A Golden Chain, Chapter 5
CHAP. V. Of Truth, and of Reuerence in speech.
TRuth of speech is a vertue whereby a man speaketh as he thinketh: and so consequently, he speaketh as eueryevery thing is, so farre forth as possibly he can. It is made a note of a righteous man,Psal. 16.2. Pro. 12.22. to speake the truth from the heart: and they that deale truly are Gods delight.
This is alwaies required in all our doctrines, accusations, defences, testimonies, promises, bargainings, counsels:Prou. 17.7. but especially in Iudges and Magistrates sitting on iudgement seat, because then they stand in Gods stead, who is truth it selfe.
To this place belongeth Apologie, which is, when a Christian called before a Magistrate,Mat. 10.32. and straightly examined of his religion, confesseth Christ boldly, and denieth not the truth.
Contrarie to this, is lying, cogging, glosing, smoothing, dissembling: as for example, Gehazi, after he had receiued money and garments of Naaman the Syrian against Elishas will,1. king. 5.25. he went and stood before his master, who said vntounto him, Whence commest thou, Gehazi? who making it nothing to lie for a vantage, smoothed it ouer finely, and said, Thy seruant went no whither. To the like effect and purpose, report is made of a rich man that had two chests: the one whereof he calleth all the world, the other his friend. In the first he putteth nothing: in the second he putteth all his substance. When his neighbour came to borrow money, he vseth to answer, truly I hauehave neuer a pennie in all the world, meaning his emptie chest, but I will see (saith he) what my friend can doe, looking thereby for interest by the money out of his other chest.
This vice is very common, and it is a rare thing to finde a man that maketh a conscience of a lie.
Lying is, when a man speaketh otherwise then the truth is, with a purpose to deceiue. Here note that there is great difference betweene these two speeches, It is an vntruth, and, It is a lie. The first may be vsed when a man speaketh falshoods. But in vsing the second, we must be heedie and sparing: for when a man is chalenged for a lie, three things are laid to his charge. I. That he speaketh falsly. II. That he is willing to doe so. III. That he hath a desire and purpose to deceiue.
Quest. Whether may not a man lie, if it be for the procuring of some great good to our neighbour, or to the whole countrey where we are?
Ans. No: Reasons are these. I. Lying is forbidden, aIam. 3. 12. Pro. 2. 22.as an abomination to the Lord. II. cRom. 3. 8.We are not to doe any euill that good may come thereof. III. He which lieth, in so doing conformeth himselfe to the deuil, who cIoh. 8.44.is a lier and the father thereof.
Obiect. I. Such lying is for our neighbours good and not against charitie.
Ans. No: for d1. Cor. 13.6charitie reioyceth in the truth.
Obiect. II. The holy Scriptures hauehave mentioned the lies of the Patriarkes.
Ans. We must not liue by examples against rules of Gods word.
Obiect. III. Rahab and the midwiues of Egypt in sauing the spies, and in preseruing the Israelites infants vsed lying, and are commended for their facts.
Ans. They are commended for their faith, not for their lying. The workes which they did, were excellent works of merciemercy, and the…efore to be allowed: and the doers failed onelyonly in the manner of performing them.
As truth is required in speech, so also reuerence to God and man.
Reuerence to God is, when we so speake of God and vse his titles, that we shew reuerence our selues, and more reuerence in others.Deut. 28.58 If thou wilt not keepe (saith the Lord) and doe all the wordes of this law (that are written in this booke) and feare the glorious and fearefull name, THE LORD THY GOD, then the Lord will make thy plagues wonderfull.
Here take heede of all maner of blaspheming, which is, when men vse such speeches of God, as doe either detract any thing from his Maiestie, or ascribe any thing to him, not beseeming him: a sinne of all other to be detested. Reasons. I. A blasphemer is viler then the rest of the creatures: for they praise God in their kind, and shew forth his power, goodnesse, and wisdome: but he dishonoureth God in his wretched speech. II. He is as the madde dogge that flieth in his masters face, who keepeth him and giueth him bread. III. Custome in blas…hemies sheweth a man to be the child of the deuill, and no child of God as yet. A father lying on his death bedde, called the three children to him which he kept, and told them that one only of them was his owne sonne, and that the rest were onelyonly brought vp by him: therefore vntounto him he gaue all his goods: but which of these was his naturall sonne he would not in any wise declare. When he was deade, eueryevery one of the three children pleaded that he was the sonne, and therefore that the goods were his. The matter beeing brought before a Iudge could not be ended: but the Iudge was constrained to take this course: he caused the dead corpes of the father to be set vp against a tree, and commaunded the three sonnes to take bowes and arrowes, and to shoote against their father, and to see who could come neerest the heart. The first and second did shoote at their father and did hi…e him, the third was angrie with both the other through naturall affection of a child to a father, and refused to shoote. This done, the Iudge gaue sentence that the two first were no sonnes, but the third onelyonly, and that he should hauehave the goods. The like triall may be vsed to know who be Gods children. Such persons with whome blaspheming is rife, are very deuills incarnate, and the children of the deuill, who rende God in pieces, and shoote him through with their darts, as it is said of the Egyptian when he blasphemed, that he smote or pierced through Gods Name. Leuit. 21.11 vaykkobh.Magistrates and rulers seuerally punish such as shall abuse their names, and they doe it iustly: how much more then should blasphemers of Gods name escape without great punishment.
Againe, here we must be warned to take heede of that customable swearing, and also of periurie. It is a very straunge sinne: for the periuried person doth not onelyonly sinne himselfe, but withall he endeauoureth to intangle God in the same sinne with himselfe.
Further, take heede least thou dost either make or recite the iests which are contriued out of the phrases of Scripture: which are very many and very vsually rehearsed in companie. The oyle wherewith the tabernacle and the arke of the Testament and the Priests were annointed,Ex. 30. 31. was holy: and therefore no man might put it to any other vses, as to annoint his owne flesh therewith, or to make the like vntounto it. aIoh. 19.8.Pilate a poore Painym when he heard the name of the Sonne of God was afraid: and we much more ought to tremble at the word of God, not to make our selues merrie with it. And therefore the scoffing of Iulian the Apostata is very fearefull, who was wont to reach Christians boxes on the eare, and withall, bid them turne the other, and obey their masters commandement,Mat. 5. 39. Whosoeuer shall smite thee on the right cheeke, turne to him the other also. And he denied pay and like reward to his souldiers that were Christians, because he said he would make them fit for the kingdome of heauen, considering that Christ had said, Blessed are the poore in spirit: for theirs is the kingdome of heauen.
Here also men must learne to take heede of all maner of charmes and enchantments, which commonly are nothing els but words of Scripture or such like, vsed for the curing of paines and diseases both in men and beasts. As for example, the first words of S. Iohns Gospel, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, &c. are vsed to be written in a paper and hung about mens necks to cure agues. But the truth is, such kind of practises are deuillish. Patrons of charmes hold that in such words as are either diuine or barbarous, is much efficacie. But whence is this efficacie? from God? from men? or from the deuill? If it shall be saide from God; we must know that the word vsed in holy manner, is the instrument of God to conuey vntounto vsus spirituall blessings, as faith, regeneration, repentance: but it doth not serue to bring vntounto vsus corporall health. Well then, belike words take vertue from the speaker, and are made powerfull by the strēgth of his imagination. Indeed of this opinion are some Phisitians, as Avicenna and Paracelsus, Parac. lib. de Tartaro.who thinke that phantasie is like to the sunne, which worketh on all things to which his beames doe come, and the latter that by imagination miracles may be wrought. But this opinion is fond, and the reasons alledged for it are without weight. For imaginations are no things but shadows of things. And as an image of a man in a glasse hath no power in it, but onelyonly serues to resemble and represent the bodie of a man: so it is with the phantasie and conceit of the mind, and no otherwise. And if imagination hauehave any force, it is onelyonly within the spirits and humours of a mans own bodie: but to giuegive force to worke in the bodies of others it can not; no more then the shadow of one bodie can ordinarily cure the bodie of another on which it lighteth. Wherefore words vsed in the way of bodily cure, be they in themselues neuer so good, are no better then the deuills sacraments: and when they are vsed of blinde people, he it is, that comming vnderunder hand, worketh the cure, and by turning himselfe into an angel of light, deludes thē. But it were better for a man to die a thousand times then to vse such remedies, which in curing the bodie, destroy the soule.
Lastly, auoide all imprecations and cursings, either against men or other creatures: for God in iudgement to punish such cursed speaking, often brings to passe such imprecations: as may appeare in the Iewes, who at the arraignment of Christ, cried, saying,Mat. 27.25. His blood be vponupon vsus and vponupon our children: which imprecation is verified vponupon them till this day. At Newburge in Germanie a certaine mother cursed her sonne, saying,Lonicerus theat. hist. prec. ept. 4. Idem. Get thee away, I would thou mightest neuer come againe aliue: the very same day he went into the water and was drowned. Againe, a mother brought her child to the Vniuersitie of Wittenberge, by reason he was possessed with an vncleane spirit: beeing demaunded how it came to passe, shee answered in the hearing of many, that in her anger shee said, The deuill take thee, and thereupon presently the child was possessed. And in our countrey men often wish the plague, the poxe, the pestilence to their children, their seruants, their cattell: and often it falls out accordingly.
In the daies of king Edward, certaine English souldiers (as I am certenly informed by a witnesse then present) being by a tempest cast vponupon the sands on the coast of France, gaue themselues to praiers, and commended their soules to God, as in so great danger it was meete: but one among the rest, desperatly minded went apart and cried out, saying, O gallowse claime thy right, gallowse claime thy right. Now the said partie among the rest (as God would hauehave it) escaped safe to land; and afterward liuing some space of time in France, returned againe to England, where he was hanged for stealing of horses: and thus according to his desire the gallow…e claimed her right.
Reuerence to man is in two respects, either because he is created after the image of God, or because he is aboue vsus in age, gifts, authoritie.
In the first consideration, men must hauehave care to giuegive such names to children as are proper and fit, vsuall, and knowne: the signification whereof may admonish them of the promises of God; of godlines, or of some good dutie. And there be foure allowed ends of giuing names. I. To preserue the memorie of some thing by the name giuen, as Adam, Israel, Isaac. II. To signifie some thing to come, as Euah, Abraham, Iohn, Peter. III. To preserue the name and memorie of parents and kinred, which was vsed in the birth of Iohn Baptist. This custome may still be retained, if there be any good example in the ancetours that the child may follow. IV. That the life and profession of good men may be reuiued in the renuing of their names.
Here we must take heede, in no wise to giuegive to children, the proper names or titles of God, as Iesus, Immanuel, &c.
Neither are the professours of the Gospel to be intituled by the names of such as hauehave beene famous instruments in the Church, as to be called Calvinists, Lutherans, &c. 1. Cor. 12.13Now this I say, that eueryevery one of you saith, I am Pauls, and I am Apollos, I am Cephas, and I am Christs: Is Christ deuided? was Paul crucified for you? either were ye baptized in the name of Paul?
And it is a bolde part of the pestilent generation of Papists, who take to themselues the name of Iesuits, Act. 11.26. foreign sic. Ro. 11.4.whereas the like name of Christian was giuen to the disciples at Antioch not by the deuise of man, but by diuine oracle.
As the changing off the name giuen in baptisme is not to be allowed: so the varying of it according to the varietie of language, (if neither hurt nor fraud to any be intended thereby) is not vnlawfull. VponUpon this ground Saul is called Paul: and Christ cals Simon his disciple otherwhiles Cephas, otherwhiles Peter. And very worthie Diuines in this age, that their writings might be read of the aduersaries, hauehave in like sort without offence varied their names. Melancthon calls himselfe Dydimus Faventinus, and Melangaeus. Bucer intitles himselfe Aretius Felinus: and Theodore Beze once writ himselfe Nathaniel Nezechius.
Reuerence to man as he is superiour, is in vsing fit titles of reuerence. Sara is commended in Scriptures for obeying her husband, and for calling him Syr. But excesse must here be auoided,1. Pet. 3.6. when titles of honour proper to God are giuen to men, as head of the Catholike church to the Pope, Ladie and Queene of heauen to the mother of Christ. This fault Christ reprooueth in the young man, saying,Mar. 10.18. Why callest thou me good, there is none good but God.