Irenicum to the Lover of Truth and Peace, Chapter 16
CHAP. XVI.
The Pride of mens hearts the great dividing diſtemper.The firſt dividing diſtemper.
PRide is the greateſt Maſter of miſ-rule in the world, it is the great incendiary in the ſoule of man, in families, in Townes, Cities, in all ſocieties, in Church and State: This wind cauſeth tempeſts to ariſe. Prov. 13. 10. OnelyOnly by pride comes contention. The holy Ghoſt ſingles out pride, as the only cauſe of all contentions, becauſe it is the chief; though there be many in a ryot, the whole uſually is laid upon the ring-leaders. Pride is the ring-leader to all ryots, diviſions, diſturbances amongſt us. Prov. 21. 24. Proud and haughty ſcorner is his name who dealeth in proud wrath. Pride may be well indicted for the great common Barrettor in all Towns, and Cities, and Kingdomes, it makes wofull troubles whereſoever it comes. Mathematicians make this a rule to know when a thing is exactly round, and when it is exactly plaine; Round things will not touch but in puncto, if you lay plaine things together, they will touch in every part of them.
Proud hearts will joyne only in ſome things that concern themſelves, but plain hearts will joyn in every thing wherein God may have glory, and their B…ethren good.
G…uty ſwoln legs keep at diſtance one from another; bladders that are blown up with wind, ſpurt one from another, they will not cloſe, but if you prick them, and ſo let out the wind, you may pack a thouſand in a little room. Wee finde this by experience, when God gives us moſt ſucceſſe in our Armies, then are we moſt divided, then every man begins to look high, and to be ſharking for himſelf; and when the Lord diſcountenances our Armies, and brings us low, then we think and ſpeak ways of Accommodation, then we bewaile our diviſions with ſome brokenneſs of ſpirit: As it is with Souldiers when they are fighting againſt the common adverſary, then they can agree well enough; but when they come to divide the ſpoile, or be put into their Garriſons, then they fall out: When we lye under the danger of the ſame common calamity, then we can agree; but when we come to ſhare for our ſelves, then our ſpirits ſwell one againſt another.
We read in Scripture of the Mannah that God gave his people; ſuch was the nature of it that the heat of the Sun melted it. You wil ſay, How could it then endure the heat of the oven? for they baked it in the oven; yet ſo it was, of a ſtrange kind of nature, that it could bear the heat of the oven, and not the heat of the ſun. Even of ſuch a temper are our hearts; the heat of the ſunne of proſperity diſſolves us, cauſes us to runn one from another, but the heate of the fire of affliction bakes us, brings us, and ſettles us together; it makes us to be one, it takes away our rawneſſe, it conſumes many of our ill humors, and ſo compoſes our ſpirits into one.
The ſtupidneſs of our hearts is ſuch, as we do not make our brethrens caſe, who ſuffer the rage of theſe wars, our owne; But we for the preſent having ſome more liberty then formerly, we are lifted up, and in the pride of our hearts puſh at our brethren, and ſmite our fellow-ſervants: If the dogges be at a little diſtance from us, though we even heare the cryes of our brethren who are worried by them, yet we fooliſhly bleſſe our ſelves in our preſent eaſe, enjoyments, and hopes, as if our fleſh muſt be ſpared, our eſtates, our liberties and enjoyments muſt be continued, yea raiſed, whatſoever becomes of others. Oh ſinfull vaine ſpirits, befooled and hardned with their pride!
But what are the ſeverall workings of pride that make ſuch a ſtir in the world?The ſeverall workings of pride cauſing diviſions.
Firſt, A proud man thinks himſelf too great to be croſſed, Shall I beare this? I will make you know what it is to doe ſuch things againſt me;Anſw. he thinks it a great diſhonour to him to beare any thing, therefore he muſt needs quarrel and contend, if it be but to ſhew what a man of ſpirit he is, or to ſhew that he is a man of ſuch worth, as whatſoever others beare, yet it is not fit for him to bear it; it is but reaſon that ſuch a man as he ſhould make men who will preſume to croſſe him, to yeeld to him, to ſtoop under him. Now when one proud man thinks it a diſhonour for him to put up wrongs from another who it may be is as proud as himſelf, and he thinks it a diſhonor for him to put up wrong, what peace can there be? ſome wrongs muſt be put up, but proud men will never agree who ſhall begin.
Secondly, becauſe his ſpirit ſwells ſo big, he thinks every thing that croſſeth him to be very great; his ſufferings are great to him according to what great thoughts he hath of himſelf, according to the excellency or meanneſſe of any perſon: So are his ſufferings to be reckoned, ſufferings of a man in eminency are judged according to his eminency and place; if a mean man ſuffer the ſame things, they are not accounted ſo great; now whether a man be great really, or in his owne apprehenſion, its all one in regard of his eſteem of his ſufferings, he thinks himſelfe therefore intollerable, becauſe they are againſt himſelf.
Dan. 3. 14. Is it true O Shadrach; Meſhach, and Abednego? Do not ye ſerve my gods? that which you have in your books, is it true? Arius Montanus tranſlates, Nunquid de ſolatio: what, is there deſolation made? what, you to oppoſe the command of a King? if this be ſuffered, what deſolation muſt needs follow? Add indeed the root from whence the word comes, ſignifies deſolari, foreignto make deſolate; why? was it a deſolation that theſe three poor innocent men made, becauſe they would not, nay, they could not do as this proud K. would have them? wht made him thus to aggravate the offence, but meerly the pride of his heart? he thought that any thing croſs to his command was a moſt hainous offence, a thing moſt horrid in the very mention of it, no leſſe then the utter undoing of all things. Pride ever aggravates any thing done againſt its owne mind. This in Dan. that Montanus turns, Nunquid deſolatio, Buxtorfius tranſlates num de induſtria; what on purpoſe? you doe it on purpoſe to provoke me; thus proud men and women in their families, whatſoeuer children or ſervants do amiſſe; what? you do it on purpoſe to anger me, do you? When the winde comes croſſe the ſtreame, the waters rage: So does the will and affections of a proud heart, when any thing croſſeth it.
3ly. Pride makes men ſwell beyond their bounds; the way to keep all things in union is for every man to keep within his bounds, the ſwelling beyond tends to the breaking all in pieces. Hab. 2. 5. He is a proud man, neither keepeth at home, who enlargeth his deſire as hell, and cannot be ſatisfied. If any humour of the body goeth beyond its bounds, it brings much trouble to it, the health and peace of the body conſiſts in the keeping of every humour within its veſſell and due proportion.
4ly. Pride hardens mens hearts. Dan. 5. 20. His minde is hardned in his pride. If you would have things cleave, you muſt have them ſoft, two flints will not joyn; the Spanyard hath a Proverb, Lime and ſtone will make a wall, if one be hand, yet if the other be yeelding, there may be joyning, and good may be done, not elſe.
5ly. Pride cauſes men to deſpiſe the perſons, actions, and ſufferings of others, nothing is more unſufferable to a mans ſpirit then to be vilified. A proud man deſpiſes what others do, and others what he does, every man next to his perſon, deſires the honour of his actions. If theſe two be contemned, his ſufferings will likewiſe be contemned by the proud: This alſo goes very neer to a man; one man thinks what another man ſuffers is nothing, no matter what becomes of him; another thinks his ſuffering's nothing, and no matter what becomes of him. O at what a diſtance now are mens hearts one from another!
6ly. Pride cauſes every man to deſire to be taken notice of to have an eminency in ſome thing or other; if he cannot be eminent on one ſide, he will get to the other; he muſt be taken notice of one way or other: when he is in a good and peaceable way, God makes ſome uſe of him; yet becauſe he is not obſerved, and looked upon as eminent, he will rather turn to ſome other way, to contend, ſtrive, to oppoſe, or any thing, that he may be taken notice of to be ſome body, that he may not goe out of the world without ſome noyſe: What, ſhall ſuch a man as I? of ſuch parts, ſuch approved abilities, ſo endued by God to doe ſome eminent ſervice, be laid aſide, and no body regard me? I muſt ſet upon ſome notable worke, ſomething that may draw the eye of obſervance upon me. I have read of a young man,Interrogatus cur hoc egerit, reſpondit, ut qui bonis non poterit, vel malis innoteſceret. who ſet Diana's Temple on fire, and being aſked the reaſon, he ſaid, That he might have a name, that the people might talk of him. Becauſe he could not be famous by doing good, he would by doing evill. Proud ſpirits wil venture the ſetting the Temple of God, yea Church and State on fire,Difficile eſt cum praeſtare caeteris concupieris ſervare equitatem. M. Tul. li. 1. offic. that they may have a name, whatſoever they do or ſuffer; to get a name they will rather venture, then dye in obſcurity, that of all things they cannot bear.
7. A proud man would have others under him; and others being proud too, would have him under them; he would have others yield to him, and others would have him yield to them, where will the agreement then begin? What is that which hath rent and torne the world in all ages, that hath brought woful diſtractions, perplexities, confuſions, miſeries in all Countreys by wars, but the pride of a few great ones, ſeeking to bring one under another? Thoſe waſting Wars of the Romans between Sylla and Marius, Caeſar and Pompey, were they not from hence? It is hard for men in great places, and of great ſpirits, to accord long. Melancthon in his Comment upon Prov. 13. 10. ſays concerning ſuch men, there was wont to be this Proverb, Duo montes non miſcentur, Two mountains will not mixe together.
8ly. A proud man makes his will to be the rule of his actions, and would have it to be the rule of other mens too, and other men being proud too, would have their wils the rule of though there be nothing elſe but pride, and in the Hebrew it is foreign Dabit jurgium, give contention, if there be no cauſe given, it will make it.
Now let every man looke into his own heart, and ſee what pride hath been, and ſtill is there, and be humbled before the Lord for this. All you contentious, froward, quarrelſome people, you are charged this day from God to be men and women of proud ſpirits, and what evill there is in our ſadd diviſions, that pride in your boſome is a great cauſe of. Saint Paul did beat down his body, left after he had preached to others, he ſhould become a reprobate. Let us all, and eſpecially Miniſters, labour to beat down our ſpirits, leſt after all our profeſſion and glorious ſhews, we at laſt become Reprobates, at leaſt ſuch as God may caſt out for the preſent in this world, taking no delight in making uſe of; what in ſuch times as theſe are to have hearts ſwoln and lift up in pride? God is now about the ſtaining the pride of the earth. How unſeaſonable and dangerous is it for a Marriner to have his top-ſails up, and all ſpread in a violent ſtorme? it is time then to pull downe all, leſt he be ſunck irrecoverably. The point of a needle will let the wind out of a bladder, and ſhall not the ſwords of God, the ſwords of Warre and Plague, that have got ſo deep into our bowels, let out the windy pride of our hearts? The haughtineſſe of men ſhall be bowed downe, and the Lord himſelf will be exalted. The Lord humble us, that he may reconcile us, not only to himſelfe, but to one another.