Eighteen sermons preached in Oxford 1640 of conversion, unto God. Of redemption, & justification,…

First, Consider the nature of this death, which ⟨p. 131⟩though every man knoweth, yet few lay to heart. This death, what doth it?

First, It takes from thee all the things which thou spentst thy whole life in getting. It robs thee of all the things thou ever hadst: Thou hast taken pains to heap and treasure up goods for many years, presently when this blow is given, all is gone: For honour and preferment, it takes thee from that; pleasure in idle company keeping, it bars thee of that. Mark, this is the first thing that death doth, it takes not only away a part of that thou hast, but all: it leaves thee quite naked, as naked as when thou camest into the world: Thou thoughtest it was thy happiness to get this and that. Death now begins to unbewitch thee, thou wast bewitched before, when thou didst run after all worldly things: thou wast deceived before, and now it undeceives thee; it makes thee see what a notorious fool thou wast, it unbefools thee. Thou hadst many plots, and many projects, but when thy breath is gone, then all thy thoughts perish, all thy plottings and projectings go away with thy breath: A strange thing, to see a man with Job, the richest man in the East, and yet in the evening (we say) as poor as Job: He hath nothing left him now. Now though death takes not all things from thee, yet it takes thee from them all; all thy goods, all thy books, all thy wealth, all thy friends thou mayst now bid farewell: now adieu for ever, never to see them again. And that is the first thing.

First, It takes from thee all the things which thou spentst thy whole life in getting. It robs thee of all the things thou ever hadst: Thou hast taken paines to heap and treasure up goods for many years, presently when this blow is given, all is gone: For honour and preferment, it takes thee from that; pleasure in idle company keeping, it barrs thee of that. Mark, this is the first thing that death doth, it takes not onely away a part of that thou hast, but all: it leaves thee quite naked, as naked as when thou camest into the world: Thou thoughtst it was thy happinesse to get this and that. Death now begins to unbewitch thee, thou wast bewitcht before, when thou didst run after all worldly things: thou wast deceived before, and now it undeceives thee; it makes thee see what a notorious fool thou wast, it unbefools thee. Thou hadst many plots, and many projects, but when thy breath is gone, then all thy thoughts perish, all thy plottings and projectings goe away with thy breath: A strange thing, to see a man with Job, the richest man in the East, and yet in the evening (we say) as poor as Job: He hath nothing left him now. Now though death takes not all things from thee, yet it takes thee from them all; all thy goods, all thy books, all thy wealth, all thy friends thou mayst now bid farewel: now adieu for ever, never to see them again. And that is the first thing.