_ 248 Chap. Iq eArn expofttionupon theRook of f ó B. derl.14 fours reproached him, and that his acquaintance wereafraid of him; He was afeare to his acquaintance, not that they were afraid he would doe them any hurt, but they were afraid to own him, or doe him any good. We have David bemoaning himfelfe a- caine for-this, (Pfal. 38 It.) My lovers and myfriends find aloofefrom myfore, andmy kin/men /land a farre off:His friends came neere enough to himwhen he was (aswe fay ) in a whole skin, or in a good condition, but when fores were upon him, he meanes itnot offares (in proper fence ) upon his fl fh, but offores in ametaphor, troubles in his eftate; then as if his fore had been a plague-fore, they flood a farre off. Read the fame holy man once more bewayling the unfaithfulneffe of his friends, ( 69. 8. ) 1 am become aflranger to my brethren, and an allant to my mothers children. And though Hemans greateft trouble wasa divine defertion, yet he was not a little trou- bled that men deferted him. ( Pfal. 88.8. ) Th,u haft put a way my acquaintancefarrefrom me; thou haft made me an abomi- nation untoahem. Heman had .pretious fpi it, yet God at once powred terrour upon him, and fiiffered men to powre contempt uponhim; and while the terrours of God diltraeted.him, he could not conceale how much the contempt of men difquie- ted him. Thirdly, '`Obferve; Themoll profeffedand reali friendsin the world, may prove unfleadie and unkinde. We cannot be allured of any friend but drift. ,,Where or whom he loves, he loves to the end ; but we may quickly fee the end ofmans love. Men are mutable in their condition, but' more mutable in their afeflicns. Now they love, anon they hate, now they applaud, anon they calumniate,now they lay us in their hearts, and anon they call us ont of their houles : now they cannot tell how to live out of our company, and anon they cannot live in it. There are many rocks upon which love hath fplit, and friendfhip hath been broken but ufually 'tis Tome change in our outward condition, which makes the change in our affection. Sometimes the profperitie of friends turnes our love'ínto envy. 4nd, which wemay ( charitably ) interpret as an argument of Gods favour to them, checks our friendfhip` with them. It
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