AUr.tld;r.s fJith. - i the rr. Chap. to the Ee!Jr. / 7! I . . ., __ , i Ag:tinc, this praB.itCof .AbrahamJ / zirh, condcnmcs the w:1ndring 6eggers, to be :m vn– t3ichfull and vngrac:ous gcpcration, Our l:md ( by the abufe ofour peace and plc11ty) is full of (uch. Askc them where theydwttll!thcir anf~,-,·cr is, They illucfm:lfl dwtlling(but, lookc into the m:1ttcr, :llld they hauc the largdl dwelling of all : for they d~,.,·cll cUcry whcrc,atHJ all ahroad; 1 1 they count it bo1ldagc to be tied to one To\-\'ll, I [or dwell in one pari ill, and.thinkc it frccdomc : ~llld libcrric to d\\'Cil c:ury where. Thcfc arc ICatcrpillcrs of a Common-wealth, and the j grcaccll robbers of the poorc that arc. Com– mon Thccucs fie:~. le from rJch men : but thcfc ilcalc from the poorc; theyget th:lt frolitmCn, 'Nhich the true poorc fliould hauc. No good comes eo Church nor Cammdn-we~tlt_h by thcfc men, but much hurt to both. For afinger cut offfrom hisplace, is of no vfc:fo, a man li– uing out ol his calling, :md ont of his placc,is of no vfc in the bodie politique. Happy will it be with our ChurCh andState:, when we h:mc fuch la\'\'CS, and fuch execution of them, asthat this dit"order may be rcfdnried; and cuery man confined tohisownc dwelling, and none fuffrcd tdliue.in our kingdome,who is not of fome pariih : for!et vs be alfurrd, fa manywandring bcgg:ers, fo many blemHl1cs in our goucrnment. . Thirdly, A6rahamt dwelling in thu Land (becing afruitc of ~isfaith)tcadleth vs it is no nood token,but an Ill figne for a man to be vn– ~ertaine in his d\\'dBng. It is the fafhiotJ of many men, ifthey ttauaile,thej' ncuer lodge at one place twife: and for their dwdling,it is not certainc; but now in the North, now in the South ~ now in thisParifh;now in that, now in this turifdiCHon,naw in~nothet: Sometime in the Citie, foffietime in the Coumric. Whe be thcfe?But either fuch as he in debt,and purpofe to dcalc ill with their Creditors; or that: arc malefaetors, and hereby labour to auoide the · ccnfurc ofAuthotitic; ordfc they bePaph1s, which by this meanes labour to lurke vnfecnc, and to cfcape the law;as many ofthet"!l doe,ci– thcr by skipping out o( one Parilh, Diocelfe, Coumie, or Prouincc ituo another, and fo a..:. uoiding the authoritie ofall: or elfe,bylurking in great Cities, and fo lying as SoioHrnerJ, and not as P~~rifoiontrJ, vnfccne or vnmarked in fo I gtcatmult\tudcs. Let our Authoritictakcthc more carefull notice of fuch mert, the more craftily they labour to creep from vndcr lt:and let fuch men know, they difcouer themfelues I the more by this prac\ife, to be vnfaithfull ei– therto GOD, or Men, or both; fceing that G 0 D here commends A6raham for dwel. ling or fi,ying in that place, which GOD had I appointed him. And fo much for this quelli- ' on. . ... I Againc, it may here be dcmaundcd; How j ..Abrahttm might lawfully dJVtfl iJz Ctma– ! an, fccing it was then ldolatrous. It may fcemc, that therefore it 1s not v:~la·wfull for I A m~·n to dwell ii1 PopHh or idolatrous. Couo- ~· -·--– tncs. I anfwec: Ahtahamdid nor fo vpon :~ny pri.:. j u:~tc mouon, nor for any· "\'Odt!iy cat: fc, but I vpon fpecial warrant and calling fromC:od:o– thcrwifc his fo doino, b:1d not bccne ndhF– a.ble: therefore that PraCtiiCof hiscannot be a j \-Yarrant f~x any to do the like,withom.the like 1 caufc and calling. ·I But how couldAbrahambe pt_eferued from 1 the contaeioil of Idolaters, bmng among!t 1 them~ I an~\·cr; ! Firit, God that called hinl thither, did thera prcfcruc him. Again<', Abr.tbrm;. liu.cd in thC 1 1 Country, bur conuerfccl not with the people-at all,but in fame ncceffaJic and ciuill affaires;and B by this meanes efcapcd the-danger of infeCli– on. Whet\c \'VC may lcarne,thin ifan"y man would liuc ln fuch placcs:withomhurt tO their confci– Cil(e, lcr them firfi bcfurc that they hauc a cat..: ling and warrant from God, to Iiuc in thoiC: Countries. Secondly, let them conuerfc with Idolatm warily and fparingly;and fo 010! they prefcruc thcmfclues from the occalions ofcUilJ as Abrahdm did, who abode i!1·an Idolatrous Country; and fo,though not without danger; yet without hurt to hi~ religion. Thus we fee Ah_raham drvelt in theLand of Canaan. . Now fecondly, this Land is called the Land C <if Promifo: that is, the Land formally promifcJ him by God • when hee called him om·of·his ownc Counfiy. And itislikclythattheAp·oc llle doth not here firfi of all call it fo : but that it was known generally among£\ the Pmiarks by that name: -ond that Abrahamhip1fclfc did fir£\ of all fo call it; who,when hclooked·vpori ·-it, and confidcred the fruitfulneffc and '"':\eel. ·Iencie of it, did Cilermore remember and ·Cal to minde, thU land Upro·mi[edto·mee,this is ininc bypromife. Aod herein herclled and fatisfied himfclfc, though he had ·nor' the poffdlion of ·it. . Here We may fee the e-xcellency oftruefaith: which depends vpon the_promi(es of God, though they be vnpcrfotmed. A iand-.5f pro" mifo contents Abraham, he leaues the poffif!i- :b ~" to hispollcritie.lt is-hardto finde fuch faith' m rhc world: It IS land 111 pofi'dfion which we .lookcfor: a Land of ptomifc cani10~ content Vs; but let vs labour topratlil( faith, and ro takecomfort in thepromifcs ofGod,and Ie3uc the performance toGods :~.ppoimcd time. !hirdly, he dwelt-in this landbj-fairh. -And no mcruailc. Forhaditnotbecnc-byf3ith, he would neucr haue dwclc there, where he ha cl notfomuchas ·3roomc for.his.T cnt to fiand in,buthemutl /;orrow; nortoburichis dead, but he mufl: buy it.This wasaoainft tC<lfon, yrt bJ faith hedwelt there,os afOre1yfaith heleft 1Jt1 own~, \o\"hlch was atfo.~g:intl rcafon. Where (\ill the power offaith 1S magnified to be fuch, as ir will c3rie aman oucr all impediments oFo– bcdicncc,and will giuc bim viCtory not ::~gninf!_ one,
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