The Crown and Glory of Christianity, Uses · Use and exhortation 3 · Objections · Objection 7
Seventhly, and laſtly, Others may object and ſay, Should we purſue after holineſs, we ſhall be ſure to be reviled, ſlandered, and reproached on all hands, every one will hoote and hiſs at us, we ſhall become a ſcorne and a by-word to all that live in the family with us, and to all our neighbours round about us, every one will ſcorne us, and hate us, and we ſhall be their Table-talke, and their ſong, and the Butt at which they will ſhoote in all their meetings and diſcourſes, &c.
Now that you may be ſufficiently armed againſt this objection, I deſire you ſeriouſly to conſider of theſe five following Anſwers.
Firſt, That thoſe that revile and reproach holineſs, are ſuch that have never known the neceſſity, nor the excellency of holineſs, they have never experienced the power, nor the ſweetneſs of holineſs,Jude 10. 1 Tim. 1.7. they ſpeak evill of things they know not, of things they underſtand not; not to know is mans miſery, but to ſpeak evill of that which a man underſtands not, is the heighth of folly,1 Cor. 2.8. and this theſe revilers doe. Had they knowne (ſaith the Apoſtle) they would not have crucified the Lord of glory; Scientia non habet inimicum praeter ignor…ntem.ſo I ſay, had theſe revilers known the ſplendor, the beauty, and the glory of holineſs, they would never have reviled it, and ſcorn'd it: Had the Jews known the God-head of Chriſt, the divinity of Chriſt, the glory of Chriſt, they would never have cryed up Barrabas, and have rail'd on Jeſus, as they did; ſo had theſe Railers but known the worth, and the weight of holineſs, they would never have cry'd up wickedneſs, and decry'd holineſs as they doe. Now, oh what ſhame, what folly, what vanity is it for a man to turne his back upon holineſs, becauſe ſuch revile it, and ſcorne it, who never knew feelingly, nor experimentally, what holineſs was? Would not a man either ſigh or laugh at him, that ſhould turne his back upon riches, honors, and preferments, &c. becauſe the blinde, poore and beggarly ſort of people, who never experienc'd what theſe things meane, caſts dirt, dung, ſcorne and reproach upon them; and is not this the preſent caſe? ſurely yes. The Fox in the Fable, when he could not come at the Grapes, cryed out, That they were ſower, they were ſower; ſo men that cannot reach to the Riches, the honors, and the great things of the world, O how doe they cry out againſt theſe things! O what diſgrace, ſcorne, and contempt, doe they caſt upon theſe things! and all becauſe they cannot reach them, becauſe they cannot graſpe them; the application is eaſie. 'Tis mens ignorance of holineſs that makes them cry out ſo much of holineſs. That heathen Ariſtotle hit the mark when he cry'd out (Ignorat ſane improbus omnis) Ignorance is the ſource of all ſin; the very well-ſpring from whence all wickedneſs flowes; for ignorance inſlaves the ſoul to Satan, it lets in ſins by Troops, and then locks them up in the heart, and it ſhuts out all the meanes of recovery, &c. And who then will wonder to ſee ignorant perſons let fly at holineſs? Suppoſe a Geometrician ſhould be drawing of lines and Figures, and there ſhould come in ſome ſilly ignorant fellow, who ſeeing him, ſhould laugh at him, would the Artiſt, think you, leave off his employment, becauſe of his deriſion? ſurely no; for he knows that his laughter is but the fruit of his ignorance, as not knowing his Art, and the grounds upon which he goes; and therefore he holds on drawing, though the ſilly fellow ſhould hold on in his laughing. O Sirs, though ignorant perſons deride holineſs, and laugh at holineſs, yet be not you aſham'd of holineſs, but hold on, and hold out in your purſuit after holineſs; for they underſtand not the rules and principles by which you are acted, and therefore 'tis that they throw dirt in the face of holineſs; but 'twill be your wiſdome to wipe that off, and ſo much the more to purſue after holineſs, by how much the more the ſilly ones of the world ſlight holineſs, and laugh at holineſs. But,
Secondly, There is no fence againſt an evill tongue, a man may fence himſelf againſt an evill eye, and againſt an evill hand, and againſt an evill head, &c. but there is no fence againſt an evill tongue, an evill tongue is ſuch an unruly, ſuch a miſchievous, ſuch a dangerous, ſuch a killing, and ſuch a deſtroying member, that there is no fence againſt it; a man may fence off the ſt…oak of a ſword, the thruſt of a Rapier, and the ſhot of an Arrow, but he can never fence off the reproach and the reviling of an evill tongue; If the heart be ſanctified, the tongue is the beſt member in the body, if the heart be unſanctified, 'tis the worſt.Bias one of the ſeven wiſe men, told Amaſis King of Egypt, that the Tongue was the beſt or worſt member of the body. Tota vita homines linguae delictis eſt referta; The whole life of man is made up of the ſins of the tongue, Baſil. Aeſop being by his Maſter ſent to buy up all the beſt meat he could get in the Market, bought up all the tongues; and being ſent againe to buy up all the worſt meat he could get in the Market, he bought up all the tongues againe, and when he was askt why he did ſo, he anſwered, that there was no fleſh better then a good tongue, nor no fleſh worſer then a bad tongue; which the Apoſtle confirmes fully in that 3 James, from verſe the ſecond to verſe the 12th, Vide. An evill tongue is wilder then the wildeſt Beaſt, the Horſe, the Aſs, the Camel, the Elephant, yea the Lyon, the Leopard, the Beare, and all other Beaſts have been tamed by man, but the tongue no man, no Monarch on earth have ever been able to tame. An evill tongue in ſome reſpect is worſe then the devill; for the devill may be ſhunned and avoyded, but an evill tongue no man can ſhun; and if you reſiſt the devill, he will fly from you, but the more you reſiſt an evill tongue, the more it will fly upon you. Pro. 16.27. An ungodly man diggeth up evill: and in his lips there is a burning fire. An ungodly man, or a man of Belial, as the Original has it, diggs up evill; ſuch old evills that have been long ſince buried in the Grave of oblivion and forgetfulneſs, he diggs up to caſt in the Saints diſhes, and to reproach them with: The teeth of malice will be ſtill a digging to finde out ſomething againſt the people of God, and if they can pick up any thing out of the dunghill of falſe reports to object againſt them, their lips preſently are as ſo many burning Beacons, to diſcover it to all the world; now their tongues will be ſet on fire of hell, and now they will labour to fire the hearts and tongues of others againſt the people of God. A wicked tongue (as Bernard obſerves) kills three at once; firſt, it kills his name and fame by ill report who is ſlandered; Secondly, it kills his belief with a lye, to whom the report is made. 3. It kills the ſlanderer himſelf with the ſ… of detraction. David who fell oftener under the ſad laſhes of evil tongues, compares reviling tongues to three fatal weapons, a Razor, a Sword, and an Arrow: 1. To a Razor, in that Pſal. 52.2. Now you know a Razor meets with every little hair, and many times inſtead of ſhaving the hair, it ſlaſhes the fleſh; and ſometimes by miſſing the Beard, it endangers the throat. And ſo the reviling tongue will take the leaſt advantage imaginable, to ſlaſh and cut the names and reputations of thoſe that fear the Lord in a thouſand pieces:Pſal. 57.4. 2. To a ſword that cuts and wounds deep, and ſo does the revilers tongue cut deeply into the names, fames, and credits of the people of God: And 3. To an Arrow; the ſword onelyonly cuts when we are near,Pſal. 64.3. but the Arrow hits at a diſtance; the ſword can't cut except we be at hand, but the Arrow may hit us when we are afar off; the reviler can eaſily ſhoot his Arrows of reproach a great way off; he can ſhoot them from one Town to another,Pſal. 73.9. from one City to another, from one kingdom to another, yea from one end of the earth to the other; when the hands are manacled, and the feet fettered and ſtocked, the tongue travils freely all the world over, and loads the names of men with what reproaches it pleaſeth. The tongue is the great interpreter of the heart; the tongue is the key that unlocks thoſe treaſures of wickedneſs that be in the heart;Mat. 12.34. That man has commonly moſt of the devil in his heart, that has moſt of the devil in his mouth. The ſtrokes in Muſick anſwer to the notes that are pricked in the Rules. the corruptions of mens hearts commonly breaks forth at their lips. Look as a pimpled face diſcovers a diſtempered Liver, and as a ſtinking breath diſcovers corrupted Lungs, ſo a reviling tongue diſcovers a baſe rotten heart. When the Pumpe goes you may quickly know whether the water that is in the Fountain or Well, be clear or muddy, ſweet or ſtinking; and when the clapper ſtrikes, you may ſoon gueſs of what mettal the Bell is made of: and ſo by mens tongues you may eaſily gueſs what is in their hearts; if the tongue be vil'd, the heart is ſo; if the tongue be bloody, the heart is ſo; if the tongue be adulterous, the heart is ſo; if the tongue be malicious, the heart is ſo; if the tongue be covetous, the heart is ſo; and if the tongue be cruel, the heart is ſo, &c. mens minds are known by their mouthes; if the mouth be bad, the mind is not good; he that is rotten in his talk, is commonly rotte… …n the heart. Of all the members of the body, there is none ſo ſerviceable to Satan as an evil tongue; and therefore when all the body is full of ſores,Chryſoſtom. Drexelius, and others. he will keep the tongue from bliſters, that ſo a man may the more freely and fully curſe God and die: And this was the reaſon why Satan ſpared Jobs tongue, when he ſadly paid all other members of bis body, that ſo his grand deſigne which was to provoke Job both to curſe God, and to charge him fooliſhly, might take place; but Jobs tongue be oyled with grace, proved his glory in his trying hour, and inſtead of curſing he bleſſes a taking God, an angry God. O! ſirs, the world is as full of evil tongues as Nilus of Crocodiles, or as Sodom of Sulphur, or as Egypt of Lice; and there is no fence, no guard againſt theſe evil tongues; and therefore why ſhould any man be diſcouraged from purſuing after holineſs, becauſe of the revilings of evil tongues. Munſter writes of men in India, which ſpeak not like men, but barks like doggs, and who regards ſuch men? no more ſhould we regard ſuch foul mouth'd perſons, who are ſtill barking againſt holineſs, as the doggs bark againſt the Moon; but as the Moon runs her race and holds her courſe, though all the doggs in the Town bark never ſo much at it; ſo ſhould you purſue after holineſs, though all the tongues in the Town ſhould be barking and ſcoffing at you. But,
Thirdly, Conſider, That thoſe that now reproach holineſs, will ere long be of another minde, they that now revile and reproach holineſs, will in a ſhort time change their minds and their notes; when theſe very men who revile holineſs ſhall come to fall under terrors and horrors of conſcience, and when they ſhall come to lye upon their dying beds, and to have their immortal ſouls ſit trembling and quaking upon their pale lips, and when they ſhall appear before the great God,Numb. 23.10. and awake with everlaſting flames about their ears; O, how will they then wiſh that they had never reviled holineſs! How will they then wiſh that they had prized holineſs, and that they had ſpent their All in purſuing after holineſs! O how will they then charge themſelves, and cenſure themſelves, and arraign, and condemn themſelves for their ſcorning and condemning of holineſs! O how will they then wiſh that they had never heard of holineſs, nor read of holineſs, nor thought of holineſs! O how will they then wiſh that their mothers wombs had proved their Tombes, and that they had rather lived and died in a land of darkneſs, then thus to live and dye without holineſs! Now, O what folly and madneſs is it for thee to neglect the purſuit of holineſs, becauſe ſuch and ſuch revile it, who perhaps before the next year, the next month, yea it may be the next Sabbath comes about, will wiſh ten thouſand times over and over, that they had purſued after it, and that they had made it their greateſt work in this world to obtain it? But,
Fourthly, Such perſons who are revilers, deriders, and haters of holineſs, ſhould rather be divinely contemned, ſcorned and ſlighted, then any ways gratified, encouraged, pleaſed, and ſtrengthned in their evil ways by thy neglect of holineſs, and by thy non-purſuance after holineſs.Ezek. 13.19. ult. O how may thy neglect of holineſs upon the account of revilings and ſcornings, ſtrengthen the hands and the hearts of revilers and ſcorners, &c? and therefore 'tis much better divinely to ſlight and diſdain them, then by ſinful omiſſions, to gratifie and pleaſe them. See how ſlighting Eliſha carries it to wicked Jehoram, though he was a King, 2 Kings 3.13, 14.The Prophets here ſpoken of, were the remaining Prophets of Baal, of the idolatrous groves, and of the Calves of Jeroboam. And Eliſha ſaid unto the King of Iſrael, what have I to do with thee? get thee to the Prophets of thy father and Prophets of thy mother. And the king of Iſrael ſaid unto him, Nay, for the Lord hath called theſe three kings together, to deliver them into the hand of Moab. And Eliſha ſaid, as the Lord of Hoſts liveth, before whom I ſtand, ſurely, were it not that I regard the preſence of Jehoſaphat the King of Judah, I would not look toward thee, nor ſee thee. 'Twas not the great diſtreſs and danger that they were in (being like to periſh for want of water) nor the dignity of Kings, nor the number of three, but the goodneſs, the graciouſneſs and holineſs of Jehoſhaphat that wrought upon Eliſha to work a miracle to preſerve them and their people alive; the holy Prophet carries it very high towards this unholy Prince, for had it not been for Jehoſhaphat, he would not have honored him with a look, no not with a caſt of his eye; theſe words, I would not look toward thee, nor ſee thee, are words of a very high ſtrain, and ſpeak out a great deal of holy-loftineſs, ſtatelineſs and contempt towards King Jehoram. And the ſame ſpirit was working in Mordecai towards wicked Haman, as you may ſee in that Eſth. 3.2. And all the Kings ſervants that were in the Kings gate, bowed, and reverenced Haman, for the King had ſo commanded concerning him; but Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence. The Perſian The Perſians manner was to kneel down and reverence their Kings, and ſuch as he appointed in chief authority, which Mordecai would not do to this proud ambitious, wicked Haman, though all the Courtiers and the Kings Life-Guard, and all that had occaſions to attend the Court did.Kings (as many other heatheniſh Kings) were reverenced by their ſubjects, with a kind of Divine honor or ſervice; and ſuch reverence and honor the King commanded ſhould be ſhewed to his great favourite Haman; but this renowned Mordecai refuſed to do; he was ſo Divinely noble and ſtout, that he would not reverence ſuch a wicked wretch in his heart, nor yet yeild to him that outward worſhip that was required by the King, it being more then was due to a man. Some of the Rabbins ſay (As Aben Ezra, &c.) that Haman had the Image of ſome falſe god about him, and that therefore Mordecai would not bow before him, leaſt he might ſeem to bow to the Idol that Haman carried about him: Others of the Rabbins ſay (as R, Salomon, &c.) that Haman did make himſelf a God, and required ſuch worſhip as was due onelyonly to the true God, and that therefore Mordecai would not reverence him, nor bow before him: And ſo Junius and other Expoſitors ſay, that it was more honor then did belong to a man, that they gave to Haman; and that therefore Mordecai refuſed to bow to him. And 'tis very remarkable that ſome of the wiſeſt and beſt of Heathens have forborn to come into their Kings preſence, becauſe there was expected greater honor and worſhip to be done to their Kings, then was meet to be done to a mortal man; but that which is moſt conſiderable, and moſt probable, is this, that therefore Mordecai refuſed to reverence Haman, and to bow unto him, becauſe he was a wicked Amalekite, and a bitter enemy to the people of God, and of that Nation, of that ſtock whoſe remembrance God would have blotted out under heaven, Exod. 17.14. Deut. 25.19. and with whom the Lord had ſworn that he would have war from generation to generation, untill they were utterly waſted and deſtroyed, Exod. 17.16. Compared with that 1 Sam. 15.3.
It has been uſual with the Saints to ſlight ſuch who have been ſlighters of Chriſt and holineſs.I ſhal look upon Auxentius no otherwiſe then as upon a devil, ſo long as he is an Arrian, ſaid holy Hilary. When Amphilochius the Biſhop came into the preſence of the Emperor Archadius and his ſon (who was then partner with his father in the Empire) he ſaluted the Emperor with all reverence, but ſlighted his ſon, whereupon the Emperor was very much diſpleaſed, and demanding the reaſon why he ſo ſlighted his ſon, the Biſhop anſwered, Becauſe he had ſlighted and neglected the eternal Son of God (he being at that time a profeſſed Arrian) whereupon the Emperor received the Biſhop again into favor, and baniſhed all Arrians out of his Dominions. I have read of one Maris a godly Biſhop of Calcedon, who being blind, and Julian that Apoſtate Emperor giving him ſome opprobrious words, calling him blind fool, becauſe he had rebuked him for his Apoſtaſie, the good man anſwered thus, I bleſs God that I have not my ſight to ſee ſuch an ungracious face as thine is. Do your worſt, do your worſt, ſaid Juſtin Martyr ſlightingly to his pe ſecutors, but this I will tell you, you may put all that you are like to gain by the bargain into your eye, and weep it out again. When a great Lord of this Land (who was as graceleſs as he was great) met Mr. Fox in London ſtreets, and ask't him how he did, Mr. Fox ſaid little or nothing to him; whereupon ſays this great Lord, Sir, do you not know me, No not I, ſaid Mr. Fox, ſays the Lord, I am ſuch a one; Sir, ſaid Mr. Fox, I deſire to know nothing but Jeſus Chriſt, and him crucified. Policarpus meeting at a certain time with Marcion the Heretick, ſays Marcion, don't you know me? yea ſaid Policarpus, Euſebius.I know thee to be (primo genitum Diaboli) the firſt begotten child of the devil. And indeed why ſhould we prefer him before a piece of Copper, that prefers a piece of Gold before his God, yea that prefers his luſts and every toy and trifle before Jeſus Chriſt, his immortal ſoul, and the great concernments of another world? God commanded in the old Law, that whatſoever did go with its breaſts upon the ground, ſhould be an abomination to us: O how much more ſhould we abominate that man, whoſe heart and ſoul is glued unto a piece of earth, or to this or that defiling & deſtroying luſt? Pro. 29.27. An unjuſt man is an abomination to the juſt: and he that is upright in the way, is an abomination to the wicked. The quarrel between the ſeed of the Woman,Gen. 3.15. and the ſeed of the Serpent, is almoſt ſix thouſand years old; light and darkneſs, heaven and hell,The Antipathies that are in nature between the Elephant and the Boar, the Lyon and the Cock, &c. is nothing to that which is between the juſt and the unjuſt. are not more oppoſite and contrary one to another, then theſe are contrary one to another; that ſeed of enmity that was at firſt between them, is now grown up on both ſides to an abomination, and an abhorring of each other; the juſt man ſaith, what have I to do with thee thou ſon of Belial? and the unjuſt man ſaith, what have I to do with thee thou ſon of David? the original in the text laſt cited is obſervable, the juſt abhorreth foreign, vir iniquitatis, the man of iniquity, i. e. the man that is made up of iniquity, that is nothing but iniquity; now this ſhews that 'tis iniquity in the man that makes the man to be an abomination to the juſt; but now wicked men they abhor the upright for their very uprightneſs, they abhor him that is upright in the way, and could wiſh him quite out of the way, and will do what they can to make him away; the uprightneſs of the upright is ſuch a terror to the wicked, that they can't but abominate and abhor the upright, and therefore no wonder if the upright abominate them; and indeed who can look upon wicked men, as enemies to God, as adverſaries to Chriſt, as murderers of their own ſouls, as fighters againſt the Church, as Champions for Satan, and as the Peſts and Plague of a Nation, and not abhor them, and not abominate them? O ſirs, not to contemn the wicked is an argument that you your ſelves are wicked, and not to contemn the wicked, is a means to make them more wicked, not to contemn the wicked is to encourage and tempt the wicked to be ſevenfold more wicked, yea not to contemn the wicked who contemn God, Chriſt, Heaven, and holineſs, &c. is to contemn God himſelf. As for ſuch that advance the wicked, that magnifie the wicked, that flatter the wicked, that ſtrengthen the hands of the wicked, that are moſt In with the wicked, that joy and glory in the proſperity of the wicked, and that ſigh and mourn, that ſtamp and take on at the downfall of the wicked; theſe are certainly wicked, yea they are eminently wicked, and therefore the more to be ſlighted and ſcorned by men of integrity and ſanctity. But,
Fifthly and laſtly, To neglect the purſuit of holineſs upon the account of this objection, is to debaſe the great God, and to overvalue vain man, as if there were more power, ability, policy, and malice, &c. in worthleſs man to hurt and harm thee, then there is power, allſufficiency, wiſdom, goodneſs, and graciouſneſs in God to defend thee, and ſecure thee, and arm thee againſt all the reproaches and revilings of ſlanderous tongues. Now who art thou, and what art thou, O vain man, that thou ſhouldſt dare to leſſen God & greaten man, to debaſe God and exalt man, yea to ſet up man above God himſelf, and to ungod him as much as in the lyes? and yet all this thou doeſt when thou turneſt thy back upon holineſs, becauſe of the revilings and reproaches of wicked men.
But I ſhall ſay no more to this objection, becauſe I have ſpoken very largly to this objection in my former books. If you deſire further ſatisfaction to this objection, turn to that Treatiſe called Apples of Gold, &c. and from Page 311. to Page 327. you will finde ſeven more diſtinct anſwers to it. And ſee alſo my Mute Chriſtian under the ſmarting Rod, and from Page 304. to Page 326. you will finde eight anſwers more to this objection. I confeſs ſeveral other objections might be made againſt your purſuing after holineſs, but becauſe I have ſpoken to them at large in my former writings; therefore I ſhall not trouble you with them here; and therefore let thus much ſuffice for anſwer to thoſe objections that uſually men make when they are preſt home to follow after holineſs.