Four godly and fruitful sermons two preached at Drayton in Oxford-shire, at a fast,…Foure godlie and fruitful sermons two preached at Draiton in Oxford-shire, at a fast,…

I have dealt very foolishly] This he speaketh to make this sin more odious unto himself: for by nature we are so proud, that we cannot abide that any body should say, we have dealt foolishly and absurdly: therefore doth he lay lode upon himself, the more to beat down his pride, confessing that he had dealt very foolishly, because he had dealt very sinfully: whence note this doctrine, That the more sinful any one is, the more foolish he is.

I haue dealt very foolishly] This he speaketh to make this sinne more odious vnto himselfe: for by nature we are so proud, that we cannot abide that any body should say, we haue dealt foolishly and absurdly: therefore doth he lay lode vpon himselfe, the more to beat downe his pride, confessing that he had dealt very foolishly, because he had dealt very sinfully: whence note this doctrine, That the more sinfull any one is, the more foolish he is.

Eve did eat of the forbidden fruit,¹ thinking she had dealt very wisely & providently for her self: but did she get any thing by sinning against her makers commandment? No surely: when she had a conceit that she should deal most wisely, she dealt most foolishly of any that ever was in the world: for thereby she brought sorrow and misery, yea eternal damnation of soul and body, not only upon her self (had not God given her repentance and mercy) but upon many hundred thousands ⟨p. 17⟩of her posterity. So Achan thought it a part of wisdom to take up the Babylonish garment & the wedge of gold that lay in his way:² he might thereby (as he imagined) enrich himself, and the matter never be known: but was not that the ruin of himself & his household? In like manner Jeroboam esteemed it a wise and safe way for him to set up the Calves, that the people might worship at Dan and Bethel, and so not fall from him, to join again to the house of David: he accounted this a surer course to establish his throne, then for him to rest on Gods promise: but did he not get exceeding dishonour and utter ruin hereby? in so much that when the Lord will set forth a notable reprobate and firebrand of hell, he doth describe him by this, that he was like Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that made Israel to sin: and whereas he hoped by this means to set up himself and his seed for ever, he caused them through his sins to be swept away as dung from the face of the earth. The like may be said of Ahab in taking away Naboths vineyard. And this must needs be so,