ReprooFesnotal. waiesin feafon. Sunday inLent. Ser.i8. nitie,receiuemy words with thatgood intentionwhich Ideliver them, thouballnot efca_ pedcleerefromthe tonguesoffooles. It ought therefore to beeagreat comfort vn- tothee, thatthofe fooles fhouidmutter againft thee, that fpakeill of God. The Athenians, fentencedone tupido, a bafe fellow to beeput todeath inPhocions company, whowas afamousman : and tupido,weeping, as hewent along toex- ecution; Phocien faydvnto him , Whydooftthouweeper Thinkft thou it a fmall happineffe,that thoumutt dye inmy company r Thelikewords loth kt,- ziunzenvie to thofe that are iniured by the tongues of fooles ; Thinkeft thou it a fmall happines,that thou fhouldit fuffer therein withGod r Saint Chryfofleme fayth, That aneuill tongue, is worfethanadogge : for hee oxely tearesamans cloaths and his flefh ; butan ill tongue, mens honours , lines, and foules. Saint Bernardfayth , That it is worfe thanthat piercing of ourSauiours fidewiththe fpeare , For that fpeare didbut woundthe dead bodieof our Sauiour Chrift but this ftingof the tongue, our Sauiourbeeing aline ; the onetherein, beeing leffe cruell than the other. Davidfayth ; That an ill tongue differs but little fromHell. From thedepthofHelswombe, andfroma foule tongue, goodLord de- liver vs.Whereyou fee he makes it apeeceofhis Letanie. Manydoe murmure byintimating afecret; This is onely committed to thy breit whence it neuer ought to goeout. They doe not confiderwho commit a fecret to a man that thereinthey inioyne him , not tokeepe it : It isagreat foolerie to thinke, that anotherwill keepethatfecret . which thou thyfelfe couldft not conceale. And asgreata folly is itthat thou flhouldft holdhim vnfaithful,who reuealeth thy fe- cret, andtake thyfelfe tobeloyall when as thouwaft vnfaithfull tothy felfe. Thoudooft notkeepe that fecret,which. Godand his Law commands thee ; and thou holdit,him difloyall,that breakes butthe Lawes ofthe World. Thoudefa- melt thy neighbourby reuealinghisdefe&s to thyfriend, andyet wouldit faine make (how that thouart very tender of his honour. But kfmknewtheir thonghts,andfayd, EveryKingdom deuidedageingitfelfepal bedeflate. tmathew, recounting anotherMiracleofadumbeDeuill;theScribes &.the Pharifeesfayd,rn principedamoniors, &c. Our Sauiorat thattime did dif- femble their blafphemie , hoping (as S. Chryfolferne fayth) thatthe fplendor of that Miracle , Ihouldby littleand little ouercome them. But perceiuing in this Miracle,that theyperfeuered in their malice, and thathis (Hencegauc occafion vnto them,to increafe their fufpition, hee made afhort and cutted Sermon vnto them. For, thereare occafìons whereina manought tobee filent, and wherein he ought to fpeake. And fo thof two places in the Prouerbs, which. feeme quite contrarie,are well reconciled. vtnfwerenot afoole, accordingto hiefooli/h- neffe;leaff thanalpbelike him ; .Anci againe y t nfiverea foole according to hisfoe- lifbneffeleaf, hebewifinhi<owieconceit. To reply sometimes to the fboleries of a foole,is to be a foole. Andnot replyvnto him, is to giue himoccafion to take himfelfe tobewifer than he is. Thefe twoplaces Saint Cy rian quoteth his Traét whichbe madeagainst Demerianw, Whegrew f o fhameleffeand fo impudent,in commendingPaganifine,and:condemning Chriflianitie, that af- tera long filence,he brakeout andfayd, vitra tacere nonaportet I may nolon- gerhold my peace. Thelike courfe did our Saviour here take with the Scribes andPharifees. And for the better ` conuincingofthem,he madeanfwer'totheir inward thoughts which is apropertieone lybelonging toGod. Not, becaufe they didnot blafjpliemehimwiththeir mouths ; forthe word Dixerunt, proues thatfufficiently;but becaufe,they did eitherblafpheme hinibetween their teeth, (as Saint Chryrattemo will haue it) or becaufe forne did vtterthis blafphemie with 297 Mat.9. Prou.26.4.5.
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