Three treatises of the vanity of the creature. The sinfulness of sin. The life…Three treatises of the vanity of the creature. The sinfulnesse of sinne. The life…

Give me leave to explain this Vexation in some one or two of Solomons particulars, and to unfold his enforcements thereof out of them. And first to begin with that with which he begins. The Knowledge of things, either natural in this present text, or moral and civill. vers. 17. of both which he concludeth that they are Vanity and vexation of spirit. The first argument he takes from the weakness of it either to restore or correct any thing that is amiss. That which is crooked cannot be made strait. We may understand it several ways. First, All our knowledge by reason of mans corruption is but a crooked, ragged, impedite knowledge, and for that reason a vexation to the mind: for rectitude is full of beauty, and crookedness of deformity. In mans Creation his understanding ⟨p. 69⟩should have walked in the strait path of truth, should have had a distinct view of causes and effects in their immediate successions; but now sin hath mingled such confusion with things, that the mind is fain to take many crooked and vast compasses for a little uncertain knowledge. Secondly, The weakness of all natural knowledge is seen in this that it cannot any way either prevent or correct the natural crookedness of the smallest things, much less make a man solidly and substantially happy. Thirdly, That which is crooked cannot be made strait. It is impossible for a man by the exactest knowledge of natural things to make the nature of a man, which by sin is departed from its primitive rectitude, strait again, to repair that Image of God which is so much distorted. When they knew God, they glorified ¹him not as God, they became vain in their imaginations and their foolish heart was darkened. It is the Apostles speech of the wisest heathen. Aristotle, the most rational² heathen man that the world knows of, in his Doctrine confesseth the disability of moral knowledge to rectify the intemperance of nature, and made it good in his practice; for he used a common strumpet to satisfy his lust. Seneca likewise the exactest Stoic which we meet with, then whom never any man writ more divinely for the contempt of the world, was yet the richest usurer that ever we read of in ancient stories, though that were a sin discovered and condemned by the heathen themselves.

Give me leave to explane this Vexation in some one or two of Salomons particulars, and to unfold his enforcements thereof out of them. And first to begin with that with which he begins. The Knowledge of things, either naturall in this present text, or morall and civill. vers. 17. of both which he concludeth that they are Uanitie and vexation of spirit. The first argument he takes from the weakenesse of it either to restore or correct any thing that is amisse. That which is crooked cannot be made strait. Wee may understand it severall waies. First, All our knowledge by reason of mans corruption is but a crooked, ragged, impedite knowledge, and for that reason a vexation to the minde: for rectitude is full of beauty, and crookednesse of deformity. In mans Creation his understanding