Vade mecum. Go with me: Dear Piety, and rare Charity. Whose flame is stirred up, to dispel the cold out of the mind. By Otho Casmanne, Preacher at Stoade. Translated out of Latin, by H. T. Minister. The Contents appear in the Page following. Duc me nec sine me per me Christ optimë duci, Nam duce me pereo: Te duce saluus ero. Guide me sweet Saviour Christ, The way, Let not myself me guide: If thou me guide, I shall be safe, If I myself, I slide. LONDON Imprinted for Thomas Charde. 1606. The Contents of this Book. The Epistle Dedicatory of the Translator. The Epistle Dedicatory of the Author. A Synopsis or view of this Book. A Prologue sententious. Four members. 1. Incipe. Begin. 2. Ne desice seu re gredere. Faint not, or go not backward. 3. Sed profice. Go forward, or profit. 4. By denying unrighteousness, and By follewing of righteousness. An Epilogue sententious. Prayers framed to the parts and members of this Book. To the three Right worshipful, The Epistle by the Translator. and religiously virtuous Gentlewomen, Mistress Anne Osbourne, widow of the Right Worshipful Master Peter Osbourne, Esquire Mistress Dorothy Osbourne, the wife of M. john Osbourne, Esquire. Mist. Grace Chapman, the Widow of M. William Chapman, Citizen, Increase of grace in this life, with assured hope of glory in the world to come. Having had long experience (Right virtuous Gentlewomen) of your Christian Piety and Charity, grounded upon a true knowledge of the word of God, I have thought good to present unto you, this short Treatise of a learned Writer, Translated by me, for the good liking I had thereof. Wherein he directeth every Christian how to begin, to go forward, to persevere in the way of Piety & Charity, till he have attained the mark, which is eternal life. Not that I thought you, to have much need of any such direction to be prescribed you, who have long since both found the way, and practised the course of a Christian life, and by God's grace shall so persevere: But yet I judged it might be a good confirmation to you, that you have not hitherto wandered uncertainly in your course, as also that it might be some encouragement unto you to persevere. But unto other, who have not yet either sound the way, or begun to walk, or have but slowly or faintly gone forward in this course, to such, this book may be both a guide to direct them in the way of Pity, and Charity, and also a spur to stir them up to go forward. I have been bold to join you three in the Inscription of this Epistle, as my three Charites or Graces, of whom the Poets make mention, Three loving and bountiful sisters. And sure I am, that grace is in every of your Names: and Nature hath joined you in Consanguinity and near Affinity (as also GOD hath united you in Piety. Now as in the Etymology of your Names ye carry Grace, so I doubt not but in your hearts ye possess the three Christian Graces, Faith, Hope, and Charity: which by God's mercy shall never leave you, till they have brought you to the expected end of your Faith and Hope, even eternal life. Which God for his son jesus Christ's sake grant to you, and all true Christians. Amen. So far ye well. Your unworthy Pastor, H. T. To the whole body of the College of S. Mary, at Stoad: Otho Casmanne, The Epistle Dedicatory of the Author. Preacher of the said College, wisheth salvation in Christ. YOu venerable and Reverend men, and Brethren, greatly beloved in Christ, unto whom, by the favourable will & providence of jesus Christ (whose unworthy Minister I acknowledge myself) I do execute the embassage of the Gospel, who also for that purpose have chosen and called me, to teach among you the word of Christian verity and sanctity: Are not to be passed over by me. The tongue serves to teach: but give me leave I beseech you, by writing to warn those whom with mourning I daily wish to teach, by example, life, and work: would to God I might perceive, that it were in my power to perform it. It is a great matter certainly to be a Minister of the Word, but to be a Workmaster answerable to the word, is (by Christ) a far greater matter. We love a frequent Hearer of the word of God, but a diligent Doer of A doer of the word hard to find. the word heard & kept, we admire. These are my groans, these are my wishes in this calling, which by the will and grace of God I maintain (pardon me I pray you, if I unburden these things into your bosom, with that Charity and Faith that is meet) to wit: That I be not a monster, having a larger tongue than hands: For that saying of my master jesus Christ doth sound in my ears: He that teacheth and doth, he shall Mat. 5. be called great in the kingdom of heaven. He will have me, not only to be the salt of the earth, in soundness of doctrine: but also the light of the world, in holiness of life, & example of virtue: Otherwise of mine own mouth will he judge me, as an ungracious servant: And Luc. 19 Ibid. 12. I shall be beaten with many stripes: If I bind together heavy burdens, and lay them on other men's shoulders, and I myself scarce touch them, or move them with my little finger. Every man must show his faith by his works, as a tree is known by her fruit. Let us all hear that saying of Aurelius Numerianus: Be that which thou art reported to be. Or that of Horace; Tu recte vivis, si curas esse quod audis: Well dost thou live, if thou endeavour To be the same, thou hearest ever. We are called Christians, let us live a Christian life: We are called spiritual, let us live in the spirit, and mortify the deeds of the flesh. Let us join in wishes, and mingle mournings, that by begging, and getting the help of the holy Ghost, we may rather be, than desire to seem good: For as one saith; It skilleth more what thou art, than what thou art accounted. Let us I say on all sides, endeavour with joint forces, to be the same before God, that we would seem to be before men. That shall we do, if joining Charity with Knowledge; & Holiness with Verity, we lead a godly and Christian life. Surely God is holy, and we his servants ought to be holy, that we may be united to him: We are not our own men. Why then should our own Reason & will bear the sway in our counsels and actions? Let us labour in all the parts of our life, to enjoy God, as the chief end, having a respect unto his will to do it. We are in the Church, the holy City of God, whom he hath consecrated to himself: Let us count it a wickedness, Motives to godliness. to profane it with our impurity: Christ, who hath reconciled us to God, is a pattern set before us, let us express his example in the actions of our life: God doth show himself a father unto us: Surely we are too unthankful, if we show not ourselves as children to him. Christ hath cleansed us by the laver of his blood, let us shame to defile ourselves with new stains or filthiness: He hath also inserted us into his mystical body, let not us fall away from that body, by sprinkling ourselves with foul blots. The holy Ghost hath dedicated us to God, as holy temples, let us, by his help, who dwelleth in us, make Mat. 5. our light so to shine before men, that they may see our good works, that our heavenly father may be glorified. We have the Angels our guides and watchmen, let us not, by the filthy stink of our sins drive them from us. Our souls and bodies are destined to heavenly glory and mortality: Let us labour earnestly to keep them pure and undefiled, against the day of our Lord jesus Christ. What is therefore for to be done by us? I have with a good meaning, for our mutual edification in Christ, gathered like a Bee, and framed out of all the best Authors (this fire of Christian Piety and Charity, that stirring up one an other brotherly, and inflaming one an other in the way of a godly conversion, and holy conversation, we may attain to the true felicity of eternal life. Take ye this of me, your unworthy Minister, with all favourable countenance: read it with me, with a mind desirous of Christian holiness: Let it go with me and you, all our life long: He alludeth to the title, Vade Mecum. Favour with good will, the labours of your servant, studious of your salvation, tending to God's glory. Well then ye reverend men, and beloved brethren, let us enter the way of true happiness: by a true conversion, and godly conversation: Let us not faint in the way, for any difficulty or burden of temptations, but let us go forward in a continual study of continency, and obedience, unto righteousness, and by righteousness, unto the glory of eternal life. And afore all things, let us do our endeavour to learn to deny ourselves: O how hard and difficult a matter is it, for a man to forget and forsake himself, A hard thing to forsake ourselves. and to apply his whole soul to the obedience of God: How unpleasant a thing is it, for a worldly man, not to seek his own, but by doing all things according to Gods will, to seek the glory of God. Let us by denying our selves, patiently bear the cross that God doth late upon us, that we may be conformed to Christ, and by humility acknowledge our own infirmity, and beg the grace and help of God. When we have thus forsaken ourselves, let us not neglect our neighbours, From ourselves, to our neighbours. From both to God. but rather prevent them with honour, and in good earnest employ ourselves wholly to procure their commodity: From ourselves and our neighbours, yea and from all things, let us cast our eyes upon God, and resigning ourselves, and all that is ours, to his will, Let us yield all the affections of our minds to be subdued by him. If any thing fall out prosperously, let us ascribe it to God, & not to ourselves: If any thing succeed not according to our wish, let us not be dismayed with impatiency: but if any evil happen unto us, let us not therefore reckon ourselves unhappy, neither let us complain against God for our estate. Almighty God grant, that by his holy spirit, working effectually in our hearts and minds, we may with careful industry search out the way of Truth and Charity, & with ardent desire long to come to our heavenly Father: and having found out & known the way, we may with good courage enter it, and with godly care walk in it: fleeing the vanity and inconstancy of the world, that we neither go backward, nor decline, either to the right hand, or to the left. The God of mercy and sanctification, so frame the course of our lives, in the use of earthly things, that we pamper not ourselves too much, but that we use the world, as if we did not use it: That 1. Cor. 7. we may learn no less to bear penury meekly, than abundance moderately: That we may restrain Luxury, our deadly enemy, lest we turn the helps of our life into hindrances. Let us remember, that these earthly things, are by the goodness of God, appointed for our commodity, that they might be as pledges, whereof we must one day yield an account. In all the actions of our life, let us carefully look unto the special calling, To look to our calling. whereunto God hath called us, to do those things which beseem it, and to shun whatsoever is unseemly for it. To conclude, the eternal Father grant us to contemn this wicked world, & whatsoever appertains unto it, and as is meet, to meditate on the life to come, and the incorruptible Crown in heaven. These things, ye Reverend men and brethren, I wish to you and myself, which my wishes and studies, if I shall perceive not altogether to be unpleasing unto you, I shall seem to have reaped sufficient, and plentiful fruit for my labour in this Book: and peradventure shall be stirred up to perform some greater matter. The Lord jesus bless you all, and every one, abundantly from heaven. Amen. Far ye well, and live ye happily, At Stoade, Idibus, Octob, 1604. Seneca Epist. 116. YE command us say they, too hard matters, We are frail men, we cannot abridge ourselves of all things. He Answers, Because we love our vices, we defend them: And we had rather excuse them, than excusse Shake them off. them: we pretend we cannot, the truth is, we will not. Epictetus. Lib. Dissert. Cap. 31. Of Diog. Cyn. I have no guard, no swords, nor pomp, nor outward terrors: In stead of those, A good conscience, gives me boldness & arms me with power: I esteem Honesty for very love, without law or penalty. Other men are harbowred within walls, doors, or covertures: I live under the broad sky, and wide world, in the eyes and view of every one: I desire only to please God. And yet whiles I do thus, it falls out that I am railed on, yea and beaten: but what marvel? Of boys and fools, that cannot abide to be rubbed on the gall: yet will I neither change my mind, nor leave my manner: And even those that beat me, I love, as a father, or as a brother. A Synopsis, or view of this little book, whose Title is, Vade mecum: Go with me. Dear Piety, and Rare Charity. This little book hath six parts. 1. A Prologue sententious. Four members 1. Incipe. Begin. 2. Ne Defice seu regredere. Faint not, or go not backward. 3. Sed profice. Go forward or profit. 4. By denying unrighteousness, and By following of righteousness. An Epilogue sententious, 1. The sum of the Prologue. All men desire to know and Live. LEt us first learn to know, that we know how to live godly. Let us learn to know God, and To know Ourselves. For he that knoweth himself; knoweth God. He that knoweth God, shall be made like to God, etc. Let us so live here, that hereafter, we To live. may live with Christ for ever. For this life is not to be desired for itself; but for another life, unto which we must come by the gate of death. Therefore that we may ever live with Christ; Let us learn both to Live and well. Dye We learn to live well, by meditating on death. We learn to die well, by living godly. We leer to live godly, by dying happily, To this way there is a mark set, uz. Eternal life: And the way to this mark, The mark and the way. joh. 14. How to know the way. is jesus Christ our Saviour, who saith: I am the way, the truth, and the life, we attain to the knowledge of this way. 1. By a right understanding of the holy Scriptures. 2. By Illumination of the holy Ghost. 3. Whereof ariseth an experience, feeling God himself working in us. Begin therefore O man, Know and Live. Begin, faint not, but go forward. 1. Begin to enter the way of life, The first member. which leadeth to the mark of salvation. The entry is made by a conversion. The Conversion is made by, An aversion from sin the worst Conversion twofold. Aversion from sin. Evil, and by A Reversion to God, the best good. 1 In turning from sin, consider O sinner, thy miserable estate, while thou art yet in thy sin. Thou art an enemy to God, and he The miserable state of a sinner to thee: A friend to Satan, nay a slave both to Satan & sin: Beggarly, filthy, and guilty of eternal death. Beg therefore the grace of God, which may prevent thee, accompany thee, and follow thee. Now God's grace in the Conversion of a sinner, useth two means. The knowledge of sin, and knowledge of sin. A consternation of the mind. 1. We come by the knowledge of sin, by the law, which is the rule of righteousness: By knowing how sin is bread, uz. 1. Four ways inwardly, in the heart: How sin is bread. By suggestion: delight: consent: defence. 2. Four ways also is it performed in work: First privily: next openly without shame: Then it groweth to a custom: At length it comes either to security, or desperation. Consider also the heinousness of sin, uz. It is an injury to God: A grievous weight, casting us headlong: A tyranny of satan: A gilt not pardonable, if Christ had not died: The son of God must needs die to purge it. 2. After the knowledge of sin followeth Consternation of mind. a consteruation or casting down, sorrowing for sins committed: And fearing God's wrath. Hereof ariseth A fear, and A sorrow, A fear threefold: Lest we be forsaken of grace: deprived of the sight of God: Fear. and tormented in Hell. A sorrow twofold: The first for fear of punishment, which is called a worldly Sorrow. sorrow. The second, for sin and offending of God, which is called a godly sorrow. Either of them is wrought by the spirit of GOD, but by divers Instruments, uz. The first by the Law, The second by the Gospel. 2. In returning to God, we must consider Reversion to God. the nature of God: That he is the chief good, etc. We return by faith, resting in the By faith. mercy of God the father, in the merits of jesus Christ his son. This faith ariseth in our hearts. First How it riseth. the Illumination of the spirit: with an inward sense of our own wretchedness. Secondly, succeedeth a hope of pardon: that although we feel not our sins yet pardoned, we hope they are pardonable. Thirdly, we shall perceive an hunger and thirst, of the grace that is offered us in Christ. Fourthly, thou shalt come to the Throne of grace, that there thou mayest find favour. Now in this access, thou shalt perform Two things in returning two things. Thou shalt confess thy sins, generally, and specially. Thou shalt ask pardon of thy sins, with groans, which cannot be expressed. Fiftly, thou shalt by an assured persuasion imprinted in thee by the holy Ghost, apply the premises of the Gospel specially to thyself. Here look to the practice of David's David's practice. Delays dangerous. repentance. And beware of delays and long lingering: meditate the shortness of thy life: And the manifold dangers of delays, uz. The treasuring up of wrath: The alienation from God. An evil conscience: The offence of the Angels: The engladding of Satan: The tragical ends of impatient sinners. Faint not, neither go backward. The second member. When thou hast in some sort learned & entered the way of life, walk in it with thanksgiving: take heed thou faint not, neither go backward. 1. Resist therefore temptations, for Temptations. God tempts, and why. God to whom thou art returned, will try his new soldier. Both to stir thee up, to long for the rest of thy heavenly country: And to draw thee, from the love of the world. And that thou mayest know, from dines. whence thou hast power to resist. Here thou must have these helps in a rea. Ardent Prayer: Constant Hope, A strong Patience. 2. Satan thy adversary, from whom Satan tempteth. thou art fallen, will sift thee. Though he be most subtle as a Serpent, yet listen not to him: Neither yet trust thine own judgement. Though he be very strong as a Lion: yet resist him: being armed with a true faith in Christ, whereby thou shalt quench his fiery darts. 3. Often times we tempt ourselves, Domestical enemies. for we have our domestical enemies: for every one is tempted, when he is drawn away and enticed, with his own concupiscence. Against this inward enemy, we must make war continually by mortification. 4. Without us, in the world, many external enemies. temptations are offered: which may disturb our wits. But thou O man, shalt overcome them, By shunning or removing the occasions of evil. 5. To conclude, thou shalt meet with manifold temptations, uz. Manifold temptations. 1. The memory of former sins which grief is biting, but it is not unprofitable. 2. Sometime the remembrance of former sins, with a delight, which is very hurtful. 3. The troubles and vexation of a Christian life. 4. The contempt of the world, striking a certain shame of our profession into us: or alluring us by his love: to these temptations are set down their remedies. And the danger of Relapse is showed, lest the last be worse than the first Relapse dangerous. Dangers of relapse. Relapse is dangerous in three respects. 1. On the devils part: who seeketh to return to his house, from whence he went out. 2. On God's part: whose spirit is grieved, and he as it were deluded. 3. On man's part himself: who getteth a custom of sin hardly to be recovered. Go forward, or profit. To go forward in the way of salvation, it is the gift of God: we must therefore The third Member. Two parts 1. The denying of unrighteousness. beg it of him by prayer. Now we shall profit herein, by denying unrighteousness, and following righteousness. 1, We shall deny unrighteousness, if we deny ourselves. Thou shalt deny thyself, by mortifying sin. Of sins ' Some be light, and Some be more grievous. 2. Let us make our beginning, by declining Lighter sins. from lighter sins: which though they seem to be of small account: yet they bring with them many mischiefs. For every sin deserveth punishment: Manifold inconveniences. defileth the soul: diminisheth the heat of Charity: weakeneth the powers of the soul: hindereth our glory: disposeth a man to greater sins: withstandeth a new grace: weakens our prayers: hinders our proceeding in the way of life, etc. Therefore O man, search daily every day all the corners of thy conscience, and fight daily against sin, be it never so little, by continual faith and repentance. More grievous sins. Four chief heads. 2. Let our next care be to mortify, and avoid more grievous sins. And first, Immoderate self-love, which is carnal, must be cut off. 2. Carnal Appetites, and Concupiscence must be tamed. 3. Unbridled affections, and perturbations must be restrained. 4. Wicked habits must be plucked up by the roots. For as evil inclinations engender evil affections: so evil affections, breed evil habits: The rooting out whereof, require a greater force of the spirit. Concerning evil habits. Evil habits to be mortified. The faculties of the soul are, Some Superior, and Some Inferior. The Superior faculties are the Understanding, & Will. In the understanding, must be mortified the vice of Curiosity: temerity: pertinacy. The understanding. Cogitations. And because the understanding is the fountain of infinite cogitations, which the memory receiveth and keepeth, as committed to her trust. These therefore must be mortified, whether they be idle, earthly, unclean, or curious. In the will we must mortify, whatsoever The will. repugneth the will of God, revealed in his word. In the Inferior faculties of the soul, uz. The Senses and Appetites. The concupisible, & Irascible parts. Wherein many evil habits are engendered. Evil habits in the inferior parts First gluttony and drunkenness, are to be mortified. Next Luxury, or Riot. Thirdly, Covetousness. Fourthly, anger. Fiftly, envy, Sixtly, Pride. seventhly, Sloth, which breedeth Dullness and Coldness in spiritual exercises. Lastly, we must avoid cowardliness, and Pusillanimity. cast off fear: for many times the mind is troubled, when we are entered the way of life: either with expectation of evils near at hand: or with despair of deliverance from present evils. But what is it that thou needest fear? 1. Whether the cross, or afflictions? 2. Whether Nothing to be feared. sickness or griefs? 3. Whether loss of earthly riches, or penury? 4. Whether the horror of death at thy end? 5. Whether Satan's fury, and assaults? 6. Whether the number or heinousness of thy sins? 7. Whether the terror of the last judgement? He showeth that none of these are to be feared, and setteth down reasons of comfort. 2. Go yet forward in the practice of The forth member to follow righteousness. Righteousness. For after the denying of unrighteousness, we must go forward in the practice of righteousness and holiness. Proceed In virtues and In a good courage. A double care. The first care must be to attain them. The second to keep them when they are gotten. Thou shalt both get them, and keep them. How to ● get, & how to keep. By frequent use of devout prayer: By pursuing them with a good courage: By loving them ardently: By a continual use and practise of them. Thou shalt go forward with a good courage. 1. If thou have a firm purpose at the first. How to go forward. setting foot, to go forward. 2. If thou persevere, and suffer not thyself to be plucked away by any impediments. 3. If thou reckon virtue to be sweet and amiable, and not sour and sharp. Concerning virtues to be embraced. virtues to be embraced. justice gives each one his due. To God, glory. justice comprehendeth all virtues in itself, it giveth every one his due. To God, that which appertaineth to him. To man, that which appertaineth to him. 1. justice giveth to God Glory, and Religious worship. We own glory to our God, in respect of God himself, and our own selves. God's nature is most glorious, most excellent, most beautiful, &c: We are his Image, after which we were created, and regenerated, etc. True religious worship, consisteth in Religious worship. The true knowledge of God, and The true serving of him so known. The true God, is truly to be known, according as he hath revealed himself in the books of Nature, and holy Scripture. God being rightly known is to be served with a Religious worship: Religious worship What it performeth. giveth to GOD due reverence: Submission: Obedience: due fear: and Love: due Hope and Confidence: due Adoration and Invocation: due Honour in swearing by his name: due Thankfulness: due Exercise of Religion, private and public: due Patience under the cross: due Constancy in faith, and Obedience. 2. justice gives to every man his due. justice towards men. Towards ourselves To himself first, and then To his neighbour Thou oughtest to love thyself, and not to hate thyself: But in an holy sort, first therefore learn to know thyself: And after thou knowest thyself, have a care to compose thyself to holiness and integrity. Let thy first care be for blessings or goods Of the soul, then Care of the soul. Of the body. 1. In the soul are faculties. Superior, and Inferior. Superior faculties. Superior, the Mind, Conscience, and will. 1. Give to the mind or understanding, Wisdom and Prudence. 2. For thy conscience be careful: to prepare it: to preserve it: to reform it. 3. To thy will, thou owest an holy government to refrain it by Prudence. 2. In the soul, are inferior parts. Inferior faculties. The Irascible or angry part, Concupiscible or lusting part. 1. Thou shalt moderate the angry part, and rule it by these virtues, uz. Christian Fortitude: Magnanimity: Patience: Constancy: meekness: Humility. 2. Thou shalt moderate the lusting part, and rule it by these virtues, uz. Temperance: in Abstinence and Chastity. Have a care of thy body, uz. to preserve Care of the body. thy Life, and thy Health, as much as in thee lieth. And if thy health be impaired, use medicine to recover thy health. Provide also for external goods, which we Care of external things. honour. call the goods of fortue, uz. Honour and Wealth. Let modesty moderate Honour, that thou pursue it so farforth, as is convenient & lawful. In getting them, use a godly industry, possess Wealth. justice towards our neighbour. Living. them holily: use them frugally. Now because we are not borne to ourselves, but we ought to love our neighbours as ourselves, we must give to our neighbours their due, both in Giving and Recompensing. To our Neighbours, Whether living Or dead. To every man generally, To certain men specially. To all and every man, we own both an Towards all. Inward affection, and Outward effects of love. To nourish familiarity and society in common conversation. 1. Carry therefore a loving affection towards A loving affection. thy neighbour: with a study of Christian Concord. 2. Show also the effects of a loving affection Effects of love. in word, and deed. In humanity: civility: and liberality, To certain degrees, or states, thou owest also To certain states. To the miserable. special duties. 1. To thy neighbours being in misery, compassion, and commiseration, or the bowels of Piety. 2. To certain degrees also and states, yield To certain degrees. their due, both in affection, and effects, uz. To thy Superiors, give reverence, and obedience. To the poor, Alms, and relief. 3. To Strangers or Pilgrims, entertainment by Hospitality. These duties to the living. We own also a duty to our neighbours being To the dead. dead. Let us therefore perform unto them the last duty of Charity, uz. Mourning and Burial. We must also have a respect to our neighbour's Retribution. desert, to recompense good turns, uz. Friendship, for friendship: And gratitude, to them that deserve well of us. In this manner then denying unrighteousness, and practising righteousness: Entering A short Recapitulation. to walk in the way of life in the Lord and not fainting: but by God's help going forward and profiting; yea Persevering in the same way, at length we shall come to the end of our way, even to the Lord, with whom we shall enjoy glory and immortality, by jesus Christ our Lord, etc. Amen. The Epilogue, containing, An encouragement, or spur to virtue. Encouragement to virtue. First by reasons taken from Christianity. Secondly, by wise sentences and examples, taken from Heathen men. FINIS. Vade Mecum Go with me. DEAR PIETY & RARE CHARITY. Whose Flame is stirred up, to expel the Cold out of the minds of many. To all that profess the Name of Christ, and call upon his godhead. A sententious Prologue. TO know and live [O ye Christians] is all our Desires, Let us learn first to know, that we may know how to live. for Non qui multa quidem sed quae sunt commoda vitae. Is dici sapiens, cur meriatur habet. Not him that knoweth much always. A wiseman will I call: But he that knows his life to rule, What so shall him befall. This world hath much science, but little conscience, lest therefore our knowledge To know if it go alone do puff us up, let charity be joined with it, with christian prudence: God and ourselves. let us endeavour to know God and ourselves, But at this day many know many things, but scarce any knows himself well: for to know ourselves, is an A gradation hard point, and not for every one to attain; Let us therefore learn first this divine precept, Every one to know himself, for he that knows himself shall know god, he that knows God shallbe made like unto him: he that is made like unto God: is worthy of God: he that is worthy of God, committeth nothing unworthy of God, but Acceptable. thinketh on divine things, and what he thinketh he speaketh, what he speakerh, he Displeasing Godly worketh. (ergo) caetera si vis noscere, te ipsum noscere discas. caetera si vis vincere, teipsum vincere discas. Noscere se ipsum, vincere se ip sum Maxima virtus. If aught thou dost desire to learn, Learn first to know thyself: If aught thou wouldst overcome, First then subdue thyself. Thyself first know, and first subdue, All other virtues will ensue. Let us live (O ye christians;) that we To live. may live with Christ; This life is to be desired not for itself, but for an other, whereunto we must come by the gate of Death. Therefore that we may always live with Christ, let us learn to live and die well. We learn to live well, by meditating on Death. We learn to die well, by living Godly. We learn to live Godly, by dying happily. The end of this life, is a happy Death, The end of Death is a blessed life: We shall live blessedly, if we be dead to the world. Ergo. Vive diu, sed vive deo: nam vivere mundo, Mortis opus est, viva est, vivere, vita deo, Vive sed ut séper vivas, sic ergo beatus, Vive deo moritur, qui sibi vivit, homo, If long to live thou do desire, Then long in God to live: The worldly life doth work to death, For God true life doth give. So live that thou mayst always live, And happiness attain. Who lives unto himself doth die, Such death will be his bane. Let us not therefore reckon how long, but how well we do live: he hath lived Not how long but how well. long who in few years, hath gained many Talents, by living well: for not many years and days make a long life, but a lively mind, he liveth not that thinketh on nothing but how to live, he that hath nothing in his life more pleasant than this A miserable life. mortal life, can never in his life embrace virtue. Many times therefore, he that lived long, hath lived but a while, because he lived not well: And many times, he that lived well, hath no long life (to wit in this world) full ill live they that think to live alway. Let us not always be beginning to live well, for he lives ill, who is always beginning to live well. Oh, believe me▪ many have ceased to live, before they ever began to live: therefore let us diligently consider, not so much how long, but in what manner we have lived: for not to live, but to live well is better. Non est crede mihi sapientis dicere vivam, Sera nimis vita, est crastina, vive hody. It is no wise man's part to say, To morrow I will live: To morrows life may come too late, If God no life do give, Therefore Oh man to know and live, begin, go not backward but proceed. There is a mark set thee, even eternal life in heaven, the chief perpetual happiness. 1 Mark. Choose the better part with Mary: Lay up treasure in heaven, where rust nor moth corrupteth Math, 6 not, nor thieves can break through nor steal. And God shall give to thee over Apoc. coming, to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God. This is the mark of life. This is true life, strive to this, from hence is banished all ill, here aboundeth all good. Here shalt thou rest again from thy Còmodities in the end. labours, being delivered from all evils: God shall wipe all tears from thine eyes, there shall be no more death nor mourning, nor cry, nor sorrow. 2 Here shalt thou enjoy the most pleasant company of thy God, thy creator, conserver, Redeemer, sanctifier, whom beholding face to face, thou shalt rest in his joy, who shallbe all in all unto thee. Thou Cor. 13 shalt be with Christ, the fairest among john: 12 men, and shalt see his glory which the father hath given him. 3 Here shalt thou bear the Image of the heavenly man, and with open face 2 Cor. 3. thou shalt behold the glory of God, and shalt be transformed into the same Image from glory to glory: There, that which is perfect cometh in place: and that 1 Cor. 13 Math. 13. Luk 20 1 john. 3. which is unperfect shallbe abolished, and thou shalt know, even as thou art known. Thou shalt shine as the sun in the kingdom of God the Father: Thou shalt be as the Angels of God, and as the sons of God are. Thou shalt be like to God who appeareth unto thee. 4 Hear shalt thou be gathered to the company of the holy Angels, and to the Heb 12 Congregation of the faithful, who are recorded in heaven, where is mutual knowledge, perfect love, perpetual praising of God. 1. Pet. 3. 5 Here thou shalt be replenished with all joy without tediousness, in an heritage immortal, undefiled, incorruptible. To those that love him, God hath prepared 1 Cor. 2. such joys as the eye hath not seen, the ear hath not heard, neither the heart can conceive in the heavenly Paradise. 2 The way to this mark is laid open to The way to the mark. joh. 14. Ibid. 6. Act. 14, us. First our Saviour Christ saith: I am the way the truth and the life; next it is said by him, Every one that seethe the son and believeth in him hath Eternal life: and thirdly, by many tribulations must we enter into the Kingdom of Heaven. Therefore Christ is the way, we must enter by faith, we must walk through tribulations, For strait & narrow is the Matth. 7 way that leadeth to life. This way of life to the just is good, holy, right, immaculate, elect, It is unknown What manner of way to man's reason, few enter, into it, there are few walkers among so many talkers, and unpleasant and difficult is it to the flesh, because of the companions that accompany the travelers, even the cross, and denial of ourselves. Yet this is the way which God hath set before us, which is pleasing to him, wherein he directeth us, and which leadeth to him: 3 This way is to be learned out of the Where this way is to be learned. holy Scriptures rightly understood, by the illumination and schooling of the holy Ghost, confirmed by use, and frequent meditation: till by experience we feel the Spirit of God to work in our hearts and by practice we perceive a chéerfulnes to walk in the way of Godliness. The first member. Incipe begin. jerem, 6 Enter O man the way of life and look diligently about thee, where that way is, and walk in it. Begin, the mark is life, there is a way that leads unto it, set thy longing to attain to thy heavenly father, from whom thou art declined after the world and the Devil. The first entry by conversion. Conversion in 2. points. 1 Acursion from evil. Make thy beginning or entry by conversion: let thy conversion be, by aversion or turning away from evil, even the worst evil, and by a reversion or return to good, even the best good. Turn away therefore from evil, even the worst evil, which is sin, and turn jerem 25. unto good, the best good, who is God. Let every man turn away from his wicked way, and from his ungodly desire, Motives to turn from sin. Alienation from god. Consider O thou sinner, thy miserable estate whiles thou art yet in thy sin. 1 Thy sin doth turn thee from God, and God from thee, whom it grievously offendeth and maketh thee his utter enemy Now what can be more grievous, then to have and feel, God to be thine Enemy. 2 Thou becomest worthy by thy sin to be forsaken of God, and after a sort to Deprivation of graces. be brought to nothing, being brought to extreme beggary of the Spirit, to wit, being deprived of God's grace and glory: To be without the chief Ens and good is either to be miserable, or else to be nothing at all. 3 Thy sin maketh thee of a man, a friend to the Devil, yea his servant and Consorting or serving of the Devil. slave, and the heir of hell fire. Every man by sinning selleth his own soul to the Devil, taking the sweetness of temporal pleasures as a price for it: Again on the other side also thou drivest away from thee As much as in thee lieth. by sinning: the good Angel thy keeper. 4 Sin is a most filthy thing as the scripture setteth it out: like mire wherein The filthiness of sin. swine wallow: like dregs, rottenness corruption, leprosy. Behold the prodigal Luke 15. son wallowed in the mire of Luxury, at the last living among an heard of Swine Look also if thy soul stink not by the putrefaction and corruption of the wounds of thy sins. 5 If thou wax old in thy sin, O thou Custom of sin dangerous lest impatienie follow. sinner it will exercise a great tyranny over thee by custom, and by custom of sin, Satan, so that thou shalt not repent, though thou sometimes desire to repent, For sin is barbarous and exerciseth tyranny over the Soul that is once taken captive, to the ruin of th●se that receive it: chrysostom I confess I sighed not being bound with iron chains, but with mine own iron will, mine August lib: 8: enemy had possessed my will, and had of it made a chain for me, and had bound me fast: I struggled with myself and was overthrown of myself. 6 Whilst thou continuest in sin thou dost sustain the gift of eternal punishment that is, thou art, deprived perpetually of the Eternal punishments vision or sight of God and art tormented with everlasting pain of most ardent fire. Epilogus- Call to mind therefore with me the miserable state of a Sinner: thou art God's enemy, deprived of god's grace: most beggarly, most filthy, a slave to the Devil, under the tyranny both of Sin, and Satan: an heir of Hell, Turn therefore from this worst evil. But that thou mayst convert, by turning from evil, and returning to God, God's help to be craved thou hadst need of the help of God's grace to prevent, accompany, and follow thee, For it is God that giveth Repentance by Grace threefold. 2. Tim 2. the knowledge of the Truth, that we may recover out of the snares of the Devil who are holden Captive at his will; It is God that worketh in us both to will Phillip. 2. and to perform Say therefore with joying: Convert me O Lord and I shallbe jerom. 31. de voc gent Lib. 2. The working of gods grace. converted: after thou didst turn me I repent. The grace of God saith Prosper is above all justifications or instructions, persuading: by exhortations, warning by examples: terrifying by dangers, enticing by miracles, guiding by understanding, inspiring by counsel, illuminating the heart itself, and enduing it with affections of faith. Now the grace of God in turning man from sin useth two means. Two means of Aversion from sin. First the knowledge of sin. Next the Consternation of the mind. Thou mayst come to the knowledge of thy sin by the Law of God. For by the Law is the knowledge of Sin: For the Law is the rule of righteousness showing what is just, and what is unjust. 1 The knowledge of sin Rom. 3. Whatsoever therefore is either in us, or is done by us, which is not agreeable to the rule of God's Law, that same is sin By this rule try both thy Internal and external actions, and thereby judge of thy life. And that thou be not deceived in the use of this rule. Observe these two things Whatsoever is contrary to the Law of God and our neighbour, is forbidden by 1 Two Rules whereby to know sin. the Law of God, and is repugnant to the rule of justice. And contrariwise whatsoever agreeth with the Law of God, and our neighbour, is commanded by the Law of God, and consonant to the rule of justice: Although by express words it seem to be neither commanded, nor forbidden. The Law is spiritual requiring a pure, perfect, spiritual, and perpetual obedience: whereby thou mayst understand that all men are guilty before God's tribunal, as transgressors of his holy Law, Thus than thou wilt acknowledge thyself a Sinner 2 Then learn to know how Sin is conceived and fashioned in the heart, and How Sin is conceived afterward brought forth in work. 1 Four manner of ways sin is conceived and framed in the heart, by Suggestion, In the heart four ways. delectation, consent, and defence. The Suggestion is wrought by the adversary: delectation by the flesh: consent by the will, bold defence by pride: whiles the fault which ought to terrify the mind, doth lift it up, but the more it swelleth, the more it supplanteth it. 2 Four manner of ways also is sin performed in work: First we are ashamed In work four ways. to sin openly: After a while we can let our faults be known without blushing: Hereupon sin groweth to a custom; and at the last it is confirmed, either by a false hope of mercy, or by a desperate fear of misery. Finally, learn to know the heinousness of sin: for sin is an injury offered The hainosnes of sin by the sinner to God: A contempt of his high Majesty, while we despise his will preferring the love of ourselves and the creatures: Sin is a most heavy burden depressing a man in the basest manner, and casting him headlong except he repent from one wickedness to another: Submitting him to the Tiranye of the devil, and last of all throwing him down to Damnation. This mischief was so unrecoverable by any human wisdom, virtue and Aremedie, strength: that it was necessary that the Son of God should become man to be Crucified and die that we might be delivered from it. 2 After the knowledge of sin, followeth Consternation or compunction. Two fold. Psal. 88 a consternation or casting down of the mind sorrowing for the sins committed, and trembling at the wrath of God and punishments due for sin: hereof thou shalt say with David. Thy wraths are gone over me and thy terrors have troubled me, And again: Mine iniquities are risen above my head and are like a Psal. 38. sore burden to heavy for me to bear. This consternation or sorrow or sense of God's wrath will be stirred up the more How it is stirred up. in thee, If thou think on the Law given to our first parents in Paradise: In what day so ever thou shalt eat of this tree Gen. 2. thou shalt die he death, If thou call to mind that Thundering of God in mount Sinai: Cursed is he that abideth not in all things which are written in the Law to do it. If thou look to the hand writing of thy Conscience, testifying of thine own heart, both the sin and sentence of damnation pronounced by God. If thou view the signs of gods wrath: whether threatened or executed, as plague, famine, sword, etc. or such as prognosticate punishment imminent or near hand. Hereof riseth fear and and sorrow. Fear is three-fold as Bernard saith: Two effects of the Law Fear to be deprived of the grace of God: Fear to be excluded from the vision or 1 Fear three fold. sight of God; and fear to to be tormented in hell. This fear doth Bernard stir up in his own heart in this wise: Way well How it is stitred up. Bern: in Cant 16 Oh my soul what a fearful and horrible thing it is to have contemned thy maker, to have offended the Lord of Majesty Majesty is to be feared, Lordship is to be feared, especially such a Majesty such a Lordship. He even he is to be feared, who after he An enumeration of terrible things all to be feared of impenitent sinners hath killed hath power to cast down headlong in to Hell, I tremble at hell, I tremble at the judges countenance, which may make even the Angels & heavenly powers to tremble. I tremble at the wrath of his power, at the thought of the violent ruin of the World, at the flaming of the Elements, at the mighty tempests, at the voice of the Archangel, and the sharp word, I tremble at the teeth of the Infernal beast, at the belly of Hell, at the roaring beasts prepared for a pray: I am afraid of the gnawing worm, the scorching fire, the smoke, the vapour, the sulphur, the Spirit of storms, the outward darkness: Who will give water to my head, and a fountain of tears to mine eyes, that I may prevent by tears, weeping wailing gnashing of teeth? and hard manacles and fetters and weight of Chains, pressing down, binding, burning and never consuming. Woe is me O my mother, why didst thou bear me, a son of sorrow, bitterness, indignation, and eternal weeping? 1 Sorrow two fold 2 Sorrow of compunction which ariseth out of the consideration of the heinousness of sin is two fold, 1 The first sorrow is for the punishments Sorrow of punishments deserved, it is called worldly sorrow or a sorrow to death. The efficient cause of this sorrow is 2. Cor: 7 Eficient cause. even the holy ghost, who in this case is called the Spirit of Bondage to fear: who testifieth unto us our servile and miserable estate while we are strangers Rom. spirit of bondage. from Christ, and therefore doth strike a fear and horror into us. Now the Instrument where●● the holy ghost doth work this sorrow in our Instrument hearts is the preaching of the Law, the some whereof is comprised in this syllogism or reason: Cursed is every one that abideth not in all things that are written in the Law to do them▪ From hence the conscience gathereth, but I have not a bidden in them (whereupon it concludeth Ergo I am accursed. Hereupon ariseth that sorrow or rather horror of mind, not so much for sin, which is in the assumption: as for the punishment of the Curse, which is in the conclusion. This Terror of the Law (if the grace of the Gospel come not between) would drive a man to desperation. 2 The second sorrow is for Sin it Sorrow of offence. 2. Cor. 2. self, and for the Offences committed against God, it is called Godly sorrow, or a sorrow to Salvation. The Efficient cause of this sorrow is Efficient cause. the holy Ghost: who in this case is called the Spirit of Adoption, whereby we cry Spirit of Adoption. Abba Father: This openeth our mouth, and enlargeth our heart to call God our Father and to call upon him familiarly, Now the Instrument whereby the holy-Ghost doth work this sorrow, or Instrument rather love in our hearts, is the Preaching of the Gospel, the some whereof is comprised in this syllogism or reason. He that believeth shall obtain remission A syllogism. of sins: shall be justified, and saved: From hence the heart by Faith gathereth, but I believe; Ergo I shall obtain remission of my Sins, I shallbe justified and saved. In this conclusion, as their is matter of unspeakable joy? So also there is in that same matter of sorrow, which is conceived (upon the knowledge of God's mercy) for offending so merciful a father. Of this sorrow the same Bernard saith: Bernard When I bethink me how I have offended my heavenly father, I have good cause to be ashamed: Sorrow though I be not terrified: He hath voluntarily begotten me by the word of Truth: He spared not his only begotten for me so begotten: So he hath showed himself a Father to me, but I have not again showed myself a son to him: With what face do I now lift up mine eyes to behold so good a Father, being so bad a Son? I am ashamed that I have committed things unworthy my begetting: jam ashamed that I Or my kind have lived so degenerate from such a father: O let mine eyes gush out with water: Let confusion cover my face: Let shame overwhelm my countenance, & darkness possess it: Let my life languish in sorrow, and my years in mourning, fie for shame: whatfruit Rom: 6: had we of those things whereof we are now ashamed, If I have sown in the flesh I shall reap nothing of the flesh but corruption: if in the world that also passeth, & the lusts thereof, what? I have not been ashamed wretched man to prefer transitory & vain things, whose end is death, before the love and honour of my Eternal father: I am confounded, I am confounded to hear: If I be your Father, where is my honour. etc. Reversion or return to God. A descripti-of God. 2 Having turned from sin the worst evil return to God the best good, whom thou hast forsaken Take a view of God who calleth thee, to whom thou must have recourse: He is Ens Complete absolute of himself, the chiefest good, most simple, most perfect, & therefore divine, Eternal before all things, in all things, after all things and in the highest degree, within all things, not included without all things not excluded above all things, not lifted up under all things not cast down, to this Ens return thou. He is the chief good, most actual. most liberal, indefficient & perfect, in him all goodness Essentially, and above all Excellency is found: from him all goodness is derived, to all creatures, without any diminution to himself: By cleaving unto him by Faith and Charity, all the Saints are made good and happy. whom by communion and participation of his goodness, he doth fill, and as it were, make drunk with plenty. To this most excellent and most bountiful good, return, that being delivered from evil, thou mayest be made partaker of good. Now thou dost return by Faith and How to remine. confidence of mind, wholly resting in the mercy of God the Father, through jesus Christ and his merits. This is a wonderful and supernatural faculty of the heart, apprehending and receiving of Christ, by the holy ghost, and applying him to ourselves. Hereof riseth an internal and effectual An Internal persuasion persuasion, by the forcible working, or certification of the holy Spirit, concerning the mercy of God the Father in Christ. Verily, verily, I say unto you: he Ioh: 6. that believeth in me hath Eternal life. Item believe in the Lord jesus, and thou Act: 16. Ephes: 3. Eph: 1. shalt be saved. Item, By Christ we have an entrance through confidence. Item: In whom ye have hoped, after that ye hard the word of Truth, even the Gospel of Salvation: In whom after ye believed, ye were sealed with the holy spirit of promise. Item: Which spirit, testifieth to our spirit, Rom. 6. that we are the sons of God. But that this Faith which is the free The practice of Faith. gift of God, and is not given: to every one may arise in thy heart. First thou shalt do thy endeavour to The knowledge of the Gospel. attain the knowledge of the Gospel by the illumination of the holy Ghost: My just servant by his knowledge shall justify many. Especially thou shalt labour, by an inward sense of thine own wants, to consider the promises of the Gospel, whereby thou shalt give an assent to the Gospel hard, that thou be not in that number, of whom it is said: That the word hard, Heb. 4. did not profit them, because it was not joined with faith in them that hard it. For God would have all men to be saved, and to come to the knowledge of the Truth. Secondly, thou shalt conceive Hope of pardon, whereby thou shalt believe, that Hope of pardon. thy sin is pardonable, though it be not yet pardoned▪ thou shalt say with the prodigal Luke 15. son: I will arise and go to my Father, and will say unto him: Father I have sinned against heaven, and against thee, neither am I worthy any more to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants. Thirdly thou shalt eagerly hunger and Hungering & thirsting for grace, thirst, for his grace, whieh is offered thee in Christ, and shalt earnestly beg: that He who is Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, will give thee of the fountain of living Water, freely, When thou art proceeded thus far, Christ doth count thee happy. Blessed are they that hunger and Math. 5. thirst after righteousness, for they shallbe satisfied. Fourthly thou shalt come to the throne Access to the throne of grace. Heb. 4. of grace, that by apprehending Christ, there thou mayst find mercy with the father. Now in this access thou shalt perform two things. First thou shalt humbly, purely, and Confession of sin. faithfully confess thy sins, generally and in particular. Whereupon shall follow remission of them before God: According to that: I will make my sin known Psal: 32. unto thee, and mine iniquity will I not hide: I said I will confess my defaults unto thee O Lord, and thou tookest away the punishments of my sin. Say with the Prodigal son, Father I have sinned against Luke 15. Heaven and against thee, neither am I worthy any more to be called thy son. Secondly, thou shalt entreat for pardon Entreating for pardon. Rom. 8. for thy sins, with groans that cannot be expressed, and that with continuance. In which case the spirit will help forward our infirmities: For we know not what to ask as we ought: but the spirit entreateth for us. Finally to conclude, a certain and special persuasion, must be sensibly and effectually A certain persuasion. imprinted in the heart, whereby the promises of the Gospel must be applied to thy Faith, that Christ may speak inwardly to thy heart: Be of good comfort my Son, thy sins are forgiven thee. See therefore O man, thou that returnest to God, that thou give thine assent, unto the word of God, and withstand doubting and distrust, and then by experience, thou shalt feel a sense of joy and comfort. A pattern of the practice of David's repentance David after his fall repenting, gives the first place to the knowledge of his Knowledge of sin. sin: Have mercy (saith he) on me O God, after thy great mercy, And upon Psal. 51. which Psalm Gregory sayeth, I should despair of the healing of my wound, If I did not presume of the omnipotency of my Physician: Let others seek for small mercy that have sinned ignorantly, I as I have grievously fallen, so have I greatly offended: But thou O omnipotent Physician, dost both correct the contemners, and instruct the ignorant, and pardon the confessors. I do know mine own wickedness, and my sin is always against me: Here is present (sayeth Gregory) the miserable Gregory. man, let mercy also be at hand: I know my own misery, if I did not acknowledge myself miserable, I should not labour in mourning. 1 I acknowledge that I have sinned of Manifold acknowledgements mine own accord, and wicked will, therefore I do not hide mine unrighteousness: I know from what I am fallen and what I have incurred, I know to whom I have enthralled myself by sin, even to the Devil, the enemy of all goodness, I know the blot that I have gotten by sin, and the filth wherewith I have horriby defiled myself. 2 I acknowledge that I have sinned against Manifold ways against God. thee only, and done evil before thee, against thee my Creator, whom I unhappy creature have not served, but have rather cleaved to the creature, then to the Creator, Against my Lord, against whom, I as a most wicked servant have rebelled to obey thine enemy, against thee my Law giver, whose will while I should have followed, I have shamefully despised, and to satisfy my lust, I have transgressed thy Laws. Against thee my most loving Father, for whose innumerable benefits, I have been so long unthankful, yea with whose benefits being fatted and pampered, I have kicked against thee my Father, and being forgetful of thy love, I have preferred mine own Love, and the Love of the Creatures before thee, Finally against thee my good God, most mighty, most just, have I sinned, whiles I have departed from thee on whom I should wholly have depended, and in whom only as my end I should have rested. 2 After the knowledge of sin, came A consternation. Psal: 6. a fear or consternation of his mind, which did invade his mind: Lord sayeth he rebuke me not in thy fury, neither chasten me in thy wrath. 3 Here upon a great sorrow possessed Sorrow for sin. Ps: 38 his heart, Mine iniquities are gone over my head, and are like asore burden to heavy for me to bear: my wounds are putrefied and corrupt through my foolishness, I am racked and vexed exceedingly, my heart panteth, my strength hath Ps: 51. forsaken me, etc. but an humble and contrite heart thou wilt not despise. Hope of pardon psal: 6. 4 Hope of pardon succeedeth: Turn thee O Lord and deliver my soul, save me for thy mercy sake: because in death no man remembreth thee, and in Hell who will confess thee:: As my soul, sayeth Gregory, is turned to thee, by the storm of repentance, so turn thou to Gregory, me, by the calm of mercy, and being turned to me deliver my soul. And therefore David saith to his soul, why art Psal. 42 thou cast down O my soul, and why frettest thou within me: Trust in God for I will yet praise him. 5 After hope of pardon David communeth Faith. p●al 25. with God, and resteth in him, O my God in thee do I trust, let me not be put to confusion: The Lord is my salvation: In thee O Lord do I hope, let me never be confounded. 6 Out of this Faith breaketh out from Confession the soul, a confession watching to heaven: I said I will confess my sins unto the Psal: 32. Lord, and thou tookest away the punishment of my sin. My sorrow is ever Psal. 38. in my sight, for I will open my iniquity before thee, and be careful for my sin. 7 A purpose of amendment of life followeth: Purpose of Amendment Psal: 6. Psa: 39 Depart from me, all ye that work iniquity: For the Lord hath heard the voice of my weeping: I said I will take heed to my ways, that I offend not in my tongue. 8 Finally he rejoiceth, with an inward Inward joy and peace. Psal: 103. sense of joy and peace: Praise the Lord O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgiveth all thine iniquities, and healeth all thy diseases, he will not alway be striving or chiding, neither keepeth in his anger for ever, etc. Return into thy rest O my soul, because God hath been bountiful to thee. Thus do we departed from evil, not Counersion not without grief without a sorrow of evil: that is we are sorry we have been evil: neither do we approach to good as to God, without Faith in him: For he that will come to Heb. 11. God must believe that God is. Now this departing from evil, and approaching to good, imports a certain Conversion imports a change, unde, et alio. Threefould change, which hath two terms or bonds, vz: from whence, and whether. This change is in the mind, will and heart. An the mind there is a change of the 1 In the mind judgement and counsel The mind disalloweth the evil that is done, and alloweth the good that is to be done. 2 In the will. In the will the change is on this wise, the will refuseth the evil, which hitherto it committed, or at the least way declineth from it, and chooseth hereafter the good that is to be done, or inclineth to it. In the heart the change is thus wrought: 3 In the heart. The heart hateth and detesteth the evil hitherto done, and loveth and pursueth the good hereafter to be done. Cease therefore to do evil and learn Conclusion Esai. 1. psal 34. Rom. 13. or else study to do well: or departed from evil, and do good: Item: Cast away the works of darkness and put on the armour of light: Item: Walk in the spirit, and fulfil not the lusts of the flesh: Item: Put ye one the Lord jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh to fulfil the lusts thereof, And Christ himself saith, deny thyself and take up thy Cross and follow me. Begin therefore, being turned from evil and returned to good, to bring forth Fruits of Conversion fruits worthy of amendment of life, and apply thyself to the study of holiness or new obedience. 1 Thou art bound as a creature to the Obligations between God & us. Creator, I wish thee often to pay the debt of gratitude. 2 Thou art bound as a servant to his lord. If I be your Lord, where is my fear. 3 Thou art bound as a child to his Father, thou art a child by creation, and regeneration, reverence therefore Almighty God as thy best Father. 4 Thou art bound as a client to thy benefactor, the benefits of God towards thee are exceeding great, therefore exceeding great thanks are due to him. What fruits. Begin therefore to show thy good life, and obedience to God, in loving God and thy neighbour. 1 The love of God is conceived in thee, by the knowledge and consideration of The love of God. the fatherly affection, of God towards thee: It is brought forth by a confidence in Christ: it groweth by the spirit of faith: it is strengthened by the cogitation of the heap of God's benefits, both corporal and spiritual: it appeareth in our obedience under the Cross and holiness of life. 2 The love of our neighbour is brought forth and maintained, by the love of God, The love of our neighbour 1 john. by the commandment of God, by the bond of nature and grace, He that sayeth he loveth God and yet hateth his Brother, is a liar, and the love of God is not in him. But begin the holy study, of either love, to testify, that thou art turned from The end of godliness. sin and returned to God: that thou hast renounced Satan, that thou hast submitted thyself to God, that thou art a companion of the most chaste spirits in heaven: That thou art a fellow of all that fear gods name on earth: That thou art the Temple of the holy Ghost: wherein whole Offerings and incense is offered, and the horns of the Altar are decked with boughs, & flowers of obedience. Begin to day defer not, make no long Dangers. of delay Vncerteinty of life. delays, for fear of these dangers ensuing. 1 Meditate with thyself, the uncertainty of thy life. Surely thou must watch and pray, for thou know'st not, either the day or hour, wherein the Lord will come: take heed thou be not overtaken by god's judgement at unawares. Heaping of sin is tresuring of wrath. Rom: 2. 2 Know thou the by dangerous delay, the treasure of many sins, of god's wrath & grievous punishments, is gathered together. Thou by thy hardness, and heart that cannot repent, dost treasure up to thyself wrath, against the day of wrath, and declaration of the judgement of God The angel's grief. Luke 15 3 Be thou afraid to offend the holy Angels: who verily rejoice at the repentance of sinners even as doubtless they sorrow at their security in heaping sin upon sin. Induration by alienation from God. 4 Call to mind the dangerous alienation from God, which is procured by daily increase of sin: way moreover, with a secret ● serious consideration, in thy soul, the induration that will follow, for the longer thou deferrest thy conversion, the harder it will be: A young man walking after his own way. when he is old will not departed Proverb 22 from it. Thou knowest thy saying: Late repentance is seldom true Repentance 5 As much as in thee lieth, take heed of an An evil Conscience evil conscience, which custom and continuance in sin, doth breed and nourish: There is no grief bitterer than a gnawing Conscience. 6 The longer thou stickest in thine old Deprivation of Grace. sin, the longer thou art deprived of the sweet joy of the holy ghost, and spiritual consolations. 7 Thou shalt increase the joy, and Satan's joy pleasure of Satan thy enemy, by drawing after thee along cord of inveterate or old grown sins, Think it a true saying: Sins are the delights and dainties of the Devil. Examples Tragical. 8 Finally view the Tragical ends of all such as have ever drawn along the day of there Conversion: Call to remembrance the horrible destruction of the old world the Sodomites. Egyptians, & jews, The Churches of the East, and other that were impenitent Be not flack Syrach. therefore turn unto the Lord, and put not off from day to day thy conversion: for suddenly shall his wrath come, and in the time of vengeance he will jerom. to Cilantius. destroy thee. Too long custom of sin makes the way of virtue, rough and unpleasant. After any vice, saith Bernard, is confirmed Bernard. by many years custom, a particular, and as it were a miraculous assistance of God's grace, as needful for the overcoming and rooting out thereof. A question to a secure sinner. Both ways catching. The same Bernard saith; Thou that makest so unequal a reckoning with thyself, persevering in thy evil & ungodly life, tell me: Dost thou believe that the Lord thy God will pardon thy sins, or dost thou not believe? If thou believe that thou shalt find no place for pardon, what greater folly can there be; then to sin without hope of pardon? But if thou think that he is good, gentle, and merciful: who although he have been offended, yet he is ready always to pardon thy sins: Tell me I pray thee, what greater frowardness can there be, then to take occasion to offend him the more, whom there is cause thou shouldest love the more. And S. Augustine, we must prevent Augustin the day, which is wont to prevent us. And the same. He that is first forsaken of his sins, before he himself do forsake them: is not freely condemned, but as it were of necessity: late repentance deceiveth many. And Ambros. Not to sin is only proper to God, Ambrose but it is the part of a wise man, to amend and correct his error, and to repent him of his sin. And Cassiodorus: A mischief, the longer it continueth, the more it increaseth, but a speedy correction of sin, is a curable good. And Saint Augustin. Though God have promised pardon to him that repenteth, yet he hath not promised leisure to live till tomorrow, to him that sinneth. The second member. Nedifice. Faint not: neither go backward. THou knowest & hast found the way of life, thou art entered into it, walk in it with thanksgiving. No man, Transition by only knowledge of the way, hath attained to the end, except he also walk in it. Thou art entered the way, hold on thy purposed course, approach every day cheerfully to thy GOD, by faith in heart, by study of godliness, by true love; depart further daily from Satan, the world, and thyself. But in fleeing, beware of vanity and inconstancy, that thou faint not, or go backward. Thy repentance, and thy life, are determined Repentance and life, one end. August. by the same ends: for the whole life of a Christian man, is a continual exercise of repentance. The action of the second repentance (which followeth the first) through our whole life, which we lead in this mortal flesh, must be undertaken with perpetual supplication, of humility, 1. because no man desireth, the eternal, incorruptible & immortal life, except he repent him of this temporal, corruptible, & mortal life. Secondly, howsoever every man doth glory, that he hath tamed his body, so y● being crucified to the world, he doth chastise his members from all evil works, having brought them in subjection: yet let him understand, that all these things are given him, he hath them not of himself: Not only therefore because of our very mutability & ignorance, and for the malice of the day: but also because of the very contagious dust of this world, we ought to repent us daily. Here therefore is need of a continual Mortification & vivification. Mortification of the flesh, and vivification or quickening of the spirit: Faint not, bear it out, and be stout, thy labour will one day avail thee. The greater thou art, the more laborious The greater, the greater conflicts. shalt thou be: being delivered from Satan, and made the son of the highest, thou hast gotten an high pitch of glory: thou shalt therefore have the greater conflicts with labour and dangers. Nothing Alexander was more Kingly in Alexander, than his labour. And to thee being a great King's son, now reconciled to thy father, nothing ought to be more glorious, than this spiritual labour. Life (life I say eternal) gives nothing to men without great labour: no man attaineth to the highest without labour. Sometimes thou Preoccupation. shalt be in danger, what then? he that attempteth great matters shall be in danger: and great things will be enterprised with great perils, and the greatest good things, are not without some great evils: Spare not therefore to bestow thy labour, though there be danger, where honour and reward are to be hoped for: But be wise: A mind that knows how to fear, knows how to adventure warily, be well advised of the danger, and thou shalt be wary to avoid it. Two branches. Here two things are to be done, We must resist Temptation. We must take heed of Relapse. When thou art entered the journey of Temptations. Christian Piety and Charity, thou shalt not be free from temptations: But take a good courage. 1. For God to whom thou art returned Causes of temptations. God and why. will try his new soldier: But God would never suffer thee to be shaken in the siue of temptations, were it not for his own greater glory, and thy greater profit, who art tempted: Both that thou mightest be stirred up to desire the rest of our celestial country, and be drawn away from the love of this present world: & also that thou mightest know, from whence strength to resist is ministered unto thee. Here thou must have these aids in a readiness. First, be fervent in prayer, that thou mayst Aids. Prayer. Psal. 6. Hope. say with David: Let thy hand now cease: Item; Lord reprove me not in thy fury. Secondly, stir up thy hope of God's mercy, for he that now chasteneth us is our father: who therefore doth now show himself a father, that he might not hereafter show himself a most severe judge: God 1. Cor. 10. is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that which you are able to bear, but will with the temptation give success that ye may be able to bear it. Thirdly, let invincible patience strengthen thee. Whereupon Bernard Patience. on the Psal. He that dwelleth, saith: Glorify and bear Christ in your body: A Psalm. 9●. pleasant burden, a sweet weight, a wholesome farthel: though it seem sometime to press us down, though it punch our sides, though it whip us when we winch again: though it pinch our chaws with bit and bridle, yet it doth very happily restrain us. Be thou as a yoked jumentum. or drawing beast, that thou mayst say with David, I am become as a beast used to the yoke. This similitude consisteth not in brutishness, but in imitation of patience. 2. The devil, an adversary and a tempter, will sift thee, and vex thee, whom The devil, and why. thou hast forsaken: He seeketh the ruin and destruction of thy soul, and by infinite engines and great force laboureth to overthrow thee: But resist and faint not. Though he be most subtle: yet thou Aides. Subtle. that art a tender plant of God (as Bernard speaketh) not having as yet thy senses exercised to discern good and evil: follow not the judgement of thine own heart, abound not in thine own sense, lest that crafty huntsman entrap thee, being unwary. Humble thyself under the mighty hand of God, take counsel of the holy Scriptures: hear the advise of holy men, who know better the wiles of that hunter. Solicit God by prayers, and knock at heaven gates. Though he be very strong, and as a roaring Lion: yet be thou armed with Strong. faith in jesus Christ, whereby thou mayest daunt the force of Satan, study to lead a godly life, as much as thou canst, by God's grace. In all things, or above all, saith the Ephes. 6. Apostle, take the shield of faith, whereby ye may quench all the fiery darts of that wickedone. And S. Peter saith. Resist the devil, being strong in faith. 1. Pet. 5. Though he be most cruel: yet since the triumph which Christ crucified got Cruel. over him, he is become most cowardish. Resist the Devil, saith Saint james, james. 5. and he will fly from you: And Gregory. He is strong against them that consent to him: he is weak against them that resist him: if consent be given to his suggestions, he is as a Lion: if he be resisted, he is as an Ante. 3. Oftentimes we ourselves do tempt Ourselves. ourselves, being domestical or privy enemies to ourselves, by our carnal lusts: Every one, saith Saint james, is tempted, jam. 2. when he is drawn away by his own concupiscence, and snared, as a fish with a bait. Against this inward enemy, thou must Aides. wage privy war continually, & shake the weapons, by a daily denial of thy evil affections, & wicked inclinations, which we perceive in ourselves: Let the purpose of thy mind be constant to follow good, detest inconstancy, idleness, & sloth, with earnest endeavour, repunge the pricks of noisome cogitations, and delectations, assoon as they rise. 4 Without us, in the filthy world, The world. many things do offer themselves, which by some means contain in them something, which may allure thine appetite, and lead thee from right reason: yea, as Solomon saith; The creatures of God, are many times as a snare, and as a trap to the feet of the unwise. For the corrupt nature of man, as a spider, doth draw out of the sweet flowers of God's good creatures a iovyce, which it turneth to poison. But thou O man shalt get the victory, Aides. if thou shun or remove all occasions of sinning. Bernard. The true note of compunction, is the fleeing of opportunities, and the withdrawing of occasions. O thou that art a Champion of Christ's, if thou be wise, arm thyself with a most patiented enduring of the temptation, when it is present, and with a Christian perseverance in the conflict or encounter. When thou art converted, & reconciled to God, & hast entered the path of piety; Special temptations. certain special semptations will assail thee. 1. But let it not dismay thee, that after thou art reconciled, the memory of thy Remorse of sin. former sins hath recourse, sharply assaulting thy mind: Hear David saying: My sin is alway before me. Hear Psal. 51. Saint Paul. I am not worthy to be called an Apostle, because I persecuted the Church of God. The remembrance of sin, as it is sin, is profitable: for thereby the force and weight of sin, A profitable remembrance whereby God hath been injured and provoked, is represented to the eyes of our mind: from whence arise a most wholesome fear and sorrow, from whence shame & blushing, as of a child before so good a father from whence a love is inflamed towards our loving or benign God, who hath pardoned our sins. Hear worthy Dangerous-remembrance? Augustine. Set not before thine eyes the delectation of thy former sins: but set before thine eyes the damnation of thy sin: It is dangerous, when the filthy imaginations of sin, & impure fantasies have recourse, & do with importunity thrust in themselves, for they show, that the remnants of the old sores do yet rest in that man's soul. Whereupon Bernard saith: Therefore our memory must be purged from these, & this sink must be thoroughly scoured: Hear the Apostle S. Paul. This is a faithful saying, and worthy by all means to be accepted. That jesus Christ came to save Comforts sinners, among whom I am the chief. Take therefore (my brethren) from the blessed Apostle this consolation and comfort, that the conscience of former sins, after we be returned to God, do not overmuch torment us, but may only humble us, as it did him: I am the least of the Apostles, & am not worthy to be called an Apostle, because I persecuted the Church of God: Even so let us humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God, and let us have trust, because we also have obtained mercy. 2. Moreover, this cogitation, not without Troubles of temptations. great danger, doth trouble thy mind, to wit: That while yet thou didst live after thy own will, & gavest the rynes to thy appetites, thou didst not feel so many cares & troubles (as in this state of grace, even in the first entry of Christian piety thou art sharply shaken with. But when this Aides. cogitation comes to thy mind, hear what Christ doth cry to thine ears: He that will be my Disciple, let him deny himself, and take up his cross & follow me. Nunquam bella pijs, numquam certamina desunt Et quocum certet, mens pia semper habet. The godly always warriors are, To them are conflicts rife: The godly mind hath enemies, Who move continual strife. use of temptations. There is great use of temptation, which God will not have thee to lack: He that is not tempted, what knoweth he, saith the wise man? All the Saints have trodden this path: wilt thou exempt thyself from this lot? Christ himself the best beloved son of God, is the standard-bearer of this warfare, whose steps we must follow: He was in all things tempted like unto us. Heb. 4. When thou wast called to a new life, thou wast not called to delights and pleasures, but to labours and temptations, to persecutions, yea if so the case required, to undergo death. 1. When this cogitation afflicteth thee, Aides. Satan most busy to tempt in our conversion. then think, that Satan doth search all the corners of thy heart, to try after thy conversion how thou holdest friendship with God, with whom thou hast newly entered amity, whether it be stable or wavering, he hath no need of this trial towards those, who are at utter enmity with God. 2. Think thou that Satan will More busy with a convert, then with a wilful sinner. move every stone (as they say) to remove thee from godliness: but he hath no cause to set upon a wilful sinner in such sort: for he possesseth and useth him, as he lists. Whereupon chrysostom saith; Satan doth ever assail the first beginnings of good, he trieth the rudiments of virtue, he hasteth to extinguish holy things in the first springing, knowing that he cannot subvert them when they are surely founded, or grounded. 3. Finally think thou, that the seeds Seeds of sin lurking. of these temptations do lurk, or lie hid within ourselves (for either being addicted to some peculiar vice, or being drawn away with the care of worldly business, they appear not but when opportunity serves, they lift up their heads: and bewray themselves, even then, when we begin to live to God. 3. Many times the way of Christian The way hard. life will terrify thee, as being hard and rough for the flesh, saith Bernard, hitherto untamed, doth not willingly suffer itself to be chastised, & brought into bondage, but being as yet mindful of late lost liberty, doth more earnestly lust against the spirit. This temptation, saith he, is called Night fear. in the Psalm, The night fear, not night itself, because not every affliction, which is signified by the night, but fear of affliction, is the temptation. But to overcome this cogitation of the Aids. flesh, which by the help of Christ thou shalt. Thou must take pains in the way of godliness and charity: for the way of virtue is hard: it will not be gotten, but by enduring every hard and rough thing, sorrow, yea infamy, if need be. Have not the Heathen who knew not Christ learned this by nature's direction. Difficilia, qua pulchra. Beautiful or excellent things are hard to be attained. Nature itself hath proposed or set many difficulties before things of estimation: virtues are wrapped up in labours, and great expenses, that thou shouldest get to them by many difficulties: Careful labours, or laboursome cares, prepare the way to the attaining of fair and honest things. Thou hast striven to enter at the narrow gate, proceed in the way, give not thou place to evil, but throng on more boldly. Pray and take pains, and thou shalt overcome all difficulties: Labour improbus omnia vincit: untired labour doth overcome all: But nothing is so easy, that seems not hard, if we go about it with an ill will: we climb to honour by virtue: nature hath placed nothing so high, whither virtue cannot reach. They are deceived with the error of a Virtue hath her delights. false opinion, that think, that a godly life is full of trouble, labour, & pain: so that it is altogether void of sweetness & pleasure: when as virtue is not without delight, & Christ's yoke is sweet, & his burden light: Let us hear David's experience: I have delighted as much in thy testimonies, as in all manner of riches. Item. The judgements. Psalm. 9 of the lord are to be desired, above gold & precious stones, sweeter than the honey & the honey comb. God himself in his covenant promiseth present help. I will give them a new heart, and a new spirit will God's aid promised. I settle in their bowels, and I will take away their stony heart, and give them ● fleshy heart, that they may walk in my precepts, and keep my judgements, and do them, that they may be my people, and I may be their God. He therefore, who is true and mighty, will bring it to pass, that thou mayest say with the Apostle: Our old man is crucified with Christ, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that we might no more serve sin: Fear not, saith Esay, because Esay. 40. I am with thee: shrink not, because I am thy God, I have strengthened thee, and have helped thee, and sustained thee, by my right hand. Behold, all they that strive against thee, shall be confounded, brought to shame, and be as though they were not, etc. I am thy Lord God; who take thee by the hand, saying unto thee: Fear not, I have helped thee. When jesus our Saviour cometh: And every valley is exalted, and every mountain and hill is humbled, and the rough ways are made plain: That which thou canst not, that shall the holy Ghost abundantly perform, in thee: The Lord thy God shall circumcise Deut. 30. thy heart, and the heart of thy seed, that thou mayst love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live. Say with Saint Augustine, Lord give that thou biddest, and bid what thou wilt: Be careful to keep the love of God, and that will Love endureth many troubles. make thee to swallow all troubles without pain. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments, and his commandments are not burdensome: for all that is borne of God, overcometh the world. And Saint Augustine. He that loveth, laboureth not, for all labour is contrary to them that love not: only love it is that blusheth at the name of difficulty. Temptations of the world. 4. The world also, either with his glory, and bravery, will allure thee to love it; or by his contempt and embacing will discourage thee, when thou art entered into the way of piety, and charity: or will strike into thee a certain (I know not how to call it) impudent shame to profess the truth. No small impediments in the way of godliness. But learn with me O Christian. Spernere mū●ū, spernere nullum, spernere to met, Spernere te sperni disce, beatus eris. Despise the world, despise no man, Except thyself pardie: Learn to despise, to be despised, So shalt thou happy be. Consider with me, I pray you, how Aids against worldly felicity. short and transitory the felicity of this world is: How many and great miseries are mingled with worldly delights: How many and great dangers and snares lie in their way, that walk through the parching heat of this world. Consider the horrible blindness and Egyptian darkness of worldings. Look on the world, & thou shalt look on a filthy dunghill of sin and uncleanness. Look on the world, and thou shalt look into a shop of fraud and deceits, yea into the house of death. Contemn therefore the contempt of this world: which being despised, despiseth thee: but thou shalt be commended of him, that is most to be commended, even of God, from whom all true praise proceedeth. But if thou be ashamed of the truth; Aids against shaming at truth. and blushest at the ways of Gods holy Commandments: Remember O man, remember, that thou must shortly die, and be presented before Christ: how great shame shalt thou then be covered with? If Christ were not ashamed to hang naked on the Cross for thee, why art thou ashamed to keep Christ's sayings? So many thousands men & women, have powered out their blood with their life for Christ's sake, and art thou ashamed for love of him to do any good? What wilt thou say in the day of the last judgement? what will he thy shame? what confusion of face? If thou be ashamed to do well, thou shamest to be a Christian: what shame can be more shameful▪ Thou knowest what Christ saith: He that is ashamed of me before men, of him will I be ashamed before my father, & all his Angels, Thou knowest also that of the Apostle: If I endeavoured to please men, I should not be the servant of Christ. And one saith: Why dost thou respect men? why dost thou delay to do those things which are acceptable to God & good men? Didst thou not promise in thy Baptism to renounce the devil and all The vow of Baptism. his works, and only to love God, into whose name & Godhead thou wast baptised. Shame therefore to do the works of the devil, rejoice to do the will of God: It is a shameful madness to blush at well doing, for the which we shall be despised both in heaven and earth, and not to blush or be ashamed of evil doing which hath a curse following it, and punishment, both in this, and in the world to come. Thou art not ignorant of that saying of our Saviour; The servant Luc. 12. knowing his Lords will, and not doing it, shall be beaten with many stripes. What is it, I pray thee, that thou prayest daily, that Gods will might be done, and yet to please the world, thou dost it not? Consider I pray thee, that it cannot be, By the world, understand the wicked. that it should be well with thee concerning God, and also concerning the world, that thou shouldest please God and the world. If other should laugh thee to scorn, whiles thou seekest for treasure, yet thou wouldst not desist from thy purpose for their scorning: why then dost thou give over to seek the treasure of divine grace and glory? View one the one side, God, & and Paradise, which is the dwelling of the blessed, and on the other side the world, and the conversation of worldlings, and tell me whether estate is more to be desired? O how great joy shalt thou be filled with! when by death thou shalt departed hence, if for human favour or displeasure thou wert never hindered, or ashamed to live to God. 2. Take heed of Relapse, that is, Relapse dangerous. Fall not back into thy former sins. The memory of thy life past, which before thy conversion, thou didst lead (as it seemed) sweetly, in the fulfilling the lusts of the flesh, is wont to draw with it a certain sadness in the will, because thou perceivest that thou art perpetually excluded from that pleasant life by thy conversion to God. But know thou, that this Relapse (as they call it) or falling back into sickness is dangerous: Our Saviour Christ threatening us: that of a man falling back to Understand, fall: or end. his old sin, the last shall be worse, than the first: And that in three sorts. 1. In respect of the devil, who doth assault, the man lately delivered from the In respect of the devil. sins wherewith he held him in slavery, more cruelly, he attendeth him: more watchfully, he invadeth him: more sharply, as a pray recovered out of high hands, or as a morsel snatched out of his jaws: And not finding rest, he saith: I will return into my house, whence I came out: And leadeth with him, seven other spirits worse than himself. The man therefore relapsed in respect of Satan, is in worse case than before he was. 2. In respect of God also, because such a sinner as a dog to his vomit, In respect of God. or as a swine to her wallowing in the mire, is sooner forsaken of God: We have healed Babylon (saith the Lord by the Prophet) but yet she is not jerem. 51 sound: Lo let us leave her. Item, Who will have pity on thee, O jerusalem? jerem. 15 or, who will go to entreat for thy peace? for thou hast forsaken me saith the LORD, thou art gone backward. And Christ saith to the man cured of the Palsy: Behold thou art made whole, sin no joh. 5. more, lest a worse thing happen unto thee. Item, Thou ungracious servant; Mat. 12. I forgave thee all that debt when thou desiredst me, shouldest not thou have had compassion on thy fellow-servant, even, as I had pity on thee? And the Lord being wrath, delivered him to the jailers, till he should pay the whole debt. Ye know how it said: He that loveth danger, shall perish in it. 3. In respect of the sinner himself, who often falleth back into sin, the last In respect of the sinner. is worse than the first, for sundry causes: First, because in every sin, there is a turning from God, by the transgression of the commandment, and a turning to the devil, by the delight in sin. And out of this delight, by custom of sin, are engendered evil habits, which make our return to God hard: So that we get as the Prophet saith: A harlot's forehead, jerom. 3. that cannot blush. And Saint Augustine. Out of our perverse will riseth lust, and while we serve our lust, we breed a custom: and while we resist not custom, it becomes a necessity. And Solomon saith: The wicked when he is come into the deep, make light of it. All other sinners do war against three enemies, but he that often falleth The three enemies. The Devil, world, flesh. back into sin, must war against a fourth enemy, to wit, custom, the hardest enemy among all. Secondly, he that is reconciled to God, and is delivered out of the power of darkness, even the devil, and is restored to The fourth Custom. Sin in a Christian, more heinous than in an infidel. 2. Pet. 2. the free liberty of the spirit, doth sin more heinously by Relapse, than he that is by nature a child of wrath, and lives in slavery to sin, having never received faith, nor the grace of Christ. It had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than after they have known it, to fall back from the holy Commandment which was given unto them. And Basil. As the air which is drawn in pestilent places, doth breed privy diseases in the body; so out of evil custom, many mischiefs arise, though they be not by and by felt and perceived. Thirdly, consider with me, what a great indignity is in this matter. For what can be imagined more absurd, than even now, to have wept and mourned, An indignity. and to have entreated Gods infinite mercy, to obtain remission of thy sins, and suddenly changing thy purpose to forget thyself, to set light by God's grace, to renounce godliness, to be clearly an other man, and to think otherwise, than erewhile thou wast, and desirest alway to be. Fourthly, when we often fall back Hard to obtain. God's favour. to the same sins, it is an harder matter, (no doubt) to return again into God's favour, both because the injury is greater, and God's displeasure juster, and because we ourselves have hardened our hearts: and finally, because Satan's power and dominion over our souls is increased: For this cause are we Heb. 10. taught: That to those that sin wilfully, after the knowledge of the truth received, there remaineth no more a sacrifice for sin, but a fearful expectation of judgement and devouring fire, which shall consume the adversaries. But this place is rather understood of Apostasy, and sin against the holy Ghost. Be not therefore negligent in avoiding Exhortation. such cogitations, as solicit thee to return again to thy old life: yea the more often and earnestly that they thrust themselves into thy mind, the more speedily and strongly, let them be cast out. We must saith Cyprian, meet with the suggestions of the devil, and not nourish a snake, till he become a serpent: And Hierom. Kill thy enemy, while he is small, and dash iniquity in pieces, even in the seed. Be servant in prayer, and often use that prayer, which was so familiar to Saint Augustine. Da quod jubes, & iube quod vis, Give o Lord, that which thou biddest, and bid what thou wilt. The third member. Profice: Go forward, or proceed. IT is the gift of God to proceed in the God the cause of profiting. jere. 10. way of Salvation: For God giveth the increase. I know O Lord, that the way of man, is not in his own power, neither is it in man to correct his own way. We must therefore ask this gift of Prayer the means. God, by prayer, in whose hand it is. And David, Lead me O Lord in thy righteousness, because of mine enemies, make thy way plain before my face. We must therefore pray: That according to the riches of his glory, he will strengthen us by his spirit, in our inward man, that Christ may dwell in our hearts by faith, that we may be rooted and grounded in love. Saying, Thy will be done O father, as in heaven by thy Angles; so in earth, by us. Laying therefore aside, all malice, Exhortation. 1. Pet. 2. and all guile, and dissimulation, and envy, and all backbiting, As new borne babes, reasonable, and without deceit, desire ye the milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby to salvation, if ye may taste how gracious the Lord is. And strive to enter in at the strait gate: Exercising thy 2. Tim. 4. self unto godliness, which is profitable to all things, with great zeal and endeavour, taking upon thee the yoke of Christ. Go on in the way which thou hast entered: for the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent catch it. Say unto Satan, that would draw thee back: Go behind me Satan, for thou art an offence unto me. The way of the righteous, proceedeth Prou 4. as a shining light, and groweth to a perfect day. Be not therefore wanting to the Heb. 12. Psal. 119. Not to profit. grace of God: but run the way of God's commandments. If to profit be to run, saith Bernard, than thou ceasest to profit, when thou ceasest to run: and when thou ceasest to run, than thou beginnest to faint: Hereof we may plainly gather, not to profit is nothing else but to fall away. The spirit must ever either profit or fall back. And Augustine; How much soever we live here: how much soever we profit here: let no man say; It sufficeth me, I am righteous: He that saith, I stay in the way▪ cannot tell how to come to the end of the way; And the same August. Go forward my brethren, examine yourselves alway, without fraud or flattery: dislike always what thou art, if thou wilt attain to what thou art not: for where thou pleasest thyself, there thou wilt stay. Observe diligently thy going forward. Four things to be noted in profiting. In profiting, persuade thyself assuredly, that thou art daily beginning. 2. Be not discouraged if thou perceive that thou hast not yet profited so much as thou couldst wish. 3. Let the purpose of thy race in profiting be God, & too God: Therefore in the beginning of every action, first examine thy action diligently, and afterward, look to the progress & end of it. Then whatsoever human praise might happen to thee, by thy well doing, tread it under foot, in respect of the glory of God. 4. Look to the pattern of all virtues, even jesus Christ: who is the son of righteousness, the light of the world, the way, the Truth, and the Life: Through patience run to the mark: that is, set Heb. 4. before thee, looking to jesus the captain and finisher of thy faith: In all things grow in him. Eph. 4. First and above all things, labour earnestly to subdue thyself, and to flee vices; then follow virtue, and seek after righteousness. These things are to be observed generally: now of things specially, wherein we ought to profit or go forward. First, in denying unrighteousness. Two branches. Secondly, in attaining righteousness. 1. Touching the abnegation or denial of unrighteousness. Thou shalt deny unrighteousness, if thou deny thyself, and mortify the flesh. Thou shalt deny thyself, and mortify the flesh, if thou first foresee that thou sin not, and after sinning, that thou speedily repent, and beware not to commit the like sin. Now among sins. Some are lighter, and Two sorts of sins. Some more grievous. Let us make our beginning, by shunning and declining, the lighter sins. Surely all sin offendeth the Majesty of God, and maketh the sinner guilty of eternal death; but it is evident that there All sins offend God. Lighter sins to be subdued. are certain degrees of sins, and one sin is more heynons than an other: He therefore that will profit, must make his beginning by subduing the lighter sins. Though they seem of small account, yet I would wish thee, not to make small account of them. For remember: 1. All sin whether great or small, doth Manifold inconveniences. wrap thee within punishment, because it is a breach of God's commandment. 2. They defile the soul with their contagion: They do so deface our beauty, saith Augustine, That they separate us from the most chaste embracings of our Spouse, who is more beautiful than the children of men. 3. As water quencheth flaming fire, so do they diminish the server of Charity. They weaken the faculties of the mind in the exercise of holy virtues: as a load laid on an horse, maketh him go the slower. 4. They hinder our own glory by hurting God's glory, and do abate the blessing of our eternal glory. 5. They dispose or prepare a man to greater sins: and bar up the way from receiving new graces: They hinder the true devotion of holy prayers to God, and are an impediment to our progress in a spiritual life. 6. They spoil us of many heavenly graces. And as thieves, who pilfer many A Simile. small things by little and little, are not of long time perceived, because the things are of small value: yet in the end the theft is perceived, when the owner perceiveth that he wanteth many things. So do these pilfering sins by little and little bereave us of many graces. 7. They weaken the soul, and make it apt to fall into all evil infirmities: And though they seem to be but small hurts, yet are they not to be neglected, but speedily to be healed. 8. They are as dust, or as a cloud before the eyes, which hinder the sight, so that we cannot cheerfully behold God, nor purely love him. He therefore that despiseth small Ecclese. 19 Eph. 4. things, shall decay by little & little, saith the Preacher. Grieve ye not the holy spirit, saith the Apostle. And Saint Augustine; Despise not small sins: though thou Small sins to be despised. Similes make light account of them, yet be afraid at least, when thou numbrest them. And the same. No sin is so small, that by contempt becomes not great. For the sea sands, though they be very little, and so likewise the drops of water: yet being multiplied, grow to great floods, and do much harm: and the water that leaketh into the ship will at the length sink it. The same. There is no sin so small, that is not able to destroy a man, if he take pleasure in it. And Hierom. Way not how little thy sins are, but how great God is, who is displeased with thee. Therefore O man. What is to be done to avoid small sins. 1. Search diligently, and daily, all the starting holes of thy conscience, & strive continually against every sin, be it never so small: by new repentance &, exercise of faith, we ought daily to cure our maladies, not only by acknowledging our sins, but also by searching the root of them. 2. Call to remembrance otherwhiles, that sins, otherwise small, in a man endued with great graces, are recokned to be great. For by how much the person that offendeth is more famous, by so much is the blot, that he is stained with by offending, more shameful. 3. Think seriously, that every sin, be it never so little, is an impediment to him, that goeth forward in the way of salvation, especially, if it be now grown to an habit, or custom, whereto little sins do make a way. If it hinder, being once or twice committed, what will it do, think you, when by daily custom, it is confirmed? for every evil is easily suppressed in the first springing, but not when it is waxed old. We must therefore withstand the beginnings. For though such sins be thought to be as thorns, To withstand beginnings A Simile. which when they be young, prick gently, yet when they are grown more stubborn, stick faster, and wound sorer, so that though they kill not the inner man, yet they pierce him through to the quick, and weaken him, and make him to halt ill-favouredly in the way of life. Let thy first care be therefore to overthrow small sins. 2. Next, let us endeavour to shun, pluck up, and cast away greater sins, even Greater sins to be avoided. wicked affections, which by custom are grown to an habit, which are fourfold. 1. Immoderate self-love, which is carnal, must be cast off. 2. Carnal appetites and concupiscences, must be tamed. Evils fourfold 3. Unbridled affections and perturbations, must be refrained. 4. Wicked habits must be pulled up by the roots. 1. Concerning self-love. The love of ourselves being carnal Self-love above all to be mortified. and immoderate, must be denied and mortified. The height of the denial of ourselves, is the mortification of the perverse love of ourselves. Which passing through all other vices, doth give as it were a spirit and life unto them, and therefore hath the pre-eminence above all other vices: Bernard. Whereupon Bernard. There is a carnal love, whereby a Hom. 4. man loveth himself, for himself above all things, whiles yet he savoureth nothing but himself. And S. Augustine. in Ezech. The perverse love of ourselves, depriveth the swelling spirit of the holy Lib. 11. De Gen. ad Lit. society, and wrappeth him in misery, now longing to be satisfied with iniquity: The contrary to it is Charity, which seeketh not her own: that is, rejoiceth not in her private excellency, and therefore worthily is not puffed up. And the same. Two loves made two Cities: Lib. 14 de Civit. to wit, the love of ourselves, the earthly City, to the contempt of God: The love of God, the heavenly City, to the contempt of ourselves. The carnal love therefore of ourselves, Why to be mortified. is to be mortified, because it doth not only defile the action, but also perverteth it, and bendeth it to thyself: so that it causeth, that although thou seem to thyself, to do that thou dost for God's cause, yet indeed not respecting God, but thyself, thou seekest nothing in thy purpose, but only thyself. Convert therefore thy whole study and care, to an earnest denial of thine own carnal love: for no small heat How to mortify it will serve, to dry up so great a fountain of evils. Oppose against the head of all wickedness, the mother of all virtues, Charity, that thou, who didst perish by loving thyself, mayst revive by denying thyself. For man, saith Augustine, who perisheth by loving himself, recovereth by denying himself. The force of this abnegation, or renouncing Five heads of ourselves, is by Saint Basill reduced to five heads: First, to renounce our riches, possessions, and all our worldly goods. Secondly, our parents, kindred, and worldly friends. Thirdly, all our carnal and earthly affections. Fourthly, our own honour and glory. Fifthly, even the love of our life, and that for the love of God and jesus Christ. This do therefore: Be thou upright: What is to be done He is upright saith Gregory, who is not cast down in adversity, who is not inclined to carnality, who is wholly lifted up to heavenly things, who is wholly subjecteth to Gods will: Direct all thy doings to God, and by love to enjoy God, who is always present: As much as thou mayest, endeavour to be united, and likened to God, that thou seek only and affect his honour, his will, and his good liking, both in prosperity and adversity. So shalt thou be happy. 2. Concerning carnal lusts and appetities. The inclinations to evil, to wit, carnal lusts and appetites must be tamed. For we are by nature more prone to evil than to good: The thoughts of man's heart are prone to evil from his youth: yea General inclination to evil Gen. 6. & 7. Rom. 7. all the cogitations of his heart are inclined to evil at all times. In our flesh dwelleth no good, but sin, which maketh that we understand not what we do, and that we do not the good that we would, but the evil, that we hate: For the law of our members in us, resisteth the law of our mind, and captiveth us to the law of sin. There are also certain inclinations, which follow the nature of particular Spciall inclinations persons, and the constitution of certain bodies. And there are which by custom are engendered, by some habit gotten. O how unhappy doth a man that is going forward, feel himself, by being hindered by these inclinations and lusts? and how great a labour is it to subdue them? 1. But thou O man, take a good courage, and strive by God's help to go forward, Means to tame them. as thou hast begun, in the way of godliness: The continual exercise of godliness availeth much in this case: Concupiscence saith S. Augustine, is daily diminished in those that profit, and are continent. That therefore thou mayst restrain evil inclinations, either common, or proper: exercise thyself in those virtues, which are most contrary to them. And to repress lust, contain. 2. With great vehemency resist the inclinations of lust, and the first motions Withstand beginnings. Rom. 6. thereof: strive, repunge, consent not: go not after thy lusts: Let not sin reign in thy mortal body, to obey the lusts thereof. Let thy humble and fervent prayer to God, break the force thereof when it ariseth. 3. When the motions of those appetites arise, let not thy heart be moved, but continue immovable in thine advised purpose to please God, as if those perturbations were altogether without thee: neither didst thou work any thing in them, but rather didst suffer. According to Bernard. Now peradventure I do not these things, but suffer of them: they are done in me, but they are not done by me, if I do not consent. I may call them mine, not because I do them, but because I suffer them. 4. Search diligently to what evil thou How to discern inclinations. art inclined: that thou mayest meet with them, and strangle them as enemies. Mark the constitution of thy body, whereof followeth the inclination. Wilt thou know, saith Fulgentius, Fulgentius what thou lovest, mark what thou thinkest: for the frequent and often recourse of any thought uncalled, is a sign of a liking or desire of that thing. Rip the inclination of thy childhood, and youth: It is a rule that things that are very pliable may suffer of a weak agent: To be eastly moved therefore either in mind or sense, at the sight, voice, or fame of any light matter, is a token of an inclination to that thing. Examine thine own experience, what things they are, which have hitherto either furthered thee to virtue, for thy good, or drawing thee back to vice, for thy hurt: and hereby apply thyself to pursue the one, and to avoid the other. 3. Concerning affections and perturbations. Evil inclinations and carnal lusts, engender vicious perturbations and affections of the mind, which are called passions: Those if they be immoderate, must be weeded out with the hook of mortification. 1. Watch carefully in the very rising Rules how to mortify them. of the affection, that thou check the violence of it even in the beginning, before it come to a perfect habit: Blessed is he that taketh the little ones and dasheth them against the stones: As S. Augustine interpreteth the Verse of the Psalm. 2. After this thou shalt not be idle, Cutting off. but shall continually cut off the branches of untamed perturbations, which by hereditary corruption spring up in the mind, with the are of abnegation. It is not enough, saith Bernard, once to have cut them off, we must ever be pruning, yea if it be possible ever, because if thou wilt not dissemble, thou dost ever find some thing, that aught to be cut off: How much soever thou hast profited, while thou abidest in this body, thou art deceived, if thou think that sin is dead, and not rather suppressed in thee. The jebusite will dwell within thy borders, will thou, nill thou, he may be subdued, he cannot be utterly driven out. 3. Thou shalt not only labour to lop Planting in. the branches of evil affections: but also shalt endeavour contrariwise to plant or griffe in, the graffs of good affections: For the mind is never free from motions, either stormy and evil, or calm and good, let it therefore be occupied with good, that it be not overwhelmed with ill: to wit, Let thy mind be occupied in divine and spiritual things. The inward man's labour, is the outward man's rest: And the server of the spirit, is the chillness of the flesh. 4. Moreover, if thou wilt cure thy passions, thou shalt toil much, to turn away thy mind and will from the love of earthly things, that thou mayst wholly apply thy mind to heavenly things, cleaving fast to God. That thy life may be hid with Christ in God. 4. Concerning wicked Wicked habits. habits. As evil inclinatious bring forth evil affections, so evil affections engender wicked habits, the rooting out whereof, require a greater force of the spirit. Now the faculties of the mind, are some Faculties of the Mind. Superior. superior, and some inferior. The superior faculties, are the understanding, and will. In the understanding, these vices following are to be mortified. 1. The vice of Curiosity: whereby the In the understanding. What is to be mortified. Curiosity understanding doth search those things which either exceed our sapacitie, or which appertain nothing to us to know. Hear the wise man: Seek not out things too high for thee: And be not curious to search out superfluous things. 2. The vice of Temperitie or rachnes. temerity. When by doubtful conjectures and uncertain signs, we presume to judge of the life & manners of an other man, against charity: & not only to judge, but to condemn our neighbours. Where that of the Apostle may be justly returned many times upon us. Thou art inexcusable O Rom. 2. man, whosoever thou be that condemnest an other: for in the same thing, wherein thou judgest an other, thou condemnest thyself. 3. The vice of pertinacy or stubbornness, Pertinacy when we cleave so stiffly to our own opinion, that we admit no man's counsel or persuasion in deliberating. Against which Solomon saith: Lean not to thine own wit, and be not wise Prou. 3. in thine own conceit. Distrust therefore. O man thine own judgement: and apply thy judgement Dagerous to trust our own judgement. to the rule of God's word, and of wise men. Saint Basil saith: As it is far from right reason, wholly to rely upon our own will and judgement: So not to stand to the judgement of the greater part, is to incur the danger of contumacy, and wilfulness, (at the least other circumstances being equal). And Cassian. It is unpossible for any man, trusting in his own opinion, not to be deluded by the devil. And Bernard. How long will ye be wise in your own eyes? God committeth, and submitteth himself unto mortal men: and will ye walk yet in your own ways? And elsewhere. What greater pride can there be, than that one man should prefer his own judgement before the whole congregation, as if he only had the spirit of God? It is like the sin of Idolatry not to assent: to wit, to sound judgement. And like the sin of soothsaying, to repunge. And again: If the love of thy friend, do diminish & cover his fault, in thy judgement: how much more shall the love of thyself deceive thee, when thou shouldest judge against thyself. 4. The understanding, is the perpetual fountain of infinite Cogitations, Thoughts to be mortified. which being laid up in the memory, are there preserved and kept: These if they be faulty must be mortified. Whereof some are idle: some are earthly: some are filthy: some are curious. 1. Those that be idls must be reform: Idle thoughts. For if we shall give an account of every idle word: why not as well of every idle thought? Call to mind, that thou standest always in the presence of the Lord of heaven and earth, who seeing the heart, doth secretly reprove the idleness and vanity thereof. 2. Those that be earthly and worldly, Earthly. are more violent, and cleave faster unto us, which if they settle awhile, cannot be removed without great difficulty. Put the axe therefore to the root of that delight, which beginneth to affect thy will, by such cogitations. This carnal appetite, springing up in the beginning of our life, we must repress or keep under in us, though we cannot extinguish or quench it. 3. Those that be filthy or unclean, are suggested by the wicked spirit: Whereof Bernard saith: We ought, if we will preserve our souls pure, whiley et the unclean thoughts are a far off, to prevent Unclean them, and to drive them from us, that they may have no access unto us. The same Bernard saith, We must set so fierce a keeper at Reason's Chamber door, as will spare none, but whatsoever enemy shall presume to enter, whether privily, or openly, he will drive them away. And let that be, The remembrance of Hell fire. 4 Those that be curious (as before) Curious. in seeking the hidden things of God, and man, are to be avoided: For as thou must not be careless in searching thyself: so thou must shun curiosity. The soul saith Bernard, while it is drowsy, through carelessness in viewing itself, becomes In searching other. In the will what is to be mortified. curious in examining others. 2. In the will, all that is to be mortified, that is proper to ourselves, and not common with God, and his Saints. For as in the will, the principle of good, is to submit ourselves to God, and to commit ourselves to be ruled by him: so the mischief riseth thereof, that the will is guided, by her own beck and counsel. Our own will therefore is to be denied: which seeketh itself, delighteth in it, and neglecting all other by self-love, wherewith it is wholly snared, is bend to her own commodity. Our own will saith Bernard, Our own will dangerous. doth impunge the Lord of Majesty, with her own fury: for it withdraweth and conveyeth itself from his government, whom it should serve as her Author, while it will be in her own power. And again, What doth GOD hate or punish, but our own will? Let our own will cease, and there shall be no Hell: Against whom doth that fire rage, but against our own will? marvelous things fall out in the abnegation marvelous effects. of our own will: whiles by the spirit of God, the will riseth against itself, and is turned against itself, by envy itself. 1. The will is carnal, and blind by nature, How to be mortified. therefore it needeth a guide, that it err not. If the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the pit. 2. The will is licentious by nature, therefore it hath need of a bit or bridle, that it pass not the bounds of reason in her affections: Restrain their jaws Psal. 32. with a bit and bridle. 3. The will by nature, is like a shameless strumpet in her appetites: who prostituteth herself under every shadowy jerem. 2. tree: therefore it must be restrained and kept, that it become not a pray to her lusts: Go not after thine own concupiscences, Sirach. 18 saith the son of Syrach, and turn away from thine own will, for if thou give thy soul her lusts, she will make thee a scorn to thine enemies. Whatsoever, saith Seneca, thou withdrawest from thine own will, that only A double leprosy. thou addest to virtue. And Bernard; There is a double Leprosy in the heart: our own will, and our own counsel, surely an evil leprosy, and so much the more dangerous, as it is more inward. And Basil, whatsoever any man doth by the arbitrement of his own will, that, as it is the doers own, so is it far from the rule of godliness. Ephrem. Nothing is more grievous, than to be overcome of our own will. 2. Inferior faculties of the soul, are the Inferior faculties. Sense and Appetites in the Concupiscible and Irasible parts. Here are also evil Habits to be mortified. 1. First, we must labour to avoid gluttony; Gluttony to be mortified. For it is impossibl● saith Cassian, that a full belly should withstand the temptations of the inner man: for he that could not stay his superfluous appetites; how shall he be able to quench the heats of his carnal concupiscence. And Gregory. We cannot prevail in the conflict of the spiritual combat, except we first tame the enemy that is within ourselves: to wit, the appetites of gluttony. And Basil. The moderation of the belly, is the repressing of the perturbations of the mind, the repressing of the perturbation of the mind, is the peace and tranquillity of the soul, the tranquillity of the soul, is the plentiful fountain of virtues. 1. Apply as a remedy to this disease, Abstinence, Remedies. Abstinence. for contraries, are cured by contraries: by usual temperance, not only the mouth, but much more the desire or appetite is restrained and is made obedient to reason, and to God. 2. Thou must no less abstain from other vices, Neighbour vices. then from noisome meats, if thou desire to suppress the appetites of gluttony. For as the immoderate lust and use of one vice is the breeder of many others: so by pampering thy belly, many vices are ready as it were to render mutual thanks. Again: They, whose belly is their God, savour of earthly things. Phil. 3. 3. That thou yield not to gluttony, Labour, and spare not to take pains, do that Labour. thou dost earnestly, for to escape the snares, and to prevent the traps of the Devil, be always doing some good thing, and even to day. 4. Be thou occupied seriously, in meditation Meditations. of divine matters: It is true saith Greg. That Gluttony is weakened by abstinence, but no man can have the virtue of Abstinence, that doth not fill his mind with spiritual food. 5 Look on the example of our saviour Christ's example. Christ, whom thou oughtest to imitate: He endured hunger and thirst with wonderful patience: And when meat was brought him, though he were hungry, joh. 4. yet would he not eat, to put away hunger, taking his opportunity to win souls: yea, in the midst of his torments they gave him Wine mingled with Gall to drink. 6 Finally, thou shalt profit in mortifying Rules of moderation. Gluttony: if thou take heed least under a pretence of natural necessity, thou pass the bounds of reasonable moderation: If thou encounter the very delight of gluttony: If thou prepare thyself to eat, as if thou shouldest take a medicine: If while thou eatest, when variety of dishes doth whet the appetite afresh, thou check the appetite, and repress thy greediness. 1 From hence proceed to mortify Luxury to be mortified Luxury, or Riotousness, with a serious care. The chariot of Luxury, is rolled Bernh. in Cant. upon four vices, as upon four wheels: the cramming of the gorge: the lust of the flesh: delicacy in apparel, excessive idleness or sleep: It is drawn even with two horses, Prosperity of life, and Abundance of wealth. And these have two riders; sluggish Drowsiness, & envious Security. Luxury must be abandoned by him Greg. in moral. that will go forward: for after this vice hath once possessed any man's mind, it will scarce suffer him to think any good: for our lusts are like bird-lime. Of suggestion, riseth cogitation: of cogitation, A gradation. affection: of affection, delectation: of delectation, consent: of consent, operation: of operation, custom: of custom, desperation: of desperation, defence of sin: of defence, gloriation: of gloriation, damnation. Pleasures, as saith Chrysostom, are like A description of pleasures. the sirens, which outwardly appear very beautiful, with long yellow locks, grey glancing eyes: round full paps: a pretty small mouth: rosy cheeks: the neck, breast, hands, and other parts, as white as Alabaster: but with an horrible tail, like a Serpent, sharp pointed, full of teeth, and venomous. Therefore Aristotle persuadeth him that will escape the snares of pleasures, to view them on the back part, and not in the face: when they go from us ward, and not when they come toward us. But look thou on the judgements of God's judgements, against Luxury. God, against luxurious persons: consider the universal flood: the destruction of Sodom, the slaughter of the Isralites and Beniamites, the confusion of David's house. Read the Histories of all ages, reporting the miseries which came by Luxury: and mark what destruction Luxury and Lechery have brought, not only upon particular persons, but also upon whole nations. As Troy, Sodom, etc. When this vice assaulteth thee, the first and chief remedy is prayer. Without humility, saith Gregory, no triumph is gotten against any vice. The Remedies Humble pra●er. mind that cannot submit itself humbly to God: cannot prevail against the lusts of the flesh, but striveth in vain to overmaster them, and pressing them, cannot oppress them. Ask of God with Solamon, continence or chastity: For I knew saith he, that otherwise I could not be chaste, except God gave it: And even this was a point of wisdom, to know whose gift it was: therefore I went unto the Lord, and made my prayer to him. He loves thee not at all o God, saith S. Augustine, who loveth any thing with thee, which he loveth not for thee. 2. Abstinence from stirring meats, Abstinence. is an effectual remedy against this vice, for if lust be a fire, thou takest matter from that fire, when thou withdrawest wine and delicates. For in wine, saith the Apostle, is Luxury, if it be in excess. Wine and youth saith Herod, are two Rivers of voluptuousness. 3. Keep thy heart carefully: for The custody of the heart. out of the heart proceed evil thoughts. The heart therefore, saith Cassian, is first to be cleansed, from whence springeth life and death. And Solomon saith: With all diligence keep thy heart, for out of it proceedeth life. But that thou mayest cleanse and keep thy heart: expel evil cogitations forthwith assoon as they rise: And in the stead of wicked cogitations, occupy thy mind about honest and chaste things. 4. After the custody of the heart, The custody of the senses. keep thy senses: Hear Saint Augustine. Whatsoever appears beautiful to thy sight: whatsoever sweet to thy taste: whatsoever flattereth thy hearing: whatsoever enticeth thy smelling: whatsoever is soft in touching, in all these if we be unwary, evil concupiscences creeping in, we suffer the virginity of the soul to be corrupted, and that is fulfilled which is spoken by the Prophet: Death entered in by our windows: to wit, our senses. Here thou shalt have profited O man: Notes of profiting. If by God's grace thou have attained so far, as that if thou feel the pricks of the flesh, thou suffer them without thy fault. If thou prevent every evil thought, or if they offer themselves to thy mind, thou suddenly strangle them: If thou perceive that lust is abated: & though it cannot here be utterly taken away, yet it may be subdued. 3. Study then to mortify covetousness: For it is an outrageous mischief: whose Covetousness to be mortified. greediness to possess always more and more, cannot be satisfied with any plenty or store of riches, which is wont to be accompanied with savage cruelty, which they exercise towards other, that they may fulfil their unlawful greediness, with other men's goods, Flee therefore covetousness, worse than a dog, or a snake, which taketh away the use of things, envying them, to themselves, and other. Mark, I pray you, if a covetous man be not more vile than any slave: for he is The miserable state of a covetous man. an Idolater, a thief, a murderer, an infidel, a profane person, an Atheist, inhuman, execrable, the cause of all mischief, a fool, miserable, sordid, insatiable, poor, pensive, a band, an Adulterer, blind, and altogether unhappy. Expel, and explode with clapping out this vice from thee. First, by true knowledge and holy reverence Remedy & means. of God. Secondly, by greater gain, I mean godliness, with a mind content with her lot. For nature is content with few things, live not by opinion, but according to nature. Thirdly, know thou that unsastable Incommodities of riches. covetousness cannot defend hers in time of adversity. Fourthly, remember that the love of riches doth bring men into many dangers. And that only, the enemies of learning and virtue, do greatly esteem them: and that they are the cause of all confusion. Fiftly, view rather the worthy examples of such as have used their riches well and conveniently. Sixtly, thou knowest that thou shouldest first seek the kingdom of God, to whose providence thou oughtest to commit all thy business and affairs. Seventhly, mark me the riches of this world, which are such as can make no satisfaction, nor bring any peace or tranquillity to the soul. Finally, look on the pattern of perfection, Christ's example. even our Lord jesus, who being poor in this world, was an utter enemy, both in word and deed to covetousness. 4. Moreover, we must endeavour to Anger to be mortified. How great a mischief. mortify Anger, and to restrain wrath: for wrath is an horrible monster: it doth extinguish the light of reason, it burieth outward fury, though thou cannot so easily, nor so soon bridle the inward motions: If thou be ashamed so to be moved, or to be seen angry before wise men: If thou canst recompense other men's evil sayings and deeds, towards thyself, with good deeds and words: If when wrath ariseth, it do not prevent reason, but follow it. 5. The poison of envy must be purged Envy to be mortified. out of thy soul: for this is a pestilent wickedness, which changeth a man into the state of the devil, and an unmerciful fiend: For it is sorrow of the prosperity, What Envy is. and good success of our neighbour's affairs. So that as chrysostom saith; An envious mind is ever sad. And Basil. All the blessings of his neighbour, both inner and outer, both of body and mind, do grieve an envious man, and his good success, he counteth his own calamity: Envy is so foul an evil, that the envious man dares not bewray himself: therefore he counterfeits gladness, but he bursts inwardly. Flee therefore envy O man: horrible is the nature and disposition of envy: for it is stricken with sorrow: and in stead of praising the bounty, mercy, and goodness of God, it becometh an enemy to God and man, to whom nothing is so heavy and troublesome, as to enjoy the blessings of God. View the picture of an envious man, described by Gregory: The rancour of A picture of Envy. envy, saith he, when it hath corrupted the heart, the outward parts bewray the madness of the mind: the colour becomes pale, the eyes cast down, the mind inflamed, the members wax cold: the cogitation is enraged, the teeth gnash, and when the hidden hatred groweth in the hidden corners of the heart, the enclosed wound festereth the conscience. To mortify envy, 1. Be thou so minded, that thou admire no human thing at all, as being called Remedies to the participation of true and eternal blessings, not to vain and transitory things: set thy desires and affections on the actions of virtue, and Envy shall not surprise thee. 2. He that desireth to be free from Lib. 5. Moral. the plague of Envy, saith Gregory, let him love that heritage, which the number of heirs doth not straighten, which to all is one, and to every one is whole, which appeareth to be so much the larger, by how much the more the multitude of them that enjoy it, is enlarged. 3. Consider that the gifts and graces of our neighbours are so proper to themselves, as that God many ways doth communicate the use of them to others. 4. Call to mind often the mischiefs which flow from the fountain of Envy, the grievousness of the sin, & how hardly it is cured. Take thou away envy, saith S. Augustin, and then that which I have is thine: I will take away envy, and then, that which thou hast is mine. And Ambros: Flee envy which is wont to rend, not so much other, as him that doth possess it. 6. Pride, which is detestable in a Christian Pride to be mortified. man, is to be mortified: The beginning of all sin, saith the son of Syrach, is pride: which being the root of all vice saith Gregory, is not content with the overthrow of one virtue, but raiseth itself against all the faculties of the mind, & is as it were a general infection, corrupting the whole body. See it, and shun it: for a proud and ambitious man, can neither endure a superior, A proud man. nor an equal: He hunteth after false honour, and neglecteth true honour: he setteth himself against God, whom he robbeth of his honour, that he may convey it to himself, against all right and duty: he never weigheth the miseries of such as are like himself: he never considereth his own weakness, nor God's power: he never observeth nor feareth the sharp threats of God against proud men: to conclude, he hath lost all knowledge of himself. Now to the end thou mayst deny and Remedies against pride. overcome this vice of Pride: 1. Dwell with thyself, and know thine own wants: Know thyself, O how many things shalt thou find, that shall offend thee! 2. Set before thine eyes the example of the Son of God himself, who being declared to be Lord of men & Angles, yet whiles he was conversant in this world, he was a perfect pattern of humility, & contempt of worldly glory, and consider the dangers that are wont to accompany great prosperity. And wilt thou get a perfect knowledge How to come by the knowledge of thyself. of thyself, and a true humility, which are the deadly enemies of pride? Read and meditate diligently the sacred holy truth: Confer the state of us, who are men, with the condition of other creatures: Examine and inquire rigorously into thine own life: Consider how many things thou lackest, which are infinite in number, above those thou hast: Compare this state of ours, with the state of our first parents before they sinned: Mark who they be that praise thee, and who they be that dispraise thee: Take a lively view of the tribunal, of the most wise, just, and omnipotent God. So shalt thou abate thy pride, and be humbled. 7. Sloth is to be mortified, and the drowsy weariness of the mind, dullness Dullness in spiritual exercises to be mortified. What it is and coldness is to be shaken off: I mean The drowsy weariness wherewith the heart is burdened and depressed, so that it can do nothing willingly: whereby the whole man is cast down with a sluggish laziness, & a continual tediousness occopieth the mind, whereby the mind is swallowed up and possessed with a faint languishing, so that it is hindered by a cloudy darkness and confusion of itself, that it is no: able to frame a speech. Whereof riseth a lukewarmness, or frozen coldness. Luke warmness in this place, is a certaine dullness in him that is going on Lukewarmness what it is. in the way of life begun, now being already, either weary, or else discouraged with the load of the burden, or difficulty of the journey, & as it were, fainting in the way, he sitteth him down, and goeth no more forward. This lukewarmness, maketh a man to pray, without attention, & fervency of Effects. the spirit: To meditate heavenly things, without due sense, affection or fruit of his understanding: Hardly doth he rid himself from frequent conncourse of men: Seldom doth he gather his wandering mind home to his own heart: He vieweth himself, as it were, through a lattice, without repentance, or purpose of amendment: willingly doth he range abroad, to relieve his tediousness: He solaceth himself, with vain delights, and cogitations, here and there, sought for: He talketh freely of other men, and observeth and reproveth other men's words and deeds: But himself grievously taketh discipline, admonition, and correction: He avoideth all labour, necessary and fruitful to his salvation: He obeyeth laws, but slowly, coldly, and with loathsomeness: He seeketh honour and estimation of men, and desireth to please them: He neglecteth the wholesome use of the Sacraments: He seldom & lightly heareth godly Sermons: He shuneth not the occasions of sin, but presumeth of his own strength: He pampers himself, and liberally bestoweth on his own carcase: He calls to mind his old manners, and the pleasant life of worldlings, so that he is not displeased with worldly pleasures, but rather approveth them. Therefore to take away this tediousness, heaviness, and dullness. Pray to God to deliver thee out of these necessities. Say unto thy spouse: Draw Remedies me after thee, and we will run after the odor of thy ointments or perfumes. 2. When thou feelest, saith Bernard, an heaviness or dullness upon thee, do not yield unto it, or cease from a study of Godliness: By resisting, thou shalt overcome: thou shalt resist, by returning to thy labour again. 3. Consider the dangers in the which Dangers of lukewarmness. a lukewarm man doth stand: There is danger, to fall back unto his old sins: There is danger, to lose the fruit of the labour bestowed, in the life well begun: There is danger of a greater fall, if that dullness be not shaken off: There is danger never to recover out of the gulf of that languishing and fainting. 4. Remember the unhappy state of the lukewarm man: wherein he can no long while be quiet, but he shall be vexed with the cogitations and scruples of his own conscience: yea the very loathsomeness itself, (if there were no other thing) wherewith he is holden, cannot but grieve him and wound him. 2. Coldness is an affection, whereby a man loveth indeed, and chooseth a better trade of life, but he hath no power to dispatch Coldness, what it is. himself from those businesses and occasions, which either hold him in sin, or stay him from the race, & rule of virtue: or casteth him into such sins, as can be by no means excused. And so much the grievouser is the fall, as the degree of holiness, from whence we fall, is higher. 1. First therefore thou must deliberate Remedies of a new kind of life, more earnestly to be pursued, by a renovation of serious repentance and faith. 2. Meditate with thyself on thy end, which may be sudden, and cannot be avoided, and other the last things which follow death. 3. Consider, that Hypocrisy and dissembling, is most odious to God. A simple nature saith Bernard, such as God is, requireth simplicity of heart: woe be to the sinner, that entereth the land two ways, for no man can serve two masters. 4. View and weigh the life of lukewarm, & frozen cold men, that knowing it, thou mayest dislike it, & disliking it in others, thou mayest amend it in thyself. 5. Cowardness and fear must be Pusillanimity to be mortified. mortified: for when a man is entered the way of Christ: the mind, many times, is assailed with grief, either by expectation of some evil, or danger approaching: or by desperation of safety or deliverance from some evil, or danger present. But be not dismayed in thy mind: Hear and pray to him, who saith: Say to the faint hearted, be of good courage, and faint not. And say with David, I Esay. 35. Psal. 54. did weight for him, who saved me from my pusillanimity of spirit, and from the tempest. Why fearest thou O thou coward? Fear argueth a base mind: conceive a firm hope of the providence of God: when Exhortation. thou strivest with the anguishs of Pusillanimity, thou must lift up thy mind to God's providence. Resist with a good courage, and set thyself, by the help of God's spirit, against the whole rout of fantasies. Discuss, saith Gregory, the mists of mourning, lest thou, who in the time of tranquillity, didst think greatly of thy sefe, in the time of perturbation, do confound thyself, with the terrors of thy base thoughts. Peradventure God will bring thee, by this Good effects. Pusillanimity, to a study of humility, that by it, that lofty pride (which even in good actions, lieth in weight, even for holy men) may be laid flat, or he hath a purpose, to purge thy soul, of that affection of self-love, whereby oftentimes thou art wont to please thyself, more than is meet. How be it; what is it, that thou needest Comforts against sundry sorts of fear. The cross greatly to fear, or be amazed at? 1. Is it the Cross or Affliction? If thou be godly, the cross and affliction is to thee inevitable, or not to be shunned: it is profitable, honourable and glorious: it confirmeth thine adoption, it renowneth thy virtues: it banisheth vices. Bear therefore the cross with a good courage. 2. Dost thou fear the anguish of Sickness sickness? Thy body is mortal, there is no cause then that thou shouldest fear sickness, which leadeth to death: Sickness breedeth hollome Philosophy: to wit, A meditation of death: the vices of the mind are cured by the diseases of the body: thou learnest to abandon self-love, and the love of the world, and to hope for a better life: Faith, Hope, and Invocation of God, becomes more ardent. 3. Art thou afraid of the loss of worldly things? Loss of earthly things. Trust in God, lean on his most holy promises, surely Gods truth is immovable, his power impregnable, his bounty immeasurable, he will not leave thee, nor forsake thee. 4. Doth the terror of death trouble Death. thy mind? Cast off the fear, which incredulity that is to be banished, doth strike into thee: compare the course of this life, with the last period or end thereof. Art thou not tossed with perpetual misery? If thou be wise, with the wise man, thou Eccles. 1. Commodities of death. wilt say, Vanity of vanities, all is vanity. Be not afraid of death, whereby thou shalt be delivered from the tyranny of sin; from the snares of the world; from the temptations of Satan; from the rage of false brethren; and shalt come to the port of felicity, out of the sink of evils, eternal: death shall not touch thee, because eternal life is prepared, promised, sealed and confirmed to thee in Christ: Believe and thou shalt have eternal life. 5. Dost thou tremble at the assaults of Satan? God doth furnish his with strength, to resist Satan: Being upholden by the wisdom, vigilancy, and invincible power of Christ thy head, call upon God, take unto thee christian patience & constancy, with the shield of faith, and the sword of the spirit, and by God's grace and perseverance thou shalt be safe. 6. Art thou astonished with thy many, and great sins; sin.. Behold the remission of all thy sins purchased by Christ, promised, given, and sealed unto thee: why tremblest thou? Behold the love and mercy of God the father, the satisfaction and intercession of jesus Christ, and admit the comfort, and assistance of the holy Ghost. 7. Thou quakest for fear of the last The last judgement judgement and Tribunal. Be of good comfort, and settle thyself thoroughly on the promises of salvation, so often repeated in holy Scriptures: The love of God the father, and the covenant of his grace, through the satisfaction of his son jesus Christ, is immutable, and he shall be our Patron, and Advocate in that judgement. Thou for thy part as often as thou sinnest, so often return to Daily repentance. God, by a renewed repentance and faith: apprehend the grace of God the father: the merits of jesus Christ: the consolation of the holy spirit, who is the earnest of our inheritance: hear the manifold afflictions of this world, with a patiented mind: & seeing thou hast access unto the Throne of grace, power out thy prayers to thy God: sigh and send up thy affections, and thy hope shall not be confounded, but thou shalt enjoy unspeakable felicity in heaven. Amen. The fourth member. Profice ulterius. Go yet further forward in attaining righteousness. WHen we have denied unrighteousness, we must proceed to A transition. attain righteousness: According to that, Cease from evil, & do good: virtue must succeed in the place of vice. Now in seeking after the way of righteousness and life, beware thou decline not, either to the right hand, or to the left. Let us then go forward In virtues, and with a good courage. In virtutibus & In virtute. Concerning virtues, know that they are virtues Gods gifts great goods, to be desired for themselves: that they are the gifts of God most precious, and with most earnest prayer and desire to be begged of him: And if thou obtain them, God is to be thanked, who hath endowed thee with so great graces. The first care must be, to attain them. The next is, to keep them when they are gotten. Thou shalt both get them and keep them. How virtue is gotten and kept. First, by the frequent use of godly prayer: for God doth both give, and increase his gifts to those that ask of him. Secondly, by a good courage, which we must bring to the attaining of justice, for virtue of itself is laboursome, and the nature of man if it be not upheld, is very prone to evil. Thirdly, by an ardent love of virtue: for Love overcomes all difficulties, and is strong as death, as Saloman saith. 4 By perpetual use and exercise: for they are as the talents, which God by no means will not have to lie idle: he that doth not go forward, in the race of virtue, doth go backward. But in this practice look one thy Master Christ jesus, who is the perfect pattern of life and death. Now by god's grace working with thee, thou shalt walk from virtue, to virtue: thou shalt exercise virtue, for virtues sake: thou shalt practise virtue, for the love of God, and to his glory. 2. Thou shalt go forward in virtue, with a good courage and willingly. First, if when thou settest thy first step How to go forward. on the threshold of any virtue, if thou have a resolute purpose, in thine own will, to follow that virtue, & upon every occasion to put it in practice. Secondly, if thou so firmly persevere in the purpose, & practise of that virtue, that thou suffer not thyself to be drawn from it, by any temptations. Thirdly, if where as our corrupt nature esteemeth the countenance of virtue to be sour, and her service bitter, thou on the contrary, do esteem her so beautiful, & her service so sweet, that not only any thing cannot pluck thee from her: but also thou Virtue, beautiful & sweet. dost fulfil all her duties, with great cheerfulness and alacrity. Thou shalt proceed therefore: First from a firm purpose to practise, from practice to a perfect habit, being able to resist impediments: from thence thou shalt ascend to an alacrity, & cheerful delight to be ever Degrees or steps. Satan. doing some good. justice or righteousness. justice or righteousness doth comprehend in itself, all virtues: So that this is the very head of all christian virtue, of religion, charity, holiness: which discerneth exactly, & practiseth cheerfully all holy & honest actions: This giveth to every one that is his The property of justice. To God glory. Why. own: To God, that which is his own. To Man, that which is his own. 1. Concerning Gods due. justice giveth to God Glory, especially, by study of holiness, and Religious piety: therefore glorify God, for thou owest unto thy God, glory. In respect of God himself. In respect of ourselves. God's nature. Tim. 1 Psal. 113. His commandments. Promises there as His benefits. Consider God himself: The nature of GOD is most glorious, the best, the greatest, the fairest: Thou art bound by his commandments, to glorify him: Embrace his sweet promises, tremble at his horrible threats; contemplate his actions and works, wherein his virtues, promises and threatenings, do notably shine, to wit: The benefits of our creation, Conservation, Redemption, Intercession, Sanctification, & Glorification: His wonderful judgements, rather to be reverenced then searched, yet always right & just. judgements Rom. 11. Miracles, His miracles, may be added: Is not the end of all his divine virtues, commandments, promises, judgements, that he should be glorified. Let us consider ourselves? behold the Image of God, to the which we were created, and are regenerate, and The image of God. whereby we have a fellowship with God and a partaking of his virtues, doth allure us to glorify him: The vow which Vow in Baptism. The Sacraments. we made in our Baptism once, and in receiving the Sacrament of the Supper, we often renew, doth bind us to glorify God, many excellent commodities which we enjoy do force us. Give therefore glory to God, and thou shalt have peace of conscience, which passeth all man's understanding. His blessings Effects. shall cheer thy heart in all things: thou shalt receive the testimony of a true faith, thy death shall be precious: thou shalt carry with the a pledge of thy resurrection and glory, which is to come. Assure thyself, there is nothing that can return from us to God, for all the graces which we receive from him, but only this homage, to glorify him: Which while we do, we declare our love to our neighbour, whom by thy example, thou dost win, by stirring him up to glorify God. Now we give glory to God, especially as I have said, by the study & practise of religious piety, whereby, in believing Religious Piety. rightly of God, thou dost also worship him rightly. Minister, saith the Apostle, in thy 1. Tim. 6. faith, piety, and follow O man God's righteousness, faith, piety, charity, patience, modesty. For godliness or piety, is great gain, with a mind content with his estate or lot. And Seneca saith: A good man must be very religious towards God. Now Religion standetb in two points: In the true knowledge of God. In the true worship of God so known First therefore thou must learn to know Trust the true knowledge of God. God aright, as he is revealed in the book of nature, which is the frame of the world, & in his word, which is the holy scripture: and herein consisteth christian wisdom. Let not the wise man, saith jeremy, glory in his wisdom, nor the strong man in jerem. 9 his strength, neither the rich man in his riches: but let him the glorieth, glory herein, that he understandeth and knoweth even me, who am jehovah, who exercise mercy and justice in the earth, wherein also I delight. In the visible creatures saith Paul, the eternal power and divinity of God is seen. And the Prophet Esay sends us to the Law and Esay. 8. the Testimony: And Christ our Saviour to the holy scriptures, saying: Search joh. 5. the Scriptures. This wisdom must chiefly be learned out of the holy Scripture; which instructeth Holy Scripture the rude or unlearned, counseleth the ignorant or doubtful, correcteth the sinners or offenders, comforteth the heavy or sorrowful, bringeth back such as err or wander, into the way of truth: briefly, it frameth aright the whole life of a Christian man. All Scripture, 2. Tim. 3. and every part thereof, saith Saint Paul, is inspired of God, and is profitable to Teach, to Reprove, to Correct, and to Instruct in righteousness, that the man of God may be entire, prepared to every good work. It is a sure word of prophesy, saith Saint Peter. Secondly, God being rightly known, 2. True worship of God. must also be religiously worshipped of thee. Religious worship yieldeth unto God. First endue humility, fear, love, hope, confidence. Secondly, Invocation by prayer, attention by hearing his word, and service in the public exercises of religion. Thirdly, patience under the Cross, and constancy in the profession of Christian truth. 1. Be thou therefore religious towards Humility towards God. God, giving him such humility, as is due to him. Submit and subject thyself reverently to the Majesty of God, both in mind and body, and confess thyself unworthy of his benefits. Thou shalt be humbled to God ward, if thou consider him, to be thy Creator, & thou his creature. Him to be immortal, and thyself mortal. Him to be the Lord, and thou his servant. Him to be the best, and thyself the worst. Humble yourselves, saith S. Peter, under the mighty 1. Pet. 5. hand of God, and he will exalt you in due season. Say with jacob the Patriarch: Lord I am less or unworthy of all the benefits and truth, which thou hast showed unto thy servants. Gen. 32. This humility will breed in thee an obedience towards God: for it is not enough Obedience to know the will of God, except thou do obey him, and endeavour to put in practise the commandments of God, which thou hast learned: He that doth the will of God endureth for ever. And 1 joh. 2. if ye know these things, saith our Saviour, happy are ye, if ye do them. Not joh. 13. every one that saith unto me, Lord Lord, shall enter into the Kingdom Mat. 7. of heaven, but he that doth the will of my father, who is in heaven, even he shall enter into the Kingdom of heaven. Yield unto God a due fear: acknowledging Fear. the mercy, and justice of God; Fear to offend God, whom to offend is the chief evil. Conceive a terror of sin, and the punisher thereof, and yet so fear God, as that thou love him, as a child doth his father: for we must both fear God as our Lord, and love him as our father. The Lord hath a delight Psal. 147. Psal. 112. in them that fear him, and yet put their trust in his mercy. Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord, and hath great delight in his commandments. Yet have ye not received the spirit of Rom. 8. bondage, to fear, uz. such a fear, as cannot stand with the love of God. 1 joh. 4. Render therefore to God the love that love. is due unto him: that is; In acknowledging the goodness and love of God towards thyself, love thou God; again above all things, Love the Lord your Esay. 28. God, and serve him, with all your heart, and with all your mind. He that loveth father or mother more than me, saith Christ, is not worthy of me. 6. The love of God is very diligent in working: This is the love of God, that ye keep his commandments. 1. This love doth unite the lover and 1. joh. 5: The properties of the love of God. the thing loved; so that we say with David: Like as the heart desireth the fountains of water, so longeth my soul after thee o my God: It bringeth a mutual conjunction with it: for God is love, and he that abideth in love, abideth 1. joh. 4. in God: It so ravisheth a man with the love of God, that forgetting himself, be seeketh not his own, but the things that are jesus Christ's. 2. This love, maketh us continually to cast the eyes of our mind upon God. Man by love setteth his affection upon God, because the mind thinketh on nothing else: this love is strong as death, it overcomes all things, and is overcome of nothing. 3. It so feedeth the mind, that it is never satisfied: it never thinketh or seeketh any thing but God; and him, the more it findeth, the more it wisheth. View the creatures, all are yours saith the Apostle: view thyself, thou art Christ's; view Christ, he is Gods: So by love thou ascendest to God. Fix thy hope upon thy God, as is meet, calling to mind his love, and Hope. truth in things past, and expect with patience, his presence and help for things to come. Cast thy care upon God, and hope in Psal. 37. him, and he will bring the matter to pass. Item. Tarry the Lords leisure, Psal. 147 be of good courage, expect the Lord, and he shall comfort your heart: The Lord hath a pleasure in them, that put their trust in his mercy. Hope confoundeth not: But hope Objects of our hope. thou from God, such things as fall under a Christian hope: to wit, eternal happiness, & all things that are necessary and profitable to further us in the attaining of that blessed felicity: hope for God's Mercy, with his effectual blessing in all things, and that by thy Saviour Christ jesus. Yea hope many times contrary to hope, and strive against the spirit of distrust and desperation: And hope thou strongly, constantly, cheerfully. Rest thy confidence upon God as thou Confidence. art bound: Acknowledging the power and mercy of thy God, and firmly repose thyself therein, against whatsoever dangers happen. Blessed is he, saith jeremy, that trusteth in God, and jerem. 17 whose confidence is in the Lord. And the son of Syrach. In all thy Syrach. 33 actions put thy trust in God, for so shalt thou also fulfil his commandments. 2. Be thou also religious towards God, giving him due worship: In adoring Adoration or Invocation of God. him, and calling upon his name: Call upon him religiously, acknowledging him to have all power, all knowledge, and to be present every where. But call thou upon God, with a present intention of mind; with an Rules of Invocation. acknowledging of thine own unworthiness; with a true affection of heart, with a desire of God's blessings, submitting thy will to Gods will: with hearty repentance; with a consideration of God's commandments; with a meditation of the divine promises, with assured faith to be heard, with confidence in Christ the Mediator. These things being thus prepared, entreat the mercy and favour of God, both to obtain things necessary for soul and body, and to turn away all evil. Now, the best form of prayer for every Christian man, is the lords prayer, taught by the son of God to his Disciples, containing all things briefly, which are to be prayed for. When need requires, give God the A religious oath. honour of a religious oath, and call God himself to be a witness of thy speech, as the only searcher of the heart, and if thou do wittingly deceive or lie, ●et him revenge the lie or deceit. Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God, and shalt swear by Deut. 6. his name. Thou owest unto thy God a reverend Gratitude thankfulness, way therefore God's benefits, with an admiration and joy, rehearse them, commend them, celebrate them, extol them. Acknowledge all good things, as received from him only, both spiritual and corporal, and therefore give him only the glory. Say with the Psalmist: I will praise the Lord at all times, his Psal. 34. praise shall always be in my mouth. Offer unto God the sacrifice of thanksgiving, and say, Praise the Lord o my Psal. 103. soul, and forget not all his benefits. Be not thou either ashamed, or weary, Exercise of the word private. Psal. 1. or cloyed with the word of truth; exercise thyself rather in the word of God, by reading, meditating, talking, and conferring with other. Let thy delight be in the law of the Lord, & meditate therein both day and night, let the word of Colloss. 2 Christ dwell in thee plentifully in all wisdom, teaching and exhorting one another, Apply thy reading. 1. Tim. 4. Being asked a reason of thy faith at any convenient time, or otherwise being provoked, defend God's truth out of the holy Scriptures, and be not ashamed to confess it. Be ready, saith Saint Peter, 1. Pet. 3. always to give an answer, to every one that asketh a reason of the hope that is in you, for every one that confesseth me before men, him will I, saith Matt. 10. Christ, confess before my father, who is in heaven. Be not slack to serve God in public Exercise of religion public. exercises of Religion. At appointed times, but especially on the Sabbath, repair to the Church, where the Christian Congregation is assembled in unity of mind, forsake not such meetings, neither despise thou the communion of Saints, but attend the word of God, as it is meet, use the Sacraments, and pray devoutly with the Saints. Let us not Heb. 10. forsake the mutual assemblies, saith the Apostle, as is the the manner of some. Do all to the glory of God: Let all things be done to edifying. 1. Cor. 10. &. 14. Ecclesiastical rites Moreover, observe the public Ecclesiastical rites, attending on Religion, that all things may be done decently and in order, in convenient time and place. 3. Whatsoever cross it pleaseth God Patience under the Cross. to lay upon thee, thou oughtest to bear it patiently, for this is our duty to God. Carry therefore the cross, wherewith God doth try thee his child, or chastise thee in this vale of tears: carry it I say with patience, stoutly, and with an invincible Rom. 12. Prou. 3. Heb. 12. mind: Be patiented in afflictions: My son saith Saloman, refuse not thou the chastening of the Lord, neither grudge when thou art reproved of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, etc. God doth chastise thee, lest thou shouldest Uses of the cross think thyself without all fault. He would have thee more & more to return to him, to cast off sin, and to embrace virtue, that the old man might be crucified, and the neweman revived. He would have thee to prevent further lapses, and not to rush into security. He would also stay other from wickedness by punishing thee, and that they might speedily return to good. Moreover, the servant and disciple, must be conformed to his Lord & master. Christ is our Lord and master, with whom we must suffer, if we will reign with him. God trieth thy faith, thy hope, thy obedience, thy patience, thy fervency in prayer: He will have his power and mercy to appear, in strengthening, & delivering thee. He would make thee weary of this earthly life, & to be stirred up with a desire of thy heavenly love. Therefore bear that is to be borne: patience will have the victory. Be constant in faith, and yield to God the obedience of thy faith: Persist in this Constancy. religious worship of God, by persevering unto the last breath of thy life, in a lively faith and love of God: neither do thou suffer any thing, either prosperous or adverse, to remove thee from that heavenly truth, or godliness, which thou hast learned. Be faithful unto death, saith the Apoc. 2. Mat. 10. spirit, and I will give thee the Crown of life, for he that persevereth unto the end, shall be saved. 2. Concerning man's due. justice giveth to every man his due; man must give, first unto himself that which is due to himself. And next to his neighbour, that which is due to his neighbour. Give to thyself that which is due to thyself. Thou oughtest to love thyself, To thyself thou owest love. and not to hate thyself, but this love must be holy and moderate, that knowing thyself, by the help of God's grace, thou mayest frame thyself, to an holiness and righteousness, conformable to the Law of God. Thou shalt love thy Rom. 13. Eph. 5. neighbour as thyself. And never yet did any man hate his own flesh, yea he nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord doth the congregation. Auselme saith. justice is a liberty of the mind, giving What justice is. to every man his proper right; to our Superior reverence, to our Equal concord, to our Inferior discipline, to God obedience, to ourselves holiness, to our enemy patience, to the needy mercy. And a man becoming judge of himself, must search himself, without partiality. Enter therefore into thyself: Dwell with thyself, and seek not thyself without thyself. And as Plautus saith: Ever persuade thyself it is best, that thou thyself be best, if thou cannot attain to that, yet at the last, that thou mayst be next the best. First therefore thou owest to thyself, The knowledge of ourselves. 1. Cor. 11 and 13. the knowledge of thyself: Surely it is a very hard matter to know ourselves; but hear thou the Apostle, who saith: Let every man examine himself, Item, examine yourselves whether ye be in the faith. Hear other wise Christians, as Ayapetus for one: We must first learn this divine precept, that every one know himself: for he that knoweth himself knoweth God: He that knoweth God, shall become like to God, but he that shall become like to God, must be worthy of God, he becomes worthy of God, who committeth Acceptable to God. nothing unworthy of him, but thinketh on divine things, and speaketh what he thinketh, and doth what he speaketh. chrysostom saith: It is the part of a wise man, first to know himself, to view what he himself is: what is beneath him, what is within him, what is above him, what is over against him, what before him, what behind him. For this consideration hath a fourfold fruit, Our own commodity, our neighbour's charity, the world's contempt, and the love of God. And Bernard saith. No man is saved without the knowledge of himself, out of which riseth humility, the mother of salvation, and the fear of God, which as it is the entrance to wisdom, so is it the entrance to salvation. Being known to thyself, Care of ourselves thou owest of good right to thyself, a diligent care of thyself, concerning integrity, & holiness, to the composing and decking of thyself. Now thou shalt frame thyself to integrity and holiness: if thou study to use and order aright, the things which God hath committed to thee, Whether they be Inward, or Outward. First therefore, when thou knowest Care of goods. Of the mind. thyself, reform all the inward goods of thy mind and body, to a rightness pleasing God. justice therefore, yielding thyself thy right, commandeth thee, above all things, to be careful in informing rightly, and repairing the faculties of thy soul, both Superior, and Inferior. The superior faculties of the soul, Superior faculties. are the mind, the conscience, and the will: Have a good regard of these, and thou shalt not be in danger. Concerning the mind. Give therefore to thy mind or understanding, that which is due to it. What we own to the mind Now thou owest to thy mind or understanding, wisdom: to thy judgement, Prudence. 1. The mind attaineth wisdom, Wisdom by applying itself to the knowledge, and consideration of divine and human things, which are profitable and necessary to the use of our life. This is obtained of God: For all wisdom, How we obtain wisdom. Out of the word. By prayer saith the son of Syrach; is from God, but by his word, for his word is the fountain of wisdom, and his commandment, the original and entrance thereunto. It must be asked by prayer, saying with Saloman. O Lord give me wisdom and understanding, that I may go in and out before thy people. By companying with the wise. Prou. 13. Syrach. 6. It is learned also by conversing with wise men, according as it is said: He that keepeth company with wise men, shall become wise: Therefore my son, saith Syrach: Apply thyself to the instruction of wisdom, from thy youth: for wisdom advanceth her children, and receiveth those that love her, & goeth before them, in the way of righteousness, and purchaseth them the love of God. 2. Prudence is gotten by due observation, Prudence what is meet to be done, or left undone, what is to be desired, or shunned, that thou mayest foresee to choose the good, and refuse the evil, and search the means to perform honest actions: that both afore and after thou be weary. For Prudence, is like two-faced janus, in every thing observing, what goes before, and what follows after: Remember what Aristotle saith: That man is borne to two things, uz. to understand, and to do, or work. Thou shalt achieve it, next the grace of God, by use and memory of things, according How prudence is gotten. By experience. as it is said, Longo Prudentia surget ab usu, Prudence riseth, by long practice or experience. When thou dost deliberate, saith Isocrates, of things to come, consider the examples of things past; For if thou remember things past, thou shalt the better deliberate of things to come. Always give ear to that of Syrach: Whatsoever thou takest in hand, do it advisedly, and keep a mean in all things. Now in labouring for Prudence, in How to be perfect in Prudence Counsel. this sort shalt thou proceed. First, take counsel of the matter that is to be done, or not done: try all things afore hand by counsel. 1. Let the rule of thy counsel be the Law of God: according to it, let all thy cogitations and deliberations be directed: Thy Law saith David are my counsellors. 2. Then let thy prayer, powered out to God, crave his help, that thou mayst both think, and determine those things that are agreeable to his will: saying with David; Teach me to do thy will O God, for thou art my God. 3. After prayer let a diligent inquisition and meditation of those things whereof thou hast consulted, follow. For as Saloman Prou. 10. saith: The lips of the just consider what is acceptable. 4. Do not attribute too much to thyself, and to thine own determinations, according as it is said: Lean not too much Prou 3. to thine own wit, especially in thine own matters, wherein men are wont to be blinded. Therefore in weighty matters take advise of other: I, saith Wisdom, Prou. 8. dwell with Counsel, and am present in all wise consultations. Secondly, when thou hast taken counsel, discern aright between all those reasons, Discretion. that are brought in consulting. Here therefore is need of discretion, whereby truths are discerned from falsehoods, certainties from uncertainties: unprofitable things, from profitable: unseasonable, from seasonable: honest from unhonest: pleasant, from unpleasant, and to conculde, good from evil. And of these which are more or less good, and which are more or less convenient, for time, place, person, or for the matter in hand. And to discern not only what is to be determined, but also how much, and how farforth we ought to proceed in every cause. 2. Concerning the conscience. Give unto thy conscience, that which What is due to the conscience. is due unto it. Thou oughtest not to wound and ulcerate our conscience, but to keep it sound and entire. Now thou shalt get, and keep, a good, Three means to get a good conscience. Preparation. and a sound conscience, by three means. By diligent preparation, by speedy application of remedy: and by reformation. 2. That thou mayest diligently prepare thy conscience: Learn by the law what is commanded to be done, and what is forbidden and to be left undone: Learn the judicial sentence of the Law, pronouncing men accursed for every sin: Then examine thine own conscience seriously, according to this rule of the Law, whereby thou shalt understand, what thy state is before God; hereof a sorrow will strike thy heart, for fear of the punishment due to thy sins which thou hast committed. 2. A better Remedy for a sorrowful and wounded conscience, can I not Remedies show you, than the blood and merit of jesus Christ our Saviour. For the applying whereof unto ourselves, we have need: First, of the preaching of the Gospel, which is as it were the hand of God, offering his grace unto us. And then of faith, which is as our hand, receiving the graces offered. But here thou must remember to humble thyself truly, and to resist all doubting. 3. The conscience is then reform, Reformation. when it ceaseth to accuse and terrify thee, and contrariwise, beginneth to excuse thee, and by the holy spirit doth testify unto thy spirit, that thou art the child of God, and that thy sins are forgiven Two means to Keep a good conscience. thee. When thou hast gotten a good conscience see that thou preserve it, and keep it in safety: by removing impediments and applying fit remedies. Impediments, some are with in thee; Impediments to be removed. some without thee. 1 Within thee are thine own sins: take away therefore ignorance, seducing thee from the knowledge of God's word: take away unbridled & untamed affections, by inverting their course from thy neighbour against thyself, or thine own sins: or by inclining them to God, and our Saviour Christ: take away worldly desires of riches, honours, and pleasures. 2. Without thee the devil, and the wicked world are impediments to a good conscience, these must be withst●●d. Remedies to be applied for the preserving of the conscience are two: First, Remedies to be applied. thou shalt conserve and nourish a lively faith: Secondly, thou shalt retain a constant purpose and ardent desire to obey God in all things, so shalt thou provide for thy conscience. 3. Concerning the will. Moreover, give unto thy will that which What is due to the will. is due to it. If thou love thyself, thou owest unto thy will an holy government, to bridle it by a godly prudence: that being guided, not by the flesh, but by the spirits, it may earnestly will that which is good, and niil that which is evil: Now it is God, saith Philip. 2. the Apost. who worketh in you, both to will, and to perform according to his undeserved favour. Here thou mayst use the syllogism, as Prudence Sylog. they call it, of Prudence: whose principles or propositions are fetched from Counsel and judgement, and the conclusion from the election of the will. Counsel searcheth out things which are Counsel. a furtherance to attain the purposed end. judgement discerneth among many judgement things purposed; which are chief to be chosen. By election the will desireth and chooseth Election. those things, which by right reason we have learned to be most profitable for our use: whereunto if the command of reason & prudence, illumined, be joined, it maketh the purpose ready for the action, or to the hand: so that there wanteth nothing but execution, or putting in practice. But see thou propound nothing to thy will, but that which may agree with the will of God, and doth tend to his glory to the knowledge of whose will, and to; the advancement of whose glory, thou oughtest with all diligence to frame thyself. Thus shalt thou sanctify the superior faculties of thy soul, by giving them that is due to them: wherein thou dost a right to thyself. The inferior faculties of the soul; to wit: The Irascible or angry part, and the Concupiscible or lusting part, are to be brought in order, that thy affections may be moderate and holy. 1. Concerning the Irascible or angry part. Thou shalt moderate or rule that virtues moderating the Irascible part. part of thy soul which is prone to anger, by these Christian virtues, uz. Fortitude, Magnanimity, Patience, Constancy, meekness, Humility. 1. Furnish thy soul with Fortitude, wherewith it may be armed and prepared Fortitude to enterprise and endure labour, yea even the perils of death, with a Christian courage, so that it may expel cowardly fear out of the mind, & may settle a constant trust in it. Be of good courage, Psa. 27. saith the Psalmist, and God shall comfort your hearts. Ye that put your trust in the Lord: Be strong in the Lord, and Ephe. 6. 1. Pet. 3. in the might of his power: Fear not their threats, neither be thou troubled. And Saint Paul to Timothy, saith: My son, be thou of good courage. 2. Tim. 3. Saint Ambrose saith: Fortitude of the Lib. 61. Offic. mind is no mean virtue, or severed from the rest, as if it were at defiance with other virtues, but it is such a virtue as only defendeth the ornaments of all virtues, and preserveth their right, and is at deadly enmity with all vices, it is invincible in labours, courageous in dangers, rigorous against pleasures, churlish against entice, whereunto it cannot tell how to listen. And Christ. Fortitude of mind is to us from him Lib. 63. De vita Contempt. to whom with the Prophet we sing; The Lord is my fortitude & my praise, and he is become my salvation: He is our fortitude, because he doth so strengthen us with his invincible protection against all vices, that neither flattering prosperity can make us dissolute, nor frowning adversity desperate. And now the Lord be our praise. Now thou shalt be reckoned a valiant man if thou have such power over Who is a valiant man. thine affections, that thou canst master them, so that not thou art so stirred and provoked by them, as they by fortitude are ruled and governed at thy beck: For the valiant man useth his anger as a whe●stoane to sharpen his courage in adventuring perils, yet as an underling, not as a commander, neither is his reason thereby disturbed, but his affection inflamed. 2. Magnanimity or greatness of courage is occupied in great matters, and of Magnanimity. honourable account, wherewith also the soul must be endued: that we seek not honour for itself, nor greatly esteem of human honour. He is a man of great courage saith Gregory: who desireth eternal things. Who is Magnanimous. Thou shalt be magnanimous, if thou contemn human honour, and enterprise great things for the glory of God, and exercise all virtues which tend to eternal felicity. If thou increase daily in courage, and wish earnestly, and perform valiantly whatsoever may further the glory of God, & the salvation of men, if thou stand invincible against all injuries and calamities, which men can lay upon thee. 3. Possess thy soul in patience, whereby Patience. thou mayest endure with a willing mind, & stoutly bear all evils that come upon thee, and all troubles which thou takest upon thee, and all adversities and crosses which thou canst not with honesty and godliness avoid. Arm thyself with patience, saith Syrach. 2. the son of Syrach, whatsoever happeneth, bear it patiently, & endure whatsoever calamity patiently. And our Saviour Christ saith: Possess your soul, Luk. 2. in patience. And S. Peter: Minister in your faith patience, etc. 2. Pet. 1. No man can escape misfortunes, but to bear misfortunes patiently, is only the part of a godly man: for mortal men are bound to bear mortalities: endure the harder things, then shalt thou more easily bear light things. Nobile vincendi genus est patientia, vincit punctum. Qui patitur, si nis vincere disce pati. A noble kind of victory. Is patience: Learn to suffer. For he that suffereth, overcomes all wrongs that men can offer. S. Crysostome maketh nine degrees Nine degrees of patienc. of Patience. The first is, to do no wrong. The second is when a wrong i● done, not to desire a revenge. The third is, not to requite the wrong, but to be quiet. The fourth is, to offer himself to bear wrong. The fift is, to be ready to bear more than he that doth the wrong desires. The sixth is, not to hate him that doth the wrong. The seventh is, to love our enemy. The eight is, to do him good. The ninth is, to pray to God for him. 4. Thou owest unto thy soul constancy, Constancy. or perseverance in well doing: that is, to persist in an honest & laudable purpose, to retain always in one rate, the same mind and will, that thou be not lifted up by prosperity, nor cast down by adversity, or decline from good to evil. Hereby thou mayst overcome the difficulty of long lingering, or fault of defection, whereunto the action of virtue is in danger, when it is drawn out by length of time. Get this grace, by God's help unto thy soul: the thou mayst have a will to persevere in the action of virtue begun, till thou have fully perfected it: Pray unto God, and he will say unto thee: I am the Lord thy God, taking thee by the Esay. 41. hand, and saying to thee: Fear not: I have helped thee: Fear not o jacob, that art a worm: He will strengthen thy weak hands, and thy feeble knees, and make thy feet to step aright. But let thy will be firm to persist in faith, and the works of faith, and to resist those things which hinder them. First Satan is an adversary, whom thou must Impediments. withstand, being steadfast in faith. Secondly, the very length of time, often breedeth a vain fear, but in thy God thou mayest do all things. Thirdly, the world many times affrighteth us with his bugs, or turneth us aside by his examples: But labour thou, & thou shalt have thy higher, after weariness followeth rest: hope, and thy hope shall not confound thee. 5. Endue thy mind with meekness, which may so appease the angry force Meekness. thereof, that it offer not violence to reason, or remove her out of her state, but may make thee readier to pardon, than to revenge. By meekness therefore anger must be Anger to be refrained. Eph. 4. Tit. 3. refrained or bridled: walk saith the Apostle, in all meekness and humility, forbearing one an other, and forgiving one an other, in modesty showing meekness to all men. Item, Let us behave ourselves in much patience and long suffering and mildness, in the holy Ghost. By meekness desire of revenge Eph. 4. Colloss. 3 which riseth of anger must be restrained or cut off. With patience support ye one an other, forgiving one an other, if any man have a quarrel against an other, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you: not rendering evil for evil. Rom. 12. The effects of meekness Psal. 147. judith, 9 If thou be meek, thou shalt be acceptable to God: The Lord receiveth the meek, he heareth the prayers of such as be gentle: The prayers of such as be humble & meek have ever been acceptable to thee, saith judith: To such he sent his son: To preach to the meek he sent me: To such he gives his grace: To the meek he giveth grace: Such he directeth in all their actions. He shall Esay. b 1. Prou. 3. guide the meek in judgement, he shall teach the gentle his ways. 6. Thou owest humility to thy soul Humility which may make thee not to wax proud of the store or worth of any graces, but in acknowledgement of thine own infirmities to prefer every one before thyself. In humility embracing one another, Item, Deck yourselves inwardly, with lowliness of mind: for GOD 1, Pet. 5. resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the lowly. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, & he shall exalt you in due time. My son saith Syrach, behave thyself humbly, apply thyself to the lowly: for this is Syrach. 3. better than all that which the world esteemeth so highly: The greater thou art, the more humbly behave thyself, and the Lord will love thee: for the Lord is the most high, and yet he worketh great things by the lowly and afflicted. And chrysostom saith; Nothing is to be compared to the virtue of humility: for it is the root, the nurse, the prop, and band of all goodness. And Saint Augustine, If we will attain to the height of Charity, we must first think of the foundation of humility. And Basil: Humility is the safest treasury of all virtues. Anselme reckoneth seven degrees of humility: The first is, to know thyself to Seven degrees of humility. be contemptible. The second is, to be sorry for it. The third, to confess it. The fourth is, to persuade the same to other in time and place. The fifth is, to bear it patiently when other report it. The sixth is, to take it in good part when thou art used contemptibly. The seventh is, to accept, desire, and love the same. It must needs be a great strength in the mind that shall ascend to these degrees. Though thou do never so great matters, yet count not thyself great: Thou shalt become humble, if thou contemn all worldly and human things, and do consider the beginnings of thine own being. 2. Concerning the concupiscible or virtues moderating the concupiscible part lusting part. Thou shalt moderate thy soul, which is prone to lust, by these Christian virtues. 3. Temperance, Abstinence, and Continence. 1. Thou oughtest to keep thy soul in Temperance. Temperance: whereby thou mayest refrain and restrain thy lusts, thy pleasures & delights of the body, from which, because they be natural, we are the more hardly drawn. Sundry reasons there are, which ought to stir thee up to moderate the appetit●● Motives. of just. First, because the voluptuousness of the body, doth hinder that God by his word cannot enter into the soul of man, to draw and convert it to him. Secondly, because bodily pleasures are vain, slippery, momentany: even vanity of vanities: leaving behind them, remorse, sorrow, repentance, not easily removed. Thirdly, because even in the very moment of time, wherein carnal pleasures doth entangle us with her allurements, it doth so bewitch our minds: with her poison (shall I call it) or sweet charm, that it wholly subdueth us. Let not sin Rom. 6. therefore reign in your mortal bodies, that ye should thereunto obey through the lusts thereof: But strive against the tyranny of pleasures, which a● it were certain cruel beasts do devour the soul, and strangle reason, if in time they be not prevented. Seneca saith: It is an easier matter to hinder the first motions of the affections, than to rule their violence: set thou therefore upon the root of lust as it were with a sword. 2. If thou love thyself, challenge to thy Abstinence & sobriety. self abstinence and sobriety, and yield them to thy soul: that thou mayest keep the nutritive power thereof in an holy temperance and moderate use of meat and drink. Use sparingly, saith Ecclesiasticus, Syrach. 31 Eccles. 10 those things that are set before thee, that thou be not odious for thy greediness. And the Preacher saith: Blessed are thou O land, whose princes eat in due time for refreshing and not for riot: for he that is moderate in feeding shall prolong his life. Item, Wine moderately drunk is a cheering to the soul and heart: And strong drink soberly taken is health both to soul and body. Let not therefore your hearts Luk. 21. be overcome with surfeiting and drunkenness, and cares of this life. etc. Thou must therefore strive earnestly with thyself, against thy bodily appetities, which as it is hard to overcome, so it is glorious to overcome: for the devil useth the necessity of the flesh as a just patronage to an inward temptation. 3. If thou wish well to thy flesh, see Continence and Chastity. thou retain Continency and Chastity, and embrace them: that thou mayest keep the generative power of thy soul in a holy temperance and lawful use ordained of God. Cal to mind often these warnings. This know ye, saith the Apostle, and Eph. 5. understand, that no fornicator, or unclean person, or Adulterer, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of God & 1. Cor. 6. Christ. And again: Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ, the Temples of the holy Ghost, Vessels of honour? shall I take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbidden? Item. If any man defile the Temple of God, him will GOD destroy. Item: This is the will of GOD, even your Sanctification, 1. Thes. 4 that ye should abstain from fornication, and that every one of you should know how to keep his vessel in holiness and honour, and not in the lusts of concupiscence, as do the Heathen which know not God. And our Saviour Christ saith; He that looketh on a Mat. 5. woman to lust after her, hath committed Adultery with her already in his heart. And jerom. It is a great gift of faith, and a great grace of virtue, to keep the Temple of God pure, and to offer ourselves a whole offering to the Lord, and to be holy both in body and spirit. 2, Thus must thou provide for graces of the mind: Take a care also for goods Cares for goods of the body. of the body, by a lawful endeavour to preserve the health of the body. If therefore thou love thyself, have a care of thy bodily health, maintain as Health. much as in thee is thy life and welfare, that it may be whole and sound: It is marvelous how much the former temperance through abstinence and continence do help to preserve health. If thy health be endamaged, apply medicine to recover health, and to avoid Medicine Sirach. 38. sickness: My son, saith Ecelesiast. consider diligently what is good for thy body and what hurteth thy health, and abstain from it: Honour the Physician with due reward, and use him for necessity sake. Again: Health and a good habit of body is better than gold, and Cap. 30. an able body than great riches. Read more, Chap. 38. 3. Thou must provide for external Care for goods of fortune. goods, which they call the goods of fortune, (if thou love thyself) such as are Honour, and Riches. Let a godly contentment and sufficiency, moderate and govern both these sorts: that thou rest content with thy portion and estate, both of honour and wealth, which God hath allotted thee, with a thankful mind to GOD, not desiring or carefully seeking more. For godliness is great gain, with a 1 Tim. 6. Syrach. 31. mind content with his lot: And a moderate man is content with few things: Be content therefore with present &. 42. things. Learn with the Apostle to be content with thy estate: I have learned, saith he, In whatsoever estate I am, Philip. 4. therewith to be content: I know how to be humble, and how to excel every where, and in all things I am instructed, both to be full and to hunger, both to abound, and to suffer penury. Having 1. Tim. 6. food and clothing, let us be therewith content, etc. 1. Concerning honour. Let modesty be the moderator of thine Honour. honour: whereby thou mayest desire, pursue, and maintain thine honour, so farforth as is convenient, lawful, and seemly: Let your modesty be known to all men: Through modesty, Philip. 4. &. 2. let every man esteem an other better than himself: The greater thou art, the more humbly behave thyself, saith the son of Syrach. Endeavour in the mean while, by godliness, virtue, and honest arts, to get thyself a good report among men: for honour is an honest estimation, conceived of us by other men, for virtues sake. If it may be, procure an Rom. 12. honest report in the sight of all men. Item, Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever Philip. 4. honest, just, pure, lovely, or of good report, if there be any virtue, any praise, think on these things: for a good name is better th● riches, saith the wise man. 2. Concerning riches and wealth. Let godly industry be thy guide in Riches. Getting. getting thy riches or wealth: I say godly, that thou shouldest pray. For Omnia cumprecibus feriuda cura potest: Prayer. Labour. Isay industry, that thou shouldest labour. Labour omnia vincit improbus. As prayer with care doth much avail So earnest labour doth prevail. Perform therefore the duties of thy calling diligently, expecting an heavenly blessing by calling upon God, and labour earnestly to get thy living, that thou mayest eat the labour of thine own hands. In the use of thy riches govern them Using. by a godly possession: that being justly gotten, thou mayest hold them lawfully, and mayest be master of them as long as it shall please God: Be thou alone owner Prou. 5. of thine own fountain, and not strangers with thee. Use them and enjoy them, frugally Using. and thristily: by making thy expenses according to thy ability, tolerable, honest, and necessary, answerable to thy degree. The just man saith Solomon, useth Prou. 10. his riches for the benefit of his life. And the son of Syrach saith, Take Sirach. 14 benefit thyself of thy wealth or goods. And David; God shall fill thy mouth Psal. 103. with good things. Thus must thou exercise righteousness by loving thyself in a godly sort, giving to thyself thy due: to thy soul that which is due to it: to thy body that which is due to it: to thy external goods that which is due to them. But thou art not borne to thyself, thou oughtest to love thy neighbour as thyself: thou must be conversant with him. To him thou owest love, to use him familiarly, nourishing society in a civil life. Here observe two things. Who is our neighbour. Luk. 10. First, that every man is thy nighbour, whether thy friend, or thine enemy: whether rich or poor: whether domestical or a stranger: whether known or unknown: especially if he stand in need of us. But among Christians he chiefly Gal. 6. is our neighbour, who professeth the same religion with us, and therefore chief to be beloved. Secondly, let this be ●● common rule, whatsoever ye would th●● men should do to you, do ye the same to them again. 2. Let justice therefore both give and justice towards thy neighbour. To every man living. retribute unto thy neighbour that which is due to him, whether A live, Ordead. To every man living generally, and to some special persons especially. To every man living, bear inwardly ● Christian affection, and show outwardly the effects thereof. 1. Thou oughtest to bear a Christian Benevolence in-affection. affection towards thy neighbour: that is to say a good will, embracing every man as he is a man, and God's Image, with a well-willing affection of mind: being willing and ready to help, or further thy neighbour in his business no less than thyself in thine own: Endeavour as much ●● thou caused to preserve Christian Concord, and peace towards all men. Concord. According to the Charge of the Apostle. If it be possible, as much as is in you, Rom. 12. Effects of benevolence. line peaceably with all men. 2. Thou must also show the effects of thy wel-willing in deed and work, to perform towards him in conversation. Humility, Civility: Liberality. 1. Concerning Humanity. Deny not the right of Humanity unto Humanity. any man, being thyself a man. But signify thy inward good will towards all men, in outward gesture and words: for justice wills thee to be courteous and gentle to thy neighbour. Showing thyself easy and tractable in speaking, in hearing, in answering, in companying. Be ye gracious or amiable, saith the Apostle. Collos. 3. Eph. 4. Rom. 15. Be ye courteous one to another. Let every man please his neighbour in that which is good. 2. Concerning Civility. Be not unmindful of Civility in meetings, let thy behaviour be quiet, thy conversation Civility. seemly: Let mistress Civility rule thy speech and gesture: for thou owest unto thy neighbour, both convenient speech and gesture. 1. Let her so govern thy speech, that Silenc. & speech. first thou mayest learn to keep silence, seasonably, and seemly. Next, that thou mayest know when to speak wisely and rightly. 1. Some time a comely silence is seasonable, Circumstances. of silence & speech whereby we conceal our meaning, or what we know: Bethink thee therefore aforehand, whereof, and to whom, in what words, in what place and time, with what sound or voice any speech is to be had, or not had: what, to whom, where, and when it is meet to keep silence. Weigh thy words, saith the son of Syrach, as in a balance, and Syrach. 8 make a door and bar for thy mouth, and beware thou slip not at any time, and fall before him that lieth in weight for thee: Pray with David: Set a watch Psal. 141 O Lord before my mouth, and keep the door of my lips. 2. Sometime it becomes us to speak unto our neighbour, and to utter our mind, but yet in due sort: See therefore Circumstances. that thou consider the things whereof thou speakest: weigh thy words. Observe time and place, temper thy pronunciation decently. 3. Let truth especially season thy talk Truth. in our speech. Eph. 4. with her attendants: for thou oughtest to speak the truth to thy neighbour. Be therefore most studious of truth, and utter things to thy neighbour as they are in deed, according to the meaning of thy heart, and the instruction of reason. Let every man speak the truth Zach. 8. to his neighbour, saith the Prophet. And David testifieth, that He that speaketh the truth to his neighbour from his Psal. 15. heart, and hath used no deceit in his tongue: he shall dwell in God's Tabernacle. With truth, join first gentleness, next fidelity, both which thou owest unto thy neighbour. Deal plainly and freely with thy neighbour, what thou conceivest aright Truth. utter; what tbou hearest interpret favourably in thy word, and covenants with thy neighbour. Keep thy promise firmly. Keep touch with thy friend laith Solomon: And be not carried about Prou. 27. Syrach. with every wind, but be constant in thy words. Let Christian gravity order thy gesture gestures. towards thy neighbour, that they may be framed towards every one, as is convenient, with comely behaviour: let A●ule. this be thy rule: Show thyself in behaviour and gesture, such as thou wouldst be counted: And be thou inwardly such indeed, as thou labourest to appear outwardly. 3. Concerning liberality. Thou owest unto thy neighbour good Beneficence, or liberality. turns and benefits, therefore according to thy ability thou shalt help thy neighbour▪ both with thy purse and pains, thou shalt communicate with him thy goods, what thou mayest and oughtest: Let thy Prou. 5. fountains saith Saloman, flow forth, and let the water stream in the streets, but be thou still owner of the springs. Do good unto all, but specially to those Gall. 6. Mat. 5. Syrach. 5. and 14. of the household of faith. But do good to them also the hate you, etc. Item. According to thy power help the poor, give cheerfully: for God loveth a cheerful giver. To thy Beneficence add Christian Gratification. gratification, whereby through thy courtesies and good turns, thou dost encourage thy neighbour in well doing, that he may go on to the end of that he hath well purposed: Light thou therefore an other man's candle by thine: teach the way to the wandering: give faithful counsel: communicate willingly wholesome doctrine: further thy neighbour in the attaining of some honest function, and other things necessary. These things thou owest to every man. To some special persons we own also To special men. some special duties. Both in hearty affection, and willing effects. As, 1 To our neighbour being in misery, To such as are in misery. we own, Compassion and Commiseration, or the bowels of mercy: sorrow therefore with thy neighbour in his misery, out of an earnest affection of love & desert, and study to relieve him. Put upon Coll. 3. you as the elect of God, holy and beloved, the bowels of compassion. Item, Be ye at concord; have a feeling of one 1 Pet. 1. another's miseries: love as brethren, etc. Item, Remember those that are in bonds, Heb. 13. as if you yourselves were in bonds with them. Have compassion of those that be in affliction, as if you yourselves were afflicted in the body. Item, Rejoice Rom. 12. with them that rejoice, weep with them that weep. To certain states of men, we own also Affection and Duties. Give therefore to every one their due. To our superiors, Reverence, and Obedience. To the poor, Relief, or Alms. To the Pilgrims or strangers Hospitality and Entertainment, 1. Concerning our superiors. Give unto thy Superiors, first, reverence The superiors. Reverence. Rom. 13. or worship. That is, see thou give due honour & reverence to such men as either in age, state, gifts, or otherwise, are thy betters. Give to every one, saith the Apostle. his due: Fear, to whom fear: Honour, to whom honour belongeth. Rise Levit. 19 up before the grey head, & honour the person of the aged. Item. Fear God, honour the King, For he that feareth God, Syrach. 10 honoureth his Prince. saith Eccles. Secondly, we ought to yield obedience Obedience to those that lawfully rule over us: so that we must not only hear the lawful charge of our superior, but also study to perform it. Obedience, saith Samuel, is Sam. 15. better than Sacrifice. And Greg. By Sacrifices were offered the flesh of other creatures: by obedience our own will is mortified: in that our will is subjecteth to the will of another for God's cause. And Bernard, Christ rather than he would lose his obedience, lost his life. 2 Concerning the poor. To the poor alms. Give alms to the poor, that thou mayst relieve their want by thy supply. No precept is more usual saith Cyp. among the precepts of Christ, than that we should insist or be deligent in giving of alms, and not be greedy of earthly possessions▪ but to lay up treasure in heaven: S●ll your possessions saith he, and give it in alms, And again, Lay not up treasure for yourselves on earth, etc. If thou wilt be perfect, go, sell all that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven. To conclude, He calleth them Abraham's children, whom he seethe to be diligent in helping and feeding the poor. 3. Concerning Pilgrims or Strangers. Thou oughtest to harbour pilgrims To pilgrims, Hospitality. or Strangers: Such good gests shalt thou receive, cherish, and refresh, as may no way impeach thy good name, or breed thee any mischief. Exercise therefore Rom. 12. 1. Pet. 4. Heb. 13. Hospitality. And be ye ready to harbour one another without grudging. Item. Be ye not unwilling to harbour strangers: for by this means some unawares have lodged Angels. And Saint Augustine saith. Learn O thou Christian to give entertainment, lest peradventure, he against whom thou shutest thy door, and to whom thou deniest entertainment, be God himself. Or at least, one of God's Saints, of whom it is said: whatsoever ye did to one of these little ones which believe in me, ye did it to me. And contrariwise, whatsoever ye did not, ye neglected to do to me. These things give to thy neighbour while he is yet alive. And remember that thou art a debtor Duties to the dead. to the dead: Perform to them therefore the last duties of piety: to wit, mourning and burial: for as these who are sick, and at the point of death, are to be visited and comforted: so those that be dead must have their right (which are called just) for we ought both to mourn for them, and to bury them. Whereupon the son of Syracb saith: If any man die, bewail and lament him, as if Syrach. ●8. thou hadst suffered some great loss, and then wind his body, according to the custom, and see that he may be honestly buried. These things, shalt thou perform as a man, but much rather as a Christian man, both to the living and dead. Now moreover, thou must have a regard what thy neighbour hath deserved Retribution, or recompense. of thee, and what good turns thou hast received, that thou mayest recompense and requited them: For justice requireth, that thou retribute and repay the good turns thou receivedst, with good turns, as being a due debt. Retribute therefore or return to thy friend, friendship: and at the least thankfulness, for his well deserving of thee. 1. Concerning friendship. Thou dost return friendship, if in good will and courteous thou do render Friendship. mutual love to thy friend: Recompense therefore hearty good will, with hearty good will, interchange courtesies, such as be honest and possible. But thou shalt be careful to set thy affection on such as thou perceivest to be With whom bend earnestly to true godliness, and a serious study of virtue, that ye may grow up together in godliness, as it were one heart. Therefore Eccles. saith; join thyself to good men, and rejoice with them. Item; A sure friend is Syrach. 9 & 6. a strong hold, he that hath such a one possesseth a great treasure. And Cassian saith; That is faithful friendship, and a conjunction indissoluble, (or a joint that cannot be dissolved) which is founded upon equality of virtues: for the Lord maketh men that are of like manners or conditions, to dwell together in one house. And therefore in those only love can continue without breach, in whom there is one purpose & will, who will, & nile the same thing, or one thing. 2. Concerning gratitude or thankfulness. Thou dost return thankfulness Gratitude to thy neighbour who hath deserved well of thee, when thou dost render unto him, a thankful remembrance of a benefit received, with a willing declaration of thy good will, both in word and deed. Carry therefore towards thy benefactors, a mind or desire to recompense benefits rrceived, or at the least a heart most ready to wish well: But if thou canst requited good turns received, with gifts and courtesies. Chrisostom saith; The best guardian of benefits is the memory of benefits, and a continual confession of thanks. And Bernard, Nothing can be returned more acceptable by the receiver to the giver, than if he show himself thankful for that he secretly received, for he doth reproach to the spirit of grace, who doth not take a good turn, from him that giveth it, with a grateful mind. Thus having abandoned unrighteousness, labour to attain righteousness. 1. Begin I say, to enter the way of salvation; by Converting from evil to good. 2. Faint not for any temptations which are in the way. 3. But go forward by denying thyself. 4. And following Christ in the way of holy virtues: by 1. A firm purpose to attain to virtue: by 2. A fortitude overcoming all impediments: by 3. A sweet contentment in virtues possession: by 4. A daily examination of our profiting in the way of virtue. The Epilogue or Conclusion, containing. An encouragement, or spur to virtue: That thou mayest o man be inflamed, in the study of Piety, and Charity. First by reasons taken from Christianity. Consider at large these short sayings. LEt the most holy and most glorious God, allure thee by the perfection of his virtues, whose glory thou oughtest earnestly to further. 2. Let the eternal knowledge of God whereby thou art foreknown, provoke thee to holiness. 3. Let the undeserved and free love of God, wherewith thou art loved, the mercy and grace of God wherewith he preventeth thee, draw thee. 4. Let thy holy predestination to life, first holy or blameless, next eternal, procure thee. 5. Remember that thou art created by thy Creator to walk in holiness and righteousness. 6. Let the Image of God thy father and Creator, whom thou oughtest to resemble, & not to be a degenerate or unkindly son, invite thee. 7. Let the wonderful benefit of God's preservation and government: whereby thou art marvelously kept, even unto this hour, exhort thee. 8. Let the unspeakable love of God the father, who gave his only son to thee, and to death for thee, incline thee to godliness. 9 Let the inestimable or unvaluable benefit of thy Redemption, bring thee to an holy obedience: for thou wast redeemed, that thou shouldest be thankful. 10. Let the pattern of perfection and charity, jesus Christ, whose steps thou must follow, inflame thy heart with the love of charity. 11. Let the dignity of thy calling lead thee to holiness of life: for thou art called not to uncleanness, but unto holiness. 12. Call to mind how thou wast reconciled to God, who was offended with thy sins, by Christ: that thy sins were forgiven thee, that thou mightest live to God, and righteousness. 13. Let the gifts of the holy Ghost, which are given thee, to sanctify thee: who is offended with thy sins, induce thee to the study of godliness. 14. Let the commandment of the most best, and most greatest God, who willeth thy sanctification, compel thee to the practice of Christian charity. 15. Let the regard of thy duty due to God, call thee to an obedience of holiness, that thou mayest testify thy gratitude towards him: for thou art God's debtor. 16. Let thy renovation begun, whereby thou art become a new man, stir thee up daily: for he that is borne of God sinneth not: And a good tree bringeth forth good fruits. 17. Let thy faith if it be lively, bring forth, stir up, sharpen, and maintain the study of virtue: For without works faith is dead: show therefore thy faith by thy works. 18. Let the light and knowledge of the will of God and his mysteries, kindle in thy mind holiness. Thou knowest Gods will, do it. 19 Thou owest to thy God a sacrifice of worship, to be seasoned by the f●●● of faith: to be inflamed by the fire of the holy Ghost: to be sanctified by the merit of Christ. 20. Thou art the Temple of the holy spirit wherewith thou art anointed and endued: keep this Temple holy, set forth the praise of God, with thought, word and mind, mouth, and life. 21. Let the comforts of the holy Ghost, whereby thou art refreshed, running in the race of virtue, and comforted in thy prayers, be as spurs unto thee in the course of godliness. 22. Let that sweet franquillitie of a good conscience, and the inward joy of heart, which thou enjoyest by virtue, minister fire unto thy devotion. 23. Let the manifold commodities which accompany Piety, prick thee forward: for Piety hath the promises of this life, and of the life to come. 24. Let the hope of fruit that comes thereby move thee: for thereby thou shalt relieve thy neighbour: thou shalt glorify God: thou shalt stop the mouth of thy adversaries. 25. Let the uncertainty of thy life, and death every where, and at all times lying in weight for thee, warn thee: Live well, that thou mayest die well. 26. Let that glorious Tribunal of Christ, and the fearful judgement of the last day, before whom thou shalt be presented, and at which time thou must give an account, terrify thee. 27. Let the terror of two. fernall torments wherewith all the wicked shall be tortured, compel thee to the obedience of faith. 28. Let the reward of life and glory eternal, which with great joy thou shalt enjoy, in Gods own presence, in the midst of all celestial happiness, illure thee. 29. Be earnest to follow righteousness, for by attaining thereto, thou shalt obtain the commendations of a wise man: who is as the apple of God's eye. 30. If thou be just thou shalt be happy, even as that thee, which being planted by rivers of water, fructifieth in due season, and remaineth unwithered: As a flourishing Palm tree, or as a Cedar planted in the house of the Lord. The praises and privileges of the just. First, thou shalt be noble in deed: being the son of God, borne of God. 2. Thou shalt be the very Image and lively similitude of the living God. 3. Thou shalt be the beautiful and beloved spouse of Christ: Thou shalt be called the joy & delight of the most highest. 4. Thou shalt be the Tabernacle and living Temple of the living God, & a certain Chapel for the holy Ghost. 5. Thou shalt spring forth as a bright light, and increase to perfect day. 6. Thou shalt mount to heaven, despising and treating underfoot, all earthly and transitory things. 7. Being assured of God's help, thou shalt always hope for salvation without doubting. 8. Thou shalt bear injuries patiently, and pardon wrongs willingly. 9 Thou shalt enjoy true peace and tranquillity of mind: thou shalt be filled with true godliness and pleasures. 10. Thou shalt be worthy of all manner of sound honour: thou shalt be glorious in worship and praise. 11. Thou shalt be adorned with Christ & piety, with most beautiful ornaments. 12. Thou shalt be very rich: for thou shalt want nothing at any time. And for thy sake the Lord will bless the City and other. 13. No creature shall hurt thee, if thou be just: but every creature shall serve for thy good. For all things were made for thy behoof, and are preserved. 14. Thou shalt have the kingdom of God within thee, and shalt be a King. 15. All things shall prosper happily with thee: Even adversity shall make thy state most happy. 16. Thou shalt have God to be thy protector, thy guardian, and revenger. 17. God will have a special care of thee: whom thou shalt have to be thy teacher and guide. 18. Thou shalt only serve God and Christ, being a perfect freeman. 19 Thou shalt have God thy friend, and whatsoever thou askest, thou shalt obtain. And whatsoever thou givest him, shall be most acceptable to him. 20. Thou shalt be a fellow citizen with the Saints, being admitted to the heavenvly City: And being an heir of the eternal kingdom, as the son of God. 21. Being a soldier of jesus Christ in the Christian warfare, thou shalt ●●ght manfully and valiantly. 22. Thou shalt be in God and Christ, and God and Christ shall be in thee. 23. Thou shalt live a long and blessed life in Christ the son of God. And all manner of blessedness shall be in thee. 24. Death shall not be fearful unto thee, and thou shalt expect it joyfully: for dying, thou shalt not die, but live for ever. 25. Thou shalt obtain assured victory against all thine enemies. 26. When thou shalt enter into heaven, thou shalt be crowned with heavenly glory and honour. 27. In the general judgement, thou shalt be adorned with praises by Christ the judge. 28. Thou shalt sit with Christ to judge the world, and shalt triumph gloriously with all the blessed. Secondly, be thou stirred up O man, by exhortations and examples of Heathen men: Hear and blush. I use saith Seneca, this authority against myself, and every day I arraign myself: when the candle is taken away, and my wife is silent (who now knoweth my manner) I begin to examine with myself the whole day past, I view over all my deeds and words, I conceal nothing from myself, I pass over nothing: for why should I fear any my errors? when I may say, See thou do it no more, I forgive thee for this time. Again he saith: What is better than this custom, to examine the whole day? How sweet is that sleep, that followeth this surviewe of ourselves? how quiet, how sound and free, when the soul being either commended or admonished, becomes an especial and privy censor of itself, judging of her own meaning? Therefore, saith the same Seneca, inquire into thyself: first perform the part of an Accuser: next of a judge: lastly, of an Entreater: Sometime also offend or displease thyself: For he doth willingly err, who knoweth not that he doth err, he doth overlove himself, who is content that other should err, that his own error may be hidden. 1. Cóncerning Piety towards God. The same Seneca saitb. 1. A good man ought to be very devoutly given towards God: And to worship God for his excellent majesty and singular nature. 2. The first service of the Gods is, to He speaketh in the plural number, as a Heathen man. believe in them, or to believe that there are Gods. Next, to give unto them, their honour and goodness: To know that it is they that govern, and rule all things by their power, that take the charge of mankind. 3. He worshippeth God, that knows God, neither shall any man profit sufficiently, except he conceive aright in his mind, what manner of one God is: having all things, bestowing all things, giving benefits freely. And Epictetus. If we be well advised, what else should we do, either public or private, but celebrate, and praise, and give thanks to God: should we not both while we are digging, and while we are ploughing, sing this hymn unto God? Great is God, who gave us these instruments wherewith we till the earth: Great is God, who gave us our hands: who gave us power to swallow, who gave us our stomach, who maketh us to grow secretly: to breath sleeping: these things are to be sung in every thing, and a divine hymn to be sung, because he hath given us understanding of things, and power and reason to use them. And soon after he proclaimeth. If I were a Nightingale, I would do the kind of a Nightingale: If a Swan, of a Swan: Now that I am a reasonable creature, I must praise God: This is my duty, this I do, neither will I leave my station, as long as I may, and I exhort you to use the same song. And Seneca. The Godhead is a great thing, I wots not what, and greater than I can conceive: which while we live, we endeavour to know, and to approve ourselves unto him. Thus speak these Heathen men: Shall we be astonished at these things? or shall we not rather be ashamed? Again, Seneca. The end i● to follow God: But to follow God, is to submit our own minds to the mind that governs all things: as good Citizens submit themselves to the Laws of the City. And again the same Seneca. I do ever will rather what God will, than what I myself, I will be joined and cleave to him, as his servant and attendant: with him I desire, with him I cease to desire, and simply and in one word: That that God wills, I will. O Words bred! proceeded from heaven. O Epictetus, saith Lipsius, that I were so affected with thee. Again the same, I dare lift up mine eyes to God and say, Use me hereafter where thou wilt, and how thou wilt: I have good cause to consent with thee: I am of one mind with thee, I refuse nothing that seemeth good to thee: Lead me whither thou wilt, cloth me with what garment thou wilt. Wilt thou have me bear office in a commonwealth? wilt thou have me live a private life? wilt thou have me to bide by it, or to flee? to be poor, or rich? I do not only agree to be and do what thou wilt have me, but in all these things I will defend and maintain thee against other. Again the same. We must so conform ourselves that we may obey God, and be content with all things that happen, and willingly follow. As which are ●●don, & proceed from the best mind, even God: This is an high courage, that yields itself to God. Again; A wise man, if any thing happen, knows it is the Law of nature: he will call to mind that old rule, Fellow God. Again: We are borne in a kingdom, to obey God is liberty. Seneca out of Epictetus. Duc more parens, celsique dominator poli. Quocunque libuit, Nulla parendi est mora, Adsum impiger, fac nollo, comitabor gemens, Malusque▪ patiar, quod pati licuit bono, Sic vivam●●, sic loquamur. Guide me O father, Lord of the highest sky: Whether it shall please thee, to thee will I high. Be it thou deny me, I will follow sadly. And will suffer evil, as a good man gladly: Let us so live, and so speak. We enter ●nto the Temple, saith he, soberly: coming to the sacrifices, we cast down our countenance humbly: we take our gowns with us, and frame ourselves to all signs of modesty. 2. Concerning knowledge of ourselves. The same Seneca. 1. The beginning of salvation, is the knowledge of our sin: And it skilleth much more what thou seemest to thyself, than what thou seemest to other. 2. Surview every corner of thy mind, and though thou know no evil by thyself, yet sometime, (as the said Seneca often saith) it behoveth thee to forget what thou art, and it is a good thing and profitable for some men to be ignorant or himself: that is, not to know his abilities: that he may rather in fear, lead a moderate life, than in pride an insolent & immoderate. Otherwise as Socrates said: The knowledge of ourselves is the cause of much good, and the ignorance of ourselves, is the cause of much evil. 3. Concerning wisdom. The same Seneca. 1. The exercise of wholesome studies is commendable, though it bring no present fruit. 2. Study not to know more than other, but to know better: the is, with more fruit: To desire to know more than is sufficient, is a kind of intemperance. 3. A wise man must not go always in one pace, but in one way. 4. A wise man is skilful to overcome evils, but a fool is weary of himself. 4. Concerning Prudence. 1. Prudence is a present notion or understanding, forecasting things to come, or that may happen. 2. If thou embrace Prudence, thou shalt be ever the same, & as variety of time & causes do require, so thou shalt apply thyself: not changing thyself at all, but rather fitting thyself to every occasion: As the hand which is the same, both when it is stretched to a span, and when it is pressed to a fift. 3. If thou desire to be prudent, intent thy foresight to things to come, and propose to thy mind whatsoever may fall out: Let nothing be sudden to thee, but foresee all aforehand, for he that is provident never saith, I did never think this would have been so, because he standeth not in doubt, but expecteth, he doth not suspect, but avoideth. 4. If thy mind be prudent, dispose thy actions according to three times: Order things present: foresee things to come: Remember things past. For he that never thinketh of things past looseth his life: he that never forethinketh of things to come, falleth unawares into all dangers. The heathen esteemed their Philosophy. Christian's must esteem the word of God. 5. Concerning true liberty. 1. To obey God, saith Seneca, is true liberty, and that true liberty may happen to thee, thou must serve Philosophy: That only study is called liberal, because it bringeth liberty. 2. It is true liberty, not to fear men, nor fortune▪ nor to will unhonest things, nor excess, but to have a great power over ourselves. 3. Liberality doth bring our mind to that freedom, wherein it was created of God our father and Author, so that it feareth nothing, nor sorroweth for any thing, nor serveth a base. For a good man is always free, though he be a slave: an evil man is a slave, though he be a King: a slave I say to so many Lords, as he is to vices. I am free, saith Epictetus, because I am purposed and have conformed my mind to Gods will: He would have me shaken with an ague, I am content: he would have me to enterprise a matter, I will: he would have me to obtain a thing, I will endeavour: he would have me not to obtain, I cease: he would have me die, I yield. Who can now therefore hinder me, or force me besides my will: no more than God himself. 6. Concerning Fortitude and Magnanimity. Seneca saith; 1. If thou wilt put off all carefulness whatsoever thou fearest least it happen, forecast that it will happen, and whatsoever evil it be, measure it with thyself, and abridge thy fear. He is not a valiant man, whose heart groweth not in courage, in the midst of difficulties. 2. It thou be of great courage, thou wilt never think that any man can do thee a reproach: Thou wilt say of thine enemy, It hurts not me, that he had a purpose to hurt me. And when thou hast him in thy power, thou shalt think it a sufficient revenge, that thou couldst have revenged, & hast not: for assure thyself it is a great and honest kind of revenge, to pardon. 3. It is the measure of Magnanimity, neither to be faint hearted, nor brainless bold. Thou shalt therefore be Magnanimous, if thou neither thrust thyself into dangers rashly, neither shun them dastardly: And nothing doth daunt the courage so much, as the conscience of a wicked life. It is the property of a man of good courage, to contemn great things, and not to encumber himself with too many things, but to hold a mean. 4. There is nothing great in human things, but a mind despising great things. A Magnanimous man stands upright, equally poised on both sides: Nothing doth cast him down, nothing that is to be borne doth displease him. He complaineth not of any thing fallen on himself, that may fall to another man, he knows his strength, he overcomes fortune by virtue. 7. Concerning Patience. Seneca. 1 We mortal men are borne to this lot, or bound to this condition, to bear mortality. 2. I would be loath to endure torments, but if I must suffer them, I wish that I may behave myself in them honestly, stoutly, and courageously. 3. He that can beware fortune, can bear it: Neither skilleth it what thou bearest, but how thou bearest: If he that do thee wrong be weaker than thou, spare him: if he be mightier than thou; spare thyself. 4. Thou art not yet happy, if the vulgar sort do not deride thee: If thou wilt be happy, make thine account, both to contemn, and to be contemned: It is hard to suffer, but sweet to remember. 8. Concerning Constancy: Seneca. 1. Go forward, and above all things take heed that thou be constant. As often as thou wilt try whether thou hast done any thing or not, mark whether thou will the same thing to day, that thou didst will yesterday: The change of the will, showeth that the mind doth sometime swim, and sometime float, as the wind blows. 2. Account it a great matter, to be still one man, No man is still the same man, but a wise man. all other are of many shapes. This require or exact of thyself, that what manner of man thou purposest to show thyself, such one thou keep thyself to the end. 3. There is nothing that constant labour, and diligent earnest care, will not overcome. Virtue and Felicity are placed on high, but godly perseverance will reach and pierce to them. 4. The greatest token of an evil mind, is wavering, and a tossing between a show of virtue, and a love of vice. 9 Concerning meekness, moderating anger and revenge. Seneca. 1. The chief remedy against anger, is delay: wilt thou not be angry, be not curious: The multitude of offenders, appeaseth the anger of a wise man. 2. The less thou suppressest anger, the more shalt thou be suppressed by it: for than we begin to be angry with other, when we leave being angry with ourselves: And the end of anger, is the beginning of repentance. 3. Anger dies quickly in a good man, as a short passion, and even the memory of anger. 4. No free or honest man, can bear reproach. A grievous crime, even when it is lightly reported, doth harm. O how miserable a thing is it to be injured by him, of whom I cannot be believed: 5. Forgetfulness is a remedy against wrongs, in an afflicted man, laughter is an injury: that is; It is an injury to scorn a man that is in misery: He that doth wrong to one, threatens many. 6. It is the part of an high courage to despise injuries, and it is a reproachful kind of revenge, not to seem worthy, of whom to seek revenge: for some have settled the wrong more deeply, while they have gone about to revenge them. He is noble and valiant, who like the great wild beasts despiseth the barkings of curs. 10. Concerning Humility. Seneca. Let no man be too confident in prosperity, let no man faint in adversity; For the course of things is changeable. And the other Seneca, the Tragedy Writer. Quoquo fortuna altius. 1. Euexit atque levavit humanas opes: Hoc se magis supprimere foelicem decet. Item. 2. Ima premutat brevis hora summis Quem dies vidit veniens superbum: Hunc dies vidit fugieus iacentem. Item. 3. Nemo confidat nimium secundis: Nemo desperet meliora lapsus: Miscet hac illis, prohibet que Clotho Stare fortunam, rotat omne fatum. Nemo tam Divos habuit fa●e●tes, Chrastinum ut possit sibi polliceri. Res deus nostras celeri citatas. Turbine versat. Item. 4. Dominari tumidus▪ spiritus altes gear: Sequitur superbos ultor a tergo deus. 1. How much the higher fortune hath, Lift up a man to wealth and power. So much the more he ought to stoop, Lest fortune chance on him to lower. Item. 2. One hour turns all things upside down, Changing the lowest with the highest: Whom one day saw coming proudly, The same day saw flying cast down. Item. 3. Trust not too much prosperity, Hope better in adversity: For Clotho mixeth this with that, Nor suffers fortune keep one state, None is so high in God's favour That hath to morrow in his power, For men's afflictions, as with whirl wind, Are still turmoild, and stay none find. Item. 4 Go on to rule in tyranny: Swell still with proud and lofty state: Yet God who hateth pride, at back Pursues the proud with deadly hate. 11. Concerning Temperance, Abstinence, and Sobriety. Seneca. 1. We may not set our chief felicity in the flesh. 2. An Ox is fed within the compass of a few aker● of ground: One wood or forest is sufficient for many Elephants. But man is fed by the land, and the sea, How then? Hath nature given us an unsatiable belly, when as she hath given us so small a body, that we should exceed the greediness of most vast and hungry beasts? Surely no: for how small a thing is it that is given to nature, with how little is she sent away? The hunger of our belly costs us not much, but our ambition and riotousness: Let us therefore reckon men that serve their belly, not among men, but among beasts. And some not among beasts verily, but among the dead. 3. Nothing shall so much profit thee to temperance and a moderation of all things, as the often remembrance of the shortness of thy life, and uncertainty thereof: whatsoever thou dost, remember death. 4. It is a shameful thing not to know the measure of thine own stomach, or not to exceed it. The belly is content with a little, if thou give it not what thou canst, but what thou oughtest. Seneca saith of himself. I use such a pallet, being an old man, wherein no print of my body can be seen: I go down into a cold bath, afterward I eat dry bread, I dine without a table, after which I need not wash my hands. 12. Concerning Chastity, and Continence. Seneca. 1. We must also war, and surely, with a kind of war, whereto no truce is ever given: Pleasures or lusts, must above all be subdued, which as ye see have ravished fierce natures, or valiant minds: If I give place, or yield to voluptuousness, I must give place, or yield to sorrow: I must also give place, or yield to labour: I must give place, or yield to poverty. 2. The lover knows what he desires, what he savours he sees not: or how ill advised he is, he sees not: The lover what he supposeth, dreams waking: Love cannot be wrested away, but it may slip away. Redeem the anger of thy lover with tears: It is a commodity for ● young man to be beloved, but in an old man it is a crime: Love is an idle cause of care. 3. Bashfulness is to be nourished, which as long as it lasteth in the mind, there is some place for good hope. 13. Concerning Contentment. Seneca. 1. Let all thy cogitations bend hither, this care, this wish, remitting all other wishes to God: that thou be content with thyself, (that is, with thive own estate) and with the goods that spring of thyself, (that is, with thine own ability) what felicity can approach nigher to God? 2. Rest content with thine own, to be so much the happier, as thou art freer, from much business: for as the body is more ready in health, so is the mind being free from cares: and as weakness wringles the body, so cares dry up the mind: And it is an evident sign of weakness, to want many things. 14. Concerning Modesty, which is content with mean things. Seneca. 1. It is the token of a great mind to contemn great things, and rather to be content with a mean, than to covet too much, 2. It never did satisfy him that got it, that seemed too much to him that wished it: And the other Seneca. 3. Whatsoever exceedeth measure, hangs in a tickle or uncertain state. 4. He that would have his virtues published or proclaimed, labours not for virtues sake, but for glories sake. 5. Will the strong man glory in his The application is left conjectural. strength, when sickness hath weakened his body? Doth the rich man glory in his riches, when thieves or tyrants have spoiled his hope? Shall a man boast of nobility, when he is reproachfully used, & many times brought in bondage to base people. 15. Concerning frugality, and sparing. Seneca. 1. If thou live according to nature, thou shalt never be poor: if according to opinion, thou shalt never be rich. Nature requires but little: Opinion hath no measure. 2. Hunger costs but little, surfeiting is chargeable: A small care will provide necessaries, delights and dainties ask great labour. 3. Buy not all that thou lackest, but that which is needful and necessary: It is easily provided the nature desireth, there is much toil about superfluous things. 16. Concerning the care of health. 1. Hold this sound and wholesome manner of life, that thou so far nourish and cherish thy body, as is convenient for thy health: It must be handled somewhat the more hardly, lest it be the destruction of the soul. Let meat satisfy hunger: let drink quench thirst: let garments hide nakedness, put away cold, serve for comeliness. 2. I confess that we have a certain inbred love to ourselves, to provide for them: I do not deny but that we may nourish them, I deny that we must serve them. 3. We must so carry ourselves, not as though we were to live only to the body, but as though we could not live without the body. 4. He esteems little of honesty, who loves his body too well: Let us take diligent charge of it, but yet so farforth as reason requires. 5. We are greater, and borne to greater things, than to be bondmen to our bodies: The contempt of his body, is a man's own liberty. 17. Concerning liberty of manners. Seneca. 1. As he that is tossed hither and thither with storms, and yet goeth not forward to his Port, hath not sailed much, but hath been much turmoiled: So he that hath lived long, and hath not profited in good manners, hath not lived long, but hath been a long in the world as it were tossed too and fro. 2. Every man may frame his own manners, but service or offices, fall by chance. 3. Nothing doth better endue honest minds, nor sooner reclaim a mind enclinable to evil, than the conversation of good m●n. 18. Concerning justice. Seneca. 1. Whosoever desireth to attain, or practise justice: first fear and love God, that thou mayest be loved of him: Now thou shalt love God, it thou imitate him herein, that thou do good to all, and hurt no body. So all men shall count thee, and call thee a just man, they will follow thee, reverence thee, and love thee. For being just, thou wilt not only, not do harm thyself: but also thou wilt hinder other from doing harm. 2. Look to receive from other, that thou dost to other: Thou shalt perform piety to thy parents: love to thy kindred: thou shalt have peace with all men: thou shalt have war with vices: thou shalt keep fidelity with thy friends, and equity towards all men. 19 Concerning liberality and bounty. Seneca. 1. It is the property of a wise man; both to owe where he ought, and to pay where he ought: to owe always thanks, to repay good turns as he may. 2. This is the law of friendship between two: The one must by and by forget what he gives, or what good turn he hath done, the other always remember what he receives, and how much he is indebted: He that doth a good turn, must be silent, he that receives it, must declare it. 3. Benefits must be given silently, that they may only be known to them whom they profit. Sometime also even he that is relieved must be deceived, by having a benefit, not knowing from whence he receiveth it. 4. Although thou oughtest to give to every one that asketh: yet in him to whom we give, we may respect his manners, his good affection towards us, his near dwelling, his society with us, & the good turns & curtestes aforetime done for our behoof. 5. A benefit that sticks long in the givers fingers, and which he seems loath to departed with, & so gives, as though it were wrested from him, is not acceptable: But those good turns which are ready, east, occurrent: where there is no delay but in the bashfulness of the receiver, are most acceptable. 6. The often upbraiding of benefits dejecteth the heart, and casteth down the courage. Let us give our benefits freely, and not let them to usury. He is worthy to be deceived, who thought of receiving again when he gave. 7. There is no benefit so great, that a malicious mind may not embace: there is none so small, that a good Interpreter will not advance. 20. Concerning Truth: Sincerity, and Fidelity. Seneca. 1. Truth is like herself in every part: A lie is slender and thin: if ye look into it diligently, ye shall see thorough it. 2. A man that hath done a shrewd turn, may fortune be hid: but though he be hid, his conscience will not be flattered. 3. Counterfeit things do soon return to their nature, but such as are grounded on truth, and rise from a sound foundation, proceed to greater, and better. 4. I had rather fail of success, than fail in my promise: He that hath faith in his dealing, will deal uprightly even with his enemy: He that loseth his credit; loseth the uttermost that he can: when single hearted faith is once gone, she seldom returns from whence she went: No man ever lost fidelity, but he that never had it. 5. Both points are faulty: both to believe every body, and to believe no body: That thou wilt have another man not to disclose, that do not thou disclose first. 6. An evil man speaking fair, count as a snare laid for thee. For he hath his poison, which is his fair speech. 7. As a modest gate or pace is fit for a wise man: so should his speech be grave, and not bold or rash: Be therefore slow in speech. 8. And let this be our chief rule, what we think, to speak: what we speak, to think: That the man and his speech may agree. 21. Concerning friendship. 1. Bethink thee whom thou wilt receive to thy friendship, but when thou hast taken aliking, embrace him with thy whole heart, talk with him as boldly as with thyself. Reveal all thy secrets to him, if thou think him faithful, thou shalt make him faithful. 2. The remembrance of my friends deceased, is sweet unto me: for I held them as if I should lose them: I have lost them, as if I had them. 3. It is to no purpose to seek a friend only, in the markets or concourse of people, if thou look diligently, thou shalt find him at home: for he is deceived that seeks a friend in the common walks and assemblies, or that makes trial of him at a feast: For thou shalt find thy friend within thy breast, and not on the Exchange. 4. It is troublesome to have all men as friends, it is enough that they be not our enemies. 5. Dissimilitude in manners: distance in manner of life, & contrariety in nature, dissolveth friendship: Approved friendships, desire earnestly, retain constantly, keep perpetually: Enmities which happen, use honestly, believe slowly, lay down speedily. 6. With our friends we ought to have short reckonings, and long friendships. 7. First settle thyself to be good, and then seek another like to thyself. 8. Admonish thy friend secretly, but praise him openly: If thou bear with thy friends faults, thou makest them thine own: So trust thy friend, that thou leave no place for an enemy. 9 It is a march an●ising, not a friendship, that respecteth commodity. For he detracteth or discrediteth friendship, who provideth for good haps. 22. Concernng Gratitude, or Thankfulness. 1. This surely is agreeable to justice, so be thankful for every benefit received. 2. Some give thanks by stealth, in a corner, or in the ear: they are afraid to do it openly, that they may be said to have a benefit rather by their own virtue, than by others help. 3. Let us therefore think nothing more honest than a thankful mind: And he that accepteth a good turn thankfully, hath paid the first pension. 4. He that willingly oweth thanks, doth recompense a good turn: And he that means to be thankful, forthwith when he receiveth, doth acknowledge it. 5. To recompense a good turn, and to be thankful, requireth time, and ability, and a prosperous fortune. Nothing is so necessary, or with more care to be learned, than to requite a benefit, and to give thanks. 23. General precepts: note them well. 1. It is the triumph of innocency not to sin: And where we may do most harm to forbear. 2. Thou sinnest twice when thou appliest thyself to obey sin. The eyes offend not, if the mind command not the eyes. 3. Vices do creep, and hurt by touching, & the sinful lives of offenders do pass to every one that is next. 4. No possession, no weight of gold or silver is more to be esteemed than virtue. 5. Virtue is thankful to every one both dead and living: if we follow it in good sooth. 6. All benefits would be bestowed in light, or openly: but there is no stage or theatre greater to virtue, than a good conscience. 7. We must so live, as if we lived in the sight of all the world: we must so think, as if every man might see into our inward breast, (or as if every man might see our heart). 8. Regard thy conscience, more than same, for same may be deceived many times: but by thy conscience never. 9 Fear no man more, that is wéeting of thy sin, than thyself, for thou mayest escape another, but thyself never. For sin is a punishment to itself. 10. Learn this one thing, to despise this life: No man ever ruled it well, but he that despised it: Think still of what manner thy life is, and not how long: for not to live long, but to live well, is a good thing. 11. It is a good thing to finish our life before death, and then to expect the time that remaineth in security. 12. None of us knows, how near the Lord is: Let us therefore frame our minds, as if we were come to the last home. No man receiveth death cheerfully, but he that hath prepared himself thereto long before. 13. Whatsoever thou dost, look to death. Every day must be ordered, as it were the last. These are out of a Heathen man; Hear them, ponder them, blush, and follow them. Except thou walk and continue in this way: Thou shalt be odious to God, The conclusion. who hateth the workers of iniquity: Thou shalt be offensive to good men, and even to the unbelievers: because for thy sake the name of God is evil spoken of among the Gentiles: Thou shalt be cursed every where, and procure grievous punishments upon thyself: Thou shalt be holden captive as a slave in Satan's snares. To conclude, thou shalt have no part in God's kingdom, but shalt hear that fearful sentence of the most high judge: Go thou cursed one into everlasting fire. O homo. Mors tua, Mors Christi, Fraus Mundi, Gloria Coeli. Et dolour Inferni, sunt meditanda tibi. Remember man thy dying day, General. restraints of sin. And Christ, who for thee died: Remember Satan's subtleties, And how this world doth slide. Remember joys celestial, And pains that are in hell: Let not thy flesh seduce thy soul, Remember these things well. FINIS. Certain short Prayers, framed to the Argument of the parts and members of this book, for the use of such as desire to profit by calling for the assistance of God's grace, in whatsoever they shall be instructed by this book, to be needful for them. 1. A Prayer to prepare us to enter the way of Christian Piety and Charity, fitting to the argument of the Prologue. O Almighty God and most merciful father, who hast engrafted in all men a desire to know and live: And To know from whom all true knowledge and life proceedeth: Grant me true knowledge, whereby I may know thee, and myself aright: Lest by knowing much, and yet not knowing thee, and myself aright: It may be said of me, (as of many other) that I have much knowledge and little conscience. And am puffed up with knowledge, but void of Charity. And seeing this life is not to be desired To live. for itself, but for an other, whereunto we must enter by the gate of death. Give me grace that I may so live here, that I may always live with Christ: that I may learn both to die and live aright: That I may study not to live long, but to live well: That I be not suddenly taken out of this life, before I have begun to live well. Moreover, O Lord: for as much as thou hast set a mark to such as will live A mark. godly, to wit: Everlasting life, and hast showed the way to this mark, Even by The way. jesus Christ, who is the way: the truth: and the life. Grant me O Lord, the knowledge of The knowledge of the way. this way: by the right understanding of thy holy word, and by the instruction and illumination of thy holy spirit: That at the length I may feel thy grace working in my heart: That by beginning in thee, and not falling from thee, but profiting, and going forward in godliness, I may walk in faith and charity, till I come to the mark, by jesus Christ, etc. Amen. A prayer for the entrance of the way The first member. of Christian Piety and Charity, fitting to the argument of the first Member: Incipe: Begin. O Almighty God and most merciful The end and the way. father, who hast proposed a happy end to a Christian life: and hast showed us a good and right way, whereby we might attain the same: yea, and hast set us in that way, by the Sacrament of Baptism: and hast instructed us by thy holy word: and confirmed us in the same by the blessed Sacrament of thy Body and Blood. Give me grace, that I may earnestly bend my whole study, and desire, to attain that end or mark: And that my heart may long after thee my God, from whom I have long time been wandering: Grant me now at length, seriously to meditate my conversion, by turning from sin, the worst of all evils: and by returning to thee my God, the best of all goods. And that I may truly turn from sin, Turning from sin. give me grace to consider the miserable state of man, living in sin. uz. How grievous a thing it is, to have thee his The miserable state of a sinner enemy: and thereby to be deprived of grace in this life, and of glory in the life to come: How grievous a thing it is, to grieve the holy spirit, and the holy Angels our keepers: How grievous a thing it is, to become a slave to sin and Satan, and so an heir of damnation. I crave thy help therefore O God, to lead me to repentance: That I may Repentance search myself, and examine all my actions, both internal, and external, according to the rule of thy justice, even thy law: whereby I may discern how I have in Degrees of sin inward. heart, grown: from suggestion, to delight: from delight, to consent: from consent, to a defence or justifying of my sin. How Outward I have grown in action, from secret sinning, without fear before thee: to open sinning, without shame of men: from thence to a custom, without compunction, deceiving myself with a vain hope of mercy, with danger of despair in the Fear of God. end, strike therefore O Lord a fear of thee into my heart, and astonish my mind, that I may fear to be forsaken of thy grace: to be deprived of thy sight: to be tormented in hell: prick my heart, not so much with a sorrow Godly sorrow. of thy punishments, as with a sorrow of offending thee, my good and merciful father: that the spirit of adoption, Rom. 8. may succeed the spirit of bondage: And the sweet comforts of thy Gospel, may sucéede the terrors of thy Law: Through jesus Christ our Saviour, etc. Amen. Now in our conversion, as there is Returning to God. Terminus a quo: so there is Terminus ad Quem; As we must turn from sin, so we must return to thee: who art the chiefest good, most simple, most perfect: Grant me therefore thy holy spirit, which only can work this conversion Effects of our conversion. in my soul: By illuminating my understanding, that it may judge aright: By directing my will, that it may choose aright: and by inspiring my heart, that it may desire that which is good. That in the end I may bring forth the fruits of holiness and obedience towards thee my God: to whom I am infinitely bound, etc. And the duties of charity towards my neighbours: As in the practice of the holy Prophet, David's repentance we are taught. And because delaying of returning is dangerous: as by thy holy word, and Dangers of delay. sundry examples we are taught: Give me grace not to defer my conversion unto thee, but even this day at the least, to begin: Lest by continuing in sin, I treasure up for myself wrath, against the day of wrath: Lest I be restrained from thee: Lest I be deprived of joy and comfort of the spirit▪ Lest my conscience be seared up by hardness of heart. Give me grace therefore O Lord, speedily to return to thee: for what is the certainty of my life? Or who knoweth the day and hour when thou wilt come to judgement? Blessed is that servant whom the Lord when he cometh shall find watching. Verily, he shall be crowned with immortal glory, with Christ jesus our Lord. Amen. A prayer not to faint or go backward, fitting the argument of the second Member: Ne defice, Faint not, nor go backward. O Almighty God, and most merciful The second member. father, forasmuch as through thy grace I have in some sort attained the knowledge of the way of life, and have also by thy grace entered the same: give me increase of thy grace, that I may walk in it. For there are many stumbling blocks, many snares: many temptations in the Temptations in the way of godliness. By God. way, so that we had need of thy help to stay us, that we faint not, or fall away. 1. If it be thy good will to tempt me O Lord, I know it is for my good, not to cast me down, but to draw me from the love of this present world: to stir me up to the love of our heavenly country, and that I might know from whence I have power to resist temptations. Give me grace therefore by faith and patience, to humble myself under thy mighty hand. 2. If sathan tempt me, I know it is to overthrow me: yet though he be very strong By Satan. give mestrength to resist him: though he be very subtle, give me wisdom to beware of him: though he be cruel, give me courage to triumph over him, through Christ our Captain: who hath spoiled him, cast him out, and led him captive. 3. If the flesh do tempt me, it is so much the more troublesome, as it is By the flesh. Memory of sin with sorrow. more domestical. 1. For sometimes the memory of my former sins hath recourse with sorrow, which maketh me to doubt of my true reconciliation with thee, which though it be troublesome, yet it is not unprofitable: That I might thereby consider the heinousness of sin, whereby I have provoked thee: that thereby I might conceive a fear and sorrow for the same: that I might blush and be ashamed before thee our father, & be stirred up to love thee so much the more, who hast pardoned our sins, by thy mercy in jesus Christ. 2. Sometimes the memory of my Memory of sin, with delight. former sin, hath recourse with delight: whereby it appeareth, that there remaineth some remnant of the old wounds, which memory is dangerous, because it bringeth with it a certain heaviness, whereby I am excluded from the sweetness of my conversion to thee, by delighting in the former lusts of the flesh, before my conversion. Give me therefore O Lord thy special grace, that I may remember my former sins with sorrow, and not with delight: with detestation, and not with desire: with condemnation, and not with justification. Purge my memory from unclean fantasies, draw out that filthy sink: Make the purpose of my mind constant in good. Grant me to detest inconstancy, idleness, and sloth: As soon as I am provoked with wicked cogitations, grant me earnestly to withstand them: that with a clean heart I may receive thy holy spirit. 3. Some times, even in the entry of the way of life, my mind is troubled, to The cares of a Christian life. think how many cares and troubles▪ Christian life is tossed with, which it seemed to be void of, while I gave the rains to my lusts: whereby the way of godliness seemeth hard and difficult. Give me grace therefore O Lord according to thy commandment to deny myself, and to take up my Cross & follow thee: Denial of ourselves. Thou O Christ our guide and standard-bearer hast gone this way: This way have all the Saints trodden: The way of life is not so hard, and difficult, where Christ is our guide, where he is our speed: Thou hast promised that thou wilt give us a new heart, and a new spirit, that we may walk in thy precepts: give us that thou commandest, and command us what thou wilt. 4, If the world either by allurements would draw me to his love, or by contempt By the world. would drive me from my profession, with a certain shame thereof: Give me grace to despise the world, and not much ●● care to be despised: for how transitory is the felicity of this world? how many troubles is it mixed with? Give me grace to remember, that shortly we shall all be presented before the tribunal of Christ, of whom whosoever shall be ashamed before men, of him will Christ be ashamed before his holy Angels: Grant me grace therefore never to be ashamed of any good: but to be ashamed of sin, which bringeth shame and confusion: from which vouchsafe to deliver us through jesus Christ. Amen. 5. Moreover, for as much as all relapse into sin is dangerous, lest our last be worse than the first: Both in respect of Danger of Relapse. God, into whose favour to return, it is harder after we have despised his grace, than God, into whose favour to return, it is harder after we have despised his grace, than before we have received it: Secondly, in respect of the devil, who returneth with seven worse spirits: Thirdly, in respect of ourselves, who by custom engender wicked habits, hardly to be cured. Grant me therefore grace O Lord, that I return, not as a dog to my vomit, lest I may seem to despise thy Majesty, whose mercy I have so often begged, that I might obtain pardon: Lest I give opportunity to the unclean spirit to enter again, with seven worse spirits. Lest by custom of sin, I grow to an hardness of heart, to commit sin with greediness, without repentance. From those so dangerous evils of relapse, stay me O Lord by thy mighty hand, through thy mercy, in thy son jesus Christ. Amen. A prayer to profit and go forward, fitting to the Argument of the third Member. Profice seu pergredere. The third Member. Profit or go forward. O Almighty God and most merciful Ourbackwardnesse in profiting. father, I acknowledge that it is not in a man's power to direct his own ways, or to reform his own life: But either we stick in the beginning of the race, or we go not forward so well, or so fast as either we ought or desire. Grant me therefore O Lord according to the riches of thy grace, that I may be strengthened by thy spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in my heart by faith, that I being rooted and grounded in love: may go forward in the way of salvation. First in denying of myself, and Next in practising righteousness. And because all sin, be it never so small, doth make us guilty of punishment, Care of lesser sins. and defileth the soul: doth diminish the seruor of Charity, and weaken the force of the spirit: doth dispose to great sins, and hinder increase of graces: doth spoil us of spiritual gifts, and deprive us of glory, etc. Grant me grace O Lord to withstand the first motions of sin, and diligently to examine every corner of my heart▪ and by speedy repentance and faith to purge every sin, seem it never so small: that I may not only cut off all occasions of sin, but also pull it up by the root, through jesus Christ. Notwithstanding O merciful father, forasmuch as through thy long suffering, Care of grievous sins. thou dost not only as it were wink at our lesser sins, but art also wont, through thy mercy, to pardon our more grievous sins: so that though they be, as purple or scarlet, by repentance they become as wool or snow. Grant me grace so to profit in the way of godliness that I may daily more and more deny myself: By mortifying the love of myself: By taming the appetites of the flesh. By refraining the affections of the mind or will: But especially in rooting out all wicked habits. Both in the Superior and Inferior faculties of our soul. Mortify O Lord in my understanding, Wicked habits in the understanding. Curiosity Rashness. the vice of curiosity: whereby I am too curious to search those things which exceed my capacity: or which appertain nothing unto me: The vice of rashness, whereby I presume to judge of other men's lives and manners: besides the rule of charity, either by uncertain, and doubtful conjectures, or else by envious, or malicious rumours. The vice of pertinacy, whereby I do stand so stiffly in my Pertinacy presumed opinion, that I will admit no man's counsel, or persuasion above mine own. Free my understanding O Lord, from Cogitations. all idle, worldly, unclean and curious cogitations: in stead whereof, give me grace, that necessary, spiritual, holy, and profitable cogitations may occupy my mind: That I may contemplate heavenly things, laying a foundation for the time to come, that I may obtain eternal life. Mortify O Lord in my will, whatsoever The will. is repugnant to thy will, that I may neither will, nor desire any thing, but that which is agreeable to thy will revealed in thy word, and is acceptable to thee. And because in the inferior faculties Wicked habits in the appetites. of our souls, in our appetites and senses, many wicked habits do prevail, which without a mighty force of the spirit cannot be subdued; As Gluttony and Drunkenness: Luxury: Avarice: Envy: Anger: Pride: Slothfulness in godly exercises: Cowardliness, or pusilanimity in temptations. Grant me O Lord by thy grace, to overcome all these evils, whereunto either all, or to some one more than the rest, either by nature I am inclined, or by custom subdued: that being delivered out of the snares of sin, and Satan, I may serve thee in such righteousness and holiness, as is acceptable with thee, through jesus Christ our Lord. Prayers against each particular evil habit, as every man shall think most befitting his own estate. O Almighty God and most merciful 1. Against Gluttony or drunkenness, pray thus. father, I confess and acknowledge that thou hast forewarned us, to take heed of surfeiting and drunkenness: and hast threatened by thy holy word, to exclude Gluttons and Drunkards out of the kingdom of heaven. Give me grace to avoid this sin, by a moderate abstinence: by flying idleness: by Restraints of gluttony. a meditation of heavenly things: by a practice of Christian virtues: by an imitation of Christ, in hungering, thirsting, and praying: Grant me grace that in eating and drinking I be not carried too far beyond the bounds of natural necessity. And that I may come to take my food, as to take a medicine: that I may repress in feeding a new appetite, stirred by variety of dishes: that I may receive my corporal food with prayer and thanksgiving, and with a desire of spiritual food, that being refreshed with bodily food, I may return more cheerfully to the offices of my calling, through jesus Christ. Amen. O Almighty God and most merciful father, forasmuch as the vice of luxury or Against Luxury, pray thus. Riotousness is never alone, but is carrier, as it were in a Coach on four wheels, uz. Pampering of the belly, and lusts of the flesh: Niceness in apparel, and lastnesse of sleep: And is drawn as it were with two horses, equally matched, uz. Prosperity of life, and abundance of wealth, whereon also do sit as it were two drivers, Slothful dullness, and Envious security. Give me grace O Lord, to profit day, by day, in the mortifying of this vice: or rather vices: By humble prayer, craving continency of thee: By withdrawing from the fire of lust, the fuel of wine and delicates: By a watchful ear: expelling out of my heart all evil cogitations forthwith as they rise: And by keeping my senses, lest death enter by them as by the windows: Grant that by thy grace I may warily avoid whatsoever is beautiful to the eye: whatsoever is sweet to the taste: whatsoever is pleasant to the ear: whatsoever delighteth the smell: whatsoever is soft in touching. That at length by thy grace I may so profit in mortifying Luxury, the though I feel the prick of the flesh, yet I may suppress it without sin, and may perceive lust to be so abated in me, that though it cannot wholly be taken away, yet it may be subdued: Through jesus Christ, Amen. O Almighty God and most merciful ●. Against covetousness, pray thus. father, forasmuch as thou hast forewarned thy children to beware of covetousness, which is an unsatiable desire to possess more and more, and is accompanied with many mischiefs: Give me grace to expel and expulse this vice, by a godly contentment: depending always upon thy providence, and promise: and setting before our eyes the example of our Saviour Christ, who when he was Lord of all, became poor for us: Grant me therefore in whatsoever estate I am therewith to be content, either in plenty or want, in fullness or penury. Remembering that riches cannot help in the day of temptation, nor give tranquillity or rest to the soul: but rather do wrap their possessors in many snares. Grant me therefore to cast all my care upon thee, etc. Through jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. O Almighty God and most merciful 4. Against Wrath, pray thus. father, forasmuch as thou hast forbidden us to be angry, rashly, and dost make it as murder, to be in danger of judgement: I beseech thee by thy grace, to free me from this sin: which extinguisheth the light of reason, disguiseth the countenance, and changeth a man into a Monster. Grant me by thy grace to overcome this savage beast, by removing the procurers of anger, which are Envy: Pride: Curiosity: Suspicion: Credulity: & love of ourselves: By restraining, by the wisdom of the spirit, the first assaults of anger. By Christian patience suffering wrongs, and not seeking to revenge ourselves: That observing thy commandments, and following thy example, I may through patience inherit the promise, through jesus Christ, Amen. O Almighty God and most merciful 5. Against Envy, pray thus. father, who hast commanded us to love our neighbours as ourselves, the poison against which love, is Envy: which sorroweth at the prosperity of our neighbour, and joyeth at his misery. Give me grace therefore O Lord, to shun this plague, which hurteth more the possessor, than him that is envied: For the avoiding whereof, Grant me grace to contemn all human things: & to long for that heritage, which multitude of heirs doth not strengthen: that I may reckon the gifts of my neighbours as mine own, and communicate my gifts with them: that Envy being set apart, we may reckon that ours which they possess, and that we possess may be theirs, as Members of one body, whereof Christ is the head. O Almighty God and most merciful father, who resistest the proud, and givest Against Pride, pray thus. grace unto the humble, For as pride is the root of all evil, so it is the overthrow of all virtues, and as an infectious disease, corrupteth all the faculties of the soul. Give me grace therefore O Lord to beat down this great evil: By taking a diligent view of myself, that finding mine own wants, I may lay down my Pride: By conferring my state, with the first estate of our first parents, I may see from whence I am fallen: By knewing the law, I may know my own infirmities: And by setting before me Christ's example, I may learn Humility: who when he was Lord of Men and Angels, yet became a perfect pattern of Humility, and Contempt of the world: that we being humbled in ourselves, might ●e exalted of thee: Through jesus Christ, Amen. O Almighty God and most merciful Against dullness in 〈…〉 exercises, pray thus. father, I acknowledge my dullness and lukewarmness, in going forward in the way of life: whose effects daily I feel in myself. For. How often do I pray without attention and fervency of spirit: How often do Ill effects. I meditate divine things, without affection of my mind, and therefore without fruit? How hardly do I rid myself from idle company? How seldom do I return into myself, to gather my spirits, to examine my own state? I look into myself as it were through a Lattice, without repentance or amendment of life: I talk freely of other men, and severely censure their deeds and words: O how willingly do I pass my time in vain shows, or outward things; to relieve my weariness? How often do I seek comforts here and there, & solace myself with idle thoughts? How grievously do I bear discipline & correction? I obey laws but for a fashion, with loathsomeness & unwillingness O how often do I avoid labours, which are necessary, and profitable to salvation. I seek to be gracious, and in favour with men: How do I neglect the use of the Sacraments? How seldom, and negligently do I hear godly Sermons? How careless hitherto have I been, to avoid sin? How presumptuous of mine own strength? How much have I pampered myself, making provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof? I call to mind my old manners, and the pleasures of sin, not with grief and disliking, but with a delight and liking. Grant me therefore, O Lord, thy Dangers of Lukewarmness. grace, that I may overcome this root of vices. I acknowledge the danger, wherein a Lukewarm man doth stand: whom thou hast threatened to vomit out: whose state is miserable, and end searefull: Give me grace therefore not to fall back into mine old sins, that I be not in danger of a greater ruin: but that recovering out of the gulf of these mischiefs, I may with a more cheerful mind, run the way of life. Stir up in me O Lord, an Remedies ardent desire of newness of life: make me continually to meditate on my end, which if it should happen to be sudden, and I unprovided, the things that come after will be more grievous, which my end that it may be blessed, I beseech thee for jesus Christ his sake, etc. Amen. When thou art entered, O my soul, In case of Pusillanimity or fear, a communication with the soul. the way of life, thou art perhaps grieved, either with the expectation of some evil at hand, or with distrust of deliverance from some evil present: But pray O my soul with David; I expected him who delivered me from my fear, and from the storm. Conceive an assured hope in God's providence, and flee to him in the time of trouble. Peradventure he will humble thee, by this temptatian, to beat down thy pride, which assaulteth the godly, even in holy actions, or be purposeth to purge thee of self-love, whereby thou pleasest thyself many times, more than is meet. But what is it O my soul, that thou needest fear? Dost thou fear the Cross and affliction? The cross not to be feared. If thou be godly, the Cross and affliction as it cannot be shunned, so it is profitable, and glorious to the godly: It abateth vices; it increaseth virtues: it confirmeth our Adoption, etc. Bear it therefore patiently and courageously. 2. Dost thou shrink at sickness: Thy Not sickness. body is subject to death, why then dost thou so grieve at sickness, which prepareth to death, which to the godly is a passage to life? Moreover, the sickness of the body, doth many times, cure the diseases of the soul. 3. Dost thou grieve for the loss of Not loss of worldly things. worldly things. Believe in God, & take hold of his promises: He will not leave thee, nor forsake thee. 4. Doth the terror of death astonish thee: Not death Cast off fear, which riseth of infidelity: Compare the course of this life, with the last period thereof. Art thou tossed with continual miseries? Fear not death which shall deliver thee, from the tyranuy of sin, from the deceits of the world, from the temptations of Satan. Eternal death shall not touch thee, because life is prepared for thee in Christ. 5. Do the assaults of Satan terrify thee? Remember that God doth arm, Not Satan. such as be his, with power to resist Satan: Thou shalt overcome by Christ our Captain: Call upon God, and arm thyself with the Shield of faith, & the sword of the spirit, etc. And by God's grace thou shalt overcome. 6. Art thou amazed with thy many Not many or great sins. and great sins? The remission of thy sins is sealed, and confirmed to thee, by many and great promises by Christ, and in Christ, therefore thou oughtest not to 1. joh. 2. fear, If any man sin, we have an Advocate to the father, even jesus Christ, the righteous. 7. Doth the terror of the last judgement, Not the last judgement. make thee tremble? Cast off this fear, call to mind the love of God the father, in his son, and that the same Son of God, is both thy redeemer, and judge. And thou O my soul, as often as thou sinnest, so often by faith and repentance be thou renewed: Take hold by faith on God's grace, acknowledge the love of Daily repentance. Christ, embrace the comfort of the holy spirit: who is the earnest of our inheritance: whereby it will come to pass, that thou coming with confidence unto the Throne of God's grace, shalt find comfort against temptations, in due season: Through jesus Christ, etc. Amen. Prayers framed to the Argument of the fourth Member. Proceed further, to attain Righteousness The fourth Member. and Virtue. O Almighty God and most merciful God's long suffering. father, I acknowledge thy infinite grace and mercy towards me, who hast been hitherto so patiented, and long suffering towards me, that thou hast not only endured me, having all my life long provoked thee, by my many and great sins: but also hast now at the last, prevented me, by thy grace, that I might come to the knowledge of my sins, and turn from them, and return unto thee, by hearty repentance, and denial of unrighteousness: So that I seem, in some sort, to have proceeded in forsaking the love of myself: In moderating my carnal desires: In mortifying the Affections of my mind: In rooting out evil habits. But because I must not stay here, but from the denial of unrighteousness, I Grace to proceed. m●st proceed further, to the attaining of righteousness, which I cannot do, except thou O Lord, do give grace, and power: therefore I come unto thee O Lord, beseeching thee, to give me grace both to attain to virtues, and to keep them being attained: And because they be best both attained, and kept: by frequent use of godly prayer: By an ardent love of virtue: and by continual exercise. Give me grace O Lord, never to faint Means. in prayer; with hearty affection to embrace virtue, and not to hide my Talon, but that occupying with the same, I may make a good account to thee thereof. And that I may grow from virtue to A purpose to persevere. virtue, Grant that I may have a firm will and purpose, not only to enter, but also to persevere in well doing, that no storm of temptation may remove me, that being in love with virtues, I may cheerfully do the offices due to her: yet not for any other respect than for thy glory: Always beholding our Master jesus Christ, as the perfect pattern of life and death. Amen. We must begin at justice. O Almighty and most merciful father, A prayer to attain justice. who art just in all thy ways, and holy in all thy works: I acknowledge that I am infinite ways bound unto thee, for thine unspeakable benefits: which I can no way recompense, but by glorifying thee, according to the rule of justice, which thou hast prescribed to us, that as thou art just, so should we be just also: By giving to every one that which is due to them; To thee, that which is due to thee: To men, that which is due to men. Give me grace therefore O Lord, to worship thee, according to the prescript 1. Towards God. rule of thy word: that is, to call upon thy name, with a true affection of heart, and a lively faith: To submit myself obediently to thy Majesty: In a true fear of thy judgements, avoiding essences: And in an earnest love of thy promises, embracing thy mercies: To rest upon thee, by a firm hope, and constant trust: To testify my thankfulness, by a cheerful obedience of thy will: Never to be ashamed of thy truth, but to profess it constantly: To endure the cross, with an invincible courage: Looking for that blessed hope, and appearing of the glory of the great God, even thy son jesus Christ our Lord, Amen. O Almighty God, and merciful father, 2. Towards ourselves thou hast allowed us to love ourselves, to have a moderate care of ourselves, by maintaining those good things, which thou either in soul, or body, hast bestowed on us. Give me grace therefore to be chief 1. The soul careful for the good of my soul, by repairing & reforming, both the superior and inferior faculties of my soul. Grant me grace therefore, O Lord, to Superior faculties. The mind Wisdom apply my mind to the knowledge of Divine, & human things, which either may further me to the life celestial, or make me profitable to human felicity. Which is wisdom. Grant me Prudence, to choose that Prudence which is verily good, and to refuse that which is verily evil: to mark what is to be desired, and what is to be shunned. Grant me discretion, which is the companion Discretion. of true Prudence, that I may discern, truth, from falsehood: certainties, from uncertainties: that which is profitable, from that which is unprofitable; that which is seasonable, from that which is unseasonable: things honest, from unhonest: things pleasant, from unpleapleasant: and to conclude, good from evil. And among these, what is moor or less good, what is convenient for time, place, and persons. Give me grace O Lord, to remove all The conscience. impediments, whereby my conscience may be wounded, and grieved, which are only my sins, which bring sorrow, and inflict wounds. Grant that I may so restrain my conscience, Knowledge of the law by the knowledge of thy law, and awe of thy judgements, that I may not dare any thing contrary to thy will. And if my conscience chance to be A remedy. wounded, that I may speedily seek my remedy, which only is, the redemption by the bleed of jesus Christ: apprehended by a true and lively faith: whereby our consciences are secured before thee, if therewithal we abstain from our sins, and serve thee with a pure mind. Give me grace O Lord, to will nothing, but that which is agreeable to thy will, revealed in thy word: that cleaving only thereunto, I may both will, and do those things, which are good and acceptable to thee, which grace we obtain, by the assistance of thy holy spirit, who worketh in all men the power, both to will and to perform, according to thy free grace: Through jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour, Amen. Give me grace also O Lord, to rule Inferior faculties. The Irascible part. the inferior faculties of my soul, Anger and Lust. And that I may moderate Anger: grant me fortitude, whereby my soul may be strengthened, stirred up, and armed, to endure labour, and danger, yea of death, for Christ's sake, with a good courage: that I may be able to moderate and subdue my affections, and not be subdued of them: That I may despise worldly honour, and seek the glory of God, and eternal felicity: that I may patiently bear all troubles, and adversities, and crosses, which cannot with godliness and honesty be avoided. Grant me constancy, that I may persevere, in honest, and godly purposes, Constancy. retaining one tenure of mind, & will: that I be not puffed up in prosperity, nor cast down in adversity, to fall from good to evil. Grant me meekness, whereby my Meekness soul may so appease the rage of Anger: that it prevail not above reason, and put it out of place: but that it may incline, rather to pardon, than revenge. To conclude, grant me humility, that Humility I wax not proud, in opinion of my gifts, or graces, above other: but truly acknowledging my own infirmities, I may, not only, not prefer myself before other, but also prefer every one before myself. So shall not my Angry part, break forth like a wild beast into rage, but be a furtherance to me in the course of virtue. Through jesus Christ. Amen. Give me grace O Lord, to moderate The concupiscible part. my lusts, by Temperance, in Abstinence, and Continence. Grant that I may restrain the desires, pleasures, and delights of the Temperance. body, which being natural, are the more hardly restrained: Let my soul therefore strive against them, by temperance, in using moderately meats, and drinks, ordained for the nourishment of the body, that whether we eat, or drink, we may do it to thy glory. Grant me Chastity, to contemn my Chastity. Lusts, in a holy moderation of the parts, given for generation, that I may keep them within the bounds of the lawful use, ordained by thee, in holy wedlock. That my Lusts by thy grace being Chastised, they may not rage, to make me brutish, nor defile my soul, to make me odious to thee, but being by thy grace and spirit subdued, my soul and body may be an holy Temple, acceptable to thee: Through jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. O Almighty God, and most merciful Goods of the body. father, thou hast given us leave to take care for our bodies, ●o that the same be moderate. Give me grace therefore, so to provide Life, and health. for my body, that I make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the Lusts thereof: but that the care of life and health, which we seek to preserve, may by thy goodness be so blessed, that I may be the better able to perform the duties of my calling. And if my health be impaired, grant O Lord, that the means which I shall use to remove diseases, may by thy goodness In sickness take good effect. And that, whether in sickness, or health, I may be both content, and thankful to thee who knowest best, what is best for every man: and turnest all to the best, for them that love thee: Through jesus Christ our Lord, Amen. Thou also hast commanded us O Lord, to content ourselves with our estate, 3. External goods whether in poverty, or riches, whether in contempt or honour. Give me grace therefore, with a thankful mind towards thee, to content my Contentment. self with my lot, and not to seek, by greedy care, to increase. Grant that I may by godly industry Godly industry. get my living, neither enriching myself, by unlawful means, nor eating the sweat of other men's brows: but eating the lawful labour of mine own hands: Possessing riches holily, and using them frugally. Grant that I may by virtue, godliness, Honest fame. and honest arts purchase a good estimation and report, with the good and honest: that, as far as is lawful, I may regard the estimation among men: and where it is not attained, but with evil circumstances, I may contemn it: together with all false reports and contempt of the wicked and malicious, so that there be always, within myself, the testimony of a good conscience towards thee. That finishing the course of this life, in an holy calling, whether through penury, or abundance, through contempt, or honour, I may attain the celestial crown: through jesus Christ. Amen. O Almighty God and most merciful 3. Towards our neighbours. father, thou hast taught us, that we are not borne to ourselves: but that we should love our neighbours, as ourselves. I acknowledge therefore, that Iew● unto my neighbours, the duties of justice, both to all in general, and to some specially; both to the living, and to the dead: both in inward affection, and in outward effect. Give me grace therefore, to embrace all men, as men: yea as thy Image, with To all men. a loving affection wishing unto them all good, as to myself, and as much as lieth in me, to be at peace with all men. Yielding due benevolence unto all men, in countenance, gesture, word, and deed; helping and furthering them, to the uttermost of my power. Grant that I may through true charity, To some special. have a feeling of other men's misery, to suffer with them that suffer: & through true love, to relieve them, to give alms to the poor, to harbour the strangers, etc. That I may be partaker of that blessing: Come, ye Blessed, inherit the kingdom, etc. Give me grace to yield unto my superiors, reverence, and obedience: as unto thee, and forthée: To my Inferiors humility, and beneficence: in conference and conversion: To my friends mutual love, and gratitude: in affection of heart, and signs of thankfulness. And because thou hast commanded us To the dead. to do good even unto the dead: Grant that I may be ready to perform unto the dead, the last Christian duty: in moderate mourning over them, and decent burial of their bodies, in hope of the Resurrection, not forgetting to show my good will, and liberality towards their posterity, their widows, children, and kindred. etc. That in this wise, performing the duties The conclusion. of justice, required of every Christian, having by thy grace O Lord; Entered the way of godliness, and charity. And Fainting not in the same, but going forward, not only: To the denial of all unrighteousness: but also To the practice of righteousness, even with perseverance, I may in the end, attain the crown of glory, by jesus Christ our Lord, Amen. The Epilogue consisting of Reason, and Sentences, both of Christians, and Heathens, to stir up our endeavour, & love to Piety, and Charity: Is referred to the Members of the former treatise: Therefore they are easily converted to our use, by the prayers above framed. God grant this book, and labour, may have good success, according to the Authors wish, in his Epistle Dedicatory. Amen. FINIS.