The sermons of Master Henry Smith gathered into one volume. Printed according to his…The sermons of Maister Henrie Smith gathered into one volume. Printed according to his…

There is a wise eye,¹ and there is a foolish eye,² the wise eye is like the Bee, which gathereth honey of every weed: the foolish eye is like the spider which gathereth poison of every flower. Therefore God licensed Abraham to see the flames of Sodom, which he forbade Lot, because that which teacheth one, tempteth another: it is a true Proverb, the eye is a shrew; although it show light, yet it leadeth many into darkness. If Eve had not seen, she had not lusted, for it is said, Seeing that the tree was pleasant to the eyes, ³she took and eat. ⁴If Achan had not seen, he had not stolen. For he saith, first I saw, and then I coveted. If David had not seen, he had not lusted, for it is said first, That he did see her, and then he sent for her.⁵ So when Ham had seen the temptation, he was snared with the sin: therefore it followeth, He told his brethren ⟨p. 603⟩which were without, &c. Thus sin groweth of sin from the eye to the heart, and from the heart to the tongue, a man may go into a labyrinth easily, but when he is in he cannot get out: so Ham did see a temptation easily, but when he had seen it, he could not look from it. Therefore when Esayah speaketh of vanity,⁶ he named Cart-ropes of vanity, to show how one sin draweth on another, as it were with Cart-ropes,⁷ and one sinner maketh another,⁸ as Eve did Adam. When Satan was cast out himself, he sought ever after whom he might devour, so when Ham had strained reverence himself, he laboured to bring his brethren into the same disobedience. All men seek after fellows, and we think it evil to be evil alone, therefore the thieves before they go to steal, call their mates, and say, Come with us,