The crown & glory of Christianity, or, Holiness, the only way to happiness discovered…The crovvn & glory of Christianity, or, Holiness, the only way to happiness discovered…

A flattering mouth ruins name, fame, estate, life, body and soul, it ruins a man both temporally and eternally,¹ it often undoes a man in both worlds, it makes a man miserable both here and hereafter: flatterers are devouring Caterpillars: flatterers tongues do more mischief then persecutors swords, for their swords can but destroy the bodies of men, but flatterers tongues destroy the souls of men: flatterers are the greatest soul-cheaters, and soul undoers in the world; flatterers dare call vice virtue, they dare call pride neatness, covetousness good husbandry, drunkenness good fellowship, prodigality liberality, wantonness a trick of youth, passion zeal, revenge courage, &c. They dare call enormities infirmities, and wickednesses weaknesses, they dare call great sins little sins, little sins no sins, they gild over all their poisonous Pills with gold, they draw the fairest Glove upon the ⟨p. 287⟩fowlest hand, they lay their neatest colours upon the filthiest sores, they put their best paint upon the worst faces, and the richest robes upon the most diseased bodies; and by these devices they entangle many to their utter ruin, Prov. 29.5. A man that flattereth his neighbour spreadeth a net for his feet. The Hebrew word (Machalik from Chalak) that is here rendered flatterer, signifies a smooth-boots, a soft butter-spoken man, because flatterers, the better to deceive, do use to oil their tongues, and to butter their lips, that so by their smooth soft speeches they may the more insinuate themselves into mens affections, and so make way for their destruction: flatterers have their silken nets to ensnare and entangle poor souls to their eternal ruin. Look as Fowlers strew corn and lay baits, to draw Birds into their nets; or look as Hunters spread their nets, that they may take beasts and prey upon them, or make a prey of them; so flatterers they spread their nets that they may catch poor souls, and either prey upon them, or else make make a prey of them. Flattery is the devils invisible net, and happy is that soul that escapes it: the flatterers net is worse then his sword, for his sword may be the more easily seen, feared, and avoided, then his net. Of all arms the flatterers net is the most perilous and dangerous, both to the lives, estates, and souls of men;