them ; and it was observed that, being full of guilt, they went to their deaths with dejected and ill-favoured countenances, so that the very Gentiles took notice of it, and reproached them as degenerous persons, and worthy to suffer as evil doers. West, that was chaplain to Bishop Ridley, refusing to die in Christ's cause with his master, said mass against his conscience, and soon after pined away with sorrow.l A smith in King Edward the Sixth's days, called Richard Denson, was a forward professor of religion,^ and by his Christian instructions the happy instrument of the conversion of a young man to the faith ; after- wards, in the reign of Queen Mary, this young man was cast into prison for his religion, who, remembering his old friend and spiritual father, the smith, to whom he always carried a reverent respect for the good that he had received by him, sent to know whether he was not imprisoned also, and finding that he was not, desired to speak with him ; and when he came he asked his advice, whether he thought it best for him to remain in prison ? and whether he would encourage him to burn at a stake for his religion ? To whom the smith answered, that his cause was good, and that he might with comfort suffer for it. But for my part, said the smith, I cannot burn. But shortly after, he that could not burn for religion, by God's just judgment was burned for his apostasy, for his shop and house being set on fire, and he over- busy to save his goods, was burnt in the flames. They that will not burn for Christ when he calls them to it, shall burn whether they will or no. Oh, how much better had it been for this smith to have burnt for Christ, than that Christ should set his house on fire, and burn him in the midst of it ! He that will not suffer for Christ shall be sure to suffer worse things from Christ than ever he could have suf- fered, for Christ ; and therefore Doctor Taylor, the martyr, hit it: If I shrink from God's truth, said he, I am sure of another manner of death than Judge Hales had, who, being drawn for fear of death to do things against his conscience, did afterwards drown himself. 3
In the Bohemian persecution, John Campan, the famous poet, having forsaken his religion, said to his wife, this day is salvation come to our house; whereunto she answered, this day a curse is brought into our house ; and so it proved, for he ended his life in despair.
Those apostates that left Galeacius to enjoy their sinful pleasures and delights, &c., were taken by the bloody Inquisition, and forced pubHcly to recant and abjure their religion, and when they had done it, they became the subjects of misery and infamy, and were equally odious to both parties,
Christ seems to say to all that refuse to suffer for him, as king Re- hoboam said to the ten tribes, the order of the words being only in- verted, ' My little finger shall be thicker than your persecutors' loins, and I will add to your yoke, and whereas they would have chastised you but with whips, I will chastise you with scorpions,' 1 Kings xii. 10-15. 0 my friends, it is ten thousand times worse to be given up to a proud heart, a hard heart, a worldly heart, a formal heart, a hypocritical heart, a persecuting heart, an impenitent heart, or a de- spairing heart, &c. — for this is to be whipped with scorpions — than it is ^ Foxe's Acts and Mon., fol. 1570. " Ihid., fol. 873. » lUd., fol. 1382.
HeB. XII. 14.] AND BEAUTY OF HOLINESS. 281
to be given up to prisons, or racks, or lions, or flames, or banishment, &c., for this is only to be chastised with whips, yea, with such whips that can only reach our bodies, but can never touch our immortal souls. And therefore, as you would not suffer such hard things from Christ, oh take heed of being unwilling to suffer anything for Christ's sake, or the gospel's sake ! But,
7. Seventhly, I answer, That great are the advantages that will redound'^ to you hy all the troubles, affiictions, and persecutions that shall befall you for righteousness' sake, for holiness sake, Luke xxi. 13. Persecutions are the workmen that will fit you and square you for God's buildings ; they are the rods that will beat off the dust, and the scullions that will scour off the rust from your souls ; they are the fire that will purge you from your dross, and the water that will cleanse you from your filthiness. Physicians, you know, apply horse-leeches to their distempered patients. Now the horse-leech intends nothing but to satiate and fill himself with the blood of the sick patient, but the physician has a more noble aim, even the drawing away of that putrified and corrupt blood that endangers the life of his patient ; so though persecutors aim at nothing more than to draw out the heart- blood of God's people, that they may satiate and fill themselves with it, yet God has other thoughts and other aims, even the drawing away of that corrupt blood, that pride, that self-love, that worldli- ness, that carnalness, and that lifl^ewarmness, that otherwise would endanger the life, the health, and welfare of their souls. But this great truth I shall make more evident by an induction of particulars. Thus :
[1.] First, Hereby you will give an evident proof of the sound- ness and uprightness of yotir oicn hearts, Phil. i. 27-29. Afflictions and persecutions will discover what metal men are made of. All is not gold that glisters : many there be that glister, and look like golden Christians, but when they come to the fire, they prove but dross : he ia a golden Christian indeed, who remains gold when under fiery trials. The stony ground did glister and shine very gloriously, for it received the word with joy for a time, but when the sun of persecution rose upon it, it fell away. Mat. xiii. 20, 21. Men that now embrace the word, will, in times of persecution, distaste the word, if it be not rooted in their understandings, judgments, wills, affections, and consciences. Men may court the word, and compliment the word, and applaud the word, and seemingly rejoice in the word, but they will never suffer persecution for the word, if it be only received into their heads, and not rooted in their hearts. The house built upon the sand was as lovely, as comely, as goodly, and as glorious a house to look upon as that which was built upon the rock ; but when the rain of affliction descended, and the floods of tribulation came, and the winds of perse- cution blew and beat upon that house, it fell, and great was the fall of it, Mat. vii. 26, 27. No professors will be able to stand it out in all winds and weathers, but such as are built upon a rock. All others will sink, shatter, and fall when the wind of persecution blows upon them, Mai. iii. 2 ; as sure as the rain will fall, the floods flow, and the winds blow, so sure will an unsound heart give out when trials come.
^ Spelled ' redown.' — G.
282 THE NECESSITY, EXCELLENCY, RARITY, [HeB. XII. 14.