much more precious then gold that perisheth though it bee tried with fire might bee found vnto your praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Iesus Christ For as by the fire gold is tryed whether it bee pure or no so by the crosse faith whether it be without the drosse of hipocrisie Now the comforts that all the faithfull and chiefly Gods Ministers which for their calling sake are most subiect to all crosses and iniuries of the wicked may gather from hence in all their troubles are First that the cause is not theirs but the Lords Secondly that they come forth to battell being armed not with carnall but with spirituall weapons Thirdly that they haue present with them a King or Captaine vnder whom they fight euen Christ himselfe who hath vanquished the whole Kingdome of darknesse Fourthly that they haue regard to the incorruptible crowne of glory which Christ their chiefe Captaine hath reserued in heauen for them Lastly let them consider that as Saint Augustine saith Afflictions to the faithfull are but as files and hammers to the gold Milles to the wheate or the Ouen to the bread gold by the file and hammer wheat by the mill and loaues by the ouen are brought to their perfection So a true Christian is purified and perfected by crosses and afflictions Aug. de tempore ser 78. This is the high-way to our heauenly Country The last thing in the Epigrapha or Title is the salutation or greeting The third point A certaine forme of salutation hath euer bene vsuall among all Nations Three manner of salutations Plat. in Epist 3. Dionis as both holy and prophane Writers witnesse who haue set downe diuers formes thereof Plato expresseth three that were most in vse among the Grecians as to wish Prosperity to wish Health to wish Ioy. The first was common to the Phylosophers the second to the Physitions the third to the vulgar people The ancient Romanes vsed commonly but one forme of greeting as Salutem optare to wish Health as it is euident by Ciceroes Epistles The most vsuall among the Iewes was to wish Peace The Apostle Saint Paul in euery of his Epistles vseth this forme of greeting Rom. 1.7 1. Cor. 1.3 1. Cor. 1.2 Gal. 1.3 Ephe. 1.2 Phil. 1.2 c. Acts 15.23 Grace bee with you and Peace from God our Father and from the Lord Iesus Christ Saint Peter vseth the same forme Saint Iude wisheth Mercy peace and loue to be multiplied The first generall Councell held at Ierusalem vseth the same manner of salutation as this our Apostle Saint Iames doth The word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies to Reioyce laetari bono animo esse to bee of good cheere or comfort howsoeuer the externall affaires of this world fall out Hee wisheth them all health and happinesse which may happen to strangers and Pilgrimes in this life both of body and soule He wisheth them a true and constant faith wherby they may acknowledge God He wisheth them a stedfast hope whereby they may cleaue to Gods promises in Iesus Christ He wisheth them true charitie whereby they may loue God with all their heart with all their soule and with all their minde He wisheth them patience in aduersity moderation in prosperity eternall saluation with perfect glorification both of body and soule Obseru 1 Heere obserue that the Apostle wisheth not vnto them the honours of this world great riches or liberty which yet they might seeme to want but spirituall good things that they may lead their liues acceptable vnto God that they may be at last truely happy and blessed for cuermore Math. 6.33 Seeke first saith Christ the Kingdome of heauen For what shall it profite a man though he should winne the whole world Mat. 16.26 if hee loose his owne soule So the Apostle Iohn inspired with the same Spirit wisheth to the Elect Lady 2. John 3. and her children aboue all things Grace mercy and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Iesus Christ And Saint Iohn vnto the seuen Churches wisheth Grace and peace from him which is Apoc. 1.4 which was and which is to come He wisheth not vnto them these false fading and corruptible goods which are common to the good and bad to the iust and vniust indifferently and which doe perish with vs but the gifts of the Spirit which can neither bee giuen nor taken away of men Obseru 2 Here againe let vs consider with what care and dilligence the first Pastors of the Church performed their office of Preaching and teaching the people when they not onely fed the present with their wholesome word of exhortation examples and doctrine but also laboured to draw the absent dispersed and future age to all piety with their holy Writings They watched ouer the Flock of Christ as they that were to giue account for their soules They knew well the word of the Lord to bee stable and sure Their bloud will I require at thine hands Ezech. 3.18 This care also had all Gods seruants in the succeeding ages as Clemens Alex. Iustinianus Tertullianus Cyprianus c. a president for all true Pastors to haue before their eyes Obseru 3 Againe heere is laid before our eyes the sweete mercy and goodnesse of God towards the exiles and dispersed Christians when he raised vp godly and faithfull Pastors to comfort them and further their saluation The Apostles after His Passion being scattered abroad by sundry apparitions hee comforted them Can a woman forget her child Esa 49.15 and not haue compassion on the sonne of her wombe though she should forget yet will I not forget thee saith the Lord. So Dauid in his exiles in the wildernesse and warres and in his greatest temptations this louing Lord neuer forsooke him but with his comforts alwaies accompanied him The Vse Let not the godly therefore in their sorrow and aduersities despaire let none distrust Gods fatherly care towards them Blessed is the man that maketh the Lord his trust Psal 40.4 and regardeth not the proud nor such as turne after lies Obseru 4 Lastly here wee learne that the duty of kind greetings and salutations is Apostolicall and a worke of charitie whereby as members of one body we wish well one to another This duty of euery true Christian is not to be reiected or proudly to be disdained as all holy and Apostolicall men the Saints of God by their owne examples haue taught vs Yea Christ himselfe most louingly saluted his Disciples Math. 28.9 Luk. 24.36 Ioh. 20.26 The Vse and the women being in distresse God saue you Peace be vnto you Here are reproued the proud Stoicall sullen Sectaries of our time who being puffed vp with selfe-conceite of their owne worthinesse disdaine to afford so much as salutations to any they meete which dissent from them in some opinions concerning their humorous fancies rightly resembling the old Donatists or Anabaptists of this age plainely shewing heereby how far
in affliction but as oftensoeuer we are assaulted with temptations so often to shew our selues patient and ioyfull For the Crowne is not giuen before the end of the combat Be thou faithfull vnto the death Reu. 2.10 and I will giue thee the Crowne of life Our life cannot be without sinne Aug. sup ps 60. vita nostra non potest esse sine peccato sine tentatione quia profectus noster per tentationem fit c. nor temptation for our profit and increase in godlines is through temptations saith Aug. And his reason followeth for neither doth a mā wel know himselfe except he bee tempted neither can he bee crowned except hee ouercome neither can hee ouercome except he fight neither can he fight except he haue an enemy and temptations to encounter with So farre S. Aug. Seuenthly these afflictions are also diuers and that in three respects First in regard of the diuers instruments which God vseth in inflicting them for sometimes hee vseth the deuill sometime wicked men he vseth as meanes sometime other creatures Secondly they are diuers in regard of the temptations themselues which are diuers and man if old therefore the Prophet saith Psa 34.18 Great are the troubles of the righteous but the Lord deliuereth him out of all as famine banishment hatred slander infamy pouerty c. Thirdly they are diuers in regard of the ends for which they are inflicted which are also diuers sometimes wee are afflicted that wee may be humbled and the pride of our hearts abated sometime to the end wee may not fixe our loue vpon the world sometime to make vs more zealous in good workes sometimes that partaking with Christ in his sufferings Rom. 8.17 Wee may also bee glorified with him VER 3. Knowing that the trying of your faith bringeth forth patience THE Apostle not ignorant that it seemeth a hard thing to carnall men to reioyce in the afflictions of this world by an elegant gradation he reciteth certaine vtilities and profites that commeth of them as reasons why the children of God should be comforted in afflictions considering the fruits that come thereby The first is that by them our faith is tryed They bring forth and exercise our patience They make men entire and perfect Obseru 1 For the first that afflictions make manifest triall and proofe of our faith the Scripture aboundantly maketh mention God doth many waies proue and examine the faith of his children not that he is ignorant what it is but that wee knowing our owne weakenesse should alwaies flie vnto him and say Luk. 17.5 Domine adauge nobis fidem Lord increase our faith Genes 12. He proued the faith of Abraham when hee commanded him to depart from his Country and acquaintance Genes 22. Hee tempted him also when he commanded him to sacrifice his deere and onely sonne Isaac in whom onely was the hope of the promise By many peregrinations and troubles hee proued the Israelites by the space of forty yearcs in the Desatt Againe Deut. 8. hee proued them by suffering many false Prophets to arise and seduce the people which was onely for their tryall as Moses witnesseth Deut. 13.3 The Lord your God proueth you to know whether you loue the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soule Hee proued also the Apostle Philip Ioh. 6.5.6 when hee said Whence shall we buy bread that these may eate and this he said to proue him for hee himselfe knew what hee would do and of all the godly it is said Wis 3.5.6 They are punished but in few things yet in many things shall they bee well rewarded for God proueth them and findeth them meet for himselfe hee tryeth them as the gold in the furnace and receiueth them as a perfect fruit-offering Tribulation therefore may be compared to the hearbe Cheledonie Greg. with the iuyce whereof Plinie as Pliny writeth the Swallowes purge and cleare their sight from dust and dung that maketh them dimme So saith Gregory oculos quos culpa claudit poena aperit The eyes which sinne shutteth the punishment for the same openeth A Simile It is like vnto the roote of the Vine or Oliue tree which though the radicall humour of the roote thereof be bitter yet through the influence of the Sunne and heat it is so digested that it becommeth sweete in the branches and yeeldeth most pleasant fruite So the bitternesse of tribulation through the benefite of GODS grace causeth the sweetnesse of consolation In the multitude of the sorrowes af my heart Psal 94 16 thy comforts haue refreshed my soule Tribulation may bee likened vnto the Tree called Rhamnus whose roote leaues Rhamnus and branches though as Physitians say bee exceeding bitter yet are they very medicinable for the seed thereof purgeth the body of all grosse humours and the iuice cleareth the sight So afflictions Simile though they seeme bitter to flesh and bloud yet they are very medicinable and healthfull to the soule they purge out the noysome humour of sinne and cleere the eyes of our minde which prosperity blindeth that wee may truely know our selues and see our owne corruption and horrible filthinesse and become henceforth more wary and carefull how wee offend or displease our louing and good GOD and flye vnto him in all our miseries Aug. sup ps Flagellum tribulationis excitat torpentem humiliat superbientem purgat poenitentem coronat innocentem The scourge of tribulation stirreth vp the drousie humbleth the proud purgeth the penitent and crowneth the innocent Obseru 2 Secondly we are here to obserue that God doth proue and try our faith not that hee might make it knowne vnto himselfe what it is for hee knoweth the secrets of the heart he searcheth the reines and knoweth all things before they are done but first that our faith may become more pure and perfect euen as gold out of the furnace Secondly that we might the better know our selues that is that wee might more cleerely see our owne weaknesse and frailnesse which without the helpe of his grace we are not able to help our selues Thirdly in respect of others that wee might be an example of patience and constancy vnto our neighbours Math. 26. Mar. 14.67 Ioh. 21. So Christ proued the faith of Peter on the Sea at his Passion and after his Resurrection when hee asked him three times whether hee loued him aboue the rest And the Apostle witnesseth that through his persecutions and bands Phil. 1.14 Many of the brethren were boldened and did more frankely speake the word Hence proceeded these confident speeches of the Christians to their tyrants and persecutors Cruciate torquete damnate atterite Tertul. probatio innocentiae nostrae est iniquitas vestra Torment vs rack vs condemne vs breake vs in peeces your iniquity is the triall of our innocency As therefore the Chrysopass Chrysopass Simile or Ethiopian stone shineth in the
Apostle Saint Paul saith Romanes 12.19 Auenge not your selues but giue place vnto wrath for vengeance is mine and I will reuenge saith the Lord. But because it chanceth oftentimes that wee are compelled to answere againe The secōd remedy as when by our silence the angry man is prouoked the more thinking thereby that he is contemned Iohn 19. as was the anger of Pilat against Christ in this case another remedy is to be sought Pro. 25.15 and this is lingua mollis a modest and gentle answere Such was the wisedome of Abigal towards Dauid being angry 1. Sam. 25. For saith Salomon Prou. 15.1 A soft anger putteth away wrath but grieuous words stirre vp anger Thirdly The third remedy to winne an enemy by benefites is a singular kind of remedy prescribed both by wise Salomon and by the blessed Apostle If hee that hateth thee bee hungry giue him bread Pro. 25.21 Rom. 12.20 if hee bee thirsty giue him water to drinke for thou shalt lay coles vpon his head and the Lord shall recompence thee And this is a most noble kinde of victory And now the remedies for the repressing of wrath in our selues are these Remedies for suppressing of wrath in our selues First the remembrance of Christs sufferings for thy sinnes and why then shouldst not thou suffer a little for his sake Ephe. 4 32 Forgiuing one an other euen as God for Christs sake forgaue you Imitate their example which being stinged with the fiery serpents looked vpon the brazen serpent and were healed Wrath is a fiery serpent fixe the eyes of thy consideration vpon Christ and thou shalt be healed Secondly represse thine anger with silence Ephe. 4.31 Let all bitternesse and anger and wrath crying and euill speaking bee put away from you Plutarch commendeth this counsell of Atheriodorus the Philosopher who perswaded Augustus Caesar that when hee was angry hee should not say or doe any thing before he had to himselfe said ouer the Greeke Alphabet that by this meanes the rage of his wrath by delay might bee cooled The third is to consider the cause that is thine owne sinnes for no aduersity may happen vnto thee which thine owne sins haue not deserued Whereof pithily speaketh Augustine Irascoris patri tuo peccas irasccre tibi ipsi ne peccas Thou art angry with thy father and sinnest but bee thou angry with thy selfe that thou maist not sin The fourth is a firme faith in Gods prouidence nothing may be said or done vnto thee which is not ordered by Gods prouidence yea all the haires of your head are numbred Math. 10. saith Christ And againe Shall I not drink of the cup which my Father hath giuen mee Iohn 18.11 The fift is commiseration to take pitty on him which is angry and prouoketh thee to wrath For while this Passion ruleth in him he is a foole a mad-man Besides he is the instrument of God for the exercise of thy patience Example wee haue in King Dauid when Shemei cursed and reuiled him he was so far from taking reuenge that hee said The Lord hath bidden him to curse Dauid 2. Sam. 16.10 who dare then say why hast thou done so To conclude if thou be angry hearken to the Apostles counsell Ephes 4. Let not the Sunne go downe vpon thy wrath and this may suffice to moderate this passion in a Christian man Ira debet rationi ac virtuti accubare Basil tanquà m canis pastori quae mordeat increpet allatretque vitium vitiosos velut lupos Anger should lie downe by reason and vertue as the dog by the Shepheard it should barke at bite and rebuke vice and vitious men as wolues The seuenth Sermon IAMES 1.21 21 Wherefore lay apart all filthines and superfluity of maliciousnesse and receiue with meeknesse the word that is graffed in you which is able to saue your soules THE Apostle here exhorteth the regenerate to the hearing of the word of Truth And first he sheweth how we must prepare our mindes to the hearing of the word that it may fructifie in our hearts which consisteth in two things 1 Laying aside all filthinesse and malice to heare it with meeknesse 2 Next the reason why we must heare it because it is able to saue our soules First by an elegant metaphor taken from husbandry the Apostle teacheth that the noysome weeds of vices both of body and soule must bee first rooted vp and extirpated before the heauenly doctrine the word of truth can be receiued and bee graffed in the field of our hearts euen as the husbandmen before they cast the corne into the ground do first purge their ground of Thornes Brambles Stones and such like that it may yeeld the more increase For in euery action either naturall or spirituall two things are necessary Alterum quod agat alterum quod patiatur The Agent which worketh and the Patient vpon which it must worke And in the Agent there must bee power to worke and in the Patient or Sufferer a disposition to receiue For that the earth may bring forth fruite it is needfull that the Seed bee cast into it and that it bee first prepared as I said c. and if either of these bee wanting in vaine is the hope of fruit The Smith that hee may finish his worke first softneth it in the fire and maketh it tractable for except it be molified in vaine he laboureth to beat the cold Iron And it is a Maxime in Philosophie Actus actiuorum esse in patiente dispositi The greater in any thing the disposition is to receiue the sooner and more perfect followeth the action Wee see dry wood put into the fire quickly to be kindled and a candle lately put out and yet smoaking with the least touch of fire to receiue the flame and sometimes without fire with the breath onely to bee kindled So much auaileth a conuenient and apt preparation in the thing that receiueth any action So though I confesse the grace of God to bee free nullis astrictam legibus bound by no lawes as Aug. saith yet this grace commonly imitateth the reason and order of naturall things Hence it followeth How wee may profit by hearing the Word that a man may profite by hearing of Sermons It is not alwaies enough that there be a learned and apt Teacher vnlesse the Hearer also bee apt and wel disposed that is that the ground of his mind be first prepared that he heare not the same negligently onely for custome or in an affection of curiosity but that hee heare with zeale and deuotion for there are many that come to Sermons onely to carpe or to note if the Preacher vtter any sentence acutely or eloquently whereby they may feed their curiosity Curious hearers and not satisfie the hunger of their soule And euen as they say there is some ground so barren that if they sow the finest wheate in it bringeth not forth
This seed of it selfe is very fruitfull but according to the diuerse conditions of the ground that is of the hearers it yeeldeth none at all or diuerse fruit For the heart of some is like an high way which is worne and trodden on of all that is which without any choice is laid open to all vncleane thoughts and desires Their heart is like a common Inne which admitteth and receiueth all kinde of men good and bad knowne and vnknowne for it maketh no difference of good or euill thoughts It is like vnto a crazed boate which leaketh water at euery chinke It is like a Citie without walles or gates which is easily inuaded of the enemy Like a vineyard without a hedge whose fruit is spoiled of euery one that passeth by To conclude such a soule is like vnto a house without a dore or locke which euery one vseth as a filthy stable And how shamefull a thing is it to suffer the soule to bee thus polluted with all vncleane thoughts it may appeare by this one example Were it not an indelible shame for a woman to fall into the degree of impudency to prostitute her selfe in a common stewes Et omnibus sui copiam facere And what an ignominy then is it vnto the soule to receiue within it all vncleane thoughts and desires which the deuill offereth without any difference What is this else but to commit spirituall fornication with the harlot whereof the Lord speaketh by the Prophet Ieremy Ier. 2. Like an harlot thou runnest about vpon all high Hilles and vnder euery greene Tree What fruite now should the word of God yeeld in such a heart For euen as an harlot though shee know many men yet she remaineth alwaies barren So though they oftentimes heare the word yet are nothing bettered thereby For these vices doe distract the minde with diuers perturbations that they will not permit it quietly and attentiuely to heare the word c. The eighth Sermon IAMES 1.22 c. And be yee deers of the word and not hearers onely c. THE Apostle hauing before spoken of regeneration heere hee proceedeth exhorting the regenerate to shew forth the fruites thereof The Diuision which consisteth in three especiall members An exhortation to obedience confirmed by certaine reasons in the first foure verses The second taken from the nature and quality of Gods word which not onely teacheth vs to do well but to speake well also If any among you c. with certaine reasons Thirdly hee sheweth wherein true religion consisteth Pure religion and vndefiled c. By doing the word the Apostle meaneth not an absolute and perfect fulfilling of the Law which no man can possibly performe as the Apostle Peter witnesseth Act. 15. but the doing of the word by the imputation of the righteousnesse and obedience of Christ who hath perfectly fulfilled the Law for the saluation of the faithfull which when they haue truely receiued Christ by faith hee giueth them such measure of the spirit of sanctification that they obediently endeuour to conforme their will to the will of God to feare loue and to serue him to loue their neighbour and alwaies to proceed towards perfection Men dinersly affected to the word There are some which neither heare nor doe the word of God others which will heare but not doe and there are others which heare the word and indeuour to do the same For the first sort of these it is plaine that they are of their father the deuill by the sentence of Christ himselfe Iohn 8. chapter and 47. verse Hee that is of God heareth Gods word yee therefore heare them not because yee are not of God Simile Doth it not seeme that hee is not the Lord of a Castle which when hee would enter the gates are shut against him So the gate by which God would enter into our hearts is the hearing of the Word Preached who so then that refuseth to heare doth as it were shut the gate of his heart against Christ Euen as a Citie which receiueth victuall and all necessaries for the sustentation of their life from some other place if thou stop the waies and passages by which it was wont to bee brought they must needs faint and perish with famine So the life of our soule dependeth of some other For euery good giuing and euery perfect gift is from aboue and commeth downe from the Father The word of God is the way by which all good things commeth to the soule which if thou stop thy soule must needs perish The ground which is not manured tilled what can it yeeld but weedes brambles and thornes it bringeth not forth corne of his owne nature If thou wilt not heare the word Quid nisi peccata germinabis saith one There are many now a dayes which beare the name of Christians which will so practise the manners and rules of true Christianity as one once did imbrace the studies of Philosophie who as Cicero saith was wont to say Philosophandum esse Vt ne quid nimis Terent. sed paucis that is Hee would not wholy addict himselfe to the studies of Philosophy Sed summis tantum labijs degustare that is but a little taste and away Such are many professours now a daies which will not giue their whole heart and loue to the word but lightly and carelesly touch this heauenly Philosophie Such care for the word of God in the same measure Vt canis é Nilo Simile as they were wont the holy water comming into the Church content to bee sprinkled with a few drops but taking it in euill part if one should cast much vpon them So these content themselues with neuer so little or none at all so much doe they feare to fall into the excesse of ne quid nimis Againe as that man seemeth not to be of his houshold or family whose commandement he will not heare for shall he do that which he refuseth ro heare Is it not a wonderfull thing that all the members of the body should bee consecrated to Christ both for that hee hath created and redeemed vs and yet wee cannot affoord him one member not so much as an eare To the poysons of detractions wee haue our eares open but to the word of saluation men giue a deafe eare How shall they beleeue in him of whom they haue not heard Rom. 10.14 and how shall they heare without a Preacher But leauing these men as incorrigible and desperately wicked Contra negantes principia non est disputandū but praying to God for them I will proceed to the rest The second sort are such as can be content to heare the word but haue no care to do it For this seed of the word though of its owne nature it be most fruitfull yet according to the variety of the ground that is of the hearers among whom it is sowen it bringeth forth no fruit or very diuerse by reason that their
depart onely with your life Adeo à teneris assuescere magnum so much preuaileth an euill custome taken in youth Haue alwaies in minde this counsell of the Spirit of God Eccle. 12.1 Remēber thy Maker in the daies of thy youth while the euill daies come not nor the yeares approach wherein thou shalt say I haue no pleasure in them let this be the second Flie euil company as from a noysome pestilence Flye euill company which that yee may the better do be sometimes alone and meditate with your selues that youth soone vanisheth you must one day die and giue account for your whole life past let this be the third which if yee doe Yee shall not bee idle hearers but doers of the word Woemen Yee women build you also these three things vpon your faith in Christ Keepe inuiolated your matrimoniall chastity traine vp your children in the feare of God be honest in your apparell in your gesture in your words and workes and bee obedient to your husbands which if you doe notwithstanding the cares and troubles which wedded estate bringeth with it yee shall one day enioy the incorruptible crowne of glory being doers of the word and not hearers onely Yee Poore-men Ye poore whose vocation affoordeth nothing in this world but cares labours and sorrowes and conflicts with penury build you also these three vertues vpon your faith vse patience in aduersities hope that at length you shall bee deliuered giue thankes vnto God in all euents and accidents of this life which if you do yee shall one day with poore Lazarus exchange your sorrowes for neuer-failing ioy being doers of the word and not hearers onely Yee sinfull men and women despaire not of Gods mercy Yee sinfull men and women but without delay build these 3 things vpon your faith in Christ True sorrow and contrition of heart for your sinfull liues sure hope of pardon at Gods hands and amendment of life in the study of all good workes for that you haue displeased God offended your neighbour and most hurted your owne soules so shall not your sinnes separate betwixt God and you being doers of the word and not hearers onely Hauing before insisted at large vpon the Apostles admonition I will now proceed with the reasons The first is taken from the detriment which commeth vnto them which ioyne not practise with their hearing The reasons They deceiue themselues Non enim stertentibus prouenit regnum coelorum sed laborantibus Augustine sed vigilantibus The Kingdome of heauen is not giuen to the carelesse sleepy sluggard but to such as labour to such as watch And this labour as he saith againe to the louing sonnes and good seruants seemeth not onely not hard and onerous sed suauis leuis but sweete and light as our Lord witnesseth My yoke is easie Mat. 11.30 and my burden light It is an old prouerbe Amanti nil difficile crcdenti nil non possibile Nothing is hard to him that loueth and nothing impossible to him that beleeueth Surely it is a wonderfull thing if we consider the loue of God towards vs which seeketh by threatnings promises and rewards to induce vs to the practise of his Word and obedience to his Lawes which yet by all these meanes will not yeeld vnto him When yet if there were in vs but scintilla germanae pietatis One sparke of true piety wee would verily reioyce that any occasion were offered vnto vs whereby wee might declare our gratitude loue and obedience to so louing a God For whatsoeuer hee commandeth vs for our good hee commandeth it Vt ansam habeat nobis gratificandi that hee might take occasion saith a Father to do vs good But wee vnthankefull wretches Surdis auribus praeterimus passe by with a deafe eare and yet are we not ashamed of so great vnthankefulnesse but what get wee by this Surely the Apostle heere telleth vs Wee deceiue our selues Nobis hic seritur Bernard nobis metitur our sowing and haruest is to our selues Cyprianus Et quid tā amentiae simile imo ipsa amentia stolidius quam in rebus serijs quae non de lana caprina sed nostra vel salute vel pernitie sempiternaagant tam esse socordes ac stupidos Many can saith he againe verbis crepitare Euangelium prattle of the Gospell but haue no care to practise the same But whom deceiue they but themselues And what can bee more like to madnesse yea more foolish then madnesse it selfe then in things of so great importance which concerne our saluation or damnation to be so lumpish and blockish Many now adaies of the Layitie will challenge to themselues great knowledge yea and thinke themselues not in the milde spirit of Dauid but in a proud conceit of themselues to bee wiser then their teachers whose hearts are yet puffed vp with pride whose mindes are set on mischiefe whose feet are swift to swift to shed innocent bloud whose hands are full of briberies whose heads are full pestered with couetous desires whose liues are stained with vsury and oppression whose bodies are wearied and wasted with fleshly pleasures rauished with inordinate desires choaked with cares entised with delights carryed away with vanities Is this my brethren to heare the word what is this else but to deceiue our selues O my brethren wee which thus deceiue our selues shall neuer bee able to deceiue God Bee not deceiued Gal. 6.7 God is not mocked for whatsoeuer a man soweth that shall hee also reape Simile Should not he seeme a foole which would sow his ground with nettles cockle and darnel and expect a plentifull haruest of wheate Hee that soweth no good thing shall hee reape any good thing Shall not he that soweth in the flesh of the flesh reape corruption and he that soweth in the Spirit of the Spirit reape life eternall Surely then these idle hearers to whom the word is but diuersorium otij and haue no care to leade their liues by the line of Gods Lawes what doe they else but deceiue themselues Brethren wee all hope to bee saued wee all make profession of the hope of eternall life but do we not deceiue our selues whiles we looke for the inheritance of sonnes and our degenerate liues acknowledge not God for our Father Let vs not my sweete brethren thus abuse the long patience of our louing God and so inhaunce our condemnation at that dreadfull day Some of vs hee hath waited for which adde sin vpon sinne forty yeares others fifty others sixty with wonderfull patience inuiting vs to repentance Why is our life giuen vs by God the Authour of Life but that it should serue and obey the Giuer thereof For hee hath not giuen vs life and necessary aids of life that is the seruice and obedience of all his creatures to this end that abusing his gifts wee should prouoke and kindle his wrath against vs or should let loose the raines of
gluttony drunkennesse and other wicked desires So many yeares then as thou hast liued wickedly so long hath God patiently looked for thy repentance In which time what meanes hath Hee not attempted what hath hee not done that hee might reclaime and recall thee to a better mind With how many plagues hath hee stricken thee with how many benefites hath he allured thee with how many diseases hath hee rowsed thee with the losse of how many of thy neighbours hath he set the image of thy mortality before thee With how many secret inspirations and that in the midst of thy sinfull race hath hee sought to reforme thee With how many cals of his Preachers hath hee warned thee how many and infinite sinnes hath hee patiently suffered that hee might draw thee vnto him and prouoke thee to repentance The longer then he hath forborne thee and left nothing vnattempted to win thee the more iustly and fearefully will hee strike thee Patientia laesa fit furor This the Lord himselfe saith by his Prophet Esay Esa 42. I haue a long time holden my peace I haue beene still and refrained my selfe now will I cry like a trauelling woman I will destroy and deuoure at once Tste Philosophers say A Simile that the Adamant which of all stones is the most solide and hardest if by Art it be dissolued it turneth into so small a dust that it may hardly be descerned by the eye Such is the nature of this high Iudge and his Diuine fury as the Psalmist saith Deus Iudex fortis ac patiens Psal 7.12 And God is prouoked euery day if a man will not turne hee hath whet his sword hee hath bent his bow and made it ready Eccl. 5. The Almighty saith the Wise-man is a patient rewarder but when his patience is often and much abused then his great lenity is dissolued into most fearefull and bitter wrath and the more patient hee is in suffering the more terrible will hee bee in punishing Et tarditatem Valer. grauitate supplicij compensat and for the slownesse of punishing hee addeth the greater punishment in the end then shall wee surely finde how bitter our former pleasures are which haue beene the cause of such horrible torments Fauus distillans labia meretricis nouissima autem illius amara quasi absinthium acuta quasi gladius biceps The lips of a strange woman drop as an hony combe Pro. 5.34 and her mouth is more soft then Oile but the end of her is bitter as worme-wood and sharpe as a two-edged sword Rightly saith hee two edged for it giueth a deadly wound not to the body onely but to the soule also This considered let vs not tempt the Lord and promise to our selues security in sinning but let vs bee doers of the word and not hearers onely deceiuing our selues The second reason why wee should bee doers of the word and not hearers onely is taken from the losse of the vse of Gods Word the word of God serueth to reforme in vs the things which are amisse of this profite we depriue our felues when wee are content with bare hearing without any care of reforming our liues thereby This reason hee confirmeth by a fit similitude comparing the Word vnto a Glasse in which euery one may behold himselfe The Word compared to a glasse from whence he came where he is and whether he goeth that is his sinnes his exile his miserie his future state of wretchednesse neuer after to be changed if he persist in sinne the face of our natiuity is the manifold misery to which wee are borne when wee come into this world which being newly borne wee presage by our weeping The word of God is in many respects compared to a glasse 1 Euen as in a glasse we may behold our deformities and blemishes which wee seeke to amend So the word of God sheweth vs the filthy polutions of sinne In this glasse Dauid Mary Magdalen and all the Saints of God beheld their wicked liues and thereby conceiued a iust dislike of those sinnes wherevnto heeretofore they were addicted In this respect the word of God is compared vnto a Glasse and therefore the Apostle saith that thereby wee come to see sinne Rom. 3. and by the Law haue knowledge thereof 2 The Glasse sheweth their owne faces vnto men and not the faces of others that they might bee carefull to wipe away their owne blemishes and not to bee curious in scanning the liues of others So the word of God sheweth vnto euery one that looketh therein his owne sinnes chiefly and not the sinnes of their brethren to the intent that euery one should bee carefull of his owne life and not too curious to pry into the liues of others therefore the Apostle willeth vs by rule of the Word to to proue your selues whether you are in the faith Examine your selues 2. Cor. 13.5 Hipocrites heare the Word Hipocrits as fooles are wont to looke into a glasse to see themselues not to correct their deformities but perswading themselues that they are faire when they are deformed and so goe away as wise as they came So hypocrites thinke themselues righteous when they are wicked go as wise from a Sermon as they came thither Wee haue then the word of God as a glasse to looke in Wee haue in the Saints and true worshippers of God a glasse of examples to looke into Wee haue within our selues a Glasse of Reason and Conscience wherein euery man may know in himselfe what is praise worthy and what deserueth reproofe All these are rules for the direction of our liues and yet wee neuer care to reforme our selues thereby Luke 19. O if thou hadst knowne c. saith our Sauiour vnto that wicked Citie that is thou wouldst then bewaile thy state as I now bewaile thee Augustine speaketh thus vnto the sinner Augustine in the person of God saying Augustine O homo quia te non vides tibi places si te videres tibi displiceres sed veniet tempus quando te videbis tibi pariter mihi displicebis tibi quia ardebis mihi quia damnaberis O man because thou seest not thy selfe thou pleasest well thy selfe if thou sawest thy selfe thou wouldst take small pleasure in thy selfe But the time will come when thou shalt see thy selfe and shalt displease both mee and thy selfe thy selfe because thou shalt be tormented and me because thou shalt bee condemned Then when the Lord shall reueale the secrets of the heart when Hee shall search Ierusalem with a Candle Zeph. 1. and nothing can bee hidden from his eyes Now is the time brethren to behold our blemishes in this glasse that we may bee induced to wholesome repentance by iudging our selues to preuent the iudgement of God But alas how farre otherwise do wee vse this glasse of the Word Some beholding in this Glasse their frailty sins and dangers they are in for a time are
not onely so but wee our selues would put a bridle vnto our tongue and diligently weigh in the balance of our hearts our words before wee vtter them that they hurt no man and that our tongue destroy not our owne soule so shall it come to passe that with this one care wee shall auoide infinite sins which are committed with the tongue And so I conclude this whole discourse of the tongue with these few short lessons which I would wish euery good Christian to register in his heart and practise in the course of his life For the beter gouernment then of this little member it would greatly profite to obserue these foure things viz. First what wee should speake Secondly the manner of our speech Thirdly the time when wee should speake Fourthly and the cause why we should speak For the first wee are to obserue this of the Apostle Ephe. 4.29 Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouthes but that which is good to the vse of edifying that it may minister grace to the hearers And this in another place he expresseth more plaine But fornication Ephe. 5.34 and all vncleanenesse or couetousnesse let it not bee once named among you as it becommeth Saints neither filthinesse neither foolish talking neither iesting which are things not comely but rather giuing of thankes Euen as the Marriner doth carefully auoid all dangerous places delineated in his Map or Charte So the seruant of God in his daily speech should warily shunne the dangerous rockes of communication discouered in the word of God that his soule suffer not shipwrack thereon 2 In the manner of our speech wee should bee circumspect that we speake considerately aduisedly without too much affectation of curious delicate or exquisite words but with grauity mildnesse sobriety we vse a Christian simplicity and plainenesse in our speech without obstinate selfe-conceite as they which striue to haue the vpper hand in whatsoeuer they shall speake whereby the conscience of many is troubled charity and patience infringed and their friends offended It is a note of a generous minde sometime to yeeld and in such contention leaue the palme to another according to the counsell of the Wise-man Giue eare and bee still Eccl. 32. Verse 7.9 in many things be as one that is ignorant be as one that vnderstandeth and yet hold thy tongue 3 The third thing to bee obserued is the fit and opportunate time of speaking that we speake in due time For as the Wise-man saith Ecle 20.5 Some man keepeth silence and is found wife and some holdeth his tongue because he hath not to answere and some keepeth silence wayting a conuenient time A wise man will hold his tongue till hee see opportunity but a foole will regard no time Nobile lingua bonū si norit tempore fari At si non norit nobile lingua malum The tongue is sure a noble Good if time to speake it knowes If not the tongue 's a mischiefe great from whence much euill flowes 4 The last thing in speech to bee considered is the cause for some will vtter wise sentences that they may be thought to bee wise and others because they would shew the acutenesse of their wit and eloquence the first is an note of an hypocrite the other the marke of a foole desirous of vaine-glory He therefore that would speake must not onely haue a care that his words be good but also that the end and intention be good which is if in our speech wee seeke onely the glory of God and good of our neighbour If any thinke it hard to obserue these rules I counsell him to make his refuge the safe port of filence which will bee a remedy to shun innumerable sinnes which otherwise men are wont to fall into through a misgouerned tongue as that Mirrour of wisedome counselleth Pro. 17.28 A foole when hee holdeth his peace is counted wise and he that stoppeth his mouth prudent And Bernard saith Sint verba tua rara vera ponderosa rara contra multiloquium vera contra falsiloquium ponderosa contra vaniloquium Let thy words bee few true substantiall against many words false words vaine words The third Part. VER 27. Pure Religion and vndefiled c. THE Apostle hauing shewed negatiue what Religion is not that it cannot stand with an vnbrideled and misgouerned tongue hee now describeth the same affirmatiue shewing what the true and pure Religion is and that by the properties effects thereof heere he maketh mention but of 2 things 1 The workes of mercy towards our distressed brethren 2 And innocency of our owne liues The effects of true religion Vnder these by a figure called Synecdoche comprehending all other duties of Christianity Now in that the Apostle saith Pure Religion and vndefiled before God euen the Father Hee distinguisheth betweene the true Religion and the counterfeit and false Religion of hipocrites inferring that there is a Religion approued among hipocrites but not with God and a Religion that is pure before God and allowed of him but not with the hipocrits of the world the true Religion acceptable vnto God sheweth it selfe in mercy loue charity towards our brethren and innocency purity of our own liues which being wanting in hipocrites howsoeuer they please themselues what shew soeuer they make to the world yet is it not the true Religion before God And this much the very name of Religion implyeth which commeth as Lactantius would haue it à religando Lact. lib. 4. cap. 25. Religion how deriued quia per hoc pietatis vinculū Deo religamur obstringimur Of binding because by this band of piety we are bound and knit to God Againe this Religion is called pure and vndefiled not onely that it might be distinguished from the impure superstitions of the Gentiles But also because it ought to be voide sincere from all hipocrisie and dissimulation With how many impurites the sects of the Simonians Nicholaytans Carpocratians and of the old Gnostici Irenaeus Augustine were polluted defiled Irenaeus Augustine other ancient Writers do witnes at large The first effect of true Religion is charity towards the fatherlesse widowes signifying by them all our brethrē which stand in need of our help but especially our mercy should extend to the fatherlesse widowes of whō God seemes to haue the greater care because they are exposed to most wrong and are destitute of the protectiō of their husbāds fathers which were wont to defend them and stand for them and therfore in a peculiar and singular manner in holy Scripture Psalm 68 hee is called The Father of the fatherlesse and Iudge of the cause of the widowes Which appellation in very deed is most conuenient for the Maiesty of God for there is a false and there is a true magnanimity of minde The false magnanimity exerciseth his rule and tyranny ouer the poore the weake and such as are
the Kingdome of heauen you that are as the Apostle noteth you 2. Tim. 3.4 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 magis quam 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 louers of pleasures more then louers of God As though there were no heauen for the godly Ferra pilae similis nullo fulcimine nixa Aere sublimi tam graue pendet onus God hath hanged the earth vpoÌ„ nothing Iob 26.7 nor hell for the wicked When thou callest to minde that thou treadest vpon the earth hanging like a ball in the aire and floting in the waters is it not euident enough vnto thee that there is a God Hee hangeth the earth vpon nothing Cum te pendenti reputas insistere terrae Nonne vel hinc clare conspicis esse DeuÌ„ When thou considerest that thou tread'st on earth that hangs in aire Dost thou not clearely see by this there is a God-head faire The vse wee are to make of this doctrine is The Vse neuer to fall in loue with this polluting world as our intollerable greedinesse plainely sheweth that we are too much glewed to the loue of earthly things and haue little feeling of the ioyes of our heauenly countrey prepared for all such as loue the Lords appearing nor yet of the sinnes of this infecting world which cleaue so fast vnto vs. A Simile shewing the danger of worldly loue O that I could by any plainnesse of teaching imprint this so profitable a doctrine in your minds We see beloued in reason that the naturall heate which is within vs by externall cold in the Winter kept in and augmented which by the heate in Summer opening the pores euaporateth out and is inwardly diminished And verely so is it in spirituall matters the colder wee feele the loue of the world the more the loue of God is kindled in our hearts and the more it encreaseth but if we wallow in earthly delights in the sun-shine of polluting pleasures ô how much is the loue of God within cooled and diminished in our hearts 1. Sam. 17.39 Euen as Dauid was not well able to go vnder the burthen of Saules armour about him but when it was taken from him hee couragiously marched on and slew that enemy of God and his people the great Goliah So whilst wee are laden with Saules armour that is clogged and spotted with the weight of this defiling world wee are altogether vnapt to any Christian combate but if wee cast of this weight wee runne with alacrity as did Danid encounter with this spirituall Goliah preuaile with honour and giue him the foyle The second inseparable property then and effect of true Religion the Apostle teacheth to bee innocency of life to keepe our selues vnspotted of the world that is to bee cleere from the workes of darkenes and pollutions of wicked worldlings to abstaine from carnall lusts and filthy pleasures to which prophane worldlings are most prone The Saints of God which truely embrace the Christian and soulesaâ—â—â—g Religion are here distinguisheâ—â—â—â—m hipocrites and false 〈◊〉 They onely labour to bee holy and pure both in body and minde in soule and spirit in thought and we he 2. Cor. 11. that they may bee presented blamelesse as chaste virgines before the Lord Iesus Epictetus Epictetus comprised all his Philosophy in these two words 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Sustine Abstine Beare Forbeare to suffer euill Lactantius and abstaine from doing euill And Lactantius saith the rule of a godly life consisteth in Patience and Abstinence Almighty God requireth especially of all that professe his name this innocency of life that they keepe themselues vnspotted of the world So when hee called Abraham from the idolatry of Mesapotamia to his true worship and Religion Gen. 17. he gaue him this charge Walke before mee and bee thou perfect So when hee gathered his people into one Congregation and body polliticke hee required of them holinesse innocency and integrity of life as the effect and note of true Religion saying Bee yee holy Leuit. 11. for I am holy So our Sauiour the Authour of Christian Religion calleth his from the pollutions of the world when hee willeth them to bee as innocent as Doues Math. 10. So the Apostle prescribing to them the Christian sacrifice warneth them to take heed of worldly corruptions and not to Fashion themselues thereunto Rom. 12. This is also his counsell to Timothy 2. Tim. 2. Let euery one that calleth vpon IESVS CHRIST depart from iniquity Now the spots wherwith worldlings are chiefly defiled are Thefts Adulteries and fleshly Vncleanenesse Couetousnesse Vsury Oppression Drunkennesse Pride Enuy Contention Ambition Vaine-glory c. Wilt thou know now whether thou bee a true Professour indeed of this pure Religion which onely is able to saue thy soule fall then into a serious examination of thy conscience whether thou bee not defiled with adulteries and vncleannesse whether thy heart bee not set vpon couetousnesse and oppression stained with vsury extortion thy body polluted with surfetting drunkennes whether thou bee free from pride arrogancy void of enuy malice and contention whether thou bee not spotted with cruelty hard-heartednes towards thy neighbour c. Herewith whoseeuer is stained his Religion howsoeuer he flatter himselfe is not pure vndefiled before God for pure Religion and vndefiled before God the Father is to visite the fatherlesse widowes c. Examine thy conscience whether thou be studious of the coÌ„trary vertues as chastity teÌ„perance meeknes loue mercy liberality brotherly kindnes c. wherein the true Religion consisteth which God grant vnto vs for his Sonne Iesus Christs sake to whom with the Holy Ghost bee all honour praise power and Dominion for euer and euer Amen FINIS
that when God is said to harden it is not so to bee vnderstood as if hee did harden them which before were soft and flexible but thus that it which by his owne nature is hard he suffereth it still to bee hard and through his iust iudgements but per accidens more and more by the meanes of Sathan to bee hardened And how Per accidens Surely because God heerein worketh no euill but the deuill abuseth Gods benefites bestowed vpon a man to his obduration and hardening of his heart and causeth a wicked man of his owne accord to abuse the same to his owne destructiō as it is to be seen in Pharas and therefore in this kind of hardening there is no compulsion but a man is voluntarily hardned and in this respect Sathan hardneth The second kind is called a voluntary obduration or hardening when man hardeneth his owne heart which is when a man confirmeth and hardeneth himselfe in euill purpose neither will hee heare nor bee obedient to the voyce of the Lord or to any admonitions whereby hee is called to repentance but abuseth Gods suffering to his owne damnation which not onely Pharaoh did but also Saul and Iudas and many other though wee doe not peculiarly reade of them as wee do of Pharaoh that God hardened their hearts but onely because they voluntarily stood obstinate in their owne conceiued wickednes against all admonitions And thus not God but man hardeneth himselfe The third is called the Diuine or Iudiciall hardening that is when God as an vpright Iudge punisheth their former sinnes and the voluntary stubbornnesse of the wicked by more and more hardening their heart by the ministery of Sathan being partly already of their owne nature obdurate and partly also by the sinnes of the wicked hardened such properly was the hardening of Pharaoh so often mentioned in Exodus and in the ninth to the Romanes and besides other places in the ninth of Exodus it is said that Pharaoh sinned and hardened his heart First it is said hee sinned expressing plainly the cause of obduration which is his sinne next his heart was hardened shewing the punishment of sinne which is hardnesse of heart Hardnesse of heart is sinne the cause of sinne and the punishment of sinne For Pharaoh himselfe first sinned then God as a punishment of his sinne hardned more and more his heart so that hardnesse of heart is sinne the punishment of sinne and the cause of sinne Heere now it is manifest that sinne and the custome of sinning is that which hardneth the heart of the wicked and therefore it is said of Pharaoh that hee sinned and his heart was hardned and the Scripture plainely teacheth that GOD hardneth Sathan hardneth and Man himselfe hardeneth his owne heart but in a diuerse sence after a diuerse manner It is spoken of God not as the authour of euill but per accidens by doing good by bestowing his benefites by vsing well the wicked putposes of the vngodly and disposing them as a soueraigne agent vnto a good end Sathan hardneth as the authour of sinne blindnesse and prince of darkenesse he working in the wicked peruerteth the good motions which God instilleth into their minds and vnder the pretext of good abuseth them to euill vnto their owne destruction he alwaies sophistically concludeth and sheweth reasons to effect it and therefore hee is called Princeps tenebrarum Prince of darkenesse Who hath deliuered vs from the power of darkenesse that is Collos 1. from the power of Sathan Iohn 13. the example of Iudas maketh manifest this who did not so obstinately proceed before the diuel entred into him and began wholy to carry him after his will First he consented to the counsell of Sathan but after the taking of the sop he fully possessed him and this is called of the Diuines proxima causa indurationis quae extra hominem considerari potest The next cause of obduration which may bee considered without man Thirdly man himselfe hardneth his owne heart who of his owne will turneth his heart from God and assenteth to the counsell of Sathan Ad actiones simpliciter à Deo motus ad peccandum alectus à diabiolo saith a Father being of God simply moued to actions but of the deuill allured to sinne By sinning willingly and perseuering in sinne he obstinately hardeneth his heart to resist God abusing all Gods benefites to his owne destruction for except the will of man consented there could bee no hardening for to harden the heart is nothing else but the will to be more and more obstinate in an vngodly purpose So that Sathan hardeneth by suggesting Man by consenting Aug. con Fauslum God by forsaking as Augustine pitihily saith Diabolus suggerit Homo consentit Deus deserit the deuill suggesteth man consenteth God forsaketh And so this Oracle of the Prophet holdeth euer most firme O Israel Hos 13. thy destruction is of thy selfe but thy helpe commeth onely of mee This being so I conclude with the Apostle Let no man say when hee is tempted I am tempted of God The second thing I mentioned is the temptation to seduce deceiue drawing mouing and stirring vs forward to all wickednesse And of this temptation there are two kinds externall and internall externall is that whose cause is outward and beginning thereof as when sathan vseth the world riches glory euill examples as meanes to allure vs Of his snares it is said Iob. 18. A snare is laid for him in the ground and a trap for him in the way The snare and the trap are the deuils instruments to catch soules The deuill is like a Fowler or a Hunter A Simile who that hee may take birds or wilde beasts sheweth forth a pleasant bait but hideth the snare that being allured with the baite they may bee caught with the snare For when he promiseth to the proud man honours to the couetous man mony to the loose man pleasures c. what doth he else but vnder the baite hide the net and the snare that he may catch vnwary soules The Latine more plainly expresseth it Abscondita est in terra pedica eius decipula super semitas His snare is hidden in the ground and his trap vpon his pathes In which words as a father noteth are signified two kinds of temptations Hugo Card. The one open which except it be hidden vnder the colour of some good it is perceiued of all men and this is signified per pedicam by the ginne which is hidden in the ground as is fornication and other carnall sinnes The other more secret subtile and hidden which scarce of the wise is discerned which is signified per decipulam by a deceitfull trap The deuill then hath his ginne and his trappe for all kinds of men for he knoweth the manners of men and to what vice they are most prone and layeth that baite before their eyes to which hee knoweth their minde will bee most easily inclined
vitium est sed alterum honestius vitium dixerim alterum tutius It is both a vice to beleeue all men and to trust no man the first is more honest but the other more safe The Religion of those men is in vaine as the Apostle saith howsoeuer they professe in words and outward shewes Thirdly this deceitfull tongue as in many other things so in nothing more sheweth it selfe then in iuditijs in iudgements both in the plaintife in the crafty contriuing of his actions and in the defendant repelling fraud by fraud There is vtterly a fault among you 1. Cor. 6.7 because you goe to Law one with another Why rather suffer yee not wrong why rather sustaine you not harme Seneca could tell such euen by the light of nature non est vitium vitio vindicandum wee must not reuenge euill with euill The plantife then committeth iniustice in offering iniury See more in my booke entituled The Iudges and Iuries instruction and so doth the other in deceitfull defending of himselfe Know yee not that the vnrighteous shall not inherite the Kingdome of heauen saith the Apostle But of this occasion is offered to speake more in the next part which is of the lying tongue now I will conclude this part with setting downe the greatnesse of this sinne that is committed by the deceitfull tongue and how much it is to bee detested and this appeareth many waies First by the multitude of sinnes which accompany it Secondly by the greatnesse of the damage that commeth thereby Thirdly by the necessity of restitution Fourthly by the seuerity of the eternall punishments This vice of the deceitfull tongue is neuer alone but hath many other vices ioyned with it As in buying and selling what lying what swearing what promises what sugred and sophisticall words doth not the deceitfull tongue practise Hor. Laudat venales qui vult extrudere merces He that bad wares away would shift To prayes them most it is his drift What falshood in payments in waights in measures in falsifying of wares in substance quantity and quality contrary to the expresse Law of God Leu. 19.11 which saith Yee shall not steale neither deale falsly nor lye one to another Deut. 25.13.14 And Thou shalt not haue in thy bag two manner of weights a great and a small nether shalt thou haue in thine house diuers measures a great and a small The greatnesse of this vice appeareth by the greatnesse of the dammage that commeth thereby to the deceitfull persons because for a little temporall gaine they loose the spirituall for earthly goods they loose the heauenly for a little transitory lucre they loose their owne soules then which losse what more greater and incomparable may bee imagined such neglect the Preaching of the Word vse vnreuerently Gods Ministers prophane his Saboaths and what not Iuuenal Quae reuerentia legum Quis metus aut pudor est vnquam properantis auari What reuerence of Lawe what feare or shame in a couetous caytife that hasteneth to bee rich And so an other truely saith mortemque sequemur In praeda pudeat tanto bona velle caduca Men for loue of their prey will euen follow death but let them bee ashamed at so deere a rate to secke transitory things And therefore Verse 26. If any among you seemeth religious and refraineth not his tongue but deceiueth his owne heart this mans Religion is vaine How much this deceitfull tongue is to bee detested it appeareth by the necessity of restitution Is it not the part of a mad-man willingly to loose many and great things that he may get a few and vile things which yet he is bound vpon the necessity of his saluation to restore againe Heare what an ancient Father saith of this Nullus excusatur à restitutione nisi propter impossibilitatem sed videat ne ipse causa impossibilitatis fuerit illius No man is excused from restitution except it be for the impossibility thereof but let him see least he bee the cause of this impossibility surely he shall then bee seuerely punished Let pickers theeues cousoners oppressours of the poore Aduocates Lawyers Iudges c. looke vnto this yea betime I say let them looke to it which liue and waxe fat with the sweat of the browes of the poore and maintaine their pride and prodigality by others labours Restitution This almighty God in his most holy Law expressely commandeth Leuit. 6.5 Or for whatsoeuer he hath sworne falsely he shall both restore it in the whole summe and shall also adde the fift part more thereto and giue it to him to whom it pertaineth Heere you see that by Gods owne Law a man is bound to restore againe whatsoeuer he hath gotten by fraud false oathes and a deceitfull tongue As the Lord would not then accept of his trespasse-offering neither will hee now his trespasse-offering of repentance for his sins without restitution which to many will bee a very hard thing to do and perchance vnpossible How few are there now which with Zacheus Luk 19. will restore foure-fold for their wrongs and iniuries done to others And surely in many cases a simple restitution onely is not sufficient as when the party to whom restitution is due is damnified by vsury deceit and oppression that he is constrained to sell his inheritance or other goods in this case I say a simple restitution is not sufficient therefore the Scripture saith that he shall adde a fift part more Leuit. 6 5. Here againe ye see the truth of the Apostles proposition that a deceitfull tongue maketh our religion vaine The fourth thing which sheweth the greatnesse of this vice of the tongue is the seuerity of Gods iudgements denounced against the same Psal 52.2 as Thy tongue imagineth mischiefe and with lies thou cuttest like a sharpe razor that cutteth deceitfully And againe Hab. 2.11.22 The stone shall cry out of the wall and the beame out of the timber shall answere it woe be vnto him that buildeth a Towne with bloud and erecteth a Citty with iniquity A learned Rabine of the Iewes saith Rab. Kinhi that their fore-fathers were so carefully carefull not to offend in craft fraud and a deceitfull tongue knowing Gods seuere threatnings against these things that they made this decree If any had wrongfully taken a beame or a rafter and vsed it in the building of a Tower or Castle hee was to plucke downe the same againe and restore that peece to the owner And as for the treasures of iniquity let them plainely vnderstand that they put them into a bottomlesse bag that can hold nothing Is it not a iust plague of God that ill gotten-goods neuer descend to the third heire perhaps not to the second nor first nor to the benefite of him who thinketh hee hath surest hand-fast in them Let vs therefore my deare brethren better imploy the tongue this little member that is able to make our whole
and falshood may bee more aptly diuided into 1 A lie in words 2 In manners 3 In the things themselues In words as the pernitious officious and iesting lie Where I except honestiests hiperbolicall speeches allegories c. which conteine vtilem 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a profitable moralizing vpon a fable because there is in it no intent to deceiue neither any inequality betweene the speech and the minde nor will to speake falsely especially if wee haue respect to the equality of the thing The lie in manners includeth all hipocrisie dissimulation flattery c. Natura Cicero frons oculi vultus persaepementiuntur oratio vero saepissimè Nature the countenance the eye M. Curius a noble man in Rome of singular honesty wise dome Bacchus the drunken God of wine whom they honored with beastly ceremonies do oftentimes lie but the speech most often such go in sheepes cloathing but inwardly are rauening wolues Against such the Sonne of God denounceth woe in the Gospell Qui Curios simulant Bachanalia viuunt They Curious graue would seeme to be Yet Bacchus-like their liues we see The lie in substance of things containeth all falshood in buying and selling when naughty and corrupt things are sold and warranted for good or else one thing is sold to the ignorant for another as among the Physitions are many such as false Aloes false Balsamum c. whereby great and intollerable errors are cōmitted by vnskilful Physitians to the destruction of many 1. Thess 4.6 The Lord saith the Apostle is the auēger of such things Now let vs consider how grieuous a sinne it is First How grieuous a sin it is he that lyeth speaketh against God for God is truth and his Law is the rule of truth the lyar therefore sinneth against God himselfe Besides the truth that resteth in his minde against which the lyar speaketh is of the holy Ghost the author of all truth to lie then what is it else but to speak against the truth of God grauen in our hearts and so to bend our tongue against the holy Ghost 2 Euery lie is of the deuill who is a lyer and the father thereof Iohn 8. when hee speaketh a lie he speaketh of his owne And whatsoeuer is of the deuill must needes bee a most detestable vice therefore a wicked spirit is said to speake lies in the mouth of the false Prophets which seduced Ahab 1. Reg. 22. therefore a certaine ancient Writer vpon this place of Iohn the diuill is a lyar c. saith that whosoeuer is a lyer doth as it were couple himselfe with the deuils daughter and hath diuorced himselfe from Verity the off-spring of God For God is the father of truth and verity and a lyer honoureth the deuill as a childe doth his father who so then coupleth himselfe with the childe of the deuill let him looke also for the dowry which he is wont to giue to his children namely eternall damnation Apoc. 22.8 They shall haue their portion in the Lake that burneth with fire and brimestone 3 He that peruerteth the order constituted of God among men he grieuously sinneth and the lyer doth this for the order that God hath appointed is that by words the sense and meaning of the minde should be manifested and therefore words are said to be notes of these things which are conteined in the minde but the lyar saith contrary to that which is in his minde and therefore peruerteth the order of God and grieuously sinneth For this cause the Spirit of God saith Prou. 12. The lying lips are abhomination to the Lord. 4 The lyer saith an ancient Father blasphemeth God as doth the deuill for the deuill as much as in him lyeth Dat esse non enti giueth an essence to that which is not in that he saith that to be that is not but it is onely proper to the power of God to make to be things that are not the lyer therefore sacrilegiously as much as in him lyeth vsurpeth the power of God in affirming and giuing an essence to things which are not 5 What is more cleere then the testimony of the conscience of euery man when he lyeth For there is none that lyeth but perceiueth his conscience to accuse him as a malefactour whereof this is a most euident testimony because he that lyeth would not be counted a lyer nor euer confesse that he hath lyed and why so because it is naturally engraffed in our minds that lying is an euill thing and an offence and wickednesse full of shame and infamy yea the very children when they lie do know they haue done euill by the instinct of nature wherefore being conuicted of a lie they presently blush c. Againe it is a thing among all Nations receiued and obserned that a good man may haue no greater reproach done vnto him then if it be said vnto him tu mentiris thou lyest and what more effectuall then this common iudgement of all Nations to shew the filthinesse of this sinne and how vnworthy it is for a Christian man And surely not without cause for man was created after the image of God and God is Truth what then may bee more vnworthy for a man then to lie and bee a lyer especially seeing that this is the property of deuill as Christ witnesseth in the 8 of Iohn Of this which I haue said wee may easily gather the reasons that should moue vs to cast of lying The motiues and to deale plainely and truely with our brethren First because God in his holy Law hath forbidden vs to lie and commanded vs to speake the truth Secondly because it is very hurtfull to the lyer himselfe for with lying he prouoketh the wrath of God against him Psal 5. Prou. 6. God shall destroy them saith Dauid that speaketh lies And God hateth a lying tongue Wherefore among other causes why the godly are said to be receiued into heauen this is not the least Apoc. 14. Because there was no guile found in their mouthes Againe the lyer looseth his credite among all men so that afterward no man will beleeue him though he speaketh the truth Cicer. in lib. de deuina which Cicero notably expressed saying Homini mendaci ne vera quidem dicenti credere solemus We are not wont to beleeue a lyer though he speake the truth the reason is because Qui semel malus semper praesumitur malus in eodem genere mali It is presumed that he that was once euill is alwaies euill in the same kinde of euill Now it remaineth that I pray and beseech you brethren to whom your life and saluation is deere that yee carefully considering the heape of euils that the wicked tongue bringeth with it you would call daily vpon him in whom it onely lyeth to gouerne the tongue and say with the holy Prophet Psal 141. Set a watch ô Lord before my mouth and keepe the dore of my lips And