¶The thyrd Chapter, The fyrst comfort in tribulacion, may a man take in thys: VVhan he feleth in himselfe a desyre and longyng to be comforted by God.
I Will in my poore mynde assigne for the fyrst comfort, the desier and longing to be by God comforted, and not without some reason call I this the fyrste cause of comforte. For lyke as the cure of that person is in a maner desperate, that hath no will to be cured: so is the discomforte of that person desperate, yt desireth not his own cōforte.
And here shal I note you two kyndes of folke that are in tribulacion and heauines. One sorte that will seke for no comfort, an other sorte that wil. And yet of those that will not, are there also two sortes. For fyrst one sort there are, that are so drowned in sorowe, that they fall into a careles deadlye dulnes.
Regarding nothing, thinking almoste of nothyng, no more than if they laye in a letarge, with whiche it may so fall, that witte and remembraunce will weare away, and fall euen fayre from them. And this com∣fortles kinde of heauines in tribulacion, is the hygh∣est kinde of the deadlye sinne of slothe. An other sorte are there, that will seke for no comforte, nor yet none receiue, but are in their tribulacion (be it losse or sick∣nes) so testie, so fumishe, and so farre oute of all paci∣ence, that it boteth no mā to speake to them, and these are in a maner with impaciēce, as furious as though they were in halfe a frenesie, and may with a custome of such facioned behauiour, fall in therto ful & whole. And thys kinde of heauines in tribulacion, is euen a mischieuous high braunche of the mortal sinne of yre.
Than is there as I tolde you, an other kynde of folke, which faine woulde be comforted, and yet are Page [unnumbered] they of two sortes to. One sort are those, that in theyr sorowe seke for worldly comfort: and of them shall we now speake the lesse for the diuers occasions that we shal after haue, to touche thē in moe places than one. But this will I here saye, that I learned of Saynct Barnard. He that in tribulaciō turneth himselfe vn∣to worldly vanities, to geat hel•e & comfort by them: fareth lyke a man that in perill of drowning catcheth whatsoeuer cometh next to hand, and that holdeth he fast be it neuer so simple a sticke, but than that helpeth him not: for ye sticke he draweth downe vnder the wa∣ter with him, & there lye they drowned bothe together.
So surely if we custome our selfe to put our trust of coumfort in the delyte of these pieuishe worldelye thinges God shal for that foule fault suffre our tribu∣lacion to growe so great, that all the pleasures of this worlde shall neuer beare vs vp, but all oure pieuishe pleasure shal in ye depth of tribulaciō drown with vs.
The other sorte is I saye, of those that long and desyre to bee coumforted of GOD. And as I tolde you beefore, they haue an vndoubted greate cause of coumforte, euen in that poynte alone, that they considre themselfe to desyre and longe to bee by al∣myghtye God coumforted: Thys mynde of theyrs may wel be cause of great comfort vnto them for two great consideracions. The one is, that they see them∣selfe seeke for their coumfort where they cannot fayle to finde it. For God both can geue them comfort, and wil. He can for he is almightie: he wil, for he is al good• and hath himselfe promised, Petite et accipietis. Aske and ye shall haue. He that hathe fayth (as he must nedes haue that shal take comfort) cannot doubt but that God wil surely kepe his promise. And therfore hath he a greate Page [unnumbered] cause to be of good comfort, as I say, in that he cons•∣dereth that he longeth to be comforted by hym, which his faith maketh him sure, wil not fayle to cōfort him.
But here considre this that I speake here of hym that in tribulacion longeth to bee comforted by God: and it is he that referreth the maner of his cōfortyng to God, holding himselfe content, whether it be by the taking away or the minyshment of the tribulacion it self, or by the geuing him pacience and spiritual con∣solacion therein. For of hym that onelye longeth to haue god take his trouble from him, we cannot so wel warrant that minde for a cause of so greate comfort. For both may he desyre that, that neuer mindeth to be the better, & may misse also the effect of his desyre be∣cause his request is happely not good for himself. And of this kind of longing & requiring, we shal haue oc∣casiō farther to speake herafter. But he which refer∣ring the maner of his comforte vnto God, desireth of god to be cōforted asketh a thing so lawfull & so plea∣sant vnto god, that he cannot fayle to spede, & there∣fore hath he (as I saye) great cause to take comfort in the very desyre it selfe.
An other cause hath he to take of that desire, a very great occasion of comfort. For sith his desyre is good, and declareth vnto himself that he hath in god a good faith: it is a good token vnto him y• he is not an abiect cast out of gods gracious fauour while he perceiueth y• god hath put such a verteous well ordred appetite in his mind. For as euery euil mind cometh of ye worlde and our selfe, and the Deuill: so is euerye such good mynde eyther immediately, or by the meane of oure good Aungell or other gracious occasyon, inspyred into mannes hearte by the goodnes of God hymselfe. Page [unnumbered] And what a comfort than may this be vnto vs, whan we by that desyre perceyue a sure vndoubted token, that toward our final saluacion our Sauiour is him∣selfe so graciously busy about vs?
