The Diseases of the Time, Chapter 17
CHAP. XVII. Certaine false Appetites that distaste the Food of life, though drest in it owne kind, if not drest to their owne minde.
THere are at this day many seuerall tastes that affect seuerall manners of deliuering the Word of God. Some affect roughnesse, some verball Rhetoricke, some a short, and sandy Eloquence.
The first pretends for himselfe, that the profit of the Word consisteth in supernaturall power, not in humane elocution, and that the intising words of mans Wisdome rob that diuine power of the glory of conuersion. But the man of the man of this opinion must know first, that he findes no precept of rusticitie, harshnesse or roughnesse of speech in the Scripture.
Secondly, on the contrary, hee shall find in the Preacher, Prophets and Apostles, yea, in Christ himself, pleasant words, delightfull comparisons, perswasiue exhortations, & often very eloquent and moouing expressions.
Thirdly, God speaking by man vntounto man, though the power of God be the very effectuall cause of conuersion, & only baptiseth with fire, yet the outward powerful expression ioyning and conspiring with the inward, conuerting power may giuegive a degree thought not a being, and may blow the fire which the Spirit kindles. The Spirit in the speaker or writer, according to his degree, commonly stirreth, inflameth, and exalteth the Spirit in the hearer, and that so much the more strongly, by how much more swift & forcible penetratiō ithath, through the outward man into the inward.
Now a cleere sound and masculine expression openeth wide the doore of the vtter man, so that the spirituall meaning contayned in the words passeth in fully, strongly and swiftly; And so the actiue vehemence thereof doth as it were struck hard on the soule, and leaues a print thereon. The Word is the Lookingglasse bearing the Image of the Spirit that speaketh, and therin is the Spirit speaking discerned by the Spirit hearing. The more this spirit is discerned, the more beauty, and so the more louelove, and so the more power. Now the cleerer the Glasse is the more discerning; therefore the spirit made more excellent in an euident word is more louely and more powerfull. Surely if we could see spirituall thoughts in their Primitiue beauty without the grosse mediation of words, their excellence would rauish vsus, & their glory would command and master vsus. But now thoughts shining to vsus thorow the Lanthorne of words, the cleerer the Lanthorne is, the more bright and cheerfull is the Light, and the thicker it is, the lesse doth it direct, and the lesse doth it comfort.
Fourthly, besides the benefit of euidence, handsome expression helpes the memorie; and God speaking to man by man, no doubt, well knowes their mould to whome hee speakes, and is willing that all fauour, especially by the Ministerie of man, Rom. 6.19. should be done vntounto man, and that words should be fitted to the best aduantage of Nature. A Parable of Christ, a tuned and proportioned Psalme of Dauid, a Prouerbe of Salomon, yea, one of the Fathers harmonious Sentences, sometime take more hold of the memory, then a rough and ragged exhortation. Yet I speake not this (that I may vse Pauls words) to shame them that hauehave not, to condemne Moses, Exod. 4.10. for want of vtterance, but to exhort others from condemning, and that they doe not condemne but desire the more excellent gifts: for God gaue Moses & Aaron, euen to diuine knowledge, an eloquent vtterance. God hath giuen diuers gifts vntounto men, & all to edification; now all together shall edifie most, if the higher imploy their Talents, not condemning but incouraging the lower, & if the lower exercise their gifts, rather imitating thē enuying the higher. But in imitation, let eueryevery Man hold this Rule, That he imitate no further then his strength will make it good. Otherwise while he seekes to be another, and leaues to be himselfe, being short of the other he loseth both himselfe and the other, euen what he would be, and what he might be.
The second is a hunter of meere words, and the out-side of speaking with a neglect of the inside; such a one is a Pharisie in words, as the ancient ones were in deeds. Against these especially doe the Reasons of the first oppose, for these goe about to intice men, and to slacke their affections with Eloquence, not to turne them, not to conquer them with power. These draw men to themselues rather then to Christ, for their hearers (if they bee not of the wisest, as most are not) commend the Sermon much, and the Preacher more, and Christ least of all.
And indeed they leaue their audience commonly as they found them for profit, but somewhat better for pleasure. Their mishap is this, that the eare is not the soule, for if it had beene so, then so many soules by them had beene gained, as hearers were pleased. Surely this eare-teaching, or eare-scratching pierceth not home, but it is like an Arrow without an head; It hath indeed the woodden head of the flesh, but it wanteth the mettall and steele of the spirit, by which it should enter into the heart, and diuide betweene the soule and the Spirit. Let these men therefore remember that the Kindome of God, though it may be aduanced by words that make power euident, yet it consisteth not in words but in power.
The spirit speaking though in course and plaine words, may saue a soule, but the top of humane Eloquence, not edged with the spirit, will neuer enter in deepe enough to saue the hearers. The third sort affect a language of ends, and such a stile as is all of inlayings. They are full of short breathes, and if they perswade you not on a sudden, they hauehave done.
Againe, they darken the sence by not allowing it room enough. Surely it hath beene a misery of these latter times, to affect both in Latine and English, such a speech of parcels that hurts the memory, trauailes the vnderstanding, & doth both nibble and sting the will, not gripe it, not lift it, not weld or manage it. When the memory would claspe it, it is all one as if you did claspe a handfull of sand, the harder you squeese it, the more it flits. When the vnderstanding beholds it, eyther it is payned in opening the fast and hidebound shels of it, or if it hauehave some ease in that kind, it spyes but a short glimpse of Light, and but a Gloworme of Reason, and bee the way neuer so darke, it must be content with that flash of Lightning. When the wil and affectons meete it, they rather finde in it the taste of an Epigram, then of a doctrine, of sawce, then of meate. And if there bee any strength in it, yet it is so bound in by breuity, that it giues but a plucke to the will, and drawes it not by a continued might: so if the mind will not be moued with the pange of a sentence, it may scape well enough from this kinde of teaching.
Surely these minutes of stile, and littlenesses in discoursing, doe not well expresse Maiesty and Power. And that should they striue to expresse who are the mouthes and pens of the highest Maiesty and the highest Power. Againe, in regard of the hearers or readers, that which should enter with power, should issue with power, that which should goe to the heart, should issue from the heart, and not bee only a flash or fire-worke of the braine.
And now that I may the better free my Reader and my selfe from mistaking, and being mistaken, I am ready to tel him what I intend not, and what I intend.
First, I intend not to lessen their deserued estimation, and so their edification, whose naturall gift is a cleere and concise expression; I know there are of this sort that merit good Readers, and hauehave many of them, and I wish them prosperitie in the Name of the Lord. Such men are themselues when they write and not others, and if they should bee forced from this kind, they should (like Diamonds) bee lessened by new fashioning; and I thinke verily that wherin a man strength lyes, therein should he glorifie his Creator, and not by going out of his strength, seeke to serue and glorifie God by his disability. And this doe they commonly who leaue that Character whereunto they were fashioned, and reach after another but reach not to it. To such the Apostles counsell is good Physick; Let eueryevery man vnderstand according to sobriety, and his owne measure. But secondly, I intend to shew and proue that a continuall Discourse or Treatise made all of parcels, though it may hauehave good things in it, yet it is not the best kind of Language for edification.
And besides the reasons shewed before (that it often darkens the matter, that it hurts the memory, that it wants the power and maiesty, which the Word of God both requireth and deserueth) to make vp an absolute proofe I will adde a most absolute example, and the reason of the example. The example is Saint Paul, that strong Writer of Epistles, (as the very malice of his Enemies did confesse) who knew the best kind of deliuering Diuinity, 1. Cor. 2. and both told it vsus in writing, that spirituall things must be fitted with spirituall words, and as there he saith in writing practised that which he told vsus. If you will see his practice, search his Epistles, and among them that to the Romanes, which indeed is a Master-piece.) There you shall see that his manner of teaching is deepe in knowledge, strong in reasoning, pregnant in expression, powerfull in perswasion. Hee doth not trusse vp his words too close, neyther doth hee thin them so much that they can scarce be discerned, but to a full and substantiall matter he giueth the fulnes of speech and expression. Yea, where hee seemes most to excell, hee sometimes doubles and makes returnes, and giues two or three sights or countenances of the same matter, that our knowledge and memory may bee assured, and that hee may not bee thought to grudge vsus his matter by grudging vsus words.
And yet Epistles I thinke may best pleade breuity. Besides in his perswasions and exhortations, he expresseth vehemence of affection and ferour of spirit, which small ends doe smally and weakly performe. And secondly, if wee will search into the reason of this Example: by searching what is spirituall, we shall find that the Spirit worketh mans conuersion, especially by light and power, as hauing to doe with a darke and impotent Mankind, and therefore it expresseth it selfe best, & makes it selfe most euident by a lightsome and powerfull speech, euen words of brightnesse and feruour. So both by Pauls example and the reason of that Example, I hauehave fetched the patterne of most profitable Language. If yet you would hauehave more proofe, behold also noble Esay, the very primate of the Prophets; and the Ambassadour of God, whose tongue was touched with the fire of Heauen; This great Prophet doth not vsually skip and leape in the short steps of broken Sentences; but he walketh with Maiesty in the full paces of an expressiue, iust and mighty Language. Hee doth what we should do, euen make sweetnesse to wayte vponupon strength, & not make strength to melt it selfe away into sweetnesse. Let the Bees come vntounto Samsons Lion, but let not the Lion spend his strength in running after Bees. Now the vse which hence I would gather, is a double Medicine for a twofold Disease. The one is for the Readers or hearers disease. For many of these are sick of iudgement, and will not reade or heare any but those that are short and sweet, euen such as conuey Religion into them by Pils and not by Potions. They are like chicken that cannot eate bread except it be in crummes. But let such get vntounto them the true appetite of a true Christian, and then spirituall matter deliuered spiritually, that is with euidence & force, will be very good (if not the best) food to their soules. And I would wish them to condemne their owne stomackes, and to seeke to amend them, when they condemne or neglect a sound and Apostlicall deliuery of the Word. For certainly that Soule is not very spirituall in her appetite, that rellisheth not spirituall Doctrine deliuered in it owne, that is in a spirituall manner. For true in this it is also, That Like loues his Like, and on the otherside, where there is no louelove, there is no likenesse, but that which loues not is vnlike to that which is not loued. So the appetite that loues not a spirituall kind of teaching, is to be suspected, that it selfe is not spirituall, and that want of likenesse, is the true cause of the want of louelove. And if it be so, then let men looke into themselues for the fault, and not out of themselues, and after let them looke themthemselues to the Physician of our soules Christ Iesus, praying him to touch their hearts, as hee did the heart of Lydea with his opening Spirit, and then no doubt, shall they bee attentiue hearers of the man that speakes spirituall things in spirituall words. The other is for the Writers or Speakers disease, and this very often is affectation. EueryEvery man must be of the fashion, and so if this Language of pieces be the fashion that must bee affected; But the affectation heereof is vicious, both because it affects a vice in speaking, and likewise because it marres the naturall ability, in which the Affectator would hauehave better excelled, and whereby hee would hauehave beene more perswasiue. So hauehave I seene a good Trotter make a bad Ambler, and fall into a Racke which is neyther of them both. Wherefore to draw all to a summe; Let edification be the end of speaking and hearing, writing and reading, that it may bee so, spirituall things must be fitted with a spirituall Language. The excellence and moouing of diuine Musick, is then chiefest when the Tune speaketh like the Ditty.
So if the light and power of the Spirit vtter themselues in words of light and power, it speakes most mouingly to our soules. Wherefore let spirituall words hauehave in them spirituall euidence and spirituall feruor, for so doe they best speake to the Vnderstanding, Will, and Affections. And let the whole matter hauehave a sufficient allowance of words, for so doth it best speake to the memory. Yet this wee may know, that with a large and full expression, a sententious, definitious and comprehensiue Position, is often a very good Companion. The largenesse giues a full appearance of the matter to the vnderstanding, and workes a full impression of it into the memory, & then the breuity becomming the modell and pith of the largenes, makes it more portable and ready for vse. And we may see a string which by the sudden turne of a Key hath broken by a leisurable winding, hath risen beyond the degree where it brake. Lastly, if with the Preacher to the words of Truth, and an vpright writing, there arise pleasant words, let eueryevery man make vse of his Talent, to the profit of the lender. Instruction pointed with delight, pierceth the more sharply, and sticks the more stedfastly. And these bee the very Nayles of Salomon, the fastning of which he commends in the Teachers. But let eueryevery man serue God in his owne place, and not breake his ranke to doe some strange Exployt. For as there is not an expectation of doing God seruice, where God hath not giuen ability, so neyther is there an acceptation of that seruice which is done without an abilitie giuen of God. 1. Pet. 4.11. For such a Worke is not the fruit of the power but of impotence, and it cannot please him because it is done without him. For as eueryevery good thing comes from God, so that which comes not from God is not good, and that which is not good, can neuer please God.