The Husbandmans Companion, Meditation 33
Upon the conſtant ſupply the vegetables need.
33. Med.
WHen I ſeriouſly conſidered that theſe beautiful creatures which now adorn the earth with their flowers, and enamel it with their various ſhapes and colours, and enrich it with their odours, vertues, and operations, yet without a conſtant ſupply of mans labour, pains and diligence, and alſo of the influences of the heavens, they would ſoon wither, die, and come to nothing; ſome of them muſt be yearly ſet, or ſown, or tranſplanted, others preſerved, both from heat and cold, and all need ſome manure, care, and pains, weeding, watering, fencing, or other cares: this minded me of the condition of all earthy delights or enjoyments, they muſt be renewed, or they will ſoon vaniſh; all things by ſin are become ſubject to decay; there is a viciſſitude of earthly comforts, and a conſtant change: Mans life cannot be preſerved without food, and phyſick, and other neceſſaries, the four Elements, fire, air, earth, and water, are ſo neceſſary that if e…her be denied, mans life is at an end: the houſes we dwell in muſt be repaired, or they will ſoon come to ruine, and fall about our ears. The moſt famous fabricks that ever the Sun ſaw, are come to ruine. The Piramides of Egypt, the walls of Carthage, the tomb of Manſolus; or if there were any thing more famous or more durable, yet time hath conſumed, and brought it to a ruinous heap; the moſt impregnable caſtle, the moſt invincible ſtrong-hold, if not repaired by labour and induſtry, time levels with the ground: we cannot ſay now of our garments, as Moſes of Iſraels cloaths, Deut. 8.4. thy rayment waxed not old, neither did thy foot ſwell this forty years; it was not the worſe for the wearing; but as ſome imagine, probably it grew as their bodies did, they needed not to trouble themſelves with anxious thoughts, what to eat, or what to drink, or wherewith to be cloathed; God brought them food to their tent-doors, and provided rayment without their care or pains, but with us all ſuch comforts muſt be renewed with care and diligence, with a care of the head, though not of the heart, or they will quickly be gone: this conſideration made me think what a great deal of confuſion ſin had brought into the world, and ſubjected all things to vanity, and vexation of ſpirit: every thing (ſaith Solomon) is full of labour, for as it brought death into the world, ſo likewiſe all other miſeries; had it not been for ſin we had never had aking head, or aking heart, or loſs, or croſs, or any thing to moleſt us; and now every thing becomes a trouble; man is born to trouble (ſaith Job) as the ſparks fly upwards; yet alaſs, how doth the world bewitch men, that they had rather be drudges, and ſavages here, and moil and toil, and cark and care, and live as it were in a dungeon, and work as in the very fire, then die and come to God; this they make their portion, this is their delight, and all that they care for; they ſell their eaſe, their pleaſure, and their very ſouls: oh earth, how doſt thou bewitch us! O ſatan, how doſt thou infatuate us! oh heart, how doſt thou deceive us! what diſappointments doth fooliſh men meet with here, and yet will take no warning? we never did finde content, and yet we are always promiſing our ſelves happineſſe here, where never any yet could finde it: alaſs, what proportion is there between a piece of gold, and an immortal ſoul? Oh my ſoul, canſt thou love this ſin which hath brought all this miſery and confuſion into the world? canſt thou hug this viper in thy boſome which will ſting thee to eternal death, if not kil'd and mortified? and canſt thou place thy happineſs in theſe vaniſhing periſhing and withering vanities? will theſe ſerve thy turn, or boot thy needs, or make thee happy? can they pay thy debts, or ſave thy ſoul? alaſs, they cannot, they cannot procure thee one days reſpite out of hell, or one days freedome from ſickneſs, or from death; they cannot give thee any ſatisfaction here, for content grows not in the worlds garden; there are indeed joys worth having, pleaſures worth minding, and riches worth labouring for, happineſs that ſhall never have an end, that are not ſubject to changes, nor viciſſitudes, as earthly enjoyments are, but they are to be ſought for above, in the enjoyment of God, in whoſe preſence alone true happineſs dwells: The happineſs the world promiſeth are meer deluſions, a little honey, and many ſtings, a little bitter ſweet pleaſures, that periſheth ere it bud; in the midſt of laughter, the heart is ſorrowfull, and the end of that mirth is heavineſs; their joy is but like the crackling of thorns under a pot, ſoon in, ſoon out; if thou wilt trade, let it be in a ſurer commodity, and not with the merchant, have, fortunam rudentibus aptam, thy eſtate depending winde and weather; if thou wilt be planting, let it be in a better ſoil, and not where thorns and thiſtles are like to be thy reward; there is a treaſure to be had, a pearl of great price to be bought, Mat. 13.44, 45. whoſoever deals in theſe cannot loſe by them; in compariſon of which, pearls and diamonds and precious rubies, are not to be named; theſe are they that make the ſoul rich, all other riches doth it no good, this makes it rich to God, and lovely, comely, amiable in his ſight; oh my God, give me this treaſure, and it ſufficeth, though I have nothing elſe; all other things I can ſpare, Chriſt I cannot ſpare; he is the breath of my life, and the life of my ſoul: let the world take their portion; alaſs, it is a miſerable portion, I envy them not; but Lord, put me not off with ſuch pittifull poor things; let me have an intereſt in Chriſt, and communion with him, let me lie for ever in his boſome, and let the enjoyment of him be my portion; let me be an inhabitant in the city of pearl, where no dirty dog ſhall tread, upon the pavement, my heart pants after this, as the chaſed hart after the water-brooks, when Lord ſhall I come and appear before thee, come Lord Jeſus, come quickly.