Miscellanea spiritualia: or, Devout essaies: composed by the Honourable Walter Montagu Esq.

§. III.

The errours of prophane jealousie argued, and a Pious jealousie propounded.

MEthinks passionate lovers, who know nothing so well as the nature of jealousie, (which studyeth con∣tinually the anotamy of hearts, and is so severe to the least defective part,) should not hope to passe any insincerity upon a jealous God, if they did not study too much the qua∣lity of jealousie, and too little the nature of God, for if they attended that, it would shew them God cannot be jealous, ac∣cording to the nature of man, where jealousie implyes doubt and perplexity of inquiry; for to God the secrets of hearts are manifest, even while they are secrets to themselves, he precon∣ceiveth what all hearts shal ever freely conceive; & so God cal∣leth himselfe a jealous God, as knowing the nature of humane jealousie, (which is so sensible of the least substraction from what we affect) to assure us by that title, he can admit no participation in what he vouchsafes to love.

It is to inlighten man in the knowledge of his severity, not to obscure the beliefe of his omniscience, that he cals himselfe a jealous God, which quality is as propitious in Gods love as it is malignant in mans; for humane jealousie among all the falsities it suggests for our disquiet, telleth us but one impor∣tant truth, (and that we seem to believe little by the eagernes of our solicitations) which is the infidelity and variablenesse of all humane loves, that are so unfaithfull, as our greatest passions are commonly unsecured by our tendernesse and cau∣tion of them, and Gods jealousie assureth us of the immuta∣bility of his love, which we can loose onely by our not being jealous of it, for the more watches we set over it in our lips, and the more guards in our hearts, the more it is obliged by this circumspection: nor must we think to keep it safe in our

hearts, while the doors of our lips stand open to all the passen∣gers of a prophan and libertine tongue; so that if we make a se∣rious reflexion on it, there is none of Gods attributes so sure a guide for our way to him, as a jealous God.

Whereupon I may well ask the Synagogue of Libertines this puestion of Saint James, Do you thinke that the Scripture saith in vain, The Spirit that dwelleth in you, covets you even to emulation, and Saint Paul explicates this, * 1.1 when to indeare his zeale to soules, he calls it the emulation of God, and we know God is not as man that he may be deceived; the same Spirit is jealous of us, which peirceth and divideth * 1.2 asunder the soule and the Spirit, and is the discerner of the * 1.3 thoughts and intents of the heart; Therefore they who look up∣on the beauty of Gods love, in the beams of his mercy, should alwayes reflect upon the shadow of his love, which is his jealousie, and is inseparable from the substance of his cha∣ritie.

But commonly Libertine lovers, when they raise their thoughts as high as God, look upon his mercyes being above all his works, and account that as a City of refuge, whereunto they can easily flie for protection of these kind of infirmities of nature, pleading all their offences to be rather occasionall frailties, then purposed infidelities to God; and so while they have this attribute of Gods mercy in their eye, like the hill seated upon a mountaine, they think they cannot loose their way to it, though they loyter and wander in their youth out of the strait and narrow way; straying by the light excursions of their passion.

And certainly no one sinne hath misled more, then this pur∣posed Piety, in which the Devill is a diligent advocate for Gods mercy; For all active vitiousnesse, hath a kind of hot feavor, which keeps the conscience awake at least, but this rowling between mercy and justice, is a certaine motion, that very often rocketh the conscience into a drowsinesse till our last sleep; after which, the worm it wanted, never lets it rest againe; How many say with Christ, Yet a little and the world

shall not see me, who go out of the world, in this stretching of * 1.4 themselves in a little more sleep, a little more slumber?

Therefore I will recommend one jealousie to lovers, which think themselves secure of Gods mercy, by being but loose sutors for it, let me propose to them to be very jealous of it, I am sure they can know nothing of Gods heart, which ought to make them confident of his mercy, longer then they are actually watching it, for it is seriously true in this case (what is familiarly said to justifie vain jealousie) that we cannot love mercy much, and not be jealous of it; nay I may add, that the very apprehension of the insecurity of it is the fruition of this love, for it is a possession of mercy to be solicitous and atten∣tive in feare of losing it; in this sense Solomon saith, Blessed is * 1.5 he who is alwayes fearing, and David prayeth that his flesh may be pierced with this feare.

But alas, prophane passion is commonly a derider of all holy fear, and accepts onely that which vaine jelousie impo∣seth on her, and so the fear passion hath, proves rather a curse then a custody for her love; for the feares of lovers may be properly said to be such, as the Wise-man elegantly dis∣cribes in the Aegyptian darknesse, when their fire afforded them no light, and those flashes of lightning which passed by * 1.6 them, did but fright them so much the more; & being so terri∣fied with what they saw, they concluded that much more hor∣rid which they saw not, and thus their feare proved nothing to them, but a betrayer of the succours of reason: I need not put this on upon a lovers jealousie, to try if it wil serve it by an ap∣plication of those qualityes, for it will appeare to any body that knoweth it as apposite and fit as if it had been made by the measure of that passion; therefore I may wel conclude that love to be very unhappy, which rejects all Pious feare, and accepteth willingly this perplexing terrour.

Notes

• * 1.1

  James 4. 5.
• * 1.2

  2 Cor. 11. 2.
• * 1.3

  Heb. 4. 12.
• * 1.4

  Iohn 14. 19.
• * 1.5

  Prov. 28, 14. Psa. 118.
• * 1.6

  Sapi. 17.