The Sacred Diary, Section 9 – Section 10
SECT. IX. When thou art putting on thy Clothes.
1. Conſider, that our firſt Parents in Innocency had no Garments. A Garment is both the Cover and the Witneſs of Man's Perfidiouſneſs and Treachery againſt God his Creator. Veſtimentum eſt primae hominis contrae Deum perfidiae tegumentum & teſtimonium, cum anteà homo nudus fuerit. Buxtorf.The Innocency of our firſt Parents was then a Garment to them; as they were without cloathing, ſo they wanted no cloathing; they were naked, and knew not that they were naked; but after they had ſinned, their Sin made them ſenſible of their Nakedneſs, and they made them Aprons of Leaves, ſeeking to hide that from their Eyes, which did diſpleaſe their Souls, and not being able to ſhun themſelves, they endeavoured to cover themſelves. But God himſelf, who was indulgent to them, cut out their firſt Sute, and cloathed them with the Skins of Beaſts. This is one uſe of Apparel, namely, to cover our Nakedneſs, and to hide our Body, which began to be ſhameful, when it ceaſed to be innocent.
The ſecond Uſe of Apparel is to ſhelter us from the Injury of the Seaſons, and to free our Bodies from the rigour of the Elements; for Man no ſooner violated God's Commandment, but all the Creatures rebelled againſt him; and thoſe four Bodies, whereof all our Bodies are compoſed, declared War one againſt another to afflict us, and breaking the Bounds which Nature had preſcribed them, intrencht one upon another, to the end their Diviſion might be our Puniſhment. Now Man was bound to make him clothes, he hunted wild Beaſts, and clothed himſelf with their Skins, and robbed his Subjects, that he might defend himſelf againſt his Enemies; and learn'd to his coſt, that no Apparel is proof for all ſeaſons, but that of Innocency. Here then let every Man ſee his own Fault in his Apparel, which is a ſenſible Token of his Diſobedience; and would he govern himſelf by Reaſon, he would (as it were) chaſtiſe his Body as oft as he puts on his Clothes. And yet many now ſeem to have a deſign to outbrave Divine Juſtice, to glory in its Puniſhments, to make that ſerve for their Glory, which ought to ſerve for their ſhame. Adam was never ſo aſhamed as when he was forced to cloath himſelf, the Skins he wore were the Apparel of a Penitent; he never cloathed himſelf, but he bewailed his Innocency; and when cold Weather made him put on more Clothes, he conſidered how the Irregularity of the Seaſons was the Puniſhment of his Sin. In ſordibus agebat Eva, ipſam ſe circumferens lugentem & panitentem, ignominiam primi delicti, & Invidiam perditionis humanae omni ſatisfactionis habitu expiabat. Tertul. de habitu Mulier.His Wife knew not as yet the Art of trimming and decking her ſelf; all her Daughters Eloquence could not perſwade her, that that which was a Puniſhment of her Diſobedience ſhould add unto her Beauty. If thy Clothes or Ornaments are commendable, the Praiſe is rather due to thoſe that made them, than to thoſe that wear them. Whoſoever prides himſelf in a Sute of Apparel, intrencheth upon his Tailor's right; and who values himſelf the more for the Stuff or Silk that he wears, injures the Worms that ſpun it, or the Workmen that wrought it. Our Glory ought to be within us, In homine laudandum quod ipſius eſt Seneca.(ſaith Seneca); and we ought not to be proud of a thing which we forgo as oft as we put off our Clothes.
2. When you are putting on your Clothes upon your Bodies, let this put you in mind of putting on Chriſt, as St. Paul exhorteth, Rom. 13. ult. Put on Chriſt by Faith in Juſtification for Righteouſneſs, for he is made unto us of God, wiſdom and Righteouſneſs. As many as have been baptized into Chriſt, they have [thus] put on Chriſt, Gal. 3.27. This is our beſt Clothing, even our Wedding-Garment. Iſa. 61.10. I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my Soul ſhall be joyful in my God, for he hath clothed me with the Garment of Salvation; he hath covered me with the Robes of Righteouſneſs, as a Bridegroom decks himſelf with Ornaments, and as a Bride arrayeth her ſelf with her Jewels. Happy are they who are thus cloathed, for they ſhall never be found Naked.
3. When you are putting off your old Clothes, ſee that ye put off the Old Man with all his Works, Col. 3.9. That ye put off concerning the former converſation the Old Man, Epheſ. 4.22, 24.which is corrupt according to the deceitful luſts. Look as it is in Apparel, we muſt firſt put off an old Sute, before we can draw on a New; ſo here, we muſt put off the Old Man, that is, the old quality of our whole Nature.
Here meditate, That you are covered with Sin, as with a Garment: As a Garment covers us, ſo Sin covers us: But it is not this or that Garment; not like an Hat that doth only cover the Head, nor like a Glove that doth cover the Hand only; or like a Boot that doth cover the Leg only; or like a Skirt that doth only cover the Loyns, but it is like a Garment that covereth us allover Head and Hands, Loyns and Legs. As Children are ſwadled and lapt over in Clouts, ſo are we in Sin, and that from the Crown of the Head to the Soles of the Feet, as the Prophet ſpeaketh. Now ſeeing we are covered with Sin as with a Garment, as we would caſt off a Garment, ſo muſt we caſt off Sin. The Prophet Iſaiah ſpeaking of our Righteouſneſſes, calleth them filthy Rags; how filthy then be our Sins? We muſt ſtrip our ſelves of them, and inſtead of them get to have fair Robes put upon us; as Joſhua the …igh Prieſt came out firſt in filthy Garments, but thoſe being taken off, fair Robes were put upon him.
We muſt not lay our Sins aſide, as we uſe to lay our Garments aſide; we lay our Garments off at Night, and put them on uſually in the Morning: We have our Sabbath-Day Garments, and our Working-day Garments; thoſe we wear one day in the Week, theſe all the Week long; we muſt not do thus by our Sins. And yet I would there were not thoſe that did thus, they lay off their Sins, as they lay off their Garments. Indeed they go off at Night, ſo long as they are aſleep they think not of them, but in the Morning they go on again, and walk familiarly in them; or they ſhall off upon the Sabbath-day perhaps. When their Sabbath-day Clothes are on, then they go as if they were covered with Zeal and Devotion; but with their Week-day Sutes, they put on their Week-day ſins, and then day after day, they as commonly practiſe the one, as they wear the other. As we are exhorted to put on Chriſt, ſo having put him on, we muſt keep him on, and not when we liſt put him off again; we are not ſo to put off Sin, as when we liſt to put it on again; rather put on Shame, than put on Sin. In a word, Though you are to caſt off Sin like a Garment, yet not like a wearing Garment, for then you will one time or other get it about you again; but like a rotten Garment, like a menſtruous Garment, like a leprous Garment, like a diſeaſed Garment, like a Priſon-Garment; as Joſeph left his Priſon Garments when he was brought before Pharaoh, and when they were once put off, never put them on again. So ſhould we leave off our Sins, not only ſeponere, but deponere, not only lay them apart, but quite caſt them away, never to reſume them any more.
SECT. X. When you are going to dreſs your ſelves.
THink with your ſelves, how Pride, and the vain Faſhions of the Times, do draw many into ſuch a garb of Attire, as makes them long in dreſſing them in the Morning; and this do you reſolve againſt, and do you wear ſuch Habits as may be ſoon put on. Our firſt Parents were clad in Beaſts Skins; the Prophets wore rough Garments; and John Baptiſt was clothed in Camels Hair; and many of the Ancients ſay, That the Bleſſed Virgin had a mean Habit, only to cover her Nakedneſs, not to adorn her Body. The Lacedemonians had a Law, that none but Harlots might wear rich Apparel, that honeſt Women might be brought out of love with Bravery, and not ſpend much time in decking themſelves. It is a piece of great folly, to ſpend ſo much time in the Morning in decking and adorning the Body, that muſt ere long be a diſh for Worms, and paſs away many Days, Weeks, Months, and Years, altogether neglecting the Soul that muſt live for ever. If Saint Paul durſt not glory but in the Croſs of Chriſt, how dareſt thou to pride thy ſelf, and ſpend much time about theſe Vanities?
Conſider with thy ſelf, what is the deſign of thoſe who delight in ſumptuous Apparel, and ſpend ſo many Hours in trimming themſelves, is it not to pleaſe thoſe who look upon them, to entangle Souls in their Nets? Indeed Women do not care to Dreſs themſelves when they are alone; Solitarineſs is an enemy to Pomp: as Peacocks cloſe up their Plumes, when no body beholds them; ſo theſe do neglect their Dreſſing when no body admires them: And when they have neither Spectators to obſerve them, nor any to flatter them, Self-love is not of force enough to make them long or curious in Dreſſing themſelves. It is better to go in our Habits as the wild Indians, than have thoſe precious hours of the Morning (eſpecially on the Lord's Daies) to anſwer for, as too many Ladies and other Gallants have; yea, and thoſe that affect to wear fantaſtical Habits above their degree. It is dearbought Bravery, that muſt every day take up an hour, or half an hour of our precious time extraordinary, as one noteth.