The Christian mans teares and Christs comforts. Delivered at a fast the seventh of Octob. An[n]o. 1624. By Gilbert Primerose minister of the French Church of London.

CHAP. VI.

1. TEares of repentance are fruitfull, but they are not honourable.

2. Teares of charity, which we powre out for the sinnes of our brethren, are both fruit∣full and honourable.

3. In this charity, there is a duty to God,

4. And to man.

5. Examples of godly men which wept for other mens sinnnes, are accusations of the hardnes of our hearts;

6. Namely, the examples of Iesus Christ.

I. SUch fruites are fruitfull, such teares are pro∣fitable, but they are not honourable. 'Tis shame to a man to sinne: and therefore it is not hono∣rable unto him to have need of pardon, to beg it, to weepe for it.t A remission is a disgrace∣full brand to him that opposeth it to the hands of justice: and amongst the Nobles of the land, those are most estee∣med, in whose family there is no pardon, no letters of remission: But

u it is the glory of a man,v and namely of a King, to passe over a transgres∣sion, and to forgive it. It is even so between God and us.x It is the glory of God to conceale a thing, and to give pardons to great sinners: But they which receive such par∣dons, must confesse as Daniel did, thaty to them belongeth confusion of face, and say with Iere∣miah,a It is of the Lords mercies that wee are not consumed, because his com∣passions faile not.

II. As we must have fruitfull teares of repen∣tance,

to weepe for our owne sinnes NOW: so must we have honorable tears of charity, to weep NOW for the sinnes of our brethren, whereof we are not guiltie. As it is honourable tob the Angells to reioyce o∣ver the sinners that re∣pent, because they them∣selves are without sin: so it is a glory to us to mourne for those sinnes wherewith wee are not blemished.

III. In this glory there is a duty: if wee honour God, if we feare his glorious Majestie, if

wee bee zealous of his glory, can we heare his great and fearfull name blasphemed, can we see his word despised, his law transgressed, his glory turned into shame, and not bee commoo∣ved? If our dearest friends uttered in our eares but one word of discommendation and reproach against our fa∣thers and mothers that begat us, what noise would we not make? up would all friendship go, no exhortation, no sub∣mission, no satisfaction would be able to bridle

our impatience, and to restraine our passionate∣nesse & furie from ven∣geance.

If great men who are above our reach, if our Magistrates, if our Prin∣ces, if our Kings speake disdainfully of them, at the least wee would weepe, at the least wee would shew, by all kind of tokens of sorrow, that such disgracing checks are grievous un∣to us. The living God, the Father of spirits is every where vilipen∣ded, dishonoured, revi∣led by great and small,

by our inferiors, by our superiours, by our e∣quals, by our friends, by our foes. And shall not we, which professe to be Gods children, be sensible of such contu∣melies?

IV. A great many, yea many millions, yea, the greatest part of men give themselves over unto lasciviousnesse, and run head-long into the dark gulf of death & eternall damnation. Are they not created to the image of God, as well as wee are? Are they not our owne flesh? are they not

our brethren? where then is our charitie, where our bowells, where our mercy, if we seek not to rescue them, if we endeavour not to pull them out of the fire; if all helps beeing impossible to us, wee weepe not for them?

V.c Lot a poor stran∣ger, in the middest of a towne swarming with wicked men, when hee could doe no better, vexed his righteous soule from day to day with their filthy conversation and unlawfull deeds. Is not Christendome as filthy

as Sodome? and shall we finde amongst us all one Lot, whether out∣lander or home-bred, that is vexed therwith? When David lived a private life, and had not the power in his hand to represse wicked men; what he might, that hee did.d Horror tooke hold upon him, because of the wicked that had forsaken Gods law: rivers of wa∣ters ran downe his eyes, because they kept it not. The forsaking of Gods Law is an indifferent thing unto us: wee dis∣course, wee eate, wee

drinke, we take pleasure in wicked men that transgresse it. O how was that holy man mo∣ved with blaspheming and cursing, when hee said to his God, The zeale of thine house hath eaten me up:e the repro∣ches of them that reproa∣ched thee, are fallen upon me. Therefore I wept, and chastened my soule with fasting, and that was to my reproach! The ayre is infected with blasphe∣ming and cursing: who is eaten up with the zeale of the house of God, and of his glory,

to refraine it? At the least, who fasteth, who weepeth when hee can∣not refraine it?

If God should send his Angell through the middest of this City, as he didf the man clothed with linnen, through the midst of Ierusalem, to set a marke upon the fore∣heads of the men that sigh, and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof; I doubt not but hee should finde some sigh∣ing, and shedding teares abundātly. For wherso∣ever the visible Church

is, God hath there one or another that belong∣eth to his election: but I feare that the number would be very scant and few.

Where justice hath e∣rected her sea, where Lawyers pleade at the barre, there is prevari∣cation and briberie: where there is a crowd and many halls of traf∣ficking men, and of di∣vers societies of trades∣men; there must needes be Monopolies, ingros∣sing, cousenage, for∣swearing and robbery. Where there are so ma∣ny

Tavernes, so many Ale-houses, there is i∣dlenes, unnecessary wa∣sting, and lecherie: where every where yee see nothing but pompe, but sumptuousnesse, but riot, but gorgeousnesse and braverie, yee shall not lye, if yee say that there is too much pride and vanitie. As a bigge and wel-fed body is full of ill humours: so in a great Citie, such as this is, there are many irre∣gular and carelesse Ci∣tizens. And as standing waters turne into mud, and breed frogges and

toads; so a long peace begets a crue of uglie and noysome vices, and a packe of base and lewd fellowes.

If we couldg digge in the wall, as Ezechiel did, how many creeping things, how many abo∣minable beastes should we see, not purtrayed, but living and mooving in the Temples of ma∣ny mens hearts, who have a fare shew in the flesh, and seeme to our charitable judgement the honestest men that ever are bread. Oh! if wee could know them,

we would, or at least we should mourn NOW, ash Ezra did once for the unlawfull marriages which they had con∣tracted with the women of Ashdod, even with strange and beastly af∣fections: Wee would NOW weepe in secret places for their pride, as Ieremiah did: and that which was comman∣ded to Ezechiel,i to smite with his hand, to stampe with his foote, and to say, Alas! for all the abomina∣tions of the house of Isra∣el; that would wee, or should we doe NOW

for al the enormous and most wicked sinnes of the reformed Chur∣ches.

The holy Apostlek Paul was humbled a∣mong the Corinthians, & bewayled many which had sinned, and had not repented of the unclean∣nesse, and fornication, and lasciviousnesse, which they had committed. If this Church were but one Parish, if we might know every mans and womans carriage in it, I thinke that wee should rather want tears in our eyes, than matter to pro∣voke

them to weep for such sinnes.

The same Apostle re∣buked sharpelyl the Co∣rinthians, because they mourned not, that the in∣cestuous man might be ta∣ken away from among them. Alas! alas! what is riot, what is pride, what is taverning, what is lasciviousnesse, but committing of spiritu∣all incest with the di∣vell? There was but one incestuous of that kinde in Corinth; there are NOW too many of this kinde amongst us, and we weep not Now.

mThat incestuous man sorrowed, repented, & wept; yea hee was al∣most swallowed up with over-much sorrow: these incestuous persons will seeme honest men, and weepe not: forn whore∣dome and wine, yea, the excellent wine, take away the heart.

oIehoiakims Courti∣ers are threatned with great plagues, because when the King had cut the roll wherein the word of God was writ∣ten, and cast it into the fire, they were not afraid, rent not their clothes, &

wept not: My heart quakes, my soule shakes, my flesh faints, my haire stares, my tongue clea∣veth to my jawes, and words are dryed up in my mouth, whē I begin to cōplaine that not the word of God, but his glorious body is most cruelly & ignominiously dismēbred, that no word is spokē by many with∣out an oath, and no oath without wounds, passi∣on, body, pockes, &c. that at each of those blasphemies, God is most vilely named; and none, yea not one of

those that stand by, open their mouths to reprove it, yea, yea, doe not so much as sigh, as frowne, as shiver, as thrust one, one drop of teares from their hornie eyes to condemne it.

VI. O sweet Iesus! thou seeing the malice of the Iewes,p lookedst round about on them with anger, beeing grie¦ved for the hardnesse of their hearts: O most glorious Sonne of God! Thou, who artq over al, God blessed for ever, didstr weep over Ierusalem, be∣cause shee knew not the

time of her visitation. O zealous and blessed A∣postle! when thou wast at Athens,s thy spirit was stirred in thee, seeing the Citie wholly given to Idolatry. If ye were be∣yond sea, yea if ye could enter into a Recusants closet, yee should see so manie Idols, that yee vvould wonder, that men, men calling them∣selves Christians, should be they of whom it is written, thatt they repen∣ted not of the vvorkes of their hands; that they should not vvorship Di∣vels, & Idols of gold, and

silver, & brasse, & stone, and of wood, vvhich ney∣ther can see, nor heare, nor vvalk. More would ye wonder, if ye did see them worshipping, in stead of Iesus Christ, a peece of dough rosted upon a paire of tongs. But alas! whose spirit would wex eager at it? That which is written of the Priests, People, & Princes of Israel, is true of them:u Their doings will not suffer them to turn unto their God; for the spirit of whoredomes is in the midst of them, & they have not knowne the

Lord. But who, vvith Iesus Christ, whose ac∣tions are our instructi∣ons, is grieved for the hardnes of their hearts? Shall the sinnes of ido∣laters wring one teare out of our stony heads; when our owne sinnes are increased above the haires of our head, and are heavier than the sand of the sea, and yet wee look on them with dry eyes, as if all their muscles were withered, and without sap? Let us, I pray you, let us be∣gin NOW to weepe, because untill NOW

we have not wept: let us tune upon the strings of our hearts a dolefull song of heavie mour∣ning, because wee have not knowne, in this peaceable Kingdome, the things belonging to our peace.

Notes

• t

  Quem li∣berat, notat.
• v

  Pro. 19.15.
• x

  Pro. 25.2.
• y

  Dan. 9.8.
• a

  Lam. 3.2.
• b

  Luk. 15.10.
• c

  2. Pet. 2.7, 8.
• d

  Psal. 119 53, 136.
• e

  Psal. 69 9, 11.
• f

  Ezech. 9.4.
• g

  Ezec. 8.8, 9, 10.
• h

  Ezra 9.3. Neh. 13.23.
• i

  Ezech. 6.11.
• k

  2. Cor. 12.21.
• l

  1. Cor. 5.2.
• m

  2 Cor. 2.7.
• n

  Hosea, 4.11.
• o

  Ier. 6.23, 24.
• p

  Mark. 3.5.
• q

  Rom. 9.5.
• r

  Luk. 19.41.44.
• s

  Acts 17.16
• t

  Rev. 9.20, 21.
• u

  Hos. 5.4