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 we see to be in every kind of love. For a man that truly loveth his wife ▪ cannot abide to see his wife contemned and discredited: nor the woman that truly loveth her husband can abide to see him rejected and despised. When we love our friend, we are grieved to see any contempt offered unto him. This then we see in the nature of true love, to rejoice to see the person loved, advanced, or the thing which we love, esteemed; and grieved, to see either the person or thing so loved, to be cast down and contemned. It was a grief even to the Heathenish Philosophers to see their doctrine not regarded: were they so moved for the small regard of that earthly doctrine, which had no exact truth in it, but was mingled with infinite errors and untruths, and shall not we much more be moved, to see the word of God, which hath so exact a truth, and no untruth, contemned and little set▪ by? wherefore when we have not this godly grief in us, it is a manifest argument, that our love is very cold. For as our love is the greater, so undoubtedly our grief will be the greater; and so as our love is the less, so will our grief to see the thing defaced, be also the less. When we have much delight in any thing, we are much grieved, and who are more grieved to see the word of God trodden down, than the godly? because of all other, their delight is most in it. Not without cause then is this love commended unto us, to be a token of our zeal, and therefore we see Psalm 67. the Church praiseth and provoketh all the world to praise God, when the word had free success: such is the love of it to the word of God. O let thy people praise thee O God, yea let all the people praise thee. Oh l•t the nations rejoice and be glad, &c. As then the children of God think themselves in joy and prosperity, when the word of God is in prosperity; so it being in any trouble, death is not troublesome to them, so that by their death and suffering they may any thing confirm the truth, and give countenance to it.

This we see to be in euery kinde of loue. For a man that truly loueth his wif• ▪ cannot abide to see his wife contemned and discredited: nor the woman that truly loueth her husband can abide to see him reiected and despised. When we loue our friend, we are grieued to see any contempt offered vnto him. This then we see in the nature of true loue, to reioyce to see the person loued, aduanced, or the thing which we loue, esteemed; and grieued, to see either the person or thing so loued, to be cast downe and contemned. It was a griefe euen to the Heathenish Philosophers to see their doctrine not regarded: were they so moued for the small regard of that earthly doctrine, which had no exact truth in it, but was mingled with infinite errors and vntruths, and shall not we much more be moued, to see the word of God, which hath so exact a truth, and no vntruth, contemned and little set by? wherefore when we haue not this godly griefe in vs, it is a manifest argument, that our loue is very cold. For as our loue is the greater, so vndoubtedly our griefe will be the greater; and so as our loue is the lesse, so will our griefe to see the thing defaced, be also the lesse. When we haue much delight in any thing, we are much grieued, and who are more grieued to see the word of God troden downe, than the godly? because of all other, their delight is most in it. Not without cause then is this loue commended vnto vs, to be a token of our zeale, and therefore we see