A30598:210
The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment
The rare jewel of Christian contentment wherein is showed, I. What contentment is, II. The holy art or mystery of it, III. Several lessons that Christ teacheth, to work the heart to contentment, IV. The excellencies of it, V. The evils of murmuring, VII. The aggravations of the sin of murmuring / by Jeremiah Burroughs.The rare jewel of Christian contentment wherein is shewed, I. What contentment is, II. The holy art or mystery of it, III. Several lessons that Christ teacheth, to work the heart to contentment, IV. The excellencies of it, V. The evils of murmuring, VII. The aggravations of the sin of murmuring / by Jeremiah Burroughs.
London: printed for Peter Cole, 1649
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
1 There's A burden of trouble. A rose hath it's prickles, and so the Scripture saith that he that will be rich pierceth himself through with many sorrows, 1 Tim. 6.10. If a mans heart be set upon it that he must be rich, and he will be rich, such a man will pierce himself through with many sorrows; he looks upon the delight and glory of riches that appears outwardly, but he considers not what piercing sorrows he may meet withal ⟨p. 89⟩in them: The consideration of the trouble in a prosperous condition I have divers times thought of, and I cannot tell by what similitude to express it better than by travelling in some champaign country, where round about is very fair and sandy ground, and you see there a Town a great way off in a bottom, and you think, Oh how bravely is that Town seated, but when you come and ride into the Town, you shall ride through a dirty lane and through a company of fearful dirty holes, and you could not see the dirty lane and holes when you were two or three miles off; so sometimes we look upon the prosperity of men and think such a man lives bravely and comfortably, but if we did but know what troubles he meets withal in his family, in his estate, in his dealings with men, we would not think his condition so happy. One may have a very fine new shoe, but no body knows where it pinches him but he that hath it on; so you think such and such men are happy, but they may have many troubles that you little think of.
1 There's A burden of trouble. A rose hath it's prickles, and so the Scripture saith that he that will be rich pierceth himself through with many sorrows, 1 Tim. 6.10. If a mans heart be set upon it that he must be rich, and he will be rich, such a man will pierce himself through with many sorrows; he looks upon the delight and glory of riches that appears outwardly, but he considers not what piercing sorrows he may meet withal ⟨p. 89⟩in them: The consideration of the trouble in a prosperous condition I have divers times thought of, and I cannot tell by what similitude to expresse it better than by travelling in some champian country, where round about is very fair and sandy ground, and you see there a Town a great way off in a bottom, and you think, Oh how bravely is that Town seated, but when you come and ride into the Town, you shall ride through a durty lane and through a company of fearful durty holes, and you could not see the durty lane and holes when you were two or three miles off; so sometimes we look upon the prosperity of men and think such a man lives bravely and comfortably, but if we did but know what troubles he meets withal in his family, in his estate, in his dealings with men, we would not think his condition so happy. One may have a very fine new shoe, but no body knows where it pinches him but he that hath it on; so you think such and such men are happy, but they may have many troubles that you little think of.