The Drunkards Character, Section 180 – Section 181
§ 180.
THirdly,3. The world begins with milk, ends with a bammer: Christ keeps back the good wine until afterwards the world like Iael, beginns with milke, and ends with an hammer; whereas Christ keepes backe the good wine untill afterward, and makes his servants break their fast with the rod. Yea, he that offered our Saviour all the kingdomes of the world, and the glory thereof, is ready to yeeld a man more then hee shall require, as the same Iael did Sisera; for, as when he ask'd her water, she gave him milk: when he only desired shelter, shee made him a bed: and when he beg'd but the protection of her Tent, she covered him with a mantle, giving him more then he asked, but withall, more then he expected: so deales Sathan and the world with a poore soule. The divill is like a late Emperor of Turkie, who married his owne daughter to a Basha on the one day, and then, after a night pleasure, sent for his head the next morning: for here, he is a tempter: hereafter a tormenter; And herein Christs serv…nts and the divels differ: this life is our hell, and their heaven: the next shall be their hell, and our heaven, Psal. 17. 14. Matth. 5. 4. Luke 6. 21. Iohn 16. 20.
Indeed, our outward afflictions here are so sweented with inward consolation, that this world may rather bee called our purgatory: for a Christian here, in respect of his manifold troubles, and sweet consolation in christ, seemes half in hell and halfe in heaven, as Petrus Tenorius, Archbishop of Toledo, caused King Salomon to be painted upon the walles of his Chappell, after he had a long time considered the waighty reasons on each side, whether he were damned, or saved: or as the Papists feigned Erasmus to be, for that he was halfe a Protestant, halfe a Roman Catholike: but this inward consolation is hidden to the world.
Fourthly,4. The divell can delude their fancy and judgement of natural men. the divell and his instruments can so delude the fancy and judgement of a naturall man, that as he sees nothing desireable in a religious life, so hee shall give no credit to, nor believe any thing that the godly shall affirme. As for example. Let us tell one, whom they have converst withall, how sweet a religious life is, and how farre the light of God's countenance, the peace of conscience, and joy in the Holy ghost; doth surpasse all earthly felicity; he will not believe there is any such thing, because it transcends his conceite: as a poore labouring man in the country said to his neighbour, he believed not there was any such sum, as a thousand pounds of money, though rich men talked so much of it: they will believe no more, then what comes within the compasse of their five senses, for they are all the Articles of their faith. But they are ill discoverers, that think there is no land, when they can see nothing but Sea. Yea, viewing the godly but with natures eye, they thinke both God and nature envies them of all others, and that most men are deluded with a poysonous lye, in making only the vertuous happy.
But in case we say with Ste…en, that we see Christ Iesus sitting at the right hand of God; these blind wizards are ready to throw stones at us, for confessing what wee see, or for seeing what is hid from them.
Againe, let them see a man carefull to avoid the ginnes and snares of Sathan, which are laid in every place to take his soule; they will judge and call him a scrupulous fellow, for watching against that, which they neither see nor feare; as wonder is the daughter of ignorance. Indeed, as country men will rather believe the reports of travellers, then go to see it: so they will believe these things, rather then be troubled, or much trouble themselves about them.
Againe, let God, by his Embassadors, offer them the Kingdome of heaven upon faire and easie tearmes, they will none of it, yea, they will slight it: as the golden Indies was offered to diverse Princes, and they vilipended it, because they never saw it, yet the wealth was worth their labour, that undertooke it: and so in al other cases, worldly hearts (especially being thus deluded) can see nothing in actions of zeale, but folly and madnesse; untill we be borne againe, we are like Nicodemus, who knew not what it was to be borne againe, Iohn 3. Untill we become zealous our selves, wee are like Festus, who thought zeale, madnesse, Act. 26. untill wee bee humble our selves, wee are lie Michal, who mocked David for his humility, and thought him a foole, for dancing before the Arke, 2 Samuel 6. 16 yea, it was true then, and it is true now, and it will be true alwayes, which S. Paul observeth, 1 Cor. 1. 18. that to such as shal perish, or are, for the present, in a perishing condition; religion, shall seeme foolishnes; piety hath no relish to a brutish mans palate, but distastfull; and indeed, how should they like the food, which they never tasted, or bee in love with the party of whom they have not the least knowledg? For, as to speake is only proper to men: so to know the secrets of the kingdome of heaven, is only proper to believers. Sense, is a meere beasts; reason, a meere mans: divine knowledge, is only the Christians.
§ 181.
FIfthly,5. Forestal them see with prejudice that they shall resolve against being religious. the World and the Divell can so forestall mens judgements with prejudice against Gods people and goodnes, that they shall resolve never to be religious, so long as they live: as how many, by reason of that generall contempt, which the divels instruments cast upon religion, are both hindred from good, and hardened in evill, to their owne ruine and destruction? 1 Pet. 2. 7, 8. Yea, this makes them become more impudent, stupid, and insensible then Salom…n's drunkard, for, as touching admonition, they are like the deafe Adder; tell them what God saith in his word, they will stop the eare with the tongue, by ingrossing all the talke; neither is it the highest eloquence of the best Preacher; can make him fit for heaven, for they resolve against yeeld ng, and words are vagabonds, where the perswader hath an evill opinion of the perswader. Oh this is a difficult devill to bee cast out even like that we reade of, Mat. 17. 16. for as all the Disciples could not cast out that Divell, no more can all the Preachers this: yea, certainly where Sathan hath once set this his porter of prejud ce, though Christ himselfe were on earth, that soule would never admit him, take no good from him, no, not so much as think well of him, as we see in the Scribes and Pharisies, who made an ill construction of whatsoever he did or spake; for when he wrought miracles, he was a Sorcerer; when he cast out divels, it was by the power of divels; when he reproved sinners, he was a seducer; when hee received sinners, he was their favourer; when he healed the sick, he was a breaker of the Sabbath, &c. And even so it fares with these men: for, as an ill stomacke turnes all it receives into ill humours: or, as the Spider converts every thing she eates: and the Viper every thing shee touches into poyson: so they, whatsoever they heare, or see in the godly. In fine, as Beggers with Scumea make their owne flesh raw: so these with prejudice make their owne eyes blind: whereby it fares directly with such an one, as it doth with the Serpent Regulus, no charming can charme him: for prejudice, 6. If gentle perswasions wil no… … they will comp…d by violencelike the goddesse Adrasteia (or Sorceres rather) takes memory, wit, and grace, from all that entertaine it, and leaves them in Pyrrhon's condition, who would not believe what his eyes saw, and his eares heard.
Sixthly, they have a great advantage of Gods servants in this, when they have tryed in vaine all faire meanes, they can use violence; as it is the use and manner of all those that are agents for vice, factors for the divell, first to use gentle perswasion, but if that will not serve, compulsion. They handle us, as once that Praetor did a Souldier, who to make him renounce Christ, first (as Ierome notes) imprisoned him in his owne house, allowes him a chamber vvell furnished, soft lodging, dainty cheare, vvine, musick, all delights; vvhen this vvould not do (yet Lord, how many are thus prevailed vvithall to leave their Saviour) then hee casts him into a darke dungeon, loades him vvith irons, starves him vvith the hungry allowance of husks and puddle vvater; vvhen nothing would do, he burnes him: or as Bonner handled the Martyres, whose custome was, first to allure them vvith faire promises of honours, favours, preferments, &c. if that vvould not do, send them to Smithfield; for as bloody as he was, hee had sometimes in his mouth butter and oyle, as vvell as fire and faggot.