ment, Thou shalt take up this Proverb,the Margent readeth This taunting fpeech against the King of Babel, How bath the opprefIfa.14.4. for ceafed, the golden City ceased? &c. You fee in derifion fhe is called the golden City. And after, Verf.10. All they shall speak and lay unto thee, Art thou also become weak as we? art thou alfo become like unto tu? Verf. 12. Jer. 51.8. Pfal. 59.8. How art thou fallen from heaven O Lucifer, &c. Thus the great glory of the mighty Monarchy is become ludibrium vulgi, & fabula mundi, the scoffe of the vulgar, and the tale of the world. So feremy declareth, that this fhall be one part of the punishment of Babylon, the shall be laughed to fcorne; read at your leasures the 50. and 51. of Ieremy. Amongst many falt and fharp taunts spent upon Babel, this is one for a tafte, Babylon is fuddenly fallen, and destroyed, howle for her, take balm for her paine, if he may be bealed. It is Davids phrafe, But thou O Lord fhall laugh at them, thou shalt have all the beathen in derision. It was no fmall part of the paffion of Jefus Chrift, the subfannations and fcornful derifions of his enemies; they made fport with him, as the Philiftims did with Sampfon, Thou that couldest build the Temple, Come down,&c. It pleaseth God fometimes to fuffer his good fervants to be tongue fmitten, as we fee in the example of David and of feremy,and Job,and others. And we have many examples of his permiffion of it in the punishment of the wicked. This doth not juftifie contumelies, or make libels and fcandalous derifions lawful, but it declareth them to be the rods of God. : Therefore let men tender their reputations, and do that which is right in their places, be they high or lo, that they may not deferve ill of the times in which they live, that they may have good report of all men, and of the truth it self. Amongst other things, which by way of caution we may take warning of, J. Let them that would live out of the danger of fcorne and derifion, apply themselves to glorify God in their bodies, and in their fouls, and to honour him: for God hath spoken it, He that honoureth me, him will I honour; but they that defpife 1Sam.2.30 me, fball be lightly esteemed. 2.Let fuch take care that they be no defpifers of their brethren, that they fit not in the chaire of the fcornful;for the wages of the fcorner is fcorne, and they thar truft in themselves and defpife o thers, go away from the fight of God unjuftified. Can pride have a fall, and the lookers on not laugh them to fcorne? 3. Let fuch keep a good tongue in their own heads; for many fair pretenders of Religion, and outward profeffors, are as long as Pambo in Eufebius, taking out of that leflon from David, Servabo circa os meum capiftrum ne peccem lingua, I will fet a watch, &c. It was in fashion while that they that fought (as they pretended) Reformation of the Church, fought it in the way of libelling, and breaking jefts upon the Prelates and Malignants ofthe Church. Jam.1.26. But St. James telleth us, That if any among us seem to be religi oss, and refraineth not his tongue, that mans religion is in vain. 4. Let fuch take out the leffon of the Apoftle; Let their Speach Cor. 4. 6. alway be with grace, feafoned with falt, that you may know how to answer every man. This is the feafoning of wisdom from above, which being the breath of the holy Ghost, which is the spirit of meekneffe, doth rather put the burthens of our brethren upon us in Chriftian compaffion, then heap burthens upon them in spight and disdain. 2. Yet I do not determine all fharp and fatyrical tartneffe of fpeach unlawful; the acrimonie of a taunt hath fometimes due place, and it may be fome of the fire from Gods own Altar, when they do not proceed from anger, envy, defire of revenge, vaine oftentation of wit, flattery of others whom it may please, Pride of our own hearts. When Adam had tranfgreffed, and God had laid his curfe upon him, God faid, Behold the man is become like one of us to know good and evill. St. Auguftine faith, Verba funt infultantis,quòdnon folùm fa&tus fuerit qualis effe vo luit, fed nec illud quod factus fuerat confervavit. Gen. 3.22 God 1 Reg 18. 27. God derideth the folly of man fallen away from him: It is faid of Eliah. And it came to paffe at noon that Eliah awaked them,and faid, cry aloud, for he is a God; either he is talking, or he is pursuing, or hee is in a journey, or peradventure hee fleepeth and must bee awakeed. ..So the Prophet Ifaiah plays upon the Idolmakers and Idolaters, as if he had one of our Papifts in hand: For he fets a man upon the stage, having cut down a tree, : If, 44. 16. He burneth part of it in the fire with part thereof he eateth flesh, he rosteth roft and is fatisfied, yea, he warmeth himself, and sayeth, Aha, I am warme, I have feen the fire; Verf. 17 Object. Sol. 1Pet. 1.18 Tim.6.17 And the refidue thereof he maketh a god, even his graven image; he falleth down to it, and worshippeth it, and prayeth to it, and faith, deliver me for thou art my god. You fee what fport the Prophet maketh with Idolaters, and fure he had the Spirit of God. The Apocryphal book of Baruch, 6. chap. is a very pleasant bitternesse against Idols and Idolaters. Surely this example in my Text is juftifiable; for it taxeth the covetous oppreffours of the earth for fools; that take fo much pain, and do so much wrong to load themselves with thick clay. But is it not an injury to Almighty God, to fet no higher price, and to give no better tittle to the richest of all mettels,that which God himself was pleafed, fhould be used in the choice veffels and ornaments of his own houfe, then thus to indignifie it? I answer, the Prophet doth not indignifie the creature; but as God faid to man, Pulvis es, thou art duft, and he told him true out of what materials the frame of his body was built: fo it is no difgrace to gold to call it thick clay, it being no other in the matter ofit. And howsoever good ufe may be made of these outward riches, yet are they never to be esteemed for themselves,but for their use, which if men on earth could once understand and beleive, they would not fet their hearts upon them. Saint Peter calleth them Corruptible things. Every man is cafily drawn to study and labour to the getting of this burthen,and so insatiable in defire,that few say with Efan I have enough. There is a fingular wisdom in the ule of riches which few doseek, because they do not understand for what this thick clay ferveth. In the Latine phrafe, all those things which we use, are called impedimenta, Impediments: for as the baggage of an army is of neceflary ufe, yet hindereth the speed of their march; so do our riches, they are the faculties of well-doing yet we can hardly attaine the wisdom to keep them from being hinderances and let to us in our journey homewards. They serve us for fame, and reputation; for they fupport our credit in the world. They ferve us for fhew,for they furnish the table with dainties, the back with bravery, &c. They serve us for cuftody, to lay up for pofterity. They ferve for dole and distribution, to be bestowed upon good uses. They ferve to buy out dangers, and to deliver us from evils. They ferve to make us freinds. And they that can plaifter their wals with this thick clay, may keep off many a ftorme, and much foul weather. Yet we have feen that all rich men are not happy, even in the things of this life. Tully faith of Rabirius Pofthumus, In ftudiorei amplificande, non avaritia predam,fed inftrumentum bonitati quarebat, that is the beft ufe of them. We fee in this example, that the wals of Babel;though plaistered, and the roofs tyled with this thick clay, fo as it was called the golden City, could not priviledge it from ruine and con tempt. Therefore let us not ftrive and ftudy by indire& means, nor take too much, and immoderate care by direct means, to overload our felves with this thick clay: we fhall carry none of it away with us when we dye, and we are not fure that they shall enjoy it,to whom we would faineft leave it. The third punishment of Babel doth fhew that this thick clay hath wings. It is fubject to spoile. It makes Babel a good booty: for when thofe fpunges have fuckt in their full draught, many of them come to the wringing and squeezing till they be left dry. There be fuch in the world as ftudy the emptying of those full veffels, and find means to fpring a leak in them. This fall from plenty and fulneffe to want, from honour to low condition,from power and command to subjection and awe, makes the proud man a scorne to the world, for to out-live riches and honour and power, and to fee others deckt in our trappings whereof we had wont to be so proud, this pricks our bladder, and lets out all the wind,and leaveth us lank and empty. This is the juftice of Gods proceeding against the proud, whom he refifteth as you hear out of Obadiah in the example of Edom, and fee now in the example of the Chaldeans. As they that defpife others are now punished with contempt : fo they that spoiled others are now punished with spoile. One while the hand is receiving bribes as fast as it can to get all, and in a moment the fame hand is giving of bribes as fast, if it be poffible to fave fome. If therefore there be no better hold to be taken of thefe outward things which make many so proud,if riches increase, set not thine heart upon them, ufe them rather then keep them. Yet this is a great comfort to all that are oppreffed by the proud tyranny of men, God is ftill good to Ifrael; even to all Pfa.125.3. that have true hearts; and the rod of the wicked shall not reft upon the lot of the righteous; God will find a time to spoile the spoyler, and to strip him out of all. There is neither wisdom, nor counsel, nor strength against the right hand of God, & that right hand wil find out all his enemies. Greatneffe and power are fearful to the common man, yet nothing can reftrain either the thoughts of men and their judgments, but that they will fearch into the actions of the Higheft, and obferve what is done according to the rules of justice and wherein Religionand Iuftice are wounded. Nothing can hinder but that where men may dare to communicate their thoughts to faithful ears, there the fcroul of grei vances will be unfoulded, and the unjuftice of tyrannicall opprel fions will be laid open.. No |