According to the multitude of his fruit, he hath encreased the Altars: according to the goodness of his Land, they have

According to the multitude of his fruit, he has encreased the Altars: according to the goodness of his Land, they have made goodly Images.

Here you have the unthankfulness of Ephraim; you have had his barrenness, and selfishness, in the two former expressions, and now here his unthankfulness. The Devil he loves to have superstitious and idolatrous people have good lands, and good possessions, that he might be served accordingly; idolaters serve their idols according to their lands and possessions that they have. According to the multitude of his fruit, were the multitude of his altars. And certainly it is a great reason why all the Papists are so desirous to get England, and contribute so much that they might but get into England, and get possession here, for there is no place that they have, where they should have more goodly images, and more brave things than they should here in England, the fruitfulness of this land is that which makes it to be such a suit to the Antichristian party, and to the Devil, he thinks that might the Popish party get here, Oh! the brave things that I should have here; I began to have fine altars, but if they should begin to have possession of all the riches in the land, then Oh what golden monuments should I have? We began to have great charges to be laid out upon temples (as they called them) but certainly if they should prevail now, you should have them build them up to the very skies, such pinnacles and glorious things there would be, for the land is a great deal more fruitful and goodly than it was heretofore, it is improved mightily now. What brave buildings were there in our forefathers' time, witness these that we have near us, Westminster, and Pauls, and the like. I remember Latimer in one of his sermons before the King tells of his father which was a man that kept good hospitality, and kept a horse for the King, and yet the portion that he gave with his daughter was some five pounds. So I say, if that men were so poor and mean in former times, yet what brave things did superstition do, certainly if the superstitious party should have the possession of the land there would be brave things done; and therefore the Devil seeing that, strives to bring it into their power.

To make God's blessings to be the means and the increase of our wickedness, that is an abominable thing. To increase our sins according to the increase of God's blessings. How many may be charged with this, that when they were of low and mean estates then God had more service from them, than he has now they are of higher estates? The higher they are raised in their estates, the lower they are in the work of God. As it is observed of men that grow very fat, they have so much the less blood. And so the fatter men are in their estates, many times the less blood and life, and less spirits they have for God.

Certainly this is against the ingenuity of a Christian to be less for God when he has most from Him, when his own turn is served, then to turn his back from the Author of all his good, no it is against a main Christian principle so to do.

This is a main Christian principle, that the good of an estate consists in this: that it gives a large opportunity in proportion to what it is, in proportion to what it is to the service of God. This is a great Christian principle about estates; an estate either greater or lesser, affords either a lesser or greater opportunity for God's service; upon this principle does a Christian go in the enjoyment of his estate. Now to be less for God, or more for that that is evil, the better his estate is: he goes against that great Christian maxim.

Yes, and it is against your prayers for a sanctified use of your estate. Does God give you an estate? I hope you do seek that this may be sanctified: now for you to do less for God, and more for that that is evil by the increase of your estate, you do go against a sanctifying prayer.

But yet the chief point of all I take to be this: Mark here: