The revvard of the faithfull. The labour of the faithfull. The grounds of our faith

I. That euery Creature which would bee preserued in his Calling by the bles∣sing of God, must labour for it.

FOr as GOD would haue the World cost himselfe sixe daies labour (though in one moment he could haue finish'd it) so hee sets vs to taske, by his owne example, to our weekely stint: Sixe dayes shalt thou labour, Exod. 20. 9. and doe all that thou hast to doe. Which is not to bee vnderstood as a Per∣mission,

but as a Praecept: as though God gaue vs onely leaue, & not charge to labour. For hee sayes not, sixe daies thou Maist labour, but six daies thou Shalt labour. If our mouths will eat (as Salo∣mon tels vs, All the labour of a man is for his Mouth, Eccles. 6. 7.) our browes must sweat for it. For as the Heathen had a Pro∣uerbe among them, Dij venaunt omnia laboribus. Their Gods, they sayd sold all for labour: so we may truely say of GOD indeed: hee hath set the price of all his earthly blessings to be sweat. In

the sweat of thy brow thou shalt eat thy bread all the daies of thy life, Genesis 3. Neither let the Master thinke to wipe off all his sweat to the brow of his seruant, as though (like our Gallants) hee were borne onely to disport & pleasure, and his seruants to labour and toyle for him. No, euery Man is Gods Taskeman, and it is as naturall for vs to la∣bour, as it is for flame to ascend: so Eliphaz speaks of vs, Iob. 5. ver. 7. Man is borne to labour, as a sparke to flie vpwards, Indeed the labors of men are dif∣ferent, some of mind, and

some of body, some in the field, some in the Citie, some abroad at Sea, and some at home: but labour will meete a man euery where, be hee where hee will. It is our portion vnder the Sunne, as Salo∣mon tells vs: Behold that which I haue seene, sayes the wise man, Eccles. 5. 18. It is good for a man to eate, and to drinke, and to enioy the good of all his labour, which he taketh vnder the Sunne, for it is his portion. So that euery one that would enioy the good creatures of GOD (this subcelestiall happinesse which flourishes vnder

the Sunne) if hee would eate and drinke, or enioy any good, it must be of his labour, his owne la∣bour, not another mans; for that is to steale a∣nother mans goods, and with his sweate to warme our own browes. And so seuere was the holy Apo∣stle of Christ in this point (that Golden and Elect instrument of Gods grace to vs) who in labours ex∣celled them all that were hired into Christs vine∣yard to worke, that hee would haue him starued to death, that to maintain his life would not labor: Hee that will not labour, let

him not eate, sayes the Apo∣stle, 2 Thes. 3. 10.

It were vnnecessary to adde more out of the word of God, to acquaint vs with our duety of la∣bour, the places to this purpose, and the Scrip∣ture in this argument is prodigall. Thou shalt eat the labour of thy hands, Ps. 128. 2. Ephes. 4. 28. Let him that stole▪ steale no more but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing that is good, that hee may haue to giue to him that needeth. Where wee see the Apostle ties not one∣lie euerie man to his worke, but would haue

him, though hee labour with his owne hands to get his liuing, yet to giue something to him that needeth, & wants hands or feete, or health, or strength, or liberty, wher∣by to labour. Looke then as we see a field, as long as it hath any heart in it, if it be manured, and tilled, & sowne, and weeded, and well husbanded in euery part, neuer deceiues the hopes of the greedy hus∣bandman, but paies him in his own seed with the most lawfull vsury of naturall, and very plenti∣full encrease: which if it bee neuer wrought vpon

with the labour of man, but falls perhaps into the hands of the sluggard, growes presently full of nothing but thistles and thornes, ranke hurtfull weedes, as Salomon tels vs Prou 24. 30. I went by the field of the sluggard, and by the vineyard of the slothfull man, and loe it was al ouer∣growne with thornes and nettles had couered the face thereof: so is it with the body of man: If it be wel and faithfully laboured, it is fruitfull both to him∣selfe, his family, and the whole Common-wealth: but if it sleep away all his time in idlenesse. hee

growes not onely vnpro∣fitable, but full of noysom vices, and is as the Poet cals him onely, fruges con∣sumere natus, a hurtfull Vermin, good for no∣thing but to liue vpon the spoyle. Are not al things imbrightned with vse, and rustied with lying still? Let but the little Bee be∣come our mistresse.

Is shee not alwaies out of her artificiall Nature, either building her wax∣en Cabinet, or flying a∣broad into the flowry Meadowes, or sucking honey from the sweete plants, or loading her weake thighes with waxe

to build with, or stinging away the theeuish Droan that would faine hiue it selfe among her labours, and liue vpon her sweete sweat? Ignauum, fucos, pe∣cus a praesepibus arcent. And shal this Little crea∣ture, this Naturall good-houswife thus set her selfe to her businesse? and shall we droane away our time in idlenesse, and which al∣waies followes it, vicious liuing? Shall our fieldes labour so faithfully to re∣ward vs, and shall we be∣tray our whole liues to idlenesse and sloath. Find mee but one example in the World to counte∣nance,

and sample a man in his idlenesse.

GOD himselfe is the watchman of Israel, that neuer slumbers & sleepes. My Father workes (sayes our Sauiour) and I worke. The holy Angels are al∣waies either ascending vp vnto God (as we may see in Iacobs ladder) that is, lifting their thoughts vp∣wards to honour him in their eternall song, Holy, Holy, Holy. Lord GOD of Sabbaoth, &c. or descen∣ding from God to Men with his blessings, as be∣ing his Ministring Spirits sent for the good of the Elect to pitch their pa∣uillions

round about, and defend vs from many spi∣rituall and blind dangers, which, alas, our soules neuer see. Not one of them all was seene to bee idle, or stand still.

Man himselfe (which is worthy our obseruing) euen then, when hee was first paradis'd in the Gar∣den of pleasure, yet had something to doe in it, and was not suffered to walke idlely vp & downe like a Loyterer, or Idles∣bye that had nothing at all to doe: but was set to keepe it & dresse it, Gen. 2. Labour hee must though sweat he should not, and businesse hee had to doe,

though sweat hee should not, and businesse hee had to doe, though in the doing of it he felt no wearinesse or toyle.

And as these most no∣ble creatures of God An∣gels and man were not suffered to bee idle, so if wee looke vp to the hea∣uens themselues, we shall there see there that migh∣ty body in continuall motion, neuer standing still, but flying about the world with incredible swiftnesse, that Dauids great Giant, who euery morning like a Bride∣groome comes out of his Easterne chamber, &

delights to run the hea∣uenly races God hath set him, with all the lesse starres of the glorious body, might shed their beames vpon the Earth in the seasons of it, & so bring foorth hearbes and fruites for the seruice of man and beast.

It is indeede a naturall Truth, Omne Corpus na∣turale quiescit in loco pro∣prio. Euery naturall body is quiescent in his owne pro∣per place: and yet wee see though all gladly rest in their owne regions, and inuade not the confines of their neighbour Ele∣ments, yet they are al∣wayes

mouing and coa∣sting about in their owne orbes and circuits, there∣by teaching vs to labour euery man in the circle of his owne calling, and not to busie-body out abroad with other newe workes. The Aire breakes not into the quarters of Heauen, and yet, wee see, it is alwayes fann'd from place to place, and neuer sleepes idly in his owne regions: the reason is, be∣cause otherwise it would soone putrifie it selfe and poyson vs all with the stinking breath of it, did not the diuine proui∣dence of God driue it

about the World, with his Windes, that so it might both preserue it selfe, and serue to pre∣serue vs, which other∣wise it could neuer doe.

And truly whether we ascend vp into Heauen, or descend with Dauid in∣to the deepe, we may dis∣cerne the whole Ocean, which is a farre more sluggish element then the Ayre, neuer rest, but euer moued either by the Windes, or by a proper motion, whereby natu∣rally it ebbes and flowes to preserue it selfe sweet and wholesome for those

creatures that liue in it, and withall that it might by such inter-tides be the more seruiceable to the vse of man in the conuei∣ance of commodities from shoare to shoare. So that in a word, euery thing moues for man, & should man only him∣selfe be idle & stand still.

Giue mee but one ex∣ample in the whole World of sloath, and restiue idlenesse, but one, and I will giue thee leaue to keepe Holy-day, and play away all thy life without sweat or labour: only perhaps of a stan∣ding poole, and that

growes noisome that no man can endure it: or of some deformed Toade, and that is full swolne with rankour and poison; or it may be of an idle Droane, and that because it plaies in Summer, dies in Winter: But if wee looke vp to Heauen, that will teach vs to runne the races God sets before vs with ioy and gladnesse; if the holy Angels may instruct vs, they will take vs out a lesson of faithfull labour, both in our thoughts to God, and actions to men. All the Creatures of God will set vs a worke by their ex∣amples.

Chuse there∣fore whether thou wilt with thy vitious idlenesse be of a corrupted, and venemous nature, and so die; or exercise thy selfe in the holy labours thy vocation cals thee to, like the blessed Angels, and all other the more noble Creatures of God.

And that we may see reason why wee should labour, wee must know that it is both a Diuine and naturall Truth, Deus & Natura nihil faciunt frustra: God and Nature made nothing idle. It is for vs the heards of the field, and the fowles of

Heauen, and the fish in the Seas labour to bring forth their young. It is for vs the wearie Oxe is yoakt to labour, and the Horse takes the bridle in∣to his mouth to ease vs by his trauaile. It is for vs the poore Silke-worm spinnes her clew, and the thriftie Bee gathers her honey to the combe: but as all these labour for vs, so it is our labour that or∣ders and guides them, and sets them all a worke first. Indeed God hath of his goodnesse made them our seruants, and put our feare vpon them. The feare of you shall be

vpon all Creatures, Gen. 9. 2. But it is not our parts to vse their labours to make our selues idle, but if wee would haue them labour for vs, wee must be fellow-labourers with them for our selues. And indeed two speciall reasons would God haue vs labour for; one to keep vs from the greene-sick∣nesse of Idlenes, which in truth is the immediate mother of all Sinne, as wee may see by Dauids Tower-walke; and the o∣ther for the more full en∣ioying of our life and health. For as it is labour that procures all things

necessary for our life and health, as meates and drink. clothing & hou∣sing: so it is labour that preserues our health, by warming our blood, that it be not gellied with vn∣kindly colds into rheums and dispersing those ill humors which with idle∣nesse would grow vpon vs, and by prepuring the body more delightfully both to receiue nourish∣ment without surfet, and without disquiet, rest, & sleepe.

Ye see therefore there is both great reason for vs to labour if wee would enioy our health, and ne∣cessitie

if we would sup∣ply the wants of our own liues and example, if wee would follow either the command of God, or the patterne of other the most honourable creatures God hath made.

Now let not here the good husbandman be∣cause (he as Isaac) tills his ground and sowes it, en∣grosse all labour into his owne calling, and so thinking himselfe onely the true labourer, quar∣rell with all other profes∣sions as more idle, and lesse necessarie. Let the good husbandman haue

alwayes his due honour reserued him; but let not the good husbandman thinke all other men bad-husbands because hee is good, for hee may bee a bad man, though hee bee a good husbandman, in so thinking. For as man himselfe is diuided into seuerall respects of body and soule, estate and per∣son; so euery calling that is lawfully employed in the prouiding for any of these, hath in it true la∣bouring men. The hus∣bandman indeed he sees the body, the shepheard cloathes it, the Architect houses it, and the Physi∣tian

cures it. It were a la∣bour but to reckon vp the seuerall calling that la∣bour about the body, and indeede would passe my skill to name them: so a∣bout the estates of men, Iudges and Lawyers, and Notaries and Officers la∣bour: and about the per∣sons of men, Princes and Magistrates labour, to keepe them in ciuill or∣der and gouernment; and about the soule of man the Minister of God la∣bours. I cannot stand to euidence the labour of all these callings: I will onely make it plaine be∣cause the calling of a Mi∣nister

is by some slighted, as a matter of no great paines and sweat. That