There are three sorts of anger▪ natural, holy and sinful anger. (1) Natural which is nothing else but the motion of the irascible appetite towards an offensive object: an• this in it self is no sin, they are propassions rather than passions; the infelicities, rather than the sins of nature, as Jerome calls them: reason (saith ⟨p. 131⟩Plutarch) is the driver, the Soul is the Chariot, and the two horses that draw it on in all its motions, are the concupiscible and irascible appetites; whilst these are rightly managed by reason, they are not only lawful, but very useful to the Soul. God would not have us to be stupid and insensate, though he would have us to be meek and patient: in Eph. 4. 26. He allows the natural motion, but forbids the sinful exorbitancy. (2) Holy anger which is a pure flame, kindled by an heavenly spark of Love to God, and in Scripture is called zeal, which is (as one saith) the dagger which love draws in Gods quarrel. Such was Lots against the Sodomites, and that of Moses against the Idolatrous Israelites: when Servetus condemned Zwinglius for his harshness, his answer was, in aliis mansuetus ero, in blasphemiis in Christum, non ita; in other cases I will be mild, but in the cause of Christ, not so. That which the World calls moderation and mildness here, is in Gods account stupidity and cowardliness, neither of these are that which I am now persuading you to keep your hearts against. But (3) There is sinful passion, that's the thing which endangers you. Now anger becomes sinful when ⟨p. 132⟩'tis either Causeless, Matth. 5. 22. or excessive, and that either in measure or time, exceeding the value of the impulsive cause, be it more transient or abiding, yet 'tis a sin and is matter of humiliation before God. Now the means to keep the heart from it under provocations, are these.
There are three sorts of anger▪ natural, holy and sinfull anger. (1) Natural which is nothing else but the motion of the irascible appetite towards an offensive object: an• this in it self is no sin, they are propassions rather than passions; the infelicities, rather than the sins of nature, as Ierome calls them: reason (saith ⟨p. 131⟩Plutarch) is the driver, the Soul is the Chariot, and the two horses that draw it on in all its motions, are the concupiscible and irascible appetites; whilst these are rightly managed by reason, they are not only lawful, but very useful to the Soul. God would not have us to be stupid and insensate, though he would have us to be meek and patient: in Eph. 4. 26. He allows the natural motion, but forbids the sinful exorbitancy. (2) Holy anger wh•ch is a pure flame, kindled by an heavenly spark of Love to God, and in Scripture is called zeal, which is (as one saith) the dagger which love draws in Gods quarrel. Such was Lots against the Sodomites, and that of Moses against the Idolatrons Israelites: when Servetus condemned Zwinglius for his harshness, his answer was, in aliis mansuetus ero, in blasphemiis in Christum, non ita; in other cases I will be mild, but in the cause of Christ, not so. That which the World calls moderation and mildness here, is in Gods account stupidity and cowardliness, neither of these are that which I am now perswading you to keep your hearts against. But (3) There is sinfull passion, that's the thing which endangers you. Now anger becomes sinful when ⟨p. 132⟩'tis either Causeless, Matth. 5. 22. or excessive, and that either in measure or time, exceeding the value of the impulsive cause, be it more transient or abideing, yet 'tis a sin and is matter of humiliation before God. Now the means to keep the heart from it under provocations, are these.
