in never so much meekness and love, then she was whore, and bitch, and jade! and it was well if she missed his fingers and heels. Sometimes also he would bring his

possess nothing but disappointments as to all that he h

too. He would not suffer her to go out to the preaching of the word of Christ, nor to the rest of his appointments, for the health and salvation of her so

d got a little drink in his head. He would also, when he perceived that she was dejected, speak tauntingly and mockingly to her in the presence of

t live by hearing of sermons. If she still urged that he would let her go, then he would say to her, Go if you dare. He would also charged her with giving of what he had to h

as a disappoi

ld have let her had her own will a little, since she desired it only in the service and worship of God; but could she win him to grant her that? No, not a bit, if it would have saved her life. True, sometimes she would steal out when he was from home, or on a journey, or among his drunken companions,

of his to her was eno

ts of Kedar! My soul hath long dwelt with him that hateth peace.' O 'what shall be given unto thee,' thou 'deceitful tongue?' 'or what shall be done unto thee, thou false tongue?' (Psa 120). I am a woman grieved in spirit, my husband has bought me and sold me for his lusts. It was not

happily might they have lived together! Such an one would have prayed for her, taught her, and also would have encoura

e of God with idols?' (2 Cor 6:14-16). There can be no agreement where such matches are made; even God himself hath declared the contrary from the beginning of the world. 'I,' says he, 'will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed' (Gen 3:15). Therefore he saith in another place they can mix no better than iron and clay (Dan 2:43). I say they cannot agree, they cannot be one, and therefore the

her with his tongue, a

efore her face? And besides I verily think-since in the multitude of counsellors there is safety-that if she had acquainted the congregation with it, and desired them to spend some time in prayer to God about it, and if she must have had him, to have received him as to his godliness upon the judgment of others, rather than her own-she k

because God was therein to be pleased. I wish that all young maidens will take heed of being beguiled with flattering words, with feigning and lying speeches, and take the best way to preserve th

nd cannot be called back, let others beware by her

sk them how it is with them, as to the suitable or unsuitableness of their marriage, and desire their advice. Surely they would ring such a peal in their ears about the unequality, unsuitableness, disadvantages, and disquietments, and sins that attend such marriages, that would make them beware as long as they live. But the bird in the air knows not the notes of the bir

ve arguments to lay before such,

both in the Old Testament and in the New. 1. In the Old. Thou shalt not 'make marriages with them; thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy so

e pheasant with an owl? No, they will strictly tie up themselves to those of their own sort only. Yea, it sets all the world a wondering, when they see or hear the contrary. Man only is most subject to wink at, and allow of these unlawful mixtures of men and women; because man only is a sinful beast, a sinful bird, therefore

ded these unlawful marriages, miserably and fearfully miscarried. Soon after such marriages, conviction, the first step towards heaven, hath ceased; prayer, the next step towards heaven, hath ceased; hungerings and thirstings after salvation, another step towards the kingdom of heaven, hath ceas

, and destroy thee suddenly' (Deut 7:4). Now mark, there were some in Israel, that would notwithstanding this prohibition, venture to marry to the heathens and unbelievers. But what followed? 'They served their idols, they sacrificed their sons and

gain to Mr. Badman; had he

Yes,

they were but b

k churlishly and doggedly to it, and though, as to nature, it was the most feeble of the seven, yet it oftenest felt the weight of its father's fingers. Three of his children did directly follow his steps, and began to be as vile as, in his youth, he was himself. The other that remained became a kind of mongrel[38] professors, not so bad

f I take not my mark amiss, it often happeneth after th

unto the Lord: but the ungodly, like them that went before them, are for offering their children to Moloch, to an idol, to sin, to the devil, and to hell. Thus one hearkeneth to the law of their mother and is preserved from destruction, but as for the other, as their fathers did, so do they. Thus did Mr. Badman and his wife part some of their children betwixt them; but as for the other three that were, as it were, mongrels, betwixt both, they were like unto those that you read of in Kings, they feared the Lord, but served their own idols (2 Kings 17). They had, as I said, their mother's notions, and I will add, profession too; but their father's lusts, and s

she could not but h

ent into the world as the fruit of the loins, and u

nder all manner of disadvantages: but we must say no

lk of the advantages and disadvantages that children have by ha

something in brief unto it, that is, unto this: what advantage those child

their fathers' sakes. 2. They are born as others, the children of wrath, though they come of godly parents. 3. Grac

mercy. 3. They have the advantage of godly instruction, and of being told which be and which be not the right ways of the Lord. 4. They have also those ways commended unto them, and spoken well of in their hearing, that are good. 5. Such are also, what may be kept out of evil company, from evil books, and from being taugh

they keep them from evil company. They are not grieved at, nor yet do they forewarn their children to beware of such evil actions that are abomination to God and to all good men. They let their children break the sabbath, swear, lie, be wicked and vain. They commend not to their children a holy life,

dren, I have a mind, if you please, to inquire a little mor

What i

to go out to hear such godly ministers as she liked, but said, if she did,

his I told you then, and had also then told

d; pray, theref

em, but all to no purpose at all, at last she said she would go, and rendered this reason for it: I have a husband, but also a God; my God has commanded me, and that upon pain of damnation, to be a continual worshipper of him, and that in the way of his own appointments. I have a husband, but also a soul, and my soul ought to b

sware moreover that if she did go, he would make both her and all her damnable

at should he

weary out those that she loved from meeting together to worship God, or make them pay dearly

hink Mr. Badman wou

id it not. But, as I said, he had malice and envy enough in his heart to have made him to do it, only he thought it would worst him in his trade; yet these three things he would be doing: 1. He would be putting of oth

of the judgments of God tha

God, for had he at all done that he could not ha

himself had taken but sober notice of, the

any such persons that the jud

ve, have you too, though yo

deed, to my astoni

at it is, as to this, that you know; and then, pe

nd them. Well, after he had gone on like a bedlam in his course awhile, and had done some mischiefs to the people, he was stricken by the hand of God, and that in this manner: 1. Although he had his tongue naturally at will, now he was taken with a flattering in his speech, and could not for weeks together speak otherwise than just like a man that was drunk. 2. Then he was taken with a drauling, or slabbering at his mouth, which slabber sometimes would hang at his mouth well ni

had a fall from the bell as it hangs in our steeple, which it was a wonder it did not kill him. But after that he also walked about, until God had made a

at of his work, as he stood one day by the fire-side, he had, it should seem, a mind to a sop in the pan, for the spit was then at the fire, so he went to make him one; but behold, a dog, some say his own dog, took distaste at something, and bit his master by the leg; the which bite, notwithstanding all the means that was used to cure him, turned, as was said, to a gangrene; however, that wound was his death, and that a dreadful one too. For my relator said that he lay in such a conditi

t let us leave those that are behind to others, or to the coming of Christ, who then will justify or condemn them, as the merit of their

th, and that doth not always forget nor defer to hear the cry of the destitute; they also carry along with them both caution and counsel to those that are the survivors of suc

place, spoken enough about these kind of men; if you please, let us r

em; but we will pass them and proceed. You have heard of the sins of his youth, of his apprenticeship, and how he set up, and married, and what a life he hath led his wife; and now I will tell you some more of h

, concerning sin and knavery, none can teach a man it like the devil, to whom, as I perceive, Mr.

nto the debt of one or two, but into the debt of many, so that at last he came to owe some thousands, and thus he went on a good while. And, to pursue his ends the better, he begun now to study to please all men, and to suit himself to any company; he could now be as they, say as they, that is, if he listed; and then he would list, when he perceived that by so doing

them[41] as they. If they railed on good men, so could he; if they railed on religion, so could he; if they talked beastly, vainly, idly, so would he; if they were for drinking, swearing, whoring, or any the like vil

be a rank and stinking atheist, for he that believes that there is either God or devil, heaven or hell, or death and judgment after, cannot do as Mr. Badma

uld call them fools and noddies,[42] and charge them for being frighted with the talk of unseen bugbears, and would encourage them, if they would be men indeed, to labour after the attainment of this his excellent art. He would oftentimes please himself with the thoughts of what he could do in this matter, saying within himself, I can be religious and irreligious, I can be anything or nothing; I can swear, and speak a

be found in every corner such a one as this. True, it is said of king Ahaz that he sinned more and more (2 Chron 28:22). And of Ahab, that h

in his wickedness, I believe that at times God did let down fire from heaven into his conscience (Job 21:17). True, I believe he would q

ny that are endeavouring to attain to the same pitch of wickedness, and all them are such as he in the judgment of the law, nor will their want of hellish wit to attain thereto excuse them at the day of judgment. You know that in all science some are more arch than some, and so it is in the art as well as in the practice of wickedness, some are t

others, but are, as I suppose they call them, fools and dunces to the rest, their heads and capacities will not serve them to

ch a one. For the law judgeth men, as I said, according to what they would be. He that 'looketh on a woman to lust after her, hath committed adultery with her already in his heart' (Matt 5:28). By the same rule, he that would steal doth steal he that would cheat, doth cheat; he that would swear, doth swear; and he that would commit adultery, doth do so. For God judgeth men according to the working of their minds, and saith, 'As he thinketh, so is he' (Prov 23:7). That is, so is

d. This hard, desperate, or, what shall I call it, diabolical frame of heart,

s. For they be not bad deeds that make a bad man, but he is already a bad man that doth bad deeds. A man must be wicked before he can do wickedness. 'Wickedness proceedeth form the wicked' (1 S

dissimulation, and to abuse her so like a villain when he had got her, it

s: all these things come from within and defile the man' (Mark 7:20-23). And a man, as his naughty mind inclines him, makes use of these, or any of these, to gratify his lust, to promote his designs, to revenge his malice, to enr

e purse to do almost what he would, ha

king, and whoring, and keeping other bad company; though he was a man th

d man? Or was his calling so gainful to him as always to keep

e had a pretty trade too. He had another way to get

ow he was no hi

he could ride out now and then, about nobody but himself knew what, over night, a

it, if you think it co