Riches of mercy to men in misery, or, Certain excellent treatises concerning the dignity…

Secondly, the reason why the Lord doth love nothing but godliness, that he loveth none of the rest, so as to delight in them: for there is a kind of love that he gives them, as you know our Saviour Christ looked on the young man in the Gospel, and loved him: but I say he doth not delight in them, he loves them not with that special and peculiar love, because all these ornaments they do but beautify the creature in it self. Now no creature may rejoice in it self, or boast in it self, no creature may magnify it self, which it would do if it might find an excellency in it self. Therefore the Lord will have the creature to find no excellency in it self, and therefore he doth not magnify these things, he sets no price upon them. And the Lord would have the creature to know so much, he only magnifies and esteems that which draws the creature from it self, makes the creature his; therefore he prizeth and esteemeth only the emptying graces. You shall see the Scripture doth not magnify those moral virtues that Aristotle, and Plutarch, and Seneca, and the rest of those Heathens magnified. For the scope of the Scripture looks another way, and magnifieth those emptying graces most. As faith (for instance) which emptieth the creature of it self, and makes a man to see nothing in himself, not to trust in himself, but teacheth a man to look for all from God, therefore the Scripture magnifieth faith, O woman great is thy faith! that is, this is the thing that only makes thee amiable; this is it that makes me set a high price upon thee. And so in that speech to the Centurion, I have not found so great faith, no not in Israel. It was that which set Jacob in that high esteem with God, that which got him that title of honour to be called Israel, it was his faith. And why is it, but because the Lord regards that only in the creature which makes a man his, which draws a man nearer to him, and more out of himself? Now this godliness ⟨p. 240⟩doth; for it makes a man to see nothing in himself, but all in God, and therefore to follow God altogether, to seek God altogether.

Secondly, the reason why the Lord doth love nothing but godliness, that he loveth none of the rest, so as to delight in them: for there is a kind of love that he gives them, as you know our Saviour Christ looked on the young man in the Gospel, and loved him: but I say he doth not delight in them, he loves them not with that special and peculiar love, because all these ornaments they do but beautifie the creature in it self. Now no creature may rejoyce in it self, or boast in it self, no creature may magnifie it self, which it would do if it might find an excellency in it self. Therefore the Lord will have the creature to find no excellency in it self, and therefore he doth not magnifie these things, he sets no price upon them. And the Lord would have the creature to know so much, he onely magnifies and esteems that which draws the creature from it self, makes the creature his; therefore he prizeth and esteemeth onely the emptying graces. You shall see the Scripture doth not magnifie those moral vertues that Aristotle, and Plutarch, and Seneca, and the rest of those Heathens magnified. For the scope of the Scripture looks another way, and magnifieth those emptying graces most. As faith (for instance) which emptyeth the creature of it self, and makes a man to see nothing in himself, not to trust in himself, but teacheth a man to look for all from God, therefore the Scripture magnifieth faith, O woman great is thy faith! that is, this is the thing that onely makes thee amiable; this is it that makes me set a high price upon thee. And so in that speech to the Centurion, I have not found so great faith, no not in Israel. It was that which set Iacob in that high esteem with God, that which got him that title of honour to be called Israel, it was his faith. And why is it, but because the Lord regards that onely in the creature which makes a man his, which draws a man nearer to him, and more out of himself? Now this godliness