Husbandry Spiritualized
HUSBANDRY
SPIRITUALIZED :
Or, The Heavenly Use of Earthly THINGS.
Consisting of many pleasant observations, pertinent applications, and serious reflections; and each chapter concluded with a divine, and suitable poem.
Directing husbandmen to the most excellent improvements of their common employments.
Whereunto are added,byway of Appendix, several choice occasional meditations, upon birds, beasts, trees, flowers, rivers, and several other objects ; fitted for the help of such as desire to walk with God in all their folitudes, and recesses from the world.
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THE EPISTLE DEDICATORY.
To the Worshipful ROBERT SAVERY, and WILLIAM SAVERY, of Slade Efquires.
Honoured Friends, Thathbeenlong since observed,that the world,below, is I a glass to discover the world above; Seculum eftfpeculum : and although I am not of their opinion,that say,the Heathens may spell Christ out of the fun, moon, and stars; yet this I know, that the irrational and inanimate, as well as rational creatures, have a language ; andtho' not by articulate speech, yet, in a metaphorical sense,they preach untomanthe wisdom, power, and goodness of God, Rom. i. 20. "There is (faith
" the Pfalmist, Pfalmxix. 3.) no speech,nor language, where " their voice is not heard."
Or (as Junius renders it) there is no speech,nor words,yetwithoutthese, their voice is understood, and their line (i. e. faith Diodate) their writing in gross, andplaindraughts, is gone out through all the earth.
As man is compounded ofa fleshly and spiritual substance, so God hath endowed the creatures with a spiritual, as well as fleshlyusefulness; they have not only a natural use in alimenVOL.VI.
The Epistle Dedicatory. tal,and physical respects, but also a spiritual use, as they bear the figures and fimilitudes ofmanyfublime and heavenly mysteries.
Believe me (faith contemplative Bernard) thou shalt findmorein the woods,than in a corner; stones and trees will teach thee what thou shalt not hear from learned doctors .
By a skilful and industrious improvement of the creatures (faith Mr. Baxter excellently)we might have a fuller taste of Christ and heaven, in every bit of bread that we eat, and in every draught of bear that we drink, than most men have in the use of the sacrament.
And as the creatures teach divine and excellent things, fo they teach them in a perfpicuous andtakingmanner : Duo ill a nos max i me movent,fimilitudo et exemplum, faith the orator *.
These two things, fimilitude and example, do especially move us. Notions are more easily conveyed to the understanding, by being first cloathed in some apt fimilitude, and so represented to the sense. And therefore Jesus Christ, the great Prophet, delighted much in teaching by parables ; and the prophets were much in this way also, Hos. xii. 10. " I have usedsimilitudes
" by the ministry of the prophets."
Those that can retain little ofa sermon,yet ordinarily retain anapt fimilitude.
I confess it is an humbling consideration, That man,who at first was led by the knowledge of God, to the knowledge of the creature, must now by the creatures learn to know God.
That the creatures, (as one faith) like Balaam's ass, should teach their master.
But though this be the unhappiness of poor man in his collapsed state, yet it is now his wisdom to improve such helps; and whilst others, by the abuse of the creatures, are furthering their perdition, to be, by the spiritual improvement of them,promoting our own salvation.
It is an excellent art to discourse with birds, beasts, and fishes, about sublime and spiritual subjects, and make them answer to your questions ; and this maybe done, Jobxii. 7, 8. " Ask
" now the beasts, and they shall teach thee, and the fowls of the " air, and they shall tell thee ; or speak to the earth, and it shall
" teach thee, and the fishes of the sea shall declare unto thee."
That is (faith neat and accurate + Caryl) the creatures teach us when we think of them : ' They teach us, though not formally, yet virtually ; they answer and resolve the question put to them, though not explicitely to the ear, yet convincingly to the conscience. So then, we ask the creatures,
•when we diligently confider them, when we search out the rerfections and virtues that God hath put into, or stampe
، * Cicero, † Caryl in loc.
The Epistle Dedicatory
upon them. To set our mind thus upon the creature, is to *difcoursewith the creature; the questions which man asks of a beast, are only his own meditations. Again, the creatures teach us ; when we in meditation, make our collect i
'ons, and draw down a demonstration of the power, wisdom, ' and goodness of God in making them,or the fraility of man
' in needing them such conclusions and inferences are the 'teachings of the creatures.'
Common objects (faith + another) may be improved two ways ; viz. In anargumentative, and in arepresentativeway; by reasoning from them, and by viewing the resemblance that isbetwixtthem and spiritual matters.
First, In meditation argue thus, as in the present case and fimilitude of the apostle.
Ifanhusbandman upon the ordinary principles of reason can wait for the harvest, shall not I wait for the coming of the Lord? Thedayofrefreshing ; the corn is precious to him,and so is the coming ofChristtome. Shalihe be fo patient, and endure so much for a little corn ? And not I for the kingdom of heaven ? He is willing tostaytillallcauses have had their operations, till he hath received the former and the latter rain; and shall not I, tilltheDivine decrees be accomplished?
Secondly, In meditation, make the resemblance, anddifcoursethus within yourselves : This is my feed-time, heaven is my harvest ; here I must labour and toil, and there rest.
I fee thehusbandman's life is a great toil : no excellent thing canbeobtainedwithout labour, and an obstinate patience.
I see the feed must be hidden in the furrows, rotten and corrupted, e'er it can spring forthwith any increase. Our hopes. are hidden, light is fownfor the righteous ; all our comforts are buried under the clods, and after all this there inust be long waiting, we cannot sow and reap in a day ; effects cannot follow,till all necessary causes have first wrought.
It isnotinthepower ofhusbandmento ripen fruits at pleasure, our times are in the hands of God, therefore it is good to wait; a long-suffering patience will reap the desired fruit.
Thus you have some hints of this heavenly art of improving the creatures.
The motives inducing me to this undertaking, were the Lord's owning with some success, my labours of a like nature, together with Navigation Spit he desire and inclination (stirred up in ritualized.
A2 Dr. Man ton.
The Epistle Dedicatory. me, I hope, by the Spirit of the Lord, to devote my vacant hours to his service in this kind.) I considered, that if the Pharisees in a blind zeal to a faction, could compass sea and landtoproselyte men to their party, thoughtherebythey made them sevenfoldmore the childrenofthedevilthanbefore; how much more was I obliged,by true love to God, andzeal to the everlaftinghappiness offouls,to usemyuttermostendeavours, bothwithfeamen and husbandmen, towinthem to Christ, and thereby make them more than seventy-sevenfold happier than before? Not to mention other encouragements to this work, which I received from the earnest desires of some reverend and worthy brethren inviting thereunto; all which I hope the eventwillmanifest to be a callfromGod to this work.
I confess I met with somediscouragementinmyfirst attempt, from myunacquaintedness with rural affairs; and because I was to travel in a path (to me) untrodden; but having once engaged in it, those discouragements were soon overcome: and being now brought towhatyouhere see, I offer to your hands these first-fruits of my spare hours.
Iprefumeyou will account itnodifparagement, that Idedicateabookof husbandry togentlemenofyourquality.
This is spiritual husbandry, which here is taught you , and yet I tell you, that great persons have accounted that civil employment(which is much inferior to this) no disparagement to them. "The king himself is served by the field," Eccles. v. 9. Or, as Montanus renders theHebrew text, Rexagrofit fervus; 'The king himself is a servant to the field. And of king Uzziah it is written, 2 Chron. xxvi. 10. "That he
" lovedhusbandry," AndAmosvii.1.we read of the King's mowings.
Yea, Pliny hath observed, that corn was neverfo plentiful at Rome, as when the same mentilled the land that ruledthecommonwealth.
Quafigauderet terra laureatovomere, fcilicet et aratore triumphal i ; as thoughtheearth itself rejoiced in the laurelledplow-share, and the triumphantplowman.
What pleasure you will find in reading it, I know not; but to me ithathbeena pleasant path, from first to last ; who yethavebeenat far greaterexpence of time and pains in compiling it, than youcanbe in reading it.
The husbandman's work, you know, is no easy work, and the spiritualizing of it hath greater difficulties attending it; butyetthepleasurehath abundantlyrecompensed the pains. I have foundErasmus his observationexperimentallytrue ; Qui litter is addictifumus, animi laffitudinem a studiis gravioribus contractum ; ab iifdem tudiis,fed amoenioribus recreamus : Those that are addicted to
The Epistle Dedicatory.
study,(faith he)whentheyhave wearied their spirits with study, can recreate them again with study, by making a diversion from that which is severe and knotty,to some more facile and pleasant subject.
But to hear that God hath used and honoured these papers to the good of any foul,will yield me the highest content and satisfaction imaginable.
May you but learn that lesson, which is the general scope and design of this book, viz. How to walk with God from day today, and make the several objects you behold,Scalae etalae, wings and ladders to mount your souls nearer to him, who is the center of all blessed spirits. How much will it comfort me, and confirm my hope, that it was the call of God indeed, which put me upon these endeavours !
O Sirs ! What an excellent thing would it be for you, to make such holy improvements of all these earthly objects which daily occur to your senses, and cause them to proclaim and preach to you divine and heavenly mysteries ; whilst others make them groan,byabusingthem to fin, and subjecting them totheirlufts. Am an maybe cast into such a condition, wherein he cannot enjoy the blessing and benefit of apious and powerful ministry ; but you cannot (ordinarily) fall into such a condition, wherein anything (excepting a bad heart) can deprive you of the benefits and comforts of those excellent sermons, and divinity lectures, which the creatures here offer to preach and read to you.
Content not yourselves, I beseech you, with that natural sweetness the creatures afford; for thereof the beasts are capable, as much, if not more, than you ; but use them to those spiritual ends you are here directed, and they will yield you a sweetness far transcendingthat naturalsweetnessyou ever relished in them ; and indeed, you never use the creatures as their Lord's, tillyoucome to see your Lord, in and by them.
I confess the discoveries of God in the word are far more excellent, clear, and powerful ; " He hath magnified his word above all his
" name." And therein are the unsearchable riches of Christ, or rich discoveries of that grace that hath no footsteps in nature, as the apostle's expression signifies, Ephef. iii. 8.
And if that which might be known ofGodbythe creatures, leave men without excuse ; as it is manifest,Rom. i. 20. How inexcusable then will those be,who have received not only the teachings of the creature, but also the grace of the gospel in vain! "How shall we escape,if we neglect so great salvation ?"
The Epistle Dedicatory.
They that are careless in the day of grace, shall be speechless in the day of judgment .
I am sensible of many defects in these papers (as well as in myself;) they have doubtless a taste of the distractions of the timeswhereinthey were written; nor was I willing to keep them so long under-hand, as theaccurateness and exactnesswith which such a subject ought to be handled, did require. Had
I designed my own credit, I should have observed that counsel, Nonumqueprematur inannum, (i. e.) To have kept it much longer under the file, before I had exposed it to public view ; but I rather inclined to Solomon's counsel, "Whatever thy
" hand finds out to do, do it with all thy might , for there is " no wisdom, nor knowledge, nor device in the grave, whither
" thou art going," Ecclef. ix. 10, I apprehend a necessity offome such means to be used, for the instruction and conviction of country-people ; who either are not capable of understanding truth in another dialect, or at least are less affected with it.
The proposition in every chapterconfifts of an observation inhusbandry ; wherein, if I have failed in using any improper expression, your candour will cover it, and impute it to my unacquaintedness in rural affairs :
-In magnis voluiffefat est.
The reddition or application, you will find (I hope) both pertinent and close.
The reflections serious, and such (as I hope) your consciences will faithfully improve.
I have shut up every chapter with a Poem, an innocent bait to catch the reader's foul.
That of Herbert is experimentally true:
Averse may find him that a sermon flies, And turn delight into a sacrifice.
I should never have been persuaded (especially in thisscribling age, wherein wemaycomplain with the poet,
Scribimus indocti, doctique poem at a paffim,) to have set my dull fancyuponthe rack to extort a poem to entertain my reader; for I cannot say with Ovid, Spontefua carmen, &c. but that I have been informed,that many seamen, induced by the pleasure of a verse, have taken much painstolearn the poems in their compass by heart; and I hope both the children at home, and the servants in the fields, will
Jearn to exercise themselves this way also. O, how much better will it be so to do, than to stuff their memories with obscene ballads; and filthyfongs,which corrupt their minds,and dispose them to much wickedness by irritating their natural