Cap.31. he had in God that he would hear, and could the more comfortably commit his caufe to him; but if he had been too quick to hear himself, God would not readily have heard for him, and what had he got by that Now by all this you cannot but be convinced in your thoughts, that it is a great evil to revile again, and you that have been guilty of this, let your hearts fmite you, and know what cause you have to be humbled before the Lord.

Quest.

Anfw.

But is it poffible not to revile again? Who can but do fo when they come and give fuch ill language, fo injurious, fo false?

Those that have the Spirit of Chrift can do otherwife. Those that know the evil of fin to be a greater evil then the evil of fuffering, can do this. And those that are wife, and will not mifchief themselves, can do this. Can any by reproaches force you to take a knife and cut your felves! If they force you to commit fin, they force you to worse. Certainly you think every man is in bondage; confider what miferable bondage men fhould be in, for to be in the power of their enemies, when they lift to make them to mifchief themselves, can there be any worse bondage? for an enemy to draw any body where he will, is not fo much, but to make me to hurt my felf, this is a great and a fore bondage indeed. Wherefore there genus cer- is no contending with reproaches this way by refcendere, in proaching again, here the overcomer is the lofer. When Demosthenes was reproached by one, I will faith he, ftrive with thee in this kinde of fight, not, in which he that is overcome is the better man.

Nolim tc

in hoc

taminis de

quo qui vincitur, iffo victore eft melior.

5.

Fiftly, take heed you be not hindred in your way, or break off your courfe when you are reproached: what

though

373

Φιλοσοφίας

δεν ὡς καὶ

w's narα

μwxnoo

πολλῶν, w's igúr

though there be filth caft in the way, fhall we de- Cap.31. cline our way though the clouds do arise,and darken the light of the Sun, does the Sun cease in its course, and cease fhining because it is darkned no, it goes on its course and shines till it breaks forth: fo you are going on, shining in a good conversation, foment come and caft reproach upon your way, and darkens Tapand your courfe; What, fhall you ceafe: No, go on, and UTÓάζει αυτό. in time you will break through the clouds. Was there a ever fuch a fool as to be jeered out of his inheritances, A man hath an inheritance worth a thousand pounds a year, and a company fhall go and fcorn him, and wro contemn him, and reproach him, and he fhall be rather willing to part with his inheritance then to be thus jeered, Was there ever any fuch a fool? Is not our way of Religion a greater inheritance to us, then an inheritance of a thousand pounds a year? If you should be moved to go out of your way upon reproaches, know that this will be infinite more re-ins proach to you, then if all the men of the world Tois audid caft reproach upon you; this will reproach you a to your confcience, and that before God and all the T Angels and Saints, before all Gods people. Andrey then befides, this will further reproach you before se wicked men too, you will be the more fcorned and ava vilified.

If

ὅτοι σε

σιν ἐὰν

nandus

καταγίς

I remember a speech of a Heathen Philofopher, aurav, dr. any man begin to embrace Philofophy, he muftebe reproached; They will fay, What, we shall have σλήψε a Philofopher of you by and by, what pride and con- Ta ceitedness is this? But do you ftill way, and those who reproached you before, will .27. go on in your Enchirid. after admire you: But if you fall off, after

Bb 3

you have

begun

Epic.

Cap.31. begun (not being able to bear reproach) This, fays he, deferves a double reproach: Your reproachers will reproach you much more, they will fay, Here is a time-ferver, who will do any thing as the times ferve for hts turn. None fo much contemned as Apoftates. Thofe that oppofed Nehemiah, and fought to hinder his work, did it to reproach him, if he had left his work for reproaching, they would have reproached him much more: How would this cur you to the heart, that thofe that did reproach you, if you go out of the way, fhould reproach you much more? Confider, does this befeem the fpirit of a Chriftian? Had you ever any experimental knowledge of the evil of fin, or any good in the ways of God? Will this be an answer before God, when you come to give an account why you went out of your way? Lord, I fuffered fo much reproach, I could not bear it. And again, will it not be juft with God, for to fuffer you to fall into fome vile fcandalous fin to be reproached for, after another maner? because that you would not fuffer reproach for his name, you fhould fuffer reproach for your fin. These are the things we are to be warned of.

CHAP.

Cap.3.1.

B

CHAP. XXXI.

How we are to bear Reproaches.

I.

non dtrid

Ut how are we to bear reproaches? We are to bear our reproaches wifely, patiently, fruitfully, joyfully, and to return good for evil. First, we are to bear them wifely: there is a great deal of wisdom required in bearing of reproaches and evils that men are accused of, the exercife of wisdom does appear much in the bearing of reproaches, though we should not be infenfible, yet not to take too much notice of every reproach that is caft pon us. It was the fpeech of a Philofopher, when one was reproach- Derident tc; At ego ing of him, fome told him they deride thee; but fays he, I am not derided, I will not take to my self cor. that which is cast upon me: It is wifdom for people sapiens à to go away, and take but little notice of any thing nullo conthat is caft upon them, and therefore when upon nemnitudievery idle reproach, there come a company tatling, vit. Sen rem fuam and fay, Such a one fays thus and thus; fuch fhould in Sap non be fent away with an angry countenance, it is a dif- cad.iðjur. honor to you to receive them, as if you would take notice of every word, and as if you had no other things to take up your thoughts. Dionyfius having not very well used Plato at the Court, when he was gone, he feared left he fhould write against him, therefore he fent after him, to bid him not to write against him, fays he, Tell Dionyfius, I have not fo much leifure as to think of him:fo we thould let those that reproach us to know, that we have not leifure to think of them; as S. Paul, when the Viper came upon

Bb4

his

Cap.32. his hand, he fbaked it off, fome would have swelled' and almost dyed at the very fight of fuch a thing' but he did but shake it off: And fo fhould we do by our reproaches; when reproaches are opposed they do grow, as hair the more it is cut the more it grows, when Re- when they are defpifed they will vanish away; there is a great deal of evil comes by making much ado about reproaches.

The evil of much ftirring

proaches

are upon

us.

I.

2.

3.

Eft enim

Satana

First, by this means they are kept up in the mouthes of people, and fo the evil is worse, as a dunghil stirred stinks the worse.

Again, it may occafion those that reproach us, to raife up things that were dead a great while ago, and adde that to our reproach.

Again, it may occafion abundance of new matter, though falfe, to make our reproaches greater. If a petus fa- man should undertake to answer every reproachful cundiffimü fpeech, there would be no end, for the Devils breast, fays Luther, is very fruitful with lyes.

mendaciis.

Luth.

4.

5.

Plutarch

in vita Peric.

Again, our making much ftir, does but stir them the more that do reproach us, and by making ado and stir, it comes to be more divulged.

Lastly, when we do ftir, if we do not clear every little minute to the utmost,it will be a means to make us fufpected of all, and therefore do not take much notice of reproaches. It is a notable example that we finde of one Pericles as he was fitting before others in a meeting, a foul-mouthed fellow railed upon him all the day long; at night when it was dark, and the meeting broke up, the fellow followed him and railed at him even to his door, and he took no notice of him what he faid, but when he came at home, this is all he said, It is dark,I pray let my man light you home.

But