A guide to godliness or a Treatise of a Christian life showing the dutiesA guide to godlynesse or a Treatise of a Christian life shewing the duties

§. Sect. 2 Of such impediments as a life from worldly things, as honours, riches and pleasures, and from the society and familiarity of wicked men.

§. Sect. 2 Of such impediments as a life frō worldly things, as honours, riches and pleasures, and from the society and familiarity of wicked men.

Now the special impediments of a godly life are divers and manifold; but the chief and principal which the world useth to tempt us on the right hand, are honours, riches, pleasures, worldly friends and acquaintance, whose society and conversation are notable hindrances to a godly life. And these baits the world fitteth to every mans several humour and disposition; unto the ambitious, it propoundeth honours and the glory of the world; unto the covetous, riches and earthly treasures; unto the voluptuous, pleasures and carnal delights, causing them to bend their whole thoughts, and to spend their whole time in compassing them, so as they have no leisure to think upon, much less to perform the duties of a godly life. Which impediments if we would avoid, we must learn to contemn these earthly vanities, as being vain and worthless, uncertain both in respect of getting and keeping, and unprofitable, yea hurtful and pernicious to all those who set their hearts upon them. All which, with many other to this purpose, I have largely handled in the second part of my Christian Warfare, and therefore do here thus briefly pass them over. Neither is it needful that I should here say much of the society, friendship, and familiarity with the wicked and profane, seeing I have already spoken of it in the former Discourse. Only let us here take notice, that it is one of the chief impediments which the world useth to hinder us in the ways of godliness. For no more apt is the contagious ¹air, which we daily breathe, to poison and infect the body, then the company of ungodly and ungracious men, to taint and infect the soul. And no more possible is it to walk daily among snares and not be caught, or to live amongst the eves and not be robbed, then to preserve our selves from being entangled in the nets and grins of the wicked, and to be spoiled of all Gods graces, if we take delight to consort our selves with such as are graceless and ungodly. So Solomon telleth us, that in the transgression of an evil man, there is a snare, whereby he doth not only more and more entangle himself, but also all others that bear him company. For