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,…

As for them which live to any other end, Solomon judgeth no better of the untimely fruit than of them, who enjoy many days in pleasure, and after go to the darkness. Besides we know how all other inferior things were created to glorify God in serving man, and man was made to glorify God by the true use of the word.

As for them which liue to any other end, Salomon iudgeth no better of the vntimely fruite than of them, who enioy many dayes in pleasure, and after goe to the darkenes. Besides we know how all other inferiour things were created to glorifie God in seruing man, and man was made to glorifie God by the true vse of the word.

Let my soul live. &c. This is the usual phrase of the Scripture, when they use to set dow• a thing more pathetically, as Luke 1. My soul doth magnify the Lord: my spirit praiseth Go my Saviour. And Psalm. 103. 1. and 104. 1. My soul praise thou the Lord. Psalm. 115. 17. The dead praise not the Lord, neither any that go down into the place of silence, and Psalm. 6. 5. In death there is no remembrance of thee, in the grave who shall praise thee: and Isaiah 38. 19. The pit cannot praise thee, the grave cannot confess thee, death cannot praise thee, they that go down into the pit cannot praise thee: but the living, the living shall confess thee, as I do this day, &c. How grievous a thing it is now, every man may judge, that a man should go out of this world, or ever he knew wherefore he came into the world, and this is that which maketh us so loth to die. This was it that made the Saints of God in former times so unwilling to leave this life, not that they wanted any hope of the life to come, or had not the joy of a blessed resurrection; but either they had some special sins heavily pressed their consciences, whereby they had dishonoured God; or else they desired to live in greater measure to glorify God, either in entering into the way of repentance, or else growing in the same after they had entered; because as yet they could not say in truth: I have fought a good fight, I have run a good race, I have kept thy faith, from henceforth a crown of glory is prepared for me. For they knew that, whereof we are willingly ignorant, that we shall never uncessantly praise God in heaven, unless we carefully serve God in earth; and we shall never praise God in the congregation of Angels, which praise not God in the congregation of his saints. Let us remember then, that we live not to eat, as do brute beasts; we live not to live, as do the heathen: we live to live well, as having all the creatures to serve to our use we must live to Gods glory, according to his will. It is requisite that Christians in this lie should be prepared to praise God in the life to come with Angels: for how shall we cie holy, holy, holy, with Angels, unless we learn to praise God with his Saints in this life?