An exposition with practical observations continued upon the thirty-eighth, thirty-ninth, fortieth, forty-first, and forty-second,…

Observe, Sixthly; Those Creatures which will not do service unto man, but live merely to themselves, are wild or fierce.

Observe, Sixthly; Those Creatures which will not do service unto man, but live meerly to themselves, are wild or fierce.

These clearly resemble the condition of those men who live only to themselves, or who serve none but themselves. Whatever some men do they serve themselves only, they respect no mans good, either spiritual or temporal, besides their own; were it not that they had a chief respect to their private ends and interests in serving, they would never serve. A gracious spirit is willing to serve his neighbour, to serve his brother, as well as or with himself. Christ tells us, his Disciples should be so far from serving themselves only, that they should not serve themselves at all; he that will be my Disciple (saith our Lord Jesus Christ, Mat. 16.24.) Let him deny himself, that is, not serve nor seek himself, either contrary to the good of others, or with a neglect of their good. Therefore they who in all they do, ⟨p. 362⟩do all for themselves, live upon no better terms, nor to any nobler ends, than the Unicorn or wild Ass, who are not willing to serve any man. Let others sink or swim (say such) they care not, they will look to their own.

Seventhly and Lastly, Though God hath made a sort of creatures that (as the case stands) will not serve man, nor contribute any help to him; yet these creatures live not in vain to God, nor are they altogether unserviceable to man, though they have no will to serve him. For,