THE RICH MAN'S WARNING-PIECE.  
A SERMON, UPON OCCASION, FORMERLY PREACHED, AND NOW published, by the Author, Humphrey Sydenham, late Fellow of Wadham College in Oxford.  Monendi sunt divites, qui tanta paticbantur pro auro, quanta erant sustinenda pro Christo; inter tormenta, nemo Christum confitendo, amisit; Nemo aurum, nisi negando, seruavit; quocirca, utiliora erant (fortassè) tormenta, quae bonum incorruptibile amandum docebant, quàm illa bona quae sine ullo utili fructu dominos sui amore torquebant. Aug. lib. 1. de civet. Dei. cap. 10. 
AT LONDON, Imprinted by Felix Kyngston for Nathanael Butter. 1630.   

TO THE GREAT ORNAMENT OF HER SEX, AND NAME, MISTRESS ANNE PORTMAN, etc. THE accumulation of Honours, here, and of Glory, in future.  
My worthiest,  
WHat you formerly vouchsafed to peruse in a rude transcript; I here present you in a character, like yourself, and virtues, fair, and legible; I think it my prime honour, that it must now wear your livery, and what shall immortal it, your name; Had it nothing else to make it live in the opinion, and esteem of others, this were enough to give it both countenance, and eternity; Greatness can only patronise our endeavours, Goodness glorifies them. Under that stamp and seal of yours I have adventured it abroad, that you might know my respects are the same in public, which they were, lately, under a private, though noble roof; I never yet whispered an observance, but I dared proclaim it to the world, and then, too, when there might be some pretence and colour to suspect my loyalty; where I am engaged once in my services, and profess them, I am not beaten off by the causeless distastes of those I honour; you I ever did, and the name you beautify; on which, though I am no longer an Attendant, I am still a votary, and such a one, whose knee speaks as loud for it, as his tongue; his devotions, as his thanks; and both these from a heart swept so clean of deceit, or falsehood, that could it lodge so much sophistry as to teach the lips to quaver, and dissemble, I had not been thus (perhaps) under the furrows of a displeased brow, but might have proved as fair in the smile and cringe of many, as I am now down the wind, both in their countenance, and opinion. But, sincerity is the same, still, whether in exile, or advancement, in disgrace, or honour; wheresoever I travel I carry myself with me; I am not torn into distractions, and fears, not parceled (as others) into doubts, and hopes; but, where I am, I am in the whole man; and, where I am, so, I am All yours; All in my moral, civil, and divine observances, one that will thank you, honour you, and pray for you, unfeignedly, willingly, constantly, whilst I am thought worthy of the name, or attribute of  
Your most humbly-devoted Humphrey Sydenham.   

THE RICH MAN'S WARNING-PIECE.  PSALM. 62.10. 
If Riches increase, set not thy Heart upon them.  
I Find no dispute here, about the title of this Psalm; 'tis D●●●ds to jeduthun; that Ieduthun ●ho prophesied with the Harp, and with Trumpets, and Cymbals, and loud instruments of Music, magnified the Lord, 1. Chron. 16.42.  
The Theme and Subject of it is various, and mixed; not set mournefully to strains of penitence or mortality (as in others of his sacred Anthems) but to Aiers of more spirit and life, such as would sublimate and entrance the Devotion of the Hearer. The former part whereof is keyed high, very high, and reacheth God, and his powerful mercies; the other tuned lower, to Man, and toucheth on his frailties and weak deportment. That which concerns his God is (as 'twere) the plainsong; the ground and burden of it grave, and sober, but full of majesty, My soul watteth upon God, He is the Rock of my Salvation and defence, at the second verse; but, The Rock of my strength, and Refuge, at the seventh. That which concerns Man, is full of Descant, runs nimbly on his state, degrees, condition; divides between the humble, and the proud, and censures both, Men of low degree are vanity, and men of high degree are a lie, verse 9 Thus having warbled sweetly about the heart and middle of the Psalm; at length he shuts up his Harmony in Discord: In the front of this verse He quarrels with the Robber, and the Oppressor: and at the foot thereof (as if the Great Man were near allied them) He throws in a cavil concerning Riches; where He first, put's the case, with a si affluxerint, If Riches increase, then, the resolution or advice on it, nolite cor apponere, Set not your heart upon them. These are the parts, plainly, without violence, or affectation; so is the discourse on them; in the delivery of which, I must beg that double charity which doth commonly encourage weak men in their endeavours; Patrence, Attention: and first of the si affluxerint, if Riches increase.  
Riches have carried their weight of Honour and esteem through all Ages, 
Pats. 1.  and, almost, all conditions in them; but not always, at the same hught; Those of our Forefathers lay most in their Flocks, and Droves; the Fold was their Treasure-house, and not, the Tent. The word poecunia, money, was not then heard off, but Peculium, Gaine, which (as Viues notes it upon Augustine) was first derived from pecudes, Cattles, 
In lib. 7. de ciu Dei cap. 12. Aug. etiam lib. de Domo disciplina cap. 6.  because these were all the wealth of Antiquity, for they were then (for the most part) Shepherds. The glory and respect of Riches were near their Meridian in the days of Solomon, when they first began to shine in their full lustre; before a few Asses loaden with lentils and parched Corn, were thought a large present for a King; Then, multitudes of Camels, with Spices, gold, 
1. King. 10.2.  and precious stones scarce worth acceptance; Of old, 
1. King. 10.27. Exod. 30.18.  a few shekels of silver were a canonised treasure; Now, they were of no repute, but as stones in the streets of jerusalem. In fine, 
1 King. 10.22.  Lavers of brass were in the beginning rich enough for the Tabernacles of our God; but vessels of beaten gold must be here hammered, for the v●ensels of a King.  
Riches are now at their high spring; every Tide wafts in silver, in ships of Tarshish, and gold in the Navy of Hiram; Treasure flows in that abundance, that it doth no more satisfy, but amaze; a Queen beholds it, and there's no spirit in her. 1. Reg. 10.27. From amazement in this age, it grows to veneration in the next; that which was, erewhile, but an Ingot, or rude lump, is, Now, tricked up into a Godhead Gold shall be no longer for use, or ornament, but for worship; and now the Nations begin to kneel to it, and give it the devout posture of the whole man; the elevation of the eye, and expansion of the hands, and the Hosanna of the tongue, and the Magnificat of the heart; and thus, in a zealous applause of their new-got Deity, the Cornet, the Flute, the Sackbut, the Psaltery, and the Dulcimer shall sound out their loud Idolatry. Nay, the ancient Romans were grown so superstitious to their mass of Treasure, 
Aug. lib. 7. de ciu. Dei cap. 12. &, de discipl. Christ. tract. cap. 6.  that they made not only money their God, but called God, money; so their jupiter was named pecunia, because there was (as they conjectured) a kind of omnipotency in money, which though it creates not, yet it commandeth all things. O magnam rationem Divini nominis (saith Augustine) hoc Auaritia jovi nomen imposuit: Avarice, no doubt, thus Christened jupiter, at first, that Those which affected Coin, should not seem to love every God, 
Aug. ibid.  but the very King of gods. Had He been called Riches, the Title had been more passeable, and the devotion less sottish; for, Divitiae are one thing, and, Pecunia, another; we call the Good, and the Just, and the Wise, Rich; which have little, or nothing but in vertus; the Avaritious, and Greedy, Poor; because they ever want. Moreover, God himself we truly style Rich; yet not, Pecunia, but, Omnipotentia; so saith the Father in his seventh book De Civitate Dei. cap. 12. And indeed, the God of our happiness we style Omnipotence, and not Money; but, sometimes, to beautify and set out his perfections, Riches. So we find, Riches of his goodness, Rom. 2. and Riches of his mercy, Rom. 9 and Riches of his grace, Ephes. 2. and Riches of his wisdom, Rom. 11. Lo, his Goodness, Grace, Mercies, Wisdom, and to show their Height, and Greatness, and Immensity, and Ever lastingness no thing to express them, but Riches; which, if they afford such glory in the Metaphor, no doubt, there is something of worth and estimation in the letter, too; Riches, as they are Riches, have both their virtue and applause; for the Spirit calls them Blessings, and Good things; but they are externa media, Good things without us, which we may, uti, not frui, use only, not enjoy, or rather not joy in them; if Delight, here, be not more proper than joy; since joy (for the most part) points to things Spiritual; Delight, to pleasures Temporal. However, Riches may sometimes lawfully touch, both with our Pleasure, and Desire, so the Aim be not preposterous, and obliqne; either, to make them as Fuel for our Pride, or Bellowes for our Lust, or Oil for our Concupiscence, or Flames for our Ambition, or Smoke for our Uncharitableness. For though matters of Beneficence and gift look towards Riches, as their Source, and Instrumental cause; yet, commonly, where there is most of Fortune, there is least of Charity, and so when there is Ability of Distribution, there wants Will; and that ever strangles the Nobleness of Those which are to give, and the shouts and Bencdictions of them which should receive. And this, I believe, first gave life and breathing to that grey-haired paradox: Si opes sint bona cur non reddunt possidentes bonos? If Riches be good, why have they not influence into him that owns them, and so make the possessor good? Soul (saith the Rich man in the Parable) Thou hast much good, laid up for many years, 
Luke 12.  sleep and take thine ease; mark the Paraphrase. Quid est iniquius homine, qui multa bona vult habere, & bonus ipse esse non vult? Indignus es qui habeas, qui non vis esse, quod vis habere: The Father in his 28. Sermon de Diversis. What a mass of iniquiquitie is man swollen unto, that still desires much good, yet not to be good himself? He is unworthy to have any thing that he might Be, which would not be what he would have.  
Riches therefore, though they challenge the Name of good, yet there are such, as both Good and Bad do indifferently inherit, and whilst they are good, cannot denominate their Master good; and therefore to rectify this obliquity, Saint Augustine acquaints us with a Twofold Good; Bonum quod facit bonum, and Bonum undè facias bonum: There is a Good which doth make good, and that's thy God, and there is a Good by which thou mayest do good, and that's thy Mammon. Do good; how? Hark, the Psalmist; He hath dispersed abroad, 
Psalm. 1 12.  He hath given to the poor, his righteousness endureth for ever, Psalm 112.9. Hoc est Bonum, hoc est bonum undè sis justitiâ bonus; si habeas bonum undè sis bonus fac bonum de bono, undè non es bonus: So the Father warbles, in his third Sermon de verbis Domini. Behold, thou hast large heaps of Treasure; distribute them; in so doing, thou dost enlarge thy happiness; Hear is but giving to the Poor; and then, Righteousness for ever. Lo, an exchange of infinite advantage; weigh thy Disbursements with thy Gain, thy Diminutions with thy Increase; thy store, perhaps, is somewhat thinner, but thy justice is enhauneed; That only is lessened which thou wert shortly to lose; and this improoved which thou art ever to possess. In fine, there is only a Dispersit, or a Dedit, in respect of the gift; he hath disposed, or given; no more; but there is a Manet in aeternum: for the Reward of the giver, His Righteousness endureth for ever; for ever, why? The Apostle answereth, He that hath charity hath God, 
1. john 4  God dwells in him, and He in God: and where God dwells, there must needs be a Manet in aeternum; for God is eternity. A Rich man, then, if he have not Charity, what hath he? And a Poor man if he have Charity, what hath he not? Tu fortè putas, 
Aug. serm. 64. de Temp.  quod ille sit diues cuius Arca plena est Auro, & ille non est diues cuius conscientia plena est Deo: Thou thinkest, perchance, that He is Rich, whose chests are thronged with gold, and he not Rich, whose Conscience is filled with God; But the Father puts the Lie upon this foul misprision with an Ille vere Dives, in quo Deus habitare dignatur, in his 64. Sermon de tempore. He is truly Rich in whom God hath vouchsafed to dwell, for There is Satiety, and full content, Metell is or Croesus not half so rich; and He truly poor, in whom God hath refaied to dwell, for There is nothing but Anxiety and lamentable Indigence, Regulus, or Irus, not half so poor. Quite, & alia novit, non propter illa beatior, sed propter te solum beatus. The same Saint Augustine in the third of his Confessions, cap. 4.  
How miserable then is the condition of those who suffer the current of their Affections to be inordinately carried from the everspringing fountains above, upon broken Cisterns that will hold no water? From the Creator of the world, to Creatures here, of overvalued, and false esteem, a little Idolatrized Earth, or magnified trash; a few garish Transitories, Riches but improperly, for they have neither Truth, nor Certainty; their worth is lame, and crutched merely upon opinion; their lustre counterfeit, like those false lights which delude the wand'ring Seamen; and betray them to shelves and rocks, where both their Hopes, and they, are untimely split. But suppose those Riches (as I suppose only) to be as true, as those Lights are false; yet thus to indulge them is dangerous Idolatry, since that which is ordained for a Servant, they make not only their Master, but their God. And indeed, Such may be said to have Riches as we are said to have the Fever, when the Fever hath us; 
Sen. ep. 78.  They have not Riches, but Riches, them; for They which are either transported with their glory, or rapt with their possessions, do by Riches as birds do by Daring-glasses, play with their own ruin; how ever, such are their fair allurements and invitations, that Those who are only taken with the outside, and Bark of things, are strangely infatuated: but in this, They resemble little Children, which value every painted trifle, as a Treasure; a Bugle, or glassy Carcanet, as precious as that of Onyx. And what difference is there (saith the Stoic) between them and us, Nisi quod nos circa tabulas & statuas insanimus, charius inepti, we are madding after Statues, and Pillars, more coftly foolish, Illos, reperti in littore calculi leaves, & aliquid habentis varietatis, delectant, they taken with stones and shells of various colours, found on the Seashore; 
Sen. Ep. 119.  we, with pillars of jasper, and Porphirie, from the Sands of Egypt, or Deserts of Africa, to shoulder some Porch, or Dyning-roome, to banquet or revel in. All this Equipage of Greatness is but a Glorious vanity, 
Sen. ut supra.  and that which the Moralist calls Bracteata foelicitas, a spangled happiness, a leaf of gold laid on Iron, which for a time glitter's, and then rust's; a gaudy Vane, or Streamer on the top of some Turret, whiuers and flicker's with every blast; a acquaint jewel, hung lose in hair, which, as it dangles, falls; a very Glassy Pomp, cùm splendet, frangitur; like Bubbles, which in their swelling, break; Flattering and deluding Blessings, and such as prove better to them that hope for them, then to those that do enjoy them; For instead of that Contentment which should assail them by the fruition of their desires, here is nothing but Calamity, & new torment; Care of their preservation, and doubt of their disposal, and fear of their loss, and trouble of their improvement; to these, lean watchfulness, broken thoughts, hollow resolutions, interrupted peace, besides a whole Host of selfe-vexations and) the wheel the Rack not half the Torture. Thus, Gold is a stumbling-Blocke to him that doth sacrifice unto it, and very fools shall be taken with it, (saith jesus the son of Sirach) shall be taken with it? nay, shall be taken from it, even when he doth sacrifice unto it; so saith jesus the son of David, Fool, this night shall thy soul be taken from thee, taken from thee, two ways; First, thy soul from the riches of thy body, and then thy soul from the body of thy riches; And therefore, there is a vae Divitibus, denounced against such, 
Amos 6.1.  Woe to you that are at ease in Zion, and trust in the mountains of Samar●●, which, though the Marcionite would make a vae, only of Admonition, and not of Malediction; yet, Tertullian, in the chastisement of that error, saith; that a Canete is always used in matters of Advice, but a vae never, but in those thunderclaps of fury and malediction. So, we find only a Cavete against Avarice, because That is the Semen, and first matter (as 'twere) of Riches, Beware of Coveteousnesse, for man's life consisteth not in Abundance. Luke 12.13. But there is a fearful vae against Riches, as though they still cried for divine Castigations, Woe unto you that are rich, why? you have received your consolation, Luke 6.24. your consolation, how? Ex Divitijs, de gloria illarum, & secularibus fructibus, of your riches, and their glory, and all secular content, not otherwise. So saith the Father in his fourth Book against Martion. Cap. 5. What folly is't then to pursue that with violence and Intention, which when we have gained is no satisfaction, but a torment? what madness thus to macerate and crucify the whole man for a few titular and opinionated riches; of which he that carouse's and drink's's deepest is ever thirsty? Nothing quenches an immoderate appetite, poculum respuit, quia fluutum sitit (aith Augustine) Cataracts and rivers are but draughts competent for such concopiscences to swallow Habes Aurum habes Argentum, concupiscis aurnm, concupiscis argentum, & Habes, & concupiscis, & plenus es, & sitis; morbus est non opulentia, the same Father in his 3. Sermon de verbis Apostoli. How miserable are those desires, which are not bounded by what we do possess, but by what we can achieve. If a man suppose that Fortune he is Lord of, not voluminous enough, although he be Monarch of the whole world; yet is he wretched: he is not happy, 
Sen. lib de paupertate  that thinks himself happy; he that agreeth well with his poverty is a rich man, and he that agreeth not well with his riches is a poor man; he is not rich that still lack's something, nor he poor that wanteth nothing, utrum maius habere multum, an satis, 'tis the Sto cks Dilemma; whether hadst thou rather to have much, or enough? he that hath much, desires more, which is an argument, he hath not yet sufficient; he that hath enough, hath obtained the end, which never befalls a rich man. Seneca labours to press this home to his lucilius; 
Ep 119.  Set before me the reputed rich, Crassus, or Lucinius; let him calculate his full Revenues, what he hath in present, and hoped for Possessions; this man (if thou believe me) is poor; or (if thyself) may be poor; whether is he Covetous, or Prodigal? if Covetous, he hath nothing; if Prodigal, he shall have nothing; The Gold thou callest his, is but his Cabonets, Et Quis Aerario invidet? who would envy a full coffer? The man whom thou suppose'st to be Master of his treasure, is but the bag that shut's it up.  
Lo then, the base Idolatry of these times, and men, which not only raise their Hecatombs to their Golden Saint, but Deify the very Shrine that keep's it, A piece of wrinkled providence, or grey haired thrift; nay worse, a mere decrepit Avarice; when for a little languishing and bedrid Charity, they embalm the Honours and Memory of rich men with their precious Perfumes and Ointments, such as should cast only their Odours on the Monuments of good men; And not only so, but they advance their Statues and Pillars in our very Temples, I know not, whether more to the dishonour of our God, or to the Immortality of their own Name. What's this but to turn Israelite again, and take off from the glory of the Lord of Hosts, to worship a Golden Calf? By the Law of Nature (saith the Epicure) the greatest riches are but a composed poverty, and by the Law of God, the greatest poverty is but ill-composed riches; for he that piles them by fraud or violence, builds Aavarice one story higher, to oppression; and then not only Poverty, but judgement follows; God shall rain snares upon them, 
Psal 18  That which should otherwise cherish, shall now entangle them; and then, Storm and Tempest shall be their portion to drink, such a storm as will not be allayed without a shower of vengeance. Hark, how it blowe's? Woe unto them, That join House to house, and lay field to field, till they be placed alone in the midst of the Earth; This is in mine ears; saith the Lord of Hosts; of a truth, many houses shall be desolate, even great and fair without an Inhabitant; Ten Acres of vineyard shall yield one Bath, and the seed of an Omer shall yield an Ephah: Is this all? No, the Thunder clap is behind, Hell hath enlarged herself, and opened her mouth without measure, and their multitude and their Pomp shall descend into it. Esay 5.14. There is no misery to unjust riches; no leanness of teeth like those which grow fat with the substance of another; but, to them which grind Poverty by Extortion, & devorant plebem, sicut escam panis, eat up my people, as a morsel of bread, what Hell, here? what Horror in after times? Oh, the fearful Eiulations some have shrieked! Would God had given me a heart senseless like the flint in the rocks of stone; which, as it can taste no pleasure, so no Torment; no torment, here; but, when the Heavens shall shrivel like a scroll, and the Hills move like frighted men out of their place, what Mountain shall they get by entreaty to fall upon them? what covert to hide them from that fury, which they shall never be able to suffer, nor avoid? judgements do not always follow Crimes as Thunder doth Lightning, Instantly; but, sometimes, an Age is interposed, as between two Earthquakes; though they may escape the darts and wounds of temporal persecutions here, yet the sting that lies behind is Dreadful. They shall suck the Gall of Asps, 
job 20.14.  and the Viper's tongue shall slay them.  
Thus, we see, Riches and Blessedness do not always kiss; He's not ever Happy that is prosperous; the acquisition of much wealth, is no End of misery, but a change: the Low-built Fortune harbour's as much Peace, as that which is Higherroofed; and hath one advantage beyond it, 'tis less wind-shooke. The humble Hyssop and Shrub of the valley are not so exposed to Tempests, as the Cedar in Libanus, or the Oak in Basan; they are threatened with many a Cloud and Exhalation, which the other neither Fear, 
Epicurus.  nor Suffer. Contented Povertie (saith the good Athenian) is an Honest thing; but 'tis no more Poverty if it be content; we cannot say, he is poor that is satisfied, but he that couet's more. He that is at peace with his desires, and can compose himself to what Nature only requires from him, is not only without the Sense, but without the Fear of misery; is he poor that hath neither Gold, nor Hunger, nor Thirst? plùs jupiter nòn habet. jupiter himself hath no more; That is not little which is enough, nor that much which is not enough; He that think's much Little, is still poor; and he that think's Little much, is ever Rich; Rich in respect of Nature, though not Opinion. The man thou callest poor, hath, doubtless, something that is superfluous; and where Superfluity is, there can be no want; where no want, no poverty; on the otherside, the man thou stillest Rich, is either Poor, or like a poor man; he cannot improve his Store but by Frugality; and Frugality is but paupertas voluntaria, a voluntary poverty, Seneca calls it so in his fifteenth Epistle ad Lucillium. Let's, then, 
Epist. 91●  borrow Advice from that sacred Heathen (pardon the Epithet, Seneca will own it) and press it home to the practice of a Christian, Measure all things by natural desires; only, beware thou mix not Vices with Desires; Nature contents herself with a little, what is, beyond, or above that, is impertinent, and not necessary. Thou art hungry, reach not after Dainties, the Appetite shall make that toothsome, which is next, whether thy bread be white, or brown, Nature question's not. Illa ventrem nòn delectari vult, sed impleri. She would have the body fed, not delighted. Thou art dry; whether this water run from the next Lake, or that which is arted by Snow, or foreign cold, Nature disputes not; she labours to quench thy Thirst, not to affect thy Palate, whether the cup be Gold, or Crystal, Sabinian, or that of Murrha, or else the hollow of thine own hand, it matter's not; Fix thine eyes upon the End of all things, & thou wilt loathe Superfluities: Nùm tibi cùm fauces urit sitis Aurea quaeris pocula? Nùm esuriens, fastidis omnia praeter pavonem? Hunger is not Ambitious, she looks not after the quality of meats, but the measure; how she may Fill the body, not pamper it; These are torments of an unhappy Luxury, when we seek new ways how to provoke, and glut the Appetite, and not only to refresh our Tabernacles, 
Ecclus 37.  but to cloy them. Delicates poured upon a mouth shut up are like messes of meat set upon a grave, things only for Spectacle, not Repast. Of all Gluttonies', that of the Eye is most Epicuricall, when it would still see Dainties which it cannot taste, till the Desire hath as much surfeited, as the Body, and so we abuse the Bounty of a better Nature to satisfy the Lust and Concupiseence of the whole man; and this Rapine and greediness of the sense, is as unwarrantable, as that of fortune, which breaks down all banks of moderation; and therefore, without either Moral or Divine prescription. There can be no Virtue in Extreme; no good, which consists not in exactness of proportion, so that by the diminution or excess of that proportion, Vice insinuates; insomuch, that in the exuberancy of these outward creatures, Sin is conceived, 
Aquin. 2.2. q. 118. Art. 1.  a Capital, and Daring sin, when above a due equality, and measure, we either acquire or retain them eagerly; And this the Schoolman calls 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, an Immoderate hunger, and pursuit of temporals, in secunda secundae 118. quaest. Art. 1. There is no outward state of life so blessed as that which Diuide's between Penury and Abundance; the extreme on either side is Misery. And therefore the wisest King that ever was, and the greatest both for Treasure and Retinue, in his own desire of secular things ever mixed his Orisons with this Petition, Lord give me neither Riches nor Poverty, Sed victui meo tribue necessaria, Feed me with food convenient (the English give's it) but the Latin, necessarium, is more Emphatical; there are some things Convenient for the Majesty of a King, which are not always Necessary for his person; but Solomon, here, desire's only to have Nature accommodated, and not State; Riches he would have none; and these are convenient for him as a King, but something to feed him with, and that is necessary for him as a Man; an humble request for so mighty a Potentate, and yet so much as he need's to beg, though, not so much as God hath purposed to bestow; his Blessings come oftentimes in showers when they are sued for but as sprinklings. In that exquisite platform and rule of Prayer prescribed us by our Saviour, all temporal desires are involved in this, Give us this day our daily bread, 'tis Bread, only, we ask, and bread only, for a day, and these are Both necessary; Necessary two ways; First, in respect of ourselves, for Bread (saith the Psalmist) strengthen's the heart of Man; man's chiefest part, the Heart; and that chief part, frail; and frailty needs strengthening every day; Then, in respect of the command; it must be Bread, for a day, too; The Lord bids the Israelites gather Manna, only for a day, and the Gospel enjoines the Disciples, with a Nolite cogitare in crastinum, Care not for to morrow, but let to morrow care for it self. Meritò ergò Christi Discipulus victum sibi in Diem postulat, qui de crastino cogitare prohibetur; saith Cyprian; 
Cyp de Orat. Dom.  He rightly demands bread only for a day, who is forbid to provide any thing for to morrow. I came naked out of my mother's womb (saith job) and naked shall I return. We brought nothing into this world (saith Paul) and nothing we shall carry out; Nakedness? and Nothing? into the world? and out of it? What then can we require here, but Necessaries? and what these are, the Apostle give's in two words, Victum, Tegumentum, Food and Raiment, and enioyne's Content with these, 1. Tim. 6.8. But what food, what raiment must we be contented with? Necessarium victum, Necessarium tegumentum, nòn inane, nòn superfluum, Saint Augustine resolue's in his fifth Sermon, De verbis Apostoli, Food and Raiment necessary, not Luxurient, not Superfluous; Nature require's not the Latter, but if God sometimes bestow them, make those Superfluities fewer Necessaries, Sint tua superflua pauperibus necessaria; 'tis the same Father's advice in the same Sermon. Mistake me not; I am no Disciple of Rome, nor Athens, no Stoic I, nor jesuite, I hate a Cloister, or a Stoa; I like not the Monk in his Monastery, nor the Cynic in his Tub, nor the Anchor: in his Cell; I loathe the Penitentiary and his water, the Capuchin and his Stony Pillow; I pity the threadbare Mendicant, and the  Pilgrim; such wilful penancing of the body (for aught I read) God neither commands nor approue's. A voluntary retirement from Society, or Fortune sauour's more of Will, than judgement, of peevishness, than Religion. If God send me Riches I accept them thank fully, and employ them, in my best, to his service, and mine own; But if by Casualty, or Affliction, or some unhappy Accident, I am driven to Indigence, or Calamity; or else, if God have proportioned me such an humble Condition; I'll take no indirect course to any higher, but carry this cheerfully, without Solitariness, or Discontent; and, as with the spirit of old Attalus, so with his Language too, Torqueor, sed fortitèr, benè est. 
Sen. Epist. 5.  occidor, sed fortitèr, beuè est.  
And hence, (no doubt) it was, that Augustine so magnified his Paulinus; who having fallen from infinite riches to a retired poverty, 
Aug lib. de Civit. Det, cap 10.  when the Barbarians besieged Nota (of which he was Bishop) spoiling all as they went, as a general Deluge, and making him prisoner both to shame, and want, thus poured-out his devout expressions to his God, Domine non excrucior propter Aurum, etc. Lord, I am not troubled for gold, or silver; for where all my treasures are, thou knowest: even there had he reposed all his, where He advised to lay them, who foretold these miseries to fall upon the world. A brave resolution, and worthy of that Crown, which wreathe's all Martyrdoms; and yet but such as we, out of the honour of our Profession, should have, and, in our fires of Treall, aught to use. That Christian who hath sometimes sh●●…d in the glory of outward Fortunes, and afterwards endured the Batteries of some temporal afflictions, and yet in the midst of these cannot awake his Harp, and psaltery, and sing with David, My heart O God is fixed, my heart is fixed, I will give praise, Praise, aswell for thy punishments, as thy Blessings, is a very Coward in temptation, and unworthy either of his Countenance, or Colours; He that cannot take up the Cross with patience, and lose all to find his God, deserves him not, Minùs te amat, 
Aug. 10. Conf. cap. 9  qui tecum aliquid amat, quod non propter te amat, saith Augustine: He love's thee little, who love's any thing with thee, that he doth not love for thee; All this shadow and froth of tranfitorie things must vanish, for the hope of our bliss in future, Master we have left all and followed thee (the Disciples cry) What shall we have? What shall ye have? All things in having him, so saith Saint Cyprian, 
Cyprian. de Coen. Dom.  Cùm Dei sint omnia, habenti Deum nil deerit, si ipse Deo nòn desit. Since all things are God's, to him that hath God, nothing can be wanting, except he be wanting unto God; Nothing, saith the Father? No good thing, saith the Prophet, The young Lions do lack, and suffer hunger, but they that seek the Lord shall want nothing that is good; Psal. 34.10. Though all earthly persecutions entrench thee, and Misery seems to come on like an Armed man; and thou art fallen into the jaws of those enemies, whose Teeth are Spears, and Arrows, and their Tongue, a sharp Sword; yet Angels shall encamp about thee, and the Lord of Hosts shall be thy Buckler, and thy Shield; the Neighing of the Horse, the Noise of the Trumpet shall not invade thee; or if They do, and at such a straight, that the Arm of Flesh grows weak, and all earthly fortification, vain, yet his mercy is great unto the Heavens, and his Truth reacheth unto the clouds; the glorious Host above shall muster all their forces to assist thee, the Stars shall fight for thee, and Thunder speak loud unto thine enemies; Nay, God himself shall undertake thy quarrel, He shall bow the Heavens, and come down; the Earth shall tremble, and the Foundations thereof shall shake because He is angry; He shall set his Terrors in Array, and fight mightily thy Battles, his severe wrath he shall sharpen as a sword, and put on jealousy for complete Armour; Lo, how he breaketh the Bow in pieces, and Knappeth the Spear insunder, and burneth the Chariots in the fire, Hailstones full of fury he shoots as Arrows, his right aiming thunderbolts go abroad, and from the clouds, as a well drawn Bow, they fly unto the Mark. Thus in thy Height of miseries, God shall be thy Castle, and strong Tower; and under the shadow of his wings shall be thy refuge, till these calamities be overpassed. God never leaveth His, in their extremities; whether in the Cave, or in the Mountain; in the Den, or in the Dungeon; he is always there, both in his Power, and Assistance, and, sometimes, in his Person, too; when all natural supplies grow hopeless, God purueye's for his children, by his Miracles; Rocks shall burst with water; and Ravens provide Bread; and Clouds drop fatness; and Heaven's shower Manna; and Angels administer comforts; And at length. when all these whirlwinds, and fires and earthquakes of thy persecutions are gone by, God himself shall speak in the still voice, Peace, peace unto thee; Peace aswell in thy outward, as inward state; he that hath given thee Ponerty, can give thee Riches, and (upon thy Sufferings) will; But when they come, take heed of that disease which commonly attends those which are risen from a despised and mean condition; other goods give only greatness of mind; Riches, insolence. And therefore the Apostles advice comes seasonably here, Be not highminded, but fear, Fear, lest that God which bestowed them on thee for thy Humiliation, will take them off again for thy Pride; and so, when Riches come, put not thy trust in them, and if they increase, set not thy heart upon them: that's the second part, the resolution, or advice given on the Case put, If Riches increase, set not thy heart upon them.  


Pars secunda.  Set not thy heart upon them.  
THe Rabbins, and Hebrews, of old, attributed the whole Regiment of man to the Heart, and made that the Throne and chair of the Reasonable Soul; seating in it not only the powers of understanding; Choice, but of Will and Action too; So did the anncient Grecians; specially, their Poets. The Philosophers, on the other side, place them in the Brain; and leave only the Affections to the Heart; But, Divinity is more bountiful, the Scripture giving it the whole rational power; understanding, will, judgement, consultation, thought, endeavour; hence 'tis, that God so often scourge's the Hearts of men, commanding us to confess, honour, love, and fear him with all our heart; And therefore, that part is sometimes taken for the reasonable Soul; sometimes, for the whole man; Hereupon the Prophet's Lacerate corda vestra, Rend your Hearts, and not your garments; and This people honour me with their lips, but their Heart is fare from me; the Heart, the Shrine and Temple where I am truly worshipped; that Holocaust and Oblation only which smoke's from this Altar, bear's the acceptable Odour; all other Sacrifices are abominable, the Heart is God's jewel; he doth appropriate it to himself, only, and wholly; the hand, or foot, or eye are not forbidden to do their office, both in gathering lawfully, and preserving riches; any member but the Heart may be thus employed, that must not intermeddle, for this were to whore after a false Numen, and Burn Incense to a strange God: 'Tis not the mere possession or use of riches that offends, but the Affectation; And to this purpose, Lombard puts in his Observation, with a non dicit Propheta, the Prophet says not, nolite habere, but nolite cor opponere; 
In koum.  we are not forbidden riches; but when we have them, to set our Hearts upon them; so that, the error hang's not upon those, but us; not on Riches, but that which Idoll's them, our Heart. And therefore, Moses gave a stung Caveat to the Israelites, that when their Flocks and herds increased, and their Silver, and their Gold was multiplied, they should beware lest their hearts were lifted up, and so they should forget the Lord their God. De●t. 8.13.14. Those sublunary creatures raise not Distraction in us, so we make them not our Centre, if we rest not in them, if we can look through them, to the Giver; And, doubtless, we may entertain the unrighteous Mammon, not only as a Servant, but a Friend, by no means, as a Lord. There is Virtue in the true use of it, if there be a Qualification in our desires. And therefore, S. Augustine disputing of that impossible Analogy between Heaven, and a Richman, a Camel, and the Eye of a Needle, would have a Rich man understood there Cupidum rerum temporalium, & de talibus superbientem, such a one, as joins Avarice to Riches, and Pride to Avarice, in his 2. Book of Euang, quaest. Cap. 47. And this is the Burden of his Interpretation in three several Tracts more, non opes damno sed desideria, in his 10. Sermon de tempore; non Divitiae, sed Cupiditas accusatur, in his 5. Sermon de verbis Apostoli; in Divitijs reprehendo cupiditatem, non facultatem, in his first Book de Civit. Dei. Cap. 10. A moderate and timely care of necessary temporals is not prohibited, but the inordinate Appetite is cryed-downe by the general voice and consent both of Fathers and Schoolmen; if you require a Catalogue; view more punctually Gregory de Valentia upon Aquinas 2.2.3. Tome 4. disputation, 5. question. Hereupon, 
Sen. de Beat. vit.  the Moralists, and those of rigid and severer Brow, would have a wise man pass by Riches, in contempt, Nun habeat, sed ne solicitus habeat, not in regard of their propricty, and possession, but the difficulty and eagerness of the pursuit; which as he can manage without Indulgence, in their fruition; so, without disturbance, in their loss; In what store-house may Fortune better lock up her Treasure, than there, from whence she may fetch it without the complaint of him that keeps it? M. Cato, when he praised Curius and Caruncanius, and the voluntary and affected poverty of that Age, wherein it was a Capital offence to have some few plates of Silver, 
Sen. Epist. 119.  Possidebat ipse quadragies sestertium, saith Seneca, had his own store crammed with many a Sesterce. A wise man, as he will not make Riches the Object of his pursuit, so not, of his refusal, non amat Divitias, sed mawlt; non in animam illam gazam sed in domum recipit; nec respuit possessas Divitias, sed contemnit; 'tis Seneca's again, to his junius Gallio, he weighs them so evenly between, Desire, and Scorn, that he doth neither undervalue, nor indulge them; he makes not his mind, their Magazine, but his House, in which he doth not lock but lodge them; he love's them not, properly, but by way of comparison, not as they are riches, but as they are aloof from Poverty: Yes, Stoic, 
Sen. de Beat, vit. cap. 7.  as they are riches, they may not only be temperately loved and desired, but also prayed for, prayed for as our daily bread; not absolutely, as for our spiritual improvement, but by way of restriction; first humbly, with submission to the will of God; then, conditionally, so they prove advantageous either to our civil or moral good. But here we must warily steeere between a vigilant providence, and a fretting solicitude, a discreet and honest care, and that which is anxious, and intemperate; for if they are pursued either with unlawful, or unbridled desire; they lead our Reason captive, Blindfold our Intellectuals, startle and disturb our sublimated, and better thoughts, wean our Cogitations from Sacred project to matters of Secular employment, steal from us the exercise of spiritual duties, and so damp and dead all the faculties of the Inward man, that in way of Conscience or Religion, we are benumbed merely; Naball himself not so stony and churlish, not half so supine and stupefied as we. And therefore, your earthly Sensualists have this woeful brand set upon them by the Spirit of God. They are men of this world, they have their portion in this life only. Psal. 17.14. Riches have nothing substantial in them that may allure us, but our custom of admiring them, Non quia concupiscenda sunt, 
Sen Ep. 119.  lau●antur; sed quià concupiscuntur, laudata sunt, They are not praised, because they are to be desired, but they are desired because they are praised. To cut out our desires by weak precedents is at once folly and madness; 'tis miserable to follow error by example; That this man hugg's his Mammon, is no authority for my Avarice; I must chalk out my proceed by the line of precept, square them by the rules of Divine truth; and that tells me Riches are but snares, thorns, vanities, shadows, nothing. 
1. Tim 6.9. Math. 13.22.  Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? saith the Wise man; For certainly, Riches make themselves wings, they fly away as an Eagle towards heaven, Pro. 18. Mark, all their pomp is without certainty, or station: Things not only fleeting, but voluble; they steal not from us, but they fly away; fly away as an Eagle doth, both with strong, and nimble wing; Their Ebb is as sudden, as their flow doubtful; the Text only presupposes the one, with a si affiuxerint, if they flow about thee, as if their increase were merely casual: But if they do, what then? Nolite cor opponere, set not your heart upon them; They are transitory objects, they fly away, not only with the pinions of an Eagle, but with the wings of a Dove, of the Dove, in the Psalmist, whose wings were covered with silver, and her feathers with gold. Riches (I confess) have their Beauty, and lustre; but they are false, like globes of Crystal, which though they take the eye both with variety and delight of Objects, yet have of themselves but a hollow and brittle glory, nihil ex his quae videmus manet, currit cum tempore: Winds and Seas are not so rolling and unstable as Riches are, when they begin to surge and swell the Heart, that is set upon them: vides quia fluunt, 
Ambros. ad Mamm●.  non vides quiapraeter fluunt, fluenta sunt quae miraris, quomodò veniunt, sic transeunt, et recedunt ut discas superflua non acquirere, Lo, how the Father, playing on the word, chide's his folly, and opening the stickle condition of these sliding temporals, prohibite's all desire of unnecessary Treasure, to sweat after superfluities, and vain Abundance, since the way to them is both steep, and slippery, and like the climbing of a sandy hill to the feet of the Aged. No man can be possessed of a peaceable and quiet life that toil's much about the enlargement of it. Seneca's habere quod necesse est, & quod sat est, may well complete all earthly happiness, and terminate our desires in way of riches, to have that which is necessary, & that which is sufficient; But this latter we must bond again with the rules of Nature, not opinion. The Epicure tells us, If we live according to Nature, we shall never be poor; if, according to opinion, never rich. Our natural desires have their lists, and Bounds; Those that are derived from false opinion, have no pale; to him that goeth in a right way there is an end; Error is infinite. As therefore there are diverse sorts of Riches, so there are of Desires, too; there are Riches natural, and there are Riches Artificial; there are Desires of Nature, and there are Desires of Choice. Natural Riches, such as are surrogated to man for the supply of natural defects; as meat, drink, clothing; Artificial; by which Nature is not immediately relieved, but by way of consequence, as Coin, Plate, jewels, and the like, which the Art of man first found out for easier traffic and exchange; or (as the unhewed language of the School. man rough's it) propter mensuram rerum venalium. Now natural desires shake hands with natural Riches; they are not infinite, but have their measure, and growth, and proportion with the other. Artificial Riches are without period, and come up to those desires of Choice; which because inordinate, and not modified; are no less than infinite. He that drink's's of this water (saith Christ, by temporals) shall thirst again, joh. 4. The Reason is, because their insufficiency is most known when they are had, and therefore discouer's their imperfection more; so that Natural Riches are more exquisite because they have natural desires which are infinite; The other not without Confusion and Disorder, because their desires depend on Choice, which are mutable and various; and so, Infinite. 
Aquin. seeunda secundae, q. 1. art. 1. ad secundum. Cato.  That Rigid censor of the Romans, was both Home, and witty, to the supefluous vanities of his time, Any thing will suffice, if what we want we require of ourselves; he that seeke's for content, without him, looseth both himself, and it; not to desire, 
vis fieri diues Pentifice? niis cupias Mart, Sert Epist. 119.  and have, are of a near Blood- Quare igitur a fortuna potius impetrem, ut det, quam a me, ne petam? saith the Stoic, Why should I rather desire of Fortune, that she would give me? then of myself that I would not desire? Riches have nothing solid in them; for if they had, they would sometimes either fill or please us; but they play with our appetites as the apples did with the lips of Tantalus, which he might kiss, not Taste; or, suppose, Taste them, 'tis but as water to one sick of a violent fever, now drinking eagerly to allay his thirst, enlarges it; and seeking something to cool his Torments, he enflame's them. We are never in ourselves, but beyond; Fear, or Desire, or Hope draw us ever to that which is to come, and remove our sense and consideration from that which is, to muse on that which shall be, even when we shall be no more. Inuentus est, qui concupisceret Aliquid post omnia. There are some, that having all things, have (notwithstanding) coveted somewhat; like wide mouthed Glasses brimbed up with rich Elixirs; put gold in them, They are ne'er the fuller; And this is a punishment ever waits upon unbridled, and immoderate Appetites, He that loveth silver, shall not be satisfied with silver, nor he that loveth Abundance, with increase, Eccle. 5.10. Miserable Desires, have miserable effects; They degrade and divest Man of that pre-eminence he hath above other Creatures, and bring him down to Beasts; nay, under them; For they having quenched their Desires, by their Fruition, remain fully satisfied, till Nature quicken again their Appetites, like plants in a fat soil, which never require showers, but in drought; those of Man are ever ravenous and insatiate, like barren & thirsty ground, which even then lacks moisture, when over flowed. Thoughts which stream towards wealth, or Honour have no certain channel; but, like a Torrent or full tide, either beat down or else overrun their banks. There was never Mammonist, whose Excess of Treasure, or Extent of Fortune, could limit his Concupiscence; but it might well rival the Ambition of those Proud Kings of old, who not satisfied with the Glory of their own Crowns, and having nothing more on earth to be desired, would counterfeit the Lightning and Thunder, to have themselves thought powerful in Heaven also, make him Lord of the whole Earth; give him her Ours of Gold, Coasts of jasper, Rocks of Diamonds; nay, all the Treasure the womb of the Earth, or bowels of the great Deep have swallowed; yet, even in these floods, he thirsteth, in this surfeit, he is hungry, in these Riches, poor. O the Inexhaustednesse of Humane Appetite. Quod naturae satì; est, Homini nòn est. 
Sen Epist. 119.  Nature hath not in her vast store-house wherewith to supply our bottomless Desires; those Desires, I mean, which attend our Choice; For as they depend on the Imaginations of men (which are fertile, and ever blooming) as this Power represents the forms and Images of infinite Objects, so our desires multiply strangely to pursue all those things the Imagination hath propounded; insomuch, that we prosecute them (oftentimes) without Rule, or Measure, and there is sooner an end of us, then of our Covetousness. I know there are Desires Innocent enough, if they had their Bounds; But their Excess, and Restlessness, doth blemish their pursuit; the Chrysolite, the Berill, and the Saphire, and all the sparkling, and shelly Majesty, of Pearl, and Stone, are the Objects of a harmless delight, if we could use them moderately; But, we suffer ourselves to be transported with such violent Affections, and we seek them with such enraged heat, that 'tis rather Madness, than Desire; Nay, of all humane Aspirations there are none so lawless, and Exorbitant, as those which wander after Riches; For whereas the Rest aim only at the joy and Content which may arrive them by the possession of their Objects, and so, lull, and stumber, (like two loud and steep Currents, which meeting in a Flat kiss, & are silent.) Those of , grow more violent, by Abundance, like the flame of a great fire, which increaseth by cafting wood into it. There can be no true Riches, without Content; and there can be no true content where there is still a Desire of riches; will you have the Reason? the Moralist give's it, 
Sen. Epist. 112.  but not home, Plùs incipit habere posse, qui plùs habet, He that hath much, begins to have a possibility, to have more; and thus, as our Heaps are enlarged, so are our Affections, and They once Inordinate, the Heart is instantly rend asunder with the whirlwinds and distempers of various lusts; sometimes, it hunt's for Treasure, sometimes for Henours and Preferment, and having gotten the possession of these, still fight's against her own Satisfaction by desiring more; Insomuch, that if we could empty the Western Parts of Gold, and the East of all her Spices; the Land of her vndiged, and the Sea of her shipwrecked store; if we could lay on our Mass to the very Stars; yet Desire is as woman, and the Grave, as Death and Hell, which will not be satisfied. Such are the restless wanderings of our Affections, set once on temporals, that They finde neither Bank, nor Bottom; there is no rest to man's Soul, but in God's Eternal Rest; for there being no proportion between Spirits, and Bodies; 'tis impossible that the infinite desires of the Soul should be confined to Creatures here below, as Things too Languishing, and Transitory, for such Divine Substances to reside in, with full satisfaction, or final Rest: The heart of man, not fixed in the contemplation of Eternity, is always erraticke, and unstable, Et omni volubilitate volubilius (saith Augustine) more voluble than volubility itself; It trauel's from one Object to another, seeking rest where there is none; but in those frail and fleeting Temporals, in which, our Affections are (as 'twere) shackled, and let bound, It shall never find any Lasting and true Content; For our Soul is of that vast comprehensivenesse, and our Desire of that wild Latitude, and Extent, that no Finite Excellency or Created Comfort, can ever fill it, but it is still tortuted on the Rack of restless Discontent, and Selfe-vexation, until it fasten upon an Object, infinite, both in endlessness, and Perfection; only admit it to the Face of God by Beatifical Vision, and so consequently to those Rivers of pleasure, and fullness of joy flowing thence; and then presently (and never till then) It's infinite desire expire's in the Bosom of God, and lies down softly, 
Bolt. walk with God, pag. 125.  with sweetest peace, and full contentment, in the embracements of everlasting Bliss.  
And now, O Earth, Earth, Earth, hear the Word of the Lord. Thou whose Body and Soul, and Desires are lumpish, Earth merely, thrice Earth; Raise thine Affections from this Dull Element where they now grovel, and look up to the Hills from whence thy salvation cometh: why do they flutter here about corruptible Glories? Why do they stoop to false and vain Comforts, such as are not only open to Casualty, but to Danger? Riches are to Both? to Both, in a triple way; First, in their Acquisition, Secondly, Possession, Thirdly, Deprivation. In their Acquisition, first; As the Partridge sitteth on eggs, and hatcheth them not; so He that getteth Riches, and not by right, shall leave them in the midst of his Age, and at his End be a fool. jer. 17.11. Next in their Possession, where Moth and rust doth corrupt them, and where Thiefs break through, and steal, Math. 6.9. Lastly, in respect of their Deprivation, or Loss. He hath swallowed down Riches, and He shall vomit them up again; God shall cast them out of his Belly; the Increase of his house shall departed, and his goods shall flow away in the day of his wrath, job 20.15, 28. Lo, how the Hand of justice hovers here, and with a Double Blow strikes through the very joints and marrow of the Worlaling, even to the sundering and dissipation both of his Posterity and Fortunes? His goods shall flow away, and the Increase of his house shall departed; shall departed? whither? to the Grave; with whom? (two lamentable Companions.) The Fool and the Beast that perisheth. So saith the Singer of Israel in his 49. Psalm, thrice in that one Psalm, at the sixth verse, He trust in his wealth, and glory's in the multitude of his Riches, and at the tenth Verse, He is a fool, and brutish, and leaveth his goods to others. O vain Insolence? O transitory height? what? After all those overflowings and swarms of Treasure, must he leave his Substance to Others? Yea, to others, perchance, neither of his Tribe, nor Country. Please you to look upon him at the eleventh Verse, his very heart is transparent, and you may discover his inward thoughts. He conceiue's his house shall contìnue for ever, and his Dwelling place to all generations, and therefore calls his Lands after his own Name; yet view him again at the fourteenth Verse. He is a Beast, a silly one, a sheep laid in the grave, Death shall feed upon him, and the upright shall have Dominion over him in the morning, and his strength shall consume in the pit from his Dwelling place. Once more, He is twice in that Psalm styled A Man of Honour, but 'tis sauced with a Nevertheless, He abideth not, at the twelfth Verse; and He under standeth not, at the twentieth Verse; and in both, He is a Beast that perisheth. Mark, how the Spirit of God paints out this very Earthworm, this great Monopolist of pelf, and Rubbish. He is ignorant, Transitory, Sensual; He abideth not, he under standeth not, and (anon) he dieth; Dieth? no, perisheth; perisheth as a Beast doth, as if the Soul rotten with the Body, or his Memory with the Soul; no Remainder either of Name, or Fortune, and which is worst, of Honour; so saith the Text; What though rich; and the Glory of his house increased? yet, He shall carry away nothing with him, his Honour shall not descendafter him, verse 17. what? carry nothing away with him? not that Glorious Earth? that Gaudy Luggage his Soul Doted on? that shining Saint? that Burnished Deity, which he could, at once, both touch and worship? what? not the Cabinet he huged and clasped? not the Gold he Idoled? nothing of Treasure, or Repute, or Name? Of neither; All these false beams which were wont to dazzle him shall be now clouded in perpetual darkness, where they shall never see light again; thus the Text doome's him, at the nineteenth Verse of the same Psalm.  
Seeing then, All earthly Dependences are vain and fragile, and there can be no true peace but that which looks upward; Take for Conclusion the advice of Siracides, Lay up Treasures according to the Commandment of the most High; and they shall bring thee more profit than gold; 
Eeclus 39  Treasures of the most high? What are These? How laid up? and where? The Commandment of the most High tell's thee, Lay up for yourselves Treasures in heaven, Bags which wax not old, the good foundation against the time to come, the hold of eternal life, the Everlasting Memorial before God; that Treasure which the Angel shown Cornelius in the Vision; even thine Alms, and thy Prayers; not thy large-lunged Prayers, without Alms, such as the old Pharisee bleated in his Synagogue, or the New one, in his Conventicle; but thine Alms, and thy Prayers, hand in hand, with one cheerfulness, and Truth; thy hearty Zeal towards God, and thy willing Charity towards Man, and both these, in secret, and without noise. Such, and only such, are Golden Vials full of Odours, sweet Incense in the Nostrils of the Almighty; They shall yield a pleasant smell, as the Best Myrrh, as Galbanum, and Onyx and sweet Storax, and as the fume of Frankincense in the Tabernacle. Hear are Treasures which never fail, where no Moth corrupteth, nor Thief approacheth; these shall fight for thee against thine Enemies, better than a mighty shield, or a strong spear. If thou break the Staff of thy Bread unto the hungry, and afflicted, God shall make fat thy Bones, and satisfy thy Soul in Drought; Thou shalt be like awatred Garden, and like a spring whose streams fail not; Treasures thou shalt lay up as Dust, and Gold of Ophir, as the stones of the Brook; Thy Pastures shall be clothed with flocks, the Valleys also shall stand so thick with Corn, that they shall laugh, and sing; In sine; Thou shalt take root in an honourable place, even in the portion of the Lord's Inheritance, when thou shalt be exalted as a Cypress tree upon the Mountains of Hermon, like a Palm tree in Engedy, and as a Rose plant in jericho: And, at length, when the Glory of those Earthly Mansions must be left, when thou canst be no longer Steward, but art to pass thy strict Account before the Great Householder at the General and Dreadful Audit, when the Book of all our Actions shall be vnclapsed, thine shall be found square, and even, and thou shalt receive that happy Applause, and Remuneration, Well done, thou good, and faithful Servant, Enter into thy Masters joy.. Which the Lord grant for Christ jesus sake,  
Amen.  
Gloria in excelsis Deo.  
Road caper vites, tamen hic eum stabis ad Aras,  
In tua quod fundi cornua possit, erit.  
FINIS.