Common Places, Part 2 · Chapter 4 · Section 5
VVhat is, to tempt God.
54 To tempt, is nothing elſe, In. 1. Co. 10 Looke part. 1. pla. 8. art. 15. Looke In Gen. 24. at the end. God tempteth two manner of waies.but to make proofe. Wherefore they tempt God, which will hauehave triall of his power and will. And this is doone two waies: bicauſe otherwhile there is no lacke of ſuch things as we hauehave néed of, but we diſdaine to vſe thoſe accuſtomed and familiar things: and we would be holpen by meanes exquiſite and vnheard of. As if one that would not put on a garment, which he hath, and in the meane time ſhould praie, A ſimilitude.that God by ſome ſtrange meanes, would driue awaie the cold frō him: as there be euerie where to be found, who not content with the miracles rehearſed in the holie ſcripture, would now hauehave ſome other to confirme the truth of the faith. According to this ſenſe Chriſt anſwered ſathan, when he perſuaded him to throwe himſelfe downe headlong from the top of the temple; Matth. 4, 7.It is written, Thou ſhalt not tempt the Lord thy God. As if he ſhuld ſaie; The waie to go downe is manifeſtlie knowne vntounto me, I hauehave ſteps, to what purpoſe ſhould I caſt my ſelfe downe headlong? If I doo it, I ſhall tempt God.
55 Another kind there is of this temptation, when we lacke neceſſarie things, but yet neuertheleſſe hauehave a promiſe; and godlineſſe dooth perſuade vsus to attend patientlie. But manie refuſe to tarie the Lords helpe, yea they dare preſcribe a time vntounto God, and a meane alſo, whereby they would be holpen of him. This riſeth through the vnpatientneſſe of aduerſities, which happeneth oftentimes with our greate deſtruction. Wherefore the ſcriptures not without cauſe exhort vsus euerie where to patience. Tertullian.Tertullian alſo and Cyprian hauehave verie notablie written, Cyprian.concerning patience. None of vsus ought to preſcribe vntounto God, either the meanes, or the time of helpe: he beſt knoweth the iuſt cauſes, and he for good conſiderations deferreth his gifts. The firſt is, The 1. reaſon.for that our ſinne ſhould not lurke in the mind: for vnleſſe we were deferred, vnpatience would not bewraie it ſelfe, wherewith otherwiſe the hart is infected. Which being not vnderſtood of vsus, we would liue more careleſſe; neither would we praie to hauehave it taken from vsus. The 2. reaſon.Further, if things neceſſarie ſhould foorthwith come vntounto vsus, perhaps we would not attribute the ſame vntounto God; but either vntounto chance, or elſe vntounto our owne ſtrength and indeuour. Wherefore God hath appointed, that when he deferreth his helpe, which he afterward giueth at the time preſcribed, we may acknowledge him to be the authour of our deliuerance. The 3. reaſon.For by this means we vnderſtand, that helpe is come vntounto vsus, not by our owne appointment, but by his.
And affliction is recompenſed with the pleaſantnes of delaieng: for moſt pleaſant are thoſe things, which be longeſt looked for. Neither dooth God demand anie thing elſe, but that we ſhould weigh his gifts with a right conſideration; leſt they ſhould become vile. And thus we muſt beware of this heinous crime, that we through vnpatience doo not tempt GOD: for by ſuch meanes men either beléeue him not, to be the author of all things; or elſe they be in doubt whether he take care of them. And when helpe is deferred, at length they ſpue out their anger, and powre foorth their hatred, which they miſerable wretches alwaies kéepe cloſe and nouriſh within themſelues againſt God, and neuer ſhew it; but when they come to miſfortune. Then breake they out into blaſphemies, wherewith they either ſlander GOD as cruell; or elſe the euils, which they ſuffer, they impute vntounto the ſtarres, and vntounto euill men, whom they blame and curſe without end. A ſimilitude.And as a mad dog biteth the ſtones which be throwne at him, and letteth them alone vnhurt which threw the ſtones: ſo theſe men neither looke into their owne ſinnes, neither yet conſider they the iuſt cauſes, whereby God dooth prolong his helpe: but moſt vnwiſelie tempt God. The remedie muſt be ſo applied, that we ſet before our eies the promiſes of God, and the ſtedfaſt faithfulnes, which he hath hitherto vſed towards all the godlie, and towards vsus. Which if we ſhall repeate in our mind, we ſhall not be prouoked to tempt him, but rather we will turne our ſelues to moſt earneſt praier, whereby we ſhall obteine, that thoſe things, which are profitable to ſaluation, ſhall be giuen vsus in due time.
56 Beſides theſe two kinds of tempting God, There is another third kind of tempting God.there is a certeine other moſt wicked of all, which procéedeth onelie of impudencie and contempt. For there be ſome, which of ſet purpoſe doo go on in prouoking and ſtirring vp God by their ſinnes, of which wickedneſſe the apoſtle maketh mention in his 1. epiſtle to the Corinths, when he ſaith; 1. Co. 10, 22.Be we ſtronger than Chriſt? Neither did Peter, though he dealt more mildlie than we hauehave declared, much diſagrée from this ſignification, when in the Acts of the apoſtles he ſaid; Wherefore doo ye tempt God, Acts. 15, 10.that yee would laie a yoke vponupon the faithfull, which neither we nor our fathers were able to beare? As if he had ſaid; This is to prouoke God vntounto battell. As though they challenged greater ſtrength vntounto themſelues, than GOD would grant vntounto their fathers in the obſeruation of ceremonies. As concerning the firſt of theſe thrée temptations, …ow the Iſraelites tempted God.the Iſraelites tempted God; for when as they had ſufficientlie wherewithall to ſuſteine their liuing, they would hauehave had God to prepare fleſh and fiſh for them from heauen. Alſo they tempted God in the ſecond maner: for when they had néed of helpe, they expected not the opportunities appointed by God. Neither abſteined they from the third maner, when as by accuſtoming themſelues to ſinne, they prouoked the wrath of God.