The Christian in Complete Armour

Perhaps thou seest the Name of God dishonoured in the place where thou livest, and thy spirit is stirred within thee, (as Pauls at Athens) now if knowledge sits not in the saddle to rein and bridle in thy zeal, thou wilt be soon carried over hedge and ditch, till thou fallest into some precipice or other by thy irregular acting. Neither is knowledge enough, except thou beest armed with Temperance, which here (I conceive) is that grace, whereby the Christian (as Master of his own house) so orders his affections (like servants to reason and faith,) that ⟨p. 75⟩they do not irregularly move, or inordinately lash out into desires of, cares for, or joy in the creature-comforts of this life, without which Satan will be too hard for thee. The Historian tells us, that in one of the famous battles between the English and French, that which lost the French the day was a shower of English arrows, which did so gall their horse, as put the whole army into disorder, their horse knowing no ranks, did tread down their own men: The affections are but as the horse to the Rider, on which knowledge should be mounted, if Satan's barbed arrows light on them, so that thy desires of the creature prove unruly, and jostle with thy desires of Christ, thy care to keep thy credit or estate, put thy care to keep a good conscience to disorder, and thy carnal joy in wife and child trample down, or get before thy joy in the Lord, judge on which side victory is like to fall. Well, suppose thou marchest provided thus far in goodly array towards heaven, while thou art swimming in prosperity; most thou not also prepare for foul way and weather, I mean, an afflicted estate? Satan will line the hedges with a thousand temptations, when thou comest into the narrow lanes of adversity, where thou canst not run from this sort of temptation, as in the Champaign of prosperity: Possibly, thou that didst escape the snare of an alluring world, mayest be dismounted by the same when it frowns; though temperance kept thee from being drunk with the sweet wines of those pleasures, yet for want of patience thou mayest be drunk with the wine of astonishment, which is in afflictions hand: therefore, saith the Apostle, to temperance add patience; either possess thy self in patience, or else some raving devil of discontent will possess thee.

Perhaps thou seest the Name of God dishonoured in the place where thou livest, and thy spirit is stirred within thee, (as Pauls at Athens) now if knowledge sits not in the saddle to reine and bridle in thy zeal, thou wilt be soon carried over hedge and ditch, till thou fallest into some precipice or other by thy irregular acting. Neither is knowledge enough, except thou beest arm'd with Temperance, which here (I conceive) is that grace, whereby the Christian (as Master of his own house) so orders his affections (like servants to reason and faith,) that