Directions for a Comfortable Walking with God, Religious treatise (4 of 9)

Directions for a Comfortable Walking with God · Religious treatise (4 of 9)

p. 1332. In respect of the order. The true Christian euer casts the first stone at himselfe, and first, the beame out of his owne eye; that is, begins with himselfe, searcheth his owne heart, rips vp and ransacks his owne conscience, censures his owne wayes, condemnes and crucifies his owne corruptions, and abandons all his knowne sinnes; and then hee may with a more comfortable calling, Matth. 7. 5. with more sinceritie and successe censure aaNon generalite… peccata omnia prohibuit iudicari, necprorsus, omnibus istius rei abstulit potestatem: sed his profectò solis, qui quum …lagitijs abundent innumeris, alios de leuissimis quibusque delicti… totâ temeritate condemnant, Chrysost. hom. 24▪ in cap. 7. Mat.others. But hypocrites, and those who hate to bee reformed, first begin with others, are most prying into other mens carriages, perusing other mens liues, thirstily hunting after, perhaps, by the helpe of many dogged spies, and fawning Spaniels, the falls and faults especially of Professors; (for there is the kindly triumph:) euer tampering and medling with their motes; but hauehave neuer any leasure or pleasure to looke into their owne rotten hearts, and rebellious courses. The reason of this difference may be this: EueryEvery godly man, together with the power of grace, puts on an holy bashfulnesse, an ingenuous modestie; that hee would bee fouly ashamed, and could not with any face charge others with those crimes, which he should allow p. 134in himselfe. But hypocrites weare maskes, vizors and whorish foreheads; they will hardly blush, or be ashamed at any beastly carriage, especially bringing in pleasure or profit; much lesse for seeming holy by their strictnesse and seuerity against other mens faults, though as full of lewdnesse and lust themselues, as the skin will hold. How often may wee heare imperious Pharises mangle and martyr a good mans good name, for some lesser infirmitie, who neuer learnd to mourne for, or mortifie any one of those many grosse corruptions, and secret villanies, which reigne in themselues?

3. In respect of the manner. Selfe-guilty Pharises are woont peremptorily to passe their rash censures vponupon the more righteous then themselues, with much malice, pride, scornefulnesse, and prophane insultation: but the seasonable censures of truely humbled Christians, ought euer to bee mingled with much mercifulnesse, commiseration, sensiblenesse of their owne infirmities, and louelove.

4. In respect of euidence and truth. Prophane mens censures of Gods seruants are many times not onelyonly groundlesse, causelesse & false; but also prodigiously absurd, and vtterly impossible, without any shadow or show at all of likelihood. The enemies to Christs ministry confidently censuredIoh. 7. 20 and 8. 48. 52. and 10. 20.John 7:20John 8:48John 8:52John 10:20 him to hauehave a Deuill, in whom notwithstanding the fulnesseColoss. 2. 9.Col 2:9 of the God-head dwelt bodily. Tertullus iudged Paul to be a pestilent fellow, when he was the most precious man vponupon earth. Elijah was accounted a troubler of Israel; who was in truth the very Charrets and horsemen of the same. The Princes suggested to the King, that Ieremy was a traitor…er. 38. 4. to the State; from which he was so farre, that hee desired his head to be turned into waters, and his eyes into springs of teares, that hee might weepe day and night for the desolations of it. Proportionable for monstrousnesse of falshood, areMal… est mentis, mali moris, affingere mihi mores ex …uis. many and many censures passed vponupon Professors at this day. Opposites to the power of godlinesse are so impudently peruerse, that they commonly cut conditions vntounto others, outMali alios de suo aestimant ingenio. of the cursed corruptions of their owne rotten hearts.

But now on the other side, Gods people must be very carefull p. 135and tender, what conceits they entertaine, and what censures they passe vponupon others. They are bound by the Lawes of diuine louelove, to conceiue and speake the best of eueryevery one, vntill his words, ordinarie carriage, open prophanenesse, and fruits of the flesh, clearely conu…nce the contrary; to construe and interpret all things in the better part, so farre, as they may with a good conscience, without preiudice to the truth, or impeachment of Gods glory. They ought to bee so farre from greedy apprehension of imaginarie matter, or violent wresting of mens words, actions and behauiour to the worst sence; that if matters be but probable, poyzd with equall circumstances, and with euen weight of reasons interpretable both wayes, they are euer to suffer their conceits and censures to be carried the more charitable way. They ought to be so farre from censuring others without ground, truth and proofe; (which is the ordinarie practise of most men) that they should neuer speake the ill they too certainly know by their brethren, but with fearefulnesse, as it were, and some kinde of enforcement.

5. In respect of the end. The ends why Pharises and Good-fellowes, as they call them, entertaine many groundlesse disconceits, and thereupon exercise such censoriousnesse against holy men, are such as these:

1. To binde vp their bleeding soules in the meane time with a palliate cure, as they call it; to procure some temporarie ease to their hearts, against the checks and bitings of their guilty consciences, For when consideration in cold blood of their impenitent courses, and of their certaine walking in the broad way, by reason of their own sensuall libertie, and much company, doth sting them with remorse, they hauehave recourse to the ill opinions they hauehave conceiued of the best men; and thereupon thinke within themselues, and take occasion to say vntounto others; What need we take these things so much to heart, or trouble our thoughts with necessitie of more strictnesse? Are not those, who goe for the godliest, and are accounted the prime Professors, such and such men? HaueHave not they also their infirmities and follies, though p. 136they guild them ouer with goodly showes, and pretence of zeale? Hereupon they somewhat asswage the secret slauish smart of their now and then wounded consciences, and walk more merrily towards their eternall perdition. For a settled disconceite of a Christian harboured and applauded, is a strong naile to fasten an vnregenerate man to his owne wayes, and a mighty barre to keepe him out of a gracious state. Sensualists are so strangely bewitched by Satan, that hee first causeth them to forge in their owne braines, or take vp from a spitefull tongue, some lying tale of a good man, and then after makes it his meanes to keepe them with securitie and contentment in the kingdome of darknesse, and to stand in euerlasting opposition to the wayes of sincerity, and saluation of their soules.

2. To make, by an affected liberty and seueritie in censuring others, the maskes of their owne hypocrisie, lesse markable. For by their fained triumphs, and imperious insultations in this kinde, especially vponupon fresh newes of some Professours scandalous fall, they would hauehave the by-standers to conceiue, that howsoeuer they bee not so precise and forward, or make so great a show as others; yet they are fully as honest men as they, and may, perhaps, step into heauen before them.

3. To wreake their spite vponupon the children of Light; who are euer eye-sores and heart-sores to all sorts of sinners, Hee, meaning the righteous man, (saith the Author of theChap. 2. 15. Booke of Wisdome, though Apocryphal, yet ancient) is grieuous vntounto vsus, euen to behold: for his life is not like other mens, his wayes are of another fashion. And it angers them at the very heart-roote to consider, that whereas, they hope, and hold themselues sufficiently qualified for Heauen; yet the righteous mans forwardnesse, zeale and liuing of another fashion, if ingenuousnesse dispell the mist of preiudice, clearely remonstrates to their owne consciences, and proclaimes aloud to all spiritually vnderstanding men, that in truth, and vponupon tryall, they are in the state of wretchednesse, and of the family of Hell. Hereupon it is, that they labour might and p. 137maine, with many disgracefull censures, to dimme the glory of his goodnesse; and, if it were possible, by publishing their owne malicious surmises, others slanderous tales, or spitefully aggrauated frailties, to pull him backe, at least, in opinion of their fauourites and dependants, to the same measure of infirmities, and pitch of impietie with themselues.

But now the ends, which humble Christians propose vntounto themselues of iust dislikes, and seasonable censures of vnsanctified men, are briefly such as these:

1. To preserue their thoughts innocent from accessarinesse to sinne, by a secret inuisible allowance of it in other men; and their tongues from cowardly silence, when they hauehave a calling to disgrace it.

2. Left a Knaue goe for an honest man, and hypocrites deceiue true-hearted Nathaneels.

3. Left the power of Christianitie, wherein Gods glory is highly interessed, suffer, and be vnderualued. For instance: Thou hearest sometimes a fellow notoriously branded with some infamous sinne, yet so spoken of by some dawbers with vntemperate morter, or at least by ignorant worldlings, as though his present condition were tolerable towards God, and hopefull in respect of saluation, by reason of some other good parts, for which they praise him: In this case, if the vnderstanding Christian hold his peace, the by-standers may be so farre scandalized and mistake; as to conceiue and collect, that a man may lye in a sweet sinne, and yet liue in Gods fauour; that the pleasures of the World, and peace of conscience may consist together, which are as incompatible as Heauen and Hell. And why should not that silence be sinful, which suffers an open knowne prophane man, to carry away the reputation of one in the right way; (if there be time and place for a seasonable, wise and charitable contradiction,) as well as that, which suffers one which is true of heart, to bee charged with hypocrisie?

2. Secondly, be silent from slandering, backbiting, falsaccusing: Heere I will say nothing of downe-right forging, and fastning a false crime vponupon an innocent, which is the p. 138most pestilent and palpable, and other grosse kindes of this very foule sinne: (for so it is indeed, howsoeuer to a carnall eye looking vponupon it, painted with the colours of commonnesse and selfe-louelove, thorow the false glasse of these corrupt times, it appeares not so ougly. The very Casuists and Schoolemen, none of the precisest Diuines, I am sure, doe deseruedly vilifie it with a brand of hainousnesse, farre aboue theft; as they may well, both for a greater breach of louelove, preciousnesse of obiect, vnrecompensablenesse of losse, difficultie of restitution, concurrence of many sinnes, consequence of much ill, &c) I say, I will bee heere silent of the grosser sorts of slander, because of them, Gods children are for the most part more easily sensible, and ordinarily watchfull: but let mee a little aduise and awake thee to further inspection of the present point, lest sometimes euen in telling the truth, thou bee intangled in the briars of this base sinne, and iustly incurre the fault of a false accuser, which thou maist many wayes: (For detraction, to speake Logically, doth not formally consist in the diminution of the truth, but in the denigration of a mans good name.) 1. By discouering secret infirmities, which louelove, that couereth a multitude of sinnes, would hauehave concealed. It is a base ambition, and most vnworthy the noble magnanimitie of a Christian heart, to hunt after, and purchase an opinion of precedencie in graces, and zeale, by the disgrace of another, perhaps eueryevery way, saue onelyonly in the censurers owne ouer-weening conceit, better and more worthy then himselfe. When thou hearest a man worthily magnified, for eminencie of parts and spirituall worth, bee it farre from thee, or any that euer tooke sinne truely to heart, to come in with a But; onelyonly because out of a pang, or rather predominancy of priuie pride, thou wouldest gladly bee noted for a None-such, and passe for the matchlesse Professour. Let it euer bee the property and veine of vaine-glorious Pharises, to raise their reputations, and sometimes themselues, but with execrable villany, vponupon the imaginary ruines of good mens innocencies; and to hold eueryevery insolent detraction from other mens p. 139sufficiencies, and addition to their owne. 2. By drawing out of other mens words, actions, and behauiours, vponupon the suspicious racke of a busie wit, aimes, insinuations, and intentions, which the Author neuer dreamed on: and by fathering vponupon them such enforced sinister sences, and wrested crooked constructions, which an ingenuous impartiall Expositour could neuer possibly extract. It is the easiest thing of a thousand, for a malicious minde, to soile the glory of the brauest and most beautifull actions, with ill and wrong interpretations and surmises of By-ends. (For the pride of a mans owne disdainefull nature, and the deuill himselfe, are ready mid-wiues at such monstrous conceptions and bastard births.) There is some truth in that hyperbolicall speech of him, who said; Let any man present mee with the most excellent and blamelesse action, and I will oppose it with fifty vicions and bad intentions, all which shall carry a face of likelihood. VponUpon this very point, Tribunals of Iustice, which hold more vponupon policy than piety, especially of priuate spleene embitter their Iudiciary power against the party, too often strangely blinde the common peoples eyes, and doe a great deale of wrong. A wicked wit, and wide conscience, mounted on horsebacke amongst a number of Princes, walking like seruants vponupon the ground (the Epidemicall disease of these worst and most vlcerous times) vponupon this aduantage, many times worke a world of reuengefull villany. But how soeuer it bee easie, and too ordinarie, for blacke tongues to blast and staine by wresting and wier-drawing the beauty of the best actions, with malicious misconstructions; yet it is villanous and base. To let lawes of diuine louelove alone; euen the light of Reason led wise men to this resolution, as appeares by their **Semper in dubijs Benignio…a praeferenda sunt, de diuer. Reg. …uris. In re dub…â benigniorem interpretationem sequi… non minùs iustius est, quàm tutius, Ibid. 164.rules of Law; That in doubtfull things, we must euer pitch vponupon the more fauourable construction. Wee are to be so farre from a greedy hunting after a spitefull misinterpretation of mens speeches, and violent wresting of their actions and carriage to the worst sence; that if matters be but probable, poized with equal circumstances, and with euen waight of reasons interpretable both wayes, wee are p. 140euer to suffer our conceits and censures to be caried the more charitable way. 3. By adding vntounto the truth, or detracting from it, or intermixing false adulterate Glosses, or some impertinent Parenthesis of a mans owne. Christs false accusers were deepely and damnably faulty this way. And in this kinde, many, who are their Crafts-masters, as they say, in malice, will first of all giuegive good men in their absence their due and deserued attributions, with many magnificent and plausible speeches; **Pessimum inimicorum genus, laudantes, Tacit. in vita Agricolae. pag. 679.but afterward at the cloze, premising some formall counterfeit protestation and Pharisaicall Preface, as, I am very sorry to heare it: I would it were otherwise, come in with a But, steept in very gall and vineger, whichSome men are praised maliciously to their hurt, thereby to stirre enuy and … towards them. bites most bitterly, and cuts like the sharpest razour. As thus: A man of very good parts, great worth, extraordinary endowments; But something proud. Hee is one, that is very well reformed of late, of much knowledge, and growne marueilously forward in Religion; But a little couetous. And thus they speake, not out of any louelove vntounto the party, impartialitie of censure, or that the imputation is true: but out of a cunning tricke, to bring their owne credit to their owne doore; a peruerse humour of measuring another by their owne foote; an enuious impatiencie of being surpassed in any sufficiencies; or rather than all this, from a base, an irregular and dung-hill desire of hauing the best men, especially eueryevery forward Professour, branded with one notorious But or another. For hypocrites, and enemies to Gods grace, would, rather then their liues, hauehave the liues of all Gods people stained with some grosse sinne. Rather then faile, they will fasten vponupon them many a lewd slander that way, hammered onelyonly vponupon the forge of falshood, and by the midwifery of malice in their own crafty pates; or broched vponupon an Ale-bench, or snatcht from the distempered tongue▪ of some pedling Tell-Tale, whence they may supply themselues with imaginary matter, both of insolencie, and triumph against forwardnesse and zeale, and also nourish a Pharisaicall perswasion, that howsoeuer there may bee a profession, and showes to the contrary, yet others are as corrupt & censurable p. 141as themselues. 4. By relating all the truth, the whole truth, aaIt is not lawful to sp… … we know by another, though it be true, except we … a Calling.and nothing but the truth: but bbDoeg played the dog against Dauid, in all, or some of these respects.either with a ccWe must speake the truth in l…sse. Ephes. 4. 15.Eph 4:15malicious and spitefull heart towards the partie; or in a contemptuous, scornefull, and insulting manner; or to a lewd end, and vponupon purpose to bring into hatred and disestimation; or some way or other, without any warrantable and comfortable calling thereunto.

Heere therefore it will be seasonable, for help and direction against this more plausible, but also pestilent kinde of slandering, to tell you, that telling the euill that is true of another, in his absence, doth brand you with the guilt and staine of Back-biters, saue in such cases as these:

1. First, of profit, and good to the partie absent. For instance; Thou informest thy friend of a third man; telling him, that hee begins to breake out into bad courses, ill companie, infamous haunts and houses; and so proceedest to a more particular and punctuall discouerie of his lewd pranks and exorbitant carriage: but all this purposely for the benefit of the partie. And therefore thou intreatest thy present friend, that he would interpose, ingage, and improoue the vtmost of that power and interest which he hath in his affections, dependance, or some neerer relation, for his reclaiming and amendment.

2. Of expediencie for him that heareth: when he is any way in danger of iniurie or infection, from the cunning, or corruption of the partie spoken of. For instance: Thou discernest and obseruest some slie, smooth companion, vnderunder a cloake of Profession, and formall colour of conformitie to the best things, to insinuate into liking and acceptation with thine vsuspecting Christian friend: whereupon thou foreseest, that if hee goe on without notice and discouerie, and get once within him; a thousand to one, at length hee will either cunningly prey vponupon him, or cursedly betray him. Now in this case, thou maist lawfully lay out such a counterfeit in his colours, and for preuention of the mischiefe which might ensue vponupon such a dangerous insinuation, disclose vntounto thy friend his hollownesse and halting, and that lewdnesse p. 142and knauerie which he guilds ouer in the meane time, with a vaile of seeming, and vernish of hypocrisie; but is woont, when once hee hath attained his end, or acted his villany, to throw away his vizor. For such fellowes there are abroad in the world, who purposely mixe and ioyne themselues with Gods children, hang vponupon, and adhere vntounto true Christians, as men from whom by reason of the singlenesse of their hearts, and charitable vnsuspiciousnesse, they may either directly or by accident sucke out the greatest aduantage.

3. Of necessitie for him which speaketh: That hee may be preserued from guiltinesse and accessarinesse to the sinne, which by silence and saying nothing, hee should incurre and bring vponupon himselfe. For instance: There comes to thy notice some notorious villanies, which concealement and impunitie would mightily animate, and easily transport to further excesse and outrage; but seasonable aduertisement giuen to authoritie, as to a Magistrate, Minister, Tutor, Father, Master, Gouernour of Family, might bee a meanes to cut the knot and heart of such cursed good-fellowship, and stay the torrent of that scandalous insolencie: In this case, thou hast a calling to reueale, informe, and implore superiour assistance for suppression of sinne. And therefore those of the house of Cloe did well to certifie Paul, of the disorders and1. Cor. 1. 11.1 Cor 1:11 dissentions amongst the Corinthians: And Pauls sistersActs 23. 16.Acts 23:16 sonne, to acquaint the chiefe Captaine, with that deuillish plot of desperate conspiratours against Paul. Otherwise, both thou and they, by cowardly and cruell silence in such cases, might in some sort, iustly incurre the guilt and accountablenesse euen for other mens sinnes so vnhappily concealed.

4. Fourthly, when a seasonable, warrantable occasion is giuen thereby, of performing some Christian duty, as

1. Of instruction, and forewarning to others; thus, or in the like manner: Thou hast a friend, whom thou seest, and fearest is entring a licencious course, which at length is like to breed his confusion: Whereupon thou tellest him, that such or such a man, iust as he begins; from contempt of p. 143the Word, profanation of the Sabbath, disobedience to Parents, fell fearefully into a desperate knot of lewd companions, then to Alehouse hanting, after, to gaming, at last, to the gallowes: and therefore thou aduisest him to take heed in time: to let such wofull precedents of sinne and shame stand still in his eye, to stay him from breaking his necke at the bottome of the same staires: for if he continue the reines but a while longer vponupon the necke of his rebellious nature, and still hold on so desperately with such wilde colts, the deuils Dromedaries to the …ame excesse of riot, hee shall finde no more power in himselfe to stay, vntill from the height of sin, he fall into the bottome of hell, then a man hauing begunne to run down the steepest hill, can stop before he comes at the bottome. He that layes his foundation with fire-worke, must look in the end to be blowne vp: he that premises prophanenesse and rebellion, shall bee sure to conclude in cursednesse and confusion.

2. Of praising God for the ruine, and rooting out of some implacable impenitent aaNon desu… Ecclesiae persecutiones etiam in hoc tempore, quando tranquillitas videtur Ecclesiae▪ qui… verum est illud, Omnes qui volunt piè viuere in Christo, persecutionem patientur. Non pateri… persecutionem, non vis piè viuere in Christo. August. in Psal. 54.Ps 54persecutor; thus, or in the like manner: A remarkeable vengeance hath seized vponupon such a scornefull caytife, who hath been a perpetuall bloody Goade in the sides of the Saints all his life long. VponUpon which occasion thou discouerest vntounto thy friend many passages and plots of his cruelty and hate against the Kingdome of Christ and his precious people, and that purposely to minister matter also vntounto others, of more heartily magnifying the glorie of Gods iustice; which at length hath happily strooke downe Antiochus with an incurable, and inuisible plague; eaten vp Herod with vermine; made Pashur a terrour to his friends; Zedekiah to run from chamber to chamber to hide himselfe. For you must know, that the hearts and tongues of all good men, and friends to the Gospell, are woont to be filled with much glorious ioy, and heartiest songs of praise, at the downefall of eueryevery dogged opposite; when the reuenging hand of God, not without speciall terror, hath tumbled from the top of malice and pride, any Antichristian and enraged enemy. So the Iewes feasted, after Haman was hanged. p. 144But in such cases looke vntounto thy heart with extraordinarie watchfulnesse and search: That he be an enemy indeed, I meane, to Christianity: that thou doe it not out of spleene, humour, faction, personall enmity, for the destruction of the creature or the like: but simply and sincerely out of zeale to the glory of Gods Iustice, prosperitie of the Gospell, and peace of the Church. Otherwise, in stead of a Christian dutie, it will prooue to thee a cursed cruelty.

3. Of Prayer, Thus, or in the like manner: Thou art acquainted with the secret plots of some plausible Tyrant against the people of God, whose words perhaps may bee as soft as Butter, or Oyle, and outward deportment promise faire; but his thoughts and inuisible intendments against the better side, composed all of blood & bitternesse, of Gall and Gunpowder; whereupon, as occasion is offered, thou vnmaskest his malice amongst thy Christian friends, to the end that they may communicate, and contribute their prayers for the confusion and infatuation of all his deuilish depths and deuices of hell. Teares, patience, and prayers, were euer the defensiue weapons of Gods people. Let Powder plots, Parisian Massacres, inuincible Armadoes, slaughtering of Kings, and such like horrible and hellish combustions, brand with an euerlasting staine of cruelty and blood, the Popish religion and persecutors of Heauenly truth: But let the sonnes of the Gospell be euer content to confront and beate backe the implacable rage of all Gods enemies, and haters of sincerity and grace, onelyonly with the cutting edge, and sharpened poynt of feruent prayer. Which weapon they may discharge: hree wayes: 1. Indefinitely, against all desperate enemies to God, his Church, and Gospell, without intimation, so much as by thought, of any particular persons. So Dauid, Psalm. 129. 5. Let them all bee confounded and turned backe, that hate Zion. Deborah, Iudges 5. 31. So let all thine enemies perish▪ O Lord: but let them that louelove him, be as the sunne when hee goeth forth in his might. 2. Conditionally, when they perceiue some insulting Shebnaes, and insolent Hamans to persist and hold on in persecuting the Saints, and opposing p. 145the power of Godlinesse; they may entreate the Lord, if they belong vntounto him, to humble them in their places, and giuegive them repentance: but if hee purpose to giuegive them ouer finally to a Reprobate minde, and to the impetuous rage of their owne cruell dispositions, to cut them off, and vtterly confound them, that they bee no longer a burden to the Church, and vexation to his people. 3. Abstractiuely; against their extreme oppressions, and malicious plots, without any relation at all …o their persons. So Dauid, 2. Sam. 15. 31. O Lord, I pray thee, turne the counsell of Achitophel into foolishnesse.

Or thus: Thou obseruest some one to hauehave continued long a worthy and noted Professour, but now vnhappily begins to fall off from his former forwardnesse, to grow flacke and negligent in Family duties, cold and cowardly in good causes, heartlesse, and hanging downe the head in godly company; to dis-regard, and vnderprize the powerfull meanes; to entertaine but ordinarie affections, if not some kinde of strangenesse towards other Professours, especially of greater eminencie and acceptation for their grace; to suffer immoderate imployment and entanglement in the world to waste his heauenly-mindednesse; so that in all likelihood God will shortly giuegive him ouer vntounto some scandalous fall, as a punishment of his back-sliding: whereupon thou discouerest vntounto thy Christian friends his declining state, onelyonly that they may ioyne with thee in prayer, that the Lord would bee pleased to stay him in time, and re-establish him in his first louelove; lest by his further falling, the credit of the Gospell also receiue a bruize and blemish, profession bee ill spoken of, and the enemies of sinceritie blaspheme.

4. Of vindicating the power and truth of Religion from the mistakings of Ignorants, and VnderUnder-prizers. Thus, or in the like manner; Thou art in company where thou hearest a meere ciuill man, or a formall Professor at the best, whom the Church neuer discouered, or acknowledged to bee any of Hers, and thy selfe canst auerre out of thy certaine p. 146particular knowledge, that hee neuer set himselfe to seeke God with any conscience or constancie; but is vtterly vnacquainted with the mysterie of godlinesse, family-exercises, sanctification of the Sabbaths, contributions to the Saints, exercises of mortification, selfe-deniall: I say, Thou hearest such a man commended for his Religion, forwardnesse, and the feare of God; which commendation, if hee carry away without contradiction, the rest of the company may be very greedy to apprehend such a precedent, and resolue not to passe his Pitch of profession, as vnaccompanied with such paine and precisenesse; and yet approoued by wise and vnderstanding men, as hopefull and comfortable. Now in this case, it may concerne thee, but with as much wisdome, discretion, and charitie as thou canst possibly, to disroabe such a fellow of his vndeserued attributions, and the reputation of that holinesse which he neuer had; lest both the By-standers bee hartened to come short of Heauen, and the power of Christianitie bee disparaged by an ignorant and hurtfull vnderunder-ualuation.

3. Thirdly, bee silent from all vnsauoury communication; as lying, swearing, prophane, foolish, filthy aaLinguam habes, non vt alios salibus tuis mordeas, sed vt Deo gratias agas, &c. Chrysost. in Epist. ad Ephes cap. 5. Serm. 17.Eph 5iesting; iesting out of Scripture, mocking and making Gods people as **Lam. 3. 63.Lam 3:63Musike at Feasts, merry meetings, and cursed conuenticles of Good-fellowship; and such other rotten, ribald and Bedlam talke: which, because they are the knowne and proper language of the sonnes of Belial, the dung, froth, and damned euaporations of drunken wits; Christians, whom alone I labour to direct in this poynt, are not in such danger of, and therefore I hauehave nothing to doe with them at this time.

III. Pray for, and practise an holy and discreete dexteritie, to diuert and draw from prophane and wicked, or too much worldly and ordinarie talke, to more sauoury conference, and heauenly discourse. Me thinks, it is great pitty, that Professours should euer meete without some talke of their meeting in heauen, or of the blessed meanes and wayes that leade thereunto, before they part. Yet many p. 147times, (such a deadnesse and dampe of zeale, and heauenlymindednesse, haunts euen the holiest hearts in these vnhappie dayes of securitie and forme) worldly matters, Talke of others, or some more remarkeable accidents and affaires abroad, speculatiue curiosities, some ceremoniall vnseasonable controuersies, or other such like impertinencies in one kinde or other, take vp and ingrosse, euen from Gods children, too much of many golden seasons, which might preciously serue, by their mutuall diuing with more Christian edifying discourse into the great mysterie of godlinesse, and walkes of Christianitie, to nourish and increase amongst them much spirituall warmth, comfort, and resolution against all vngodly oppositions, and to build vp one another in their most holy Faith, acquaintance with temptations, experimentall knowledge, more comfortable walking with God, &c. To confront this common mischiefe and Mar-conference at Christian meetings, come vntounto them prepared, as I aduised before; page 86, 87. But if the company bee contrary-minded, and vn-inured to the language of Canaan, exercise and interpose all thy wit, courage, authoritie, and eloquence, to draw them from the dunghill of rotten talke; and by a wise plausible diuersion, and modestly ouer-ruling transition, carry the current of their present discourse, all thou canst, towards some Heauenly good, and spirituall end. 1. To which end, obserue, and apprehend all opportunities and occurrences, which may minister matter of digression into diuine talke; and acquaint thy selfe with the Arte of abstracting sacred instructions from the booke of the Creatures and businesses in hand. It was the practise of our blessed Sauiour: VponUpon mention of bread, Matth. 16. hee prest vponupon his Disciples, a disswasion from the Leauen of the Pharises: when he obserued, Iohn 6. a number of people to throng about him for more miraculous bread, hee digressed into a most heauenly discourse of the food of life. VponUpon occasion of drinke being denied him by the Samaritane woman, Iohn 4. hee forgetting his wearinesse, hunger and thirst, labours to allure p. 148her to the well head of euerlasting happinesse. 2. HaueHave euer in a readinesse some common heads, of more stirring and quickening motiues to minde heauenly things: as the cursed condition of our naturall state, the incomparable sweetnesse of Christian wayes, the vanity and vexations of all earthly things, the vncertainty and miseries of this short life, the euerlastingnesse of our second state in another world, the sudden executions of Gods fierce wrath vponupon some notorious ones euen in this life, especially those, which are freshest in memory, and lateliest done; the terrors of death, the dreadfulnesse of that last and great Day drawing on apace, the horrors of a damned soule, &c. Mention of these things, many times will strike full cold to the heart of the most swaggering and sensuall Belshazzar, the most raging and roaring companions, and driue the most confident and domineering worldling into his dumps. Talke then of these terrible things, may by Gods blessing prepare and soften sometimes the hardest hearts for some thoughts of remorse, and more heauenly impressions. 3. But aboue all, get into thine own heart an habit of heauenly-mindednesse by much exercise, entercourse, and acquaintance with God, in powring out of thy soule euer and anon before him, in renuing and recouering thy peace, and comfortable accesse vntounto him vponupon eueryevery fall and checke of conscience, in often contemplation and foretaste of the inexplicable sweetnesse, glorie, and eternitie of those Mansions aboue; in diuing into the secrets of his Kingdome by the helpe of humblenesse and godly feare; vponupon the most sweet and soule-fatting dayes of humiliation, mortifying visitations of troubled and afflicted consciences, often conferences with humblest and best experienced Christians, &c. By priuate imployment of thy soule in solemne reflections vponupon it selfe; fruitfully recounting with what varietie of traines it was long detained in the state of darknesse; with what delayes and tergiuersations, lets and assaults it met in its way to light; what bitternesse and terrors it passed thorow in the pangs of its newbirth; the tentations incident to its infancie in grace, progresse p. 149and growth in seuerall graces, and the whole body of Christianitie; relapses, desertions, their discoueries, recoueries, with all the meanes and circumstances: In a word, by a punctuall obseruing how God deales with it eueryevery day. Be, I say, thus blessedly busied at home in thine owne heart, and thou shalt finde thy selfe much more pregnant and plentifull in holy talke when thou commest abroad. Wee are most apt and readiest to powre out our selues in publike, according to our priuate prouisions, and the most predominant discourses and contemplations of the minde. The conferences of free and vnreserued spirits are ordinarily nothing else, but the cloathing of their ordinarie mentall conceptions, and heart-secrets with familiar formes of speech. Men for the most part, speake most and most willingly of those things they minde most. I aduise thus in this point, that thou mayst be habituated and heartened with resolution and delight, in the art and exercise of putting forward good talke; or of diuerting and drawing towards better in case of the contrarie. Otherwise, thou shalt neuer bee able to hold out with constancie and courage, to crosse many times the generall mirth of the company, to put worldly-wisemen out of their element of all earthly talke, to draw worldlings, which goes most against the haire, to heare of heauenly things.

VIII. Suruey thorowly before hand with the glorious Lampe of the Word of Life and Truth; watch ouer, narrowly with the illightened eye of a tender conscience, and euer punctually manage, and conduct with the particular light of spirituall prudence, eueryevery action thou vndertakest, or that shall at any time passe thorow thy hand; of what kinde soeuer it be, whether naturall, recreatiue, ciuill, of mercy, Religion, &c.

To which particulars, before I descend, let me commend vntounto thee, and premise this Principle concerning actions in generall.

EueryEvery truly commendable and comfortable action, consists of an absolute integritie of all concurrents and requisites. Or thus: That which is good and lawfull, must be entire. p. 150I meane it in that sence, as our Diuines speake of sanctification,Bonum non existit nisi ex integrâ causâ: malum ex quolibe… vitio. Non est actio bona simpliciter, nisi omnes bonitates concurrant: quia quilibet singularis defectus causat malum: bonum autem causatur ex integrâ causâ. To doe a good worke, the concurrence of all circumstances is necessary: but the want of one onelyonly▪ … sufficient for an ill. Thus the Schoolemen, though a rotten generation of mongrell Diuines, yet now and then let a truth fall from their pens. Aqui. 12. q. 18. Art. 4. ad 3. Catar. Hist. of the Councell of Trent. lib. 2. pag. 196. which if sauing, say they, must be perfect and entire, though not in respect of degrees, yet in respect of parts. EueryEvery part and power of body and soule must hauehave its part of sanctification, though no part his full perfection and all degrees, before the dissolution of our earthly tabernacles. Proportionably in the present point; though some mixture of infirmities and imperfections will cleaue vntounto the face of the fairest action (an absolute and vnstained purity is incompatible with this vnglorified state of mortalitie;) yet notwithstanding, eueryevery seuerall ingredient must bee attended, and tempered with its owne particular goodnesse and honestie, and seasonable conformitie to the whole; or else the whole action, howsoeuer right in other respects, is vtterly robd and disroabed of all true splendour, acceptation and grace. A little heauen sowres the whole lumpe: one noxious hearbe brings death into the pot: The goodliest deed or dutie is quite peruerted and empoysoned, by the enormitie of any one particular requisite. We say truely in the Schooles; The conclusion euer followes the worst part: Semblably in morality, the iniquitie, defect, and exorbitancie of any one ingredient, denominates the whole action naught.

In eueryevery one of thine actions and vndertakings, looke euer, if thou looke for comfort, that eueryevery concurrent bee iustifiable, that eueryevery ingredient be gracious, … bring his probatum est. For instance:

1. It must be good in its owne nature, and warrantable out of the Word; by which all things must be sanctified vntounto thee, 1. Tim. 4. 5. as a good seruant will venture vponupon nothing, but what he knowes will please his Master. Otherwise, let the person be neuer so pleasing vntounto God, his intention neuer so good, his heart neuer so zealous, the meanes, circumstances and end neuer so excellent, yet all is naught. Worshipping Christ in a Crucifixe is naught in its owne nature, abominable, idolatrous, condemned in Gods Law, Exod. 20. 4, &c. And therefore, bee it done with neuer so great deuotion and good meaning, with neuer so much Popish p. 151dawbing, or goodly pretence whatsoeuer, it is still cursed and damnable.

2. The obiect, whereabout the action is exercised, must be qualified according to the rules of Religion. Almesdeeds, and Doles of charitie, are sweet and acceptable sacrifices vntounto God. But amongst other cautions and considerations to season them, the parties, that are to be made partakers thereof, are to bee singled out with all godly discretion. 1. The true wants of a religious Professor, should in the first place bee the principall and most moouing obiect, to draw bounty from a truely charitable heart: according to that, Galat. 5. 10. As we hauehave therefore opportunitie, let vsus doe good vntounto all men, especially vntounto them who are of the houshold of faith. 2. In the next place, the lame, the blind, the sicke, the aged, the trembling hand, or any that God hath made poore. 3. Any whosoeuer in a case of true necessitie and extremitie, whatsoeuer the partie hath been before: for there not the man, as it were, but the common state of humanitie is relieued. But now, if for such a purpose, thou makest choise of a sturdy begger, idle **foreign.rogue, canting companion, the shame and plague of this noble Kingdome; thou doest not only depriue thy selfe of the comfort and honour of a truely charitable deed; but thereby incurrest a great deale of guilt, by incouraging and nourishing idlenesse, filching, many strange vnknowne villanies, nay, euen an execrable irreligious Paganisme in such lewd, lazy drones, vnprofitable burdens of the earth, and intolerable caterpillers of the Common-wealth. For such (saith a worthy Diuine) as turne begging into an Art and occupation, they are by order to be compelled to worke for their maintenance, which is the best and greatest almes.

The obiect of thy speciall, intimate, and dearest louelove, must bee the Christian, euen the poorest professour of Religion, not the compleate Carnalist, or most magnificent Worldling.

3. Thou must also looke vntounto the matter, else all may bee mard. For instance: The matter of thy bounty and beneficence, must bee thine owne goods got lawfully, not formerly p. 152hoarded by Vsury and wrong; otherwise it will but prooue, in respect of diuine allowance, but an abominable sacrifice aaEleemosyna cum iniquitate acquisita, abominabilis est coram Deo; & acceptum ei, quod sideliter fuerit acquisitum. August. tom. 4. part. 2. pag. 512. De iustis laboribus faci…e eleemosynas. Non enim corrupturi estis Iudicem Christum, vt non vos audiat cum pauperibus quibus tol…itis. Nolite velle eleemosynas sacere, de foenore & vsuris. De verbis Dom. Ser. 35. Sed ait mihi raptor rerum alienatum,—Agapem facio, inclusis in carcere victum mitto, nudos vestio, peregrin…s suscipio. Dare te putas: tollere noli, & dedisti. Cui dederis, gaudet, cui abst…leris, plorat. Quem duorum istorum exa…diturus est Deu… Dieis ei cui dederit, gratias age, quia ac. ep… sed alius …bi ex aliâ parte di…t, Ego ge…o, cui abstulisti; & pe…è totum tul…sti, & exiguum i…i dedisti. S▪ totum, quod … ▪ egen…bus▪ ed…, nec talia opera diligit Deus. Lib. 50. Hom. Hom. 7. Bonus vsus non iustificat ininstè ….: for many times, that which is highly esteemed amongst men, is abomination in the sight of God, Luke 16. 15.

3. The person must bee pleasing; the actor acceptable vntounto God: Otherwise, his best and most bountifull deeds, are at the best but beautifull abominations; Seruices most sacred in their owne nature, as Prayer, hearing the Word, receiuing the Sacrament, &c. are from him, and the altar of his vnsanctified heart, but as the offering of Swines blood. If thou be not iustified by faith, and accepted through Christ, all thy actions, naturall, ciuill, recreatiue, religious; whatsoeuer is within thee, or without thee, the vse of the creatures; all thy courses, wayes, and passages, are turned into sinnes and pollutions vntounto thee, enlarge and aggrauate thy woe and damnation: Euen the sacrifice and whole way of the wicked, is an abomination to the Lord, Prou. 15. 8, 9. The Pharise, Luk. 18. was not a button better for all his prayers, fastings, &c. nay, by accident more accursed; I meane, in respect of any gracious entertainment with God, who was not pleased with Him, in Him, in whom Hee is well pleased.

4. The heart must be sincere, else euen the noblest duties of Religion are nothing.bbMatth. …0 7, 8. Iudas gaue his name to Christ, preached, and wrought miracles; and yet all the while was a desperate hypocrite, a very incarnate deuill; because his heart was rotten, drencht in the gall of bitternesse, and snared in the bond of iniquitie. The Israelites humiliation seeking God, returning, and inquiring earely after him: bespeaking him with all termes of dearenesse and dependance; our Rocke, our high God, our Redeemer; was all but temporarie and vnsound, because their heart was not vpright. When hee slew them, then they sought him: and they returned, and inquired dearly after God. And they remembred, that God was their Rocke: and the p. 153high God, their Redeemer. Neuerthelesse, they did flatter him with their mouth: and they lyed vntounto him with their tongues. For their heart was not right with him, Psal. 78. 34, 35, 36, 37.

5. The meanes must be good. Otherwise, be the end neuer so excellent; let there bee neuer so exact and absolute concurrence of all other causes; yet the glory and comfort of the action is quite darkened, and desperately empoisoned to the man, that willingly, and against the cry of an illightned conscience, imployes and puts his hand to any wicked meanes for the atchieuement. Suppose that by a lie, thou couldest saue a mans life, his aaAd sempiternam salutem nullus ducendus est opitulante mendacio. August. de mendacio ad Consent. cap. 19.soule, the soules of all the men vponupon earth; nay, winne thereby vntounto God as much glory, as accrewes vntounto him by all his creatures; yet for all this, on thy part all were bbSed ca quae constat esse peccata, nullo bonae causae obtentu, nullo quasi bono fine, nullâ velut bona intentione facienda sunt. Contra mendacium ad consent. cap. 7.naught. For it is a sacred Principle, sealed vntounto by Truth it selfe; We must doe no ill, that good may come, Rom. 3. 8.

6. The circumstanes must bee seasonable. For instance: Personall and priuate prayer, is a right precious sacrifice and seruice: but let it bee seasonable for the circumstance of place, or else it may loose its sweet-smelling sauour in the nostrils of God, and bee tainted with **Cum vbique opportunum sit ab inani gloriâ liberum habere pectus ac vacuum: tamen in oratione praecipuè. Chrysost. hom. 19. in cap. 6. Mat.Pharisaisme. The closet, or some retired place, is fit for this exercise, which the more secret, the more sincere; not the ccMat 6. 5.Matt 6:5Synagogues, and corners of the streets, which was the Pharises vaine-glorious woont, who sought more for ddIoh. 12. 43.John 12:43praise of men, then pleasing of God. Meditation vponupon diuine mysteries, and quickning spirituall points, is an excellent, and acceptable exercise, so it keep its owne turne, and be confinde to a fit time: but in the heate of the Preachers powring out his soule for vsus in prayer at the Throne of Grace, it is sinfull, because vnseasonable. Calling to minde seriously some speciall passages formerly heard, or read, to presse them with more life and power vponupon the conscience, is a right needfull, and religious dutie: but so to doe at a Sermon, in singing a Psalme, or when wee ought to bend all the powers of our soules, and best attention to the present, is but one of Satans tricks in the glory of an Angell, to make vsus guilty of the contempt, and p. 154rob vsus of the comfort of the ordinance in hand.

7. The end also must bee answerable in goodnesse; and by its excellency and attractiuenesse, inspire amiablenes and allurement into all the means leading thereunto, though they should be in their owne nature painfull and vnpleasing. In all thy enterprizes and vndertakings, thou must hauehave in thine eye principally, that vniuersall aime of all our actions, Gods glory; other wise, let the whole affaire bee carried neuer1. Cor. 10. 31.1 Cor 10:31 so fairely in the eyes of men; be cloathed with neuer so goodly a show, and glorious outside; yet in respect of acceptation with God, or true comfort to the partie, it is no better then the cutting off a Dogs necke. Iehu did right noble and worthy2. Kings …. seruice, by his resolute rooting out, and couragious cutting off that bloody and idolatrous House of Ahab: and sweet in the nostrils of GOD, was that great sacrifice of Baals Priests: he marched furiously in this holy businesse, and was very zealous to execute Gods charge in that regard exactly. And yet for all this, all these outward glorious visible conformities to Gods commandement, were to him, but as the killing of a man; because his eye was not vponupon the right end,Hos. 1. 4.Hos 1:4 Gods glory. Hee principally aimed at the secure settling of the Crowne vponupon his owne head, by an vtter extinguishment of the Kings family. Had his aime been right, his heart had beene as well set against the golden Calues in Dan and Bethel, as his hand and sword against the idolatrous house of Baal; but it was not so, 2. King. 10. 29.

Now I come to some particulars; and

1. First, concerning recreations; which howsoeuer, they ought to be very moderate and sparing; and in that respect, me thinkes, I should rather spare my labour, and not spend many words; yet because they are not onelyonly insatiably pursued and plunged into by men of this world; but also too much looked after, and lyen in, euen by some who looke towards Religion, I shall be somewhat the longer; and aduise, that they be not

1. Costly. To curbe and confine thine affections to a seasonable and sanctified moderation herein, consider 1. how p. 155the backes and bowels of manyccQuid si volumu… pecuniam nostram ita collocare? Nonne sumus Domini rerum nostrarum? No… inferimus iniuriam proximo, non auferimus aliena. Haec illi habent in ore. At eos oportuit intelligere: Magistratus esse, prouidere, vt quisque re suâ benè vtatur. Altit…s praetereà spectandum est, Deum illis dedisse pecunias, quo habeant, vn… de familiam alant, vnde pauperibus consulant: non quas conijciant in casum, & fortunae ludibrio exponant. Pet. Mart. cap. 12. class. 2. Loc. Commu. poore members of Iesus Christ, and distressed Saints call, nay, cry euen with teares of blood for reliefe and compassion from thine abundant and ouerflowing abilities. 2. That thou must be called vponupon, and accountable with seueritie, and exactnesse at that last and dreadfull Tribunall for eueryevery farthing; how thou gotst it; and with what warrant thou keptst it; vponupon what thou spentst it. 3. The iudgement of Austin, that great and renowned Father of the Church, who, as Diuines report (for I must confesse, I take it at otherddQuid ergo fiet de pecunia? Erogandam esse dicunt in pauperes; vt qui perdidit, afficiatur damno: & qui lucratus est, non fruatur malè partis. Id faciendum est, cùm ttansfertur Dominium. Idem sensit. Augustinus in Epist. 45. ad Macedon. Mart. ibid. Bishop Babington quotes the same place of Austin for the same speech, vponupon the eight Comm. mens word, not knowing where it is in his workes; but it is a saying worthy so excellent a man) would hauehave all things gotten by play, taken from the winner, and neuer restored to the looser, but giuen to the poore; that both the winner might want, what so greedily hee gaped for, and the looser not to recouer, what so foolishly he parted with. 4. The resolution of that graue and profound Diuine of these latter times: But some say, saith eeAt nonnulli dicunt, se non oblectari ludo, nisi pro pecuniâ ludant. Verùm eam pecuniam, rogandi sunt, in quem vsum velint insumi. Fortè dicent, in conuiuium. Cur non potiùs in pauperes? Ego verò dico, Multò melius, & tutius esse, ne interponatur pecunia: Etsi enim fieri potest vt tu cupiditate non tangeris, alter tamen cum quo Iudis, fortasse tangitur. Mart. loco praecitato.he, they can take no pleasure in play, except they play for money, But we are to know of them; how they would hauehave the money bestowed? Perhaps they will say, VponUpon a common Feast. And why not rather vponupon the poore? But I say, It is much better, and more safe, that no money bee laid to the stake: for although it may bee, that thou art not toucht with greedinesse of winning, yet he with whom thou playest, may bee tainted that way. Let occasions of ill be taken away, which are too many at all turnes.

II. Cruell. Bathe not thy recreations in blood: Refresh not thy tired minde with spectacles of crueltie: Consider, 1. How God himselfe out of tendernesse and pittie, would not hauehave his people feede vponupon the flesh of Beasts with the ffEgo hîc vtrunque putâ…im includi; ne aut membrum exanimante adhuc viuâ palpitans, aut etiam sanguis adhuc palpitans edatur, nam esum alioqui sanguinis iugulato animanti, qui iam refrixerit, hîc prohibitum non putarim, nisi ex consequenti. Merc. in v. 4. cap. 9. Ge… That many people did vse raw, life-blood in this sort, as Mercerus thinkes, Stories and Poets plentifully testifie. So that some good Diuines conceiue, that there is an allusion to such a practise, Genes. 9. 4. See Sanest. in. Acts 15.Gen 9:4Acts 15blood, lest thereby they should be flesht to crueltie, and inured p. 156to behold rufull obiects without horrour. And doest thou thinke then, hee will allow thee to feede thine eye and fancy, with their bloody torturing and tearing one another in pieces? 2. With what brutish sauagenesse thou deiectest and debasest humanitie, below the immanitie of beasts. No beast, they say, takes contentment in the hurting of any other, except in the case of hunger or anger. They satisfie their appetites and rage sometimes with cruelty and blood; but their eyes and fancies neuer. 3. That men bloodily minded towards harmelesse beasts, discouer our naturall propension to cruelty, which is further manifested, 1. by the multitudes many times, thirsting and thrusting after the curiositie of wofull spectacles, and their impatiency to tarrie the beholding of the lamentable executions of guiltie persons. 2. And in that they take no delight to see wild beasts play, and sportingly to make much one of another; but are well pleased to see them bloodily encounter, mangle and enterteare each other. These seeds then, or rather weeds of crueltie, originally implanted in our hearts by the curse of nature, are too ranke and luxuriant of themselues; they need no manuring with barbarous inhumanities, and sports of blood. 4. That Rule which Diuines giuegive about recreations, we must not make Gods Iudgements & punishments of sinne, either vponupon man or beast, the matter and obiect of them. Now, best Diuines hold, that enmitie amongst themselues, was a fruite of our rebellion against God, and more generall iudgement inflicted vponupon the creature after the fall. Which miserie comming vponupon them by our means, should rather break our hearts and make them bleed; then minister matter of glorying in our shame, & vexing those very vexations, which our impiety hath put vponupon them. Alas, sinfull man, what an heart hast thou, that canst take delight in the cruell tormenting of a dumbe creature! Is it not too much for thee to behold with dry eyes that fearefull brand, which only thy sinne hath imprest vponupon it; but thou must barbarously also presse its oppressions, and make thy selfe merry with the bleeding miseries of that poore harmelesse thing, which in its kinde is p. 157much more and farre better seruiceable to the Creator then thy selfe? Yet I deny not, but that there may bee another lawfull vse of this Antipathy, for the destroying of hurtfull, and enioying of vsefull creatures; so that it be without any taint, or aspersion of cruelty on our parts, or needlesse tormenting of the silly beasts.

3. Ingrossers of time. Thousands there are, who plunge themselues ouer head & eares in courses of pleasure; which they call recreations, wherein they very vnworthily and wofully waste the fat and marrow, as it were, of deare and precious time, the flower of their age, the strength of their bodies; emasculate and melt the vigour of their spirits, into effeminatenesse, sensualitie, and lust; drowne the faire and goodly hopes of their education, the honour of their Families, the expectation of the Countrey, the improouement of their parts, in froth and folly: As though they were placed vponupon earth, as Leuiathan in the Sea, onelyonly to take their sport and pastime aaSunt profectò, qui ob hoc in hanc vitam adductos se putant, vt delicijs vacent, & ventrem disrumpant, & corpus impinguent: ato; sic hinc migrent vermibus largiorem è suâ ca…ne me… sam instructuri. Chrysost. Serm. contra Luxum & Crap.therein. Louers they are of pleasures, Mirth-mongers, men of this world, sworne Vassals to carnall loosenesse and riotous excesse. They hauehave their fooles Paradise heere, and therefore in the equitie of a iust and holy proportion, must with the Rich man looke for their payment and torment hereafter. But Gods children must make conscience of meddling at any time with recreations, without true cause and a iust calling thereunto, and hold them of the same account and consequence, with sleepe and other temperate refreshings, which serue onelyonly to quicken the minde, reuiue the body, enlarge the breath, that wee may returne with more lightsomenesse and alacritie to our worke and Callings. The season then of comfortable recourse vntounto these repaires and restoratiues is, when wee hauehave truely wearied our bodies with some honest imployment, or tired our minds in worthy and noble exercises, or both. And as we must not presse vponupon them at our pleasure, and preuent true need, out of an hankering humour after sportfull vanities, old haunts, good-fellow meetings, conformitie to the times, or some such sensuall and inordinate attractiue: so in p. 158the entertainment of them, wee must receiue them, as men doe honey, with the tip of the finger, not with a full hand. By no meanes ought we to engage, and as it were, to engulfe our affections into their excesses and immoderation; not suffer them so to insinuate, as to steale away our hearts into a pleasing insensible thraldome; so creating necessities of recreations; which is an extreme misery, and intolerable slauery; wherein, notwithstanding many truly vnworthy and vnnoble Gallants miserably languish, and come to nothing; prooue onelyonly vnprofitable burthens of the earth; and in stead of a blessing, the very bane of the Countrey that bred them.

Let such considerations as these serue as so many curbes, to restraine vsus from an vnseasonable intrusion vponupon them: and so many keene spurres to poast vsus out of them, before we be limed and entangled by them.

1. Time is short. Our life is but a span long, a bubble, aPunctum est, quod viuimus, & puncto minus. thought, a smoake, a shadow, a dreame, the very dreame of a shadow; or if you can name any thing more fading and fraile: and yet vponupon this moment depends eternitie. As wee behaue our selues heere vponupon earth, either in conformitie to the wayes of God, walking with him, selfe-denyall, &c. or in fashionablenesse to the world, seruing the times, and our owne turnes, &c. so shal we fare euerlastingly in another life: And either become most glorious and happie creatures, crowned with an exquisite confluence and quintessence, as it were, of sweetest vnmixed eternall pleasures; a very shadow whereof, not the largest naturall hearts of deepest vnderstanding men, from the Creation, to the last day, were they all vnited into one exactest height and excellency of conceit, could possibly comprehend; nay, in this one circumstance, at the least, the Saints shall surpasse euen Angelicall felicitie; they shall behold, with incredible ioy, their owne nature, in that respect, honoured and aduanced aboue the brightest Cherub, shining for euer with infinite beauty and glorified splendour, in the sacred Person of the Sonne of God: or else fall irrecouerably into the mouth of inexplicable and remedilesse p. 159horrour, and so become the forlorne and wofull Obiects, vponupon which shall bee exercised and executed the vnquenchable wrath of God, and fiercest torments in hell, with extremitie and euerlastingnesse; nay, and in this point, more vnhappy than the very Deuils: For since their Apostacie, there was no meanes or possibilitie vouchsafed vntounto them of recouery and returne to those euerlasting Mansions of glorie; But the sonnes and daughters of Adam, since their fall, hauehave had the very Sonne of God himselfe, with the deare and vnualuable cry of his owne hearts blood, to meditate vntounto, and sollicite the Father of all compassions and mercy, for restitution into fauour and plantation into the Angels roome. And therefore as this thought, Oh what vnhappy and accursed creatures were we, who being crowned with the matchlesse transcendency of all felicities and glory, would not hold our station and hauehave shined still! I say, as this thought will endlesly haunt the damned angels with vnconceiueable byting and anguish; so, not onelyonly an answerable selfe-fretting torture from this conceit; Alas, that wee kept not Paradise! will rent and teare the wofull hearts of the wicked in hell: but also a further sting of that neuer-dying Worme, not incident to the Apostate angels, will extremely enrage them with restlesse gnawings of conscience and gnashing of teeth; when out of the horrour of their hideous wofull yellings, they shall cry out against themselues; What wretches? What beasts? What madded Deuils were we! who when the glorious Blood of Christ Iesus was so mercifully tendered vntounto vsus in the Ministery of the Word, all our life long, we turned our backes against such blessed and bleeding imbracements; and cruelly cut the throates of our owne poore soules, by impenitent continuance in sinne: so loosing for a few bitter-sweet pleasures in this vale of teares, for an inch of time, fulnesse of ioy at Gods right hand, thorow all eternitie.

2. Time is precious. If all this great massie bodie of the whole earth, whereupon we tread, were turned into a lumpe of gold, it were not able to purchase one minute of time. p. 160And were there no other circumstance to set an impression of high valuation vponupon it, yet this very one doth much ennoble it; That all these faire and shining bodies aboue our heads, and principally the Prince of all the lights of heauen, that glorious and mighty Giant, the prime and crowne of all corporall creatures, doe tire & waste, as it were, their celestiall vigours, with the incredible swiftnesse of endlesse reuolutions, to beget and giuegive vsus time; I say, vsus, who for the sinne of eueryevery moment in it, deserue eternity of punishment. But that our hearts may bee more sensibly wrought vponupon, and more effectually affected with the dearenesse and preciousnesse of it; let vsus suppose that the Lord, by diuine and extraordinarie dispensation, should giuegive leaue to a damned soule to come into this life againe, and would vouchsafe him but one houre of a new triall, as it were, and a second time of gracious visitation: Oh how highly would hee prize, how eagerly would hee apprehend, with what infinite watchfulnesse, endeauour, and diligence, would hee improoue that little short golden season? And if therein he might hauehave but the happinesse to heare a Sermon; Oh with what affectionate inflamed attention would hee listen vntounto the Word of Life! how would his heart breake and bleed within him, and fall asunder in his brest, like drops of water, to heare Gods iust wrath and holy indignation thundred out and threatned against sinne! With what insatiable grasping and deare imbracement would he labour to lay hold vponupon Christ Iesus and his gracious promises? In a word, he would think, that in demonstration of thankefulnesse for Gods fauour, might hee be so happy as to hauehave it, the spending of eueryevery moment of all that great body of time, which lies betweene the Creation and the worlds end, if hee might liue so long, in as holy, pure, strict, precise, heauenly manner, as euer did the most mortified Martyr vponupon earth, were farre too little. Shall we then triflingly passe and play away the time that is so precious? And in my supposition, the damned soule should bee sure of an houre: But none of vsus can possibly purchase securitie for very one moment, after I hauehave spoken p. 161this word. The time present is our onelyonly time; wee hauehave no more power and command ouer the time to come, then ouer the time past. Euen the next minute thou mayest be cut off by the stroake of death from all further time of repentance, acceptation, and grace for euer. Nay, yet further, were it possible that any vncomfortable passion were incident to a glorified Saint in heauen, he would be sorry and transported with extreme anger and indignation against himselfe; That hee was not a more greedy ingrosser, as it were, and improouer of time, for doing excellently vponupon earth; and that eueryevery houre after his cōuersion was not crowned with some rarer and more remarkable exploit; with some more speciall and noble seruice, for the glorifying of that most bountifull, and euer-blessed God, who hath now honoured him with such vnspeakeable glory, and that Crowne of ioyes, so infinitely transcendent to the vtmost expectation of the most enlarged heart. Howsoeuer therefore men of this world, for the most part, except they be continually exercised in variety of pleasing imployments, and still entertained with fresh successions of new pleasures, are sore troubled with time, and tediously perplext how to passe it; which is the reason that they deuise so many passe-times; with much sollicitous and sensuall forecast, plot and proiect to themselues aforehand, many and many a merry meeting, idle visitations, feastings, mutuall entertainments of meere complement and vanitie, iouiall reuellings, as they call them, &c. that they chaine together, as it were, by the Art of Epicurisme and with linkes of liberty, continued occasions of company keeping, and good-fellow meetings, from the one end of the weeke to the other: (For solitarinesse and selfe-conuersing, is a very torturing racke, and the tide-time of melancholy, to the waking consciences of gracelesse and guilty men.) Though, I say, this bee the custome and carriage of Satans Reuellers; yet all Christians ought to hauehave time in deare and high esteeme, in eueryevery moment whereof should they lay downe ten thousand liues for His sake that pardons their sinnes; and also doe him all the glorious seruice of all, both p. 162the militant and Triumphant Saints, it were infinitely too little for his louelove. Wherefore no marueile though well-aduised and watchfull, they feele themselues rather pincht with want, then prest with plenty of her golden offers and opportunities to doe good, and bee euer addrest to entertaine and welcome eueryevery houre with speciall attendance, as a gracious Indulgence of his patient louelove, and long-suffering, and suffering them to doe him yet more honour, (for which cause alone they long to liue) before they goe downe into the pit and be seene no more. And they should be so farre from being afraid of solitarinesse, as to hold their time alone, the only time for sweetest contemplations, heauenly commerce, neerer conuersing and communion with God.

3. We that are earthly Angels by the noblenesse of Creation, though by voluntarie degeneration incarnate deuils, were put into, and planted within the compasse and comforts of this great and curious Frame round about vsus, the goodly Workmanship of Gods owne Almightie hand, wherein we hauehave the Sunne to serue vsus; and wee of this Kingdome by matchlesse and incomparable fauour, the heauenly and healing beames of the Sunne of righteousnesse, to shine vponupon vsus through his glorious Gospel, I say, we were placed in this world, not to serue our owne turnes, to please our owne hearts, to follow our own wayes, to eate, drinke, and sleepe; to temporize, reuell, or roote in the earth; to play the Epicures, Libertines, Machiauelians; to climbe into high roomes, by all meanes lawfull and vnlawfull; by briberie, simonie, flatterie, base insinuations, following the times; or some fouler meanes, and thereto domineere and tyrannize: In a word, to serue the deuill for a few and euill dayes, to die, and so to be damned. No, no, a nobler taske and more excellent end is appointed and apportioned for the Prince and principallest of all earthly creatures. Our being vponupon earth this little inch of time, is for businesse of another nature, and for a farre more important affaire, and of dearest consequence; euen with humblenesse and truth to know & obey our God, to serue our brethren in louelove, and to saue our owne p. 163poore soules in the Day of Christ. This is that One necessarie thing, in respect of which, all other things, though otherwise honest and excellent, are but respectiuely necessarie, and so farre as they further, and are warrantably and comfortably subordinate and contributary to this end: Nay, to this the exquisite Quintescence and concurrence of all other, the dearest and most desireable things vnderunder the Sunne, are to be accounted but drosse and dung. And yet for all this, many of vsus, while wee yet abode in the darknesse and damnation of our naturall state, spent many yeeres, some twenty, some thirtie, some perhaps fortie, wholly vponupon hell, in base and vnblessed courses, quite crosse to the end of our Creation. All that time (a misery to be lamented euen with teares of blood) was vtterly cast away vponupon the kingdome of darkenesse, fearefully lost vponupon our owne lusts, sinfull fashions, and pride of life; slauishly and wofully wasted in the deuils seruice. Nay, all that while, abominable and beastly wretches that wee were, wee set our selues with sensuall rage, against the very face of heauen, lay in actuall high Treason, and bore Armes in open Rebellion against that dreadfull Maiestie, which might most iustly eueryevery moment of that wofull time hauehave arrested vsus with death, arraigned vsus at the Barre of his Iustice, and throwne vsus down into hell. What manner of persons then I pray you ought wee to be, in the short remainder of those few and euill dayes which are behind? Euen to imploy and improoue the vtmost possibilitie of all our naturall acquired and gracious parts, our credit, calling, outward state, all our power, means, occasions, aduantages, to win and worke out glory vntounto God, enlargement of Christs Kingdome, confusion to the deuils dominion, conuersion of others, comfort vntounto our owne poore soules against our ending houre. A fellow that hath loytered a great part of the day in his iourney, or businesse, and yet must needes reach home and finish his taske, will toile and sweat at it towards night, double his paines, and put all his strength vntounto it: so we hauing not only been slacke in our businesse about Gods seruice, and slow in the way to heauen, but euen for many p. 164yeeres, perhaps, runne in a quite contrary course, and done the deuils worke, must now towards the night of our naturall life, and the conclusion of the short span thereof, spare no paines, double our diligence, presse hard to the Price of the high calling, quit our selues like men, and be strong, with an holy violence lay hold vponupon the Kingdome of heauen, with all zeale, courage, and resolution, labour to redeeme the time past, for the dayes are euill; and our particular doome for eternitie of ioyes, or woes; pleasures or paines, drawes on apace, and is euen at the doore.

And as consideration of former time cursedly misspent; so a fore-conceit also of dreadfull times to come, may iustly cause vsus to make much of, and husband well eueryevery moment wee hauehave presently in our hands; for treasuring vp an heauenly hoard of grace, comfort, patience, and courage, against the euill day. Though the times, as yet, bee faire and calme, happy and Halcyonian; and the Candle of God shines still vponupon this Kingdome, with extraordinary prosperitie and peace; there is no carrying into captiuitie, or crying in our streets, but eueryevery man is quietly reposed vnderunder his owne Vine; and there refresheth himselfe with the riches and comforts of a good and pleasant land; yet as sure as the night followes the day, a change will come. If the glorious and Triumphant times of the daughter of Ierusalem, that men called, The perfection of beauty, The ioy of the whole earth, …sai. 22. 5.The glory of all lands, were turned into a day of trouble, and of treading downe, and of perplexitie, by the Lord God of hosts, in the valley of vision, breaking downe the walles, and crying to the mountaines: what may wee of this Land looke for, if we still turne the grace of God into wantonnesse; but at length to bee turned out of our houses of peace, as the vnthankfullest and vnworthiest people that euer the Sunne of Heauen saw, or the Sunne of Christs glorious Gospell did shine vponupon so faire and so long? But howsoeuer the Kingdome fare, and God deale with vsus in publike: (OnelyOnly let me tell you by the way, that in the meane time wee stand by a miracle of Gods mercy, and a prop of his extraordinarie patience) yet p. 165eueryevery one of our particular day and doome cannot bee farre off. As yet, perhaps, the Almighty is with vsus, his prouidence protects our habitations, no remarkable affliction hath taken hold vponupon vsus; so that there is no mourning, or spectacles of miseries in our families; no crying, O my father Abraham, and O my sonne Isaac; O my sonne Absalom, my sonne, my sonne, Absalom; O Absalom, my sonne, my sonne! And these houses of flesh, it may be, wherein wee dwell for a few and euill dayes, are as yet in reasonable good repaire; and it is eueryevery way with vsus, as it was with Iob in the dayes of his youth, when he washed his steps with butter, and the rockes powred him out riuers of oyle; yet wee may build vponupon it, as a Principle which neuer failed sinfull mortalitie, that dayes of danger and distresse will hauehave their turne and time also. Sorrow and sicknesse, perplexitie and feare, temptation, disertion, trouble of conscience, the destroying Sword, a fierie triall, striuing vntounto blood; Marian times of most abhorred memory, or some dreadfull visitation in one kinde or other, may seize vponupon vsus, we know not how soone. But howsoeuer we escape in the meane time, sure I am, these fraile bodies of ours, after a short while, will fall in funder, and moulder away into rottennesse and dust; and our naked soules must stand at the iust Tribunall of the euerliuing God, countable with exactnesse and truth, for all things done in the bodie. Farre bee it from vsus then, and eueryevery one, that at that last and great Day would not cry to this Rocke and that Mountaine to couer him, like sonnes and daughters of confusion, to trifle away time in this heate of our spirituall haruest; but rather with doubled and extraordinarie resolution, let vsus gird vp the loynes of our mindes, and with all fruitfulnesse and power, improoue eueryevery houre of this faire Day of our gracious visitation; to treasure vp peace to our poore soules against the stormy winter night of death, towards which eueryevery winde driues vsus, and both sleeping and waking we are posting apace, though we perceiue it not.

4. Wee must bee countable for time. At the dreadfull Barre of that last Tribunall, as wee must bee exactly answerable p. 166euen for wandring vaine imaginations, idle words, and eueryevery the very least errour of our whole life; nay, for not improouing all our gifts, goods, and graces, to the best aduantage for Gods glory; for misimployment of our wit, vnderstanding, memory, affections, health, strength, courage, learning, libertie, authoritie, policie, or any other power or possibilitie which God hath put into our hands: so must wee also giuegive vp a strict account for the expence of eueryevery moment of time. Now tell mee at that great and generall Audit, whether of these two summes will sound more sweetly in our eares? Item, so many dayes in Recreation, or so many dayes in Humiliation; so many houres in Prayer, or so many houres in playing at Cards; so many weekes in Iouiall reuellings and merry meetings, or so many weekes in watching ouer our wayes, and walking with God, &c. A serious fore-conceit of the vnconceiueable comfort of the one; and how cold the other will strike vntounto our hearts, might make vsus easily grow into blessed Bradfords care and practise this way, of whom it is reported, That he counted that houre not well spent, wherein he did not some good; either with his pen, study, or in exhorting others, &c. and not to rush vponupon recreations vnseasonably, without necessity and warrantable calling.

5. The holiest hearts of the most worthy Saints are wofully haunted with too many distractions and violent intrusion of idle, vaine, and impertinent thoughts, euen in holy duties, religious exercises, and solemne vse of the ordinances: which without extraordinarie watchfulnesse, and wrastling on their parts, would vtterly bereaue and robbe them of all the sweetnesse, power and profit of those blessed meanes, and by little and little quite transforme them into forme and perfunctorinesse. If in the best then and heauenliest businesses, the vanity of our owne mindes, and malice of the Deuill presse vponupon vsus with such importunitie and restlesse assaults; with what furious and impetuous incursions and vastations of conscience are they like to oppresse vsus in our idle houres, ill spent time, and p. 167pursuit of pleasures? Consideration whereof, me thinkes, should cause Christians, who alone are truely sensible of the interruption and discontinuance of their sweet communion and societie with Christ, and smart many times for the estrangement of their thoughts and affections from God: onelyonly to hauehave recourse to recreations in case of true neede; for necessitie, I say, and seasonably, euen as they vse physicke; so may they expect Gods gracious protection from the hurtfull preuailing of those sensuall distempers and licentious ranging of their thoughts, which are wont to enrage and empoyson the mindes and affections of carnall men, all the while: and to make account so often as they are haled by the cunning ensnarement of old companions, the tyrannie of former custome, or vnmortified yeeldingnesse of their owne deceitfull hearts, to immoderation and excesse in this kinde; so often to expose their hearts by Gods iust permission, as a prey to temptation and vanitie. Whereby they may bee in continuall danger, either by little and little to bee drawne backe and drowned againe in the froth and fooleries of their disauowed pleasures, which were an horrible thing; or else at least, to bring vponupon themselues, from time to time, as they transgresse in this kinde, much vnnecessarie discomfort and dissettlednesse in their Christian course, dis-rellish in Religious exercises, deadnesse of heart, disacquaintance with heauenly comforts, losse of that dearest Thing, and earthly Paradise, peace of Conscience, which perhaps they shall hardly with much adoe recouer a long time after.Praesen… tempus non effundendi gaudii, sed luctus est, tribulationum, & lamentationum. Tu verò leuiter vrbanis facetijs iocularis?—Diabolus dentibus stridet, ac fremit, ignem spirat aduersus salutem tuam; & tu sedes, facetias effundens?—Ludimus dilecti? Vis discere Sanctorum conuersationem? Audi Paulum dicentem: Per triennium, inquit, nocte & di… non destiti cum lacrymis admon…e vnumquemque vestrum—Audi etiam quid & Corinthijs dicat: Ex mal…â tribu…atione, inquit, & anxietate cordis scripsi vobis per multas lacrymas. Et iterum: Quis infirmatur, & ego non infirmor? Quis offenditur, & ego non vror? Quin audi quid & alibi dicat: Nam & nos, inquit, qui sumus in hoc Tabernaculo, ge…imus, & per singulos dies, vt ita dicam, ex hoc mundo migrare cupiente Apostolo, Tu rides, & Iudis? Belli tempus est, pugnae, vigiliarum, custodiae, armaturae & aciei:—Et tu quae tripudiantium sunt, vsurpas? Non vides bella gerentium facies, quomodò sint tristes, contractae, supercilijs terribiles, & horrore plenae? Vid…n aciem oculorum austeram, cor excitatum, saliens & palpirans? &c. Chrysost. in cap. 5. ad Eph. Serm. 17.

6. Sixthly, consider Chrysostomes precisenesse against wasting time this way. The present time, saith he, is not for melting p. 168into …; but for lamentation and mourning. And yet doest thou vainely mis-spend it in merry conceits? The Deuill gnasheth the teeth, roares, and foames, and flashes out fire against thy saluation; and doest thou sit still and Iouially iest it out? Doe wee play and sport our selues, Beloued? Wilt thou learne the conuersation of the Saints? Heare what Paul saies, Act. 20. 31. By the space of three yeeres I ceased not to warne eueryevery one night and day with teares. 2. Cor. 2. 4. Out of much affliction and anguish of heart, I wrote vntounto you with many teares. 2. Cor. 11. 29. Who is weake, and I am not weake? Who is offended, and I burne not? 2. Cor. 5. 4. For we that are in this Tabernacle, doe groane being burdened. And the Apostle desiring, that I may so speake, eueryevery day to depart this life; Doest thou laugh and play? Our time here is a time of warre, of fight, of watch and ward, of harnessing, of standing in the face and fury of the enemy; and doest thou demeane thy selfe like a dauncer? Doest thou not see the faces of Souldiers in the fight; how sad they are, how contracted, how terrible with frownes, how full of horrour? Doest thou not behold the austore piercing intention of their eyes, an extraordinarie excitation of heart, leaping and panting in their brests? &c. His meaning imports thus much: Doth an ordinarie Souldier in the field against a mortal man & earthly enemy, recollect and vnite all the spirits and powers of body and soule with all efficacie, and earnestnesse, for the encounter: And shall a Christian Souldier that wrastles not against flesh and blood, but against Principalities, against Powers, against the rulers of the darknesse of this world, against spirituall wickednesses in high places; who is eueryevery moment furiously assaulted and hunted euen like a Partridge in the Mountaines, by the deuils open rage, the ambushment of the World, and the endlesse treacheries of his owne false heart, trifle away his time, and turne aside to toyes?

4. No incrochers vponupon heauenly comforts; no diminishers of our delight in God; no deuourers of spirituall ioy. For this is a very deare and diuine thing, to bee prized and preserued as a sweet and celestiall Iewell, far more worth then heauen and earth; which the world can neither giuegive, p. 169nor take from vsus; neither must any stranger meddle with it. Wee may take an estimate of its excellency, by casting our eyes vponupon

1. The intolerable bitternesse of the contrary; I meane, spirituall horrour, which, we see, sometimes by wofull experience, doth enrage the guilty consciences of some forlorne wretches, with such restlesse furies, and vnutterable anguish, that at length, (extremest, I know not whether madnesse or cruelty!) they lay violent and villanous hands vponupon themselues, In which case, such an hell vponupon earth is horrour of conscience, they care not a button for the sweetnesse of life, the rufull cries of their owne deare children, the heauy lookes of their yoke-fellowes, the abhorred infamy they bring vponupon their owne names, families, kindred, buriall, posteritie. Oh how they spurne at with a vile, disdainefull contempt, Pleasures, Riches, Honours, Crownes, Kingdomes, Worlds of gold, any thing, eueryevery thing, as miserable comforters! Nay it is so stinging, that they will rather venture vponupon that other Hell, to which they are posting in a Coffin of blood, a thousand thousand times more horrible, then endure it any longer. If sence then of diuine indignation, taking secret vengeance vponupon the guilty conscience of an impenitent Rebell, puts him as it were into hellish flames aboue ground; what an heauen vponupon earth is a sweet feeling of Gods reconciled face, and his euerlasting mercies through Christ, sealed and set on by the holy Ghost, and testimonie of a good conscience? And how deliciously doth an humble soule, so honoured with a foretaste and first-fruits as it were of eternall ioyes, graspe the Lord Iesus in his ordinances, and blisfully sunne it selfe in the louelove and light of His countenance?

2. The practise of the prophane in their insatiable restlesse pursuite of false ioyes, and painefull pleasures, which at best are but as crackling of thornes vnderunder a pot, and flashes of lightning before euerlasting fire. They hunt after them euen into hell, and light a candle at the Deuill for lightso…nesse of heart; by haunting Ale-houses, Tauerne…, Brothel-houses, p. 170Play-houses, Conuenticles of good-fellowship, sinfull and vnseasonable sports, a thousand kinds of vanities and fooleries, which are nothing but the Deuils Wakes, and reuellings of Hell. And all this little poore carnall mirth, is purchased many times with much shame, losse, misery, beggery, rottennesse of body, discredit, damnation. At what an high rate then, and with what eagernesse and thirst is that true, sweet, vnmixed, glorious ioy springing out of the Fountaine of comfort in an honest and holy heart, to bee set and sought after?

3. The differences betweene spirituall and carnall ioy: in respect,

1. Of Lastingnesse. A spiritually merry heart is a continuall feast, saith Salomon; whereas the ioy of the hypocrite is but for a moment. Iob chap. 20. 5. Carnall ioy is like lightning, spirituall like the light of the Sunne. While the Play lasts, the sensualist laughs; but hee falls into his dumps when all is done. The Drunkard is merry, whilest hee reuels it amongst his pot-companions in the Ale-house; but when he comes home, there is many times wofull worke. Whilest the Gamester is at play, he is well enough pleased; but when hee hath made away all, hee is ready to make away himselfe also. A cunning and prosperous Worldling, I confesse, by Gods permission may patch together his pleasures all his life long: but at furthest, at death comes the deadly and euerlasting dampe: whereas hee that walkes with God, is contented and comfortable all the day; and death is the daybreake to him of euerlasting brightnesse. Carnall ioy, I say, is like lightning, a flash and aaSi quid arrisisset prosperum, taedebat apprehendere, quia penè priùs, quàm teneretur, auolabat. August.away; bbDel…ctatio occidit, & praeterijt, vulner…uit, & transijt, miserum fecit, & abijt, infoelicem reddidit, & reliquit. August. Serm. 3▪ d… tempore.leaues the minde in more extreme and deeper darknesse; blasts the heart and affections with all spirituall deadnesse and desolations, with many boyling distempers, much raging wild-fire, and vnquenchable thirst after sensualitie, earthlinesse and Epicurisme; and first or last, it is euer certainly followed with renting and roaring of the spirit, spirituall terrours, thunders, darknesse and damnation. But godly ioy is like the light of the Sunne, which though it may for a time bee ouercast with p. 171clouds of temptations, mists of troubles, and persecutions, darknesse of melancholy; yet it ordinarily breakes out againe with more sweetnesse and splendour, when the storme is ouer: but howsoeuer, it hath euer the Sunne of righteousnesse, and Fountaine of all comfort, so resident and rooted in the heart, that not all the darknesse and gates of Hell shall euer be able to displant or distaine it, no more then a mortall man can pull the Sunne out of his Sphere, or put out his glorious eye.

2. Of puritie. The edge and rellish of carnall ioy, is euer much rebated and imbittered with many sowre sauces, and enuenomed mixtures; impatiencie of delay, difficulty and danger in attainment, vnanswerablenesse to fore-conceits and expectation, many secret terrours, fretting iealousies, discontented indignations against their discontinuance and vanishing, &c. And besides, those three ensuing indiuiduall stings, which to an illightned conscience as inseparably and sensibly dogge them at the heeles, as a shadow the body in the Sun-shine; cut the very throat, and burst the heart of all worldly pleasures. 1. One of them is, as it were, naturall, immediately attending all earthly mirth; more melancholy and heauy-heartednesse afterward. For as the Riuers of sweete water runne their course to die in the salt sea; so the hony of all earthly pleasure, euer endeth in the gall of griefe. Voluptuousnesse euen in her dearest minions, ordinarily expires with anguish and anger that it is gone. The transitorie flashes of sensuall delight, are like the light of a candle, which leaue at the cloze a noisome vexing snuffe behinde.Extrema ga…dij luctus occupat. And that sweetenesse which sensualists swallow downe so greedily, turnes to grauell in their guts, and at farewell fills their spirit with the returne of a more heauy melancholicke humour, then before the receite. 2. The other I call a temporarie sting: for all the wayes of worldly aaCùm c…peris te aliquid temporale delectare ad peccatum—Noli te credere tali delectationi; maiores dolores habebis, quàm suauitates. August. in Psal. 136.Ps 136pleasure are strowed also with needles and nettles, that I may so speak, which euer and anon pricke and sting her darlings, as they plucke her fading flowres. So that at best they are but like Beares robbing a Waspes nest, who rauenously rifle the p. 172combes, and with much adoe sucke out a little hony, but in the meane time, are soundly stung and swolne about head for their painefull pleasure. In their seuerall walkes of a fooles paradise, they hunt both vnreasonably and vnseasonably after transitorie delights; but they are euen pained, and payed home with a witnesse in the very pursuite. For instance: The couetous man accounts worldly wealth, and an …oard of gold, his heauen vponupon earth; but in heaping it together, his heart is wofully rent and torne asunder with carking, thoughtfulnesse, restlesse rooting in the earth, anxious and endlesse casting about and forecasting: In a word; with much care in gathering, more feare in keeping, and most griefe in parting from it. So that for feeding his greedy eye vponupon a little vanishing heape of yellow earth, his heart is continually haunted with such vexing Harpies, I meane, wasting cares and false feares, that dry vp euen his vitall moisture, and cut his very heart-strings in aaPlus egent, quantò plus habent, desiderijs vastantur, cupiditatibus dissipantur, timo…ibus cruciantur, tristitiâ contabescunt. August. in Psal. 29.Ps 29pieces. Good-fellow meetings and Ale-house reuellings are the drunkards delight: but all the while hee sits at it, hee is, perhaps, in a bodily feare of the Puritane-Constable: when towards night he goes grunting homewards, hee becomes a gazing and **Ridiculus in foro pueris videtur, occasionem que vt ab omnibus contemnatur praebet. Basil. hom. in Ebri…t. & luxum.laughing▪ stocke to children in the streets; no sooner comes hee reeling into his own house, but he wrings fresh cries, and teares of shame and griefe from his wife and family; for the reproach, beggerie and miserie he brings vponupon them. And as hee goes on in this drunken good-fellowship, and takes a pride and pleasure in powring in of strong drinke; there many times insensibly grow vponupon him many loathsome diseases and deformities of body, Rheumes, Dropsies, Palsies, a fearefull face, spuing, falling, and neuer rising againe; sometimes not euen out of a little gutter, that would scarce choake a child. The lasciuious wanton that wanders in the twilight, in the euening in the black and darke night, after the strange woman; besides the dart which sticks fast, and ranckles in his Liuer; meetes in the meane time with rottennesse in his bones, a consumption of his marrow, a wound, and dishonour, and reproach, that shall not bee wiped away. The boisterous aspiring Nimrod, out of a p. 173gluttonous desire of grasping offices and honors, scrues himselfe vijs & modis, into some high place as his onelyonly Paradise; and when hee is gotten vp, dances full merrily in golden fetters vponupon his slipperie standing: but couldest thou see into his inside, thou shouldest behold his heart miserably fretting and vexing it selfe; raging with many passionate distempers, for the indignation of good men; contempt of inferiours; thwarting of competitors; enuie of compeeres; vnderminings of counter-factionists; iealousies of Princes, &c. How many great mens hearts hauehave burst with the blasting frownes of a Kings forehead? Nay, and which is a Bedlam misery vponupon the ambitious man; hee is many times more grieued for an affront of some grand opposite; because hee cannot hauehave his will of this or that man, that stands in his way; or for the neglect of some expected complementall respect and obseruance, then pleased with all the other brauery and iollitie of his high roome. This is cleare in Haman, though hee was encompassed and crowned with much vndeserued and extraordinarie precedency and pompe; yet this one little thing, to wit, because Mordecai would not bow the knee, and doe reuerence vntounto him at the Kings gate, did vtterly marre and dissweeten all the other excellencies and extraordinarinesse of the Kings fauour: See Hester, Chap. 5. Vers. 10, 11, 12, 13. And Haman told his friends and wife of the glory of his riches, &c. But all this, saith hee, doth nothing auaile me, as long as I see Mordecai the Iew sitting at the Kings gate. 3. The third is an eternall sting, which to a waking and working conscience ariseth out of a serious consideration, and sence of Gods causefull, iust and holy indignation reuealed in his Booke against impenitents in such kindes. Whereupon it is no maruaile, though many times their hearts hating to bee reformed, and hearing their seuerall doomes denounced against them from Gods owne mouth, in that Word, by which they shall be iudged at the last Day, be full sorely smitten with inward bitter gripings, and secret guilty stings, the very hellish flashings and foretasts of that neuer-dying worme, which hereafter without timely repentance, p. 174will gnaw vponupon their consciences with full rage and vnquenchable horrour world without end. The worldling therefore may iustly tremble and roare when he reades that cutting Commination, Iam. 5. 1, 2. Goe to now, ye rich men, weepe and howle for your miseries that shall come vponupon you. Your riches are corrupted, and your garments moth▪ eaten: your gold and siluer is cankered, and the rust of them shall bee a witnesse against you, and shall eate your flesh as it were fire: ye hauehave heaped treasure together for the last dayes. The wanton, when he well weighs that flaming place, Heb. 13. 4. so full of vengeance against him: But whoremongers and adulterers God will iudge. The drunkard, when hee finds himselfe in the cursed Catalogue of that damned crue, 1. Cor. 6. 9. Be not deceiued, neither fornicators, nor Idolaters,—nor drunkards, &c. shall inherit the Kingdome of God. The Ambitionist, when he casts his eye from the top of his vsurped honours, vponupon that dreadful aaAn non & videmus saepè, quòdis quem hodiè praecedunt lictores, & stipant satellites, eras in carcerem conijcitur, & cum malèfactoribus versatur▪ Quid hac vanâ & inani gloriâ fallacius▪ Quòd si in hac vitâ praesenti vicissitudinem hanc euadit, omninò mors veniens soelicitatem resecabit. Et quem hodiè in foro magna pompa comitabatur, & qui in carcerem conijciebat, & super thronum resideba…, & inflabatur, & homines alios, quasi vmbras de…piciebat, is subitò posteà iacebit mortuus absque spiritu, foetulentus, petitus innumeris conuitijs, & ab his, quos pridem iniuriâ affecit, & quos nullâ affecit iniuriâ: condolentibus tamen his, qui ab isto iniuriâ afflicti fuerunt. Quid hoc miserabilius fuerit? Item collecta omnia saepenumerò inimici & hostes inter se partiuntur & distribuunt: peccata autem per quae haec coaceruata sunt, secum aufert, de quibus diligens, & accurata ratio exigetur. Chrysost, Hom. 22. in Gen.downefall, Obadiah 4. Though thou exalt thy selfe as an Eagle, and though thou set thy nest among the starres, thence I will bring thee downe, saith the Lord.

But now on the other side, spirituall Ioy, which springs out of the wells of saluation, and is a ray and representation, as it were, of the Sunne of Righteousnesse, and that eternall Fountaine of soundest and lasting comfort, is all sweete, pure, shining, calme, hearty, vnspeakeable, vtterly free from those fore-grumblings and reluctations of conscience; enuenomed mixtures and slauish apprehensions; after-repentings, stings and melancholike dumps: though it may be assaulted, and something dimmed with some doubts, distrusts and weakenesse of degree, by reason of our vnglorified state of mortalitie; yet in respect of its creation, substance, truth, and blissefull issue, it is a very glimpse of heauenly glory, a pure taste of the riuers of Life, and first fruits of euerlasting ioyes. Thus the blessing of the Lord maketh p. 175the heart spiritually merry with incomparable sweetnesse, and he addeth no sorrow with it.

3. Of dignitie and diuine temper. Carnall ioyes hauehave for their foundation the fading arme of flesh, and the fashion of this world, fraile and fleeting as themselues: earthly power and policie for their prop and support: For their Obiect, the Garbage of the earth, Gold and Siluer, foode for swinish worldlings; noble captiuities, guilded fetters, I meane, vndeserued dignities, honours, offices, greatnesse, and high roomes, the onelyonly ayme of ambitious Shebnaes; the filth and froth of brutish pleasures, fewell for Sodomiticall flames, and such like trash, pelfe, and vanity: For their companions, feares, iealousies, guilty gripings: The sences for their seate: Time for their limit: for their end, endlesse griefe and horrour of heart: For all earthly pleasure determines in heauinesse, as the Sunne sets in darknesse.

But now on the other side; spirituall Ioy is the blessed Spirits sweet and louely Babe, grounded vponupon the sure Couenant of euerlasting LoueLove, MercieMercy, and Peace in Iesus Christ: The matter of it, is the light aaQuid enim iucundius, quàm Dei Patris, & Domini reconciliatio, quàm veritatis reuelatio, quàm errorū recognitio, quàm tantorum …etrò criminum venia▪ quae maior voluptas quàm fastidium ipsius voluptatis, quàm seculi totius contemptus, quàm vera libertas, quā conscientia integra, quàm vita sufficiens, quàm mortis timor nullus? quòd calcas deos Nationum, quòd daemonia expellis, quòd medicinas facis, quòd reuelationes petis, quòd Deo viuis▪ Hae voluptates sanctae perpetuae, &c. Tertull. lib. de spectat. cap. 29. Sospitate Dominus moerentes erigit: quia Electorum me…s non de praesentis vitae insania, sed de certitudine aeternae salutis hilarescit. Gregor. in cap. 5. Ioh. cap. 11.John 11of Gods countenance, the Garments of saluation, the precious Robe of Christs righteousnesse, interest in his dearest Blood, and all the rich purchases of his Passion; looking vponupon our names in heauen through the glasse of sanctification, Gods holy Image renued vponupon our soules, and the illustrious beames of heauenly graces shed from the Throne of Grace & shining there; eueryevery sweet promise in his blessed Booke: In a word, Iehoua, Isa. 61. 10. Habakkuk. 3. 18. Phil. 4 4. And that glorious Name proclaimed, Exod. 34. 6, 7. a well-spring of vnspeakable refreshing to eueryevery truely broken and bleeding heart; being well opened by a feeling and a fruitfull meditation: For measure, it is immeasurable, without bound or stint, and passeth all vnderstanding, no stranger doth intermeddle with it, neither can any man possibly conceiue it but he that enioyes it. p. 176It is, as it were, the amiable splendour and sparkle of that white Stone in the Reuelation, Chap. 2. 17. which only shines vponupon heauenly hearts, with delight vnspeakable & glorious: For seate and certainty; It is engrauen by the Finger of God with an heauenly Sun-beame, as it were, shining from the face of Christ in the very center of the heart; which not all the powers of darknesse or hellish mists can finally dimme or dispell; the world neither giuegive nor take from vsus, neither man, nor deuill, nor shadow of death euer raze or roote out. It is honoured with that supernaturall singularitie and sacred temper, that vtterly against nature & all naturall possibilitie, it extracts sweetnesse and life out of ordinary causes of deiection and sinking. Troubles, persecutions, and reproaches, doe fortifie it, and serue as fewell to enlarge its lightsomnesse. See Act. 5. 41. & 16. 25. Acts and Monum pag. 2003. where the glorious Martyr Woodman speakes thus: When I hauehave been in prison, wearing otherwhile bolts, otherwhiles shackles, otherwhile lying on the bare ground, somtime sitting in the stocks, sometimes bound with cords, that all my body hath been swolne; much like to be ouercome for the paine that hath been in my flesh; sometime faine to lye without in the woods and fields, wandring to and fro; few, I say, that durst to keepe my company, for…feare of the Rulers; sometime brought before the Iustices, Sheriffes, Lords, Doctors, and Bishops; sometime called Dogge, sometime Deuill, Heretike, Whoremonger, Traytor, Thiefe, Deceiuer, with diuers other such like: yea, and euen they that did eate of my bread, that should hauehave been most my friends by nature, hauehave betrayed me…: Yet for all this, I praise my Lord God, that hath separated mee from my mothers wombe; all this that hath happened to me, hath beene easie, light, and most delectable and ioyfull of any treasure that euer I possessed. For duration, It is a very glimpse of heauenly glory, which springing vp in a sanctified heart, out of the wells of saluation, and carried along with addition of the fresh comforts, from the Word and Sacraments, thorow a fruitfull current and course of a Christian life, is at last entertained into the boundlesse and bottomlesse Ocean of the endlesse ioyes of heauen.