The Young Mans Guide, Chapter 15
CHAP. XV. Of Prophane and rash Swearing, which is another Vice whereunto Young Men are addicted.
IV. ANother Vice whereunto Young Men are addicted, is prophane and rash Swearing, which our Saviour expresly forbiddeth, Matth. 5. 34. Swear not at all; that is, not in your ordinary communication: But let your communication be Yea, Yea, Nay, Nay; for whatsoever is more than these, cometh of evil; that is, the Devil, that evil one, vers. 37.
This Vain swearing is a Vice which ill becometh any, much more those who make a profession of Christianity: for a Christians speech should be seasoned with Grace, and not with prophane Oaths; it should be savoury, ministring Grace to the hearers; and not unsavoury, ministring nothing but sin, or scandal.
Swearing in our ordinary discourse is an undoubted evidence of a prophane person, who maketh no Conscience of any sin: for what sin will he forbear, who will not forbear this unprofitable sin of Swearing? whereas other sins have their several baits and temptations to allure men thereunto; some the bait of profit, some of honour, some of pleasure. This sin of Swearing hath neither of them. It brings no profit at all, but great loss, even the loss of Gods favour, and the loss of a good Conscience. Neither doth it yield any pleasure and delight, unless a man should, (like the Devil himself) take a hellish pleasure in acting sin, and wickedness. And what credit doth it procure, unless amongst such debauched ones, whose applause is a reproach? Therefore I may with confidence affirm, that he, who maketh no Conscience of Swearing, which hath no worldly advantage to induce thereunto, will make less Conscience of other sins, which have stronger temptations, and feed the sinner with expectations of advantage from them.
O Young Man, let me prevail with thee deeply to abhor, and watch diligently against this wicked, and most unreasonable practice. Remember the account thou must make at the dreadful day: An account must be given of every idle word, much more of every vain and bloody Oath. If they shall not escape unpunished who have spoken idly, and vainly, how fearful shall their condemnation be, who in their ordinary discourse have most impiously and prophanely abused the Name of the most Great and holy God?
I know there are several vain excuses common in the mouths of men for this sin, which, if they be weighed in the Ballance of the Sanctuary, will be found very light.
I. Some excuse themselves, that they use only small and little Oaths, as Faith and Troth, forbearing great Oaths, as to swear by the Name of God, &c.
A. 1. Little Oaths are sins. Our Saviour hath expresly forbidden all kind of Oaths, saying, Swear not at all, Matth. 5. 34. Suppose that to swear by Faith and Troth be not so heynous a sin, as to swear by the Name of God, yet it is a sin, seeing Christ himself hath forbidden, and condemned it.
2. Little Oaths are great sins. God will not hold such guiltless. To be held guilty before God, notes two things.
1. To be under a merit of everlasting wrath. By thy little Oaths thou deservest the wrath of the great God.
2. Guilt notes an obligation to wrath. These Oaths are Bonds by which thou art bound over to the Judgment of the Great Day: and when there it shall be demanded, Guilty, or not Guilty? these only will prove thee guilty.
3. Little Oaths are leading sins. As he that accustometh himself to pilfer small things, by the just Judgment of God, will at length fall to steal greater things, from a Pin to a Peny, from a Peny to a Pound. So he that accustometh himself to these smaller Oaths, by the just Judgment of God, will at length fall to swear most horrid and hellish Oaths, and stick at none.
II. Some excuse themselves by saying, they shall not be believed, except they swear, and second their words with an Oath.
A. Thou wilt rather be less believed for thine Oath. Certainly every honest man will be jealous and suspitious of the truth of that mans words, who hath seconded them with an Oath; because he who maketh no Conscience of an Oath, will make as little Conscience of a Lye: he that maketh no Conscience of dishonouring God by taking his Name in vain, will make little Conscience of deceiving his Neighbour, by telling him a Lye.
III. Some alledge that Oaths are a Grace to their Speech.
A. 1. Iust such a Grace as a Blister, or Carbuncle is to the Face.
2. That Grace and Credit is dear bought, that is gained by pawning their Souls to the Devil.
IV. Some excuse themselves by saying, they utterly detest Swearing, but they have so long accustomed themselves thereunto, that they know not how to leave it.
A. In pleading long custom, thou dost not at all excuse, but the more accuse thy self. For it is as if the Thief should plead at the Bar, that he had been so long accustomed to pilfring and stealing, that he could not now leave it: Would the Judge take this excuse for good, or rather the sooner condemn him, as more justly deserving to be hanged. If Custom will not excuse the Thief for his Stealing, nor the Adulterer for his Whoring, how shall it excuse the Swearer for his swearing? For every sin, by how much the more common and customable, by so much the more heynous and detestable. If once to swear vainly be a sin, then is customary Swearing a crying sin, and must needs incur the higher condemnation. Know therefore▪
1. That an evil Custom is better broken than kept.
2. Such an evil Custom as this, though it be hard yet 'tis necessary to be broken: say not any more, thou canst not leave it, thou must leave it, or die: thou must break this custom, or it will break thy back, and undo thee for ever.
To help such as have long accustomed themselves to Swearing in their ordinary discourse, I shall give them these few Directions.
1. Believe thy present condition to be very sad and dangerous, so long as thou livest in this sin. What hope of Salvation canst thou have without true and unfeigned repentance?
2. Keep a narrow warch over thy tongue, that thou mayst not offend in this kind any more. And if thou hast been so long accustomed to it, that thou even despairest of leaving it off at once, labour to leave it by degrees. Resolve whatsoever occasion is offered, to keep such a narrow watch over thy tongue, that (with the assistance of Gods Grace) thou wilt not swear for the space of an whole day. And when thou hast got so far the Victory over thy former evil custom, then take a longer, and a longer time: and so at length, by the assistance of Gods Grace, thou wilt quite forget thine old and wicked custom.
3. Break this old and wicked custom, by taking up a new, and better: Accustom thy self to serious and savoury discourse: let thy Speech be full of Grace, and then it will be empty of Oaths.
4. Seriously lay to heart those Iudgments that from time to time have been executed on Swearer, which have been many, and grievous. Some dying with flaming heat in their mouths, as though the Fire of Hell were there already kindled: Othe… …ing with swoln tongues, and distorted mouths. … the foulness of their sin by the strangeness of … ▪
I have read of a … was a common Swearer, upon every … the name of God in vain; wh…h … the Lord against him, as that he sent … his mouth, as eat out his Tongue, the very instrument wherewith he had so abused the name of God. I have likewise met in Authors the relation of a young Gentleman of Cornwall, who being in the company of other Gentlemen, swore most dreadfully, for which being reproved by some in the company, he swore more and more. At length as they were going over a Bridge in their journey, which went over an arm of the Sea, this swearer so spurred his Horse, as he sprang clean over the Bridge with the man on his back, who as he was going cryed, horse and man and all to the Devil.
Such remarks of the Divine vengeance thou maist fall under here; but O what remains to be look'd for hereafter? These Oaths which now vanish with the speaking, and fly into the wind, will all meet thee in the belly of hell, and there those darts which thou hast thrown up against Heaven, will all be fired, and stick in thy heart for ever.
O Young man, consider therefore what folly and madness it is for thee to hazard thy body, and expose thy soul (which is of more worth unto thee than ten thousand Worlds) to the suffering of all these fearful punishments, both in this life, and the life to come, for just nothing, for a vain and unprofitable sin, which bringeth good neither to soul, or body.