A cabinet of choice jewels, or, A box of precious ointment being a plain…A cabinet of choice jevvels, or, A box of precious ointment being a plain…

Fourthly, The keeping off from all appearances of evil, §4is the best and noblest way under heaven, to keep a good Name, and to keep a good Conscience. Now a good Name, and a good Conscience are Jewels more worth than all the Sceptres and Mitres in the World, and there is no Wisdom in the World to that which leads a man by the hand to secure his Name and his Conscience, Prov. 22.1. A good Name is rather to be chosen than great Riches, and loving favour rather than Silver and Gold. So Eccles. 7.1. A good name is better than precious Ointment, the one being but a perfume of the Nostrils, the other a perfume of the heart. 'Tis observable the Princely Preacher does not say, A great Name is better than Precious Ointments, but a good Name is better than precious Ointments. Ointments are here named, because in those Eastern parts they were laid up in the Kings Treasury, even among his most precious things, Isa. 39.2. And Hezekiah was glad of them, and showed him the house of his precious things, the Silver, and the Gold, and the Spices, ¹and the precious Ointments, &c. Precious Aromatical Ointments were things greatly in use and esteem amongst the Israelites, and a special part of their Treasures, as is evident by the Scriptures in the Margin. And yet a good Name (which hath its Foundation in virtue, and in a holy, innocent, blameless, harmless, and exemplary life) is better than those most precious Ointments. And 'tis observable that the initial ⟨p. 120⟩letter of the Hebrew word [Greek or Hebrew] Tob, that is here rendered Good, is bigger than ordinary, to show the more than ordinary excellency of a good name and fame amongst men. 'Twas good counsel the Moralist gave, when he said, whatsoever commodity you lose, be sure yet to preserve that Jewel of a good Name. A good renown is better than a golden girdle, say some. And a mans eye and his good Name, can bear no jests, say others. And if I may but keep a good Name, I have wealth enough, said the Naturalist. O friends! as ever you would keep a good Name, keep off from the very appearance of evil, for the very appearance of evil will both Eclipse and wound a mans name and his Conscience at once. Certainly a man were better not to live, than to outlive his good Name. A mans good Name is like a piece of white Paper, which if once blotted, will very hardly be got out again, so as to leave no Print of it behind;