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LACK OF DISCRETION.

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vile him, and rebuke him? They did not revile him, nor rebuke him: but God gave them grace to hear him, and to convert and amend at his preaching. A strange matter, so noble a city to give place to one man's sermon! Now England cannot abide this gear, they cannot be content to hear God's minister, and his threatening for their sin, though the sermon be never so good, though it be never so true. It is, a naughty fellow, a seditious fellow; he maketh trouble and rebellion in the realm; he lacketh discretion." But the Ninevites rebuked not Jonah that he lacked discretion, or that he spake out of time, that his sermon was out of season made. But in England, if God's preacher, God's minister, be any thing quick, or do speak sharply, then he is a foolish fellow, he is rash, he lacketh discretion. Now-a-days if they cannot reprove the doctrine that is preached, then they will reprove the preacher, that he lacketh due consideration of the times, that he is of learning sufficient, but he wanteth discretion.

"What a time is this, picked out to preach such things! He should have a respect and a regard to the time, and to the state of things, and of the commonweal." It rejoiceth me sometimes, when my friend cometh and telleth me that they find fault with my discretion, for

by likelihood, think I, the doctrine is true: for if they could find fault with the doctrine, they would not charge me with the lack of discretion, but they would charge me with my doctrine, and not with the lack of discretion, or with the inconveniency of the time.

I will now ask you a question; I pray you, when should Jonah have preached against the covetousness of Nineveh, if the covetous men should have appointed him his time? I know that preachers ought to have a discretion in their preaching, and that they ought to have a consideration and respect to the place and to the time that he preacheth in; as I myself will say here that I would not say in the country for no good. But what then? Sin must be rebuked, sin must be plainly spoken against. And when should Jonah have preached against Nineveh, if he should have forborn for the respect of the times, or the place, or the state of things there? For what was Nineveh? A noble, a rich, and a wealthy city. What is London to Nineveh ? Like a village, as Islington, or such another, in comparison of London. Such a city was Nineveh; it was three days' journey to go through every street of it, and to go but from street to street. There were noblemen, rich men, wealthy men, there were vicious men, and covetous men, and men that gave them

NINEVEH CONVERTED.

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selves to all voluptuous living, and to worldliness of getting riches. Was this a time well chosen and discreetly taken of Jonah, to come and reprove them of their sin, to declare unto them the threatenings of God, and to tell them of their covetousness, and to say plainly unto them, that except they repented and amended their evil living, they and their city should be destroyed of God's hand within forty days? And yet they heard Jonah and gave place to his preaching. They heard the threatenings of God, and feared his stroke and vengeance, and believed God, that is, they believed God's preacher and minister, they believed that God would be true of his word that he spake by the mouth of his prophet, and thereupon did penance, to turn away the wrath of God from them.

Well, what shall we say ? I will say this and not spare; Christ saith, Nineveh shall arise against the Jews at the last day, and bear witness against them; because that they hearing God's threatening for sin, "Ad prædicationem Jonæ in cinere et sacco egerunt pœnitentiam," They did penance at the preaching of Jonah in ashes and sackcloth, (as the text saith there.) And I say Nineveh shall arise against England, thou England, Nineveh shall arise against England, because it will not believe God, nor

ness.

hear his preachers that cry daily unto them, nor amend their lives, and especially their covetousCovetousness is as great a sin now as it was then; and it is the same sin now as it was then. And he will as sure strike for sin now, as he did then. But ah, good God, that would give them a time of repentance, after his threatening. First, to see whether they would amend or not, or he would destroy them. For even from the beginning of the world they fell to sin. The first age from Adam, which was about two thousand years, they fell ever to sin, and they had preachers, Noah, and Enoch, and other holy fathers. And in that time a great multiplication was that grew in two thousand years; for that Scripture saith, "The sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair, and they took wives from among all that they had chosen." This is a long matter to speak of all. But what meaneth this, The sons of God saw the daughters of men? Who were these sons of God?

The sons of God were those that came of the good men, of the good preachers, of the holy fathers, that were God's men; as they that came of Seth and Enoch, that were good men, and of others. For our grandmother Eve, when Cain had killed Abel, and when she had another son by Adam, who was called Seth,

THE SONS OF GOD.

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what did she? She gave thanks to God for him, and acknowledged that God it was which had given him unto her; for she said, "Dedit mihi Deus semen pro Abel quem occidit Cain." God (said she) hath given me another seed instead of Abel whom Cain slew."

Here is a long matter to talk on. Some will say, Was this a natural mother, was this naturally done, to publish the sin of her own son? What needed she to speak of that matter, or to make any rehearsal of that matter, to open the

sin of her son? What needed she this to do? Yes, she was now a good woman; when she believed the serpent, she was not good. But now she had repented that deed, and had taken hold of the promise of God, that there should come of her a seed, that should tread down and destroy the head of the serpent. She had now taken hold of this promise, and was a good woman, and a godly woman; she opened the fault of her son, and hid it not. Here could I say somewhat to them, if I would, that spake so much against me for my preaching here the last year. But to return to Eve, and declare that by the sons of God are to be understood those that came of good men, as of Seth and Enoch, and the same good part of generation.

And the daughters of men are to be understood of them that came of Cain and of his seed;