5. It is a very bad guide to follow the counsels or desires of sick ⟨p. 116⟩persons, or their carnal friends. It fares with faithful Ministers, as with honest and able Physicians, that are many times ill thought of by the sick man and foolish friends, when they put him to pain, or trouble, they charge him with cruelty and delighting to torment the poor man unnecessarily, & it may be think of discharging him, and getting a Physician that will deal more gently with him: whereas indeed he is the sick mans best friend, and many times should he not pain him, he would kill him: so is it here, Come to a sick man, he cries, Comfort for Gods sake, so say his friends, and they think all is done, if they can get comfort: why you shall have it, but in due time, you shall have ease, health, &c. but you must be contented to wait for it, and expect it in due order, first you must be sick, oft times, that physic is the best, which makes you sickest; you shall be healed; but, if you would proceed regularly and work a true cure, you must first have your wound searched, and then healed, else you have only a palliative cure, and the wound will fester inwardly: and it is an horrible mistake of sick persons they think comfort is all they are to look after, I tell you, it is not present comfort, but everlasting happiness, you must make your business to get: it is not Augustus his [Greek or Hebrew], to die quietly, like a Lamb (as the vulgar phrase it) but a Scripture [Greek or Hebrew], to die the death of the righteous: it is not so much a calm, and sweet, and easy passage (the fishes have that, when they swim down the sweet stream of Jordan, into the dead sea, where they perish) but a safe harbour one may go to heaven in a storm, and to hell in a calm; and which is better, judge you: those wretches in Psal. 73. have no bands in their death, and yet death hath dominion over them. Comfort is not the great business you need.
5. It is a very bad guide to follow the counsels or desires of sick ⟨p. 116⟩persons, or their carnal friends. It fares with faithfull Ministers, as with honest and able Physicians, that are many times ill thought of by the sick man and foolish friends, when they put him to pain, or trouble, they charge him with cruelty and delighting to torment the poor man unnecessarily, & it may be think of discharging him, and getting a Physician that will deal more gently with him: whereas indeed he is the sick mans best friend, and many times should he not pain him, he would kill him: so is it here, Come to a sick man, he cries, Comfort for Gods sake, so say his friends, and they think all is done, if they can get comfort: why you shall have it, but in due time, you shall have ease, health, &c. but you must be contented to wait for it, and expect it in due order, first you must be sick, oft times, that physick is the best, which makes you sickest; you shall be healed; but, if you would proceed regularly and work a true cure, you must first have your wound searched, and then healed, else you have only a palleative cure, and the wound will fester inwardly: and it is an horrible mistake of sick persons they think comfort is all they are to look after, I tell you, it is not present comfort, but everlasting happiness, you must make your business to get: it is not Augustus his 〈non-Latin alphabet〉, to die quietly, like a Lamb (as the vulgar phrase it) but a Scripture 〈non-Latin alphabet〉, to die the death of the righteous: it is not so much a calm, and sweet, and easie passage (the fishes have that, when they swim down the sweet stream of Jordan, into the dead sea, where they perish) but a safe harbour one may go to heaven in a storm, and to hell in a calm; and which is better, judge you: those wretches in Psal. 73. have no bands in their death, and yet death hath dominion over them. Comfort is not the great business you need.
