Shlohavot, or, The burning of London in the year 1666 commemorated and improved in a CX discourses, meditations, and contemplations, divided into four parts treating of I. The sins, or spiritual causes procuring that judgment, II. The natural causes of fire, morally applied, III. The most remarkable passages and circumstances of that dreadful fire, IV. Counsels and comfort unto such as are sufferers by the said judgment / by Samuel Rolle ...

MEDITATION VII. Of Oppression, Theft, Deceit, false Ballances, menti∣oned in Scripture, as causes of God's contending by Fire.

I Am forced to put several sins together, that have affinity each with other, because there are so many to which the judgment of fire is at∣tributed, (or against which it is threatned) that to consider them singlely, would take up too much time and room: I finde God threatning the Jews Ezek. 22.20. That he would put them into a Furnace, leave them there, and melt them. And the cause thereof is assigned, vers. 29. The peo∣ple of the Land have used oppression, and have

vexed the poor and needy, yea they have op∣pressed the stranger wrongfully, vers. 31. There∣fore have I consumed them with the fire of my wrath. And Amos 5.11. Forasmuch then as your treading is upon the poor, and ye have ta∣ken from him burthens of wheat, yee have built houses of hewen stone, but ye shall not dwell in them, &c.

And then for Theft, see Ezek. 22.29. The people of the Land have exercised robbery: and Zechary 5.4. The curse shall enter into the house of the thief, and shall consume it, with the tim∣ber thereof, and with the stones thereof.

And lastly, as for deceit and false ballances, see Amos 8.5. Hear yee this, that say, when will the Sabbath be over, that we may set forth wheat, making the Ephah small, and the Shekell great, that we may falsify the ballances by deceit? Take notice that the judgments denounced against that people, are generally thus ex∣pressed, I will send a fire, &c. Chap. 10.2. Now one cause was their deceit and false ballances.

Now were not the sins forementioned too too common in the Land, and in the great City which is now ruined? Did not many rich men oppress the poor by griping usury, extorting, brokage, taking unmerciful forfeitures of pawns, and pledges, by ingrossing of commodities, and selling them at unreasonable rates, by vexatious suites, by taking them at advantages, by work∣ing upon their necessities, by with-holding those debts and dues which poor men had not where∣withall to recover, and several other wayes? For I pretend not to know the one half of that mystery of iniquity. Did not rich Lawayers op∣press

their poor Clients, rich Physicians their poor Patients, rich Landlords their poor Te∣nants, raising and racking their rents? Did they not grinde the faces of the poor, as it were to powder? and when time served, and particu∣larly when the fire was, did not the poor shew, their hearts served them to oppress the rich? If theft did not abound, why were so many con∣demned almost every Monethly Sessions upon that account? (besides many that escaped un∣discovered) how came it to pass, that there was a formal society and corporation of theeves, keep∣ing a kind of order and government amongst themselves? Then as for deceit and false ballan∣ces, I doubt those things were more common than either of the two former; though they might justly bear the name of either, viz. of deceit or theft, though they went not common∣ly by the name of either. How much bad mo∣ney was knowingly put off, brass pieces, light gold, and such like? how many unserviceable wares were vended at dear rates? how many rich commodities were sophisticated, as Wines, Physical Drugs, and the like, to the great hazard, of Mens health and lives? What trash was ven∣ded for Pearl, and Beazar, and for other high pri∣zed things? All was lookt upon as cleer gaines by many, in which they could but over-reach o∣thers, though the Scripture saith, let no Man defraud his brother, for God is an avenger of all such things. If a Man had not his wits about him, he could go into few places, and not be cheated, whatsoever he bought, if he did not understand it himself: so that it grew a proverb, that Men knew not who to trust. Men would

ask twice as much as they could take, and yet would have taken all they did ask, if the buyer would have given it. As for false ballances, let the Quests that went about, speak what ill weights they found in many places, heavier to buy by, and lighter to sell by. Let the full Baskets of Bread which were given away almost every Market-day, because too light to be sold, beare witness. Why was so much butter and bread taken from the owners, and sent to the Prisons, but for want of due weight? If men did use false ballances in so cheap Commodities, and that were to come under the test, what did they not do in those that were dearer, & they general∣ly left to their own consciences? in things as to which one dram of weight more or less would turn to more profit than many loaves of bread, or pounds of butter?

I doubt not but there were those, and not a few, that would not have wronged a customer in one grain of weight for the greatest profit: but were not the generality of Tradesmen for all they could get, Per fas, ant nefas, that is, by ••ook or by crook? Reflecting upon the great deceit and cheating there was: I wonder not that Constantinople stands, whilst London lies in ashes: For if we may believe travellers, amongst the very Turks there was more common justice, that is, righteousness and freedome from deceit in buying and selling, than amongst us. Righte∣ous art thou O Lord, yet let me plead with thee concerning thy judgments, why were their shops and houses burnt down that used no deceit? (and there were many such) but as for others, thy justice doth most manifestly appear in scourge∣ing

those buyers and sellers out of house and home, by a fiery Rod, who turned the famous City (which should have been a Mountain of righteousness and justice) into a Den of theeves and robbers.