The French academie Fully discoursed and finished in foure bookes. 1. Institution of manners and callings of all estates. 2. Concerning the soule and body of man. 3. A notable description of the whole world, &c. 4. Christian philosophie, instructing the true and onely meanes to eternall life. This fourth part neuer before published in English. All written by the first author, Peter de la Primaudaye, Esquire, Lord of Barre, Chauncellour, and Steward of the French Kings house.

4. Of Ambition, Pride, and Boasting or bragging.

For the second point we may well say, that among the desires or concupiscences which haue the greatest force in the soule of man, Ambition is one: which is an vnmeasureable lusting or seeking after honour, glory, and reputation. Which vice wee may truely describe to haue three faces. First, for that man not content with his state and condition, seeketh and desireth to be of greater authority and command. Secondly, when hee pretendeth to gette glory and reputation of men, presuming vpon some graces, that he hath receiued of God, more then others; which kinde of ambition, may properly be called pride, or arrogancy. Thirdly, for that many men say or do things, to seeme more then they are, or then they haue in their owne powers; which is called boasting or bragging. Now as we said in the prece∣dent proposition, we must also consider two originall points; or first causes of all our affecti∣ons: the one, of pure and entire nature; the other, of the corruption thereof; and so wee must and may say, as it is true, that ambition might well be in a man as a vertue; If he had not de¦generated from his creation, and had considered the excellency of his estate, and the great benefites which hee had receiued of God, specially in regard of his soule, by nature ce∣lestiall and diuine; for so he might haue continued in a holy pride, to desire to be made like to his creatour in goodnes, by the onely meanes which God had ordained, to maintaine him in the forme of his image, that is, in obedience, and for other things in such a degree as is conuenient for the creature. But our first parents giuing eare vnto him, who before had ouerthrowne himselfe by his owne pride, presuming not onely to bee equall with God, in goodnes, but also in power and greatnes, easily beleeued (by the liberty of their wil) the pro∣mise which that lier made vnto them, of an estate and condition higher and more excellent,

then that wherein God had created them. So Adam made according to the image of God, and ordained to bee Lord ouer all his other creatures, was not content therewith, but co∣ueted * 1.1 and sought to bee greater, and to be equall with God. At which time that false pride began to enter into him, by turning from the Lord, (whereof Ecclesiastes speaketh) which * 1.2 was the beginning of sinne. Which corruption hath in such manner corrupted his poste∣ritie, that there is no one childe of Adam, which is not pricked forward and wounded with couetousnesse, to rise and climbe vp to a higher degree of honour and authoritie then hee hath; yea, if hee may to bee the highest, and (which is worse) not for the glory of God, or the good and profite of his neighbour, but onely to content his vaine desire, and to please his foolish and carnall affections. For as the couetous man is neuer satisfied with money, no more is the ambitious man with honour and greatnesse: because his vice will not per∣mit him to remember from whence he came, and to what estate hee is exalted, but forcibly carrieth him to that which hee seeketh, and aspireth vnto. In such manner, that if he bee the second person in any high estate and dignitie, his onely and continuall thought is, how to eleuate himselfe aboue him that precedeth him therein. And if hee cannot make him∣selfe chiefe commaunder of a great kingdome, like the Prince himselfe, hee will at the least assay, to bee next vnto the person of the Prince, as Ionathan said to Dauid, Thou shalt bee * 1.3 King of Israel, and I shall bee next vnto thee. As it is written, That the mother of Iohn and Iames the Apostles besought Christ, that one of them might sit on his right hand, the other on his left in his kingdome. And in the Scripture one Diotrephes is said to haue sought the preheminence in the Church. And the Apostles disputed among themselues, who should * 1.4 bee the chiefest, and asked the Lord who should bee the greatest in the kingdome of hea∣uen. So that there is no vice nor corruption whatsoeuer, which this couetousnesse of ho¦nour * 1.5 doth not beget, as such an elder daughter of the incredulitie of our first parents could not but bee a fruitfull mother of most wicked children. Whereof Saint Bernard maketh a notable description, saying, That Ambition is a secret poyson, a hidden plague, a forger of * 1.6 deceits, the mother of hypocrisie, the fountaine of enuie, the spring of all vices, the moath of holinesse, the blinding of the heart, and that which conuerteth wholesome medicines into diseases, and Physicke into languishing dolors: and likewise calleth it the ape of Cha∣ritie. For as that Christian vertue is patient, expecting eternall good, Ambition endureth all for temporall things. Charitie is fauourable to the poore, Ambition to the rich; Chari∣tie endureth all for the trueths sake, Ambition for vanitie; there beeing no iniquitie nor crueltie, how great soeuer, whereinto Ambition will not thrust it selfe. What other thing but this pestilent vice onely mooued Corath, Daihan, and Abiram to murmure against Mo∣ses * 1.7 and Aaron, and to raise that sedition which is spoken of in the holy Scriptures? Atha∣liah to kill all the blood royall, to reigne Queene of Israel? Zimri and Omri, and many o∣thers to murther their Lords and Princes? Abimelech to massacre seuentie of his brethren the sonnes of Gideon? and Absalom an hypocrite and an ingratefull childe, to driue his owne father out of his Kingdome, and to pursue him with an armie to put him to death?

The second kinde of Ambition, properly called Arrogancie or Pride, which is aswelling of the soule, or of the heart, and proceedeth of an opinion in our selues, to bee endowed * 1.8 with giftes and graces more then others: prouoketh a man to commit true sacriledge a∣gainst God, making man to attribute the glory of that vnto himselfe, which hee hath recei∣ued from God, and therefore due vnto him. Which hee doeth two wayes, that is, in glori∣fying himselfe, and presumptuously esteeming of his owne person, because of the graces and giftes that hee hath, or at least thinketh to haue more then others: And againe, when hee seeketh, and with great desire receiueth glory of others, in such manner that hee reioy∣ceth much, when it is giuen vnto him, and is angrie if any man denies it him. The true cause of this pride is, the inconsider at loue that euery one beareth vnto himselfe, which hin∣dreth man to know himselfe. For if hee had that true knowledge, hee could not see any thing in his owne nature, but that onely which would cause him to despise, and humble himselfe: so farre off should he be from finding any thing therein, wherof to bragge and be∣come proude: for as touching that which he may haue more then an other, by the speciall grace of God, he ought to hearken vnto Saint Paul speaking thus, for who separateth thee? and what hast thou, that thou hast not receiued? and if thou hast receiued it, why reioicest * 1.9 thou, as though thou hadst not receiued it? And yet the Apostle confesseth, that hee him∣selfe had beene in danger to fall into a proud conceite more then became him, by the great∣nes

of the Reuealations that he had, If God had not preuented him. Whereby (as he saith elsewhere, that knowledge puffeth vp) he noteth how common this infirmity is to all men, to take an occasion to waxe proude, by reason of the encreasing of the gifts of God. And it * 1.10 is most strange, that it creepeth sometime into humility it selfe, and into all other vertues. For you shall see many men, who condemning pride, and other vices, without measure, to the vttermost setting out and affecting their owne modesty, and such like graces, take plea∣sure therein after a proud manner, and by such meanes fall in to that pride, which they find falt withall, and blame in others. Whereby it appeareth how crooked and slippery this vici∣ous serpent is, and into how many shapes it transformeth it selfe, to infect and poyson our hearts with his arrogancy, and withall corruptions. And yet it is most true, that if we put our miseries and vices in one scale, and all those excellent graces and merits which we presume and brag of in an other scale; the counterpoise of abiection will weigh downe all our glory and make vs blush for shame and confusion.

Let vs only weigh our ignorance against our knowledge, our want of vertue, against our perfection, our sinnes against our righteousnes, and our corruption against our holines, and it wil be more then enough to abate all the Pride and presumption wherwith our minds are infected. It is said, that the peacocke hauing so many beautifull feathers, and but two feete onely, taketh a great pride to behold her taile when shee spreadeth it abroade, and that as soone as she looketh vpon her feete, and sees them to be so ill fauoured, presently she leaues her pride, & lets fall her taile, seeming as it were to hide that, which before she thoght to be very faire and beautifull. How much more ought wee by the feeling and apprehension of diuers filthy feet which sustaine vs in vice, (that is our corrupt and peruerse affections,) to humble our selues, and to beate down the pride and arrogancy which liueth in vs, of things which are lighter then feathers: that is our owne naturall inclinations, which haue onely a beginning and an appearance of beauty? for as touching supernatural & diuine graces, how much the more they abound and increase in vs, so much the more we are bound in all hu∣mility of heart, to giue honour to God, and to vse them all to his glory, without making idols of our selues, by sacrificing to our nets, and burning incense to our yearne, as the Pro∣phet saith. We see that when the sunne shineth directly ouer our heads the shadowes of our * 1.11 bodies are but short and little, which by experience wee finde to bee true about noone time, and a little before and after noone. So there ought to be lesse pride and presumption in vs, when the sonne of righteousnes with great force casteth down the beames of his gifts and graces vpon our soules.

Touching Boasting and bragging, which is the third common effect of Ambition, there are some men so foolish in this respect, and in such manner carried away with the desire of glorie & praise, therby to nourish and feed their pride, that the lesse matter that they haue in * 1.12 themselues to bee proud of, so much the more they boast and bragge: in such manner, that their vauntings are certaine signes and testimonies of their indignitie and miserie. For as it is a signe that the Sunne descendeth and goeth downe from vs, when the shadowe of our bodies waxe and grow long: so wee may holde it for a certaine and true argument, that vertue decreaseth in that man, in whom wee see presumption to encrease, by his boasting and bragging. And as wee iudge a vessell to bee full, by the little sound that it giueth, when wee knocke vpon the head thereof; and when it sounds hollow, that is a signe that it is emp∣ty: so we may well beleeue, that in such men as take great paines to make their valour and merits sound high, there is more wind and vntruth, then truth & effect of vertue in them. They are like to pedlers, who out of their little packs willingly shew euery man all that they haue; where to the contrary, marchants hang out but small musters of the rich wares and marchandises which they haue in their great warehouses. And as eares of corne when they hang down their heads, ordinarily are full & well graind, but those that stand vpright and highest, make men gesse that they are light, and haue little or nothing in them. So we commonly see, those that are humble and modest, are as much replenished with al laudable conditions, as braggers and glorious boasters are vnfurnished thereof, and want them. And as experience sheweth vs, low vallies are commonly fertile, and to the contrary, the higher that hils are, so much the barrener they are.

Againe, we must consider, that such braggers & boasters commonly bereaue themselues of more glory and commendation, then they get by their vantings, for presently they dis∣couer themselues to be liers, for although they speake truth, yet they make themselues odi∣ous to the world, by praising and commending themselues, whereby that happeneth vnto

them both in the one & the other, which we naturally see by experiēce, that a shadow run∣neth away frō him that followeth it, & followeth him that goes frō it. To correct & amend this kind of ambition, let vs remēber the great number of the pernitious effects of this vice, and the horrible vengeance which God hath alwayes taken of ambitious & proud persons. How fearfull was his iudgment vpon Adam and Eue, because of the sin whereinto they fell by this concupiscence. And what punishment did he lay vpon Aman, Athaliah, Absalon, Ne∣buchadnezzar, * 1.13 and Herod. Let vs thinke vpon those iudgements which the holy Ghost hath pronounced, That God resisteth the proud, and giueth grace to the humble: that whosoeuer will exalt himselfe, shall be brought low, and whosoeuer will humble himselfe, shalbe exalted. That God scattereth the proud in the imagination of their hearts, and exalteth them of low degree. To be short, let vs de∣spise all the glory of the world, which is nothing else, but as it were a blast of winde, or a lit∣tle smoke. And if among worldly men, wee are held to be abiects, and contemptible in this world, in this life, (which is of so short a continuance) let vs bee content and comfort our selues in that we are great, rich and ful of glory before God, in his Son Iesus Christ, being his children, and heires of his kingdome. Finally, let vs learne, that humility is the foundation of Christian Phylosophy, and of all commendable vertues: and that as our humble beha∣uiour in all things is the glory of God, the only efficient cause of our good: so the confession of our indignity, hath for reward his mercy & goodnes. And yet we must not bee proud or vaine glorious therof, but only in this, that by our humblenes we haue learned wholly to de∣pend vpon our Father which is in heauen, to be new creatures in the Lord.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Gen. 1. 3.
• * 1.2

  Eccles. 10 14, 15.
• * 1.3

  1. Sam. 23. 17
• * 1.4

  3. Iohn 1, 9
• * 1.5

  Mark. 9. 34. Mat. 18. 1.
• * 1.6

  Bern. Serm. quadrag.
• * 1.7

  Numb. 16. 2. Kin. 11. 15 1. Kings 16. 2. Sam. 15. 18.
• * 1.8

  Of pride.
• * 1.9

  1 Cor. 4. 7.
• * 1.10

  2. Cor. 12. 7. 1. Cor. 8, 1.
• * 1.11

  Habac. 1. 16
• * 1.12

  Boasting.
• * 1.13

  Gene. 3. Esther 7. 10. 2. King. 11. 16 1. Sam. 18. Esay 14. Dan. 4. 2. Pet. 3. 5. Matt. 23. 12. Luke 1. 51. 52