A Century of Sermons, Sermon 15
THE FIFTEENTH SERMON UPON Our Saviours Tentation.
MAT. iv. 9.
And ſaith unto him, All theſe things will I give thee if thou wilt fall down and worſhip me.
BErnard meditates upon our Saviours ſuffering on the Croſs, that there were tria pungentia, three ſharp pointed Inſtruments that ran into his fleſh: But the firſt more lightly; The ſecond much more ſenſibly; And the laſt made a further entrance into his body than all the reſt. The thorns platted on his head raced the skin, the Nails went through his hands and feet: But the Speare made a ruder and a deeper wound through his ſide into his very heart: So theſe three Tentations of the Devil ſucceed one another like thoſe tria pungentia, every one had a ſharper point, and a greater ſting to do miſchief than the other, but it was not poſſible they ſhould ſtick like thorns and nails in the Son of God. The tentation to make ſtones of bread was an advice to make bad proviſion for the ſuſtenance of this life; there was Spina neceſſitatis, Satan would have prickt Chriſt on with the thorns of want and neceſſity. The tentation to caſt himſelf down from the top of the Temple, was to draw him to a violent and a preſumptuous death, as bad as that nail, if he could have faſtned it, which Jael ſtruck into the head of Siſera. The third tentation is a maſh of all the venom which the Devil had left, Peccata peccatis producta; here are ſins hanging upon ſins, one at the end of another, to make up the length of a Spear. In a word, here is a brood of ſins in a neſt, four apparently without all ſubdiviſions. Firſt, Peccatum habendi, he offers him the ſin of Covetouſneſs to give him all the Poſſeſſions of the world. Secondly, Peccatum regnandi, he would rub Ambition upon him, and put into his hands all the Kingdoms and Power of the world. Thirdly, Peccatum malè credendi, he would ſeduce him to believe that all theſe things which God alone brings forth from his treaſure were his to diſpoſe. Fourthly, Peccatum turpiter adorandi, he durſt ask that which is ſo horrid, that it is able to curdle a mans bloud to repeat it, that Chriſt would fall down and worſhip him.
Aquinas builds the gradation of theſe three Tentations on this ſort: Firſt, The evil Spirit demanded no more of Chriſt, Quàm quod appetunt quantumcunque veri ſpirituales; Tert. pa. queſt. 41. art. 1.which the holieſt men in the world, and moſt endowed with the Spirit muſt uſe, but to refreſh and feed his body. Secondly, He required that which holy men ought not to do, yet it is incident through frailty now and then for holy men to do it, to jump down from a Pinacle out of oſtentation, and to be gazed upon for vain glory. But he climbs up in the third tentation to ſuch a motion, as never any ſpiritual and holy man can commit, to be bribed with wealth and honour to forſake the Lord, and to adore his fouleſt enemy. Therefore in both the former temptations he began with this preface, If thou be the Son of God, but he leaves out thoſe words when he makes this Propoſition in my Text, for the Son of God would never commit ſuch black Idolatry, though he could give more than all; yet he laies all at the ſtake for this venture, All theſe things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worſhip me. Though Satans Kingdom be not divided, yet his Tentations may. But firſt I will read you my Text as St. Luke hath enlarged it, that we may miſs nothing which the Spirit of God hath uttered upon theſe words. Thus that Evangeliſt, Chap. iv. 6. All this power will I give thee, and the glory of them, for that is delivered unto me, and to whomſoever I will give it; if thou therefore wilt worſhip me all ſhall be thine. Now, I ſuppoſe, we may charge theſe particulars upon the Text made up out of both the Evangeliſts. Firſt, Wherein the enticement of this tentation conſiſts, why in giving, in moſt liberal remuneration pretended, Dabo, I will give. Secondly, What, and how much he will give, and that is twofold. As a Mammoniſt of Wealth, he will, he ſays, put into his hands all the Riches and Poſſeſſions that the eye can ſee, All theſe things will I give thee. And as a Lucifer of pride he tells him that he will give him title to all the honours of the world, all this power will I give thee, and the glory of them. Thirdly, he ſhews Chriſt his evidences, Quo jure, by what right and authority he can make over all this unto him: In theſe words, For that is delivered unto me, and to whomſoever I will give it. Fourthly, and laſtly, Every Bait hath his Hook under it: So this promiſe is laid upon a moſt impious condition, if Chriſt will fall down and worſhip him. Set your minds now upon theſe things, and I will deliver them in their order.
Every tentation had ſome clawing provocation in it peculiar to it ſelf; now the ſharpneſs and dangerouſneſs of this tentation is in giving, that is the firſt Point, Dabo tibi, I will give thee; that is a ſpeeding word, we muſt confeſs it to the ſhame of the world. Every one is a friend to him that bringeth gifts, ſays Solomon. All Satyrical Invectives, Fables, or Morals, Writings of every cut and faſhion are full of this, that theſe things which Satan requires are commonly to be bought, Worſhip, Homage, and what you will: The Tongue of man, the Knee, the Heart, nay, Body and Soul together are to be purchaſed: As you bring with one hand, you ſhall carry away Favour and Juſtice in the other. The acceſs of profit carries the main ſtroke in every thing; The Heads judge for reward, and the Prophets divine for money, Mich. iii. 11. They that ſhould be moſt clear from this fault you ſee are chiefly in the reprehenſion. No man knows with what ſtint he would ſpend, or how much he would lay up, therefore, unleſs where the conſcience is much refined from greedineſs, it is a pleaſure to ſacrifice to our net, and above all things to catch at that, which comes in with ſo much eaſineſs, as Dabo, I will give thee. Hazael King of Syria muſt have a preſent,2 Kings xii. even all the hallowed things that were dedicated to the Lord, that he might not come up againſt Jeruſalem. Felix the Governour without a feeling would not ſet Paul at liberty. The corruption of the times was ſuch in Iſrael, that men thought the Prophets as greedy as themſelves, and would not ask them counſel of the Lord without a gift in their hand.2 Kings viii. Benhadad ſent a Preſent of all the good things in Damaſcus, even forty Camels burdens to Eliſha to enquire if he ſhould recover of his ſickneſs. And Saul more apparently being counſelled to go to Samuel to ask which way he ſhould return home, made a ſtand at it, ſaying, What ſhall we give to the man of God? There is not a preſent left. This polling Covetouſneſs was very ordinary, no doubt, in that Land when the People knew nothing, but the Prophets were devourers of gifts, and would not open the Oracles of God unto them without Satans complement, Dabo, I will give thee.
The giver that would corrupt another, ſuch as the High Prieſts that delivered Judas thirty pieces of Silver to betray his Maſter, ſuch a one, you ſee by the inſtance of my Text, doth ſupply the place of the Devil. I am ſure God gave no man wealth to this end, to buy another out of his honeſty; the eternal Law ſays that vertue only ſhould be rewarded, and he that keeps the Commandments; therefore to give a Penſion to man or woman to be vicious is to croſs that ſupreme fundamental Law by which heaven and earth are governed. Fie that ſo good a vertue as Liberality ſhould be ſo ſcornfully imitated. No vertue is more often commended by God than bounty and giving, but above all moral qualities it is moſt plauſible foreign, Ariſtotle hit the reaſon in a word, it redounds to the common benefit of others, more than any other vertue, which begets it favour and affections. Now to caſt dirt in the face of this vertue Satan ſets up a liberality, which is of a moſt different condition, and nothing of kin to it, when the great Patrons of ſin care not what they beſtow upon them that ſerve their turn for flattery, for injuſtice, for luſt, for ſenſuality. When poor Lazarus wants a draught of cold water, a ſhower of Gold ſhall rain down into the Lap of Danae; the wages of an Harlot are far greater, for the moſt part, than the recompence of moſt faithful and honeſt ſervice. The Egyptian Rhodope out of the gifts of her Lovers was able to diſpend enough to build a Pyramis, an expence ſo great that few Kings in Egypt could accompliſh it. If the Daughter of Herodias ſhew her ſelf laſcivious and immodeſt, Herod will caſt away half his Kingdom upon her, or if that be too little, he leaves her to be her own carver; ſhe may ask any thing, Dabo quodcunque volueris, I will give thee whatſoever thou wilt ask. O that noble qualities were as ſure of Patronage as Inſtruments of wickedneſs are ſure of means and maintenance. As Suetonius ſaid of his Nero, Pecuniae fructum non alium putabat quàm profuſionem; He thought there was no uſe of riches but waſte and profuſion: So in the Line that Satan draws out there is no uſe of giving but to procure Idolatry, to fall down and worſhip him. Curſed be thoſe hands that open themſelves wide to any one, man or woman, to make them the child of perdition. Judah gave his Ring to Thamar to hire her unto Fornication. I believe he repented him with many tears of bitterneſs becauſe old Jacob did ſo abundantly bleſs him: but let me propound unto him that is prone to do the like; will you abuſe thoſe bleſſings, thoſe temporary bleſſings which God hath given you to buy Souls for the Devil? Chriſt hath given a ranſom out of his bloud to redeem that ſoul from Hell, and will you give Gold and Silver to buy it into Hell again? Was there no poor Member of Chriſt whoſe body you might ſave with that money wherewith you deſtroy a ſoul? He that giveth to the needy lendeth to the Lord, but he that purchaſeth any one to be ſinful by his bounty, he lendeth to the Devil.
This that I have ſpoken of was the ſin of Balaac to barter, and be at a price with Balaam to do an evil act, to curſe them whom the Lord had bleſſed; and it is the Chapman that makes the Market, woe be to the giver that tempts the weakneſs of man with ſuch a forcible provocation, Aureo pugillo ferreus murus frangitur, ſays the Heathen; A Hammer of Gold will beat down a Wall of Iron: Yet is there nothing to be ſaid to the receiver? Shall his hand be clear that hath taken when he is called to anſwer? Nay, none more accuſed by the Spirit of God, none more criminous: They are companions of thieves, every one loveth gifts, and followeth after reward, Iſa. i. 23. Neither is robbery their alone enditement, but the worſt of ſins againſt the Second Table, Bloud and Murder. Shut not up my life with the bloud-thirſty, in whoſe hands is wickedneſs, and their right hand is full of gifts, Pſal. xxvi. 9. He that takes reward to do evil takes a fee to loſe his own ſalvation. Nay, what toil and drudgery ſome will undergo to earn the wages of iniquity? Minori labore margarita Chriſti emi poterat, ſays St. Hierom; You might accompaſs that invaluable Pearl in the Goſpel, whereof the Parable ſpeaks, that the Merchant ſold all he had to buy it; I ſay, that Pearl might have been gained with leſs danger and induſtry, the whole treaſure of the Kingdom of heaven. Eſpencaeus, being a Romiſh Doctor, and a moſt learned, may be bold with his own friends, who hath revealed more corruption and bribery in the Roman Court than a modeſt Proteſtant could almoſt believe: As Penſions taken not only for the puniſhment of incontinence paſt, but to lay down ſomewhat before-hand for the time to come: What if the Viſitors met with ſuch as reſolved to be chaſte, yet the common Levy was exacted of ſuch a one, Habeat ſi velit. O ſhameleſs word, he may uſe the ſin if he will. Then the Taxa Camerae, as they call it, is far worſe than it, which was a Table, wherein every one may know what it will coſt him for any ſin committed: Omnibus abſolutio empturientibus eſt propoſita; no delinquent could want abſolution, but he that came ſhort of payment, I will rip up no more, and I had as lieve you ſhould ſee the ugly viſage of moſt ſordid covetouſneſs by their glaſs, as in any corrupt cuſtoms of our own. An unjuſt taker runs upon the Devils ſcore, and he ſhall be delivered over to the Tormentor till he have payd the utmoſt farthing.
But will you confound Satan? And leave him not one tool in all his ware-houſe, and invention to work upon you;Annael. lib. 1…. learn that Leſſon perfectly which Tacitus puts in the mouth of a worthy Magiſtrate, Nihil venale in noſtris penatibus, aut ambitioni pervium; I am not to be won either with money or promotion. Give them their bribe back again, and put every mans Silver in the mouth of his own Sack, and let them take it home again, as Joſeph dealt with his Brethren: And as Abraham kept his hands from the Preſents of the King of Sodom, I would not take any thing that is thine, leſt thou ſhouldſt ſay, I have made Abraham rich. Gen. xiv. 23. More ſharply St. Peter to Simon Magus, when he would have given to have received the Holy Ghoſt, Thy money periſh with thee, Acts viii. The Clementine Conſtitutions ſay upon that paſſage, that if the Apoſtles had taken that Sorcerers money they themſelves had loſt the gifts of the Holy Ghoſt for ever, even as Adam by eating the forbidden fruit loſt Innocency and immortality. It is no bad anſwer which Eſau gave, when he refuſed Jacobs Preſent, he had plenty and enough of his own, as who ſhould ſay, a man of his fair Poſſeſſions was in better caſe to give than to take. I would we had not loſt Eſaus conſcience now adays; for I fear none ſhark ſo ravenouſly, or gripe gifts faſter than they that have abundance. Qui minus habent ſemper aliquid addunt ditioribus; they that are needieſt and bareſt muſt pay to the rich mans Box. Upon thoſe words, Acts xxiv. that Felix expected Paul ſhould give him ſomewhat to be ſet at liberty. St. Chryſoſtome asks where Paul ſhould have it? How could he come by Silver or Gold to caſt into that Sack of corruption? The Father conjectures wittily, that Paul came to Jeruſalem with money which he had collected at Corinth, Macedonia, and other places for the poor Saints, and Felix his teeth watered to devour all that which was gathered for the poor Chriſtians of Jeruſalem. Well, Eſau was in good caſe to keep his hand clean from gifts: And is not he in better caſe whoſe conſcience is fixed upon this Memento; He that hateth gifts ſhall live, Prov. xv. 17. And he that is greedy of gain troubleth his own ſoul. If wealth will not increaſe but by the wicked Mammon, I ſhall ſpend leſs in Luxury here, and have my wages increaſed an hundred fold hereafter in the Kingdom of heaven. Fabricius ſpurn'd away all the Treaſure which Pyrrhus ſent him, and yet a man ſo ſhort of Revenue, that Pyrrhus his Meſſengers found he kept houſe with nothing but Herbs and Sallads. Three things, ſays Gregory, are moſt Evangelical Sacrifices, Caſtitas in juventute, parcitas in ubertate, liberalitas in paupertate; A chaſte youth unſpotted touching the fleſh, ſobriety in plenty, and a liberal heart which could not be corrupted in poverty. I believe Satan thought his Dabo, I will give thee, would ſoon conquer our Saviour, becauſe he had ſo little: Certain charitable women miniſtred to him of their ſubſtance, and maintained him. If he were put to pay Tribute to Ceſar, he put the Fiſhes of the Sea to pay it unto him. Dominus noluit habere quod perderet, & ideo pauper huc venit, ut Diabolus non haberet quod auferret, ſays St. Ambroſe. Our Lord had no Riches to loſe, but came into the World as poor as ever any did, for, that the Devil might not uſe him as he did Job, he had nothing to be taken away. But becauſe the ſubtil Serpent learnt in Jobs caſe the ſurer way was to give Riches than to take away, therefore he plies our Saviours Poverty with this offer, Dabo, I will give thee: But Chriſt came to ſanctifie Poverty in his own Perſon, that it might not ſtumble at golden Balls, and fall into evil; for God hath choſen the poor of this world to be ſtrong in faith and integrity. And ſo far I have dilated that the ſting of this third Tentation is in this word, Dabo, I will give thee.
But the noiſe and wonderment is in the muchneſs or quantity, what mighty boon Satan promiſeth to give, all the Riches and Poſſeſſions that eye could ſee, All theſe things will I give thee. This was no pidling, but ſo round an offer, as he could go no higher; and ſo much he ſtakes down at once, that he would make himſelf unable to give for ever after. I could tell you of moſt bountiful Donations given by ſome of the Heathen Emperours. Thoſe vaſt Principalities, and maſſes of Gold which Nero gave to Tiridates are beyond my Arithmetick, and almoſt my belief, the Crown of Armenia, a Million in Caſh, and more than the whole Kingdom of Armenia was worth in entertainment. It was a moſt munificent ſomewhat indeed, yet a ſum that is quite drown'd if you name it with this offer in my Text, which hath no ſtint and meaſure, Haec omnia tibi dabo; I will give you all the riches of the earth, not a drachma debated. We ſay Proverbially, It is an ill wind that blows no man profit, and an ill bargain that makes no man the richer: So theſe very embers of Hell ſhall give us ſome light, and theſe baits of Satan ſhall abound unto the uſe of our knowledge in theſe following Obſervations.
Firſt, That which whiſpers into us immoderate deſires, and a vaſt expectation of earthly things is an evil Genius. Satan propounds a world of Wealth at once, and cannot ſpeak under Millions: But Almighty God, howſoever he diſtributes a mighty Inheritance to ſome, yet he prepares all men by his Goſpel for Poverty, and Baniſhment, and loſs of all they have. He bids us pray for no more than our dayly bread, and having food and Rayment let us be therewith content, 1 Tim. vi. 8. A little water is a great bleſſing if Samſon can get it out of the Jaw-bone of an Aſs to ſave his life; A morſel of bread and fleſh Morning and Evening is Elias his dimenſum; A handful of Meal, and a Jar of Oyl was the whole Proviſion of the Widow of Sarephath: The diſtributions of temporary Fortunes, when God gives them, are thrifty and ſparing, that every one may have a little as the Apoſtle Andrew ſaid. Jacob wondred at his own increaſe that he was grown a rich Shepherd, With my Staff I paſſed over Jordan, and now I am become two Bands, Gen. xxxii. 10. Such another example is ſcarce to be found as that of David, whoſe Cup was filled brim-full. God magnifies his bounty towards him by the mouth of Nathan, I gave thee thy Maſters houſe, and the houſe of Iſrael and Judah, 2 Sam. xii. 8. yet theſe were but the narrow Territories of the Land of Canaan, far from this inſatiable Poſſeſſion, All theſe things will I give thee. The prodigal Child in the Parable, though a moſt rank conſumer, yet this evil Spirit had not entred into him, for he deſired no more of his Father than the portion of goods which fell unto him: But the Devil cuts out no portions for his Minions, he diſciplines every one of them to aim at all that can be gotten, to be like a rouling Snow-ball, ever gathering, and growing bigger and bigger.Juvenal. Sat. 14. Quis metus aut pudor eſt unquam properantis avari? There is no ſuch bridle as ſhame and modeſty in the heart of him that makes haſte to be rich, I ſay, he wants the bridle of ſhame, I do not recal my word. Either cruel Uſury, or peſtilent Couzenage, or baſe Corruption, or ſordid Penuriouſneſs, or unchriſtian ſlackneſs in Charity; ſome of theſe muſt concur to raiſe up a mountain of Wealth from a mean beginning. When Sylla, that powerful Roman, made very witty Apologies for thoſe evil courſes he took to oppreſs the Commonwealth, one choak'd him with an unanſwerable Objection, that he could not be througly good that had ſcrap'd ſo great wealth together, and was born to nothing. God will bleſs and reward induſtry with gainful ſucceſs, that is to be preſuppoſed and granted for the encouragement of thoſe that are diligent in an honeſt Calling; but theſe boundleſs gatherers, that would know no end of getting, have their Bank in the Devils Mart, for it is he that bids them carry more and more, that they ſhall never have load enough, All theſe things will I give thee. St. Auſtin very truly lays the crime of Covetouſneſs, not upon that abundance which a good rich man hath, but upon the corruption of his will,Serm. de Temp. 05. and upon that which he would have; Avaritia eſt eſſe velle divitem, non jam eſſe divitem. It is no breach of Gods Commandment to be rich, but to long and thirſt for more. They that will be rich, ſays St. Paul, fall into temptations and ſnares, and many hurtful deſires; Dives qui fieri vult, & citò vult fieri. Let fortune come in quickly though the Devil lead it by the hand. Beware of theſe ſwelling purchaſing imaginations, that are ever reckoning upon more: confine your heart to moderate contentation if you will live in peace.Homil. 19. in Joh. Nay, St. Chryſoſtome ſays, the leſs you deſire and want, the leſs you ſhall live like a mortal man, and the more like an immortal Angel. Quanto paucioribus indigemus, tanto magis Angelis appropinquamus. But above all remember, that God directs the ſoul to be contented with a little, the evil Spirit would have you ingroſs the whole earth, and perhaps he could ſuggeſt devices how a luxurious man might be able to ſpend all the wealth in the world if he had it: but immenſe Projections, for riches come from the motion of the evil one, All theſe things will I give thee.
In the next place let us declare againſt theſe words of Satan, that his gift is not more ſpacious than it is unjuſt. He preſents before Chriſt the whole earth and the fulneſs thereof, and our Saviour look'd upon all thoſe things not with the eye of concupiſcence, but as a Phyſician looks upon a diſeaſe, without any paſſion of infirmity: But Satan would be his very gracious Benefactor, and put all into his hands. Would he undertake it? But what ſhould become of that portion and poſſeſſion in which every man was eſtated? The poor man that had but one Ewe Lamb, ſhould he loſe that? Naboth, that had but one field of his Fathers Inheritance, ſhould he be turned out of that? Should the very Nervs of all Juſtice be crackt in ſunder, Meum and tuum be baniſh'd out of the world to make up this Donative? This is like the condition which Saul required of David, he would make David his Son-in-Law if he would give him two hundred fore-skins of the Philiſtins. David muſt not only provide him that which was none of his own, but be the deſtruction of two hundred men to give Saul a Preſent: So Satan would rob the whole world to make up an exceſſive liberality; A Legerdemain which he deviſed from the beginning, to give that which was none of his own, as when he gave Eve the forbidden fruit which God had both planted and reſerved. And this is the moſt tyrannical and unconſcionable injuſtice in the world to wring and extort from one, and to caſt it away as waſtefully and profuſely upon another. This was the familiar ſport which the ancient Comaedians made, (it was ſport with them that knew not God) for a luſtful young man to cozen his own Father, and laviſh it all upon ſome ſumptuous Harlot. This is the moſt remorſeleſs prodigality of our own times, to ſteal with one hand, and to ſcatter it away moſt exceſſively with the other. How many ungodly borrowers take up upon credit, that which they can never reſtore, and leave the Lender in the lurch to his utter undoing; and this wicked ſhift is made, not through neceſſity to ſatisfie nature, but to be bountiful to ſuch Ravens as pick from him upon his Creditors coſt. An incloſer of Commons, that draws out his ſin the longer by depopulating the whole Village, turns forth a ſwarm of poor People to the mercy of the wide world, by whoſe ruins he advanceth his own Poſterity. Ariſtotle ſays, that a Prodigal that gives away nothing but his own,Lib. 4. Eth. c. 5. and draws himſelf dry by ſuch neglectful ſpending is rather a fool than a vicious perſon: but that Prodigal abounds as much with viciouſneſs as the other doth with folly, that cares not from whom he takes, that he may be giving foreign 'Tis vicious indeed; for 'tis the Devils vein of giving, ſaies my Text; he conſiders not this mans right, or that mans in his goods and chattels, or what belongs to the Widow or Orphan, abſolutely all theſe things will I give thee.
Ina and Offa, and ſome other Saxon Kings that reigned in this Iſland; but they eſpecially were the greateſt Patrons to this Church of England that ever it enjoyed either before or ſince their dayes: perhaps it would poſe any Hiſtories in the world to ſhew the like. Yet I muſt tell you, that the Biſhop of Rome hath been a great giver to Religious Maintenances in this Kingdom, and which is very ſtrange, it coſt him nothing, he was never the poorer: For he gave away the greateſt part of the Tythes in the Kingdom from the Parſonages and preaching Miniſtry, to maintain contemplative men, as they call'd them, in Abbeys and Monaſteries. This was the firſt ſpawn of Impropriations: now this is giving drawn by the copy of the Devils Charters, impoveriſhing the right owner to give a ſtranger: not robbing Peter, as we ſay, to pay Paul, but robbing knowledge to pay ignorance; robbing the Pulpit to feed lazie Lubbers: in a word, it was to pluck the fleece from the Sheeps back to keep the Wolf warm. Antonius de Roſellis, a Canoniſt of Naples defends this Poſition, that the Pope, as he is Chriſts Vicar on earth, hath a right to all things in this world, and may take from one whatſoever he will, and give it to another, without fraud or injurie. This Book is licenſed in Italy, and never found fault with by the Inquiſition. I ſhall meet with this buſineſs more aptly, when I come to open the next point, where Satan boaſts, that he would give the Son of God all the Kingdoms of the World: yet in the mean time is it not worth an objection, that this power and privilege to give all things cannot belong to the Devil, ſince another hath claimed it in print, and Antonius de Roſellis proves it for his Client out of this Text, Henceforth will I make you Fiſhers of men? The ſcurvy luck of it is, that thoſe words were not ſpoken to Peter only, for then it ſeems to be a Fiſher of men had receiv'd this gloſs, to ſweep all into his Net, that the whole Generation of mankind doth enjoy upon the face of the earth. But this is apparent, here are two that lay claim, they can give all theſe things to any man; who ſhall carry it? but perhaps there is no jealouſie between them, and they will agree among themſelves. Some man would imagin ſo from this Text: the Dragon hath given to the Beaſt with ſeven heads, all his power, his ſeat, and authority, Revel. xiii. 2. And ſo much for that obſervation.
Somewhat elſe muſt be in it, that Satan unaskt, and unſought to, is ſo ready to part with all that he can give. God is very liberal, and opens his hand, and fills all things living with plenteouſneſs, but ſayes the Apoſtle, dives eſt in omnes qui invocant eum, he is rich unto all that call upon him: We muſt ask, and ſeek, and pray unto him (good reaſon for it) and then he will give us a bleſſing. And is this greater dealer of riches in my Text the Devil more forward in liberality than God? for he paſt his word voluntarily unpetitioned; all theſe things will I give thee. There is ſome guile in this you may be ſure, it cannot be otherwiſe. Beloved, the Lord God defers not to be gracious, he ſtakes down, and puts us in poſſeſſion of his benefits, and no good thing doth he withhold from them that lead a godly life. But the Devil makes his adherents ſtay, and look for reverſions when they fall, he dodges and deludes men with vain hopes of the time to come, he will give all things: let ſuch as Ephraim take his word, that fill their belly with the Eaſt wind, for he doth give nothing. He called Chriſt the Son of God in the two former Tentations; do you think if he had riches or honors to diſpoſe, the Sons of God ſhould be the better for his liberality? ne're a whit. A poor Philoſopher that could get nothing among hard-hearted rich men, ſaid they were like trees hanging over the ſide of a rock, which had fruit in great abundance, but Vultures and unclean birds eat it up, no man could come at it to gather it. So whoſoever fares the better for Nabols wealth, David ſhall be ſure to go without if he ask him any thing: but it may be they ſhall have a fair promiſe, if they can keep life with that; like this foreign, this future tenſe in my Text, he is not furniſht for the preſent, but dabo, I will give thee; Why are his Charriot wheels ſo long a-coming? ſayes the Mother of Siſera, when ſhe lookt for her Son that was ſlain and dead. So, with much vexation to be deluded ſhall the wicked ſay, where is my hire which the Tempter promiſed? when ſhall I receive my wages: Oh it will come anon, ſays this delayer, ſtay for it and you ſhall ſpeed at laſt. Doth God deal ſo deceitfully with thoſe that truſt in him? no, ſays David, I have been young, and now am old, yet I never ſaw the righteous forſaken, nor his ſeed begging their bread. For although the plentiful reward of the faithful is not on earth, but in heaven, yet they have a teſtimony of his liberality in this life that he doth depoſit ſomewhat in earneſt, and lets us not build onelyonly upon promiſes, carnalis populus ſi parva non acciperet magna non crederet: We are fleſh and frailty, and muſt have a little in hand, that we may the better believe we ſhall receive an hundred fold hereafter. Mark now the unequal wayes of the wicked,2 Pet. iii. 4. who grumble at God, as the Apoſtle ſayes, for delaying his ſecond coming, and that the glorification of the reſurrection is not revealed, whereas all things elſe which the Prophets have foretold in Scripture are exactly fulfilled, and nothing but Chriſts ſecond appearance remains to be revealed: and yet theſe worldlings will believe the Devil without repining, and yet among all his promiſes from nequaquam moriemini downward he hath performed nothing.
The firſt time that ever he pawn'd his word to mankind in three particulars, he broke it every title: 1. Ye ſhall not dye, yet we are all become tenants to the grave, and no man can eſcape death. 2. Ye ſhall be as Gods; far otherwiſe we are become as beaſts. 3. Ye ſhall know good and evil, but alas we are blind and ignorant, that refuſe the good and take the evil. And are not theſe promiſes as faithleſs, all things will I give thee? yes undoubtedly, he would take away all that we have, and all that we hope for, and gives that ſatisfaction which Ceſar Borgia did, when he drew many of the noble family of the Ʋrſin together, upon pretenſe of good will, and then ſlew them; ſayes this arch-Hypocrite, it was their fault that believed me. St. Chryſoſtom had no faith in the Devils aſſeveration, but ſpeaks thus upon my Text, foreign, when he makes ſhew that he will give much to man, his intent is to rob him of all. Will you reap this fruit from the obſervation before I leave it, be faithful of your word, and huddle not out promiſes, you care not what, which you never purpoſe to perform: that's the Devil's dealing. If you ſeparate your word from your meaning, you ſeparate your honeſty from your conſcience: It is the common ſin that follows buying and ſelling; God be merciful to you, your …ords fall from you like leaves in Autumn, the owner cares not which way the wind blows them. The firſt thing that you break is your word, and many times the whole eſtate breaks after it. David asks, who ſhall dwell in the holy tabernacle of the moſt High, and he anſwers three times in that Pſalm, they that are juſt and faithful in their ſayings; he that ſpeaks the truth from his heart, v. 2. he that hath uſed no deceit in his tongue, v. 3. he that ſweareth to his neighbour, and diſappointeth him not, though it were to his own hinderance, v. 5. David deſired to know by ſome ſign whether he ſhould come into the preſence of Saul, or fly from him. Why Jonathan kept his word with David: Jonathan deſired that David would be merciful to his Poſterity after him, David ſware unto him, and kept his word with Jonathan. But be you juſt in your promiſes to your brother, and God will make good unto you the promiſe of eternal life: the Lord is faithful in all his ſayings, and holy in all his works.
The next collection from hence ſhall be this, that the Devil would not offer leſs than all he had to win a Soul: he would not offer a trifle for that which he knew was the moſt precious thing upon earth. And it is a little excuſe, though far from a good anſwer, when a man is fetcht into a ſin for a great bewitching recompence: pretio octuplicis ſtipendii illectus, as that famous Renego pleaded for himſelf, that he was enticed back to the Church of Rome, with a ſtipend eight times greater than he had in England; but to be enticed from our heavenly Father, like a Child with toyes of no eſtimation, it accuſeth us that we do not value our own ſoul at ſo good a rate as the Devil doth. What a narrow mean reward was that for which the lying Prophets did change the ſervice of God? Ye pollute me among my people for handfuls of barley, and for pieces of bread, Ezek. xiii. 19. What will you give me, ſayes Judas, and I will betray him? And you do not find that he did drive the Market with the Prieſts and Elders, but took the firſt ſum that they appointed him.De paſſion. Dom. Serm. 9. Anima lucri cupida etiam pro exiguo perire non metuit, ſayes Leo. A greedy covetous mind will damn both body and ſoul for a little money. What could Eſau have taken leſs than a meſs of pottage, eſpecially made of lentiles; the meaneſt pittance of relief that a beggar looks for at every door? and what had Eſau in this world to exchange for it ſo precious and valuable as his Birthright? the Law ſhews the dignity thereof, that all the firſt-born were peculiarly conſecrated and given unto God, Exod. xxii.Gen. xlix. 3. Deut. xxi. 17. 29. they were next in honor to their Parents; they had a double portion of their Fathers goods. Until the Law was given the firſt-born adminiſtred the Prieſthood in the Family, that was a ſacred thing: and yet more ſacred, he was a type of Chriſt, for Chriſt is called the firſt-born among many brethren, Rom. viii. 29. Moreover and above, it was a type of our adoption, and being heirs of the Kingdom of Heaven. See what a vile exchange Eſau did make for all this heavenly dignity, that the Holy Ghoſt for good cauſe calls him a prophane perſon, who for one meals meat (and for ſuch a courſe meal) ſold his birthright, Heb. xii. 16. If we will proſtitute our ſelves ſo cheaply to the Prince of darkneſs, and ask leſs than for ſhame he can offer, to put our ſelves into the bondage of iniquity: mark what will follow, the Lord will debaſe us, as we have debaſed our ſelves;Pſal. xliv. 3. thou ſelleſt thy people for nought, and takeſt no money for them, ſayes the ſweet Singer of Iſrael: or as Moſes told the Iſraelites, if they ſold themſelves to commit iniquity, they ſhould be ſold for ſlaves, and no man would buy them, Deut. xxviii. 68.
But for all this, I muſt give you to know in my next admonition, though Satan offer'd all that is in this world, yet he did not offer enough for that which he would gain, namely to win a ſoul: every thing under the Sun comes ſhort of that appretiation; much more in this caſe it is to be conſidered, that if our Lord Jeſus could have been ſupplanted (which was impoſſible) all mankind had periſht: for upon his righteouſneſs, and upon his perfect obedience did depend our Crown and our Salvation: if therefore one ſoul is worth the whole world and more, what could be valued againſt all the ſouls in the world? But I will inſtance upon this for our uſe; there is nothing ſo valuable that ſhould bribe a man to commit the leaſt ſin againſt our Heavenly Father. You will ſmile at the Indian Savages, that part with gold, and ſpices, and amber, for glaſs beads, and ſaffron brouches; yet whoſoever ſins for the mammons of iniquity, barters for a far more unequal merchandiſe; you change immortality for death, eternal joy for continual care, a certain treaſure for uncertain riches, the moſt happy fruition of the Creator for leſs than the felicity of a dream: aut tranſeunt nobis viventibus, Anguſt. de Tempor. Ser. 50.aut dimittuntur nobis dormientibus; the living may loſe all they have got by injuſtice, but for certain the dead cannot keep it. What is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and loſe himſelf, or be caſt away? Luke ix. 25. if he loſe himſelf, the word following is foreign, the vulgar read it, detrimentum ſui faciat: from whence a good Expoſitor ſayes,Toletus. there is no compariſon in the purchaſing of earthly things: non ſolùm cum damnatione aeternâ, ſed etiam cum jacturâ gratiae Dei, though damnation and hell fire were not incurr'd, to ſuffer the loſs of the Holy Spirit, and of the Grace of God. Wherefore all that Satan could ſhew, and let him ſhew as many worlds as Alexander could wiſh, all is not worth ſuch a cringe as he would have the Son of God to make, to bow down, and commit Idolatry. We read of one Apoſtle ſo abounding in charity to his own Nation, that he could be content to loſe his part of heaven, cupio anathema eſſe pro fratribus; it was St. Paul who was willing to be anathema for his brethren, that God might be glorified in all the people of Iſrael, but he would not exchange the leaſt degree of his ſanctity, and faith in Chriſt for all the muck in the world. Joſeph had rather loſe that was comfortable to him in this life, liberty, good name; yea the garments from his back then be defil'd with luſt. I have no inſtance fit to come after that of Moſes, Hebr. xi. 24. who by faith refuſed to be called the ſon of Pharaohs daughter, chooſing rather to ſuffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleaſures of ſin for a ſeaſon. Philo ſayes of him, that Thermut the only child and daughter of Pharaoh, being long married, and quite barren, wanting iſſue to ſucceed, fained her ſelf big, and at laſt to be delivered of Moſes, whom ſhe found in an ark of bulruſhes expoſed to be drown'd, him ſhe brought up for her adopted child, to inherit all the Kingdoms of Egypt. But becauſe Idolatry reigned in that place, he could not worſhip the Lord there with pure and undefiled ſervice, he wandred away from this regal fortune to keep ſheep in the Wilderneſs. O moſt magnanimous ſervant of God, that had rather keep ſheep with a pure conſcience, than be a King among Idolaters! for how much wiſer is it to purchaſe eternal felicity with a little miſerie, than to heap up eternal miſerie by enjoying a little felicity. There are things to come far more precious than theſe which the tempter extols: but alaſs he did offer nothing to ſpeak of to countervail the loſs of a ſoul, when he mouthed theſe words as a donative which could not be refuſed, all theſe things will I give thee.
Finally, to go but one deliberation further, though Satan was incredulous, and would not be perſwaded, that Chriſt was the eternal Son of God conſubſtantial with the Father, that had taken our fleſh in the Virgins womb to redeem us, yet he could not but obſerve how holy and zealous He was in all his waies, endowed with ſanctity beyond all the Prophets that ever liv'd, therefore this Tentation muſt needs be ill placed, and moſt unſeaſonable: for God is all manner of riches to thoſe that ſerve him unfeinedly,In Pſal. cxxii. and with an upright heart: Plenitudo deliciarum, & ſufficientia divitiarum Deus eſt, no ſtrong line, but a ſweet and moſt emphatical meditation of St. Auſtins. Where God abides, there goes with him the alacrity of all delight, and the inheritance of all riches. Where was St. Pauls Exchequer think you? in what corner of the world did his rents lye? that he wrote to the Philippians, I have all, and abound, Philip, iv. 18. Satan cannot be ſo ſhameleſs to offer any thing to him that hath all already: there's work for an Auditor, let him caſt up thoſe ſums if he can, and make them even, 2 Cor. vi. 10. as having nothing, and yet poſſeſſing all things; ſuch Apoſtolical ſpirits (thoſe few that are) meaſure themſelves wealthy, not by the weight of ſilver and gold, but by the grace of God which inhabits in them, and doth enable them to refuſe more than Satan can pretend to give. There was ſomewhat elſe which St. Peter lookt for that was not in the Inventory of all this baggage, which the tempter would impart to Chriſt; theſe are his words: Lo we have left all, and followed thee, what ſhall we have? Mark. x. 28. this is odd, you will ſay, to leave all, and then to fall a demanding, and looking for more: but firſt he lookt for the promiſe of the coming of the Holy Ghoſt, which David pray'd for; Encline my heart unto thy law, and not to covetouſneſs: rather a dram of virtue, than a talent of fortune. Secondly he lookt for the glorification of body and ſoul, where Satan ſhall no more ſtand at our right hand to tempt us, where the ſpirit ſhall be ready, and the fleſh as willing to fall down and worſhip the Lord for evermore. Amen.