The second tome of homilies of such matters as were promised, and entitled in…The second tome of homilees of such matters as were promised, and intituled in…

so certainly shall God plague you with poverty in the middest of plenty. Then when other have aboū dance and be fed at full, you shall utterly waste and consume away your selves, your store shall be destroyed, your goods plucked from you, all your glory and wealth shall perish: and that which when you had, you might have enjoyed your self in peace, and might have bestowed upon other most godly, ye shall seek with sorrow & sighs, and no where shall find it. For your unmercifulness towards other, ye shall find no man that will show mercy towards you. You that had stony hearts towards other, shall find all the creatures of god to youward as hard as bras, & iron. Alas what fury and madness doth possess our minds, that in a matter of trueth & certainty, we will not give credit to the trueth, testifying unto that which is most certain. Christ saith, that if we will first seek the kingdom of God, & do the works of righteousness thereof, we shall not be left destitute, all other things shall be given to us plenteously. Nay say we, I will first look that I be able to live my self, and be sure that I have ⟨p. 337⟩enough for me and mine, and if I have anything over, I will bestow it to get Gods favour, & the poor shall then have part with me. See I pray you the perverse judgement of men, we have more care to nourish the carcass, then we have fear to see our soul perish. And as Cyprian saith, whilst we stand in doubt least our goods fail, in ¹being over liberal, we put it out of doubt that our life & health faileth, in not being liberal at all. Whilst we are careful for diminishing of our stock, we are altogether careless to diminish our selves. We love Mammon, & lose our souls. We fear least our patrimony should perish from us, but we fear not lest we should perish for it. Thus do we perversely love that we should hate, and hate that we should love, we be negligent where we should be careful, & careful where we need not. This vain fear to lack our selves if we give to the poor, is much like the fear of children & fools, which when they see the bright glimmering of a glass, they do imagine straight way that it is the lightning, & yet the brightness of a glass never was the lightning.

so certainly shall God plague you with pouertie in the middest of plenty. Then when other haue aboū daunce and be fed at full, you shall vtterly waste and consume away your selues, your store shalbe destroyed, your goodes pluckt from you, all your glory and wealth shall perishe: and that whiche when you had, you myght haue enioyed your selfe in peace, and might haue bestowed vpon other most godly, ye shal seke with sorow & sighes, and no where shall find it. For your vnmercifulnesse towardes other, ye shall finde no man that will shew mercy towardes you. You that had stony heartes towardes other, shal finde all the creatures of god to youward as hard as bras, & iron. Alas what furie and madnesse doth possesse our myndes, that in a matter of trueth & certayntie, we wyll not geue credite to the trueth, testifying vnto that which is most certayne. Christe sayth, that if we wyl first seeke the kyngdome of God, & do the workes of righteousnes therof, we shal not be left destitute, al other thinges shalbe geuen to vs plenteously. Nay say we, I wil first looke that I be able to lyue my selfe, and be sure that I haue