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with gain; give twenty-pence, and thou shalt have fortypence. It shall come again, thou shalt not lose it, or else God is not God. What needs it to use such deceitfulness and falsehood to get riches? Take a lawful way to get them, that is, scatter this abroad which thou hast, and then thou shalt have it again, with great gains; "four times," saith Scripture. Now God's word saith, that I shall have again that which I laid out, with usury, with gain. Is it true what God saith? Yes. Then let me not think, that giving unto the poor diminishes my stock, when God saith the contrary; namely, that it shall increase; or else we make God a liar. For if I believe not his sayings, then by my infidelity I make him a liar, as much as is in me.

Therefore learn here to commit usury; and especially you rich men, you must learn this lesson well, for of you it is written: "Whosoever hath much, must make account for much:" and you have much, not to do with it what you lust, but you must spend it as God appoints you in his word to do: for no rich man can say before God, "This is my own." No, he is but an officer over it, an almoner, God's treasurer. Our Saviour saith, "Whosoever shall leave his field, shall receive it again a hundred fold." As, if I should be examined now by the papists, if they should ask me, believe you in the mass? I say, No; according unto God's word, and my conscience, it is naught, it is but deceitfulness, it is the devil's doctrine. Then I must go to prison, I leave all things behind me, wife and children, goods and land, and all my friends: I leave them for Christ's sake, in his quarrel.* What saith our Saviour unto it? "I shall have a hundred times so much." Now though this is spoken in such wise, yet it may be understood of alms-giving too. For that man or woman who can find in their hearts for God's sake to leave ten shillings or ten pounds, they shall have a hundred fold again in this life, and in the world to come life everlasting. If this will not move our hearts, then they are more than stony and flinty; then our damnation is just and well deserved.

For to give alms, it is like as when a man comes unto me, and desires an empty purse of me. I lend him the purse, he comes by and by and brings it full of money, and

* This was actually done by many in a very few years afterwards.

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gives it to me: so that I now have my purse again, and the money too. So it is to give alms, we lend an empty purse and take a full purse for it. Therefore let us persuade ourselves in our hearts, that to give for God's sake, is no loss unto us, but great gain. And truly the poor man does more for the rich man in receiving things of him, than the rich does for the poor in giving them. For the rich gives only worldly goods, but the poor gives him by the promise of God all felicity.

"Daily." Here we learn to cast away all carefulness,* and to come to the storehouse of God, where we shall have all things competent both for our souls and bodies. Further, in this petition we desire that God will feed not only our bodies but also our souls: and so we pray for the office of preaching. For as the body must be fed daily with meat, so the soul requires her meat, which is the word of God. Therefore we here pray for all the clergy, that they may do their duties, and feed us with the word of God according to their calling. Now I have troubled you long, therefore I will make an end: I desire you will remember to resort to this storehouse. Whatsoever you have need of, come hither, here are all things necessary for your soul and body, only desire them. But you have heard how you must be apparelled; you must labour and do your duties, and then come, and you shall find all things necessary for you: and especially now at this time let us resort unto God, for it is a great drought, as we think, and we have need of rain. Let us therefore resort unto our loving Father, who promises, that when we call upon him with a faithful heart, he will hear us. Let us therefore desire him to rule the matter so, that we may have bodily sustenance. We have the example of Elias, whose prayer God heard: therefore let us pray this prayer, which our Saviour and Redeemer Jesus Christ himself taught us, saying, "Our Father which art in heaven," &c. Amen.

* Anxiety, apprehension.

THE

SIXTH SERMON

UPON

THE LORD'S PRAYER.

MATTHEW vi.

And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us.

THIS is a very good prayer, if it is said in faith with the whole heart. None ever said it with the heart, but he had forgiveness, and his trespasses and all his sins were pardoned and taken from him. As touching the former petitions, I told you that many things were contained in them; which you may perceive partly by that I have said, and partly by gatherings and conjectures. Truly there is a great doctrine* in it, yet we think it but a light matter to understand the Lord's prayer, but it is a great thing. Therefore I would have you mark it well; but especially keep in your remembrance how our Saviour teaches us to know the liberality of God, how God has determined to help us; insomuch that we shall lack nothing, if we come to his treasure-house, where are locked up all things necessary for our

souls and bodies.

Further, consider by the same petition that we are but beggars altogether. For the best of us have need to say daily, "Our Father, give us this day our daily bread." I would the proud and lofty fellows would consider this, namely, that they are but beggars, as St. Paul saith, “What have ye, that you have not gotten with begging?"

Yet above all things, I would have you to consider this word "our;" for in that word are contained great mysteries and much learning. All those that pray this prayer, that is to say, all Christian people, help me to get my living at God's hand; for when they say "our," they include me in their prayers.

*Much instruction.

Again, consider the remedy against carefulness,* which is, to trust in God, to hang upon him, to come to his treasure-house, and then to labour, and to do the works of our vocation: then undoubtedly God will provide for us, we shall not lack. Therefore learn to trust upon the Lord, and leave this wicked carefulness, whereof our Saviour admonishes us.

Especially I would have you to consider what a wicked opinion this is, to fancy that giving to the poor is a diminishing of our goods. I told you of late of the proprieties of things, how things are ours, and how they are not ours; all those things which we have, either by labour or by inheritance, or else by gifts, or else by buying, all those things which we have by such titles are our own; but yet not so that we may spend them according to our own pleasure. They are ours upon the condition that we shall spend them to the honour of God, and the relieving of our neighbours. And here I spake of restitution; how we ought to make amends unto that man whom we have deceived, or taken goods wrongfully from him. There are some men who think there is no other theft but taking purses, and killing men by the way, or stealing other men's goods: those men are much deceived; for there 66 are a great num

ber of thieves."

What was this but a theft, when Isaiah saith, " Thy princes are infidels, and are companions with thieves." This was a theft, but it was not a common theft: it was a lordly theft: they could tell how to weary men, and so to take bribes of them. Such a one was Zaccheus; he robbed not men by the highway, but he was an oppressor, and forced men to pay more than they ought to pay; which his so doing was a theft, as much as if he had robbed men by the highway. There are many who follow Zaccheus in his wickedness, but there are few, or none at all, who will follow him in his goodness. "If I have deceived any man, I will pay it again fourfold." I would wish that all bribers and false tollers† would follow his example. But I tell you, without restitution there is no salvation: this is a certain sentence, allowed and approved, first, by the Holy Scripture; secondly, by all the writers that ever wrote upon Scripture; yea, the very school doctors, as bad as they were, yet they never contradicted that, but said "We ought to make resti.

* Anxiety. LATIMER,

+ Tax gatherers, or takers generally.

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tution of a man's good name, and of his goods taken from him wrongfully:" that is to say, when we have slandered any body, we ought to make them amends. Also, when we have taken any man's goods wrongfully, we ought to make him amends; else we shall never be saved, for God abhorreth me, and all things that I do are abominable before him.

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Forgive!" Who is there in this world that hath not need to say, "Lord, forgive me?" No man living, nor ever was, or shall be, our Saviour only excepted: he was an undefiled Lamb." I remember a verse which I learned almost forty years ago, which is this: Sæpe precor mortem, mortemque deprecor idem, in English, "I pray many times for death to come; and again I pray, that he shall not come." This verse puts a difference in precor and deprecor; precor is, when I would fain have a thing; deprecor is, when I would avoid it. Like as Elias the prophet when Jezebel had killed the prophets of the Lord, Elias being hidden in the mount, desired of God to die; and this is precor. Now deprecor is the contrary, when I would avoid the thing, then I use deprecor. Now in the Lord's prayer till this petition, we have been in precor, that is to say, we have desired things at God's hand. Now comes deprecor, I desire him now to remove those things which may do me harm: as sin, which doth harm: therefore I would have him take away my trespasses. Now who is there in the world, or ever has been, who has not need to say this deprecor, to desire God to take from him his sins; to "forgive him his trespasses." Truly, no saints in heaven, be they as holy as they may, yet they have had need of this deprecor; they have had need to say, "Lord, forgive us our trespasses." Now you ask wherein standeth our righteousness? Answer, in God's forgiving unto us our unrighteousness. Wherein standeth our goodness? In God's taking away our wickedness; so that our goodness standeth in His goodness."

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In the other petition we desire all things necessary for our bodily life, as long as we are here in this world; " For every man hath a certain time appointed him of God, and God hideth that same time from us." For some die in young age, some in old age, according as it pleases him. He has not manifested to us the time, because he would have us ready at all times: else if I knew the time, I should presume upon it, and so should be worse. But he would have us ready at all times, and therefore he hides

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