Gentlemen, Those that shall read what I have writ in this epistle, concerning public spiritedness and charitableness, and know you well, they know how to make the application without any further direction from me. Sir John, I must crave leave to say, that it is and will be your honour and comfort, both in life and death, and in the day of your account, that in all the great places, oiSices, and employments unto which divine providence has called you for divers years together, you have laid out your time, your strength, your estate, for the public good. When others have been serving themselves upon the public, you have been a-serving of the public. Sir, it is your great mercy and happiness that you can stand forth and say, as once Samuel did, ' Be- hold, here I am, witness against me, whose ox have I taken ? or whose ass have I taken ? or whom have I defrauded ? whom have I oppressed ? or of whose hand have I received any bribe to blind mine eyes there- with V 1 Sam. xii. 3. Your prudence and moderation before your mayoralty, and in it, when you had many a narrow bridge to go over, and after it, to this day, will never be forgotten by all sober citizens. Sir, the French history tells us, that when an old courtier would needs de- part from the court, and retire himself to a private life, the king desired him to leave his advice in some general rules, about the government of his kingdom. Upon this motion of the king, the old courtier took a sheet of white paper, and writ upon the top of the leaf. Moderation, and in the middle of the leaf, Moderation, and at the bottom of the leaf. Moderation, intimating to the king, that the only way to keep his king- dom in peace and prosperity, was to manage his government throughout with a spirit of moderation. When Vespasian asked Apollonius what was the cause of Nero's ruin, he answered, that Nero could tune the harp well, but in government he did always wind up the strings too high, or let them down too low. Both of your staying in London in the time of the last great plague, when death peeped in at every window, and when most magistrates, ministers, and .people were fled from their habitations, — the terror of the Lord and of his judgments being very great in that day, upon all sorts and ranks of men, — and that chiefly, mainly, if not only, upon the account of public service, and that no- thing might be wanting on your side to preserve poor creatures from perishing. The old Romans, for lesser services than you did in these 1 Arist. Khetor., lib. ii. cap. 6.
248 A CABINET OF JEAVELS.
dismal days, have set up many a statue of brass ; but the Lord is faith- ful, and will not forget to reward your work, your great work, your hazardous work, and that matchless love and bowels that you shewed to very many that were impoverished for want of trade, and to very many that lay in a sick, languishing, and dying condition. How free, how full, how seasonable, how suitable, how impartial, how constant, and well regulated your charity then was, and since hath been, is very well known to God above, and to some faithful friends still alive ; but all will out in the great day, Mat. xxv. 35, seq. I know you don't love that your left hand should know what your right hand doth, Mat. vi. 3, and therefore I shall not provoke you by sounding a trumpet. The angels have their hands under their wings ; they do much good, and yet make no noise, Ezek. i. 8, and x. 8. There are some in the world that are like to them. The violet grows low, and covers itself with its own leaves, and yet of all flowers yields the most fragrant smell to others. There are some charitable Christians that resemble this sweet flower.
Gentlemen and ladies, your respects and undeserved favours, that have been many ways manifested unto me, hath emboldened me to dedicate and present to you this treatise, as a real testimony of my un- feigned love, service, gratitude, and desires to promote the internal and eternal welfare of all your precious and immortal souls. And wherein could I, or any body else, be more truly serviceable to you than in en- deavouring to promote your assurance of eternal salvation, which is the grand design and project of this book. ' Now, the God of all grace fill all your hearts with all the fruits of righteousness and holines.s, imto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, and of faith and hope in this life,' 1 Peter v. 10 ; and at last crown you all, and all yours, with ineffable glory in the life to come,' Gal. v. 22, 23, Heb. x. 22, 23. To the everlasting arms of his protection, and to the perpetual influences of his grace and mercy in Christ, he commends you all, who is to you all.
Your much obliged and affectionate friend and soul's servant in our dear Lord Jesus,
Containing eighteen special Maxims, Considerations, Rules, andDirec- tions that are seriously to hs minded and observed, in order to the clearing up of a mans interest in Christ : the saving vjoi'k of God upon his own soul ; and his title to all the glory of another world.
The first maxim or consideration.
I. First, Some have made the witness of the Spirit to be the only mark or evidence of our interest in Christ, and deny all signs from the fruit of the Spirit ; ^ but this is to deny the fruit growing upon the tree to be a sign that the tree is alive, wJtereas our Saviour expressly tells us, thai ' the tree is known by his fruit,' Mat. xii 33. Certainly it is one thing to judge by our graces, and another thing to rest on our graces, or to put trust in our graces, or to make a Saviour of our graces. There is agreatdealof ditfereucebetweendeclaring and deserving. Doubt- less, Christians may look to their graces as evidences of their interest in Christ, justification and salvation, though not as causes of their interest in Christ, justification and salvation. 0 sirs ! we must always carefully dis- tinguish betwixt the root and ground of our comfort, and between the testi- monies or evidences of our interest in the root of our comfort. Now it must be readily granted that Jesus Christ is the only root and ground of a Christian's comfort and triumph ; and, therefore, saith Paul, ' God forbid that I should rejoice in anything, but in the cross of Christ,' Gal. vi. 14 ; and so in that, 2 Cor. ii. 14, 'Now thanks be unto God, which always causes us to triumph in Christ.' So that, if at any time we behold this or that saving grace, or this or that part of holiness shining in our hearts or lives, we take comfort in it, not as the cause, or root, or ground of our comfort or triumph, but as in a testimony or evidence, because it doth manifest our interest in him, who is our comfort, our peace, our joy, our salvation, our ' all in all,' Luke ii. 25 ; Col. iii. 11. Look, as the
• But this opinion being well laid asleep in these days, I shall not put myself to the trouble of awakening of it afresh, but leave it to sleep with the authors, who are now in their graves.