A Counterpoison, Religious treatise · Chapter 26
CHAP. XXVI.
Because it is for our credit to be evill spoken of by them, and would be a disparagement to have their good word.
3. REasons joyntly respecting our selves and our enemies, are two.
1 Because it Were a disparagement to have their good word.
2 Because it Is the greatest praise to be dispraised of them.
THese two reasons being neere of kinne, in speaking of them, I will cast both into the similitude of a Y, which is joyned together at one end, brancht in the middle. And first to joyne them both together.
The condemnation and approbation of wicked men, is equally profitable and acceptable to good men: for every word they speak of the conscionable, is a slander, whether it be good or evill: whether in praise or dispraise, his very name is desiled by comming into their mouthes; or if this doe not hold in all cases, yet (as a Reverend Divine saith) it is a praise to the god'y, to be dispraised of the wicked; and a dispraise to be praised of them: their dispraise is a mans honour, their praise his dishonour: so that when deboysed persons speake ill of a man, especially their Minister, the worse the better; for to be well spoken of by the vitious, and evill by the vertuous; to have the praise of the good, and the dispraise of the bad, is all one in effect, as Salomon sheweth; They that forsake the Law (saith he) praise the wicked; but they that keep the Law, set themselves against them, Prov. 28. 4.
Thus much of both Reasons joyntly, now of each severally; and first, That it is a disparagement to a godly man to be well spoken of by the wicked.
When it was told Antisthenes, that such an one who was a vitious person, spake good words of him, he answered, What evill have I done, that this man speakes well of mee? To be praised of evill men (saith Bion the Philosopher) is as evill, as to be praised for evill doing: For such, like Garlick, suck onelyonly the ill vapours from all they come neere. Out of which consideration, our Saviour Christ rejected the evill spirits testimony, which though it were truth, yet he would not suffer the Devill to say, Thou art the Christ the Sonne of God, or that Holy One; but rebuked him sharply, and injoyned him to hold his peace, Luke 4. 35. No he would not suffer the Devils at another time to say, That they knew him, Vers. 41. And good reason, for hee knew that the Devils commendations would prove the greatest slander of all. Neither would Saint Paul suffer that maid which had a spirit of Divination, to say, he was the Servant of the most High God, which shewed them the way of Salvation, Acts 16. 17, 18. well knowing that Sathan did it to this end, that by his testimony and approbation, he might cause them (which formerly beleeved his Doctrine) to suspect him for an Impostor and Deceiver, and that he did his miracles by the helpe of some Familiar spirit. And indeed, if the good report of wicked men, who are set on worke by Sathan, did not derogate from the godly, or from the glory of God, Sathan should be divided against himselfe; and if Sathan be divided against himselfe, saith our Saviour, how shall his Kingdome stand? Now we know he seeketh to advance his Kingdome by all possible meanes, and consequently in this.
Wherefore if wee enjoy any wicked mans love, and have his good word, we may justly suspect our selves are faulty in one kinde or other; for 'tis sure he could not doe so, except he saw something in us like himselfe. If every thing were unlike him, how is it possible hee should love us? Difference breeds dis…ion, and sweet congruity is the Mother of love. This made Aristotle, when a Rakeshame told him, he would rather be hanged by the necke, than be so bated of all men as he was, reply, And I would be hanged by the neck, ere I would bee beloved of all, as thou art; And Phocion, to aske, when the people praised him, what evill have I done? It was a just doubt in him, and not an unjust in any that are vertuous like him; which occasioned one to say, their hatred I feare not, neither doe I regard their good will.
Secondly, a wicked mans tongue is so farre from being a slander, that it makes for our credit, to be evill spoken of by them. To be evill spoken of by wicked men, saith Terence, is a glorious and laudable thing; and another, It is no small credit with the vile, to have a vile estimation. As a wicked mans glory is his shame, so the godly mans sh…me (for doing good) is his glory: and to be evill spoken of for well-doing, is peculiar to good men; as Alexander used to speake of Kings. Yea, saith Epictetus, It is the highest degree of reputation, for a man to …eare evill when he doth well. And Job is of his judgement, which makes him say, If mine adversary should write a booke against me, would I not take it upon my shoulder, and bind it as a Crowne unto me? Yes, I would, &c. Job 31. …5, 36, 37. And who having the use of Reason, (especially sanctified) will not conclude, that Religion and Holinesse must needs be an excellent thing, because it hath such enemies as wicked men, and wicked spirits? What saith that Ethnick in Seneca, in this behalfe: Men speake evill of mee, but evill men. It would grieve me… if Marcus Cato, if wise Laelius, if the other Cato, or either of the Scipio…s, should speake so of me, but this as much comforts me: for to be disliked of evill men, is to be praised for goodnesse. Indeed, to heare that a good man speakes▪ evill of us, as its possible (though rare) from him to credit a false report, and so crediting it, to report it too goes to the very heart, and fetcheth from thence teares into the eyes; and into the mouth words of passion, and admiration: as when Caesar saw that Brutus was one of them that helped to stab him with bodkins in the Senate house, he cryed out, And art thou there my Son: but if a hundred other men doe the same, if wise, wee value it not. Why, O happy art thou, saith Pious Mirandula, who livest well amongst the bad; for thou shalt either win them, or silence them, or exasperate them▪ If thou win the… ▪ thou shalt save their soules, and adde to thy own glory; If thou silence them, thou shalt diminish of their torment, and prevent the contagion of their sinne; If thou exasperate them thereby to hate and traduce thee for thy goodnesse, then most happy: for thou shalt not onelyonly be rewarded according to the good which thou do'st, but much more according to the evill which thou sufferest. And S. Peter, If any man suffer as a Christian, (that is, for righteousnesse sake) let him not bee ashamed; but let him glorifie God in this behalfe, 1 Pet. 4. 15, 16. The reason is given by Saint A…stin, with whom this speech was frequent; They that backbite me, &c. doe against their wills increase my honour, both with God, and good men. Alas, the durty feet of such Adversaries, the more they tread and rub, the more lustre they give the figure graven in gold; their causelesse aspersions doe but rub our glory the brighter. And what else did Judas, touching Mary, when hee depraved her in our Saviours presence, for powring that pretious oyntment on his feet? John 12. which was the onelyonly cause, that in remembrance of her it should bee spoken to her praise, wheresoever the Gospell should bee preached throughout the whole world, Mar. 14. 9. O what a glorious renowne did the Traytors reproach occasion her? like as the treason of Pausanias, augmented the fame of Themistocles.
Yea, their evill report may possibly inrich a man; A friend of mine came to preferment by being reproached for his goodnesse, in the presence of a religious Gentleman.
And this is the hurt which lewde men doe to the godly, if they are godly wise that heare them; when they thinke to taxe, and traduce us; they doe in truth commend us, and we may say of their words, as he said of good fellowes, the better the worse, and the worse the better.
Indeed, swinish men may beleeve their mis-reports, because they are Judges; which for the most part will enquire no farther, but beleeve at first: but the wise know their tongues to be no slander; yea, they will either smell out the Serpents enmity in the relator, or spy out in his lyes one lame leg or other; as lyes are rarely without. And indeed, if ill tongues could make men ill, good men were in a bad taking.
Now to make some use of this point: If the language of wicked men must be read like Hebrew, backward, and that all good men do so for the most part, it being a sure rule, that whosoever presently gives credit to accusations, is either wicked himselfe, or very childish in discretion; then let us count their slanders, scoffes and reproaches the most noble and honourable badges and ensignes of honour and innocency that can be: And in case we are told that any such person doth raile on us, let our answer be, he is not esteemed, nor his words credited of the meanest beleever, which understands any thing of Sathans wiles.
Secondly, care not to have ill men speake well of thee, for if thou wert worse, thou shouldst heare better; if thou wouldest be as lewd as they are, thou shouldest never heare an ill word from them.
Thirdly, looke not to have every mans good word, since some are as deeply in love with vice, as others are with vertue: Besides, a man may as well draw all the aire into his mouth with a breath, and keep it: as purchase every mans good word.
Indeed, if a man were able, and willing to be at the charge; he might stop their mouthes with money: for Philip of Macedon having given a great reward to one that spake evill of him, was after that highly praised by him, which made him conclude, that it lieth in our selves, and in our owne power, either to be well, or ill spoken of; but this is not a remedy of Gods prescribing: besides, a man had better endure the soare, than be at such cost for a plaister. And thus wee see, that a man of a good life needeth not feare any who hath an evill tongue, but rather rejoyce therein; for he shall be praised of Angels in Heaven, who hath, by renouncing the world, eschewed the praises of wicked men on earth.