934 A Di{cour{e of the Fear of God. ~ ili; World your end?-;;;;;;n may as foon~ellel with Yert~;~i;;g-;;; ~fill the Soul with the World. ' l· Third/!• Cor.fiderthe Continuance of the Soul. It isofan Immortal Duration; It !hall contmue as long as God IS memful to fave, as long as God is )Ufi to punin1 fo:'~~crer!~~n~lll~\~:'~~f;~f,~;n~~~1~~fhl~ga~~~[ti~:m\\~~~J~~~ i~~t lf~:!:o:ll;,( man a very Fool who lhould make a Journey for a Year, and provide ViB:uals but tor one day? Thus fooltlh IS he who makes a Journey for Eternity with the things of Mortality. All thethmgs here below may be compared to the Diurnal River (that I have read of) wl11ch runs m the Day, but IS dry m the N1ght; the reafon they give of It is this,. becaufe It fprings from the melting of Snow, which lie:. on the top of the Mountams. Now the Beams of the Sun dilfolving that Snow in the day, there 1s a Currenc and Stream~ but the Snow being congealed in the Night, then is the Channel dry. So it is with the World, all the things here below run in the day for the time (poffibly ) of Life, or of Profperity; but when the Night of Death comes, then ~~~ll~~svfu: :rf e~7o~ t~n~:t:r~i,':te ~~\~~~\;i;te~d~no~tbrstah~~:~e t~~e~~~t!;.~llri:~~ It is a Note of Folly for a man to make an ill Bargain; I know not what worlt! Bar• gain can be made, than for a man to exchange his Soul for the World, therefore he is the greatefi Fool that doth fo. But on the other fide, confider that God is an ObJ<B: ;that is able to bnng both PerfeB:ion and Satisfaction to the Soul; he IS able to bring rcrfcction, becaufe in him there is a Tranfcendency of all good ; he is able to bnng Satisfaction, becaufc once God being enjoyed there is no fear of the Lofs of him. He brings PerfeCtion to the Soul in its chiefefl: Faculties; to the Underllanding he ~:.~~~ ~n t~c;L~~~~~ ~~e 1~~i:~~~~;rrf~c}i~~ ~tl~~ \~~~e~h~1~aftn:~dv~~;i~r:lt 'J: ~e:;;: h~:~: as he is the chiefefi Good. Thus the Underfianding is perfected in its Knowledge, and the V\ ill is perfe8:cd in its Love; therefore for the Soul to m~ke fure of him (as · it doth by the Fear of God) to make God its Friend, certainly it IS the befi Wi[Jom. The fi1m is this, in God rhere.1s a fullnefs ofPerfeC:bon, and a Perpetuity of Fruition7 and therefore the Soul once attaining him is made really and perfeB:Iy happy; whereas all the things of the world fall fbort as to the Conveyance of the!e two. CHAP. XI. The Fol!J ofWorld!J Wife Men in particular, in purfuing thePlcafures, Profits and Honours of the World. •. confider thefe things in particula:; we will take ;hem afimder, ?nd [o lhew you how every carnal Man IS the greatefi l<ool, by purfumg worldly things. 1 . FirJI, Confider Pleafures. This is one end lor which many Perfons do rack their Underfiandings and employ thm Knowledge; and the Souls of very many ferve them for no other ufc bot to be (ifl may fo [peak) as Cooi<S to prov1de Sawoes for their Bodies. Certainly this mufl: needs be a very great Folly; for do you thmk the Candle of the Lord was enlightned in a man merely to fearch after earthly SausfaB:ions? Do you think the Underfiandin~ (which is the Ex~ellency of the reafonable ~:r~!~~~e~s':~d ~;:fis?c{;~~ :~n~~a~0~re~f~;ers 3a~~~~:~~~;:i1~!fs'of:h~~~ft)e f~~~n~~ b;. The Folly therefore of pm·fuing of this, will appear to you in mo things. 1 • Suppofe you could fquceze:all the Pleafures of the World mto one Draught, yet ~~fce'v~\\ ~~~ci~~rf'u~~s E;l:~arzz~~~d~n~~~e·;~;~;cd:n~o: K~1 ;i/~o~~r~~;;~ers~;}~;_ much lefs arc they able to fill the expanded Defires of your Souls. All the Glory at the world cannot fatisfie the Defires of one Eye, much Jcfs can 1t fill the Defires and Vacuities of the Heart. Worldly Plcafures are a Sum in our Defires, they ba~:
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