Contemplating Mortality and Immortality, Part 1
Of theſe I thus reſolued.
THat Death was a fall, What death is.which came by a fall. Our firſt framed father Adam falling, in him wee all fell. Cecidimus omnes (ſaith S. Bernard) ſuper acerbum lapidem in luto, vnde inquinati & vulneratiſumus. Therefore wee needed water in Baptiſme to waſh vsus, Blood in the Euchariſt to heale vsus.
This falling ſickneſſe infected not only the perſon, but the nature (ſuch is the infection of euill alwayes worſe thē the Act) making man that was immortall, ſubiect to Death, as are Birds and Beaſts: whereas before wee were differenced from them in this condition, though made of the ſame matter, Dust. Yet as wee now ſtand, the fault is ours, if that fall be not our riſe: the aduantage wee hauehave by Chriſt, being more then the damage wee had by Adam, ideo qui ſtat, videat ne cadat. For relapſe may turne vsus againe to be as Birds and Beaſts, that hauehave no ioy, but being; no ſorrow, but dying.
Conſider Death originally or in his owne nature, and it is but a departed breath from dead earth inliuened at firſt by breath caſt vponupon it. Take the dimenſion of it, and it is but a point of Time, interiected betweene two extremes. A Parentheſis which interpoſed breakes no ſenſe, when the words meete againe. When Seneca was asked, Quid eſt Mors? he anſwered, Aut finis eſt, aut tranſitus. Rogatus Secundus Philoſophus ſaid to the Emperour Adrian, Mors est aeternus ſomnus, Diuitum Pauor, pauperum deſiderium, incerta peregrinatio, ineuitabilis euentus, latro hominis, fuga vitae, reſolutio omnium. Plato ſaid it was Lex Naturae, Tributum mortalium. Scaliger defines it to bee, but the ceſſation of the ſoules functions. All men graunt the cauſe of Death was iuſt, yet few can tell, who was the Author, or whats the name or nature of it. Eſtimemus ſingula famâ remotâ quaeramus quid ſint, non quid vocentur.
In Nature it can be nothing for it hath no cauſe efficient, The nature of Deathbut deficient. Poſt mortem nihil eſt, ipſa que Mors nihil. It hath no Eſſence, though Exiſtence. It is no ſubſtance, but priuation; no creature, but creaturarum ſepultura. Therefore curiouſly to ſearch the efficient of it, were to labour the eye to ſee darkneſſe. God made it not, ſaith the booke of Wiſedome, nor is it mentioned as any of his workes. God that made all things, ſaw that all things which he had made, were good. Omne ens bonum, & omne bonum estens. Therefore good Saint Auguſtine ſaid finely, Lord, thou hast not made Death, wherefore, I beſeech thee, ſuffer not that which thou haſt not made, to reigne ouer that which thou haſt made. It is no errour to ſay that man made death. For curioſitie (the itch of mans Soule) affecting to know that which God neuer made, which was the euill of death, thinking it had been good, to know euill, by deſiring to know it, made it. He that knew all other things, knew not this one thing: that hee knew enough. So diuine a thing is knowledge, that wee ſee, innocencie it ſelfe was ambitious of it. Life did not content, that was thought but the act of knowledge: knowledge was the life the ſoule looked at. That yet begets a ſtudious ſcrutinie to diſcouer things wee can neuer know. So we ſee, that although Nature be moderate in her deſires, yet conceit is vnſatiable. But ſince God hath reuealed more then we can know, enough to make vsus happy; let vsus learne ſober knowledge, and contented ignorance.
Who then was the Author of Death? The Autho… of Death.The booke of Wiſedome ſaith, that through enuie of the diuell, death came into the world, and they that hold on his ſide, finde it. But if the Diuell was the father, Sinne was the mother. For ſaith Saint Iames, ſinne being finiſhed, trauaileth in child-birth like a mother to bring foorth death. Adam falling, ſin followed him: Man being tempted, Death attempts him, and by ſinne death entred. Death had no intereſt in man, till ſin had diſpoſſeſſed him of the freehold hee had in God. There was no truſt in Gods ſeruants, ſaith Eliphaz, but euen Angels were charged with folly. And to doe the Diuell right, hee did but perſwade, not compell. It was in mans choice to ſtand or fall. Adam acceperat poſſe, quod vellet: non velle, quod poſſet: nos accepimus & poſſe, quod volumus; & velle, quod poſſumus: ille poſſe non mori, nos non poſſe mori ſic Augustinus. Power of ſtanding, man had from God, but poſſibilitie of falling from himſelfe. Therefore though wee may thanke our firſt parents for our birth-ſinne; Yet wee may thanke our ſelues for improouing of it; wherefore ſaid the old Letanie, Ame, ſalaa me, Domine.
All mans natiue vertues were giuen him but in truſt, and vnderunder a condition. Hee abuſed the truſt, and brake the condition, ſo incurred the penaltie. For that is mans nature, euer ſubiect to extremities, either dull in want, or wanton in fruition. Ne moriemini was a faire warning, but hee cared not for it: when Satan tempted, hee conſented. Had the mind gouerned the eye, the Apple could not hauehave beguiled, though it was faire to ſee to. The proud aſpiring thought was hatched in man. The Diuell was but the deuiſer, ſinne was the Author, and wee being partners in the ſinne, ſhared likewiſe in the puniſhment. Facinus quos iniquinat, aequat. Since then Death ſtole in at the eare, by our hearkening to ill counſell; let vsus now caſt it out by the eares, through hearkening to Gods Word: the word of life, the life of Death.
For the name of Death: The name of Death.Saint Iohn cals it a ſleepe, Amicus noſter Lazarus dormit. Of Saint Steuen it was ſaid, and when hee had thus spoken, hee ſlept. The Patriarkes and Kings of Iudah ſlept with their Fathers. Tranſitum ad vitam, aliqui appellant mortem, ſaith Saint Bernard. Sed ideo Scriptura dormientes appellat, vt euigilaturos minimè deſperemus. Hee is not dead (ſaith Dauid) but ſleepeth, whoſe fleſh doth reſt in hope. The night ſauours of mortalitie, and ſleepe is but the ſhadow of death, and where the ſhadow is, the body cannot bee farre off. But let it be Mors à morſu, which our firſt Parents taſted; or Mors à mora, which yet tarries for vsus all. Let her bee ſtiled Ladie, miſtreſſe of the world, that will not bee courted, nor yet caſt off. Yet is ſhe but vox tantum, a thing next to nothing. Solo timenda ſono. Better is it called a transfiguration, or tranſmigration from life by death to life againe, Exitus non tranſitus. Tranſitus quem ire non intelleximus, tranſiſſeſentimus. The graue is but a withdrawingroome to retyre in for a while, a going to bed to take reſt, ſweeter then ſleepe. And when it is time to riſe, cum expergiſcar, then I ſhall bee ſatisfied, ſaith the Prophet Dauid.
In the meane time it is common to all, Death common to all.Mors etiam ſaxis nominibuſ que venit. Yet this fauour nature hath done. Quod grauiſſimum fecit, fecit commune, vt crudelitatem fati conſolaretur aqualitas. Who liues and ſhal not ſee death? Quiſquis ad vitam naſcitur ad mortem deſtinatur, it reſpects none. Equat omnes cinis. It is as naturall to die as to be borne. Licet impares naſcimur, pares morimur. No ſooner borne, but haſtening to die: Orimur, morimur. We come into the world with a ſheete about vsus, as no ſonner borne, but going to bee buried. For all this, man is euen with Death. Nunquam enim magnis ingenijs cara in corpore mora est: nay, the good Soule aegre fert has anguſtias. Therefore what great thing doth death in haſtening dayes? This ſhewes infirmitie, rather then power. Age doth more, nil enim non longa demolitur vetuſtas: Death onelyonly ſhortens time, not life; for lifes time ſhortens by lengthening: Morimur, quòd mortibus viuimus; morieris, non quia aegrotas, ſed quia viuis. This all men are to know, that mortis meritum, is peccati debitum. Both impoſed on man for ſinne.
Sith then, Life but a dying death.it is a Statute made in heauen, omnibus ſemel mori, and that life is ſo momentanie, and death ſo certaine; ſplendemus licèt, Hêu quàm citò frangimur corpora vitrea! Since life it ſelfe is no true liuing, but a dying being; and ſuch a being, as eueryevery day pants for breath, which nature fawnes vponupon it for a while. Mors & fugacemperſequitur virum. And ſince death is no death, but a going vntounto heauen, and heauens comming vntounto vsus; How can a man but thinke it a well ſpent life alwayes to be meditating vponupon death?
But ſaith Zenophon, Cur vitam contemnendamputas, & habes? I will not inquire nor require more of death, but death. Err as enim, qui in terrogas, Quid ſit mors? Et propter quod mortempetam? Quaeris enim aliquid ſupra ſummum.
But if a man dye ſhall he liue againe? ſaith Iob. Yes, Life after Death.ſaith Saint Paul, we that are in this Tabernacle ſigh, and are burthened, becauſe we would not be vnclothed, but cloathed vponupon, that Immortalitie might bee ſwallowed vp of life.
Phoenix ſponte crematur
Vt redeat, proprioq ſolet pubeſcere letho:
Ste tu corpus coactum
Diſcere mutatâ melior procede figurâ.
The bright dayes die into dark nights, but riſe againe a mornings Though the body ſleepe awhile in the duſt, yet ſhal it ariſe after thy likeneſſe. The Soule which departed for a ſeaſon, ſhall, as Saint Paul ſaid of Oneſimus, come againe and bee receiued for euer. That bodie which was ſowen a naturall body, ſhall riſe a ſpirituall bodie: Sow in teares, reape in ioy; who ſo goe forth weeping and carrie precious ſeede, ſhall returne with ioy, and bring their ſheaues with them.
Yet caro iſta Pulueries, this clod of earth muſt lye a while in Duſt. Sed reſurget tandem as the Queenes daughter all glorious within. For if in this life holineſſe maketh the face of a man to ſhine by an Irradiation from the heart; what ſhall be the beauty of the bodie glorified? Surely though it be not deifyed: yet ſhall it be purified, perfected, and immortalized. Our vile bodies ſhall be changed, ſaith Saint Paul, and faſhioned like vntounto his glorious body. Such glory hauehave all his Saints.
If the exchange bee ſuch, who would not be willing, yea, glad to die? Nilminus eſt hominis occupati, quam viuere. Quos autem felicitas grauat, exclamant illi, Mihi viuere non licet. It is a good minde to bee content to dye, and willing to liue. But to be willing to dye, and content to liue, is the mind of a ſtrong Chriſtian. Diligimus mortem pariter, pariter que timemus. Ipſe metus te noſter amat. When the Senator Cato was asked a queſtion concerning Death; Si Deus (inquit) ille mihi largiatur, vt repueraſcam, valde recuſem. Nec tum me vixiſſe poenitet, quia bene vixi; nec timeo, mori, quod ex hospitio, non domo, diſcedam.
Wherefore though death be not to be ſought in the errour of youth, as the Preacher ſaith. reſpects it may bee deſired. Death deſireable for three reſpects.Portus eſt aliquando petendus, nunquam recuſandus.
As firſt, that ſowe may betimes leaue off to ſinne; ſince ſin liues in vsus, and leaues vsus not till Death. Dixit Socrates, Appropinquante morte multò es diuinior.
Secondly, the Soule that ſoone departs, facilius ad ſuperos iter facit, quia minùs facis ponderiſ que traxit.
In this paſſage betweene life and death, whats the diſtance? So little, as with the Ancients the Embleme of life was oculus apertus: Mortis clauſus, but not extinctus: nec plus intereſſe putauerunt inter mortem & vitam, quam ictum oculi. Man is onelyonly a winke of life, his life and death ioyned as neere as ioy and griefe; where teares expreſſe both.
Thirdly, that we might the ſooner come to liue indeede. Vita aeterna est illa vita vitalis, iſta eſt tantùm mortalis. For this cauſe ſaith Bernard, praecipitat quiſ que vitam ſuam, fuiuri deſiderio laborat, praeſentium taedio. Men commonly ſay. There is nullum tempus praeter Nune. But this preſent is not that which contents the Soule. Nimis anguſtat gaudia, qui praeſentibus acquieſcit. They are onelyonly creatures of inferiour nature, that are pleaſed with the preſent.
Man is a future creature, his ſoule lookes at what is beyond this life. Scrutatur quod vltra mundum, futura & praeterita illum delectant; Haec expectatione, illa recordatione.
It would make a man heauenly proud, but to thinke of how Diuine a nature and qualitie his Soule is. The Heathens could ſay it was Diuinae particula Aurae. Epicurus makes it a Spirit mixt of fire and ayre: Others define it to bee a ſelfe-mouing number. Seneca ſaid, Quid aliud eſt anima, quam Deus in corpore humano hoſpitans? Neuer could any giuegive it ſuch a definition, that either an other, or himſelfe could conceiue it.
And no wonder that a man cannot conceiue what his Soule is: Becauſe it ſuffered a compoſure before it ſelfe was. Therefore Admiration rather then Search becomes a man in ſuch a ſecret.
Tully ſaid, Mihi quidem nunquam perſuaderi potuit, animos dum in corporibus eſſent mortalibus, viuere; cum exijſſent ex ijs, emori. Let mee euer worſhip the great God of this little god, my Soule. Et ne plus vltra.
OnelyOnly this I know, That to no creature elſe God hath giuen a liuing ſoule, nor is there hope in any creature elſe, but man; and this hope is giuen for ſuſtentation of his ſoule.
Hee that contemplates theſe things, wil beare himſelfe too loftily, and thinke himſelfe too good to looke ſo low, as vponupon the ſublunarie things of this life. Anguſtus, eſt animus quem terrena delectant.
How then can this Beautie bee pleaſed to inhabit long contubernio iſto? All it needs to care, is but Sepulture to that body which once had the Honour to be the Temple of ſuch a gheſt: But becauſe many times the houſes of the dead and the vrned bones doe meete with foule hands, for this alſo Nature hath prouided, vt diſertè ait Maecenas. Nec tumulum quaero, ſepelit Natura relictos.
It is one of the daily petitions of eueryevery good Soule, Adueniat Regnum tuum, Thy Kingdome come, O Lord Yet ſaith Ambroſe, Hoc nitimur & reluctamur. For, Quis ſine querela moritur? Quis non gemens, quis non recuſans exit? Quis cum acceſſerit, non tergiuerſatur, timet, plorat?
In all things elſe, Mans croſſe Nature.obſerue how contrarily wee carry our ſelues. The labourer from his work haſts to his bed. The Mariner rowes hard to gaine the Port. The Traueller is glad when hee is within kenning of his Inne: yet we, when Death comes to put vsus into our Port, ſhun it as a rocke. Wee feare what wee ſhould wiſh, and wiſh what we ſhould feare.
O fortunatiorem Marcellum eo tempore, quo exitum ſuum Bruto approbauit, Mans better choice.quàm quo populo Romano conſulatum! Heare, O Chriſtian, what the Pagan ſaith, Quid ni non timeat, qui mori ſperat? It is harder to make a true Philoſopher patient of life, then of Death. Hic ſpe mortis patienter dolet, & taedio doloris libenter moritur. Hunc fert, illam expectat, ſed expectata Mors, tardè venit.
I am in a ſtraight betwixt two ſaid Saint Paul, whether to liue in the fleſh were profitable for mee, and which to chuſe I wote not. Yet at laſt reſolued, liue or die Chriſt was to him aduantage. Therefore to bee looſed and to bee with Chriſt was beſt of all. Till then God grant that I may hauehave vitam in patientia, mortem verò in deſiderio.
So ſhall I fulfill my courſe with ioy, life not deare, nor death grieuous.
In elder times both wiſe men, great men, Life and death compared.and vaine men, had Death in ſuch eſtimation, and ſo vndervalued life, as they fondly ſaid, Had man beene worthy to know what life was before, he receiued it, hee would hauehave beene loth to accept it. Nemo vitam acciperet, ſi daretur ſcientibus. Life would hauehave kept vsus in ſlauerie, but that Death freed vsus. They counted death but the retreite of life, & optimum Naturae inuentum: for by it eueryevery man might make himſelfe happy, no man be longer miſerable then he will. Placet no vita? viue. Non placet? licet co reuerti, vnde venisti. They thought no ſtate miſerable, but that which Death could not remedy. Wherefore (ſay they) a wiſe man liues but ſo long as he ſhould, not ſo long as hee can. If Death were not in our power, wee ſhould deſire it more then now wee feare it. Magiſtra rerum ratio taught them, that common ſafety lay in Death, &, inuitum qui ſeruat, idem facit occidenti. Life was ſubiect to many fortunes, ſed in eo qui ſcit mori, nil poſſe fortunam. This made them cheriſh theſe deſperate conceits: Nil referre; faciatne finem, an accipiat. For though life be not, yet Death is at a mans command. Mori nihil aliud eſt, quàm velle; in which reſpect no man could complaine of life. Quia neminem tenet. If any man did complaine, this was their wiſh, Mors vtinam pauidos vitae ſubducere nollet; ſed virtus hanc ſola daret. In ſcorne ſome ſaid, Egone expectem vel morbi crudelitatem vel hominis, cum poſſim medio exire tormento, & aduerſa diſcutere? But their braueſt conceit was worſt, that it was genus mortis generoſum, for a man to be author of his owne death, ſay they, if permitted to deſire death, why ill to giuegive it to themſelues?
— Sed furor eſt, ne moriare, mori.
They ſeemed thus to maintaine their aſſertion, by reaſon as wellas courage. Death is naturall, therefore we come. Viuere noluit, qui mori non vult, hee is ſorry that he was a man, that is not glad to dye. It is ineuitable, therefore we muſt be reſolute, feras non culpes, quod vitari non poteſt. Fooles fly it, old men attend it, wiſe men wiſh it. Nay, ſome ſo prided themſelues in this way, that for Care, Feare or Griefe they would not dye. Non inferam mihi manus propter dolorem, nor yet for feare, ſtultum eſt, timore Mortis mori. Nor yet the threats of torments. Sic mori, vincieſt. Sed ſi coeperat ſuspecta eſſe Fortuna, ſi multa occurrebant moleſta tranquillitatem turbantia, then it was Fortitude to diſpatch themſelues. How, or with what, it mattered not. Scalpello aperitur ad illam magnam libertatem via, & puncto ſecuritas conſtat, ſaid Seneca when he bled to death. Cato will die becauſe the Commonwealth declined; Nerua, becauſe the lawes were not kept; Siluianus, becauſe he would not liue at the mercy of his enemy; Lucretia, to couer a diſhonour.
But Plato and his Socrates were of another minde: Death was to be expected till Nature called for it, or Iuſtice tooke it. For Religions ſake men may ponere animas, but ſuas, not for oſtentation, nor in diſcontent. Inde facult as fuit non ponendi animam, ſed pendendi. Bona res eſt mori ſuâ morte. Life was giuen to manage to the vtmoſt, and to make the beſt of it. EueryEvery one was heere ſet ſentinell, not to depart the place till his Captaine calls him off. Non eſt optima, quae placet, ſed quaedecet: That Death was beſt which was well recollected, quietly ſuffering what it could not poſſibly preuent. Fortiter ille facit, qui miſer eſſe poteſt. It is not enough to die with a Romane courage, nor that the cauſe of Death be iuſt; but it muſt bee alſo neceſſarie, vnſought, ineuitable.
But let goe this diſcourſe, my Contemplation lyes another way.
The kindes of Death as of life, are two: The one bodily, The kinde of death.the other ſpirituall. As bodily life is the coniunction of body and ſoule: So bodily Death is the ſeparation of ſoule and body. And as a godly man hath three degrees of life:
The firſt in this life, when Chriſt liues in him; for the ſoule of a good mans ſoule is the Spirit of God within.
The ſecond when his body returnes to the earth, and his ſoule to God that gaue it.
The third at the end of the world, when body and ſoule revnited ſhal enioy heauen: So likewiſe a wicked man hath three diſtinct deaths. Dead in ſinne while he liues, dead in ſoule when hee dyes, dead in body and ſoule when both are adiudged to eternall condemnation. Malis fit mors ſine morte, fin… fine fine, defectus ſine defectu. Quia mors viuit, fints ſemper incipit, & deſicere defectus neſcit. To labour not to lye is labour in vaine, it is to deferre, not to auoid. To forget to dye, and hope to liue is dangerous ſecuritie. This let a wiſe man doe, quod ne ceſſe eſt, ne timeat; quod incertum eſt, ſemper expectet. Seeke not conſolation againſt death, but let Death bee thy conſolation; for there is no comfort againſt death, but in death. Supremum necoptes, nec metuas diem. Mortem optare, malum, timere, peius.
Now to make Death eaſie: Thinke of the glory that followes it. Who will not endure a few pangs for infinite pleaſures? The bitter pill promiſing health is ſwallowed willingly. Mors non anfert vitam, ſed in melius transfert.
That the aſpect of Death may not trouble thee, looke not vponupon Death in death, but looke beyond it. Thinke not ſo much of it, as of the happineſſe that comes by it. Erit ſomnus dilectis, initium refrigerij, ſcala montis, haereditas ſecura, Ianua vitae, ingreſſus in tabernaculum. Therefore ſaith Iob, From ſixe troubles it deliuereth thee, & in ſeptima, that is, at point of death, non tanget te malum. Fit your ſelfe for it, and you will neuer feare it, doe by it as you doe in other things, when you would goe ſleepe, you put off your cloathes, you draw the curtaines, and goe to bed. Thus as it were acting ſleepe, before you goe to ſleepe. So addreſſe your ſelfe to death before hand. Bring your ſelfe acquainted with it, that when it comes you may entertaine it, non vt hoſtis, ſed vt hoſpes, not as a foe, but as a friend: not as a ſtranger, but as a gueſt that you had long looked for; and bid welcome Death, more bleſſed then thy Birth. What a griefe is it to ſee ſome great men build ſtately houſes, as if they ſhould alwayes liue, and yet they to liue as if they had but mortall ſoules!
It is good counſell; Effice mortem tibi familiarem, vt poſſis, cum ſors tulerit, illi laetus & alacriter obuiam exire.
Thoſe Philoſophers were more mortified, who had their graues alwayes open before their gates, that going out or comming in, they might alwayes thinke of Death. Good Ioſeph of Arimathea built his Sepulchre in the middeſt of his garden. So doe thou, amid all thy pleaſures and delights, thinke of death, and that wil coole and temper all thy vaine deſires. It will ſo qualifie thee to the world, and the world to thee, as thou wilt not much care for it.
In this world wee are all Benonies, the ſonnes of Sorrow. The way to Heauen is by weeping croſſe.
Hi motus animorum atq haec certamina tanta
Pulueris exigut tactu cōpreſſa quieſcunt.
It is obſerued, that moſt of other creatures liue long, but dying, periſh all to nothing. Man that is ſhort-liu'd, he dying, liues eternally. Thinke but of this, and you will thinke as S. Bernard did, that life was little better then hell, were it not for the hope of Heauen.
Surely Chriſt would not hauehave dyed, but that wee might die with ſafety. Hee by death in death, did deliuer vsus from death. And did Chriſt dye for mee, that I might liue with him? I will not therefore deſire to liue long from him. It is a token of little louelove to God, to be loth to goe to God. All men goe willingly to ſee him whom they louelove. Our brother Ioſeph liueth, therefore though with Iacob I cannot ſay, I will goe ſee him before I dye. Yet Lord let mee dye that I may ſee him whom my ſoule loueth. Liuing I cannot, but dying I ſhall.
Let no difficulties hinder, for ſince Adams fall none paſſeth vntounto Paradiſe, but by burning Seraphims. The way to Canaan is cumberſome, but knowing that our iourney leades to the land of promiſe, wee paſſe it pleaſantly. Yet before wee come at Hieruſalem, we take in our way the valley of teares. The ſwift Riuer of Iordan muſt be croſſed, before wee come to the ſweet Waters of Siloam.
Let no delights tempt you; proſperous fortunes may hinder a cheerefull dying: but if pleaſures of life allure not, feares of death will neuer trouble. Neminem aduerſa conuincunt, niſi quem ſecunda decipiunt. Adam was ſet vponupon in Paradiſe, Iob on the dunghill: yet Iob fortior in ſtercore, quam Adam in Paradiſo. The very place of pleaſure is dangerous. In Paradiſe Adam could not be innocent, but out of Paradiſe he was a good man. For any thing in life, loſe not the cauſe of life, nor iudge not of things by the face of things. For life and death hauehave deceiueable vizards: vnderunder the faire face of life lurkes griefe: vnderunder the foule feature of death (which is but fancy) lies felicity. Take off the mask and you ſhall change your minde; loath that you loued, and louelove that you loathed.
Ʋita habitu caſto, cum non ſit caſta, videtur,
Mors, praeter cultum, nil meretricis habet.
Now for the freedomes that come by Death.Freedo by deat
Firſt it frees from all worldly iniuries: Mors multorum malorum finis, nullius boni. Heere good men doe but liue, and ſuffer benè agere, & male pati. It is their portion and it is good for mee (ſaith Dauid) that I hauehave beene afflicted. Non ſentire mala, non eſt hominis; ſed non ferre, non eſſet viri. Sufferings are greater trials then actions.
Secondly, it ends all miſeries. Man in miſery (ſaith Iob) longs for death, and digs for it more then treaſure. Mors finis eſt, non poena.
Nay ſaith one, Nec finis, nec paena bonis lex eſt, non paena, perire. Death ends ſinnes, not life: it reformes, but doth not deſtroy Nature. Vitiorum eſt Sepultura, virtutum Reſurrectio.
Thirdly, it frees vsus from all corporall infirmities. Mors omnium dolorum ſolutio. Life it ſelfe is a diſeaſe, and we dye by corruption of humours, whether they be of body or manners: who thinke to heale all infirmities with an eaſier plaiſter then Death, Delineamenta potius quam remedia podagraeſuae ponunt.
Fourthly, it frees vsus from all bodily labours. So ſaith the Spirit. Bleſſed are they that die in the Lord, they rest from their labours. Adeo iuuat occupatum mori.
Fiftly, it eaſes vsus of all troubles. Refrigeries eſt animae. Refection to the Soule. Were wee but in a throng, wee thinke that man at eaſe who gets out firſt. Noah, when hee had beene toſſed but a yeere vponupon the waters, Mount Ararat was to him a gladſome place; for there the Arke reſted. So likewiſe miſcrable man after many weariſome yeeres, toſſed vp and downe the world as in a troubled ſea, will bee glad of Death as of Mount Ararat, a reſting place for his tyred Soule. As an Apprentiſe patiently vndergoeth ſeuen yeeres labour to bee made a Freeman, or as a bondman waites for the yeere of Iubile: So doth the Soule for her deliuerance.
Laſtly, death doth vsus not the leaſt pleaſure, in freeing vsus from phantaſmes and vaine pleaſures. Pleaſure may ſtand with innocencie, for God loues to ſee his creatures happy: But commonly the pleaſure of the body, is the poyſon of the ſoule. A man ſmothered in Roſes meetes with Death, though in ſweetneſſe. Delicatas enim mentes eneruat felicitas. In vaine mirth, there is no true ioy, nor gladneſſe in laughter. Nam res eſt ſeuera verum gaudium. Delight in pleaſures, and you ſhall finde your greateſt pleaſures become your bittereſt paines in their loſſe. A man whoſe ſoule is conuerſant with God, finds more pleaſure in the deſart, and in death, then in the Palace of a Prince.