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By this short view I have given you of the Provident Gentleman, I suppose you will grant him to be none of those we may call the best, or such as it might be wished, wee had many of in our Nation; And truly the Prudent Gentleman, I mean him who is now adayes knowne by that name, is not of a much Nobler dye: very often you shall find
him to be the very same, alwayes very neer of kind to the former. Cowardice is as much afraid to be known, and therefore as loath to walk without her maske as Covetousness; and would as gladly arrogate to her selfe the never more abused names then now of a wise caution, and a Christian Prudence; as that other of a vertuous thrift and necessary Pro∣vidence.
Insteed of being (as wisedome commanded his Disciples) wise as serpents, Gentlemen are become meer Serpents in wisedom; and have render'd themselves very capable of that Commendable Character, which was long agoe given to the Serpent, They are more subtile then all the beasts of the field; and the Prudence they boast of, and under which they vaile a Carnall mind, and a Carking Cowardly soul, is nothing else but a worldly Policy, or rather a Devillish Subtilty. They have made one halfe of the text quarrel with, and justle the other quite out of their Bibles, advancing the wisedome of the serpent to so high and Intense a degree, that it cannot admit the least proportion of the Holy Doves more necessary Innocence. Such a foraminous piece of Net-worke has Christian Prudence
been made of late, that these Glib serpentine Politicians can soe wind themselves in and out at pleasure, as if they meant neither God nor Man should ever know certainly where to have them.
It is a very famous piece of the Gentleman's prudence to Endeavour to Out-wit an All-wise God, and to go about to put Fallacies upon him out of his owne word, often make∣ing even God's most righteous precepts the Topicks of his disobedience. How frequently endeavours he to cloak the violation of one law, by a pretended obedience to another, and by setting God's Commands at variance one with another, thinks to steal away his beloved sin, and not be taken notice of? He dares not take up his Crosse and follow Christ, lest he should become Felo de se, accessary to his owne death; Nor knows he how to forsake Father and Mother for Christ's sake, without a breach of the Fifth Commandment, which binding him to Honour both, he cannot see how he may in any sence forsake either. He dares not part with houses and lands, for fear he might seem to Dispise God's good Blessings; nor hazard his estate in the vindica∣tion of his Religion and his Loyalty, lest he
should be said to have thereby thrown away the opportunities of expressing his bounty and his Charity; He knows how much he is ob∣liged not to deny Christ before men, and to give an account of his faith to such as demand it of him; but then he produces a text which tells him of daies wherein the Prudent shall keep silence, and these daies he supposes still present, whensoever his person or estate may be endanger'd by an open heart or an Ingenuous tongue. He will be ready to suffer Persecution for the Gospell of Christ, and, with St Paul, to be bound and to dye; but this must onely bee when his Prudence is at a losse and he can find out no way just or unjust to avoyd all this. As long as there are shifts enow left him, such as dissembling language, Covert Engagements, Cunning flatteries, treache∣rous Compositions, petty Contributions, Vn∣derhand Compliances, in things both Civill and Religious, he thinks he wants no honest Evasions, to secure both Life and livelyhood, Thus he is Content to set him down in qui∣etnesse, whilest the Enemies of God's Church advance in troops and Armies against her; and thinks it enough, when he can say he wishes all well, and praies for the Peace of Ierusalem.
It were no Prudence openly to declare his opi∣nion, or to act on any side; alas, he is but one single man, and one's as good as none a∣gainst the stream of the multitude, not Con∣sidering that where one does not joyne with one, there can be no multitude. There are other Champions enow in the world to vin∣dicate her quarrell, such as have no estates to look after, No families to provide for, when if all were of his mind there would not be so much as one; and besides who has grea∣ter reason to labour then he that has already received so great a share of his wages. What though he freely gives away a large portion of his goods to the Enemies of God? It is but the way to secure the rest for better pur∣poses. What though he be constrain'd with faire speeches to flatter up the transgressors in their Iniquities? His heart for all this shall be for God, his prayers for the Church, and he is as Good a Christian and as Loyall a Subject within as the best. Alas, 'tis no great mat∣ter to Comply a little in outward things, to lay an hand upon a Bible, to invoke the sa∣cred Name of God, and seemingly to Re∣nounce Religion and Loyalty; God knows, he intends no such matter, but onely takes
this Course to keep his Family from ruine, and to preserve himselfe safe and whole to doe God and his Church more service heare∣after.
It is all one with him to goe to Church or C••nventicle, so he may by frequenting ei∣ther be thought to favour the Religion in Fashion, and so not be suspected an Enemy to the God that rules, the man in power with a sword in his hand. He can take a great deal of pains, rise early, and go farre, to en∣courage a seditious Lecture, and when Ser∣mon's done with an Hypocriticall face smile upon the preacher, and inviteing him home with him witness his thankes and approbation in a Good dinner; But he holds it imprudence to frequent that true worship and service of God, which the excellency thereof and the Command of his superiours commends to his Conscience, lest he should be thereby thought ill-affected to that Religion, which he would have Good men believe his soul ab∣horres. He dares Countenance Rebellion and Sacriledge both with his tongue and Purse; but aesteems it dangerous, and therefore (with∣out all doubt) Imprudence, to Contribute so much as a Good look to the Encouragement
of the truly Religious and vertuous, lest he should be suspected by the prosperous sinner, an Enemy to Treason, and Wickednesse.
Till we can find a way how to cast out this Prudent Devill, which (as the Prophet tells us) is wise to doe evill but to doe Good has no un∣derstanding; we shall ever heare this possess'd Gentleman crying out with the Daemoniack in the Gospell, what have we to doe with thee Iesus thou son of God? Why art thou Come to torment us before our time? Such a perfect Gout is this prudent Cowardise, that the lame Gentleman ever cries out at the very sight of any thing looks like Religion, as if it would come too neer him, and touch him upon the sore place. So sad a thing is it to stand in feare of health, lest it should make us sick▪ to tremble at the sight of what would bring us to Heaven, lest we should lose our Earth; and to take so much anxious care to praeserve the Body whole, for fear a Courteous wound should set open the dore, and give the soul leave to fly out into Heaven and be at rest.
If such men be truely prudent, then are all true Christians undoutedly fools: Or if this over-warynesse be no more but a prudent and Religious Caution, then are most of our Eng∣lish
Gentlemen (which I have not yet Chari∣ty enough to beleeve) Prudent Christians. But (alas) Neutrality hangs too much be∣twixt two, ever to come so high as Heaven; and a Cold Indifferency comes so farre short of that necessary zeal which is the unfailing Consequent of true Piety; that it is impossi∣ble it should ever be Crown'd with aeternall Happinesse. He that is not deeply in love with his God, cannot place his absolute fe∣licity in the fruition of God; and he that is afraid to do any thing, or think's it prudence to suffer nothing for him, is not in Love with him. God has long agoe told the Gentle∣man, and all others, how much of another temper he must be who will live for ever, in∣structing him what an immediate Contrariety there is betwixt being for God and against him, soe that there can be no mean left for such a prudent Indifferency: betwixt fight∣ing Vnder Christ's Banner, and being the Devill's Souldiers. Moderation, 'tis true, in things of Indifferency is a Commendation; but the Gentleman needs feare as little that he can be over zealous in a Good matter here upon Earth, as that he may be over happy in Heaven. As there be no Angels but such as
are either very good, or very bad, so every Gentleman is either a Saint indeed, or else stark naught. He that sitts still shall come as soone to Hell as he that sweats in pursuite of it. But whosoever hopes to Come to Heaven, he must ever run and with his face that way if he will be sure to obtaine. I would wish that Gentleman who has not the heart to Confesse Christ before men, to Consider, how he can have the Courage to hear Christ denying him before his Father which is in Heaven, or to Endure those torments in H••ll which he shall be sure to undergo for not Confessing him here upon Earth. Such a Lukewarme soul is so Nauseous unto God, that he must at last Spue him out into the Bottomelesse pit.
If this be Christian Prudence, to secure an Estate or preserve a Family, or save a life, by being frigid, and so Spiritlesse in our Pro∣fession, as may make us nauseated by God, and set us at such a distance from Heaven; a true Christian shall have as little reason to Envy the G••ntleman his Prudence, as the poore Church of England has cause to be proud of his Courage.