6 The Vanity of the World. .God bath 1haken it, like that of Sinai, and wrap'd it about with Clouds and thick Darknefs. 1. It betrays the Soul to Guilt and eternal Condemnation. For ufually the World intangles it in ftrong, tho' fec.ret and infenfible Snares, and infinuates into the Heart that love of it felf, which is inconfiftent with the love of God. The World is the Dcvil's Factor, and drives on the Defigns of Hell. The Apoftle bath told us, t T im. 6. 9· Thel th4t will b~ rich, fall into temptation, and a Jnare, and many fooliff, and lmrrful lujfs, whtch drown m!n in deftru£l-ion and pe-rdition. And becaufc of the fhbfervicn cy of world!y enjoyments to Mens Lufts, it is almoft as. impoffible a thing t<? n~oderate our AffeCbons towards them, or to bound our Appetites and Delires, as It IS to a!fw:~.gc the thirft of a Dropfie by drinking, or to keep that Fire from encreafing, into whkh +Luke Ji· we are frill cafi:ing neW" Fuel. And therefore our Saviour hath pronounced it as *hard ,. 5 . for a rich Man to tnttr into Heaven, at/or a CAmel to go thro' the Eye of a Needle. t M-at."J-6, AsJudtu gave a fign to the Officers that came with him to apprehcndjeiits,-f-Whom~ ,.s. foe1.Jer I foal! kifi, the [11me U he, hold him faft: The fame fign doth the World give the · Devil. Whomfoever I fhall carefs and favour, whomfoever I fua\1 he<Ip honour and tiches on, whomfoever I ihall embrace and kifs, the fame is he, hold him fait Such a darling of the World is too often fait bound in the filken Bands ofVoluptuoufnefs, and configncd over to be fail: bound in Chains of mail"y Darknefs. Ill. . As an things in the World :~re lying Vanities, foare they all vexatious. They :~re mfamous to a Proverb, Vncertain ComfortJ, but moft certain CroffeJ· And therefore the wife Man concludes them all to be, not only V aniry, but Ve.t:ation of Spirit. . There is a fotlr-fold Vexatioufnefs in all worldly things. I. There is a great deal of turmoil and trouble in getting them ;nothing can be acqui- . red without it. The Sweat of .Adam's Brows bath ftream'd down along upon ours, "" Gen. l• and the Curfc together with it, * that in farrow we fhould eat of that which Toil 1S• and Labour hath providedfor us. Men rife early,and go to b~d late, and eat the Bread of carefulnefs; and fuch is either their Curfe, or their Folly, that they make their qvesuncomfortable, only to get the Comforts of Life. 1. Whether they get them or no, y\::t frill they arc. difappointed in their Hopes. + If t _Ex. his they cannot compafs their Defigns, then they are tormented,. becaufe they fall fuort trif!ttu•{- of what they Iabot1red for; if they do compafs them, yet frill they are tormented, !:~r;';~j~- becaufe what they laboured fot, falls fhort of what they cxpeB:ed from it. The truth ,,flit tJut Is, The World is much better in fhew than fubftance: And thofe very things we ad~ fumff~~~ mire before we enjoy them, yet afterward we find much lefs in them than we exped:~ pNdtt. St- ed. As he that fees a falling Star ihoot thro' the Air, and draw after it a long train ~ec. ~ of Light, runs to the place; and thinking to get fome bright and glittering thing, ,IJ,.qll:. catches up nothing but a filthy Jelly; fuch is the difappointment we find in o.ur pur. fuit after the enjoyments of this VVorld: They make a glorious Jhew at a difta.nce, but when we come near them, we find our Hopes deluded, and nothing upon the place but a vile Slime. 3• Thirdly; They are all Vexation while we enjoy them. Be it what it will that we poilHs of the World, it is but by fits at moft, that we take any great pleafure in it: And then, what between Cares and defigns to fecure the continu- • 'H y) u~oJ>e} me1 i~~v ance of it, and fears oflofingit, the comfort of enjoying it is wholly ~~'1.!"- !~0<?~-ntn~ eOPo.' fwallowed up. * For ftrong AffeB:ions begetting fi:rong Fears, do :;;;t~o;'~::~~vc~'J,e1: always lefiCn the d~ligh.t of prefent Enjoyn~cnts. This is ~he un~ /jtUov dumr t;"O'"' ~ ...... fct..'lf"H.· llappmefs of all tlungs m the World, that 1f we fct any pnce and ~~/.w. Plut. de tra1~quil. value upon them, we lofe rttuch of the fweetncfs of them, by fe:1r~ jng to lofe them. 4· rr Fourthly· They arc all Vexatious, as in their Enjoyment, fo efpecially in their Lofs. Whatevc; we fet our Hearts upon, we rpay ~!lUre our felves, and ~xperic_nce will teach it us, that the pleaihre of polfeffing tt, will no~ nea~ countervarl the bitternefs of lofing it. And as if God had on purpofe fo ordamed tt, to take off our Hearts from the World t.he better we efi:eem any thing, the moreVanity and Vcxationfhall we find in it· fo~ the more will our Care and Perplexity in keeping it, and the more bur Grief and Torment in lofing it be encreafe~. ~hat's a thi~d Demonft~tion. . IV. Fourthly; The Vanity of the World appears m tlus, That a little Crofs w1Jl emb•\· ter great Comfotts. One dead Flit 1s enough to corrupt a whole Box of the Worlds moft fragrant Oilmnmr: How mu<;h will only. the aking of a Tooth, a fit of theSton~;
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=