Chap. IV.] a cabinet of jewels. 437
Holy Ghost with Simon Magus ; and yet for all this his inside as bad as any of theirs. An hypocrite is a Cato without and a Nero within ; a Jacob without and an Esau within ; a David without and a Saul within ; a Peter without and a Judas within ; a saint without and a Satan within ; an angel without and a devil within. An hypocrite is a. Jew outwardly, but an atheist, a pagan, a Turk inwardly, Rom. ii. 28, 29. I have read of certain images, which on the outside were covered with gold and pearl, resembling Jupiter and Neptune, but within were nothing but spiders and cobwebs ;' a fit resemblance of hypocrites. Hj^ocrisy is but an outside, like cloth of arras, fair and beautiful without ; but if you look to the inside, you shall find nothing but rags and ends. That monk hit it, that said, To be a monk in out- ward show was easy, but to be a monk in inward reality was hard. To be a Christian in outward show is easy, but to be a Christian inwardly and really is very hard. An hypocrite's inside never echoes or answers to his outside ; his inside is vicious, and his outside is religious. But let all such hypocrites know, that dissembled sanctity is double iniquity, and accordingly at last they shall be dealt with. Mat. xxiv, 5. But,
[2.] Secondly, No hypocrite under heaven i& totally divorced from the love and' liking of every known sin. There is still some secret lust or other, which, as a sweet morsel he rolls under his tongue, and .will not spit it out, Job xx. 12-14. Every hypocrite tolerates some evil or other in himself, and takes liberty to transgress. An hypocrite will make hard shift to daub up his conscience, and to- secure himself from the checks thereof. After once the bag was committed to Judas his custody, after once he was chosen into that sweet office, he quickly put conscience out of office, and never left stealing and licking his fingers, whilst there was any money in his bag to finger.^ Herod knew much, and heard John Baptist, and had some temporary affections, and did many good things, Mark vi. 20. But yet (1.) he kept Herodias his brothers wife, Mark vi. 17 ; (2.) he took away the life of John the Baptist, Mark vi. 27 ; (3.) he sets Jesus Christ at naught, and rejected him, Luke xxiii. 11. As fair as Herod seemed to carry it, yet he lived in a known notorious sin, and unjustly murdered the messenger of God, and mocked and rejected Jesus Christ as a vile person. Some sin or other ahvays reigns without control in an hypocritical heart. As they say of witches, that they have one familiar or another that still sucks them, an hypocrite always reserves one nest-egg or another in his heart or life, for Satan to sit and brood on. Jehu did many brave things, but yet he kept up the woi-ship of his golden calves. Naaman prornises high, but yet he is for bowing in the house of Rimmon. The pharisees were very devout, but yet they loved the praises of men, and the upper- most seats in the synagogues. There is neA'er an hypocrite in the Avorld, but will do what he can to save the life of his sin, though it be with the loss of his soul. O sirs ! Satan can be contented that hypo-
* It was a strange conceit of the Cerintliians, and those Caini or Cainiani, as they are called by some, that honoured Judas the traitor as some divine and superhuman power, and called his treason a blessed piece of service, and that he knowing how much the death of Christ would profit mankind, did therefore betray him to death to save the race of men, and to do a thing pleasing to God — InncBtis, Aug. de h<sresi.
438 A CABINET OF JEWELS. [ChAP. IY.
crites should yield to God iu many things, provided they will be but true to him in some one thing ; for he very well knows, that one sin lived in and allowed, gives him as much advantage against the soul as more. Satan can hold a man fast enough by one sin, as the fowler can hold the bird fast enough by one claw. Satan knows, that one sin lived in and allowed, will mar all a man's sweetest duties and services ; as one dead fly will mar the whole box of precious ointment, Eccles. x. 1, and as one jarring string will bring the sweetest music out of tune. It is said of Naaman the Syrian, that he was a valiant man, and a vic- torious man, and an honourable man, and a great favourite with his prince, but a leper, 2 Kings v. 1. So it may be said of many hypo- crites, they have such and such excellencies, and they perform such and such glorious duties, but they live and allow themselves in this or that sin, and that mars the beauty of all their services. Mat. vii. 21-23. Satan knows, that one sin lived in and allowed, will as certainly damn a man as many ; as one disease, one ulcerous part, may as certainly kill a man as many. Satan knows, that one sin lived in and allowed, will render a man as unclean in the eye of God as many. If the leper in the law had the spot of leprosy in any one part of his body, he was accounted a leper, although all the rest of his body were sound and whole, Lev. xiv. So he who hath the spot of the leprosy of sin allowed in any one part of his soul, he is a sjjiritual leper in the eye of God ; he is unclean, though in other parts he may not be unclean. The schoolmen say, that if a sow do but wallow in one miry or dirty hole, she is filthy ; and certainly, that soul that doth but wallow in any one sin, he is filthy iu the eye of God. Satan knows, that one sin lived in and allowed, will as effectually keep Christ and the soul asunder as many, as one stone in the pipe will as effectually keep out the water as many. Satan knows, that one sin lived in and allowed, will make way for many, as one thief can open the door to let in many more. Satan knows, that one sin lived in and allowed, will as certainly shut the soul out of heaven as many. One enemy may shut the door upon a man as well as many.; and what difference is there between that man that is shut out of heaven for living in many sins, and he that is shut out of heaven for living but in one sin ? One sin lived in and allowed, will arm conscience against a man, as well as many. If there be but one crack in the honey glass, there the wasps will be buzzing, One sin allowed and countenanced, will spoil the music of conscience. One siu lived in and allowed, will make death as terrible and as formidable to the soul as many. One handwriting upon the wall made King Nebuchad- nezzar's countenance to change, and his thoughts to be troubled, and the joints of his loins to be loosed, and his knees to be dashed one ao-ainst another, Daniel v. 5, G. Now, all this Satan knows, and there- fore he labours mightily to engage hypocrites to live in the allowance of some one sin.^ O sirs I remember that as one hole in a ship will sink it, and as one stab at the heart will kill a man, and as one glass of poison will poison a man, and as one act of treason will make a man a traitor, so one sin lived in and allowed will damn a man for ever. One