can be fa

tisfying,

when I

love tanquam ofu

Cap. 25. fhall have when the end of all fhall be: Now when No love the end of all things we enjoy for a feafon is come, then every man will fee the vanity of them, and cry out of them, and fay they will not fatisfie: Yea, we shall not onely fee the vanity of them, but in fome respect fee it a greater mifery, then if we had never enjoyed them; now that thing which will not onely fail us, but when it fhall fail us, it will be a greater vexation to us that we had them, then if we had never enjoyed it, certainly they which know this cannot be fatisfied with it.

8.

9.

Eighthly, a gracious heart makes ufe of all the experiences that it hath had of the vanity of the crea ture, of all things that are but for a feason; when God in the way of his providence gives to one that is gracious, experience of things, he will treasure up his experience: vain light hearts, though God do give them experience of the vanity of the crea ture, and of things that are but for a season, they do not treasure up their experiences,but though they cry out of the vanity of the creature at fome time, yet they run out again as greedily in their defires af ter it as before:but a gracious heart findes when God takes away the creature, wherein it had placed a great deal of confidence, God hath fhewed it how fading it was,and the fetled condition of it is nothing but vanity and fo the experience of the vanity of former things,does take off his heart from any thing that it looks upon as abiding for a season.

Laftly, that which is but for a feafon, does want an efpecial ingredient in it,which is required for fatif faction: the special ingredient unto fatisfaction, is fecurity, that there may be foul-fafe fecurity. A

guftine

321

Auguftine fays, The foul cannot enjoy any thing Cap.25. freely with fatisfaction, unless it can enjoy it with fecurity: Now when the foul enjoys a thing for a feafon, it cannot be fatisfied, because it must be folicitous to provide fomething when that is gone, which it hath for the prefent. So that these arguments being put together, you may fee evidently, Nothing that is for a feafon can give fatisfaction to a gracious heart. Having laid these things in the explication of the point, all that we have to do is to apply it.

Hence we may fee the excellency of a true graci- Ufe. ous fpirit: where there is grace in the foul, it puts a wonderful excellency upon the foul,as in many other refpects, fo this one does wonderfully declare the excellency of a gracious heart, that it is so raised, so enlarged, fo greatned, that nothing that is for a feafon can fatisfic it, but it looks for things beyond a feafon. Let all the world, the things that are in Heaven and Earth, prefent themselves to the foul to fatisfic it, the foul will fay, What are you, temporal or eternal? If the answer be given temporal, the foul rejects them, and puts them off as too mean things to be fatisfaction for it; If you had brought eternity with you, fays the foul, I could have embraced you, and clofed with you, and have been fatisfied in the enjoyment of you, but if the infcription of eternity be not in you, you are too mean for me, my happiness Pecuniam is not here, I must look higher, I am loft for ever if I do not look higher then thefe things. When Bafil accötinuò was offered money and preferment to tempt him, he daret, glo anfwers, Give money that may last for ever, and glory femper fiothat may eternally flourish.

da

que

permaneat

riam qua

reat. Bafil

in 40. Martyrs.

Cap.26.

2.

CHAP. XXVI.

Perfwafions to take off the heart from temporal things.

S

Econdly, hence let us all make use of this Argument, to take off our spirits from all earthly things that are here below, Let us look upon all things in the world as under this notion, that they are but for a feafon, and let us improve this ar gument to the utmoft that poffibly we can, for the working our hearts off from the things of this world. The beauty of all worldly things is but as a fair pi&ture drawn upon the Ice, that melts away with it; The fashion of this world paffeth away. When Alexander faw himself wounded, and in danger of death, he then faw the vanity of thofe flatterers that would have perfwaded him he was a God: So when we fee thofe things upon which we fet our hearts, as if our chief good, as if a Deity were in them, to be wounded, and ready to perish, let us learn to alter our thoughts of them, to take off our hearts from them.

Much may be done in the improving of this argument, of the fading vanishing nature of creaturecomforts: the Scripture makes much use of it,to take off the hearts of People from them; Why wilt thou fet thy heart upon that which is not? Riches have wings and will fly away. It charges them that have riches, that they trust not in uncertain riches: Man that is made in honor abides not; They fing to the Tabret and Harp, and make merry, and in a moment they go down to hell. This Mofes argument, is the strong Scripture

323

Scripture argument: there is nothing but uncertain-Cap.26. ty, mutability, vanity,upon every creature that is here below. The fashion of the world paffeth away, and the luftre of it; there is no enduring fubftance here: Thofe in the Hebrews were content to part with thing that endured but for a feafon, fo they might any have an enduring fubftance and fo Abraham looked for a City that had foundations, Heb. 11. 10. these cities have no foundations,

tenctur

Hieron.in

Efay 38.

All earthly things are like the earth it felf, it hangs upon nothing, Fob 26. 7. and therefore there can be no certainty in them, no continuance in the enjoyment of them: neither will the things of this world Nulla res abide, they perish in the ufing of them, and that long morwhich perifhes in the ufing,we must not fet our hearts omnifque talium eft, upon. Its the expreffion of Gregory Nyffen,The things felicitas of the world are as if a man were writing upon the feculi dum water with his finger, as any thing is written, the im- amittitur. preffion vanishes, and nothing appears; not as one were writing upon the fand or duft, which although any little wind blows fmooth, yet it ftays a while till the wind rifeth: So the creature is not vain onely,because it leaves us after a while, but the comfort of the creature leaves us in the ufing. Seneca Lays,We live amongst things that are perish- Inter peri ing. We hear much of the vanity of the creature, mus. and we can fpeak much of it,but how is it improved? Cur ea qua how if you perish eternally for fetting your hearts ad ufum upon thefe things and notwithstanding all your effe non talk, this dreadful noise fhall be heard from you, poffunt, ad We have loft eternity, for fetting our hearts upon diuturna things that were for a feafon. It is a notable fpeech depofces ? that Ambrofe hath; Why will you make that which Ambrofe

Y 2

tu ra vivi

diuturna

fupplicium

in Luc 4.

cannot T. 5.

Cap.26. cannot be eternal for ufe, eternal for punishment? It is fading, in regard of the ufe, but it proves to be eternal in regard of the punishment.

Therefore when any temptation comes, to draw your hearts to any thing that gives content to the flesh for a feafon,Ó that you might improve this Argument to refift the temptation! What, fhall I while away that time I have to improve for eternity to seek after you, and take content and pleasure in you? you are not onely temporal your felves, but you do hazard the lofs of eternal things, and hazard the bringing of eternal evils. And therefore do not think it much that I prefs this argument, because it is ordinary all that perish, perish because they set their hearts upon that which is for a season:and therefore though the knowledge of this in fome general notion be ordinary, yet the truth is, to know it powerfully indeed, and effectually, it is a riddle to the world.

It is a notable place we have in Pfalm 49. 3,4. The whole fcope of the Pfalm, is to fhew the happy fecure eftate of the godly in all troubles, and the vanishing condition of all ungodly in profperity; now mark how he calls to us in the beginning of this Pfalm, to hearken to this argument: We might fay, this is an argument we have heard a hundred times, and know what it is, Why fhould we hearken fo? Though you think this is an ordinary Theam, yet this is the great wifdom, and understanding of a gracious heart to know, this is the dark faying that I will open, fo fays the Pfalmift, My mouth fhall peak of wisdom, and the meditation of my heart

Shall