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,…

This Psalm is a lively representation of a man regenerate, and teacheth us, what are, or ought to be his meditations, his exercises, and his affections; so that¹ by how much a man shall have found himself to be truly conversant in this Psalm, so much may he think himself to have profited in regeneration: and by how much the less he hath found, that he is less occupied in the practise hereof, so much he is to suspect himself to fail and come short of newness of life. In these days, because we attribute so much to ministerial knowledge, and have felt so little profit by² the teaching of the Spirit, and seeing we brag so much of faith, & have so little love; lastly, whereas we boast of our profession, and yet are so little profited in holy conversation, the Lord for such contempt of his trueth, doth ^*now teach us by deluding spirits, and fantastical devisers, and the lying Family of love. Wherefore unless we be more inflamed with a love of the truth, and an hatred of heresy, than we have been; it may come to pass, that as in the Primitive Church the Gospel of Jesus Christ being preached at the first, of men of the lowest state, and afterward for the good liking of it, was brought to be preached after the more learned sort: even so heresy now beginning in the unlearned and ignorant⁴ people, may by the just judgement of God, for the contempt of the word, take place even among the best learned. For it is as easy for the Lord in his judgements, to send a lying spirit into four hundred learned men, as to suffer the common Israelites to be deluded therewith: so then we have the mysteries of iniquity to teach the mysteries of righteousness, and we must learn love of them, which are the abusers of love. Wherefore if we desire⁵ to know Christ crucified by the spirit in his word, if we will know him to be our Prophet, our Priest, and our King, we must be new creatures, for the old things are gone, and new things have succeeded them in their place; we must let love be laborious in us, and fruitful in good works. But when we have not so good misliking of heretics, we shall find them as the grasshoppers of Egypt, we shall see new and old enemies join together, to the great dishonour of our God.