The covenant of life opened, or, A treatise of the covenant of grace

Hypocrisy is considered in it self, and so it is opposed to sincerity. Or in relation to these graces and duties which it fenzies, and so it is opposed to all the true virtues which it lyingly and feignedly represents, as painting is opposed to reality in nature, being a counterfeiting of nature, and it is opposed to things that are painted, so a living man, and a growing rose, things obvious to the eyes of sense are most easily painted as colours lineaments, as a mans body, but things that fall under the understanding only, as the soul, and under the sense of smelling and touching, are hardly pictured. Ye may paint the man, the roses, the colour, figure, and the fires red flaming, but he cannot paint the soul, the smell of the rose,¹ or the heat of the fire: It is hard to counterfeit spiritual graces, as love of Christ, sincere believing intending of the Glory of God, Its hard to get a coat, or put painture on spiritual graces, and the more ye counterfeit the Spirit, the more Devil-like is the forgery, for he changeth himself into an Angel of light. There is some use for painted men, for they serve for ornament, but there is no use for faith but resting upon Christ, nor for love, but to cleave to God, and please him and our neighbour: In all duties we counterfeit but the outward bulk of graces and actions, and would seem to do what we do not: If the colour of graces and godliness be desirable, it self is more desirable, but to imitate only the externals of the Covenant of Grace to keep a room in the Church, is to put a lie and mock upon the Lord, and to reproach him with dimness of sight: And such as hate Christ and the Godly in their heart,² and first clothe them with the coat of hypocrites, liars, Samaritans, seditious men, they much more hate Godliness, he that would have the picture of the man stabbed or hanged, would much more have the living man in person stabbed or hanged.

Hypocrisie is considered in it self, and so it is opposed to sincerity. Or in relation to these graces and duties which it fenzies, and so it is opposed to all the true vertues which it lyingly and feinzedly represents, as painting is opposed to realitie in nature, being a counterfeiting of nature, and it is opposed to things that are painted, so a living man, and a growing rose, things obvious to the eyes of sense are most easily painted as colours lineaments, as a mans body, but things that fall under the understanding only, as the soul, and under the sense of smelling and touching, are hardly pictured. Ye may paint the man, the roses, the colour, figure, and the fires red flaming, but he cannot paint the soul, the smell of the rose,