The works of the reverend and faithful servant of Jesus Christ M. Richard Greenham,…The workes of the reuerend and faithfull seruant af Iesus Christ M. Richard Greenham,…

That thou mayest stand. This is a promise, and we shall not fail of this armour of proof, nor of the profit of it. And so as we are exhorted to put on the armour, so we shall have the fruit of it by standing, so we still pray, Da Domine, quod jubes, & jube, quod vis. Thus Christians by faith and standing fast in the evil day, must change the other evil nature of affliction into a good quality, still being mindful to comfort themselves in this, that the Evangelical exhortations give by promise through the holy Spirit a certain strength to do the thing commanded, the Law leaving us in our weakness. Again to the armour.

That thou maist stand. This is a promise, and we shall not faile of this armour of proofe, nor of the profit of it. And so as wee are exhorted to put on the armour, so wee shall haue the fruite of it by standing, so we still pray, Da Domine, quod iubes, & iube, quod vis. Thus Christians by faith and standing fast in the euil day, must change the other euill nature of affliction into a good qualitie, still being mindfull to comfort themselues in this, that the Euangelicall exhortations giue by promise through the holy Spirit a certaine strength to doe the thing commanded, the Law leauing vs in our weakenes. Againe to the armour.

Stand. We must always be in a readiness, and at the first call, what time of year, month, day, or night soever the adversary provokes us. He begins with the girdle, because in former ages as there were divers manners of eating, sitting, or warring, so Paul here speaks of such things as were used then. The girdle is not now, which was then used, as we have some armour familiar to us, unknown to them, as guns, &c. The use of the girlde was to gird fast the nether parts, this is Truth, which is not taken for the whole word, as Joh. 17. but for a sincere and upright heart, or for faithfulness. And as we take faith either for our faithfulness to God, or Gods faithfulness to us; so truth meaneth sometime upright dealing either from God •o us, or from us to God. Truth is counted then for a true performance, as Roman. 2. The judgements of God are with truth, that is faithfulness. Al the ways of the Lord are mercy and truth, that is, a performance of his mercy. Well, here it is not spoken of that truth, which is the word, but of uprightness of heart and sincerity. Again, the truth of the word is after spoken of, and here can be no vain repetition. Well, as the girdle knits all together on the body; so the uprightness of heart is the band of all virtues, and hypocrisy