Seven godly and learned sermons preachedSeuen godly and learned sermons preached

So might Moses have said to the children of Israel, what profit had ye in this golden calf? So Hezekiah, what profit had ye in this brazen serpent, of which now ye are ashamed? Even thus Isaiah might likewise have said, what profit had ye in your calends, & new Moons, in your holy days and sacrifices? And so other the Prophets might well have said, what profit had ye in your dreams, in your spider cobs, in your dross, in your chaff? what commodity had ye of all these things? Alas ye are now ashamed of them, & therefore ye had no profit of them, ye had no pleasure by them, they brought you no commodity, they brought you only shame and confusion.

So might Moyses haue said to the children of Israel, what profit had yée in this golden calfe? So Ezechias, what profit had yée in this brasen serpent, of which now yée are ashamed? Euen thus Esay might likewise haue said, what profit had yée in your calends, & new Moones, in your holy daies and sacrifices? And so other the Prophets might well haue said, what profit had ye in your dreames, in your spider cobbes, in your drosse, in your chaffe? what commoditie had yee of all these things? Alas ye are now ashamed of them, & therefore yee had no profit of them, yée had no pleasure by them, they brought you no commoditie, they brought you only shame and confusion.

Thus (good brethren) let us weigh and consider, what profit we had in times past of those things, of which we are now ashamed. And let us consider how much we are beholden to god, that ⟨image 46⟩now may see and know our own folly and ignorance, and so be ashamed. But herein, good brethren, there needs not many words: for there is no man so blind, but may well see, no man so deaf, but may well hear, no man so dull, but may well perceive and understand, the great error, the great blindness, the great darkness, that we have been in. And therefore let us all now give God thanks, that he hath restored his light unto us, and taken that great error and darkness from us. Loth I am here to speak of those things whereof we may be ashamed: loth and sorry I am to repeat that unto you, whereof we are now ashamed: but this place now requireth the same, this time and place willeth me somewhat to speak thereof. The time hath been, that we have put our trust in pardons, in Bulls of the Popes, in vain scrolls, and writings of his; yea, and in them we have had greater hope and affiance, than in the death of Christ, and merits of his passion. We have fallen down before images, before stocks, and stones, such as had eyes, and saw