The bright star which leadeth wise men to our Lord Jesus Christ, or, A…

Why will he do such wrong to his first borne to make him base borne; and his posterity a bastardly generation? why will they beget a continual sorrow to themselves, that they should not be able to look upon their child without blushing, and cannot see the fruit of their body, but they must look on the fruit of their sin, and behold a witness before them of their own filthiness and disobedience to God? Or if he purpose not to marry her that doth this, why doth he rob her of her virginity, and make her unfit for any other else? Therefore this is ⟨image 155⟩a foul sin and dangerous, for unless it be repented for soundly, fornication before marriage makes a plain and high way for adultery after marriage.

Why will he doe such wrong to his first borne to make him base borne; and his posteritie a bastardly generation? why will they beget a continuall sorrow to themselues, that they should not be able to looke vpon their childe without blushing, and cannot see the fruit of their bodie, but they must looke on the fruit of their sinne, and behold a witnesse before them of their owne filthinesse and disobedience to God? Or if he purpose not to marrie her that doth this, why doth he rob her of her virginitie, and make her vnfit for any other else? Therefore this is ⟨image 155⟩a foule sinne and daungerous, for vnlesse it be repented for soundly, fornication before marriage makes a plaine and high way for adulterie after mariage.

The third outward breach of this commandment follows. And that is uncleanness which is either unnatural or natural; unnatural, as Sodomy practised of the Sodomites, condemned Rom. 1. when man with man works wickedness, woman with woman commits villainy, or else that beastly sin, when the seed of man is mixed with the seed of a beast. These nature abhors and they be commonly punishments of some other wickedness, and follow a very profane and dead heart, & are worse then dulterie. The natural uncleanness is either alone, one by himself may defile his own body in most filthy sort, which though it be more secret from man, yet it is most abominable before God, and often God brings it to light by punishing those which have used it with tears of conscience, and horrible fears in their mind, or else with frenzy and franticness. These punishments have often fell on the practisers of this secret sin, and then all goes abroad, then they lay open, and vomit out all their own shame, and however they seemed chaste and pure before, yet now their filthiness is brought to light. Also an other kind of natural uncleanness is between married people, either in their entrance into marriage, or else in their proceeding and use of marriage. The uncleanness in the entrance is either if one marry an other of a contrary religion; as a professor, and a Christian to wed an Atheist or a Papist; their whole life so led till repentance and conversion, is unclean in the eyes of God, for their marriage was not lawful before God, and therefore in Ezra; these that had so married were constrained by God to put away both their wives and children as illegitimate. Also if those marry together that be within the degrees of consanguinity or affinity forbidden, they may cloak and shift as long as they will, but they shall never shift of the account and estimation of being unclean persons before God, sith they marry without the warrant, yea contrary to the commandment of God. Also those that marry without consent