DEarly beloved not to make any long preamble, or to uſe many circumlocutions but to fall aboard with my text, theſ words are not litterally to be vnderſtood but typically for this is a prophetique ſaying of our Mr. that their ſhall be many in the latter dayes that ſhall have no eares but looſe them for the teſtimony of a good conſcience, and for the Goſpels ſake, of which ſort I and my other brethren which ſuffered with me are three, diſtempred and diſmembred members. Yet beloved ſiſter miſtake me not I doe not mean diſmembred in my principall member, the virge of generation, no this might well have gotten a loathing in you toward me, but is the loſſe of the tips of my eares.

There are many have eares to heare beaſtly and prophaine tailes, ſongs, and ballads with a great deale of contentation, and think not this time long or ill ſpent, but they have no eares to heare of piety and godlineſſe, they thinkean houre a day, and a day 7 yeares yea they lock vp the dores of their eares, you may ſee their long locke hang over them, they have no eares to heare of the foure Cardinall virtues. And here I cry the Lord hearty mercy, and it would have made my eares to tingle (if I had them) that I ſhould ſo farre over-ſhoot my ſelf, to approve vertues to be Cardinalls, when I will by no meanes allow men to be Biſhops, as Fortitude, Temperance, &c. And heere again I cry the Lord hearty mercy, that I ſhould once name or mention that brand of the Beaſt on the neere Buttock, that &c. which wee ſo ſolemnly condemned, and damned with their new Synodokical Canons by the Common hang-man; but here wee ſee, though the ſpirit is willing, the fleſh is weake.

Hee that hath eares to heare, let him heare, is meant by the eares of the new man, for there are many walke altogether after the fleſh, the new man is hardly yet in the Embrio, it hath neither forme nor eares, to theſe as yet it is not given to heare or underſtand the hid myſteries, &c. and here alſo Idolatry is utterly aboliſhed; Thoſe muſt be prayed unto, that have eares to heare our prayers, but Idolls have no eares to heare, ergo they muſt not be prayed unto, the Minor is proved by another infallible and undeniable text, they have eares, and heare not, eyes and ſee not, and theſe Gloſſes I take to be the true and genuine ſence of the text.

1 Vſe. From whence I may raiſe many uſes of Comfort and Conſolation, of Comfort, Dearly beloved, is this, I take and reape a great deale of Contentation, that when I preach, you (I ſay) dearly beloved Brethren and ſiſters will come 9. or 10. miles to lend the your eares, thus as the lopping off the top of a tree, the cutting off of one head begets many, even ſo, not onely the Saints themſelves, but their very limbes alſo doe increaſe by loſſe.

2 Vſe. Of Comfort, dearly beloved brethren and ſiſters, that I reape from hence, is this, That although I have loſt my eares, yet through your bountifull liberality, as pledges of your moſt affectionate love towards me, I have their weight in gold, yea doubled and trebled, that if my adverſaries knew all, they would looſe theirs for halfe the moneys, this then in the ſecond place muſt needs be a great reioycing to my heart to have my eares tipped with gold, and both my pockets lined with the ſame.

3 Vſe. Of Comfort that I raiſe is this, from the mildneſſe of my cenſure and puniſhment, for theſe wolves in Sheeps cloathing, theſe fat bulls of Baſan, might as well have plucked out my tongue by the roots, as to have cropped my eares for then the ſtaffe was in their owne hand, they wanted not ability to doe it, but my God would not ſuffer it, but mollifi'd the hearts of the Lions, that they ſhould not thereby ſtop my mouth for ever, and to have made me, as I often called them, a dumb dogge.

4 Vſe. Of comfort, dearely beloved, that I make, is this, from the not making away, or burying of my eares (and indeed I had intreted them, but that the wicked ſhould not thinke I did mourne and make a funerall for the loſſe of my eares) and therefore I ſay, I have preſerved them, and have made open reioycing for the loſſe thereof, and ſince God hath endowed them with great vertue, that I have miraculouſly done many cures with them, eſpecially they are a preſent and Soveraigne balſome (being imbalmed) for ſore throars and to tell you the truth truely I am a Iew, a very Sabaterian ſo that they are perfect Iews eares and hearin I may glory with the beſt of the Catholique Reliques.

5. Vſe. Of comfort dearly beloved brethren and ſiſters, I reaped from the effuſion of my blood on • the pillory, that you would not ſuffer a drop to fall on the ground, but licked it up with your hand-kerchif • s and doe keep it in greater eſteeme then Iewels or Diamonds, and I am perſwaded that you may find accult virtues even in that blood alſo if you would make experiments hence I ſay I have taken great ioy, that you keep and have it in ſo high honour, yet I muſt needs confeſſe ever and anon I receive a check from my conſcience that I ſhould ſo much inveigh againſt popiſh Reliques, and yet ſo contrarily ſuffer my owne to be kept, here we ſe that the beſt of the brethren play ſhip wrack of ſalvation on the rocks of vaine glory.

6. Vſe. Of Comfort, dearly beloved brethren is this, do you remember the humble humble humble Bee (I know you doe) that gave me a viſ •••… the pillory, and when the ſ •• ffing Iewes and Iſhmalites ſpit their poyſen in mocks & ſcoffs to ſeaſon their wormwood word, ſhe ſhit hony in my mouth; and her Bom Bom was a little bow bell, yet big enough to ring the paſſing peale for the little tips of my prick eares, thus you ſee to our further comfort when men are ſilent, God makes beaſts to celebrate the funerall obſoquies of his Saints or the loſſe of any member of them.

7. Vse. Of Comfort that I reaped is this, when I returned from baniſhment to make amends for my diſgracefull departure from this metropolitan City thouſands of you came forth to mete me with roſemary and ribonds in your hatts to bring me in with allollity to my long ſequeſtred and widdowed wife, and gave vs a large offering of three thouſand pound as if our nuptuall day were againe to be ſolemnized neither ſhould I have bin againſt it to have bin married againe to leave out thoſe ſuperſtitions and Idolatrous ceremonies eſpecially theſe two with this ring I thee wed, and with my body I the worſhip although I love my wife well yet I would be loath to make a God of her, but out alas this our glorious and triumphant returne was much ecclipſed the other day by thoſe Iriſh Rebels that had 2000 for our one, and thouh they did not goe and ride forth with roſemary in their hats, yet by reaſon of their forwardnes of the ſpring, thouſands uſhered them in with palmes in their hands this I ſay beloved a great damp to our glory that we ſhould be brought in like men, and ſuch number their Rebels.

Now a word or two of one or two obſerv:

1 ob. The loſſe dearly beloved of our eares is a Infillable ſymptomy of a true child of God, and I ſhould not be ſorry, yea I could heartily wiſh that every ſheep of this fold had thi eare marke, and then the wicked mouths were ſtop'd to call vs prick-eares.

2. Object. This is the ſhorteſt and ſweeteſt Sermon that ever I made, but the time was over-ſhot before I began, and Mr. Gaudy-dinner in a great forwardneſſe that I cannot proceed to application, reaſons and motives to ſtirre you up not to be backward to looſe your • aſe for the holy Cauſe, but if you can reliſh this, I will proceed with the reſt, and for this time, to wind up all in two lines, Thus, thus you ſee, for all the wicked feares, Man may, and not heare, that hath, and hath not eares.