A Godly Form of Household Government, Part 7
The Seruants dutie towards their Maisters.
THis dutie confisteth in three points:
1. First, that seruants and apprentises do frō their hearts, cheerefully, and willingly, performe the labours and workes that their maisters, mistresses, or dames, shall command them.
2. Secondly, that they be faithfull in things committed to them by their maisters, mistresses or dames, that so they may keepe their goods.
3. Thirdly, that they be carefull to obserue vprightnesse of manners, that the wife, sonnes and daughters, or other fellow seruants, be not corrupted by their bad counsels, or lewd behauiour.
These points are plainely proued by these places of Scripture quoted in the margine: Eph 6.5.6.7.8 Col. 3.22.23.24 Tit. 2.9.10. 1 Pet. 2.18.19.20.21.whereby seruants are straightly charged, reuerently, and faithfully to obey their bodily maisters, mistresses, and dames, in all things which may be done without offence to God. And this obedience and seruice must be done with feare 1. Tim. 6. 1. 2. Luk. 17. 7. 8. 9and trembling, in singlenesse of heart, as vntounto Christ, they being … with a reuerence to Godward, as though they serued God himselfe, and that as well in the absence of their maisters, mistresses or dames, as in their presence: not constrainedly, as it were forced or compelled thereto, but heartily and with good will, as they that serue the Lord, and not men: not onelyonly in respect of the earthly reward, but because they know, and are assured, that of the Lord they shall receiue the reward of inheritance, in as much as they serue the Lord Christ. So that hereby all godly seruants, may in few words learne what dutie they owe to their maisters, mistresses, and dames: namely, to louelove them, and to be affectioned towards them, as a dutifull child is to his …: to be reuerent 1. King. 5. 13. The property of a good seruant.and lowly to them in their words and gestures, to suffer and forbeare them: to obey with readie and willing mindes all their lawfull and reasonable commandements: to feare them, and to be loth to displease them: to be faithfull and trustie to them and theirs: in deedes and promises, to be diligent and seruiceable: to speake cheerefully: to answer discreetly: not ouer boldly to dallie with their maisters wife, daughters, or maidens: to be loyall and dutifull to their maisters, mistresses and dames: as Iacob was towards Laban, and Ioseph towards Gen. 29. 18. 19. 20. & 39. 5. &c.Potiphar. And they must carefully endeuour to do and procure, to the vttermost of their abilitie, that which may be to their maisters, mistresses, and dames honestie, credit and profit, and that as well when they are absent and out of sight, as when they be present and looke on. This is a qualitie and propertie belonging to eueryevery good seruant, both men and maides: to wit, that whatsoeuer goods or necessaries of their maisters, mistresses, or dames, they shall hauehave charge of, as committed to their trust and keeping; they carefully see such things so well and orderly placed, and laid vp, that if there shall be at any time any iust occasion to vse any necessary in their custodie: yea, if it be in the night season, and that without a light, they then not onelyonly can say, in such a place it lyeth, but also, if they be required, they can presently fetch the same.
Seruants must take heede that they do not … and willingly anger or displease their maisters, mistresses, or dames, which if they do, then they ought incontinent and forthwith to reconcile themselues vntounto them, and to aske them forgiuenesse. They must also forbeare them, and suffer their angrie and hastie words, and in no wise answer againe spitefully or scornefully, neither yet vponupon any such occasion run away For the Angell taught and willed Hagar the seruant of Sarah, when she fled from Gen. 16. 7. 8. ….her mistresse, that she should returne and humble her selfe vnderunder the hands of her mistresse. So did Saint Paul make agreement betwixt Onesimus a vagabond and theeuish seruant, and sent him againe to his maister Philemon, from whom Phil. 10. &c.he was fled away: and it is probable that he admonished Onesimus to submit himselfe to his maister.
Seruants & apprentices therfore according to the rule of Gods word, must patiently beare, and forbeare their maisters, mistresses, and dames, & do whatsoeuer lawfull thing they shall command them, not being against a good conscience. And therefore they must remember, how How far forth seruants ought to obey their maisters.farre foorth they are bound to obey their maisters, that is, Vsque ad aras: so farre as Christian religion suffereth, and so far forth as they may do it with an vpright conscience: for otherwise, if their maisters shall command them to do any thing that is vnhonest, vnlawful, wicked, vniust, or vngodly, then they must in no wise obey it, 1. Sam. 20. 28. &c. and 22. 17. Dan. 3. 18. Act. 4. 19. and 5. 29.
The conditions of a good maid-seruant, are, that she be carefull, faithfull, patient, neat, and pleasing, that she be …, quicke, and handsome, and of few words, honest in her word, deed, and attire: diligent in an houshold, and hauehave skill in washing, …, brewing, sowing, and spinning, but chiefly in holding her peace.
Seruants must lay apart all euill conditions, as pride, vnfaithfulnesse, brawling, murmuring, lying, swearing, and filthie communication, picking, stealing, and tales telling.
If seruants would carefully marke and learne, Mat. 8 9.and so diligently practise these three short lessons following: so doing (no doubt) they might both procure and purchase much quietnesse to themselues, and also winne and get the great good will and liking of their maisters, mistresses, and dames thereby: First, that they would cheerfully go when they are bidden. Secondly, that they would come willingly and readily when they be called. And lastly, that they would remember to shut and sparre the doores after them. The neglect and omitting of this last dutie, may haply be thought no great matter: but if such as be housekeepers will carefully obserue it, they shall finde, that they sustaine both lesse and hinderance by it.
And because it sometime hapneth, that one And among seruants, to helpe and ease of one another necessarie.seruant is too much charged with labour and worke, and another of his fellowes hath more ease then worke, one therefore should helpe another, as we see by vse in our owne bodies, when one leg is weary, we can rest it on the other, or when the right hand is ouerlaboured, we can ease it with the left: and when entercourse of louelove and curtesie intreates and perswades not this fauour and kindnesse amongst them, then should the maister himselfe command the negligent and loytering seruant, to helpe and ease the weary, and him that is well imployed and ouer-charged.
Againe, seruants are to be admonished and Seruants must to the vttermost of their power, seek the commodity & benefit of their maisters.put in mind, that they do not (as some do without all conscience) make spoile and hauock of their maisters goods, wittingly, and willingly: neither yet that they suffer any of those things that they are put in trust with, through their heedlesnesse and retchlesse, to be marred and lost: but specially that they do not make spoile and wast of such broken meate as remaineth after their meales or at other times: which doing, is not onelyonly an hinderance to their maisters profit, but also a great offence to God, who commandeth that such broken meate as remaineth, be gathered vp and saued, that so nothing be lost. loh. 6. 12. Therefore to conclude, let seruants & apprentises, both men and maids, assure themselues, that as they deale and behaue thē selues to their maisters, mistresses or dames, and their goods, whilest they are seruants, so likewise the Lord in iustice will cause their seruants to deale and behaue themselues to them when they shall come to be maisters or dames themselues, so punishing sinne with sinne.
And as religious and godly maisters be very Mat. 7. 2.warie and circumspect, when they hire and entertaine any seruants into their seruice, that they be such as be godly, honest and religious, or at least such as will be tractable and obedient to such good order and godly gouernment, as is, or shall be vsed & exercised daily in their houses, but contrariwise, such maisters as be prophane and irreligious, hauehave no care or regard whom they hire or receiue into their houses, so they will fit & serue their turne for gaine and profit, though they be neuer so Iewd, vicious, or vngodly in word or deed: so likewise, such as are Christian and religious seruants, ought also to be very warie and carefull, that they do not place themselues with any such maisters as are prophane and wicked, or in such townes and parishes where there wants good meanes, and exercises both of preaching and catechising, whereby they may daily profit and go forward in that good course which they hauehave begun: whereas on the other side, such seruants as are without God, irreligious and ignorant of the meanes of their saluation, care not where, or with whom they dwell: nay, they will not with their good wils, come to dwell either in that towne, or with those maisters, where they shall be restrained and kept from swearing, dicing, carding, tabling, prophaning of the Lords day, and other such wickednesse: who in thus doing, do flie from God, and seeke and follow after their owne destruction.
FINIS.
End of the text · Robert Cleaver, A Godly Form of Household Government (1621)