Corn. 9. Of Sufpition. Chap.7. 5 t 9 Sodom, though the cry of their fin was great, Defcendam, faith God, & videbo, I Geíi.3.9. wi/Igodown and feewhether theyhave done according to thecry. Though Godneeded wen. 18.21. no information, yet he thus fpeaks for our example and imitation. Now for the adìon,upon a fufpition; it is utterly unlawful to ad againft any ç. Coneeraing upon a bare fufpition. David had a ftrong fufpitionofDoeg, that he would tell' the aa,on. Sail, what Abimelechhad done, yet it was not fo ftrong,as to make him proceed ' Sain.za,22. to any aEtion thereupon ; for if hehad,he had kept him,from carrying any tales toSaul. Thefe rulesmay help usagainft groundlefs fufpitions againft others: Sundry ocher rules may begiven, concerningour felves andour own a&ions, Rader; in relation to the tins here prohibited, and already handled. s. When we are to fpeak the truth ofour felves,knowing our own imperfedi- 1. when roc ons, and that lingua eft prodiga, the tongue is prodigal in a mans own praifes, we speak of our muff do as S. Matthew did, whobeing to tell his own ffory, calls himfelf by theácá.9 wornname, Matthew thePublican, whereas the other Evangelists call himMat- Luke 5, .9- z', thew the fenofAlpheusor Levi,he leaves.out alfo his own feaft,which he made for . 29, Chrtft,and mentions it not, thoughS.Luke fees itout : fo the fame S.Luke (peak- ingof S. Peters denyal mentions it gehely, as that he faid, Warman I know not the Luke íz.57; man, and Man Iknow him not: but in S. Marks Gofpel, (which was thought by do. the Primitive Church to bewritten by S. Peter) he faith, that he began tocurfe and fwearthat be knew him net.' Thushe (pares nothis owncredit in fpeaking of him felf. 2. For hearing Inch as fpeak evil of others, firft we mull give them an angry 2. For Fearing look, for an angrycountenance drivesaway aflanderer , as the North. wind Both rain. Others speak And fecondly a deaf ear, wemuft ftop our ears against them. It were a ha PPY `au; Prov.2y.z3.,, thing, as S.Hierom faith,ifgood men would hero the wicked, as the wickedare to them, when theycome to them, theythew no liking to them,either by their wordsor countenance, neither ought the other to chew any to them ; but our unhappiness is, that we want that constancy and courage in good, which they have inevil, and our ears are open to the Charmer. 3. We mull,not in our reports of any, augere rem, make the matter greater 3 qy, tt;a,.e0 then it is, as Does, when but a dozenof bread,was given to Davidby Abimelech, fns rapert,. he reports thatAbimelech gave him vilinals, as if he had been furnilhed with a great deal. And theSpies that ditheartned the people, by reporting the Casas- nites to be far ftronger then they were, and not to be conquered whereas the other Spies told them the truth, the Land was ftrong indeed; but yet theyshould N,;;; i3,32ò not fear them. 4. Against flattery, thismeleafrarsguratio, this fweat and pleafant choaking, 4. Abontflar- the. rule is, we (hall avoid it our felves, if we forfakenot the Lawof God, for toy., they that forsake the Law, praifethe wicked, &c. And againft flattery by others,that Prov;a8,4: we be not ítrangledwith it ; we muff fay contrary to Ahab, He hated Micdieoh, 1 kings 21.8, becaufe he did notprophecy goodto him, he did not pleafehim by flatteries. But we muft fay, we hate theflatterer,becaufe he fpeaks onlyplacentia, pleating things. And again, if we would judge ourfelves, as the Apostle exhorts, we Ihould not i Cor. 1 1.31. hearken to flatterers, when we fee our owndefefts, we would fay ashe did,Va- Rom.21. tom me grope dicunt, paf ores fednon ego credalru illú , they would make me this and that, but I believe them not. 5. How to behave our felves in reproaches. TheProphet diredts us, Fear not Efa9S1. rye their reproaches, norbe afraidof their rebukes: We must efteem the witnefs within 4. About"- us, more then the outwardwitnefs of the world and the witnefs above us Proaehu, more then both. But ifreproach be fallen upon us, then we mutt remember thefe . rules,. s. Sometimes a man is reproached with an-latterknown, and of which he is convicted ; here, t, he muff take heed offrontmeretricia,a whorith forehead. If the word of God, and the Cenfures of the Church will not prevail,te is not their civil cenfures that will work any thing : and z.be mull not only have the (hame in his countenance, but alto confusion inwardly, that he may he able to fay This (name I willingly bear, only I with, that I may amend my fault,and reco- ver the favour of God, andbe in credit withhis fervants. z. Sometimes a man is reproached for a thing not known, nor ishe convidted_ of
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=