A divine herbal together with a forrest of thorns In five sermons. ... By…A divine herball together with a forrest of thornes In five sermons. ... By…

God did also mean, that thy self should take comfort in these things. It is a part of that Blessedness, ¹which the Psalmist promiseth to him that feareth the Lord. Thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands: happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee. For God gave wine (for this purpose) to make glad the heart of man, ²and oil to make his face shine, and bread to strengthen his heart. How doth man divert Gods goodness, when he turns his blessing into a curse, and puts his good creatures from their intended uses! The Lambs are for thy clothing, ³and the Goats are the price of thy field, saith the Wise-man. Thou must wear the wool, and drink the milk of thy own flock. ⟨p. 39⟩Neither be so sparing, as to starve thy self in the middest of thine own plenty. As the covetous wretch, that dares not eat an egg, lest he should loose a chicken. Nor so profuse to thy own lusts, that thou shouldst give all, vel veneri, vel ventri: not that surfeits or wine should sluice out thy estate into thy belly. Not that with unnecessary quarrels of law, thou shouldst afflict and weary thy neighbours. O madness! that to put out both thy brothers eyes, thou shouldst put out one of thine own: nay, both thine own for one of his. Ingrateful men for Gods great mercy; that what they get by peace with forraines, vainly spend it in civill wars: where the Lawyers set them together, as men clap on unwilling Mastiffs! Most commonly they fight at the long weapon, a tedious, wearying, weather-beaten suit. Sometimes they fight close; Poniard and Pistol, killing quarrels: laying trains for one another, till both be blown up. Can the back of charity bear no load? Are the sinews of love grown so feeble? Alas fools! you get both nothing but the blows; the Lawyer goes away with the victory. He fills his purse, and you come home both well beaten.

God did also meane, that thy selfe should take comfort in these things. It is a part of that Blessednesse, ¹which the Psalmist promiseth to him that feareth the Lord. Thou shalt eate the labour of thine hands: happy shalt thou be, and it shall bee well with thee. For God gaue wine (for this purpose) to make glad the heart of man,