A30598:284
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.
Oh no, there is a fretting humour, an inflammation in the heart, a murmuring spirit that is within thee and that is the misery of thy condition, and that must be purged out of thee before thou canst be healed, and let God do with thee what he will, till he purges out that fretting humour thy wound will not be healed; a murmuring heart is a very sinful heart, so that when thou art troubled for such an affliction, thou hadst need turn thy thoughts, rather to be troubled for the murmuring of thy heart, for that's the greatest trouble, there is an affliction upon thee and that is grievous, but there is a murmuring heart within and that's more grievous. Oh that we could but convince men and women that a murmuring spirit is a greater evil than any affliction, let the affliction be what it will be. We shall show more afterward that a murmuring spirit is the evil of the evil, and the misery of the misery.
Oh no, there is a fretting humour, an inflamation in the heart, a murmuring spirit that is within thee and that is the misery of thy condition, and that must be purged out of thee before thou canst be healed, and let God do with thee what he will, till he purges out that fretting humour thy wound will not be healed; a murmuring heart is a very sinful heart, so that when thou art troubled for such an affliction, thou hadst need turn thy thoughts, rather to be troubled for the murmuring of thy heart, for that's the greatest trouble, there is an affliction upon thee and that is grievous, but there is a murmuring heart within and that's more grievous. Oh that we could but convince men and women that a murmuring spirit is a greater evil than any affliction, let the affliction be what it will be. We shall shew more afterward that a murmuring spirit is the evil of the evil, and the misery of the misery.
Secondly, The evil of murmuring is such, that God when he would speak of wicked men, and describe them, and slew the brand of a wicked and ungodly man or woman, he instances in this sin in a more special manner: I might name many Scriptures, but that Scripture in Jude is a most remarkable one, in the 14. verse, and so forward, there it is said, That the Lord comes with ten thousands of his Saints, to execute judgement upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them, of all their ungodly deeds, which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches, which ungodly sinners have spoken against him Mark here in this 15. verse, there is four times mentioned ungodly ones; All that are ungodly among them, all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches, which ungodly sinners have spoken against him: This is in the general. But now he comes in the particular to show who these are, these are (saith he) Murmurers: that's the very first. Would you know who are