Commentary on Prov Ecc SoS Isa Jer Lam Eze Dan, Ecclesiastes · Chapter 5
CHAP. V. Verſ. 1. Keep thy foot.
QƲa. d. Wouldſt thou ſee more of the worlds vanity than hitherto hath been diſcourſed? get thee to the Sanctuary, as David did, Pſal. 73. For as they that walk in a miſt, ſee it not ſo well as thoſe that ſtand on a hill: ſo they that have their hands elbow-deep in the world, cannot ſo eaſily diſcern what they do, as thoſe that go a little out from it. To the Houſe of God therefore, to the Temple and Synagogues, to the Churches and Oratories ſteer thy courſe, take thy way. OnelyOnly ſee to thy feet, i. e. keep thy ſenſes and affections with all manner of cuſtody, from the mire of wicked and worldly matters. Shooes wee have all upon our feet, that is, (to ſpeak in St. James his phraſe) filthineſs and ſuperfluity of naughtineſs in our hearts,Jam. 1. Exod. 3.5. Joſh. 5.15. that muſt bee put off at Gods School-door, as God taught Moſes and Joſhuah. And Pythagoras (having read Moſes belike) taught his ſcholars as much, when hee ſaith, foreign, Put off thy ſhooes when thou ſacrificeſt, and worſhippeſt. His followers the Pythagorians expounded his meaning, when they would not have men, foreign, but foreign, worſhip God careleſly, or by the way; but prepare themſelves at home aforehand. And Numa Pompilius (one that had taſted of his learning) would not have men worſhip the Gods foreign, by the by, and for faſhion, but foreign,Plutarch. at good leiſure, and as making Religion their buſineſs. In the Law of Moſes, the Prieſts were commanded to waſh the inwards and the feet of the ſacrifice in water. And this was done, foreign, ſaith Philo, not without a myſtery, ſc. to teach us to keep our feet clean when wee draw nigh to God. Antonius Margarita in his Book of the Rites and Ceremonies of the Jews, tells us, that before their Synagogues they have an iron plate, againſt which they wipe and make clean their ſhooes before they enter: and that being entred they ſit ſolemnly there for a ſeaſon, not once opening their mouths; but conſidering who it is with whom they have to do. Thus it was wont to bee with them: But alate, though they come to their Synagogues with waſhen hands and feet; yet for any ſhew of devotion or elevation of ſpirit,Spec. Europ. they are as reverent (ſaith one that was an eye-witneſs) as Grammar-boys are at ſchool when their maſter is abſent: Their holineſs is the meer outward work it ſelf, being a brain-leſs head, and a ſoul-leſs body. And yet upon the walls of their Synagogues they write uſually this ſentence,Euxtorf. Abbreviat. p. 186. by an abbreviature, Tephillan belo canvannah ceguph belo neſhamah: i. e. A prayer without affection, is like a body without a ſoul. Solinus reporteth of the Cretians, that they do very religiouſly worſhip Diana: and that no man may preſume to come into her Temple,Adem numinis praterquam nudus veſtigia null… licito ingreditur. cap. 16. but bare-footed: Satan Dei aemulus, the Devil is Gods ape: hee led theſe ſuperſtitious Ethnicks captive, as the Chaldeans did the Aegyptians, naked and bare-foot, Eſay 20.2, 4.
When thou goeſt to the Houſe of God] Called the Gate of Heaven, Gen. 28.17. ſuch as none but the righteous may enter, Pſal. 118.20. the beauty of holineſs, the place of Angels,foreign. and Arch-angels, the Kingdom of God, yea Heaven it ſelf, as Chryſoſtom calls it. The French Proteſtants called their Meeting-houſe in Paris, Paradiſe. The primitive Chriſtians called ſuch places foreign, (whence Kirkes, Concil. Laodic. cap. 28.Churches) and the Lords Houſes, and Baſilicas, Kingly palaces. Now it is held an uncivil thing to come to the palace of a King with dirty ſhooes, or to cat at his table with foul hands. Men waſh their hands every day of courſe, but when to dine with a Prince, they waſh them with balls. So it ſhould bee here; when wee come to Gods houſe, wee ſhould come with the beſt preparation wee can make; wee ſhould alſo bee there with the firſt, and ſtay till the laſt, as door-keepers uſe to do; which office in Gods Houſe David held an high preferment. And whiles wee are there, let our whole deportment bee as in the preſence of the great God, whom wee muſt look full in the face, and bee ready to hear, as thoſe good ſouls, Act. 10.33. Now therfore wee are all here preſent before God, ſay they, to hear all things that are commanded thee of God. Neither muſt wee hear onelyonly with the hearing of the ear, but with the obedience of the heart and life, (for ſo the Original word here ſignifieth) Gen. 3.17. Becauſe thou hast heard, that is, obeyed the voyce of thy wife, &c. hearing diligently without diſtraction, and doing readily without ſciſcitation.
Than to give the ſacrifice of fools] i. e. The formalities and external ſervices of profligate profeſſors, that think to ſet off with God for their ſinnes, by their ſacrifices; for their evill deeds, by their good. Hence they burthen Gods altar, and even cover it with their ſacrifices; ſticking in the bark, and gnabling upon the ſhell of holy ſervices, not once peircing to the heart, or taſting of the kernel thereof: and are therefore abominable, becauſe diſobedient, and to every good work reprobate, Tit. 1.16. How many bee there at this day, that not onelyonly pray by tale, as Papiſts do by their beads, but turn over other duties of Religion as a meer task; holding only a certain ſtint of them, as Malt-horſes do their pace, or Mill-horſes their round, meerly out of form and cuſtom, thoſe banes and break-necks of due devotion? Theſe do not onelyonly loſe their labour, but commit ſinne, Eſay 1.14. compaſs God with a lye, Hoſ. 11.12. becauſe they waſh not their feet before they compaſs Gods altar.Cicero. The Heathen Oratour can tell theſe fools of the people, Deum non ſuperſtitione coli velle, ſed pietate, that God requires the heart in all holy duties,John 4 24. and muſt be ſerved in Spirit, even totocorde, id eſt amore ſummo, more vero, ore fideli, re omni.
Hoc non fit verbis: Marce, ut ameris, ama.Martial.
For they conſider not that they do evill] That they deſpite him with ſeeming honours, with diſpleaſing ſervice, which is double diſhonour; with ſeeming ſanctity, which is double iniquity, and deſerves double damnation. This they ſo little conſider, that they think God is greatly beholden to them, and does them no ſmall wrong, that hee ſo little regards and rewards them, Eſa. 58.3. Mal. 3.14. Non ſic Deos coluimus ut ille nos vinceret, Antonin. Philiſ. referente Vulcat. Gal.ſaid that Emperour going into the field againſt his enemy. Wee have not ſo ſerved the Gods, that they ſhould ſerve us no better, than to give the enemy the better of us.
Verſ. 2. Bee not raſh with thy month] From hearing, the Preacher proceeds to give directions for ſpeaking, whether it bee of God or to him. For the firſt, the very Heathens could ſay, Non loquendum de Deo ſine lumine, Pythag.Wee may not ſpeak of God without a light, i. e. without a deliberate premeditation, and well-adviſed conſideration. In ſpeaking of God, ſaith one,Mr. Hooker. our beſt eloquence is our ſilence. And if wee ſpeak at all on this ſubject, ſaith another, no words will ſo well become us, as thoſe quae ignorantiam noſtram praetendunt, Jul. Scalig.that moſt diſcover our ſmall knowledge of him: How little a portion or pittance is heard of him, ſaith holy Job, (chap. 26.14. The Hebrew word ſignifies a little bit or particle, nay a little peece of a word, ſuch as an eccho reſoundeth) But the thunder of his power who can underſtand? it is ineffable, becauſe unconceivable. Here, if ever, Claudicat ingenium, delirat linguaque menſque,Lucret.
But although Hierome thinks it beſt to underſtand the Preacher here of a ſpeaking of God, yet others, and for better reaſon,Hieron. in loc. conceive his meaning to be rather of a ſpeaking to God by prayer, and particularly by a Vow, which implies a prayer, (as the Greek words foreign and foreign import) Here then,
Let not thine heart bee haſty to utter any thing] Heb. Let not thine heart through haſte, bee ſo troubled or diſturbed, as to tumble over, and throw out words without wiſdome, in a confuſed manner, in a ſlubbering ſort. But as there was half an hours ſilence in heaven when the ſeventh ſeal was opened,Rev. 8.1. and or ever the ſeven Trumpets ſounded: ſo ſhould there bee a ſad and ſerious weighing of our petitions, before wee utter them. Neſcit poenitenda loqui, qui proferenda prius ſuo tradidit examini, Caſſiodor. lib. 10. Ep. 4.Hee repents not of his requeſts, who firſt duly deliberates what to requeſt. Whereas hee that blurts out whatſoever lies uppermoſt, as ſome good men have done in their haſte, and heat of paſſion, (as Job, chap. 6.5. David, Pſal. 116.11. Jeremy, chap. 15.10, 18. Jonah, chap. 4. who brawled with God inſtead of praying to him) diſpleaſeth God no leſs than the Muſcovy-Miniſters do their hearers, if they miſpronounce but any ſyllable in their whole Liturgy.
For God is in heaven, and thou upon earth] Hee is the High and Holy One; that inhabiteth Eternity,Iſa. 57.15. and thou art Epalude ſua procedens & repens vilis ranuncula, (as Bernard hath it) a baſe toad creeping or crawling out of a ditch: there is an infinite diſtance and diſproportion between Him and thee; therefore ſee to it that thou come to him with all poſſible reverence, humility, and ſelf-abaſement. See Job 42.6. 1 King. 18.42. Matth. 26.38. It is obſervable, that when the great Turk comes into his Moſche, or Temple, he lays by all his State, and hath none to attend him all the while.
Therefore let thy words bee few] But full, as the Publicans were, Luk. 18.13. O quam multa quam paucis! Oh how much in a little! ſaid Tully of Brutus his Epiſtle; ſo may wee ſay of that Publicans prayer; how much more of the Lords prayer, ſet in flat oppoſition to the Heatheniſh Battologies and vain repetitions, uſual with Pagans and Papagans, &c. See the Note on Mat. 6.7, 8, 9. It is reported of the ancient Chriſtians of Aegypt, Quod breviſſimis & raptim jaculatis orationibus uti voluerint, ne per moras evaneſceret & hebetaretur intentio, Auguſt.that they made very ſhort prayers, that their devotion might not bee dulled by longer doings. Caſſian alſo makes mention of certain religious perſons in his time, Qui utilius cenſebant breves quidem orationes ſed creberrimas fieri, &c. who thought it beſt that our prayers ſhould bee ſhort, but frequent: the one, that there might bee continual intercourſe maintained between God and us: the other, that by ſhortneſs wee might avoid the Devills darts, which hee throws eſpecially at us, while wee are praying. Theſe bee good reaſons; and more may bee added out of Matth. 6. as that our Heavenly Father knows what wee need, &c. That which the Preacher here preſſeth, is, the tranſcendent Excellency and ſurpaſſing Majeſty of Almighty God. I am a great King, ſaith Hee, Mal. 1. And I look to bee ſerved like my ſelf.Hoſ. 14.2. Therefore take unto you words, neither over curious, nor over careleſs, but ſuch as are humble, earneſt, direct to the point, avoiding vain bablings, needleſs and endleſs repetitions, heartleſs digreſſions, tedious prolixities, wilde and idle diſcourſes of ſuch extemporary petitioners, as not diſpoſing their matter in due order by premeditation (and withall being word-bound) are forced to go forward and backward, like Hounds at a loſs; and having haſtily begun, they know not how handſomly to make an end.
Verſ. 3. For a dream commeth through the multitude of buſineſs] When all the reſt of the ſenſes are bound up by ſleep, the ſoul entreth into the ſhop of the fancy, and operates there uſually according to the buſineſſes and imployments of the day paſt;Tertull. de anima, cap. 49. & fierividentur quae fieri tamen non videntur, ſaith Tertullian, thoſe things ſeem to bee done in a dream, which yet are not ſeen to be done at all: theſe are but vanae jactationes negotioſae animae, the idle toffings of a buſy minde. In like ſort, a fool, a heartleſs, ſapleſs fellow, (that being ſenſual and void of the ſpirit of grace and ſupplications, hath neither the affections nor expreſſions of holy prayer) multiplies words without knowledge, thinks to make out in words what hee wants in worth, being foreign, as Plutarch ſaith of Alcibicdes, one that could talk much, but ſpeak little: His voyce is known by multitude of words. It is but a voyce that is heard, it is but a ſound that is made, like the uncertain ſound of a Trumpet, that none can tell what it meaneth, what to make of it. Corniculas citius in Africa, quam res ration…ſque ſolidas in Turriani ſcriptis reperias, ſaith one:Beringer. Contra Id. Cum. Lauret. Ariſtot. De divinat. per inſom. So here. If there be any worth of matter in the fools words, it is but by chance, as Ariſtotle ſaith, that dreams doe by chance fore-tell thoſe things that come to paſſe. Let it be our care to ſhun as much as may be all laviſh and ſuperfluous talkativeneſſe and tediouſneſſe, but eſpecially in prayer: leſt wee offer the ſacrifice of fools, and God be angry with us. For as it is not the loudneſſe of a Preachers voyce, but the weight and holineſs of his matter, and the ſpirit of the Preacher that moves a wife and intelligent hearer: ſo it is not the labour of the lips, but the travel of the heart that prevails with God. The Baalites Prayer was not more tedious than Elijah's ſhort: yet more pithy than ſhort. And it was Elijah that ſpake loud and ſped in heaven. Let the fool learn therefore to ſhew more wit in his diſcourſe than words, leſt being known by his voyce, hee meet (as the Nightingale did) with ſome Laconian that will not let to tell him, Vox in es, praeterea nihil, Thou art a voyce, and that's all.
Verſ. 4. When thou voweſt a vow unto God, deferre not to pay it] See the Note on Deut. 23.21. It is in thy power to vow or not to vow. Vovere nuſquam eſt praeceptum, ſaith Bellarmine, We have no command to vow. That of David, Lib. 2. de Monac. cap. 15.Vow and perform to the Lord your God, is not purum praeceptum, ſaith Mr. Cartwright, a pure precept, but like that other, Be angry, and ſin not; where anger is not commanded, but limited. So neither are wee ſimply commanded to vow, but having voluntarily vowed, we may not deferre to pay it; delayes are taken for denials, excuſes for refuſals.
For he hath no pleaſure in fools] He needs them as little as King Achiſh did,2 Sam. 22.15 he abhors them, Pſal. 5.5. as deceitful workers, as mockers of God. Jephta in vovendo fuit ſtultus, in praeſtando impius, Jephta was a fool in vowing,Hieron. and wicked in performing. But he that vowes a thing lawful and poſſible, and yet de-deferres to perform it, or ſeeks an evaſion, is two fools for fayling; ſith
Verſ. 5. Better it is that thou ſhouldeſt not vow] q. d. Who bad thee bee ſo forward? Why wouldſt thou become a voluntary Votary,Dicta factis deficientibus erubeſcunt. and ſo raſhly ingage to the loſſe of thy liberty, and the offence of thy God, who expected thou ſhouldſt have kept touch, and not have dealt thus ſlipperily with him? Thou haſt not lyed unto men, but unto God, Acts 5.4. As the truth of Chriſt is in me, ſaith Paul, 2 Cor. 11.10. ſo he bindes himſelf by an oath, as the learned have obſerved. And as God is true, our word toward you was not Yea and Nay:2 Cor. 1.19, 20 for the Son of God who was preached among you by mee was not Yea and Nay: but in him all the promiſes of God are Yea, and Amen. Why? what of that, might ſome ſay? and what's all this to the purpoſe? Very much: for it implieth, that what a Chriſtian doth promiſe to men (how much more to God?) he is bound by the earneſt penny of Gods Spirit to perform. He dares no more alter or falſifie his word, than the Spirit of God can lye. And as he looks that Gods promiſes ſhould bee made good to him, ſo is hee careful to pay that he hath vowed to God; ſith his is a Covenant of Mercy, ours of obedience, and if hee ſhall be All-ſufficient to us, we muſt be Altogether his, Cant. 2.16.
Verſ. 6. Suffer not thy mouth to cauſe thy fleſh to ſin] Heb. Nec des, Give not liberty to thy mouth, which of itſelf is ſo apt to over-flow and run riot in ſinful and ſuperfluous language. Reign it in therefore, and lay Lawes upon it, leſt it cauſe thy fleſh to ſin, thy ſelf to become a ſinner againſt thine own ſoul. Say to it in this caſe, as Chriſt did to thoſe Phariſees in the Goſpel, Why tempteſt thou me thou hypocrite? or as the Witch ſaid to Saul that ſought to her, Wherefore layest thou a ſnare for my life, to cauſe me to dye? 1 Sam. 28.9. Shall my prayer become ſin, and my religious vowes through non-payment, a cauſe of a curſe, Pſal. 109.7? When thou art making ſuch an ill bargain, ſay to thy mouth, as Boaz ſaid to his Kinſman, At what time thou buyeſt it, Ruth 4. Rom. 6. ult.thou muſt have Ruth with it, ſo thou muſt have Gods curſe with it (for that's the juſt hire of the leaſt ſin, how much more of thy crimſon crime?) And let thy mouth anſwer, No: I may not doe it, I ſhall mar and ſpoyl a better inheritance, I ſhall anger the Angel of the Covenant; who if his wrath be kindled, yea but a little, he will not pardon my tranſgreſſion, for Gods an… is in him, Exod. 23.21. Who as he is Pater miſerationum, the Father of mercies, ſo he is eus ultionum, the God of recompences, Pſal. 94.1. True it is that Anger is not properly in God, Fury is not in me, Iſa. 27.4. but becauſe he chides and ſmites for ſin (as angry men uſe to doe) therefore is Anger here and elſewhere attributed to him, that men may ſtand in awe and not ſin, ſith ſin and puniſhment are linked together with chains of Adamant.
Verſ. 7. For in the multitude of dreams, and in many words] i. e. As in the multitude of dreams, ſo in many words, &c. There may bee ſome matter in ſome of either: but neither of either wants their vanities. Dreams are of divers ſorts. (See the Note on Gen. 20.3.) Epicurus judged them all vain. The Telmiſenſes, Tertul. de anima c. 46.nulla ſomnia evacuabant, ſaith Tertullian, made no dreams to bee vain. But that ſome dreams are Divine, ſome diabolical, and ſome natural, Peculiare ſolatium naturalis oraculi, as one ſpeaketh, good ſymptomes and indications of the natural conſtitution, no wiſe man ever doubted. That of the Philoſopher hath a truth in it,Ariſtot. Ethic. Juſtum ab injuſto non ſomno, ſed ſomnio diſcerni, that a good man may be diſtinguiſhed from a bad, though not by his ſleep, yet by his dreams in his ſleep.
But fear thou God] And ſo eſchew this evil of fond babbling (in Gods ſervice eſpecially) which is no leſſe a vanity than plain doting; and procures Divine diſpleaſure.Fulgent. Deum ſiquis parum metuit, valde contemnit. He that fears not Gods wrath, is ſure to feel it, Pſal. 90.11.
Verſ. 8. If thou ſeeſt the oppreſſion of the poor] And ſo mayſt bee drawn to doubt of Divine providence, and to with-draw thine awful regard to the Divine Majeſty, to forgoe godlineſſe, and to turn flat Atheiſt, as Diagoras and Averroes did.
Horat.Marvel not at the matter] Nil admirari prope res eſt una Numici. A wiſe man wonders at nothing: he knows there is good cauſe why God ſhould ſuffer it ſo to be, and gives him his glory. Opera Dei ſunt in mediis contrariis, ſaith Luther, Luther. in Geneſ. Nazian. Cypr.Gods works are effected uſually by contraries. And this hee doth foreign, that he may be the more marvelled at, ſaith Nazianzen. Hence he commonly goes a way by himſelf, drawing light out of darkneſs, good out of evil,Exod. 15.11 heaven out of hell: that his people may feelingly ſay, Who is like unto thee, O Lord, glorious in holineſſe, fearful in praiſes, doing Wonders? Verily there is a reward for the righteous: verily he is a God that judgeeth in the earth, Pſal. 58.11.
For he that is higher than the higheſt regardeth] And wherein they deal proudly,Pſal. 76.12 he is above them, Exod. 18.11. and over-tops them, Pſal. 2.4. ſets a day for them, and ſees that their day is coming. Pſal. 37.16. The moſt High cuts off the ſpirit of Princes (hee ſlips them off, as one ſhould ſlip off a flower between his fingers, or he cuts them off, as Grape-gatherers doe the cluſters off the Vines, ſuch a Metaphor there is in the Original) He is terrible to all the Kings of the earth, thoſe dread Soveraigns, thoſe Hammers of the earth, and Scourges of the world (as Attilas ſtiled himſelf) ſuch as Sennacherib, Mundi flagellum.whom God ſo ſubdued and maſtered, that the Aegyptians in memory of it, ſet up his ſtatue in the Temple of Vulcan with this inſcription,Heredot. foreign. Let all that behold me, 2 Chro. 19.6learn to fear God. It was therefore excellent counſel that Jehoſhaphat gave his Judges: Take heed what you doe, for yee judge not for man, but for the Lord, who is with you in the judgement. Wherefore now let the fear of the Lord our God bee upon you, take heed and doe it. Look upon him that over-looks all your doings, ſaith he; and then learn to ſit upon the Tribunal, in as great, though not in ſo ſlaviſh a fear of doing wrong, as Olanes in the Hiſtory did upon the flayed skin of his Father Siſannus, nayled by Cambyſes on the Judgement-Seat: or as a Ruſſian Judge that fears the boyling Caldron, or open battocking: or the Turkiſh Senate, when they think the great Turk to ſtand behind the Arras at the dangerous door. In fine, let the Grandees and Potentates of the Earth know, and acknowledge with Conſtantine, Valentinian, and Theodoſius, three great Emperours (as Socrates reports it of them) that they are but Chriſti Vaſalli, Chriſts Vaſſals: and that as he is Excelſus ſuper Excelſos, High above all, even the higheſt, ſo hee hath other high ones at hand, viz. the Holy Angels; who can reſiſt the King of Perſia, as Michael the Prince did, Dan. 10.13. Fright the Syrians with a pannick terrour, 2 King. 7.6. ſmite the Aſſyrians with an utter deſtruction, Iſa. 37.36. deliver Peter from the hand of Herod, and from the expectation of the Jewes,Exod. 12. Acts 12.11. make a wonderful difference in the ſlaughter of the firſt-born of Aegypt. Tyrants ſhall be ſure, ſooner, or later, to meet with their match. Look what a hand the Ephori had over the King of Sparta, the Tribunes had over the Roman Conſuls, and the Prince Palſgrave of Rhine ought, by the ancient orders, to have over the Emperour of Germany, (Palatino haec dignitatis praerogativa eſt, ut ipſum Caeſarem judicare & damnare poſſit, Parci Hiſt. proſ. med. 771.quoties ſcilicet lis ei ab aliquo Ordinum imperii movetur, the Palſgrave hath power to judge and paſs ſentence upon the Emperour himſelf, when any of the States of Germany do ſue him at the Law) the ſame and more hath God and his Angels over the mightieſt Magnificoes in the world, Lebanon ſhall fall by a mighty one, i. e. by an Angel, as ſome interpret it, Iſa. 10.34.
Verſ. 9. Moreover the profit of the Earth is for all] viz. For all ſorts of men, and for all kind of uſes. Alma mater, Terra ferax. Then ſhall the Earth yeeld her increaſe: and (therein) God, even our own God ſhall bleſs us, Pſal. 67.6. Can any of the Vanities of the Heathens give rain or grain? no,foreign. neither, Jer. 14.22. Can the Earth bring forth fruit of her ſelf? So indeed our Saviour ſeems to ſay, firſt the Blade, then the Ear, after that the full Corn in the Ear, Mark 4.28. but then it is after the good husband hath ſowed it, and God by his bleſſing given the increaſe. The drift of the Preacher here, is, to ſet forth the excellency of tillage firſt, and then to ſhew the vanity of it. Tillage is the life and blood of a Common-wealth: it is beyond all pecuniary poſſeſſions. Jacob had mony and other fruits of the Earth:Gen. 43. and yet if Aegypt, (the worlds Granary, as one calls it) had not ſupplyed them with Corn, hee and his might have periſhed.
The King himſelf is ſerved by the field] Not the Lyon, Dragon, Unicorn,Rex agro fit ſervus. Ar. Montan. &c. But the Plough and the Ship are the ſupporters of a Crown. Some read it thus, Rex agro ſervit, The King is a ſervant to the field; It concerns him to have care of tillage, plantation of fruits, breeding of Cattel, &c. or elſe all will ſoon run to wrack and ruine. King Uzziah loved husbandry, and uſed it much, 2 Chron. 26.10. and Amos 7.1. wee read of the Kings mowings. And Pliny hath obſerved, that Corn was never ſo plentifull and good-cheap at Rome, as when the ſame men tilled the Land, that ruled the Commonwealth, Quaſi gauderet terra laureato vomere ſcilicet & aratore triumphali.
Verſ. 10. Hee that loveth ſilver, ſhall not bee ſatisfied with ſilver] As hee cannot fill his belly, nor cloath his back with it, ſo neither can hee ſatisfie his inordinate appetite and deſire after it, though hee had heaped and horded it up, as the great Calyph of Babylon had, that covetous caytiff, ſtarved to death by Haalon brother to Mango, the great Cham of Cataia, in the midſt of his gold, ſilver, and precious ſtones, whereof, till then, hee could never have enough. Auri nempe fames parto fit major ab auro, Turk. hist. Prudentius.A man may as ſoon fill a cheſt with grace, as an heart with wealth. As a circle cannot fill a triangle: ſo neither can the whole world (if it could bee compaſſed) poſſibly fill the heart of man. Animarationalis caeteris omnibus occupari poteſt, impleri non poteſt, Bern.The reaſonable ſoul may bee buſied about other things, but it cannot bee filled with them. Non plus ſatiatur cor auro, quam corpus aura, As ayr fills not the body, ſo neither doth mony the minde. It cannot therefore bee Mans chiefeſt good (as Mammoniſts make it) ſith it doth not terminate his appetite, but that although hee hath never ſo much of it, yet is hee as hungry after more, as if hee were not worth an half-peny. Theocritus brings in the covetous perſon firſt wiſhing, —Mille meis errent in montibus agni.
foreign, ardere. Hinc ardens appetitus.That hee had a thouſand ſheep in his flock. And this when hee hath gotten, then, Pauperis eſt numerare pecus. Hee would have Cattel without number. The Greeks derive their word for Deſire, from a root that ſignifieth to burn. Now if one ſhould heap never ſo much fuel upon a fire, it would not quench it, but kindle it the more. So here. Surely as a Ship may bee overladen with ſilver even unto ſinking, and yet have compaſs and ſides enough to hold ten times more: ſo a covetous wretch, though hee hath enough to ſink him,Saluſt. yet never hath hee enough to ſatisfie him. Cataline was ever alieni appetens, ſui profuſus, not more prodigal of his own, than deſirous after other mens eſtates.
Verſ. 11. When goods increaſe, they are increaſed that eat them] Servants, friends, flatterers, trencher-men, penſioners, and other hang-bies, that will flock to a rich man, as Crows do to a dead carcaſs: not to defend, but to devour it. Caeſar periſhed in the midſt of his friends, whoſe boundleſs hopes and expectations hee was not able to ſatisfie. The King of Spain (were it not for the Weſt-India Fleet) were never able to ſubſiſt: though hee bee by far the greateſt Prince in Chriſtendom, Camden.gives for his Motto, Totus non ſufficit orbis, and hath his Empire ſo far extended, that hee may truly ſay, Sol mihi ſemper lucet, The Sun ever ſhines upon my Dominions; The Duke of Bavaria's houſe is ſo peſtered with Fryers and Jeſuits, that, notwithſtanding the greatneſs of his Revenue,Heylin. hee is very poor: as ſpending all his eſtate on thoſe Popiſh fleſh-flies, thoſe inutiles & ribaldi, (Lyra's words upon this text) uſeleſs, needleſs, ribaldry fellows.
Saving the beholding of them with his eyes] To ſee ſuch a large retinue, ſuch a numerous family, as Job, who had a very great houſhold, chap. 1.3. and Abraham, who had a Trained band in his family, but eſpecially as Solomon, who had thouſands of ſervants and work-folk. Whereunto I may adde Cardinal Wolſey his pompous family; conſiſting of one Earl, nine Barons, Knights and Eſquires very many, Chaplains and other ſervants (beſides retainers) at bed and board,Toto corpore aliquandiu volutatus. Sueton. no fewer than four hundred. Or, to ſee ſo much wealth, and to tumble in it, as Caligula the Emperour was wont to do, contrectandae pecuniae cupidine incenſus, loving to handle his mony, to walk upon it with his bare feet, and to rowl amongſt it with his whole body, as Suetonius relateth. The like is reported of Heliogabalus, who alſo, beſides what hee did eat, is ſaid to have provided himſelf (in caſe hee ſhould bee in danger to bee ſurprized by his enemies) ſilken halters to hang himſelf withall, ponds of ſweet water to drown himſelf, gilded poyſons to poyſon himſelf with, &c.
Verſ. 12. The ſleep of a labouring man is ſweet] Sleep is the nurſe of nature, the wages that ſhee pays the poor man for his unceſſant pains.Somni finis eſt ſalus animantis. Magir. His fare is not ſo high, his care is not ſo great, but that without diſtemper or diſtraction hee can hug his reſt moſt ſweetly, and feel no diſturbance, untill the due time of riſing awakeneth him. Theſe labouring men are as ſound as a Roche, as hungry as Hunters, as weary as ever was dog of day, as they ſay: and therefore no ſooner laid in their beds, but faſt aſleep, their hard labour cauſing eaſie digeſtion, and uninterrupted reſt. Whereas the reſtleſs ſpirit of the rich wretch rideth his body day and night: care of getting, fear of keeping, grief of loſing, theſe three vultures feed upon him continually. Hee rowls a Siſyphus his ſtone; his abundance, like a lump of lead, lies heavy upon his heart, and breaks his ſleep: Much like the diſeaſe called the Mare or Ephialtes; in which men in their ſlumber think they feel a thing as big as a mountain lying upon their breaſts, which they can no way remove. His evill conſcience eftſoons laſheth and launceth him, as it did our Richard 3. after the murther of his two innocent nephews; and Charles 9. of France after the bloody maſſacre. God alſo terrifies him with dreams, throws hand-fulls of hell fire in his face, interpellat cogitantem, excitat dormientem, as Ambroſe hath it, interrupts him while hee is thinking, awakeneth him while hee is ſleeping, rings that doleful peal in his ears, that makes him ſtart and ſtare, Thou fool, this night ſhall thy ſoul bee taken from thee: Veni miſer in judicium, Come, thou wretch, receive thy judgement.
Verſ. 13. There is a ſore evil] Or, an evil diſeaſe, ſuch as breaks the ſleep,Mala infamitas. Pagn. Plin. Hinc pallor & genae pendulae, item furiales ſomni & inquies nocturna, cauſing paleneſs, leanneſs, reſtleſneſs by night. This diſeaſe is the Dropſie or Bulimy of covetouſneſs, as ſeldome cured as Hereſie, Phrenſie, Jealouſie, which three are held incurable maladies.
Riches kept for the owners thereof to their hurt] Worldlings ſit abrood upon their wealth, and hatch to their hurt; as the ſilly bird doth the eggs of the Cockatrice. Riches are called goods; but it hath been well obſerved, that hee that firſt called them ſo, was a better Husband than Divine. Such an Husband was hee in the Goſpel, who reckoned upon much goods laid up for many years. But how come theſe goods to prove evil to the owners, but by the evil uſage of them? riches in themſelves are of an indifferent nature; and it is through mens corruption, ut magna ſit cognatio & nominis & rei divitiis & vitiis, that riches are weapons of wickedneſs, Engines of evil.Jer. 17.11. Hee that getteth riches, and not by right, ſhall die a poor fool.
Dum peritura parat, per male parta perit.
Hee that keepeth his riches (having no quick ſilver, no current money) when God calls him to part with them for pious and charitable uſes, keepeth them to his own greateſt hurt. For the ruſt of his canker-eaten gold ſhall riſe up in judgement againſt him at that great day, James 5.3.
Sic plures nimia congeſta pecunia curaJuvenal. Sal. 10
Strangulat—
See the Note on Prov. 1.19.
Verſ. 14. But thoſe riches periſh by evil travel] i. e. By evil trading, trafficking, or other croſs event and accident. They waſte and wither either by vanity or violence; they ſlip out of the hand, as the panting bird, or wrigling Eel; there is no hold to bee taken of them, no truſt to bee put in them, they were never true to thoſe that truſted in them. See the Note on Prov. 23.5.
Verſ. 15. As hee came forth of his Mothers womb] q. d. If riches leave not us while wee live, yet wee are ſure to leave them when wee die.Haud ullas portabis opes Acherontis ad undas: Nudus al… inferna ſtulte vebere rate. Propert. Look how a falſe harlot leaves her lover, when arreſted for debt, and follows other cuſtomers: ſo is it here. And as Doggs, though they go along with us in company, yet at parting they run every one to his own Maſter; ſo do theſe to the world, when wee come to leave the world. Death as a Porter ſtands at the gate, and ſtrips us of all our thick clay, wherewith wee are laden. See the Note on chap. 2.22.
To go as hee came] Like an unwelcome gueſt, or an unprofitable ſervant, a cipher, and excrement. Oh live, live, live, (ſaith a Reverend man) quickly, much, long; ſo you are welcome to the world. Elſe you are but hiſſed and kickt off this ſtage of the world, as Phocas was by Heraclius. Nay, many (as Job 27.23.) who were buried before half dead, &c.Abn. fun. by Dr. Harris.
And ſhall take nothing of his labour] Ne obolum quo naulum Charonti ſolvant. Some have had great ſtore of gold and ſilver buried with them; and others would needs bee buried in a Monkes cowl, out of a ſuperſtitious conceit of ſpeeding the better in another world; but it hath profited them nothing at all, Eccleſ. 9.10.
Verſ. 16. And this alſo is a ſore evil] Malum dolorificum, ſo it will prove: a ſingular vexation, a ſharp corroſive, when Balaam and his bribes, Laban and his baggs, Nabal and his flocks, Achan and his wedge, Baltaſar and his bouls, Herod and his harlots, Dives and his diſhes, &c. ſhall part aſunder for ever: when they ſhall look from their death-beds, & ſee that terrible ſpectacle, Death, Judgement, Hell, and all to bee paſſed thorow by their poor ſouls: Oh! what a dreadful ſhrick gives the guilty ſoul at death, to ſee it ſelf launching into an ocean of ſcalding lead, and muſt ſwim naked in it for ever! Who therefore (unleſs hee had rather burn with Dives, than reign with Lazarus) will henceforth reach out his hand to bribery, uſury, robbery, deceit, ſacriledge, or any ſuch like wickedneſs or worldlineſs,1 Tim. 6.9 which drown mens ſouls in perdition and deſtruction? If rich men could ſtave off death, or ſtop its mouth with a bagg of gold, it were ſomewhat like. But that cannot bee, as Henry Beauford, that rich and wretched Cardinal found by experience; as the King of Perſia told Conſtantine the Emperour, who had ſhewed him all the glory and bravery of Rome, Fulg.Mira quidem haec, ſaid hee, ſed ut video, ſicut in Perſia, ſic Romae homines moriuntur, i. e. Theſe be brave things, but yet I ſee, that as in Perſia, ſo at Rome alſo, the owners of theſe things muſt needs die. Agreeable whereunto was that ſpeech of Nugas the Scythian Monarch, to whom when Michael Paleologus the Emperour ſent certain rich robes for a preſent,Pachymer. hiſt. lib. 5. hee asked, Nunquid calamitates, morbos, mortem depellere poſſent? whether they could drive away calamities, ſickneſſes, death? for if they could not do ſo, they were not much to bee regarded.
What profit hath hee that hath laboured for the wind?] i. e. For juſt nothing. See Hoſ. 12.1. Jer. 22.22. The Greeks expreſs the ſame by hunting after,foreign. and husbanding the wind. The Apoſtle ſpeaks of beating the air, 1 Cor. 9. as hee doth, that fights with his own ſhadow, that diſquiets himſelf in vain. The four Monarchies are called the four winds of Heaven, Zech. 6.3, 4. And at the Popes inthronization a wad of ſtraw is ſet on fire before him, and one appointed to ſay, Sic tranſit gloria mundi, The glory of this world is but a blaze or blaſt.
Verſ. 17. All his daies alſo hee eats in darkneſs] i. e. hee lives beſides that hee hath; and cannot ſo much as bee merry at meat. Hence is much ſorrow, wrath and ſickneſs; eſpecially, if ſpoiled of his goods which hee made his god, hee is no leſs troubled than Laban was for his Teraphim, or Micah for his Mawmet, Judg. 18. Hee is mad almoſt, and ready to hang himſelf for woe; having much fretting, foaming, fuming anger, languor, ready to flie at God and men.
Verſ. 18. It is good and comely for one to eat, &c.] Niggardiſe and baſeneſs is an ugly evil, making a man, though never ſo rich, to bee vilipended and deſpiſed of all. Nabal ſhall not bee called Nadib, the vile perſon liberal, the churl bountiful, Iſa. 32.5. See the Notes on chap. 2.24. & 3.12.
Verſ. 19. This is the gift of God] A gift of his right hand, donum throni, non ſcabelli: 1 Tim. 6.6Godlineſs onelyonly hath contentedneſs. The comfort of wealth comes in by no other door, than by the aſſurance of Gods love in beſtowing it, and of his grace in ſanctifying it. God give thee the dew of Heaven, &c. Gen. 27. 28. Eſau likewiſe had the like, but not with a God give thee. A carnal heart cares not how, ſo hee may have it; hence his ſo little comfort and enjoyment. A godly man will have God with it, or elſe hee is all amort. Moſes would not bee put off with an Angel to go along with them; Luther proteſſed,Valde proteſtatus ſum me nolle fio ſatiari. Luth. when great gifts were offered him, that hee would not bee ſatisfied or quieted with thoſe rattles.
Verſ. 20. For hee ſhall not much remember, &c.] Hee vexeth not at the brevity or miſery of his life: but looketh upon himſelf as a ſtranger here; and therefore if hee can have a better condition, hee uſeth it rather: as if a traveller can get a better room in an Inne,1 Cor. 7. hee will, if not, hee can bee content; for ſaith hee, it is but for a night.