To all the Lords, Knights, Ladies, Gentry, Ministers, and Commons of England and the dominions thereunto belonging that have but the least desire, the least mind, or the least will, to escape hell, and to go to heaven, or to be happy in both worlds, c. My Lords, Ladies, and G-entlemen, c., The philosophers, speaking of happiness, were divided into two hundred and eighty-eight opinions, every one intending something, yet resolving upon nothing; and therefore the man in Plutarch hearing them wrangle about summum honum, the chiefest good one placing of it in this, and another in that went to the market and bought up all that was good, hoping that among all he should not miss of happiness; and yet he missed it; true happiness being too great and too glorious a thing to be found in anything below real holiness. All men in the general, desire to be happy, but all men do not desire in this or that particular, or in this or that way, to be happy. Here there is an infinite difference, quot homines, tot sententice, so many men so many minds. A desire of happiness is planted in all men by the constitution of nature. This is so intrinsical and so innate in nature, it is so engraven in it, that even the fall of A dam, as great as it was, hath not blotted it out. This desire of happiness is left in man for a stock to graft holiness on. God grafts the plant of grace upon the stock of nature. Indeed happiness, like Kachel, Gen. xxix. 17, is so fair and so beautiful a thing, that every one is apt to fall in love with it, and earnestly to desire it, yea, many there be that would serve twice seven years to enjoy it. But by the standing law of that heavenly country above, the younger sister must never be bestowed before the elder ;you can never enjoy fair Rachel heaven and happiness except you are first married to tender-eyed Leah real holiness. Gen. xxix. 17-28. He that will h
(Typographical errors above are due to OCR software and don't occur in the book.)
(Typographical errors above are due to OCR software and don't occur in the book.)
