The first Sermon.

YE heard in my reading the last Sabbath, by occasion of the forerunning verse, how odious before God, & hatefull in his sight, the sinne of hypocrisie, and dub­blenesse of mind is: especially in religion, & in the seruice of God: when men will beare fayre wether with the world, and seeme to carry good mindes, and vpright affections towards Sion, the true Church of God, and yet secretly worke the daūgerous effect of thornes and prickes to the sides thereof. As also when men wil make their professi­on, and religion, as it were a shipmans hose, and an indiferent thing, swearing by the Lord, and by Malcham, Zephan. 1.5. 1 Kings. 18.21. and halting be­twixt two opinions, as the people whome sometimes Eliah the Prophet sharpely re­prooued because they cared not whether [Page] they worshipped God, or Baall, and past not whether they serued God altogether, or in parte, with whom many of this our age doe iumpe, & ioyne hands, who make conscience of no religion: for whether it be the light of y ^e Gospel, or the blindnes of poperie and su­perstition that preuayleth, they esteeme not, so that it serue for their commoditie, and ad­uantage, hauing a heart, and a heart, as the Greeke worde significantly importeth, [...]. one for the olde lawe, and another for the newe learning, as they tearme it. But we shewed, and prooued both by testimonies, & exam­ples, that as the sinne of such men is great, so is their ende horrible, and their punish­ment greeuous many times in this life. And in the conclusion of my former lecture, it was further declared, that as it hapeneth in the ordinarie vse, or rather abuse of othes, that the man which is a common swearer will not sticke sometimes for his profite to forsweare himselfe, the same sinne being increased by practise, and by custome grow­en to an habite in him: and as it comes to passe also amongst murderers, who ma­king no conscience of the slaughter of inno­cent children, or seruants, will make no bones to proceede further, namely to im­brue [Page] their hands in the guiltlesse blood of greater personages, Mat. 21.33. &c. as appeareth by the pa­rable of the vineyard let out to the husband­men, who hauing slayne the houshoulders seruants, did not spare to commit the like outrage, against his sonne, and heyre, repre­senting the progresse of malice in the Iewes, who hauing murdred the prophets, crucified at last the Messias also, Heb. 1.1. Mat. 23.32 the heyre of all things, & so fulfilled the measure of their fa­thers: euen so it falleth out in the sinne of hy­pocrisie, that he that commonly exerciseth double dealing, and dissimulation in world­ly matters, will smell also of the same in the seruice of God, putting no difference be­twixt the holinesse of religion, and the pro­phanenesse of his ordinarie dealings: so that whether he vseth prayer, or frequenteth ser­mons to heare, or whether he fasteth, and gi­ueth almes, or whatsoeuer else is done by him in this case, it is done in that sort as the counterfaite shewe of great deuotion was made by the people of Iuda, who although they vsed to say the Lord liueth, Ier. 5.2. yet they did sweare falsely, & as in that one, so in al other religious matters, they plaide the hy­pocrits. And of such y ^e prophet Dauid spea­keth in y ^e excellent Psalme, contayning the [Page] summe of al the benefites of the Lord, shew­ed, and extended to his people the posteri­tie of Abraham, they remembred (saith he) that God was their strength, Psal. 78 35.36.37. and the most high God their redeemer, but they flatte­red him with their mouth, and dissembled with him with their tongue, for their heart was not vpright with him, neither were they faithfull in his couenant. Meaning that their double dealing in his seruice was such, and so great, as that they ranne vnto him, and sought him early, as though they had beene very holy, and religious, but all was for feare of punishment, and not for a­ny hearty loue, or obedience, that they did carry towards God. Whereby together with other reasons, I confirmed the former sententious speech of Iames in the 8. verse, that a double minded man is vnstable not in one but in all his wayes: and so infer­ring an exhortation, and direction, to pray vnto God to auoid, and flye from all the pointes and partes of hyprocrisie, and dou­blenesse of heart, I ended for that time. Yt now followeth in the 9. verse. Let the bro­ther of lowe degree reioyce. &c. In which words, the Apostle in my opinion seemeth to returne to the argument of ioy and pati­ence [Page] to be vsed of vs in our aflictions wher­of as you haue already heard, he intreated before in the 2.3. & 4. verses of this present chapter. Which argument he hath hitherto left, & broken of, with purpose to take away such obiections as might be made and fra­med preiudiciall to the same doctrine and matter. For if you would for a triall as it were strike, and race out the verses interpo­sed betwixt this 9. and the 4. then it would euidently appeare, and ye should easily finde that this present verse is in good order and artificiall method, added & applied to the 4. verse: for there the Apostle speaketh of pati­ence, & of perfection in patience consisting in perseuerance in the time of trouble and aduersitie, and now in this verse he comes backe againe to the same argument, and proceedeth therein for the further comfort & consolation of the afflicted. And knowing that amongst all the crosses and calamities of this life, the crosse of pouertie and of wāt in respect of cōmon necessaries, is both very generall and very grieuous also, yea to the weake shoulders of flesh & blood almost intollerable, insomuch that many times, yea dayly we see those of that state, which are not preuented with the grace of God nor go­uerned [Page] by the spirit, and so not perswaded to relie vppon the prouidence of God, and to content themselues with their poore condi­tion, do breake the walles of obedience, and runne headlong into vnlawful actions and thereby into the daunger of the lawes, see­king to satisfie themselues by thefte, and to relieue themselues by robbery, and often­times murther the consequence thereof, ra­ther then stand to the miseries, and indigen­gencies of their vnfortunate place, the holy Apostle hauing a special consideration here­of, doth heare by his counsell, and perswasi­on labour to cure this malady, and to apply a salue to the sore of the poore man, deliue­ring his mind freely and sufficiently in the matter. And if we do w ^t diligence consider, and with iudgment examine the contents of these verses, we shal finde y ^t the Apostle doth heare make, & institute a cōparison betwixt those two diuers things, which oftentimes are occasions of temptations & prouocations to some disorders & mischiefes in those men which are within the compasse of the same, namely pouertie, & riches, of the first wherof he speakes in this 9. verse, of y ^e other in the sequell of the place, so that I take the dispo­sition and order of these verses consisting of [Page] three seueral points to be this. First y ^e Apo­stle doth enter into a course of schooling the poore man shewing him by direction, with what minde he is to take, and to beare the crosse of his pouertie and howe to behaue himselfe in the state and time of his low de­gree: that is, he is not to fire his eyes, and to looke onely vpon the vilenesse, and basenesse of his condition, and to dwell still vpon the consideration of his pinching necessities, but he is to take another, and better course, namely to erecte and lifte vp his minde in some heauenly meditation, to take as it were a spirituall view of that immortall in­heritance, and celestiall possession, wherein he shal be ioyned partener with al the faith­full and children of God, if he practise con­tentation, patience, obedience, & godlines in y ^e course of y ^e simple life, whereby it pleaseth God for a time to try & to humble him. In y ^e second place he vndertaketh y ^e admonishing & aduising of y ^e rich man also, teaching him w ^t what mind he is to take, & in what sort to vse the blessing, & abundance of his riches, to wit, he is not by occasiō therof to exalt him­self in his conceit, & to lift himself vp in an o­piniō of his happines, as though y ^t his welth should for euer continue w ^t him, & he with it, [Page] but he is to know that as his life is vncer­taine, so is his riches, forasmuch as the Lord giueth both, and taketh both away at his pleasure: so that he is not to ware proud or to growe arrogant, vpon the tast and fee­ling of the felicitie of this life, but rather to be meekly spirited, in y ^e time of his greatest florishing, as knowing that although he be now at this present in much prosperitie, & hoysed vp to the top and mount of good for­tune, yet he may suddenly be turned downe to miserie, and stript of all that now he pos­sesseth. Thirdly, and lastly, least the Apostle should seeme to speak this without his war­rant and euidence, he doth in the latter parte of the tenthe verse, produce a reason as an amplification of the doctrine, to fortifie his assertion withall, which is done by way of similitude consisting of the qualitie and na­tur of a common flower of the grasse, repre­senting the weake state, and short durance of humane prosperitie: then which flower ye know your selues there is nothing more mutable, and subiect to a change, by reason of the small force, and substance that it hath to abide, and stand, in his beautie: for al­though it spread it selfe gloriously in the morning, and seeme to be the thing, where­in [Page] nature hath labored to shew all her skill, yet the heate of the sunne when it riseth o­uermatcheth the glorie thereof, and makes it quickly to wither, and come to nothing. Such is the rich man, and his riches. So that by this onely diuision, and resolutiō of the verses ye may well conceiue what no­table, and necessary matter is lodged and contayned in them. Being such, as doth concerne all estates, and respect all de­grees, high and lowe, rich and poore, the no­ble personage and the poorest cotager, all and euery one may herehence learne a di­rection for his life, and furnish his minde with a sufficient treasure of instructions, how & after what maner to dispose of him­selfe, and his doings in the best sort to the glorie of God, and the euerlasting comfort of his soule. The poore man because of his wants and defectes is not to despaire: the rich man by reason of his aboundance, and fuperfluities is not to presume of himselfe, and his abilitie: the honorable is to temper his high degree with humblenesse of minde, the Iazar or miserable creature, to mitigate, and qualifie his smart by the vse of pati­ence, as hereafter in the processe of our speech yee shall see, by the grace of God, [Page] more at large.

Concerning therfore the first of our parts, although the Apostles phrase be here singu­ler, seeming to speake of some special or per­ticuler person, yet by cōferring other places with it of the same forme of wordes, and by considering the reach of the doctrine to ex­tend generally to all, I doubt not but they are plurally to be taken, and conserued. For the propositiō being indefinite, and the con­sequence of the place so ioyntly, and sensibly depending vpon the precedence it cannot be but equiualent, and the same with an vni­uersall speech. To acquaint you with my meaning in plaine termes, albeit the Apostle doth heare say let the poore man, or brother of lowe degree reioyce, it is all one, or as much as if he had said, let al poore men, and all breethren of low degree reioyce, because that, which he requireth at the hands of one of that sort, he looketh for of all, and if ye do with diligence note, and with iudgment cō ­sider the scripture speeches, ye shall in many places light vpon wordes of the same course & nature, deliuered in such singuler maner and yet importing, and including vniuersall constructions. In that the common name of a poore man is not heare vsed, but the appel­lation [Page] of a brother, it may teach vs, what is to bee thought of such a one vpon whom it hath pleased God to impose, and lay the crosse of pouertie, in which case to bee taught, and informed, I take it to be very re­quisite, and necessary for many of vs: for we in our common iudgments are very carnall, and in our opinions foolish, who vse to mea­sure the worthines of a man by the appea­rāce, and vpon the sight and view of his mi­sery doe by and by pronounce him a wicked person, a vicious liuer, a man accursed, and punished in such sort deseruedly for his sins, when as the purpose of God in the visiting of many with his crosses, is not so much to notifie, and confirme to the world the deserte in them of such afflictiōs, but either to make proofe & trial of their faith, or else to conuert their humiliations to other good purposes, seruing for his glory & their bettering. I cō ­fesse y ^t there is not one man amōgst the sons of men cōsisting al of corrupt & mortall mat­ter so holy, and righteouse as that hee de­serueth not any punishment or correction, if the Lorde woulde straightly marke iniqui­ties, & do nothing but that, which the rules of his iustice doe prescribe, who then should stand; as the prophet speakes: Psal. 130.3. but forasmuch [Page] as it hath pleased God in the aboundance of his loue, to take away the curse of the lawe due for sinne by the death of his sonne and not to impute sinne to him that beleeueth, and seeing the very faithfull themselues are subiect to crosses and afflictions sundrie wayes, and in greater measure subiect then the children of vnbeleefe, it cannot be that troubles and calamities should alwayes be demonstrations of the wrath of God, or tes­timonies of great sinnes in those, whose shoulders lye vnder such burdens. But we are otherwise to thinke, that sometimes God doth discipline his children by the vse of his rodde for some secret sinnes, and im­perfections which themselues doe not espie: sometimes hee doth before hande preuent their sins the fruit of that corruption, which lyeth hidde in them and would otherwise break forth, except by sicknesse, pouertie, im­prisonment, hunger, or such like meanes they be admonished, and restrayned: some­times he hath respect to his owne glorie, be­ginning with iudgment at his owne house, least he should seeme to approue those sins in his elect, which his iustice doth more sharpely punish in the reprobates: somtimes he doth suffer Satan that roaring Lyon & [Page] his ministers, to haue after a sorte power o­uer the states, and bodies of his children for the experiment of their constancie, and the instruction of others: and sometimes also he doth vse the daungers, & extremities of the saints, as occasions to shew foorth his owne power, glorie, mercie, wisedome, and righteousnesse in his church, by miraculous deliuerances, bringing them into manifest perils, and yet finding meanes to preserue them beyond the hope and opinions of men. These together with other intentions in the workes of God if they be well conside­red, will bridle the ouerlashing humor of carnall iudgment, and leaue no roote of cause in the minde of any man, to take such persons for sinners, and dispised of God, whose liues are heare subiect to some exter­nall difficulties. In the holy storie of Iob, we read, that when his three friendes, hea­ring of the euil that was come vnto him, came from their places to see him, and to la­ment his case with him, & beheld the great and straunge miserie wherevnto hee was brought, and the lamentable plight wherein he stood, they were so caried away with the streame of a false imagination, and conceit concerning him that whereas before they [Page] tooke him for an vpright, and iust man, and hygh in the fauour & loue of God, they now vpon the appearance iudged him to be an hy­pocrite, and spared not rashly to affirme, that he was in that sort & measure iustly plagued of God for his his sins: for Eliphaz y ^e Tema­nite wished him to remēber and cal to minde who euer perished being an innocēt, or where y ^e vpright were destroied. Iob. 4.7. I haue seen it, said he y ^t they which plow iniquitie, and sow wic­kednes, do reape the same, so cōcluding, that Iob could not be innocent or vpright or free from wickednes, because the fruit & effect of such misfortunes, & calamities was fallen vpō him. And I doubt not but y ^t in the same Eliphaz is a patterne of al carnally minded, & ignorantly conceited worldlings, who vse cōmonly to draw arguments from the afflic­tions of the children of God, cēsuring there­upon y ^t they are not good, nor honest, nor such as they would seeme to be, because they liue not in such a free, & happy, & glorious state of life, as others doe. Wherin they discouer thē ­selues to be as brutish, Now called Malta. & barbarous, as those barbarians of the Ile of Melita, whereinto Paul happened after his escape from ship­wracke, who vpon the leaping of a Viper vpon his hande, Acts. 28.4. from the fire, condemned [Page] him by & by for a murderer, & for such a one as vengeance would not suffer to liue. This is in cōmon y ^t rash verdits of our Atheistes, Epicures, Libertines, & prophane Gospel­lers, who respecting nothing but the out­ward accident, and not considering by reason of their naturall blindnes the course of God in his workes commit sinne in their senten­ces, speaking good of euill, and euill of good, Ier. 5.20. ill of the righteous, & well of the couetous whom God abhorreth. They may learne to correct their erroneous iudgments both by the sequell of that place of the Acts before ci­ted, and by the answere of Iob, who to purge himselfe, & to defend his innocencie against the ouerhastie opinions of his friends affir­med that y ^e Lord knew his way & tryed him & that he should come forth like the golde: Iob. 23.10. meaning y ^t although the world was ignorāt of the true cause of his miserie, yet y ^e know­ledge therof was w ^t the Lord, who vsed the same as a mean to bring to passe his greater profite. Let vs make some vse then of this matter for our selues, & know assuredly, y ^t as on the one side it is no sufficient reason to proue the vertue, and goodnes of a man be­cause hee hath welth and riches in posses­sion, so on the other side it is no necessary [Page] conclusion to condemne a man for wicked, and vnrighteouse, because he is afflicted with pouertie and lacke of sufficient reliefe for himselfe, the remembrance, and conside­ration wherof, wil work in vs a charitable, and Christian opinion concerning our poore brethren, not to thinke that they are the worse men in the sight of God because of their harde happe in that case, they are our brethren still, in profession, and essence, flesh of our flesh, bone of our bone, of the same pro­portion in making, and of the same mettle in substance, whereof we our selues bee wee neuer so daintie, are created, and therefore they are not to be vsed of vs with such con­tempt and indignitie as they receiue gene­rally of the worlde: forasmuch as it is not their pouertie that doth either alter their nature which is still common with ours, or proue them to be disfauored of the Lord, Heb. 12.6. the case so standing, that whom God loueth he chasteneth, and hee scourgeth euery sonne that he receiueth, and the affliction of a base estate, is many times to the man rather an argument of the loue of God then a testimo­nie of his wrath: as appeareth expresly by the wordes of the Prophet Dauid, who be­ing greeuously afflicted himselfe, & know­ing [Page] the purpose of God therein sufficiently, doth pronounce a blessing to those that did pittie his case, and conceiue a good opinion of him, and of all those, which should be in the like sort visited: for he breaketh forth in­to this effectuall speech, Psal. 41.1. blessed is he that iudgeth wisely of the poore, the Lorde shall deliuer him in the time of trouble. Meaning such a one as doth not condemne that man for accursed whom God doth afflict with po­uertie knowing that there are many causes, why his hand is in such sort heauie vpon a man. Secondly by this appellation and ti­tle of brother which the Apostle doth heere apply to the poore man, we may learne by his example how to vse our words, and tem­per our speeches concerning men of base place, and state. To giue them the best stile that we can, and to auoyd the intemperate humors of many disdainfull persons, who cannot frame their tongues to any indiffe­rent words respecting their inferiors, but re­uile them, and taunte them, and loade them with such contemptuous tearmes, as are ne­ther comely in their owne mouthes, nor in a­ny sorte fitting the persons towardes whom they vse such immoderation. Prou. 17.27. Salomon affir­meth that he that hath knowledge spareth [Page] his words. Iames. 4.11. And our Apostle Iames will haue vs in no case to speake euil one of another. A third matter there is also in these wordes, which is not to be omitted without note and obseruation, namely that in the Apostles di­rections heere to the poore man, and in the vse of his name, he doth not cal him the poore brother, or beggerly brother, but the brother of low degree, although in so doing it may seeme that part of his meaning is to increase and magnifie the glorious exaltation of such a man to the kingdome of God, which by a comparison made with a precedent basenes, is made so much the more high and magnifi­cent, by how much the more low and simple his condition was before in the world, be­cause that contrary things being one set a­gainst another, are then most cleerely and perfectly seen what they are, yet I doubt not but that the commodities of the low estate of a poore man, are heere insinnuated, and re­garded by the vse of the phrase: for the low degree of a man, although it bee accompa­nied with some wants in respecte of the abundance of the richer sorte, who are commonly destitute of nothing seruing to the outward prosperitie of this life, yet it is free from those hazardes, and perilles, [Page] whereunto the hygh estate of the welthy is continually subiecte. For they may in good sense bee compared to hyghe trees scituated and planted in the toppes of mountayns, which by reason of their place lye open to euery winde that bloweth, and euery storme that aryseth, yea a little puffe of the ayre maketh them to shake, and to tremble: but the poorer sorte are with good probabilitie resembled to lowe shrubbes, or bushes growing in the vallies vnder the winges, and defence of the hilles, which by reason of their lowe growth, are safe from the raging storme, and beating tempest, they are not assaulted with the feercenesse of euery whirlewinde, they are not beaten with the droppes of euery scouring showre, they stand and spring in quiet, and safetye, when the highe Cedars must needes re­ceiue euery wether, and refuse none, and therefore are many times by contrary and furious windes rent and torne, and so pre­uented of further increase. And many times we see great and mightie trees by violence of the wind ouerthrowen broken and pluckt vp by the rootes, seldome or neuer doth the like ouerthrowe happen to a lowe and litle bush. Againe the hygher & statelier the tree [Page] is the more terible is his fall, and the more signe, and impression thereof doth he make in the earth: the bush or bramble suppose he be rooted vp and throwen downe hee falles without any harme, and perceth not. And a­gaine if a great tree fall, all the bowes and branches, that are on his falling parte are brused, and crusht vnder him: but so is it not in the shrubbe: for as his leaues be few and his branches small, so is his danger the lesse, and his harme none at all. All which things the riche man for his admonition, and the poore man for his comforte, are to apply to themselues. The riche man whether wee consider him in respect of his conceit, or sim­plie of his place, he is a high tree, in his con­ceit many times he is such a one, as stands within the threat of the prophet Esay. Esay 2.12.13. The day of the Lord of hosts is vpon al the proud and hautye and vpon all that is exalted, and shalbe made low, euen vpon all the Cedars of Lebanon, that are high, and exalted, and vpon all the Okes of Bashan, and vpon all the high mountaines, and vpon all the hils that are lifted vp: meaning in that place by the high trees, and hils, such manner of men as are lifted vp in pride, and growen loftely minded by reason of their welth gathered by [Page] coueteousnesse, thinking themselues thereby to be towers, and walles, as it followeth in the fifteenth verse of that chapter, that is stronge, and mightie of themselues, not able to bee ouerthrowen. And doubtlesse many such high trees, I meane many high spirited men there are amongst vs, who being raui­shed, and caried away with an opinion of themselues, are altogether forgetful of their mortall state, they thinke with the king of Babell, that they shall liue for euer, they saye with Nimrodde and his company, Gen. 11 4. let vs build and get vs a name, they trust in their goods, & boast themselues in the multitude of their riches, they thinke their houses and their habitations shal continue for euer, euen from generation to generation, Psal. 49.6.11.13. and cal their lands by their names. But what sayeth the prophet concerning the end of such men, this their way vttereth their foolishnes, for their beautie shall consume when they shall goe from their house to the graue. And in the prophesie of Ezekiel, Ezek. 31. [...]. there is a notable place to this purpose, where the prophet speaking of the king of Ashur, affirmeth that once he was like a Cedar in Lebanon, with fayre branches, and thicke shadowing bowes, and shot vp very high, and his top was amongst [Page] the thicke bowes, his height was exalted a­boue all the trees of the fieeld. verse. 11.12. &c. but what followes in the place, thus saith the Lord I haue cast him away for his wickednesse, his branches are fallen, his bowes are broken, all the people of the earth are departed from his shadowe, and haue forsaken him, yea hee is gone downe to hell. This is the ende of such a highe tree, and the effect of such lofti­nesse, verifying that famous sentence of Sa­lomon in his Prouerbs, Prou. 16.16. that pride goeth before destruction, and an high minde be­fore the fall. Which thing, is of some conse­quence to be learned of all men for warning, and to bee considered of such men for amen­dement, as are subiecte to this sinne: who if they cannot, and care not to reforme them selues by that which already hath been spo­ken yet they are to remember further the iudgment of that highe tree, that proude king Nebuchadnezar, who in the prophe­sie of Esay is compared with Lucifer, Esay. 24.13. which saide in his heart, I will climbe vp into heauen, and exalte my throne besides the starres of God &c. But what followeth? thou shalt bee brought downe to the ground and to the sides of the pitte, and more of his destruction yee shall finde, if yee reade [Page] the chapter. Nowe in place and degree, the riche man also is a high tree, and by rea­son thereof subiecte to many inconuenien­ces: euery sharpe winde of alteration in the common wealth, of inuasions of the enimie, and of other grieuous accidents driueth vp­on him: and not so onely, but in other re­spectes his heigth is also daungerous. Wisd. 6.5.8.6. For an hard iudgment shall they haue that beare rule, so sayeth the wise man: and againe, for the mightie abideth the sorer triall: and againe, the mightie shalbe mightilie tormented, but hee that is most lowe is worthy of mercie. Verse. 6. The poore man being a lowe shrubbe or bushe is not so subiecte to the Are, to mutations, to iudgmentes, hee escapeth in safetie when the riche man is rifled, crushed, and by his mightie fall, like a greate stone from the toppe of the buil­ding is dashed into many peeces, and so his fall made vnrecouerable: and there­fore it is better in my opinion to bee Abste­mius his mule, Abstemij fa­bula. though carrying great bur­dens of wood euery day with peace and safe­tie, then bee his palfrey cladde in purple, a­dorned with furniture of Golde, and fedde with the best prouinder, and subiecte to the fearres and wounds, receiued commonly [Page] in the warres. And this being considered I doe not see why the brother of lowe degree that is, the poore man, should not according to the Apostles wordes, rather be glad then any way pensiue, forasmuch as hee stands farre of from thundring, and gunshotte: as his state is lowe, so are his mischiefes few, as his degree is not high, so his fall is not to be feared: but bee it that he doth fall, yet being within the compasse of the Lords protection, it is no otherwise then the pro­phet Dauid speaketh, Psal. 37.24. though hee fall hee shall not be cut off, for the Lord putteth vn­der his hand, the Lord supporteth, and sho­reth him vp so that in his fall there is no harme. The speciall doctrine then that this consideration, and matter yeeldeth, is not onely a comforte to the poore man, to holde himselfe contented with his state, because of the benefite, and commoditie of safetye which it beareth in diuers respectes, but a perswasion & counsell also to the rich man, not to be caried away with the ytching vayn of ambition, not to hunt with greedinesse after promotion, not to bee possessed with such vayneglorious humors, as were the Scribes, Mat. 23.6.7. and the Pharisies, who loued the cheife places at feastes and the highest seats [Page] in the assemblies, and greetinges in the market, and to be called of men Rabbi, verse. 12. Rab­bi. It is an inreuocable decree, that whosoe­uer will exalte himselfe shalbe brought low, and humbled. Somewhat it was that Io­tham the yongest sonne of Ierubbaal, stan­ding in the toppe of mount Gerizim, Iudges. 9.8. after that Abimelech the Tyrant had vsurped the kingdome and slaine his brethren the sonnes of Ierubbaal about 70. persons vpon one stone in propounding his parable to the men of Shechem affirmed, that when the trees went out to consult about the electing, and annoynting of a king ouer them, it was nei­ther the oliue that would leaue his fatnesse, nor the figge tree his sweetnesse, nor the vine his wine, none of these trees, being indeed worthy of prefermēt would aduance themselues to the gouernement and king­dome, but the contemptible bramble and scratching bryer whereunto Iotham likened the same Abimelech, he in the pride of his heart and the arrogancie of his stomacke, would needes take vpon him the state and be Lorde ouer the rest, not contenting him­selfe with that place, which nature and birth had assigned him: but his highe conceite went before his fal and his ambitious spirit [Page] was rewarded with a miserable destruction. And therefore in this case the answere of Dauid to Michal his wife, who despised him because of his dauncing, and reioycing and praysing of God before y ^e Arke, is generally cōmended I wil be yet more vile said he thē thus, 2. Sam. 6.22 & wilbe low in mine own sight, and of the very same maide seruants which thou hast spoken of shall I be had in honour. So that the first steppe to true honour in deed is the practise of lowlinesse, and a minde free from the infection of an ambitious appetite, by the vse whereof, although a man may per­aduenture sometimes by the patiēce of God aspire to dignities, and offices of high place, yet the same is nothing else, but a meane and preparatiue to a greater mischiefe, and ouerthrowe. So that my meaning in this matter may bee easily conceiued, which is, not to condemne a lawfull authoritie, nor to disswade any man from the vndertaking of such roomes of credit and estimation as are of greate necessitie in the common wealth, and profitable for the peace and prospe­ritie of the same, but my purpose onely is by occasion of my terte to reproue the extremitie, which consisteth in a thyrst [Page] and hunger to be aloft and to exceeded the common state of men: when a man follow­ing the vnbridled sway of his proud conceit doth disdayne the societie, and company of his honest brethren, as not brooking any e­qualitie: saying with Adonijah the sonne of Haggith I will be king, 1. Kings. 1.5. and with Aaman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, all the honour, and glory that I haue, doth not a­uaile me, Hester 5.13. as long as I see Mordecaye the Iew sitting at the kings gate. This is it that I speake of, and against a climing humor, a brambles spirite, a disposition inclining to preheminence, not with intent to doe any common good to the countrey, but with pur­pose onely to feede, and satisfie the roote of arrogancie, and ambition, to commaund all men, and to be subiect to no man. Which I take to be reprooued by him, whose life was the spectacle and president of all humilitie, ye receiue honour one of another, Iohn 5.44. and seeke not the honour that cōmeth of God. Which is a thing generally founde in these dayes, and therefore requires a generall warning. For euen amongst vs there are those, who although they are not furnished with any excellent gifte or grace of God, and haue no­thinge in them deseruing commendation, [Page] saue onely a little more money, and welth then their neighbours haue, yet they are so vnreasonably ledde away with the force of this insolent conceit, as that they vouchsafe not a good looke towards those, who albeit they possesse not so much wealth, yet they practise more vertue, and honestie, then thē ­selues. And there are many petty Absolom also florishing amongst vs, nothing but the crowne and kingdome, I meane the Magi­stracye, and roome of Iustice can content them, insomuch that there is no rest of their continuall laborings, till they come to sitte downe in the chayre of Dauid, in that reue­rend place which requireth a great measure of iudgment, wisedome, experience, know­ledge, and conscience, from all which things they are as farre, as they are neere vnto the gall and bitternesse of presumption. So that I see the date of that auncient prophesie of the holy Apostle out, and expired, who long agoe foresawe, [...]. Tim. 3.1. that in the last dayes there should come perilous times, men should bee louers of their owne selues, couetous, boa­sters, proud &c. intemperate, ferce, no louers at all of them y ^t are good, heady, high minded louers of pleasure more then louers of God: the full accomplishment of which prophesie [Page] whosoeuer seeth not, seeth nothing. But as the Apostle prophesied of such men, so may we prophesie of the ende of them, not vnder­taking the spirites of prophetes, but collec­ting by the ends of other men, who in our re­membrance were in such sorte affected, and therefore euen in this life tasted the bitter fruite of their owne workes and qualities, that the reward whereof the Apostle heere speaketh, and promiseth remayning for the brother of low degree, which is exaltation, and great glorye, shalbe no parte of their re­compence, because they smell not of the swete spirite of humilitie, which is the be­ginning, and steppe to that high degree of true honour, and felicitie, which is proper onely to such, and reserued onely for such, as doe decke themselues inwardly with lowli­nesse of mind and humble them selues vnder the mightie hand of God, 1. Pet. 5.5.6. to whom there is a promise of exalting made in due & con­uenient time. The Apostle hauing thus v­sed the name of the poore man, doth nowe proceed to his purpose, namely to direct him to that thing, which in the time of his pouer­tie he is to practise, & that is ioy, for so it fol­loweth in the verse. Let the brother of lowe degree reioyce. He might haue said let him [Page] not bee sorie, or let him not bee impatient, or let him contente himselfe, or any such like thing, which might well haue a­greed both with his intent and with the poore mans qualitie, but hee vseth here a word of greater effect and force, Let him reioyce, whereby he doth labour to remoue all sorrow and sadnes from the minde of the poore man, wishing him not to bee heauy in heart, nor dolefull in conceit, but rather to plucke vp his spirite, to bee of good cheer, and comfort, yea to conceiue gladnesse in the time of his greatest smarte of pouertie, vpon consideration of the high degree of glorie & felicitie whereunto it is the purpose of God to exalte him, wherehence euery one, that is subiect to the crosse of pouertie may drawe out for himselfe a singuler consolation, and learne withall how he is best to behaue him­selfe, when his shoulders are crusht with the same burden, and yoke, how to support, and strengthen himselfe, least he fall into these daungerous mischiefes and inconueniences, which the maior part of that sorte, being destitute of grace & gouernement, doe daily runne into: his best course is, to fixe his eyes, by the vse of his hope & faith vpon the crown of righteousnes, which y ^e Lord the righteous [Page] Iudge hath laid vp, and wil giue to al those that loue his appearing, and in a ioyfull ex­pectation of the same, doe with quietnesse sustayne, and with patience goe thorow this speciall affliction, knowing that it pleaseth God sometimes to vse the same as a meane or instrument to bring a man to the know­ledge of himself, to faith, repentance, prayer, obedience, and other Christian dueties, and at the last to the end of his faith, which is the saluation of his soule. So that although I must needes confesse that on the one side the drinking of this bitter cup, and the feeling of the miseries of this state may discourage a man, and driue him to the doore of faintnes, and almost dispayre, yet on the other side the remembrance of the promised glorie of God to come, and assuredly to be shewed may as a sweete and pleasant draught extinguish the former bitternesse, and turne the strong streame of impatiencie into a quietnesse of contentation, to effectuate therby that same practise of ioy whereunto he is heere, as it were by the hande of the Apostle ledde and conducted in the mides of his calamitie. And for the better helpe and furtherance of the poore man to this good vse and practise, and to cause him both the more rea­dily, [Page] and the more plentifully also to con­ceiue this ioy he is with some diligence to ponder with himselfe the most louing course that it hath pleased God to take with him ouer and aboue the maner of dealing hee v­seth with and towards the rich man. For whereas he is most vsually in the leaues of the scriptures reproued, threatned, condem­ned, and wished to mourne and lament, the poore man contrarywise is comforted, incouraged, cōmended, and willed to reioice, as in this place. In the fift chapter of this E­pistles, Verse. 1.2. Iames singes another maner of songe to the richer sort: goe too now ye rich men weep and houle for the miseries which shall come vpon you, your riches are corrupt, and your garmentes are motheaten, your gold and siluer is cancred, and the rust of them shalbe a witnesse against you, and shall eate your flesh as it were fire. &c. which wordes I could wish were written in some place ob­iect to the eyes of al of that sorte, that seeing of themselues they will not remember, yet by this meanes they might alwayes bee ad­monished of their great abuses committed in the blessings of God, and of the plagues which those abuses will bring vpon them without speedy, and harty repentance. But [Page] for our vse, I note thus much by comparing these two places together: that the common sort of rich men are wonderfully deceiued in their opinion, and doe mightily erre in their conceite, who imagine that the onely true ioy and pleasure consisteth in the posses­sion of riches, and in the inioy of wealth, to be able to tell much money, to produce good store of golde, to be able to buy, and builde, and by continuall purchase to ioyne land to lande, house to house, and Lordshippe to Lordshippe, so to liue, and dwell as princes of the earth, this is the mother of ioye a­mongst them: by occasion whereof they sing and reioyce and slay oxen, and kill sheepe, Esai. 22.13. & eate flesh, and drinke wine, and say, let vs eate and drinke for to morow we shall die: but this ioy proceeding not from God nor his spirite, who is the Author and fountaine of all Christian and lawfull reioycing, is no true ioy, but rather a madnes and frantike­nes, when as men forgetting themselues, and not considering the vanitie of their mindes, the breuitie of their pleasures, and the vncertainty of prosperity, and carnall wealth, doe reioyce in their boastings, Iames 4.16, Act. 7.41. and in the woorkes of their owne handes, yea in a thing of nought and say, haue not we got­ten [Page] vs hornes by our owne strength? Amos 6. [...]3. I deny not but that riches being well vsed, and ap­plied to their right endes, namely to the fur­therance of Gods glory, the preferment of his worde, the profite of his Church, the re­leefe of the poore, and such other good & holie purposes a man in the performance of these dueties, may reioyce with thankes to God, that it pleased him to work in his heart such acceptable motions, and to dispose him to the exercise of the fruites of his faith for the discharge of his conscience, and the prouo­cation of others to the like obedience, but to thinke that where wealth and prosperitie is abused, beeing conuerted to the nouri­shing of pride, prodigalitie, banquetting, couetousnesse, oppression, vsurie, reuenge­ment, and such like wicked actions, the plea­sure which men take, and the ioy which they conceiue to be good or honest, or any way cō ­mendable, is an opinion very absurd, and vn­worthy the braine of a Christian. And yet there are such amongst vs, who being hood­winked with the vayle of carnall conceite, doe as it were clappe their handes, and throwe vp their cappes at their good for­tune, triumphing in the increase of their wealth and making bankets because of their [Page] abundance, and goe no further, eyther to the acknowledging of the goodnes of God, from whence all good thinges proceede, or to the directing of their riches to suche vses as by duetie, and conscience they are bounde vnto. In suche cases they ought rather to weep and howle as Iames speaketh, because all good sense and feeling is taken away from them, and their heartes not moued by the blessinges of God towardes them, to bee thankefull to him for the same, and to fructifie in good workes to the praise of his name, and the good of his Church. Againe on the other side also, the poore man is not free from errour, nor to bee excused in his opinion, who by reason of the wantes of his state, and the manifolde miseries which by compulsion hee is driuen to su­staine, doeth quite banishe from his heart all ioy, and gladnes, applying no comfort to his mynde, no peace to his spirites, no solace to his soule, but passing his time in miserable carefulnesse, and languishing by the force of his imagination. Hee is in this case for his correction, and remedie, to haue recourse to the word of God, and to deriue out for him­selfe those sweet promises, which are direct­ly made and leueled therein towards him, to [Page] keepe him from all such mischiefes, as with­out the helpe and stay thereof, he might dan­gerously fall into. Salomon that prince of peace, and of wisedome also, in his booke of Prouerbes, or notable sentences, affirmeth that a little with the feare of the Lorde, Prou. 15.16 is better then great treasure, & trouble there­with, as commonly it happeneth to the ri­cher sort, who take not so much payne to get as they are disquieted with carke, and care, to preserue and increase that which they haue gotten, and therefore the spirite of God by the Apostle condemneth them, 1. Tim. 6.10. as men ha­uing pierced themselues thorow with many sorowes, reaping an euill conscience, as the fruite or haruest of their couetous labours. Psal. 37. The Prophet Dauid also in that excellent Psalme which containeth matter of incou­ragement, and consolation, to such as marke and grieue at the prosperitie of the vngod­ly, and doe after a sort stagger in faith be­cause of the contrary, which is affliction, & crosses, wherewith the children of God are alwayes compassed, hee doeth amongest o­ther things minister a comfort to the heart, and conscience of the weake, like and e­quall with that of Salomon, verse 16. pronouncing that a small thing vnto the iust man is bet­ter [Page] then great riches to the wicked, & migh­tie. The reason is, because the iust man, al­though he be poore in condition, yet hee is riche in spirite and minde, because he depen­deth vppon the promise and prouidence of God, and contenteth himselfe with his small portion. But the vnrighteous man, though possessing much externall wealth is nothing so blessed nor happie as the poore man be­cause he is neuer satisfied: he is like vnto the horseleech, who hath two daughters crying, Prou. 30.15. giue, giue, he is like vnto the barren wombe, and the graue which will neuer bee full, and like to a man that hath the dropsie, who the more he drinketh, thinking thereby to extinguish his thyrst, the more hee doeth in­crease the drienesse thereof, so the couetous riche man, the more hee hath, the more hee wanteth, and the more hee aboundeth, the more he thinketh himselfe destitute, & there­fore careth not what vnlawfull meanes hee vseth to make his commoditie, hauing no feeling of conscience, and no sparkle of the feare of God in him. And therfore it is that the holy Apostle Paul resolutely affirmeth in this matter, that godlines is great gaine, 1. Tim. 6.6. if a man carrie a contentation, and a mo­deration of minde. For therein consisteth the [Page] true sufficiencie of this life, and without it, there is nothing els but the verie plague of greedines, Ibid. 10. and of vnsatiable auarice, which is the roote of all euill. And to these places we may adde also that same protestation of the Prophet, made for the increase of his owne comfort, and of others in such sorte minded as him selfe, beyng grounded vp­on the tryall and experience which he him­selfe had gotten in the course and race of his whole life, Psal. 37.25. professing that hee had beene young, and was then olde, yet he neuer saw the righteous forsaken, nor his seede beg­ging bread. Which is a speeche full of sweet incouragement to the faithfull man, know­ing thereby, that howsoeuer it pleaseth God for his triall to afflict him with pouertie, & externall wantes, so that hee hath not the like fulnesse and measure of releefe as the vngodlie man hath, yet he is neuer forsaken of the loue and fauour of God towards him, but is in such sorte regarded, and blessed of him, that although hee leade a poore life, and is not furnished with plentie of tem­porall thinges, yet that carnall want is an­swered, & recompēced, with store of spiritual graces, which are the onely true treasure, & riches which cannot perish, wherof y ^e Apostle [Page] no doubt speaketh to y ^e Corinthians, when he saith concerning himselfe, & other his fellow workers, that they were as sorrowing, and yet alwayes reioycing, as hauing nothing, 2. Cor. 6.10. & yet possessing all thinges. And our Apostle Iames also vrgeth the same to the conscien­ces of the rich, after this sorte. Hearken my beloued brethren, Iames. 2.5. hath not God chosen the poore of this world, that they shoulde bee rich in faith and heyres of the kingdome which hee hath promised to them that loue him? Thereby conuincing the rich men of the worlde, of parcialitie, and euil iudgemēt in their thoughtes by their owne confession, because they knew that God had promised y ^e inheritance of his kingdome to the poore, & had adorned them with the riches and ex­cellencie of faith, Math. 5.3. and yet they vsed respect of persons, yea, they despised the poore, and oppressed them by tyrannie, & drew them before iudgement seates. The like argumēt also Paul vseth in another place of the Co­rinthians, where speaking of the state of the Church of God in Corinth, which consisted but of meane, and simple persons, who not­withstanding confounded, and ouerthrew y ^e wisedome of the Scribe, & the eloquence of the disputer, and the vnderstanding of all the [Page] Philosophers of Greece, 1. Cor. 1.26.27. he remembreth the same Church thereof in these wordes. Bre­thren you see your calling, how that not ma­nie wise men after the flesh, not many migh­tie, not many noble are called, but God hath chosen the foolish things of the worlde to cō ­found the wise, and the weake thinges of the world to confounde the mighty things, and vile things of the worlde, and things that are despised, hath God chosen, yea thinges which are in mans iudgement nothing, to bring to nought things that are. So that the poore man vpon the consideration of this, that although hee swimmeth not in the out­warde commodities of this life, as the wic­ked doe, yet possesseth in good measure the graces, and blessings of the spirite, whereby that which is otherwise wanting, and defec­tiue in his state is furnished in his minde, hereupon with good reason, and iustly hee may separate all sorowe, and lamentation from his heart, and dispose him selfe to some comfort, and christian reioycing, and testifie with the Prophet, Psalme 4.7. Thou O Lord hast giuen me more ioy of heart then the sonnes of men haue had when their wheate, and their wine did abound: Let worldlings therefore tri­umph in the ruffe of their pleasures, verse 6. and say [Page] who will shew vs any good? that is plant their ioye and felicitie in riches, and in fre­quenting the vaine delights of this life, let the poore mā solace himself with the light of the Lords countenance, & with the remem­brāce of his fauor, which he may assure him­selfe to be greater riches, than all the Golde of Ophyr which is in India, 1. Kin. 9.28. 2. Chron. 9.14. or the Siluer which Salomon had from the Kings of A­rabia.

The second Sermon.

WE are not to pretermit in this matter an examina­tion of the latter parte of that notable protestation of the prophet Dauid ci­ted the last day out of the thirtie and seuē Psalme, where for the consolation of the poore, iust, and righteouse man hee professeth that as hee had neuer seene himselfe forsaken of the Lorde, so also hee had neuer seene his seede left so barely, or driuen to such extremities, as that they were forced to begge their breade: a thing, which the poore man is with some diligence to consider as ma­king for the better ingendring of his con­tentation and comfort: for whereas the in­crease of the poore mans miserie consisteth many times in the view of his wife, and chil­dren, whose minde by reason of them is so much the more oppressed with care, by how much the lesse he seeth any ordinary meanes to leaue them after his death in any good or reasonable state, it cannot bee, but that when hee shall finde out a remedie for this speciall griefe hee shall with great alacritie [Page] applie himself to the conceiuing of this ioy, whereof he is here by the Apostle Iames re­membred. This salue or remedy, the prophet Dauid will quickely giue him, for he spea­keth to the cōscience of the poore man, where the wound or sore lyeth, protesting in the worde of a prophet, and man of God, that the seede of the righteouse man was ne­uer seene by him begging bread. Which wordes are not so to bee taken, as though the issue of the righteouse man, should be al­wayes lefte in such sufficient case in respect of outward things as that they should ne­uer want any thing seruing for supplying of corporall wants, but the sense of the words is, that the aflictions of this life, and the vse of the Lords trials is not alwayes per­manent, nor continually remayning in the seede and posteritie, of a righteouse man, but that all the corrections of the Lorde vsed to­wards them are momentany and for a time, and indure not alwayes: so that although himselfe doth dye, and be vntimely taken a­way from his children, yet the Lorde who prouided for him in the time of his life wil­be carefull for his posteritie after his death, so that they shall inioy his good blessings, and bee preserued for euermore. Psal. 37.28. Whereas [Page] on the contrary the seede of the wicked man shalbe cut off. versu eodē. Psal. 109.10. His children shalbe vaga­bonds, and begge their bread, comming out of their destroyed places: his posteritie shal­be consumed, and in the generation follow­ing his name shalbe put out: yea y ^e iniquitie of such childrens fathers shalbe had in con­tinuall remembrance with the Lord, so that according to the tenor, & course of the threat contayned in the lawe, the ielousie, and fire of the Lordes wrath shalbe kindled so hot, and shall burne so furiously, and so con­tinually against them that their iniquitites shabe visited vpon the children, Exod. 20.5. vpon the third, and fourth generation, of them that hate him: but on the contrary the beames of his mercie, and the sunne shine of his fauour shal stretch, & be extended vnto thousands to them that loue him, and keepe his commaun­dements. The performance of which graci­ous promise, if there be any that stand doubt­full of, and therefore seeme to distrust the former profession of the prophet Dauid, be­cause they see that the ofspring of many good and righteous men doe not inioy the same promised blessing, but are oftentimes left very simplye, and driuen to many inconue­niences, insomuch that without the helpe [Page] and releefe of others, they might not onely begge but famish and perishe, and come to a lamentable ende, they that pause vpon this matter, and suspend their iudgement, as not crediting the truth of the promise, nor the report of Dauid, are first to consider, that it is a part of the performance of the same pre­mise, that it pleaseth God by his speciall prouidence to moue the hearts of good men to shew compassion vpō the desolate and fa­therlesse children of a righteouse man, to be taken vp of them, and preserued by them from the common miseries and mishappes of the worlde, whereas on the contrary the same prophet hath constantly affirmed, that for a full punishment of the sinnes of the wic­ked, Psal. 109.12. it shall so come to passe after them that there shalbe none to extend mercie vnto them, neither any to shewe pittie vpon his fatherlesse children. Againe they are in this matter to carry a good eye, and sound iudg­ment, and to compare scripture with scrip­ture, and to consider what the Lord speaketh to this purpose by his prophet Ezekiel, wher hee makes this promise conditionall. If a sonne shall see the sins of his father, & feare, Ezek. 18.14.11.16. and not doe the like, &c. he shal not dye in the iniquitie of his father, but hee shall surely [Page] liue: but if the son be cruel, a shedder of blood, an adulterer, an oppressor, an vsurer, y ^t hat [...] takē interest, if he doth these things, saith the Lord, shal he liue? he shal not liue: seeing he hath done all these abominations he shal d [...] the death, and his blood shalbe vpon him: for ye see how this matter standeth. Verse 10.11.12.13. You must needs confesse, y ^t seeing God doth not afflict nor punish any man iniuriously or vniustly therfore the affliction, and miserie which the posteritie of a righteouse man are somtimes subiect vnto, proceede not from any rigor, or too much seueritie in God, but from the de­sart of their owne actuall, and personall sinnes, God is not so cruell or preposterous in his iustice as to punish one man for the sinne of another: ye shall vse this prouerbe no more sayth the Lord, the fathers haue ea­ten sowre grapes, verse 1.4. & the childrens teeth are set on edge, but the soule that sinneth that soule shall dye: and therefore the sense of the law in Exodus is this: God will visite the iniquitie of fathers vpon their childrē: true, if they hate him, if they proceede, and perse­uer in the sins of their fathers: otherwise if they forsake their fathers sins, they shal not feele their fathers plagues. And againe. God wil shew mercie vnto thousands: true, to thē [Page] that loue him, that keep his cōmandements, that do continue and goe forward in their fathers obediēce & holines: but if they break of y ^e course, & practise of their fathers vertue, they shal cut thēselues of frō the tast of their fathers blessings: so y ^t although amongst vs many times it comes to passe, y ^t the children of a good mā, of a zealous protestāt, of a chri­stian vnspotted in his life, are destitute of re­leif, & left to thēselues, & run into mischeifs, they prosper not, they play the vnthrifts, they spend all, they continue not y ^e name, & honest roome, and reporte which their fathers had, we are not to thinke y ^t there is any fault in y ^e promise of God or defecte in his prouidence but rather we are to assure our selues, that y ^e apostacie of y ^e children from y ^e steps of their good father hath pluckt vpon them that iust plague which their sins haue deserued, & so are the authors of their own destruction. A third regard there is also to be had in this matter, and y ^e cōsisteth in y ^e ignorāce, & vnsuf­ficiēcie of our iudgmēts, for we many times are deceiued in our opiniōs, taking y ^e mā for iust & righteous which is not so in deed: so y ^t by reason of y ^e want of perfect knowledg in this case, we are caried away w ^t y ^e main cur­rēt of false sentences, & w ^t doubt & distrust in [Page] the promise of God. Therefore wee are to set a watch before our heartes, and to keepe the doore of our lippes taking heede howe, and what we doe thinke and pronounce con­cerning the seede and posteritie of men, and the state of their fathers: for many a man haue been taken for honest, zealous, well dis­posed, a good Gospeller, & a man vpright in his actions who neuerthelesse hath played the hypocrite in all these things, and carri­ed a visor before his face to blinde the eyes, and to abuse the iudgments of the world: so that it is no marueile, that wheras we tooke him for a man of great integritie and godli­nes, being in our opinions deceiued, his issue and generation after him tracing in the same steppes of hypocrisie and iniquitie with their fathers, are visited with the sharpe rod of the Lordes indignation, growing into ne­cessitie, impotencie, beggery, and such like miseries, the fruites and reapings of their owne dissolute sowing. Ye see then how the wordes of the prophet Dauid are to be taken & how the poore man is therhence to collect, and applie to his sicke conscience, his salue of comfort. Let him content himselfe with his lowe degree: let him serue the Lorde in purenesse of spirite, let him relye in al things [Page] vpon his good prouidence and according to his habilitie prouide for the good education of his children, and then let him commit him­selfe to the Lorde, and commend his chil­dren to his protection: hee giueth to beastes their foode, Psal. 147.9. and to the young Rauens their sustenance. The fowles of the heauen that sowe not, reape not, Mat. 6.26. and carry not into any barnes are fedde by your heauenly father. The Lillies of the fielde doe spring, and are clothed in such sort, that Salomon in all his glorie was not arayed like one of them, how much more will he cloth, and feede you, your wiues, your children, your familie, your po­steritie for euer, if yee bee not like Gentiles without faith, but like good Christians with­out immoderate thought, not as those whose whole delight is seated and planted, in Mammon which is riches, and made so drunken with the pleasures of sinne, that God and all godlinesse is quite forgotten, and out of minde, but as those that first of al seeke his kingdome and the righteousnesse thereof, to whome there is this sweet and sin­guler promise made, by him in whose mouth there was neuer found guile, Verse. 33. that all other necessaries whatsoeuer belonging to the pre­seruation, of our bodies, and natures shalbe [Page] by him sufficiently prouided, and ministred aboundantly for our vse, and comfort. Yt will not be amisse in this matter for the be­nefite of the poore man, & his better induce­ment to contentation and ioy, to goe a little farther, and to consider how much his estate is commended in the course of the scripture, and preferred before the state of the riche man. For I assure you for any thing that I can read to the contrary, that the qualitie of a low degree being in many places cōpared with the condition of a rich man, the first by reason of some speciall aduantages which it carieth, receiueth most cōmonly the wor­thier place, and better commendation then the other. I will not stand vpon this point, that it pleased the sonne of God Christ him­selfe, to make choyse of a poore estate vpon earth, rather then of a riche, and of an estate so poore, as that by his own confession, the Foxes had holes, and the birdes of the hea­uen had nests, Mat. 8.20. 2. Cor. 8.9. but he himself had not where­on to rest his head, so that in his person wee may see and finde the condition of pouertie sanctified vnto vs, and not in him onely but in his Apostles also, who left and forsooke al that they had, and followed him, insomuch that Peters particuler song to the creeple, Acts. 3.6. might haue beene songe of all of them, sil­uer, [Page] and golde haue I none, the obseruation of which point might serue somewhat to the matter, but I will leaue examples, which doe rather beautifie then prooue, and record that which is expressed, as taught, & commaunded by Christ, seruing very fitly to the purpose, in a place of Mathew, where he directing a certayne young man a course to grow to a perfection in the commandemēts wished him to goe and make sale of all that he had, and giue it to the poore, Mat. 19.21. and to come & folow him. By which words we may ga­ther how the state of pouertie was commen­ded by Christ vnto him, as a better trade, & conditiō of life thē y ^e possession of great lāds, which then he retayned. I will not say that this is a thing necessarily belonging to our time, and that the precept or counsell there giuen by Christ to the yong man is general, as binding vs & others now to the prescrip­tion thereof, as thoughe, that without the sale of our goods and the vndertaking of a voluntary pouertie, noe mā might performe y ^e measure of feare & seruice which God re­quireth, for so say our aduersaries, Canisius Ca­techis. titul. de concil. fol. 336. but I know y ^t the same direction was speciall for y ^e time, & personal for y ^e yong mā whose inward disease Christ searched, & touched by y ^e sharp­nes therof, cōtaining a rule or pattern of perfect [Page] loue, which he was to looke into, and to frame himself accordingly, who before brag­ging of that sufficiencie and full obedience which was not in him, had lyed egregiously to Christ, in affirming that he had kept al the commaundements of the second table from his youth and lackt nothing, whereof hee was immediately in the presence of Christ at that time conuicted, being so farre from the practise of any such perfect and absolute loue, as that vpon the speech of Christ. he de­parted heauie and sorowfull, because he had great possessions: whereby he apparantly be­wrayed, how many leagues he was of frō a consummate obedience, in that he preferred his couetouse affection, before the loue that he falsely pretended to carry towardes his neighbour. But although the same directi­on reached for that time to him onely and perticulerly, yet I doubt not but the same may serue now as a peculier rule, for such a one as shalbe founde culpable in the same fault, and offend in the same error with him. But suppose not, yet my collection is probable, that the two seuerall conditions of pouertie, and riches being there sette one against another in that young man, the first in regarde of the profite of the man, is pre­ferred [Page] before the latter: for otherwise to what ende serueth that same consequent iudgment of Christ vpon the sight of that young mans behauiour, pronounced to his disciples, and that with an asseueration. Verely I say vnto you, that a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdome of heauen, and the Euangelist Marke reporteth the speech to haue beene deliuered in maner of admiration, Marke. 10.23. how hardly doe they that haue riches enter into the kingdome of God? meaning that the very possessing of riches is such a pulbacke or rather plague vnto a man, as that it keepeth him from such good actions, and Christian courses, which other­wise not being in that sorte burdened, hee might cheerefully performe and prosecute with delight, for the discharge of those seue­rall duties, whereunto he is bound by the word and lawe of God. And yet this is not al that is there vttered by Christ to the pur­pose, but hee proceedeth further and affir­meth the matter not onely hard but impossi­ble also that a riche man shoulde bee saued: insomuch that the passage for a Camel through the eye of a nedle is easier and more possible, then the entrance of a riche man into the kingdome of God. A harde [Page] speech I confesse, and yet the speech of him whose truth & knowledge may not be called in question, being himself the very truth, but ye may say to me, as the disciples said then vnto Christ, being exceedingly amazed at the wordes, who can then bee saued: I an­swere, such as are not in mind proportiona­ble, nor in qualitie like to that poore man, from whom the occasion of this speech grew and was taken, for I acknowledge that ri­ches it selfe considered simplie, are the good creatures of God, and in their nature they are not euill, but commodious, and profita­ble diuers wayes: but in that place Christ indeede speaketh of such rich men, as in their wealth are idolaters, Col. 3.5.6. for which things sake the wrath of God commeth vpon the childrē of disobedience: such as incline their hearts not to the testimonies of God but to couete­ousnesse, Psal. 119.36. making their gold their very God, not by professiō, but by a kind of cursed con­fidence planted therin. And the truth of this approueth by the former place of Marke, where it is euident that Christ speaketh of such as put their trust in their riches, Marke 10.24. the very same wordes being there expresly v­sed. So that not riches but coueteousnesse is heere condemned as the thing that produ­ceth [Page] an impossibilitie for an entrance to sal­uation, and as it were a barre and obstructi­on that keepeth fast the doore opening a pas­sage to the kingdome of God. Notwithstan­ding ye see, how that Christ in that place of Mathew although hee taxeth onely that grosse sinne which dependeth vpon riches, yet he pronounceth the difficultie or impossi­bilitie against the riche man without any speciall limitation: because indeed we are so peruerse in hearte, and in nature so cor­rupt, as y ^e without an extraordinary grace, and gouernment, it is impossible that we should not presume of our wealth, and waxe proud thereof, and forget God and so runne into those mischeifs, in y ^e whirlepoole wher­of the cōmon sort of rich men are miserably plunged. For we see what the vniuersall case almost of all our riche men is, hauing their thoughts estrainged from God, and all loue of godlinesse banished frō their hearts: being set out in colours in the person of that rich man, the parable of whom is knowen of al his kinsmen, but his sin is auoyded of few of thē: who vpō y ^e large increase of his fruits: Luke. 2.16. and the plenteouse blessing of his groundes, did not dispose himself to returne the duty of thākfulnes to god for y ^e same, but applied his [Page] heart to the delight, and pleasure therereof, being occupied with care for the amplifying of his barnes, & the gathering of his goods, and the procuring of the ease of his soule, to eate and drinke, and take pastime not consi­dering in whose hands and power that soule of his rested, who for the abuse of his plente­ousnes, & prophane securitie pluckt the same from him, when he thought himself far from any such plague or perill. This is the ex­acte image and mirror of the most rich men of our time, who being depriued of all spiri­tuall, and Christian sense, and wholy posses­sed with a spirit of carnall greedinesse, seeke onely the things of the world, coueting to be rich in themselues, Verse 21. but not in God, vsing all vnlawfull practises, and vngodly pollicies, to hale, and pull corruptible pelfe into their hāds, wherby they bewray themselues to be no better then greedie dogs, as the prophet speakes, Esay 56.11. which thinke that they haue neuer enough. And from this filthy fountayne, springs the foule streames of their irreligi­ous liues, their proud cōceits, their voluptu­ous desires, their prophane epicurisme, their brutish forgetfulnesse of God, his honor, his word, & their own duties euery way. Let vs looke for exāple vpō the state perticulerly of [Page] our own coūtrey & take a view of the ordina­ry course of life in those who amōgst vs sit in y ^e highest roomes, & by reason of their welth, beare the stroke in gouernment, and other matters, where shal we find more Atheisme, barbarousnesse, confusion, loosenesse, out­rage, sacrilege, and what you will else then among them? For their owne parte they thinke that they maye sinne by authori­tie being as men not subiect to the checkes or controlements of any, their lykings bee lawes, and their wils reasons: and as they them selues liue without lawe, so doe their families without order: their houses being not lodgings for Christians, but harbours for Sauages: not exercised with anie one point of good discipline, or pietie: but suffe­red to stande as monuments of misrule, and spectacles of all kinde of lewdnesse: their children fed, but not taught: their seruants and retinue, as farre from the feare of God, and the fruites thereof, yea from humane ci­uilitie, as they are neere to the contempt of God, the irreuerence of his worde, and the dishonour of his name by their common swearings, and blasphemies. And I woulde to God that this were the fault onely of the Libertines of our age, who carrie no note [Page] at all, nor marke in the matter of zeale and sinceritie, but this abuse, & ouersight (which may iustly prouoke teares,) is crept within the doores and roofes of such as make greate shew of religion, & are reputed of the number of the best Professors, and fauourers, whose houses are not in such sort purged & reformed from these cōmon corruptions, as in soule I wish, & thēselues in conscience are bound vn­to. Which thing I take to be most requisite for their consideratiō, & most worthy of their christiā attendance & carefulnes, y ^t so al stum­bling blocks of offence, & occasions of slan­der to our common cause may bee remoued, wherby y ^e enemy that speaketh euill of vs as of euil doers, 1. Pet. 2.12. may by our good works which he shal see, glorify God in y ^e day of visitation, so that I hope you now conceiue by the pre­mises, the ful sense & reason of the former al­legation or speech of Christ, pronoūcing the impossibility of entrance into the kingdome of God against the rich man, standing in the difficultie of applying himselfe, by occasion of his wealth, to the practise of good things: and in the impediments which doe accompa­nie the possession of riches, withholding a man from the free course of christian duties, & obedience, which otherwise he might in good [Page] measure yeelde himselfe vnto, the experience whereof is very large, and plentiful amongst vs, forasmuch as wee finde not one riche man almost amongest a hundred wel giuen, religious, zealous, a louer of the trueth, a regarder of his soule, and saluation, more then of his luste and pleasure, but from the least of them to the greatest, Iere. 6.13. with one minde and consent they drawe after co­uetousneesse, following the way of Caine, & cast away by the deceite of Baalams wages: Iude 11. so that wee may runne to and fro by our streetes, as by the streetes of Ierusalem, Iere. 5.1.5. in the dayes of Ieremie, and seeke and enquire in our open places if there bee any one man amongst our great mē, that executeth iudge­ment, and seeketh the trueth, but wee shall not finde him: they haue altogether bro­ken the yoke, and burst the bondes, and haue not knowen the iudgement of the Lorde, so that in this case I cannot resem­ble our time better, then to the time where­in Christ liued, wherein the mysteries of the kingdome of God, were hid from the wise & prudent, and men of vnderstanding, Mat. 11.25. and were opened to the simple yea vnto babes, and wherein the great men, the princes, the Scribes, and the Pharisees, and the richer [Page] sorte despised Christ, and counted the preaching foolishnes but the poore by his owne testimonie, Mat. 11.5. and triall receiued the Gospel, & were not offended in him. I will not here (although good occasion is offered) enter in­to a rehearsall of the common speeches of our great worldlings, and Atheistes, who swelling with pride, and almost renting a­sunder with disdaine and rancour, because of the libertie of the Gospel, and the passage of the word (maugre their hearts & beards,) doe breake out into that same wicked aun­swere of the Pharisees to their officers, con­cerning Christ: who beeing amazed at the grace of his woordes, and stricken in their heartes with the efficacie of his doctrines, were so farre from doing violence vnto him, as the high Priests had commaunded them, as that contrariwise they bare witnes of his power, and confessed the excellencie of his sayings, affirming, that neuer man spake as he did. Ioh. 7.46.47 But what said the Pharisees? are yee also deceiued? doe anie of the rulers or of the Pharisees beleeue in him? but this people that knowe not the lawe are cursed: these are the very formall words of the loose liuers of this time, who of purpose to dis­grace as much as they can the Preachers of [Page] the worde, and to diminishe the glory of the Gospel if they coulde, doe vsually make com­parisons betwixt the base condition of such as are louers of the trueth, and diligent hea­rers of the worde preached, and the high de­gree of those that make a mocke of Christ, and apply themselues to the persecuting of him in his saintes and members: looke (say they) what a sort of beggerly, and poore fel­lowes doe follow him, such as haue scarce a peece of siluer in their purses, or of bread in their houses, they are his disciples, and are become great holy folkes, and will shortly proue Preachers, and proceed Doctors: but who of vs doe fancie him? doe not wee that bee Gentlemen, rich men, rulers, and magi­strates speake euill of the man: doe not wee report the woorst we can of him, among our selues, and to strangers: doe not wee con­temne his pulpit talke, make a iest of his threatnings, and preferre accusations, arti­cles, and billes of enditements against him? there are none of vs that doe loue him, and therefore both hee, and they that heare him are deceiued and accursed. Thus the Pha­risees of our time deale with vs, and shewe themselues as it weee in print, to bee such maner of men as were the Iewes, whose [Page] hearts vpon the hearing of Stephens words brast for anger, Act. 7.54. and whose teeth gnashed vp­on him: and such also, as were the Priests, and captayne of the Temple, and Sadu­ces in Ierusalem, who being not able to con­taine themselues, by reason of the malici­ous spirite wherewith they were possessed because that Peter and Iohn did suche, and suche thinges in their ministerie, Act. 4.1.2. they came vppon them and tooke it grieuously, that they taught the people, and preached in the name of Iesus the resurrection from the dead, but they are condemned by their owne mouthes as euill seruauntes, disclayming from the loue, and knowledge of that thing, and of those men, who ought to bee their ioye, 2. Cor. 2.16. and pleasure, and would bee a sauour of life vnto life in them, if they were ordayned to saluation. Wee confesse that in externall braueries, and in the glorie of fleshe, and pompe of the worlde they exceede and goe beyonde vs, but this is not a thing that maye breede a iust offence in anie of vs, forasmuche as the cause of fayth and religion, doeth not hang vppon the sleeues, and authoritye of men, neither doth consist in multitude nor in the degrees of persons, but the same is [Page] to be iudged by the eternal and immutable worde of God, which is the word of trueth, Coloss. 1.5. of life, of saluation, of reconciliation of y ^e spi­rite, the onely rule & direction of the faithful: so that although the heathen do rage, and the people murmure, the kings of the earth band themselues, and the princes do assemble to­gether, yet all this may bee against the Lorde, and against his Christ, with purpose to cast off the yoke of his seruice, Psal. 2.2.3. and to breake the band of their obedience, for mul­titude is no priuiledge for trueth, neither is gentilitie, any warrant for godlines. The true wisedome of God, which is the Gospel was not known of any of the Princes of the worlde, for had they knowen it, 1. Cor. 2.7.8 they would not haue crucified the Lorde of glorie. And therefore albeit in number we be few, in estate poore, and in byrth not Gentle­men, yet in the knowledge of God wee may be noble, in faith riche, Iames 2.5. and in the sight of God as precious as the honorable. Yea, in this matter the case doth so stande, that for the most parte those thinges, which to the eyes of the worlde seeme most excellent, and by the iudgement of man are commen­ded, and preferred, are notwithstanding ab­horred of the Lorde, whose eyes beholde, [Page] not the face and legges, but doth pearce in­to the reynes: and so likewise on the con­trary, those thinges which in the opinion of men are vile and of no estimation, are neuer­thelesse in high account before God. For hee seeth not as man seeth, 1. Sam. 16.7. for man looketh on the outward appearance, but hee beholdeth the heart, so saide the Lorde himselfe to Sa­muel, being deceiued in the faire complexi­on and high stature of Eliab, the eldest sonne of Ishaie. It is a notable sentence of Salo­mon in his Prouerbes to this purpose, Bet­ter is the poore that walketh in his vpright­nesse, Prou. 28.6. then hee that peruerteth his wayes though he be riche, and againe, a poore man is better then a lyer, meaning that although a man be destitute of riches, and yet doeth possesse, and practise vertue, he is to be estee­med aboue that man, which hauing much wealth, yet stands voide of all honestie, so that if there were nothing else but this one­ly good thing following the estate of the poore man, yet it might bee a fufficient mo­tiue, to prouoke him to the ioye, and reioy­cing which Iames doeth here set before him, because the feare of God, and obedience to his trueth doeth not consist in golde, and sil­uer, in many possessions & noble progenies, [Page] but in a regenerated spirite, and in a heart purified by faith. Which spirite & heart, see­ing hee may plentifully be adorned with, al­though in the externall things of the world, hee bee not so full as others, there is no rea­son that he should passe his time with teares, and separate all comfort from his heart, the blessed Apostle affirming for his consolati­on, that the kingdome of God is not meate nor drinke, nor any such outward things, Rom. 14.17. but righteousnes, and peace, and ioy in the holie Ghost: and forasmuch also as by the simple­nesse of his condition, and the absence of ri­ches, being the very chaynes and fetters of the minde, he may more quietly apply him­selfe to the seruice of God, and runne the course of righteousnesse, tending to the gate of Gods kingdome more promptly then the rich man, who by reason of the loade of his wealth, is so pressed with care, and prison­ned with carnall cogitations, as that hee hardely can dispose himselfe accordingly, therefore the man is the sooner, and the bet­ter to content himselfe with his poore, but profitable state, and not either by griefe to torment himselfe, or by a hungry humor to couet that thing, which may bring with it more trouble then quietnes, and more disad­uantage [Page] then commoditie if he make price of the sweet freedome of his conscience. A very reuerend, Muscul. in Math. cap. 21. fol. 490. and learned Diuine of this latter age, disputing of purpose concerning this matter, setteth downe briefly diuers spe­ciall thinges wherein the state of the poore man, is more happie and fortunate then the condition of the riche, which although at the first blushe it maye seeme to bee somewhat straunge, because wee see how euerie man contendeth to auoyde and flee from the doore of pouertie, as from a Scorpion, and is as vnwilling to come neere it, as a marriner is loth to approche a rocke in the sea for feare of shipwracke, yet vppon a sober and prudent balancing of the differences, it wil appeare howe probable, and reasonable the matter is, and that howesoeuer men doe followe their natu­rall and greedie appetites in coueting to bee riche, yet when they haue done all that they can in that respect, they must saye with Salomon, Eccl. 2.11. that it is but va­nitie, and vexation of the spirite, and iumpe in iudgement with this diuine, to preferre the poore mans vnhappinesse be­fore their owne blisse. For yee shall see. The poore man is not so muche intangled [Page] with the cares of the worlde, and deceite­fulnesse of riches, as the other is, Mat. 13.22. which are expressely called thornes by Christ, because in many they do suffocate or choake the good seede of the worde, and makes them altogether vnfruitefull: the rich man hee is in mynde troubled, in bodie busines­sed, in his thoughtes distracted, hee hath so manie farmes to visite, so manie yoke of Oxen to looke vnto, so manie bargaynes to make, so muche money to paye, and to receyue, and so many thinges to doe, as that hee can spare no time to regarde the state of his soule, nor spende an houre to pro­uide his spirituall wealth, and wel­fare, by the hearing of the woorde of GOD, the meanes of his saluation prea­ched, and if he doe by chance come to a ser­mon at any time, it were as good, or rather better hee were absent: for although his bodie bee in the Churche, yet his wits run vppon his businesse, and his senses are oc­cupied about other matters, the voyce of the Preacher is as an vnperfect sounde to his eares: hee receiueth the beginning of a sentence, but attendes not the latter end: he heares the latter end, but hath forgotten the beginning, and so it comes to passe, that as [Page] he came to the temple with litle deuotion, so he returnes home with little profite, but the poore man is at libertie in respect of these thinges, his minde is not in such sorte fore­stalled, nor his wits with such cares trou­bled, but with a free minde, and conscience prepared with the feare of God, he doeth ap­ply himselfe to his seruice, desiring to in­crease in knowledge and in all good things, holding nothing so precious, as the dis­charge of his duetie in that case, the glorie of God, and the Christian care of his owne saluation.

Againe, the riche man is Cousine germane to Diues the glutton, who as hee was full in his purse, so he would needes bee delicious in his fare: his wealth and his di­et must bee correspondent, Luke 16.19. he must eate and drinke of the best, his table must bee furni­shed with all the delicate meates, and drinks that may be gotten for money, making his bellie his God, and planting a felicitie in the varietie of meates, and drinks, and mul­titude of dishes. And heere hence growe the inconueniences and mischiefes of surfeting, drunkennesse, wantonnes, concupiscences, and idlenesse the mother of all wickednesse, for the bellie being full, the bones looke for [Page] rest, and not of this onelie, but of the disea­ses of the bodie also, as the Goute, and drop­sie, with others of the like nature, the fruits of superfluous, and immoderate feeding. But nowe the poore man as hee cannot by reason of his wantes, so he doth not acquaint himselfe with such a gluttonous kind of life: he contentes his nature with a little, and therefore hath his body sound, his mind vn­corrupt, his limmes strong for labour, his legges proportionable, and by reason of his good course, liueth long, and dieth in a good age, which is the blessing of God, whereas the gorged riche man doeth by his intempe­rance abbreuiate the continuance of his own life, and so committes a greate sinne in the breach of the sixt commaundement of the lawe. Exod. 20.13

Further, the poore man by reason of his daylie labour, and ordinarie trauell in his vocation, doth so weaken the forces & pow­ers of his bodie for the time, as that in the e­uening, and houre of rest, he refresheth him­selfe with great pleasure, hauing that sweet comfort of nature which is sleepe, as it were at his commandement: whereby he is so suf­ficiently reuiued, that in the morning he re­turneth againe to his common busines, fresh, [Page] lustie, ioyfull, and fit for his worke, whereas the riche man is in this point like to Ahas­suerosh the king of Persia, of whom we read in the booke of Hester, Hest. 6.1. who could not sleepe in the night, and therefore called for the booke of the Records, or Chronicles of the lande, that by perusing of them, hee might driue out the time of the night: our riche men consider not that it pleaseth GOD manye times for a punishment to them to withholde his benefite of natural sleepe from their eyes, the same being a spe­ciall gifte of his, for the preseruation of our nature, which otherwise without the same could not possibly indure. The first man A­dam coulde not sleepe of himselfe vntill the Lord caused it to fall vpon him, Gen. 2.21. as shewing thereby that it is in his hands either to giue it or not to giue it, to send it or to withdraw it as pleaseth him. And therefore in the vse of his iustice, he doth many times depriue the riche mē of this comfort, suffering them to lye tossing, & tumbling vpon their beds, de­siring this ordinary refreshing, but cannot haue it, and I my selfe haue hearde many of them complayning of the want thereof, that they passe many nightes, with little or no sleepe at al, taking the same to come by some [Page] happe or fortune, by the length of the night, or some stirre and noyce, not considering the iustice of God afflicting them in that sorte with vnrest in the night, to put them in re­membrāce of y ^e ill spending of the day, which thing being regarded of Salomon, Eccl. 5.11. made him to affirme, that the sleepe of him that tra­uaileth is sweete, whether hee eate little or muche, but the satietie of the riche will not suffer him to sleepe, and againe, the hearte of suche a man taketh no rest in the night. Ib. 2.23.

Moreouer, the poore man, by reason of the perpetuall necessities of his life, is so well accustomed with common afflictions, as hunger, losse, displeasure, iniuries, want of money and suche like thinges, as that it is no trouble nor disquietnesse vn­to him, when he is in any such sort pinched, because his youth, and age, and all the dayes of his life hath beene nothing els but as it were a schoole of discipline, and fur­nace of tryall to him, and therefore what­soeuer crosse happeneth, hee doeth endure it with patience, and vndergoe it with con­tentation, beyng well pleased with his lot, but the rich man y ^t hath bin acquainted with no such crosses, hauing liued in ease, wealth, [Page] friendshippe, prosperitie, quietnesse, plea­sure and delight, and therefore not know­ing what affliction meaneth, when he by the hand of God is neuer so little touched, whe­ther it be with an iniurie, enemies, hunger, losse of children, landes, or wealth he is by & by carried away beyonde the limites of all reasonable patience, he fretteth, and fumeth and taketh on like a madde man, yea, some­times fometh out blasphemies against God, and complaineth of the harde dealing of God towardes him, as though God were bound by the receite of some benefite of his, to extend alwayes the partes of loue & cur­tesie for shew of thankfulnesse: and so thin­king that God shoulde still let him liue in such a flourishing state, as somtimes he did, when he feeles but a smal alteration, though it be but a gentle admonition, he takes it in no good part, he growes outragious, & will not be perswaded to any moderatiō of mind: so that it is impossible that the singuler ver­tue of patience should possesse his soule: but the poore man is prepared for euery occasi­on, come what affliction or aduersitie will come it is no newes to him, seeing the whole course of his life, hath been a practise of bearing and suffering.

[Page]Lastly the poore man hauing liued in his simple estate with a good conscience caried in all his actions, when the time commeth that hee must pay his due to nature, and goe the way of all flesh, death which is common to al, is welcome to him: hee hath no great wil or testament to make, no goods gotē by vsury, and opression to restore, no masse of money to leaue behinde him, no store of trea­sure to breede in him a hatred of death, but knowing that the same is his port of rest, and conclusion of all sorowes, he receiues it qui­etly ioyfully, and Christianly. But oh what a terror to the mind of the riche man is the con­sideration of death, howe many greeuous sinnes hath he marching before him, which makes him to abhorre the ende of his life: the respect of his former felicitie in this world, his wife, his wealth, his place, his cofers, his lands, his houses, his seruants, euery of these perticulers ministers a thousand occasi­ons of desiring life to his heart, and as he ly­eth loath to dye, so hee knowes not howe to prepare himselfe for the same, but many times it comes so to passe, y ^t the man y ^t hath passed all his life in sinne, and securitie, and vanitie without a discharge of a good consci­ence towards God and the worlde, is by the [Page] iustice of God so farre from repentance, and a Christian ende, as that what with carnall cares, and hope of longer continuance, and other things of the like qualitie, wherof Sa­tan at that time will powre in plentie, and sufficient number into his head and braines, he shall haue no remembrance of making an attonement betwixt God, and his soule, but shall die desperately without hope of mercie, and impenitently without remorse for his sinne: this point of difference in the depar­ture of the rich and poore man is notably touched by the sonne of Sirachi, Ecclus. 41.1.2. who in one verse cryeth out, O death how bitter is the remembrance of thee to a man that liueth at rest in his possessions, vnto the man that hath nothing to vexe him, & that hath prosperitie in all things. But in y ^e next verse he proclay­meth, O death how acceptable is thy iudg­ment to the needy vnto him whose strength fayleth, and is vexed with all thinges, &c. Whereby is prooued, that good resoluti­on concerning death that the poore man ca­rieth, being glad when the ende of his mise­ries approcheth: but contrariwise y ^e horror, and feare of death, which possesseth the mind of the rich man, who can in no case abide to heare speech of the same, being the thing that amongst all things else hee least broo­keth, [Page] & most abhorreth. Now all these things being considered I referre the iudgment to your selues, which of these two is the happi­er man: the rich with so many inconueni­ences attending his person, or the poore with so many aduantages accompanying his e­state, and whē ye haue past your verdit, then apply it to the present wordes of Iames for the strengthning of his direction of ioy to the poore man: for I doubte not but that the dililigent obseruation of these differences, as it cannot but breed in the riche man a kinde of disliking of himselfe, and his condi­tion, so it cannot but ingender in y ^e poore mā an allowance, & approbatiō of his pouertie, & so cause him y ^e more willingly to practise ioy & contentation in the manifolde distresses of this life. But now by y ^e way if for your satis­faction you aske me this necessary question, what maner of poore men I speak of al this while, because y ^t matter is sōe what doubtful, in y ^t there are diuers persons, going vnder y ^e name & title of y ^e poore, who by reasō of their lewd, & wicked course of life deserue no iot of these good speeches, but rather y ^e whip & cor­rection, & al maner of disgrace, being such as are vnworthy in any good place to be remē ­bred or spoken of: I wil shortly resolue you, y ^e [Page] that by the poore man I doe not vnderstand the idle begger, and rogish companion, who not applying himselfe to any ordinary la­bour, makes a profession of beggery, and liues altogether vpon the spoyle: such both by the lawe of God, and the commendable lawes of this realme prouided in that be­halfe, are to be punished according to the measure of their idlenesse, and qualitie of va­gabond liuing: neither doe I meane by the poore man such maner of persons, as are common haunters of alehouses, vnthriftes, spendals, and drunkards, hauing scarce ei­ther pennie in their purses or coate to their shoulders, and yet all the weeke long lye at such tipling places, hauing no regard for a ciuill behauiour, nor desire to purchase an honest & good report amongst men. Which special thing I could wish by some seuere or­der might be reformed in this place, wherin there are many offendors in this case, the negligent consideration whereof is occasi­on of many riots and breaches of the lawe in many poynts (and of much sinne also) but by the poore man I meane such a one as in scripture by the spirit of God is commended vnto vs, and committed to our regarde, the man vpon whom it hath pleased God not to [Page] bestow so great a portion of riches as vpon others for some secrete purpose of his wise­dome, being no tall Cedar, no man of great office or authoritie in the common wealth, but an artificer or handicraftes man, labou­ring diligently in his manuarie trade or science, to releeue himselfe, and maintayne his familie thereby, demeaning himselfe ho­nestly as a christian, and quietly like a sub­iect in the feare of God, and according to the qualitie of his vocation, such a one in scrip­ture I take to be ment by y ^e name of a poore man. As for our roges, and vagabonds I ex­clude them out of the role, and number of poore men, commended by the spirit of God, and spoken of by vs, who because they do not labour, they should not eate, & I could wish for them also, that by the good execution of our lawes, the countrey might be rid of the burden and charge of them, who by the due­tie, and diligence of the officers ought to be taken and sent to our bridewelles, and mill-houses erected for the purpose, that so by iu­stice they might bee driuen to that paynes and amendment of life which of themselues they purpose not to practise. Within this compasse of poore men we may include those also, vpon whose shoulders it hath pleased [Page] God to lay the crosse of pouertie for their triall or punishment: hauing beene some­times in very sufficient state, and able both to liue of themselues, and to releeue others in necessitie, but now by some casualitie, are decayed, and come behinde hand, and fallen into pouertie, as either by fire, robbing, ship­wrack, sureteship or such like occasions, and therefore are compelled to relye vpon a ge­nerall charitie, with whom we may in like sort ioyne the poore of our almes houses, the olde, lame, blinde, maymed souldier, and o­ther such impotent persons, to whom there are promises made of farre better states, if for the time they can resolue themselues to heare of their miseries w ^t a shoulder of pati­ence, and to trust to the good prouidence of God expecting a time of helpe and deliue­rance from him. And as these men are in di­uers places of scripture perswaded to quiet­nes and contentation, so here by the Apostle Iames they are prouoked to reioycing, to cast off all mourning and complaining, and all partes of impatiencie, to consider the commodities of their lowe degree, to looke vp to the heigth and excellencie of Gods kingdome prepared for them, to acknow­ledge the mercies of God, to giue him [Page] thankes without grudging for his visitati­ons, and so to liue, as that by their pouertie, God may accordingly be glorified, and their afflicted bodies, and soules in the ende sa­ued: of which matter ye shall heare more (if God permitte) the next time.

The third Sermon.

REioyce in that he is exalted. It is nothing straunge that Iames shoulde heere giue counsell to the poore man to reioyce in his pouertie, or rather in his exaltation, al­though the Lorde by the prophet Ieremie, doth restrayne, Ier. 9.23.24. and limite al reioycing, and glorying to the knowledge, and vnderstan­ding of his will: saying, let not the wise man glory in his wisedome, nor the strong man in his strēgth, nor the rich man in his riches ches, but let him that glorieth, glorie in that he vnderstandeth and knoweth me: and our Sauiour would not giue libertie to the Se­uentie, Luke 10.20. to reioyce because the diuels were subdued to them in his name, but rather be­cause their owne names were written in heauen: and the blessed Apostle also woulde not dispose of himself to reioyce in any thing, but in the crosse of our Lord Iesus Christ, as himselfe professeth to the Galatians: Galat. 6.14. which places ouerthrow not the wordes of Iames here, because y ^e scripture is not as a house or kingdome deuided in it selfe, but as God is alwayes one, and he neuer contrary to him­selfe, [Page] for his worde also is one, and that ne­uer iarres with it selfe. A generall rule for all our ioy is giuen by Paul to the Corinth. 1. Cor. 1.31. saying, he that reioyceth let him reioyce in the Lord: which rule if it doth square out, and measure the vse of our mirth, and glad­nesse, then whatsoeuer speciall thing it be that we do reioyce in, or of, it can but be law­full in it selfe, and acceptable to God: for the ioye of the faithfull is not in such force tyed vp as it were by the winges, in respects of the receite of the graces of God, but that there is this scope giuen them, that looke howe many good blessings they are made partakers of from God, of so many they may freely, and without sume be glad, and ioyful, prouided alwayes that the rule be kepte, to make God the foundation of their ioye, and in the vse thereof to haue regard of thank­fulnesse of the benefite, and the prayse of his name. If we search the scriptures & peruse y ^e histories of the Church, we shall read of ma­ny things from whence the godly in al ages haue taken occasion to reioyce: as of the de­liuerance of the faithfull, out of the hands of persecutors, victory against the enemies, re­turne from captiuitie, the free course of the Gospell, the obedience and constancie of the [Page] brethren, the gouernment of a good prince, y ^t peace of conscience vpon feeling of y ^e mercie of God, & many other things, which particu­lers if they happē to vs, as they haue of old to y ^e Church of God, we may in like sort, & w ^t ­out al offēce reioyce in thē as they haue done. So y ^t hereby all the carnall reioycings of y ^e wicked are cōdemned, who many times boast of their sin, & triumph in doing euill, making not God, but Sathan whom they serue the foundation of their ioye: for when the chil­dren of God are in some distresse, and any way afflicted, then as Tyrus reioyced at the ouerthrow of Ierusalem, Ezek. 26.2. saying, a hathe gate of the citie is broken, it is turned vnto mee, for seeing she is desolate I shalbe reple­nished, so do the wicked Tyrians of al times clap their hands & are well apaid when they see the miseries of the righteous thinking the sight of their calamitie, to be a sufficient cause and reason for their execrable melody. The proofe whereof is great, and large euen amongst vs, seeing it can not be denied, but that there are such scoffing mates, and riming marchants, as were in the dayes of Dauid, who made songs of his trouble, & tri­umphed in his aduersitie, Psal. 32.15.16. and said, a ha, a ha, our eyes haue seen the man ouerthrowen, so [Page] these persons, when they see neuer so little trouble raised vp against vs, that we are mo­lested, cited, suspended, excommunicated, in­dighted, inhibited, and in such like sort diuers wayes hādled, they cry out there, there, so we would haue it, they make feastes one to ano­ther in token of ioy, and looke bigge vpon vs, as if they would deuoure vs, yea they deale as the Pharisies sometimes dealt a­gainst Christ, Mark. 14.11. who when they heard that Iu­das Iscariot woulde betray him into their handes they were glad of it, and promised him money to doe it, so these men reioyce when they can haue any occasion of aduan­tage by the cānon law, the iniunctions, or o­therwise against vs, and both by perswasiōs, and promises, doe incourage others to work our mischiefe: but they reioyce in their boa­stings, & al such reioycing is euill. Iames 4.16. And ther­fore we know to our comfort, y ^t looke as the Lord brought a most horrible iudgment vpō Tyrus for triumphing at y ^e fall of Ierusalem, Ezek. cap. 26. & 27 so these men shall not escape the force of the Lords wrath, who being ielous of his honor, cannot abide to see his seruants abused, & his prophets, the apple of his eye made iesting stocks: & as we do admonish thē, so we aduise all others, to be carefull in this case of their [Page] mirthes and triumphes not to reioyce in the wickednes of their handes, and in the sinnes of others, as it is seene nowe a dayes, that there are those, which take a felicitie, and pleasure to make a man by abundance of drinke loose the vse of his senses, laughing at his drunkenes, & reioycing at that, which the soules of gods children do moorne for, & they themselues if there were any feare of God in them should condemne in themselus: but such is the desperatenes of this age by reason of our corruptions, and want of good discipline, that the glory of God lyeth in the dust, the way of God is euill spoken of, and sin and iniquitie hath gotttē he vpper hand, and trampleth vpon godlines: but leauing the sorrow and lamentation for the same, and prayer either for the redresse of all things amisse, or for the ende and finishing of all things, to your Christian soules and consci­ences, I will proceede with the Apostle is the texte, who nowe concludeth with the poore man, and giueth him a sight of his crowne and glory, and cause of ioye, consi­sting in a future preferment, or promotion in the wordes, in that he is exalted. It is a common vse not onely of the spirit of God in scripture, but of vs amongst our selues [Page] also in the time of a mans trouble to mini­ster comforte vnto him by an argument drawen from the hope of deliuerance, and remedie in the ende. If ye reade the thirtie and one chapter of the prophecie of Ieremie, the whole prophesies of Micha, Nahum, A­bacuck, and so to Malachy, the last of the prophets, ye shall haue sufficient proofe, and instance of this matter. And in the newe testament, yee shall light almost vpon no leafe, or page, but yee shall finde comforts of this qualitie. Mat. 5.12. Luke 12.32. Luke 23.43 Luke 21.28. Iohn 14.18. Acts. 27.34. 1 Iohn. 2.25. Greate is your rewarde in heauen. It is your fathers pleasure to giue the kingdome. To day shalt thou be with me in paradise. Lifte vp your heades for your redemption draweth neere. I will not leaue you fatherlesse, but will come vnto you. There shal not an heare fall frō the head of any of you: this is the promise that he hath promised vnto vs, euen that eternall life w ^t infinite other places of y ^e like impor­tance: which course is also followed and ta­ken of vs in our consolations to our afflic­ted friends, because we knowe that there can not bee applied to their consciences, a more speciall matter of comforte, then hope and assurance of helpe, and reliefe at the [...]ast. The very same maner of incourage, [Page] ment, and cheering, Iames doth here lay and spread before the eyes of the poore mā wish­ing him to be contented with his state, to practise patience, yea ioy because the time shall come wherein, although he bee now in greeuous miserie, and lye in the dust, yet hee shalbe lifted vp to a supreeme degree and heigth of glorie, and shalbe made partaker of all the honours, and excellencies of the sonnes of God: so that if there bee any bro­ther or sister among vs, punished, and afflic­ted with any kind of crosse, and calamitie, whether it be pouertie, weakenesse, sicknes, contempt, diffamation, or persecution, or whatsoeuer else the regarde of the present matter, we haue now in hand, may in great measure strengthen their feeble armes and solace their heauie spirites assuring them that the said afflictions, shall not alwayes continue, & indure vpon them, but shall haue not onely an ende but also a recompence of such glorie at the last, as all the miseries of this present time, are in no respect worthy of. Rom. 6.11. And least any man should mistrust the truth of his promise, and stagger with doubt of the assurance, it is with diligence to bee marked, how of purpose to take away all oc­casion of such incredulitie, the Apostle doth [Page] here vse not the future but the present tense, he doth not say in that he shalbe exalted but in that hee is exalted, as though hee were in present fruition already of the ioyes of that kingdome: the like or rather more effectu­all maner of speaking is vsed by Paul to the Romans, where to approue the certaintie of the glorie of the faithfull, hee speaketh after the maner of the Hebrewes, Rom. 6.13. vsing the time past although the benefite be to come, in re­spect of the time with vs, for he doth not say there, that God wil predestinate, cal, iustifie, and glorifie the faithfull but that hee hath done these things already, and that the glo­ryfication of the saints of God, is as it were past & gone, a most elegant course of words, ratifying, and sealing vnto the elect their true and vndoubted blessednes, & there is no question, but that y ^e children of God now li­uing & as yet carying about them this earth­ly tabernacle, doe notwithstanding in their cōsciences feele as it were y ^e tast & begining of those exceding ioyes, wherof herafter they shal haue by y ^e mercie of God reall, & actuall possessiō. This place doth further shew, what is y ^e proper course of aspiring to y ^e excellēcie, & preheminēce of the felicitie of Gods king­dome, & what y ^t meās or ladder is to ascēd or [Page] climbe vp by to the gate of perfect glorie: not a dayntie, and delicate life, not a proud, and lordly behauiour, not a quiet state free from all afflictions, and perturbations, but humilitie, lowlines, persecution, killing, the loosing of the life in this world, these are the meanes to steppe vp to the seat, and scepter of true and triumphant happines. The man that is desirous to come to a vayne of golde, hee must digge for it, and discend into the bowels of y ^e earth, without which discent he shall neuer fulfill his wish. Paul proposeth before the Romans, and by them before vs, the person of Christ for an example in this matter, Rom. 8.17. who being the sonne of God by na­ture, first suffered, and then was glorified: so that we being the sonnes of God by grace, & adoption, and heires anexed with Christ, if we purpose to be made partakers of his glo­ry we must first be pertakers of his crosse, & take that course for our prefermēt which he did. The regard of which matter may be a singuler cōfort to al y ^e faithful who by reason of the afflictions of this life are after a forte battered and throwen down in conscience, with some naturall distrust of the glorie to come: whose weake faith is to haue this sup­port, y ^t their trouble and aduersities, are the [Page] verie high wayes leading to Gods king­dome, and their miserie as it were the doore, by which they are to enter and passe in, so that the feeling of the extremities of this life, is no cause why they shoulde feare or bee discouraged, but rather is as an in­denture, and firme obligation, confirming the assurance of their future comforts, wher­of God in his worde hath made them large promises, & therefore as they are hereby to plucke vp their spirites, and to comfort their heartes, so on the contrary part those men that receiue their consolations in this life, & cannot abide the smart of the least afflictiō, but shunning it themselues, doe labour to increase the same in others, and adde to the bonds of the Saintes, and playe the tyrants ouer the poore, flaying them and selling thē euen for shoes, and oppressing them with all burdens, they may learne herehence what little cause they haue to reioyce in their lustes, or to take pleasure in these actions, forasmuch as the time shall come, wherein although the poore be made here their foot­stooles, and bondslaues, they like Popes riding on their shoulders, yet a suddayne change, and great alteration, shall happen, when the poore man shalbe exalted, and lif­ted [Page] vp to the skies, and they shalbe taken by the iustice of God, and hurled into the depth of hell. And that this is true, hearken what the wise man saieth concerning the matter, who speaking of the different endes of the wicked, and righteous man, doeth pro­nounce that at the iudgement of al flesh, Wisd. 5.1.2. &c. the righteous man shal stande in great boldnesse before the face of suche as haue tormented him, and taken away his labours, but the wicked when they see him shall bee vexed with a horrible feare, and shalbe amazed for his wonderfull deliuerance: and then they shall change their minds, and sigh for griefe, and say within themselues. This is he whō wee sometimes had in derision, and in a parable of reproche: we fooles thought his life madnesse, and his ende without honour, but how is he now counted among the chil­dren of God, and his portion is among the Saintes, & therevpon they shal breake forth into a condemnation against themselues, & say, we haue erred from the way of trueth, & the light of righteousnes hath not shined vn­to vs, and the sunne of vnderstanding rose not vpon vs: we haue wearied our selues in the way of wickednes, and destruction, and we haue gone thorow dangerous wayes, but we [Page] haue not knowē the way of the Lord, & fur­ther, they shall then though too late growe out of conceite with their former vanities of the world, and pleasures of sinne, which they inioyed for a season, and shall crie out, what hath pride profited vs, or what gayne hath the pompe of riches brought vnto vs, for all these thinges are passed away as a shadow and as a poste that passeth by, &c. Sure­ly if these thinges doe not mooue, and cannot woorke the heartes of our world­lings to another conceit of themselues, and better course of life then nowe they holde, I must needes pronounce they are made not of flesh, but of flint and adamant, which beates backe the blow of the hammer, and will re­ceiue no impression, but I hope y ^e best of thē: and I doe also pray to God for them, that a new creatiō of heart may be wrought in thē, that they may be touched with a feeling of their own sinne, & sense of the necessities of y ^e Saintes of God, and may so runne the race of this life, that the crowne of righteousnes stored vp for the faithful, & the high degree of exaltatiō to y ^e glory of the sonnes of God, spoken of here by Iames, may bee cōmunica­ted by the mercie of God with them and vs.

For y ^e helping forward of which matter [Page] in their behalfe, I will now trace forwarde in the steppes of the Apostle, and goe on with him to the second part, or member of his cō ­parison heare made, and instituted: compre­hending a special direction for the rich man, teaching and schooling him, as well as the poore man, how he is to behaue himselfe in his good estate, and time of prosperitie, to wit, not to build vpon his wealth, as vpon a rocke or foundation, thinking that there is no qualitie of weakenes, or possibilie of de­cay therein, but rather to consider the natu­rall incerteinty, and slipperines thereof, and vppon that consideration, to cast off all his vaine trust, and foolish confidence reposed in the same, and while hee hath his riches in possession so to vse it, and dispose of it, as God in his worde hath prescribed. For suche I take to be the meaning of the Apostle in the woordes, Let the riche man reioyce in that hee is made lowe. That is, let him keepe himselfe within the compasse of his duetie, and thinke that as many times after peace comes warre, and after fayre weather a storme, so a great mutation may happen to and vpon his felicitie, whereby it may come to passe, that although he be nowe riche, yet he may be made poore: although he be now [Page] mounted aloft,, and risen vp to the toppe of worldly glorie, yet he may be pluckt downe againe to the earth, and throwen into the dust of miserie, as many haue bin before him. And therfore he is to carrie in his heart, this poynt of knowledge, and consideration, and therewith to be armed in such sort, as that when this alteration shall come, he may bee prepared for it, and goe out as it were to meete it: saying with Iob to his wife, shall we receiue good things at the hand of God, Iob 2.10. and not euill also? or otherwise these words may be taken, and that with good probabi­litie and sense: to wit, that the rich man al­though by reason of his sufficiencie & good measure of wealth, he be promoted, and ad­uanced to some high estate, and excel­lent calling, yet in his opinion he is to beare a lowe sayle, and to carry an humble minde still within him, to bee farre from any arro­gant, and proud conceit of himselfe, and al­though he be high in degree, yet to be low in behauiour, in gesture meeke, and in speeche courteous, which thinges are able to winne the generall loue of men, yea of enemies, & in such sort to apply himselfe to the practise of humilitie in his greatest honour, as that it may be seene that a gentlens of spirite, and [Page] lowlines of minde is more regarded of him then the quantitie of his wealth, or the qua­litie of his calling: both these constructions being so reasonable, and so agreeable with y ^e purpose of the Apostle, and the duetie of the rich man, wee will shortly by the grace of God dispatch for your comfort, & edifying. I hope you are not so ignorāt as not to know, nor so frowarde as not to acknowledge the naturall mutabilitie, and vncertaintie that is in this life, and in the possession of riches, to day a king, to morowe without a king­dome, to day a Queene, Reu. 18.7.8. no widdowe, seeyng no mourning, to morow, a fall, death, sorow, famine, and burning with fire. Salomon in his Booke called the Preacher, beeyng written in his latter daies after long experi­ence doeth dwell after a sort vpon this ar­gument, proouing largely and strongly, that there is nothing of staye, and conti­nuance vnder the sunne, for the very genera­tions doe passe and goe away, and all things haue their ende. Who would haue thought reading the beginning of the storie of Iob, where it is said that his substance was seuen thousand sheepe, Iob. 1.3. & three thousand Camels, fiue hundred yoke of oxen, & fiue hundred she Asses, his familie verie great, no man in all [Page] the East part of the world like vnto him, not one amongest all the Arabians, Chaldeans, Idumeans, and the rest of the nations com­parable vnto him for wealth, I saye who would haue thought that notwithstanding all this, hee should by and by reade concer­ning him, that in one daye hee had his seruauntes slaine, his cattell stollen, his sheepe burnt, his children murdered, all that hee had, spoyled, destroyed, taken away, and nothing left him, yea his very body al­so made a spectakle of horror, and an image of miserie, beeing smitten with sore byles from the sole of his foote to the crowne of his head, and no part remaining whole a­bout him? It is not almost credible in hu­mane opinion, that so sodayne a change, so miraculous an ouerturne from so good a state to so vyle a case, from so muche wealth to so much woe, could possibly haue happened: but the storie is true, and the ac­cident is nothing impossible, and Iob him­selfe confessed, that as he was borne naked, so he should die naked, and that as the Lord had giuen him that wealth, so he had also ta­ken it away from him at his pleasure. But what was Iob, an Indfidell, and a repro­bate? No surely, Iob. 1.1. an vpright and a iust [Page] man, and one that feared God, and eschew­ed euill, so saith the spirite of God expresly of him, and yet this change from riches to pouertie, and from good to badde fell vpon him, howe much more then are the vngodly sinners, and vnrighteous men of the world subiect to the same. Iudgement saith Peter begins at the house of God, if it first begin at vs, what shall the ende bee of them which o­bey not the Gospel of God? and if the righ­teous scarcely be saued, where shall the vn­godly, and the sinner appeare? 1. Pet. 4.17.18. Did Iob, feele the suddainnesse and the waight of an alteration, and shall those in whose hearte there is no feare towardes God, in whose handes there is no innocencie, and in whose minde there is no desire of any good thing, shall they escape the plague of the same? no no, the Prophet Dauid affirmeth plainely concerning them, that they shalbe consumed as the fat of Lambes, their prosperitie shall passe away, Psal. 37.20. as a clowde, their Bay trees shall not alwaies be greene, they stande in slippery places, the Lorde will cast them downe into desolation, they shalbe suddenly destroyed, Psal. 73.18. perished, and horribly consumed: how many instances and examples can I giue you of this matter? but to leaue all, [Page] and to remember one, who can sufficiently expresse, or thorowly describe all the glorie, magnificence, pompe, pleasure, prosperitie and wealth of Nebuchadnezar the king of Babel, who had power ouer all kingdomes, Iere. 2 6.7. and all nations serued him, and did put their neckes vnder his yoke and by reason of his conquest ouer Ierusalem, and ouer Ieho­iakim the king of Iuda, 2. King 2.24. and ouer the house of the Lorde, his golde and siluer, and trea­sure was mightily increased, and yet for all this, as high as his estate was, and as in­finite as his wealth was, you know what iu­stice happened vnto him: he was cut downe by the watchman, his kingdome was taken from him, and hee from it, and hee became both poore amongst men, Dan. 4.30. and miserable a­mong beastes. This the Lorde our God to whom no mā is like is able to do, he maketh poore, and maketh riche, as Hanna the mo­ther of Samuel sometime did sing, 1. Sam. 2.7. hee exal­teth, and bringeth lowe, it is as easie a mat­ter with him to make a man a caytiffe, as a king, and a peysant as a Prince, for health, and sicknesse, life and death, prosperitie and beggery they are in his handes, to giue the one for a blessing, and to inflict the other for a punishment, when, where, and how it plea­seth [Page] him. How many men are there euen a­mong vs, within y ^e cōpasse of our own know­ledge, who somtimes florished in y ^e world, & braued it out in y ^e best sort, & who but they? wāting nothing that might serue for the ful­filling of their desires and the glorie of their pleasures, swimming in silkes, abounding with wealth, houses, grounds, sheepe, oxen, & many other things, yet nowe they are stript into their dublets, and turned as it were to their bag & staff, not so ful before as now they are miserable and emptie: this is the vncer­teinty of humane happines. who therfore but a foolish or rather mad man, will trust this world, & put any cōfidence in his wealth, and proceed to ware proud thereof, as though it shold for euer cōtinue with him, nay, suppose it do stād w ^t a man a long time, yet although his riches leaue not him, yet he in y ^e end shall leaue his riches, & be he as rich as Croesus, or as Diues was, yet at the last he shal iump with Lazarus, and be as poore as hee. And therfore it is not in vaine that Paul in his in­structiōs to Timothie, doth of purpose touch this particular point of the vncerteinety of carnall wealth. 1. Tim. 6.17. Charge them y ^t are riche in this world (saith he) that they bee not high minded, & that they trust not in vncertain ri­ches [Page] but in the liuing God. &c. Obserue the attribute: he doth not say, that they trust not in wicked riches, deceitful riches, or such like words, but in vncertayne riches, which epithete, he doth their vse as a speciall argu­ment to disswade men from the reposing of any trust in the same: for it is a great foo­lishnes to trust to an vncertayne thing: who will leaue to a broken staffe in leaping ouer a ditch? what mariner wil hazard his ship w ^t a rottē cable? what mā wil build a tower vp­on a weak foūdation? & what distressed persō wil in extremitie relie vpon a siccle freinde? now if it be a cōsequence of want of wit in a man to do any of these things, is it not y ^e like also in him y ^t shal plāt his affiance in riches, being a thing in confessiō, as brittle as a bro­ken staffe, as weak as a rottē cable, as totte­ring as a sandie foundation, as vnconstant as a wauering friend, as mutable as the winde, and as meltable as the snow? let the riche man therefore vpon remembrance of this point if he be carefull of his owne good, cast of his immoderate desire of wealth, and vnchristian opinion of the strength thereof, & content himself w ^t lawful means in the vse of his trade, & if God doth blesse his labors as he hath promised to the righteous man, let [Page] him conuert his sufficiencie to the inlarge­ment of the kingdome of God, his glorie, the furtherance of his worde, the comfort of the Saintes, and the profite of the Churche of God euery way, not yeelding to the affecti­ons of a foolish heart which will carrie a mā to ostentation, pride, and prodigalitie, and other vanities, but in all his actions seeking the honour of him, from whome he receiued his blessings: let him carefully consider the vncerteintie for continuance in that he pos­sesseth, and thereupon while hee hath his ri­ches, before the euill dayes doe come, dispose of it according to knowledge and consci­ence, least when the yeres of dearth, and ne­cessitie doe approche, then he say as a com­mō Gamester, and Diceplayer vsually doth, who hauing lost his mony at one vnthriftie, will then sweare, and take on, and professe, I would I had rather giuen it to the poore, saying so when his money being gone is be­come another mans, but when hee had it as his owne, he had no such good minde to do it. I my selfe haue hearde many, who some­time were in good case, and state, but nowe are in the contrary, wishing that when their abilitie was good, they had done this, and that, to the poore, to the Church of God, to [Page] the Preacher, and to other good vses, but when they were in their prosperitie they had no such good motion, nor gracious feeling in them. There is no doubt, but that Diues when he once felt the torment, & knewe the cause therof, he repented ten thousand times, that hee had not releeued Lazarus in his life: but then his repentaunce was too late, and had I wist, is alwayes the natu­rall and essentiall propertie of a foole. For a wise man will prouide a remedie for a mischiefe while time serues, but a foole when it is too late. Remember therefore the Parable of the talentes, and therein the iudgement of that euill and slothful seruant, Mat. 25.26. who not imploying his one talent to the ad­uantage of his maister, had the same taken from him, & giuen to his diligent fellowe, & himselfe in the ende, as an vnprofitable hire­ling, throwen into vtter darknes. And surely in this respect, that place of Salomon in his preacher is most excellēt, who speaking of y ^e miserable mind of the couetous man, not ha­uing the grace to vse his riches as he should do, Eccle. 6.1.2. he doth affirme that he had scene an euill vnder the sun, which was much amōgst the sonnes of man, namely, a mā to whom God hath giuē riches, & treasures, & honor, & hee [Page] wanteth nothing for his soule of all that it desireth, but God giueth him not power to eate thereof. Which indeede is a plague of plagues, that a man should haue in his fin­gers & custodie, that, by the good vse wher­of hee might doe singular good in Gods Church, to his glorie, and the saluation of many soules, & yet doth abuse his blessinges to the maintenance of his pride, bellicheere, wantonnes, luxuriousnes, couetousnes, vsu­rie, and other sinnes, without any regarde of that duetie whereunto the woorde of God doth binde, and direct him. If this thing be well marked, and aduisedly considered of our riche men, Luk. 16.8.9 I doubt not but that by the helpe of God, the same good & prudent effect which wrought in the vnrighteous steward, vpon the reckoning which his master called for at his hands, wil followe in them, name­ly a wise, and prouident dealing while they are in office, & a purchasing of friends by the riches of iniquitie, that when themselues do want, they may be receiued into euerlasting habitations: but now, if we take these words in y ^e other sense, namely y ^t the rich man is not to be proud of his wealth, not to boast therof, nor to be blowē vp in any arrogāt cōceit of himself therupō, but rather to ioyn humility [Page] with y ^e same, to be lowly in his own eies, & to bee so much the more lowly, by now much y ^e greater his substāce is, as y ^e constructiō may be & is good, so is y ^e doctrine profitable, for it teacheth y ^e rich mā, with what vertue amōgst the rest, his state must be accōpanied & ador­ned, & with what tēperature, he is to mixe y ^e sweetnes of his abūdance, & y ^e eminēcy of his degree, to be ful, & yet to be as if he were emp­ty, rich, & yet as if he were poore, high in coū ­tenance, and yet as if he were low in calling, to be of the same minde whereof the holy A­postle was, as he reportes of himself, saying, Philip. 4.12.13. I haue learned in whatsoeuer state I am therwith to be content. I can be abased, and I cā abound euery where in al things, I am instructed, both to be full, and to be hungrie, and to abound, and to haue want, I am able to do al thinges through the helpe of Christ which strengtheneth me, as if hee had sayde in other wordes, when I am on the one side pinched with pouerty, loaden with contēpts oppressed w ^t miseries, or howsoeuer afflicted & persecuted, I am content I dispaire not, I submit my selfe, & refer my case to the will, & pleasure of God, and I doe with patience in mind, & constancy in behauiour endure, & vn­dergoe the burden of my crosses. And on the other side also, when I am out of the perill [Page] of all mishappes, when my foote hath esca­ped the fowlers net, and my soule the Perse­cutors sworde, so that my life & libertie is in no hazard, or distresse, & I feele the want of no good thing, then I am not high minded, I waxe not proude, I exalt not my selfe ar­rogantly, & presumptuously, but with a so­ber minde, in the feare of God I take and vse the benefit of his good blessings, the eui­dēces of his loue returning vnto him y ^e due­ties of praise, & thanks for all things. This is a singular dispositiō of spirit, & a mirror of mortificatiō & wisdom, or rather y ^e chief skil & arte of the childrē of God to cary thēselues so vprightly, directly, & equally in al occur­rēts, as neither by y ^e storms of afflictiōs to be brokē & ouerthrowen, nor yet by the sweete draught of prosperous euentes to bee made drunke, neither to bee dismayed with the sharpnes of the Lords discipline, and trials, nor yet to surfet with the pleasure of his fa­uours, but so to liue and stand in both cases, as if they were one: & howsoeuer the worlde goeth, or their condition altereth, to bee the same maner of mē, of the same mind, behaui­our, gouernment, & quality stil. Which good and constant example in Paul, if it were of vs imitated and expressed, I should thinke that the ouerflowing riche man woulde [Page] not so much forget himselfe in the time of his felicitie as he doth, liuing in pompe, and securitie without all feare of God, and holy exercises: and that the needy poore man also, would not so often acquaint himselfe, with vnlawfull actions, practised for his violent releife, whereby many times the peace of the countrey is hazarded, and broken, but rather content himselfe with his meane fortune, and liue within compasse of lawe and hone­sty, relying vpō the good prouidence of God, which beeing continually working for spar­rowes, will not fayle him if hee faithfully trust in his mercie. But ye se what the drift of my speech is by occasion of the present words, that the riche man if he will reioyce, and be proud of any thing it must be of hu­militie, and not of any vaine confidence in himselfe, or his wealth, to auoyde the vaine­glorious humor of y ^e Pharasie, whose welth bred pride in his hearte, and the pride of his hearte ministred contempt to his lippes, Luke 18.11. in despising, and disdeyning his neighbour the Publican. Which thing is many times a fruite, & consequence of abundance without speciall moderation, and gouernement. For the Apostle affirmeth that the bounteous­nesse of God leading a man to repentance is [Page] not so taken of him but rather conuerted to an abuse of the Lordes patience, and suffe­rance, to the hardening of hearte, and heaping vppe of a treasure of wrath for himselfe against the day of wrath: Rom 2.4.5. and in the prophesie of Ieremie the Lorde himselfe makes complaint that whereas by the great measure of his blessings powred with both his hands vpon his people, he had prouoked them to obedience, they cōtrariwise follow­ed the sway of their lusts, Ierem. 5.7.8 and being fed full assembled themselues by companies in the harlots houses: they rose vp in the morning like fed horses, for euery man neyghed af­ter his neighbours wife. The experience of this woful matter we see in these daies plainlie as in a diamond, wherein the good bles­sings of God which should stirre vs vppe to Christian thankefulnes, are shamefully pro­phaned, and turned quite as it were against the heare, to an engendring, and fostering of sinne, and abhomination. As wee are equall with Sodom & Ierusalem in fulnes of bread, so in iniquities, Ezek. 16.49. pride, abundance of idlenes, & neglect to strengthē the hand of the poore and needie. Nay Sodom, and Ierusalem, and adde to thē a third, Samaria, these neuer cō ­mitted halfe of our sinnes, but we haue ex­ceeded [Page] the number of their transgressions, & haue iustified all their workes. And did the Lord in his displeasure make thē carry their own shame, and confounded them, Ib. ver. 54. & will he passe by vs, & our houses, & not suffer the de­stroyer to come in? hath he plauged his own citie wherein his name was called vpon, and shall we goe free? Rom. 11.21. hath he not spared the na­turall branch, and shall we that are graftes escape the axe, and iudgment? is it not good reason, and equitie, that if we commit their sins, we should also feele their scourges? for God is not parciall in his iustice, neither can any fauour or regard peruert y ^e course of his righteousnesse, but as sure as he liueth we shal know the price of our sins, & feele the ful smart of his wrath as they haue done, except we proclayme our fast, and put on our sack­cloth, and sit in ashes, crying mightelie to the Lord for mercie, Ionah. 3.5.8 10. and euery man turne from his euil wayes, & from the wickednes of his hāds, then the Lord wil repent him of y ^e euil y ^t he hath purposed against vs, & not do it, & y ^e which he hath said he would do, he wil not do it, otherwise y ^e abuse of his blessings being cō tinued, & y ^e multitude of our other sins incre­sed, shal procure y ^e suddē desolatiō, which shal neuer be recouered, & y ^e horrible destruction, which shall cause our names to be abhorred [Page] of the generations to come. Well it remay­neth now onely to stand vpō the y ^e third & last part of our diuision, contayning by amplifi­cation a reason of the former speech of the Apostle, wherfore the rich man is not to trust to his welth, nor to depēd vpon the strēgth of his riches, the reason is, because the same as Salomō speaks, Pro. 23.5. is as an Eagle which sud­dēly takes her wings, & flyeth into y ^e heauē, It is a flying thing, a thing subiect to cor­ruptiō & chang: no surer then y ^e flower of the grasse, which alwayes perisheth, and vani­sheth away. There are in scripture many swift thinges to the vncertayne qualities whereof the nature of wealth and riches is likened, and resembled: as sometimes to a shadow, which of it selfe in substance is no­thing, but the bare glymse of the body be­ing interposed betwixt the sun & the earth: sometimes to a post, and speedy messenger, who cōming in post departeth in hast, either in some seruice from the prince, or in carri­ing newes to the court: Wis. 5 9.10.11.12. sometimes to a ship which passeth thorow the waues of the wa­ter, the trace whereof being once gone can­not be found, nor the path thereof seene in the floods, sometimes to a byrde that flyeth in the ayre, and no man can see any token of her [Page] flight: sometimes to an arrow which is shot at a marke which deuideth the ayre for a time, but it commeth together againe im­mediately, so that a man cannot know where it went thorowe, and sometimes to the dust which is blowen away by the winde, al these things naturally, and liuely expressing the hopelesse condition of riches, and the trust­lesse prosperitie of this life. But amongst al other fit, and proper things to this purpose, the same comparisō which the Apostle vseth in this place, is not the least nor the last in conueniencie, and aptnes, making an equali­tie betwixt the riche man, & a flower of the grasse, which although for a time it be very glorious, and beautifull, yet all the glory thereof is weake, and all the beautie thereof vaine, and subiect to a sudden chaunge. And as in this place riches, so in other places such things, as are in their prime, and gallant­nesse are compared with this flower, and a­mongst the rest the time of youth, and yonge yeares, is tearmed by the name of the flower of a mans age, because then the body is lusty, the limmes strong, the proportion comely, the blood stirring, the wittes fresh, the me­morie quicke, all the powers perfect, and no­thing in nature wanting for inwarde and [Page] outward sufficiencie. But most commonly in scripture, such things as be short in conti­nuance, and in state transitorie, are resem­bled to this flower, as in the booke of Iob, that holy, and patient man, entring into a description of the miserable state and course of mans life from his byrth day, to his dying day, affirmeth that man being borne shoo­teth forth as a flower, Iob. 14.2. and is cut downe, hee vanisheth also as a shadowe, and continueth not. Quickly come, and quickly gone: soone ripe, & soone rotten as the prouerbe is. The crying voyce in the prophet Esay, doth make a difference betwixt y ^e state of a grasse, and of a flower, the one being of longer con­tinuance, Esay 40.6.7 though all be but little then the o­ther. All flesh is grasse, but the grace of flesh, that is the beautie excellencie, wisdome, and power of flesh is as the flower of the fieeld, the flower is more orient, and elegant, then the grasse, but the grasse is more durable, and permanent then the flower: both are subiecte to decay, and corruption, but yet the one droppeth to the earth sooner then the other. Which thing is to be applied to the wordes of our text, and to be regarded of the riche man with some speciall diligence, for as much as himselfe is heare by the Apo­stle [Page] resembled, not to the grasse but to the flower therof, which of the two makes most speede to consumption. The holy Ghost by the prophet Dauid, doth of purpose describe a flower, or grasse, shewing what it is, and of what force, and time for con­tinuance. For hauing spoken in the for­mer circumstances of the Psalme, of the fragillitie and weakenesse, of the breui­tie, and shortnesse of mans life, proouing it to be of no longer perpetuitie, then a day, a floode, a watche, a sleepe, a thought, and last of all a grasse, hee doth thereupon inlarge that last similitude, by expressing the state of the same grasse, in the mor­ning (sayth hee) it florisheth, and groweth, [...] the euening [...] is cut downe, Psal. 90.6. and [...]. Which is all one with that further description, which Iames makes heare in the next verse of this chapter, where amplyfying this reason which wee haue now in hande, hee sheweth the maner of the decay of the riche man, by the degrees of cor­ruption, wherunto the grasse is subiect. For as when the sunne ariseth with heate, then the grasse withereth, and the flower fal­leth away, and the goodlye shape of it peri­sheth, euen so shall the rich man wither away [Page] in all his wayes: In which words he tou­cheth y ^e general course of increase, & decrease in al vegetatiue & growing things, which as they haue their beginning, so they haue also their declination, and ende, and cannot al­wayes continue in one state: so in riches there is a beginning, and that sometimes base and simple, and as small as the begin­ning of a roote of a grasse, or of the seede of a flower which is not great in the greatest. We see and knowe amongst our selues, ma­ny who now are rich and welthy, and in suf­ficiencie farre beyond many of their neigh­bours, who began the world but with a smal stock, with little or nothing, yet by the bles­sing of God, & their own diligēce, their stock is increased, their state bettered, and their roome and place nowe reuerend amongst vs. Which beginning & originall of theirs, I could wish many to reuoke, and call backe to memorie, who are now so farre gone with pride, and arrogance, by reason of their pre­sent prosperitie, that they forgette the place from whence they came, the parentes from whom they discended, the simple seede from whence the great measure of their wealth hath spong, and their owne vnworthinesse e­uery way without Gods mercie to receiue [Page] any such blessinge. Which thing being re­mēbred, and aduisedly considered, I doubt not, will worke that good effect, which is nowe wanting in those, whom their ful­nesse hath made drunke, and obliuious of their owne progenie, and the graces, and fauours of God towardes them extended: namely thankefulnesse to God for the same, care of his honour, respecte of his true ser­uice, humilitie, lowlinesse of minde, and ten­dernesse of hearte towards those, who feele nowe the sharpenesse of that want, and ne­cessitie, whereunto themselues in the remē ­brance of many were sometimes subiecte. But by reason of the common neglecte of Christian dueties in this case, we see howe in iustice the Lorde doth deale with such maner of men who sloting vp for a time, as the sea or flood when it aryseth, yet at the last are brought downe to a low ebbe, and iump in cōclusion with that barē figgetree, which receiued a curse from the mouth of him who neuer blesseth vnrighteouse bran­ches, Mat. 21.19. and by and by for all his gloriouse leaues withered, and came to nothing, or with that same gourde, which came vp as a shadow to the head of Ionas for a time, but [Page] beeing smitten by a worme presently dryed vppe, Ionah. 4.7.10. so that as it sprange in a night, so it perished in a night. Exam­ples of our time in this case are superflu­ous: for the matter is most euident, and the men are yet liuing, whose states are specta­cles of this iustice, and whose decay are glasses of this declination, their tree of wealth hauing knowen the force of a curse, and their gourde of pleasures hauing felt the worme of vengeance, so that as their riches already hath, so themselues houre­ly doe, according to the wordes of Iames, in this place, vanish awaye as a flower of the grasse. Which thing being true I doe not a little maruell, that there are so ma­ny in the worlde, who contrary to their owne knowledge (for in this matter they connot pleade ignorance) doe make their wealth their supporte, and their treasure their shoote anker, not onely being proude thereof, but that which is an argument of a miraculous vnsensiblenesse, doe plant their confidence in the same, looking for helpe and deliuerance from their rustie and cor­rupte gatherings, which shall consume as a snayle that melteth, and as the vntime­lye [Page] fruite of a woman, that hath not seene the sunne. It was a speciall thinge giuen in charge by Paul to Timothie that hee should inioyne riche men in no case to trust in their riches: 1. Tim. 6.17. for hee knewe sufficient­ly howe to a riche man a perswasion inten­ding to trust and repose in his wealth, is most plausible, euen as wee see it appa­rant in these dayes, by the actions of those men, whom God hath blessed with great abundance, who presuming vppon the same, and thinking themselues able there­by to compasse any matter, doe applie them selues to oppression and tyrranny, by ex­coriating or skinning the poore man, cha­lenging those landes, and possessions where­in they haue no interest, but make a claime, and pretenced right, of purpose to defraud, and vndoe those, whome they knowe by reason of their wantes not able to make their parte good, by continuing the char­ges of lawe against them. And many o­ther vile thinges of like nature, are com­monly put in practise by them, not mi­strusting the successe of any matter they take in hande, intending, that if briberie, and corruption, and rewardes, may pur­chase [Page] particularly, and peruert the righte­ouse course of iustice they will assuredly speed of their purpose: this is the rea­son that so many bad and odious sutes are nowe vndertaken and prosecuted, ouer­throwing the foundations, and states of many good men, because the opinion which the vnrighteous man hath of victorie, and preuaylement by his wealth, is a spurre in him to tyrranny, supposing that his golde shal beare him out, and the countenance of his money shall terrifie as many as resist him. This oppressour doth little thinke of the wordes of Iames in this place, proclay­ming the naturall vncertaynetie of the riche man, and his Mammon, or of the mightie foolishnes of his heart, or of y ^e iudg­ment of God entring into his doores, from whose handes his money shall not saue him, Ezek. 7.19. nor his coyne keepe him in the daye of his wrath. Howe necessary then for the time is this doctrine, and that counsell of the ho­ly prophet. Psal. 62.10. Trust not in oppression and rob­bery, if riches increase set not your hearte thereon, and that notable confession of Iob also for example and direction, whose life is a president for vs, who sometimes in [Page] in great vehemencie wished, that his arme might fall from his shoulder, and be bro­ken from the bone, Iob. 3.24.25. if he had euer made gold his hope, or had sayde to the wedge of gold thou art my confidence, or reioyced in that his substance was great, and that his hand had gotten muche. A confession which thousandes of our dayes cannot make with any trueth, whose whole trust stan­deth in the heape of their treasure, and whole glorie in the possessiō of their wealth, hauing the like vayne, and vaineglorious conceite which Haman in the Booke of He­ster, who instead of acknowledging y ^e good­nesse of God towards him called his friends together, Hester. 5.11. and in the pride of his heart tolde them all the glorie of his riches, and the multitude of his children, and all the things wherein the King had promoted him, &c.

But against such maner of men the Lorde by the Prophet Amos doeth threaten, to raise vp an afflicting nation, from the en­tring in of Hamah, vnto the wildernes that is a generall destruction without the escape of anie, because they reioyce in a thing of nought, Amos 6.1 [...].13. and saie haue not wee gotten vs hornes by our owne strength? howe muche [Page] better then were it for vs, and all men to cast of this peeuish confidence in the arme of fleshe and in the vanishing shadowe of car­nall things, and to trust in him, and his mer­cie, who is the shielde, and buckler of the faithfull, the God of all strength and salua­tion, and able sufficiently to saue those, that relye vppon his goodnes: howe much more profitable for our selues, and for our soules comfortable were it to put in vse that sweet direction of our Sauiour, lay not vp trea­sures for your selues vpon earth, where the mothe, and canker doth corrupt, and where theeues doe digge through, Mat. 6.19.20. and steale, but laye vp treasure for your selues in Hea­uen, where neyther the mothe nor canker corrupteth, and where no theeues can digge thorowe to steale. Which wordes if they were well considered, and diligently exami­ned, woulde appeare to carrie within the compasse or bowels of them many good rea­sons to disswade vs from all miserable inde­uours of scraping together the pelfe of the worlde, and all idolatrous confidences in the same. I will not stande to discourse at large of those three seuerall enemyes to whose power the nature of all carnall trea­sure [Page] is subiect, and must obey, forasmuche as there is nothing which a man externally can possesse, but that in time, either the mothe may frette it, or the canker may cor­rupt it, or the theefe may violently breake in and surprise it, whereby first the corrupti­on, then the consumption, and last the dan­ger, and small securitie of wealth is most fully and excellently shewed, and withall the huge vanitye of mens heartes condem­ned, who serue with deuotion, and honour, that transitorie trashe, wherein there is nei­ther strength to continue, nor substaunce to indure, nor assurance to stande without decay and losse: but this one thing in the woordes maie bee with breuitie obserued, that our Sauiour doeth there remember vs of the place wherein we liue, [...] and vseth the same as a reason to withdraw our myndes, from the heaping vp of treasure in the same. This earth is not our habitation, but tho­rowfare: wee are not heere as dwellers for euer, but as soiourners for a time, as all our fathers were, wee haue heere no rest, Micha. 2.10 Heb. 13.14. nor continuing Citie, but wee must seeke one to come, wee must haue wiues as if wee had none, wee must weepe as though [Page] wee wept not, and reioyce as though wee reioyced not, and buye as though wee pos­sessed not, 1. Cor. 7.39.30. and vse this worlde as though wee vsed it not for the fashion of this world goeth awaye: and therefore if there were any measure of ordinary witte and wise­dome in vs, wee woulde not so greedily ap­ply our selues to couetousnesse, nor so car­nally dispose of our selues to the loue of the worlde, and worldly thinges as wee doe, beeyng by our owne knowledge so natural­ly subiect to a short durance, and so constāt­ly ordayned to an vniuersal destruction, but rather wee woulde respect that place, which is immortall, and that treasure which is incorruptible, and laye vp for our selues in store (as the spirite speaketh) a good foun­dation agaynst the time to come, 1. Tim. 6.19. that wee maye obtayne eternall life. 2. Pet 3.10.13. Doe wee not knowe that the Heauens shall passe awaye with a noyse, and that the elementes shall melt with heate, and that the earth with the woorkes that are therein shall bee burnt vp? And if wee doe knowe it, is it not expedient for vs, that wee looke ouer, and beyonde all these thinges, and by a holy conuersation, and faithfull hope, ex­pect [Page] newe Heauens, and a newe earth, wherein dwelleth righteousnesse? Is it not requisite for vs to bee risen with Christ, and to seeke those thinges which are a­boue, where Christ sitteth at the right hand of GOD, that when hee shall appeare Colos. 3.1.4. and come in iudgement with thousandes of Angels, wee maye also appeare with him in glorie? My beloued brethren, and si­sters in the Lorde, suffer the woordes of exhortation: if there bee any consolation in Christ, if anye comfort of loue, if a­nie felowshippe of the spirite, Philip. 1. if any com­passion of mercie, looke to your selues, and regarde the state of your soules: let not the precious death of Christ Iesus bee made without effect in you, grieue not the holy spirite of GOD by which you shoulde bee sealed agaynst the day of redemption, Eph. 4.3 [...]. set your affections vpon heauenly thinges, and not vppon the thinges of corruption. Let your conuersation bee without coue­tousnesse, to doe good, Heb. 13.16. and to distribute forgette not, for with such sacrifices God is pleased, if all these thinges be amongest you and abounde in you, you cannot possi­bly bee vnfruitefull in the acknowledging [Page] of Christ. Nowe the God of peace, that brought agayne from the dead our Lorde Iesus, Heb. 13.20.21. the greate shephearde of the sheepe, through the blood of the euerlasting coue­nant, make you perfect in all good workes, to doe his wil, working in you that which is pleasant in his sight through Iesus Christ, to whom be praise for euer, and euer. Amen.