A64834:95
Sin, the Plague of Plagues
Sin, the plague of plagues, or, Sinful sin the worst of evils a treatise of sins trial and arraignment, wherein sin is accused for being, proved to be, and condemned for being exceeding sinful : and that 1. as against God, his nature, attributes, works, will, law, image, people, glory and existence, 2. as against man, his good and welfare of body and soul, in this life, and that to come : with the use and improvement to be made of this doctrine, that men may not be damned, but saved, &c. : being the substance of many sermons preached many years ago in Southwark / by Ralph Venning ...Sin, the plague of plagues, or, Sinful sin the worst of evils a treatise of sins tryal and arraignment, wherein sin is accused for being, proved to be, and condemned for being exceeding sinful : and that 1. as against God, his nature, attributes, works, will, law, image, people, glory and existence, 2. as against man, his good and welfare of body and soul, in this life, and that to come : with the use and improvement to be made of this doctrine, that men may not be damned, but saved, &c. : being the substance of many sermons preached many years ago in Southwark / by Ralph Venning ...
London: printed for John Hancock, 1669
Title page typeset from the transcription.
SIN, THE PLAGUE of PLAGUES; OR Sinful Sin the worst of Evils. › 2 In a Moral sense, for
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
1 1Mans folly is but too apparent in relation to his chief and ultimate end, the summum bonum; Man is exceedingly to seek for happiness, where to place it, as how to obtain it. Oh the variety of opinions that men have had about happiness! Varro tells us of a great many, but who can tell us of all? So many men, so many minds; for when man goes from unity, he falls into multitude; he hath found out many inventions: Time was when man had light and wisdom enough to know that God was the [Greek or Hebrew], the Supreme and chief good, and that his happiness lay in knowing and enjoying God; but since sin man is become such a fool, as to say in his heart there is no God, at least no happiness in knowing God; for if sin make not men such Atheists as to believe there is no God, yet it makes them such as to wish that there were no God, and to say that 'tis no happiness to know him, or profit to serve him: Let us eat and drink, &c. is the voice of more men, then let us seek and serve God, who will show us any good, viz. corn, wine and oil, is the voice of marry, Psal. 4. yea of all till regenerate: Man is become so sottish and brutish, that he lives by sense: Now sense will never look to God who is invisible (that's for saith) but to the creatures which are visible, and the objects o• ⟨p. 41⟩sense. How did Solomon set this out to the life, in his Ecclesiastes, viz. that sense seeks for happiness below God; that man is fond of toys and trifles, and seeks contentment where there's nothing but vexation, as if he could find ease in the place, and element of torment, viz. in hell; he sets his eyes and heart upon that which is not, Prov. 23.5. The lust of the eye, the lust of the flesh, the pride of life is (the Trinity) the God of this world, and excludes the love of God, 1 Joh. 2.15, 16.
1 1Mans folly is but too apparent in relation to his chief and ultimate end, the summum bonum; Man is exceedingly to seek for happinesse, where to place it, as how to obtain it. Oh the variety of opinions that men have had about happinesse! Varro tells us of a great many, but who can tell us of all? So many men, so many minds; for when man goes from unity, he falls into multitude; he hath found out many inventions: Time was when man had light and wisdome enough to know that God was the , the Supreme and chief good, and that his happinosse lay in knowing and enjoying God; but since sin man is become such a fool, as to say in his heart there is no God, at least no happinesse in knowing God; for if sin make not men such Atheists as to believe there is no God, yet it makes them such as to wish that there were no God, and to say that 'tis no happinesse to know him, or profit to serve him: Let us eat and drink, &c. is the voice of more men, then let us seek and serve God, who will shew us any good, viz. corn, wine and oyl, is the voice of mary,