SATAN'S COMPASSING THE EARTH.  
BY HENRY SMITH.  
LONDON Imprinted by Thomas Scarlet. 1592.   
job. 1.7.8. 
7 Then the Lord said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? And Satan answered the Lord, saying, From compassing the earth to and fro, and from walking in it.  
8 And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou not considered my servant job, how none is like him in the earth? an upright man, one that feareth God and escheweth evil.  
I Have spoken of the question already, now of the answer, Compassing here doth signify tempting, & the Earth doth signify all the people of the earth: as if he should say, I come from tempting all men. It is some vantage unto us to hear that the Spaniards are coming before they come, and what number they have, and how they are appointed, that we may levy our forces accordingly. But beloved, there is a greater adversary than the Spaniarde, which brings in the Spaniards, your adversary the devil. It is good for us to hear when he comes, that we may be in a readiness against him, as we prepare against them. Therefore this Scripture, and this time accord well. In Revelation 12.10. the devil is called an accuser, and now I am an accuser of the accuser: he accuseth us to God, & God accuseth him to us, that when he comes like an angel, yet we may say to him like Christ, Avoid Satan. First give me leave to say unto you as Christ said unto his disciples, Take heed how you hear, for that which I am to speak unto you of the devil, the devil would not have you hear: and therefore as he is here called a Compasser, so he will compass your eyes with shows, and your ears with sounds, and your senses with sleep, and your thoughts with fancies, and all to hinder you from hearing while the articles are against him, and after I have spoken, he will compass you again with business, and cares, and pleasures, and quarrels, to make you forget that which you have heard, as he hath made you forget that which ye have heard before, or else to contemn it, as though you might do well without it: as he hath compassed them which do walk in the streets while the voice of God soundeth in the Churches as they pass by: therefore before every Sermon ye had need to remember Christ's lesson, Take heed how you hear.  
Now to the matter. Satan from whence comest thou? I come from compassing the earth. Here the devil is called in like a jailer, which keeps some in perpetual prison, and some are bailed, and some return to prison again, and some are executed. They which sin fearfully, stay as it were about the Prison, but are not bound: they which sin wittingly are under lock, they which sin greedily, are under lock and bolts, they which die in their sin, are like them which are condemned, this is the bondage which we have brought ourselves unto for a fair apple. When the tempter overcame us, we were removed out of paradise, where we were seated: when we have overcome the tempter, we shall be translated into heaven, where he was seated, heaven door was wide, and the way was broad before the rebellion, but when weeknockt at the cannell door, than the good door was shut, heaven is large, but the way to heaven must be narrow, therefore God hath set our enemies in the gate to fight with us before we enter, that this saying might be verified, The kingdom of heaven is caught by violence: so soon as we rise in the morning we go forth to fight with two mighty giants, the world and the devil, and whom do we take with v● but a traitor? this brittle flesh which i● ready to yield us up to the enemy at every assault, only he which suffers Satan to compass us, doth stay him from destroying us. When God asked Cain, where is thy brother? Cain lied and said, I cannot tell. When God asked Sarah why she laughed? Sarah lied and said, I laughed not: but when God asked the devil from whence he came, he answered truly, I come from compassing the earth, and yet he which speaketh truth himself, taught them to lie, as he is called the father of liars, because he teacheth all others to lie. How then? Was Cain worse than the devil, because he lied and the other told truth. By this you may see that carnal men do not know so much of God as the very devil knoweth, for he knew that GOD could tell where he had been, but Cain doubted whether God could tell what he had done, and therefore he made a lie. Thus, thus the devil teacheth his scholars to do worse sometimes than he will do himself, even as he would bring them (if it were possible) into a worse plight than he is himself. The devils faith cannot save us, no more than it can save him, the devils knowledge cannot convert us, no more than it doth convert him, and yet he would not have men believe, that which he believeth himself, nor have us understand so much as he understandeth himself: for if Cain had understood so much as he, that God knew whether he lied or no, he would have answered God truly, as Satan did, but the devil knew that there was no dissembling with God, who knows what he asks before he asks, therefore he told troth to God, though he lie to man: for to lie unto him which knoweth, is as if one should lie to himself, but Cain was not so well learned, he thought peradventure yet God might understand his murder, as a these suspecteth in his heart that the judge may know his theft: but he doubted whether God did know it, & therefore he denied it like one which is guilty, but thinks that if he confess, he shall be hanged, and therefore though evidence and witness accuse them, yet you see many which will not accuse themselves.  
From compassing the earth. He which was called Satan before, which signifieth an adversary, is here said to compass the earth: which is to say, being put together, an adversary compasseth the earth, and therefore let the earth beware like a City which is besieged with the adversary.  
The devil hath more names then any Prince hath titles, some GOD hath given to him, and some he hath given to himself: but this is to be noted in the devils names, that he never called himself a liar, nor a tempter, nor an accuser, nor a slanderer, nor a deceiver, nor a devourer, nor a murderer, nor a master, nor an adversary, nor a viper, nor a lion, nor a dragon, nor a wolf, nor a cockatrice, nor a serpent. But when Christ asked him his name, he calleth himself Legion, which imports a multitude, as if he should brag of his number, and here he calls himself in effect the compasser of the earth, as if he should brag of his power. And in the fourth Chapter of Luke & sixth verse, he calleth himself the possessor of the earth, as if he should brag of his possessions, and in the same he calleth himself the quire of the earth, as if should brag of his liberality. Thus he which is evil itself, doth shun the name, because he would not be hated, and therefore no marvel if men call evil good, and would be counted honest, though they be never so lewd, for so will the devil: but as God never called the devil but by those names which the devil hated, so he never calleth sinners by those names which they call themselves, for if you observe the Scripture, there is no name of the devil, but in some place of Scripture or other the wicked are called by the same name, he is called a liar, & they are called liars: he is called a tempter, & they are called tempters: he is called a murderer, & they are called murderers: he is called a slanderer, and they are called slanderers: he is called a viper, & they are called vipers: he is called a lion, & they are called lions: he is called a wolf and they are called wolves: he is called a serpent, and they are called serpents. Thus God would they that shallbe damned should have the name of him which is damned, to put them in mind. Now none of the devils names are in the book of life; and therefore liars, & tempters, and slanderers, and murderers, and defamers are not, therefore these are the devils names. This I note to show you how deadly God doth hate sin, that neither the devil nor his followers could ever get a good name of him, for all his compass, he could never compass this, to shuffle any praise of himself into this book of life, for he doth not compass heaven, but earth, though he would compass both, the devil himself doth tell us here, that he compasseth, & he telleth us not why he compasseth, but his name Satan that went before, which he spoke not of, doth tell us why he compasseth. Because it signifies an adversary, it giveth us to understand that he compasseth the earth like an adversary. God doth compass the earth like a wall to defend it: the devil compasseth the earth like an enemy to besiege it. For enemy is his name, he is envy even to the name.  
Three things I note: wherefore the devil may be said to compass the earth. First, because he tempteth all men. Secondly, because he tempteth to all sins. Thirdly, because he tempteth by all means: So that whosoever sinneth, wherein soever he offendeth, whereby so ever he is alured, the sin, and the sinner, and the bait, are compassed, and contrived by this Archpolitique, which calls himself a Compasser. Many have their names for nought, because they do nothing for them, like Laban's images, which were called Gods, though they were but blocks: but the devil deserves his names, he is not called a tempter, and a liar, and a slanderer, and an accuser, and a deceiver, and a murderer, and a compasser in vain, like Saint George. which is always on horseback, and never rides: but he would do more than by his office he is bound to. Other are called officers because they have an office: but he is called enemy because he showeth his envy. Other are called justicers, because they should do justice: but he is called a tempter because he practiseth temptations. Other are called pastors because they should feed: but he is called a devourer because he doth devour: and we call him a Compasser, because that he doth compass. Ever since he fell from heaven he hath lived like Cain, which cannot rest in a place, but is a runagate over the earth, from door to door, from man to man, begging for sins as the starved soul begs for bread. He would have dwelled in heaven, and not been compassing the earth, he should have sung with the Angels, & not been quarreling with men, but he hath changed his calling, & is become a compasser, that is, to lay fetters upon men, as God hath fettered him, left they should ascend to the place from whence he is fallen. Therefore in this the Liar spoke truth, when he said, I come from compassing the earth: as if he should say to God, I come from the slaughter of thy servants, not to ask forgiveness for all the souls which he hath slain already, but to get a commission that God would make him knight Marshal over the world, to slay and kill as many as he hated: like the bramble, which set itself on fire first, and then fired all the wood.  
Peter describing the devils walk, saith that he goeth about: The devil saith that he goeth a compass. Peter puts in, seeking whom he may devour: the devil leaves out devour, and saith no more, but that he compasseth. This circular walk is particular to the devil, and therefore may be called the devils circuit. All other creatures go forward, but the devil goeth about, which may well be applied to the crafty devil, because to go about, is commonly taken to undermine: when he meaneth he will destroy you, than we say he will compass you: so when the devil compasseth, then beware least he devour. For the devil goeth about men, as the Fowler goeth about the lark, to snare her; as the thief goeth about the house, to rob it; as the ivy goeth about the oak, to kill it. The devils walk is a siege, which goeth about but to find an issue to go in: for he goeth about but until he can get in to be a possessor. He is content to be a compasser. The first name the devil hath in Scripture, is a Serpent, he is a Serpent, and so are his ways like a serpent, which windeth himself like a circle.  
As God is said to make an hedge about men, so here the devil is said to make an hedge about men: but this is an hedge of temptations, and that is an hedge against temptations. As David saith the Angels compass us, so might he say the devils compass us. Satan compasseth, and man is compassed. Satan is like the circumference, and man is, as it were, the Centre: that is, temptations go round about him, and he dwelleth in the midst of them. Thus much of Compassing: now what he doth compass.  
I come from Compassing the Earth. This is the devils pilgrimage, from one end of the earth to the other, and then to the other again, and then back again, like a wandering Merchant, which seeketh his traffic where he can speed cheapest. I have heard of some travelers which have gone about the earth, but I never heard of any that had seen all parts of the earth but this old Pilgrim Satan, which hath been in heaven, and in Paradise, and in the earth, and in the sea, and in hell, and yet hath not done his walk, but like the Sun which courseth, about the earth every day: so there is no day but Satan seethe every man upon earth: as a compass hath no end, so he makes no end of compassing. Because he is such a compasser of the world, therefore Paul calleth him The God of this world, not a piece of the world, as England, or Ireland, or France, or Germany, or Spain, but of the world, that is, of all the countries, and cities, and towns, and villages, & houses: The Pope talks of his kingdom, how many provinces are under his dominion, but the devils circuit is greater than the Popes: one would think that he could never tend half his flock, because he is vicar of so great a monarchy, and yet he is never non resident. You may see his steps every where so brim and fresh, as though they were printed in ashes, if God make you see your country naked, your temples desolate, your cities ruined, your houses spoiled, you will say the Spaniards have been here: so when you see your minds corrupted, your hearts hardened, your wills perverted, your charity cooled, your judges bribers, your ruler's persecutors, your lawyers brabblers, your merchants usurers, your landlord's extortioners, your patrons symonistes, your pastors loiterers, you may say the devil hath been here. Seeing then these weeds grow in every ground, you may bear the devil witness that he doth compass all the earth. If a man love his friend, he will say, I will go an hundred miles to do him good: but if the devil hate a man, he will go a thousand miles to do him hurt. The devil doth not go his progress like a king, only for delight, but all the way as he goeth, Peter saith, He seeketh whom he may devour. The devil goeth a visiting, he will teach the sick how they shall recover their health, he will whisper the poor how they shall come by riches, he will tell the captives how they shall redeem their liberty: but to devour is the end of his visitation. Therefore Peter called him a Lion, and said that he went about, and told us that he sought as he went: at last he saith, to devour, & there he ends, showing that devouring is his end: now you shall hear whom he compasseth, & to what he compasseth, & how he compasseth When it is said that the devil compasseth the earth, it is meant that he compasseth the men of the earth: out of which I gather, first of all creatures he compasseth men: secondly, that he compasseth all men, and by consequence that he compasseth good men. The devil is like an Archer, and man is his mark, and temptations are his arrows. As Peter is called a fisher of men, so the devil may be called a hunter of men: for of all creatures his envy is only to men, because man was made to serve God, and inherit the joys which he hath lost, therefore he is called no slear, but a manslayer. When there are no men upon earth, than the devil will compass the earth no more.  
Secondly, he assaulteth all men, like Ishmael, which was against all. It is said of Saul and David, Saul hath slain his thousand, and David his ten thousand: but if you put in Satan, you may set up the number, and say, Satan hath slain his hundred thousand. As there is a legion of men, so there is a legion of devils: that as they said Peter's angel, so they may say Peter's devil: for Christ would not have called Peter Satan, if Satan had not backed him: as death killeth all, so the devil tempteth all: when he hath Eve, he hunteth for Adam: when he hath Adam, he hunteth for Cain: as the father was tempted, so must the sons, as the mother was tempted, so must her daughters. Every man but Christ may say, I have been overcome, but Christ himself cannot say, I have not been tempted. In the Spanish inquisition the protestants are examined, but the papists slip by: but in the devils inquisition papist, and protestant, and Atheist, and Puritan, & all are examined. He is not a captain of forties, nor of fifties, nor of sixties, nor of hundreds, but he is general over all which fight not under Christ's banner, he possessed the two Gergesites, which were men, he possessed Mary, which was a woman, he possessed the man's son, which was a child. Nimrod is called a mighty Hunter which killed beasts, but this is a mighty hunter which killed Nimrod himself, God keep us out of his chase. Thirdly, he warreth against the righteous, even because they are righteous, as God makes the barren fruitful, and the fruitful to bear more fruit: so the devil would have them serve him, which serve him not, & they which serve him to serve him more: and therefore as the Giant encountered with David, so the devil encountered with David, and with David's Lord: he which gave him leave here to tempt job, was after tempted himself, although the net broke, & the bird escaped: yet as he tempted Christ thrice together, and as he desired to sift Peter more than other, so they that follow Christ, and are like Peter, are sifted more than other. For this viper is like the viper which ceased upon Paul. Among many which stóode by the fire, the viper chose out Paul, & lighted upon him before all the rest: so if one be holier than another, this viper will battle with him, & there is great reason why the godly are tempted more than the wicked: because the wicked are his fernants, and do tempt others.  
As he tempteth all men, so he tempteth to all sins: for hell and the devil, are alike, therefore as hell is never filled with sinners, so the devil is never filled with sins, and therefore when thee had made Peter deny his master once, he made him deny him twice, & when he had made him deny him twice, he made him deny him thrice. For this cause our sins are counted amongst those things which are infinite, because the devil and our flesh meet together every day to engender new sins. All the devils riches is in baits, he hath a packful of oaths for every one which will swear, a pack full of lies for every one which will deceive, a pack full of excuses for every one which will dissemble. As he doth go through the streets, into every shop he casts a short measure, or a false balance: as he passeth by the taverns he sets dissension betwixt friends: as he passeth by every Inn he casts a pair of cards, and a pair of dice, and a pair of tables: as he passeth by the courts, and finds the Lawyers at the bar, he casts among them false evidences, forged writings, and counterfeit seals.  
Thus in every place where he comes (like a foggy mist) he leaves an evil savour behind him. The murmuring of Moses, the dissimulation of Abraham, the idolatry of Aaron, the incest of Lot, the drunkenness of Noah, the adultery of David, the flight of jonah, the denial of Peter, name Satan, and thou hast named the very spawn of all sins, which with his tail plucked down the Stars from heaven. How many hate their enemies, and friends too, and yet embrace his enemies, because he kisseth when he betrayeth, as though he would not betray. Avarice saith, I will make thee amiable: tyranny saith, I will make thee dreadful: sloth saith, I will make thee beautiful: vanity saith, I will make thee merry: prodigality saith, I will make thee beloved: So the poor sinner stands distract how he may follow all sins at once, seeking grapes of thistles, and roses of thorns.  
As he tempteth to all sins, so he tempteth by all means: for the name of a compasser doth import a cunning tempter. There is craft in compassing, the Hunter maketh a rail about the dear as though he would guard them, when he meaneth to take some of them: the fouler goeth about the bird as if he did not see her, when he comes to snare her. If men have so many sleights to compass their matters, how can the compasser himself hold his fingers: if the serpents feed be so subtle, what do you think of the old serpent, who hath been learning his trade ever since the creation? If men's trades may be called crafts, the devils trade may be called craft? Herod is called a fox, but this fox taught him his subtlety: this is he that prepared flatterers for Rehoboam, which prepared liars for Ahab, which prepared concubines for Solomon, which prepared sorcerers for Pharaoh, which prepared witches for Saul, which prepared wine for Benhadab, which prepared gold for Achan, which prepared a ship for jonas, which prepared a rope for Haman, he goeth not about for nothing.  
But this is the first trick of his compass, he marks how every man is inclined, what he loves, what he hateth, what he fears, & what he wants: and when he hath the measure of his foot, than he fits him. Ask what you will, here is he which offered the whole world. What, shall jonah stay for want of a ship, nay here is a ship, go and fly from the Lord: shall Esau stay for want of broths, nay here is a mess of broth, go and sell thy birthright: shall judas stay for want of thirty pence, nay here are thirty pence, go & betray thy master: shall Pilate stay for want of an halter, nay here is an halter, go and hang thyself.  
The tyrant shall not want a flatterer, the wanton shall not want a mate, the usurer shall not want a broker, the thief shall not want a receiver: he is a factor between the Merchant and the Mercer, and the gentleman and the tenant: he is a makebate between the man and his wife, he is a talebearer between neighbour and neighbour. Thus if you ask me what is the devils trade or occupation, all the day long he is making nets, and gins, and snares, to catch thee and me, which gape for the worm.  
If then the devil be such a busybody, which meddleth in every man's matter, let us remember what the wise man saith, a busy body is hated: the devil is to be hated because he is a busy body: the jews could not abide the Publicans because they were like summoner's, and takers, which carried toll out of their country into another: how then can we abide this great publican, which taketh toll over all the world? nay not toll of men, but men themselves: he which compasseth the earth, compasseth us, even us which stand here. Therefore what shall I say, but as Christ said, When the thief compasseth the house, shall not the owner guard the house: if the city be compassed, & not defended, how should it stand: as the devil runneth round about us, so the armour must go round about us, & then though he compass us, yet he shall not overcome us: but as the Israelites were safe though the water compassed about them, as the children were safe though the flames compassed about them, as Daniel was safe though the lions compassed about him, so they which have Christ's armour, are safe, although the devil compass about them. I will not fear, saith, David, what man can do unto me, nay I will not fear what the devil can do unto me, for he which is with me is greater than he which is against me. Thus much of the devil and his compass.  
As the serpent compasseth, so doth his seed: and therefore Solomon calls the ways of the wicked, crooked ways. This is the great compasser, there be little compassers beside, like the pharisees, of whom it is said, that they compassed sea and land to make one like themselves. In stead of these compassers we have Seminary priests, which compass from Rome to Tiborn, to draw one from Christ to Antichrist, I will not name all compassers beside, lest I be compassed myself, but this I speak within compass, that there is a craft of compassing, and Satan is the craftes-master, & the rest are his prentices, or factors under him. When he hath compassed some men, he sets them to compass other men, and so he hath his compassers, and spies in every Country, like continual Legers to follow his business for him, which will do it as faithfully as himself. If he appoint them to lie, they will lie as fast as he: if he appoint them to deceive, they will deceive as cunningly as he: if he appoint them to slander, they will slander as falsely as he: if he appoint them to flatter, they will flatter as smoothly as he: if he appoint them to mock, they will mock as scornfully as he: if he appoint them to revenge, they will revenge as spitefully as he: if he appoint them to persecute, they will persecute as fully as he. So if he do but say let there be an oath, strait there is an oath: let there be a lie, strait there is a lie: let there be a flout, strait there is a flout: let there be a bribe, strait there is a bribe: let there be a quarrel, strait there is a quarrel: therefore in this the liar told the truth, for he hath compassed the earth indeed.  
Thus you see what the devil answered, when GOD asked him from whence he came. Now if God should ask you, as he asked the devil, from whence you came before you came hither to him, or rather whether you will go when ye depart from him, I do verily think that some here did come from as bad exercises as the devil himself: and that when they do departed from this place, they will return to as bad exercises again, as the Devil did: Some unto the Taverns, and some unto the Alehouses, and some unto Stages, and some unto Brothels, and some unto dicing, and some unto quarreling, and some unto cozening.  
I would feign know this, if the devil came from tempting, and you from sinning, who was better occupied he in commanding you, or you in obeying him, they which come to the Church and return to their sins, come to the Lord as the devil came, not to be reform of his evil, but to have a passport to do more evil: if any such be here, he hath learned nothing, but goeth empty away, for they which come like Satan go like Satan: a little water is sprinkled upon them, which falls off again to the ground so soon as they are out of the Church door, all which they learned is forgotten, like a perfume which savoureth no longer than they abide in the house where it burneth, therefore as I warned you at first, Take heed how you hear, so I warn you now, take heed lest this Compasser come and steal that which you have heard, for when judas had received the Sacrament, the devil entering into him after that, could never be driven out again: so if the devil enter into you, after you have received this warning, he will possess you like judas, stronger than he did before, and every word shall condemn you, as he which eateth the Sacrament unworthily, eateth his own damnation, so he which heareth the word unfruitfully, heareth his own damnation, that is, the word which I have spoken, saith Christ, shall judge you in the last day.  
FINIS.   

A SERMON PREACHED upon the first to the Corinthians,  1 CORINTH. 10.12. 
Let him that thinketh he standeth, take heed lest he fall.  
By Henry Smith.  
LONDON Printed by Thomas Scarlet. 1592.   
1. Corinth. 10.12. 12 Let him that thinketh he stand, take heed lest he fall. 
WHen you have examined yourselves by the touchstone which I gave you, 
Acts 26.28 2. Cor. 13.9  whether you be in the faith or no, if you find that you stand in the faith, let him which thinketh he standeth, take heed lest he fall. Three sentences we borrowed of Paul: in the first he exhorted us to be Christians: in the second he taught us to know whether we be christians or no: in the last, he warneth us, if we be, to persever and take heed lest we fall. Paul doth not teach us these phrases to doubt of our salvation, or of the mercy of God, as the Papists say, but of our constancy in his service, not lest we fall from our election, but lest we fall from our righteousness, this is a godly fear, and blessed is he (saith Solomon) not which standeth in fear of God's mercy, but he which standeth in fear of his own frailty. Pro. 28.14. As job did, which feared all his works, job. 9.28. We must have confidence towards God, but diffidence towards ourselves, for God will be true to us, if we be true to him: this fear is not contrary to faith, but cannot stand without it, therefore take heed lest ye fall, is, take heed lest ye sin, as the Israelites sinned. An admonition gathered from the fall of the jews, to them which stand, or to them which think they stand, to take heed lest they fall: as a Chronicler in a story gives a watch word by the way, to admonish the reader of some special thing to be marked: so the Apostle teaching us to make use of all that we hear or read, after he had showed how the Israelites stood sometime, and how they fell after again, which were the elect people of God, the becon of the world, & glory of nations, until they crucified him, who would have saved them, ends with a sigh, as if he should say, it grieves me to record their folly, and to discover the nakedness of my countrymen, what should I rehearse any more? if they fell thus? take them for a warning, and Let him that thinketh he standeth, take heed lest he fall. Here we are set to sinner's school, to see what we can learn of the wicked, as the Bee doth gather honey of weeds, for all which is written, is written for our instruction, Rom. 15: 4. These things (saith Paul) are written to admonish us, upon whom the end of the world is come, as if he should say, we have need to take more heed than they under the law, because we live in the last and worst days, when the Dragon is let lose, & hath great wrath, because his time is short, reve. 12.12. Now if you would know how the Israelites fell, read but from the sixth verse, and you shall see how they fleeted from sin to sin, like a fly which shifteth from sore to sore. They tempted the Lord (saith Paul) they murmured, they lusted, they committed Idolatry, they served the flesh, they sat down to eat, and rose up to play: Take heed (saith Paul) o ye Corinthians, lest ye live so too, you shall not do evil because others do so, but these things are written for your learning, therefore first you shall learn, that as they fell away, so you may, and then by their fall you may learn to stand. Thus the Apostle warneth us, that we are all in a house ready to fall, and all in a ship ready to sink, all in a body ready to sin, who can say what he will do when he is tried? Therefore Paul saith not, let him that standeth take heed lest he fall, but Let him that thinketh he standeth, take heed lest he fall: warning us before that we take heed of falling, and to examine how we stand, whether we stand or no, for when he ma●es his speech of them which think they stand, not of them which stand, he intends that few stand in comparison of them which think they stand: many think themselves wise that are fools like other, many think themselves pure, which are profane, like other, as Solomon noteth, Pro. 30.12. There is a generation which are pure in their own conceit, and yet are not washed from their filthiness: as though there were a generation or sect of such men. And again Pro. 20.6. Many men will boast of their goodness, but who can find a faithful man: so many seem to stand which stand not, many think they believe, which know not what faith meaneth, many look to be saved, which cannot tell who should save them, no more than Nichodemus knew what it was to be borne again, the reason is, many are afraid to sound too deep, and examine their conscience, lest it should upbraid them with the noisomeness of their sins. Therefore like a favourable judge, which would save the malefactor, he will ask him so cunningly, that he will answer for him to, & then he will say, I find no fault in this man, let him pay his fees and be gone: so I find no fault in this faith, me thinks it is a sound saith, me thinks it is a good which when he is down riseth no love, me thinks it is religious enough, when I come to the Church, and love my neighbour, and obey my Prince, and give every man his own, & pay my tithes, and fast twice a week, as the Pharisee did, me thinks this is well, what would you have more? have I not kept all the commandments. Lu. 18.18. No (saith Christ) there is one behind, examine thyself, & still thou shalt find something behind, like a cobweb in the top of an house when the floor is swept. Therefore well doth Paul say, he which thinketh that he stands, not he which stands, for he which stands in Christ falleth not, but he which thinketh he stands falleth suddenly, an may finally, unless he stand upon his watch, take heed is a good staff to stay upon, and so often a man sins as he casts it from him, all go astray.  
But this is the difference between the sins of them which have faith, and them which have no faith, they which have no faith, fall like an Elephant, which when he is down riseth not again: they which have faith do but trip and stumble, fall and rise again, their falls do teach them to stand, their weakness doth teach them strength, their sins doth teach them repentance, their frailness teach them constancy, as Peter was better after his denial than he was before. judas did never stand, but seemed to stand, the Disciples knew not that he was a thief and intended treason, for they asked, Is it I? is it I? Christ knew, as it appeareth, when he gave him the sop and said, That which thou dost do quickly: if ever he had stood, he could not have been termed the son of perdition. Many did seem to the world to go out of the Church, but john saith, they were never of the Church, meaning that if they had been of the Church, they could not have gone out of it, for the true vine could not leave her grapes, nor the olive her fatness, nor the fig three her sweetness: so they which stand in the faith, do not fall away, but seem to fall, as hypocrites seem to stand. The best men have had their slips, but always they rose again, as though they had sinned to teach us repentance, therefore their sins are written, which else should have been concealed for their honour, for they were not registered in spite to disgrace them, but to admonish us that when we see such a field of blood, like carcases, which the dragon hath slain. we may fear to set upon him unarmed, lest we be slain like other, as Solomon beheld the field of the slothful which was full of thistles and weeds, Prou. 24.30. So we must behold the sins of other to learn by them. I passed by (saith Solomon) and considered it well, I looked upon it and received instruction, this note is in the margin of your Bibles, that I might learn by another man's fault: so Solomon showeth how we should look upon other men's faults if we behold and consider them, and look upon them to receive instruction as Solomon did, then do we behold and consider, and look upon them well, or else as Abraham might see the smoke of Sodom, but Lot might not see it, so they which can make use of sin may hear, and see, & speak of errors of men, yet is it not lawful for them, because they are as a spider which gathereth nothing but poison. Did not many pervert the sins of the patriarchs, and apply them to themselves, as they should apply their doctrines? But these things (saith Paul) are not written for our imitation, but for our admonition that is, for a cave at least we do the like, for they repent that which they did, and shall we do that which hay repent? Christ saith Follow me, without limits, but Paul saith, Be ye followers of me as I follow Christ: so we must follow the patriarchs, and Prophets, and Apostles, as they followed Christ, lest following that which they repent, we sustain or suffer that which they escaped. This is a lesson for all but Christ, Let him which thinketh he stand, take heed lest he fall. When Paul had distilled the capital sins of the Israelits, this is the quintessence, that is, all the profit which he could wring out of them, Let them that think they stand take heed lest they fall. Who would have said that jerusalem would have become an harlot: that the chosen people should become the cutsedst upon the earth? yet so it is, saith Paul, thus & thus they have done, and thus hath God forsaken them, that all the world may take heed how they stir up the lion of judah, which devoureth the wicked like bread: Who would have thought when Lot was grieved with the sins of Sodom, that he would have committed a worse sin himself, first to drink till he was drunk, then to lie with his own daughters? yet he did so. Who would have thought that Noah when he builded the Ark, because he believed in God, & gave example to all the world how they should save themselves, when the flood was past, would have given the first example of sin to his own sons? Who would have thought that when he was persecuted for his godliness in the desert, he would have slain the husband for the lust of the wife, when the blessings of God did call him to thankfulness? Who would have thought that Solomon when he prayed in the temple, and was termed by God the wisest man in the world, would have taken more concubines unto him than any heathen in the world? How are the mighty overthrown, saith David? 2. Sam. 1. Like Peter which said he would never forsake Christ: and forsook him first. The strange men are fallen. Even Solomon himself, and David, and Noah, and Lot, and Samson, & Peter, the light of the world, fell like the stars of heaven: these tall soldiers, strong oaks, fair pillars lie in the dust, whose tops glittered in the air, that they which think they stand, may take heed lest they fall. Can I look upon these ruins without compassion, or remember them without fear, unless I be a reprobate, & my heart of flint? Who am I that I should stand like a shrub, when these Cedars are blown down to the ground, and showed themselves but men, the best man is but a man, the worst are worse than beasts, no man is untainted but Christ, they which had greater gifts than we, they which had deeper roots than we, they which had stronger hearts than we, they which had more props than we, are fallen like a bird which is weary of her flight, & turned back like the wind in the twinkling of an eye. 2. Kin. 8.13. Who would have mocked him, that should have said sometime as Elisha said to Hazael, what wickedness he should do in time to come, that he should slay and trample men, women and children, Hazael blushed to hear thus of him, and said, Am I a dog that I should do this, as if he would never do it while he were a man, but count him a dog when he comes to that: so they which are changed like Hazael blush to hear thus of him, and would have scorned sometime at him which should once have said when they were zealous and studious preachers, & persecuted for their preaching, that the time would come when they should be loiterers, time-servers, lovers of the world, & greedy wolves, devourers of their flocks, and persecutors, they would have said, Am I a dog? Am I a beast? Am I a reprobate, that I should do this? they would never believe this till it came to pass, and being fallen, they say they sinned like Hazael, which blushed before he sinned and was impudent after. Therefore let no man say what he will be, before he have examined what he is, but run his course with a trembling fear, always looking down to the rubs which lie before him, & the worthies which are slain already, and remember when any spectacle of frailty is in thine eye, this is my warning, for no man hath more privilege than another. This is the profit we should make of other men's faults, like a pearl which is taken out of the serpent: when we see our brother's nakedness, it should move us to compassion of him, and a fear of ourselves, for when we rejoice at others fall, like Cham, as the leprosy went from Naaman to Gehezi, so God turneth his wrath from them, & it lighteth upon us, Prou. 24.18. and such as have despised others without remorse, have fallen in the like, or more shamefully themselves, and never rose again. What shall we do then when we hear of other men's faults? not talk as we do, but beware by them, and think, Am I better than he? Am I stronger than Samson? Am I wiser than Solomon? Am I chaster than David? Am I soberer than Noah? Am I firmer than Peter, if God should leave me to myself? if he should withdraw his hand which holds me? Into how many gulfs have I been falling, when GOD hath preserved me of occasion, or delayed the temptation, or wonderfully kept me from it, I know not how, for he delivereth me from evil, as he delivered David from the hloud of Nabal, by Abigael, which came unlooked for: So he hath prevented many wonderfully, when they were assaulted so hardly, that they had thought to have yielded to the enemy. Sometime I may say there wanted a tempter, sometime I may say there wanted time, sometime I may say there wanted place, sometime the tempter was present, & there wanted neither time nor place, but God held me back that I should not consent: so near we have glided by sin, like a ship which rides upon a rock, and slips away, or a bird which escapes from the fouler when the net is upon her. There is no salt but may lose his saltness, no wine but may lose his strength, nor flower but may lose his scent, no light but may be eclipsed, no beauty but may be stained, no fruit but as 〈◊〉 blasted, nor soul but may be 〈◊〉: we stand all in a slippery a nea● where it is easy to slide, & hard 〈◊〉 up, like little children which overthrow themselves with their clothes, now up, now down at a straw, so soon we fall from God, and slide from his word, and forget our resolutions, as though we had never resolved. Man goeth forth in the morning, weak, naked, and unarmed, to fight with powers, and principalities, the devil, the world, & all their adherents, and whom doth he take with him but this flesh, a traitor, ready to yield him up at every assault unto the enemy. Thus man is set upon the side of a hill, always declining, and slipping: the flesh muffleth him to make him stumble, the world catcheth at him to make him fall, the devil undermineth him to make him sink, and crieth still, Cast thyself down: and when he falleth, he goeth apace, as Peter, who denied thrice together: & when he is fallen is like a stumbling stone in the way for other, 〈◊〉 they may fall too: Therefore 〈…〉 that thinketh he standeth, take heed 〈◊〉 he fall.  
So earnestly must we call 〈◊〉 our souls, that we be not weary of well doing: for happier are the children that never began, than judas, whose end was worse than his beginning. Wisdom and Righteousness are angry with him that leaveth his goodness to become worse: if thy spouse had committed fornication thou mightst have divorced her, but he which leaveth his righteousness to live in wickedness, forsakes his spouse to commit fornication, and is divorced from Christ himself. If thou were like the Vine, or the Olive, or the Fig tree, they would not leave their grapes, or their fatness, or their sweetness, to get a kingdom; but the Bramble did: If thou be like the Bramble, what wilt thou do when the fire comes? As this is a memorandum to all, so especially let him that ruleth, and him that teacheth, take heed lest he fall: for if the Pillars shrink the Temple shakes, as when a great Tree is hewn down, which is a shadow to the beasts, and a nest to the birds, many leaves, and bows, and twigs fall with it: so many stand, and fall with them, whose lamps give light to others: Even as jeroboams sin made Israel to sin. Therefore Paul hath given you a watchword, which every one should write upon his table, upon his bed, and upon his nails, lest he forget in one hour, for he which stands now, may fall before night. Sin is not long in coming, nor quickly gone, unless God stop us, as he met Balaam in his way, and stay us, as he stayed the woman's son, when he was a bearing to his grave: we run over Reason, and tread upon Conscience, and fling by Council, and go by the Word, and post to Death, as though we ran for a Kingdom, like a Lark, that falls to the ground sooner than she mounted up: at first she retires, as it were by steps, but when she cometh nearer the ground, she falls down with a jump: so we decline at first, and waver lower and lower, till we be almost at the worst, and then we run headlong, as though we were sent post to hell, from hot to lukewarm, from lukewarm to key cold, from key-cold to stark dead: so the languishing soul bleeds to death, and seethe not his life go till it be at the very last as pe.  
Woe be unto him that is guilty of this murder, if the blood of Abel cried for vengeance against his brother Cain which slew his body, shall not God be revenged for the death of the Soul. Where is thy Brother (saith GOD?) Nay where is thy soul? hast thou slain it, which was my Spouse, my Temple, mine own Image? If the servant which hid his Talon was cast into darkness, what shall be done unto thee which hast lost thy Talon? For he which falls from his righteousness, doth not hide his Talon, but more, he doth lose it.  
Thus if you never knew what good to make of evil, this you may learn in the sinner's School: let them which think they stand, take heed lest they fall, and let them which are down, care to rise, and the Lord so direct our steps, that we may rise again.  
FINIS.