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…

For the more particular discovery of this Truth, let us first look upon the best works of the best men. Though we say not that they are sins, and in naturarei culpable, as our adversaries charge us; yet so much evil doth adhere unto them by the mixture of our corruptions, by passing through our hands, as when sweet water passeth through a sink, as that God might justly turn away his eyes from his own Graces in us, not as his Graces, but as in us. It is true, the Spiritual offerings and¹ sacrifices of the Saints, as they come from Gods Grace, are clean and pure, a sweet savour, acceptable, well pleasing, and delightful unto God. But yet as they come from us they have iniquity in them, as not being done with that through and most exact conformity to Gods Will, as his Justice requires, and therefore if he should enter into judgement, and mark what is done amiss, he might reject our Prayers, and throw back the dung of our sacrifices into our faces, for abusing and defiling his Grace; For cursed is every one that continueth not in everything written in the Law to do it. Clean then and acceptable they are. First, comparatively in regard of wicked mens offerings, which are altogether unclean. Secondly, by favour and acceptance, because God spareth us as a father his son that desires to please him. Thirdly, (which is the ground of all) by participation with Christ, ²being perfumed with his incense, being strained through his blood, being sanctified upon his Altar; When he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of gold, to purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, then shall they ³offer unto the Lord an off•ring in righteousness, then shall the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the ⟨p. 326⟩Lord. But in it self ou• best righteousness is as a m•nstruous rag. If God should lay righteousness to the⁴ line and judgement to the plummet, should take such exceptions as he justly might at the most holy action that any Saint can offer to him; If he should show the conscience how short it falls of that total perfection which his pure eye requires, how many loose thoughts, how much deadness, weariness, irreverence, diffidence, vitiateth or purest prayers; how many by ends, corrupt respects, ignorances, oversights, forgetfulness, worldly intermixtures deface and blemish our brightest actions;