Tropes and Figures, Treatise 1 · Head 8 · Part 31 · Subpart 21 – Parallels
Wicked Men naked.
Ezek. 16.8. — And covered thy Nakedneſs, &c.
Verſe 22. Thou haſt not remembred the Days of thy Youth, when thou wert naked and bare, &c.
Rev. 3.17. — Poor, and blind, and naked, &c.
THere is a twofold Nakedneſs, viz. an external, and an internal Nakedneſs; the Nakedneſs of the Soul, as well as of the Body.
Parallels.
I. NAkedneſs ſince the Fall doth not only import not having of Clothes, but the Want of Clothes. As Adam before he fell, had no Clothes, ſo he needed none; his Nakedneſs was an Ornament to him; but no ſooner had he ſinned, but he ſaw the want of a Garment: So all ungodly Men are not only without ſpiritual Clothes, but they exceedingly need them; as they have no Righteouſneſs to cover them, ſo 'tis their Miſery. 'Tis a lamentable thing to be naked, and 'tis a far more grievous thing to be ſpiritually naked, to have no real and divine Cover for the Soul.
II. The Shame, Deformity, and all natural Filthineſs of a naked Perſon doth appear; 'tis viſible, and he is thereby expoſed to Reproach: So the Shame, Deformity, and Vileneſs of wicked Men, who are ſpiritually naked, (having not the Righteouſneſs of Chriſt to cover them) doth appear; and this expoſeth them to Shame and Reproach. Sin is the Shame of any People. To ſee a Man naked,Prov. 10 … that hath a rotten and polluted Carcaſe, full of Sores and ſtinking Ulcers, is a loathſom Sight: But ſuch is the State of the Souls of ungodly Men, they are naked, and their inward Filthin…ſs lies fully open to the Eyes of the great God, nay, and much of it appears to the Sight of Men; ſpiritually there is no Soundneſs in them, from the Crown of their Heads to the Soles of their Feet,Iſa. 1.6. nothing but Wounds, Bruiſes, and putrifying Sores.
III. A naked Perſon is expoſed to the Extremity both of Cold and Heat. Clothes ke…p the Body warm in Winter, and defend from the parching Heat in Summer; and he that is without them, from hence is in a miſerable Condition; every Blaſt pinches him, the Sun ſcorches him, &c. So wicked Men lie open to the dreadful Wrath of God, which is ſet forth in Scripture by Things extreme in their Nature, both in reſpect of Heat and Cold. O how unable will theſe naked Souls be to abide the Day of God's Wrath, or to ſtand before him who is a conſuming Fire! The Righteouſneſs of Chriſt will be as a Cover and Screen between the Saints, and the devouring Flames of God's Anger: but wicked Men have no Defence, no Screen nor Cover; they are naked, expoſed not only to the Shame of every Eye, but to the direful Effects of God's dreadful Wrath and Vengeance, &c. whilſt they live, and when they die, and for ever.
IV. A naked Man is expoſed to great Danger by his Enemies; every ſmall Blow may wound him, who hath nothing on to defend him from it; every ſmall Prick will make him bleed: But much greater Danger is he in by great Strokes, and Thruſts of Swords and Spears, and by Arrows and Darts that Enemies may let flie againſt him; his Condition is not full of Shame, but alſo full of Danger: So wicked Men, who are ſpiritually naked, are expoſed to great Danger from the Enemies of the Soul. (1.) Sin, nay, every Sin wounds him; the leaſt Sin makes a Wound in his Soul, what Wounds then do great Sins make! (2.) Conſcience wounds him, and laſhes him ſorely. (3.) Satan lets flie his fiery Darts and Arrows againſt him, and wounds him to the very Heart, and, like an hungry Lion, tears his Soul (as it were) to pieces. (4.) Death and Wrath wound him, he having nothing to defend him from any of theſe, &c.
V. A naked Perſon is not fit for any Employment; he is not fit to fight, nor fit to labour: So ſuch who are ſpiritually naked, are not fit for any ſpiritual Service; they can neither work for God, nor ſuffer for God, nor reſiſt Sin and Satan; they are not fit for any Society of ſpiritual Men, but are unſpeakably miſerable every way.
Diſparity.
NAked Men deſire Clothes, they will beg hard for ſomething to cover their Nakedneſs: But the Wicked are unſenſible of their Nakedneſs, and therefore ſeek not to be cloathed; nay, like mad Men, refuſe Raiment. We read, Luke 8.27. of a Man poſſeſſed with a Legion of Devils, and the Text ſaith, he wore no Clothes; his Madneſs is evidenced by that, he would ſuffer no Clothes to be put upon him. 'Tis a Sign Men are ſpiritually poſſeſſed with a Legion of Devils, that refuſe to put on the Garment of Faith and Holineſs to cover their Nakedneſs. Theſe Garments are held forth every day to be ſold (without Money, and without Price) in the Miniſtry of the Word; but ſo mad are ungodly Men, they had rather go naked, than lay hold on them, and put them on. And is it not juſt, that ſuch Men ſhould be buried in Hell,Iſa. 55.1, 2 Rev. 3. in their own Rags, that will not embrace Chriſt and Holineſs, that they may be cloathed with eternal Salvation?
Wicked Men compared to Vipers.
Mat. 3.7. O Generation of Vipers, &c.
JOhn Baptiſt calls the Scribes and Phariſees, and other wicked Men of the Jews, Vipers; not only Vipers, but a Seed and Generation of Vipers. Some think, he alludes to the Devil, that old Serpent, whoſe Off-ſpring they were: Ye are of your Father the Devil, John 8.&c. But others rather think, he compares them to the Serpent called the Viper, upon conſideration of divers Properties, wherein there is a fit reſemblance between it and them, &c.
Parallels.
THe Viper is a moſt poyſonous Creature:Act. 28.5. when the Barbarians ſaw the Viper ſtick on Paul's hand, they looked upon him as a dead Man; their Biting is accounted mortal: So the Wicked are a very deſtructive and murderous Generation of Men; their bitter Words, and cruel Slanders, are like deadly Venom; The Poyſon of Aſps is under their Tongues. David complains of the Ungodly upon this account, Whoſe Tongue (ſaith he) is as a ſharp Sword. Sin is compared to Poiſon: Their Poiſon is like the Poiſon of a Serpent, &c. The Tongue (ſaith James Jam. 3.8.) is full of deadly Poiſon. And if this be the Nature of their Words, what are their Works!Pſal. 57.4. If Poiſon be in their Words, what Poiſon is in their Blows, and curſed Bitings! Their Teeth are Spears and Arrows.
II. The Viper devours Scorpions, and thereby the Poiſon becomes ſtronger: So the Phariſees and Sadduces, taking in the poiſonous Opinions of their corrupt Rabbins, by adding their own, encreaſed the Poiſon of their vile Errors. Blackwood.
III. The Viper hath a beautiful Skin, tho inwardly very venemous: So thoſe Phariſees, like other painted Hypocrites, made a fair Shew in the Fleſh, appeared devout, and glorious to Men, but were inwardly full of the Poyſon of Luſt, and abominable Error.
IV. Young Vipers (as Ariſtotle, Pliny, Rhodogin, Ariſtot, Hiſt. of Anim. lib. 8. ch. 29.and others affirm) eat their way into the World through their Mothers Belly, (tho ſome ſeem to doubt of the Truth of this generally received Opinion): So the Scribes, and Phariſees cried out, We are Abraham's Children, &c. and from thence concluded, they were meet Subjects for Baptiſm, and ſhould be ſaved: They, like Vipers, as one obſerves, would needs find a way to Heaven through the Bowels of their Anceſtors,Plin. lib. 10. p. 62. Rhod lib. 3. cap. 37. or by the Faith of their Parents:Mat. 3.7, 9. but what ſaid the Baptiſt? O Generation of Vipers, &c. Think not to ſay within your ſelves, We have Abraham to our Father, &c. Or as another worthy Writer obſerves upon the place: As the Viper eats (ſaith he) through the Bowels of his Dam, that they may come to Life; ſo you Scribes and Phariſees kill your Mother, the Synagogue, your Fathers, the Prophets, and faithful Teachers, that you may live in your Pride and Covetouſneſs. —
V. Geſner, and divers others, affirm, that the Female Viper is the worſt,Hierom. and her Biting more deadly than the Males; after the biting of the Male there are but two Holes, but after the biting of the Female there are four. See the Verſes of Nicander.
But of the Vipers Brood, the Female is the worst,
Which, as it were, with greater Wrath doth burn;
And therefore when ſhe bites, makes Bodies more accurſt,
Inflicting hurtful Wounds, to Vehemency turn'd;
Rolling her Bulk and Tail more oft about,
Whereby a ſpeedier Death doth Life let out.
This may aptly be applied to many curſed Women, who, of all the viperous Generations of curſed Monſters, have, in divers Ages of the World, appeared in their venemous Rage and Malice againſt the Innocent, worſe than Men. I might give you a Catalogue of them, if needful. As ſome Women who are gracious, ſeem to excell Men in Zeal and Love, and other divine Vertues: So ſome Women, when very wicked, and left to themſelves, exceed moſt Men in horrid Abomination, &c.