quid faciet eis qui rapuerunt aliena? woe to them that take that which is none of theirs. 4. This fin of rapine doth incurre the curfes of them that are robbed; for every man crieth, woe to such as congeft that which is not their own. 5. This fin doth hinder the ascent of the prayers of them that commit it; God will not admit them to his prefence; for fo God faith, Relieve the oppressed, judge the father leffe, plead for the widow; Ifa. 1 18. Come now and let us reafon together. 6. The time fhall come when thofe that fuffer wrong, shall judge their oppreflours, for the Saints shall judge the world. Therefore let every man make confcience of doing violence; doubtleffe there is a God that judgeth in the world; let us value men as our brethren, and feek their good; let us direct our intentions & fubventions to that only end,that he that loveth God may declare it by loving his brother alfo;let our brethren grow up with us, and let us joy in their prosperity. 4. Cruelty is charged upon them. For they build in blood, and cruelty is alfo one of the compa nions of ambition and covetoufneffe. If Ahab have a defire to Naboths Vineyard,either Naboth must part with his Vineyard,or his life. They are not all innocent of this great offence that keep themfelves from shedding of blood: they that invade the meanes of the maintenance of life, that pinch the labourer in his wages, or that make the hireling work for nothing, or that let their hire fleep in their cuftody, whilft he pineth for want of things neceffary, are all guilty of this accufation of blood. It was the provocation wherewith God was provoked against the old world, for which he brought upon them the great floud that deftroyed them all; This was Edoms fin in Obadiah.. There is a manifold cruelty as you then heard. 1. Cruelty of combination, when we make our felves ftrong in a faction, to oppreffe all that oppofe us, and go not our way. 2. Cruelty of the eye, when we can be content to look on, to fee injures done to our brethren,without any compaffion,or sub vention,. 3. Gruelty 1 3. Cruelty of heart, when we rejoyce against them that suffer wrong, and make our felves merry with their afflictions. 4 Cruelty of the tongue,when we infult over them and brand them with taunts. 5. Cruelty of the hands, when we 1. Either perfecute their perfons with molestation. 3. Or rob them of their goods by cruel direptions. 4. Or hinder the courfe of justice that should do them right. 5. Or procure their death, because they do ftand in our 2. The punishment. 1. They confult shame to their own house. Ambition doth affect to build up an house, to establish a name that may continue in the blood and pofterity, in fucceeding generations with glory and honour. David hath a croffe prayer which is in the hearts and mouths of many that hate fuch pride; let not their wicked imagination profper, least they grow too proud, Thefe words do fhew that ambitious pride fhall not profper, and whereas they study honour, and confult glory, in their aime and intention, God turneth it all to shame in the event. The words of my text are the words of God; he knoweth what he meaneth to do; and he faith,they confult their own shame, because be purpofeth to turne all their glory into fhame. Shame is the thing that an ambitious man doth defire to decline above all things, all his ftudies bend their strength against it, and pursue glory which is the contrary to it. To this purpose covetous men gather riches, and then with mony purchase great offices and great titles to make great houses, and nominous families upon earth to furvive them. But But where this greatneffe is begun by ambition, maintained and fupported by rapine, and cruelty, pride will have a fall; he that meaneth to give it the fall, faith fo, God whose power none hath ever refifted, he will turne that glory into fhame. The wifeman faith, He that is greedy of gaine troubleth bis own Pro.15.27 house. For Pro 14.11. Pio 15.25. Pfal. 52.7. Pro 11.10. The houfe of the wicked shall be overthrown; he doth not mean domus, the house, but familia, the family,the whole name and pofterity, the glory, all shall perish and come to fhame. And Prov. 15. 25. Solomon tels us who fhall do it. The Lord will destroy the house of the proud; this is their shame to come down again; when men have been aspiring and setled their nest on high, and made themselves beleeve that their honour shall be established upon their houfe; for then, 1. God ball laugh them to fcorne, the Lord shall have them in derifion, laying, Behold the man is become as one of us. 2. Men fhall laugh at them, and fay, Lo, this is the man that made not God his ftrength, but truffedin the abundance of his riches, and strengthned himselfe in bis wicked neffe: for Solomon faith, When the wicked perish there is shouting. 3. The Lord fhall be glorified in the fhame of the proud, covetous, cruel man; for every man fhall fay, ftrong is the Lord God Rev.18.8. who judgeth them, as over Babel; thus is God praised. Verf. 20. Rejoyce over her thou heaven, and ye holy Apofttes and Prophets, for God hath avenged you on her. This point is of excellent ufe. Pro.10 24. 1. For Doctrine, it teacheth us that which Solomon hath said, The feare of the wicked shall come upon him; the proud man feareth nothing fo much as fhame; the covetous man feareth nothing fo much as want; the cruell man nothing fo much as re venge; the glutton nothing fo much as hard fare; the drunkard nothing so much as a cup of cold water: and God hath threat ned thefe offenders with all thefe judgments. 2. It commendeth to us wisdome, and righteoufneffe, and hu mility, and all holy vertues, for they be all builders, and raise up houfes, and lay the foundation fure. Ab auditione mali non ti Pro.28.2 mebit. The juft man is bold as a Lyon; as Solomon, The wicked Pfal.112.7. are overthrown and are not: but the house of the righteous fhall ftand. Prov. 12.7 Humility layeth the foundation of it low. Faith worketh by love to furnish it. Honour and much glory ate the roofe of it; peace is the fence about it, and profperity the demefies belonging to it. And the guard of Angels pitch their ten ts round about it. This houfe is built upon a rock, yet it must endure the winds and waves. 3. This hath deceived many; for they have thought unrighte ousnesse the better and safer way; because they have seen the wicked flourishing, and fpreading like to a green bay-tree. Fob difturbeth them in their ruffe, and glory, and fulnesse and fatneffe. Their houses are fafe from fear, neither is the rod of God upon them. It goeth pleasantly for two or three Verses, buc verf.13. Job, 20.9. in a moment they go down to the grave. It is an admirable wifdom, that fob hath recorded to direct, our obfervation of fuch, Lo their good is not in their hand. They are not mafters of their happy estate; which he proveth; How oft is the candle of the wicked put out; it is but a candle, and it is put out; often for God distributeth forrowes in his anger. God is angry; he doth not cover them over with /orrows, and and overwhelme them with woe here, but he diftributes forrow, giving them fome.lucida intervalla. Verf, 16. This varnish and paint,and guilding; of unrighteousneffe with Verf. 17. temporal happineffe, doth make it deceive many. A brutishman knoweth not, neither doth a fool understand this, Pfal. 92.6 When the wicked (pring as the graffe, and all the workers of ini quity flourish: it is that they shall be destroyed for ever. Who would have thought it? every man faith, when he seeth pride have a fall: no, for the Pfalmist faith, Thy thought are very deep. Here God himself declareth, that ambition shall end in shame; and the candle of the wicked when it is put out, will end in a foule and stinking fmoak. 4. This admifheth and exhorteth all that love their houses, and study their own honour, to feek it in the way of piety and charity; Matth.25. 35. charity;let such serve God, let them not neglect the Lords houfe, the Lords day, the Lords Table; let them fuffer their brethren to dwell in peace by them, and to grow up with them, and to be the better for them. It is not the riches that we leave behind us to our heirs that doth build our house, but that we bestow well to the honour of God, and the good of our brethren where we live. You shall fee it in our Saviours fentence, I was hungry and you fed me; I was naked, and ye cloathed me, &c. Not the meat that we do eat our selves, nor the cloathes that we do wear our felves, nor the mony and land that we demise to our pofterity, maketh us friends in the day of the Lord, but what we difpofe. A worthy Citizen of our City that had been his own steward of his goods, and disposed them to many charitable uses, was his own Poet for his Epitaph, and caused this line among others to be infculped on his grave, That Igave, that I have. Which calls to my remembrance a story that I read in Pe raldus, Bishop of Lyons in France: How a great Lord thinking his tenan. fomewhat too rich,and meaning to share with him,required of him a true inventory of his eftate, and what his wealth was; He antwered it was in all coo crowns; it was objected that he diffembled his eftate; fuch a grange,fuch a house, fuch a farm, and many other things of good value belonging to him were not named;he answered. Illa non funt mea fed Domini mei, quiquando voluerit poteft ea accipere;fed quod dedi pro Deo in manus pauperum in falva cuftodia pofui, ita quod nullus poteft mihi illud auferre. These are not mine but my Lords, who when he pleafe may take them from me; but what I have for God given to the poor, I have laid that in fafe cuftody, fo as none is able to take that from me. The riches wherewith we honour God, do build our house; always provided that they be riches well gotten; for if charity have been violated in the getting of wealth, the charity of g ving it away to the poor, will not redeem the breach of justice. Juftice muft ever go before charity; in the difpenfation of our goods, |
