pleased, if it can fly from such a misery, whatsoever else it can endure. And to make this consideration the more efficacious, when thou considerest what thou hast, frame to thyself such an apprehension of that thing as thou hast of it, when thou dost want it. Understand now what thou dost enjoy, as thou wouldst do if thou didst not enjoy it. Consider how desirable health is to a sick man, or friends to a poor man, &c.; and so let them be in thy eyes. Thou wantest plenty, but thou hast enough thou wantest riches, but thou hast health; thou wantest health, but thy sins are forgiven. Consider now, suppose thou wert sick, or thy sins were not pardoned, in what a case wouldst thou then be; what wouldst thou most complain of? for the want of them, or for the want of the things thou now groanest under? Answerable to the trouble thou shouldst have in the want of those things, let thy quiet be now in the possession of them and as thy grief for the want of such things would exceed all that which is in thee at present for the want of others; so let thy present thankfulness and contentedness be that thou wantest them not: which is another way of making this rule efficacious,-Compare the want of the things thou hast with the want of the things thou now hast not. CHAP. IX. Two considerations more: one of the wants of others; another of the uncertainty of our own enjoyments. VIII. IF thou dost consider what thou wantest, and canst not but look upon it, and compare thyself with others, then COMPARE THYSELF WITH ALL MEN, AND NOT WITH A FEW: Or, se condly, WITH THE WHOLE CONDITION OF THOSE FEW, AND NOT WITH SOME PART OF IT; and this will be a remedy for the same kind of trouble from discontent, and from envy, with all evils of like nature. First, I say, look upon all men, and thou wilt see there are thousands of persons with whom thou wouldst not for any thing change conditions. By what law then is it that thou must needs only gaze above, and take no notice of those beneath? that thou must look on him only who is carried on men's shoulders, (as one did excellently resemble this folly,) and think it is a fine thing to be so mounted; and never think of the poor men that carry him, in whose place thou wouldst by no means stand. Thou art not alone in the condition wherein thou art; yea, there are thousands in a worse, and yet (which is more) they are contented. Down with thy high looks, and stare not only upon the great mountains; be content to take notice of those a little that sit in the valleys, yea, of those that embrace a dunghill. Or, secondly, if thou canst not keep thy eyes off from those great men, then compare thyself with the whole of them, and not with some one piece, and then tell me whether thou wouldst wholly change conditions with them, and be as they are. Are there not many inconveniences in their condition which thou wouldst not meddle withal? thou wouldst have his wealth, but not his cares, nor his fears, nor his ignorance perhaps and folly, nor wouldst thou be troubled with his vices. To be short, none of you would have been the rich man in the Gospel for all the world: Lazarus, as miserable as he was, would not have been in his case. Nay, you will scarce fancy any man so complete, but there is something or other in ourselves that we fancy more, which we would keep, and have all that he hath too. But why must thou needs have all? why must every one else be deplumed for to trim thee? why must none else be pleased but thy own single self? And besides, seeing there is something in thyself, which thou lovest more than all the world, and wouldst still be that, whatsoever else thou changest; why cannot that content thee, and give thee rest, seeing it is so much worth to thee? He that will go about to make an answer to me will cure himself, unless he resolve to be unreasonable. Let me subjoin this one rule which tends to the same purpose with the former, and will comprehend all of this kind: Distinguish between real needs and artificial; i. e. those needs which God made, and those which thy own fancy hath created. It is most certain that the needs which God hath made are but few, and soon filled, and God hath made provision for them: therefore all this kind of trouble flows from thy own fancy, which if it pleases can create a thousand necessities to itself, which are indeed none at all; and by the same reason that it makes a thousand, it may 。 Luke xvi. create ten times as many for there are no limits when once we are gone beyond nature and necessity. If these needs therefore are a burden to thee, blame nothing but thy own folly, and by the help of God's grace seek a cure in thyself. Reduce thyself to nature and real needs, and thou wilt never be troubled about these matters, because thou wilt always have what nature desires; yea, the way to have that is not to desire any more. So a wise man among the Jews once said, Quære id quod tibi necessarium est, &c. Seek that which is necessary for thee, and leave that which is not necessary for by leaving to follow that which is not necessary, thou wilt obtain that which is.' I remember that when some blamed Cato that such a man as he would be in want, (as we speak,) he blamed them rather because they could not want, viz. such things as those which are not really needful for us. And I think he might have blamed them also upon this score, that they were in want because they thought they were. And if we would but deny ourselves sometimes in unnecessary desires, even when it is in our hands to humour ourselves and gratify our desires, it would be of excellent use; for we must remember that as long as the things of this world are empty and finite, our trouble will not end by satisfying, but by ceasing our desires. IX. COUNT NOTHING CERTAIN THAT IS WITHOUT THYSELF; AND THINK THY SOUL, NOT THY BODY, TO BE THYSELF. Thou mayest be certain of thy own choice, if thou knowest thyself; and thou canst tell what thou wilt do, but thou canst not be certain what will be in the world, or what other men will do; and therefore reckon upon nothing as constant and stable but thy own resolution, which may be constant if thou pleasest, and this will keep thee from trouble about what thou losest. When health and riches and such like things are gone, then thou canst say, I never made account that they would stay P. It was accounted of old a piece of great wisdom to wonder at nothing; and this is the way to it, which thing alone the poet thought was almost enough to make one happy and keep him so. Nil admirari prope res est una, Numici, • Μηδὲν θαυμάζειν. a Horat. [lib. i. Epist. 6.] But he will not cease to admire that knows not the nature of things; and he knows nothing that doth not see they are constant only in inconstancy. СНАР. Х. Three directions more, showing how we should shut the world out of ourselves, and avoid self-flattery, and take heed of a rash anger at our own selves. X. WHAT IS WITHOUT THEE KEEP IT AS FAR AS IS POSSIBLE WITHOUT THEE. Let many things not come in unto thee, nor do thou go out to them, i. e. let not them into thy heart by love, and let not thy heart go out to them by desire. Make few things to become a piece of thyself, which are without thyself; for if thou lovest many things of which, as I said before, thou canst not be certain, thou wilt be often troubled at their loss, or at their danger. This rule may serve also to fortify you against the same kind of trouble (among others) for the relief of which I prescribed the former. Keep but every thing there where it is, and all is safe. If the world change and alter, that is nothing unto us, if it be not within us. If it have no hold of our hearts, how are we concerned in its various mutations? We shall never suffer together with the world if it be not a part of us. But if we set open the door and entertain it, if we embrace it and let it dwell in us by our love cleaving to it, then we shall be as it is; and nothing can give us a remedy but the casting of it out again, and setting it where it was, quite out of ourselves. It is a true rule, that no good can bring us any pleasure but that against whose loss we are prepared. He that is in fear doth not sincerely enjoy: and it is as true, that we shall have no mind to lose that which we love dearly. Now what a miserable case is this, to be troubled with fear while we have a thing lest we lose it, and be troubled with grief when it is gone because we have lost it? But I have taught you how to provide against both these, and against all sudden accidents and changes that are in the world. Keep thyself as thou art. Let very little in which is without. I say very little, because some things press into our hearts, and get into our affections whether we will or no. We cannot but love some agreeable persons; and there are others whom we ought to love, because of the obligation we have to them. These take such hold of our hearts that they become a piece of it; and we seem to have lost half of ourselves when they are gone. Against this there is no remedy but one: since they will be within us, let them not take up the best room there. Make them know their place, and keep them below God and our Saviour, and his precious promises. Do but love thy Creator and Redeemer above all, and thou wilt find fulness and satisfaction there, when the departure of a very dear friend hath made a wide breach and a great vacuity in thy heart. The next rule also may help to give some relief, if thou dost but use it in good time. XI. DO NOT PROMISE THYSELF THAT WHIch God never proMISED THEE. This heals all the evils which arise from vain hopes, and cools the anger of those sores which are caused by frustration of our expectations. It is lawful to desire several things which are uncertain, if God see them good for us; but let us not promise to ourselves any of them. Do not enjoy thy friends, or any other good, as if thou hadst a lease of them for thy life. Do not entertain thy thoughts with promises of contentment in such a relation and such a condition, nor of success in such an enterprise, no, though thou goest about it wisely: but promise to thyself pardon of sin and eternal life, if thou dost thy duty, and the grace of God to help thee for to do it, if thou pray for it, and wilt use it: for all these things God hath promised to give us. Solomon saith that the race is not to the swift, &c., but time and chance happeneth to them all. Now because men know not the time when things will alter, and, which is worse, promise to themselves those things, as if there were no time nor chance but what they fancy; therefore he saith that evil falleth suddenly (and therefore sadly) upon thems. Hope and fear are two great instruments of our trouble, and we must cure them both, as I have directed in this and the former rule. And if we will hope for any thing, let it be (as I said before) in the days of our sorrow and adversity, to support our heaviness; not in the days of prosperity, to please our fancy. We have good things enough then to comfort us : r Eccles. ix. II. s Ver. 12. |