The true interest of families, or, Directions how parents may be happy in their children, and children in their parents to which is annexed a discourse about the right way of improving our time / by a divine of the Church of England ; with a preface by A. Horneck.

Motives to excite Children to do these things.

First,* 1.1 It will tend migh∣tily to move them to Honour their Father and Mother, if they consider who requires this at their hands. This Law proceedeth not from Men, but from God; It is a Law made by him who is their Maker; and therefore by right of Creation may require their Obedience: It is a Law made by their faithful preserver, and rich pro∣vider; and therefore by vertue of his daily care over them, and kindness to them, may command them what he thinks good: This is the will of their Father in Heaven, of their Lord and King, of him who will call them to an account, and render to them accord∣ing to their Works; of him who is their greatest and best Friend, if they do his Will and keep his Commandments; but will be their most dreadful and ter∣rible Enemy, if they do not obey his Voice: If therefore children have any sense of God on their Souls; if they consider his infinite greatness, power,

wisdom, justice, truth, faithfulness, mercy, and kindness; they cannot but endeavour to perform what he requires, when once they know what is his holy will and pleasure. Now, as to what I speak of, to wit the Duty of Children to Parents, it is plain and clear, not only from those Laws which are con∣tained in Holy Scripture, which were revealed from Heaven to Holy Men, whom God made use of to be the pub∣lishers thereof to the World: but likewise from the Laws of Nature, those clear impressions which God hath made on the minds of Men in all pla∣ces, and in all Ages; whereby they are taught that Children ought to honour and obey their Parents, to love them and to relieve them, and provide for them, if they stand in need of their help. These have always been the calm and sober thoughts of all Men; and when any were so wicked as to violate this sacred Law, they were hated and abhorred by all others; and in all well govern'd States, were punished according to the demerits of their Crime, and the degree of their diso∣bedience and perverseness, either im∣mediately by the Parents, or by pub∣lick

Judges, upon complaint made by Parents. The Sense of all this ought to move Children to honour their Father and Mother, that they may approve themselves to God, who requires them to do so, and that upon the severest Penalties, if they shall dare to disho∣nour them, and disobey them.

Secondly, To encourage Children to perform their Duty to their Parents,* 1.2 God hath been pleased to add a gracious promise. That thy days may be long upon the Land which the Lord thy God giveth thee. He might only have com∣manded them to do this, by virtue of his absolute Power and Soveraign Au∣thority, which he has over all Men, without proposing any Reward; but such is his infinite Bounty and Good∣ness, that he hath added a Promise to the Command, thereby to make Chil∣drens Duty the more easie.

As to the Promise it self, it is not to be understood absolutely, as if all good Children should live long; pro∣mises of Temporal Blessings are made conditionally, that is, so far as God sees such things best and fittest for us: So that as to this promise of long life,

God will bestow it, if it be most for his own Glory, and the good and Be∣nefit of Children. Oftentimes he does lengthen out the years of pious and dutiful Children; whereas the years of wicked and undutiful Children are shortned by their prophane and wick∣ed Courses; so that some of them are cut off immediately by the hand of God; and others are put to death by the hand of Man.

As for those Children who live not to a great Age, tho' they are very du∣tiful and obedient to their Parents; God doth make up what is wanting in the number of their years here, with an everlasting Life, and Glory in Heaven. In which case there's no cause to Complain, as if God did not fulfill his promise to them. For as there is no reason for a Man to complain, who is employed to work for so much a day, if his Master see it fit to free him from his Work, and pay him all his Wages before the third part of his time is out: Even so, if God think fit to set his Children at Liberty, from the toil and labour of this life, and to bestow upon them glorious and Eter∣nal Rewards, while they are in the

Morning or Noon, as it were, of their Age, there is no ground of complain∣ing upon his doing so, but rather great matter of praise and thanksgi∣ving unto him, whose mercy and love is infinitely great.

But besides this Reward in the other World; there are Temporal Bles∣sings which God will bestow on those who keep this Commandment. How acceptable and pleasing to him, was the Obedience of the Rechabites unto their Father, tho' his Commands seem∣ed very hard and severe, to wit, That they should drink no Wine, nor build House, nor sow seed, nor plant Vineyard, nor have any, but should dwell in Tents, Jer. 35. 6, 7. &c. And ver. 18. Jeremiah said unto the House of the Rechabites, Thus saith the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, because you have obeyed the Command of Jonadab your Father, and kept all his Precepts, and done according to all that he hath commanded you: Therefore thus saith the Lord of Hosts, the God of Isra∣el, Jonadab the Son of Rechab shall not want a Man to stand before me for ever. Which Words import that he would take a particular care of them, that he would be mindful of them, and

have them in his Eye; that he would preserve them, and shew them his fa∣vour and love, and continue unto them those Offices and Priviledges which they enjoyed, which some think were, of being Scribes and Doctors of the Law, and having some Charge in or about the Temple.

* 1.3Thirdly, Besides the Command of God, and the Reward which he hath promised to them who honour their Parents, how strong an Argument ought it to be unto all Children, to excite them to this, when they consider the Example of their Blessed Lord and Master, their King and Saviour, Jesus Christ? Of whom it is said, that he was subject unto his Parents, Luke 2.51 And if he, who was so much greater than his Parents, who was their Lord, their King, their Maker, their Saviour and Redeemer; if he, who was the Son of God, and thought it no Robbery to be equal with God, I say, if he was subject to his Parents, ought not all Children to be so to their Parents? and to esteem it their glory to imitate their Prince and Saviour, as in his other Virtues,

so in his Obedience and Subjection to his Parents? Shall any Man think him∣self too good to do this, when Christ did it before him? Can it be too mean for a Worm to do that, which a Man, a great Man, and a mighty Prince hath done? Shall vile sinners think them∣selves abased and dishonoured by doing that which was done before by him, who knew no sin, and in whose Mouth there was found no guile, who was holy, harm∣less, and undefiled, separate from sin∣ners, and made higher than the Heavens, Heb. 7.26. As our Blessed Lord was a great and noble Pattern to us in o∣ther things, so particularly in his love to his Parents. When he was upon the Cross, a little before he gave up the Ghost, he expressed how great his love was to his Mother, and how tender a care he had of her. John 19.25, 26, 27. Now there stood by the Cross of Je∣sus, his Mother, and his Mothers Sister, Mary the Wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus therefore saw his Mother, and the Disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his Mother, Woman, behold thy Son. Then saith he to the Disciple, behold thy Mother. And from that hour, that Disciple took her unto his

own home. He commends his Mother to John (Joseph in all probability being dead) that he might take care of her, as of his own Mother. Tho' he was at this time in the midst of great pain and anguish, tho' his hands and his feet were nailed to the Cross, tho' his head was Crowned with Thorns, tho' he lay under the most insupport∣able Burden that ever Man lay under, yet, as if the sight of his Mother had made him forget all his Sufferings, and Torments, he affectionately recom∣mends her to the Care of another, who he knew would perform all the Offi∣ces of a loving Son unto her. He knew how great an affliction it would be to her, to be deprived of the Comfort of his presence in the World; he knew to how many necessities and wants, she should be exposed by his leaving of her; and therefore he gives it in charge to the beloved Disciple, to do the Duty of a Son unto her, to be to her in his stead, to honour her, to love her, to serve her, to take care of her, and provide whatever might be fit for her. This shews all Chil∣dren what is their Duty towards their Parents, to wit, that they ought to

take care of them, so long as they live, and are able to do it; they ought with all respect and kindness, to per∣form unto them all those Offices, which the Laws of Nature and Chri∣stianity require.

Fourthly, May not the Ex∣amples of some Heathens,* 1.4 which have already been men∣tioned, excite Christian Chil∣dren to perform their Duty to their Parents? There are a great many more instances might be added to this purpose; I shall only mention two. The first is, of the brave Coriolanus, that Great Roman Com∣mander, who being very ill used by his Country-men, fled to the Volscians, who were at that time at War with the Romans. Within a little time after his coming amongst them, he was made General of their Forces; in which Ser∣vice he had great Success against the Romans, gaining several Victories over them, whereby he was encouraged to approach to the very Walls of Rome: His Country-men were terribly alarm∣ed with this; so that they were for∣ced to make humble Addresses to him, to deprecate his displeasure, but to no

purpose: They sent their Priests in their sacred Vestments, but to as little Effect: But no sooner did his Mother, attended with his Wife and Children, come to him, but he submitted him∣self to her. Now, says he, you have overcome me indeed, when the intrea∣ties of my Mother are added to yours; tho' Rome deserve my hatred, yet for my Mothers sake I will spare it; and immediately he withdrew his Army.

A second Example, is that of the worthy Athenian Captain Cimon, who not being able to redeem the Corps of his Father, which was arrested for Debt, sold himself, and became a Slave, that his deceased Father's Body might be freed from that Arrest that was upon it, and so might have honou∣rable Burial. This great Man was famous for his Noble and Valiant Ex∣ploits, for his great courage and ex∣cellent Conduct in Military Affairs; but there was not any thing for which he was so much admired and loved, as for this wonderful instance of Affection and Respect to his Fa∣ther.

May not such shining Patterns a∣mongst the Pagans, make many Chri∣stians

ashamed, who come so far short of them, in their Duty and Obedi∣ence to their Parents? Shall not they rise up in Judgment and con∣demn Christians, who tho' they have a more excellent, compleat, and per∣fect Rule, tho' they have a great deal more Light to direct them in their Duty to their Parents; and tho' they have much greater assistan∣ces to enable them to perform their Duty; do nevertheless carry them∣selves so undutifully, and unchristi∣anly, as if they had never heard of the Gospel of Christ, yea, as if they had been born without any impressions of Natural Religion on their Minds, whereby all Nations are so far in∣structed and enlightned, as to acknow∣ledge, that to honour, obey, love, serve, and assist our Parents, is a Du∣ty of unquestionable and indispen∣sible Obligation.

Notes

• * 1.1

  1. Motive, from the divine Com∣mandment.
• * 1.2

  2. Motive, from the Di∣vine Promise.
• * 1.3

  3. Motive, from the Example of our Blessed Saviour.
• * 1.4

  4. Motive, from the Examples of some Heathens.