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

Here the description of hypocrites; they are all words; smooth unctuous, and feigned words. Christians in the skin, devils at the core. Like the Armenian Dragons, that have cold and squailed bodies; yet cast fire out of their mouths. Such was that Diogenes Sinopensis; in opinion a Stoic, in conversation a Epicure, a fool in both. That Apostate Julian so wrote of himself; that he had an busy tongue but a lazy hand. Their rhetoric is pretty and their logic witty, but their practic is naughty. They gape like sea-fishes, so wide as if they would devour the whole Ocean: rip them up, and search their entrails, and you find no water in their bellies. Cruelty that is, aperta malitia is hurtful: but hypocrisy, operta malitia is most pernicious. A Player and an hypocrite are all one with the Greeks: hypocrites are the devils company of players. As men sometimes play in the shapes of devils, so devils play in the shapes of men. As CHRIST to deceive the devil took man upon him: so diverse to deceive man take the devil upon them. Satan's best trading is by metamorphoses and transformations. He once changed himself from an Angel of light to a devil: so now he would change himself from a devil to an Angel of light. What is true of every evil; Quantò interius, tantò deterius; holds strongest in hypocrisy. Pagans allow us peace, heretics peace, hypocrites no peace. The Churches persecution by Tyrants was bitter, by heretics more bitter, by hypocrites most bitter. There is scarce a house in the world, but it is haunted with this kind of spirits; familiars; visible and carnal devils; familiar hypocrites. Fear, and the pit, and the snare are upon thee, O Inhabitant of the earth. ¹Either the fear of Tyranny, or, the deep Pit of policy, or the Snare of hypocrisy, continually assault us. But as CHRIST said to his Apostles; He that receiveth you, receiveth me: so he that deceiveth you, deceiveth me. Ananias lied unto Peter, Peter tells him that he had lied to the Holy Ghost. It is well observed that many mens religion is like the adverbe Quasi: which denotes a picture not a nature, an appearance rather than an existence; likeness than a true being. As it were. So the locusts are described, Rev. 9.7. As it were horses prepared to the battle, and on their heads as it were the faces of men, &c. They were not horses, but as it were horses:

Here the description of hypocrites; they are all words; smooth unctuous, and fained wordes. Christians in the skin, divells at the coare. Like the Armenian Dragons, that have cold and squail'd bodies; yet cast fire out of their mouthes. Such was that Diogenes Sinopensis; in opinion a Stoicke, in conversation a Epicure, a foole in both. That Apostate Iulian so wrote of himselfe; that he had an busy tongue but a lasy hand. Their rhetoricke is prety and their logicke witty, but their practicke is naughty. They gape like sea-fishes, so wide as if they would devoure the whole Ocean: rip them up, and search their intralls, and you find no water in their bellies. Crueltie that is, aperta malitia is hurtfull: but hypocrisie, operta malitia is most pernicious. A Player and an hyppocrite are all one with the Greekes: hypocrites are the divells company of players. As men sometimes play in the shapes of divells, so divells play in the shapes of men. As CHRIST to deceive the divell tooke man upon him: so diverse to deceive man take the divell upon them. Satans best trading is by metamorphoses and transformations. He once changed himselfe from an Angell of light to a divell: so now he would change himselfe from a divell to an Angell of light. What is true of every evill; Quantò interius, tantò deterius; holds strongest in hypocrisie. Pagans allow us peace, heretickes peace, hypocrities no peace. The Churches persecution by Tyrants was bitter, by heretickes more bitter, by hypocrites most bitter. There is scarce a house in the world, but it is haunted with this kind of spirits; familiars; visible and carnall divells; familiar hypocrites. Feare, and the pit, and the snare are upon thee, O Inhabitant of the earth.