(3.) Thirdly, As it is an impossible thing, so it is a very prejudicial, a very dangerous thing, to attempt to sin yourselves out of your troubles ; for by attempting to sin yourselves out of your trouble, you will sin yourselves into many troubles, as Jonah and Jacob did ; and by labouring to sin yourselves out of less troubles, you will sin yourselves into greater troubles, as Saul did ; and by endeavouring to sin your- selves from under outward troubles, you will sin yourselves under inward troubles and distresses, which are the sorest and saddest of all troubles ; thus did Spira, Jerome of Prague, Bilney, and others. Some there have been, who, by labouring to sin themselves out of their present sufferings, have sinned themselves under such horrors and terrors of conscience, that they could neither eat, nor drink, nor sleep, but have been ready to lay violent hands upon themselves.
And Cyprian, in his sermon de lapsis, speaks of divers who, forsak- ing the faith to avoid sufferings, were given over to be possessed of evil spirits, and died fearfully. 0 man ! thou doest not know what deadly sin, what deadly temptation, what deadly judgment, what deadly stroke, th >u ni.i vest fall under, who attempts to sin thyself out of troubles. What is it to take Venice, and to be hanged at the gates thereof? It is better to be silent aud mute under thy afflictions, than by using sin- ful shifts to sin thyself under greater afflictions.
(4.) Fourthly, Consider it is a very ignoble and wnworthy thing to go to sin you/wlves out of your troubles and straits. It argues a poor, a low, a weak, a dastardly, and an effeminate spirit, to use base shifts
PS. XXXIX. 9.] UNDER THE SMARTING ROD. 325
to shuffle yourselves out of your troubles. Men of noble, courageous, and magnanimous spirits will disdain and scorn it, Dan. iii. 8, vi., Heb. xi. 24 As you niay see in the three children, David, and those worthies, in that 11th of the Hebrews, of whom ' this world was not worthy.' Jerome writes of a brave woman, who, being upon the rack, bade her persecutors do their worst, for she was resolved to die rather than lie. And the prince of Conde, being taken prisoner by Charles the Ninth, king of France, and put to his choice whether he would go to mass or be put to death, or suffer perpetual imprisonment, his noble answer was, that by God's he]p he would never choose the first, and for either of the latter, he left to the king's pleasure and God's provi- dence.1
A soul truly noble will sooner part with all than the peace of a good conscience. Thus blessed Hooper desired rather to be discharged of his bishopric than yield to certain ceremonies.
I have read of Marcus Arethusus, an eminent servant of the Lord in gospel-work, who, in the time of Constantine, had been the cause of overthrowing an idol temple ;2 but Julian, coming to be emperor, commanded the people of that place to build it up again. All were ready so to do, only he refused it ; whereupon his own people, to whom he had preached, fell upon hiin, stripped off all his clothes, then abused his naked body, and gave it up to children and school-boys to be lanched3 with their penknives ; but when all this would not do, they caused him to be set in the sun, having his naked body anointed all over with honey, that so he might be bitten and stung to death by flies and wasps ; and all this cruelty they exercised upon him, because he would not do any- thing towards the rebuilding of that idol temple ; nay, they came so far, that if he would but give one halfpenny towards the charge, they would release him, but he refused it with a noble Christian disdain, though the advancing of an. halfpenny might have saved his life. And in so doing, he did but live up to that noble principle that most commend, but few practise, viz., that Christians must choose rather to suffer the worst of torments, than commit the least of sins, whereby God should be dishonoured, his name blasphemed, religion reproached, profession scorned, weak saints discouraged, and men's consciences wounded and their souls endangered. Now tell me, Christians, is it not better to be silent and mute under your sorest trials and troubles, than to labour to sin, and shift yourselves out of them, and so proclaim to all the world, that you are persons of very low, poor, and ignoble spirits ? But,
(5.) Fifthly, Consider, sinful shifts and means God hath ahuays cursed and blasted.4 Achan's golden wedge was but a wedge to cleave him, and his garments a shroud to shroud him. Ahab purchases a vineyard with the blood of the owner, but presently it was watered with his own blood, according to the word of the Lord. Gehazi must needs have a talent of silver and two changes of raiment, and that with a lie, I say with a lie ; well ! he hath them, and he hath with them a leprosy that cleaved to him and his seed for ever, 2 Kings v. 22-27. With those
1 Lactantius speaks of many such brave spirits. I might produce a cloud of witnesses from among the primitive Christians, who have been noble and gallant this way.
- A favourite example of Brooks. See Index, sub nomine. — G. 3 ' Lanced.' — G.
4 Jer. v. 5, 6, 11 ; Ezek. vii. 13 ; 1 Sam. xxviii.5-8, &c. ; 1 Kings xxi. 18, 19, compared with chap. xxii. 23.
326 THE MUTE CHRISTIAN [Ps. XXXIX. H.
very hands that Judas took money to betray liis master, with those very hands he fitted a halter to hang himself. The rich and wretched
glutton fared delicately, and went bravely every day, but the next news you hear of him, is of his being in hell, crying out for a drop, who, when he was on earth, would not give a crumb. The coal that the eagle carried from the altar to her nest, set all on fire.
( rassus did not long enjoy the fruit of his covetousness, for the Par- tisans taking of him, poured melted gold down his throat.1
Dionysius2 did not long enjoy the fruit of his sacrilege and tyrauny, for he was glad to change his sceptre into a ferule, and turn school- master for his maintenance. Ah! Christians, Christians, is it not far better to sit quiet and silent under your afflictions, than to use such sinful shifts and means which God will certainly blast and curse ? But
(6.) Sixthly and lastly, Consider this, that your very attempting to sin and shift yourselves out of troubles and afflictions, will cost you dear. It will cost you many prayers and tears, many sighs, many groans, many gripes, many terrors, and many horrors. Peter, by attempting to sin himself out of trouble, sins himself into a sea of sorrows : Mat. xxvi. 75, ' He went forth and wept bitterly.'3