A commentary or, exposition upon the divine second epistle general, writtenA commentary or, exposition vpon the diuine second epistle generall, written

5 Caligo mortis, the darkness of death. Death is a putting out of light, and a committing to darkness. Psal. 88.12. Shall thy wonders be known in the dark? shall thy loving kindness be declared in the grave? Job calls it A land of darkness, without any order, where the light is as darkness, Job 10.22. Remember the days of darkness, Eccl. 11.8. Heaven is the place of light, the bowels of the earth the place of darkness. Mans life is in the mid-way between them: he sees whither his soul may go, whither his body must go. There is an old Apologue: a man going out of his beaten and directed way, to gather unlawful fruits, fell into a deep pit. In his fall, he caught hold on the arm of a tree growing in it. Thus he hung in the midway, betwixt the upper light from which he fell, and the lower darkness to which he was falling. He looks down ward, and sees two worms gnawing at the root of this tree: he looks upward, and spies on a branch a hive of honey: he climbs up to it, and fits feeding on it. But in mean time the worms did bite in sunder the root, and down falls man, and tree, and all into the bottom of the dark pit. Man himself is this wretch, who straying from the way of Gods commandments, fell to eat of the forbidden fruit: instantly he fell. The pit over which he hangeth is the grave, the tree whereby he holdeth is this mortal life: the two worms are day and night: the hive of honey is the pleasures and lusts of this world. Hereupon he greedily feeds: until the two consumers, day and night in their vicissitudes, have eaten asunder the root of life. Then down drops earth to earth, Corpus putidum in locum putridum. There it must lodge in the silent grave, neither seeing nor seen, blended in the forgotten dust and undistinguished mould; till it be wakened by the Archangels Trump in the great day of Christ.

5 Caligo mortis, the darkenesse of death. Death is a putting out of light, and a committing to darkenesse. Psal. 88.12. Shall thy wonders be knowne in the darke? shall thy loving kindnesse be declared in the grave? Iob calls it A land of darkenesse, without any order, where the light is as darkenesse,