366 on the Excellency of the Soul. you do for mee ? can you fave my foul in the time o` di- #}refs ? you would draw mee to fuch and fuck courfes, fuch and fuch companions would draw mee to fuch and fuch waies, I but you may put them offwith this, Is this the way to fave my foul ? if it bee, then I will do it, but if it will not do that, God forbid that I fhould meddle; Oh therefore remember, remember, that the fafhion of this world paffeth away, i Cor. 7. 30, 31. The Apof}le would take off the hearts of men from the things of this world, and bring this Argument, faith hee , The fafhion of this world it pa th a- way; Therefore ufe the world, as not abufing it. That that you have in your Englifh book, paffes away, it is (roT:kyet) and I finde two very learned Writers tranflate it by a word that fignifies to deceive; The fail:ion of the world will de- ceive you at laft, and another by a word that fignifies, To âB quire crofs; Thefe two lignifications it bath, it Both de- ceive, or it goes quite crofs, the outward chew of the world, oh it doth deceive thoufand thoufands of fouls to their eternal perdition, and it goes quite crofs; it feems to promife thee thus and thus much, but it will go quite crofs in the conclufion, and will bee thy undoing , if thou doll not take heed; and therefore let not any thing in the world bee a temptation to thee, for the Intl fin that poflìbly may bee. I remember Auflin in his book about an officious lye, hath this paffage; faith hee, A man mull not tell an officious lye (that is, a lye without an intention to do any body hurt) for the gaining of the world, nay, for the gaining of all the fouls in the world; the leaf} fin is a greater evil, than the gain of all the world is a good, becaufe that it is dangerous to the foul, upon that very ground; and therefore it is faid of Bald, when the perfecutors terrified him with the lofs of all that hee had, but that did not prevail , then they made him fair proffers, and great advantages that hee fhould have, I but Bail Taught at them, and bid them go and proffer fuck things to children : So the f}ory of the Mar- tyrs tells us of Autiniru, that godly man, that having been a means to demolifh a place for Idol worlhip, The Idola- ters
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