Sermons upon Deuteronomy

But let us come now to the unbelievers. It is true that God sheddeth out his temporal benefits upon them, so as they be healthy, & have abundance of goods, and so forth: but yet shall all these things be turned into a curse to them. If a man demand whether the having of bodily health, & also wherewith to find a mans self, be not the blessings of God: yes verily be they. But yet must we note that as in respect of the faithless,¹ & of the despisers of God, they turn to their harm, because they be foul & unclean, & do defile Gods benefits with their handling of them. Needs must it be then that the order of nature is turned upside down in this behalf. For inasmuch as the wicked & the unbelievers are full of filth & uncleanness: they can not touch any of Gods benefits, but they must needs beray them and mar them. And therefore all must needs turn to their condemnation. Again, we see how the world goeth. Have thieves (I mean such as are given to deceit & fleecing) have they gathered much together? They have tormented themselves all the tim of their life: & what joy have they had of them? God taketh vengeance on them: for they be inflamed with such greediness of them, as they be never in quiet: & besides that, they cannot do good with their evil-gotten goods. But in the end, do they once dye? Then goes all to havoc again. For the world sees how the devil hath liberty to overthrow, even such as a man would have thought to have bin well grounded, & that they should never have decayed to the worlds end. A man would wonder to see how they be destroyed in the turning of a hand. Yea and moreover, the goods which they have raked together for their children, become as halters to hang them withal, so as they become miserable even in the sight of the world, & men behold the signs of Gods wrath & vengeance in them, whereby it is well known that he never leaveth men unpunished for the contempt & wrong which they do to his majesty, in rushing forth into all disorder insomuch that if he punish not the fathers themselves, he layeth the execution of it upon their children how long soever he make delay. So then let us mark that it is not without cause that God telleth us he will bless such as serve him, yea even to the worldward.

But let vs come now to the vnbeleuers. It is true that God sheddeth out his temporall benefites vpon them, so as they be healthie, & haue aboundance of goods, and so forth: but yet shall all these thinges be turned into a curse to them. If a man demaund whether the hauing of bodily health, & also wherewith to finde a mans selfe, be not the blessinges of God: yes verily be they. But yet must wee note that as in respecte of the faithlesse,