The Vanity of the Lives and Passions of Men, Chapter 8
CHAP. VIII.
Of the vanity of the paſsion of deſire.
AS the billows of the Sea rowl one after another till they break themſelves into fome againſt the clifts or rocks of the adjacent ſhores; even ſo the deſires of men drive away one another till they vaniſh away into the ſmok, becauſe the objects of their deſires are for the greater part but vanity; for not one man of a thouſand doth fix his deſires upon the right object, that can ſatisfie his deſires, and fill his heart with joy and content; and although mens deſires be as free as their thoughts; for the greateſt Tyrants have no power over them, yet there is an Eagle eye above, who ſearcheth the reins, that knows their deſires as well as their thoughts. Men ſhould therefore be very cautious in their deſires, ſith they proceed from the concupiſcible appetite, and are properly called Cupidity, and in plain Engliſh Coveteouſneſs; and how dangerous it is to deſire or covet any thing prohibited in the Law of God, I leave it to the judgment of the Reader; ſith in the Interpretation of our bleſſed Saviour, who was the beſt Interpretor of the Law that ever was upon earth, He that coveteth a woman to luſt after her, hath already committed adultery with her. If evil deſires then be ſo criminal, men ſhould be very wary how they fix their deſires, for they have a hand in all their paſſions,Senault in his uſe of paſſions, pag. 273. either to furniſh them with weapons, or with ſtrength to afflict them. And among all the reſt of the paſſions, there is not any which hath more branches, proceeding from one and the ſame root then this paſſion of Deſire; for if all the deſires of men were limited by their objects, the number of paſſions proceeding from the general paſſion of Deſire would be as numerous as a Swarm of Bees. I have already ſpoken of three of its branches, viz. firſt, Of the deſire of worldly honors: ſecondly, of the deſire of worldly riches: thirdly, Of the deſire of worldly pleaſures: the firſt being the paſſion of Ambition; the ſecond, the paſſion of Av…rice; the third the paſſion of Volupty: And now I ſhall ſpeak of the fourth branch, called Cupidity, which is of greater concernment then any; and therefore give me leave, for the better deſcription of it, to ſpeak of theſe particulars in order.
1. Of the definition of mens deſires.
2. Of the two eſſential cauſes of them.
3. Of their effects and proprieties.
4. Of the comfort that proceeds from the ſpiritual deſires.
Firſt, All the deſires of men may be reduced to theſe two heads or compriſed under Neceſſary, and Superfluous: The Neceſſary are limited, but the Superfluous have no bounds, becauſe they cannot be numbred: And this is the moſt approved definition of mens deſires: Deſire is nothing elſe but a paſsion that men have to attain to ſome good which they poſſeſs not, which they conceive to be convenient for them; The Biſhop of Marſulles pag. 206.And not withſtanding mens deſires are commonly fixed upon objects that ſeem good, but are really evil, becauſe the Senſes delude their Imagination, and often-times their Reaſion and Judgment: Now the paſſion of D…ſire differs not onelyonly from the paſſion of Love, but alſo from the paſſion of Delight, becauſe Love is the firſt motion or paſſion that intice … to proſecute the good,The definition f…nens deſires. whether it be preſent or abſent; but the d…ſire is a paſſion that enduceth men to proſecute the good that is abſent; and the paſſion of Delight is onelyonly a ſweet content of the poſſeſſion of the good,See Senault, pag. 27. after men have obtained the ſame. Senault ſaith. That the paſsion of Deſire is nothing elſe but the motion of the ſoul towards a good which ſhe already loveth, but doth not as yet poſſeſs; whereby it appears, that mens deſires are ordinarily fixed upon uncertainties, and that is the reaſon why I ſaid formerly, they often vaniſh into ſmoke.
Secondly, The two moſt eſſential cauſes of mens Deſires,The impotency of men, is a cauſe of their deſires. is their Impotency, and Diſcontentedneſs: for God who is Omnipotent hath no Deſires, and in the fruition of his bleſſed and glorious preſence is the end of mens deſires: And ſuppoſe he had deſires, yet the end of them would be his own incomprehenſible Beauty and Goodneſs: If God doth but Will, he hath the injoyment of his Deſire, as it is apparent inaGen. 1.3. Geneſis, And God ſaid, or God willed, Let there be light, and there was light. But it is not ſo with the greateſt Monarchs in the world, for through their impotency, they are inforced to deſire, and their wiſhes and deſires all are oftentimes rejected by him who is alſufficient to grant them the injoyment of their deſires:See Plutarch in A…randers lite. Alexander the Great was the greateſt Monarch upon earth, and yet his wiſhes and deſires, nay the prayers he made to his Idols, or imaginary gods, for the recovery of his dear and beloved Epheſtion were rejected, and theſe deſires did manifeſt his impotency.See Suetonius in Auguſtus life. Auguſtus Ceſar was the greateſt Monarch in the world, he wiſhed and deſired, that the overthrow given to his Legions in Germany might be vindicated, and out of impatiency of the performance of his deſire, he often like a mad man ſtamped with his feet upon the ground, Crying out, Varro, Varro, give me my Legions again; and yet in his life time he did never obtain his deſire: It appears then that the impotency of men in the moſt eminent, is a cauſe of their deſires:The diſcontentedneſs of men is a cauſe of their deſires. ſecondly, the diſcontentedneſs of men in their Station and Calling, is the cauſe of many fond deſires, for there is not one of a hundred that is contented with his condition, becauſe there are but few Diogenes in theſe days that are contented with a Tub to keep them free from the injuries of the air,See Plutarch in his Morals. or with a wooden-bowl to take their meat and drink, or refuſe as he did the great offers of ſuch a Prince as Alexander was; for being demanded by Alexander as he ſat in the Sun, what he did deſire he ſhould do for him, Nothing, ſaid he, but that you ſhould go out of my Sun, becauſe he ſhaded him from the Sun in a cold day. But their diſcontentedneſs breeds in them ſwarms of deſires, and makes them build Caſtles in the air; and yet is daily ſeen that our own wiſhes and deſires, and the wiſhes and deſires of our intimate friends do moſt commonly prove fatal unto us.
Thirdly, The proprieties and effects of mens deſires change according to the good and evil nature of their objects, and of their moderation, or diſtemper; for the neceſſary deſires of men, who are for the greater part harmleſs and innocent, become vicious if they be violent and irregular, which makes mens condition to be worſe then that of the unreaſonable creatures, for they have alſo natural and neceſſary deſires, or rather natural inclinations as well as men, but they are moderate in the greateſt part; for the Oxen,The propriety of natural deſires. Horſes, and Sheep have a natural and neceſſary deſire to their food; but when they have graſed ſufficiently to ſatisfie their hunger, they lye down and reſt themſelves, bounding their deſires with that meaſure and quantity of food as doth ſatisfie Nature: but men whom God hath indued with Reaſon, whereby they might better then they, moderate their deſires, give them neither bounds nor limits, many of them eating and drinking more then will ſuffice Nature, and by their exorbitant diſtemper, are oftentimes inforced (to eaſe Nature) to vomit up what they have eaten and drunk: Likewiſe the brute creatures are ſatisfied with the clothing that Nature hath beſtowed on them; the beaſt of the field with their Wooll or Hair, and the fowls of the air with their Feathers, but men are not contented with their natural skins, nor with woollen Cloth to keep them from cold, and from the injuries of the Meteors of the air, but their deſires long after vain and ſuperfluous garments of ſilk, and cloth of Silver and Gold, although the Indians are as healthful that go naked, as they who go gorgeouſly apparalled: and Montagnes records,See Montagnes Eſſais. That a French Begger, went for many years together ſtark naked through the ſtreets of Paris, having onelyonly a linnen cloth before his privy members,How mens deſires are multiplied. and when out of pity men gave him their old apparel, he ſold them away, and ſaid that Cuſtom made him prefer the clothing that Nature had given him to all other. Moreover, the Foxes and Conies are contented with their holes, the Tvgers and Lyons with their dens, and the Sheep, Horſes, and horned Beaſts with the ſhelter of Buſhes and Hedges; but men are not contented now adays with Cabins made of Boughs, of Reeds, or Flags, as many of the Indians are, or with thatched Houſes as their forefathers were, but they muſt have Palaces, and ſtately Houſes of a moſt exquiſite and excellent Structure: And theſe and many other like things do multiply their deſires, and do vex and diſquiet their minds in theſe very things which ſhould be free from vanity: but one of the c…efeſt proprieties of the ſuperfluous deſires, is,Pro. 3.16. That they are inſatiable, and harder to be ſatisfied, ſaith Salomon, then the Horſleech, the Grave, the Barren Womb, the Earth that is not filled with water, and the fire that ſaith not, it is enough: and daily experience doth ſhew, that if one deſire be obtained, that ſeven will ſucceed in his place, and that they are properly the Hydras heads, who the Poets feign, that when one was cut off ſeven came in its ſtead; even ſo, the greater ſucceſs men have in their deſires, the more they multiply them; for the quinteſſence of all the moſt excellent creatures under the Sun cannot ſatisfie the deſires and cupidity of men.The properties of the ſuperfluous deſires of men. Alexander the Great having conquered the greater part of the world, did inquire if there were any more worlds then one, his ambitious Cupidity being not ſatisfied with the conqueſt of this world, but aſpired to the conqueſt of another. And Ceſar having conquered the lower Aſia, Africa, and Europe in three years, his deſire was not ſatisfied, but aſpired to conquer alſo the Hyrcanians and Parthians inhabiting in the furtheſt parts of the upper Aſia: 1. Of their Inſatiableneſs.So inſatiable are the deſires of glory. Likewiſe Creſus the King of Lydia had heaped up unparallel'd treaſures, yet could not they ſatisfie the Cupidity of his deſires to increaſe his riches, but he undertook a war againſt Cyrus to augment them by the conqueſt of Jonia, the richeſt Province that was then in Aſia: but this deſire proved fatal unto him,2. That honor, riches, nor pleaſures can ſatisfy mens deſires. for he loſt his own Kingdom, and all his treaſures, and had loſt his life, without the mercy and clemency of Cyrus. Creſus alſo was the richeſt man that ever was at Rome, and yet his wealth could not ſatisfie his Cupidity, but longing ſtill after more, he loſt his life in the proſecution of the increaſe of them: neither can carnal pleaſures ſatiſfie the laſcivious deſires of men, as it doth appear in the effeminate lives of Sardanapalus, Tilegnius, Nero, and Heliogabalus, but rather caſt them into the abhorred delights againſt Nature, and from rational men, makes them become more brutiſh then beaſts.3. Of the ſwiftneſs and inconſtancy of mens deſires. Another propriety of mens ſuperfluous deſires, is, that they are ſwifter, and more inconſtant then the windes, for they have the ſame agility as the thoughts, who are here and there at an inſtant by the working of the imagination, and more fickle in the proſecution of their objects then the winds, for one object be it never ſo beautiful or pleaſant, cannot detain them long, but it becomes diſtaſtful and odious unto them, and by this they are inticed to ſeek after another, which they ſuppoſe to be more excellent then the former, when it is oftentimes more deformed, and of leſs worth, becauſe mens deſires delight moſt in Novelties,4. The extravagancy of mens deſires. and variety of changes. The next propriety of mens deſires is their Extravagancy, being rather guided by Fanſie, then by Reaſon, for they deſire commonly ſuch things as are moſt oppoſite, and contrary to their own good, and the welfare of their ſouls and bodies; for in their diet they love and deſire to eat of ſuch things as are moſt contrary to the preſervation of their health; & in their actions they deſire, and take more delight in thoſe which are more oppoſite to the ſalvation of their ſouls, their deſires being more violent after the pleaſures of the fleſh, then zealous or fervent after the ways of a godly life; ſo that mens deſires and inclinations are ever more addicted, and fixed upon the evill then upon the good, except the nature and propriety of them be changed by divine Grace.The effects of mens deſires. As for the effects of mens deſires, they are, as I have ſaid before, Good of Evil, according to their objects; but ſith it hath been proved that they are commonly fixed upon evil objects, their effects muſt of neceſſity be rather evil then good: If the honors of this world be their object, the fruits and effects of Adhbition is the deſolation of Kingdoms, the ſhedding of innocent blood, and the miſeries that follow civil and inteſtine wars: If their object be the riches of this world, their effects are carking cares, moiling and toyling, and vexation of minde in their acquiſition, and fears and apprehenſions in their keeping, and grief and ſorrow in the loſing of them. If the pleaſures of this world be their object, the effects wil be the waſting of their means, the impairing of their health, and the indangering of their ſouls. But if the object of their deſires be the glory of God, then their effects will be comfort in this life, and eternal bliſs in the life to come;The fruition of Gods preſence, is the onelyonly object that can ſatisfy the deſires of men. So that upon the good or bad election of the objects of mens deſires, depends their happineſs or woe in this life, and their torment or glory in the life to come: It behoveth men therefore to be wary upon what objects they fix their deſires, ſith there is not any thing under the Sun that can ſatisfy them; for if all the excellency of the creatures were abſtracted into one, yet it could not ſatisfy the deſires of men, ſich their ſoul is a ſpark of the divine eſſence that can never be free of the anxiety and perturbations of minde, that proceed from the inconſtancy, and reſtleſneſs of mens deſires, till by grace it doth injoy the ſight of the glorious preſence of God, the original Spring of it, who is the fulneſs and perfection of all bliſs, for that object onelyonly can ſatisfy the wiſhes and deſires of their ſouls.
Fourthly, The comforts that Chriſtians may receive in this life of their godly deſires are many, as it ſhall appear when I have perſwaded them to indevor to baniſh from their minde the ſwarms of vain deſires, that diſquiet the tranquillity of their ſouls, which may be done by theſe means: firſt, To hate and abhor all carnal deſires, for as long as they have a predominancy in their ſouls, it is impoſſible for them to have a feeling of the comforts proceeding from the ſpiritual deſires: for the fleſh having the maſtery over the ſpirit, it keeps theſe effects under hatches.Alluſion upon the 19. Pſalm. ver. 9, 10. But if men deſire the ſear of God, and prefer his Statutes and Judgments before the refined gold, and hold them ſweeter then hony, or the hony comb, they will by degrees obtain the dominion over their carnal deſires: The ſecond means is to indevor to obtain a contented minde, for diſcontentedneſs is the cauſe of the extravagancy of mens deſires, But godlineſs a1 Tim. 6.6.with contentment, ſaith St. Paul, is great gain; for the daily diſcontent of men makes them deſire they know not what; but when they are contented with their eſtate and condition in this life,Four means to contain mens deſires within their limits. their deſires aſpire higher, and endeavor to attain to the ſupream good, as the onelyonly object of mens deſires. The third means is to purifie their hearts; for as clean and pure ſtreams cannot proceed from a foul and muddy Spring, even ſo it is impoſſible that godly deſires ſhould ſpring from the hearts of men except they be purified and ſanctified by the Spirit of God; for as our bleſſed Saviour ſaith,bMatth 15.19. Out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, &c. and theſe are the effects of mens deſires, whoſe hearts are not purified by grace, becauſe the Concupiſcible appetite reſides in the heart; and this appetite is the ſpring or root of all the deſires of men. The fourth means is for men to ſet a watchful Centry over their eyes; for by the eye men perceive the objects, and the objects are the moving cauſe of mens deſires and Cupidities: by the eye King David ſaw the beauty ofc2 Sam. 11. ver. 2. Bathſhebah, by which he was tempted to luſt. Therefore men muſt make a covenant with their eyes as Job did,dJob 31.1. for they are the windows whereby mens laſcivious deſires are conveied into their hearts, and by theſe means, and the free grace of God, men will be able to keep their deſires within the limits preſcribed in his Word, from which wil proceede; firſt,Six comforts proceeding from the ſpiritual deſires of men. A true and real contentment of minde, which cannot be obtained as long as their vain deſires do interrupt the peace of their ſouls; for being freed of their extravagant deſires of Cupidity, They may, as St. Paul ſaith, be contented with that they have, ſith eHeb. 13.5.God hath promiſed that he will never leave nor forſake them: ſecondly, An unſpeakable inward joy: for being free from the continuall vexation proceeding from the irregularity of their deſires, whereby they have more liberty to beat the ways of righteouſneſs, and make their f2 Pet. 1.10.calling and election ſure, from which they were diſtracted by their worldly deſires: thirdly, A far greater conſolation, by the familiar communion they will have with their gracious God, then they had before, At whoſe right hand, ſaith the Prophet David, gPſal. 16.11.there are pleaſures for evermore: fourthly, A fervent deſire to walk in the ways of righteouſnes, and to ſeek the Lord in the night, and in the morning, as the Prophet Iſaiah ſaith,hIſa. 26.9. With my ſoul have I deſired thee in the night, yea, with my ſpirit within me will I ſeek thee early: fifthly, A certain aſſurance that their deſires ſhall be granted, ſith they have baniſhed their former vain, and extravagant deſires, as Salomon ſaith,iPro. 10.24. The fear of the wicked ſhall come upon him, but the deſire of the righteous ſhall be granted: ſixthly; A hunger and thirſt after righteouſneſs, whereby they ſhall be in love with all righteous duties, and be induced to kPſal. 1.2.meditate day and night in the Law of God; and by their conſtant habit in the ways of true piety, they ſhal be made partakers of this bleſſing of our bleſſed, SaviourlMatth. 5 6. Bleſſed are they which do hunger and thirſt after righteouſneſs, for they ſhall be filled, viz. with incredible joy, and unſpeakable comfort. It is then apparent that worldly deſires are but meere vanity and vexation of ſpirit, and that there is no true comfort but in the Spiritual, &c.