440 ;. Conclu(lon. our life is a mifery. Io6 14. ì, ICor. 7. 29. Iam.4.14. I Iohn i. if. Hopes 111lchor-hold, or, the aym he hath. The very belt things that be in this life, they are not worthy be hoped for after ; infomuch, that even death it felf it may be counted a remedy, andnot a penalty. Godwill have a mans lifeto be Ihort, anddeath to come foon becaufe he will nothave his creaturewornout with a tedious mifery, and tranfitory vanity ; a vanity ofmiferyt that is in this vain miferable life ofmortality. I have done with the fourth. A fifth thingthat followeth in the Text (that I may haft on) we haveHope, we have Hope in Cbrifl, we have Hope in Círift in this life; our hope in this life is not upon thethings of this life, forif it were in this lifeOnly, it wéremiferable: Oar life is a mifery; There is the fifth:: And this is a certain truth, and will plainlyappear to us,inmany pariges ; ifwe will believe either theSpirit of God, or the experience of the godly,[ fhallnotneed toRand to prove it : You will ask me, hem itwill be railed from this place? Thus, ire art ofall men the moftmifirable,becaufe that vi arementionedamongi the number of thofe that are the moremiferable I it implieth, that all the reft are miferable more or lets :.the very comparifon that is ufed, cloth manifeftly declare unto us thatthere isa meafureofmifery to everyman living : fo then there is mifery. 2. It appearethout of theText, becaufe hereand elfe- where,you 4ta11 have man and mifery made terms convertible : Man is named Enoch, and Enoch is miferJ : Man, and mifery fo joyned together, thatthere is no pullingthem afunder till death parts them,forthen there is no more mifery. ;. Becaufe that mifery here ; our beingmiferable in this life, is mentioned even with thevery beltthings of this life : the very heft things thatare in this liEe,and of this life, fo longas theylook to this life, I fay they are Riled miferable ; but the belt things,evenChrilt himfelf,ourHope it felf;fay what you can, here is Hope,and here is Cbriflin theText,and yet notwithftandinghere is mifery too. Now thenwereafon thus; that if the belt things in this lifebe miferable, then thereft are nobetter than fo, that the belt are no better, it isplain ; becaufe let us have what we wouldhave in all theWorld, yet fo long as weare here it ismifery. If this be fo, then we mutt come to the conclufion we have made, and that is Jacobs conclufion, Gen.47.9. Fewand evil have thedales ofthe years ofmy life been; It is Jobs conclufion too, Mans life isfullofmifery : It Is Davidsin the Pfalms,Mans life it full of labour andfarrow, it is foon cut of, andwe ill away; oar dayes come to an end aea talethat is told, they paf; away as a fhadow, and the beauty, the heft of them, withereth asgrafs : his Solomons, he was the Preacher,and hercishis Text ; all isvain,andvanity, Vanityofvanities,all is vanity, one thingandother, everything undertheSun, our lifeit felf, ourfelves, fo long aswe are here we are undertheSun, he calleth all vanity : And faith the Apoftle, 7hit Ifay Brethren, thetime ofour life isfhort : esindwhat is our life, faith Saint James ? But a vapour that appeared; for a little while, and then vanifhetb away: it is a vapour that vanifheth, ámeteor ofmí- fery. What 1ha11 we fay of this now ? (to fpeak it in fewwords home to out felves,) fomewhat may concern our felves, and fomewhat as we refpeft and reflect upon others. In regard of our (elves; it may have this double Ufe. Firft to wean us from the World, Secondly to win us to the Lord. r. To wean us from the World : The Worldconftdered in it Pelfis fo full ofmi- fery,that there is nothing to bedelighted in: there is fo muchbitternefs,that I war- rant it will wean anyChild from it that isnot aworldling,for he indeed is at his own breafts with hisownMother : But confider theWorld as it is init Pelf, and there is nothing in it,but true bitternefs,andfalre fweetnefs, certainpain,and uncertain Flea- lure ; tedious labour and timerous ref} : nothing in theWorld but vanity and mi. Eery, for faith Saint John, Love not the world,he that makes bimfelfebefriendofGod, makes himfelfanenemy to the world, O you lovers of the World (faith Saint yAu- fiin) Iwonderatyou! Ofoolifh men I who bathbewitched you? for whatwreftle you ?I
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