He cavils instantly.

In his poor cabinet of bone

Sinnes have their box apart, Defrauding thee, who gavest two for one.

58. SIGHS AND GRONES.

O Do not use me

After my sinnes! look not on my desert,

But on thy glorie!

And not refuse me

then thou wilt reform,

for thou onely art

The mightie God, but I a sillie worm :
O do not bruise me!

O do not urge me!

For what account can thy ill steward make? I have abus'd thy stock, destroy'd thy woods, Suckt all thy magazens: my head did ake, Till it found out how to consume thy goods: O do not scourge me!

O do not blind me!

I have deserv'd that an Egyptian night
Should thicken all my powers; because my

lust

Hath still sow'd fig-leaves to exclude thy light: But I am frailtie, and already dust:

O do not grinde me!

O do not fill me

With the turn'd viall of thy bitter wrath!

For thou hast other vessels full of bloud,

A part whereof
Ev'n unto death:

my

Saviour emptied hath, since he died for my good,

O do not kill me!

But O reprieve me!

For thou hast life and death at thy command;
Thou art both Judge and Saviour, feast and rod,
Cordiall and corrosive: put not thy hand
Into the bitter box; but O my God,

My God, relieve me!

59. THE WORLD.

LOVE built a stately house: where Fortune came :
And spinning phansies, she was heard to say,
That her fine cobwebs did support the frame,
Whereas they were supported by the same:
But Wisdome quickly swept them all away.
Then Pleasure came, who liking not the fashion,
Began to make Balcones, Terraces,
Till she had weakned all by alteration:
But rev'rend laws, and many a proclamation
Reformed all at length with menaces.

Then enter'd Sinne, and with that Sycomore,

Whose leaves first sheltred man from drought and Working and winding slily evermore,

The inward walls and Sommers cleft and tore:
But Grace shor'd these, and cut that as it grew.

[dew,

Then Sinne combined with Death in a firm band,
To rase the building to the very floore:

Which they effected, none could them withstand;
But Love and Grace took Glorie by the hand,

And built a braver Palace than before.

60. COLOSS. iii. 3.

Our life is hid with Christ in God.

My words and thoughts do both expresse this notion,
That Life hath with the sun a double motion.
The first Is straight, and our diurnall friend;
The other Hid, and doth obliquely bend.
One life is wrapt In flesh, and tends to earth :
The other winds towards Him, whose happie birth
Taught me to live here so, That still one eye
Should aim and shoot at that which Is on high;
Quitting with daily labour all My pleasure,
To gain at harvest an eternall Treasure.

61. VANITIE.

THE fleet Astronomer can bore

And thred the spheres with his quick-piercing minde:
He views their stations, walks from doore to doore,
Surveys, as if he had design'd

To make a purchase there: he sees their dances,
And knoweth long before,

Both their full-ey'd aspects, and secret glances.

The nimble Diver with his side

Cuts through the working waves, that he may fetch
His dearely-earned pearl, which God did hide
On purpose from the ventrous wretch;
That he might save his life, and also hers,
Who with excessive pride

Her own destruction and his danger wears.

The subtil Chymick can devest

And strip the creature naked, till he finde
The callow principles within their nest:

There he imparts to them his minde,
Admitted to their bed-chamber, before

They appeare trim and drest

To ordinarie suitours at the doore.

What hath not man sought out and found, But his deare God? who yet his glorious law Embosomes in us, mellowing the ground

With showres and frosts, with love and aw; So that we need not say, Where's this command ? Poore man! thou searchest round To finde out death, but missest life at hand.

62. LENT.

WELCOME, deare feast of Lent: who loves not thee, He loves not Temperance, or Authoritie,

But is compos'd of passion.

The Scriptures bid us fast; the Church says, now :
Give to thy Mother what thou wouldst allow
To ev'ry Corporation.

The humble soul compos'd of love and fear,
Begins at home, and layes the burden there,
When doctrines disagree:

He

sayes, in things which use hath justly got, I am a scandall to the Church, and not

The Church is so to me.

True Christians should be glad of an occasion
To use their temperance, seeking no evasion,
When good is seasonable;

Unlesse Authoritie, which should increase
The obligation in us, make it lesse,
And Power it self disable.

Besides the cleannesse of sweet abstinence,
Quick thoughts and motions at a small expense,
A face not fearing light:

Whereas in fulnesse there are sluttish fumes,
Sowre exhalations, and dishonest rheumes,
Revenging the delight.

Then those same pendant profits, which the spring And Easter intimate, enlarge the thing,

And goodnesse of the deed.

Neither ought other men's abuse of Lent
Spoil the good use; lest by that argument
We forfeit all our Creed.

It's true, we cannot reach Christ's forti'th day; Yet to go part of that religious way

Is better than to rest:

We cannot reach our Saviour's puritie;
Yet are we bid, "Be holy ev'n as he."
In both let's do our best.

Who goeth in the way which Christ hath gone,
Is much more sure to meet with him, than one
That travelleth by-wayes.

Perhaps my God, though he be farre before,
May turn, and take me by the hand, and more,
May strengthen my decayes.