Chap. 3s. As Expofitiou upon the Booke of Jo B. Verf. t i. oftheir efpoufalls or marriage; they then gave up themfelves mutually to each other, the husband to be no more his owne, much leffe anyother womans but his wives,and the wife to be no more ber owne, much leffe to be any other mans but her hull bands ; and this folemnly witneffed in the prefence of God and before his people. Therefore adultery is a Covenant-boeaking as wel as aCommandment ,breaking fin. (lhfel. 2. 14, ) Yet ye fay, wherefore ? Becaufe the Lord loath been witneff e between thee and the wifeof thy youth, againft wham thouhaft dealt treacloeroto . ly : yet is ¡he thy companion,and thewifeofthy Covenant; That is, the wifewith whom thou haft covenanted to betrers,as wel as (he to be thine only. The covenant is reciprocals. The husband is to ,the wife the husband ofher covenant, and the wife is to the huf- band the wife of his covenant. He to ber and the tohim bath covenanted to be faithfuii and loyal!. Thirdly, To fhew the heinoufneffe of this crime, Solomon makes it worfe thenTheft (Pro. 6. 30.) U3 i e n doe not dl fe a thiefe if heffeale tofatiufae Áíe rot_:le when he is hungry, &c. Which we are not to underftand-abfolwely, but comparatively to fome other fort of timers, and particularly of the Adulterer ( v.32. ) But whofo committed) adultery with a woman lacketh underiand- ng, be that loth itdeftroyeth bu owne f ale. As if he had fayd , A thiefe is a wifer and an honefler man then an Adulterer ( though a thiefe be farce enough from being an honest or a wife man)And we may fay Adultery is worfe then theft, as being indeed the wort theft. To fleale any thing from another is wickedneffe, and the better that is which is ftolne the theft is the worfe. But adultery fleales that which is more valt'ahle then gold and flyer, or any goods what foever that belong ous ; He that commits adultery hales from a man the bet thing that be bath hiswife, who is one flesh with him ; yea Adultery is telferobberyy, it robs us firft of our honefty ; fecondly, of our honcur ; it robs thofe that are unborne as wel as thofe that are borne; it fleales away thewhole inheritance, which often goes not to the right heire, but to a fpurious brood. It is awrong to whole private familyes as well asperlons, yea it is a wrong ro the pub'ick or to nati. ons. The evil! of it hatbbeen (hewedmore largely at the 24th Chapter of this Booke, therefore I fholl adde no morehere; But only mind the reader oftheft Scriptures (a Cer. 6. a9.) What p Ggg know 409
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