OH ▪ my soule ! when shall I begin to know what sinne is ? Beleeue me , could I be perswaded to know sinne to be that which my blessed God by Scripture cleares sinne to be , neuer Pilot was more carefull to haue his ship kept from a rocke or sand , neuer wayfaring man was more warie to haue himselfe preserued from the hands of robbers ▪ then thou , ô my soule , wouldst be to haue thy selfe kept from sin . Would subiects , being Dukes , Marquisses , Earles , and so ●orth , refuse to lay aside that which they were resolued by the Kings patent vnder his great seale , would depriue them of his loue , countenance , companie , and maintenance ? Now sinne , saith my blessed God , speaking to me by Scripture , is that onely foule thing , vnto the which that cleane God of heauen cannot draw neare , is that onely foule thing which cannot possibly draw neare him , which cannot possibly abide where he is , which cannot possibly enter where he is . Shalt thou neuer begin grauely to consider with thy selfe , ô my soule , what things blessed Iesus , clothing himselfe with the nature of man , was heartily content to take vpon him , and what that was which he would no wayes vpon any condition meddle with ? A soule , with all the powers of it , like vnto thee , ô my soule , Iesus will take on , a bodie in all the members of it like vnto this my bodie , he will not refuse to put on . Yea , am I subiect vnto anie infirmitie vnto the which he did not willingly subiect himselfe ? Yea , what shall I say , did he not contentedly vndergo pinching pouertie in his birth , in the whole course of his life , and in his death ? Did he refuse to be banished and exiled from his natiue countrey , while he was yet in his swadling cloathes ? Did he not endure hatred and fearefull contempt , often weeping , but neuer laughing , for any thing we can reade ? Yea , did he refuse to be betraied by one who did eat in the dish with him , to be deliuered to a strange Iudge by those of his owne nation , whom he came to saue , to be accused by them , he many a day trauelled to haue wonne to God , to the end that through faith in him they might haue bene excused before his barre ? And finally did he refuse to haue his righteous soule propined with the bitterest cup of Gods wrath , and his sacred bodie to be scourged , crowned with thornes , pierced with nailes , yea with the speare , in the end yeelding vp his holy blessed soule vpon the very cursed tree , and that betwixt two malefactors ? And yet when all this is done and suffered by him , ô my soule , will he be a sinner as I , alas , am a sinner ? No , no , a sinner as I am , he will not be . He will be content to be conceiued in the bosome of a woman , to be borne of a woman , to liue a man among men , to dye as a man in the sight of men , to the end that he may saue sinfull man ; but he will no wayes be conceiued in sinne , be borne in sinne , liue in sinne , or dye a sinner , Heb. 7. 26. but separate from sinners . And therefore he is conceiued without sinne of the holy Ghost , borne without sinne of the virgin Marie , liued so without sinne , that none of his enemies could accuse him of sinne ; yea he dyeth so for sinners that he who condemned him , behooued to absolue him , Ioh. 18. 38. saying , I know no fault in him , I am innocent of the bloud of this iust man . Must not sinne then , ô my soule , be a vile foule thing , yea be that onely foule thing which that cleane God of heauen abhorreth , and which should be abhorred by all those who would proue themselues to belong to God ; truly seeing holy , wise , humble , Iesus would no wayes meddle with it , as with that which is not only worse then any thing , but the onely euill ? O when shall Kings , Princes , great men , meane men , yea beggers , thinke sin to be worse then pouertie , then banishment , then hatred , then contempt , then scourging ; yea then crucifying , and that in leud companie ? Could this onely euill thing sinne be seene by men , as it was seene by sweet Iesus , sinners would be rarer , who now be so fearefully frequent . Beside this , ô my soule , sinne is that which cannot vpon any condition abide where the God of heauen abides . Tell me , tell me , must not those Angels who sometimes possessed the heauens , Gods dwelling place , be cast out of them , so soone as this onely euill thing sinne lights vpon them ? Must not Adam possessing Paradise , defiling himselfe with sinne , be put out of doores presently with his sinne ? Neither shall euer sinne , ô my soule , be able to enter where God is ; for that Ierusalem which is aboue , Reuel. 20. 27. can admit no vncleane thing . As sin is a foule thing , ô my soule ! so sinne is a defiling thing . But what doth it defile ? The soule of the sinner , the bodie of the sinner , his hall , his chamber , his boord , his bed , his meate , his drinke , his clothes ; yea the very stones and timber of his house , and so all which belongeth to him . Hearest thou not the Spirit saying vnto thee , ô my soule , Vnto the pure are all things pure , Tit. 1. 15. but vnto them that are defiled and vnbeleeuing is nothing pure , but euen their minds and consciences are defiled . Hearest thou not the Spirit saying to thee againe , Haba. 2. 9. 10. 11. 12. He that coueteth an euill couetousness to his house , that he may set his nest on high , to escape from the power of euill , thou hast consulted shame to thine owne house by destroying many people , and hast sinned against thy owne soule , for the stone shall crie out of the wall , & the beame out of the timber shall answer it . Finally , sin is a fearefully and monstrously defiling thing , for it defileth not onely sinfull man with all that which belongeth vnto him , but it defileth euen the very cleane things of God , when they are handled by man being defiled : first thereby making those cleane things of God not onely to be foule , but to be abhomination before his Maiestie , who otherwise hauing commanded them doth take speciall delight in them . What cleane thing is more cleane then prayer is in it selfe , and yet hearest thou not Salomon saying to thee , Pro. 28. 9. ô my soule , He that turneth away his eare from hearing the Law , euen his prayer shall be abhominable . Yea , hearest thou not Isaiah bringing in the Almighty God speaking thus in the eares of the Princes of Iudah , and people of Ierusalem , What haue I to do with the multitude of your sacrifices , Isai. 1. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. saith the Lord ? I am full of the burnt offerings of rams , and of the fat of fed beasts , and I desire not the bloud of bullocks nor of lambes , nor of goates . When ye come to appeare before me , who requires this at your hands , to tread in my courts ? Bring no moe oblations in vaine : incense is an abhomination vnto me , I cannot suffer your new Moones , nor Sabbaths , nor solemne dayes ( it is iniquitie ) nor solemne assembles . My soule hateth your new moones , and appointed feasts , they are a burthen vnto me , I am wearie to beare them : and when ye shall stretch out your hands I will hide my eyes from you , and though ye make many prayers , I will not heare , because your hands are full of bloud . What if this could be seene and considered by men , ô my soule , ô with what an hatred would sinne be hated , ô with what a care would sinne be eschued ! While I am without the house of God , sinne defileth me with all belongs to me , and when I enter within the house of God , it maketh me , alas , euen there to defile the very cleane things of God. Thy God , ô my soule , may abide to looke vpon the colour of any thing , may suffer the smell and fauour of any thing , but the colour and smell of sinne he may no wayes abide . And ô would to God that man could learne in this point to resemble his holy maker . The basest begger cannot abide the sight and smell of a priuie , for when he drawes neare vnto it , he withdrawes his face from it , and closeth vp his nosthrils : and yet , alas , euen the brauest courteour can abide the sight and smell of idolatrie , blasphemie , oppression , murther , adulterie , drunkennesse , &c. The men of this world confesse , ô my soule , that such and such things haue their owne colour , their owne smell , but when shall they learne out of that blessed and onely worthie booke of God ( alas in this dead age drowned in Atheisme , scoffingly and disdainefully cast behind backs with this prophane speech , It is but the Bible ) to know , and knowing to perceiue , that sinne and righteousnesse want not their owne colour , want not their owne smell ? Those who haue read and considered that heauenly sweetest booke of the Canticles , must know that pietie and righteousnesse be white and fauourie , and that sinne and iniquitie be blacke and loathsome , before him who commands the one and condemnes the other . Out of this sense Bernard could say , being carefull to informe vs , heartily willing to reforme vs : Bern. in Cant. Habent & mores colores suos , habent & odores , vitia sunt nigra , virtus est candida . Euen manners haue their owne colours , and haue also their owne smell , for vices be fouly blacke , and vertue shining white . This moued old Isaacke , speaking of his blessed sonne , enriched with grace and clothed with righteousnesse , thus to speake : Gen. 27. 27. Behold the smell of my sonne is as the smell of a field which the Lord hath blessed . This moued our God , as hath bene alledged , looking vpon the foule praiers of the foule Iewes , thus to reiect them both . When you shall stretch out your hands , Isai. 1. 15. I will hide mine eyes from you , and though ye make many prayers , I will not heare , for your hands are full of bloud . Could these things be duly weighed , ô my soule , ô how reuerently & greedily wouldest thou hearken vnto , & ô how carefully wouldest thou obey that wholsome exhortation giuen louingly by the God vnto the Iewes , polluted with sinne , and by sinne polluting euen his whitest things ? Wash you , make you cleane , Isa. 1. 16. 17. take away the euill of your workes from before mine eyes : ceasse to do euill , learne to do well . But what must thou do , ô my soule , to the end that this so profitable a counsell may be followed by thee ? The Spirit clearing this point to me , saith : Let vs change our selues from all filthinesse of the flesh and spirit , and grow vp to full holinesse in the feare of God. Iam. 4. 8. And againe , Change your hands ye sinners : purge your hearts ye wauering minded . Bernard considering this , can thus resolue me : Duo nobis purganda sunt , intellectus & affectus : Intellectus vt nouerit , affectus vt velit . We haue two things which we must change , our vnderstanding and our affection : our vnderstanding to the end that it may know , our affection that it may learne to will well . Knowest thou , ô my soule , what maketh men to commit sinne with pleasure , and what is that which moues them first to neglect , and then to despise holinesse ? Surely nothing beside the want of true heauenly light in their mindes , and the want of true loue and hatred in their hearts : for if they could see sinne to be sinne as it is , and perceiue holinesse to be holinesse as it is : would they not , seeing sinne thus , hate sinne , would they not perceiuing holinesse thus , loue holinesse ? And if their heart could truly hate sinne , would their hand attempt to commit sinne ? If their hearts could truly loue holinesse , would their hands be stayed from the exercising of holinesse ? The sense hereof moued Bernard to say : Bern. ser. 58. Cant. Non parum profecit anima tua cuius immutata voluntas , cuius illuminata ratio est , vt bonum & velit & nouerit . In altero vitam , in altero visum recepit . Nam & malum volendo mortua erat , & bonum ignorando coeca . Thy soule hath not profited a little , whose will is changed , whose reason is enlightened , so that it both knoweth and willeth that which is good . By the one it hath receiued life , and by the other sight . For by willing that which is euill , it was dead , and by being ignorant of that which is good , it was blind . Could this be considered , ô my soule , ô then that wholesome counsell louingly giuen to thee by that meeke Lambe , who came to saue thee , would heartily be embraced by thee : Reuel. 3. 18 I counsell thee to annoint thine eyes with eye-salue , that thou mayest see . Yea could this be well regarded by thee , thou wouldest alwayes crie with Dauid : Psal. 119. 18. 34. Open my eyes that I may see the wonders of thy Law , giue me vnderstanding and I shall keepe thy Law , yea I shall keepe it with my whole heart . Psal. 51. 10. Create in me a cleane heart ô God , and renew a right spirit within me .