Not with flefh and blood. '77 great man, not fuck a number of men, who have the keyes of all the prifons at their girdle, who can kill or lave alive, no, not thefe, only look they be thy enemies for Righteoufnefre fake. Take heed thou make(' not the leaft childe thine enemy, by of- fering wrong to him, God will right the wicked even upon the Saint. If he offends, he than finde no fhelter under Gods wing for his fin. This made ?creme complain that the Chrifti- ans fins made the armes ofthofe barbarous Nations which inva ded Chrifiendome vi6torious: Noftris peccat /4 fortes ferns barbaq. But if mans wrath findes thee in Gods way, and his fury take fire at thy holineffe, thou needeft not feare, though thy life be the prey he hunts for. Flefh can only wound flefh, be may kill thee, but not hurt thee, why fl ouldeft thou feare to be ftript of that which thou haft refign'd already to Chrift ? 'tis the firft leffon thou learneft, ifa Chriftian, to deny thy felf, take up thy croffe, and follow thy Mafter ; fo that the enemycomes too late; thou haft no life to lofe, becaufe thou haft given it already to (Thrift, nor can man take away that without Gods leave ; all thou haft is enfured ; and though God bath not promifed thee immuni- ty from fuffering in this kinde, yet he bath undertaken to beare thy loffe, yea, to pay thee a hundred fold, and thou fhalt not flay for it till another world. Again, thou ought'ft not to feare flefh. Our Saviour, Mat. 10. thrice in the compaffe of fixe verfes, commands us not to feare man ; if thy heart guiles at him, how wilt thou behave thy felf in the lift againft Satan, whole little finger is heavier then mans loines The Romanes had arnmprdoforia; weapons rebated or cudgels, which they were tried at before they came to the friarp, If thou canft not beare a bruife in thy fiefh from mans cudgel and blunt weapon, what wilt thou do when thou fhalt have Satans fword in thy fide ? God counts himfelfreproached when his children feare a lorry man; therefore we are 6id, Sanciifie the Lord, and not to feare their feare. Now if thou wouldeft not feare man who is but fiefh ; Labour, Firft, to mortifie thy own flefh. Flefh only feares flefh : when the foule degenerates into carnal delves and delights, no won- der he falls into carnal feares. Have a care, Chriftian, thou bring'il not thy fell into bondage : perhaps thy heart feeds on the applaufe of men, this will make thee afraid to be evil fpoken A a
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