A cloud of faithful witnesses, leading to the heavenly Canaan, or, A commentary upon…A cloud of faithfull witnesses, leading to the heauenly Canaan, or, A commentarie vpon…

Thirdly, many men take much delight in some kind of meat: some in variety of meats, and some so love their belly, as they care not how many creatures, or kinds of creatures do dye, for their belly sake: this is to be considered. For I take it a great fault, for men either to be too lavish and careless, how many creatures they cause to die, or (though they eat but one kind) to do it without all use or further ⟨p. 29⟩consideration. For, mark whence comes this, that man cannot now live, or not so well; but his life must be the death of other creatures, his nourishment and preservation, the destruction of other creatures. At the beginning before sin was, this was not so: no creature did either serve to clothe or feed Adam: but this came with sin; sin brought this vanity upon creatures, to die for the feeding and clothing of man: and had we stood without sin, no creature should have lost his life to be our meat. I take it therefore the duty of a man to make great use of his meat in this regard. And first, for the meat that he loves best, let him be humbled for his sin: knowing that if he had not sinned, he should have had much more sweetness in other meat, which notwithstanding should not have cost any creature his life. And secondly, for variety be not too lavish, nor too riotous: consider, every dish is the death of a creature of Gods creation: consider again whence comes this, that creatures must die to feed thee; not from the creation, creatures were not made to that end: Innocency would have preserved all creatures to more excellent ends.

Thirdly, many men take much delight in some kinde of meate: some in variety of meates, and some so loue their belly, as they care not how many creatures, or kindes of creatures do dye, for their belly sake: this is to be considered. For I take it a great fault, for men either to be too lauish and carelesse, how many creatures they cause to die, or (though they eate but one kinde) to doe it without all vse or further ⟨p. 29⟩consideration. For, marke whence comes this, that man cannot now liue, or not so well; but his life must be the death of other creatures, his nourishment and preseruation, the destruction of other creatures. At the beginning before sinne was, this was not so: no creature did either serue to cloathe or feed Adam: but this came with sin; sin brought this vanitie vpon creatures, to die for the feeding and cloathing of man: and had we stood without sin, no creature should haue lost his life to be our meate. I take it therefore the duty of a man to make great vse of his meate in this regard. And first, for the meate that he loues best, let him be humbled for his sinne: knowing that if hee had not sinned, hee should haue had much more sweetnesse in other meate, which notwithstanding should not haue cost any creature his life. And secondly, for variety be not too lauish, nor too riotous: consider, euery dish is the death of a creature of Gods creation: consider againe whence comes this, that creatures must die to feed thee; not from the creation, creatures were not made to that end: Innocencie would haue preserued all creatures to more excellent ends.