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Show ;~8 !668. 1../"'r'-.J Chap. XU. Mat.~· I. philo2•7• No CROSS, No CROWN. VoL. I. And for the other Sin of Avariu, they can 'only avoid_ it, and fpeak Truth, thus, That never feeding the Flofk, They camzot be fazd to feed 11 for Lucre: That is, They get the Peoples Money fo_r Norbmg. An ExaQJ.~le of which is given us by the Complaint of God h1mfelf, from the PraChce of the Proud, Covet~lli, fa!Je Prophets of O_ld, That the People ~ave _rbeir Money for that which wJU not Bread, mtd tbe1r Ltbour for that V.lblfh dzd not profit them: And why? Becaufe then the Priefl ba~ no Vifion; and too many now defpife it. ~ . . M §. X. But alas 1 When all is done, wh~t FoJJy, :IS wel~ as Irre~tg10n, ts there in Pride? It cannot add one Cub1t to any Mans Srature: What Crotres can it hinder? What Difappointments helj>, or harm fruftrate? It delivers not from the common Stroke , Sidmejr disfigures; Pain mfr {hapu:; at~d Death ends the Pro11d. JUan's Fabrick. Six: Foot of C:Jid Ear;b bounds his big Thoughts; and his Perfon, that was too good for any Place, mufi at lafi lodge within the firait Limits of fo l:ittle_andfo dark a Ca~e: And who thought nothing well enough for him, 1s qmckly the Entertain· ment of the loweft of all Animals, even JVorms themfelves. Thus Pride and Pomp come to theCo'!lmon End; ~ut with this Diff~renc.e, !if~ Pi!Y from the Living · and mor8 Pam to the Dymg. The Proud Man s Anuquny can· not fecure' him fro!D Death,. nor his !feraldry froq1 Judgment. _Tides of Honour vani!h at thiS Extremny; and no Power ot W~lt~, no Qlibnce or Refpea can refcue or infure them, As the Tree faDs, It Iter i aod a1 Deatb leaves .lllen, Judtmemfinds them, §. XI. 0, what can Prevent this ill Conclufion? A!>d \j'hat can Reme<lr this Wtif~l Declenfion from Ancient Meeknefs, Humility, and Piety, ar.d that Godly Life and Power which were fo ConfpicUOU!i in the Authority Of the Preachings, and Examples of the Living of the firfi: and pureft Ages of Chri/lianity! Truly, nothing ~ut an ln~a.rd and Sincere Examjnatio~ _by thcTeftimony of the Holy L1gbt and Spmt of JESUS, of the Condmon of their Souls and Minds toward Chrifi:, and a better \nquiry iqto the Matter and Examples of Holy Record, 'Twas his Cotl)plamt of old, That Light waJ come into the World, but Men lov'd, Darlmefs rather than Light, hecaufe their Deeds were Evil. If thou wouldfi be a Child of God, and a Believer in Chrift, thou muft be a Child of Light Q Man I Thou mull bring thy Deeds to it, and Examine them by that Holy, Lamp in thy Soul, which is the Candle of the Lord, that fhews thee thy Pride and Arrogancy, and reproves thy Delight in the ~a~n Fafhions ?f this World. Religio~ is a Denial of Self; yea, of Stlf-Rebg,cn too. It 15 a firin Tye or Bond upon the Soul to Holineft, whofe End is Happinefs; for by it Men come to fee ·the Lord. The pure in Heart (fays Jefus) fee God: He that once comes to bear Chrift's Yoke, is not carried a \Yay by the Devil's JJ.Uuremenu; he finds excelling Joys in his Watchfulnifs and Obedience. If Men lo\•ed the Crofs of Chrift, his Precepts and DoCtrine, they would CroJs their own Wills which lead them to break Chdfi'S Holy 'Vill, and lofe their own Souls, in doing the Devil's. Had .Adam minded that Holy Light in Paradife more than the Serpent's Bait, and ftayed his Mind upon his Creator, the Rewarder of Fi· delity, he had feen the Snare of the Enemy, and refifted him. 0 do not Delight in that which is foibidden! Look not upon it, if thou v,oouldft not be captivated by it. Bring not the Guilt of Sins of Knowledge upon thy own Soul. Did CHRIST fubmit his Will to his Father's, and for the foy that Wal Jet before him, endure the Cro[s, and dejpife the Shame of a new and untrodden Way to Glory? Thou alfo ·muft fubmit thy Will to Chrifl's Holy Law and Light in thy Hent, and for the Reward he fets before thee, to wit, Eternal Life, Endure his Cro{s, anil de./}ife tbe Shaf11e of it. All de· fire to rCjoyce with him, but few will tuffer with him, or fOr him. Man)' are the Companions of his Table; not many of his Abftinence. The Loavn they follow, but the Cup of his .Agony they leave. 'Tis too Biuer: They like not to drink thereof And divers will magnifie his .Miracles, that are offended at the Ignominy of his Crofs. But 0 Man I As Re. for thy Saha .. tion, fo thou for the Love of Hi!Jl mull H11mble tbJ folk and be con rented to VoL. I. NoCRQSS, No CR.OWN. to be of J\0 R~ptttotion, that th~u mayft follow him, not in a Carnal For:. mal Wsy, of vain Ma~'s Tr~~lti.on and Prefcripti~n, but as t~e Holy hhoft by the Apoftle doth exprefs n, ln the "new and livmg Way, Wb1ch Jefus hath confeualed, that brings .all that walk in it, to the Eternnll<efl of God: W)lcreinro he himfel£ is eotred, Who is the Holy and only bleffed Redeemer. CHAP XIII. §. I. Avarice (thefecond Ct1pital Lufi) its Definition and DiflinOion. §. ~-It mtfiftl int Defire of Unlawful 'things. §. 3· A• in David', Cll[ellhlutUriah•, Wife. ~·4· Al{o Ahab's ddu• Naboth't YintJII.Ti.. ;. ~· Next, in Unlawful O¢fires of Lawful Thmgs. ;. f>· Covet:oufnefs il "Mvk of Fa1fe Prophets. ;. 1• A Jttprouh t11 ~tli~ion. §. 8. Aa E•· s;'r:~ s~Sr~r:n~&us.s' /.' ;;.e~;!ft;~·rn J~;r~fi:tr:~':rdi~· ~}·M~~;. •• .E.•;.•!J:; Covct()US :Man .s Common Evil. S· 1~. Hil H.Jpoc:rifie. ~. 16. ~old bi# God. ~. 17. lie ilfp.t;in8 to Dwll. ;. 1.8. lsreprnll. i)' Chri(f tmJ. llis Followers. ;. 19. Ananias 4N.l Sap-o plura's lin ••1.1-•igmtnt. §.. 20. William Tindal's Di(wufe on rb.n Suhjell referttJ. unto. S· 21: ;I>etc:r Ctyrron'tTt]limon.J 1f€1.in/t ir, S· 22. Abraham Cowley', wit'J ~on4jbvp Satyr ll]OIJ lf, §. I. J Am come to the Second Part of this Difcourfe, which is Avarice,: · or Covetoufnifs, an Epidemical and a Raging Difiemper in the World, attended with all the Mifchiefs that can make Men miferable in 1hemfehes, and in Society: So near a·kin to the foregoing Evil, Pride, th:it they are feldom apart: Liberality being almoft as hateful to the Proud, 3S to the Covet om. I fhall define it thus: Covetoufnefs is tbe Love of Mo-nty or Riches: which (as the Apoftle hath it) is the Root of nil Evil. It brancheth it felf int.;> thefe Three Parts; 1ft, Dejiring of Unlawful Things. Secondly, Unlawfully dr.firing of Lawf:ulTbmgs. And laftly, Hoarding up, or unprofitably wl/b·ho/Jmg the Benefit of them from the Relief of private "h1jons, ur the Publick. I !hall. firft deliver the Senfe of Scripture, and what Examples ~re therein affor.d:d againft this Impiety: And nex:r, my owa Reafons, With fome Authormes from Authors of Credit. By which it will appear, That the Working of the Love of Riches out of the.Hearrr of People, ts tt111ttlch the Bujinefs of the Crofs of Chtift, tU the rooting out of any one Sin that ftlan is fallen into. §. II. And Firft, of Dejiring or Coveting of unlawful Things: It is ex· pref\y Forbidd'n by God Him!Hf, in the Law he delivered to Mofu upon ftlonnt Sinai, for a Rule to his People, the Jews, to walk by: Thou foalt not Cover (foith God) thy N<igbbou(s Houf'' Thou fha!t not Covet 1by Neighbour's Wife, nor his Man.jervant, nur his Maid-fervant, nor his Ox nor bis lift, nor Any Thing tbdt is thy }{eigbhour's. This God confirmed by Thunderings and Lightnings, and other fenfible Solemnities, to ftrike 33.9 1668. ~ Chap. XU. .H.e. b. 10. 19, Chap.XIIt ~ Epher. ~··"31 J 1 Tim.6. 9, 10, the People With more Aw in receiving and keeping of it, and to make the Breach of thefe moral Precepts more Terrible to them. Micah complaint full~rnouth'd in his Time, They covet Fields, and tde them by Violence. but Mic:. 2, J~ theu End was Mifery. Therefore was it faid of old, Wo to them that ~ovet nn roil Coveroufnefi: This is to our Point. We have many remarkable Infbnces of t~is in Scripture 1 t~o of which I will briefly Reporr. §. III. Dav1d, though otherw1fe a good Man, by Unw::trchfulnefs is taken; the Beauty of Uriafls Wife was too hard for him, being difarm'd, an~ off from his Spiritual Watch. There was no Di.ffwafive would do: Ur1~h m~ft be p~t upon a defperate Service, where.it was gre:a:t ~ds if he furv1ved lt. Thts was to h:1ften the Unlawful SausfaEHon of h1s Defires by a Way th:J:t look'd not like dire£l: Murder. The Connivance took; UdiJh is kill'd, and his Wife is quickly David's. This interpreted David's Covet· ou_fnef.r. But went it ofF fo) No, David had !harp Sa wee with his Meat. J!J, PJeajl1re foon turn'd to .Anguijh and Bitternifs of Spirit: His Soul was overr»helm'd with Sorrow: Tb, II' aves went over bi1 Jlend: lie wns &oPfMmed X x 2 -wi1hin |