming themselves pilgrims in all countries of the world The first following sence goe after the judgement of sensuality The second following the naturall light goe after prudence and human reason And the third following the spirituall light goe after Faith Hope and Charity The first delight themselves of that which pleaseth sensuality The second despising that which pleaseth sensuality seek their proper glory and their proper satisfaction of their mindes The third despising both the one and the other thing love the honour of God and the glory of Christ. The first the world loves The second the world despiseth albeit on the other side it prize and esteeme them And the third the world despizeth hates and persecutes The first God knowes not The seconn God abhorres The third God prizeth loves and favours Where I doe not understand that God prizeth loves and favours this third sort because the world despiseth them abhorres them and persecutes them but that the world despiseth abhorres and persecutes them because God prizeth them loves them and favours them Farther I understand that from their thus feeling themselves on one part prized loved and favoured of God and on the other part despised persecuted and hated of the world it redounds that they following where the holy spirit leads them running after Faith Hope and Charity esteem themselves Pilgrims in this present life esteeming themselves Cittizens of eternall life Esteeming themselves Pilgrims in this present life they live like Pilgrims having no intent to inherit in this present life nor to rejoyce of that which they rejoyce who are Cittizens thereof and so they passe lightly through all these things setting affection to none of them And holding themselves Cittizens of eternall life they begin to live as they live there and they have intent to inherit in it and to rejoyce in that which they rejoyce in who are cittizens thereof and herein they set their affections They I understand that albeit the remembrance of death frightens them in regard of the sence in regard of the livelinesse that is in them in their affections and appetites in regard of esteeming themselves Pilgrims in this present life and cittizens of eternall life it
comforts them and gives them content considering that death is the end of their Pilgrimage They who albeit they be indeed prized loved and favoured of God are not yet despised hated and persecuted of the world doe not as yet esteem themselves Pilgrims in this present life not being handled as Pilgrims albeit they esteem themselves Citizens of eternall life in as much as they know that they are prized favoured and loved of God It is true indeed that this estimation is not entire nor perfect in them untill that the world knowing them prized loved and favoured of God begins to handle them as Pilgrims despising them hateing them and persecuting them For as then they feeling themselves handled by the world as Pilgrims have recourse to Christ and recourse to God and being as they are more prized more loved more favoured of God and more illustrated in the knowledge of eternall life they esteem themselves Pilgrims and strangers in this present life in such manner that however afterwards the world returne to prize love and use them well they doe not leave to esteem themselves Pilgrims and to hold it good to goe out of this pilgrimage Here I understand two things The first that it is Gods will that they whom he loves should live as Pilgrims And the second that between them who hate the world because they are persecuted of the world for piety and them who hate the world for other respects there is this difference that these second although they bear hatred to the world whilest they are despised of the world and would be contented to goe out of the world when the world returnes to prize them loving the world they would by no meanes goe out of the world And the other after that they once hate the world seeing themselves despised hated and persecuted of the world they never more returne to love the world how much soever it love and esteem them This difference proceeds from hence that following the light of the holy spirit and being illustrated in the knowledge of eternall life they doe alwaies hold themselves for pilgrims in this present life and alwaies hold themselves for Cittizens of the Kingdome of God and in eternall life and therefore hate this life and rejoyce to goe out of it On the contrary the other following the naturall light have no certainty of eternall life and if they have any they doe not stand sure to be well in it therefore they doe not altogether hate this life nor rejoyce to goe out of it In this discourse christian persons shall understand that they are to esteem themselves pilgrims and strangers in the world in this present life and that they are to esteem themselves Cittizens of the Kingdome of God and of life eternall And that if so be the feeling themselves very fearefull of death shall make them know that they are not come to this to esteem themselves pilgrims they ought with continuall prayer to pretend it being certain that by how much more perfectly they shall stand therein then they shall be most like to Christ and most like to God who have been and are in this present life strangers and pilgrims and like such have been and are used And to every Christian person it appertaines to procure to be like to God and to the sonne of God Iesus Christ our Lord. CONSID. XCVII Whether Iustification be a fruit of piety and whether piety be a fruit of Justification WIlling to examine between these two gifts of God Piety and Justification which of them may be said to be the fruit of the other that is whether piety be the fruit of justification a man being first just before pious or whether justification be the fruit of Piety a man being pious before just and willing in this matter to proceed with order as it were I first say that by Piety I understand the true divine worship which consisteth in worshipping God in spirit and in truth Iohn 4. approving with the minde whatever God doth holding it for just holy and good In this signification I understand S. Paul useth this word Piety 1. Tim. 3. And I say that by justification I understand the purity of conscience which dares appear in judgement such as was S. Pauls when he said there is laid up for mee a Crowne of righteousnesse c. Passing on farther I understand that calling into counsell for the making of this examination the naturall light prudence and humane wisdome shee will alwaies say and affirme that justification is a fruit of piety understanding that one cannot have justification and purity in his conscience if he doe not first adore God in spirit and in truth giving unto him that which it ought to doe as his creature and that suddenly when he gives to God that which he ought to give hee is iust having cleannesse in his conscience And so it is resolved that Iustification is a fruit of piety since from a mans being pious it redounds that he is iust Farther I understand that calling into counsell for the making of this triall the holy spirit and the Christian spirit he will say and affirme that Piety is the fruit of Iustification understanding that a man cannot haue Piety worship God in spirit and truth if he be not first iust accepting the Gospell of Christ making Christs iustice his and understanding that instantly when a man believing is iust he begins to haue Piety adoring God in spirit and truth And so it is resolved that Piety is a fruit of Iustification for a man is first iust then pious If that were true which naturall light saith prudence and humane wisdome for the selfesame cause it would follow that there hath not been nor is nor shall bee a pious man I would say who should giue entirely compleatly unto God that which he ought to give And it being true that which the holy spirit and the Christian spirit saith it well follows that there hath been is and shall be a great number of iust men for there haue been are and shall be many men that haue been are and shall bee iustistified by Christ accepting and making Christiustice theirs Men that Iudge that Iustfication is a fruit of piety by the selfe same case give testimony of themselves that they iudge by naturall light by prudence humane wisdome as Plato and Aristotle would have iudged who had no notice at all of Christ. And in very truth I knowe not what they think of Christ of the Christian businesse nor of the Gospell The men that iudge that Piety is a fruit of Iustification by the selfesame case give testimony of themselves that they iudge by the holy spirit by the Christian spirit as S. Peter and S. Paul iudged who largely knew Christ and had the spirit of Christ. They haue this opinion of Christ that in him God chastised all our sinnes that is all that wherein we faile unto that which as the creatures of God we are
descends a vitall vertue by meanes whereof it lives so every one of those who being incorporated in Christ are the Church of god because he can speake saith and affirmeth that he feeles that from Christ there comes unto him a spirituall vertue by meanes whereof he lives a spirituall life This S. Iohn thus understood Chap. 1. when he said For of his fullnesse have we all received and grace for grace And so S. Paul understood it Colos. 1. For it pleased the Father that in him should all fullnesse dwell I know Christ for King in the people of god for I understand that he is he who with his spirit rules and governes it not onely in inward things and divine as head but also as god In outward things and corporall as King In all which things being as they are the Sonnes of god as S. Paul saith Rom. 8. they are lead by the spirit of God And so I understand that the kingdome of god is not called the spirituall kingdome because he governes us in spirituall things but because governing us in spirituall and corporall things he doth not govern us with the outward law but with the inward law which is the government of the Holy Spirit the Christian spirit Of this kingdome of Christ the holy Scriptures are full Esay 5. Mic. 5. Daniel 7. By which I understand that in this present life God reigns but by Christ that in lifeeternall god shall reign but by himselfe For then he shall be all in all 1. Cor. 15. In this manner I know Christ glorious for King in the people of god for Head in the Church of god and for Lord of the Elect of god And I know Christ humble most innocent and free from all sinne and abounding in all justice And I know fullfilled in him in part the promises of god made to David and to Abraham And I know him for the Sonne of god first borne and onely begotten I know that he is the Word of god with which god created all things I know him eternall consubstantiall And I hold for certain that as the Christian faith shall goe on being in me more efficacious mortifying me and quickening me so theseknowledges of Christ shall goe on being more cleare and more distinct by which I shall goe on from day to day alwaies more knowing god as he may be knowne whilst this flesh being passible and mortall is not a subject habilitated to see Christ to see God face to face as I shall see him in life eternall Having taken this resolution in the conceit which I ought to have of Christ I goe resolving my selfe in the conceit that I ought to have of them who are the members of Christ considering every one of them a Sonne of god not first borne as Christ who alwaies was a Sonne but an adopted Sonne by Christ and in Christ not onely begotten as Christ who is the sonne by generation but regenerated by Christ and in Christ borne the sonne of wrath and re-borne the sonne of God not in the state of gloryfication in which Christ i◅ but in the state of opprobry in which Christ was not Lord of Gods elect but one of the number of them who being elected of God are the servants of Christ redeemed and bought by Christ Not head of the Church of God as Christ but a mēber of the Church of God of which Christ is the head Not King of the people of God as Christ but governed by the spirit of Christ by meanes of which spirit I know that all the members of Christ stand united amongst themselves and united with Christ himselfe and therefore united also with God God abiding in them and they in God And so I see fullfilled that Prayer which Christ made unto his Father for this union Iohn 17. saying That they may be one in us c. And I understand that in this vnion consisteth all the christian perfection I pray God that he doe in such manner Imprint it in my memory that it may not seeme that it sever itselfe or depart from it not so much as for one moment to the intent that I never may doe thing which shall not be worthy of this union which I acknowledge from my christ who is my Lord my Head and my King To him be glory with the Father and the holy spirit Amen CONSID. CX That the principall gifts are not understood untill they be possessed A Most great testimony of the Christian life is this that according as a christian man goes perfecting himself in his christian customes so he goes clearing himselfe in his christian conceptions Nay I hold for certain that the selfesame christian spirit which goes perfecting him in his customes goes clarifying him in his conceptions so much that it can be hardly understood whether the clarification in the conceptions comes from the perfection in the customes or the perfections in the customes come from the clarification in the conceptions And therefore it is sure to say that both the one and the other thing comes from the christian spirit which doth marvellously work both the one and the other in them who accept the Gospell of Christ. This I haue said to this purpose that I having understood that the christian businesse is not science but experience and having by many comparisons procured to make some persons capable of this truth I haue never remained satisfied in my minde in such manner that it seemed to me to haue expressed to mine own manner my conceit untill now that having in mine own judgement comprehended it with more clearenesse itseems to mee to bee able to expresse it better And so I say that between the believing and accepting the christian things Faith Hope Charity with humane wit◅ or with the christian spirit I know the difference which I know between accepting approving those three naturall vertues Magnanimity Valour and Liberality and having them indeed I would say that as there be mē who hearing speak of these three naturall vertues and of the perfection of them albeit they doe not know them in themselves do approue them and accept them for good so there bee also of those men who hearing speak of those three gifts of God Faith Hope and Charity and of the perfection and efficacy of them albeit they doe not know them in themselves doe approve them and accept them for good believing that thy who accept the grace of the Gospell doe enjoy the remission of sins the reconciliation with God through Christ and approving the hope with which they expect the felicity of eternall life and the loue with which they loue God aboue every thing and they loue their neighbour as themselves And I say farther that as whilst they who approve those three natural vertues not possessing them albeit they willingly heare talk of them through the desire which they haue to possesse them yet is not that so much as that it gives them entire