Downame - Puritan-02038 v2

That worlds things binder men fa attaining homily ío7et.789 them, they will neuer care ro retorne vnto their heauenly father, neither will they glue all they haue to buy thispre- ciouspearle ofglory, if theymore efleeme their earthly of- fetfions,and in comparifon of them bafely value thofe hca- ucniy treathres. So one faith, that holy delight in heauenly happineffe fhunneth the heart which is prepoffeffed with Berd.d e world! delires, neither can there bee any mixture ofthings afccnanfrd.d truely ubflantiall, wich elliptic vanities; of true things with Domini.Serm. falle; eternal! with tranfitorie, fpirituall with corporall,the 6. highefl with the loweli, fo as a man may at the fame time fa- nor of thofe things which are aboue,and thofe things which are beneath. For these worldly things haue in them a be- witching quality,whcreby thofe who affect them, are blin- ded that they cannot fee thofe heauenly riches,though much greater and better, and fo being out ofliight, they are alto out ofmind, and are either quite forgotten, or vtrerly difre- garded. And as he who loueth an harlot doth prefentlyloath his wife,taking hiswhole deli oht in her companie and wan - ton dalliance, and ellceming his owne home a iaile orpri- fon ; fo they,who set their hearts vpon this worldly flrum- pet, doe prefently contemne our husbandlefus Chrifl,and flee fromour hcaucnly home, as if it were the place of their banishment. And this the Apoflle implieth, where beefaith ,rr pi).1,, that the outward forme or beautiful! appearance of this A 7111446 world cloth feduce or mifleade men out of their way, like the tCor. going fire which leades thofe who behold it into hedges 7.35. and ditches,andfo blindcth and dazleth them,thac theycan- not find the way to their owne home. In which regard this bewitching world isfitly likened to a kind of ferpent called by the Grecians o.?.which when the cannot ouertake the fleeing patfengers,doth with her beautiful!colours allonith and amaze them, fo as theyhaue no power to paffe away till thee haue flung them; for fo doth the counterfait beauty and brauerie of theworld inueigle and bewitch thole who beholdit with ouerpartiall eyes, that they Rand atlonilihed till it haue flung them with carnali concupifcence, and do- ting loue, fo as they haue neither will nor power to fct one E e e 3 foote