Eare) GQuietneft andworldly Peace to be denied. 149 the world the fruit of your labours You rob thefood.r of men to whom you fhould do good. You rob the Church that fhould be bettered byyou : You rob the Commonwealth of which you are a member, and fhould have benefit by you. You owe your labours to Church andCommonwealth and the fouls of men, andwill you not pay fo great a debt? You de- ferve no room in the Church or Commonwealth, but to be cut off as anunprofitable member, if you bring no advantage to them. They fay the Bees will not fuffer a drone in the Hive. Nay, ifyou be hired fervants, you plainly rob your Mailers if you are floathful , as much as if you {tole their money or goods : Ifyou buy anhundred fheep ofa man, andhe let you have but fourfcore, doth he not rob or cheat you ? And ifa man buy a years or adayes labour ofyou, and you let him have but half a years labour, or half adayes labour, becaufe ofyour (loath, do you not defraud or rob him of the other half I So that the idleare thieves to themfelves, to the Church and the fouls ofmen, to the Commonwealth and thofe that they are <related to ; even to their wives and children, for whom they fhould providedue maintenance by their labour. 6. And you are injurious to the boneft poore, in thatyou difable your [elves fromrelieving them when God com,mandeth you toworkwitk, year hands, not only for your felves, but that you may have togive to them that need, .. Eph. 4. 28. What if all men fhould do as you do, howwould the poore bemaintained and the Church and Commonwealth ferved ? 7. Yea woril ofall, youare guilty of robbing Godhimfelf. It is him that you oweyour labours to, and the, improvement of all the talents which he lendethyou': And idlenefs is unfaith- fulnefs to the God of Heaven that fetteth you on work : Even in working.for men, you mull do it ultimately for God, Cod. 3.22, 23. [Not with eye-firvice as men pleafers , but in fin- glenefs ofheart, fearingGod : and whatfoeverye do,.. do it heartily as to the Lord, and not unto men ; knowing that of the Lord you (hallrece ve the rewardofthe inheritance, for yeferve the _Lord But he that cloth wrong, (hallreceivefor the wrong which-be bath: done.] If it be an offence towrong man, what is it, to wrong God.? and ifyou, may not be floathful in the workof aman, 11 3 what
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