he neuer shrinketh aduersitie and prosperitie is all one to him Happy is he that findeth a true and trustie friend AS great and mighty fishes are not bred and fed in small riuers and swéet waters but in the salt and bitter waters of the seas So men that are excellent and very famous by reason of the notable and manifolde vertues wherewith they be indued are not delighted in the false and deceitfull pleasures of this world but are nourished and as it were swéetely cherished and brought vp in Christ with very sower sorrowes and bitter calamities which they endure and most patiently beare for Gods sake And as to a valiant soldier nothing is more noble and woorthie praise than to carry the armour and armes of his prince So a true Christian man estéemeth nothing of greater valure and more honorable than to beare the armes and badges of Christ his captaine that is to be throughly touched with great crosses and many afflictions and to be well armed with a godly patience Heare the Apostle that stout and valiant soldier of Christ I do beare in my body the marks of the Lord Iesu Yea he saith further All that will liue godly in Christ Iesu shall suffer persecutions Séeing Christ our head and onely sauiour suffered persecutions what maruell if we his members suffer them The holy scripture calleth calamities and persecutions yea and death it selfe indured in the quarrell of God and his truth a cup. Dauid prepared himselfe to receiue this cup I will receiue the cup of saluation and will call vpon the name of the Lord and expressing what this cup is he saith Right déere in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints Christ hath his cup and the world his the cup of Christ hath very bitter drink in it but very wholsome The cup of the world is gold to sée to and is ful of pleasures within but most pestilent and deadly it pleaseth the senses and killeth the soule AS a physition doth minister to his sicke patients sower and bitter potions to drinke that some hurtfull humor of their bodies may be expelled So God our heauenly physition willing to cure the maladies and to salue the sores of our soules doth reach vnto vs many times the cup of afflictions troubles and miseries that our sins and iniquities being taken away we may be restored to the former saluation of our soules The world doth offer vnto vs a very beautifull cup but it is full of deadly poison it delighteth our eies and taste but it worketh most surely our ouerthrow and vtter destruction This is that cup that Iohn in the Reuelation biddeth vs to beware of the Lord giue vs grace to shun it for he saith it is full of all abhomination and vncleannes Let vs chéerefully receiue the cup of Christ that is pouertie penurie obloquies euill reports backbitings slanders persecutions sicknes and death it selfe this is very sharpe and vnpleasant to our taste at the first but at the length most wholsome to our infected and sicke soules A Good bailife of husbandrie when he séeth plentifull fruits grow after his faithfull labours desireth that his lord or master may come that séeing his diligence and fidelitie in his calling he may reward him for his trauel and paines taken And a valiant soldier after dangerous fight and noble victorie gotten wisheth the presence of his prince that he vpon the view and sight of the sweate of his browes his grieuous wounds and courage may recompence the noble acts that he hath done So that man which hath faithfully handled the husbandrie and bailywike committed to him of the Lord and hath manfully fought against the world flesh and sathan and through the grace and mightie spirit of God hath gotten the vpper hand and victorie of them all he now most earnestly desireth that Christ his captaine vnder whose banner he hath fought would come that he might receiue his reward which is euerlasting ioy in heauen and eternall saluation through Christ with God his angels and saints for euer and euer Which though it be called a reward yet is it the frée gift of God vtterly vndeserued of man but onely deserued and purchased for vs by Christ Iesu in his death and passion vpon the crosse and to all that do beléeue in him it is frée But on the other side the wicked and vngodly whose delight is onely in the pleasures and pestilent flickerings of the world which do swallow vp vanities euen with gréedines and set at naught all vertue and godlines which are shut vp vnder iniquitie and become slaues vnto sinne which are pricked in their consciences and do feare the infernall woes and terrible torments of hell which are prepared for them against the day of their death they would not haue Christ to come to heare of his comming is troublesome and fearfull to them A guiltie man whose conscience doth disquiet him would neuer sée the Iudge a traitor would neuer willingly be séene of his prince nor a disloyall person of one that knoweth him AS brasse or copper doth make a greater sound and is heard farther off than gold whereas notwithstanding gold is far more excellent than it So eloquence ioined with knowledge soundeth lowder and farther than humilitie coupled with charitie and yet such humilitie is far better and more excellent than it Knowledge without humilitie puffeth vp saith the Apostle but charitie doth edifie Againe If I speake with the toongs of men and of angels and haue not charitie I am but as a sounding brasse or a tinkling cimball A great bragger and boaster of religion maketh much noise but an humble spirited Christian is far better than he AS trauellers not thinking of the sunne setting are ouertaken with darknes before they be aware So doth death suddenly come vpon many that neuer thought of it neither haue learned to die nor what shall become of them when they be dead But it behooueth all Christians that will be saued to watch to stand stedfast in the faith of Christ to quit themselues like men and to be strong and to do all that they do in loue AS earthen vessels are alike subiect to danger breaking whether they be new or old made So all men are open subiect to death alike whether they be yoong men and in their lustie and florishing age or they be old men and well strooken in yéeres If thou shalt come into a Poâ—ters ware-house where thou shalt sée a large table set full of pots some old and some new some little and some great and shalt demand of the Potter which of them all shall first be broken he may well say for answer That which shall fall first to the ground Euen so among men he dieth not first that is elder but he that first falleth to the ground that is that commeth fiâ—st to his graue What is this world else but a Potters ware-house and
what are all we that be in it but earthen vessels The Apostle saith We haue this treasure in earthen vessels And saint Iohn saith As an earthen vessell shall they be broken Séeing then that all flesh is grasse and all must sée death but how when and where we cannot tell it standeth vs vpon to haue our mindes fixed in heauen and to be seeking those things which are aboue where Christ sitteth at the right hand of God in maiestie and power that liuing in his feare and dying in his faith we may haue a glorious resurrection and méeting him ioyfully in the cloudes we may heare him most cheerefully say to vs Come ye blessed children receiue a kingdome prepared for you before the foundations of the earth were laid The which kingdom God for his sonne and our sauiour his sake grant vs Amen THe moone when she decreaseth doth turne the opening of hir bowe downe towards the earth and hir backe vp towards heauen and so procéedeth to hir defect and the end of hir course by little and little losing hir light vntill at the length she be darke and vtterly void of all hir light And on the other side when she increaseth she turneth hir open side vp towards heauen and hir backe towards the earth and so goeth on growing and increasing by degrees vntill she come to hir â—ul and perfect light Euen so man when he fainteth and faileth in truâ— christianitie anst spirituall graces and so falleth away more and more he turneth the doore of his hart and the opening of his desires altogither to this world and being carried away with the loue of transitorie things he seeketh nothing but the earth and the things of the same turning him from immutable goodnes to things very vncertaine and changing euery day And whiles he thus falleth away and starteth aside like a broken bowe he loseth the light and excellent brightnes of Christian dignitie vntill he remaine not onely depriued of the light of grace but also blinde in his vnderstanding vtterly obscured and cleane couered with a most palpable darknes The Psalmist speaketh of such men saying They are without knowledge they haue no vnderstanding they walke in darknes And the holy Apostle saith Their foolish hart is full of darknes And againe Walke not ye as the gentils walke in the vanitie of their mindes hauing their vnderstanding darkened But when man groweth in diuine exercises and increaseth in a heauenly life and goeth on still in spirituall graces then he turneth his backe to the world and vtterly renounceth the vanities the flickerings the allurements and all the deceits of the same and turneth the opening of his hart and all his desires to God onely and so goeth on continually profiting and euerie day receiuing some brightnes vntill he be filled not onely with the light of grace but of glorie also Therefore by how much the more thou shalt see a man occupied in the vnsaciable desires of this world and busied with the troublesome affaires of vaine and transitorie things and such as be vnprofitable for his soule by so much the more vnderstand thou that he goeth backward and decaieth in Christian perfection And on the other side the more feruently and earnestly thou shalt see him to aspire to heauenly things knowe thou that so much the more he profiteth in the true knowledge loue feare and worshipping of God That we therefore may profite in heauenly things and be illuminated with the bright beames of grace let vs lift vpwarde our harts to God let vs send to him our desires our sighes and grones let vs neuer cease begging but continually craue at his hands that euerlasting life which is onely excellent onely best and kept in store for all that do truly feare God and walke in his waies EVen as a bodie without a soule is dead bicause it vseth not the sinewes ioints nor members So that common welth or that citie may well and truly be said to be dead where good lawes godly statutes and holy ordinances are not vsed and put in practise which are the sure binding bands of mans societie and the principall parts of a common wealth These missing iustice is contemned vertue banished honestie expulsed and all euill vice vilenes and all sinne iniquitie and abhomination cherished vpholden and maintained IF birds of all sorts do desire the aire fishes séeke for water and the fire of the earth mounteth and flameth vp towards the elementall fire and all things séeke their place and centre and do tend towards the same why then will we not seeke our God as we ought our onely rest our centre and onely good If floods and riuers with great force run into the sea bicause as Salomon saith they came out of the sea why will not we loue our God why will we not aspire towards him why will we not in all feruencie of loue drawe néere vnto him which is that immeasurable sea of all goodnes from whence we came for he hath made vs after his owne similitude and likenes As we are bound to kéepe the precepts and commandements of God so are we most straitly bound to loue honor and obey himselfe Euen as the horse is ordained to run the oxe to plough and the dog to hunt so is man borne aboue all things to loue God AS a stone preaseth to his centre So an hard harted man is preasing towards hel It is said of the obstinate Egyptians They went downe into the depth like a stone Their bodies went downe into the bottome of the sea and their soules into the bottome of hell And Ecclesiasticus saith An hard hart shall fare euill at the last God grant therefore that euery one of vs may iustly say as Iob saith of himselfe The Lord hath mollified my hart It is written in the bookes of Exodus Numbers that Moses did smite the rocke with his rod and that abundance of water flowed out Vnto which words the prophet Dauid alludeth saying He smote the rocke and the waters gushed out so that riuers did run thereat The Lord so smite our stonie harts with the rod of the crosse of Christ and of the remembrance of his bitter passion and so breake in péeces the hard rocks of the same that floods of most bitter teares may run from our eies and many déepe sighes and gréeuous grones may fal from our harts to mooue the Lord to wash away all our sinnes and rebellions against the Almightie in and with the blood of Iesus Christ our only sauiour and redéemer Amen AS wilde and fierce horses are woont to be broken with the hardnes of the bridle and sharpnes of the bit So our vntamed lusts and vnbrideled appetites are hampered and brought within the compasse of reason with the bridle of aduersitie troubles sorrowes and afflictions EVen as the grape that it may yéeld wine is brought to the presse that it may be throughly
beginning doth growe to such an excéeding bignes And yet in this one thing man is more admirable that being moulded out of the earth and dust he will make his hart a nest for pride and all abhomination to build and to dwell in THe comminations of the Lord by the prophet Ezechiel are not onely against Pharao the king of Egypt but do reach also to all them which do imitate him and sticke to him in his tyrannie and cruell practises whom the prophet tearmeth by the name of fishes For euen as when some great and huge fish is drawen out of a riuer in a net many smal ones which are about him are taken and drawn out with him Right so it is the Lords maner not onely to tangle and to trap within the infringible net of his indignation heauy iudgements the first authors and chéefe bruers and brochers of idolatrie treason trecherie or any other kinde of euill whatsoeuer But all those also will he censure with the same weight and measure of punishment which haue anie pleasure in those forbidden euils and are so far from being offended and gréeued at the same that they wish in their harts good successe and continuance vnto them I will saith the Lord euen glue fasten vnto thy skales the fishes of thy floods or riuers and I wil draw thée out of the midst of thy riuers and all thy fishes shall sticke vnto thée c. Meaning that he would destroy not only himselfe but all his followers also togither with all those that by any means did fauor or further and did giue or lend vnto him their cōpany counsell goods strength voices or so much as one hartie wish or desire to set forward his malice and crueltie against the Lord and his seruants And so indéede it came to passe Therefore it behooueth all men to haue a good and sure ground for euery thing that they do and that neither companie drawe them nor authoritie constraine them nor feare to lose goods libertie nor life driue and compell them to do that thing which is directly against the worde and will of God and is by him absolutely forbidden And this is well woorth the marking that the prophet doth cal men fishes which are tossed and tumbled in the troublesome waters and waues of the world For what els is this world but a sea continually disquieted with fearce flouds of infinite temptations tossed with stormes of innumerable troubles and shaken with windes of al maner of vanities Is there any Euripus Syrtes or Charybdis that hath so many and so monstrous flouds and dangerous waues and that hath so sundrie and stormy motions as this world hath What vast gulph what strait and narrow sea is shaken with such whirlewindes and troubled with such blustering blasts such raging stormes and cruel tempests with such thicke blacke and vncomfortable clouds as this world is There be in the sea of this world two chéefe and principal fishers the one is Christ our most swéete and only sauiour the other is the diuel our most cruel and deadly enimy Christ doth fish for men that he may giue them life and saue them for euer but the diuel doth fish for men that he may bind them in the chaines of death and destroy them for euer The waters of the sea of this world are worldly riches dignities promotions fleshly lusts and filthy pleasures they are like bitter and salt water which will neuer quench a mans thirst but the more he drinketh the thirstier he is But the water of Christ doth indéed quench the thirst of him that drinketh it and doth laie the heate of the lustes and lawlesse desires of the flesh For he himselfe doth saie That if a man drink of the water of this world he shal thirst again But if he drinke of the water saith he that I wil giue him he shall not thirst for euer The rich man mentioned in the Gospell had his belly ful of the water of this world but now he is tortured in the heate and tormented in the flames of hell shal be a thirst there for euer But poore Lazarus that sought for the water of Christ did drinke of it is now in heauen in the bosome of euerlasting blessednes and shall neuer be a thirst any more Christ doth fish for men that he may draw them out of the bitter waters of this dangerous sea and that he may giue vnto them the water of grace But Christ doth fish with an angling rod and an hooke and he taketh few But the diuell that wicked and craftie fisher with his great large long and broade nets taketh and draweth vp great multitudes and infinite numbers of fishes which voluntarily giue themselues vnto him and do suffer him most easilie to take them Christ doth fish that he may bring grace and giue vnto them whom he taketh eternall life and the fishes flie from him they will not come néere him And the diuell doth fish that he may kill and destroy and bring men into endlesse easelesse and remedilesse condemnations and torments and the fishes run and flie to him Christ as he walked by the sea of Galilee with his angle tooke soure Symon and Andrew Iames and Iohn but the diuell walking by the sea of this world may in as little space and short time take foure thousand The diuel fisheth with a hooke and doth catch many mo then Christ doth take the reason is bicause his baite is swéeter and more pleasant to mans appetite and doth better agrée with the depraued will and gracelesse disposition of man then that baite which Christ vseth doth The diuels baite is voluptuousnes the foule pleasures and rotten delights of the flesh worldly wealth at will the vaine glory of the world innumerable riches of all sorts power authoritie vanitie an insatiable desire to beare rule and a thousand such others The séelie poore fishes being deceiued with these baites do neuer féele the hooke vntill it sticke so fast in their iawes that there is no scaping but the diuell maketh a full account of them as of his owne The Lord giue vs grace and so open the eies of our vnderstanding that we may sée and eschew all his baites and neuer be taken with any hooke of his But our sweet Sauiour Christ that heauenly fisher which séeketh to saue our soules and to bring them to euerlasting happines and celestiall immortalitie he fisheth with a sharpe and bitter baite verie vnpleasant to the corrupted nature and appetite of a naturall man to wit with much fasting praieng often with watchings honest labours in a mans calling contempt of the world spirituall pouertie bitter teares déepe sighes and gréeuous grones for sinnes committed against the Lord with humilitie and lowlines of hart with kindnes peace patience righteousnes and such other things all which although to those which are inflamed with a right and true loue of God they are pleasant and
welcome yet not the lesse to the will and desire of a méere naturall man that is a friende of flesh and blood they are hard do séeme very bitter to his corrupted taste God grant that we may so swallow vp all these and other such like baites that wée may be surely taken with the Lords hooke and drawne to euerlasting life through Iesus Christ our Lord Amen SAthan is a subtle fisher and vseth great cunning in the casting of his net and searcheth out that veine of water wherin euery one is delighted and do take their pleasures for he doth not set vpon all men after one the same maner He tempteth one with riches and another with the flickerings and pleasures of the world he draweth one on with pride another with malice and enuie he winneth some through too much spending and many thousands through too much sparing euen as he perceiueth the inclination of euery man to be The mouth of his net is very broad and the going in is very wide and open but the comming out is very hard straight and narrow and founde of none or verie few For euen as a fisher when he taketh some great fish doth not by and by violently strike and twich hir but letteth his fishing line go at all the length vntill the fish do swallow downe the hooke and so worke hir owne destruction least if at the first he should twich hir too hard the fishing line or thread should breake and his baite and hooke lost the fish should escape Euen so the diuell when he hath gotten a poore sinner fast vpon his hooke and hath intangled and fettered him in the chaynes of some dangerous and deadly sinne and hath bewitched him with the sorceries of the flesh and the world he doth not suddenly oppresse and exasperate him least if at the first dash he plaie the diuell openly and roughly like a diuell as he is the sinner should break his bands and escape his snares But he doth cherish him and maketh much of him and doth suffer him now and then both to speake and to do some things that sauor of vertue that by litle and litle he being made fast and dead sure vpon the hooke of sin and wickednes he may by degrées worke his owne wo and vtter destruction So that the diuell doth stretch out his angling rod thread and all not that he may let the sinner escape but that he may make him the surer and holde him the faster Thus suffered he Herode to pretend in words the worshipping of Christ when he intended in his hart to kill him And Pilate to confesse Christs innocencie and yet against his owne conscience to giue sentence of death against him And Iudas to kisse Christ as though he loued him and euen then to betraie him These and many mo like them notwithstanding their painted and golden shewes were fast inough vpon the diuels hooke and so are al hypocrites and dissemblers THere is a sea called the dead sea which is a lake in Iudea called Asphaltites whereof Aristotle Pliny Iustine and diuers others do make mention There is neither fish nor any liuing creature found in it whereupon it hath the name dead Further in it nothing is couered neither doth any thing that is in it sinke to the bottome thereof but all things do swim and are in sight and do continue in the top of the water For which cause they are compared vnto it that will kéepe no counsell nor secrets whatsoeuer but will reueale and bewraie all things that they know whether they be good or bad It is a mightie great lake and is neuer troubled with anie waues stormes or tempests but is euer quiet And therefore they are compared with it that lead their liues in tranquillitie peace and quietnes and are neuer pressed nor broken with any calamities nor tossed and troubled with any sorrowes or miseries in the worlde but are euer at harts ease and liue as they list The water of this dead sea is reported to be excéeding bitter for the swéete riuer Iordan running into it as some do write it doth vtterly lose the swéetnes thereof and is made very bitter also Euen as Hypanis a ryuer of Scythia which hath a maruellous swéetenes vntill a litle bitter spring which Herodotus calleth Exampeus be mingled with it and then it is corrupted with a woonderfull bitternes Euen so those men which are like torne vessels that will hold no water and so full of chinkes that they neither can nor will kéepe any secrets or counsell are very bitter and intollerable men and do much harme in euery place where they com neither can any counsell or secret be committed vnto such without great danger to the common wealth wherein they dwell and especially to all those that repose any trust in them Such men seeme they neuer so wise learned and full of counsell are not to come neere godly princes neither to be made acquainted with matters of state and the affaires of common wealths least they do great hurt both with giuing counsell themselues and also by discouering such weightie secrets as shall in trust be committed vnto them These are those vngodly ones whose counsell good Iob saith shall not come neere him These be they in whose counsell the kingly prophet saith the man is blessed that neuer walketh The beginning of our actions is counsell and therefore great indeuour is to be vsed that euill counsellers be eschewed and in any wise not leaned vnto Adam following the wicked counsell of Heâ—a his wife and Heâ—a the counsell of the deceitfull serpent besides that wo they wrought vnto themselues they brought great miserie vpon all their posteritie The diuell is the first author of wicked counsell and neuer ceaseth to deuise which waie he may best soonest worke our wo And that he cannot do by himselfe he laboureth to do it by wicked counsellers his trustie seruants and dead sure ministers Whose acquaintance familiaritie is to be auoided and the company and counsell of godly wise men is to be imbraced and vsed Who so kéepeth companie with wise men saith Salomon shall become wise But he that is a friend of fooles shall be made like vnto them And Ecclesiasticus saith that he that toucheth pitch shall be defiled with pitch And the apostle saith That a little leauen sowreth the whole lumpe of dowe Euen as the Chameleon is sometimes blacke and sometimes gréene sometimes pale and somtimes blue for he euer taketh his colour of the thing which he séeth to be next vnto him and doth shew and represent the colour of what thing soeuer is set before him So men of all degrées are woont verie much to imitate the nature disposition and maners of those whose counsell they follow and whose familiaritie they vse Dauid that famous prophet of God vnderstanding so much doth say in a Psalme where he describeth the parts and office of an excellent and
that it may giue good season and a swéete sauour vnto meates So a true Christian especially one aduaunced to dignitie and placed in authoritie should spare no labor but euen breake himselfe with studie and care and vndergo any paines to do good to profite many and to win some soules to God Such men indeede hath Christ appointed to be the light of the world and the salt of the earth They ought to be full of loue to God and man They should liue as strangers vpon the earth They should haue no acquaintance with pride couetousnes ambition emulation and such other sinnes of the world EVen as the sailers gnomon or rule which is commonly called the marriners néedle doth alwaies looke towards the north pole and will euer turne towards the same howsoeuer thou shalt place it which is maruellous in that instrument and néedle whereby the marriners do know the course of the winds Euenso euery Christian man ought to direct the eies of his minde and the waies of his hart to Christ He is our north pole and that fixed and constant north star whereby we ought all to be gouerned he is our hope and our trust he is all our strength whereupon we must still relie And as the gnomon doth euer behold the north star whether it be closed and shut vp in a cofer of golde siluer or wood neuer losing his nature so a right Christian man whether he abound in wealth or be pinched with pouertie whether he be of high or lowe degrée in this world ought continually to haue his faith and hope surely built and grounded vpon Christ and to haue his hart and minde fast fixed and setled in him and to follow him through thick and thin through fire and water through wars and peace through hunger cold through friends and foes through a thousand perils and dangers through the surges and waues of enuie malice hatred euill spéeches railing sentences contempt of the world flesh and diuell and euen in death it selfe be it neuer so bitter cruell and tyrannical neuer to lose the sight and view of Christ neuer to giue ouer our faith hope and trust in him Let vs followe the counsell of the holy Ghost which saith Put me as a signe vpon thy hart as if he should say Set me in thy hart in stéede of a marke whereat all thy thoughts words and works may be leuelled Put out of thy hart the marke of the world and place me there as the end vnto the which all thy purposes may tend vpon whom all thy cares may be cast and in whom thou maist rest thy soule in all peace A woonderfull gnomon and most excellent sailing néedle was that noble king and famous prophet of God Dauid when he said I set the Lord alwaies before mine eies for he is at my right hand that I shall not be mooued Therefore saith he my hart reioiced my toong was glad and my flesh shall rest in hope And the Apostle saith Let vs run toward the fight that is set before vs looking still vpon Iesus the author and finisher of our faith who hauing ioy set before him indured the crosse God giue vs grace continually to lift vp our harts and mindes our hand and eies to Christ Iesus and as Augustine saith To behold stedfastly our head AS all riuers of waters go into the sea bicause they came out of it and as Salomon saith All riuers and flouds returne to the place whence they came So let vs go and towards our God with all our harts strength and powers bicause we came out from him and were created of him Let vs therefore looke vpon him with the eies of a stedfast and constant faith grounded vpon his word let vs behold his glorie and the blessednes of his saints and let vs conceiue in our harts and soules an vnfained loue to him and let vs not haue two loues one for our selues and another for our neighbors but let vs loue them and our selues both with one and the same loue which may kindle and inflame our harts and mindes throughout with an earnest desire of immortalitie and that heauenly Ierusalem That we may say with the prophet O my soule returne vnto thy rest for the Lord hath done well to thée or as it may be translated bicause the Lord hath restored thée to thy selfe As if he should say O my soule when thou didst serue thy bodie and wast in bondage to it it was no maruell that thou didst séeke the pleasures thereof but now séeing thou art thine owne bicause the Lord hath restored thée to thy selfe séeke not anothers pleasure but thine owne séeke thine owne rest and not the rest of thy bodie of the flesh of the world séeke God delight in him flie vnto him and rest thy selfe in him put all thy cares griefs sorrowes in his loue and swéete comfort thinke of eternall blessednes presse it and print it surely in thy selfe This is thy spirituall rest this is thine own and only delight restored vnto thée by the benefit and bountifulnes of God THere is nothing liker vnto the world than the sea For as it floweth and ebbeth and all the waues thereof at the length fall into the earth So this world is neuer quiet it extolleth some and casteth downe others but all the vanities of it are ended in the graue If the sea lie open to many dangers how perilous then is the world if the sea be troubled with strange stormes with what tempests then is the world tossed If they that serue by sea are neuer without great perils how much more then the seruants of the world They whose heads are vnder the girdle of the world are continually shot at with the darts of enuie hatred and malice and are euer couered as it were with cloudes and stormes of a thousand cares How many are slaues to pride how many are dirtie drudges to couetousnes how many are consumed in substance soules and bodies by foule and filthie lecherie How many are deuoured and swallowed vp quicke of sorrowes and gréefes of hart and minde And doth not too much ioy and reioicing in worldly trifles kill some Many die laughing but mo sorrowing some with eating and drinking too much and many through want of sufficient giue the world adew Some grudge and whine bicause they haue many children and some are malcontent bicause they haue none some grudge not bicause they haue many but bicause they haue bad ones some boast of their beauties and some mourne for their blacknes Many desire to liue long but few to liue well All would be rulers and few will be ruled What then shall we thinke of this world Truly I thinke of it as of a thing most dangerous and most vaine and the going out of it is to me as the shore is to a man that hath trauelled far and long by sea and hath béene dangerously tossed with the surges and waues of
his hand an angling rod and with a baited hooke fishing in an obscure and troubled riuer although he doth not sée the fish rush vpon the baite yet he perceiueth very well that the fish is taken and hanged vpon the hooke bicause the corke or barke of his fishing line is pulled downe and hid vnder the water So sathan that most subtle and wilte fisher although he séeth not our thoughts being in the secrets and bottomes of our harts yet notwithstanding by outward signes he many times doth know them as by our words For out of the aboundance of the hart the mouth speaketh by our actions and by the gestures of our bodies For Christ himselfe affirmeth That out of our harts do come euill and wicked thoughts And Salomon in his Prouerbes doth number among those things which God hateth An hart that is fraught with euill thoughts Héere hence may most easily be gathered that all our euill thoughts do not come vnto vs from without neither are wrought in vs nor stirred vp altogither by sathan but that they come and créepe out of our owne corruption And so by outward signes and tokens comming to the knowledge of our enimie the deuill he neuer ceaseth with infinite temptations of all sorts to do his greatest indeuour to drawe the same cogitations of our harts into most dangerous and damnable practise if the Lord of his mercie and goodnes shall not giue vs true repentance and the assistance of his spirit wherby we may auoide his snares and escape his traps Which thing the Lorde grant vs. Amen AS the smith doth not make himselfe the hote coles that be in his forge but doth blowe the fire with bellowes and so the coles are kindled and made hot and firie So the diuell doth blowe and inflame those dangerous and wicked cogitations which are conceiued in our harts and minds with the bellowes of great and manifold temptations and so laboring to kindle the fire of all iniquitie he ministreth nourishment to all our wicked and damnable purposes For the hart of man is like vnto a smithes forge his euill and bad cogitations are hote burning coles he that doth blowe the bellowes to make them to burne vp and to consume both our soules and bodies is the diuell that ancient enimie of our happines and saluation It is to be lamented verily and with bitter tearâ—s and blubbering eies to be bewailed that such pestilent cogitations and deadly thoughts should be nouzeled and nourished in our harts and soules which do kill both bodie soule for euer euen as the frie of vipers in comming to light do kill their dams most miserably EVen as a begger doth couer and hide those parts of his body which be whole sound and perfect and doth open and shew abroad those parts or members which be â—ore wounded maimed lame putrified and rotten to mooue the harts and mindes of passers by and of all that shall behold him the rather to pitie him and to minister vnto him some reléefe and comfort Euen so we that be poore and miserable sinners in this world must not bring before the Lord our God our owne merits good déeds or vertues as able and sufficient to win the fauour and loue of God and to cléere vs of our sinnes and transgressions but we must most willingly with harts that be rent and torne with gréefe and sorrow for our misdéedes and heinous offences done and committed against the maiestie of God open bring foorth and lay before him the botches of our soules the corruption of our natures and the putrifaction and rottennes of our sinnes and iniquities that we may obtaine at Gods hand ease and comfort to our soules and consciences his great mercie and frée remission for all our rebellions sinnes and wickednesses through Iesus Christ our Lord. AS they which do dig mettals out of the earth do not contemne nor despise the least gobbets and peeces that they espie but take all but especially if they finde by digging a veine of gold they leaue no way vnsought but with all care and diligence they looke about them and do dig the gold and earth togither and most diligently do saue and kéepe the same Euen so ought we to deale in the holy word of God we must passe ouer nothing therein lightly nor despise one word of all the sacred and diuine scriptures but eagerly and earnestly to do our best and greatest indeuors yea and to call and to crie most mightily to the Lord to aide assist and enable vs to dig out of the same word whatsoeuer is requisite and necessarie for the saluation of our soules and eternall life It is not earth and gold mixt togither it is all most pure and throughly tried yea it is purer by a thousand degrées than any golde that hath béene tried seauen times in the fire The prophet affirmeth that it is better than thousands of gold and siluer AS the sea doth cast to shore shell fishes of al sorts wéedes and many other things and not long after doth sup vp receiue deuoure and cast into the depth the same againe Euen so this world doth now thrust vs out of fauour and by and by receiueth vs againe and when we thinke our selues to be vpon a very safe shore and that we haue leisure and time to rest vs and to meditate vpon some woorthie and excellent things euen then we finde our selues deceiued and are tossed among the waues of infinite troubles and are swallowed vp of innumerable calamities bicause many things that we neuer thought of haue preuented vs and the flickerings and false promises of this cosoning world haue deceiued our hope and disappointed our expectation AS a weake and brittle wal is easily cast downe and ouerthrowen with euery engine but an huge fense a mightie strong wall and a tower that is firme and fensed on euery side doth stand surely and endureth the force that commeth against it without yéelding staggering or falling insomuch that the enimies that seeke to ouerthrow it are driuen and constrained to vse warlike engins and policies yea and to batter and shake it with engins torments and ordinances of wars which will send and throw out stones weapons bullets and pellets of iron and lead Euen so sathan doth most easily ouerthrow with euery light temptation fraile and weake men which are not well setled in vertue nor grounded in godlines nor armed with the holy word and spirit of God but to win and ouercome if he could men that are furnished with a strong and liuely faith and such as are staied and do relie vpon the Lords protection and loue he vseth sundrie subtilties and most dangerous and forcible temptations He that tempted our sauiour Christ will neither spare any man nor meanes to destroie vs if he can bring to passe and effect his purposes The Lord kéepe and defend vs from his craft subtiltie and force and so strengthen vs with the holy
with the riches goodes naturall gifts and talents which they haue receiued of the Lord do purchase and euen make sure vnto themselues euer lasting confusion death and damnation against the will and commandement of the Lord the owner and giuer of the same Ecclesiasticus saith truly that gold and siluer hath destroied many men If we would follow the counsell of the Apostle we should mortifie couetousnes which he calleth worshipping of idols The couetous man saith Augustine before he gaine monie he loseth himselfe and before he catch any thing himselfe is catched Couetousnes is a cruell tyrant and the riches of couetous men are those idols vnto the which that saying of the Lord by Ieremie the prophet may very well be applied Ye shall serue strange gods day and night which will giue you no rest The old philosophers purposing to describe auaâ—ice or couetousnes did faine that one Tantalus in hell was gréeuously tormented with thirstines and drought in the middest of riuers of waters signifying thereby that couetousnes is a very swallowing gulfe and an insaciable hel where couetous men euen burning with a loue of riches do most earnestly couet and gréedily run after those things wherof they haue great and vnspeakable abundance And the more they haue the more are they tormented with an vnquenchable thirst and an hote burning desire still to haue more and more In my opinion if a couetous man were so mightily and so heauily loden with gold and if it were possible fuller of riches than that ship that came to Salomon from Ophir yet he would neuer be satisfied RIuers and floods although they be most swéete and pleasant yet when they run and enter into the sea they are most bitter kéeping their right and due course they yéeld pure and wholsome water but once mingled with the sea they are as it were poysoned with bitternes Euen so the wealth and riches of this world although in the course of this life they do highly delight some men which haue them in possession not the lesse when they come to the sea of death whither all floods at the length shall come they séeme to be dolefull sower bitter intolerable and as it were poyson it selfe For rich and couetous men do then finde and féele that their riches wealth and prosperitie which the Lord gaue them to an excellent end haue béene vnto them many times occasions of euill That good man Augustine saith that pride is a sicknes or disease that commeth of riches Also gold is the matter or cause of cares labours toyles feares and of all vnquietnes it is perilous to the possessors of it and a great weakening of vertues in all them that set their harts vpon it And Chrysostom saith that riches are a schoole of malice enuie and hatred Christ Iesus therefore our heauenly schoolmaster saith Blessed are the poore in spirite for theirs is the kingdome of heauen And againe Lay not vp for your selues treasures in the earth Also You cannot serue God and mammon And yet this is euer to be vnderstood that riches of themselues are not euill but as they be to the wicked and vngodly hinderances of vertues so they are to the faithfull seruants of God helps and furtherances of many good things godly actions and very charitable works For godly men do possesse their riches be they neuer so ample and infinite and are not possessed of their wealth and goods their riches are drudges to them and not they to their riches EVen as gold is tried with a touch stone So is man tried with gold And as Chilo the Lacedemonian saith Gold doth most manifestly prooue and declare what they be that owe it And looke what the touch stone is to gold the same is gold to man The touch stone with rubbing the gold or siluer vpon it sheweth plainly what kind of gold or siluer it is and gold it selfe doth in like maner most easily bewray what maner of man one is There is no touch stone in all the world that doth more truly touch and trie al degrées of vertues and vices than gold wealth and abundance of riches The Israelites being very inclinable to the superstitions of the Egyptians were no sooner out of Egypt but they made a calfe of gold and iewels the which they worshipped in stead of God And in the land of promise they oftentimes consumed and wasted their gold and treasure in making of idols Whereupon did arise that great complaint which the Lord maketh by the prophet Oseas saying I haue multiplied their siluer and their gold which they haue made Baal as if he should say I haue giuen the Israelites great store of siluer and gold which they most wickedly haue wasted in making of the idoll Baal And by the same prophet the Lord saith Their siluer and their gold haue they made idols for themselues to serue But men that are godly and of sound and Christian religion do bestowe their goods their wealth and riches vpon building and repairing temples and churches dedicated to the holy seruice and true worshipping of God in féeding the poore saints of God in redéeming captiues in prouiding for poore widowes and orphanes and in doing such other vertuous and godly déedes of charitie The nobles of the Israelites returning from the captiuitie of Babylon did bring their substance and riches to build the temple of the Lord. And Tobias did féede the hungrie and gaue clothes to the naked The wise men of the east contrie opening their treasures offered vnto the Lord gold frankincense and mirrhe And now in our time that is truly offered vnto the Lord and is vnto him a sweete smelling sacrifice which is giuen to the poore distressed seruants of God I remember a report giuen out of one â—medeus when certaine orators talking with him demanded whether he kept any hounds or not he presently shewed vnto them a great multitude of poore beggers sitting all togither these saith he are my hounds with these do I hunt after the kingdome of God these do I kéepe and féede euery day the Lord send many such huntesmen HIeronymus saith that it is a part of sacrilege not to giue vnto the poore that which is their owne That is whatsoeuer thou art able to spare Money meate clothing harbour counsell comfort and whatsoeuer els thou art able to do That is not lost which thou dost distribute among thy poore brethren and sisters in the worlde For as Salomon saith He laieth in bancke vnto the Lord which hath pitie and sheweth mercy vnto the poore It can not be lamented and bewayled inough to sée how infinite thousands in the world do most vainly yea most vilely and wickedly spend and lauish out the goods and riches wherewith the Lord hath put them in trust to the end that they should vse them to his owne glory and the good of his church Some vnder the colour of religion and holines with their goods
and transitorie spirituall things and fleshly matters the things that are aboue with God and the deceiuable trifles that are belowe in the earth may not be mingled togither Thou canst not both sauour of the Lord and of the world thou canst not beare both good and bad fruit it is not possible that thou shouldest both be barren and fruitfull If thou louest God and his doctrine be graffed in thée then art thou fruitfull if not thou art vnfruitfull For the truth it selfe saith He that abideth in me and I in him he bringeth foorth much fruit SAlt is made of sea water but so long as it is in the sea it is not salt it must be taken out of the sea and placed vpon the dry lande that being in salt pits where the sun may shine the aire blow vpon it the water may be thickned and so conuerted into salt This world is a sea so long as we liue in the world being tormoilde in the swelling surges of the pride thereof and tossed with the ebbings flowings of the worlds inconstancie and ouerwhelmed in the bitter waters of the sinnes and wicked practises of the same we are as yet no salt We must go out of the world and enter into the lande to wit into our selues and take a iust view of our owne imbecilitie and haue a due consideration of our owne miserable and wretched estate that the sun of righteousnes may thrust out his beames and the winde of heauenly grace may blow vpon vs and so we may be turned into an admirable and woonderfull salt that being seasoned our selues we may be meanes and the Lords instruments to season others We may be bold to inueigh against all iniquitie when we haue amended our owne amisses Yet must that be done in measure and according to knowledge for so it behooueth al men to do all things that they do It is well saide of one that salt is an excellent sauce and seasoner of all things so that measure be not wanting Otherwise measure and meane missing the salt it selfe is lost and that which should haue béene seasoned is vtterly spoyled For too much doth make very bitter that which measure would haue made ful swéete And yet notwithstanding all men must but especially the ministers of the worde lift vp their voices and crie out against all maner of sinne and wickednes For the Lord saith by Ioel the prophet Sound out the trumpet in Sion crie out vpon my holy mountaine and let all the inhabitants of the earth be troubled and quake And Esaias saith Crie out cease not lift vp thy voice like a trumpet The Scripture doth signifie so much when it saith That God commanded Moses to make two trumpets of siluer wherewith he should call the people togither when their tents were to be remooued For with the sound of those trumpets the people were roused and stirred vp to wars and to celebrate certaine daies wherein sacrifices were offered vp vnto God Euen so euerie preacher of the worde of God ought to call vpon sinners to remooue their tents from this wicked world and the maners and fashions of the same and so much as in him lieth to bring the people that are blinded in their sins and falling from God out of their errors perils and dangers with all their force and skill to mooue and stir them vp to be that in déede which true christianitie doth require That euery one may say with the prophet Esaie Let the vngodly man forsake his owne waie and the wicked man the cogitations of his owne hart and be turned vnto the Lord And with Iohn in the Reuelation My people auoide out of the midst of Babylon be yée not partakers of their sinnes As if he should saie Remooue and separate your selues from the transitory and lieng things of the world forsake the wickednes of it and pitch your tents by godly meditations and holie affections of your harts and minds not in the earth but in heauen For euery preacher of the Gospell ought to prepare his hearers so much as in him lieth and by his owne example to stir them vp against the enimies of their soules And to counsell them with the apostle To put on the armor of God that they may be able to stande against the deceits of the deuill for we wrastle not against the world flesh and blood but against princes powers and the gouernors of the darknes of this world It behooueth vs therefore to be well furnished with the armour of light and that the weapons of our warfare be not carnall but spirituall AS an expert and skilfull husbandman doth first draw out of his fields or lands and pulleth vp by the rootes thistles briers brambles and all other venemous and wilde wéedes and afterward committeth vnto them his good séedes Euen so a wise teacher of the word of God ought first to roote out sinne and vices and to till as it were the minds of his hearers and as much as in him lieth to draw and pull out of them both roote and rinde of all maner of euill and wickednes and to prepare and make them méete to receiue the good séeds of the holie word and to sowe in them those things which being rooted and growne vp may bring foorth both pleasant profitable and plentifull fruites And although vertue and godlines vnto the wicked and vngodly séeme euen horrible and bitter and all vice and naughtines swéete and well sauouring so that they are not willing that the gardens of their harts should be wéeded and trimmed bicause they would haue no vprightnes no integritie of life no truth nor honestie to grow there yet not the lesse the Lords ministers must euer thinke that the same is spoken to them which was deliuered to the prophets long since Make Ierusalem to know hir abhominations And shew my people their wickednes and the house of Iacob their sins Offer vnto them salt wherewith their corruption may be drawne out and they made to sauour swéetely in the nostrilles of God if they be not altogither rotten and consumed in their sinnes Thrust at them with the goade of the holie word and strike at them with the two edged sword of the law of God that if they be not starke dead in their abhominations and be not alreadie swallowed vp of hell if there be any recouery in them at all they may be awaked out of their deadly slumbers and may be so pricked at their harts that they may finde and féele how forlorne they are in the sight of God and flie to him for succour grace and mercy if they belong to his kingdome WHat doth it profite a riuer to flowe from a pure and cléere fountaine if it selfe be foule filthie and vnholesome Euen so the noblenes of fathers and the honours of elders and auncestours what doth it pleasure their sonnes when they themselues degenerate from their
and compasseth about with the shadow thereof all those that flie to him for succour yea all the poore birds of God shall safely builde their nests vnder the shadow of his boughes He that dwelleth saith the prophet in the helpe of the almightie shall rest in the protection of the God of heauen Indéede to be vnder the Lords protection and in his fauour is to be in all safetie against all power of men and diuels and to be from vnder the wings of his grace is to lie open to all dangers and to death and destruction it selfe of our soules and bodies The Lord therefore kéepe vs so néere vnto himselfe in due obedience to his will and word that he may vouchsafe to be our shield and buckler against all the assaults of sathan EVen as lightenings do smite whatsoeuer they finde in the earth except the lawrell trée as Plinie affirmeth in his second booke chapter 55 So great calamitie is able to take away and to ouerthrow whatsoeuer is in man or that he hath saue onely firme and constant vertue for constant vertue is a goodly lawrell trée euer florishing and gréene and will not be consumed burnt vp nor destroied with any fire that breaketh out of the cloudes be it neuer so fierce nor with any violence of torments and troubles whatsoeuer To this vertue doth the apostle exhort vs saying My déere brethren â—e ye constant and vnmooueable alwaies rich in the worke of the Lord and indéed they that are grounded in the loue of Christ and leaue nothing vndone to auoid the dishonoring of God and the offending of their brethren and do their best indeuour to honor and obey the almightie and to edifie his seruantâ— do not onely not feare the firebrands of any sorrow whatsoeuer but also do euen despise all the firie flashings and thunderclaps of the world and do remaine constant and vnchangeable in the seruice of God euen to the losse of their liues if néede be Infidels that knew not Christ but were méere strangers vnto him thought it better to lose their liues than to violate their promises and othes made to their enimies Much more then ought Christians in such cases to be constant The Lord himselfe in the mouth of Ezechiel the prophet affirmeth that he shall neuer thriue nor prosper that maketh no conscience of violating and breaking his oth wherewith he hath bound himselfe though it be to his deadly enimie And Iosua hauing promised vpon his oth that the Gabaonites should liue in the countrie vntouched afterward when their great deceit was discouered and they found most vnwoorthie to liue yet for his oth sake he spared their liues We haue sworne vnto them saith he in the name of the God of Israel and therefore we cannot touch them We learne by this to beware how we binde our selues by othes but if we haue once done it we must not regard to whom but by whom we haue sworne and bound our selues EVen as the lambes with the which the shéepe were conceiued as they beheld Iacobs rod were of the same colour that the rod was of So such as the religion and actions of princes péeres of realmes and countries ministers parents and gouerners be such for the most part is the religion and such be the actions of subiects and inferiour persons For as examples are very dangerous in euill things so be they of great force and vertue in good and holy things When princes will haue godlie vertuous loyall and obedient subiects they must deale with them as Iacob did with his shéepe they must lay before them the rod of true religion iustice holines righteousnes and integritie of life and maners and then no doubt they will conceiue in their harts thoughts that be pure righteous chaste sound and holy and bring foorth great plentie of fruits of the same colour that the rod is of to wit not words onely but works also of â—aith and obedience to God and man Parents with their natural children ministers of the word with their spiritual children and maisters with their seruants must do the like AS most pleasant perfumes do euen then when they be in the fire giue out a most excellent odor and their swéetest sauour Euen so a vertuous and godly man when he is thrust into the midst of the hote scorching fire of calamitie and miserie doth then shew most his vertue faith religion patience and constancie THere be some men which now and then do bestow great cost and much of their riches vpon those that néede them not not drawne therunto with either loue or mercie but caried with vaine glory with vanity it selfe so to do Such men are like fluds which send their waters into the sea and leaue the drie land which is very thirsty vnwatred But such men by the commandement and will of God should helpe the poore féede the hungrie cloth the naked harbor the harborlesse visite and redéeme captiues c. For that is the mercy whereto the Lords blessing and mercy belongeth according to that he saith Blessed are the mercifull for they shall obtaine mercy It is a worlde to sée and consider that man dare be so bold and so shamelesse to make but a tush or a thing of nothing of the Lords commandement when in the mouth of his prophets he saith Breake thy bread vnto the hungrie And Giue thy bread to the hungrie soule and couer the naked with thy garment if thou wilt liue and be saued How thinkest thou O man that God will heare thée séeing thou thinkest him not woorthie the hearing With what hart canst thou beg a kingdome of him to whom thou deniest a péece of bread when he sendeth thine and his owne brother for it dost thou thinke that he will bestow vpon thée an immortall garment of eternall glorie séeing thou refusest to giue to his poore naked seruant that is readie to perish and to die with cold one of thy superfluous and old moth eaten garments The vaine men of the world which do lauish out their riches and substance vpon néedlesse things and méere vanities without regarding the néedie saints of God will neuer be able to answer their dooings before the iudgement seate of Christ Will the Lord of heauen and earth take this in good part that haukes and dogs are kept and fed fat and faire and his séely soules that he died for haue neither coates nor flesh vpon their backs or doth this please him that wals and stones be most curiously and costly adorned and couered and men want to eate and wherewith to couer their nakednes How swéete a sacrifice were it to God and how highly would it please him if many rich and costly suits of apparell that men and women haue more then they néed and many golden chaines care rings and other costlie iewels which serue more for pride then for profit were willingly euen in loue to God translated by the owners of
on high first kéepeth it lowe and holdeth it downe with the force of a van and the gathering togither of much winde Euen so our God presseth vs downe and kéepeth vs lowe that he may lift vs vp and exalt vs on high he throweth vs downe héere in earth that he may exalt vs in heauen and laieth many times disgrace vpon vs in this world among men that we may be gracious in the world to come with himselfe his angels and his saints On the other side AS a wrastler imbracing him with whom he striueth in the wrastling place for victorie lifteth him vp the higher that with the greater force he may hurle him against the ground So this world doth extoll vs that with throwing vs downe headlong it may hurt vs and that we may fall from the top of deceitfull and transitorie glorie downe to the bottome of most certaine and perpetuall ignominie Cyprian saith The world smileth vpon a man with a cruell purpose it flattereth to deceiue it calleth a man to it to kill him it extolleth him to vndo him AS men mad and frantike are woont to teare and rent themselues So wicked and vngodly men inflict vpon themselues most deadly and incurable wounds yea they be most wilfull murtherers of their owne soules and bodies For that is true in the booke of Wisedome Man through his owne naughtines killeth his owne soule And what greater madnes can there be than a man to run headlong vpon euerlasting destruction Iob hauing a desire to describe the ignorance of such men and to declare that euen in matters most euident and plaine they be vtterly void and destitute of wisedome he saith In the day light they run into darknes and as in the night so stumble they at noone daies And whereas the feare of God is the beginning of wisdome as Dauid and Salomon his sonne do both affirme and vngodly men loden with all maner of naughtines to the feare of God are méere strangers it is plainly and truly concluded that they be not onely without wisedome but also that they haue not so much as the beginning of the same AS the filthie swine regard not but thrust from them roses that are most beautifull and swéete and séeme to contemne most fragrant and pleasant flowers and do rather séeke after foule puddles and stinking mire and forsaking dainty dishes and costly iuncates do franke themselues most gréedily with wilde mast and vncleane things So vngodly men haue no taste of the word of God but hunting after vncertaine riches which are in continuall hazard and at the length will deceiue them they are as it were fettered in the inchanting pleasures and pestilent flickerings of the world From the which the Lord preserue and deliuer vs. Amen AS in a fruitfull and fertile ground among many wholsome and very medicinable herbes some that be dangerous and full of poyson do grow So the wits and wisedome of men togither with some profitable and wholsome counsels and admonitions do bring foorth perilous and pestilent errors and are therfore with wisedome and great discretion to be regarded euen as herbes are to be gathered and vsed But this wisedome and discretion is to be sought for and had onely in the word of God which is a lanterne to our féete and a most perfect light vnto our pathes It is onely acceptable to the soules of Gods saints and nothing but it doth féede them to eternall life It is swéeter vnto them than hony and the hony combe In mens iudgements words and works we may be deceiued in the Lords we cannot Thy iudgements O Lord saith Dauid are iust and more to be desired than fine golde or pretious stones and they are swéeter than hony and the hony combe It is the power of saluation to all that beléeue it it is able to saue our soules if it be throughly rooted in vs. The word of the Lord laid vp in our harts doth preserue vs from sinne it clenseth our harts and by the working of the holy Ghost with it it createth right spirits within vs. By the meanes of it the saints and seruants of God attaine to that puritie and cleannes of hart and minde that they wish for and desire nothing but that which is good godly and holy The author of the word is God himselfe who can neither deceiue nor be deceiued and therefore whatsoeuer is written in it is truth whatsoeuer is taught in it is vertue and holines whatsoeuer it promiseth after death is eternitie and endlesse ioy to the children of God when this life is ended Whereto the Lord bring vs all if it be his good pleasure AS that man that will giue an onset and encounter with an enimie or wil defend and kéepe himselfe vnwounded at his hands hath néede of a sword in his hand to smite the enimie withall and to repell his violence So whosoeuer will triumph and carry away the victorie ouer this world flesh and diuell must hold fast in his hand that is in his maners conuersation and the whole course of his life the worde of God which is called the sword of the spirit is sharper than any two edged sword This the Lord commandeth to be closed and safely laid vp in the cofer of our harts and to be worne as a signe vpon our hands and to be had for a remembrance alway before our eies Salomon doth counsell vs to binde it fast to our harts and to vse it as a chaine about our necks and to take it with vs when we walke abroad And Christ himselfe saith If any man loue me he will kéepe my saying Againe Blessed are they that heare the word of God and kéepe it The apostle also Not the hearers of the law are righteous before God but the doers of the lawe shall be iustified And Iames saith Be ye doers of the word and not hearers onely deceiuing your owne selues The Lord giue grace and his holy spirit vnto vs that we may loue to heare his word and to do his will EVen as doues do loue and delight in houses that be faire whited and do willingly frequent swéete and pleasant places but contemne and flie from blacke foule and vnsauorie cottages So faithles and vntrustie friends do hunt and séeke after the friendship of those men by whose wealth and riches they may be holpen reléeued and enriched But men in pouertie and distressed persons vnable to fill their bellies to clothe their backs or otherwise to pleasure them with some worldly things they vtterly despise they care not for their companie their loue nor friendship feare they God neuer so much Yea if some blustering storme and terrible tempest of aduersitie shall blowe away thy wealth and shall separate thy riches and thy selfe thy greatest friends as thou thoughtest will hide them from thée and no where be found but a faithfull friend loueth at al times