ind of a good man
unto sin, are not a great inward trouble and grief to his heart? To
such wretches as care not for their conscience, but like
unreasonable beasts follow their foul affections, many of these
temptations are no trouble at all, but matter of their bodily
pleasure. But unto him, cousin, that standeth in dread of God, the
tribulation of temptation is so painful that, to be rid of it or to
be sure of the victory, he would gladly give more than half his
substance, be it never so great. Now if he who careth not for God
think that this trouble is but a trifle, and that with such
tribulation prosperity is not interrupted, let him cast in his mind
if he himself come upon a fervent longing for something which he
cannot get (as a good man will not), as perchance his pleasure of
some certain good woman who will not be caught. And then let him
tell me whether the ruffle of his desire shall not so torment his
mind that all the pleasures that he can take beside shall, for lack
of that one, not please him a pin! And I dare be bold to warrant
him that the pain in resisting, and the great fear of falling, that
many a good man hath in his temptation, is an anguish and a grief
every deal as great as this.

Now I say further, cousin, that if this be true, as indeed it is,
that such trouble is tribulation, and thereby consequently an
interruption of prosperous wealth, no man meaneth precisely to pray
for another to keep him in continual prosperity without any manner
of discontinuance or change in this world. For that prayer, without
other condition added or implied, would be inordinate and very
childish. For it would be to pray either that they should never
have temptation, or else that if they had they might follow and
fulfil their affection. Who would dare, good cousin, for shame or
for sin, for himself or any other man, to make this kind of prayer?

Besides this, cousin, the church, you know, well adviseth every man
to fast, to watch, and to pray, both for taming of his fleshly
lusts and also to mourn and lament his sin before committed and to
bewail his offence done against God, as they did at the city of
Nineve, and as the prophet David did for his sin put affliction to
his flesh. And when a man so doth, cousin, is this no tribulation
to him because he doth it himself? For I know you would agree that
it would be, if another man did it against his will. Then is
tribulation, you know, tribulation still, though it be take