fhall be our condemna ion, if God doe only offer us the bread of life, and doe not withall give us it, and make us to receive it. All bodily meats being a power nutritive, but profit no', except they be a power digeftive: So though the body of Christ crucified have a power to give life and nourishment, yet except we digeft it with faith, it shall doc us no good.

For our affurance hereof Chrift faith of the Sonne of man, that God the Father hath fealed him, that is, he hath power and authority to be the bread of life, and to conferve life to them that feed on him. He hath fealed him, First with his nature, being the very Sonne of God, He is the fimilitude and ingraven form of his perfon, Hebrews the first chapter and the third verfe. We need not to doubt of the remiffion of our finnes; for Chrift as he is God, giveth power to forgive finnes. Secondly, as he is fealed with Gods nature, fo with his name, He is wonderfull Counsellor, the mighty God, the Prince of Peace, Ifatab the ninth chapter. Thirdly, With his miracles, For he raiseth the dead, and quickneth whom he will, no leffe than the Father, John the fitt chapter and the twenty firft verfe. Fourthly. Because exception was taken against his miracles, For they faid that he did them by Belzebub, Matthew the twelfth chapter, therefore he is further fealed, with a voyce from Heaven Saying, This is he in whom I am well pleased, beare ye him, Matthew the feventeenth chapter: not only whom he commands, but where he promifeth, to refresh them that come to him, Matthem the eleventh chapter. Fiftly, He hath fealed him with the spirit, The spirit of the Lord is upon me, Luke the fourth chapter; And that not only rests (John the third chapter the three and thirtieth and four and thirtieth verses) content with receiving the fpirit for himself, but with a power to give it to his: So that by his interceffion with God the Father, He fent down the spirit upon the Apostles, Acts the second chapter. Being thus fealed by God, he is able to nourish us by his flesh crucified for us, unto eternall life, if he give us grace to lay hold of it by faith.

Luke 12.15. Dixit igitur eis, Videte, & cavete ab avaritia: nec enim cujufquam vita ex iis quæ ipfi fuppetunt, in eo fita eft ut redundet.

The former question is refolved three wayes. First, We must be-> ware of it, because the finne of covetoufaeffe is hardly avoided, the defire of having aboundance is so rooted in the hearts of all men. Se condly, Because, as it is hardly avoided, so it is a finne very hainous in Gods fight, being committed, howfoever we perfwade our felves, that those finnes are the least, that are naturally planted in us. Thirdly, Because whereas men may repent for other finnes, they can hardly repent of this. For other immoderate defires doe ceafe by two means either when they are fatisfied, or elfe when death doth approach. Covetoufneffe doth yeild to neither of thefe means; for the more that riches increase, the more doth his covetous defire increafe; and the neerer that death is, the more doth a covetous man imbrace his riches, and still covet more.

Touching the fecond question; Though we be perfwaded that we ought to avoid this finne, yet we know not how; and therefore we ask, How hall we avoid it? The word of God appoints us three means, First, Trust in God Secondly, Prayer against the finne: How to avoid Thirdly, Meditations concerning the fame.

coveroufneffe.

in God.

Firft it is a good way, for the avoiding of covetoufneffe, to trust in The first God; for that is a thing that the heart of a covetous man will not fet means, Truft himself against: He will in no wife follow the counfell of the Philofopher, which reacheth, That to avoid covetoufneffe, a man must give himself to the actions of prodigality; he would rather hear how he might get money, than how to spend that he hath : But if he be adviled to put his truft in God, he will not be against that, as a thing which is not fo contrary to his finne as prodigality: But this means doth the Scripture inculcate, Trust not in uncertain riches, the first epiftle to Timothy and the fixt chapter: If riches increase fet not your weats upon them, Pfalm the fixty fecond: Riches avail not in the day of wrath, Divitias nam perdet in die ira, Proverbs the eleventh chapter and the fourth verfe: Let not the rich man glory in bis riches, Jeremiah the hinth chapter and the twenty third yerle. As the Scripture exhorts us, not to truft in riches; fo it fets forth examples of them that invain put their truft therein; For this is the man that took not God for bis frength, but trufted in the multitude of his riches, Pfalme the fifty fecond. But of confidence in God it speaketh thus, It is better to truft in the Lord, than to put confidence in man, Pfalm one hundred eighteens O Lord of hosts! blessed is the man that putteth his truft in thee, Pfalme the eighty fourth; Our fathers trufted in thee, and thou dideft deliver them, Pfalme the twenty fecond and the fourth verfe; The Lyon fhall hunger, but fuch as trust in the Lord fhall want no good thing, Pfalme the thirty fourth and the tenth verfe; A horfe is a vain thing to fave a man, but the eye of the Lordis upon them that fear him, and truft in his mercie, Pfalime the thirty third and the feventeenth verfe; To deliver their fouls from death and to feed them in the time of depth. After that a man bath admitted this opinion, which is so confirmed by Scripture, then there is cause to perfwade him; for the Apoftle gives two commands,in the first toTimothy the fixt chapter and the seventeenth verse,

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The fecond

Charge the rich of this world, not totrust in uncertain riches, but in the living God and to distribute. To teach them, That the cause whymen doo not diftribute, is for want of trust in God. They could be content to low good works; but they look up and fear a cloud of po verty will come upon them, and they fall want themselves; which would not be if they did trust in God but man give more trust to the uncertainty of riches, than to the certainty of Gods promife. To help this error, our Saviour faith, Care not for your heavenly Father knoweth that you need all these things, Maithear the fixt chapter and the thirty second verle; And the Apostle faith, Let your converfation, be without covetousnesses for God hath faid, I will not leave thee, non forfake thee, Hebrews the thirteenth chapter, and the fift verfe. If we were perfwaded, that he that feeks to obtain Gods favour by doing. good works, layeth up a better foundation for the time to come, than he that heaps up riches, the first epistle to Timothy, the fixt chapter and thenineteenth verfe, it would make us ufe this means, for the avoiding of covetoufneffe. For be a man never fo rich in this world, and never fo honourable, yet bis glorie shall not goe with him, Pfalm the fourty ninth and the leventeenth verfe: But their works follow them, opera fua fequuntur eos, Apoc. the fourteenth chapter and the thirteenth verfe. Therefore it were good for us rather to refpe& and provide for the time to come. And as it is good for the life to come, fo for this life prefcat; For a little that the righteous bath, is better than great riches of the ungodly, Pfalme the thirty seventh and the fixteenth verfe; And Godlinefe hath promise of this life and that which is to come, the first epis fileto Timothie the fourth chapter and the eight verfe. Again to truft in God, and not in riches, is a better foundation,not for our felves only, but for our pasterity; I never saw the righteous for faken; nor his feed begging their bread, Pfalm the thirty leventh and the twenty fift verfe; The feed of the righteous is blessed, Pfalme one hundred and twelve and the second verse.

The fecond means to avoid this finne is Prayer; either with a momeans,Prayer. derate defire to pray with Salomon, Proverbs the thirtieth chapter, That God will give neither poverty nor riches; or with David, Pfalme the hundred and nineteenth, Incline my heart to thy Laws, and not sa covetonfneffe. And this is a good means, fuch as a covetous man will cafily admit: For howfoever the finne of covetoufneffe be rooted in the heart of man, yet when he confiders the danger that he is in by the fame, he will pray that he were not covetous. And howsoever the Apostle faith, The prayer of a righteous man availeth much, if it be fervent, Oratio jufti fervens prævalet, James the fift chapter and the fixteenth verfe, yet God will fometime hear the prayer of a wicked man, if it be not fervent, yet if it be offered up ofen, it will not be in vain; not by the violence or weight, but by often rifing up, as the water that often falls makes the ftone hollow. The prayers of wic ked men are turned into finne, if they be ordained to finne, Pfalme the hundred and ninth and the feventh verfe And God doth not hear them that ask to spend upon their lufts, James the fourth chapter

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and the third verle. But when wicked men pray against finne, and, feek for grace to defroy figne in them, God doth nor reject thele prayers, For Chrift will not quench the fmoaking flax and the fudden flashing of fuch de fires in the hearts or covetous men, though they be not lo vehement as the prayers of righteous men, Matthew the twelfth chapter: Chrift did not quench the fall defire that was in Zacheus at the first, but accepted of it; fo that it grew to be a defire of fhewing greater works of liberality Luke 19.

The third means is Medication. Every covetous man hath thefe The third, Meflashing defires in his heart, that he were not fo covetous; As Baalam, ditation, though he lived wickedly, yet defired to dye the death of the righteous. But that those defires may be conftant, they must arife from meditation, which will stirre them up often; For fo they will be tanquam lumen crefcens ad meridiem, Proverbs the fourth chapter and the eighteenth verie; Whereas otherwife they are as the fudden flash of lightning, that doth no fooner appear, but is prefently gone. Therefore that he may avoid this finne, the covetous man among all his thoughts of vanity, I will gue to the Citie and buy and fell, James the fourth chapter; I will pull down my barns and make greater; I will eat and drink, Luke the twelfth chapter, muft ufe thele true thoughts, which only keeps him from it: Firft, he must think of the means, whereby he obtains riches. Secondly, of riches, what it is to be rich,and what riches are. That he may confider of the means of getting riches as he ought, he must think firft, To how many cares he is brought with the defire of being rich; how infinite and intricate his cares are that they are like thornes; he hath no fooner rid himself of one care, but another arifeth in his heart; For when a man hath enough, yet ftill he hath his cares: They that want meat and drink doe but fay, What shall we eat and drink? Matthew the fixt chapter, and the rich men that have to eat and drink, are also carefull to have more, and to enlarge their barges to receive more, Luke the twelfth chapter; therefore the Apostle faith well, They that will be rich, pearce themselves with many forrows, the first epistle to Timothy the fixt chap ter. Secondly, to how many finnes the covetous man doth endanger his foul, while, to gather riches, he ticketh not to finne against God, by oppreffion, by deceit, by perjury, fwearing, and unrighteous dealing. Thirdly, to how many judgments and plagues of God he is fubje&, by means of thefe finnes, even while he is in this life. Fourthly, That by means of his impenitencie, he is like to perish for ever: For whereas there is a forrow due to every finne, which being com- A forrow due mitted, by repentance is remitted and feeleth mercy at the hands of to every finne. God. The finne of the covetous man is fo rooted in him, that he cannot be forry for it: the more he bath, the more he fill defireth: and the neerer he is to death, the more he cleaveth to his finne of covetoufneffe. If he will be truly penitent for his finne, he must make reftitution, as Zacheus, Luke the nineteenth chapter. Penitentia non Of reftitution. agitur nifi reftituitur, & non remittitur peccatum nifi reftituatur ablatum. Without it, no But this is that which makes a covetous mans finne grievous before

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remiflion.

Uncertainty of

they bring.

God, That he cannot make reftitution, which notwithstanding must be made, and other finnes require no reftitution; therefore Chrift faith well, That it is as hard for a rich man to enter into the Kingdome of Heaven, as for a Camel to paffe through the eye of a needle, Matthew the nineteenth chapter. When the young man was willed to fell all he had, and to give to the poor, he was very fore grieved; fo loath are they to restore that which they have unjustly gotten together. But how foever the Doctrine of reftitution is darus fermo, yet it is fanus fermo. The confideration of thefe four things that doc accompany the greedy defire of getting riches,will make a man to avoid this finde, if he think upon them throughly.

The fecond obfervation, is touching riches, wealth it felf. Ifthou confider how deceitfull and uncertain a thing riches is, for which riches, & evils thou haft brought thy felt to fo many inconveniences and fuch infinite cares, so many grievous finnes, to fo many judgements of God daily hanging over our heads for the fame, and into fuch difficulty of repentance,it will make thee avoid it; therefore our Saviour calls riches deceitfull. Matthew the thirteenth chapter and the twenty fe cond verse: And the Apostle faith they are uncertain vanity, the first epistle to Timothie the fixt chapter: The reafon is, because he that hath them to day, may lose them to morrow; and though they make mans life comfortable for a while, yet they cannot prolong life.

The reafon is, because our life doth not stand in the aboundance of wealth. In which words the holy Ghoft gives them leave to imagine, that if they be covetous, they fhall be wealthy and rich, howbeit it is not any means that the covetous man can use, that will make him wealthy; for which of you by taking thought, Proverbs the twenty fecond chapter, and Matthew the fixt chapter: The blessing of the Lord maketh rich, Sola benedictio Domini, Proverbs the tenth chapter and the twenty fecond verse: It is not early rising, nor late sitting down, Pfalme the hundred twenty feventh. But put cafe it be true which they imagine with themselves, yet their life stands not in the riches fo gotten. It is indeed probable that a covetous man shall soon attain to riches; For all is fish that comes to net with him; he will not refufe any gain, be it never fo unlawfull; If it be panis fallaciæ, if it be pretium fanguinis, he will put it up. And as he hath more means to get, fo he fpares more than other men doe: He doth no good works; he diftribute:h not to the neceffity of the poor, magnum vectigal parfimonia, and flesh and blood alwaies perfwades her felf of the beft, and never doubteth of any hurt: The rich Merchants say with. themselves, We will goe and buy and fell, and gain, Fames the fourth chapter, never thinking that they hall lofe. The rich man thought with himself, I will eat and drink and take my reft, but never thought that be should dye, Luke the tweltth chap er. So we alwaies dream of the best, and never fear any evil. We will drink strong drink to day, and tomorrow shall be as this day, and better, Ifaiah the fifty feventh chapter. Again, they may pretend further caufe for the finne of covetoufaeffe.